Catching up on a couple things from the last week or so…

ESPN made four correct personnel moves in one day?

Moving Sean McDonough to the play-by-play voice of Monday Night Football.

(Reportedly) Not bringing back Cris “Fall Guy” Carter and Ray “White Suit” Lewis.

Adding Randy Moss to NFL Countdown.

What is happening? 

Mike Ditka will also not be back on NFL Countdown, but he will still be around the network. Trent Dilfer could be gone as well, and the uncertain status of Chris Mortensen, due to his illness means that NFL coverage on ESPN could look very different on game days this fall.

I’m not going to try and make the case that David Ortiz is better than Ted Williams was, but nice job by Dan Shaughnessy taking that strawman and using it to write a column dripping with more undertones and suggestions that Ortiz must be using something in order to keep his performance level so high at the age of 40.

There’s no doubt that if Dan Shaughnessy was around in the 1950’s, he’d be trashing Ted Williams in the mold of Dave Egan.

Sure Teddy ballgame can hit the ball, but he’s not nearly the all-around player and man that Tris Speaker was.

The irony of all ironies is Shaughnessy decrying the era of “hot takes.”

Speaking of – you know things are slow in the Patriots hot take business when the topics have been Tom Brady’s cookbook and his mattress commercials.

Seriously.

Published by Bruce Allen

Automattician.

11 thoughts on “Wednesday Quickie”

  1. “Speaking of – you know things are slow in the Patriots hot take business when the topics have been Tom Brady’s cookbook and his mattress commercials.”

    Don’t worry, the new outraged take of the day is that Tom didn’t solve the concussion issue..or something.. in an interview about his mattress endorsement. /eye roll

    http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nfl-shutdown-corner/tom-brady-on-concussions—it-s-just-part-of-life-123925471.html;_ylt=AwrBT8q3aTNXf6UAuX9XNyoA;_ylu=X3oDMTEyNW84ODh0BGNvbG8DYmYxBHBvcwMxBHZ0aWQDQjE1NjNfMQRzZWMDc2M-

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  3. I don’t read Shaughnessy so I have no idea what argument he is making. However I have stated time and time again I don’t believe 40 year olds hit 30-35 HR’s without ahem, cough help. I think in this era it is a fair fair question to ask and accusation to make. In the public opinion wars it seems to me you are guilty until proven innocent on this topic.

    As for comparing Williams to Ortiz…if you believe Ortiz is clean…then their offensive numbers are comparable and Ortiz with his 3 rings might have had a better career. The question is does the fact that Dom DiMaggio wanted Williams to wear a cow bell when he played left field so DiMaggio would know where he was at all times so he could cover for him offset the fact that Ortiz was a DH. I don’t know.

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    1. Ortiz’s and Ted’s numbers in their late 30’s are comparable. Also, Hank Aaron hit 40 HRs at age 39 and hit a career high 47 HRs at age 37. Ortiz hasn’t failed a PED test since being outed on the anonymous list. Hasn’t failed multiple times like Manny or been involved with Biogenesis like A-Rod. Point is, Shank is a horrible human being.

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    2. I guess that if your athletic performance doesn’t conform to some general assumptions and expectations – such as the idea that older athletes should produce less and less each succeeding year after a certain point – then people are always going to assume you’re on the juice.
      But this thought process and conclusion doesn’t seem to be restricted to the age of the athlete – just yesterday, I heard Felger float the idea that Jackie Bradley’s turnaround at the plate might be attributable to PEDs. No proof, no big head or suddenly huge biceps – just an increase in production where little was actually expected. Not for nothing, Felger has insinuated the same thing about Tom Brady, especially after he turned things around after week four in 2014.
      And the thing about Ortiz seems particularly unfair to him. As I understand it, his name (and only 5 others IIRC) was leaked from a list of about 100 guys who tested positive for ‘something’ – no one will say what – and everyone concluded that he was obviously on steroids. He hasn’t failed any official PED test since then, but I’m sure I’ll hear that those tests are easy to fool, so I’ll be told that his clean record really doesn’t mean anything.
      I don’t know – I feel like it’s just a shame that if someone is kind of an outlier and performs a bit longer than most others, then he’s automatically suspected of cheating. I kind of feel like you should have to prove it before you get to rip down someone’s career accomplishments.

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      1. Felger’s insinuation about JBJ is one of the reasons why I find him so loathsome. The guy has gotten hot and shown power spurts before, like last August when he was on a similar hitting streak, or like spring training a few years ago when he made the team coming out of Ft. Myers, but then ended up getting sent down because he couldn’t hit his way out of a paper bag once the real games began. His problem has been consistency and maintaining his production levels over the long haul. If Felger cared about facts — Mr. “Fact, not Opinion” himself — then he would know that JBJ’s recent streak, while impressive and a career best for him, isn’t the only such streak he’s had during his brief MLB career. It almost makes me want to see JBJ go into a 5 for 45 slump next week, just so someone can ask him if he still thinks JBJ is on ‘roids. What a tool.

        As for Shank……you know, Terry Ryan, who was one of the best-ever GMs and talent evaluators EVER……….ever, ever, ever!! He gave up on Ortiz, and suddenly he comes to Boston and puts up all of these numbers!!! He’s never going to drop the “Ortiz is dirty” meme. Maybe he is. I have no idea. No one, to this day, knows what he got popped for back in 2003, but it’s out there, and it’s the hammer guys like the CHB will forever use to bash Ortiz and minimize his accomplishments. Shank probably won’t vote to put him into the Hall of Fame. That’s fine. He’s entitled to his opinion — but if I have to hear him invoke that “Terry Ryan gave up on him and he hardly ever made mistakes” mantra one more time, I’m gonna lose it.

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        1. Just a quick follow up to the points made, I don’t believe that MLB has ever confirmed that Ortiz name was on the list. Due to the privacy issues I don’t think they could. So all we are left with is a news report that Ortiz was on the list. I’ll be honest after the last year and a half I’m not sure why anyone takes this story as gospel.

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          1. Because Ortiz came out in that press conference and said he did not know why he was on the list but he had his people looking into it. Then he said that he would get back to the media in a few days and explain what happened because he was a stand up honest guy. He never addressed it again. That is why I don’t believe him or that he was clean. The change in his numbers from Minnesota to Boston (where he met Manny) is also extreme. He might be clean. Had this happened 30 years earlier…no whispers nothing. But it happened during the height of the steroid era, on a team that had at least 3 users and his numbers defy all but extreme examples in history. So people like me question Ortiz because unfortunately he needs to prove he is clean in this time and era.

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          2. So the fact that Ortiz hasn’t failed a single official drug test since the anonymous one way back in 2003 isn’t proof enough? What would proof look like to you? If tomorrow, Ortiz comes out and says he failed the 2003 test for steroids would that make you believe he was clean from then on or not?

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    3. Only baseball fans care about PEDs because they “commit onanism” (cracked carrot) to throw pillows lovingly stitched with “56” “.406” “755” and “60*”

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  4. I’m waiting for the faux outrage to shift to Brady, who turns 39 in a few months. The hater media has it way too easy in PEDs. They indict everyone and if they’re right, they sit back and nod. If they’re wrong, no one cares. I don’t know if Papi is on anything. Until he’s busted, I’ll root for him. The Sox are fun to watch. That’s all I’ve ever asked.

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