Ed Rendell Off His Rocker

Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell apparently thinks that the United States is a "nation of wussies," according to his comments made on radio station 97.5 The Fanatic in Philadelphia, because the NFL decided to cancel Sunday night's Eagles-Vinkings game.  Since when is it "tough" or a sign of strength to drive your car through blizzard conditions to attend a three hour football game in the freezing cold? It would have been reckless to play that game and put tens of thousands of people in danger.  But, then again, the sight of fans shoveling the two feet of snow surrounding their cars in the parking lot would have made Ed Rendell proud to be an American.

Governor Rendell also thinks that the Chinese "would have been marching down to the stadium."  Maybe he forgot about the winter storm in southern China during 2008 that put trains to a screaching halt.  Rendell would be surprised to find out that 200,000 Chinese choose to stay in train stations rather than march to their final destinations.

He also found a correlation between canceling the football game due to snow and the fact that "the Chinese are kicking our butt in everything," as he likes to put it.  Well, maybe China is on the rise because their political system affords it the ability to institute laws, policies and adjustments to national agendas without the partisan infighting that makes for great television in the United States. That does not make China strong, it just gives it citizens less of a voice in the political process.

Big Blue on a Big Skid

It's bad enough that the New York Football Giants are playing themselves out of the postseason, but now the Giants have to deal with rumors that they are playing for a lame duck head ball coach.  Although, Bill Cowher is insulted by rumors that he wants Tom Coughlin's job in New York, there is no denying that Cowher would jump at the chance to lead the G-Men.  But, who is to say that Cowher would have any more success in New York than Tom Coughlin? Tom Coughlin is one of the five best coaches in the NFL right now. Sure, Cowher has 149 head coaching victories over 15 seasons, and is an impressive 59 games over .500.  But, all of Cowher's coaching experience came with the winningest football franchsie in the NFL. If Cowher is such a great coach, then how come there wasn't a drop off when Mike Tomlin took over the reins of the Steelers?

Although, Coughlin only has 132 wins through the same amount of years as Cowher and is 25 games over .500, his record is negatively impacted somewhat by having to build the Jacksonsville Jaguars from an expansion team in 1995. In addition, Coughlin knows his football, having worked his way up the college ranks from being a graudate assistant at Syracuse to eventually being the head man at Boston College. It's a shame that Coughlin now has to worry about his job security after all the success that he has had at every stop along the way. It's more of a shame that there are those who think Cowher, who has just as many rings as Coughlin, can do a better job in New York.

Rex Ryan Causing More Distractions

If Rex Ryan is delusional enough to think that his wife has sexy feet, can you really believe him when he proclaims that the Jets are "going in a direction of a Super Bowl?" Rex failed to mention that his wife's feet were dangling outside the car window because the fumes emanating from them were making her nauseous. The only worse looking feet belong to the women who walk into Gary's Shoes and Accessories for Today's Woman in the New Market Mall.

Al Bundy in Gary's Shoes and Accessories for Today's Woman

But in all seriousness, you have to applaud Rex for thinking that his wife has sexy feet after 23 years of marriage. We've all been inundated with tabloids surrounding Tiger Woods, Tiki Barber, Johan Santana and Rick Pitino over the past few years, that it is actually refreshing to hear about someone in sports who still has the spark in his marriage. Who cares if he has to create kinky foot fetish videos to do it? Instead of trying to sidestep the questions, Rex should have confronted the rumors head on, cracked a few jokes about the video, and maybe the story would have gone away.  Now, it continues to linger, despite Rex trying to sweep it under the rug.

Larry Brown Out as Bobcats Coach

Larry Brown has been relieved of his coaching duties by Michael Jordan only one year after leading the B-Cats to their first postseason appearance. Hopefully, for Larry's sake he finally puts the coaching whistle away and retires with his family to their suburban Philadelphia home. He's become the Brett Favre of coaches, hanging on for way too long.

Fans are beginning to forget his brilliance leading the Kansas Jayhawks to the NCAA champhionship in 1988 and the Detroit Pistons to the NBA championship in 2004. Instead, his career is going to become overshadowed by the debacle in New York with James Dolan and Isiah Thomas, and the recent departure in Charlotte in which he couldn't even finish out the season. Larry might be a great teacher of the game, but unfortunately the game has changed alot in the thirty plus years since he began coaching it.

Could Jose Reyes Earn $100 million in Free Agency?

Despite signing Jose Reyes to a contract extension earlier in the offseason, the Mets act as if it is still uncertain whether Jose will be a part of their long-term plans.  I am perplexed that the Mets are willing to take this approach with the best homegrown position player in franchsie history since Darryl Strawberry.  Yes, that's right, Jose Reyes is a better player and more valuable than David Wright. I understand that power, which David Wright supplies, is generally a a more valuable commodity, but it is much easier to find a power hitting third baseman than a dynamic shortstop like Jose Reyes. The fact remains that Jose Reyes is one of the top four shortstops in the game along with Hanley Ramirez, Troy Tulowitzki, and and Elvis Andrus.  Jose is in elite company among major league shortstops.  He plays stellar defense, hits for a high average, steals bags, and is the catalyst for the Mets offense.  Most importantly, he was an iron man from 2005 to 2008 after not being able to run in 2003 and 2004 with a myriad of strange back and leg issues. 

Given Jose's productivity at one of the most high profile positions in baseball, it's amusing that the Mets are not sure whether Jose fits into their long-term plans.  Reyes might be able to earn $100 million in free agency similar to Carl Crawford, who put up comparable numbers while playng leftfield, which is regarded as a less important position.

When Jose Reyes has played a minimum of 150 games, he has swiped no less than 56 bases, including a peak of 78 stolen bases in 2007.  He has led the National League three times in stolen bases (2005-2007) and triples (2005-2006, 2008) while maintaining a .286 career average.

Year	Team	G	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	AVG	OBP
2003	NYM	69	47	84	12	4	5	32	13	.307	.334
2004	NYM	53	33	56	16	2	2	14	19	.255	.271
2005	NYM	161	99	190	24	17	7	58	60	.273	.300
2006	NYM	153	122	194	30	17	19	81	64	.300	.354
2007	NYM	160	119	191	36	12	12	57	78	.280	.354
2008	NYM	159	113	204	37	19	16	68	56	.297	.358
2009	NYM	36	18	41	7	2	2	15	11	.279	.355
2010	NYM	133	83	159	29	10	11	54	30	.282	.321
Career		924	634	1,119	191	83	74	379	331	.286	.335

Meanwhile, Carl Crawford has led the American League four times in stolen bases (2003-2004, 2006-2007) and triples (2004-2006, 2010) while maintaining a .296 career average.
 

Year	Team	G	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	AVG	OBP
2002	TB	63	23	67	11	6	2	30	9	.259	.290
2003	TB	151	80	177	18	9	5	54	55	.281	.309
2004	TB	152	104	185	26	19	11	55	59	.296	.331
2005	TB	156	101	194	33	15	15	81	46	.301	.331
2006	TB	151	89	183	20	16	18	77	58	.305	.348
2007	TB	143	93	184	37	9	11	80	50	.315	.355
2008	TB	109	69	121	12	10	8	57	25	.273	.319
2009	TB	156	96	185	28	8	15	68	60	.305	.364
2010	TB	154	110	184	30	13	19	90	47	.307	.356
Career		1,235	765	1480	215	105	104	592	409	.296	.337

Despite the fact that Crawford hits for a career average that is 10 points higher than Reyes, he has never swiped more than 60 bases in a season, which Reyes has already accomplished twice in his young career.  And you get the impression that Jose, at 27 years old and two years younger than Crawford, has not reached his full potential.  Although, he might come off as aloof because of his bubbly personality, Jose has always played the game hard and if he ever manages to become more of a student of the game, there is no reason he cannot rob 80 or 90 bases next season.

Raissman Struggles to Live in Francesa's Shadow

Bob Raissman of The Daily News went out of his way to write an article bashing Mike Francesa's analysis of this week's Giants-Eagles football game.  I understand that Raissman clearly has a vendetta out against Francesa, but what exactly does it stem from?  Did Francesa not play nice with Raissman as a child?  If that is the case, maybe Raissman should stop acting like a petulant child by referring to Mike Francesa as "the Sports Pope," and instead try to usurp him as the go to voice for NY sports by improving his own analysis.  

Rather, Raissman prefers to dissect every minute of Mike'd Up with pen and paper in hand, and then proceed to write an article that rips a few points Francesa raises over the course of a five hour show.  Unfortunately, writing an article that disagrees with the viewpoint of a sports talk radio host does not make Raissman a better sports reporter.  It only makes him look as if he cannot contribute any fresh content of his own.

Real Men of Genius

They don't make men like they used to.  Maybe Tom Brokaw was right in coining "The Greatest Generation," consisting of men who defeated the Nazi's in Europe, the Japanese in the Pacific, and built America into a superpower when they returned home. We got a glimpse of that great generation when we saw former Minnesota Vikings head coach Bud Grant, at 83 years old, run out at halftime of the Vikings-Bears to be honored in a short-sleeve polo golf shirt, despite the freezing temperatures.

Giants Still Control Their Own Destiny

Coughlin practicing constructive criticism

Unfortunately, Jeff Feagles is not walking through the door for the New York Football Giants. The Giants knew their decision to go into the season with a rookie punter could cost them a game or two with dropped snaps and shanked punts. It just so happened that Matt Dodge, the Giants rookie punter, may have cost them the most important game of the regular season with the division on the line. The coaching staff chose to go with Matt Dodge out of camp, and are as responsible as anyone for his ups and downs.  That's why its good to see Couglin stay with Dodge after Sunday's abysmal loss to the Eagles at the New Meadowlands Stadium.  The kid may turn out to be a very productive punter for the next decade, making Giants fans more irrate that he decided to kick a line drive to the fastest player in the NFL.  But, regardless of how his career unfolds, Dodge alone is not responsible for the stunning loss to the Eagles, in which the Giants blew a 31-10 lead with a little over eight minutes remaining.

Afterall, it was not Matt Dodge who decided to play a prevent defense in the fourth quarter or drop Justin Tuck into coverage.  Nor was it Matt Dodge's decision to have the hands team on the sidelines as the Eagles successfully recovered an onside kick.  Tom Coughlin can scream at Matt Dodge all he wants if he thinks that it will make him feel better.  But, he needs to do some soul searching after Sunday's loss, as the loss does not rest solely on the rookie punter, despite the chorus of boos that serenaded the punter as he walked off the field.

The good news for the Giants is that they still control their own destiny.  The bad news is that they won't have Plaxico Burress this time around when they go to the frozen tundra of Lambeau Field.  However,  you have to be thankful this holiday season, if you are a Giants fan, that Sunday's collapse to the Eagles came in the regular season rather than the NFC Championship Game.  Couglin will use this loss to motivate the troops to rally in Green Bay, and you can guarantee that you will not see another fourth quarter collapse from Big Blue as they look forward to making a run in this postseason.

Knicks Win in Loss to C's

Take a bow, Paul

Madison Square Garden returned to being the Mecca, at least for one night, on Wednesday evening.  A team has not earned more in a loss since the New York Football Giants were beaten by the Patriots in Week 17 of Season XLII.  In the past few seasons, the Knicks would have lost to the Celtics before the ball even went into the air for tip-off.  But last night, the Knicks competed as if they genuinely expected to win.  The team has not competed on a daily basis like this since the days of Sprewell and Larry Johnson.  The crowd appreciated the Knicks effort by getting behind them early and often, causing  Garnett to admit after the game that "there was a lot of energy at the Garden, the atmosphere was great."

The Garden once again took its rightful place as center stage for opposing players to put on a show.  Despite laughing at the idea of a Knicks-Celtics rivalry, Paul Pierce's body language told the true story.  After putting the dagger in the Knicks hopes with his patented step back jumper, he took a bow as if beating the Knicks still meant something and doing it at MSG was still basketball's biggest stage to do it on.

Who's Kidding Who?

Joe Benigno

When I heard the news that Cliff Lee was signing with the Phillies, the first thought that came to my mind was Joe Benigno, with his hands raised in the air, screaming, "Who's kidding who?"  The second thought that came to my mind was the utter dominance of the Philly rotation.  This might be the most formidable rotation ever assembled.  I understand that Cole Hamels can be maddening to watch because he has so much untapped potential, but try to find me a better number four starter in all of baseball.  I'll save you the time searching, by telling you it cannot be done.  I also understand that Roy Oswalt is no longer in his prime, but the Texan can still flat our hurl with the best of 'em.  He showed his old form after joining Philadelphia by going 7-1 with a minuscule 1.74 ERA.  Based on last season, the Phillies rotation looks stellar with three potential hall of famers.

Phillies Rotation off Last Season
Rotation	Record	ERA
Roy Halladay	21-10	2.44
Cliff Lee	12-9	3.18
Roy Oswalt	13-13	2.76
Cole Hamels	12-11	3.06
Kyle Kendrick	11-10	4.73

You have to keep in mind that Cliff Lee's 2010 numbers were skewed by playing for a last place Mariner ballclub in the pacific northwest.  But, after joining the Rangers, he pitched to an ERA under 3.00 in 5 starts during the regular season, and we all know how dominant he was in the postseason.

The only rotations that compare historically to the Phillies are the '98 Braves, the '71 Orioles, the '66 Dodgers, and the '86 Mets.  Let's take a look at how these all-time rotations stacked up.

Tommy G earned the CY Young Award in 1998, as Maddux, Glavine, and Smoltz finished 1-3-6 in ERA.  The combined ERA for the Braves staff was a haircut under 3.00, and an amazing 1.27 lower than the NL average in 1998.

1998 Braves
Rotation	Record	ERA
Tom Glavine	20-6	2.47
Greg Maddux	18-9	2.22
John Smoltz	17-3	2.9
Kevin Milwood	17-8	4.08
Denny Neagle	16-11	3.55

The '71 O's had four 20 game winners in their rotation, and the four starters had a combined 2.89 ERA, about a run less than the AL league average in 1971.

1971 Orioles
Rotation	Record	ERA
Dave McNally	21-5	2.68
Jim Palmer	20-9	2.68
Pat Dobson	20-8	2.9
Mike Cueller	20-9	3.08

The '66 Dodgers staff was comprised of three hall of famers, and probably the most dominant pitcher of all time.  Although the records of the remaining four starters after Koufax seem mediocre, you have to remember that the '66 Dodgers were not an offensive juggernaut (they got swept by the O's in '66 World Series, scoring their only two runs in Game 1).

1966 Dodgers
Rotation	Record	ERA
Sandy Koufax	27-9	1.73
Don Drysdale	13-16	3.42
Claude Osteen	17-14	2.85
Don Sutton	12-12	2.99
Rick Aguilera	10-7	3.88

In 1986, the Mets pitching staff dominated the NL, as Bobby O, Darling, and Doc finished 2-3-5 in ERA, and Sid, Doc, and Darling were all in the top seven in strikeouts.

1986 Mets
Rotation	Record	ERA
Dwight Gooden	17-6	2.84
Bob Ojeda	18-5	2.57
Sid Fernandez	16-6	3.52
Ron Darling	15-6	2.81
Rick Aguilera	10-7	3.88

 
As long as the Phillies rotation is able to stay healthy in 2011, it should stack up as one of the best of all time.  Coupled with an offense that has three hard-nose gamers in Chase Utley, Ryan Howard, and Jimmy Rollins, I wonder when November tickets will go on sale at Citizens Bank Park.