What are we missing?

The Minnesota Vikings and the New York Jets both started the pre-season with a quarterback competition. Both now have their starting QBs. Brett Favre will take the snaps in the great white north while Mark Sanchez will suit up in East Rutherford. And that answers the question of who will start. But it leaves us with another question. What are these teams thinking?

If you watched Mark Sanchez play on Monday night then you saw him react like a rookie to pressure. His first pass was rushed, picked off and run back to the house for 6. His second pass hit Ray Lewis in the hands and should have gone for 6 more, but Lewis dropped the ball. Sanchez finished 3/8 with 1 TD, 1 INT and 1 Dropped INT (a stat the NFL should begin tracking) for 43 yards. Not exactly stellar numbers. For the pre-season he’s 6/12 for 131 yards with 1 TD and 1 INT. Kellen Clemens on the other hand, who has actually played in an NFL game, is 9/14 for 84 yards with the same 1TD to 1 INT. And it leaves me wondering. What is it that the Jets see in Sanchez that has earned him the job over Clemens? It certainly doesn’t seem to be anything he’s shown on the field so far. But hey, maybe Rex Ryan likes the idea of his starting QB throwing the ball to the other team’s front 7.

In Minnesota, the situation is even stranger. After stringing the Vikings along so that he could skip camp, Brett Favre signed a 2 year deal, waltzed off a plane and relegated Tavaris Jackson and Sage Rosenfels to a battle for the #2 spot. Now, Favre has earned a lot of things in his career. But this one is a bit puzzling. Has Brett Favre, whose last pass with the Packers was a game ending interception, and whose self-destruction knocked the Jets out of the playoffs last year, earned the right to skip camp, miss the first pre-season game and then be anointed the starter? Consider this. Tavaris Jackson down the stretch last year threw 9 TDs to only 2 INTs and had a QB rating over 90. Jackson went 12/15 for 202 yards and 2 TDs in the same game where Favre went 1-4 for 4 yards. Jackson appears to be getting better while Favre has clearly been on the decline. So what are we missing? Why isn’t Jackson getting a chance? Is it because the Vikings are trying to lose? This Bears fan certainly hopes so.

We need a new stat

Let's call it the Interest Now, Determined After Sustained Sucking (InDAss). I hosted a Cubs fan for dinner last night after not talking to him for a few months and I had to ask if he cared or if he had given up on the season. After admitting there were a few reasons to check the standings on maybe a weekly basis on the off chance there was a miracle brewing in Wrigleyville, he said its Bears season. Mets fans, including some of your faithful OSMers, have long since given up hope. We have a magic number, but maybe it's time for a tragic number.

Here's a suggested formula for the InDAss. It's a work in progress, so please don't submit this to the STATS folks until we agree on all of the variables, thank you very much. This applies to all sports, I believe, except for hockey where no team is eliminated ever. You either get a participation ribbon or the Stanley Cup at the end of the season and only Canadians care which.

Games remaining
- Games back/division (once InDAss turns into a negative number, this becomes games back in the wild card, if the sport has one)
* Wimp index (fan's tolerance for backing a team that's going through a tough swing, along the lines of a batting average)
+ Schedule effect (who do you have on your schedule? Scale of -5 to 5)
+ Precedent factor (Scale of 0 - 10 representing size of most recent turn around)
- Strength of Competition (0 - 10 scale, based on current performance and historical stretch performance of the leader)
- Delusion penalty (Sorry, Rockies fans. That's never happening again. Scale = 0 - 5)
= InDAss

So for starters, the Cubs. The Cubs as of last night's action stood at 6 games back. To the outside observer it doesn't look that bad, especially with some puff balls coming up in the schedule. Let's have a look and see if my buddy should find a paper bag and calm down.

Games remaining - 45
- Games back (6) - 31
* wimp index (Cubs fans endure a ton, but have a time earned sense of futility. -- .230) - 7.13
+ Schedule effect (as they are in danger of being swept by the Padres, who the Cubs should beat is up for debate, but objectively, they have one more vs. SD, 4 in LA vs. the slumping Dodgers, the Mets and Nats at home -- and that's just the rest of the month. September has the Bucs and more Mets to balance out sets vs. potential wild card rivals San Fran and the division leader Cardinals. Let's call it a 3.) - 10.13
+ Precedent factor (remember that great comeback story the Cubs had in the last decade? Me either -- 0) - 10.13
- Strength of Competition (The Cardinals looked like a wild card threat to start the season, but until -- I mean if, if, Cards fans -- Carpenter does back on the DL, that team is capital T tough and looking strong for the balance of the year -- 9) - 1.13
- Delusion penalty (Cubs fans know where they stand -- 0) - 1.13

= The Cubs are in danger of crossing over into Wild Card chasers, but I don't think all hope is lost in the division. A good next 15 games is important, but keep your chins up, Cub fans, at least through the weekend.

Don LaFontaine is dead... or is he????

With all the talk on the famed website originalsportsmusings.blogspot.com of the demise of Don LaFontaine, I was at peace. I had spent my time grieving for "The Voice" and I had made my peace with God. Sunsets, puppies, hot chicks... would never look the same in a world without him. I had finally admitted that trailers would never be the same, no matter how upsetting that prospect may be.

At 1:26 AM on Sunday August 16th my world... was shattered into a million pieces.

While stumbling in a drunken stupor after several hurricanes, several shots, several women sitting on Josh Fenderman's lap and not earning a dime... that's wen I saw him. Standing guard outside a souvenir shop, a rare site in New Orleans and one that "The Voice" obviously felt an obligation to leave the physical world to defend. His sacrifice is unprecedented.

When I looked back, he was gone. But for one brief, magical moment, the color was brought back to rainbows. I was no longer mad at Hootie for the "Amy Winehouse" moment. I was not able to take a picture, but due to some incredible technological advances, I was able to extract this image from my mind and re-create it in the form of a photo. I share that brief moment with you.




How do I move on from here????

I don't want the same thing to happen to originalsportsmusings.blogspot.com that happened to the Kodan Armada. They were convinced that the Last Starfighter was dead. He of course as not and used the Death Blossom to end their chances of conquering Rylos. Lets just hope that this sighting has not hurt the momentum that orgininalsportsmusings.blogspot.com has gained in conquering the online sports/entertainment/politics blogsphere.

This is clearly a sign that we need to work harder than ever to save originalsportsmusings.blogspot.com.

Thanks for your support during this difficult time.

The best 18 days of our lives

It has been 18 glorious days since the evil CLJ sentenced www.originalsportsmusings.blogspot.com to death. He's been given the ability take over and kill www.originalsportsmusings.blogspot.com since July 31. Yet, today August 17, in the year of our Lord 2009, we sit hear today - alive, well and enjoyed globally.

Now I know the questions that our millions of followers are wondering:

1) Why would anyone want to kill the potential profit juggernaut that is www.originalsportsmusings.blogspot.com?

2) Why do you think 18 days of hearing Mike Vick's old cell mates yell "dead man walking" have been glorious?

3) How can CB40 actually like Kelly Clarkson?

Well I can't give good answers to questions one and three. However, I will explain my thinking on question two.

As is our ritual, every day we've been able to wakeup, run to our PCs, Macs, iPhones, BlackBerries, or whatever is your favorite method of following www.originalsportsmusings.blogspot.com, and we've been able to continue receiving, following and developing our favorite website since Al Gore first created this wonderful Internet.

Over the past 18 days, all of you have been able to enjoy the literary masterpiece that is www.originalsportsmusings.blogspot.com. Likewise, over the past 18 days, all of us have been able to continue working at the best job we've ever had, even if we are still waiting on that first pay check. However, over the last 18 days, none of this was supposed to happen.

Just like all of you, I went to bed on July 31, 2009, expecting that was going to be the last time I ever saw www.originalsportsmusings.blogspot.com. Yet, for 18 days, to our surprise and elation, we've awaken to one more beautiful day with our beloved site. That is 18 sunrises with Art V's Mets rantings. It's 18 sunsets with the Hat's Olympian athletes search. And of course 18 moments with the swimsuit models of the day - ok, maybe there were a couple days where there were multiple moments, but none of us have gone blind yet...

Anyway, I guess what I'm saying is this is all time that none of thought we had left. I've always been told that when one cheats death, even for a short period of time, that a breeze blows crisper, the sun shines brighter, and a bird sings even more beautifully.

This is what we have all experienced together for the past 18 days. None of us know when CLJ will hit the delete key on this wonderful experiment, but what we do know is that every day we have left is a day we were never meant to have together and that makes each day glorious, in my opinion.

This Mets fan has stayed mum for too long...

I've stayed mum for too long. I have long neglected this platform that could potentially reach millions, and so it's time I start using it for the greater good.

It was mentioned in passing and in jest today that perhaps the New York Mets -- my New York Mets -- should be contracted from Major League Baseball. As a long-suffering Mets fan, I can see that this kind of thinking emanates from one of two places: 1) A NY Mets fan who just wants to end the pain and misery; or 2) Fans of other teams merely having fun at our expense.

Either way, I guess the point of fact is this: Yes, the Mets have fallen on hard times. Yes, they set a new world record for injuries begotten by inept medical care. Yes, Madoff took all of the Wilpons' money, and even though they still want ours, they don't want to spend a dime. Yes, Omar Minaya turned one of the best things to happen to the team -- firing Tony Bernazard -- into a meteoric PR disaster. Yes, they lack fundamentals in every phase of the game. Yes, they can't beat the San Diego Padres, the Arizona Diamondbacks, or even the Newark Bears at this point..........

But with all that said, is contraction the answer? No.

Despite all of the misery, despite this wasted season, despite two straight epic September collapses, despite Game 7 of the 2006 NLCS and despite all of the years and years of heartache and suffering since the 1986 championship season, I know in my heart of hearts that the New York Mets will one day come out of this soon-to-be-23-year drought, and they will get back to what made them so Amazin' to begin with.

I dream of a scrappy team that takes no prisoners on the field, managed by a man with the intellect and heart of a Japanese warrior. I see a freer, wiser man than he was before, still clever but without all the needless ploys, liberated from plastic glasses and mustache disguises as this franchise rises to meet their true destiny as World Champions once more.

This team, and this man, will overcome all of the arrogant Senseis and juiced-up Johnny Lawrences of the world, and they will take back this New York Town that they once owned, albeit for a fleeting moment, albeit soon-to-be-23-years ago.

So when you say contract the Mets, I say Mets, it's time to do the right thing and bring in the man we know is waiting, just waiting to come back home. It's not time to contract, it's time to sign the contract that will make all of this a distant memory.

It is a Flushing rallying cry that is worth the redux, and that cry is, "BOBBY V! BOBBY V! BOBBY V!"

I'll see you all again on Valentine's Day!

--CB40

A Second Chance, and "the List"

We're still here. A second chance. And this time we take it seriously.

A "source with knowledge" has stated that David Ortiz and Manny Ramirez were on baseball's infamous "List" of 104 players who tested positive for PEDs in 2003. Or is it 96? Suddenly, we don't know. MLB says 104. The MLBPA says 96, 13 of which were contested. Which is the real number? And are the latest 3 outed players actually guilty of anything?

We know that Alex Rodriguez did in fact take PEDs. We know this because he admitted to it. We know that Manny Ramirez took something. He tested positive this year for a substance linked to steroid use and served his suspension with no opposition. But we don't know that he tested positive for anything in 2003. In fact, we don't know that Sammy Sosa or David Ortiz tested positive either. It's reasonable to believe they did. Sosa issued no comment after being outed. Manny did something this year. Ortiz turned into a power hitter in 2003. The circumstantial evidence is there.

But we don't know for sure. We haven't seen the list. Supposedly, the MLBPA hasn't seen the list. David Ortiz says he didn't do anything wrong. He claims he took a number of perfectly legal, over-the-counter supplements and vitamins. But no steroids. Bronson Arroyo echoes a claim that he took Andro, which was allowed under MLB rules until 2004, until he heard that it might be laced with illicit steroids. A plausible explanation? Yes. A credible one? With the shadow of Jose Canseco, Alex Rodriguez and Manny Ramirez's positive 2009 test, it's hard to say.

But there is an equally large, equally important issue here. The List itself. The List has been sealed by court order for years, the subject of a disagreement between the MLBPA and the Federal Government. The court seal hasn't prevented leaks this year. It should have. Leaking information from a sealed document is a crime. The List, which was to have been anonymous, was also the basis for the MLBPA's cooperation with the MLB testing program. It appears now that not only is the list not confidential, but that MLB may not have shared accurate information with the MLBPA.

So what should the MLBPA do now? Should it drop its opposition to release of the list? Not in the humble opinion of the Hat. In fact, just the opposite. Donald Fehr should call a press conference tomorrow. He should announce that the MLBPA agreed to cooperate with a testing program based on the results of an anonymous testing survey. Right now, that survey is not anonymous, and the results that MLB shared may not be accurate. As a result, as far as the MLBPA is concerned, the testing program is over. The players will no longer cooperate. Throw down the gauntlet. Force MLB and the courts to take action to stop the leaks and ensure that the information provided by MLB is accurate. Until then, no more tests, no more suspensions. Regardless of public opinion of the agreement, both sides should abide by it. And until MLB holds up its end, the MLBPA should refuse to be constrained by its end.

Sons of America and the Internet, I am The Original Sports Musings

OSM: Sons of America and the Internet, I am The Original Sports Musings.

Young reader: The Original Sports Musings is god not a man.

OSM: Yes, I've heard. Kills men by the hundreds, and if he were here he'd consume CJL , Jr, the evil man trying to shut us down, with fireballs from his eyes and bolts of lightning from his arse. I AM The Original Sports Musings. And I see a whole army of my countrymen here in defiance of tyranny. You have come to fight as free men, and free men you are. What would you do without freedom? Will you fight?

Veteran reader: Fight? Against CJL, Jr.? No, we will run; and we will live.

OSM: Aye, fight and you may die. Run and you'll live -- at least a while. And dying in your beds many years from now, would you be willing to trade all the days from this day to that for one chance, just one chance to come back here and tell our enemies that they may take our lives, but they'll never take our musings!!!

OSM and readers: Musings Forever!!!!

The Final Post

It's over. OSM is dead. We've failed. We've failed worse than the Oakland Raiders, who compounded their draft mistake today by giving $23M guaranteed to Darius Hey-I-Can't-Catch. We've failed worse than Manny Ramirez fails PED tests. We've failed worse than the Pittsburgh Pirates over the past 16 years. We're done. We're being contracted by the owner. We had a good run. We tried really hard. But the public just didn't seem to catch on. We're like the WUSA. Or maybe the USFL. It doesn't matter. It's over. No more Biff, no more Fenderman, no more CB40, and of course, no more Augie Phonics. We here at OSM would like to thank you for your support during our trying times. We hope to see you again on this giant interweb. Unless...

...unless you love www.originalsportsmusings.blogspot.com so much that you can't bear to see us go. If that's the case, HELP US! 1 LAST TIME, HELP US! Show your support! Stop our evil owner and keep OSM on the web!

Mike Mussina's Hall Of Fame Case - Part 1

Last week CB40 sent around a bulleted list of sports points and complaints and one of the items ended up sparking a long e-mail firestorm. The bullet was:

Chris
--WFAN CALLERS -- STOP IT! MIKE MUSSINA IS NOT A HALL OF FAMER!!!

At first, I let this go. I don’t usually get in to Hall debates because of the stupid subjectivity. But, eventually I found the arguments against to be so bad I had to respond. Some of these writers you'll know. I'm not going to really identify any of them because I'm not entirely sure they want their names out there. I will note background info where I can. These will be unedited save for capitalization and spelling.

Justin
Mussina would be a Hall of Famer if he pitched three more seasons and reached the 300 win club.

Chris B
Maybe, but I even hate that Glavine is going in. Smoltz and Maddux were much better than he was. And, again, a guy like Schilling and Pedro deserve it for their short-term dominance, rather than these guys who just hung around long enough to compile without ever dominating.

Mussina a compiler? Can you really call a guy who had one of the best seasons of his career in his last year a compiler? Still, not quite enough to get involved. Especially as some other list members made the points I was going to make.

Peter
Citing Mussina’s Wikipedia page.
Mussina's candidacy for the Hall of Fame has come under recent debate. "Do I compare to some guys who are in? I think I do," Mussina told USA Today in 2006. The only other pitchers to match Mussina's 17 seasons of 10 or more victories are Greg Maddux, Warren Spahn, Cy Young, Don Sutton and Steve Carlton; all are Hall of Famers except Maddux, who also retired after the 2008 season and thus is not yet eligible. Of the 23 eligible pitchers who have at least 265 wins and an ERA of 3.69 or less, 20 are in the Hall of Fame. Mussina's consistency is often overshadowed by the dominant peaks of contemporaries like Pedro Martínez and Randy Johnson. Baseball writer Tim Kurkjian stated on the August 3, 2008 edition of Baseball Tonight "He's a Hall of Famer. I've looked at the numbers and he's in."

He is the oldest pitcher to ever win 20 games in a season for the first time at the age of 39 in 2008. He never won the Cy Young Award, but finished in the top six of Cy Young voting eight times. Mussina also came tantalizingly close to pitching a perfect game and winning a World Series, having lost chances at achieving both in the 9th inning in 2001.

Only five pitchers in the history of major league baseball have as many victories as Mussina and a better winning percentage: Lefty Grove, Christy Mathewson, Grover Cleveland Alexander,Roger Clemens and Randy Johnson.

Greg
There may be a movement brewing where guys who were quiet and got the job done will gain votes vs. guys that chased home run records and stole headlines. If he doesn't get in on numbers, he may get in for being the right kind of guy for the voters in the years coming up. I say he gets in, but don't care that much except that I think he's one of the good guys and would be happy for him.

At this point – it seemed like the debate would be friendly. Perhaps neutral and the Sports Musings group would come to the conclusion that he’s a pretty good pitcher and it could probably go either way. Until this point, I hadn’t even chimed in… I’d just been reading the opinions. But then, the godfather of the e-mail list chimed in. Chuck is the resident hardcore Yankee fan. Loves sports, loves predicting, and as we learned in Atlantic City, loves red wine.

Chuck
Moose is not a Hall of Famer. Period. End of story. Actually, in my book, he isn't even close. He is the classic two or three starter that hung around a while and pitched on good teams. Also a terrible big game starter.

And agreements started rolling in.

Chris B
Chaz, I agree with you, 100%. Wow. ;-)

Justin
He would have 300 wins if o's gave more run support

And only one disagreement

Peter
He also pitched in the best division in baseball his whole career and still amassed 270 wins and the 6th best winning % of any pitcher with that many wins. That’s impressive. I’m sorry. People can knock him all they want but not many pitchers can say they pitched as well for as long as he did.

And this is where I finally had to join the fray. The talk about wins had become just too much.

Tom
The "wins" stat is the most retarded hall of fame statistic ever. "Hey, let's use this stat which largely has nothing to do with pitching to figure out how good of a pitcher you were." If you insist on using them, though, 120 games over .500 is pretty ridiculously awesome.

And thus arrived Coogan.

Coogan
Is it me or is he not as good as Bert Blyleven was? And BB isn't in ... ...

Interesting debate, though. Agree it could either way and I wouldn't be offended if he got in.

To end part one, I'll present the e-mail that got myself and my friend Mike fully in to the debate. Remember: hardcore Yankee fan.

Chuck
Ok, I'll play this installment of why Mike Mussina is not a Hall of Famer:

• 0 rings.


• Carried a staff 2 times 1996 and 1997.


• 0 Cy Youngs.


• Limited All-Star appearances.


• Rarely even the third best guy on the staff.


• One good post season start in the ALDS vs the A's in 2001. He even sucked as an Oriole against the Yanks.


• Pitched well in relief against the Red Sox in 2003. But wasn't even the best pitcher in the game -- Rivera was.


• Played for teams with almost a 600 winning percentage and won 20 games once last season.


• Nibbled all the time.


• Was slow to the plate.


• Never took responsibility for letting the team down.


• Retired not because he didn’t want to play anymore or he couldn't but rather because he wasn't getting paid.


• Bolted the Os for more money.


• Held the Yanks hostage after the 2006 season.

In part two, Hulse and I dismantle the previous e-mail and former IP/411 writer Mark U joins the fray -- with the bad guys.

Your Help Is Needed

In recent weeks a shot rang out that nearly destroyed the Smusing world and quite possibly the real world as well. The face of Original Sportsmusings wanted to shutdown this dearly beloved blog and instrument of humor for those who can read good.

Pic: This man is in. Are you?

Since that announcement there has been a flurry of activity in support of OSM. Mostly from The Hat...mostly. But that is not enough. More support is needed along with the ever important Twitter feed that no one will use. Will you Help?

I know this burden sounds great but the effort is minimal in exchange. For as little as 5 minutes a day you can read this blog, post comments, and and make its contributors extremely rich. All you have to do is agree to be in.

Only here can you learn about the most devastating pitch in baseball, the cutter. Maybe you too can save 500 games in the majors with just one pitch. You have to read to find out. No matter the subject, if there is anything you want to read about you can find it here at OSM...when it eventually gets written. Do you have a favorite blogger? Well, you can find all of The Hat's blogs at OSM which will soon be syndicated at http://www.originalsportsmusings.blogspot.com/.

For those that agree to be in your support will be rewarded. You can keep the fish or go for what is in the box. The choice is yours my friends. I suggest the box.

Thanks for the support,

HHH