Bring on the Chaos
I have a motto, one that I communicate to my kids as well as anyone I work with, and one that has served me well for over two decades: “Try never to make the same mistake twice.” Because, in the words of Billy Joel, “We’re only human, we’re supposed to make mistakes.” Mistakes are, for…
Attach Some (Payroll) Strings to Stadium Subsidies
I recently read “Field of Schemes” by Neil deMause and Joanna Cagan, which delves into the decades-long grift wherein billionaire owners bilk municipalities out of billions (it used to be millions) of dollars by having them finance stadiums under the threat of relocation. I read that book after reading Dan Moore’s terrific piece in The…
Taking Off My Red Sox?
Joe Posnanski, the fantastic sportswriter and podcaster, simply had enough. After a lifetime of Cleveland Browns fandom, after “Red Right 88,” “The Drive,” “The Fumble,” a middle-of-the night absconding to Baltimore, after a revival of the franchise, after all the heartbreak, and near elation, the ownership of the Browns dropped one additional straw — a…
Re-Examining Andre Ethier
On May 28, 2006, the Los Angeles Dodgers started Matt Kemp in center field and Andre Ethier in left. This was the first time the two “rookie sensations” played together in Dodger blue. Kemp went 1-for-4 to start his career, and Ethier went 0-for-2 with a walk in his 22nd career game. Starting on that late…
Quit Your Whining
In the end, the best team won. That sort of vindicates the system, no? At the beginning of these playoffs, the first under the expanded format wherein 12 teams were allowed into the dance (2020 excepted), there was a great deal of Sturm and Drang about the early outcomes. When the 89-win Padres knocked off…
Witnessing History: Albert Hits #700
On a Saturday afternoon in 2002, I walked into Pacific Bell Park to watch a pre-game montage of Barry Bonds’ milestone home runs, culminating with #600, which Bonds reached the night before. I was 18 hours too late to witness history. And when Bonds proceeded to go 0-1 with three walks, I didn’t even get…
Stadium Dilemma: For Having A Ball or Watching Great Ball?
Many years ago, I was watching an NFL game from Dallas. Al Michaels had the call, and he was raving about the beauty and grandeur of AT&T Stadium, Jerry Jones’ then-new gift to the world and the world of football. Al could not stop talking about the sight lines and the massive video screen that…
Catch Therapy: An Open Glove and An Open Heart
It was the darkest moment of my life. Darker even than the moment, just three hours earlier, when the doctors broke the news to me. Darker even than the moment just two hours earlier, when I was the one breaking the news. A fitful 90 minutes of sleep does not prepare you for the hardest…
The Legend, The Myth, The Man
Maya Angelou said it best: “When someone shows you who they are, believe them.” Never has this been truer than in Philadelphia a few weekends ago. On Aug. 7, the Phillies held a 42-year celebration of their 1980 World Series championship. The team invited Pete Rose to attend. Rose showed everyone who he is (again).…
A Salute to Vin Scully
A lawyer friend called me the other day to discuss a deal. But before we got down to business, we had to deal with important matters. He wanted my thoughts on the trade deadline and the passing of Vin Scully. I offered a few bromides about the Dodgers’ failure to land Juan Soto and then jumped…