Breaking Up (a Pass) Is Hard To Do

Oh, National Football League.  You make it hard to forgive you, although I keep doing so.

 I think I said I was done with you last year.  Then I came back because, well, just because you were there and I couldn't resist you.  But . . .


1) Aldon Smith and the 49ers.  He crashed his car into a tree at 7 in the morning.  I don't so much care that he was drinking, but he drove while intoxicated, endangering other people.  The 49ers say they care about his well-being as a person, but they are not deactivating him for this game.  He is apparently going to play today, THEN maybe go to rehab.  My love for the Niners will be tarnished if they do play him. 

2) If rumors are true, the NFL exerted pressure on ESPN to back out of developing a documentary with PBS on concussions.  I don't know if those rumors are true, but they fit with the general pattern of issues we have seen regarding concussions recently and a growing discontent over how the league has addressed the matter.

3) Our nation's capital's football team continues to use a racist nickname straight out of Manifest Destiny.  Although I suppose someone with a dark sense of humor might find that fitting, I don't like the fact that the Commissioner continues to support the name.  The reason why no one in the league wants to change it, of course, has to do with money and merchandising, in the guise of "tradition."  I don't accept that as sufficient reason. 

So, these reasons are making me consider boycotting the NFL, by which I mean I would not watch another game and I will continue to never buy football merchandise.  It isn't like it was a realistic option for me to actually attend a game live, due to expense, so my "boycott" would be little more than poking a hole in a river. 

As I say this, of course, Green Bay versus Cincinnati is on the TV, but at least it is on mute. 

Okay, so maybe I'm just a hypocrite, talking big about being done without doing anything.  I know I talked about breaking up with the NFL last year.  But this year, with NBC Sports giving me fantastically improved access to Premier League Soccer, well, that gives me a more than adequate substitute in terms of weekend sports. 

NFL, time to clean up your act, or I really will be done for good. 

Opening Day Thoughts

Spring, and life begins again, and a new baseball season rides into town as my daughter gets ready to be born this summer. 

Having a daughter on the way puts things in perspective: the fact that the Giants have won two of the last three World Series means that I will TOTALLY be relaxed about the outcomes this year and can just enjoy the unfolding narratives.  That should last at least two weeks.

Here are my thoughts from Opening Day so far:

1) Clayton Kershaw is amazing.  I hate that he pitches for the Dodgers, but you can't have anything but respect for him.  He shut down the Giants on offense and won the game with a home run.  It was just his day. 

2) Matt Cain pitched well, the offense did their best--although would it kill Hunter Pence to develop some patience at the plate?--and it is a long season.  It was the bullpen that let the Giants down today.  It's going to be a fun rivalry this season.

3) These are not the same Dodgers owners whose attorney attributed some blame to Bryan Stow.  I need to remember that.

4) Jackie Bradley Jr, the Red Sox phenom, looks like he could be fun to watch!  Great discipline.  But he will need to show he can hit.  Drawing walks against CC Sabathia was impressive, but Daric Barton of the A's and Travis Ishikawa of the Giants drew a lot of walks, and that was never enough to really break through into the big time.

5)  Yankees are in trouble this year.  Also, it is strange to see Kevin Youkilis in a Yankees uniform. 

6) Bryce Harper hit two home runs.  Let's just give the World Series to the Nationals now and save us all a lot of time. 

Or, you know, let's not do that. 

Addressing The Slums, Literally

There are times when the influence of sports triggers steps forward in society at large.  Think Jackie Robinson and the integration of Major League Baseball.  Now, in Brazil, comes another one of those steps forward.

I found this fascinating: the slums, or favelas, or Rio are finally being mapped. 

It is depressing, but admittedly poetic in a macabre sort of way, that the poorest slums in Rio de Janeiro have not been named on maps.  The poor have been invisible, literally not listed on any map, denied the official addresses needed--as mentioned in the article--for job applications, bank accounts, and emergency calls. 

No wonder drug dealers have roamed the slums of Rio for so long. 

So, the reason why Rio is finally addressing this issue?  Sports, or more directly, the money and public attention that will come to Brazil from the 2014 World Cup and 2016 Summer Olympics.  It doesn't seem like this prompt should have been needed, but hey, if it works, it works. 

A victory for sports, for people like FIFA's president Sepp Blatter who argue that sport should be independent of politics because it serves as its own style of diplomat, bringing outcast countries into the fold and encouraging them to ameliorate those circumstances that cause outrage within and beyond their borders.

Then again, the awarding of the 2014 Winter Olympics and the 2018 World Cup hasn't exactly spurred human rights advances in Russia, where new anti-gay legislation is pending.  Clearly Putin loved the old Cold War movies too much, because now he wants to revive that Russia versus the world paradigm through tyranny and just general nastiness. 

Don't expect to see FIFA rescind the Russian World Cup, though, nor the IOC pulling the Olympics.  Too much money at stake, and sporting associations aren't likely to take such blatant action.  But if FIFA refuses to condemn Russia, then it certainly seems like it should not be allowed to take too much credit for improving Brazilian life, even if that is an indirect result of the 2014 World Cup preparations. The same should be said for the Olympics.

Or is it just an example of picking one's battles?  Should FIFA and the IOC be lauded for their influence, the awarding of sporting events and the ensuing public spotlight forcing positive changes in some instances? 

Perhaps we should just say objectively that sports are having a positive effect in Brazil, and a neutral effect in Russia, since the awarding of the World Cup can't be blamed for Putin becoming a jerk--he was one already.  The changes that occur are simply a matter of cause and effect, not a reason for celebrating the sports that triggered the changes. 

What do you think?  Is credit due to FIFA and the IOC for awarding these prestigious events to a country with known social ills, in the expectation that the ills might be treated?  Or is it really just all about the money with them, and any attached progress happens independently of their influence, or more specifically, independent of their intentions? 

A Broader View Of Baseball

I was finding myself screaming at the TV on a regular basis, any time the Giants didn't win a baseball game.  It seemed natural enough to think that if the Giants were struggling and the Dodgers were having undeserved success, the universe was unfairly out to get me. 

Then we realized our cat had fleas, and all of a sudden baseball didn't seem as important.  After a frenzied day of vacuuming--in which I learned how to use the attachments on our fancy new vacuum cleaner WITHOUT an instruction book--and decimating our laundry piles and taking the kitty to a vet for treatment, I'm feeling very adult and productive, even if I did put whites in with a pink blanket.  Ouch. 

So this puts me in a more reflective frame of mind.  Time to consider some of the stories in baseball that intrigue me even without directly contributing to the all-conquering success of Buster Posey and company.

1) Bryce Harper.  I've been opposed to Bryce Harper, the young Washington Nationals phenom with the bad haircut, on general principle ever since I read in Sports Illustrated that he has a bit of a swelled head.  But then Cole Hamels intentionally hit Bryce Harper in the first Phillies-Nationals game of the year, for no valid reason, and Harper's response was to steal home.  That's just outstanding.  So now, today, there is a rematch on TV, and a rivalry I can actually care about on the East Coast.  It helps that the Red Sox and Yankees are struggling, so there are actually some different teams being shown on TV.

2) The Athletics.  Oakland is playing quite well this year, and even though Yoenis Cespedes is hurt, he has done enough to pique my curiosity.  With Oakland, I have the benefit of cheering for them as a local team from my boyhood, but with the buffer that they were never my favorite team, so I am not as heavily invested in them.  I can just enjoy the intricacies of the game when watching them play, and they are actually competing in the AL West.

3)  The Orioles.  The AL East is being lead by a team that does not hail from New York, Boston, or Tampa.  And they aren't Toronto.  That's fascinating.  The Orioles have a great tradition from the days of Cal Ripken Jr and Eddie Murray and Roberto Alomar.  They should be contending, and it is great that they are, especially since they weren't given much of a chance this year.

That's enough to be going on with.  It should be an awesome summer of baseball. 

Random Thoughts On Writing And Vegetables

Two poems submitted in the last two weeks. This promises to be addictive.

It starts to rain as I walk to buy fresh bagels. There is a novel in that, surely.

In gardening news, it appears that alyssum is the Borg Collective of the world of raised vegetable beds.

They Look Smaller On TV

When I was growing up, one of my favorite baseball books was Summer of '49 by David Halberstam, which chronicled the thrilling pennant race between the Yankees and the Red Sox. It bestowed mythic status upon players like Dom and Joe DiMaggio, Ted Williams, Johnny Pesky, Yogi Berra, even Birdie Tebbetts. Without baseball, and the larger-than-life status it bestowed upon heroes, how many kids growing up in Montana during the '80s and '90s would have any clue who Mel Parnell was?

These days, I don't find the same fascination when it comes to Boston-New York baseball games. I wish I could still care about the rivalry. I've tried. But . . . no. It doesn't help that Sunday Night Baseball seems to broadcast Yankees-Red Sox approximately 160 times a year, which they really have to try for, since there are only 162 games in a season.

Overexposure makes the whole thing less interesting.

The NFL should have learned this lesson. I heard a rumor in Peter King's column for cnnsi.com that the NFL planned to announce the schedule for 2012 as part of a prime-time TV special. Sadly, this was not just a rumor. They actually did it this week.

This sort of non-event event gives events a bad name. It's like LeBron James' "Announcement" special; we really didn't need an hour-long TV special to tell us where LeBron was going to play basketball. And much like that killed off a lot of my interest in the NBA, the NFL televising the schedule makes me question my interest in football.

Of course, I'm also still bitter about the coverage of the NFL draft. I used to enjoy getting up early on a Saturday morning to watch the draft with Vaughn. We would get coffee and breakfast and make our own mock drafts. Now, though, the NFL shows the first round on a Friday evening, east coast time, when I'm still at work. Boo.

I understand why the NFL needs to market every last drop of potential advertising dollars; now that we are no longer able to pretend as a culture that concussions are a sign of manliness and virtue, the lawsuits are going to pile up, especially after Gregg Williams expressly stated the motive of unmitigated violence against opponents.

That's fine for a business to try to protect its interests, but the consequence of their methods risks losing me as a fan even before the 49ers move to Santa Clara.

Green For Saint Patrick's Day, Green For Soccer

The torrential rain stopped long enough. Mostly.

There were still bursts of hard rain for different periods during the day, but our Saint Patrick's Day excursion to AT & T Park for a soccer doubleheader continued, with plenty of hot chocolate, of course.

It was always going to be festive. We figured that out on the train up from San Jose, as more and more fans crowded on the train, a majority of them wearing Mexico jerseys, which had the added benefit of being green, thus protecting the wearer against pinches. (Interesting train ride: people were openly carrying cases of beer, which is apparently not a problem for Cal Train, as the conductors didn't seem to care.)

I was not sure how well a soccer field would fit inside AT & T Park, with the configuration for baseball, but it actually proved to be quite successful, and our seats were amazingly close to the pitch. First game was San Jose versus the Houston Dynamo.




The Earthquakes had moments of opportunity, but never quite finished, while the Dynamo made the most of the penalty kick they earned to take all the points from the game. Still, I enjoyed it thoroughly.

And then things got even MORE festive for the second game, which is a little odd when you consider the first game was a professional match and the second game was a bunch of players 23 and younger. It wasn't even an actual Olympic qualifying match, simply a friendly between Mexico and Senegal. But the fans increased in number and frenzy, flocking to the bottom of the stands just to take pictures of the Mexican players warming up with small games of keep-away. And the procession on to the field was complete with fanfare (apologies for the shaky quality of the video from my iPhone):







Mexico soccer fans are great. I have rarely seen the wave done without any irony. Unfortunately, they also like vuvuzuelas.

The game was brilliant. Despite the youth of the players, there was an added dimension of speed and elegance that seemed to be missing from the MLS game, as fast and as skilled as the Earthquakes and Dynamo were. Senegal was big and strong, but Mexico started the game clearly the superior in terms of creativity and tactics, and their momentum paid off with two penalty kicks earned and converted in the first twenty-five minutes. Senegal looked much improved in the second half and converted a penalty of their own, but Mexico never really looked in danger of losing the match.

It was a great day, capped by a great meal at Tres with our friends Vaughn and Emily, where we had margaritas and shrimp tacos. A perfect flavor for the end of a soccer-flavored Saint Patrick's Day.

Full Speed Ahead With The Earthquakes

Major League Soccer really is a major league.

That sounds simplistic, but bear with me. I've always rooted for the league and the Earthquakes--and when there was no team in San Jose, DC United--but I always subconsciously considered it to be far inferior to the Premier League. The players looked slow, the passes looked slow, the fields looked clunky. Yes, the entire field.

But I've been to two Earthquakes games now, one last year and one on Saturday night, and seeing it in person is an entirely different question. The atmosphere has been outstanding, and everything looks polished smooth, and this is while they are playing at the University of Santa Clara, not even their own stadium--although their own stadium is now officially in the works.

Well, it looked smooth until before kickoff, when a fog machine and pre-match fireworks obscured everything during a strange electric guitar rendition of the national anthem. The anthem went on so long I thought the guitarist got lost along the way.



To see these players up close is to realize how fast and big they are. A shot that on TV looks like a slow bouncing ball actually zips along, passing outside the goalpost almost before it leaves the foot. That's how it felt, at least.

Which makes me realize just how much more intense and rapid a Premier League game must be in person.

2012 has kicked off with a win for the Earthquakes. I can't wait for the next game.

Soccer At The Desperate End

First, there was Germany-England. Now we have Bolton-QPR.

I know, I know, I never thought it would be possible to link the two matchups either. But it must be done.

Everyone remembers the World Cup imbroglio where a shot by England's Frank Lampard clearly crossed the goal line, but a goal was not awarded. That would have tied the match at 2-2. As it was, Germany went on to win 4-1, ending England's run in the tournament. Honestly, I think Germany was the stronger team and would have won anyway, but it clearly should have been a goal.

In today's match, QPR's Clint Hill made a great break to the ball on a corner kick and had a well-struck header that Bolton's goalie Adam Bogdan volleyed up against the crossbar and away from the line. Problem was, it had clearly gone a couple feet over the goal line. The assistant referee did not signal the goal, even though he had the proper positioning. He later claimed not to see it. There was a defender right on the post, but it still seems like he should have seen it cross the line.

The referee was not in a position to make the call either, although he was positioned correctly for a corner, with a vantage point that would allow him to watch for any fouls within the crowd in front of the goal.

Mistakes happen; unfortunately, both these teams are battling to avoid relegation from the Premier League, which would carry a significant financial setback.

Both teams clearly had nerves. Crosses and free kicks were hit too low and straight at defenders far too often--although American Tim Ream, a defender by trade, floated in a lovely cross for Bolton's opening goal. Bolton, by the way, went on to win 2-1, which makes the blown call all the more painful for QPR.

Goal-line technology seems inevitable. I am hesitant over anything that over-technifies* soccer--the omnipresence of television replays that expose every missed call by a referee, for instance--but I think it is a good call. It could actually remove some pressure from referees who are doing a tough job at a fast pace. Additionally, while I dislike the fact that sports are a business, it is not a fact that is going to change, and with so much at stake, I think it is important to make it as fair as possible. So if the goal-line technology can prove to be reliable, or if there is some sort of review process that allows questionable decisions to be reviewed--although such a review process probably wouldn't be feasible without interrupting the flow of the game--then I think it would be a good idea.

*my own term, and I stand by it.

Reasons Why Manny Ramirez Won't Destroy The A's

So I said the other day that all my interest in Oakland would dissipate if they signed Manny Ramirez. They did not take heed of my warning; strange, because I assumed Billy Beane was a regular reader.

In order to cover my bases, just in case the Ramirez signing doesn't ruin the A's season, here are some reasons why it will be successful, or at least not apocalyptic.

1) It's a non-guaranteed contract, which means if Oakland finds a better option while Ramirez is serving his 50 game suspension, they can simply release him.

2) It has certainly generated buzz. Anything to get people talking about Oakland, in addition to the Cespedes signing, has to be good for the Athletics. Maybe a few more fans in the stadium, maybe a little excitement or momentum. Good for the bottom line, hopefully good for the team, and therefore hopefully good for the fans, although if the team is indeed going to move to San Jose, it will be little more than a parting gift. Before these signings, it was likely that people would forget the AL West had four teams. At least now they will remember there is an Oakland.

3) Manny being Manny would make for a good excuse for any distractions or mediocre performances from the team. A good old fashioned scapegoat.

4) He won't be around for the first third of the season anyway, so the season's course will be at least partially defined already. It's a long season, but we will have some sense of how the team is likely to do, and Ramirez could either be an injection of adrenaline to maintain success, or simply a distraction from another disappointing run. It's a gamble, but as Oakland has already been written in as set to lose more than it wins, might as well gamble.

So yeah, I'll watch a few games. And maybe that's the whole point of the Ramirez signing: trying to get a few more people to notice the A's.

Signs Of Life In Oakland . . . For Now

It was looking like another tough off-season for Oakland Athletic fans. That's saying something, because the bar for tough off-seasons in Oakland is pretty high, with the ongoing reports that the A's will soon know the way to San Jose from first-hand experience.

This off-season seemed noteworthy in terms of promising an especially mediocre season; and yes, 'especially mediocre' seems a contradiction in terms, but it isn't a contradiction for A's fans. First, rumors are that the move to San Jose will happen soon. And even if it doesn't, some of the most exciting players the A's had are now gone, either via trade or free agency: Trevor Cahill, Gio Gonzalez, Andrew Bailey, Josh Willingham, to name four. And then you have the rest of the division getting tougher, with Albert Pujols going to the Angels and Texas signing Yu Darvish.

So there didn't seem to be many reasons for Oakland fans to care what is going to happen this season, other than the visceral, emotional reasons that no sports fans can really ignore, no matter how disgusted they get with management.

But there are a few interesting things that have happened.

1) Coco Crisp stayed. The free agent outfielder with one of the best names in baseball, expected to leave for richer pastures, actually signed a new contract, giving Oakland a figure of stability atop the lineup.

2) Jonny Gomes signed. The free agent outfielder is a native of Petaluma, so that adds an element of potential hometown heroics.

3) Unexpectedly, the A's signed one of the most talked about free agents of the off season, Cuban defector Yoenis Cespedes. Given the propensity of Oakland to hold on to money like an oyster holds on to its adductor muscle, this was startling. I expected him to sign with the Miami Marlins, for many obvious reasons, including the Marlins' willingness to splash cash about this off-season.

None of these reasons really give me extra motivation to attend an Oakland game. If I'm going to the Bay Area for a baseball game this year, odds are it will be a Giants game.

But there is this special bonus reason that intrigues me as a writer.

4) Brandon McCarthy is really, really funny. I didn't know much about Brandon, but he recently contributed a guest column to an SI.com blog, and it was awesome. It would be akin to Nick Hornby signing to play soccer for Newcastle United and turning into a 30 goal per season man.

All these moves could well be with an eye for a future San Jose stadium, which ironically I would dislike, much as I would dislike the Niners in Santa Clara, even though that would put them closer to me. But nevertheless, I'm intrigued enough that I will catch a few A's games on TV this season.

Unless, as rumored, they sign Manny Ramirez, as they are rumored to be considering. That would make me give up on them all over again.

Soccer Takes A Furry Turn, And Other Thoughts

1) I watched the Liverpool-Tottenham game today, which will be memorable not because of anything that happened in terms of actual game play, but because a cat scampered on to the field to halt the proceedings for several minutes. It was bemusing to see Brad Friedel looking so bemused to see a cat scurrying around the goal area--I hope he's not a non-cat person. But it was very cute, and a lot more entertaining than last week when apparently some buffoon ran on to the field and handcuffed himself to a goalpost. It was also way more attractive than any streaker.

Within minutes, there were already at least three Twitter accounts attributed to the cat. That says something about society, but I'm not sure what. I'm going to say it is a good thing.

2) Two more players who once were on my fantasy soccer team who shall never again represent FC Buster Posey: Luis Suarez and Andy Carroll. Luis Suarez just finished an eight game suspension for a racial insult directed against Patrice Evra of Manchester United, and Andy Carroll just spent the entire game whining and calling for penalties where none were merited, and then he wasted a couple of golden chances to score.

I trust they feel the lingering sting of being banished forever from the world of the my fantasy soccer graces.

I know you might think it is dubious to link a player impugned with racism with a player who fails to score, but they are in fact linked: one is offensive, and the other is ironically not offensive enough.

Pro Bowl, Amateur Relevance?

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell announced that he would consider eliminating the Pro Bowl, the annual all star game that used to cap off the year, following the Super Bowl as a post-season party in Honolulu.

My reaction to this news: "Huh. I don't really care."

If my reaction was not unique--and I suspect it was not--that underlines the problem that Goodell was pointing out. Is the Pro Bowl still relevant and do people enjoy it?

Speaking for myself, it has been some time since I actually cared about the Pro Bowl, and that was even before the NFL moved it to the weekend BEFORE the Super Bowl, which struck me as really weird, and an effort to artificially give it more importance than it actually has. I haven't really watched the Pro Bowl for some time, so I don't know if I can advise the commissioner on how to fix it. I tried to watch it last year, but I got bored after two minutes. Nevertheless, I've been thinking about this question, so I'll put out the thoughts that occurred to me.

I used to love the Pro Bowl. I feel nostalgic for the NFL of the '80s and '90s, when I was growing up. I think those were halcyon days for the NFL, with stars like Joe Montana, Jerry Rice, John Elway, Dan Marino, Randall Cunningham, Barry Sanders, Warren Moon, Phil Simms, etc. I remember enjoying the spectacle of the Pro Bowl, because every sports fan enjoys those "what if?" moments, such as "what if Joe Montana could throw to Art Monk or hand off to Herschel Walker?" Those "what if" moments are the reason why the Pro Bowl--and any All-Star game--would appeal to fans.

Tradition is important, I can tell you that much. Clearly the advertisers understand that football fans like tradition, as the advertisements in the Super Bowl seemed to focus a lot on nostalgia, as highlighted in this article by Peter Hartlaub of the Chronicle--on a side note, the Matthew Broderick/Ferris Bueller ad for Honda was clever and creative enough that I did not consider Broderick a sell-out, which is saying something; I don't feel quite so charitable towards Jerry Seinfeld or Jay Leno, although to be fair, I have disliked Leno since Conangate.

In the spirit of tradition, maybe the Pro Bowl should have been left alone as a post-Super Bowl party. The Pro Bowl should be fun for the fans, and the fans would be more likely to have fun if the players were clearly having fun, and I suspect that players would be more likely to have fun at the Pro Bowl with a longer break between the end of the season and the exhibition in Honolulu, not to mention the fact that then the stars of the teams in the Super Bowl could play.

If you do want to make the Pro Bowl better, you need to do away with the idea of an extra regular season game or two, because that's going to be an extra game or two to exhaust the players, which will make them less likely to enjoy an exhibition.

Maybe the question of relevance is the wrong question. Should the Pro Bowl be forced to mean more than what it is? In Major League Baseball, they recently introduced a competitive element, in that the league that wins the All-Star Game earns home field advantage for the World Series. This wouldn't work for the Super Bowl, not only because the Super Bowl is a one-off game rather than a series, but also because the Super Bowl is at a neutral site that bids large sums of money well in advance for the right to host, so you couldn't really inject an identical post-season stake in the Pro Bowl. Even if you could, the Pro Bowl can't be held in the middle of the season, so the result of the Pro Bowl would have to impact the following year's Super Bowl, which is not an idea I would like. I also can't say that I tend to watch baseball's All-Star Game more now than I did before it was just an exhibition.

In the end, maybe the question Commissioner Goodell needs to ask is, "How do we make the Pro Bowl fun again?" If you can't make it fun, then there is no point to having it. There is enough competition and money and business factors throughout the NFL; return the Pro Bowl to the realm of fantasy and nostalgia and pure entertainment.

When Sports Don't Matter

1) Does it seem odd to you that San Francisco is in a tizzy over a yacht race? The America's Cup is coming to the city, and I'm not quite sure whether or not this should be classified as a sporting event.

It seems more like an indulgence for the 1%, doesn't it? I have to wonder what the Occupy movement makes of this. It seems likely to be a target, or at least a potential target, if the movement persists until then.

How would the America's Cup transfigure the city? Will it leave a lasting benefit? There are talks of new places to stash yachts, but I think the city has enough of those already. And I don't think the majority of the city--as extrapolated by surveying my own opinions--would really care who can sail a yacht faster than another person.

Will the organizers and sponsors find a creative way to make it relevant to the city? What lasting benefit will they provide? And most importantly, how will they protect the waterways of the Bay, so as not to harm marine life?

As long as they can provide acceptable answers to these, then I don't mind if they have their boat race.

2) I love the Niners. The Niners fans, not so much in the last couple of weeks. First, there were myriad reports of harassment and verbal abuse of Saints fans that just crossed a line. Then there were the reports that police had to kick more than 100 people out of the game the other day.

Even worse, though, was this story.

Threats against our own player? Seriously, just because we lost the game? Yes, Kyle Williams had unfortunate turnovers, and they proved turning points on the game, but that doesn't justify the vitriol he received.

As one might expect, the vitriol was via the Internet, home of the shamelessly rabid and lunatic.

There is no room in sports for that sort of reaction.

I mean, if one must be vitriolic, limit it to REASONABLE targets, like complaining about biased refs and East Coast Bias. The fumble on the Giants' Ahmad Bradshaw that apparently wasn't a fumble? Justified by Mike Pereira, head of NFL officials, based in New York. I mean, that is justifiable irrational vitriol.

What? What are you looking at?

Seriously, though, stories like this make me recoil from rooting for sports. There is no justification for reacting like these fans reacted towards Williams. Maybe they lost a lot of money betting on the game, money they couldn't afford. To them, I would say, "Don't bet money you can't afford to lose on a football game, moron."

Playing With House Money

The Niners' playoffs begin today, when they host the New Orleans Saints. This game worries me, because I'm not sure the Niners can keep up with the Saints' high-powered offense, but it will be interesting to see how the defense copes with Drew Brees and his multiple weapons.

Even though the Niners are the home team, I would say they have nothing to lose. This whole season has been a success, a surprising turnaround from the recent struggles, especially since this was their first season under new coach Jim Harbaugh, and it was a season that began with a curtailed pre-season due to the lockout, reducing the preparation time.

It's great to see the playoffs back in Candlestick, for perhaps the last time. Either the Niners will move to Santa Clara, or San Francisco--or interested private parties--will come up with a stadium plan to keep them in the city, which looks doubtful.

I obviously want them to win today, but anything they do in the playoffs has to be considered a bonus. Still, the playoffs are the natural home for Frank Gore, Vernon Davis, and Patrick Willis, so let this be the beginning of a dominant run in the NFC.

Of course, I will be upset if they lose. I'll undoubtedly burn Drew Brees in effigy, but I mean, that just goes with the territory of fanaticism. You can't call yourself a true American sports fan until you've burned someone in effigy. I'm just saying, I'll get over it sooner than I would otherwise, and that's really all any of us can ask for in terms of keeping sports in perspective.

Seriously, what is the proper perspective on sports? Is there magic in sports? There seemed to be in 2010 when the Giants won. Some people think that Tim Tebow is magic, but he isn't. I'm sure Tebow's a nice guy, but if there is a God, I would hope it doesn't put a finger on the scales of a football game, because sports, let's face it, are not the most important thing in the world. Sports are at best number two in the world. And that's the way it should be. The magic of sports is entertainment, a diversion, and there is nothing wrong with that. Just don't be confused about the significance of sports compared to economic woes, religious persecution, poverty, etc.

This is ignoring the question of sports as business, the economic benefits a successful sports team can bring to a community, any tangible or pragmatic questions like that, because that's boring. I'm talking just about the playoffs, as in The Playoffs, as in what Jim Mora did not want us to talk about, but Jim Mora's clip has been reduced to advertising for a cheap American beer, which means that his opinion, like the beer, is irrelevant to my life. Newcastle and Fat Tire all the way for me today.

Let the run begin, Niners. If you leave SF, it will be the last time I care, even though Santa Clara is technically closer to me, so let's enjoy this moment while it lasts.

P.S. Dear Fox and all other TV broadcasters--when one of your skits is not funny, don't pretend that it worked. It makes you look silly.

P.P.S. On a related note, but not about sports, Kaley Cuoco, it would have been okay for you not to be excited that Two Broke Girls won an award on the People's Choice Awards. You don't have to pretend that it is a good show just because you work for the same network.

Random Sports Thoughts For The New Year

1) Everyone-and by everyone, I mean me-has made fun of Ron Artest for pulling a Chad Ochocinco and changing his name to the bizarre Metta World Peace, but the more I think of it, the more I think it is brilliant. It will certainly help his offensive game, because what defender will try to block his shots when that would prompt a television announcer to say, "So-and-so rejects World Peace"?

2) Odds are that David Beckham will sign with the LA Galaxy to play one more season in Major League Soccer instead of moving to Paris Saint-Germain. This is exciting to me, because Marina bought us season tickets for the Earthquakes for next season, so there is a chance I will be at the same soccer field as David Beckham, which will therefore make me glamorous and rich by association.

3) I keep reading about football teams signing random players who were not under contract during the current season to 'future/reserve contracts.' This means that once the next season officially starts in March, these players will THEN be under contract. They aren't technically employed by the team now, but they can't be employed by another team, is my understanding. This seems random and weird. Still, it isn't like the old reserve clause that basically kept players bound to one team, back in the days before free agency. The players who sign these non-contract contracts aren't being conscripted, after all.

Still, this does seem to be splitting hairs. Why not say that the teams have signed these players to contracts? Does anyone really care about the labor-related details as to why things are set up this way? Other than the lawyers who get paid for labor law work, that is.

One more example that sports are WAAAYYY more complex now than a bunch of men and/or women getting together to play a game with a ball. Not sure if that complexity is a good thing or a bad thing.

4) The 49ers scored a touchdown on a fake field goal on Sunday, with kicker David Akers tossing a pass to Michael Crabtree, who was hanging out way out to the left. The Rams completely ignored him or just weren't paying attention, which is why they are 2-14 and looking for a new coach. The touchdown was certainly important because the game was a one-touchdown victory for SF, but more importantly, that's just fun. Totally unconventional, even if it seems a little sneaky.

The Problem With David

If David and Goliath had fought a series of 16, or 38, or 82, or 162 contests, do you really think David would have won every time?

Here's the problem with sports and the question of parity--the little guys can pull off a Cinderella moment in a one-off encounter or a short run through the NCAA tournaments, but over the course of the season, the big guys tend to win out. Look at soccer, for example. Teams like Manchester City, the nouveau riche of the Premier League, have such depth of talent that they can withstand the rigors of a long season, letting stars rest, and can overcome red card suspensions or injuries more easily than smaller clubs. It isn't that they are inherently better as a club, or at least that is not the only reason; they also have more resources.

The resource question is important. Newcastle United started off the season brilliantly, but are now running into some trouble. They lost to Man City three weeks ago, which was not unexpected, then managed to secure a controversial draw with Man United. Last week, fickle fate attacked. Chelsea's defender David Luiz should have been sent off in the fourth minute for denying a clear goal-scoring opportunity, but escaped with a yellow card. That could have changed the entire match, and Chelsea went on to win 3-0. Even worse, Newcastle's star defender Steven Taylor was lost for the year. The media implied that now Newcastle will have to scramble for points the rest of the way to ensure safety, that being the only realistic option.

Today's match indicated this might be the case. Traveling to Norwich, Newcastle were thumped 4-2, having Dan Gosling sent off for a red card. I'm not too familiar with Norwich, but I would say that if Newcastle had serious ambitions of qualifying for Europe this year, Norwich is exactly the sort of team that Newcastle must beat.

It's funny how quickly results can turn. The small teams, the Cinderella stories, tend to fade away over the course of a long season. I was reading World Soccer the other night, in which articles were raving about the surprising starts of promoted Novara in the Italian Serie A and Real Betis and Levante in Spain's La Liga. I do get the magazine a bit late, as it comes all the way from England. This was the magazine on sale in October that I got in November. After reading the articles, I checked the standings, and all three teams had slipped wayyy down the tables. And look at the story of Blackpool last year in the Premier League: they came racing out of the gates as the darlings of the media, playing attractive soccer and getting some great results. But then, things started to not go their way, and they faded, and they ended up with relegation back to the lower division and lost their star Charlie Adam to Liverpool.

The Cinderella teams in the short tournaments become the Flavor of the Week in a long season. Big teams that start slowly--such as Arsenal this season--do recover. Dust tends to settle and cream rises to the top, which is the problem at the heart of the question of competitive parity: there is too much dust, not enough cream to go around. Any chef will tell you it is crucial to get the dust-to-cream ratio just right.

How do you ensure parity without relying too much on artificial restrictions? That's a problem that none of the major professional sports have really figured out once and for all. Salary caps help, so the NFL is ahead of a lot of the others, I would say. Baseball, for instance. Small-market teams benefit from revenue sharing, but that doesn't mean they can or will spend money, and it isn't entirely clear how legitimate some of the claims of necessary frugality from teams like the Pirates and the Marlins really are, especially in light of the Marlins splashing around cash on free agents this off-season like a kid doing a cannonball into a pool. And then you have the Angels owner, Arte Moreno, attacking the Yankees and Red Sox for doling out massive contracts, only to turn around and spend $250 million to lure Albert Pujols away from St. Louis. And in Spain, it never feels like there is a genuine chance for anyone other than Barcelona or Real Madrid to win the championship. The last team to do so was Valencia in the 2003-2004 season, which in the age of Twitter is so long ago that, realistically, it never happened. Is there a solution?

Michel Platini's Financial Fair Play movement seems a good first step to prevent the biggest clubs from taking on massive, destabilizing debt to outspend all comers and monopolize the best talent. There are loopholes, and we will have to wait to see how this works, but I like it in theory. Of course, just because a team is spending within its' means doesn't ensure parity, as some teams are meaner than others. I mean, they have more means than other teams.

Maybe this is just evolution, survival of the fitter, in terms of competition for resources. Maybe this is just a by-product of free-market capitalism or some other similar economic terms. Is the question of fairness in sports simply a myth? We talk about how there is always hope for any team at the start of the season, but it doesn't seem realistic. Without hope, what's the point of playing the games?

Of course, there would be no point, because, yes, things can happen that are unexpected. The Giants were not expected to win the World Series in 2010, and the Yankees, Phillies and Red Sox all failed to win it last year.

I would hope for more idealism in sports, even in the financial side. I know it is a business, but I would hope that results in sports would be primarily based on more than the bottom line. I think this is why I would much rather the 49ers stayed in SF, built a new stadium in Hunter's Point--which could attract business and jobs to that area--rather than fleeing to the suburban comforts of Santa Clara and a parking lot next to the Great America theme park. Spread the joy and resources, I tell you, even if Santa Clara can offer you more revenue. Santa Clara and Silicon Valley have a lot of resources as it is. But that's not going to happen. The Niners will go to Silicon Valley, and when they do, I'm done with them. Not that they would care.

The reality is that life isn't fair, so maybe sports don't have to be entirely fair either, even if they are supposed to be a sublimation for our frustrations with the unfairness of life. To paraphrase Calvin (of Calvin and Hobbes, not John Calvin), the world seems to rarely be unfair in our favor. Still, just because reality is unfair, that is no reason not to try leveling the pitch for all parties. I just have no idea how to do so.

When Business And Sports Collide

Some days, the news delivers all sorts of sports gold. Yesterday and today were just like that, and fittingly for a blog that starts with a mention of gold, I will write about the intersection of sports and business.

1) One of the latest Twitter scandals comes to us from Ohio University--note this is NOT Ohio State University, but the other one. Apparently the punter for Ohio University got into so much hot water over a derogatory remark about Idaho that he canceled his Twitter account. I'm not going to argue whether that is appropriate or not, given that derogatory remarks about Idaho/North Dakota constituted the basis for an entire system of humor in Montana. The lesson I learned from this story is that there is apparently a Famous Idaho Potato Bowl, which means there is a new champion of the Most Ludicrous Name For A College Bowl Game contest.

I also find it funny, yet all too perfectly appropriate, that this is the bowl game that used to be the Humanitarian Bowl. There is, after all, less profit in humanitarianism than there is in potatoes.

2) The NHL is considering realignment of the league. Realignment is always kind of odd. In baseball, for instance: the Brewers moving to the National League? I'm only now accepting that, and I dread trying to adjust to the Astros playing in the AL West.

For the NHL, certain realignment decisions would make sense. For instance, the Winnipeg Jets are currently playing in the Eastern Conference's Southeast Division, which only makes sense when you recall that this incarnation of the Jets was formerly known as the Atlanta Thrashers until this season. Realignment makes a lot of sense, commercially, in that it can create more logical rivalries if done right. Rivalries equal money.

There are many other factors in deciding what teams go where; teams that have to travel great distances currently will be in favor; other teams will resent the extra travel and extra expense if they must travel further. A lot will also depend on if the Phoenix Coyotes move to Quebec, which would be great! Much as I missed the name Winnipeg Jets--because that is a name that just screams hockey--I also miss the Quebec Nordiques and the Hartford Whalers, for no other reason than that they were teams in the league when I was first paying attention to sports, and I never authorized any changes.

Not that I pay much attention to hockey. It's too hard to follow the puck on TV. Still, I'll be interested to see how this plays out.

The NHL also seems to be heading for a possible collective bargaining showdown, based on a report in Forbes magazine arguing that the NHL needs to find a balance of revenue sharing between players and owners similar to the recent NBA agreement that reduced revenues going to players/employees. You know when Forbes is writing about sports, it's not writing about the sport side of sports.

If there is a protracted discussion on this, I hope the NHL learns the lessons the NBA should also learn; if there is a strike, a lot of us won't care. A good way to proactively prevent an exodus? Restore the Nordiques and the Whalers, and get rid of the Nashville team, the Columbus Blue Jackets, and any of the other bland teams I can never remember because they are newfangled corporate franchises, not rooted in a history dating back at least as far as my childhood.

Because it's all about me, even when I don't watch the NHL regularly.

3) On a more somber note, in discussing the collective bargaining issue, I find it interesting--and sad--that the New York Times featured in the same paper the first in a three part series on an NHL enforcer who died of an overdose recently, apparently the victim of addictions that arose from a career based on fighting. Fighting is a part of the business of hockey. It draws in fans. It's not part of the sport. It's the 'entertainment' side that appeals to a different portion of the mind. And it's another reason I've never been drawn to hockey too much, nor MMA. To make a career out of sacrificing your body, that's a hard thing, though not unknown in the broader society. Look at coal miners.

It's stories like these that transform one's perception of sports from the mythical purity of history to the business side of the game. Is it even possible anymore to really lose one's self in the game any more without being reminded of the other aspects?

Geometry Of Imperfection

Contrary to the ranting beliefs of certain xenophobes, you don't have to be sick to enjoy watching soccer, but it can help. I'm recovering from a little head cold, which puts me in the mellow, contemplative sort of mood that allows me to thoroughly enjoy the Fulham-Liverpool match, even though there is no score at the half.

The question of geometry suffuses the entire match. John Arne Riise was a star with Liverpool, and now he is back in England with Fulham--symmetry. Give-and-go passes define invisible triangles, and attempted through balls are all about finding the right angle to create an intersection of the pass and the striker.

Knowing where someone is trying to play the ball when pulling it back from the end line is great fun, and even when a ball goes horribly awry, that still elicits a "Woah" of reaction as the ball goes sailing directly into the side advertising boards.

The pace of the Premier League is still so much faster than Major League Soccer. I also compare this to the College Cup, where the Stanford women just beat Duke. I got to see the game on ESPN3.com, and the soccer was just as pleasing to the eye, the same strategy, the same overlapping runs and working to unlock the defense, the same chess match as in Liverpool-Fulham, but at a slower pace.

Do you prefer watching professional or college sports? Do you prefer watching men or women? In soccer, other than goals, what are your favorite elements to see during the match?

The Goal Line

So, for many years, it has been rumored the 49ers would vacate Candlestick Park, and San Francisco in general, for the more suburban climes of Santa Clara. Sure, Santa Clara is fine for the Niners to use as a corporate headquarters and practice facility, but Santa Clara 49ers is almost as much of an abomination as the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.

In other words, I don't want the 49ers to move. The fact that I live in Santa Cruz and the Niners would actually be closer to me doesn't hold water, because I don't actually want to attend a game. I just want them to stay in San Francisco, since I grew up with Joe Montana, Jerry Rice, Roger Craig and their companions.

It looks more and more likely that the Niners will leave San Francisco. A ballot initiative, despite controversy, was passed in Santa Clara to allow the use of public funds for constructing a stadium, and the newspapers have reported that new private sources have been secured, completing the amount required. The thing that gives me hope it still won't happen is that a consultant for the project said, "It's like first and goal from the 9 yard line. We think we're going to score from here." I read that right before the Niners had first and goal from the five after a fumble, and had to settle for a field goal. Thus, my hope. The Niners have forgotten how to score touchdowns. Vernon Davis dropped a perfect pass in the end zone.

We are still up 9-0 so far against St. Louis, in a game where a tie or a win would clinch the division for us, but we haven't put the ball in the end zone. It doesn't bode well for us, how many times the offense has not finished in the end zone over the last few weeks.

But sports are full of fickle things, such as fortune. Look at Newcastle United: last week they benefited from a controversial penalty kick; yesterday, the referee failed to red card a Chelsea defender in the fourth minute, and Chelsea went on to win 3-0. Today is a possible clinching win for a first playoff birth for SF since 2002, but it has already seen Patrick Willis leave the game with a possible hamstring injury.

The Niners leaving San Francisco for Santa Clara would be another fickle thing. They would have to change their name, I think, because to say you represent San Francisco, but you actually play in Santa Clara, would be hypocritical, because you would be cashing in on the cachet of the name San Francisco 49ers.

Would this be truly fickle? Does it matter? I think it does, but I could be biased. Do you think that teams that relocate for the purposes of a fancier new stadium are cynically rejecting the emotional ties to a city for the sake of decisions that may be good for business?

I guess the point is the goal. Are the teams legitimately looking for a better facility to improve their chances for a championship? But if in doing so, they are turning their back on the community that has housed them for 50 years, are they selling their soul?

I say yes. What do you say?