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I really really wish Rob Dibble's Hard Ball had been updated in the last sixteen months. Without it, Dibble's wisdom is only parceled out in tiny, Sugar in the Raw packet-sized morsels of genius in other people's articles. For instance, Rob, why aren't there baseball dynasties anymore?
"There's too much movement now," former Reds reliever Rob Dibble says. "Chemistry is a big deal. You need to come up with the same guys, stay with them, get to know their tendencies and their inside jokes. Otherwise, it doesn't work."
Exactly. How am I supposed to field a ground ball when fucking Gomez over there doesn't laugh when I say "Do I make you horny, baby?" It's from Austin Powers. Jesus, Gomez. Santana understood me. Santana laughed every time.
Oh shit, the ball got past me. Fuck. Well, it's my turn to bat. I'm so depressed I guess I'll hit into a triple play. I hate Gomez. He told me he never even saw Meet the Parents. How am I supposed to do my "I have nipples, could you milk me?" routine?
I just struck out.
---
There's probably something to what Dibble's saying, though. If you look back at baseball's greatest teams, you'll notice one unmistakable fact: they're also baseball's funniest teams.
New York Giants: 1904 to 1924 Funniest riff: Heinie Zimmerman's Archduke Ferdinand impression. So funny, everyone who saw it admitted that the whole war was worth it just for that impression.
Chicago Cubs: 1906 to 1910 Funniest riff: Joe Tinker would armpit fart "La Marseillaise."
Philadelphia A's: 1910 to 1914 Funniest riff: Blackface.
New York Yankees: 1921 to 1928 Funniest riff: Lou Gehrig disease.
St. Louis Cardinals: 1926 to 1946 Funniest riff: Also Lou Gehrig disease.
New York Yankees: 1936 to 1964 Funniest riff: Yogi Berra would rest his balls on Phil Rizzuto's face when he fell asleep. This wasn't a joke; they just liked it. The funniest riff was when Mickey Mantle would beat up the batboy.
Baltimore Orioles: 1966 to 1983 Funniest riff: Mark Belanger had a very incisive bit about the '73 oil crisis. He currently hosts the show "Real Time with Bill Maher" under the name Bill Maher.
Cincinnati Reds: 1970 to 1976 Funniest riff: Joe Morgan used to perform a hilarious rant about ARPAnet. "Mark my words," he would say, "One day a computer will write a book that will ruin baseball."
Here are some bits and pieces from Rob Dibble's recent columns on foxsports.com. I call them Dibbles.
How can teams that have so much trouble scoring runs still be in the playoff hunt? That's simple. It's pitching, my friend.
You have a talent for stating the gut-wrenchingly obvious, my friend.
The Nationals are the worst offensive team in baseball, dead last, 30th. They've only scored 542 runs this year. Yet because of their pitching, they still have a chance with 24 games remaining because they can get people out.
The Houston Astros have the best pitching staff in the game while boasting the 26th-best offense in baseball ... The Marlins have the 19th-best offense in the Majors, yet they have the sixth-best pitching staff in the NL ...
So you see, it's not about $200 million offenses; it's about pitching and defense.
That's what gets you a ring.
Washington Nationals: 76-71 Houston Astros: 78-68 Florida Marlins: 78-69 New York Yankees ($200 million offense): 83-62
The Nationals are going to have a hard time winning a ring while they're watching the playoffs on TV.
This excerpt is kind of long, but it's worth it:
Baseball is a very complicated, yet very simple sport, all at the same time. 15 years ago when I was a part of a World Championship team, we didn't get a big name guy at the trade deadline, in July or August, and I can honestly say we didn't need one, either. It may have done more harm than good.
You see, there is a very delicate balance in a major-league clubhouse, and a lot of it has to do with the fact that you trust each other and love each other. That started back in the minor leagues for some of us, back in spring training for others, but sometimes bringing in that NEW guy may just send you in the wrong direction.
Just look at the moves the Red Sox made last year. Before the 2004 season they picked up Curt Schilling and Keith Foulke, then later that season picked up a couple small, but important pickups like Dave Roberts, Orlando Cabrera, and Doug Mientkiewicz. All of which are great guys.
Okay, so your argument is there is a delicate balance in major-league clubhouses, so teams shouldn't have to bring in big name guys midseason, or even one "NEW" guy at all. What's your example? A team that brought in a bunch of new guys.
It's a bad, pointless argument, but an even worse piece of evidence. Then again, baseball is a very complicated, yet very simple sport.
It's a simple plan, but every team has a different way of looking at it. You have your own jokes, your own teammates who keep things loose, make things fun. Sometimes when you change just the smallest thing, the team goes down the drain.
Unlike the 2004 Boston Red Sox, the only team you chose to mention in your column.
And finally:
Barry made himself into a hitting machine by what he has done off the field. You may want to cut him some slack, because if you don't know greatness when you see it and you want to keep saying he cheated or something stupid like that ... well then, I can't help you. But if you are like me, and you know players do work hard and can make themselves better, then just enjoy his greatness and don't question things that don't matter.
I want to keep saying he might have cheated because he might have cheated.
Also, "don't question things that don't matter"? A) Who the hell are you to tell me not to question things and B) steroids don't matter?
This is the same guy who wrote of the Palmeiro case, "I'm physically sick and disgusted that this has happened."
This is a true story: I saw that Rob Dibble had written a new column for FoxSports.com, and I literally jammed my fingers trying to cut and paste it into this blog as fast as I could. I type this with my left index finger soaking in a plastic cup full of ice water:
When Congress wanted to hold hearings on steroids I was amazed. Don't we have bigger problems in this country? I had just been to Iraq six months earlier and found out there is a giant war going on. And when I was a player with the Cincinnati Reds, my teammates and I helped raise money for the homeless.
>>You didn't know there was a war in Iraq...until you went to Iraq? Were you headed there on a vacation? And what in the world does the second sentence have to do with the first?
Just examples of the far more pressing questions in this country than why does Rafael Palmeiro use steroids, or why did any of the eight out of the 1,200 major-league roster players get caught using a banned substance?
>>I used a computer to decipher the grammatical structure of this sentence, and can officially report: it is dumb. At the time Congress intervened, Palmeiro hadn't tested positive, nor had most of the eight players he references. (I'm kind of making his point for him, but oh well.)
Let me get this straight, one more time, baseball is the root of all the problems in America?
>>Yes. That's the lesson to be learned by Congressional intervention. That baseball is the root of all the problems in America. That's what all the congressmen said when they had the hearings. "Mr. Selig, you are here because baseball is the root of all the problems in America." "I understand, Senator, and I am sorry. Sorry for the crime, sorry for the poverty, and especially sorry for WorldCom and Qwest."
If I take 1,200 policemen, 1,200 firemen, 1,200 doctors, 1,200 politicians and 1,200 airline pilots, how many of them do you think would test positive for a banned substance? Yeah you got it, more then baseball. So why is it when baseball has a problem it's more important to clean it up than the rest of the country? I can't figure that one out either.
>>Um...okay. Where do I start...baseball is a product, not a service, so that makes his policemen and firemen analogy moot. Baseball has antitrust exemption. Baseball is televised. Baseball is intricately woven into the fabric of the country, as a pasttime and as a product. Kids don't play "politics" when they are young, nor do they look up to politicians, nor are they influenced by their behavior in the same way. Also, the "drugs" in question for baseball are performance enhancing drugs. They are cheating drugs, not recreational drugs. If doctors, for example, were able to take illegal drugs that made them better doctors, and gave Americans an inflated view of their abilities, we would have to clean that up, too. Dibs: pay close attention: this is an apple. That is an orange.
I was driving into work today and heard this bleeding-heart writer on a radio show. He said, "If I ever have children, and maybe one is a boy, and 20 years from now, if we are at a ballgame, and someone hits a pitch out of the ballpark and he asks me who hit the most home runs ever? Well, if it's a steroid user, or a rumored user, how will I explain to him what has happened to our game? The cheaters have taken that away from us."
Are you freaking kidding me?
>>I'm guessing he wasn't. It's a little melodramatic, but I, for one, have had my love of Bonds, Palmeiro, Giambi, and others, dulled pretty significantly.
I almost crashed my truck.
>>Man. We were so close.
I am a father of two children and I do get asked way tougher questions everyday. Like "Dad, why is that man living on the street? Dad, why are all those men and woman dying in Iraq?"
>>Oh my God. Rob Dibble is lecturing me on homelessness and war. What concentric circle of hell is this?
I'm sorry I got political on you, but let's get serious.
>>This is amazing. "I'm sorry I got political on you, but let's get serious." Dibs just let his deep wellspring of emotions about homelessness and war overtake him...he is a slave to his heart, and his soul...he sometimes stares up at the sky and writes in his journal...he has a tattoo of Ichiro's name on his ass...he freaking *cares*.
Baseball is a game, it's not a social issue. I played it, I should know. AIDS, cancer, war ... these are social issues, and of far greater importance than Major League Baseball.
>>Okay. Okay. I'm literally shaking with anger. How do I explain this? No one -- not ever, once, anywhere -- has ever suggested that AIDS, cancer, and war are less serious issues than baseball. Everyone in the universe with half a brain knows that AIDS, cancer, and war are more important issues than baseball. That does not necessarily mean that congress should not try to do something about the drug problem in baseball. Congress can walk and chew gum at the same time. You could say, perhaps, that not nearly enough is being done to combat AIDS, or cancer, or war, and I would probably agree with you. But you are ascribing attributes to this congressional intervention that do not exist. And frankly, as a fan of baseball, and as someone who believes that baseball is -- despite being a game -- somewhat important to the fabric of this country, and seeing as baseball did absolutely nothing to police itself in these matters, and seeing as congress has given baseball an antitrust exemption, and seeing as baseball is a business that conductes itself nationwide, giving congress the right to regulate certain aspects of its business, I think it wholeheartedly appropriate that congress took a few days to whip this sport into shape.
Can we all just wake up, and stop crying about baseball and stop trying to fix the world through baseball? Enjoy the game, it's a distraction, it's entertainment. But I don't think it will cure cancer; I should know, my father died from cancer.
>>I honestly don't even know where to begin here. Rob Dibble is trying to guilt me into agreeing with him because his father died of cancer? That is horrific and disgusting. Not to mention the fact that it apparently hasn't occurred to him that some people enjoy the game less when they know that the players are cheating. Nobody is trying to "fix the world through baseball." "But I don't think it will cure cancer?!?!?!?" What the fuck is he talking about?
To me it's simple, let baseball clean up its own act or else. And let the government clean up the country.
>>Baseball adamantly refused to clean up its act. And as far as the "or else" goes -- or else what, you numbskull? Or else what?! What is the threat? Or else...it won't? The "or else" is: THE FUCKING GOVERNMENT WILL CLEAN IT UP FOR THEM.
I seriously think Rob Dibble is the worst writer I have ever read, on any subject.
Loyal readers: One American dollar goes out to the first person who can provide an excel spreadsheet proving that Rob Dibble's father did not die of cancer.
>> Leiter for the Yankees so far: 19.1 innings, 13 ER for an ERA of 6.13.
You may ask, why Al Leiter? He's old and wasn't pitching worth a damn in Florida. But I say it's a great move.
>> Leiter's WHIP for the Marlins: 1.85. Leiter's WHIP for the Yankees: 2.02.
Leiter started his career in New York when he was 21 back in 1987 and made 22 starts over two-plus seasons before going to Toronto. Then he pitched in New York with the Mets from 1998-2004, so he is well aware of the pressure and circumstance of being in a New York uniform. Plus, he's won world championships with Toronto and Florida and tried to get one with the Mets, so he's postseason ready for sure.
>> If the Yankees make it to the postseason, I bet Al Leiter won't be starting any games for them in October. Just a guess.
What I also like about the 39-year-old (we played together in Florida in 1996 when I was hurt all year, my last in the big leagues) is that this is a shot in the arm, a chance at one last shot at glory, and there are few players I respect more then Al. He's always prepared, always attacking the hitter with every pitch, and one of the proudest players I've been around, so if he doesn't have his stuff some nights, you can bet he'll try and beat you with his heart. He's a tough son of a b---- and there's no better player to have around when you need someone to lead.
>> That tough son of a bitch lasted 2 innings in Cleveland today. He allowed four hits and walked five. But he tried to beat those Indians with his goddamn heart, and he battled his way through six outs, that goddamn hero.
One last thing, along with Randy Johnson, Kevin Brown, and when Carl Pavano comes back, Leiter's addition will give the Yankees four pitchers in their rotation who have won championships. And I like those odds when the postseason starts.
>> Al Leiter has a strikeout to walk ratio of 0.88. The only starters in all of Major League Baseball with a worse ratio are Luke Hudson of the Reds (ERA of 8.39) and Dewon Brazelton of the Devil Rays (ERA of 6.33).
Can you imagine a headline reading "Getting Brazelton is a championship-caliber move"?
**CORRECTION**
Dewon Brazelton is such an awful baseball player he is no longer allowed to start games for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. His last start was May 11, when he gave up 5 ER in 4.2 innings in a loss to the White Sox -- an outing superior, incidentally, to Al Leiter's today.
Brazelton's main duty now appears to be to come in whenever Mark Hendrickson gives up 5 ER in the first inning, so he is a very busy man.
Dude, I know. But now we have Yankee results from Leiter! And while most of us probably expected him to perform extraordinarily poorly, now he's actually done it.
Next, we'll see how Shawn Chacon's 39/36 K/BB ratio holds up for the Yanks.
Well, sort of. It's not exactly hard to decide you're anti-Palmeiro steroid use.
Friend: Hey Dibs, you're writing a column about Raffy's illegal drug use? Dibs: You got it, friend. Friend: For or against? Dibs: Hmmm ...
And 4 hours later, we have our answer.
The fact that he was so adamant in front of Congress that he never used steroids makes it even worse. Now he has the nerve to say he wasn't careful enough and didn't intentionally take them. Why do you need to be careful if you've never taken anything illegal?
>> I think it's pretty clear that 1) Palmeiro is implying that someone, perhaps an Evil Trainer, slipped him illegal designer drugs in what he thought was a totally legal supplement and 2) Palmeiro is lying to cover his ass.
I have a lot more feeling on this subject because anytime Palmeiro's name came up I was one of his biggest backers. I was always telling people, 'Look at this guy, he's got these great numbers and he's not as big as some of the other players, he's not a hulking guy.'
>> The worst part of this whole scandal is that Rob Dibble has "a lot more feeling" on it. And nothing like exonerating a guy without evidence because "Look at him. He's not that big." Although I have been known in the past to do exactly that in the case of, say, Junior Griffey.
I and many other baseball fans feel very foolish today. To not be fighting mad that you came up positive... if it were my name, no union or lawyer could make me keep quite (sic) about it.
While other teams in the AL East sit and watch the transaction wire, the New York Yankees make moves and release dead weight in a New York minute.
Before we even get started, the Red Sox made three roster moves a few days ago, and the Orioles are about to get A.J. Burnett. So, nice start here, Rob.
Al Leiter is just the latest example. Whether it be getting rid of Steve Karsay, Mike Stanton or Paul Quantrill, or making a trade for Leiter, GM Brian Cashman will waste no time in changing the face of this $200 million team. Time is money, and wasting time is losing ground to the competition.
First, that is a brilliantly mixed metaphor, there, at the end. Good work. Second, so, just to be clear, you are praising Brian Cashman for releasing three guys who were GROSSLY overpaid by, um, Brian Cashman. And then you are praising Brian Cashman for scooping up Al Leiter off the scrap heap, which might not be a bad move, but which was made for the simple reason that the Yankees LITERALLY DID NOT HAVE ANYONE TO START on Sunday against the Red Sox. Way to keep the nonsense going, Dibs! Let's see what's next...
While the Orioles try to get A.J. Burnett, and the Red Sox trade for light-hitting Alex Cora and miss out on Bret Boone, Cashman picked up Leiter for a player to be named later and some cash.
Alex Cora is a utility infielder who plays good defense and costs nothing. Bret Boone has a .656 OPS (lower than Mark Bellhorn's sub-par .689) and costs four million dollars for the rest of the year. Bret Boone is also 36 years old. Bret Boone would have been a terrible pick-up -- or at least a terrible risk -- for any team.
This may not sound like much now, but it's little moves you make like Theo Epstein did last year that can win you a championship. No one knows that better then the Yankees. It was the Dave Roberts stolen base in Game 4 of The ALCS that broke the Yanks' back last year.
No it wasn't. That was the first of like four thousand subsequent events that broke the Yanks' back. How can the very first thing that went right for the Red Sox that entire series be the thing that "broke the Yanks' back?" Bill Mueller's single, Leskanic's four big outs, Ortiz's home run, Ortiz's single, ARod striking out with a runner on third and one out in a close game, Rivera's two blown saves, Gordon imploding, Schilling's 7 innings of one-run ball, Bellhorn's home run, ARod's swiping of Arroyo's arm, Foulke striking out Tony Clark with the tying runs on base in the ninth of Game Six, Derek Lowe's six innings in Game 7, Ortiz's home run after Damon was thrown out at the plate, Damon's Grand Slam, Damon's 2-run shot, and Bellhorn's solo job after Pedro had given up two runs, are all better examples of things that "broke the Yanks' back."
And it was Leiter who beat the Sox this past weekend to help the Bombers take three out of four in Boston.
This is factually correct. Nice job.
Getting Al Leiter could wind up being season-turning move for New York. You may ask, why Al Leiter? He's old and wasn't pitching worth a damn in Florida. But I say it's a great move.
Okay. Back that up.
Leiter started his career in New York when he was 21 back in 1987 and made 22 starts over two-plus seasons before going to Toronto. Then he pitched in New York with the Mets from 1998-2004, so he is well aware of the pressure and circumstance of being in a New York uniform.
You are failing to back that up. Does anyone think that "pressure" is really make or break for any of these people? Did Tim Redding shit the bed in New York because of the Pressure? Or because he isn't that good?
Plus, he's won world championships with Toronto and Florida and tried to get one with the Mets, so he's postseason ready for sure.
This is fantastic. Dibble is doing one of my favorite Joe Morgan-esque things, which is praising players for winning championships in the distant past. And, he is going one step further, which is praising Al Leiter for TRYING to get a championship. Is there any player in history who has not, at some point, tried to get a championship? "You know who should be in the Hall of Fame? Ron Roenicke. That guy tried to get so many championships."
What I also like about the 39-year-old (we played together in Florida in 1996 when I was hurt all year, my last in the big leagues) is that this is a shot in the arm, a chance at one last shot at glory, and there are few players I respect more then Al. He's always prepared, always attacking the hitter with every pitch, and one of the proudest players I've been around, so if he doesn't have his stuff some nights, you can bet he'll try and beat you with his heart.
Al Leiter's heart on the year: 2.90 ERA, 49 IP, 44 H, 18 BB, 31 K. His heart has been pretty good, I guess.
He's a tough son of a b---- and there's no better player to have around when you need someone to lead.
First, thank you for not swearing in print. Second, the Yankees need someone to lead? With Jeter, Posada, Williams, ARod, Sheffield, Rivera...they need a leader?
One last thing, along with Randy Johnson, Kevin Brown, and when Carl Pavano comes back, Leiter's addition will give the Yankees four pitchers in their rotation who have won championships. And I like those odds when the postseason starts.
Wow. Kevin Brown is valuable because he has won championships? How valuable was that last year, when he started Game Seven against Boston and didn't make it out of the second inning, you fucking moron? Randy Johnson is 42. Kevin Brown is 39 and has CHRONIC BACK TROUBLE. Carl Pavano, before getting injured, had given up MORE HITS THAN ANYONE IN BASEBALL. Al Leiter is 39 and terrible.
But don't worry. They've won championships. And in the Manure-Brain Universe Rob Dibble lives in, that means more than whether they are good.
KT: Stanton was signed by the Mets before the 2003 season, meaning the culprit was none other than ... drumroll please ...
FJM favorite Steve Phillips!
Money quote: "He's a good fit," Mets General Manager Steve Phillips said about Stanton. "For us to get a guy who's been in the postseason so many years to go with Tom Glavine, who's been in the postseason so many years, it adds an attitude to the clubhouse that we feel was necessary."
So THAT'S why they gave him $9 million over three years. The way that quote dovetails with your post about Dibble's obsession with past championship experience is truly magical.
"Baseball wants the All-Star game to have meaning? I don't get it."
>> Yes, baseball thinks more people might want to watch if the game has some real-world (or at least real-baseball-world) impact. Is that so hard to get?
"If the game means so much, why are some of baseball's best players not in the game?"
>> The system for selecting All-Stars has some pretty large flaws. I agree, Rob.
"[C]an you imagine an NBA All-Star game without Michael Jordan or Magic Johnson?"
>> Yes, the last two NBA All-Star games have not involved either Michael Jordan or Magic Johnson. Neither did the three NBA All-Star games from 1999-2001.
"And Michael Young is more deserving than Jeter??? Don't make me laugh."
>> Well, hold on, now, Rob. The question is a good one. Young has a higher raw OPS than Jeter this year and as anthony baseball pointed out, more runs, RBI, and home runs. But he plays in Texas. A check on Baseball Propectus reveals the following for the first half of 2005:
Jeter WARP2: 4.8 Young WARP2: 3.5
Ugh. By that metric, Jeter appears to be more deserving than Young.
Anyway, I'm sure that Dibble did exactly the same legwork I just did before jumping to any conclusions.
More dispatches from a place called Dibble Time (yes, this is a parody of the slogan "a place called Miller Time"):
"To me, it doesn't matter, the suspensions are a joke, if guys want to cork bats or spit all over the ball, or get a better grip on the ball, let 'em, that's just part of the game, but 10 games off hurts your team as much as the player, so take money not games."
> What? So if a player cheats, his team shouldn't be penalized at all? This makes no sense. Also, that sentence has eight commas.
"I had a teammate, I won't tell you who he is, but he put K-Y jelly on his gums, but very rarely loaded one up, he went to his mouth after every pitch, and he drove Roger Craig crazy because Mr. Craig though he was cheating all the time."
> What's the point of all this, Robert? Also, five commas.
"Players would bone their bats (big cow bone, rubbed back and forth against the sweet part of the bat, or rubbing it on the sink) ...Trust me when I tell you, it was more because they loved their bat, then that they were cheating ..."
> You're rambling. It's a 442-word "article," and you're rambling. Those ellipses are in the article. It's like he's totally given up trying to organize his thoughts in any way.
"The way the Reds have played the last four years has been sad. They've led all of baseball in striking out the last four years, and are well on their way to a fifth title."
> The Reds are second in the NL in runs scored.
---
Why do people who insist that statistics don't matter always immediately cite the wrong statistics in the wrong way to support the wrong conclusions?
If I were a third grader, and I were cheating, I would say the kind of things that Dibble's saying. "I don't think cheating is bad because people do it and whatever." And then I would go back to cheating, and think it was okay because I said it was okay.
I'm just saying, given that Dibble is obviously an enormous idiot, maybe he also cheated and this is his way of rationalizing.
Thanks, Junior, for bringing Dibs into the fold. It's about time. Here are some more gems:
Check out these two sentences:
Oh by the way, I couldn't care less if a guy cheated, that was his deal, when I was on you weren't hitting my stuff anyway. I know a lot of pitchers and hitters are cheating right now, but they are still lousy, so just let it go, if it was legal 100 years ago, why can't it be legal now?
What point(s) is/are you making? And as for the final two run-on clauses, nice job. That's an excellent rationale for slavery.
Ty Cobb used to sharpen his spikes, as much to spear his opponents as to get in their heads, and he's in the Hall of Fame.
...?...
Regarding Kenny Rogers:
Movie stars and rock stars and athletes are public figures, but when should we respect their privacy?
How about: when they are in their houses? Kenny was on the baseball field, which seems to be the kind of place where a baseball reporter or baseball cameraman is within his rights to be covering him.
Society is at the point right now where someone is going to get hurt.
Like that cameraman did?
We all want to know, who is Brad dating?
Angelina.
Who is Jennifer dating?
Don't know. Vince Vaughn?
Are we all so bored in our daily lives, that we need to have people hiding around every bend just to get a shot of our favorite movie star or athlete? Should they have the same rights as any private citizen?
They do. They are also movie stars and rock stars and athletes, which means that from time to time, people are going to photograph them.
Now in the case of Kenny Rogers, he is in a battle with his team for a contract extension. It's become ugly and has spilled over into the press. Should private matters such as this be made public? I ask you, would you want your private matters made public? I think not.
If I were a 40 year-old pitcher with a legendarily up-and-down career, and I was demanding $25 million over two years in the middle of a season, I don't think I'd have an argument that that should be kept a secret. This was not about his battle with mental illness, or his daughter's divorce, or something. It was about a contract that he demanded.
My problem with Kenny is that the people on the baseball field and in the locker room can have all the access they want.
That's your problem with Kenny?
They have a job to do, and as long as they keep it about baseball, you have to let them do their job.
Right. Which is why it's insane to attack a cameraman who is on the baseball field, where you are, when you are a baseball player.
Now, if they come to your house and want to take your picture when it doesn't have to do with baseball, or in the case with actors, I think there should be open season on those people.
Fair enough. But they won't, because I am not a professional baseball player. Also, the professional baseball player in question was on a baseball field, where it is pretty kosher for a baseball cameraman to shoot pictures of a baseball player.
This is such a stupid point. It's like saying, "Kenny Rogers was wrong, but put yourself in his position. Now take yourself out of his position, and imagine a totally different situation, in which his rights were being violated. NOW do you see his side of the story?"
I think too much freedom of the press is NOT a good thing.
Interesting. How do you feel about the totalitarian dictatorships under which such conditions flourish?
After all, shouldn't all citizens in this country have the right to privacy?
Absolutely. And professional baseball players who are wandering around on professional baseball fields before playing in professional baseball games should expect to be passively photographed by credentialed members of the baseball media.
And just for fun, here's a quote from an old column...
Watching the rash of injuries to pitchers, and they are becoming injuries to younger and younger pitchers, I'm starting to question the methods MLB teams are preparing these pitchers for their craft...When I was coming up through high school and the minor leagues, I built my arm strength through almost totally long-tossing and pitching in games. Now pitchers, and this is even happening at the high school and college levels, are supplementing good, old-fashioned hard work on a baseball field for getting arm strength through private trainers, gyms and even Yoga and Pilates. I think it's time to see how the old timers did it, so pitchers can complete games again, have fewer arm problems and have careers that span two decades instead of two seasons.
And here is a description of Dibble's career, from Baseballlibrary.com:
"One of the hardest-throwing pitchers in baseball, Dibble racked up phenomal strikeout totals and intimidated opposing batters with his explosive fastball, although his career was almost certainly cut short by the tremendous strain he placed on his arm...
"Dibble came into his own in the first half of 1989 as a set-up man for John Franco, although he injured his shoulder in a fight after hitting the Mets' Tim Teufel with a pitch...
"Dibble racked up 56 saves over the next two years, but soon fell victim to frequent arm problems. He lost his command of the strike zone during an injury-plagued 1993 (42 walks and eight home runs allowed in 41 2/3 innings) and saw his ERA more than double to 6.48. After missing all of 1994 following surgery on his rotator cuff, he struggled to regain his velocity and pitched poorly in brief stints with the White Sox and Brewers in 1995."
Length of Dibble's career: 7 years, and that's being generous, since he missed all of 1994 with, um, arm injuries.
I've found a new Joe Morgan who's so good at Joe Morgan-ing someday he may even out-Joe Morgan Joe Morgan! Can you tell I'm excited?!
It's Rob Dibble!
Here's an article entitled "The way you should play"! Take it away, Rob!
The way you should play
Tuesday, June 14 Having watched St Louis Cardinals shortstop and leadoff hitter David Eckstein now for four-plus years, he is easily one of my favorite players. He may not be able to hit like Albert Pujols, or go get fly balls like Jim Edmonds or catch and throw like Scott Rolen, but if you took all of them and squeezed them together, you would come out with a player like David Eckstein.
> Whoa, whoa, slow down, Rob! You just said Eckstein can't hit or field or catch or throw! And yet you also say he is the ultimate super-player who can do all of those things! Which is it?!
Sure he's small, and doesn't have home-run power, but last year in the AL, he was the second-hardest player to strike out, doing it just 49 times in 566 at bats.
> Last year, David Eckstein had an OBP of .339! Zounds! And an OPS+ of 77! Zowie!
Now David may not make All-Star teams, although he has a great chance with his manager Tony LaRussa coaching this year's All-Star squad from the NL, but he is one of the best all-around players in the game today.
> Surprise, Rob! Your little secret is STARTING the All-Star Game! One of the best all-around players in the game today?! You're crazy!
He does everything the way the game should be played, and the other players may get you to the playoffs, but the David Ecksteins bring home the championships.
> That is totally unfounded!
If you want to teach your kid how to play baseball, tell him to play like David Eckstein.
> Shut up!
And now a picture of our new hero! Doesn't he look cool?!
