Photo by Getty Images.
Major League Baseball's Players Association leaked its proposal to the owners on Sunday. It is part of an ongoing negotiation to try to bring the sport back in some form.
In these worst of times, we see good people rise and bad people show their colors. Major League Baseball's owners, players and agents have revealed themselves to be the latter. And it should come as no surprise; greed on both sides has been an embarrassment for years.
But with our country reeling from Rona fears, the self-destruction of our own economy and now the horrid actions of a police officer in Minnesota, you can always take comfort in baseball being tone-deaf and making news for all the wrong reasons.
It is easy to point fingers at the players and their agents, because those are the people we identify as the sport itself. But the owners are just as culpable, if not more so. Some owners do not even want to play the season, because they will lose less money than if they actually do play.
Instead of quietly working things out, both side throw public volleys, making noise for their ridiculous greed while our country faces perhaps its greatest challenge of most of our lifetimes. U.S. jobless claims have topped $40 million, and that's just those who filed for unemployment. The number of others not eligible or fortunate enough to have money don't count in that. This in a population of 382 million. It's going to get worse.
And while it does, baseball publicly fights over its billions, throwing it all in America's face.
There is a great line in Bronx Tale that sums it up perfectly.
"Mickey Mantle? That's what you're upset about? Mantle makes $100,000 a year. How much does your father make? If your dad ever can't pay the rent and needs money, go ask Mickey Mantle. See what happens. Mickey Mantle don't care about you. Why should you care about him?"
It's time to stop caring about these idiots and helping them line their pockets. We learned nothing from the 1994 strike, when they basically told us the World Series meant zero. To quote Casino, "always the dollars. Always the dollars."
Contrast that with the MLS, which quietly worked out a viable plan, and the NBA, which has been working together to get things done without constantly leaking things to the media. Even hockey, with the worst commissioner in sports, appears close to an arrangement. There might have been discord within, but you damned sure didn't hear much about it. They get it. People are suffering; we don't want to hear about your internal squabbles right now. We have much bigger problems. People want their lives back. They want leagues to get back to games in whatever form they can and provide some distraction. The leaders of these other leagues understand the world is not what it was.
They just want to play.
Baseball? The same entitled greedy bastards on both sides they have always been. Yes, there are some good people doing good things, but that's not what we are seeing. It's hard to blame desperate baseball journalists for running with stories like this, because their livelihoods are at stake as well. But baseball's leadership should know better. Leaking a proposal on a weekend when the country is in complete turmoil with protests and riots is beyond arrogant.
In the post-Rona world, some teams will not survive. In fact, some sports may not make it, either. Let's see how critical their tone-deaf financial squabbles become when that day comes. Memo to you, baseball: Shut up. Keep your negotiations internal, so the world doesn't see your greed. Get something done and let us know when you are ready to come back for us to worship at your altar. Until then?
We will tweak that quote from Sonny in Bronx Tale.
"Baseball don't care about you. Why should you care about it?"
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NFL insiders hint at eye-opening future for Houston Texans offense
Dec 7, 2024, 2:38 pm
C.J. Stroud faced criticism in Houston's last few games as the Texans hit a rough patch after losing just two of their first eight games.
But the second-year quarterback remained confident and his strong performance last Sunday helped the Texans (8-5) to a 23-20 win over the Jaguars to enter their bye with a two-game lead atop the AFC South.
“When he is leading and playing the way he is playing, our entire team feeds off of him,” coach DeMeco Ryans said. “I am excited for his second year. I think he is showing a ton of growth, he is in a really great spot for us physically, mentally. I really love where he is and I am excited to see how he comes back after the break.”
Stroud threw for 242 yards and a touchdown against Jacksonville to leave him ranked fourth in the NFL with 3,117 yards passing this season. That game came after he threw two interceptions in a 32-27 loss to Tennessee a week before for the team’s third loss in four games.
Those two interceptions brought his season total to nine, which are four more than he threw in 15 games a rookie. But the Texans aren’t worried about that statistic and believe he has grown in his second year.
“He’s made a lot of progress,” general manager Nick Caserio said. “There are some plays, like all of our players, that we probably wish he could have back, but happy he’s our quarterback, happy with what he brings to the table. ... Wouldn’t want anyone else leading this team.”
The Texans are in position to win their division for a second straight season despite dealing with several significant injuries on offense. Running back Joe Mixon missed three games early with an ankle injury and leading receiver Nico Collins was sidelined for five games with a hamstring injury.
They also lost four-time Pro Bowler Stefon Diggs for the season when tore an ACL in Week 8.
Mixon leads the team with 887 yards rushing and 11 touchdowns and has added four touchdown receptions. His work in his first season in Houston after a trade from Cincinnati has helped the team deal with those significant injuries to the receiving corps.
Mixon ranks third in the NFL by averaging 88.7 yards rushing a game and has had at least 100 yards rushing in seven games.
Stroud has continually raved about Mixon’s contributions on and off the field.
“He’s a servant, a helper,” Stroud said. “That’s ultimately what I want to be as well. Who can I serve and how can I help? That’s ultimately what the game of football is.”
While Mixon has been the team’s most important new acquisition on offense, Danielle Hunter has been Houston’s new defensive star. The defensive end spent his first eight seasons in Minnesota before joining the Texans this year.
He has helped Houston lead the NFL with 84 tackles for loss after piling up 15 this season, which is tied for third most in the league. He also leads the Texans with 10½ sacks to help them rank second with 42.
Hunter been a great addition to a team that already had defensive end Will Anderson Jr., last year’s AP Defensive Rookie of the Year. Anderson ranks second to Hunter on the team with 13 tackles for loss and 9½ sacks.
Ryans said this week’s break is much needed for a team that opened the preseason on Aug. 1 in the Hall of Fame game.
“It’s here and we’re going to take advantage of it,” he said. “We’ve been going at it for a long time.”
The Texans need to recharge this week with a brutal stretch of three games in 10 days when they return from their bye. Houston hosts Miami on Dec. 15 before a trip to Kansas City on Dec. 21 and a visit from the Ravens on Christmas Day.
“It’s Christmas and all that, but we can’t worry about that. All we can do is focus on Miami,” Caserio said. “And then when we get through the Miami game, then we kind of turn the page to the next. ... We’re either going to earn it or we’re not. Not to oversimplify it, but that’s the truth.”
The Texans will play those game without starting linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair after he received a three-game suspension for his violent hit to the head of Jacksonville’s Trevor Lawrence, which led to a concussion.
Al-Shaair will be eligible to return for Houston’s regular-season finale against Tennessee.