Baseball, Final Four, NASCAR......what a bore!!!

First off, let me start off by saying that I am in no way bored by baseball or this year's Final Four. NASCAR, we'll address that later.

Did anyone catch that moron Pete Rose on the Tonight Show? If not, let me paraphrase what he said. First off, Jay Leno asked hom, point blank, "Do you gamble anymore?" His reaction was priceless! He stuttered, stammered, then finally got out some feeble response, but it was like keeping a chunk of kryptonite around Superman. Then, Rose went on to claim he, at one time, was bigger than Elvis. Let me just say this: The Graceland estate makes 40 million a year, Rose bets the dog track in South Florida......who's bigger? Then he went on to say that he bet on his team every night. I know I was younger back then, but does anyone remember when he steadfastly denied that he ever bet on baseball, despite all of the evidence in front of him? He also went on to say that his gambling problem made him more of a human. OK, I'll need clarification on this one. More human? Come on.......I could come up with something a little better than that. He was on ESPN Radio recently, saying that if we were allowed back in baseball, he would get hired, strictly because he'd be a draw at the gate. Always thinking of ways to maximize the cash flow, that Pete is. I said it a long time ago, and I'm saying it now. Pete Rose doesn't deserve to be reinstated into baseball just because he's now admitting what we all knew years ago. I hated the fact he was allowed on the field prior to a World Series game in 1999. I also hated the fact that people crushed then-NBC reporter Jim Gray for grilling Rose about his gambling. Turns out Gray was on the right track, doesn't it? If we're going to reinstate someone, then reinstate Shoeless Joe. He was proven, in a court of law, not to have been on the take, along with his other 1919 Black Sox teammates, but Judge Landis banished them anyway, citing the "best interests of the game" clause. Keep Rose out of the Hall, please. He doesn't deserve it.....period. Was his accomplishment of breaking Ty Cobb's record something to see? Sure it was. But, when it comes out that, during the course of that game, you were changing jerseys once an inning to maximize the income potential, and that the bat used to break said record was sold to pay off gambling debts, then that should tell you what kind of degenerate we're talking about. I don't even think there should be some kind of plaque recognizing his accomplishment. Actually, there is a plaque about him on every clubhouse door. It says "Gambling on the game is subject to a lifetime ban from baseball". Take a clubhouse tour one time. You'll see what I'm talking about. Keep Rose out of the Hall. He'd just bring down good guys like Brett, Yount, Molitor, Gwynn, Ripken, Ryan, and Fisk.
So, I took a call the other day from a friend, who said he wanted to see more Yankees coverage in this website posting. Well, how's this? George Stienbrenner had named an heir-apparent to his Yankee throne a couple of years ago. Steve Swindall, Steinbrenner's son-in-law, was hand-picked by the Boss to succeed him when he finally steps down. Well, a monkey wrench got tossed into those plans. Turns out that Steinbrenner's daughter, Jennifer, has filed for divorce from Swindall. Boy, talk about having the keys to the kingdom snatched away from you. The Boss can't fire Swindall altogether, though. Swindall remains a minority owner of the club. Boy, you have to hand it to those New Yorkers. They sure can put on a great soap opera.

To the Final Four, where Florida thumped Ohio State for its second championship in as many years. What made it a little more interesting is that these two schools met for the football championship, where Florida manhandled the Buckeyes. But, it's at that point where the basketball story becomes a secondary topic. Both of these schools are football schools. When someone first mentions either Florida or Ohio State, what do you think of? Football related things. Spurrier. Meyer. Wuerffel. Emmitt Smith. The Swamp. Or, in the case of Ohio State.....Hayes. George. Katzenmoyer (remember him?). The Horseshoe. Dotting the I. Troy Smith. All of these are football related things, people, and nothing is going to change that about either school. Florida coach Billy Donovan is supposedly going to meet with Kentucky officials about the job in Lexington. Two consecutive national titles, and he's still a distant third in Gainesville, behind the upcoming defense of their football championship and spring practice. And, while I'm on this subject, much has been made about Florida winning both the football and basketball championships. A little too much if you ask me. I mean, didn't Texas win both the football and baseball championships in one calendar year? They were even in line for the basketball championship that year as well. Yet, somehow, that gets brushed under the rug. Why? Because the baseball championship is awarded around the time we're all talking NFL training camp, and getting ready for two-a-days. Give credit to the Gators.....they hold two titles right now. They aren't the first to do it. Probably won't be the last.


To NASCAR, where way too much credence is being given to this boxy looking Car of Tomorrow. They recently used this car at Bristol and Martinsville, and, for my money, it stinks. This is a car that will be fully implemented in to NASCAR in the near future, and by then, we'll all sit back and remember the good racing days, where stock cars looked like cars, and not some Indy car knockoff. And, did anyone see who was on this development team for this atrocity? None other than Brett Bodine. You remember him.....the guy who used to drive the #26 Quaker State Buick for Kenny Bernstien Racing, who won his only race because he was a lap down at North Wilkesboro, and everyone else had to pit, handing him the race. Most other times, you could find him at the back of the field, up in the wall, or in the garage area once the green flag dropped. So, with this "stellar" career resume under his belt, how did he get involved in such an indeavour? Why is it, that the people who get trounced at something are the ones saying that things have to change (see also: McCain, John, 2000 Republican Presidential nominee)? One of the biggest things driving this change is safety, and I don't have an issue with that. But, I think with the addition of SAFER barriers, restrictor plates, and HANS devices, racing was already much safer. At the end of the day, it's called racing for a reason. Whoever is the fastest wins. If you can't go fast enough, or if you feel you can't compete, get out of the business. There's a reason (and this pains me to say more than you'll ever know) that Hendrick Motorsports is so successful. They spend whatever it takes to be at the top of their game. If teams can't compete with that, then so be it. Get out of the sport. But, for a loser like Bodine to come in and say he car needs to be redesigned, that's just plain sour grapes. I mean, what does he do now on race days? He drives the pace car, and was in danger of going a lap down to the field just this past Sunday! NASCAR should have just looked at his career totals. Then, they would have known what I've said all along: For some reason, the great teams are penalized by the sorry teams. For those about to make the argument that some of the lesser teams can't attract big-boy sponsors, yeah. There's a reason for that, and it just goes to prove my point. Show you're a winner, get the big dollars. Show you can't keep a car going straight, struggle to make the field each week. Scrap the Car of Tomorrow, please NASCAR. It really is a bad idea.


Well, there you have it. Baseball is now in full swing, no pun intended. The NFL is getting ready for its draft and mini-camps. The playoffs will soon start for both the NBA and NHL. It's a great time to be a sports fan. Take care.

Till next time......

Patrick