I was going to open about the Yankees. The fact that Gerrit Cole, Jordan Montgomery and J.A. Happ have pitched well thus far. Rookie phenom Delvi Garcia is trueing heads. Gleyber Torres is comfortable at the plate. Thankfully, so too is Clint Frazier. Lots of positives in Tampa thus far.
Of course, if there are positives with the Yankees, there are negatives. Usually those negatives outweigh the good in camp.
Luis Severino—out for the season after undergoing Tommy John surgery. Giancarlo Stanton has a calf strain which makes his starting the season with the big club in doubt. No further updates on James Paxton’s return.
Then there is Aaron Judge. His shoulder soreness has morphed into a new ailment in his right quadriceps. An MRI on the shoulder came back negative. Funny thing—Severino’s original MRI was negative.
Judge will undergo further tests next week. I am dreading the outcome of those tests. The last thing the Yankees need is to have Judge and Stanton out for extended periods, especially with CF Aaron Hicks still recovering from his Tommy John surgery.
This is the New York Yankees, not a hospital ward. At least I thought that. They are keeping the staff doctors busy as well as some renowned surgeons like Dr. David Altchek at the Hospital for Special Surgery, who worked on Severino this week.
I would like to hear less about doctors and MRI’s, tests and PRP—too close to home for me. This is not the way to begin the season.
I came across an article the other day about the Flytrap defense. Flytrap defense you say?
In this day of analytics dominating baseball, the shifts employed by teams are numbers-related, based upon algorithms which analyze the number of times the ball is hit to a certain location. Thus, a team has a reasonable chance of recording an out based upon a hitter’s past history or how a pitcher attempts to pitch him from his history. This is why there are so many shifts in baseball, which, in many instances work, but of course can fail miserably. Yet how baseball is played cannot simply be mathematically explained.
So back to the Flytrap defense. Oberlin College was a bad team from the 1970’s into the early 1990’s. Their opponents would regularly trounce Oberlin by double digit margins.
The coaches at Oberlin included assistant coaches who coached other sports—football and basketball, where switching defenses can be important as to the outcome. Thus, with nothing to lose, in 1994 Oberlin went to a radical defense leaving essentially a pitcher and catcher with sometimes a first baseman in the infield and all the other players scattered about the field.
After the opponents laughter subsided upon seeing this inventive defense, they tore it apart because Oberlin was really bad, and it left the team vulnerable for bunt hits. Oberlin abandoned this gimmick and actually became good in baseball in recent years.
We tend to give credit to Tampa Bay for establishing the overloads we see on the diamond. Instead, maybe we can tip our caps to Oberlin College, who thought out of the box 30 years before the shift was born.
As we enter this baseball season, there is a protracted fight over one of baseball’s immortals. The Phillie Phanatic. The Phillies are suing a group of defendants who claim they are the rightful creators of the Phanatic.
The company Harrison/Erickson designed costumes and puppets in the 1970’s: Miss Piggy, Fraggle Rock among the masterpieces created, along with the Phanatic. Club Vice President Bill Giles wanted an innovative mascot to replace colonial figures Phil and Phyllis. So Harrison/Erickson was hired and created the costume we know and love, for $5,900, with the Phillies having the right to use the costume on TV, in commercials and in personal appearances.
Erickson’s widow sees the ownership residing with Harrison/Erickson despite differing agreements and settlements, copyright issues and the like which have cropped up since the Phanatic’s inception in 1978. It is complex litigation full of claims, counter claims, declaratory judgment requests that are too burdensome to detail. Suffice it to say that, absent a trial or a settlement, the Phillies might have to cease the use of the mascot in June of this year.
The Phanatic stands 6’6”, with a 90 “ waist for its overweight, clumsy, big beaked and big footed 300 pounds of bright green fur, which is slightly fragrant from body odor. The Phanatic’s website says he came from the Galapagos Islands, has a best friend named Phyllis, and his mother’s name is Phoebe. He likes to eat cheesesteaks, Tastycakes, scrapple and hoagies. His favorite movie is Rocky.
Most importantly, he is one of 3 mascots in the National Baseball Hall of Fame. And an endearing, funny, in your face character which warms the heart of children and adults—even if he is the most sued mascot for his antics that sometimes fail miserably.
Let’s get this settled in some manner. The Phillie Phanatic is as iconic to Philadelphia baseball as is Mike Schmidt, the Phillies Hall of Fame third baseman.
I want to take a moment to discuss the Kobe Bryant memorial. I think that it was the most emotional and well-done tribute to a fallen sports hero that I have ever witnessed. His widow courageously eulogized her husband. Speaker after speaker gave rare insights into the man—a private and very complex individual who might well be described as a Renaissance Man. The giants of the sports world came to the Staples Center that morning. Shaquille O’Neal and Michael Jordan shed tears for him during their remarks. Rhianna and Alisha Keys offered musical tributes. Legendary UConn Women’s Head Coach Geno Auriemma and Oregon star Sabrina Ionescu, who would set a record THAT night in Palo Alto by becoming the first player in D-I history, men’s or women’s, by compiling 2000 points, 1000 assists and 1000 rebounds in a career, gave memorable speeches.
It is still sad and tragic what happened on the hillside in Calabasas that fateful morning. The litigation has started but it simply cannot replace the lives lost nor alter the feelings displayed by so many in Los Angeles and beyond.
The two New York teams are still fighting for playoff spots in the NHL as the calendar turns. The Rangers signed leader Chris Kreider to a long-term deal and he suffered a broken foot in a loss to Philadelphia. The Islanders lost to the Rangers in OT then were shutout at home by Boston. With the Rangers down a couple of players and the Isles not playing to the level of earlier in the season, the hopes of these two teams are 50-50 that they make the playoffs.
I saw a replay of an ESPN E:60 documentary on then-Washington State Head Football Coach Mike Leach. What I did not know is that he did not play college ball, was an average player in high school in Wyoming and that he graduated BYU Law but never practiced.
Instead, he chose the route that he loved—to coach. His wife understood what made Mike happy, and they endured many hardships along the way as he worked tirelessly towards becoming an innovative offensive coach in a number of stops, the latest now at Mississippi State. Brash and opinionated, Leach was recognized for his brilliance by many of his mentors and peers. That comes from the highly analytical and disciplined mind of the law school training he received. Who knew?
Now on to college basketball. Rutgers lost a heartbreaker at Penn State on Wednesday night, fighting back from a deficit of over 20 points to take a lead into the final minute in State College, falling to a three pointer. Two games left to redeem themselves. Tuesday night when I sit court side as Maryland, the top team in the Big Ten, comes to Piscataway. The regular season closes out with a trip to Purdue next weekend. Whatever happens, whether RU wins some games or loses the rest, it has been an improvement that RU fans have waited for.
Coach Steve Pikiell was richly rewarded with a $20 million extension on Friday aa a result of what his team has accomplished. This makes him the second highest paid public employee in NJ—behind Greg Schiano. And by the way—a hostile workplace lawsuit has been filed against an employee in the athletic department. RU sure knows how to hire and spend money on its athletics.
The game of the week was in women’s basketball. Hartford, the last winless team in D-I college basketball, upset 25-2 Stony Brook in the final game of the season for the Lady Hawks. There are 9 teams in the America East Conference. Eight go to the playoffs. This was Hartford’s playoff game. Good for them.
Which leads me to the my take on the NCAA field as we are 2 weeks away from Selection Sunday. There are a lot of teams fighting for spots in the field. Here’s what I see:
America East Vermont (or tournament winner)
AAC Houston, Tulsa, UConn, Wichita State and SMU fighting for 3-4 berths
A-10 Dayton is a lock; Rhode Island, Richmond, St. Bonaventure and St.Louis have shots at getting in. 2-3 spots.
ACC Florida State. Louisville, Duke and UVA all are in.
Atlantic Sun Liberty is 27-3 and 13-2 in conference play heading into this weekend; North Florida is 20-11 and 13-3. If Liberty loses in the conference tournament, will they have a good enough resume?
Big 12 Kansas is a lock, and Baylor too, even with a loss on Saturday to TCU;
Texas Tech, one of last year’s darlings, is dangling on the fence right now.
Big East Seton Hall stands tall; Creighton and Villanova should make the NCAA;s too. Providence has an outside shot to make it, along with Xavier, Butler and Marquette. I see no more than 5 from the Big East.
Big Sky Eastern Washington and Northern Colorado have had identical seasons; Montana is chasing them. Only 1 gets a bid.
Big South Radford and Winthrop are the 2 superior teams; both should get in. Only 1 makes the tournament.
Big Ten Maryland, Wisconsin, Michigan State, Illinois, Penn State and Iowa are in; Ohio State, Michigan, Rutgers and Indiana have work to do. I see 8 teams from the Big Ten, not 1 capable of winning the NCAA Championship.
Big West. UC Irvine is the class of this league’ UC Santa Barbara is a distant second. One team only here Colonial Hofstra, William & Mary or the tournament winner go on.
C-USA Pick one from North Texas, Western Kentucky, Louisiana Tech or an upset winner.
Horizon Wright State or Northern Kentucky or their tourney winner.
Ivy Yale is the frontrunner; if they lose to Harvard or Princeton, do they have a strong enough record to be a wild card?
MAC Bowling Green or Akron or an upset winner.
MEAC NC Central and NC A&T are the leaders.
MVC Norther Iowa, Loyola and Bradley are all worthy of an invite; Maybe 2 get in.
Mt. West San Diego State for sure; Possibly Nevada or Utah State. But not likely.
NEC It is St. Francis PA and Merrimack.;1 comes dancing from the NEC.
OVC Belmont, Austin Peay and Murray State. All tied at the top. Does the Committee dare take 2 from the OVC given recent successes?
Pac 12 I see 6 teams taken here; 7 are in play—Oregon, UCLA, Arizona State, Colorado, Arizona, USC and Stanford.
Patriot Colgate is the top team; will they survive the conference tournament?
SEC Kentucky, Auburn LSU and Florida should all make the dance.
Southern East Tennessee, Furman, UNCG are the top 3. Only 1 makes it.
Southland Stephen F. Austin is the class of the league and winners over Duke; Abilene Christian and Nicholls State trail; Take SFAU if they stumble—they are that good.
SWAC Prairie View leads. Somebody goes.
Summit South Dakota State, North Dakota and South Dakota are teams which could upset someone in the first round of the NCAA’s; only 1 representative from this league.
Sunbelt Arkansas-Little Rock and Texas State; just 1 is permitted in.
WCAC Gonzaga is a certainty, as is BYU; St. Mary’s is on the bubble as is Pacific. USF is a long shot.
WAC New Mexico State is 23-6 and has the only remaining unbeaten conference record; I bet the Selection Committee is dreading having to decide if the Aggies are invited should this group fall.
No picks yet. No complaints yet. That’s about two weeks away.
Unless I am focused on another Yankees injury.
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