Why is it that the most astute fans so often know before the GMs, managers, coaches and assigned media experts?
Even many progressive, analytically wishful know by now that they fell for and advocated nonsense, as MLB has been reduced to a primitive exercise of trying to hit home runs or striking out, and pitchers assigned to one half-inning before being returned to the bullpen or to Syracuse, Scranton or Modesto.
Fundamental, functional strategy has vanished. And that brings us to the bottom of the ninth of tie games, now often followed by speed-it-up legislated runners at second base to begin extra innings.
But even artificial additives seem to escape common sense and easily applied strategies.
Reader Sam Agami still can’t figure out what Aaron Boone was or wasn’t thinking a week ago Friday at the Stadium against the Tigers.
At 1-1 in the bottom of the ninth, the Yankees had Alex Verdugo on third and Giancarlo Stanton on second when Boone replaced Stanton with pinch runner Taylor Trammel. Trammel is faster — or at least runs harder — than Stanton. So it seemed to make sense.
Except for the fact that it didn’t, as Stanton wouldn’t have even had to move — and he’s good at that!
As Agami noted, if Verdugo scores from third, the game is over. If the game enters, say, the 11th, Trammel would be batting for Stanton.
Agami: “Must be some genius analytics beyond my mental capacity.”
Reader Ron Eckstein doesn’t get it, either:
“In the bottom half of extra innings with the assigned runner on second, wouldn’t it make more sense to walk the first batter setting up a double play or force at any base?
“If the score is tied, the winning run is on second base, anyway.
“I’ve never seen that happen or even mentioned by announcers. Seems to be a simple, logical strategy.”
Wednesday, Tigers at Cleveland, 4-4 bottom of the 10th. The Guardians move the automatic runner to third on a — holy Gino Cimoli! — sacrifice bunt.
But still the Tigers leave first base open, thus the infield must play in. The game ends with a single up the middle. No chance for a double play because Detroit eliminated it as a matter of odd choice or professional neglect.
Lot of bleeping bleeps go unbleeped nowadays
Here’s hoping that rock bottom isn’t so unforgiving that it doesn’t permit any bounce.
Seems everyone with a voice is now eager to be heard as a crude, vulgar slug. Class? Soon few will know what it is to recognize it, let alone to practice any.
This televised Tom Brady roast was just another exercise in confusing humor with unclever, put-down, don’t forget to shout “F–k!” social vandalism.
That “comedian” Kevin Hart, thrust upon the commercial sports landscape, including sports sucker-gambling, for no apparent reason than that he shouts “F–k” a lot — he’s more of a curiosity than comic — was the first of many clues.
Why celebrities and famous athletes would go to such lengths to be seen and heard as having a head filled with sixth-grade naughty boy thoughts and put-downs never ceases to befuddle. And I’m not easily fuddled.
May 5, 2024. @broadimage / SplashNews.com
But they seem to line up to be seen in the lowest available, allowable light as the “coarsening of America,” as former ESPN anchor Bob Ley called it, continues its no-upside descent.
You can’t even bring kids to a daytime sports championship parade and ceremony without prepping them to hear lowest-rung expletives shouted into microphones. And the violators escape due to diminished social standards that would cast the plaintiffs as out of step with modernity.
And none of the commissioners even give calling for common decency a shot. What?! And risk offending the most offensive? Look who Roger Goodell invites to “entertain” at halftime of Super Bowls? He’s going to advocate for public civility?
WFAN’s Evan Roberts has become an obligatory drive-time radio lowlife given to calling people “s–-mbags” and urging Knicks fans in the Garden to cuss out the Pacers during player introductions.
Not only would Roberts be appalled if his kids were seated near those who took his antisocial prompts, he’s not particularly convincing as someone who would normally use vile language, as he was likely raised better and is unaccustomed to playing a low-life on the air.
In a visceral but practical sense, would Roberts, the father of two young children, urge his kids to be a public lowlife, especially for a living? Not a chance!
Thus we must conclude that Roberts’ classless, Dumpster-drawn act is just that — an act to attain the status of what it takes to be a WFAN radio star, these low and loathsome days.
Think how backwards that is: “But I’d never act that way in private!”
Albert Brooks, the actor/comedian, tells of bombing out in front of a crowd of young adults until he had an idea: He’d shout an expletive. He did, and he immediately won the crowd and the night.
It was that easy.
‘Connect’ to whom, MLB?
Reader Gary Siegel has a question for ESPN’s Stanley Cup telecast producers and directors: “Isn’t it more important to stick with the puck rather than show players returning to the bench?”
I can answer that: With ESPN, you never know.
MLB’s new “City Connect” uniforms are so clearly what Nike designed them for: to covet street-gang appeal, for MLB to better compete for the menace trade. Or do you think by now that Nike and its sports partners don’t by now know exactly what they’re doing, why, for how much and for whom?
Come to think of it, I’m surprised that Nike and its Chinese Communist Party business partners haven’t yet produced highly flammable USA, UK and Israeli flags for the pro-Hamas to burn.
The swoosh, as it is sacred, would be made of asbestos.
As professional political lobbyists will tell us, bribes come in many forms, from winks and nods to as much as you can stuff in a duffel bag.
The PGA is paying — giving — Tiger Woods roughly $100 million and Rory McIlroy about $50 million essentially for not bolting for Saudi Government money.
Just in time, too, as both have bills piling up.
Wonder how, say, mini-tours grad Wilson Furr, No. 196 on the PGA winnings list at 80 grand, feels about that?
Stats Amore!:
In Tigers-Guardians on Wednesday, 10 players were in the lineup who were batting .194 or under.
While U.S. colleges fall all over one another to recruit tennis players from countries as far flung as New Zealand, the current highest ranking U.S. pro is Taylor Fritz, at No. 13.
In 116 at-bats, Cardinals DH Nolan Gorman has struck out 43 times and is batting .172. Ahh, but he has hit four home runs! Through 2 ¹/₂ seasons, Gorman has struck out 294 times in 805 at-bats — 37 percent of his at-bats! — but he has hit 45 homers, thus, as noted at the start of this column, that’s all that matters.
