We didn\’t have a strong theme contender for the Gambit today, so I\’ve opened up the floor for a sports grab bag. I suggested the topics of Buster Posey/Catchers blocking the plate (Wade A suggested this last week), and Ricky Rubio\’s long voyage overseas, but we may also wander off the reservation a bit to other subjects too. Read on for some quick takes after the break:
wadE:
Are people actually still talking about Buster Posey? I just saw that Billy Beane told his catcher, Kurt Suzuki, to get the hell out of the way (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=6613043). On one hand I see that as a ridiculous piece of advice from someone who should keep his mouth shut. On the other hand, it\’s not a bad idea. What exactly is the point of a catcher blocking the plate? How much more effective is it than placing a tag? It seems that with a little time between the injury and now most people have calmed down and we shouldn\’t see a rule change (thank god), but I also hope we don\’t see more grandstanding by idiots like Billy Beane.
R-r-r-r-ricky R-r-r-r-rubio! The Spanish Conquistador will sail into Minnesota for the 2012… or maybe 2013 season if the NBA has a lockout. It seemed like this was inevitable over the past few weeks. Why risk a new rookie salary structure with a new collective bargaining agreement? As if on cue Rubio signed at the last moment on May 31st to lock in a max rookie deal. While his play over the past two years has not inspired the Wolves faithful, most scouts say he is the real deal and could be a great player. I won\’t even begin to know the first thing about the NBA these days… if this were 1989 I\’d speak with some confidence. All I know is the the T-wolves need something to put butts in the seats and hopefully Ricky will do that for more than a week whenever the next season starts.
Alex:
I\’m torn on the Posey incident, (but not about the level of histrionics it\’s inspired, although that\’s a rant for a different time). On the one hand, a play at the plate and a collision can be one of the most exciting moments in baseball. (See this for reference – that play ended the 2003 NLDS.) On the other hand, this is no longer the 1980s, when baseball players weighed a buck-fifty, and the collisions weren\’t as violent. I think overall I\’m not inclined to want a rule change unless this kind of injury happens with more frequency, but neither would I think that a rule change is a terrible idea.
I\’m going off topic for item two. So it appears that Alex Burrows bit Patrice Bergeron during last night\’s Stanley Cup Finals game. Oh, Mr. Burrows. I know you\’re one of those \”love him if he\’s on your team\” types, but this is ridiculous. I would highly suggest that you play more to your talent (you\’re on the Canucks top line!), and do less of what I\’ll call heading down the Claude Lemieux career path. Because Darren McCarty types are out there too, Alex, and then you\’ll have to turtle. You can always tell the turtlers, and I\’d hate to see it end up there (of course, I\’d enjoy watching it happen, too). I\’m hoping this results in a one-game suspension and a wakeup call, but until Brendan Shanahan\’s reign of terror officially commences, who knows what the discipline might be on this one.
Wade A:
BUSTER POSEY INJURED! REIGNING ROOKIE OF THE YEAR BREAKS LEG ON COLLISION AT THE PLATE! GIANTS PLAYERS SAY THE HIT WAS FAIR, BUT AT WHAT COST? IS IT TIME TO CHANGE BASEBALL\’S RULES, WHICH HAVE BEEN IN PLACE FOR OVER ONE HUNDRED YEARS BECAUSE OF THIS CALAMITOUS, HORRIFIC OCCASION? POSEY\’S AGENT SAYS SO, BUT HE\’S CERTAINLY SPEAKING FROM AN UNBIASED POSITION. RIGHT?
That was the scroll at the bottom of the screen last Friday on ESPN 6. Or at least I assume it was. With at least two or three cable channels dedicated exclusively to sports news, the MLB Network, and however many ESPNs there are these days, finding enough content is an issue. Thusly, when a story like Posey\’s comes along, they beat the hell out of it and generally make it much bigger of a deal than it deserves. Does the rule about blocking home plate (which is inconsistent with the rules governing every other base) need review? Maybe. Is Posey\’s injury the reason it should be reviewed and, God forbid, changed? No. (As I joked to Alex and wadE, would we even be having this conversation if this had happened to Steve Holm or Rene Rivera?)
To quote the great philosopher Mike Tice: \”Calm down… Calm down…\”
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