An Open Letter to Gary Bettman

Dear Mr. Gary Bettman,

Why did you have to take my beloved NHL away from ESPN and put it on Versus? Back in the day I could sit down on my couch with a soda and some chips and enjoy a hockey game commentated by Gary Thorne and Bill Clement. Barry Melrose would come on at intermission and tell me why my Colorado Avalanche were killing the Red Wings.

I never had to go far up on my dial, since ESPN was a culturally relevant channel carried by all cable providers. The Stanley Cup Playoffs were actually televised on at least three channels simultaneously thanks to ESPN having three stations available to broadcast live coverage. All of the Stanley Cup Finals games were available for everyone to watch on ABC or ESPN, instead of being available on one obscure channel no one had ever heard of five years ago.

Yes Mr. Bettman, Poker had eclipsed your league in terms of television ratings. This was at a time when the league was at its most un-followable moment, right around a lockout year with few players with any transcendent appeal. You, Gary dearest, took the money that was offered to you by NBC and Versus not realizing that in the process you doomed the sport you love so much to anonymity.

How can anyone who is new to the sport take it seriously when the coverage of it is preceded by men with funny southern accents fishing for bass and is followed by loggers sawing through trees? The average American must think "What is this game called hockey? Must be pretty boring and irrelevant if its on this channel." Bam, one possible fan lost, Monsieur Bettman.

The NHL is at its most appealing point since the league boasted none other than Wayne Gretzky. Take a look at how well the Capitals do in terms of support in Washington, DC. The district, and its suburbs, is one of the more demographically diverse areas in the nation. You do not have to be white in this town to know who Alexander Ovechkin is or why he is so great to watch.

The league is chock full of young marketable stars, surely you are aware of this Mr. Bettman. Wouldn't it make sense to try and get them out there on a network of relevance? The numbers for the Stanley Cup Playoffs and Finals last season were some of the best the NHL has seen in years. And yet Gary, if these playoffs had been on ESPN and ABC just imagine how the company owned by Disney could have made those numbers grow to even higher heights?

Gary Bettman, when the time comes to decided where to take the league's television rights again, please, do take whatever ESPN offers. I want to remember what it felt like being a kid watching Peter Forsberg score on Chris Osgood. I want to remember not having to go so high on my dial to find one of my favourite sports. Gary, I am so tired of watching Daniel Negreanu & Co. play Texas Hold 'Em. Put them back where they came from, not on television.

Hell Gary, even the NHL video game last season won best sports game. Let's capitalize on this momentum Gary, I know we can make the NHL relevant again.

Yours,

Charlie Klein

Daily Fail: Sorry ESPN Hype, But Jury's Still Out On Pedro

Charlie Klein

Five innings pitched. Five strikeouts. Three earned runs. One walk. Not that much of an impressive line right? Well if you happen to be a 38 year-old Pedro Martinez, it is one hell of a game correct? No, Regis, final answer.

The amount of buzz surrounding Pedro's first start for the Phillies last night is truly ridiculous. It was just one game folks! Now everyone and their fantasy baseball playing mother is thinking they have to go pick this guy up in their leagues right this minute because of all of the hype ESPN is giving Martinez. Martinez is only owned by 8.7% of ESPN fantasy leagues.

Ladies and gentleman of the jury, it's just one game. I think that the people at ESPN just want to see Pedro do well so badly that when he offers them average at best performances they will laud him until the next news cycle. If Pedro had the opposing pitcher Jeff Samardzija's line (3.1IP, 7ER, 4K's, 8 hits) the analysts would all say, "Oh well it was just one game." The same syllogism should be true of this perfomance too right? According to ESPN, it should not.

Call me a Pedro hater, call me a Phillies hater, or whatever you like, but any rational baseball observer (read: not a Phillies fan, sorry Mark but I had to say it) would say that the judgement for Pedro's success in Filth-a-smell-thia is dependent upon more than one perfomance. More importantly, it is safe to assume that if this is the best Pedro can offer, then there is a lot worse he can do in his next outing.

Martinez is a lock for Cooperstown. I have never seen a more dominating pitching performance than when he started the 1999 All-Star Game in Boston when he struck out the first five batters he faced. I honestly enjoyed most of his time for the New York Mets. But he is not that player anymore, so please, ESPN, stop treating him as such.

Playoffs!?! Playoffs!?!

John Quirk

I have seen enough and it is time to make some bold, hard hitting playoff predictions for the final 50 games in MLB. The beauty of living in America is that we simultaneously get to set up the upcoming NFL season, the new draft class, and their glaring absences from training camps nationwide, absences that are motivated by trying to lock down more millions in a time of near economic crisis… what a country!

The American League is pretty clear cut as far as I’m concerned, and my previous predictions all still ring true. I still like the Rangers, although it is maybe a little more realistic to call them the wild card at this point than to think that they will upend the Angels out west. I picked the Angels on June first and no obtrusive reasons to back off that prediction. Ervin Santana has been lights out and I think Mike Socia is one of the best managers in the league. He keeps them competitive year in and year out, and they will be a tough out for anyone in the playoffs, especially the yanks…

I realize that my prediction of Texas as the wild card ousts the Red Sox from the playoff picture and I’m cool with that. In fact I think the Rays are a better odds on bet to make it that the sawx at this point. After the sweep in the Bronx last weekend exposed Smoltz for what he was and sent him off to assignment land, the land for those designated as being done, I think it’s clear Boston will not have enough arms to help them play catch up, even when the bats finally do wake up. I’m still on the Tigers in the central (almost as much because of the White Sox and Twins as the Tigers ineptness) but I am stickin’ with them none the less.

Now on to the NL where the truly great races will take place this season. The west was over long before I even declared it so on June 1. The rest of the divisions are more wide open than Randy Moss against the Lions.

In the east I think the Phillies will hold on, but the race will prove to be close right to the bitter end. The Braves have been a tough out all season and have a better team, especially with the addition of Nate McClouth, than they have in since the late 90’s they just haven’t necessarily played like it all year. Derek Lowe has pretty much encapsulated the on again, off again nature of this team. 22 games against the Mets, Reds, Padres, Nationals, as well as 7 more with the team in front of them the Phillies, sets the Braves up for a potentially big stretch run. Their whole rotation has faltered at times throughout the season, however I think that with their better than average lineup, and great bullpen anchored by one of my favorite relievers in the league, Rafael Soriano, the Braves will be a force for the rest of the year. Don’t be shocked when they sneak in and take the wild card.

That leaves just one team from the central and it is the team currently atop the division. Best coach, best line up, solid rotation, solid bullpen, recipe for success for the red birds. Chris Carpenter has bounced back to near ’05 form when he won 21 games. He currently boasts a whip under 1, which validates his impressive 11-3 record. He along with Wainwright are a more than formidable 1-2 punch, something which makes the Cardinals a dangerous team come playoff time.

A perfect segway to playoff predictions…

If only I wasn’t starving and committed to making French toast for me and my roommates… Playoff picks and NFL preview coming soon… stay tuned…

Start Flappin' Those Wings

Connor Folse

With the recent six year contract given to linebacker Aaron Curry, fourth overall draft pick in the 2009 NFL draft, the Seattle Seahawks have put together the last piece of the puzzle in their quest for the title of 2010 Superbowl champions. Sure, there are plenty of question marks, but this Seahawk team seems like it may have the best chance of returning to the Superbowl since its loss to the Steelers in 2005.

Last season the Hawks were decimated by an unbelievable amount of injuries and with the preseason just around the corner, the 12th man holds its breath in hopes that this year's squad can stay healthy. The damage started with injuries to virtually the whole receiving core leaving tight end John Carlson as the target of choice. Injuries to quarterback Matt Hasselbeck and most of the offensive line including perennial pro-bowl tackle Walter Jones followed. Couple the obscene amount of injuries on the offensive side of the ball with a poor running game and the worst ranked secondary in the NFL and the Seahawks brewed the prefect recipe for a 4-12 season.

But with a new year comes new hope. Most everyone from last year starts training camp healthy and a number of new additions have been made in an attempt to bolster the Hawks enough to overtake the Cardinals for the division title. To start, the Seahawks had a brilliant draft. They took Aaron Curry with the first pick, who is said to be the surest thing to come along in a draft in years. They made what is quite possibly their best offseason move by trading their second round pick for the broncos first rounder next year, which means the Hawks may have a top five pick in next years draft the way the Bronco's offseason has developed so far. Kyle Orton is no Jay Cutler. With their next two picks the Seahawks grabbed versatile offensive lineman Max Unger from the University of Oregon to boost a depleted o-line and speedy, underrated wide reciever Deon Butler out of Penn State.

The Hawks also addressed a number of needs with offseason acquisitions. On the defensive side they they traded linebacker Julian Peterson to the Lions for defensive tackle Cory Redding. This was a great pickup because they later resigned linebacker Leroy Hill to a long term contract giving them what may be the best linebacking corps in the NFL. They then bolstered the worst secondary in the NFL by adding former Seahawk Ken Lucas and cornerback Travis Fisher. The promise shown by cornerback Josh Wilson towards the end of last year coupled with these additions and the return of pro-bowler Marcus Trufant should remedy their poor performance from last year. The Hawks also added defensive tackle Colin Cole to strengthen the defensive line and they also get pro-bowler Patrick Kerney back from injury. To bring together the seemingly strong defensive unit, the Seahawks hired former Buccaneers linebacker coach Gus Bradley as their defensive coordinator.

On the offensive side of the ball the Hawks get their leader Matt Hasselbeck back healthy as well as the anchor of the offensive line Walter Jones. The retirement of guard Mike Whale hurts but the Hawks recently signed linemen Cory Withrow and Gary Ruegamer to take his place. The running back core remains the same apart from the addition of fullback Justin Griffith but should be stronger now that Hasselbeck has returned with a stronger receiving core. Carlton remains a centerpiece of the offense after just one year and former Lions tight end John Owens hopes to grab the second tight end spot by the horns. Wide receivers Dieon Branch and Nate Burleson return from injury and if all this wasn't enough, the Seahawks added the Housh, wide reciever T.J. Houshmanzadeh to lead the receiving core back from injury.

The Seahawks look like a team to reckon with and if everyone stays healthy an 11-5 season is not out of reach. There are still a lot of question marks but all i know is that i will be there on September 13th when the Hawks face off against the St. Louis Rams. the sweet sounds of The Verve's Bittersweet Symphony ring in my ears. Ahhh football season.

Just Danglin' On The Waiver Wire

Charlie Klein

Over the past few days there has been a flurry of activity on the waver wire throughout Major League Baseball. Due to the current state of the economy the ability of big market teams to add an underachieving and overpaid player is enhanced as small market teams continue to dump salary.

Today the Chicago White Sox claimed the underachieving and enigmatic Alex Rios off waivers from the Toronto Blue Jays in exchange for not having to pay the remainder of his exorbitant pay packet. This is an interesting move by J.P. Riccardi, Jays GM, considering he is a protege of the money baller himself Billie Bean. Rios, who has never had an off the charts season but seemed to have bags of potential. He started off brilliantly in 2006 but only finished with modest power numbers. Six years and sixty-four million dollars offered later, the Jays dealt the once considered five-tool player to the White Sox.

What's awfully puzzling about this move by Ken Williams, White Sox GM, is that the White Sox already have a solid, functional outfield. Yes, Carlos Quentin is not having the same year statistically that he did in 2008. And yes, Jermaine Dye is getting old and is not a great fielder (was he ever?). Sure, Podsednik is not a power threat but has been clutch late in games. Then there is always DeWayne Wise who saved Mark Buehrle's perfect game with one of the greatest catches I have ever seen.

Now Williams adds Rios, who is not having a great season (Franklin Gutierrez of the Seattle Mariners has the same number of homeruns and a higher batting average and costs 455,000 this year) and is not even a buy low sell high sort of move that makes all GM's look good. Yes, the White Sox did not give any of their prospects up in this deal, but I would have rather threw some prospects in than have to pay Rios' contract in full. But no matter, what's another big contract for the payroll eh? Williams is a respected GM in MLB but with more moves of this nature then his stock could fall. If Rios does well in a new ballpark with new fans in a pennant race, then the move will be worth it. I just do not see it happening.

This is a brilliant move by Riccardi. The man received to much flack for the manner in which he handled the Roy Halladay sweepstakes and deserves more credit for the job he is doing in Toronto. Dumping Rios' bloated contract helps them in the long run to re-sign Halladay and invest in players like Aaron Hill and Adam Lind. Riccardi just basically sold off one of his toxic assets for nothing.

The other Sox were rumoured to have claimed Christian Guzman off of waivers from the Washington Nationals yesterday in order to fix their weakness at shortstop. The Beantowners have not found a long term replacement for Nomar Garciaparra since the Fenway favourite was traded in 2004. Orlando Cabrera filled in well but was never meant to remain with the Sawx. Julio Lugo was a disaster and their farm system has been unable to provide a replacement in either Jed Lowrie or Nick Green. The addition of Guzman would be just another quick fix by Red Sox GM Theo Epstein. That does not mean it is a bad move, but it is what it is. Guzman could provide another bat in the lineup that hits for average and gets on base so that the Youka & Co. can drive him in. Guzman also offers a good glove in the midddle infield. Come on Theo, you know you wanna!

If the Nationals traded Guzman there would be a definite uproar by the local and fickle Nationals fans in the District of Columbia. The team has won an impossible eight games in a row and does not show any signs of slowing down. The Nationals' current streak is a franchise record for consecutive wins and has the fanbase abuzz with the pipe dream of being a competitive ball club. Trading Guzman, who the fans love for his intro music (How We Do, G-UNIT), would kill any good PR the Nationals have, and especially this season, lord only knows how much they need a positive atmosphere surrounding Nationals Park.

There will surely be more additions (and subtractions) made through the wire this season. It will be interesting to see what team sets itself up best for a late postseason run. As John Sterling loves to say, you can't predict baseball.

Daily Fail: Patty Kane

Charlie Klein

Chicago Blackhawks starlet Patrick Kane apparently has a thing against cabbies. If you are a Chicago taxi cab driver and are reading this, well, if you see a five foot nine inch blond man with a mop of blond hair, just let him wait for the next cab. Patrick Kane was arrested along with his cousin at 5 a.m. in Kane's hometown of Buffalo, NY.

According to the corresponding police report, Kane and his cousin James allegedly punched their cab driver and took the 15 dollars they had given him after the cab driver could not give them 20 cents in change.

I understand perfectly Kane's dismay at not receiving proper change for his purchase, but really when you are a star in the NHL getting paid $875,000 anually what's 20 cents in the grand scheme of things? How much is that going to affect your bottom line, Mr. Kane!?! Apparently, a rather lot.

The taxi cab driver who had the misfortune of picking up Kane and his cousin suffered facial cuts after being struck in the face and head. This story would make much more sense if it was a hockey player who was notorious for fighting, like Ti Domi or Donald Brashear. It is possible that I am straight up ignorant and just missed all of Kane's fights this season, but when I watched my darling Canucks lose to the Blackhawks I do not remember a single occassion in which Kane dropped his gloves.

The NHL is looking into the situation. As if hockey needed to enhance its image as a league for toothless brutes. Thankfully no one pays the league any mind so this story will pass without much media play.

English Premier League Table Predictions

Charlie Klein

The 2009-2010 English Premier League Season is due to kick off August 15, just nine days from today. I can honestly say that I am more excited for the return of the EPL than I am for the NFL. There is no doubt in my mind on that subject. As my fellow writers on this blog will also do, I am going to deliver to you my table prediction for this upcoming season.

1. Manchester United

2. Chelsea

3. Liverpool

4. Manchester City

5. Arsenal

6. Aston Villa

7. Everton

8. Fulham

9. West Ham

10. Tottenham Hotspur

11. Wigan Athletic

12. Sunderland

13. Wolverhampton Wanderers

14. Bolton Wanderers

15. Stoke City

16. Birmingham City

17. Blackburn Rovers

18. Burnley

19. Portsmouth

20. Hull City

Storylines to follow:

Does the Top Four change for the first time since 2003?

Unless Arsenal finds itself a bonafide striker that has a great bill of health, I do not see them qualifying for the Champions League next season. Selling their only dependable striker to Manchester City along with their best centre half, Adebayor and Kolo Toure respectively, has ostensibly sold fourth place to the boys in baby blue. Add in the new players at the City of Manchester Stadium (Carlos Tevez, Gareth Barry, Roque Santa Cruz) and one should have the ingriedients for a top four finish. Ultimately it could be any number of teams, particularly Aston Villa and Everton, that overtake Arsenal for fourth place.

Can Manchester United win the league for the fourth year on the trot?

Many in England, particularly those who live outside of Trafford, are hoping that any other team could win the league this season. I understand their wishes, but as a Manchester United supporter and as a person with a rational mind, I do not see how any other team mounts a serious challenge to the Red Devils superiority. Yes, United did sell two goalscorers in Carlos Tevez and Cristiano Ronaldo. Sure, the Red Devils will be without first team keeper Edwin Van Der Sar for the first two months of the season. Both of those facts will not be enough to derail a team that has the experience and depth of talent to repeat once again.

How will the three promoted teams fare in the Premiership?

The only promoted club that I picked to face the drop at the end of this season is Burnley, primarily because I do not think they have done enough to change the side that miraculously qualified for promotion last term. Owen Coyle is a good manager but tactics can only get a team so far in the EPL. I am impressed with the work that Wolverhampton Wanderers have done adding experience and depth to a team that won the Coca-Cola Championship last season by a safe margin. As for Birmingham, I like their manager Alex McLeish and their squad depth is better than the three teams I picked for the drop.

Who gets relegated?

Even though Portsmouth was bought by a wealthy Arab, I do not believe they have the talent to hang with most teams in the Premier League. Selling Peter Crouch and Glenn Johnson, two of their best and most qualified players to play for the England National Team, has done nothing to help their cause. Hull City I feel like have been narrowly avoiding relegation since they were promoted, and this year I refuse to believe they will be able to avoid the drop. If they do secure American striker Jozy Altidore on loan, that will certainly make things interesting, but I do not think it will be enough to secure them Premier League football next term.

And then I could be totally wrong on everything. The beauty of football is that teams come from nowhere and succeed in ways none of the pundits predicted. All I want this year is for my boys to win a fourth consecutive league and to watch some entertaining league football in the process. The best nine consecutive months of the year are about to return!

Cincinnati Bengals: A Farce?

Koshin Egal

While I was watching HBO in anticipation of a new episode of True Blood, quite possibly the best show on television; I was more shocked by something that did not air on the show. What could be weirder than vampires, telepaths and an interesting take on religious fanatics? The survey says..The Cincinnati Bengals on Hard Knocks! What, was my local JV team not available!?! This was the show that was brought on to replace the award winning Inside the NFL. It was okay last year with the Dallas Cowboys because the Cowboys had a lot of hype going into last year as a legit title contender. Although, a wide receiver and a quarterback dating a Hollywood starlet may have gotten in the way of that.

But what is appealing about the Bengals? Maybe if this was four years ago and the Bengals were coming off of their 11-5 season when they were one of the hottest teams in the NFL it would make sense. After all they did have a dynamic offense with two great receivers in Chad Johnson (pre Ochocinco), T.J. Houshmandzadeh (housemozilli championship), even though the commercial was 3 years ago it’s still funny, if you don’t believe me click this link, a quality running back in Rudi Johnson and a franchise quarterback in Carson Palmer. A devastating blow to Carson Palmer in the first quarter of a playoff game forever changed this franchise. Not saying that this will happen to the New England Patriots but if Tom Brady is not the same guy this year then you’ll know how Cincinnati Bengal fans feel like.

Other interesting notes around the league, in what I’ll titled how did you spend your summer? Brett Farve will stay in Hattiesburg, Mississippi cutting the grass instead of joining up with the Vikings. In a way this makes sense cause if John Madden is retired then who else can say Brett Farrrva with such love. Antonio Pierce and Plaxico Burress spent theirs with a grand jury. The grand jury and Plaxico will now be bunk buddies with Antonio going home early. Finally my favorite Lendale White spent his losing weight. Losing as much as 37 pounds. Why is this my favorite? He did it by giving up the booze, in particular Tequila. Thus setting up this, Lendale blames it on Patron, cause he was in the zone, Blame my fat on the a a a a a alcohol, Blame my fat on the a a a a a alcohol. Thanks Lendale and good luck with the diet. Football is almost here yea.