At long last, there is enough of a slight gap in my other pursuits for me to weigh in on the whole LeBron James situation.  And by “other pursuits”, I mean my day job, P90X (I’m in Week #3) and writing some technical articles to help support my revenue-generating activities.

So, why did I wait so long?  There is certainly no lack of people giving their two cents on the subject, and almost all of them have better credentials than myself (note that I did not say that they are more qualified – anyone that has read my stuff before knows the deal).  So, you knew that it was coming (my two cents, that is), and you knew that it was probably going to be a slightly different take.

If you are used to the same old shit, sorry.  That is not what we do here.  Just like Brett Favre throwing the ball to the wrong team, Peyton Manning doing anything to avoid any physical contact whatsoever and costing his team dearly by doing so even when big games are on the line, Pau Gasol or any nimrod from Duke flopping around like Serie A soccer players instead of playing tough defense, the French surrendering, and politicians being crooked…we like to take a slightly different angle on the sports stories of the day.  It’s our signature move; it’s what we do.

So, that bring us to the order of the day – what to make of this whole LeBron mess.  As a disclaimer, let me say that I have followed LeBron with great anticipation ever since he was in high school.  I have, like most of you, been completely impressed by his skill on the court, and equally intrigued by his boyish nature.  I am not one for pre-game theatrics normally, but I bought into it with LeBron.  He was just a kid having fun.

After this debacle, I will never have anything but disdain for LeBron.  I will call him The Jester every chance I get.  I was DVR-ing “The Decision”, or as it should be known,  the “Let’s Kick Cleveland in the Groin Just for the Hell of It” show.  I wanted to save it in digital form so I could play it for my son in a few years, when he was old enough to appreciate that fact that LeBron decided to forgo everything else that was less important and stay with is hometown team, earning a new level of respect to go along with everything else by which he has been blessed.  I stopped the recording midway through and erased it from my DVR.  I only wish I could use my TV remote to erase it from my memory.

So, I am done with LeBron.  You should know that going in.  Now let’s talk about respect, since that’s what really matters here.  Sure, other people have said that rings matter, and legacy matters, and money matters, and worldwide exposure matters, and blah, and blah, and blah.  Don’t believe any of that.  It’s about respect…or at least it is with real fans.

The premise of this article is that I wanted to take a tour through all of the players involved in this whole mess, give them a “Respect” grade before and after…kind of take a look at what this whole thing did to them, from a “Respect” standpoint. Everyone knows that LeBron hurt himself in this regard, but how did everyone else do?  So, let’s get started.

LeBron James

Twitter: @KingJames (Yes, this dude has so little class and so little concept of humility, history or his place in it that he actually refers to himself as “The King” frequently enough that he thought it was a good idea to do so in the name of his Twitter account.  Do you think Jordan ever called himself “His Airness”?)

Respect Grade (Before): B

Somehow, LeBron had a pretty good grade before this whole debacle.  I guess it’s understandable, I mean, he can run really fast and jump really high and do amazing things on a basketball court.  Plus, and everyone forgets this, he turned in one of the all-time great performances in NBA Playoff history, scoring 29 of his team’s last 30 points.  He did that when he was 22.  Of course, he has since turned into Peyton Manning in the playoffs.  The bigger the game, the better chance he will be just average.

Respect Grade (After): C-

What is there to say that hasn’t been said?  This was just the Exxon Valdez, in terms of what it did to the LeBron Respect-O-Meter.  Seriously, he has officially entered A-Rod territory.  Fans of his team will want him to succeed, and fans of every other team will want him to fail in the most humiliating way possible.  If he ever gets caught doing something dumb or runs afoul of the law, people will cheer out loud.  I am sure nothing like that will ever happen to LeBron. After all, he has the mental giants coming up on our list taking care of things.  What could possibly go wrong?

Maverick Carter

Twitter: Unknown

Respect Grade (Before): C

I am giving Mav a ‘C’ here, since he was never really respected, but merely worshipped as LeBron’s next-in-command.  Unfortunately, that kind of “respect” gets yanked out from under you at the first sign of trouble.  When you are just as responsible as anyone else for actually causing the trouble, well then you have something of a Respect-O-Meter freefall on your hands.

Respect Grade (After): D-

I really wanted to give Maverick an ‘F’ here, but I just couldn’t do it.  He got intellectually worked over by ESPN, Jim Gray, Joe the Plumber, and a couple of the “prop” kids at the Boys and Girls Club.  I actually feel sorry for the guy.  I mean, who knew that in the high-stakes world of NBA free agency that “street smarts”, especially if you think that by having them your are actually smart, were a detriment?  Oh, EVERYONE with an IQ above 40 knew that?  Oops.

Randy Mims and Richard Paul

Twitter: Who Cares?

Respect Grade (Before): C

Ancillary hero worship.  See entry above.

Respect Grade (After): C

Just another couple of “not so bright” dudes along for the ride.  Can’t really fault them.  Even if they are smart enough to have seen the writing on the wall, why would they choose this cauldron of high emotion to say something other than ‘YES’ to their meal ticket for the first time?

Dan Gilbert

Twitter: @cavsdan (verified)

Respect Grade (Before): C

This guy made his fortune in the mortgage business, which puts him one small step above the members of the Ravenite Social Club.  In fact, maybe we should give Mr. Gilbert a nice mafia name.  How about “Danny the Incompetent Greasy Slimeball Wuss that Sold Cavs Fans Down the River By Bowing Down Before One of His Employees”.  Yeah, that kind of has a nice ring to it, although as a Dan Gilbert descriptor, it seems like it might need an F-bomb or two.

Respect Grade (After): D

Everyone knows about the letter…and what Jesse Jackson (see below) had to say about it.  The letter and Jackson’s response were easily the two most despicable acts in this whole thing.  The only person in this whole sordid affair that owed anything to the Cavaliers fans was Dan Gilbert, and he let them down.  He shit the bed every day for years and years, never cleaned up the mess, and as soon as everyone saw and smelled the pile of shit, he blamed someone else.

Dwyane Wade

Twitter: @dwadeofficial (verified)

Respect Grade (Before): B+

A phenomenal player that, unlike his new team mate, seems to shine in the clutch.  It was not his fault that the David Stern instructed the refs that they would all be fired and replaced if Mark Cuban won a championship.  It is, however, his fault that he talked to his hand one time when he was en fuego.

Respect Grade (After): A-

D-Wade almost certainly was having inappropriate, if not outright illegal, conversations with LeBron and Chris Bosh prior to July 1, when he was still an employee of the Miami Heat.  However, he was able to talk all of these dudes into coming down to Miami to play ball with him and have a great time.  Wade is about to be divorced.  I think both James and Bosh are married.  All 3 will probably be divorced before they win a championship.  But the fact remains that Dwayne Wade made it all happen…sort of (see entry for Pat Riley below).

Chris Bosh

Twitter: @chrisbosh (verified)

Respect Grade (Before): B-

A great individual player that needed to leave Toronto.  If he was lucky, he was going to get to play with someone better than him, as he had proven that as the featured player, the best he can do is make you a lottery team.  LeBron James, at the age of 22, as the feature player, with a team every bit as bad as what Bosh had in Toronto, took the Cavs to the NBA finals.  There is the difference.  But the boy can still play some ball and seems to have a good head on his shoulders.

Respect Grade (After): B

Slight upgrade here for knowing his limitations and putting himself in the best possible position to not only build a legacy for himself, but also wreak a little havoc in the paint along the way.

Pat Riley

Twitter: Unknown

Respect Grade (Before): A+

NBA genius of the highest order.  He makes doormats into playoff teams, playoff teams into contenders, contenders into champions and champions into dynasties.  A+, man.  You can’t get better than that.

Respect Grade (After): A+

Big brass balls on Riles during this whole thing.  Showed up at LRMR with his 5 championship rings, showed them to LeBron and said “Do you want this?  If you do, there’s only one guy that can make it happen, and it’s the dude sitting across from you with sick amounts of cap space.”  I am not sure if there is, or ever has been, another NBA executive with the charisma to pull this off.  I thought about throwing another ‘+’ on the end of that A+, but screw him.  After all, he is the guy that made the NBA potentially not so fun to watch for 85% of the fans any more.

Chris Broussard

Twitter: @Chris_Broussard

Respect Grade (Before): B+

Chris has always been one of my favorite NBA guys on TV.  In fact, it is a shame that he works for ESPN, and that is one of the highest compliments I can pay to someone that works for ESPN.  His analysis has always been right on the money, and like most real fans with some knowledge, I know he is one of the best.

Respect Grade (After): A

Mr. Broussard seized his opportunity in the bright lights and crushed it.  What’s more, he did it through hard core analysis, unlike the dude next on our list.  As the grades will show, in this fan’s opinion, he has leapfrogged Ric Bucher on the Respect-O-Meter.  I am not sure if anyone else shares that opinion, and I don’t really care.  Broussard nailed it.  Every. Single. Time. For the whole 37 weeks that this thing dragged on.  Wait, it was only a couple of weeks?  Oh, I could have sworn that thing took the better part of a full year.

Ric Bucher

Twitter: @RicBucher

Respect Grade (Before): A

Bucher is one of the most respected NBA experts working today, and with good reason.  He not only almost always provides spot-on analysis but also frequently comes up with something that no one else has thought of before.  As that is what we have tried to do here at MackOnSports since Day One, it has earned Ric Bucher a special place in our heart.

Respect Grade (After): A-

Unlike Chris Broussard, Bucher used this opportunity to try and give us more than we ever wanted from him.  He kept on providing spot-on analysis, but he also took on an almost sinister persona – entertainer.  There are two basic problems with that: first, it is in violation of one of the cardinal rules…stick with what you know.  If you were any good as a joke writer (Dane Cook notwithstanding), you would be making a hell of a lot more money as a comedian than you are making as an NBA analyst for ESPN.  The second problem is that most of Bucher’s attempts at humor occurred on the Mike and Mike show, which means that the two Mikes were laughing like they were sitting in a sitcom audience and reacting to the flashing “LAUGHTER” sign, which kind of egged Bucher on.  Normally this would be a considerable slam, but I will give Bucher the benefit of the doubt.  Plus, he was working sleep deprived for most of this whole ordeal.

Bill Simmons

Twitter: @sportsguy33

Respect Grade (Before): A-

Always a solid effort from the Sports Guy and his columns and Tweets during this fiasco were up to his usual standards.

Respect Grade (After): A-

Simmons did nothing to improve or worsen his position here.  He is truly one of the only constants in an ever-changing world.  That is a good thing.

Jesse Jackson

Twitter: @RevJJackson (not verified)

Respect Grade (Before): B+

Reverend Jackson is one of the most dynamic leaders we have in the country.  His cause is just, and he almost always represents it well.  Although when he misses the target, it is never something a little off the wall…it is something batshit crazy.  He is still a national treasure.

Respect Grade (After): B-

This was one of Jesse’s batshit crazy moments.  He got lots of airtime for him and, ultimately, publicity for his cause.  He is still a national treasure.  The worst thing you can say about Jesse’s role in all this is that, because of his stature, it kind of forced folks to take a side, and some folks (like Mike Wilbon, see below) decided that they would rather appear batshit crazy than not.

Michael Wilbon

Twitter: @MichaelWilbon (not even making that one a link – dude has never tweeted, but has an account, presumably so people can tweet things at him and some minion can put the tweets on a teleprompter during PTI or something…good thing ESPN is not a bunch of money grubbing shysters that are so deep into the entertainment business that they have forgotten that they got their start in the sports business – sorry, little bit of a rant, there…)

Respect Grade (Before): A

Almost always provides good insight and analysis.  Plus, his restraint is truly amazing.  How else can you explain why he has not committed an on-air strangling of Tony Kornheiser?

Respect Grade (After): B

We are sometimes judged by the company we keep.  Jesse Jackson said one of the most batshit crazy, dead wrong, despicable, slanderous things he has ever said, and Wilbon agreed with him.  Sorry, that’s exactly what happened.  Forget about black and white…he agreed with one of the most egregious attacks on a human being in the mainstream press that we have seen in a long time.  Oh yeah, the attack was also baseless and without provocation.  If Wilbon was not the only one that ever asked LeBron, or anyone in his camp, a tough question throughout the whole ordeal, this grade would be a C-.

Jason Whitlock

Twitter: @WhitlockJason (Easily the most follow-worthy of all the Twitter accounts listed in this column)

Respect Grade (Before): B

J-Dub brings it on a regular basis.  He sometimes comes off as being controversial, but it never rings untrue.  If Whitlock is defending a position, it is because he believes in the position.  If it sells papers and garners clicks, great.  If not, who gives a shit?  Not Whitlock.  He is true to himself and true to his craft.  That’s what I like about him.

Respect Grade (After): A-

Whitlock absolute crushed Jesse Jackson…the only person I heard do it.  In fact, I have held back myself from what needs to be said about Jesse Jackson in this column, lest I be labeled a racist.  Jason Whitlock is an African-American, which made it OK for him to say what he said about Jesse Jackson.  You know what?  I think J-Dub would have brought the same thunder down on Jesse no matter what.  Now THAT is a sports writer, and someone I trust to give me what I need from a sports media outlet.  A far cry from what is constantly seeping out of Bristol and poisoning us all.

Stephen A. Smith

Twitter: @stephenasmith

Respect Grade (Before): B

Stephen A. has a great reputation in the industry.  I don’t like his approach.  I am completely convinced that he would rather take a controversial position that is not in his heart, and defend that position vociferously…all in the name of building his reputation and selling stuff.  The problem is that in that case, you are building a house on a foundation of bullshit and lies.  Anyway, Screamin’ A. Smith is not my cup of tea.  The day he lost his Indianapolis syndication was one of the happiest sports days of the past year for me that did not involve Brett Favre against New Orleans, Peyton Manning against New Orleans or Landon Donovan against Algeria.

Respect Grade (After): B

Coming up with a “No Change” grade for Stephen A. is kind of a rollercoaster ride.  So, here is my thought process.  The fact that he called D-Wade, LeBron and Bosh to Miami a “Done Deal” some time during the Nixon Administration shoots him straight up to a solid ‘A’ on the Respect-O-Meter.  No one else had the sources to back up a statement that bold that early.  The fact that he almost instantaneously started backpedaling and qualifying things drops that grade down to an A-.  The fact that he later acted as if his own doubt in his sources was something that never happened drops it down to a B+.  And lastly, the fact that he whined like a little bitch about the “hurtful” conduct of some of his contemporaries, when he himself had expressed doubt as well, drops it down to a B, which is where he started.  Truly a hypocritical performance exposing an essential weakness of character and conviction.  I wonder if that’s what he was shooting for…

Stuart Scott

Twitter: Unknown (Somehow, not being able to find this ass-clown on Twitter made my day – maybe he is too busy texting women that are not his wife)

Respect Grade (Before): D

Stu Scott is an absolute farce.  His act has almost leapfrogged Chris Berman’s act on the “All Time Most Tired and Played Out Things in the History of Sports Broadcasting” list.  Almost.  Plus, is there anything funnier than Stu’s NFL spots where he throws a football to someone off camera (pretty freaking funny) or catches a ball coming in from off-camera and tucks it like he is going to make a football more (absolutely hilarious).  Don Rickles is jealous of comedy this pure.  Vinko Bogataj (the “ABC’s Wide World of Sports” agony of defeat guy) in mid-helicopter, skis flailing, looked about 100 times more athletic than Stu Scott preparing to make his football move.

Respect Grade (After): D-

Stu Scott was the emcee of the studio show.  He had the opportunity to make a statement, ask an insightful question, do something other than be a stuffed shirt.  I hoped against hope that he wouldn’t let us all down…I hoped against hope that he would not “pull a Stu Scott”. Oh well…

Jim Gray

Twitter: Unknown (I was a little surprised that Jim Gray, after carving himself out another 3 minutes – see below – is not holding on for all he is worth in every media outlet possible…then again, a precursory search is all this guy deserved. He might have a Twitter account. I don’t know. I don’t care.)

Respect Grade (Before): D

After what Jim Gray did to Pete Rose at the 1999 MLB All-Star game, if I ever see him on the street, I will punch him right in the face and probably rip out his throat a la Swayze in Road House…or at least would have done so before I had kids.  A life sentence kind of puts a damper on spending quality time with your kinfolk.  Now, I would probably just hold his arms behind his back like Michael Corleone while everyone else in the immediate area throws haymakers at him.  In fact, I think so little of Jim Gray that I was not only shocked to find that he had not been run out of the industry entirely, but doubly shocked at how he was able to land this interview.

Respect Grade (After): C

When it came out that Jim Gray had much more of a hand in this than anyone realized, and that he might have actually pitched the idea to LeBron’s people with the caveat that he be prominently involved, I had a newfound respect for the man.  I mean, that took some serious initiative, right?  Of course, if LeBron had anyone on his team that was smart enough to come in out of the rain, this ploy never could have worked…but Gray absolutely saw his opportunity, thrust himself into the public eye, and snatched another 3 minutes of fame for himself.  I still want to throttle his narrow ass for what he did to Pete Rose, though.

Adrian Wojnarowski

Twitter: @WojYahooNBA

Respect Grade (Before): B+

Wojnarowski is one of the most respected NBA journalists out there right now.  I have always enjoyed his stuff.  He is kind of a cross between Whitlock and a Rhodes Scholar.  Everything he writes is from the heart, he never seems to be writing something he does not truly believe, and he is a master of research and fact-finding.  Truly a joy to read his stuff.

Respect Grade (After): A

Adrian was able, through the HUGE exposure of this whole things, coupled with the fact that he is an excellent writer and an even better journalist, to make an even bigger name for himself.  Every time he weighed in during this whole affair, it was always on point, and Twitter just blew up with everyone letting their followers know that they needed to head over to Yahoo! sports to read Woj’s latest.

Brian Windhorst

Twitter: @PDcavsinsider

Respect Grade (Before): B

Most people outside of Cleveland and/or NBA Insider circles (including yours truly) did not even know who this dude was.  As it turns out, he has been sharing great information about LeBron for a very long time and probably has more access to LeBron than anyone not shining LeBron’s shoes or bonking Delonte West.

Respect Grade (After): A

This dude was, at one point, thought to be a piece of furniture at LeBron’s house and/or the LRMR offices in downtown Cleveland.  Everything he wrote or Tweeted during this whole thing was right on, topical and definitely of interest…exactly what you would expect out of a very good beat writer for an NBA team.  The fact that it was LeBron James make it that much more pronounced.  You can tell this dude worked his ass off to make this happen, and I am happy for him.  I hope that he remembers that Stephen A. Smith got his start this way and does not turn into a blowhard that jocksniffs his guests and belittles his callers that sound like they are of a different race than himself.

William Wesley (Worldwide Wes)

Twitter: @william_wesley

Respect Grade (Before): B

Worldwide Wes has a level of access around elite basketball players that is absolutely astounding, despite having no discernable talent whatsoever, other than getting said access.  No one else has been able to do this with such efficiency.  He is to the NBA what Paris Hilton is to celebrity.  But you cannot for one second understate the fact that of everyone in LeBron’s inner circle, he is the only one that could have made something of himself without LeBron.  Sure, being just another remora feeding on LeBron’s scraps has made it much easier on Worlwide Wes, but he was always going to find his way to the limelight.

Respect Grade (After): D

Worldwide let himself be pushed to the background during this fiasco, and ended up kind of smelling like a rose, or at least it seemed that way.  Then again, if you smell like a stale fart, but you are surrounded by guys that just took a bath in raw sewage on national television, it’s kind of easy to be the pleasant smelling one.  Please, don’t follow this nimrod, but do click on the link above to check out his Twitter page.  He has never left LeBron’s side and is sending snarky Tweets sniping at all the “haters” that do not worship at the altar of LeBron.  His Twitter bio says “Mogul. That’s all you need to know.”  Yeah, he’s a douche.

Cavaliers Fans

Respect Grade (Before): B

I always have held a soft spot for Cleveland sports fans.  They are forever hounded by a series of moments that live in infamy and really make you feel their pain.  They have experienced losing on every level from being horrible for years on end, being thisclose to glory and seeing it snatched away, and having a greedy nimrod of an owner take one of their teams away.  Haven’t these poor people suffered enough?

Respect Grade (After): D

Despite all of the losing, I always thought that Cleveland fans knew their stuff, and that they were true fans of their teams.  The fact that they were burning LeBron James’ jersey and not a picture of Dan Gilbert tells me that they don’t know half of what I gave them credit for knowing.

——————————————

So, there it is.  One man’s opinion of what this whole mess did to the reputations of most of the folks involved.  Take it for what it’s worth.

My name is Nathan, and I am 9 years old.  I live in Manhattan with my mom, dad and sister.  We all love the Knicks, but no one loves them more than my Dad.

Everyone around here is talking about where you are going to play basketball next season.  I am writing to tell you something that I think no other Knicks fan will ever tell you.  I think you should stay in Cleveland.

I do not fully understand exactly how difficult it is to do what you do on a nightly basis…I am just too young to get it.  Basically, I just know that you are better than all of the other players on the court, and you sometimes make them look so silly that my crazy dad gets up, runs around the room and does what my sister and I like to call “the LeBron dance”. We ask my dad why he gets so excited, and he tells us how difficult it is to do that against the guys you are doing it against.

My dad goes on to let us know how good those other players are, and how very difficult it is to even get the chance to play in the NBA.  “But LeBron plays at a different level,” he always says.  And without fail, he always ends every discussion about you with: “and he’s coming to the Knicks some day.”  Then, that changed to “and he’s coming to the Knicks next summer.” And last month, that became “and he’s coming to the Knicks next month.”

My dad, and most of his friends, have not slept for a few days now.  They are on the edge of their seats and will be devastated if you do not come to the Knicks.  Please, Mr. James, for the sake of myself and your young fans everywhere, stay in Cleveland.

Most of the points that I want to bring up have been told to you already.  Cleveland is your home.  Cleveland gave you your first chance.  Cleveland is the only place that will always love you, even if you never win an NBA Championship ring…and they will love you even more if you play your entire career there.  I was shocked when I found out that Cleveland is also the team that can pay you the most money.

Mr. James, I am going to love watching you over the remainder of your career.  I am going to love coming to appreciate your historically great skills on the basketball court more and more over time.  I am sure that I will be a great fan of basketball my whole life.  I am also sure that I will be a LeBron James fan my whole life.

If you come to play for the Knicks, I will probably love you even more.  If you stay in Cleveland, I will respect you forever, and I don’t think I need to tell you how much better respect is than love.  I will tell my grandchildren that I got to see the great LeBron James play basketball, and remind them, every time your name comes up, that you were one of the all-time greats, not just because you elevated your game and your league – there are lots of other players that can do that and HAVE done that and WILL do that – an even greater feat than that is to elevate your city.  You have already done that, and have a rare opportunity to continue doing it for your entire career, instead of chasing money and other less important things.

You have already had such a positive impact on Cleveland, perhaps giving thousands of children opportunities they never would have had without your influence.  Children like me.  Children my age, that will love you forever, just like I will.  But they are different – they are Cleveland’s children…and I think you know what they mean to you, and I also think you owe it to them, and all Cleveland fans, to finish what you started in your home town.

So Mr. James, I know you are busy this week, talking to all of these billionaires that want you to come play for them.  Please, don’t listen to any of them.  All they want to do is use your skills to make themselves more money.  Mr. Gilbert, while also running a business, represents all Cleveland fans, everything that was once not so good about your city, everything that you have already changed for the better, and everything that will continue to change as long as you stay there.  If you leave, no one is sure what will happen to your city and your team.  In fact, there are teams of accountants trying to calculate the potential negative financial impact if you leave.

I will continue to watch you and love you.  I hope that you make the right choice and do not go chasing something that is nowhere near as important as what you have done, are doing, and might do in Cleveland.  I hope that myself, and all the children, not only get to love you for your talent on the court, but also respect you for making the right decision for your team, your league and your city.  Please stay in Cleveland.

My dad will get over it.

Thank you,

Nathan

Well, I’m here to tell you that A-Rod is still baseball’s best hope, but there are several things that have just jumped out at me (some obvious, some not) over the past several days, and to me, those things, and how they are handled, will make all the difference.

• You Can’t Have it Both Ways, Alex.  After watching the Gammons interview, the first thing I noticed was the glaring contradiction whereby A-Rod starts by implying that it was a conscious effort on his part to take an active role in using performance enhancing drugs to “earn” his big fat new contract and cement his legacy as one of the greatest players of all time.  Then, later in the interview, he mentions that the “loosey-goosey” culture around baseball at the time was such that he just went with the flow, tried a few things, and could not even begin to tell you what he was on.  Well, which one is it?  I believe the scientific facts point to choice A, the one where he is a little less innocent.  He had the specific steroids and testosterone in his system, “stacked” in the specific proportions that would lead me to believe he was a habitual user, and knew exactly what he put into his system and when.  The sooner he admits this, the better off he will be…especially once the Feds come calling.  Bonds and Clemens and Tejada are going to jail.  A-Rod does not want to explore those kind of pinstripes.
• A-Rod’s Arrogance is the Most Damning Thing of All.  The first example of his arrogance here was during the Katie Couric interview.  I have included it below for easy reference.  After he says that he never used steroids and was never even tempted to do so, he goes on to say that it was because he has never felt overmatched on the baseball field and he is basically better than anyone else, not only because of how he plays, but because he did not take steroids.  I think perhaps a less egotistical answer may have served him well there.  Then, during the Gammons interview this week, he is trying to tell us that he thinks that the interview with Gammons is all that is required of him and he is ready to move on, so we should all move on as well.  In my opinion, he deserves everything that happens to him as a result of this…not because he used steroids when everyone else was using steroids, but because he was such an arrogant prick about it every step of the way.

• The New York Headline Question.  All in all, I think A-Rod did an excellent job during the Gammons interview.  Before piling on me for that last sentence, let’s remember that this is a guy that has seemed slick and coached during just about every interview I have ever seen…probably because he has 2 or 3 people on staff that coach him in those situations.  But not this time.  At least, it did not look that way.  It looked like he was genuinely not expecting any of the questions specifically, and he made an honest effort to be truthful without giving away the farm.  Let’s also remember that this dude is a ballplayer, not a Rhodes scholar.  I think he did well…except for the question about what he would like to be the headline in New York the following day.  I am trying to find it on YouTube and will change this text slightly once I do…but he basically dropped the ball and implied that the New York media was less than friendly.  The first time I saw it, as soon as the question was asked, I blurted out “A-Rod Apologizes to Fans”…think anyone might be thinking a little better of him if he had said that?
• Barack Obama is The Man.  I don’t care if you are the biggest racist redneck in the country, if you are a baseball fan, you have to know that we, as sports fans, finally have our President.  Sure, you could say it’s window dressing and he is just a brilliant orator, but take a quick look and listen below and let me know if you can think of another President since Lincoln that would have presented not only his feelings, but the feelings of an entire nation of baseball fans in such a nearly perfect manner.

• Tom Hicks Should Go Away.  For some reason, this rich guy that should have known better is on my TV talking about how he felt betrayed that A-Rod juiced up when he was with the Rangers.  Tom Hicks is way too smart to not know that at least half of his team, and every other team, was on the juice during that time.  I just wish he would go away…he has no dog in this fight, when you really look at it.  In fact, I think that A-Rod himself, or at least all Rangers fans, have been the ones that have been betrayed by Hicks.  So, let me get this straight…you had enough balls to give A-Rod the biggest deal in sports history, but not enough balls to extend yourself a little bit further and get him some teammates that didn’t suck?  How can some of these guys be so damn smart in their pre-baseball endeavors and so damn stupid once they own a team?
• Where the Eff is the Commissioner Hiding?  Speaking of stupid baseball owners, how come we have yet to hear from the Commissioner himself?  He is the single person in all of this that bears more responsibility for every inflated stat, wasted taxpayer dollar and dead-too-early-of-a-heart-attack former major leaguer that has happened and will happen in the future.  The blood is on his hands, and it always has been.  And how has he handled it?  Ignoring Barry Bonds during his run at Hank Aaron’s record.  Way to go, Mr. Commissioner.  What are you going to do now that your Ace in the Hole is dirty, too?  So far, to the surprise of no one, you have been absent from the public eye.  Every day that you have been commissioner has been an indictment against the entire league, but you are somehow getting worse at the time your game needs you to get better.  I am begging you as a baseball fan…can you please just have enough integrity and respect for the game you have destroyed to buy the Brewers back from your daughter and just run one franchise into the ground instead of the entire league?
• Conspiracy Theorists, The Line Forms Here. OK…I have no evidence of any of this whatsoever, but what if the “source” that leaked A-Rod’s name to Sports Illustrated was someone from the A-Rod camp?  Bear with me here, but A-Rod will forever be known as the first guy to come clean (Pettitte does not count) and has the potential to be known as the guy who brought baseball out of the steroid era…instead of Jose Canseco.  In fact, would you put it outside the realm of possibilities that this is all a creation of the Commissioner’s office, who would rather have A-Rod be known as the face of the steroid era and not Bonds and definitely not Ozzie’s brother…OK, probably a bad example when you have a commissioner that would have extreme difficulty pouring piss out of a boot, even if the instructions were written on the heel.  But, at this point, nothing would surprise me.  Let’s also not forget that A-Rod’s agent is the devil incarnate…anything is possible.
• Let’s Get ‘Em All.  The Feds have been talking about some crazy stuff lately, like not only dealing with the 104 positive tests, but also re-testing the 500+ negative samples they seized back in 2003, to determine if they were using, but were just further ahead of the testing technology of the day than A-Rod and the other 103 guys with hot samples.  I’m all in favor of it, but only because I think that the only way to actually quantify the Steroids Era is to get as much information about as many players as possible, and what they were using and what they were not.  There is a very easy way to accomplish this…an amnesty period, monitored by MLB.  Any player can come clean between now and March 31.  After that, if we or the Feds have to come to you, then you will be subject to a one-year suspension without pay.
• Statistical Relevance – Welcome to MLB Geeks.com.  I have purchased a domain name, started to gather my fellow geeks that love baseball, and hope to be launching an actual company soon that is dedicated to using cutting-edge technology to provide net positive value to our national pastime.  Watch our blog for more on this one later.

So, in conclusion, the only thing this blog entry has taught us is that I have had something to say regarding A-Rod and the steroids mess, and I have done so with my usual focus on conjecture and a total lack of sound journalistic research.  I hope you enjoyed my take on it and found something here that not every other idiot is saying about it.