The Dugout – Fascists, Frames & The Next Generation
No Go For Romo
Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo was supposed to be the face of the first annual National Fantasy Football Convention in Las Vegas. Over a hundred players were due to be involved in the three-day event, but the NFL went along and cancelled it due to the fact it was aligned with a casino.
Those players included some of the biggest names in the game, and they were due to make a stack of cash for their appearances too. But you know who wasn’t gonna be making any money? The NFL.
The NFFC was announced back in March, yet was only cancelled this week, the NFL saying they only recently became aware of it. It would have been held in July. They referenced a rule that states:
"Players and NFL personnel may not participate in promotional activities or other appearances in connection with events that are held at or sponsored by casinos."
However Romo went on ESPN radio and disputed all that. Like, for example, if players can’t appear at a non-gambling event that happens to be held at a casino… then why is it okay for the Detroit Lions to have a commercial alliance with the MGM Grand in Detroit?
"They talk about how no players or NFL personnel are to be associated [with casinos], well, I'm like, that doesn't really make sense. There's just far too many cases and it does make it sound sometimes that it's an issue about money, which is disappointing because we were just trying to get the fans to hang out with players."
Boom. All about the money, Tony said it himself.
Next year's Convention will reportedly be held in Los Angeles instead.
Curiously, the NFL tweeted this a little while later (which was swiftly deleted):
Bloody fascists…
The Bleeding Edge
Of the many things you can fault the Dallas Cowboys for (like, overspending on personalities and a decade of bad drafting that’s only been overcome in the last few years, for example), you can’t criticise their dedication to the old adage ‘By Any Means Necessary’.
The ‘Boys have started flying a drone over their training camps for different angles of plays and scouting, while they also have plans to start using virtual reality to help them in video sessions. They’ve scored a deal with StriVR Labs, a VR production team, with the hope of being able to provide 3D video from practice sessions in the near future. They’ve added a new room at their Valley Ranch training facilities and will start giving virtual-reality headsets to their quarterbacks and maybe some position players too in order to check on their reads and options. For the last couple weeks the Cowboys have been running plays with a 360 degree camera on the line of scrimmage.
The Next Generation
The story of the 2015 MLB season seems to be that of promise and prodigy. First of all there’s Bryce Harper’s historically brilliant breakout month in May, finally going above and beyond the ‘future superstar’ status he’s held since he was about 16 and rocketing himself up amongst the superstars of the here and now. Seriously, at age 22 his Wins Above Replacement for 2015 is at a league-high 4.3.
But while he’s currently busy fulfilling potential, a bunch of new rookies are busy fulfilling Harper’s unfilled potential that he’s currently busy filling. If that makes sense.
Some of the best prospects in years are emerging at the major level as we speak. Probably none more so that Kris Bryant of the Chicago Cubs. He had to wait two weeks longer than he should have to debut, since that’d keep him under a minimum number of days on the roster and effectively guarantee the Cubs another year of Bryant before he hits free agency (you know, just in case). But since he debuted in mid-April, he’s gone on to show that his massive spring training numbers were nothing to be scoffed at. His 34 RBI have him tied for 15th on the National League ranks, yet he’s had at least 20 fewer plate appearances than any man ahead of him bar a certain Bryce Harper.
Bryant’s teammates Addison Russell is another man to watch for. He’s going to be a defensive maestro at some point, probably at shortstop though for now he’s playing second base just to get him in the side. He’s had a tough start at the batting plate but is already showing a knack for getting on base.
As far as slugging goes, Joey Gallo of the Texas Rangers is a man to keep an eye on. He’s your typical slugger to the absolute extreme. Immense power numbers in the minors balanced with immense strikeout numbers. Which would win out in the majors? Well, after going 3-4 with a HR, 4 RBI and 3 runs on debut, there’s plenty of hope. Gallo is playing for the injured Adrian Beltre at 3B, so he won’t be a permanent fixture just yet, though he’s doing pretty fine in this audition. Though 13 Ks in 24 at-bats isn’t fantastic.
The most recent call-up that’s gotten folks taking is Carlos Correa. The Houston Astros are famous for not pushing their prospects early, but 20 year old Correa is kinda undeniable. He’s a shortstop and a top three minor league prospect by most accounts. His debut was as tough as it gets, facing Chris Sale (see way below for why that’s such a bugger), though he can hold his head up as he drove in a run scoring single for his first major league hit, the only Astro run on the night.
Pitching-wise, Noah Syndergaard joins a quality list of Mets pitchers to emerge through their ranks. He’s been beaten up a couple starts as he finds his feet in the big leagues, but already he’s showing some masterful control – his strikeout to walk ratio is superb. Carlos Rondon of the Chicago White Sox is the opposite, his control has been sketchy so far, but just recently he’s started to work that out. The 22 year old is the highest ranked pitching prospect to debut in 2015 to date.
Lefty Eduardo Gonzalez was picked up by the Boston Red Sox in the Andrew Miller trade last year, and has already established himself in their starting rotation. He’d only been called up for one start initially, but 7 2/3 of scoreless ball earned him another start. Then another quality effort got him another start, and so on and so forth. He’s got a 94 mph fastball and an ever-improving changeup to go with a mean slider.
And a shout out to Texas Ranger Alex "Chi Chi" Gonzalez, who has pitched 14 2/3 innings in two major league starts so far without conceding a run. His second start was a complete game shutout and he’s given up just 5 total hits.
MLB Power Rankings:
- St Louis Cardinals (Last Week = 1)
- LA Dodgers (3)
- Houston Astros (2)
- San Francisco Giants (5)
- Texas Rangers (10)
- Minnesota Twins (6)
- New York Yankees (9)
- Pittsburgh Pirates (NR)
- San Diego Padres (NR)
- Kansas City Royals (NR)
The Ballad of Khalil Bell
“After losing his job, a record-holding free agent spirals into obsession to reclaim former glory & return to the NFL.”
Westbrook Frames
Continuing his passion for fashion and selling glasses to people who don’t need glasses, Russell Westbrook’s company Westbrook Frames (which he co-owns) has struck a deal with the NBA to sell branded frames for each of the 30 teams in the association. They’re very expensive, US$145 a pop, but come designed by an NBA All-Star.
It’s also been announced that Westbrook will be the cover athlete for NBA 2K16 via EA Sports. It’s been a big week for everyone’s favourite hurricane of an NBA player.
Blake Explains Fetty
Cleveland Believes
But Having Said That...
Steph.
Alleged Fact of the Week:
Steph Curry can deadlift 181kgs.
Quote of the Week:
“If we win a championship… it’ll save me from kicking Steve Kerr’s ass for making me come off the bench.” – GSW’s Andre Iguodala
Good Week:
Dee Gordon (LA Dodgers) – The dude just keeps on hitting. He’s averaging an MLB-best .366 and at this rate he’ll log 239 hits – which would rank tie for 16th mot EVER in a single season. Oh, and he also plays some stellar defence and has stolen 20 bases so far.
LeBron James (Cleveland Cavaliers) – Finals LeBron. There are few things better. He scored 44 in game one and 39 with 16r & 11a in game two. His shooting percentages are down, but he’s carrying this damn team on sheer will and determination. It’s incredible.
Klay Thompson (Golden State Warriors) – Buuut LBJ’s opponents have so many weapons. One of whom is this bloke, who’s scored 21 and then a fantastic 34 in games one and two. Thompson’s quality almost snuck the Warriors by a rare awful shooting game from Steph Curry, who went 2-15 from 3pt in the Cavs’ win. That’s a record for most missed threes in a finals game.
Bad Week:
Seattle Mariners – After dropping 9 of 11 games at home (scoring only 21 runs), they’ve now sunk well below .500. It’s not been great, fair to say.
San Francisco 49ers – Regular fixtures on this list. You can add Anthony Davis, SF49 offensive tackle (not the basketballer, obviously), to the list of players getting the hell outta San Fran this offseason. He’s taking a temporary year-long retirement to allow his mind and body to rest up. This after the likes of Justin Smith, Chris Borland and Patrick Willis all retired – not to mention the guys lost in free agency. And it almost got worse, 23 year old Eric Reid saying he considered retiring after his concussion issues before deciding he still wanted to play the game.
Player of the Week:
Chris Sale (Chicago White Sox) – Having gotten 14 Astros to strikeout the other day, Sale extended his streak of 10+ Ks to 4 games, the only White Sox pitcher to ever do that. What’s more, he’s the only pitcher in the modern era to do that while increasing his strikeout total each game. Only Greatest of the Great Sandy Koufax has ever gone three consecutive games with 12+ Ks and 1 or fewer earned runs. Chris Sale is the best in the business right now.