Tale of the Third Little Pig
Monday, February 9th, 2009A-Rod allegations: This is baseball’s worst nightmare
[Part I: On telling fibs to Agents of the US Federal Gov't]
It’s not surprising the game’s highest-paid player would try to skirt the system in 2003. What was more surprising out of the SI report was the suggestion that Gene Orza, the players unions No. 2 man, may have tipped off Rodriguez about tests. If it was done once, why not twice? The Major League Baseball Players Association should never be in the position to play sheriff, but it damned straight ought not to be an abettor, either.
The allegations surrounding Rodriguez won’t kill baseball. In the end, it will be part of the price fans pay, like overpriced watered-down beer and lousy hot dogs. But make no mistake: This is the single most devastating development for the game since this whole process of self-analysis and self-flagellation started …
[Part II: Garbage Time]
Much ado last week about Stephen A. Smith’s shot across the Toronto Raptors bow. Three things stand out: One, despite never having met Smith but having had the misfortune to hear his overwrought, self-important spittle, he is not exactly someone whose information I’d take to the bank. Two, Chris Bosh is way too smart to discuss his plans with anybody who’d leak it to a dolt. Three, having said all that, why the hell would you want to stay with the Raptors if you were Bosh?
[Part III: Monday 2 Monday ... or, The need for Higher, Stronger, Faster]
Truth is, [Lyndon] Rush has a dream: to keep up with the Minins, as in Latvian Janis Minins, the gold medalist in Saturday’s four-man sled.
“That’s the kind I’d like to buy,” Rush said. “It’s way, way fast. I tested it in Germany and it’s automatically five-tenths of a second faster. What I have is a standard sled. There’s a company in Germany called Dresden and they cookie-cut sleds. You’ll see guys buy those, and then start doing things to them. They know how to do little tricks and stuff. Me? I’m clueless. After four years I know how to do little things to make the sled how I like it, but I don’t know how to make it fast. There’s after-market companies that take your sled and supe it up. But that custom kind of work is expensive. What I have is a stock sled. I want a suped up sled.”
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The need to be suped up in some way is one of the problems plaguing our society today … whether it be in Major League Baseball, the NHL, the NBA, the NFL, Formula One, NASCAR, Bobsled Racing, or just everyday life … rather than having earned one’s own way to the top of the podium, gradually, over time, with authentic blood, sweat & tears.
This corner, on the other hand, much prefers a different course of action … which builds [a home, or business, or otherwise] brick by brick, board by board.
