The Daily Lowdown

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2010-04-18T20:07:00.001-07:00

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Put up or shut up time for playoff-bound Sharks

2010-04-10T22:17:00.000-07:00

It was Fan Appreciation Night at the San Jose Arena on Saturday so it’s time to show the Sharks some love.
After a devastating and embarrassing first-round playoff series loss to the eighth-seeded Anaheim Ducks last year, the Sharks could have had the motivation and drive sucked out of them. They could have skated through this season like they were entitled to get home ice advantage for the Stanley Cup. They could have been gone through the motions with their talent and still made the playoffs.
Instead, they rose again and met expectations this season. Oh, they didn’t win the Presidents’ Trophy, which was a curse last season. But they won the Pacific Division again and they played well enough to win the Vice Presidents’ Trophy, if there were such a thing.
Now comes their albatross – the playoffs. Expectations for that are hitting the roof in the Shark Tank. Anything less than reaching the Western Conference finals will be not be tolerated. It’s June or swoon.
What must the Sharks change or do different to get the proverbial King Kong off their backs?
First, they must dramatically improve their special teams in the Stanley Cup playoffs. This regular season, the Sharks had a power play percentage of 18.2 percent. Not bad.
However, in their last three postseasons, the Sharks have converted only 9.6 percent of their power play chances. That’s just 16 goals in 137 opportunities. That’s not poor. That’s putrid.
The other must-go for the Sharks is that goaltender Evgeni Nabokov must stand on his head, hockey lingo for make improbable saves that can turn a game and a series. Nabokov is an exceptional goalie but, in the playoffs, he has not elevated his play to stand-on-your-head status. The recent great playoff goaltenders – Martin Brodeau, Curtis Joseph and Ed Belfour -- sharpened their focus when their teams needed them most.
In fairness to Nabokov, the defensemen in front of him have not been a model of consistency. The Sharks’ third-set of blueliners for the playoffs likely will be Kent Huskins and either rookie Jason Demers or Niclas Wallin, none of whom are playoff dependable.
Basically, the Sharks must raise their level of play in the playoffs. You know it. They know it. No more excuses.
“We will turn it up a notch next week (in the playoffs),” Sharks captain Rob Blake told Sharks fans Saturday night following the team’s shootout win over the Phoenix Coyotes. “We expect you to do the same.”
Ditto.

Stage is set for Tiger Forgiveness Weekend

2010-04-09T20:50:00.001-07:00

Oh, oh.
What if Tiger Woods wins the Masters?
He’s two strokes back going into the weekend. He’s right where he wants to be. Right where we want him to be. In the hunt, like a speed boat chasing down row boats on a lake.
What could possibly happen?
Best-case scenario: Tiger wins the tournament with a birdie putt on the 18th hole at Augusta then his estranged wife, Elin, shows up with the kids and Tiger breaks down in her arms with his kids hugging his legs. Norman Rockwell portrait. The world forgives him. Nike has fodder for another commercial.
Worse-case scenario: Really can’t think of one right now except Tiger wins the Masters and Elin serves him with divorce papers coming off the 18th green and Stevie Williams, his caddy, sells his story to TMZ. That would be a kick in the groin, or a golf club to the Escalade, if you will.
If anything, people are paying attention to Tiger again for what he does best, not what he did behind everyone’s back. Tiger – and golf -- is relevant again and the Earth is back on its axis.

Once around the bases …

Pillow talk landed Tiger in trouble. Bad pillows landed Jeff Suppan on the disabled list. As the story goes, Suppan, who will make $12.5 million to pitch for the Milwaukee Brewers this season, came up with a stiff neck in spring training because of the pillows he used to sleep on in a rented condo. Here’s an idea: Why didn’t he just go out and buy some better ones. Duh?

I know it’s only four games into the season, but the 2010 San Francisco Giants already have a magical feel about them … until Brian Wilson blows a save.

Going into the first weekend of the baseball season, the longest current winning streak in the major leagues is shared by the Giants and A’s.

Going to see the San Jose Sharks play on Saturday night. After watching the fight-filled third period of their game on Thursday night against Vancouver, I wonder if they have expanded the penalty boxes at the Shark Tank.

Congrats to Don Nelson. The Warriors can fire him now.

Then Nellie can become general manager of the 49ers.

Time to get back into the swing of things

2010-04-02T21:38:00.000-07:00

This week marks the one-year anniversary of me being officially laid off at the Marin Independent Journal after 22 plus years of service.

Like Tiger Woods, it’s time for me to get back in the swing of things by giving my two cents worth with one liners.

Figures that an ambidextrous pitcher would wind up with the New York Yankees. They give out money left and right.

It just seems to me with all his off-the-field problems that Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Rothlisberger is destined some day to meet Dr. Drew.

I wish Pablo Sandoval would grow a mustache so I could call him Kung Fu Manchu Panda.

Will Fresno-bound Buster Posey join the long line of “Future Catchers for the Giants” that have been busts? He might be the next Steve Decker.

I haven’t figured out yet what Billy Beane’s master plan is for the Oakland A’s. Waiting for the Angels, Mariners and Rangers to get worse or the Giants to give up territorial rights?

Over or under: Giants will have 15 more wins this season than A’s.

My local theater is offering the chance to watch the Final Four basketball games in 3D. For $15 a seat?! Sorry, I’ll go see “Hot Tub Time Machine” and see what pops out of the screen.

Given how wacky the NCAA men’s basketball tournament has played out , I ask you this: Why not Butler? Why doesn’t anyone think they can win it all? I do.

Of course, this is the first time in memory that I didn’t get at least one Final Four team right in my bracket.

Fortunately, I didn’t enter anyone’s office pool this year. I started my own “living room” pool. My 12-year-old son will win it if Duke wins it all.

The one thing I love about my youngest son that I think he inherited from me other having a passion for baseball and the Red Sox is that the kid just loves to play Wiffle ball in the backyard.

I’ll all for banning medal bats … but why can’t Major League Baseball initiate a fundraising effort to furnish wooden bats to high school players on down to Little Leaguers. They can afford it.

Maybe Don Nelson could win a championship in the “D” League.

The more I watch Stephen Curry, the more I marvel. Let me be the first to call him a future Hall of Famer. For some other team.

If one of Tigers’ former mistresses shows up in the gallery at the Masters, what will he yell if he hooks a ball off the tee: Fore or Foreplay?

The best thing I can say about Tiger is he didn’t pick a mistress with lots of tattoos.

A part of me wants to see Tiger win the Masters to put all this behind him. A bigger part wants me to see him miss the cut because I think he still needs to be humbled.

Walked into the half empty grill of the Castlewood Country Club on a Sunday afternoon a couple of weeks ago with my teenage son wearing jeans and a hoodie so we could meet a friend. My son and I were asked to leave. Another reason I hate golf.

I’m done voting for Mark McGwire for the Baseball Hall of Fame. Saying performance-enhancing drugs didn’t enhance his performance is like saying Viagra doesn’t give you a woodie.

Do you want Terry Donahue back, 49ers fans? Then pipe down.

If the Raiders don’t trade for Donovan McNabb, I wouldn’t be surprised to see Al Davis draft Tim Tebow if the Florida quarterback drops into the second round.

The look on the face of Sharks coach Todd McLellan in that 5-1 loss at Dallas the other night must have been the same look on my face when I had a colonoscopy the other day.

Really, seriously, the only thing that matters about the Sharks anymore is if they can at least play their way into the conference finals. Time for potential to turn to promise.

After hearing Tara Van Derveer recognize and credit her coaching staff on KNBR the other day, it made me think: Is there any coach in America who has a bigger ego than UConn women’s coach Geno Auriemma?

OK, Nick Saban. But he’s (still) not smiling.

Text from new St. John’s coach Steve Lavin to me: Good fit … Right time … Tough task but eager.

Why he is a better coach now? Lavin has spent the past seven years at ESPN with an all total access pass to see how other top coaches, young and old, run their practices, talk to their teams, strategize for their opponents and win.

Funny. Lavin was criticized for not having a Ted Winter-like veteran coach as an assistant at UCLA. First thing he did at St. John’s was hire 73-year-old former Purdue coach Gene Keady as a consultant.

BTW: Steve’s dad, Cap, who fell in December, is back on his feet playing bocci ball again.

Did you see new Seattle Seahawks coach Pete Carroll shaking hands with Sam Bradford at the Oklahoma quarterback’s Pro Day the other day?

Little known fact: Carroll came close to leaving USC in2006 to become the Kansas City Chiefs’ head coach and work with close friend Carl Peterson, then the Chiefs’ general manager. Herman Edwards got the job, Peterson resigned two years later and Edwards soon after got the boot.

Ever wondered how many Facebook friends ESPN’s Skip Bayless has?

Who is voting for Kate “Dancing Drama Queen” Gosselin to dance some more? All the mothers-of-eight?

Why do I care? Better question: Why am I watching?

Baseball season couldn’t come any sooner to save me from watching anymore “Bachelor” or “Dancing With Stars.”

And one more thing: Yankees suck.

Why I voted for Toby Gerhart for Heisman Trophy

2010-02-15T10:39:00.000-08:00

In my 14 years as a Heisman Trophy balloter, I have never bought into the Heisman Hype.
I saw Joey Harrington’s $250,000 10-story billboard in Times Square. I’ve heard stories about life-sized posters, CDs, videos, even leafs (for Ryan Leaf) being delivered to Heisman voters. I still have the 1:24 scale DeAngelo Williams’ cast-die race car sent to me somewhere in my garage that the University of Memphis mailed to promote him for the Heisman in 2005.
But I must admit I was impressed last week when I got an email from a man my age in Tiburon, Ted Gazulis, a Terra Linda High School and Stanford University graduate. He is a season-ticket holder for the Cardinal and he felt compelled to sell Toby Gerhart all by himself.
The fact of the matter is Gerhart, Stanford’s bruising running back, already was No. 1 on my ballot and nothing or no one changed my mind. I just hope enough Heisman Trophy voters see it that way.
The Heisman Trophy is not a lifetime achievement award. Otherwise, Tim Tebow or Colt McCoy would win it this year.
The Heisman Trophy is not a player-of-the-week award. Otherwise, Mark Ingram or C.J. Spiller or Case Keenum would win it this year.
The Heisman Trophy is an outstanding player-of-the-YEAR award. That’s why I voted for Gerhart. He’s had quite a year, replacing Tiger Woods as Big Man On Campus.
You must remember that there are no designated criteria or an owner’s manual on how to vote for the Heisman Trophy. It’s all subjective. It depends on your point of view. Or what region you come from.
I have been voting on the Heisman Trophy since 1996 and I have established my own five-step criteria for selecting the top three names on my ballot:
1) Impressive overall statistics and impact on team and record.
2) How players perform in the top 3-4 biggest games on their schedule when the spotlight is the brightest.
3) Consistency.
4) Strength of schedule
5) Signature game or play or something unique that sets the player apart or makes him representative of college football.
Gerhart received my first-place vote, worth three points, because he best met the criteria in all five categories.
Statistics and impact on team? The year Gerhart set foot on The Farm -- 2006 his true freshman year --Stanford was a team ranked 115th in the country in rushing with season-ending totals of 781 yards and three rushing touchdowns.
Gerhart ended this regular-season this year with 1,736 yards and 26 touchdowns and Stanford finished 12th in rushing, four spots behind Ingram and Alabama’s stable of running backs who played an extra game.
Gerhart led the nation in touchdowns, rushing yards and rushing attempts, 311. He averaged 200.3 yards a game this season against opponents who were ranked in the Top 25. He averaged 141 yards a game and scored 12 touchdowns against the top five rushing defenses in the Pac-10 Conference, all currently ranked among the top 38 rushing defenses in the nation.
Big games? Gerhart rushed for 136 yards and four TDs in the Big Game against Cal this season. With Stanford needing a win to become bowl eligible for the first time in eight years, Gerhart on Nov. 7 rushed for 223 yards and three TDs in a 51-42 win against then sixth-ranked and Rose Bowl-bound Oregon. And, in his only national network TV appearance this season, Gerhart rushed for 205 yards and three TDs against fabled Notre Dame. And I haven’t even mentioned what he did to USC.
Consistency? This is where Gerhart tops all. He didn’t have a bad game. His worst game this season was an 82-yard rushing effort against Wake Forest. That was the only game this season that Gerhart didn’t score a TD. He rushed for more than 100 yards in 10 games and for 200 or more in three of them.
Strength of schedule? According to this week’s Sagarin Ratings, which are used in the formula to compute the BCS standings, Stanford is 19th in SOS. Alabama is 20th. Florida is 27th. Texas is 44th. Much has been made of Stanford’s four losses. In three of them, the Cardinal had two-touchdown leads and couldn’t hold them. That’s not Gerhart’s fault.
Signature moment? He threw a TD pass against Notre Dame on fourth down but did you see the replay of Gerhart’s game-winning TD run against the Fighting Irish? He took the fight out of them. There was a Notre Dame safety in the end zone that clearly didn’t even bother to step up and try to tackle Gerhart at the goal line. He just let Gerhart pass by like a truck at a toll stop. Gerhart is the only college football player in the country capable of making other players “smart” while being smart himself – a 3.25 GPA as a management, science and engineering major carrying 21 units this quarter.
Gerhart is bright and funny and articulate and humble and modest, outstanding on and off the field, the ideal student-athlete in the eyes of the image-conscious NCAA. He is the total package as a player worthy of winning the Heisman Trophy.
There were two more spots to fill out on my ballot and I could have listed at least 12 names. Ingram, the Alabama running back who had a great game against Florida in the SEC championship game, jumped back on my ballot after he was a non-factor in the Crimson Tide’s come-from-behind win over Auburn the previous week. He could be considered the best player in the nation. But I’m not convinced that Ingram is even the best player on his own team (I like Julio Jones) or the best runner in his team’s backfield (I like freshman Trent Richardson).
Nick Saban, Alabama’s coach, confirmed that for me in his post-game on-field interview with CBS after the Florida game. He didn’t exactly wholeheartedly endorse Ingram for the Heisman (as Jim Harbaugh did Gerhart), noting that Ingram is “one of the best players on one of the best teams in the country.”
McCoy, Texas’ quarterback, probably had the best chance in my mind to pass Gerhart on my ballot, but he never approached the consistency this season that he did last season when he had much better statistics. McCoy started the season by throwing at least one interception in each of his first seven games then he threw three in his last game against Nebraska in the Big 12 Conference title game. He finished 18th in the nation in pass efficiency.
The two other quarterbacks that I seriously considered – Boise State’s Kellen Moore (39 TD passes, only three interceptions) and Houston’s Keenum (5,449 passing yards with 43 TDs) – had the numbers to win the Heisman or earn a trip to New York, but they didn’t have the strength of schedule. Both Boise’s and Houston’s SOS is in the 90s and I can’t get past that. Ultimately, I put McCoy’s name on my ballot over Moore because Moore didn’t compete with the week-to-week pressure and expectation that McCoy has with Texas.
Ryan Mathews of Fresno State could win the Hides Man Trophy. He may be the most overlooked player in the country. He led the nation in average rushing yards per game (151.27) and averaged 6.8 yards a carry and had he not been injured in the first half of the Nevada game on Nov. 14 and missed the next game he would have topped Gerhart in total rushing yards and 100-yard games. Mathews was every bit as talented as Dion Lewis, who got noticed because he plays for Pittsburgh.
Spiller of Clemson made a late push for the Heisman with a 233-yard, four-TD performance against Georgia Tech in the ACC championship game. But we must not forget that a week earlier he had only 18 yards on nine carries (with a long run of five yards) against in-state rival South Carolina. Besides, as far as all-purpose running backs go, I was more impressed with Oregon State’s Jacquizz Rodgers, who rushed for 1,377 yards and 20 TDs and caught 74 passes for 509 yards.
I am a big Tebow fan, but this season statistically was the worst of his three full seasons at Florida. He wound up 49th in pass efficiency. I like Cincinnati’s Tony Pike, but he missed playing time this season and was nearly benched in the Big East Conference title game and finished 56th in pass efficiency. Teammate Mardy Gilyard saved the Bearcats against Pitt. Oregon’s Jeremiah Masoli was a big-play player in leading the Ducks to the Rose Bowl, but I had a hard time voting for a quarterback who was 70th in the nation in pass efficiency, just two spots ahead of Greg Paulus.
I am not a big fan of Notre Dame football, but quarterback Jimmy Clausen was on my Heisman radar for a long time. In the end, however, I thought teammate Golden Tate was a better Heisman Trophy candidate than Clausen.
I also thought in November that this season might be a great opportunity for a defensive player to make a case for the Heisman. Nebraska’s Ndamukong Suh got plenty of attention at the end but, statistically, Michigan State linebacker Greg Jones caught my eye with his consistency and nine QB sacks.
In the final analysis, though, Gerhart was as good as any of them to be considered the most outstanding college player in America. He carried the ball more times for more yards and more touchdowns while carrying his team on his back more than any other player in the country.
It’s as simple as that. As simple as an email.

Offensive linemen top 49ers, Raiders draft needs

2010-02-15T10:37:00.000-08:00

Is it me or do we debate the future of pro quarterbacks in the Bay Area with the same frequency and intensity that they debate the future of health care in Congress?
JaMarcus Russell leads his team on an improbable game-winning touchdown drive in Denver, repeatedly signals God in the Mile High City, gets a game ball from his head coach and a little bit of confidence for the first time in months and the Raiders tell him the next day that he’ll stay on the bench if Bruce Gradkowski can run this week or Charlie Frye can recite the alphabet. In other words, unless Tom Cable changes his mind this week, the other quarterbacks would have to be either cripple or concussed for Russell to start this Sunday.
Meanwhile, Alex Smith throws three interceptions in the first half in Philadelphia, gets publicly criticized by his head coach for poor play in the City of Brotherly Love, gets an apology from said coach the next day and earns another chance to start. This is gall.
Well, isn’t about time that both of our pro football franchises draft another QB? This merry-go-round of mediocrity, misery and Monday morning quarterbacking mystery has gone on longer the Chris Cohan Era with the Warriors. Get off the pot or make shift.
The chances of Russell or Smith turning a corner in their NFL careers seems as likely as a toboggan turning a corner going downhill in Tahoe. At some point this weekly argument about the future of our starting quarterbacks has got to run into a giant snowdrift and simply disappear. It’s driving me nuts because the cycle never ends. It’s as annoying as Ned the insurance man in Ground Hog Day.
Let’s just say all the constant whining and wailing about Russell and Smith every single week makes me so sick that I want to name them H1 and N1.
The Raiders have invested three years and about $36 million in Russell and he’s nothing but a third-stringer in their minds right now. He has fallen further and faster on the depth chart than Tiger Woods. Unless Russell gives Al Davis a reason to believe in him and defend him in the next few months – how ‘bout an overhead projector breakdown of Russell re-negotiating down his contract figures? – then Russell is either gone or evolves into the next Alex Smith in the Land of Shawn Hills.
The Raiders have tried to give Russell better coaching and protection and more competition and commiserating to light a fire under him to discover that he’s about as fire retardant as William “The Refrigerator” Perry.
So what’s Davis to do? Draft another quarterback, baby. A Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback. It’s soooo Al. He covets Heisman Trophy caliber players like Tiger does mistresses.
It appears that the Raiders, next to last in the league in passing this season, may have a shot to pick 2008 Heisman Trophy winner Sam Bradford of Oklahoma with their first selection in the first round, though the Raiders could risk it and wait until early in the second round and 2007Heisman Trophy winner Tim Tebow of Florida could fall into their laps. Then again, Al Davis didn’t wait for Sebastian Janikowski to slip into round two.
Logically, the Raiders would do better to take an offensive lineman. Either Oklahoma State’s 6-foot-5, 303-pound Russell Okung or 6-foot-5, 318-pound Trent Williams of Oklahoma – the Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum of tackles in the 2010 NFL draft -- should be on the board when Oakland makes its first pick on April 22. Then the Raiders could select someone such as Texas quarterback Colt McCoy (who completed 73 percent of his passes the past two years) or Ole Miss QB Jevan Snead in the second round and give them a year to develop from the sideline watching Gradkowski play Gradlousy.
Then again, Al loves speed and Alabama inside linebacker Rolando McClain would bolster a Raiders run defense that ranks 28th in the NFL in stopping the run. Roll tide with Rolando, and roll away Russell Error.
The 49ers have two first-round picks which gives them flexibility to maneuver and move up in the first round to take Notre Dame’s Jimmy Clausen or Bradford, who passed for 88 touchdowns with only 16 interceptions in his Sooners’ career. But that’s not the call in Singletary’s Show and Tell World.
Realistically, the 49ers sound committed to Alex Smith for one more year so I suppose they could go after Washington’s Jake Locker in 2011 if things get worse. And, unlike the Raiders, the 49ers have a young quarterback (Nate Davis) on their roster they’d like to groom.
That line of thinking means the 49ers will be thinking to improve their offensive line. With the first-round pick the 49ers acquired from Carolina (if the Panthers lose their last two games they could finish as high as eighth in the draft order) the 49ers could have an outside shot at OU’s Williams. If not, they could grab Florida cornerback Joe Haden then maybe pick up Rutgers’ Anthony Davis (6-5, 322 pounds) or Maryland offensive tackle Bruce Campbell (6-7, 310 pounds) in the middle of the first round and follow Samurai Mike’s creed for smash mouth football. The 49ers, even with Frank Gore, are only 26th in the league in rushing.
If the 49ers go offense with their first first-round selection, they might go defense with the second first-rounder and USC safety Taylor Mays could provide some smash mouth in the secondary. The 49ers are 28th in the league in defending the pass. Of course, putting more pressure on the opposing QB has been an Achilles heel in San Francisco, so Georgia Tech 6-4, 275-pound defensive end Derrick Morgan, if he declares for the draft, could give them a pass rusher on the edge.
We’ll have to wait until Feb. 24 to take a serious peek at the 2010 NFL draft when prospective draftees strip down to their underwear at the scouting combine in Indianapolis. Until then, it’s JaMarcus and Alex and the revolving door of doubt each and every week.
Enjoy it while it lasts. I’m going to go get my H1N1 shot.

I voted for McGwire ... for the last time

2010-02-15T10:34:00.000-08:00

Roberto Alomar spit in the face of an umpire.
That’s probably the most degrading thing anyone could do on a baseball field and one of the most despicable things one man could do to another in life. That’s how most people may choose to remember Alomar.
But it’s probably not going to keep the second baseman from being elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame this week. When qualifying members of the Baseball Writers Association of America -- including me -- submit their ballots by Dec. 31, I suspect Alomar will receive the necessary 75 percent of the vote to gain induction into Cooperstown.
Alomar has my vote. He was a 12-time All-Star consecutively, meaning he dominated more than a decade at his position. He won 10 American League Gold Glove Awards. He was a lifetime .300 hitter. He could steal bases. He could score runs. He could prevent runs. He could hit with power. He could hit in the clutch. He may be one of the best all-around second baseman ever in the game and certainly the best at his position in his era.
Case closed.
I’m not going to let one isolated spitting incident with home plate umpire John Hirschbeck 13 years ago cloud Alomar’s Hall of Fame caliber playing career. I would dare guess that most of my fellow 530 plus HOF balloters feel the same thing.
Yet, most of my fellow balloters choose not overlook the one isolated incident two years ago that haunts Mark McGwire and he wasn’t even playing on a baseball field at the time. I just wonder how many BBWAA writers would vote McGwire into the Hall of Fame if he had not never appeared in front of a Congressional panel and made a fool of himself with his “I’m not here to talk about the past” mantra.
I, for one, have tried to look past that embarrassing moment and tried to remember McGwire for hitting 583 career home runs and injecting, no pun intended, much-needed life and excitement into baseball in 1998 when the game was reeling and recovering from a work stoppage that cancelled the 1994 World Series. He looked like a natural home run hitter as a rookie in 1987 when he slugged 49 home runs. When he started hitting home runs later his career he didn’t look as natural, though no one seemed to care. Baseball needed a hero and McGwire produced a heroic feat – 70 home runs in a single season.
Then, for whatever reason 10 years later, McGwire agreed to appear before a Congressional panel investing steroid use in baseball. He didn’t flat out lie like others. He didn’t go into deep-rooted denial like others. He knew what he did sent the wrong message to the youth of this country and he wanted to help, but he only hurt himself with his stance and choice of words.
McGwire made a big mistake. But should he not be in the Hall of Fame along with Alomar, who couldn’t for years couldn’t live down the biggest mistake in his baseball career?
Case still open.
Yes, I am among the 22 percent or so of BBWAA members who vote for McGwire for the Hall of Fame. I’m not particularly proud of it. My argument is a hard one to make and defend. Like making an alibi for Tiger Woods’ marital infidelity.
I’m trying to look at McGwire more objectively and not be as judgmental. There is a gray area in my mind. There was a culture that existed in baseball in McGwire’s era that was not discouraged by anyone, any rules or any substantial drug testing. No one individual should be faulted for letting baseball’s dirty little secret get out of control. It was a team effort of deceit.
This is not a black and white issue with me. I don’t see it simply as McGwire cheated therefore he should not be in the Hall of Fame where they are other cheaters, or players who, too, looked for a competitive edge with the means they had.
Baseball is a game of numbers and McGwire put up big numbers that should land him in the Hall of Fame. Those numbers are probably tainted, but I do not know to what degree. I do not know how many other players in that era cheated, too. I do not have all the facts and information I would like to know how performance-enhancing drugs, legal or illegal, affected statistics of the so-called Steroid Era.
As you may have gathered, filling out my Hall of Fame baseball ballot is an agonizing progress. I can check up to 10 names on the ballot and there are 26 on it this year. I will vote for Alomar, McGwire and Andre Dawson, a gifted hitter and fielder and one of only three players in the history of the game with 400 home runs and 300 stolen bases in his career. And he played most of it on bad knees. He was Rookie of the Year in 1977 and National League MVP a decade later.
I could have voted for Edgar Martinez, arguably the greatest Designated Hitter ever. But, though he was essentially paid to do one thing – hit – he had 2,247 hits in his career, far short of the magical 3,000 and more than 1,000 fewer than Paul Molitor.
I could have voted for Barry Larkin, another first-timer on the ballot. But in my mind he falls into the same category as a number of other Hall of Fame candidates – Jack Morris, Fred McGriff, Lee Smith, Tim Raines, Alan Trammell, Harold Baines, Don Mattingly – truly great players at their positions in their eras but were they dominating for an extended period of time to be deemed Hall of Famers? What sets them apart?
Which brings me finally to Bert Blyleven. For years, I have been on the fence but have resisted voting for him because I ultimately have found it hard to vote for a starting pitcher in the Hall of Fame who has nearly a .500 lifetime record (287-250) and made only two All-Star teams in 22 major league seasons. However, Blyleven is fifth all-time in strikeouts and recorded 262 complete games and 60 shutouts and those numbers jump out at you in this era. Plus, he had a legendary curve ball.
Phil Niekro is in the Hall of Fame primarily because he was a legendary knuckle ball pitcher – who won 318 games, made five All-Star teams in three decades and once led the league in ERA.
I could have voted for Blyleven, but I didn’t. I’m getting closer, yet I’m not quite totally convinced he belongs in the Hall of Fame.
But keep in mind one thing: We all can make mistakes. Big ones. Some are forgiven. Others are not.

Forgive my lapses

2009-08-02T17:09:00.001-07:00

Today is International Forgiveness Day.
Forgive me.
I have been lax updating this website the past month or so and I should explain. I have a new job. Actually, two.
In July, less than four months after I was laid off at the Marin Independent Journal following 22 years as sports columnist there, I was hired by Dominican University of California to be its new Associate Director of Public Relations. I will be pushing and pitching news instead of providing it and my main focus will be on the academics at the wonderfully small, private school in San Rafael and less on athletics, though the Penguins are taking a big step this fall when they move from NAIA to NCAA Div. II. Dominican will compete in the Pacific West Conference, which has nine member schools in four states, four in Hawaii. Its most famous school is Chaminade which, on Dec. 23, 1982, scored perhaps the greatest upset in the history of men’s college basketball, if not all of sports, by stunning Player of the Year Ralph Sampson and then No. 1 ranked Virginia.
On the very day I accepted the Dominican job, I received a telephone call from Jay Dela Cruz of Comcast SportsNet Bay Area, asking me to join his “dream team” of writers to contribute to CSN’s expanded website. I agreed to write a weekly column for CSN and appear on at least a couple of CSN’s locally-produced TV shows if needed.
Thus, I have been and will continue to be busy. I do not know how often I will be able to contribute entries to this website. My original intention, after I was laid off, was to post something every single day to keep myself busy and feed whatever interest this website generated.
That is not possible now. However, periodically, if time allows me and the mood strikes me, I will express myself and my opinion – good, bad or indifferent – through this website.
If not, please forgive me.

Giants fans have nothing to complain about

2009-07-10T22:36:00.000-07:00

Dear San Francisco Giants fans:

Quit the whining. You’re starting to sound like Boston Red Sox fans.

You complained about Barry Zito and yet he’s had a winning record since May 24 and, coincidentally, the Giants have gone 28-15 since then.

You griped about needing a big bat in the lineup. Well, you got a big man with a big bat – “Kung Fu Panda” Pablo Sandoval who would have been in the All-Star Game if you had outvoted Hawaii and its native son Shane Victorino.

You grumbled about Jonathan Sanchez being in the rotation and rejoiced when he was demoted to the bullpen and yet he returned as a starter on Friday night and threw a friggin' no-hitter with his father watching.

Stop it. The Giants will go into the All-Star Game break as the National League wildcard playoff leader. They have two (Tim Lincecum and Matt Cain) of the top 10 starting pitchers in the league, if not the majors. They finally have found a lead-off hitter, Aaron Rowand. They have a lovable lug of a first baseman/third baseman/catcher, Sandoval, the best combo player in San Francisco since Huey Lewis sang and blew into a harmonica.

Following Sanchez’s no-no on Friday night, only the Red Sox, Yankees and Dodgers had more wins this season and were at least 10 games over .500.

And yet Giants fans seem to always find fault with someone or something about this team?

This season you’ve seen a 300^th career victory. You’ve seen a no-hitter. You’ve seen progress, more than you ever expected or imagined or even hoped.

The Giants are having a truly magical season. Realize it. Enjoy it!

ESPN show on Jerry Rice: From dirt to paydirt

2009-07-09T17:59:00.000-07:00

There are times I have been as hard on ESPN as Rush Limbaugh on liberals, but “Homecoming” with former Sports Illustrated senior writer Rick Reilly hits a home run with me.

I watched Jerry Rice’s “Homecoming” the other night on the Mothership Station. It was taped about two months ago at the Great America Theater, a block over from the 49ers’ headquarters in Santa Clara. The show was funny and revealing. It was sports’ version of the old TV show “This Is Your Life” from the 50s and 60s.

It was a one-hour examination of Rice’s life before and after football and it included never-before-told stories that either Reilly or his crack staff had researched. It included appearances from family, friends and former teammates such as Steve Young, Eddie DeBartolo and Dwight Clark.

But the biggest surprise – and best story – came from Jackie Rice, Jerry’s ex-wife. They divorced about two years ago but she had the class to show up for the show and gave us the funniest image. We all know how meticulous Rice was and may still be about everything he did in football – from the way he played it to the way to the way he trained for it to the way he even dressed for it – but Jackie offered a tale of how Jerry used to clean their floors the day before home games.

“He’d vacuum the carpet and the lines had to line up,” said Jackie, drawing a big laugh from the audience and a big smile from Jerry.

Jackie, I'm sure, could have really embarrassed Jerry with some other stories but she told one that reflects his incredible work ethic and unique character in a way that so many of us can understand on a human level. The guy could score touchdowns and clean the house!

So when Rice is inducted into Canton with the Class of 2010, he will have completed a classic career with a new twist: From Hoover to the Hall of Fame.

Spitting mad about watching sports in Hawaii

2009-07-05T18:50:00.000-07:00

I got up for “Breakfast at Wimbledon” today to catch the Roger Federer-Andy Roddick gentlemen’s final.

Then I remembered I was in Hawaii where it might as well be “Last Call at Wimbledon.” I missed it. I switched over to ESPN to discover that Federer won in an epic fifth set and, because I’m three time zones to the left of California, it was over by the time I was awake to watch it.

Instead, I got my morning fix of sports watching some weird team bowling event on ESPN. The bowlers were dressed in shorts, t-shirts, sneakers and caps and were rolling balls down a makeshift lane that appeared to be at some Six Flags amusement park. I know that because I swear I saw Bugs Bunny sitting in the back row of the crowd.

Following sports in Hawaii is like following the moon in daylight. Everything seems out of whack. Most major league baseball games this weekend were over before I had lunch. I’ve got ESPN’s Sunday Night Baseball on the TV right now and I haven’t even thought about what I’m going to have dinner. I could go to a sports bar but 1) I haven’t found one here on Wakiki Beach (but I have found about 87 ABC Stores!) and 2) even if I did the only thing to watch would be the SportsCenter from Los Angeles and, frankly, I’ve had my fill of Manny Ramirez highlights.

So I’m stuck watching Tampa Bay pitcher Matt Garza spit as much as any man that can humanly spit.

Aloha means there’s nothing else on the TV worth watching.

Aloha means goodbye to best intentions

2009-07-03T10:27:00.000-07:00

As I stepped off the plane in Honolulu on Wednesday, Nick Rolovich was staring right at me.

Well, a large full-length cover photo of Rolovich on the back page of the Star Bulletin anyway. Rolovich, the former Marin Catholic High quarterback from Novato, California was recognized as No. 30 on the Star Bulletin’s countdown of the 100 greatest players in University of Hawaii football history. So I called Nick at the football office and left a phone message about getting together.

Then, on Thursday, I discovered that another former Marin Catholic and U of H star, Travis LaBoy, was coaching in a clinic in Manoa. Wow. So I decided right then and there to hop in my rental car and drive to the U of H campus and see LaBoy AND Rolovich together at the same time.

Imagine my luck?

Well, negotiating a car on the tight and crooked streets of Wakiki Beach is like playing Rubik’s Cube. I got lost trying to drive to the campus – passing approximately 27 ABC Stories in the process I might note -- then I had to walk through two parking garages to find the U of H football office on the third floor where I was directed to a lecture hall of another football clinic on the first floor where a coach informed me that Rolovich was on vacation and the football camp that LaBoy (who was No. 36 on the U of H all-time football list … 36^th? He made it to the NFL and played in the Super Bowl? 36^th???!!! Top 25 at least) was a part of was actually at Kapi’olani Park, which is right across the street from the hotel where I was staying. But the camp ended on Wednesday.

My luck.

It turned out that Rolovich and his family were attending a wedding in Novato. And LaBoy, with his foot in a cast following total reconstructive surgery for playing for the Arizona Cardinals, was back in California, too.

The Big `D' of the A's

2009-07-03T10:16:00.000-07:00

I had the privilege to spend a day with Oakland A’s left-handed pitcher Dallas Braden last Sunday for a freelance article I’m doing for the next issue of A’s Magazine. I was with him from the time he left his house in Stockton that morning to go to the Oakland Coliseum to the time he left a Stockton Ports game at Banner Island Ballpark that night to go home.

I saw how generous Braden was with his time and his fans. For example, more fans were flocking to him on Sunday night than to Roger Clemens, who was sitting with his wife, Debbie, about 30 feet away watching their son, Koby, catch for Lancaster against the Ports.

I saw the softer side of Braden. I did not see the harder side.

“He’s actually a complex guy,” A’s manager Bob Geren told me. “At some points, he varies his answers to me `Yes, sir’ `No, sir.’ At other times he’s very funny or very quiet.

“I’ve seen all of the angles of him but the one thing he is when he’s in the game is as fierce of a competitor as I’ve seen and tough. I’ve never seen a guy get hit with a 106 mph line drive (off the bat of Toronto’s Vernon Wells on May 10) right in the pitching hand and just stay in the game. I’ve never seen that and I don’t think I ever will again.”

In other words, Braden deserves a big hand either way.

Memories of the Original MJ

2009-06-27T09:25:00.000-07:00

My Michael Jackson memories date me and my age. I first saw him and Jackson 5 on the Ed Sullivan Show in 1970. I listened to their first album on an 8-track cassette.

But the closest I came to Michael Jackson -- the original MJ -- was in 1993 when he appeared at halftime of Super Bowl XXVII at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena where everyone thought the San Francisco 49ers would be. The 49ers had the best record (14-2) in the NFL during the 1992 season and that earned them the right to host the upstart Dallas Cowboys in the NFL championship game at Candlestick Park on Jan. 17, 1993.

It was Steve Young’s first championship game as the 49ers quarterback, replacing Joe Montana. He drove the 49ers 93 yards to a touchdown with 4:33 left in the game, pulling the 49ers within 24-20. I had come down from the press box and was on the sideline to the left of the 49ers bench. The crowd was as loud as I can ever remember it being at Candlestick Park. The Cowboys had the ball and the 49ers’ defense needed a stop and everyone was on their feet. It was thunderous. The momentum had shifted.

Then, on first down, Troy Aikman threw a 14-yard pass to Alvin Harper who turned it into 70-yard gain and Candlestick fell silent and the 49ers’ rally went dead. Three plays later, Dallas scored the clinching TD and Jimmy Johnson walked into the visiting locker room and uttered that infamous scream “How ‘bout them Cowboys!”

It wasn’t supposed to be the Cowboys’ year. It was supposed to be the 49ers’ year and I was supposed to go to the Super Bowl.

Instead, Michael Jackson told us to “Beat it.”

Are the Warriors shooting themselves in the foot again?

2009-06-26T10:06:00.000-07:00

That wasn’t an NBA draft I watched on television on Thursday. That was a puzzle.

Puzzle? After the first six players were selected in the draft, each time ESPN listed a “need to improve” graphic and each time it popped up “mid-range jumper” or some variation that indicated that these instant millionaires ought to work on their outside shot.

What’s wrong with this picture? These are millions of dollars about to be paid to young men who can’t even shoot a basketball much beyond a dunk and a lay-up?

One of those players was Ricky Rubio, the 18-year-old kid from Italy. He plays like Pete Maravich but he looks like Tony DeFranco, the lead singer for the 70s pop family singing group whose big hit was “Heartbeat (It’s A Love Beat). Did I nail that or what?

Anyway, Rubio said he preferred California’s climate so the Minnesota Timberwolves went ahead and drafted him – and his 8.0 points a game scoring average – thinking Rubio and his family would welcome the frigid winters in Minneapolis. Yeah, right. And, apparently just in case Rubio didn’t, the T-Wolves took another point guard, Jonny Flynn of Syracuse, with their next pick.

Puzzling.

Then, with the seventh pick overall, the Golden State Warriors finally took a player who can really, truly shoot and the rumor is they want to trade him to another team, the Phoenix Suns.

Now let me ask you this Warriors fans: Would you rather have Stephen Curry take a 3-point shot for your team or Stephen Jackson? I thought so.

Yet the Warriors are considering trading Curry, a dead-on, spot-up jump shooter who would compliment the slashing style of Monta Ellis, to the Suns for Amare Stoudemire, who doesn’t rebound well or defend well or block many shots and who could command a contract extension that could pay him $95 million for five years? And to get Stoudemire the Warriors would have to give up Curry and Andris Biedrins, their best rebounder and shot blocker? And this would make the Warriors a much better team for Don Nelson, who may coach only one more season?

I can understand if the Warriors want to blow up their roster as start over but I get the feeling they’re like Wile E. Coyote carrying the TNT to do it.

Very puzzling. More puzzling than funny.

LeBron and Shaq are not Batman and Robin

2009-06-25T09:15:00.000-07:00

Why can’t LeBron James suffer like Kobe Bryant?

Ever since Shaquille O’Neal was traded by the Los Angeles Lakers in 2004, it appeared Kobe was cursed never to win an NBA championship without Shaq. It took a Kobe five years to do it alone, but he did it.

Can’t the King go the same route? Can’t he pay his dues, so to speak? LeBron is still only 24 years old. What’s the rush? He’s only been in the league for six seasons.

Jerry West had to play 12 years in the NBA before he finally won his first championship – at the age of 33 – but West needed 7-foot-1, 275-pound Wilt “The Stilt” Chamberlain to get him over the top.

But LeBron wants his NOW. Which is why the Cleveland Cavaliers traded for Shaq who will try to do for the King what Wilt did for West. Except the 7-1, 325-pound Shaq will turn 38 during the playoffs next season and that’s asking a lot for a guy of Shaq’s stature to defer to LeBron. Shaq was supposed to be the missing piece for the Phoenix Suns when they acquired him late in the 2008 season and stuck him in the middle of an All-Star lineup. Well, Shaq had as much impact in Arizona as Matt Leinart and the Suns’ franchise is fading like a cactus in the desert sun.

So what we have is an NBA-title-or-bust scenario this coming season in Cleveland and they will have to go through a healthy Kevin Gannett and Boston and Dwight Howard and an inspired Orlando team. If the LeBron and Shaq don’t win it, it could be one-and-done for both players. LeBron will leave Cleveland and find another team that offers a Kobe-like supporting cast to lead him to an NBA championship and Shaq will look for the best deal that will portray him as the missing link.

Good luck, King. Good luck, Shaq, You’re going to need it. I hope you suffer together.

U.S. soccer scores back-to-back `miracles'

2009-06-24T19:09:00.000-07:00

I was in a restaurant having lunch with my family on Wednesday when cheers erupted from the bar. No, John Daly wasn’t buying a round for the house. Upon further review, there were people actually watching TV and cheering for a goal by the United States in the Confederation Cup.

Big deal? You bet. It was confirmation that someone cares about soccer in this country.

Two weeks ago, Sports Illustrated had a tiny article in its publication – on page 33, right after horse racing – that basically implied that Bob Bradley’s job as coach of the U.S. team was under fire. The Americans had been embarrassed in a 3-1 loss to Costa Rica – think New York Yankees being swept by the Washington Nationals – then needed to rally for a 2-1 over Honduras (think Baltimore Orioles) in North and Central American qualifying for the World Cup. Ask most Americans to name a player on the U.S. team and they might get Landon Donovan but no one else.

The Americans and Bradley appeared irrelevant until Wednesday. They essentially produced back-to-back miracles. First, they somehow managed to get to the semifinals of the Confederation Cup in South Africa only because they needed the improbable combination of Egypt losing to them by three goals (and they did) and Italy losing to Brazil by three goals (and they did). Then, in the semifinals, though being outshot 29-9, Team USA upset heavily-favored Spain, the world’s No. 1 ranked team, 2-0.

“This is an accident,” Spain’s coach, Vincente del Bosque, said.

Accident? Do you believe in miracles? Twice? We’re talking “Miracle on Grass” stuff here.

The Americans will now play in the Confederation Cup championship on Sunday, the first time since 1916 the U.S. has played in a men’s FIFA finals. Think Boston Red Sox and Curse of the Bambino.

Maybe this was an “accident.” Or maybe this was just a shot-in-the-dark day for American soccer. Either way, it should bring some attention to soccer in the United States. That’s a miracle in itself.

The King and wine make great combination

2009-06-22T12:20:00.000-07:00

I spent the whole weekend at the NASCAR race at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma and got my neck red.

I saw plenty of odd sights but the weirdest one of all was seeing Richard Petty drinking wine in the winner’s circle. What’s wrong with this picture … The King? Drinking red wine? In the winner’s circle?!

It’s about time. Richard Petty represents everything I like about NASCAR and since he retired as a driver in 1992 and became an owner his team had won only three times until Sunday. That’s three times in 17 times and none in almost 11 years.

And then Kasey Kahne, driver of the No. 9 Budweiser Dodge for Richard Petty Motorsports, came out of nowhere – a driver with no penchant for running on road courses winning a race for a 71-year-old owner who richly deserved it. It was a great moment, and then the King was ready for it. He was ready for the wine, too.

It seems Petty visited a winery over the weekend and was led into a wine cellar that the King called “a cave.” He said it was loaded with barrels of wine.

“I think we drunk something out of every barrel,” the King said. “(The cave) was straight and, when we got to the other end, and when I turned around, that dog gone was like that and like that (waving his hands). It changed after I went up through it. It was straight going in, it wasn’t too straight coming out.”

To quote rocker Peter Frampton: “What wine? Whose wine? Where the hell did I die?”

In a NASCAR world that has gone so high tech, it was so nice to see a good ole boy get a win for a change. The difficult economy has taken a big bite out of Richard Petty Motorsports, creating tension and causing cutbacks. Yet the King has handled all the losing and frustration over the years with class and dignity so it was such a treat to see him back up on the big stage and back in the spotlight again.

Petty could have whined about all his team’s misfortunes and bad luck. Instead, he wined and dined.

A toast. Long live the King!

Kyle Busch works hard for the money

2009-06-20T20:31:00.000-07:00

Last year, Kyle Busch hardly thought about racing on the eve of the Toyota/Save Mart 350 at Infineon Raceway. He and his girlfriend, Samantha Sarcinella, spent the weekend by going to Target to buy “Family Guy” DVDs then watched television in their hotel room when they weren’t hanging out by the pool.

Relaxed and refreshed, Busch led 78 of the 110 laps and won the race on Sunday.

This year, Busch won’t have much time to relax. After practicing at the Sonoma track on Saturday morning, he hopped on a helicopter to fly to Napa to get on a private plane to fly to Milwaukee to race in the Nationwide Series series there on Saturday night. After that, Busch planned to fly back and arrive in Napa around 4 a.m. on Sunday so he could defend his title in NASCAR race at Infineon Sunday afternoon.
If there was any benefit to it it’s that Busch got to leave the track in Milwaukee about an hour sooner than Carl Edwards, who outran him to win the race and had to stick around for media and sponsor obligations.

Still, Busch suspects he won’t catch a break.

“I’ll probably get ridiculed if I lose the (Sonoma) race this year or struggle in it because I went to Milwaukee. I don’t feel that way,” Busch said earlier this week. “Last year I set the tone that I do know how to road race and if my car is good enough I can make it happen and if we’ve got the right pit strategy we can make it happen. This year it will just be about making sure I get enough sleep.”

Busch planned for shut-eye. He said he had a comfortable spot on the private plane picked up.

“In the bathroom,” he quipped.

Well, don’t be surprised that even with forces against him – jet lag, sleep deprivation, Busch-bashing fans – that the Bad Boy of NASCAR makes good on Sunday. Then he can relax.

NFL players are most underpaid athletes in the world

2009-06-18T16:48:00.000-07:00

Forbes Magazine has announced its list of the world’s highest-paid athletes and, of course, Tiger Woods tops it.

No surprise there.

Woods is one of three professional golfers on the Top 20 list. There are also five NBA players, three Formula One race car drivers, two NASCAR drivers, two New York Yankees, two professional boxers, two professional soccer players and one tennis player.

However, there is not one NFL player on the list.

What’s up with that? The NFL is probably the richest sport there is. Stadiums are usually filled to capacity. There are games on television sometimes five days out of the week. There is analysis of the games on TV 24/7/365. These NFL players get more worldwide exposure than any athletes on the planet from merchandize sales to fantasy football and yet not a one of them is among the world’s highest paid in their profession. And the closest to make the list isn’t even a quarterback. It’s the former client of Mill Valley sports agent Steve Baker: Oakland Raiders cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha, who signed a $45 million contract in February.

So, though NFL owners are making money hand over clenched fist, the league’s salary cap prevents its employees from making more money than they should.

If you were to ask me, NFL players are the most underpaid athletes in the world. If you could stand on an NFL sideline like me and hear the violent sound of players getting tackled, you might agree. These players don’t get paid enough to subject their bodies to those type of brutal collisions. I mean, Manny Pacquiao, who is the best boxer in the world pound for pound, couldn’t take the pounding that most NFL players do yet he’s tied with LeBron James and Phil Mickelson at No. 6 on the latest rich list.

In fact, King James and maybe Shaquille O’Neal might be the only two on the current Forbes’ Top 20 best-paid list who would be able to play in the NFL. But they play in a league that guarantees you’ll earn every single penny for every year in which you sign a contract to play. The NFL guarantees a big signing bonus and not much else beyond an annual salary.

So as much you may know and adore Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, Brett Favre and all the other star-studded QBs in the NFL, they are rich men, poor men compared to Kimi Raikkonen.

Kimi Raikkonen!? Never heard of him? He’s a Finnish F1 driver who is tied with Kobe Bryant and Michael Jordan for No. 2 on the list behind Tiger. Kimi’s probably never even picked up a football in his life.

If it's Tiger vs. Phil, who would you root for?

2009-06-17T17:04:00.000-07:00

Imagine this fantasy finish to the U.S. Open this weekend.

Tiger Woods vs. Phil Mickelson in the final group, topping the leaderboard and comfortably leading the rest of the field by several strokes.

Who do you root for to win?

Everybody loves Tiger because Tiger’s a winner. He’s fit and he’s fun to be around. He’s in all the TV commercials and video games. His demeanor breads confidence and his smile could light Nike headquarters for a week. He’s won more major tournaments on this planet other than Jack Nicklaus and he wins from ahead and from behind with an unmistakable animated fist-pumping style that appeals to the galleries who adore him and the fans watching at home who admire him. He is on the Mt. Rushmore of modern day sports.

Then there’s Phil. He’s lumpy and lefty. He’s like a doughnut: There are a variety of reasons you shouldn’t like him (namely he doesn’t win nearly as much as Tiger) and he’s usually not good for you in the end but you have a fond weakness for him. You have a soft spot because, all things considered, he’s an underdog. A cuddly puppy, though hardened golf fans don’t warm to him because he fails in the clutch more than his succeeds and the perception is no such thing ever happens to Tiger.

Tiger wins when you suspect he can win. Phil wins when you least expect it.

So what happens if, on Sunday, they’re playing for our national championship, head to head, hole by hole? Who do you want to see win?

As much as I like Tiger as the next guy, I’m pulling for Phil. His wife, Amy, has breast cancer – my older sister is a breast cancer survivor – and she wants him to come home with the U.S. Open trophy. It’s like Adrian awakening from a coma and telling Rocky Balboa to go fight and win. This would be perfect theater, Phil coming down the 18^th fairway at Bethpage Black with a chance to win the U.S. Open but needing to beat Tiger to do it.

In the end, it’s pure Hollywood. Phil, with Tiger looking over his shoulder, sinks a tournament-winning birdie putt then breaks down and cries. And we’d cry with him.

So, the question is, do you root for Tiger and smile or root for Phil and cry? Either way, I’m loving it.

Sosa newest victim of "Fairnaru-Wada Era"

2009-06-16T15:48:00.000-07:00

You know it’s not a good day in sports when Mark Fainaru-Wada shows up on television.

I kid Mark, who I consider a good friend, but his job now as an investigative reporter for ESPN means he usually turns up or reports something negative regarding athletes and performance-enhancing drugs. So, when the New York Times reported today that former Cubs slugger Sammy Sosa tested positive in 2003 for using an unnamed PED, Fainaru-Wada got some face time to explain the latest catch in the steroid era net.

He is the Bob Woodward of the PED generation, who was at the forefront of steroid investigation.

It was just another gotcha. In 2003, Sosa was caught redheaded with a performance-enhancer – cork spilled out of one of his bats. Sosa’a alibi for that was it was one of his batting practice bats and he mistakenly used it in a game. Sosa also denied using PEDs in front of a Congressional committee in 2005 and said earlier this month, upon announcing his retirement through ESPN Deportes, that he was “calmly waiting” for his induction into baseball’s Hall of Fame.

Well, tick, tock, tap your shoes and grab a Snickers bar. Sosa will have to wait five years before his name even appears on the Hall of Fame ballot and, by then, we should have a clearer picture of the so-called steroid era. By then, we should know the names of all 104 anonymous players on the list who tested positive in a secretive 2003 survey and right now we know only two – Sosa and Alex Rodriguez.

Until then, Fainaru-Wada has a job to do.

Giants' wildcard playoff hopes premature

2009-06-15T16:42:00.000-07:00

If the 2009 season was to end right now, the San Francisco Giants would be in the playoffs.

OK, have you rolled that around in your mind and relished that thought? It would be like Susan Boyle being named Miss California then being backed by Donald Trump.

We’re talking pure fantasy here, people.

The good news is the Giants have won 13 of their last 18 games to move a season-high six games over .500. They’ve got a better record than the New York Mets.

The Mets are probably a better team but they’re in a tougher division. The Giants, who currently have a better record than four of last year’s division winners, are a good team in a bad division.

Now brace yourself for the bad news. Four of the last five teams the Giants faced had losing records. Four of the next five teams the Giants face have winning records.

So, before we get too excited about the Giants, let’s get to July then turn the page and the calendar. Then we will see how committed the Giants are to winning right now. We will see if general manager Brian Sabean can make a deal to bolster the offense before the trade deadline. We will see if the Giants are willing to part with pitching prospects of the future for a big bat of the present to make a playoff run. We will have to wait and see.

Until then, you can fantasize all you want.

Penguins' Cup win supersedes Detroit's woes

2009-06-13T09:40:00.000-07:00

I woke up this morning expecting to see video of people dancing in the streets celebrating the Pittsburgh Penguins winning the Stanley Cup on Friday night.

Instead I logged onto my computer and the first thing I was led to was an ABC video entitled “No Joy In Motown,” focusing on the Red Wings losing the Cup in Detroit, a city that leads the nation in unemployment (14 percent) and where the housing market and automobile industry have collapsed.

Now I feel for Detroit. Everybody does. But what about Pittsburgh and its hockey franchise!? The Penguins became the first road team in 30 years to win a Game 7 of a finals championship series but their fans and their city have suffered through tough times, too.

Mario Lemieux will forever be the face of hockey in Pittsburgh and its savior. In 1993, a year after he led the Penguins to their last Stanley Cup, he was diagnosed with Hodgkins disease at the height of his playing career. He beat cancer and eventually became the team’s owner. In 1998, the team filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and was on the verge of folding or moving. Lemieux stepped in and agreed to defer players’ salaries, thus saving the team. Few if any owners would ever do that.

The Penguins continued to lose money. In 2004, their attendance (11,877 per game) was the worst in the NHL. The next season started and Lemieux had no choice but to go along with an NHL owners lockout, preventing players from playing and fans from watching. Five years ago, the Penguins and the league had hit rock bottom.

Then, on Friday night with Super Mario in attendance, the Penguins climbed back to the top, ending an incredible comeback by hoisting the Cup over their heads in Detroit. There may have been no joy in Motown, but there was tons of pride in Pittsburgh, the Steel City. It’s a feel-good story that even Detroit can appreciate.

"Superman" needs nickname change

2009-06-12T16:15:00.000-07:00

Look! Up in the sky! It’s a bird!! It’s a plane!!! It’s someone who can’t make a free throw if his team’s playoff life depended on it!!!!

It’s Dwight Howard of the Orlando Magic who calls himself Superman. Well, he must be because with 11.1 seconds left in Game 4 of the NBA Finals on Thursday night he had the ball and the game firmly in his hands on the foul line 15 feet from the basket unguarded when he suddenly treated the net as if it had been dipped in Kryptonite. He did his best to avoid it. The man who is supposed to smash through bricks launched a pair of them at the rim. He missed both of two foul shots that would have given the Magic a likely insurmountable 4- or-5-point lead to even their series with the Los Angeles Lakers.

Instead, Howard fired Shaq-like blanks and the Magic missed a golden opportunity to abracadabra some excitement and suspense into these Finals. The Lakers managed to tie the game with just one shot then won it in overtime and, for all intent and purposes, won the series.

“Superman” Howard had been faster than a speeding bullet to score 16 points and was more powerful than a locomotive to block nine shots and was able to leap tall buildings with a single bound to grab 21 rebounds. Yet he will be forever remember in the Magic Kingdom as the stiff at the line who clanked a couple of free throws that would have made him the star of the game.

Now the burden is off Kobe Bryant and the Lakers smell the championship and Howard – who missed eight free throws all told in the eventual eight-point loss -- is prepared to take on the persona of another super hero – The Invisible Man. Maybe Howard ought to take his cape and slam dunk it in the trash and show a little humility. He’s suddenly become the Clark Kent of this series.