Ally Oop

It can't be just me this time of year. The Sports Center Top Ten Plays are so BORING. With basketball and hockey going on and not much else, every single day is the same. 7 or 8 ally oop dunks and a couple accidental hockey shots that hit the corner of the net. Once in a while you'll see a goalie making an accidental save. But its always the same. You can substitute soccer once in a while for the accidental goal or save that is proclaimed great. But that's pretty much it.

A play that happens dozens of times a night, often when there is nothing at stake, is just not that cool anymore. I saw the play when I was watching practice at college my freshmen year. It was the first time I saw something like that live. It was cool.

But when I saw a few more times, I realized if a team with big tall players have a few who could jump, they should be able to do something like that. And that was at a small insignificant university in southwest Minnesota (hint) 35 years ago.

I see many guys in the park, right down the block from me, doing it on a 8 1/2 foot rim. Regular guys who aren't very tall. It just doesn't seem like that big a deal when so many can do it.

I'd rather watch the phenomenal passing of Ricky Rubio every time he plays a game than more dunks. Why? Because that is an uncommon ability that very few people possess. And I never see it live. And it's unbelievable as to the amount of skill that is needed. People just don't see the beauty of finesse any more.

Dunks? Bah, Humbug.

Keith Law

ESPN commentator and baseball expert Keith Law released his top 100 prospects in MLB Wednesday.

Twins outfielder, Bryon Buxton was number ONE on the list. Third baseman, Miguel Sano, who needs Tommy John surgery, is number eight.

We have some fine young stars just waiting for their opportunity to shine. Let's hope they're as good as their billing.

Wolves Over .500

NBA basketball is becoming more interesting to me again. With the Wolves winning 4 of their last 5, and Kevin Durant on a roll (OKC clubbed LeBron and the Heat last night IN Miami) I find the product much more palatable.

The right teams need to win, you see.

Still just chillin' mostly, waiting for the Super Bowl.

Concussions and the NFL

Jahved Best was a promising 1st round draft pick of the Detroit Lions in 2010.

He had great potential as a running back. His career ended early this past season. One too many concussions was the simple answer.

He's now suing the NFL and the helmet maker whose helmet he wore for damages and lifetime lingering medical expenses.

You see, his primary argument is that the NFL never should have drafted him since he had multiple concussions while playing at USC.

Though I feel sorry for Best, these types of lawsuits cannot continue. The NFL has only started looking at the long-term problems associated with multiple and/or severe concussions. They have started those studies to try to cut down on the damage done. Perhaps they have the hope of reducing concussions completely.

But you can't blame the NFL for not knowing everything yet. That isn't fair to them. I guarantee you that if Best hadn't been drafted by any NFL club back in 2010, he would have sued them for NOT drafting someone with his potential, based on clauses in the Americans With Disabilities Act, which prevents discrimination against people with medical problems or disabilities.

ALL NFL players now KNOW there are great risks involved with playing the game. Potentially severe long-term risk. They are taken out of games now against their wishes just to protect them from themselves.

But success in the NFL means great riches. No one forces them to play. It's dangerous and they know it.  Older players, long since retired, have admitted as such. But there is money to be made from lawsuits.

And everybody wants their piece of the pie.

Americans have always been good at blaming others for the consequences of their choices. People over eat, take up smoking, and play professional football because they want to. Blaming McDonalds, tobacco companies, and the NFL for long-term medical problems is wrong.

There are enough facts out there today to make everyone responsible for their own decisions and choices. It wasn't always that way. But it is today.

You live with the consequences of your choices. If someone pays you or not.

That's life.

Wolves Win On the Road

If nothing else this season, the Wolves are muddling through a .500 season picking up more road wins than they ever have before. Last night they won in Chicago for the first time in awhile.

At this point I don't know if I want to watch them more or less.  I used to watch Minnesota sports because they're "my teams".  Now I want teams that have a legitimate chance to win a championship.

I watched the Twins far less last season than I usually do. Same goes for the Vikings. I've actually watched far more T-Wolves action this season than I've watched in along time. But I'm also realistic in my expectations, and the more I watch NBA basketball, the less I like it. I see officials making (or not making) calls that influence outcomes more than players making plays. That doesn't change just because we're winning. It's just easier to watch.

And the Wolves, as fun as they are this year, are just an average team that will most likely lose Kevin Love next season.

NBA basketball, above all else, is about the best players. Without them, you simply are not going to win championships. And you need more than one. Ask LeBron.  The Wolves are CLOSE to being a great team.

Next year, they will be farther away from 'great"than this year.

Will I continue watching them because they win half the time?

I don't know. Right now, they literally are the only game in town.

Hockey doesn't count. It never did.

Pro Bowl

I have no idea what the ratings will be for this game, but I watched a few minutes at the beginning just to see what this new look of "drafted" teams would look like. I had no natural rooting interest and thought the uniforms with fluorescent accents were as bad as any uniforms I had ever seen. Knowing that players from the same regular season teams were competing against each other added less interest, not more.

I hope that it was an abject failure. Just a bad idea for a game that already served no purpose, this game should be cancelled.

Of course in a country where Sports Nation (a show where hosts guess what fans think) is now extremely popular, I have no idea what young viewers will think of the game. I just know they're idiots.

Guessing majority opinion? Popular?

Wow. Just wow.

As awful as yesterday's uniforms.

Poll

Half a million sports fans were polled by the online opinion website You Rather. The results were hysterical.

Wolves Win THREE in a Row

High scoring, even first quarter. Even second quarter. Golden State pulls away in the third.

T-Wolves rally to win by one. On the road, against a 26-18 team.

They still surprise me. Once more .500 on the season.

Lip Reading NFL

They are getting better and better at this.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=rRqKYXcL-2U&desktop_uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DrRqKYXcL-2U

Garza Signs With Brewers

As I predicted, the Twins did not sign Matt Garza. You only have so much space on a major league roster, and Garza came to the agreeable free agent game too late.  The Twins are still looking for position players, but even that search looks like it is done for the year.

The Twins announced yesterday that they would let Andrew Albers go to Korea this coming season. He will make more money there this year than in his entire career so far. The Twins weren't going to hold him back and even with unexpected injuries, you can only use so many starters. He was not in their long-term plans.

Kevin Love to START

A last second push by the T-Wolvest and their fans to make Love an All -Star starter has paid off. He will be the first Minnesota player to receive that honor since Garnett in 2007.

NFL Cheerleaders

These women aren't paid much. The Oakland Raiders Cheerleaders sign a straight $1,250 a season deal at the beginning of the year, and are paid at the end of the season.

They are suing the Raiders for more money.

From the Raider's perspective, they say they are totally up front about the deal. HUNDREDS try out to become famous and get noticed. They don't force any of them to be there and there are lots of women who will gladly replace them.

This isn't NFL level talent. There is no draft. It's a part-time fun job for those who like to dance. They are best compared to mascots, and they get to see NFL games from the sidelines. Fans would PAY for their proximity to the field.

And they aren't needed one way or the other.

The courts will probably make them millionaires.

What a country.

Tanaka Signs For 7 Years, $155 Million Dollars

I understand the system now. Everybody is allowed to negotiate with international free-agents.

The Yankees will still offer the most money.

The Yankees will get who they want as if no other team is involved.

Good deal for Tanaka, though. At $22 million plus a year, he's the richest 25 year-old ever in the world of sports, and he's never pitched an inning of major league ball.

I'm still insanely interested in seeing just how good he is going to be.

And it looks like the new big-contract deals in baseball are SEVEN years now. At least that's something I agree with.

Much has been learned from the A-Rod deals.

Andrew Albers First Victim of "Most" Rotation

Andrew Albers, a good young pitcher, has given up on being part of the Twins. He's a starter and knows he can no longer fit into the Twins plans. They are stacked at the major league level and he's behind Kyle Gibson, Alex Meyer, and Trevor May at AAA.

His chance at a major league career with the Twins is virtually nil. So he wants to sign with a higher-paying South Korean team where he will earn much more than the fourth or the fifth starter of a minor league team.

He just has to get the Twins permission to okay the deal.

Scott Diamond and Vance Worley will be the next ex-Twins as the most rotation in baseball continues to shed arms.

Too much of a good thing is not a good thing.

Big Mouth Equals Sales

Richard Sherman may have drawn a consensus of heat nationwide for his WWE-like remarks about Michael Crabtree Sunday, but that trash talking has now moved him up into the top 10 for NFL jersey sales.

He's in front of teammates Wilson and Lynch AND the only defensive player in the league to be in the top 10.

Today's youth see him as a role model.

I weep for the future.

Wolves Beat Utah Again

That's two in a row against Utah who isn't very good. Lots of scoring by the Wolves and great defense. If they could only be consistent.

Goodell Looks Like An Idiot Again

Roger Goodell says that getting rid of the point after touchdown would be a good thing. It really is automatic. Only five were missed all year out of over 1,200 attempts.

I agree with him there. In fact I've said as much several times in my blog.

So why is he an idiot?

He wants the touchdown to worth SEVEN points and if you MISS the two point conversion, it would go back down to 6.

That's a very convoluted and stupid football mind.

The TD should always be worth 6. Always. The two point conversions will take care of themselves.

IF you want more excitement, allow the team to have a CHOICE of starting positions on the conversion plays. Make it worth ONE from where the normal position is. And two from the five.

EVERY conversion try will then have major interest. And getting the two will mean something special.

Taking points OFF the board?

Stupid.

Kobe Doesn't Like Watching NBA

Forced to watch games this year because of various injuries, Kobe has come to the conclusion that the NBA game isn't much fun to watch. He thinks there's there's too much finesse and not enough shoving and pushing on defense.

I laugh.

The ONLY thing that the makes the NBA game even palatable now is that guys aren't mugging each other any more on defense. He says the current game gives less skilled players a better chance to play with the superstars.

I'll finish the thought for him. The stars can no longer get away with bullying and intimidating the refs and young guys.

I'm glad the refs are calling more flagrant fouls than they used to. There should even be MORE of that. I still play a lot of basketball. The jerks who push and clobber aren't playing basketball. Basketball IS a finesse game.

If he hates it so much, he should be playing football or hockey.

Stop intimidating people, Kobe. And learn how to play the game.

I didn't think it was possible for me to dislike Kobe Bryant any more than I already did.

I guess I was wrong.

Refs Decided Game

You know how I'm always complaining that officials determine the outcome of close playoff games? I was right again last night.

Late in the third quarter, the 49er's punter was roughed on a punt. The defenders hit his PLANT leg while attempting to block the kick. The refs, however gave the Seahawks a 5 yard running into the kicker penalty instead. They called it wrong

The penalty should have given the 49ers 15 yards an an automatic first down. Instead the Seahawks got the ball with NO penalty enforced. (The 49ers couldn't re-kick the punt because their punter was hurt. Irony huh?) THAT short drive gave the Seahawks the go ahead touchdown. A proper call would have given the 49ers the ball and good field position. JUST ONE blown ref's call changed the game to Seattle's favor.

The refs strike again. One incorrect call and Seattle's in the Super Bowl instead of the Niners.

Thanks refs.

It's rarely the players. It's nearly alway the refs that determine outcomes in close games. It wasn't the only call that went against the Niners last night, but it's the one that clearly made the difference. More replays should be allowed. The game will take longer, but at least the correct team will win. Isn't that the whole idea behind playing the game?

Something that is EASILY correctable should be corrected. That's been my stance all along, in every sport.

Problems With "The Most Rotation" in Baseball

The chief problem with so many starters signed in the organization, is that the Twins won't be able to keep them all.

Sam Deduno, Scott Diamond, and Vance Worley are out of options. If they don't make the 25 man roster this year, they're basically gone.

Let's say Sam Deduno is the fifth starter. And I think he deserves to be. That leaves both Worley and Diamond. It won't be easy putting them in the bullpen either. The Twins already have 7 men, under contract, there. MOST teams have seven pitchers in their bullpen.

The core seven - Glen Perkins, Jared Burton, Casey Fien, Brian Duensing,  Ryan Pressly, Anthony Swarzak and Caleb Thielbar — all made at least 48 appearances (Swarzak was low man in games pitched but led the majors in relief innings), and only Thielbar (46 innings) threw less than 60 innings. All were extremely effective in their roll.

We did go with an eighth bullpen man for a while last year, Josh Roenicke, and he's gone now, so the Twins could put either Diamond or Worley in the pen, but not both. The problem with that is, that to do that, the Twins would then have one less position player on the 25 man roster, which would be one less pinch-hit possibility in late innings. And there's plenty of good young guys that belong on the major league roster.

Signing all those starters will force the Twins to lose some. Not everybody can be sent to minors and be kept there for safe keeping.

AND if we want to bring a young pitcher up after a month or so more in the minors, it means we would have to leave Deduno go to. I'd hate to see that.

The MOST rotation in baseball will end up being a curse. And for all you fans asking for the Twins to sign Garza, yet. STOP. There is no room for him.

Unless Sam goes to an already over-crowded bullpen and we release both Diamond and Worley.

I sure don't want that.

Well, maybe Worley,

but that's it.

Manning

Peyton Manning looked like the best quarterback in the game yesterday, scoring on six consecutive drives, two of which started within his own 10-yard line. It was an amazing display of both accuracy and patience. Brady and the Patriots didn't know what hit them.

The better game was the Seahawks comeback versus the Niners. Russell Wilson had two long TD passes which made the difference. And Colin Kaepernick's running game is insane. A tipped ball with 20 seconds left decided the whole thing.

Two more weeks to the big game.

Not much to talk about until then.

Go Denver!

Vikings

More good news for the Vikings. Norv Turner, as expected, will be our new offensive coordinator.

Adrian Peterson, still bothered by lingering effects of a groin injury, may opt for surgery this week. More tests will be taken.

Football

I'm really looking forward to today's games. I'm rooting for the Niners and the Broncos, but I will settle for great games either way. The glitch for me is Downton Abbey and Sherlock on PBS tonight. Downton I could probably miss, but there hasn't been a new Sherlock movie for two years. I want to see it!

Maybe the games will be over in time. I will just have to wait and see. I may have to call an audible.

Goon Squads

The Calgary Flames started their fourth line (the goon squad) in their NHL game with Vancouver last night. Two seconds after the game started everybody was fighting. Eight ejections soon followed. And more fights later, including the coach outside the locker room.

The ads I've seen recently, proclaiming the greatest of the NHL, all involve blood and scars.

Fans of NHL hockey are fans of violence. The league caters to them. Those ads and last night's game are just further examples of that.

I will never waste my money and time on them.

Olympic hockey is coming up soon. I'm afraid the NHL style will affect them as well. I prefer my hockey with more scoring and less enforcing. I'm anxious to see if that's still possible.

Olympic hockey is the best in the world. Sadly, those days may be ending as well.

A Big Contract

Clayton Kershaw, ace of the Dodgers, was awarded one of the richest contracts in sports history this week, averaging over $32 million for the next seven years.

The Dodgers payroll is going to be about $250 million this year and they are still hoping to land Japanese phenom, Masahiro Tanaka.

They put the Yankees to shame.

Gopher Basketball

I noticed a few media sources in the Twin Cities are raving about the Gopher's win against Ohio State a couple nights ago. Though the Buckeyes may CURRENTLY be ranked number 11 (or nine, according to which poll you follow) in the country, they won't be when the next rankings come out. They've lost 3 straight in the last week or so.

The Gophers have a better Big Ten record than the Buckeyes. Ohio State is not that good.

The Gophers appear to be one of the better teams in the Big Ten this year, but having rankings this early in college basketball means next to nothing. I've said it before, they shouldn't even START ranking the teams until the end of January, once they've all had more conference play.

When all you have to be is one of the top 65 teams to MAKE the tournament at the end of the year, having a ranking at this point means absolutely nothing.

Imagine how much more excitement there would be if the FIRST rankings would be released in two weeks. Commentators could be speculating about a top 10 right now and fans would be wondering IF their team is good enough to be there. Kind of like an early March Madness.

College basketball kills so much of the fun. Everybody could have a top 10 pick until the real rankings come out. And ESPN and FOXsports commentators would be fighting it out for bragging rights to the best rankings. It would seem like a big deal.

Right now? Ohio State is "number 11" officially. What a joke.

Stat of the Game

The Wolves were 3 for 18 last night from 3-point range. That's 3 straight losses for the ever-depressing Wolves.

Twins Final Roster Price Will Be About $85 Million This Year

That's just a tad more than last year. So much for opening up their purse strings.

At least we'll have the most rotation in baseball.

Spring Training Starts in a Month

The Twins real rotation (based on contract size commitment)?

Ricky Nolasco
Phil Hughes
Kevin Correia
Mike Pelfrey
Another 2013 holdover (Sam Deduno, Scott Diamond, Vince Worley, Andrew Albers, Kyle Gibson)

The top two on the list are the biggest free agent contracts the Twins have ever signed.

You can see from this list that we don't have any room on the roster for most of last year's regulars. Some will be in the bullpen. Some won't be around any more. And we still have to make room for prospects like Trevor May and Alex Meyer.

We don't need to sign anyone else at this point. Garza and Santana MAY have some value and upside, but at this point more signings would just be ridiculous.

I really don't want the most rotation in baseball. (See yesterday if you're confused)

At this point I just want them to better than last year.

Replay Era in Baseball Now Here

Each manager will have up to two replays granted a game. Umpires can ask for them in late innings. New umpires will be added to the majors and all will rotate to the replay booth crew regularly. Collisions at home plate have not been banned as of yet, but it's probably just a matter of getting the wording right, and then that will be included too.

Baseball is moving into the future kicking and screaming. And we'll all wonder what took so long.

Correcting stupid calls will take much of the insanity out of baseball.

I'm looking forward to it. Gardy might even last a few more full games this season.

Better Than the BEST Starting Rotation?

The Twins are going to blow away baseball and its traditions this season. Instead of having the best starting rotation in baseball, I've become aware of a whole new strategy being implemented by Twins General Manager, Terry Ryan. It will be the MOST starting rotation in baseball.

The strategy became clear when I found out the Twins are still pursuing starting pitchers in free agency. Currently they have signed Ricky Nolasco, Kevin Correia, Samuel Deduno, Phil Hughes, Mike Pelfrey, Vance Worley, and Scott Diamond. I USED to think these guys would be fighting for the five rotation spots in spring training.

But I was wrong. This IS going to be our starting rotation.

But wait, there's more!

Alex Meyer and Trevor May, our best two prospects are going to be added to the rotation as well. And so are Matt Garza and Johann Santana once we've signed them.

And there's talk that the Twins are actively pursuing Suk-min Yoon from Korea, the best Asain free-agent this side of Mashahiro Tanaka.

Mexico's hottest free agents are about to signed as well! Misael Siverio and Odrisamer Despaigne were offered huge contracts and are about to sign.

That makes 14 starting pitchers in the rotation for the Twins this season. When best doesn't cut it, you go for most.

I like that strategy. I like it a lot!

Some bullpen and position players will need to be cut to secure a 25 man roster, but progress is progress. And I'm looking forward to the MOST starting rotation in baseball history.

No one else will even be close.

Wolves Lose At Home to Bad Team

My enthusiasm is quickly waning. The game looked close at the end but the Wolves  had a horrible second quarter that they just didn't recover from. They are now 18-20 on the season. The Kings are just 14-23.

The Heat lost their third straight last night. So at least there's that.

I'm just waiting for baseball to start.

Vikes

The Vikes have a new head coach! Mike Zimmer was well-liked in Cincinnati where he was their defensive coach. He's had a top defense there for several years now. What scares me is that the Vikings were just awful at giving up points and yards the last three years BUT all of the experts missed the primary reason WHY.

We've had such a terrible offense, that the defense was on the field more than any other team in the NFL. IF we had a better, ball-control offense, the defense would not have been on the field 60% of the time. AND many of the points we gave up were directly the fault of turnovers and horrible special teams play. NOTHING will fix the Viking's defense like a better offense. (See the last half of the season two years ago as an example.)

Cause and effect are lost on football experts. We couldn't even apply pressure to the quarterback this year because we often found ourselves behind in the score. Other teams were content to have running plays rather than long passing plays. You don't get sacks that way, because you simply don't have the opportunity,

I would have preferred an offensive genius. Hopefully Zimmer will hire one. Nothing will make HIM look like a defensive genius more than hiring someone like Norv Turner to run the offense.

Ultimately it comes down to your quarterback and NOT relying on one running back. A good coach is a good start. But you won't KNOW if he's good until you see his quarterback and offense. Even if he is a defensive specialist.

Our defense will only be as good as our offense allows.

THAT'S football.

Slow Sports Day

No real news on the Vikings, Twins, or Wolves.

Just waiting for the NFL playoffs to resume. This is my chance to catch up on TV viewing again. Last night they had a comedy episode of Person of Interest. They pulled it off in fantastic fashion. Even Shield has been good the last two weeks. They have a better idea on what makes the Marvel Universe tick. Stan Lee guest stars next week in what is described as more than just a regular cameo.

The geek in me is having fun with the show at last. I'm glad I stuck with it.

Twins Top 10

Baseball America released their Top 10 list for minor league prospects for each team yesterday. This is the Twins top 10:

Bryon Buxton, of
Miguel Sano, 3b
Alex Meyer, rhp
Kohl Stewart, rhp
J.O. Berrios, rhp
Eddie Rosario, 2b/of
Lewis Thorpe, lhp
Trevor May, rhp
Danny Santana, ss
Jorge Polanco, 2b/ss

It's a strong list.

Viking Stadium Funds Delayed?

A group of "concerned citizens" have prevented bonds for the Vikings new stadium from going on sale today. IF this group delays the bonds sales for even a couple of weeks it could delay the completion of the stadium date for a full year. The Minnesota Supreme Court is said to be ruling on the case soon.

Sano

Miguel Sano is one of the huge prospects in the Twins system. At 20 years old, he's being groomed to be the Twins' third baseman of the future. They were even thinking of giving him major league time with the club this year. BUT his elbow is starting to show signs of needing major surgery. Tommy John surgery. It's not rare for positions players to need this surgery, but it is rare that it is needed when so young.

The Twins shut him down this winter in hopes that the elbow would heal naturally, but it's still causing him trouble. It's now looking like he'll need the surgery sooner rather  than later. And it will cost him a year or more of his career.

At least he's young. It looks like we're going to have wait for another year or so for his power to be on display for us.

NFL

The best teams won this weekend. Manning was great. Carolina didn't offer much resistance, and all my favorites made it to the final four. It was a super football weekend.

NBA plus Notes

Something unusual happened at the Rockets/ Wizards game last night in D.C. There was a rain delay. Twice. That's not a normal circumstance for NBA games. The Verizon Center has a leaky roof.

A-Rod was officially suspended for all of next season. In response, he said he's suing baseball in Federal Court. A guy who says he personally gave A-Rod performance enhancing drugs will be interviewed by 60 minutes tonight. I don't think this story is over just yet.

Humor Note:

Jerry Coleman died last weekend. His lived an impressive life. He played in six World Series with the New York Yankees as a middle infielder, winning a Series MVP award in the process, and sandwiched that around serving as a Marine pilot in two wars, WWII and Korea. Then he had a long and honored career as a broadcaster, most notably decades as the radio voice of the San Diego Padres.

In this role, he earned a reputation as master of the malaprop, with such gems as:

"Rich Folkers is throwing up in the bullpen."

"And Kansas is at Chicago tonight or is it Chicago at Kansas City? Well, no matter as Kansas leads in the eighth four-to-four."

And: "There's someone warming up in the bullpen, but he's obscured by his number."

 This is said to be his classic:

"(Dave) Winfield goes back to the wall, he hits his head on the wall and it rolls off! It's rolling all the way back to second base. This is a terrible thing for the Padres."

 Yes. Yes it is.

Indy's Luck Runs Out

The Seahawks and Patriots both looked good yesterday. Andrew Luck finally and his many interceptions caused his team trouble. Last week, he was fortunate they didn't affect the outcome. Yesterday's passing will lead to all sorts of pad pun headlines today.

I'm really looking forward to today's games. I want to see how good Carolina is the playoffs. Cam Newton versus Colin Kaepernick. It should be good. Still rooting for Manning and Denver as well.

Note

Just so you won't consider taking MLB to court, I thought I'd remind you now, IF you wish to go the MLB All-Star game this summer, at TARGET FIELD, START saving for it now. Tickets will be both scarce and expensive.

This will be your only warning.

Wolves Continue Roller Coaster Season

The Wolves won easily again last night, one game after losing a close one in which Love called out bench players for looking disinterested.  Pekovic was the man last night. They are at .500 again. They have not been above that mark for quite awhile. This is Love's last year in Minnesota. It's now or never.

Hall Notes

The baseball writers got it right, at least for those they thought were still untainted. Jack Morris did get enough votes in his last go around to be selected by the veteran's committee in a couple of years. He probably will eventually make it getting in that way. Another stat? He never won a Cy Young award. Not one. Of course, he's in good company there. Blyleven never did either.

Lindsey Vonn

Though she says she'll be back for next year's World Cup, Lindsey Vonn, at 29, may have seen her last Olympic games. It's taken her 11months to recover from her last knee injury, and her latest will keep her sidelined months more. There comes a point where skiing will no longer be an option.

Love and Pekovic Forget How to Shoot

And the T-wolves gave up 7 unanswered points at the end to lose by ONE.

Worst game of the season.

Stupidity and the Legal System

A fan somewhere has got a lawyer somewhere to represent him in a case against the NFL.

The suit? Saying Superbowl seats cost too much and aren't fairly distributed so that everyone has a chance at them.

My answer?

DUH!

Of course, they are more expensive than an average fan could afford regularly. But at $600 a ticket, it's NOT prohibitive for anyone who wants to see the game ONCE a year. They should be expensive. In a free market economy, price is based on demand. The NFL could charge $10,000 a ticket and still sell-out. I commend football on keeping the prices reasonable.

IF you want to go to the game, it's the extra costs of airfare, hotel accommodations, and your restaurant and bar tab that will blow your budget. It's kind of like Twins tickets. Cheryl and I can get some every year for as little as $10 each. The problem is that with gas, parking, food (and maybe a hotel for the night) the true  cost of the game is going to be closer to $200 than $20. And we're only 2 1/2 hours away.

Everybody knows that.

Why should the Superbowl be any different? Is the game exclusive? In a way, yes. But in a good way. Season ticket holders from both teams are given first chance at most of the tickets. THAT'S as fair as it gets. YOUR team is there. You should have the chance to see them. But even the NFL can't seat 140,000 season ticket holders from two teams in one stadium. Something has to give. I think it's fair that player's family and friends should be there supporting them. They shouldn't have THEIR tickets taken away either.

Let's face it, there just aren't that many tickets that should be available for a big game like this. Sometimes life isn't "fair." But in this case, I think football is being as fair as they can be. No system, mandated by a court of law, will be more fair. Will the elite celebrities get THEIR tickets? Some will. But even most of their requests are left unfilled each year.

IF the Superbowl means that much to you, save for it, over a period of years if necessary. But don't blame the system. The system's just fine. IF there's a Super Bowl in the new Vikings stadium in a few years, Cheryl and I could go there if we choose to.

But the price of hotels, gas, and restaurants will prevent that. Gas, food, and lodgings should be cheaper for the average person.

I need a good lawyer.

Steroids And The Hall Of Fame

I feel sorry for Jack Morris. His stats weren't good enough for  players from just before his era. And they weren't good enough for a pitcher after his era. On the current ballot, on stats alone, he is maybe the sixth or seventh best pitcher listed. It all depends on how you feel about Kenny Rogers (not the singer, by the way.) And it's his 15th, and last chance, on the ballot. He simply isn't good enough to make it.

Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine, Roger Clemens, Mike Mussina, and Curt Schilling had great careers, and several career defining moments. In addition to that, their win-loss records were better. Their ERAs were better, too.

Jack had one great moment, the game seven triumph in the 1991 World Series, but his career was one of reliability not greatness. His career was longer than most, but that's not a sign of greatness either. He was merely good for a lot longer than most.

I never thought Morris was good enough for the Hall. And it sure doesn't look like he will ever make it.

One thing to also note, no starting pitcher whose career started after the 1970 season is currently in the Hall. Blyleven was a rookie that year. The other guys on the ballot started in the mid-eighties. Jack is a pitcher from a forgotten era, an era that will never have a hall of fame presence.

Other pitchers from that era include Ron Guidry and Rick Reuschel. Morris had more wins than those two, but in nearly all other stats, Guidry and Reuschel were better. And they weren't even considered for the Hall. Gidry was on the ballot, but he never gained more than 10% of the vote.

That brings me to the steroid era. The mid-eighties until today. Some writers have decided that they aren't going to vote for anyone from the steroid era because they don't know WHO did them. That's right, Ken Gumick, a sportswriter from MLB.com, won't be voting for Greg Maddux, the man whose fastball rarely approached 90 mph, the man who had the best pin-point accuracy in baseball history, because he played in the steroid era. The ONLY player that will appear on his ballot will be Jack Morris.

Jack Morris, however, played at the end of the era of heavy amphetamine use. Baseball has been forever tainted. There is no" higher ground" any more. Everyone, from this point forward, will be suspect. And every writer will have the unique responsibility of acting as judge, jury, and executioner of every eligible player. Without any facts at all, merely opinion and hearsay, they will give us our future hall-of-famers.

Greatness and stats will no longer matter.

The Hall has lost its mojo.

It isn't just the end of an era. It's the end of all eras.

Wolves Roll

The starters didn't even have to play in the fourth quarter. The TEAM made 16 three-pointers, and the T-Wolves went on to win 126-95. Love and Pekovic, as usual, did the heavy hauling, but it was the entire team that was shooting well.

I didn't see much of the game with RAW on one channel and the BCS title game on the other, but I turned back frequently to see the Wolves win going away. It's hard to believe that they are still just a .500 ball club.

Let's see if they can put together a win streak now.

What A Game!

Florida State didn't look like the best team in the country in the first half. If not for a gutsy fake punt late in the second quarter, they wouldn't even have scored a touchdown.

But the second half, specifically the fourth quarter, made this a game for the ages. ESPN has a LONG highlight reel posted. If you didn't see the game this is the best Reader's Digest version ever assembled. It showed how the game changed, and even though Auburn still looked strong, they couldn't stop the Seminoles when they really needed to.

Great, great game. No sport is as good as football at its best. Last night, it was clearly at its best.

Recreational Drug Use

Twin's prospect Eddie Rosario was suspended for 50 days for recreational drug use. You have to fail TWO tests to get suspended in that area. It's not a performance enhancer.

From what I found out, it wasn't marijuana either. He took pain pills to help him with a wrist injury earlier last year. And when he suffered some back pain he started taking those same pills for his back without an additional prescription. It's possible that he's now hooked on them and finding an illegal source to get more. All of this is speculation. IF it's an addiction, they should treat it like alcohol abuse and provide treatment.

This got me wondering, players are regularly tested for recreational drug use and performance enhancers. That would include marijuana. I wonder if all the Colorado Rockies would be exempt from that part now? OR if all players who recently visited Colorado would be exempt now? In Colorado, marijuana use is now legal. It's like buying beer.

Since last week, marijuana use in the state is at an all-time high. Just like Colorado natives.

rim shot

I'll be here all week.

Rocky Mountain high, in Colorado. -John Denver

Football

The Chargers/Bengals game was disappointing. Cincinatti was the only real team to KILL the Vikings this year. Yesterday, they looked totally incompetent. San Diego made them look really bad.

Green Bay with Aaron Rodgers at the helm wasn't quite good enough to pull off the win against a surging San Francisco team. San Fran has now won 7 straight and the Packers are done for the year. I was actually surprised that the game was as close as it was. The cold didn't seem to matter much. It actually got a little warmer as the game went on. And Kaepernick looked unstoppable.

Rodgers best play was an incredible escape from an obvious sack that led to a nifty touchdown. And he was the reason Green Bay survived as long as they did even with that defense.

Two great teams. A frozen environment. A super game that had the winning field goal scored as time ran out. It would have made a great Super Bowl.

And yet it was the only the first round.

More great football ahead.

Durant

Kevin Durant scored 23 points in the fourth quarter last night, 48 for the game, and OKC ended up beating the Wolves by FOUR. The Wolves dominated the first 3 quarters. Love was his usual great self with 30 points and 14 rebounds for Minnesota except that he missed FOUR free throws in the last 27 seconds. You do the math.

sigh

Good Football

I stopped watching that first game yesterday when it was 38-10 just after halftime. I missed a great comeback by Andrew Luck and the Colts.

The second game was more of a chess match with very little scoring in the first half. The neat trivia from the game? Both quarterbacks, Brees and Foles, are graduates from the same high school (Westlake in Texas.) Foles is 10 years younger.

I'm looking forward to more game action today, though I'll probably squeeze in some more of the mini-series Bleak House, the reason I missed yesterday's comeback win by Indy, as well. Dickens writes great characters and my wife and I still have 6 hours left. We have to find the time somewhere.

And it's way too cold to go outside.

Sports Notes

Ohio State got beat again last night. Another team that slipped quickly from great to merely good.

Lelsie Frazier landed on his feet quite quickly. He'll be the defensive coordinator for Tampa Bay next year.

The NFL gave ALL of the teams more time to sell out their playoff games. With the help of corporate sponsors, they all sold out. I'm looking forward to that game in Green Bay. An ice bowl is a real possibility. I'm glad my team's fate isn't going to be determined by freezing temperatures. It's going to be a cold one.

The bidding for Japanese superstar pitcher Tanaka starts today. He was 24-0 this year with an ERA a little over 1.00. I envy the team that gets him.

Kluwe

Former Vikings punter Kris Kluwe said he was cut because of his outspoken views on gay marriage. Specifically he called Viking coach Mike Priefer homophobic.

Priefer, who has homosexual family members, said that Kluwe has attacked his character.

Kluwe has not been signed by any other NFL team since being cut. I think that says more about Kluwe's standing in the NFL than anything else. He's says everybody's afraid of his right to free speech.

I think they know he has problems with punting.

We'll see where this goes. It's always easy for guys with big mouths to claim discrimination. But most people don't like working with people with big mouths. It not his views that offend people. It's the size of his mouth. It's not what he believes that bothers people, it's his incessant condescending view of others who don't agree with him.

That and leaving balls hang rather than hitting the coffin corner.

College Football

In the course of a full season, against top competition, great teams will rise to the top. Good teams, on the other hand, will eventually fail. Last night we saw that one of the teams, thought great, was merely good. Alabama fans were enraged by their frustrating last second lost to Auburn. They thought it was a fluke, and that they still deserved national championship consideration. But a full season makes a difference. And last night's win by Oklahoma proved that the Auburn loss was no fluke.

The best will be battling next week for the title. They are being rewarded for a full season of greatness. The BCS standings got it right. Again.

Wolves!

The Wolves didn't let a bad ref call two days earlier bother them. If anything they played their best TEAM effort of the season last night. Seven Wolves were in double figures while going against against a team with a similar record. They cruised to an easy win.

I'm saying things like that more often as of late. Easy wins have not been part of this franchise's history. That's usually the mark of a team on the cusp.

I never used that word before either. The Wolves bring out the hopeful fan in me. I just can't help it.

11,000 Tickets

You know how the Packers always sell out at Lambau Field?

Not this time. 11,000 tickets remain unsold for Sunday's playoff game with the Niners. Even Packer fans are no longer faithful after just one mediocre season in which they STILL made the playoffs.

What a bunch of losers. The fans obviously have very little faith in their team any more.

Indy and Cincinnati are having the same problem. YOUR TEAM MAKES THE PLAYOFFS and you can't sell out your ONLY playoff game?

NONE of those teams deserve to win. And none of those communities deserve a team.

League Admits They Goofed

The NBA officially apologized to Kevin Love and the T-Wolves Tuesday for not calling an obvious call with one second remaining in their game against Dallas Monday night. The call may very well have cost the Wolves a win.

Well, that was nice of them.

It's what I've been saying over and over when it comes to close games in the NBA and NFL. The officials determine outcomes. Not players. And it makes those sports difficult to watch at times.

I still wonder, if they are going to take the time THE NEXT DAY to look at a play like that, why could they not look at the play RIGHT AWAY and change the call? You know, like when it still mattered?

Doing it the next day just adds insult to injury.

I hope baseball gets its act together when it comes to expanded replays next year.