Category Archives: Other Sports

It’s Labor Day, and Baseball remains the most peaceful work environment in sports

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What the heck is going on? No, I’m not talking about how the Orioles continue to defy the laws of the universe (again), I’m talking about how, on this Labor Day, Major League Baseball remains the most stable place in sports when it comes to the relations between players and management. Yes, baseball, the sport that had one strike force the season to become a split-season and the World Series get cancelled, and which at one point in the early 2000s seemed to be headed towards another strike, is the best example of labor harmony.

Meanwhile, the NBA lost a significant portion of it’s season last year, the NFL narrowly avoided a work stoppage with it’s players and now is using scab referees due to a dispute with the usual refs, and the NHL is headed down the road to another work stoppage, which could very well annihilate another whole season.

Remember when the NHL was a major sport on ESPN and everything, and not just something that was only popular in about 6 American markets and could only be found on NBC properties? That little transition from being part of the Big Four to being on the outside looking in on the Big Three happened when they lost an entire season to the 2004-2005 lockout. Who knows what might happen if they again end up with a lost season? The Europeans could just say “Screw this, I’m going home” and depart to teams in Eastern Europe and Scandinavia, never to return. What little interest in hockey that there exists in the the United States outside of the Northeast and Upper Midwest will disintegrate even more than before. But, by all accounts, the NHL and the NHLPA seem destined to run straight into the abyss again.

So why is baseball avoiding those problems? Partially it’s because MLB is making so much money that it doesn’t really matter, and the revenue sharing has allowed even the worst teams to spin a hefty profit. The same is not true for the NBA and NHL, and the fact it was more-or-less true in the NFL was one of the main reasons why there was only one preseason game that was lost.

However, the bigger reason is, in my opinion, basically the realization by both the owners and the MLBPA that to have a work stoppage, especially a work stoppage that cancels the playoffs, is a case of mutually assured destruction. Even if one side were to “win”, they’d end up far worse off than they had been before. The 1994 strike was proof of that: fans abandoned baseball until Cal Ripken, the home run chase and the late-90s Yankees dynasty brought it back. However, had the 2002 labor dispute ended in a work stoppage, there was no guarantee that any heroes would come over the hill to save the day. It just wasn’t worth the risk, so they came to terms, and have done so every CBA since.

That lesson, alas, has not yet come to the NHL.

Random Non-Baseball-related Video of an Undetermined Amount of Time:

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You probably saw this on ESPN. It still needs to be posted, as it is one of the most error-filled sports video… ever.

So, to sum it up: the receiver of the punt muffs it, the Kent State guy grabbed the muff and proceeded to RUN THE WRONG DIRECTION, his teammates BLOCKED FOR HIS SUICIDAL WRONG-WAY RUN, Towson TRIED TO STOP THE SUICIDIAL WRONG-WAY RUN… and, in the end, everything ended up NOT MATTERING because, by rule, a muffed punt is down as soon as the opposing team touches it.

Whoops.

Baseball’s children

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In a bid to combine their powers and increase the chances of returning to the Olympics, baseball and softball’s international federations (the equivalent to soccer’s FIFA or basketball’s FIBA) recently decided to merge. How well this will or won’t work, as well as what effect this might have on things like women’s baseball or men’s softball, remains to be seen. However, it does give a good excuse to look at some of the “children” born from baseball. See after the jump.

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Olympics Continuum: Why not joint hosting bids?

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I stumbled across an article today that caught my eye: a city councilor in Toronto, worried about the gigantic cost that hosting an Olympics brings to a city, has suggested that there be a joint bid between Toronto and an American city, such as Buffalo or Detroit.

I have written of this before back at the Courier, but seeing this news item has brought it back to my thoughts: why not? Why can’t and why hasn’t there been a joint Olympics bid, featuring cities relatively near a national border?

(jump)

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What type of Olympians would MLB stars be?

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Getting into the Olympic spirit, the folks across the pond at the BBC have created a neat little website that lets you enter your height and weight and it then tells you which Olympian is similar to you. Well, in theory, anyway. I’m sure their bodies are made up of way more muscle than the average Joe. I mean, I certainly am not built like a weightlifter, but it said I’m most similar to one.

However, let’s do a far better use of this already useless technology: find out what type of Olympic sport baseball players would play. Now, as I said, there is a difference between having the same height and weight as somebody and actually having the same type of body and abilities as them, but in general some things hold true: somebody who is smaller is more likely to be a gymnast or a weightlifter, while somebody tall is more likely to be playing hoops.

So, let’s get down to business:

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Olympics Continuum: The insane greatness of Michael Phelps

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Throughout the Olympics, the Baseball Continuum will branch out to give the occasional look at the XXX Summer Olympic Games. This is the Olympics Continuum.

Michael Phelps won two more medals “last night” (actually early afternoon EST, but don’t tell NBC that), bringing his total to 19, making him the greatest Olympian of All Time, as he passed Soviet gymnastics great Larisa Latynina for most medals of any kind.

So now is as good a time as any to note just how great Phelps’ accomplishment is, using one of my favorite methods: fun trivia and facts:

  • Phelps first competed in 2000 at Sydney and has had only himself and his relay teammates to gain medals. Despite this, he has only one fewer medals (19) than India, which first sent a competitor in 1900 and has sent them continuously since 1920. Oh, and India has 1.2 billion people. So, yes, it’s entirely possible that, by the end of these games, Michael Phelps will have as many or more medals than the second-largest country in the world has had in history.
  • He already has more medals than Venezuela, Chile, Algeria, Pakistan, and various post-Soviet republics.
  • His now-15 gold medals is as many Golds as such all-time Olympic greats as Paavo Nurmi (9), Jesse Owens (4) and Jim Thorpe (2) have combined, although admittedly they were in different sports and eras.
  • He’s swam 3,500 meters in races that he’s earned a medal- not counting heats and preliminaries. That’s about 2.175 miles. Or about 70 times across the pool.
  • It’s the equivalent of him swimming over 38 football fields (not counting end zones).
  • He’s won a gold in 71% of all of the events he has done in the Olympics.

Amazing, huh?

Olympics Continuum: Samuel L. Jackson tweets the Olympics (Rated R for Language)

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Throughout history, many great men have looked at sports despite being outside of it.

Presidents.
Philosophers.
Poets.
Authors.

But none, perhaps, are more wise, more charismatic or more badass than Mr. Samuel L. Jackson, who has been watching and tweeting about the Olympics. And he seemingly does it in the same persona he has in basically every movie he is in (the man embraces his niche). Is it good? I don’t know. Is it a funny and off-beat look at the Olympics? Definitely.

Note: Not all of these tweets are appropriate for all ages. In fact, most of them aren’t. Cover the eyes of children and certainly don’t say them out loud in the presence of children. Go after the jump for them.

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Off-Topic- Olympics Continuum: Stuff to Keep in Mind (HUMOR)

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Opening Ceremonies are Friday, but already the Games of the XXX Olympiad (which are really going to mess up some internet content filters with those Roman numerals) have begun with some early-round soccer games. While you can find Olympic previews everywhere, only here will you get the unique Continuum perspective. So strike up the John Williams music and go below the jump for the (rather tongue-in-cheek) inaugural installment of Olympics Continuum:

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What Franchise has the best Championship Percentage?

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The New York Yankees, are of course, the most successful sports franchise in North America (if not the world) by number of titles: 27. And it’s entirely possible that they could have gotten another one in 1994 had the strike not intervened (of course the same could be said for the Montreal Expos and several other teams). But here’s something that’s always bugged me: The Yankees and most other baseball teams have a big headstart against everyone else. So with the NHL and NBA now done with their postseasons, it’s time to take a look at what team has the best “Championship Percentage”. In other words, what teams have the most championships per year in existence where a championship was possible. Read on for more:

First, some guidelines:

  • Only “Big 4” teams are counted in this. That means foreign teams (Japanese baseball, European soccer, etc.) and minor league teams aren’t counted, nor are teams from the MLS, WNBA, NLL, Arena Football League, etc.
  • Championships will only count in years where the championship as we know it existed. That means that only modern-day World Series count for MLB, only Super Bowls count for NFL, only the Finals count for the NBA and only Stanley Cups from 1927 onward (when it became an NHL-only affair) count for the NHL. Years in which a championship was cancelled don’t count.
  • Years in a league that didn’t have a game in the championship (Pre-Super Bowl AFL, the ABA, the WHA…) don’t count.
  • This is for franchises, not teams. So, for example, the Lakers have the titles from their time in Minneapolis. The only exceptions to this are in those cases where the league has said specifically that they are separate franchises. For example, the Baltimore Ravens are treated by the NFL as if they were a expansion franchise, and the Cleveland Browns are treated as if they never left Cleveland and that they just sort of took a break for a few years in the nineties. Of course, you will not be seeing the Browns at all from this point on, anyway.
  • Teams that haven’t won at all won’t be counted.

More after the jump:

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Great Mysteries in Other Sports

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Yesterday, I gave some of the great mysteries in baseball. But there are plenty of mysteries beyond the diamond as well. For example:

  • Was, as some conspiracy theorists claim, the 1985 NBA Draft lottery fixed so that Patrick Ewing would go to the New York Knicks? (I doubt it, but it’s one of the most talked about sports conspiracy theories of all time, so…)
  • The original trophy for Soccer’s World Cup was awarded permanently to Brazil in 1970 after they won the tournament for the third time. In 1983, that trophy was stolen. What happened to it?
  • Does the IOC really have the silver medals for the 1972 Basketball Tournament in a vault, waiting for the cold day in hell when the screwed-over USA team accepts them?
  • Was Michael Jordan’s baseball stint really a cover story for a gambling suspension? (Again, I doubt it, but since so many people often discuss the possibility…)
  • Why doesn’t the NFL give the 1925 Pottsville Maroons their due? It can’t just be because it would injure the pride of the Cardinals, right?
  • Jim Robinson was the fourth man to fight to Muhammad Ali (then Cassius Clay) professionally. He has not been contacted or seen since 1979. What happened to him?
  • Speaking of Ali, did Sonny Liston throw either of his fights with him to pay off debts he had with organized crime?
  • Did Wilt Chamberlain really sleep with 20,000 women? (This has been mathematically debunked, but…)
  • Is Jimmy Hoffa buried underneath what was once Giants Stadium (it is now a parking lot for the new stadium)?

 

Know any other good ones?