At the urging of my uncle Aly, I've decided to enter the great unknown: an attempt to explore the enormous number of issues present in sports as I perceive them, cyberspace-style. This has the potential to be an exhilarating diversion for someone as fixated on and detail-oriented about athletics as I am.

The blog also seems like a win-win proposition. If it becomes at all successful, it will be obvious that my incredible insights have won the day. At the same time, I know who the culprit is if the whole concept backfires. Either way, the blame is elsewhere!

Seriously, though, I hope to focus my daily thoughts around a few main points, which I will put in bold, then continue the idea afterward. That way, you can skip to the next appearance of bold if I become too preachy or repetitive. At the same time, I hope to make my snapshots accessible to the casual fan. I can't promise I'll always succeed at the latter, but please know that I'm trying.

In addition, I've often found the notion of objectivity in sports writing to be at best incomplete: writers may attempt to hold back their prejudices in the coverage of a topic, but this does not necessarily translate into the sought-after ideal of 'unbiased' writing. As a result, I will not hide my sporting allegiances from readers. Those who know me best realized that while I outwardly curse a successful rival team, I deeply admire how it is able to enjoy such success. Finally, I will not pretend to be an international observer. For the most part, I have been raised in the United States, so my perspective is largely focused on its most popular domestic sports.

There should be no rain-outs of Major League Baseball games in progress.
To begin: yes, I am a passionate fan of the New York Yankees, and I raise this point at this particular point in time because I feel slighted by the fact that arch-rival Boston was able to escape from today’s game with a postponement even after it trailed 5-2 with two runners on base and 1 out in the fourth inning. However, I have felt the way I have about postponement for some time. I can even remember feeling frustrated back in 1997 that a Yankee game was not completed even though New York was spared a large deficit in Florida because of a rainout (June 14 of that year).

In 2002, a lack of available pitchers in an extra-inning All-Star Game led to a tie result, much to chagrin of many fans of the sport. Commissioner Bud Selig pushed for a plan that would, over the next several seasons, award the league of the All-Star Game’s winner with home-field advantage in the World Series. For a league that was so offended by a tie All-Star Game, it is beyond me how its personnel tolerate the current policy of cancellation, and subsequent postponement, of games that have not progressed past the fifth inning (or four and a half if the home team is ahead).

I am not the only one to raise this criticism: indeed, I’ve spoken to several fans who favor resuming a game at the exact point play was stopped. I understand that plan has several flaws, including the possibility that players in the lineup on a specific day might no longer be with a team when the game is made up. However, it is a travesty to erase statistics (White Sox first baseman Paul Konerko’s two-run double, for example) and take away a team’s lead merely due to weather conditions.

New ballparks are just plain fun.

A friend and I checked out PETCO Park in San Diego last night for the first time. The stadium, home to the Padres, opened last year as a baseball-only replacement for Qualcomm Stadium, which is still home to the NFL’s Chargers. Because the venue’s located downtown, it was easy to have an Indian dinner in the Gaslamp District before heading to the game. While I found PETCO architecturally understated compared to other recent emergences such as San Francisco’s SBC Park, I really enjoyed taking in a game in a new spot in a city to which I rarely venture. The beige-colored exterior and honest-to-goodness recreational park over the center field wall fit in well with the city’s laid-back atmosphere.

Having said that, the night itself was a somewhat strange experience. Usually untouchable relief pitcher Trevor Hoffman gave up four runs in the ninth inning. The Padres’ speedy center fielder Dave Roberts reached base in the seventh inning after an infielder picked up a ball rolling down the first base line that appeared to be heading foul. Roberts had earlier argued with umpires that a third-inning grounder had actually hit his foot and should have been ruled foul, to no avail. Then, as I headed out of the park, a man fell hard and needed medical attention, while another in the same area attempted to sprint out of the stadium, but was detained by security. On the way to the parking garage, several pleased Phillies fans repeated chants praising their Philadelphia Eagles (they greeted my solitary New York Jets refrain with light laughter).

Some gaudy American League power numbers are emerging.

Over the last week or so, I’ve begun playing a game called Beat The Streak: Home Run Edition on MLB.com. The premise is simple: you pick a player every day who you think will homer, and try to establish the longest streak of games in which you are successful. I picked Yankee Hideki Matsui today, and was rewarded with a three-run blast near the right-field foul pole. Yesterday’s decision was more automatic: I chose another member of Bronx Bombers, Alex Rodriguez, whose longball that day was estimated to travel 485 feet to left-center field (although YES Network announcer Jim Kaat believed it to be at least 510 feet). Still, I can’t help but wonder if two is the longest streak I’ll have.

In any case, Rodriguez has seized the American League home run lead with 35. He’s not close to the 109 RBI tallied by Red Sox outfielder Manny Ramirez. However, WCBS broadcaster John Sterling pointed out both players have already had seven straight seasons with at least 30 homers and 100 runs batted in. You can rip on Ramirez’ defense or blame Rodriguez for being greedy. However, these are truly two hitters for the ages.

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