We live in a world where political correctness is paramount and the truth is often obfuscated, covered over, revised, or simply buried. We also live in a world where blame culture and cancel culture reign supreme.
Former Dallas Cowboy running back, Emmitt Smith believes that the entire country has come “ultra-sensitive,” but he believes the nation has accepted mediocracy, and “no one really is striving to create the best-in-class standards for one another.” “When we challenge people these days, they all get offended because they’ve been challenged. … They want what the next person has, but they’re not willing to go through what that person went through to get it. People are looking for shortcuts,” Smith explained.
People are offended by team names and no matter what you name them, there is probably another group that is offended. I guess that right about now, you name a team based upon how few people you can offend. How about we name the Washington Football Team the Washington Generics? Oh wait, that would probably offend the Atlanta Brand Names.
- The Cardinals offend people who don’t like birds or ones who like Blue Jays
- The Tigers are too scary.
- The Pirates are criminals and offend everyone.
- The Reds offend the Blue and people who are not Communists.
- The Rangers offend everyone who wants to defund the police.
- The Twins offend “only childs.”
- The Brewers offend alcoholics.
I am going to stop right about there, but someone is going to be offended no matter what.
I turn on the tube and what do I see
A whole lotta people cryin’ “Don’t blame me”
They point their crooked little fingers at everybody else
Spend all their time feelin’ sorry for themselves
Victim of this, victim of that
Your momma’s too thin; your daddy’s too fat
Get over it
Get over it
All this whinin’ and cryin’ and pitchin’ a fit
Get over it, get over it
You say you haven’t been the same since you had your little crash
But you might feel better if they gave you some cash
The more I think about it, Old Billy was right
Let’s kill all the lawyers, kill ’em tonight
You don’t want to work; you want to live like a king
But the big, bad world doesn’t owe you a thing
Get over it
Get over it
If you don’t want to play, then you might as well split
Get over it, get over it
It’s like going to confession every time I hear you speak
You’re makin’ the most of your losin’ streak
Some call it sick, but I call it weak
You drag it around like a ball and chain
You wallow in the guilt; you wallow in the pain
You wave it like a flag, you wear it like a crown
Got your mind in the gutter, bringin’ everybody down
Complain about the present and blame it on the past
I’d like to find your inner child and kick its little ass
Get over it
Get over it
All this bitchin’ and moanin’ and pitchin’ a fit
Get over it, get over it
Get over it
Get over it
It’s gotta stop sometime, so why don’t you quit
Get over it, get over it
Get over it
Songwriters: Glenn Frey / Don Henley
So, I am ranting over today’s culture where it seems that everyone (I know it’s not everyONE) believes they have a right to whatever they want… and since this America, they do a have a right to freedom of speech and all that, but they don’t have a right to steal it from me and they don’t have a right to “revisionist history.” I don’t really care if the Atlanta Braves become the Atlanta Hammers (in honor of Hammerin’ Hank) because some people are offended by the Native American Monkier (I have talked to more “white” people who are offended than native Americans… but I digress). However, I am sure that some screwdrivers or wrenches might also be offended.
What’s my point? My point is related to baseball history and the Baseball Hall of Fame at Cooperstown. Some people get into the Hall of Fame because the writers like them and others don’t get in because the writers hate them, have something against them, or just are plain biased. Consider a couple:
- Bill Mazeroski is in the Hall of Fame with a .260 BA and a .299 OB%. He was a great fielding second baseman who hit 138 career HR and had a career 36.5 WAR. However, Jeff Kent who has a .290 career BA and a .356 OB% to go with 377 HR and 55.4 WAR is not. Maz was certainly a better defensive second baseman, but he could not jump out of a boat and hit water. The difference? Jeff Kent did not like baseball writers (I can’t blame him) and they did not like him either.
- Gil Hodges had a career .273 BA, .359 OB%, 370 HR and 43.9 WAR. Harold Baines has a career BA of .289, a .356 OB%, 384 HR and a 38.7 WAR. One is in the HOF, the other isn’t. Why? I am not sure.
This is all total BS from prima donna writers who have their own fragile egos to deal with and hidden agendas. The Hall of Fame is sacred to baseball fans, but tell me that Shoeless Joe Jackson, Pete Rose, Roger Clemens, Barry Bonds and Sammy Sosa, and Mark McGwire are not part of the fabric of baseball.
Some were gamblers, some were cheaters, some were steroid users and maybe worse… and the writers knew about it every step of the way. They were complicit. They knew and they turned the other way. Cooperstown is not a monastery. It is full of racists, drunks, bigots, womanizers, and great people. But, we cannot forget our roots.
Barry Bonds, even under the influence of steroids, did stuff that will never be done again. The same with Roger Clemens, Mark McGwire, and Sammy Sosa. They should all be in Cooperstown. Their plaques should explain the good and bad. The same is true with Pete Rose, he is the All-Time Hit Leader and the embodiment of “Charlie Hustle” before he became a lying gambler who wrecked his life.
It’s all a part of baseball lore. We know that most of these players were not choirboys. Cooperstown is where baseball history is preserved. The village is pure Americana, a one-stoplight town nestled between the Adirondacks and the Catskills in Central New York. It drew its name from the family of James Fenimore Cooper – whose father, William, founded the village – whose works of literature have become American standards.
The self-proclaimed purpose of the Hall of Fame is to be the “Keeper of the Game’s history.” I would say that history is both good and bad. In my years on this planet, I have learned that most people are not as good as we think, nor as bad as we think. They are people and baseball writers know of their personalities, foibles, and escapades. Mickey Callaway was accused of “lewd conduct” yesterday. The sportswriters knew about it, calling it “the worst kept secret.”
The writers knew about steroid use as did the commissioner. They all looked the other way until they couldn’t. Pete Rose was a hell of a player but evidently not a good man. We could talk for hours about that, but Pete is part of this great game of baseball. Barry Bonds is the home run leader, even if he did cheat and take steroids… it’s part of the game and the record stands. The Hall of Fame can address the fact that many people consider Hank Aaron the real HR leader. Charlie Hustle is part of the legends of baseball.
Yet, the pious sportswriters whose correctness in spreading rumors is ten times worse than weather forecasters, hold the keys to Cooperstown and if they don’t want you there, you don’t get there. The Baseball Writers have been using “cancel culture” long before it was a thing. You can’t just wipe out history and treat it like it never existed.
Pete Rose, Barry Bonds, Sammy Sosa, Roger Clemens, Jeff Kent, and especially, Gil Hodges, should be in the hall of fame, no matter what their personalities or mistakes. While we are at it, if you have a surgery named after you and you win 288 games, you should also be in Cooperstown. Tommy John is worthy as well!
Cooperstown needs to open the doors to greatness and not demand that you be a priest to enter. They are all men, some better, some worse. Some sinners, no saints! Could Kim Ng be the first woman admitted to Cooperstown? We will have to wait a while for that one…
Rants & Raves
- The 2021 season will help you understand why the Dodgers were never in on Nolan Arenado. He ain’t all that! Watch and learn.
- Juan Toribio of Dodgers.com (I guess he has taken Ken Gurnicks place) has an interesting piece on how the Dodger can fill the voids of the players lost to free agency.
- The longer it goes, the more obvious it seems: The Dodgers are not going over the salary cap and maybe that is a hard line. They have a little over $5 Million to apply to JT unless they can get someone to take Joe Kelly, but for that to happen, AF will likely have to pack a few prospects with Kelly and he may be loathe to do that. This is a business! I am not afraid to go into the season with this lineup, and see what happens:
- Betts RF
- Seager SS
- Smith C
- Muncy 1B
- Bellinger CF
- Pollock LF
- Rios 3B
- Lux/Taylor 2B
Below we have Watford Dodger and the dearly departed Joc Pederson. Joc is saying “Watford, for what it’s worth, I liked you better than Bumsrap!”
I have stated my position on this already. If any of those guys would own up to what they did instead of constantly denying it, maybe I would feel different. Pete Rose was probably the grittiest player I ever saw, and he worked hard to become the all time hit leader. But he also worked hard at destroying his own reputation, and his credibility. He is baseball’s Benedict Arnold, and no words on a plaque are going to change that. That being said, if Pete is enshrined after he passes away, well, I would not be against that. He accepted the lifetime ban, he never admitted he gambled, but when shown the evidence by Bart Giamatti, he caved. Guilty as charged. I just do not think he should be able to profit from being a Hall of Famer. That is another reason I believe Shoeless Joe should be allowed in. He is way past benefiting from election, and if any player has the stats that should insure enshrinement, it is Jackson. Personally, I do not care if Clemens, Bonds, McGwire or Rodriguez, who comes onto the Ballot next year, ever make it. They are all self serving. If they cared about the game at all, they have never shown it. I also think that the BBWA is obsolete. I do not think they should be the ones voting. Too many of them have been prejudiced with players who would not give interviews or be open to them.
I am allergic to water so frankly this website offends me.
Wow, how are you alive then? Human body is full of water.
Yeah, most are full of water. Some are full of something else.
Are you saying that if they were given an enema, they could be buried in a shoebox?
With friends like these, who needs enemas?
That was a really bad pun there DL.
Eric is going to be heartbroken, Reds are nearing a deal with Sean Doolittle.
Burn Tokyo Burn
I will ignore what got you to your point, becuz it’s seems a lil political and of course my IQ plays a part in it…
I have had the honor to visit the HOF 2 times and each time I went, the old goose bumps appeared… If it offends some folks, just create a deep state wing for deserved yet questionable… Pass it by if you wish… Shoelace Joe and Pete Rose both owned IQ’s comparable to a fire fire hydrant, but skills were unquestionable… Jeff Kent didn’t like reporters , so that ones ez-peazy… After the disastrous strike the Commissioner, baseball fans and even cricket fans knew there was something rotten in Denmark… Baseball needed it and I for one enjoyed the HR Race… While cocaine was rampant with the boys dubbed “We are Family” and cross whites always available it was only a short time HGH…
P.S. Gil Hodges first plez, Bonds was a 1st ballot HOF’er before changing hat sizes… Jeff Kent not being in is a joke… Somebody brought up, get the writers out and replaced by TBD.. KUDOS…
P.S.S. How come pitchers are are hardly ever questionable???
I was in favor of Pete Rose being honored in the Hall but only as a player. That is where he should of left it. As a manager what he did was equal to betting against his team. While never betting against the Reds he’d burn out the bullpen and made moves for victory only on games he betted on then not betting on games when he rested the pen for games to place bets. That’s fixing games to fill ones own pocket. He has to live with that and deservedly so. His play on the field was Hall Of Fame quality and everybody knows that.
Oh, I would like to write fifty paragraphs on this, but I won’t. The very short version starts with the fact that the famous jazz and social critic Nat Hentoff once wrote a book entitled “Free Speech for Me but Not for Thee,” and that title sums it up. I recently watched a 1945 movie, “Scarlet Street,” which was a noirish tale based on a French novel. And I was very surprised to learn that various religious organizations managed to get the movie banned from theatres in NYC and Atlanta, because they found it to be amoral and depraved or some such terms. The film was actually a morality tale in its way, and it never advocated amorality at all. But those were the days where the Religious Right and the Hays Code tired to control what movies were shown and which books were published. Now we have the Left doing the same thing. No one sees the hypocrisy in all of it. Films and TV sows are now filled with political or social correctness; the characters must not deviate from the way that they are demanded to be perceived. What that does, is remove the drama from the stories, the complexity or ambiguity which makes for compelling art.. That’s my view of it, anyway.
Back to sports, well-meaning efforts pushed by various groups, to not offend anybody who claims to be offended, have led to the removal of many team names, which is rather ridiculous, but there’s nothing we can do about it. As to so-called “cancel culture,” this goes on from both sides. And there are people who live for the ability to get something or someone banned, it makes them feel powerful.
On to the Hall of Fame,, that is a complex question as to whether admission should have anything to do with character. It is easier to say, “no,,” because then the voting is just based on statistics. If character does play some role, then it gets very complex. Rose is pretty easy for me, because his failures were very much baseball related. Betting on your team’s games means that you have a strong incentive to win those games more than the ones you do not bet on. That goes to the integrity of the game, which if lost, destroys the entire sport. So he deserved to be banned, in my opinion, even though his playing days were not involved. The people who obviously took steroids also deserved to not be admitted, because they blatantly cheated, even if they would have piled up good numbers without cheating. Some guy hits 68 home runs because he is taking s steroids, this makes a mockery of the game.
Now, when it comes to things like drinking, or womanizing, that is personal behavior, and if we start voting based on that, it turns the sport into some kind of morality organization. And who is to say what actions are worse than others;? Finally, we come to the Schilling matter, where he has said some incendiary and obnoxious things. But even though I do not like him, I don’t think it should disqualify him. However, all it takes is a few voters who don[t like this, to keep someone out. We know that Ted Williams did not win an MVP one year simply because a few writers who did not like him, kept him out of their top ten, even though he hit. 406. That is appalling. Of course, we see movies win awards because their themes appeal to the Academy voters, not because they are that well made or entertaining. So pure merit, whatever that is, is confused with a bunch of other things, and there is no way to extricate it now.
Great points William, and I totally agree. There have been war movies that were actually anti war in their themes. Just changing a teams name, does not wipe out the history of the team. The Red Sox were the last team to integrate, and they did it with a marginal player who was doomed to fail. So it was a few more years before they finally had a black player who was worth his salary.
How upset would Dodger fans be if we signed Maikel Franco?
He could platoon with Rios. In the last two years, he has improved against LH pitching and he’s still 28 – the same age JT was when he broke out! I think it might be a good risk to sign him to a 3-year/$17 M deal! I’m in!
I get a Juan Uribe vibe from him.
It’s what I’ve been saying for some time, Franco or Todd Frazier, also i read that Keone Kela is still available, predictions say he can be signed for only $2 millions….
Cooperstown is currently a joke, it seems to me that anyone could enter, and who should be there have not yet been … Where is the popularity of the player? That which makes it unforgettable, but there are those who are not even remembered or known and are there … An example is Fernando, with what he did for the team and baseball should be or at least be mentioned…..
And if someone doesn’t like or is offended by the name of the team or the stadium, then don’t go or don’t see them.
It is incredible and stupid that after so many years of reading, knowing, listening and naming certain names, now they say they are offended.
Fuck outta here !!!
As much as I liked Fernando, his career numbers just do not merit his election. Yes, he did a lot for baseball in LA. I think an exhibit of his impact on the community and Fernandomania as the phenomenon it was would be appropriate. I think he has a better chance getting in the hall the same way Jaime Jarrin did, as a broadcaster.
If social deficiency can keep players out of the Hall then social proficiency should put them in the Hall, well that and some accomplishments.
He still does not have the numbers or the accomplishments. He was a very good pitcher. He won 20 games once, he never won a ERA title, and after winning the Cy Young and the ROY his rookie year, he never did it again. He never led the league in any of the major catagories. And despite the impact he had on attendance and attracting Latino’s to Dodger Stadium, he was not the first Latino to impact the game, that would be Roberto Clemente. I have heard this argument for years, and it still does not hold water. His first 7 years he was pretty good, after his arm problems, he was mediocre. I totally disagree that he belongs in the hall. And there are others who are already in who I have issues with too.
If you have to pay a ticket for parking in an illegal spot, should you get a reward for parking in a legal spot?
Bear – Boston, Boston, Boston… They’re why I liked Reggie Smith so much when he came/escaped from the BoSox … He was rumored to be a problem, none of which panned out…
Williams, Yaz, Jackie Jensen etc… They just couldn’t let go..
Smith came from the Cardinals. They traded him for Joe Ferguson, Fred Tisdale, and Bobby Detherage, Boston traded him to the Cardinals for Bernie Carbo and Rick Wise. That turned out pretty good for Boston since Carbo hit a very important homer to tie a game in the World Series with the Reds. Jensen was originally a Yankee who was traded in May of 1952 to the Senators in a 6 player deal that netted the Yankees Irv Noren, and Tom Upton. DC traded him to the Sox in Dec of 1963 for 2 players. Jensen was finished by the time he was 34. He played only 11 years over all, and 7 of those with the Red Sox. I agree about Yaz and Williams. They were Boston icons. Jensen was merely a good player, and not home grown. Pumpsie Green was the first black player in Boston. An infielder, he had a 5 year stint in the bigs. 4 with Boston and 1 with the Mets. He hit only .246, but had a very respectable .357 OBP. Smith was a 2 time all star in Boston, also in St Louis, he made 3 all star teams with the Dodgers. Noren by the way, finished his career in LA in 1960.
Makiel Franco has been a huge underachiever. In 6 1/2 major league seasons he has an OPS of .737 (low for 3B), OPS+ of 94 (he’s a worse than league average hitter), and a total of 2.5 bWAR – in 6 1/2 years. He is a negative defensive bWAR of -2.9 in 6 1/2 years so he can’t field either.
After being one of the Phillies’ top prospects, they non-tendered him in 2019. With the Royals, he has partly played 1B or DH’d.
No thanks.
Sad to see my good friend Joc finally depart for the Cubbies.
Bums, if it’s any consolation, he did say you were his second favourite poster on his “Go To” Dodger site.
Sad to see Arenado go to the Cards. What a great bit of business for them.
As suspected he was available, and not for very much in Prospect return.
Essentially the Rox just needed to get him off the books, and are having to help ease the financial burden.
I know many of you believe that they would never have traded him within the division, and you are probably right, but I really hope that AF certainly kicked the tires on this. We could certainly have offered more than the return they received from SL.
Mark maybe right about him away from Denver, but let’s see how bit pans out.
I would have loved to see him manning 3B for the next 6 years.
I’ll take Win, Place, or Show most anytime.
I am ready to move on from JT. Pitchers and catchers report in two weeks… allegedly!
It is a young man’s game.
Let’s see if Ed Rios can step up. 500 AB’s for him = 50 HR?
So far, that’s what he has done in a small sampling!
I’ve already moved on from Turner. He was the most clutch for a number of years and he will be missed.
I prefer Rios at first over Muncy. So, Muncy and Price for Story. I know, not going to happen.
Pitchers and catchers will be in camp. Trust me, MLB does not want to go to war with the players over this right now.
Mark you are stirring the pot. It is important to have Turner on our roster and also not have him on some other roster such as Atlanta. Rios can get plenty of abs even if Turner is re-signed. We need Turner for October. I understand that it is a 2way street but the Dodgers should sign Turner to a fair contract and fair determined by AF. Turner should be useful for a couple of years. If it is just irreconcilable differences then we will have to move on. But, I am not giving up yet.
I am not stirring the pot. I do not think the Dodgers will go over the LuxTax threshold.
Sad to see him go too, Watford, but wish the best for him. I will always be a fan until a Dodger-Cubs game. Nice picture of you and Joc. Thanks Mark.
Chris Archer is signing to return to Tampa Bay. 1 year $6.5MM.
I like it.
In for a penny in for a pound.
Sean Doolittle signs with the Reds for $1.5MM. I will give Eric credit for this one. No way did I see Doolittle signing for that small of a contract. Cincinnati is probably as far West as he was going to go, but who knows for sure. I am not sure he has anything left, which is probably why he signed for so little, but it will be fun to watch him this season to see if he can get it back. I probably would not give a rip about how Doolittle pitches, but Eric made it worth watching.
Morrow’s contract calls for $1MM as long as he is on the ML roster. I do believe that Morrow returns to his 2017 and first half 2018 brilliance. Doolittle is $1.5MM. I am guessing that Cincinnati is hoping for a return to his 2018 brilliance. The difference is that Doolittle’s contract is guaranteed. LAD could have absorbed that gamble.
I was wrong on the Doolittle contract. I could very well be wrong on what I believe the Soria contract will be.
I’m amazed at the size of Archer’s contract. He hasn’t been all that good over the past 2-3 years and then had TOS surgery last season, a surgery which relatively few pitchers come back well from.
Maybe the Rays figure he was underpaid when he was with them so they’re making up for it. I wish him well. He’s probably glad to be back in Tampa.
Morrow was almost unhittable during that time.
If he throws a single inning for us this season that’s a success.
Brandon Morrow will be injured all year and be a non-factor; or
He will be a high-leverage, lockdown reliever!
Watch Jimmy Nelson be the man this year.
You never know.
I love this game.
Enny Romero?
Reading an article on MLB.com about our rotation and he’s mentioned.
Seems more like a potential reliever if anything.
Along with Pazos, Cleavinger, etc.