Kentucky Sports Radio
[Moderated by Matt Jones]
[Moderated by Matt Jones]
1. MLB NEEDS TO EXPAND THEIR INSTANT REPLAY AND FOOTBALL NEEDS TO LESSEN THEIRS
Great stat that I heard on Mike and Mike a few days ago. Instant replay was used on a A-Rod home run during Game 3 of the World Series. And they timed how long it took the umpires to go into their little booth or whatever and then come back out with a decision: 1 minute and 16 seconds. Calls in baseball are almost ALWAYS obvious, especially when it comes to out/safe and home runs. So, why can we not use instant replay on calls at the bases? Who cares if you are taking some of the human element out of the game, HUMANS ARE FLAWED. A camera doesn’t lie and people make mistakes. The only call that should never be considered for instant replay is balls and strikes, as this is completely a judgement call. And the argument that it disrupts the flow of the game is greatly disputed in the stat I gave at the beginning of this.
Now, on the other end of the spectrum is football (both college and pro) and it’s use of instant replay. The use, or over-use of instant replay, has led refs to officiate the game is a competely, and more detramental way. They now are more cautious to make difficult calls, such as whether a guy gets a foot down in the endzone, and also fumble calls. They now will make calls in such a way where they KNOW they can just go to the booth. That is not the best use of officials. It has led to an overuse of the booth review, which has disrupted the game. Just look at last night’s Monday Night Football game, in which the final 2 minutes of gametime lasted 35 minutes, in large part to several booth reviews. The question is: HAVE WE PASSED THE POINT OF RETURN? What is the solution? My thought is limiting instant replay to touchdown calls only, and removing fumble and spot calls from consideration. It is time to put some confidence in officials to be able to make most calls without fear of review.
2. CRIMINAL CHARGES SHOULD BE FILED FOR NBA, MLB, AND NFL PLAYERS WHO START BRAWLS
I will exclude the NHL from this argument for the time being, although I think fighting should be limited in that sport as well. But, explain to me why its OK for Robin Ventura to attack Nolan Ryan in public but I can’t attack Fake Gimel in public without being arrested and charged with assault. All it took for Ron Artest to be charged was for him to charge into the crowd and punch numerous people while sparking the largest brawl in NBA history. But, I GUARENTEE if the brawl had been limited to the 12 Pistons and 12 Pacers players, not a single player would have been charged. Why are these athletes so special? We know that athletes have a history of getting less than appropriate sentences for things such as manslaughter and murder (O.J.). Yet, if you commit assault and battery on a professional sports field, its AOK in the eyes of the law. And these guys are not even drunk when they start these fights. Which means they are more dangerous than the average person.
3. IT’S TIME FOR A SERIOUS MARKETING CHANGE IN MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL
Who are the most marketed players in Major League Baseball these days? Alex Rodriguez (roids), Manny Ramirez (roids), David Ortiz (roids), and Derek Jeter (old). Back in the day, the some of the top marketed stars were Sammy Sosa (roids), Roger Clemens (roids), Mark Mcgwire (roids), and Derek Jeter (boring). Point being, if MLB people played this right, they would recognize they have a wealth of “clean”, young stars currently in the game. Ryan Howard, Joe Mauer, Justin Morneau, Albert Pujols, Tim Lincecum, Jose Reyes, David Wright, just to name a few. But, you rarely see these guys in a regular MLB promotion. Instead, we still get ARod and Manny. So tell me, what has taking steroids really done to harm these guys professionally? Baseball has a serious image problem, as an old person’s league with old-time standards and a drug problem. They have at least started fixing the drug problem, but they are NOWHERE near correcting the problem of attracting young people to the game.
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November 3rd, 2009 at 4:46 pm
McGwire has never been proven to do steroids nor was he on that list. I think Bonds name should have been there instead.
November 3rd, 2009 at 4:51 pm
I’m Just Sayin Changes KSR (1st Edition)
Remove BTI’s idiotic change sports posts and ban the words Mike and Hartline.
Thank you, good night…
November 3rd, 2009 at 5:02 pm
Damn! The nOOb gets bumped for BTI. What a slap in the face.
November 3rd, 2009 at 5:02 pm
I actually agree with what you said about review in baseball, although I wouldn’t say strikes/calls is “completely” a judgment call. Pitches that are near the edges of the traditionally agreed upon strike zone are judgment calls, but pitches at waist level over the plate are always strikes and pitches at ankle-level/neck-level or 2 feet inside/outside are always balls. And I ALSO agree that violence on the playing field should be treated as assault in the eyes of the law for the reasons you mentioned, although that’s really a government/law enforcement issue and not a sports issue.
But I don’t think instant replay in football needs to be changed, I like it the way it is. In fact, I would argue that some of the things that can’t be reviewed right now should be able to be reviewed.
November 3rd, 2009 at 5:16 pm
The second one is probably the worst idea ever. Unless someone gets seriously injured, there’s no reason to arbitrarily bring criminal charges into matters. Obviously you’ve never had a scrape with the law, because the bureaucratic process behind every single criminal proceeding (which anything involving violence categorically is) is a giant pain in the ass that has a serious impact on multiple aspects of your life.
What is your motivation behind this argument? It seems like you’re trying to validate your position by saying they shouldn’t be able to mainly because you can’t. So that’s it? It’s because you’re jealous that you can’t get away with it? I can’t think of any other reason, because it’s not that the NBA players need your protection. Laws pertaining to violent criminal acts are there to protect people and make them a little less worried in public places or dark alleys or whatever.
How often is a player on an NBA court actually in real, serious, immediate danger of being grievously injured or killed on the court? That happens like once a decade. Those times (like Kermit punching Rudy in the late 70s or maybe when guys like Artest or Spree go way off the deep end), then yeah, the law should be enforced. But when it’s just a bunch of guys being guys and letting adrenaline temporarily cloud their judgment, and the worst that happens is a bruise or two, why are you trying to jump in? For the most childish reason of all.. because it’s something you can’t have. If someone got rough with you at a pickup game (not in a way that broke anything or caused you a medical expense) after you were a dick to him, would you call the cops? If so, maybe you just need your man card revoked.
November 3rd, 2009 at 6:02 pm
5) You’re a moron. Your basic point is “HEY, nobody is actually getting hurt, so its all good. You’re just jealous you can’t try and punch a guy in punch and get away with it.”
When a fight breaks out outside a bar, a bunch of people are around, but the people in the fight are arrested. What’s the difference?
I truly don’t even know why I am justifying how dumb that argument is, but I just cant help myself here. NOBODY IS ABOVE THE LAW.
November 3rd, 2009 at 6:03 pm
BTI can’t attack me in public because I have a Jedi Posse.
November 3rd, 2009 at 7:12 pm
I fail to see how you can make the statement that it’s ok to take the human element out of baseball because humans areflawed, and then turn around in the next paragraph and do a complete one-eighty and say that we should put confidence in officials to make most calls without fear of review. I understand we’re talking about two different sports, but the premise is the same, and one statement directly contradicts the other.
November 3rd, 2009 at 8:24 pm
6.
If I’m a moron, it’s only due to the ill effects of subjecting my eyes to a web page with your drivel splattered all over it every week. You could tell me to just not read, but I’m only human. The train wreck appeal is deep set in the human psyche. And to be completely honest, you’ve made at least 2 or 3 good points over the life of this column. But this isn’t one of them.
The situations are completely different. When someone gets belligerent in public, they’re a threat to everyone around them, including people who have nothing to do with the dispute. There are no innocent bystanders in a basketball fight. On the court there are 4700 square feet occupied by 13 people. If you’re in the middle of the fight, you chose to be there. Additionally, there’s no chance that someone has a knife or a firearm on their person. Every participant is a fully grown adult male in excellent physical condition. Nobody on the court is under the influence of alcohol and narcotics.
So yes, basically all of the valid reasons for taking more than the necessary precautions in real life (ie. arresting participants in a brawl) are rendered inapplicable on the basketball court. So either you’re too thick to have considered the differences, or you’re just jealous that they have what you don’t (and believe it or not.. that’s just the tip of the iceberg, dude).
And answer my last question from my last post.