Andy

Remembering Memorial Day

2008-05-26T08:52:00.000-07:00

Memorial Day is one of those mile markers in a baseball season where you take a few minutes to evauluate whether your team is a contender or a pretender. Now, there is still a lot of baseball season left and much can happen, but those of us 'Bird watchers have to like what we see when we look at the standings.

Raise your hand if you thought this team would be eight games over .500, and sharing first place? I didn't think so. (I know my hand wasn't up) Last season, the Cardinals were 20-28 on the fourth Monday in May, in fifth place and six-and-a-half games back of the Brewers. Heck, let's look back at 2004, when the Cards won 105 games: they were just 23-21 on Memorial Day, and in fifth place. So there is much to be thankful for on this day.

My 94-year old uncle passed away on Saturday night. Why do I bring this up? Well, he was one who lived through the Depression, and that period definitely had an impact on how he lived his life: frugally yet thankfully. All right, almost obsessively frugal, yet thankful. And in the tough economic times we're going through now, I need to stop and take time to thank those that came before me, and sacrificed to make sure that I had everything I needed..and then some..to make my mark in this world.

And on Memorial Day, that also goes to those who wear a uniform that protects the freedom that I enjoy, and yes, take for granted. Since I have lived in a time where military service is elective, I have no idea what it takes to serve my country. Realistic though it may be, watching Saving Private Ryan doesn't count. I can't say that I've known anyone who fought in combat so I have no idea of the hell they went through. I've never been shot at, tried to sleep wondering if I'll wake up on my own or if the explosion of enemy fire will do it for me, experienced being jeered at or made to feel unwelcome in a country I was there to protect, or look someone in the eye and wonder if they've got explosives strapped inside their clothing. I haven't been away from a family for months at a time, and I don't have to worry if the horrors of what I've witnessed will haunt me for the rest of my life.

No, instead I have the freedom to make choices like, do I want public or private education for my children, where to go on vacation, how I want to earn my living, who I vote for to represent me in government, and heck, voicing my opinion in this blog. So while it's great that we in the media take time on Memorial Day to show the soldiers that have come home from deployment, show the graves of servicemen decorated with flags, and the various parades around the area and the country, I think it's what we do as a people on the other 360-ish days of the year (leaving out Veteran's Day, July 4th, and such) that count. Every time we do something that comes from a freedom that we enjoy, we should be thankful to those that serve to maintain that freedom we enjoy. You may not support the politics of war, but do support those that fight instead.

While over the top, Jack Nicholson's classic monologue in A Few Good Men is right: we need them on that wall. We all need them.

Until next time.....

We Bring You This Public Service Announcement...

2008-05-11T14:45:00.001-07:00

Hello, all....and I hope it was a Happy Mother's Day for all the moms! For my two cents' worth, Mom is the most undervalued occupation on the planet.

Permit me to jump back in with a two-purpose message. And if you don't like cranky blog postings, I suggest that you stop reading now and check back later. I'll give you a few seconds while you make up your mind.

Dum dum de dum dum....

You're still reading? OK, here goes.

For any of you that would rather watch the NHL, the French Open, the PGA Tour and the U.S. Women's Open instead of Cardinals baseball on a Sunday, and haven't heard otherwise....
YOU CAN SEE THOSE EVENTS ON WRBU, LOCAL CHANNEL 46, AlSO AVAILABLE ON OTHER CHANNELS DEPENDING ON YOUR CABLE OR SATELLITE PROVIDER.
AM I CLEAR? THAT'S WRBU, LOCAL CHANNEL 46.

Now, for the second message. And it's where I really get cranky. Remember, I warned you.

Does anyone have a brain ????

It is now 1:45 pm and it is not on channel 46 are any other channel. WHY?

Again your Sports Director thinks more about hearing himself on TV than what St. Louis sports fans want to see.

Those were excerpts from some of the more polite inquiries about why they were not seeing the final round of the Players' Championship on KSDK while we were televising the Cardinals-Brewers game.

I don't have a problem with people that haven't heard that we've moved events like the TPC to WRBU. Despite our best efforts (listed in the local paper's sports section the past two days, mentioned on our sportscasts for the past three days, a graphic crawl rolling across the bottom of the screen during the game today), there are those that didn't get the word. Fine. That's understandable, and we apologize for the inconvenience. (See Point 1)

But what gets me (and I've mentioned this before) is the way some people email. Is that the way these people deal with others face to face? With their children? With their neighbors? With their bosses? I don't think so.

The cloak of anonymity is an empowering element, isn't it? And I understand that many of these articles of vitriol are off the cuff, heat of the moment communiques of frustration. That is one thing that true sports fans are---passionate. But that's not an excuse for boorishness.

When someone angered Abraham Lincoln, he would write passionate, often angry letters to that person---and then toss them in the trash can. In the 21st century, it's much more daring, though far less noble, to hit "Send" instead.

Anyone Feel A Draft?

2008-04-25T23:07:00.000-07:00

I used to dread this time of year.

As a Football Cardinals fan, how could you not?

I would spend the season watching the Big Red go through another 4-9-1 or 5-11 season, and wind up with a Top 5 or 6 pick in the following year's draft. And as draft day would get closer and closer I would get a knot in my stomach that started out about the size of a baseball and grow to the size of a bowling ball as that inevitable time came at hand...

I think the idea with having a Top 5 draft pick is that it should be a no-brainer. And with George Boone leading the way, the Cardinals' pick often was.

Shall I run down the list?

Steve Pisarkiewicz, 1977. The Big Red needed defensive help in the worst way, yet they took a quarterback.

Steve Little, 1978. Great college kicker with impeccable college credentials, but couldn't translate that into an NFL career.

Boone and company put together a six-year run of solid (Leonard Smith, Luis Sharpe, Curtis Greer), sometimes spectacular (Ottis Anderson) picks, but then closed out the St. Louis years with four unbelievably, hard-to-describe, boneheaded choices.

Clyde Duncan, 1984. Some had him listed as the 6th best receiver in the draft, yet the Cardinals took him after Irving Fryar and Kenny Jackson. Four catches and one touchdown in two seasons.

Freddie Joe Nunn, 1985. Never looked comfortable in St. Louis, though he did manage to string together a 12-year NFL career.

Anthony Bell, 1986. Not even the best linebacker on his college team, yet the Cardinals saw fit to take him 5th overall. He came into the league with people asking, "Anthony Who?" and left it just as anonymously.

Kelly Stouffer, 1987. Subject of perhaps the most famous draft quip of all time----"Oh my god, they've drafted a girl." Another pick the Cardinals reached on, and they did so well in their preparations that they couldn't ever some to contract terms with the Colorado State quarterback. He never played a down with the Cardinals.

So you can understand why die-hard Big Red fans suddenly show a nervous tic or two when you say "draft" around them.

So as the hours count down to the Rams pick at number two this afternoon, it will be a much different feeling of anticipation. Even in the great Dorsey vs. Chris Long vs. Gholston vs. McFadden debate. A solid player will be coming the Rams' way. So while there may be some drama, it'll be nothing like the old days.

Until next time...

Another Op'nin, Another Show...

2008-03-30T19:40:00.000-07:00

Another op'nin' of another show.

Another job that you hope, at last,

Will make your future forget your past.

--Cole Porter, "Kiss Me Kate"

So another opening day is at hand. A city bedecked in red. Clydesdale leading the motorcade around the stadium. Redbird greats of the past for all to behold. The atmosphere is electric, and anyone who wants to understand St. Louis needs to attend at least one Opening Day.

The manager said today that he looks forward to the first game of the season because it breaks the tie. Everybody is tied on Opening Day. Optimism runs high because everybody's 0-0. Now will the Cardinals' future forget its past?

There are a lot of questions about this team. Can the starting pitching hold up and not burn the bullpen out early? How soon can Mark Mulder and Chris Carpenter safely rejoin the rotation? How effective will they be upon their return? How much thump will the lineup have besides Albert Pujols? Will Skip Schumaker be a catalyst at the top of the order? And can the crop of outfielders keep phenom Colby Rasmus down on the farm?

Of one thing there is no question. The happiest man in the stadium will be rookie pitcher Kyle McClellan. He said today that he's been to five or six openers in the past, but this will be the first one the Hazelwood West grad will attend in the uniform of his hometown team, to be introduced to the sold-out crowd, most certainly to a standing ovation. When Rene Knott interviewed Kyle today, a smile never left his face. And that was on the day before. Imagine how he will be today.

The fun begins later, weather permitting.

Finally, Four

It's normally a big Monday, I mean Big Monday (with apologies to ESPN). In addition to the Cardinals opening the season, the NCAA usually crowns a new champion on this day. But the Final Four is running a week behind the baseball season, so that won't happen until next Monday. But, the Final Four is set. And for the first time since teams have been seeded, all four top teams have made it through.

Who do you like? North Carolina, UCLA, and Memphis have looked really strong in mowing down their four opponents, while Kansas got the monkey off Bill Self's back in holding off a surprisingly tough Davidson squad. I have three of my original four teams still alive, and so I see no reason to change my mind now. UCLA and North Carolina will advance to the final, and the Tar Heels will cut down the nets. Let's say, 76-72.

Mastering Augusta

Clifford Roberts, the original hammer behind Augusta National Golf Club, the folks that bring you the Masters, has been dead for almost 40 years now. And little by little since then, the Masters is pulling away its veil of secrecy that made it such a Holy Grail of Sports for those of us who have never been on the grounds in the first week of April.

No, the tournament is still sold out, with the waiting list for admission measured not in hundreds or thousands, but in generations. No, there are still the limited TV commercial interruptions on the weekend. No, the course is still a pristine mix of the lushest green fairways, blindingly white bunkers, and vivid pastel pink azaleas. And no, don't you dare refer to the gallery as a "crowd". In Augusta National lexicon, the people on hand are "patrons".

There was a time when CBS was only allowed to show the back nine holes of the course. Gradually, though, TV has won out and we now get to see the leaders play all 18 holes on Sunday. And now, ESPN has squeezed into the mix, replacing USA Network as the place to see the early rounds.

They are also promoting that they will have the first broadcast of the Wednesday par-3 Tournament. When I first started in this business, we were lucky to get video of the par-3 for our 10 p.m. show, and it was shot by a news camera by one of our affiliates, and then usually only if there had been a hole-in-one. My, my, how times have changed.

Until next time...

People You Should Know

2008-03-28T12:32:00.000-07:00

All right, tonight's "Turn of the Cards" special is put to bed and airs in just a few hours. (Shamless plug: 7-8 p.m. tonight, right here on KSDK.) I'm bleary-eyed, not quite sure what day it is, and kind of feel like a mole forced out into the light--a lot of late nights were spent in writing and deciding on the video to use to fill the hour. But now as I open up a yawn that would make the Grand Canyon look like a drainage ditch and stretch out the dormant muscle groups (geez, I hope nobody is looking), I need to mention a few other folks that had a hand in this.

Don Galloway and Tom Stasiak shot the video down in Jupiter, and they do great work. As I probably mentioned, Tom was the photog (oops--20th century job title. It's the 21st, so they answer to photojournalist now) when I went down to Florida, and he really busted his hind parts to get great angles and creative shots. Both of those guys made the video portion of tonight's show extra good.

Now I took those pictures and tried to put some words and reactions to them, and then handed off my vision to Jon King. (He's got a warehouse full of awards to prove his value as an editor, so he doesn't need my endorsement.) Jon and I work at opposite ends of the clock, so I didn't get to actually see how he interpreted my ideas until yesterday, and he did a fantastic job. (Shameless plug #2: Make sure you stick around to see how he closed the show out---let's just say it was a really creative way to put the end on how he began it.)

Next, I gave our graphic artist Rich Witzofsky a title and a rough outline for a concept, and then Rich did what he does best---he took the idea and conceived an animation that is light years above what I asked for. He is so creative---someone should take his brain after he's done with it and freeze it for generations after ours to study. (Rich, I did say AFTER you were done with it.)

After singling out these fine folks, it is worth mentioning that there are a lot of creatively gifted folks that I am blessed to work with. I am better at what I do because of them. And there are those who I know for a fact are undervalued for the contributions that they make here, but it goes without saying that without them, the KSDK juggernaut ceases to be.

So if you watch tonight's show and like it, think of and credit these fine folks I've mentioned. If you don't, blame me.

THOUGHTS CLOGGING MY BRAIN:

--Have you seen what the fine folks at Davidson have done for their student body? The trustees tapped a fund that paid for transportation (11 hours on a bus, each way), two nights' lodging, and a game ticket for any student who wanted to go to their team's Sweet Sixteen game tonight in Detroit. Roughly 20 percent of the 12-hundred or so students took advantage of the opportunity. Seems like a great deal, except I see that it costs $41,000 to attend Davidson. (OK, they do offer a free laundry service.) What, they couldn't have thrown in a game program and one of those foam hands?

--Why do people e-mail comments to us that are basically a chance for those who are frustrated in their own lives to take shots at the people they see on TV? You got a complaint, fine. You want to give your dog or cat a night off from being kicked around the house and write things to people that you would never have the guts to say to the person face-to-face, just because you didn't see what you wanted on a news broadcast? Really. Find another way to vent. More on that another time. (Whew, I feel better. OK, maybe not.)

--First Ted Williams, now the Gipper? (Not Ronald Reagan; the Gipper. You know, Notre Dame? Win one for him? Knute Rockne speech?) Seems they've exhumed George Gipp's body after nearly 90 years in the ground in order to determine if he fathered his girlfriend's child (DNA says he didn't), and accidentally dug up his sister's remains by accident along the way. And now descendants have sued over the unfortunate mistake. Are you kidding? Is there anything in this society that happens where someone's first thought isn't lawsuit!

--Is there any way UCLA and North Carolina aren't on a collision course to meet in the NCAA finals? They are the two best teams, by far, that I've seen to this point.

--Will Anthony Reyes ever get a fair shake? Granted, his overall spring body of work hasn't been stellar (yet a 3.32 ERA isn't bad), but he's been really good in his last two outings, and he's on the bubble between starting the season in the bullpen or in Triple-A? This untrained eye seems to think that you put Reyes in the rotation and see if he can build on those two outings, and have Brad Thompson (who is much better suited for long relief) available out of the bullpen. And if Reyes implodes again, then I'll throw up my hands and say Reyes has run out of chances.

--I really enjoyed Derrick Goold's article in the Post-Dispatch the other day on Bob Gibson's 1968 season. Gibby was one of my early heroes, and '68 was, quite simply, the Holy Grail of big league pitching. Derrick is a terrific writer, and I never miss a chance to read his stuff. (And by disclaimer, the fact that he's married to our 10 p.m. producer has absolutely nothing to do with it.)

--Are there any athletes any more classy than Isaac Bruce or Trent Green? I doubt it. It's great to have the Vianney product back in the organization, and hearing him say that it was Bruce, unceremoniously sent packing by the Rams, who told him that St. Louis was the place for him to go. That's a great story. More on that Sunday night on Sports Plus (shameless plug #3.).

Until next time....

Welcome To My Nightmare

2008-03-17T10:14:00.000-07:00

I am now back in St. Louis, about 12 hours behind schedule. As many of you who do this much more frequently than I do can relate, air travel is not a fun process. But, much like going to the dentist, it's a necessary evil.

Our journey began even before Sunday's Cardinals-Braves game was off the air. Frank, Tom and I had to drive an hour to Fort Lauderdale to catch our flight, and so the decision was to make sure to get there plenty early. And we did. The trouble began once we boarded the flight. (Now keep in mind that Rene and a KSDK photographer had trouble with this same airline we would be using last month. But our travel folks decided to give them another shot. And in a perfect world, it would have all worked out. But I digress...)

We had a scheduled 46-minute layover in Atlanta, which is a big airport, but certainly do-able to get to our next gate. But when the airplane sits at the gate in Fort Lauderdale for 20 minutes, you're tempting fate. The plane touched down at 9:00, as the pilot said it would. But then it took another 20 minutes to get to the gate, and then another 10 for the door to the plane to open. Say it with me now...no shot to make the second leg of the flight. Uggh.

Now, the hurry-up-and-wait process began. There were no other flights leaving Atlanta until this morning, so we (among many others) stood in line for the airline to provide us a lodging and food voucher. By this time, we've become zombie-like drones, traipsing through the airport to get to the shuttle to the hotel. (And did I mention my appreciation for a news photojournalist? They have to travel with a camera, tripod, and utility bag---oh, and then whatever luggage they have. We also traveled with a portable edit unit--portable in the way that that a tank is drive-able in a crowded parking lot--about 50 extra pounds that was usually hanging from my shoulder throughout the trip.)

Our intrepid trio forged on, finally finding a shuttle for the hotel we'd been assigned to. The driver, Perry, was a trip unto himself. He didn't stop talking the entire journey, saying, "We're gonna rock and roll. We've got another stop to make and then we'll be there in two shakes. Let's rock and roll." Well, Perry jammed his vehicle full of people and luggage until there wasn't room to breathe. And then he stopped and picked up two more folks. And Perry's monologue continued, at top volume and with great gusto. And presto! Just like that we were there---ok, it was longer than two shakes. Nice try, Perry.

We got there just in time for the hotel restaurant to be closing, so Frank (the man has restaurant in his blood, you may know. If you don't you obviously haven't been paying attention.) negotiated three to-go sandwiches from the kitchen folks while we stood in line to get our rooms. Finally, we got to our rooms, but something was wrong with the temperature. The room was warm, the toasted sandwiches were cold, it was 40 degrees outside, and I had shorts on. And I would have shorts on when it was time to leave, since the luggage was back at the airport.
Ah, but would we let that keep us from pressing on? Of course not.

Just about the time my head hit the pillow (or so it seemed), the alarms ( I set three, just to be safe) went off and it was time to continue the journey. Strap on my piggybacking editor friend and get back on the shuttle at 7 o'clock (or halfway through Today In St. Louis---shameless KSDK plug. Art, Jennifer, Scott and Heidi, you rock!), we get to the airport, and lo and behold, several hundred thousand of our closest friends are there, too. (OK, maybe I overestimated the number of travelers by a few--thousand.) The line to go through the security checkpoint was longer than it was leaving the morning after the Super Bowl in New Orleans just months after 9-11. The line snaked through the entire level of the airport--no spare room was wasted. But I will hand it to the security people I dealt with---they handled things with patience, calm, and aplomb, and 30 minutes later, I was processed.

The boards said our 9:10 flight was pushed back to a 9:50 departure--of course. Frank said he had heard that it would actually be 9:10, that the 9:50 was a mistake. I figured, with my luck, 9:50 might actually be early. Tom and I went to get some breakfast and then we get to the gate at 8:50, and they're loading the plane! (Good thing I talked Tom out of seconds.) We get on the plane with no troubles, and the door closes, and---uggh. The young woman sitting in the row in front of me with her two young girls tells the attendant that she isn't supposed to be on this flight---she needs to be on the flight for Sarasota! (One of the girls was asking her harried mommy, "How is daddy going to pick us up if we're in St. Louis?") So the door to the plane opens, off she and her girls go, and long, story short---we leave the terminal at 9:30. Late again.

The flight was uneventful, until we hit the ground. As the usual scramble takes place to gather belongings, upclip seat belts, turn on cell phones, stand up----oops, let's go back to that turn on cell phones thing. Frank, who is sitting next to me, is whirling around trying to find his phone. Frank lives by his phone, so this is a catastrophe in waiting. But he must have found it, because I reached down to get my carry-on bag, and when I looked up Frank was gone. Gone! Poof! Amazing.

Tom and I headed down to baggage claim, where we had a 20-minute wait to get our bags and see no signs of Frank. Finally the bags come (wet, from being unloaded onto a wet tarmac---thank you, St. Louis weather.), I head to my car, get on to the highway, turn on the radio, and there Frank is----like a cooped-up animal suddenly released into open spaces. He was in his element, talking NCAA tournament brackets and not coming up for air. He is truly something to behold.

Now, it's on to the station---three sportscasts to prepare and a spring training special now ten days from air. An eventful four days--plus one---are now in the books. And just knowing how much this country relies on the travel industry for business as well as pleasure---well, I can only shake my head enough for those around me to hear the marbles rattle...

Until next time...

The Ulti-MET?

2008-03-15T14:39:00.000-07:00

There was quite a pitching matchup today in Port St. Lucie. Adam Wainwright against the new Met savior, Johan Santana. Wainwright looked like the ace the Cardinals are counting on him to be, with five innings of one-run pitching and a hit in two at-bats. He looked sharp and workman-like, facing 19 hitters in five innings.

Santana, who received loud cheers from the Mets faithful at every opportunity, was impressive but not dominating. Impressive because even an untrained eye like mine can see what a live arm he has, and stuff that can be filthy (five strikeouts). But Cardinal hitters also knocked him around. Albert Pujols ripped a shot for a double, and sent another shot into orbit, although it was well foul. Yadier Molina and Brendan Ryan both made solid contact in doubling off Santana, and Brian Barton launched a missile to the gap in right-center that he legged into a triple. It was good to see the Cards get some runs, because I think they will have to score significant runs this year to win. I don't think you will see this team on the positive end of many low-scoring games.

In the few days I've seen Barton play, the guy can hit, and he's got some wheels. Where he lacks is on defense---he misplayed an easy (for me too say) fly ball in left today, and he doesn't have a good throwing arm. But there have been great players that have not been brilliant defensively, but Barton will have to see to it that he's not a liability if he wants to stick around.

As we drove up to the Mets' stadium, it was hard to believe that it's now 20 years old. It's a beautiful facility with a huge canopy in right field for fans to sit under. It was warm today (the back of photojournalist Tom Stasiak's neck and his forehead are a testament to the sun's power today---can you say lobster?) and it was very comfortable in the ballpark, with a nice breeze. It did strike me as odd how many New York accents there were. My first thought was the Seinfeld episodes from Del Boca Vista.

Tomorrow the Cardinals are in Jupiter, and it's our first telecast. Right after the game, we will be hoofing it to get to the airport, so I will wrap up the journey upon my return. I'm sure you'll be waiting with eager anticipation.

Until then...

A Sense of History

2008-03-14T23:21:00.001-07:00

We made the drive to Vero Beach today, and like the scores of fans, the thousands of Dodger hopefuls dreaming of becoming a big leaguer, and the likes of Duke Snider, Sandy Koufax, Don Drysdale, Steve Garvey and Mike Piazza who were able to live their dream, I passed the "Welcome To Dodgertown" sign and into a patch of hallowed baseball ground. And very soon it will cease to exist as it does now after 60 years.

The scene was much like any other Grapefruit League game, but with subtle, little differences: open, uncovered dugouts, where the players are right there by the first row of fans. Can you picture someone approaching Dodgers manager-designate Tom Lasorda for an autograph while the game was in progess, and getting it? It happened. There are many fans who watch the game while sunning themselves on a hill beyond the outfield fence. And the press box is close to the ground, maybe only 20 feet from field level. It was a great place to see a game.

As we left I heard someone say that they didn't see what the big fuss was all about. And that's too bad. I guess that person needed someone like recently retired umpire Bruce Froemming to offer a little perspective on how special a place it is, or be reminded of all the great players who learned and trained here, or simply know that the entire spring training concept that we take as commonplace now, with all the players of an organization-from Class A (and back in the day, even Class D) to the majors, all training together in the same plot of ground, that inthis case was once a military base.

Tony La Russa was asked if anyone had come to him and specifically asked to make the 75-minute bus ride so they could be a part of the Cardinals last game in Dodgertown. The manager said no, that today's players just don't have an appreciation for that sort of thing. Again, that's too bad, for you have to have an understanding of where you came from in order to appreciate where you are now.

Sure, the Dodgers may move on to Arizona, another team (the Orioles?) will take the place over, and life will go on. That's the way of the world. But one press box visitor pointed out that it will be "ironical" that the Dodgers (because of their exhibition trip to Japan) will play their final game at Dodgertown on Monday, St. Patrick's Day. They'll be wearing green jerseys.

Other observations:

Is there a more classy uniform anywhere than those of the Cards and Dodgers? I don't think so. The birds on bat is a no-brainer. Just like the blindingly white Dodgers jersey with the blue script and the red numerals on the front.

Middle infield defense could be a foreign concept for the Cards this year. Adam Kennedy looked bad on a routinely hit grounder to second today, while shortstop Cesar Izturis currently has more errors than hits. Yikes.

Speaking of defense, Colby Rasmus showed the extremes of youth on one play. He raced back on a fly ball and made a twisting catch for the out (although it appeared that the twisting came as a result of his having difficulty tracking the ball in the mid-afternoon sun and breeze), and then threw in the general direction of first base trying to double off a baserunner, but the ball kept tailing away from Joe Mather and one-hopped into the seats behind the base. Oops.

Rick Ankiel's power was on full display. His first of two homers was hit to straightaway center, and then in the eighth he hit one to right that nearly cleared two fences--the one that mattered, and then hitting the railing along the walkway in front of the Dodgers' team offices. Ankiel also made March seem like September, going in hard to break up a double play.

Next stop on the tour, Port St. Lucie.

Until then...

A Mark In Time

2008-03-14T06:22:00.001-07:00

So the Mark Lamping era with the Cardinals comes to an end: officially, in just a few hours. Unofficially, it will end in a couple of months after he graciously sticks around to help in the transition phase to Bill DeWitt III. And Mr. Lampihg leaves a very impressive body of work.

When he took over as team president, the Cardinals were a bird with a rumpled set of feathers. The team was being left to flounder by A-B, once August A. Busch Jr. passed away. Attendance was down, and the product on the wasn't very good. when it was announced he would take the job, I remember thinking that he wasn't much older than I was. But his youthful energy, coupled with a true love for the team he had rooted for since he was a kid, began to produce results. He brought in Walt Jocketty to be G.M., who in turn reeled in manager Tony La Russa. An infusion of players followed, and then so did the winning. Seven division titles and a wild card berth in 14 seasons, two pennants, and a World Championship. Lamping also polished the jewel that was the old Busch Stadium, and then mined the new diamond that is the new Busch right out of the downtown ground. The former Anheuser-Busch exec was also the conduit between the A-B ownership and the current regime. I guess it's just a simplistic notion that who better to be the caretaker of a prized possession like the Cardinals than someone who treasures that possession as much as you do? And there can never be any doubt that no one has any more love for the Redbirds than Mark Lamping. You may not agree with some of his decisions, but he always made those decisions with the best interests of the team and its fans as the top priority. He will be hard to replace.

You could tell from Thursday's game against the Mets that Tony La Russa that it was a little more important to win this "meaningless" exhibition game more so than others. After a week with nothing but a tie, a win was necessary-or at least desirable to cast off the negativity a week's worth of losing can do.

And there were some good things to see: Colby Rasmus' catch and throw from centerfield with the game on the line, coupled with Yadier Molina's snag, bag and tag, brought out a collective "ooh (wait for it) yeah!" from the crowd. Rasmus also showed something when he delivered his hit during the winning rally. Hopefully it was a peer into the future.

The manager never lets up on the intensity pedal, even in mid-March before they start counting the W's and L's. My first view of Mr. La Russa after a game that doesn't count past the next day wasn't much different than what he exhibits after a late-September, heat-of-the-race moment. If it had been different, now that would have been a story.

The player who caught my eye right away is outfielder Joe Mather. What's the old cliche, he just looks like a ballplayer. If he continues to hit, and hit with power, he will present an enviable problem of how to get him in the lineup someday, and at whose expense?

Today, a pilgrimage to a spring baseball Mecca, Dodgertown in Vero Beach. More on my history lesson next time.

Until then...

Florida Bound

2008-03-12T21:03:00.001-07:00

I'm going to experience something a little different beginning tomorrow. I will be going to Camp Cardinals for four days, and it's the first time I will see spring training with games actually being played.

I am looking forward to several things, not the least of which is seeing actual baseball. You see, the times I've gone in years past have been the first few days of camp--it'll be nice to see more than live b-p, the ol' "pitcher covers first base on a ground ball to the right side" exercise, and the morning calisthenics. The players all look bored doing it, so I don't feel the need to apologize for being bored watching it.

I'll be going down with Frank Cusumano and photojournalist Tom Stasiak to gather material for our preseason special, and for Sports Plus. I hope to see for
myself some of the more interesting questions about this team. And I'll get to see the venerable Dodgertown--and not a year too soon. The Dodgers are pulling up stakes for Arizona next year. (wouldn't it be odd to come up Vin Scully Way to watch the Orioles train there, as is the rumor?)

I'll try to check in every day with some quick thoughts and observations, when I'm not being treated for extreme sunburn. (Don't hog the sunblock, Frank!)

Until then...

Favre Out

2008-03-07T10:03:00.000-08:00

Now that Brett Favre has retired, I wonder what he'll do?

I'm sure he'll be fine. He certainly doesn't need the money, but what will occupy his time? To me, Brett Favre lived to play quarterback. So now what? Flinging footballs at faraway farm equipment or playing pickup games like he does on those jeans commercials?

It always seemed incongruous that this Southern-born man would become such an icon in the heart of the Midwest. But when you think of the other iconic quarterbacks from his era, what do you come up with? Joe Montana, Joe Cool. 'Nuff said. Troy Aikman, another Southerner, but also detached and businesslike. Dan Marino, the guy that set the bar of NFL records that Favre would eventually surpass, a great quarterback but without a whole lot of dimension apart from his ability to throw a football.

Then there's Brett. Now this guy has some dimension. Playing the game with a style decidedly his, seemingly drawing plays up with a rock in the dirt of the sandlot, blurring the line between daring and reckless. Caution? Schmaution! He would fire passes into the teeth of a secondary knowing he had the arm strength and--well, just knowing he would get it where it was supposed to be. And when he succeeded, he celebrated by jumping boundlessly up and down like a kid----even at age 38. But if he didn't pull it off, you just rooted for the guy because he thumbed his nose at playing it safe.

There was also the way he became a star, playing first for his dad in a run-oriented offense in high school that allowed him to throw maybe five or six passes a game. Riding the bench for his first pro coach, who said it would take a plane crash to get Favre into a game. Then, he replaced a guy in the Green Bay lineup, Don Majkowski, who earned the nickname "The Magic Man" for his own late-game heroics, and turned up the dial on that particular style of play. Add on his humanizing trips to rehab, first for dependency on painkillers and later for alcohol. Toss in that performance on Monday night a couple of years ago, the day after his dad died, when he lit up the sky with passes and burned his own brilliant star just a little brighter.

And then there was the way he said goodbye to football on Thursday. Full of emotion, choking back tears--real tears of bidding farewell to an old friend. No prepared statements, just Brett Favre of Kiln, Mississippi. Saying that as hard as it was to say it, his career was over, that he had no more to give the game. Poignant.

At least one person in our newsroom kind of scoffed at the notion of us using the sound bite where he sat silently gathering himself for what seemed like an hour, the emotion rising up from deep within, the silence broken only by his sniffles, finally saying that he hoped the Packers knew that all the money they spent on him was money well spent. But that wasn't a hokey sound bite used by a cynical media. That was genuine emotion, something you just don't see very much of. Kind of cleansing---like a good cry.

WHILE I'M STILL ROLLING....

The cynic in me says that the higher-ups at the Illinois High School Association must own large amounts of stock in the oil companies. What other explanation can there be for their ridiculous bracketing of the state basketball tournament? Here's what I mean:

You have Edwardsville and O'Fallon playing for a sectional championship tonight. In Bloomington. That's a good three-hour one-way trek up Interstate 55. I know, because I did it for four years in college. How stupid is that? Well, not as stupid as having the schools do it twice in two or three days. Edwardsville's team (and let's not forget their parents and fans) spent six hours on the road on Tuesday, getting in late and having to wake up and go to school the next day. It was O'Fallon's turn on Wednesday. Now both teams will repeat this idiotic sojourn again today. What happened to the day where you played in the Alton regional, then advanced to the Collinsville sectional, and then moved on the Carbondale supersectional before making the trip upstate? Can't you just see the digital numbers flash by on the gas pumps? Maybe somebody can set me straight on the logic for making teams do this.......

And while on the subject of prep sports, here's to all the players whose careers are winding down, or have already finished. Those who won't go on to play in college, and perhaps weren't stars even on their own rosters. We give out much publicity to the blue-chippers who have tough decisions about which college scholarships to accept---and hey, they deserve all the accolades for everything they've done to get to this point. But for those who endured the same long practices, whose parents got them started on the same CYC, JCCA or YMCA route, schlepped them to summer and AAU league games, forked out the money for camps, yelled out encouragement and doled out hugs and pats on the back to their kids but are now seeing the end of the competitive road, enjoy your own moment of satisfaction.

Thanks for reading on this far. Until next time..............

Seeing Red

2008-02-27T22:26:00.000-08:00

Finding balance in life as an individual is a difficult thing. Really difficult. And I should know, but I applaud those that have found it.

To extrapolate a little further, the same goes for building a team.

Wednesday's episode with Scott Spiezio reminds me of a time in Cardinals past, say around 1979 and 1980. I was still young and impressionable back then, and I just remember the lineup that team had--.300 hitters, scoring lots of runs. Of course, their pitching staff was pathetic and so they were involved in a lot of high-scoring games that they mostly lost. I thought that if the Cards could only get some balance by finding a decent pitcher or two and keep that offense, they could be really good.

Turns out there was more.

After Whitey Herzog was hired to replace the easygoing Ken Boyer as manager in the summer of 1980, he took a little time to view his team from up close and then told his boss, Gussie Busch, that he had a bunch of self-centered backstabbers that he needed to get rid of if the Cardinals were to ever win anything. Whitey went to work, and although the subsequent Redbird teams were not as flashy offensively, they had a little bit of everything----uh, balance. And they were a team of classy guys who had each other's backs.

It was little wonder that the 2004 Cardinals won 105 games. Talented team, 3 MVP candidates, enough starting pitching, solid bullpen, great defense---and a great bunch of character guys: Edmonds, Rolen, Reggie Sanders, Tony Womack, Larry Walker, Woody Williams. Not coincidentally, they're all gone now. And the team that won it all in 2006 was also chock full of leadership and character.

Now the Cards are at a crossroads. They're in the rebuilding phase, whether anyone there wants to admit it. And based on the headline moments of the last year, they also need to be in the rebuilding phase of their team image. And releasing Spiezio without the announcement of needing to wait for "due process" was needed, whether fair to Spiezio or not. This is a team that has generated a lot of negative headlines in the past 12 months---the message needs to be sent to Cardinal Nation that having winning character is at least as important as building a winning team. For now.

I'll be on my way now, in search of my own elusive (and in my case, illusive) balance..........

2008-02-24T12:23:00.000-08:00

Two head basketball coaches. Same weekend. Two very divergent paths. And one commonality.

Bruce Pearl of Tennessee is basking in the afterglow of his team's win over Memphis, a win that will likely propel the Volunteers into the number one ranking in tomorrow's new college polls.

Kelvin Sampson, though $750,000 richer, is now out of a job at Indiana. And I guess it would be superfluous to say he'll be working the phones in an effort to find a new job.

What then, do these two coaches have as their common thread?

Mention either one of their names to an Illinois basketball fan, and then duck in anticipation of their reaction.

The wound Sampson dealt the Illini faithful is much more fresh. Eric Gordon is having a dazzling freshman season for Indiana, while the Illini have been struggling (use Saturday's loss to Michigan as a case in point), er, straggling, with a 3-12 record in the Big 10. Gordon's reneging of an oral commitment to Bruce Weber in order to sign with Sampson and the Hoosiers still rankles anyone who bleeds orange and blue. And when the story came out that Sampson had committed phone violations after being penalized by the NCAA for the same kinds of no-no's, it had to cross the mind of every one of those Illini backers, "How many of those 'impermissable' calls came while getting Gordon to change his mind?"

Pearl has successfully navigated a rocky road to Rocky Top. From head coaching jobs at Division II Southern Indiana to Wisconsin-Milwaukee he plugged along until taking the job at Tennessee. Now in his third season at Knoxville, he and the Vols have climbed to a summit-like status: Pat Summitt, that is.

But before his climb began, Pearl was the assistant coach at Iowa who tape-recorded phone conversations with recruit (and later Illini standout) Deon Thomas that led to the Illinois program being slammed with NCAA probation. Jimmy Collins, who got caught in the fallout of the Thomas scandal, never shook hands with Pearl in the five years both were coaching in the Horizon League. Thomas referred to Pearl as a "snake". Three years after his calls implicated the Illini program, Pearl left as an assistant at a Big 10 school for a job in Division II. And Pearl has risen through the ranks and now can wag a "number one" finger at the basketball world. I think Illini fans would like to wag a different finger at Pearl. Still.

Until next time..........

Roger, Over and Out

2008-02-13T23:25:00.000-08:00

Roger Clemens was right. Whatever happens to come out of the Congressional hearing from here on out, he will never have his name restored. And he'll be the reason.

He said early on that the Hall of Fame was not something he gave a rat's hind parts about." But as he continues to sink deeper into the morass that he created, he is now certain to join Mark McGwire, Pete Rose and Shoeless Joe Jackson in that purgatory that lies between compromised greatness and Cooperstown immortality.

It is still a you-blink-first battle of statements between he and his former trainer, Brian McNamee. But his buddy, Andy Pettitte, may have thrown some weight behind McNamee's claims. Yeah, he had his moments of Texas toughness--denying once again that he used steroids, declaring he had serious disagreements with McNamee (duh!), and asking how one can prove a negative. He played the concerned citizen, expressing sympathy at the death of a California representative, played the patriot, expressing the pride he felt in playing for Team USA in the World Baseball Classic, played the victim as he was lit into by Rep. Elijah Cummings of Maryland, and later by California Rep. Henry Waxman, but he never really played the role that made him so successful on the mound: the intimidating power pitcher. His denials just had no oomph to them.

Now he has to sit and wait while the swirls and whispers of perjury charges loom about. I know many still hold on to the hope that he is innocent in all this, but I think another sports hero came toppling down.

Quick thoughts:

So the Jason Kidd to Dallas trade gets nixed because of Devean George's contract fine print, a virtual no-trade clause. I'd love a simple explanation of this "early Bird clause", but I think I'd fall asleep in the middle of the explanation.

I wonder what the folks at Indiana are thinking, with the news that Kelvin Sampson surely will be bringing the first NCAA sanctions against the school since 1960? They will get hit hard by these violations, especially the charge that he misled the investigation. Someone needed to take Kelvin's phone away from him.

I loved the story that Frank did Wednesday on the young basketball player at Fox High School, Cory Dunning, who played on despite cancer and even bypassed chemotherapy because his family have no health coverage. There will be much more to come on Cory's story on Sports Plus this Sunday, but already we've had many inquiries about how they can help Cory's situation. This is one reason why I love the power we have to reach others, and one reason why I love this area. Sure, we get picked on by the coasts for being too sentimental towards our athletes, but in a situation like Cory's people bypass their cynicism and jump to the cause.

Cardinals spring training officially begins Thursday with the first pitchers and catchers workout. I've always looked forward to this time of year, but I don't have the usual anticipation this year. Could be because although the end of last season seems so long ago, but I get the feeling it'll be more of the same in 2008. Play ball. Ho hum.

Until next time......

The Long Day's Journey Into Knight

2008-02-05T16:48:00.000-08:00

Polarize.

[poh-luh-rahyz]: to divide into sharply opposing factions, political groups, etc.

I can't think of anyone who is more of a polarizing figure than Robert Montgomery Knight. He's either loved or hated, praised or pilloried, deified or vilified. And now that he's stepped away from the game of college basketball, the game has gotten a lot less interesting.

He began his head coaching career as the l'enfant terrible at Army, evolved into the prickly pillar of Indiana basketball, and then morphed into a curmudgeon at Texas Tech. Unbending, unyielding, all the while enduring (or cultivating) a dislike-hate relationship with the media. And I don't think it was any accident that the coach ended his career without a career-ending session with the members of the fourth estate.

Yes, any of you that know me know where I stand on the subject of coach Knight. I definitely think the good he's done far outweighs all of the negatives. In a sense, it's unfair for the media to be the tallykeepers: his napalm-like negative incidents (the chair-toss, the "if rape is inevitable" comment to Connie Chung, and the verbal-toasting he gave to that NCAA Tournament worker, for a few examples) are such delicious pieces of video that by their very nature they're going to get replay upon replay on television, while most of the good things he does never see the light of day (which is the way he prefers it). Yes, for all the Landon Turners and Ryan Whites who were publicly helped by the coach, there are certainly hundreds more who benefited from his efforts who we'll never hear from. But their stories are just as important. And the library funds at Indiana and Texas Tech are millions of dollars richer because of what he's done for them.

No, you can't say, "Well, if it wasn't for his temper he'd be revered for his accomplishments," like John Wooden, for instance. You can't have one without the other. And as for the age-old question, there is no doubt that I would have wanted my son to play for coach Knight. Sure, there are many players that he recruited that don't have good things to say about their experiences. But Knight always made it clear in the recruiting process that he would be the most demanding (read: unbearable) coach that player could ever have, so it shouldn't have come as a surprise to the young man that Knight would use language that would make a sailor blush, would be intolerant to mistakes, and wouod have zero tolerance for falling short in the academic portion of the student-athlete job description. I remember hearing of an IU upperclassman telling a freshman, "Don't listen when he calls you an (expletive deleted). But make sure you listen when he tells you why you're an (same expletive deleted), because that's what will make you better." There was another former player who said that there were times that if he had a gun he would have shot his coach, and there were other times when he wanted to hug him and tell him that he loved him.

There was always the puzzlement that, if Knight expected his players to be disclipined, to set a good public example, and to always toe the line while representing the university, then why couldn't he follow his own set of standards? I say, the opinions of us on the outside don't count---instead, listen to those players who survived the experience, the 95+ percent of those players who got their degrees, and the ones who have gone on to successful lives without appearing in the police blotter. The ones who say they got where they were because of the guy in the rumpled red sweater. Ask them if there was a double-standard issue.

Sure I've cringed at some of his more heavy-handed headline-grabbers, but I always enjoyed his antics in dealing with the media. I'm sure there are those who were insulted when, for example, he said they should put TV people on an island (zing!), and put writers in a cave under the island (zing! zing!), or that we learn to write in the second grade and then most of us move on to other things (zing!). However, I looked forward to seeing clips of his latest joust with the press, giving that Archie Bunker-esque look when he made a sarcastic remark. Or recently, when he brought his toddler grandson to the postgame podium with him, "coached" him on how to deal with the media, and then praised the youngster for not answering a single question. I could always find the humor of those encounters, and for those working press that didn't appreciate it or thought it was a waste of their time, maybe the coach was right: they were sanctimonious and self-righteous.

I'll leave you with my favorite Bob Knight story, which I heard him tell several years ago. When he coached the U.S. Olympic team to gold in 1984, he had the last dominant, all-college roster: Jordan, Ewing, Perkins, Mullin, etc. The U.S had won each game handily (although much to Knight's chagrin, they didn't get a chance to play the then-Soviet Union, who boycotted the L.A. Games), and the gold medal game against Spain was no different at halftime. Knight's quandry was how to get his team to play better in the second half when they were so comfortably in front. He decided he would get on Michael Jordan--that if he rode Jordan, the other players would fall in line. (MJ could take Knight's verbal slings---remember, it was Jordan who left a pregame note on Knight's locker room blackboard that said, "after all the &%$#&* we've put up with, no way we lose tonight."), Trouble was, and predictably, Jordan had put up great stats in the first half. So Knight recited Jordan's numbers and then said, "But Mike, I haven't seen you set one damned screen." So Jordan responded, "Coach, I thought I heard you say the other day that I was the quickest player you'd ever seen?" "Yeah, so what's that have to do with anything?" the coach responded. "Well," Jordan continued, "maybe I set them faster than you can see them." After the laughter died down, Knight added, "Well, just make damned sure in the second half, that you set one slow enough for me to see it."

As I said, the world of sports has now gotten a lot less interesting.

Patriot Games

2008-02-04T11:29:00.000-08:00

The bashing has begun.

First off, I thought that New England would complete its perfect season, in part because they had destiny on their side. Turns out that destiny jumped off that train. The Giants were the team of destiny, weren't they? Let me count the ways, and just on the final New York drive:

1. Asante Samuel letting a sure interception go right through his hands.
2. Jarvis Green letting Eli Manning slip out of his hands on what will now be on every greatest plays in Super Bowl history list. Eli looked like Custer surrounded by the Sioux but managed to escape.
3. David Tyree managing to hang on to the ball on the back end of said greatest play, while Rodney Harrison was doing his best to separate Tyree from the ball.

The bottom line here is that as bad as New England looked for much of the game, it was the Giants who made them look bad. The offense controlled the ball early, keeping Brady and Co. off the field, the defense was able to get to Brady, harrass him, and sack him five times (the most times he hit the deck in any game this season), and Eli had the poise to direct that 83-yard drive, with 98 million people watching, to take the lead. The Giants won the game. They deserve to be champions, destiny and all.

Other observations:

We as Americans hate juggernauts. They remind us too much of bullies. So it doesn't surprise me how many gloaters have come out of the cracks to stand over the Patriots' carcass and huzzah. But with Belichick and personnel guy Scott Pioli running the ship, there just won't be any dropoff any time soon. Sorry to say.

Speaking of Belichick, the furor around here fueled by the allegation that the Patriots taped the Rams walkthrough the day before SB XXXVI is interesting. I wonder if that tape still exists? In any case, and wrong though it is, I have a hard time believing that "Beli-cheat" invented the idea of using the video camera as a weapon. Those that are old enough to remember when Al Davis was someone to fear and not just a crotchety caricature can picture all the coaches who swore that Al took guerilla warfare to new heights: bugging opposing locker rooms, among other things. Coaches, by nature, are paranoid. Didn't the Rams put up a wall at their practice facility to keep "spies" from gathering secrets from nearby hotel rooms?

Do you think Giants' defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo has set himself up for a big payday after orchestrating his masterpiece two days before an interview for the Redskins' head coaching job? Dan Snyder sure isn't shy about tossing money around.

Mizzou travels to Kansas tonight to take on the Jayhawks. They had a heroic performance a couple of weeks ago in Columbia, but I don't think destiny (all right, give destiny a few hours off after last night in the desert) will be making the trip to Lawrence. The undermanned Tigers could be in for a long night.

Michael Vick gets to keep his signing bonus from the Falcons, so says a federal judge, because it would violate the collective bargaining agreement. Do you know the Pandora's box that would open if every pro miscreant had to give back money to their teams after being convicted of wrongdoings? The courts would never have time to hear important cases.

Let's end today with some good news (and no, not that tomorrow is Super Tuesday.): Did you see Phil Mickelson and his caddie give a pair of Super Bowl tickets to a young fan and his dad? Phil is a native of the area, the tournament was only 30 miles from Glendale, and so it added up to quite a day for the young man, one he'll never forget. And I'll bet his dad won't either.

Until next time......

2008-02-02T19:21:00.001-08:00

Did you know that the 1972 Miami Dolphins, 16-0 heading into Super Bowl VII, were actually underdogs to the Washington Redskins? 35 years later, they're still acting like underdogs.

Mind you, I was a huge Dolphins fan: Bob Griese, Larry Csonka, the No-Name defense--oh yes, and Garo Yepremian, the non-throwing placekicker. But while the whole getting together to toast the last unbeaten team has been cute over the years, I'm not exactly enamored with the way some of the Dolphins have been portraying themselves as the New England Patriots have been marching toward their own chapter of football immortality. It seems kind of sniveling and bitter for them to "not root against the Patriots," instead rooting for their next opponent, in this case the Giants. Even Reebok has given them a platform, under the name "Perfectville". Sure, why wouldn't good, old fashioned corporate profiteering rear its ugly head?

But enough about that. I think that the Dolphins are going to have company in Perfectville. Yes, the Patriots will beat the Giants. New York will make it interesting, just as they did in the final game of the regular season, but New England is just too strong, possesses too many weapons, and is firmly in possession of destiny. I think Laurence Maroney will be a major factor, especially in the final minutes, as the Patriots will etch 19-0 next to their names. Tom Brady will be the MVP, the defense will harass Eli Manning into his first interceptions of the postseason, and Bill Belichick will still provide boring postgame sound bites. I would expect the final score to be 28-24.

Now, having said that, here are my answers to a couple of questions that have been making the rounds the last few weeks. I think the Patriots would handle the '72 Dolphins---Miami's finesse defense wouldn't stand up to the Pats' big offensive line, for one thing. I think New England would have their hands full against Vince Lombardi's Green Bay Packers and I think the Steel Curtain Pittsburgh Steelers would be too tough for Belichick's Patriots. But the interesting factor in any of these matchups would be, under what rules would the game be played--the no-holds barred rules of the pre-1970's, or today's more offensive-friendly rules?

If New England goes on to win Super Bowl 42 (sorry, Roman numerals aren't my thing), I think you've got to vault Tom Brady near the top of the greatest quarterbacks of all time--and much like Tiger Woods, it would be only a matter of time before he would be anointed the greatest. Why? Because his four championships would equal the totals of Terry Bradshaw and Joe Montana, and at 30, Brady would still have several more years in which to get a fifth. And shouldn't titles be the measure of a quarterback? Stats are great, but you play for championships. And Brady would have quite a resume (not to mention a nice jewelry collection) with those four rings.

On a side note, it wouldn't surprise me if the story that Belichick's Patriots had spies watching the Rams practice before Super Bowl 36. I don't have any doubt that the Patriots head coach devised a great game plan to take away Marshall Faulk in that game, plus knock around the Rams receivers, but it's easy to formulate a game plan if you can look in on the Rams preparations beforehand. But then-Rams coach Mike Martz still has to bear the blame for his pass, pass, pass into the teeth of a defense geared to the pass game plan. There is the thought that stubborness does have its positive side: you always know what you are going to be thinking tomorrow.

One final thing: the passing of Hall of Fame center Jim Ringo. Ringo was with the Packers under Vince Lombardi, when after the 1963 season he decided he was entitled to a higher raise than Lombardi was willing to pay. So Ringo did something rare in those days: he brought in an agent with him to negotiate with Lombardi in a meeting at the Packers' offices. Lombardi excused himself and left his office for a few minutes. When he returned, he told Ringo and his agent, "Our meeting here is finished. You've been traded to the Philadelphia Eagles." Now the story is probably just that, a story, but it is a good one. Rest in peace, Jim.

2008-01-28T16:51:00.000-08:00

After a long while away, hi.

How are you feeling about the Super Bowl? The pursuit of perfection against one of the biggest underdogs in the history of what started out as the cumbersome AFL-NFL Championship Game.

I haven't decided which way to lean yet--that will come later in the week. But I do have some observations.

I've been reading "The Education of a Coach" by David Halberstam. It's a great read about what turned Bill Belichick into uber-coach. But, as someone else pointed out, the dfference between the Belichick who was fired by Cleveland and the 3-Super Bowl Belichick is Tom Brady.

The core of Belichick's defensive philosophy is to take away the opposition's best weapon. So one would figure that the Patriots will try to put the clamps on Brandon Jacobs and Ahmad Bradshaw and make Eli Manning win the game with his arm. The Giants do have a good set of receivers, but can the New England pass rush take them away, too?

On the flip side, how do you stop Tom Brady? If I'm Steve Spagnuolo, the Giants defensive coordinator, I've got to find a way to get Michael Strahan, Justin Tuck, and Osi Umenyiora into Brady's face as often as possible. As heavily taped as Brady's ankle looked today, what mobility he did have is going to be lessened, so the Giants have got to get to him often while not allowing Laurence Maroney to become St. Louis' first Super Bowl MVP.

Then there's the previous meeting factor. How much can the Giants gain from having already played the Patriots? I think it did give them the confidence to get where they are now, to win three playoff games on the road, to be the best of the NFC. But the Patriots saw that movie, too. And I believe they won that game.

Like I said, I'll put some numbers to my thoughts later in the week.

Other random thoughts:

Media Day at the Super Bowl is the most interesting, most chaotic mass gathering of people this side of Soulard Mardi Gras. Thousands of people armed with a credential, all trying to get a scoop. The best bits to come out of Media Day now is when reporters turn their mics over to the more inventive players and let them go. But even that is turning into a tired act anymore.

Tom Brady is the epitome of cool. It's snowing in Foxborough Sunday, and he's at the Patriots' rally in a jacket and open-collared shirt. Of course, that jacket probably cost more than my entire yearly clothing budget. And did you notice that the snowflakes weren't melting on Ol' Tom? Now that's cool.

Is there really a need for the repeated standing ovations at the State of the Union address? For the most part it's just partisan grandstanding. I am a patriotic American and I'm all for getting behind the President, but really, 50 or 60 standing ovations? Overkill. I think the members of the Supreme Court have it right---stay seated until the end.

How many of you are ready for the Writers' strike to be over? I'm ready for some original episodes. Get it settled.

I was sad to hear that Larry Smith passed away. As much as Gary Pinkel has done for the Missouri football program, Larry Smith got the ball rolling. I remember when the Tigers became bowl eligible in 1997, after more than a decade of football abyss. It was like Larry was Moses and he had just led Tiger fans to the Promised Land. In many ways the feeling was just as good as much of what we felt this past season.

I'm glad the whole Rick Majerus-Archbishop Burke to-do has quieted down.

Tiger Woods is scary. He makes his tour debut and wins by eight shots. EIGHT! Bob Costas has made the reference to Secretariat in the 1973 Belmont, that whoever was second was actually closer to third than first. And it's that way on the PGA Tour, now more than ever. Let's face it: Tiger rarely loses any tournament he sets his sights on. A true Grand Slam is well within his reach. And how's this? CBS's David Feherty asked him if winning a record 12 consecutive tournaments was a possibility, and his answer was simple, blunt, and to the point--"Yes."

2008-01-09T17:49:00.000-08:00

It's a great time for football. The best weekend of the NFL season. Four games, with the potential payoff of Brady vs. Manning and Favre vs. Romo.

This used to be the time of year that we used to talk about the Rams. Remember those days?
That 1999-2004 run was fun, even though it meant lots of extra work for us in the sports department. That first year was unexpectedly magical, and Mike Martz kept the next few years interesting--you never knew what the man would say, but it was always interesting. "Shoot, we'll fix that," "Yeah but..." (or is that "yabbit" ). And look where we are now.

As someone who works in the media, I'm pretty sure I don't like the way the Rams have handled their offseason. Come to think of it, as a fan I know I don't like the way they've handled things.

They sure seem to be taking for granted that fans will remain loyal. But remember that the origin of the word fan is "fanatic". How is this franchise cultivating fanaticism? Let's take stock of what's happened since time ran out in Arizona on December 30th:

1. Head coach Scott Linehan did his end of the year wrap-up with the media by phone. That's fine if you work for a newspaper or a radio station, but in TV we like to see faces. That's one reason you didn't see us air any clips from that teleconference.

2. It's been reported that Linehan will be back for a third season, and that he's due to have a meeting with the front office brass (out in L.A., mind you) about how they're going to attack the 2008 season. But that meeting keeps getting pushed back. And pushed back. Well, I certainly hope that plans for 2008 aren't hinging on this summit meeting.

3. P.R. boss Rick Smith did confirm the report about the firing of offensive line coach Paul Boudreau and the "reassignment" of offensive coordinator Greg Olson, but there hasn't been any official word from management.

It would seem to me that after posting the worst record in St. Louis football history, that more visible steps would be taken to show that this franchise is interested in keeping its fans. But I'm not quite sure if we're just supposed to take the word of this management team (with their stellar record of six non-losing seasons the thirteen years they've been here.) that they're going to pull this team out of the mud. I know that the fans here want to see something substantive. That it looks like the Rams are trying and not just taking the hard-earned fan dollars of St. Louis fans for granted.

It has happened before. Coming off a 4-12 season, the Rams made some changes to Dick Vermeil's coaching staff, made a splash in the free agent pool, made some savvy draft picks and pulled off the best trade in franchise history. It all added up to a Super Bowl win and the beginning of a fun, wild ride. But it was definitely a series of proactive moves.

So what's the plan this time?

Next?

2007-12-15T20:56:00.000-08:00

Jim Edmonds and Doug Weight. Two extremely classy guys. Both headed out west. And two guys that, although they'll be on other teams, will be extremely hard to ever root against.

When Edmonds was acquired by Walt Jocketty in the spring training of 2000, the first thing that came to mind was the unbelievable catch he made as an Angel, diving away from home plate to take extra bases away from Kansas City's David Howard. And how many times did he make similarly terrific catches as a Cardinal? I wonder if new Cards catcher Jason LaRue was expecting to have a sit-down with Edmonds about being robbed of a home run (I mean legitimately robbed) by Jimmy in Cincinnati? And it's not to hard to think of several more highlight reel grabs turned in by Mr. Edmonds.

He certainly had a Hollywood flair for the dramatic. The catches, the clutch homers (sure, I still have Thom Brennaman's call in 2004 reverberating between my ears---"And we are going to game seven in the National League Championship Series!"), the catches, and of course, the times he lay on the turf stunned, shaken up, or hurt, only to slowly pick himself up and continue on. Yet, he quietly went about his business the rest of the time, quietly and deftly provided leadership, and quietly and reluctantly was a go-to guy in the clubhouse for the media. I always found his perspective to be just a little bit different, maybe going down the outer road of opinion, rather than the standard freeway, 15-second hackneyed, cliche-riddled sound bite.

Has their ever been a quieter star than Doug Weight? Maybe as quiet, but none quieter. Never brought attention to himself, except maybe with one of his slick passes. But in the 'room he was the grinder he couldn't be on the ice: a standup guy, win or lose, humble but always with an opinion, solid, someone the younger 'Notes could use as an example of how it's done. The last two weeks was typical Doug Weight: after going goal-less for the first 25 games (with no complaints about limited ice time, or even complaints about anything, for that matter), he heated up with four goals in three games (along with a great between the legs pass to Brad Boyes against Edmonton on Tuesday).

I'll always remember how the Blues traded him to Carolina so he could get the real shot at a championship he wasn't going to get here, and then after he got to hoist the Cup, he came back here as a free agent to try to get it done again.

Is That All There Is? How many of you came away from Thursday's Mitchell Report "revelations" unimpressed like I was? Stop me if I missed something: some players used performing enhancing drugs, baseball looked the other way for several key years, and Bud Selig is going to do his gosh-darndest to see that it doesn't happen again. Oh, and Donald Fehr and the Players Association feel that the policy in place is a good one, and let's see how it works for a couple of more years. (Even when baseball's labor agreement isn't due up anytime soon, the icy cold, stone-faced Fehr still seems like he's in negotiation. Does the man ever let his guard down for anything? Anything?)

One problem with Thursday's grandstanding was that even as those news conferences were blathering on, the cheaters were moving ahead of the detectors. Great, we learned about steroid-use now as the HGH-era kicks into full swing---the currently undetectable HGH. And once it becomes detectable, the cheaters will have moved on to the next form of undetectable enhancement. And fortunately (for those who will use them) or unfortunately (everybody else that cares), that's the way it will always be.

The other issue is the naming of names. Now I can be naive, but not enough to believe that those that were actually named in the Mitchell Report are innocent. But why should they be publicly named (other than for the shock value---let's be honest, how many of us would have actually paid attention to any of all that droning drivel if there weren't going to be some names named?) based on accusations and without more substantive evidence? And then there was the irresponbility of those that released names (incorrectly) before the report came out. Yikes. Sure, the line between being the first to a story and really making sure it's right is very fine, but is it that important to be the first with the information? And how would you like to be one of the ones who mentioned Albert Pujols' name and then have to face him in February in Florida? Try to pass it off that it was bad information from a network or out-of-town report that came out on your air and see where that gets you. But it seems that those who are the quickest to run with things like that aren't the ones who have to deal with the person on a regular basis.

Can't We Just Get Along? I'll be the first to tell you that relationships can be a tricky thing. But there is no rule written anywhere that says a player has to get along with his coach or manager. Joe Dimaggio hated Casey Stengel. There was a pretty long list of Yankees who couldn't stand Billy Martin. The only thing Da 1985 Bears agreed on was disagreeing with Mike Ditka. Scotty Bowman wouldn't have won many popularity contests in his own team's dressing room, until it was time to go out and accept Lord Stanley's hardware. Again.

Anyway, I see where Tony La Russa reiterated his stance that if Scott Rolen wants to be in a different uniform next season, he's going to have to prove he's as close to top-notch as his surgically-repaired shoulder will allow. Because right now the Cardinals will not get a team to help with his salary and/or provide significant compensation in order to acquire Mr. Rolen. And Rolen knows that, and is laying well below the surface as the tempest goes on above him. Notice that only one side has really been doing any talking on the subject? But both sides are right in their strategies. Rolen hates the spotlight being on him, which happened when his continuing problems with his manager were revealed. But now I'm sure he's quietly gearing up to come to camp in his best-ever shape, ready to fire out of the gate. And the ever-savvy La Russa is doing what any good coach or manager would do: find the best way to motivate and get the best possible performance he can from a player. And if appearing in the media periodically, poking at the bear in the cage, gets Rolen to produce and gives Albert protection in the order, then I'm sure La Russa could care less if his guy at third base likes him or even gives him so much as a "hello."

What's the Point?

2007-12-04T13:30:00.000-08:00

We've just had the greatest college football season that I can remember, a topsy-turvy, Screamin' Eagle of a thrill ride from Appalachian State's win over Michigan to Pitt's upset of West Virginia (and yes, Missouri's dismantling by Oklahoma). And so now it's time to settle into bowl season. And my reaction?

Eh.

Sort of that feeling you get from eating too big a holiday meal, and you just sit there and feel like you never want to eat that kind of food again.

BC-Schmess.

For all of the NCAA's trumpeting that the BCS was going to be the next best thing to having a playoff in college football, this year proves how flawed that system is. Actually, there's a word for it but my employers would rather I not use it in this forum.

I'm not nearly as rabid a Missouri fan as many I come in contact with, but boy do they have a gripe. If you're going to use the BCS rankings to determine who goes to the BCS bowls, then the top ten teams should go. Period. If not, then just blow up the BCS computer, say it was a nice try, and then move on to something that's not thinly disguised as a sham.

I understand that there is a rule that only two teams from any of the BCS power conferences can go (hence, Missouri's exclusion), with the reason being that those fat cat conferences can't load up their coffers with three and four shares of the pot. The rich getting richer, with the Boise States and Hawaiis from mid-major conferences only getting occasional slices of the pie.
But if the rankings say that it's a particularly strong year for the Big 12, for example, then let the system play out, and then dole out the extra share(s) to a charitable fund. Or perhaps a general scholarship fund for non-athletes---you know, a way to give back.

I know what you're thinking. What is the color of the sky in my world?

I understand it's a very naive thought, but why play out a season full of upsets, with one of those hoppers that pull the lottery numbers out (What do they call those things? Lottery number hoppers?) determining the rankings each week, only to have the computer's selections overwritten because of politics, money, and all those other things that aren't supposed to get in the way of amateur athletics. (Wink. Wink. Nudge. Nudge.)

I am really glad for Illinois and Kansas. But I should also be allowed to be happy for Mizzou.

Now, the Cotton Bowl is a fine game. National TV. New Year's Day (albeit at 10:30 in the morning. Truly New Year's Day.). A matchup against Heisman Trophy winner Darren McFadden and Arkansas that will be a great game. But all MU fans will have one thought in the backs of their minds, no matter how great a game, no matter how great the atmosphere, and no matter how great a party the Cotton Bowl committee throws:

Mizz-screwed.

In its purest form, the BCS rankings should take the human element out of this next month. Have the national championship game host rotate among the four major bowls like it does now, with the BCS championship site hosting the #9 vs. #10 teams in their bowl game the previous week. Another bowl hosts #7 vs. #8, another gets #5 vs. #6, and the fourth gets the #3 vs. #4 game. The bowls would then rotate the seeding of their games yearly. Neat. No muss. No fuss. Not even any hanging chad.

Or else don't do it.

The previous system didn't work, either, with the final polls determining the "mythical" national champions. You might have co-national champions, or a school from out of nowhere (see BYU, 1984) would only occasionally have a shot at being the champions. All the polls did was create arguments.

Arguments without the numbers to back it up.

Now you at least have both.

But it could be better.

Sooner(s) Or Later....

2007-11-30T00:06:00.000-08:00

Fifth down.

Kicked ball touchdown.

Tony Van Zant, hurt before he even played a down.

77-0.

73-0.

You can't blame a Mizzou football fan for beginning to twitch with the mention of these events. I'm old enough to have a vague memory of Dan Devine's team playing in the Orange Bowl against Penn State, when the Tigers turned the ball over nine (NINE) times, including seven interceptions, in a 10-3 loss. Mizzou won the Big Eight that year, but I don't remember that--just the horror of all those turnovers on New Year's Night. From there, Al Onofrio led the Tigers to a number of stunning upsets (Ohio State, USC, Alabama among them), with just as many head-scratching defeats. And then there was that albatross around his neck disguised as a Kansas Jayhawk--yep, a 1-6 record against your arch rival is not a high point on the resume.

Warren Powers was next. Boy, did he assemble some talent: Phil Bradley, James Wilder, Kellen Winslow. And the Powers-led Tigers pulled some upsets, too, but they couldn't crack that elite level. Still, knowing then what we know now, that was paradise compared to the football abyss the Terrible Tigers were in the mid-80's through the early 90's.

Woody Widenhofer, who uttered the memorable line, "You've got to take it Saturday to Saturday, because every Saturday is a different Saturday." Bob Stull, who had the opportunity to say something memorable, as in "Uh, when did it get to be fifth and goal?", but didn't--and that summed up his stay here. All right, I'm hitting the fast forward button now.

For two years, Larry Smith gave us Mizzou fans the hope that he was turning the corner with the program, playing in two actual bowl games, but that magic quickly wore off.

And then came Gary Pinkel. He was very impressive when he rolled into Columbia with his list of lofty goals: bowl games, conference championships, the whole deal. He had a great presence, but after a couple of years it looked like another seemingly great coach had met his match with mediocrity in Mid-Misery---er, Missouri. OK, there were bowl games, but after the late collapse against Oregon State last year, how many of you were wondering how many more heartbreaking defeats could happen to one program? And I know there wasn't anybody (all right, anybody outside of the football complex) who could have seen this season coming. It's been like the perfect storm, and as many have pointed out, it rings eerily familiar to what happened with the Rams in 1999.

A great new offense. A collection of thoroughbred receivers, one faster than the next. A quarterback who has conducted this kind of offense since high school, and is making his school's first real bid for the Heisman Trophy since the 1940's! A diver-turned kicker who hasn't missed in a Big 12 game. And the great athletes are now on defense as well---speed being the key ingredient---to be just as good as they have to be. And now, this program, ridiculed and downtrodden for so long, is on the cusp of playing for the national freakin' championship!

Four quarters.

Sixty minutes.

And all that stands in the way is the Oklahoma Sooners.

Now that's a school with a football history. And we don't even have to invoke the name of Bud Wilkinson. Greg Pruitt. Joe Washington. Elvis Peacock (all right, he wasn't an all-time great, but his name was Elvis Peacock for crying out loud.). Billy Sims. A program so good that a future Hall of Famer (Troy Aikman) had to transfer to another school to find playing time. The Schooner. Boomer Sooner!

This is the crossroads the Mizzou program is at. I can't begin to count how many times my fellow sports producer, Larry Thornton, has proclaimed the Tigers to have finally arrived. But then, those Mizzou players remember that the team isn't supposed to win big games, and they revert back to where they've been, instead of creating their own identity. And you could see it happening in Norman back in October. They took the lead heading into the fourth quarter, only to make key mistakes leading to another defeat. 17 losses in 18 games to Oklahoma. It was as if somebody tappped them on the shoulder and reminded them that Missouri doesn't win games against teams like that.

But instead of losing four of its final five regular season games like the '06 Tigers did, this team did something that hasn't been done since Terry McMillan, Joe Moore, and Mel Gray wore the black and gold: they won in November, and kept on winning. Can they do it one more time, but now in the unchartered territory of December?

I think so.

They didn't let the hype get to them against Kansas. KU was a step slow for three quarters, until it was too late. And this Mizzou bunch was workmanlike (if you can say a team with all those burners are workmanlike), and had an attitude. A step on your throat kind of attitude. And I think last week's game will help them this week. No need to get the deer-in-the-headlights look, they've been under the bright lights of national tv. No chance for the hype to get in their ears---they had a week of it and then took care of business.

Plus, they have no reason to fear the Sooners. Aside from the key mistakes that haunted them last time, they hung with OU in their backyard. 41-31 was not 77-0, as it was in 1986. As Bob Stoops pointed out, the Sooners made mistakes, too, but they overcame them and won the game. They didn't get the game handed to them. True, Bob. But this Tiger team over the past six weeks has not been making mistakes or turning the ball over. Pinkel has preached it over and over all season, and his players have listened. You don't turn the ball over, you win games.

And there's that speed. Speed kills---or at least it makes up for a lot of things. And the Tigers have the athletes to keep up with a team like Oklahoma. The question is, can a Sooner secondary that ranks 42nd in the nation against the pass, keep up with Chase and his Tiger Squadron? I don't think so, not with the Oklahoma pass rush only averaging 2.6 sacks a game. Mizzou will score points again. And I think this will be another week that the defense will play with moments of brilliance, with an overall performance that will be just good enough to win.

38 years of mediocrity could be flushed away in sixty minutes.

Can all Mizzou fans stand to hear, "And playing for the national championship, the Missouri Tigers."? They've had a week of getting used to hearing top-ranked Missouri Tigers. Why not?

Missouri 37, Oklahoma 31.

"Almost heaven, (beating) West Virginia..." It could happen.

Rivalry Revelry

2007-11-23T21:45:00.000-08:00

All right, raise your hands if you thought that Kansas and Missouri would be ranked 2nd and 4th in the country, respectively, with the winner of the Border Showdown (all political correctness out of the way---it's the Border War) probably moving to the number one ranking in the BCS and the inside track to a spot in the national championship game. Uh, Nostradamus, even you couldn't have predicted this. And that's why it makes the game even more delicious for Tiger and Jayhawk fans.

When die hard sports lovers across the country are asked to name the bitterest rivalries, Mizzou and KU might not get into the discussion for a long time, if at all. Yankees-Red Sox, Michigan-Ohio State, Lakers-Celtics, Bears-Packers, even Rangers-Islanders primarily come to mind. And we in the Midwest would probably say Cubs-Cardinals before getting to MU-KU. But none of the aforementioned rivalries ever began over actual bloodshed, treachery and loss of life--Quantrill, John Brown, etc. So the Kansas-Missouri border tangle had fiery beginnings, and those who have an emotional stake in things have kept this rivalry heated over the years, but in sort of a Hatfields and McCoys way----never really playing out on a national stage.

Only once before did this game have stakes (almost) as high as tomorrow night's tilt. 1960. You've heard the story: Missouri was undefeated and ranked first in the country. With future pros John Hadl and Curtis McClinton on their roster, Kansas beat the Tigers, 23-7. It was later revealed that KU knowingly used an ineligible player in the game, and the NCAA gave Missouri the win----giving the Tigers their undefeated season, but too late to save their number one ranking. And it became another bitter grudge between Lawrence and Columbia: both schools count the victory in the all-time series. Several years later, Dan Devine's Tigers ran up a 69-21 win over the Jayhawks---many say Devine did it out of revenge for the 1960 defeat, and many Tiger fans were angry at Devine for not ringing up 70 points---but it led to a classic line from then-KU coach Pepper Rodgers: "I gave Dan the peace sign after the game, and he only gave me back half of it."

No, it hasn't always been like that. The game might be the lead story in St. Louis, Wichita, and parts in between, but rarely raises a blip anywhere else. But that all changes today: 70,000 fans on site, exorbitantly high ticket prices, national television, and unchartered waters of January bowl games and (dare I say?---oh, dare to say, dare.) a BCS championship. And with raised stakes come raised emotions---all those fans, having all day to get tanked up, added to all those already fired up feelings? I can hear ABC's legendary Keith Jackson calling it "a barnburner. And not only will it burn down the barn, it'll take a couple of rows from the cornfield with it."

I think that it's safe to say that no one would have seen this coming. But as wacky a season as it has been, why not have college football's biggest little rivalry play a key part in determining the champion? (Missouri 41, Kansas 35)

Stream of Consciousness

2007-10-24T13:43:00.000-07:00

Funny how things change over a couple of years. Remember in 2004 when the Red Sox played the Cardinals and there was so much of a pro-Red Sox faction because of "The Curse" and their role as the lovable, Bill Buckner-cursed, Bucky "Bleeping" Dent-hating, just-not-quite-as-good-as-the-Yankees team? Well, they win the Series, end the curse, and three years later, it's the Rockies who are the sentimental favorites. What's that old line from the Tower of Power classic, "What is hip today might become passe"? But the BoSox sure made a statement in Game One, huh? A Josh Beckett postseason performance never goes out of style. He might just be as money in the fall as (Dare I say) Bob Gibson.

Pass the tissues. I see that Barry Bonds is bitter over the Giants letting him go. He's taking the old, "After all I did for you?" stance. Barry, you're 43, you're a liability in the outfield, you've set your record, you're no smiling symbol of the team, and you're gonna want another $18 mil. As I'm sure you've said many times, "It's business, baby." Time to let it go and embrace being a D-H.

It's kind of stunning to see the Rams in free fall like they are. 0-7 aside, this trouble with Claude Terrell (or as the coach called him today, "that particular player") is just silly. The confrontation between Terrell and Scott Linehan last week was probably the end for Claude, but it was convenient that he got himself arrested so the Rams could dump him and not worry about a grievance being filed by the NFLPA. But why say he's going to be your starter on Monday and then release him on Tuesday "for performance reasons"? Am I the only one who doesn't get that? Does a guy get that bad in 24 hours? Or as Rene Knott said to me, "What does that say to the guy behind him? 'Claude, you're the best and the worst of what we've got.' 'You over there, we're just not sure." Say it like it is---the guy was a problem and you were ridding the team of a problem. Coach Linehan even brought up his consistent tardiness and his weight issues (without word one being said about his legal issues). If the NFLPA is such a strong union, wouldn't they know not to support a guy who is a problem and sullies the good name of a strong union? My dad was a union guy for over 40 years, and he always told me that a union is only as good as its weakest member.

Put yourself in this situation: Your team has played 57 games and hasn't lost. Then you lose once, and it's the trigger to your walking papers. It's a record a lot of coaches would sell their souls to have, but it wasn't good enough to save Greg Ryan's job as the U.S. Women's soccer coach. Of course, the decision to bench your top goalkeeper (who's played magnificently in the past several games) on a hunch IN THE BIGGEST TOURNAMENT YOU PLAY IN because your backup has played well against your next opponent in the past---the past. Well, I hope you're glad you stuck to your guns, coach. Your 57-game unbeaten string (and the job) are also now in the past.

How many of you are following the Blues? They're off to a great start and that "p"(layoffs) word is being tossed around. Sure, we haven't even hit November yet, but there are a lot of pieces to like on this team: Paul Kariya and his ability to distribute the puck, Brad Boyes combining with Lee Stempniak to give the team two young snipers, Jamal Mayers and his quiet but impressive leadership, the young defense, and the collective "don't back down" attitude. With hockey players being as superstitious as they are, I would imagine they don't even want to think about the "p" word yet, let along utter it. Maybe they'll adopt the Baltimore Ravens strategy of their championship season. Their coach, Brian Billick, refused to allow anyone on the team to say the words "playoffs" or (heaven forbid) "Super Bowl". So the team broke out code words: "Festivus" for the playoffs, and "Festivus Maximus" for the Super Bowl. I know it's early, but the Blues are looking like a Festivus team.

Finally, for this week's Top Ten list for Sports Plus we're going to count down the top defensive plays in World Series history. (And no, we won't be including the unassisted triple play by Bill Wambsganss in the 1920 Series---no video.) I've got a working list, but if you've got an idea or two, let me know.

By the way, Sunday should be a good show: Tony La Russa, Rick Majerus, and a full hour that begins at 10:25----no NBC football. Hope you tune in.

60 In 30 (or 21)

2007-10-17T07:33:00.000-07:00

How do you cram sixty years of Cardinals history into a little over 21 minutes?

That was the task I was given, to produce the October installment of our 60th anniversary celebration that airs this coming Friday. Sixty years of the Cardinals and KSDK. I figured it would be no problem, that there would be more than enough material to fill the time. I was right. And wrong.

There was way too much material to fill a half-hour. And there are those commercials that have to run, too. So 21 minutes filled up pretty quickly.

I've always known that KSDK has a really good archive. I've been poking around in our basement for years now, seeing old film and videotape that I remember seeing as I was growing up. We have two guys here at the station, Bob Garger and Ray Hoffstetter (who, incidentally, are being honored by our regional Emmy chapter this weekend for their many years and contributions to our city's television history), who have done yeomen's work preserving and transferring years and years of historic news and sports film to tape, and much of this special happened thanks to their efforts.

Some high points:

Film from 1947 of the news conference announcing the sale of the team from longtime owner Sam Breadon to Fred Saigh and Bob Hannegan.

The late, great Dizzy Dean explaining (as only he could) the nuances of broadcasting a game during a rain delay, when he couldn't say on the air that it was raining.

Ernie (Let's Play Two) Banks telling Ron Jacober how playing all those day games at Wrigley Field prolonged his career. There are also interview snippets with Tiny Tim (surprisingly, a very big baseball fan), Yogi Berra, Hank Aaron, and a very young Johnny Bench.

A timeline of all the milestone moments in that sixty-year span. Editor Jon King is a wizard at using all the computer-generated effects to really dress things up, and he's outdone himself on this.

And then there's my favorite--an Art Holliday story from 1983 where he put a wireless microphone on Whitey Herzog during a game. You'll have to see for yourself how Art couldn't have picked a better day for that to happen.

There a a few things that we didn't have. I really wanted to find film of Bake McBride's 25th inning dash from first to home in 1974, and we looked but couldn't find anything saved from Harry Caray's theatrical entrance on Opening Day, 1969 (tossing away his crutches to show he'd healed after nearly being killed when he was hit by a car the previous November) or "(H)We (H)love Hrabosky" Banner Day in 1975. But there is still plenty to keep you entertained.

In case you haven't seen the promos on the air, that's this coming Friday night at 7 p.m. A lot of people put a ton of hard work into this, so I hope you watch and enjoy. And see how sixty years flashes by in a half-hour.