....on a bad ankle.

You may not know him, but Dr Andrews is the most famous sports doctor in the US. There isn't a pitching coach in the majors who has touched more arms than him.

Harbinger of the future?

Attachment 926078

Regarding Beltran, I find myself onboard with this writer (David Lennon of Newsday). I reluctantly go along with his allegiance to Bonds and Clemens for the reason he states, but when he applies a similar standard to Beltran, he makes a good point in my opinion.

Re Bonds and - perhaps to a lesser degree - Clemens, I don't need that kind of proof. I apply the O.J. Simpson standard, in that there is zero doubt that he did it, despite what Lance Ito's clown court may have decided.

And we know - as the writer acknowledges - that Beltran was guilty of blatant cheating, of distorting for posterity a championship - and was much more involved than simply knowing about it and saying nothing, or even just going along with it, like surely many BlackStros did. IMO that is a significantly worse offense than using PED's. That Manfred in his infinite misjudgment and gutlessness saw fit to only give slaps on the wrist to a few non-players and to completely un-punish the players involved - including Beltran - is of no consequence. Again, IMO.

That said, re Bonds & Clemens, and as I've posted here before, I don't necessarily think PED users should be excluded from the HOF. In those two examples, however, I am still enjoying the fact that they are being excluded - unfairly as it may or may not be - simply because (and Bonds more so than Clemens) they were complete jerks, both regarding their lack of admittance/remorse for PED's, and just in general.

Wow, I actually agree with Curt Schilling about something:

https://twitter.com/gehrig38/status/1618018018688397312

Congrats, you can be wrong together. :friday:

More seriously, the comments on Schilling's Twitter thread spell out the problems with "he bet on his own team, nbd!" quite succinctly:

1) A player who bets on his own team in certain games, or who varies the amount of his wager from game to game, has an incentive to try harder in those games than when he doesn't have money on the line. Thus he may become dangerously aggressive (or conversely, "prudent" when there's no $$$ in it), damaging the integrity of the game.

One commenter alleges that Rose (as a manager) burnt out Rob Murphy because he had money on some of the games and while that's unproven, it clearly illustrates a possible danger.

2) A player who has any sort of contact with bookmakers (or through them, organized crime) is in severe danger of being led to fix games, down the line.

There's a reason there were so many forbidden places for ballplayers in Kansas City that Bouton quotes somebody in Ball Four as saying, "wow, you can save $900 just by drinking in the hotel bar".

(The logic being that the hotel bar was a $100 fine, since that's where the manager/coaching staff drank and drunk players + drunk management is just another Billy Martin story waiting to happen. But the off-limits places, which were known hangouts for unsavory types, carried a $1000 fine. [And these were in 1969 dollars. $1000 then is $8090 today.] Because a bar fight is one thing; a player who owes money to the mob is another.)

Really, for me, the revelation is that Rose was betting on games as a player, which I did not know. So, IMO, he should have been kicked out of the game that much sooner. Bravo to Giamatti for going where others had been too chicken to tread.

Savage.

So it finally happened.

I follow MLB so little now, that the MLB the Show 23 cover was announced and when I read the cover athlete name, I had no idea who it was.

I had to look him up to even see who it was.

I think this officially means I don't follow baseball anymore.
It is bitter sweet.

Jazz Chisholm has had one good half-season. He's mostly famous for dying his hair blue or something, I don't know.

I googled the cover and thought "huh? who do the FISH have??" - and my Mets are in the same division...! :laugh:

If anything that gaudy cover shows everything that's wrong in baseball and the world.

I don't mind the cover art or the player they choose.

MLB really does need to appeal to people under the age of say...60
And Chisholm is young and black and actually shows human emotions when he does something good on the field.
Baseball needs more of that, players with actual human personalities.
Who knows what his future holds, he may flame out and last year may of been a career year.
But Sony took a chance on him.

I had no clue who he was. I am 38 and find baseball to be dreadfully boring and overly long.
I can't imagine Gen Z having any interest.

And it just so happens that I work for a sports economics firm that researches these things.
And Gen Z does it fact have almost no interest in baseball.

It comes in like 11th among their favorite sports.

I wonder when that revenue bubble will burst and they will finally realize they need to radically revamp the sport.

The Show is against big money free agent signings so they are making a statement and going for the marlins "star".

I keep telling The Millville (NJ) Meteor, there is a New York team that's much more likely to make the playoffs than the Halos. He should give them a call.

(Okay, two such teams, if you want to be technical. And a Philadelphia one as well. [MIllville is in South Jersey, aka West Jersey as the Swedes had it.] And I've only ever actually "told" Mike all this in my head. But still.)

Meantimes, I'm now having horrible thoughts of Pete Rose nobly betting on the Reds' success, only to find the "sure thing" games ruined by horrible performances by marginal players and pitchers (ie, his teammates who were already in hock to the gamblers and needed to make some quick $$ before the ticket to Indianapolis came due), resulting in Pete needing make an occasional "error" himself. Only to be told, "Don't worry about it, we're actually rooting for you guys. The World Series will be a snap. You wouldn't believe how much Graig Nettles owes us…"

And that's why you kick the ****ing gamblers out, period. Now off to check the stock market, which is completely different from gambling, I swear!

And congrats to Chaz Jism!! (Hey, let me have my fun. There won't be as good a Spoonerism available unless we get a "Phil Tucker" coming down the pike…)

MLB makes extra-innings ghost runner rule permanent for regular-season games

Ugh.

Owners will do anything to protect their investments.

Another one.

MLB approves new rule to cut down on position players pitching ahead of 2023 season

Re those two rules: The wussification of the game continues. Not just in how the game & strategy have evolved, but also via codification. Thank goodness for OOTP.

You said it.

I am 37 and find baseball great to watch, especially the games from 10-20 years ago. Sounds like you need to follow another sport. People with your mindset need to stop trying to change a sport that was already good. Go to another sport or make your own. This is the national pastime for Pete’s sake. You don’t need to change it! It’s like wanting to change the Eiffel Tower or the Pantheon.