All We are Saying, Give Them a Chance

(This column, and many others, appear on my two sites ... DigitalSortsDesk.com and DigitalSportsDesk/SportBlog.com)

By TERRY LYONS

BOSTON - April 12, 2016 — Today is game No. 7 of the brand new 2016 baseball season, jammed with 162 games for the Boston Red Sox and their American League rivals. It’s time to hit the “Panic Button.” As I’m reading it today, the boo-birds are already flocking and the sky is falling over Fenway Park.

Sox ace David Price was mowing down Orioles early in his Fenway Park debut in a home team uniform on a day deemed so special that the two greatest players in NBA and NHL history, Bill Russell and Bobby Orr (apologies the The Great One) were on site to pay tribute to the Sox. Then, the roof seats caved in as Price was responsible for five runs, all earned, as he allowed more than three earned runs in a start at Fenway for the first time in his career. 

While the ace faltered, the Red Sox offense rallied to tie the home opener at six apiece before newly acquired closer Craig Kimbrel came in to mop things up in the top of the ninth. The sequel? Hit the Panic Button II.

Kimbrel was making his first appearance at Fenway as a member of the Red Sox, of course, and allowed a three-run blast off the bat of Baltimore’s Chris Davis in the top of the ninth inning. It was the first time the million dollar arm reliever had ever surrendered a home run with multiple runners on base. The Sox lost their first hope game for only the sixth time in the last 24 seasons and only the second time in the last dozen years. Cue the boo-birds.

But, seriously.

One game does not a season make. The 3-3 Sox will face the undefeated Orioles again today and tomorrow. There’s a long way to go. However, in this “cheap shot via twitter” universe we live in, it’s so easy to take a swipe at those who suffer in the MACY*S window that is sports.

Build-up PGA phenom Jordan Spieth and prepare to crown him “the next great player, PGA Tour Player of the Year and “back-to-back” Masters champ and see what you get? An epic meltdown, yes, but a choke? No. Jordan Spieth has many a major ahead of him and he will stand in the winner’s trophy presentation spotlight more than his fair share of times. He is not a “choker” and will never be. He is a champion.

In these United States, we just love to build up our heroes, then we love to mock them as we tear them down. It is as American as political chicanery. 

Which brings me to the boo-birds.

We read the snarky twitter comments and heard the boos come raining down on Pablo Sandoval as the Red Sox masterfully produced their opening day ceremonies and introductions. Pablo’s belt buckle quickly became a Giphy sensation, right alongside of the “cryin’ Michael Jordan” memes. A week into the season and fans who consider themselves loyal and knowledgable are all too quick to bury the Panda.

I’m not sitting here, like a cheerleader or team spinster. I’m just wondering why?

Is it the contract? Is it the weight? A weight he carries around on his Mack Truck frame or is it the far heavier weight of expectations and pressure he carries everyday as he drives to the park or stops in a store?  At those times, he’s being adored and asked for autographs with smiles and a “you can do it” front.

Do fans snark and boo only when the fans, in vast obscurity with 31,159 others at the park, armed with Twitter and a gif-maker?  Or is it the more dangerous fan in a more camouflaged setting in their living rooms, kickin’ it back in their PJs on the coach, who become the slayer of Panda?

All we are saying? It’s G7 of the 2016 baseball season. Give them a chance.

A-Rod, Thanks for Nothing

NEW YORK, AUG 8, 2013  - The revolving door of the Chicago hotel rotated like the very best precision timepiece and out strode Alex Rodriguez of the New York Yankees. While teammates pivoted to their left towards the team bus, Rodriguez turned to his right to a private livery vehicle awaiting to transport the multi-million dollar baseball star to 333 West 35th Street at the corner of 35th and Shields Avenue, undoubtedly taking a short-cut from the hotel to the South Side of Chicago, the baddest part of town.

A-Rod grimaces in return to MLB action Aug. 5 (Getty Images).

Rodriguez. the centerpiece of Major League Baseball's endless attempt to rid itself of the stigma of its very own superstars cheating their way to the upper echelons of on-field statistical success, was finally sentenced to 211 games of suspension from his sport, without pay. The suspension was levied on the darkest day in Baseball's long history of very dark days. On Monday evening, August 5, 2013, the Black Sox scandal of 1919 took its place as the second most gruesome scab on a sport often referred to as the national pastime, an accurate statement as the sport is truly past its time and certainly long past its prime.

Coincidentally, Rodriguez decided to appeal the 211-game wrist slap levied upon him by Commissioner Bud Selig and the lords of baseball just as the MLB schedule-makers and New York Yankees traveling secretaries sent him to play in Chicago, the home of Al Capone, The Untouchables, The Sting and Risky Business. Rodriguez's decision to appeal was contrary to the decisions made by a dozen players who accepted 50-game suspensions for their involvement in the Biogenesis scandal and subsequent evidence uncovered to prove violations and obstruction of Major League Baseball's joint drug prevention and treatment program. The 13 suspensions announced Monday were in addition to the highly publicized 65-game suspension handed down July 22. Braun was the National League's most valuable player in 2011 while three of the MLB players suspended Monday, Nelson Cruz of the Texas Rangers, Everth Cabrera of the San Diego Padres and Jhonny Peralta of the Detroit Tigers were among the 2013 All-Stars, recently feted at the annual MLB All-Star Mid-Summer Classic.

Since that event which celebrated the very best baseball has to offer - underlined by Yoenis Cespedes' memorable performance in the Home Run Derby and veteran relief pitcher Mariano Rivera's MVP performance in the All-Star game itself - Major League Baseball went from the highest of highs to the lowest depths, arguably in the sport's history and maybe in all of sports history, as only Lance Armstrong's decades-long escapade of performance enhancing drug abuse in the Tour de France could be compared.

While the Tour de France and bicycling might have world appeal with a stranglehold in Europe, only Baseball has its place as the American Pastime, a sport woven so heavily into the American sportsman's psyche, that patrons recount story upon story of how the summer game played its role deep into family lore in nearly every household in the United States. Baseball's influence remains equally and deeply rooted in the Latin American sports world. Of the 14 players suspended in 2013, only Braun and Rodriguez were born in the United States while the 11 others hailed from either Nicaragua, Venezuela or the Dominican Republic. Rodriguez, born in the Dominican enclave of Washington Heights in New York, moved the the island with his family when he was four years old and was reared in the DR and later in Miami, Florida.

But Baseball's black eye from the steroid era seems to have no ethnic nor socio-economic boundaries. Monday's suspensions were levied on minor leaguers, journeymen, role players, utility infielders, All-Stars and superstars. Recent history and subsequent Congressional testimony by MLB All-Stars such as Mark McGuire, Sammy Sosa, Jose Canseco, Rafael Palmiero, Curt Shilling and Rodriguez, held on March 17, 2005 revealed deep-seeded troubles as it cast the spotlight of guilt and lack of credibility upon an entire generation of ballplayers, many now record holders on the all-time MLB home run hitting list. Throughout all the speculation and innuendo, Baseball attempted to coax Congress and a much smarter sports-loving public audience into the notion that the institution was addressing its issues of drug and steroid abuse in the sport. All the while, Baseball was not thoroughly prepared to investigate nor properly investigate doping programs such as BALCO and Biogenesis which were uncovered through investigative journalists, not by MLB's hierarchy seated in the commissioner's office or at the powerful player's association lobby.

What has become increasingly clear is that baseball has only itself to blame. Commissioner Bud Selig touted the league's joint anti-drug and treatment program as the best in the land, yet inexplicably allowed the tail to wag the dog as Rodriguez made mockery of the system while selfishly distracting his teammates and the New York Yankees organization that pays him some $200 million dollar, albeit reluctantly. Baseball's Commissioner could've easily proclaimed an "indefinite" suspension for Rodriguez, citing his "best interests of the game" authority, thus allowing the season to play on without the spotlights on "A-Rod" and the issue of PEDs. Instead, Baseball has botched the handling of the PED suspensions to epic proportions, dragging them out, dragging the sport through a two-week hell, and thoroughly ruining an entire season of baseball.

Why didn't baseball consolidate all of the suspensions into one announcement to suspend Braun, Rodriguez and the others all at the same time?

Why didn't baseball, badgered by the cloud of steroid and PED usage, signal a date in November 2013 for all to be reckoned with and all to be announced?

With only a baker's dozen suspended, how - on earth - is a curious public or an investigative reporter expected to believe that Selig is dealing with the issue of drug abuse in major League Baseball "once and for all?"

The "what could've been a great season of 2013" with the valiant efforts of players from the Pittsburgh Pirates, Atlanta Braves, Boston Red Sox and LA Dodgers now wasted away in Drugville, the high-water mark of Mariano Rivera's All-Star Weekend and the subsequent tributesto his career, like the standing ovation and show of support from the Red Sox Nation at a packed Fenway Park - in a game-deciding, save situation, no less - has now dictated the sorry facts of life to all involved.  The 2013 MLB season has become such a farce and such a colossal Public Relations blunder for Baseball, that it has left this reporter with nothing but an empty feeling of disdain for a sport so deeply loved, it actually hurts as the final period is written on this obituary for MLB 2013.

This column and others like it, can be found at: http://www.digitalsportsdesk.com/opinion.html

At World Series Time: We Are All Cave Men!

By TERRY LYONS (Special from DigitalSportsDesk)

After a few decades of apartment dwelling in Manhattan together with my great family, we decided to move to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and, remarkably, turn our good fortune of owning a NYC pad into a “real” home in the suburbs of Boston. All along, I had one thing in mind – to build a little “Man Cave,” complete with a fireplace, comfortable couches and lounge chairs, an all-season porch and a place to work, write and call my very own.

If you’re a baseball fan, the folks at MLB have taken that dream and multiplied it a thousand times over with their MLB Fan Cave, a place in time and space that welcomes baseball fans of all demographics,men or women, young or old, avid fan or new fan. The concept is so simple, it’s perfect.

Today’s official Major League Baseball news release reads like this:

“Major League Baseball announced today that the MLB Fan Cave will return for a third season in 2013, following a year of tremendous growth in social media activity, fan engagement and video content, as well as a highly successful concert series featuring top musical acts.” 

It’s a great idea and it couldn’t have come at a better time as the San Francisco Giants and

St. Louis Cardinals will play Game 7 of the NLCS tonight with the winner hosting Game 1

of the World Series this Wednesday, October 24 against the Detroit Tigers.

Fans can apply at MLBFanCave.com  with hopes of obtaining “Cave Dweller” status and vie

to watch all 2,430 games inside the MLB Fan Cave next year, while meeting current and

retired baseball greats, popular recording artists and entertainers. 

To read the rest of the story, please click here - READ MORE

Pastimes

Baseball at Yankee Stadium

 "And they'll walk out to the bleachers, and sit in shirt-sleeves on a perfect afternoon. They'll find they have reserved seats somewhere along one of the baselines, where they sat when they were children and cheered their heroes. And they'll watch the game, and it'll be as if they'd dipped themselves in magic waters. The memories will be so thick, they'll have to brush them away from their faces.

People will come, Ray.

The one constant through all the years, Ray, has been baseball. America has rolled by like an army of steamrollers. It's been erased like a blackboard, rebuilt, and erased again. But baseball has marked the time. This field, this game, is a part of our past, Ray. It reminds us of all that once was good, and it could be again."

-- Field of Dreams

The NFL argues the merits of how to divide some $9 billion dollars and the merits of an 18-game season.  The NBA argues percentages of basketball related income and the fact the latest system of cost certainty brought about a pretty high cost for low living. The NHL tucked the coveted Stanley Cup at North Station in Boston and it has made its way to bars, restaurants and casinos throughout the northeast after the Boston Bruins defeated the Vancouver Canucks in an exciting seven-game series. The WNBA, while in its 15th year of existence, has yet to entertain the masses. And, in the USA, MLS and women's world cup soccer don't sratch much of the itch of sports lovers.

Breakfast at Wimbledon is pretty damn good, although Roger Federer decided to take the weekend off as Spain's Raf Nadal and Serbia's Novak Djokovic create their own page in tennis history while 2004 Wimbledon champion Maria Sharapova of Russia and the Czech Republic's Petra Kvitova close-out a tournament where an American need not apply for a quarterfinal winner's share. All nice and good but the sport hasn't captured the average sportsfan since Jimmy Connors and John McEnroe battled it out in the '80s.

That leaves us with Baseball. Baseball on the 4th of July.

The crack of the bat, a hot dog and a cold beer, 90-mile an hour splitters slamming into a catcher's mitt as the umpire yells, 'Strike Three."  It doesn't get much better. The smell of freshly cut grass. the look of young children when they first see the landscaped field, young fans and old, alike, begging for autographs during the leisurely feel of batting practice.  It's so relaxing.

Yes, the winter sports have the intensity and pressures which include buzzer-beater jump shots and overtime defensive stances of pro and college basketball or the acrobatics of a hot goalkeeper stoning his opponent late into the third period of a 1-0 Stanley Cup final. There is no greater pressure in sport than the intensity faced by goaltenders in overtime of an NHL playoff game, unless you want to factor in the feelings of a gambler preparing for the feature race with five winners on a Pick 6 ticket at the Breeders' Cup. But, as the winter sports fade into the history books as spring turns to summer, Baseball becomes our pastime.

The 4th of July marks the halfway point of the major league season. Thus far, it's been a good one with surprising hot start by the Cleveland Indians to warrant a first-place ranking in the American League's Central Division, the annual battles of the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox in the AL East and tight races throughout the league, as only the National League East has its third place team more than 6.5 games out. The playoff races look promising, but we'll wait until Labor Day before we pay too much attention the the Won-Loss columns.  It's the lazy days of July and we want to relax. We toss aside the Saturday paper, thin as a dollar bill, because its headlines tell us about nasty bankrupt divorce-court Dodgers, ill-fated investors and ponzi-schemed Metropolitans and, the worst, a generation on steroids and a trial soon-to-come.  We don't want to think about that stuff when the sun is shining, the BBQ is heating up, Vin Scully is within ear-shot and the umps are ready to exclaim, 'Play Ball."

It's July, so it's Baseball and Inter-League play.  You can stand witness to the vaunted Boston Red Sox vs. Houston Astros rivalry or the Kansas City Royals at the Colorado Rockies, oh boy. Maybe inter-league is not a perfect science, of course, and it certainly beats us down with the geographic match-ups of Mets vs. Yankees, Dodgers vs. Angels, Reds vs. Indians, White Sox vs Cubs and, umm, the San Francisco Giants vs. Detroit Tigers? But regardless of the matchups, it's time to root-root-root for the home team, especially when the set-up man tosses it to the closer and the people stand to see 'three strikes and you're out.'

Out. Just like the NFL and NBA.

No Joy in Mudville

The IOC has spoken; see this...

I.O.C. Decision Draws Cheers and Complaints From Athletes
By JEFF Z. KLEIN

Female boxers were pleased, as were golfers and rugby players. But athletes in other sports with Olympic aspirations — including baseball, softball and karate — were left feeling snubbed Thursday when Olympic officials made some decisions on what games would be played at the Games.
“I’m thrilled,” said Christy Halbert, the chairwoman of USA Boxing’s women’s task force, regarding the International Olympic Committee’s executive board vote to include women’s boxing in the 2012 Summer Games in London. “This has been a long road. I’m so happy that women boxers will finally be able to participate on the world’s most prestigious stage.”
The board also recommended that rugby and golf be included in the program for the 2016 Games, rejecting baseball, karate, roller sports, softball and squash.
“I’d love to play for the rugby team — that would be great,” Tiger Woods said, drawing laughter at his news conference after completing the first round of the P.G.A. Championship in Chaska, Minn. “No. 1, I think it’s great for golf,” he added. “We’re long overdue to have it in the Olympics. Our sport is a global sport.”
The I.O.C. board’s decisions were less satisfying for those involved with sports that were left out.
“Definitely not how I wanted to wake up this morning,” said Ashley Hansen, 19, a member of the United States softball team.
“This sport will continue to grow — it’s come so far in the last 10 years,” said Hansen, who made the national team this summer for the first time. “Everybody is just heartbroken; softball deserves to be there. But we’re optimistic. International play will continue.”
Cheryl K. Murphy, 30, who has won two silver medals in karate for the United States in international competitions, said the ruling was “absolutely crazy.”
“Karate takes a lot of mental, spiritual and physical strength just to compete — it’s really the ultimate Olympic sport. Disappointment is not even the word to describe how I feel.”
Luke St. Onge, the chief executive of the National Karate-Do Federation, pointed out that his sport finished third in the voting. “Rugby and golf are money-intensive,” he said. “I’m not saying it’s wrong, but for television those two sports would be much more attractive than if we were there.”
Murphy said that younger karate athletes would have to decide whether to stick with the sport for at least another eight years if they wanted to compete in the Olympics. Cat Osterman, another United States softball player, had a similar reaction.
“The way we look at it is that it’s going to be a year-by-year decision as to whether we keep playing or not,” Osterman, 26, told Universal Sports. “We don’t know what our funding is going to be now that we are out of the Olympics.”
Harvey Schiller, who vigorously lobbied for baseball on behalf of the International Baseball Federation, was also left reflecting on an effort that came up short.
“On behalf of the millions of people who play the game at every stage, I’m personally disappointed that they won’t have a chance to participate,” he said. “Baseball is the only sport not on the Olympic program that also is the national sport of so many countries.”
Even some women’s boxers were not fully satisfied. They were upset with the I.O.C. decision to use only three weight classes while excluding seven others.
“It’s a Catch-22,” said Marlen Esparza, 20, a three-time national champion and ranked No. 1 in her 106-pound weight class, which was not included in the 2012 Olympic program. “On the one hand, I’m really happy that women boxers have gotten their foot in the door, but on the other hand, it’s really disappointing for me and for so many other boxers.”

Pat Borzi contributed reporting.

Batman ...

If this were a basketball game, the video would be everywhere and the sky would be falling. We would be hearing from every sportscaster who would tell us all that is wrong with the world. But, no. It's baseball. The national pastime. All is well. No problems. Everyone is safe and sound. No worries, mate.