Father Time Has a Cannon

Like any other sports fan with a daily sports show addiction, I was sick to death of the Brett Favre saga that has become an annual sports tradtion. After watching his melt down at the end of last season with the New York Jets, I felt like there was no way he could come back and contribute to a professional team. It looked as if his football mid life crisis was going to leave a greasy, black stain on his hall of fame masterpiece career.

He looked old. He couldn't throw the ball down the field, and had teammates calling him out for dividing the locker room (I believe ESPN threw the term "schism" around quite a bit leading up to his debut with the Minnesota Vikings). Why would he come back and subject himself to the pain of the NFL as a 40 year old? What could he possibly have left to offer? Is his desire to get under center just to stuff it in the face of Ted Thompson and the Green Bay Packers, or does he really believe he can still play? Favre has come back this year and made anyone who questioned his ability to play football feel very foolish, me included.

I am not a Favre hater. How can you be? Regardless of how he ever performed on the field, his consecutive games played streak (276 and counting) as a quarterback has to be one of sports most impressive feats. He is also a three time MVP, a clutch performer, and a Super Bowl champion. He has done everything you could ask for in a quarterback over his career. He plays the game with more grit and passion than anyone around him, and he is exciting to watch whether you admit it, or not. He has always embodied the spirit of NFLs ironman, and this year is no different.

After having his arm surgically repaired in the off season, Favre is back throwing the ball harder, and with a tighter spiral than 90 percent of the league. He still plays the game with youthful exuberance, and he still has a flair for clutch heroics (We all saw his game winning throw against San Francisco. That ball was an absolute laser). Unless you are a Green Bay Packer fan, player, or member of their operations, you have to appreciate what he has been able to do this year. I know there are bitter football fans who have had their team torched by Favre. But really, how could you not like this guy?

Speaking of the Green Bay Packers, Favre got the pay back he was undoubtedly looking for coming in to this season. Not only did he beat his former team playing for their divisional rival, he played a major role in the beatings. In two games against his former team he threw seven touchdowns and zero interceptions. Interceptions have plagued him when he was younger, and when he was not surrounded with the ground support and defense that he is currently playing with. That is always the point Favre haters make. "Look at how many interceptions he has thrown over his career. He's a gunslinger, he can't change that mentality."

This year, Favre has done what the haters thought he couldn't. He has become the most talented game manager in the NFL. Most agree the best player in the league is Vikings running back, Adrian Peterson. It seemed all the Vikings were missing from seriously contending for a Super Bowl was a quarterback. So naturally, bringing in Favre doesn't change defensive game plans. Opponents of the Vikings look to shut down the run and make the Vikings beat you through the air. The only problem is Favre has had no problem beating teams through the air. He has thrown 16 touchdowns to just 3 interceptions, good for a 106 passer rating.

Oh yeah. He's doing all this as a 40 year old.

He's 40, and if they voted today he is deserving of the league MVP (no disrespect to Peyton Manning or Drew Brees or Adrian Peterson). He's 40 in a league where running backs are left for dead at 30. He's 40, and he has 22 year old beasts chasing him around the field trying to crush him. He's 40, and he still throws the ball with velocity receivers can hear coming. He's 40, but his arm is 24.

The greatest part of Favre's game is that he can still be great with more pressure on him than anyone else in the NFL. He has endured public scrutiny over his off season floundering, and his age for over two years. He survived the crash and burn of a failed attempt with the New York Jets. He was showered with a chorus of boos when he stepped onto Lambeau Field for the first time as a visitor. He sustained several concussions throughout his career, and had shoulder surgery just a few months ago. He battled all of these pressures, and done so visibly nervous, yet still had the fortitude to play above everyone's expectations.

Can you really imagine being Brett Favre and getting booed by Green Bay Packers fans? Packers fans should use the collective energy it took for those boos, and build him a statue next to Vince Lombardi's to honor what he did for that organization. The camera was zoomed right on Farve's face to start the Packers game and you could see the emotion dancing in his eyes, but when he snapped on his chin strap, he blocked it out and went to work. Once the Vikings got a lead (mostly on short swing passes and runs by Peterson), the Vikings turned Favre loose and allowed him to give his old team a close up view of what he could still do on a football field. After dismantling the Packers defense for the second time this season, the camera man caught a shot of Packers QB, Aaron Rodgers with a look of disbelief plastered all over his face. Many argued before the game that a win might mean more to Rodgers than to Favre.

Currently, Favre and the Vikings are 7-1 and look to be headed for a clash with the New Orleans Saints as the top team in the NFC. If the Vikings play for a Super Bowl led by Favre, it will be the greatest achievement (consecutive games streak aside) of his hall of fame career. Of course, Father Time might have something to say about how Favre finishes another long NFL season. It was toward the end of the season that his play really declined last year. Eventually it has to catch up with him like it does everyone else. Although, most of his problems last year can be attributed to his arm injury which is clearly no longer an issue. From where I'm sitting, Brett Favre is Father Time, and Father Time still has a cannon.

Even if the dramatics were self imposed by his inability to stick with a decision, you have to appreciate the way he is defying the odds with his comeback. Brett Favre may no longer be a popular figure in Wisconsin, but he should have made some new fans around the country. You can count me as one of them, and I'm not ashamed to admit it.

Jayson Werth: Can't Take Off Because of Landing Strip?

Most people have never heard of Jayson Werth. To fill most of you in, he is a starting outfielder for the Philadelphia Phillies, and in 4 seasons with teams that have made the playoffs (including the past two World Series), he has put together a very nice post season resume. He is hitting near .300 with 35 hits, 11 of those being homers, and 17 RBIs. The reason why you have never heard of him might have something to do with the landing strip facial hair he sports.

A landing strip (on men) is a thin strip of facial hair that grows from chin to lip. It's not a part of a beard. It's just out there on its own, much bigger than a soul patch, distracting the eye of those who would dare look upon it. Men wearing this style cannot be taken seriously. I mean, hasn’t Werth seen Brandon Inge from the Tigers? Have you?

Well, maybe not. Inge suffers from the same affliction that Werth does. He doesn't get nearly the recognition he should because he wears that ridiculous man patch (and his is thin too. It looks suggestive, and that is not the message a professional hitter should be sending).

Werth or Inge would be better off with a facial tattoo or piercing the bridge of their nose. At least that would be original (for baseball, the NBA went there years ago). I'm sure there were others before, but I didn't notice them as most of you haven't noticed Jayson Werth. I guess on the positive side he can have a promising career as a strip club DJ when his baseball career ends.

If Werth were to shave the squirrel tail, I predict he will double in popularity next year when he plays in the World Series, again; against the Yankees, again.

I wasn't excited about Ryan Howard's goatee this year, either. It didn't seem to suit him. A goatee on a baby face is almost as bad as the landing strip. Well, not really. But still, not good. Next year both guys should come back clean shaven, and they might make it to game 7 against the Yankees. I'd get rid of Cole Hamels either way.

Shane Victorino Tries to Save Major League Baseball

I want to praise Shane Victorino for hustling out his at bats every time he hits (on display this World Series). I’m sure no one notices other than die hard and sober Phillies fans, but I believe his hard play to be exactly what Major League Baseball needs. In game two of this years World Series, Victorino had a runner on first, one out, and hit a tapper to the infield. He tore up the line like his hair was on fire. The play was made routinely, and Victorino headed back to the bench, but watching him run made a huge impression on me, and also highlighted what is wrong with the MLB.

You never see that anymore. You just don’t see players playing 100 percent all of the time, even in the World Series. I think for the most part players run out their fly balls and ground balls, but no one really runs all out. You see the 65 percent jog. Fast enough to avoid looking like a dog, but easy enough to show you know it’s going to be an out. Running hard on a ground ball puts a little extra pressure on the defense that can mean the difference between an error, and a routine put out. Running out your fly balls full speed can mean an extra base if the ball is lost in the lights and dropped. It might only make the difference one percent of the time, but that should be enough, especially in the World Series. The fact that one player running out a ground ball caught my attention means there are some that just aren’t giving enough.

Playing hard is also good sportsmanship. You should do your opponent the honor of trying your best. You hear little league coaches telling their players to hustle all the time. At what point do big leaguers stop doing this? High school? I am willing to give pitchers and injury cases a pass on this obligation, but otherwise there should be no reason for one player to stand out just for running out a ground ball.

Good job to Victorino. Hopefully there were some little leaguers watching him. An honorable mention goes to Jerry Hairston Jr. of the Yankees. I know it's not as cool as a home run for most, but I think players playing hard is what makes baseball great and exciting.

Players not playing hard, not enjoying themself, not getting excited, not playing for team, is why the country was ready for the National Football League to take over. Football has far surpassed any other sport as America's past time. There is no denying that football is a great sport, and it happens to be my personal favorite (as I'm sure it is all of yours), but at the time the NFL's popularity was increasing, the MLB was losing steam. To me this issue is directly related to the energy the players are putting into the game. In football, you have guys playing all out every play. When you stop doing that in the NFL you lose your job.

Baseball doesn't have that. Everybody credits a baseball player for hustling when he slides hard into second base. Whooopeeee! Is that really all that we should ask of a base runner to consider them hustling? Why did Pete Rose earn the nickname "Charlie Hustle?" He played the game the way every other player should have played it, and it earned him a nickname. There should be no such thing. Every baseball player, playing like Charlie Hustle, that's what I want to see. For my money, the most interesting guys to watch are guys like Shane Victorino. Guys who aren't quite as naturally gifted as some of the players they are playing with, but maximize their abilities by going 100 percent all of the time.

It is a common theory that fans want to see more offense in baseball. "Fans like the American League because you don't have to waste an at bat watching the pitcher hit." I don't think we give sports fans enough credit with these theories. Sure, the casual fan will be more likely not to change Sportscenter when they show baseball highlights, but more true fans of the game will be developed if the players would adopt the football mentality of "all out every play." I believe more fans would be created if every major league player did this than if you implemented a designated hitter in the National League. Once you really learn and invest in the sport of baseball, having a pitcher hit becomes an interesting and strategic part of the game. Speed and base running become critical. How and when to use your bullpen is more of a challenge. It also forces you to go deeper on your bench during games because of the double switch.

Baseball has latched on to the theory that home runs = fans. Aside from the steroids they welcomed players to use, they also juiced up the ball, built most new ball parks shorter than their predecessors, found new types of wood to make more powerful bats, and added teams which thinned the talent pool. All of these methods were successful in creating more offense and homeruns. Where has this gotten them? Fourth place on the hierarchy of american sports behind the NFL, NBA, and NASCAR.

Perhaps it's time for a new strategy. One that won't have an instant payoff like the homerun spike, but one that will cultivate more loyal and interested fans over the long term. Here's my idea. Just hustle. Just play all out, every play, like there is someone waiting to take your position. Play like Shane Victorino and maybe it's possible you can sell the game of baseball and not just the homerun to the American public.

The Punishment Fits the Crime: Big Mac's Return to Baseball

Big Mac, Mark McGwire makes his return to baseball next year and already the uproar around the game is deafening. McGwire returns with Tony La Russa and the St. Louis Cardinals after last being seen in front of a Grand Jury flopping around like one of those wind sock men you see in front of the car wash. McGwire will be the hitting coach of a Cardinal team that won their division and boasts slackers like Albert Pujols and Matt Holiday in the middle of their lineup.

Regardless of his merits as a coach of hitters, all I have heard in the media or from baseball fans is that he will have to make some sort of statement about his alleged use of performance enhancers, namely steroids. For some reason all the babbling sports show hosts or so called baseball experts have decided they must hear a full confession and an apology or Mac’s future in baseball will forever be protested. All seem to agree that they want to hear the words come out of his mouth. My question is why?

A typical response to this seems to be, “Take a look at Petite or A Rod. They took ownership, came clean, now no one cares.” This issue will resurface once both players are subjects of hall of fame discussions, but the point is a good one. We have a forgiving public. The general sports fan will root for a player/person who is down and needs a second chance (Michael Vick), and tear down someone who has too much success (Tom Brady). I agree 100 percent, the best course of action for Big Mac would have been to come clean right away, admit to steroid use, ask for forgiveness from the fans, and get on with his life. But the ego is a fickle thing. It competes against the part of the brain that is rational and renders some incapable of swallowing pride (Barry Bonds).

This is all well and good, but really, so what? Why are we so obsessed with hearing the words come out of his mouth?

Question. What do the following players all have in common with their alleged or admitted steroid use? Barry Bonds, Mark McGwire, Alex Rodriguez, David Ortiz, Manny Ramirez, Roger Clemens, Jose Canseco, Rafael Palmeiro, Sammy Sosa, Ken Caminiti, Miguel Tejada, Ivan Rodriguez, Jason Giambi, Andy Petite, Gary Sheffield.

Answer. They are all guilty, every single one. We really don’t need a confession to tell us that, and apologies under the gun are overrated. Did we even need the Mitchell Report to confirm who we suspected of steroid use during the baseball equivalent of Woodstock? Nobody was looking. What did you expect? The only real surprise is that Albert Pujols has never been implicated in any steroid talk. Just look at the numbers hitters were putting up before the Mitchell Report and what they are after two years of testing. And what happened to all of baseballs ageless wonders? They all got old and retired once steroid testing began. Is anyone waiting on pins and needles to find out if Bonds and Clemens can clear their name? Nope. No one cares, unless Bonds gets hired as the hitting coach of the Giants, I guess. Those guys are off the baseball map and probably will be until one of them gets convicted of perjury.

When I think about Roger Clemens now, I have this image of him in some dark, dingy basement. The only source of light is a TV in the corner of the room playing analog snow on mute. He is sitting in a rocking chair wearing white boxers and a dirty wife beater under shirt, staring at a full length mirror unable to blink, and repeating I did not do steroids, over and over in some sort of brain washed trance.

We don’t need a confession to know McGwire did steroids, and we don’t need an apology to form an opinion of the player. He looks worse, and is suffering more because of the way he handled the situation. He pled the fifth in front of congress. Does that not insinuate guilt? He wasn’t an idiot like Rafael Palmeiro, pointing his finger and shouting his innocence from the rooftops only to be tested positive a few months later, effectively ending his career and sending him into total obscurity and seclusion, but he still admitted enough by not saying anything. What does a confession now do to change the way we look at him as a person or player? If he wants to avoid the subject forever, let him. The best punishment for his case is to keep him out of the Hall of Fame which is going to happen whether a confession is made, or not. It is not like confessing will pave his passage. The only part of his game that could get him in the Hall was his power, and we know he cheated to get it.

McGwire could learn a lesson from Pete Rose. Holding on to the truth is futile. Eventually the media will get you to crack. It’s just good business. It’s too late to save face anyway. Those that would forgive him already have. The rest aren’t going to be swayed by a confession. Unfortunately for McGwire, he cannot come back and perform on the field like several others have, and since recovered some good will from fans. As soon as A Rod came clean and started hitting homers again, the fans seemed to embrace him. The same goes for Petite. On the field heroics go a long way in swaying public opinion. McGwire doesn’t have that option.

Regardless of his disposition, and whether or not he chooses to come clean, McGwire has a place in baseball if someone is willing to hire him. He is still a great person, and every baseball fan loved watching Mac and Sosa chase the homerun record. Steroid homers resurrected the sports popularity after the 1994-1995 strike. Unfortunately, the little good it did for the sports popularity was overshadowed by the epidemic that followed with nearly every player of significance realizing that they must also level the playing field by taking steroids. Baseball’s non-testing policy was equivalent to the “Please Take One” bowl on Halloween . Major League Baseball’s stance seemed to be please use steroids cautiously so you help the game, but don’t make it obvious so the media and fans catch on. The bowl emptied before anyone knew it. When hundreds of millions of dollars are at stake, personal health and ethics take a back seat. I would guess that 75 percent of the population would do as McGwire did if they were in his shoes.

It has been proven that steroids damage your body. Players of the so called steroid era set terrible examples for youth baseball players that idolized these stars. I feel, as a purist of baseball, that the game is tremendously better without goliaths hitting 70 homers a year. Speed and strategy come in to play much more, and the game should get more exciting as it gets cleaner. We will once again be able to distinguish the power hitters from others and a homerun will once again become a cherished moment rather than an expected feat three to four times a game. Nonetheless, I do not condemn Mark McGwire. The blame does not fall squarely on his shoulders. If he does not wish to make a confession then we should all just move on. Let him coach and forever be known as a guy who took steroids, hit a lot of homeruns, and is not in the hall of fame. The punishment already fits the crime.