Dear Readers,
Maintaining a weekly blog is an interesting and difficult challenge. The only requirements were a time deadline, and maintain professional topics. That's a huge umbrella to operate under. One of the more difficult taking for me was taking a fully formed idea in my head and being able to spread it out over a page or more. Take for example the statement "Ray Lewis is a great linebacker and team leader." I know he is, everyone else does too. It only takes me a fraction of a second to picture in my head everything he has done. But only I can see inside my thoughts, and nobody reading my blog is a mind reader. So I had to take all of those facts and memories I have accrued over the years and put them all together and describe everything in a way that makes sense to a stranger. I remember a play he made a couple years back against the New York Jets on primetime. The game was on the line and when the ball was snapped a Jets reciever got free over the middle of the field. He was about to catch the ball when Ray Lewis came out of nowhere and tackled him through the air, sending him falling to the ground and the ball was incomplete to end the game. The most difficult thing for me is seeing that play in my memory and then converting it onto paper. It is very challenging, but also somewhat interesting. It also is a nice alternative to twitter for my long form musings. I don't plan to continue this blog in the current format. I won't be updating it weekly. I will contribute to a blog of my own in the near future though, but that will be a personal site for me on anything I want, instead of just sports. Though I have a feeling it will end up being overwhelmingly sports related. I would like to thank everyone that has spent the time reading this blog of mine. I appreciate the support and feedback. This will be my last post for awhile, but stay on the mailing list, because eventually I will add one more post: a link to my new site. Thanks again!
Sincerely,
Michael Riley
Wednesday, November 14, 2012
Wednesday, October 31, 2012
Salisbury Athletics - Winning the Right Way
Concussions and athlete safety are hot button issues right now in the
sporting world. As long as the effects of violent head trauma become more
and more known the issue will continue to grow. We've seen interviews
with former NFL stars only a decade or two removed from the sport rapidly
declining into early Alzheimer's and dementia. The recent suicide of
Junior Seau, only two years removed from retirement, shocked the world.
The long lasting effects of head trauma are undeniable, yet we still see
evidence that suggests winning is placed in higher regard than player safety.
Recently the NFL fined the Washington Redskins $20,000 for not properly
reporting their quarterback had a concussion, stating he was "shaken
up" instead of concussed.
At Salisbury University they don't have this issue. From top to
bottom, from administrators to medical staff to coaches, everybody involved in
the sports program has made a full commitment to player safety. Recently
I spoke with the school's head athletic trainer on the issue. When questioned
on players "getting their bell rung" Dr. Lamboni responded
authoritatively by saying there is no such thing as a "bell ringing"
or being "just shaken up". According to him, a concussion is a
serious injury, and whether it is mild or severe is inconsequential. It
is this kind of dedication to keeping players healthy that makes him such an
important leader in Salisbury's Athletics Department. But that commitment
to doing "the right thing" must come from the top. Those in
positions of authority involved in the schools athletic program must set the
example by not pressuring medical personnel to downgrade or not diagnose
symptoms to get athletes back on the field. It also comes from
responsible coaches like Sherman Wood of the Varsity Football Squad. He
understands that football is a violent sport, and he is in constant
communication with medical personnel regarding injuries, recovery, and
timetables for returns. In a recent interview he stated he would never
consider sending a player back onto the field if the medical staff disagrees.
He also alluded to the idea that major Division 1 Football Programs are
money-makers, with the priority on championships and raking in sponsorship and
endorsements. Being a Division III schools allows for more emphasis on
player safety, upholding academic standards, and less pressure to win at all
costs. Maybe other programs can't win without skirting the rules, but SU
football is finding a way to do both. They are currently ranked 16th in
the nation, and a win in their next game brings home a second consecutive
conference title.
Wednesday, October 17, 2012
Two Questions the Orioles will address this offseason.
Will they pick up the
13 million dollar option on Mark Reynolds?
Mark
Reynolds had a dismal offensive season.
He was brought in to hit 35-40 home over the course of the season and be
power threat in the 4th or 5th spot. He ended the season with 23 home runs. That is a good number when compared with the
entire MLB, much above average. But keep
in mind that 9 of those long balls came in 9 game at the beginning of
September. Over the course of the rest
of the 153 games he only hit 14 home runs.
That’s below average, and certainly unacceptable for someone getting
paid 13 million dollars a year. The only
saving grace for him has been his gold glove caliber defense at 1st
base. Had he not been so stellar on the
bag his exit from Baltimore would have been swift. The Orioles have the option to extend his
contract one more season at a cost again of 13 million. His power potential is still there, and his
strikeouts were down this year. But is
potential worth 13 million a year? Will
Baltimore pick up the 13 million dollar option on Mark Reynolds and hope his
home run totals revert to previous seasons, or will they let him walk in free
agency?
Who will play left field in 2013?
Noland Reimold started 2012 strong but
is now recovering from a severe neck surgery.
It will keep him out until the start of spring training and only then
can coaches and medical staff evaluate his ability. Nate
McClouth was signed mid season as his replacement and performed well. He gave the Orioles speed at the lead-off
position and played great defense. He
was the only player to hit well in this postseason. A free agent at the end of this season, he
will definitely command interest on the market and the Orioles need to decide
how much they are willing to pay to keep him around. Additionally if the team doe decide to keep
him where will McClouth play, and how much time will he get. He has all the skills to be an every day left
fielder and the Orioles will definitely have to pay him like one. Are
the Orioles willing to overpay Nate McClouth to keep him in Baltimore as a
utility outfielder and insurance against Noland Reimold’s recovery?
Wednesday, October 10, 2012
Playing in Yankee Stadium should favor the Orioles.
In baseball the home team is supposed to always have a natural
advantage. They don't have to travel, they are more familiar with the
ballpark, and they have the support of the fans. However, in game 3 of
the American League Division Series tonight, the advantage may be neutralized.
When the Orioles and Yankees face off in this pivotal matchup, it will
feature the two best home run hitting clubs in baseball. The Yankees have
walloped an astounding 245 homers and the Orioles are a close second at 214.
It helps that both teams play in very small ballparks. The game
will be played at Yankees Stadium, where the right field line is only 314 feet
and 8 foot high. In Orioles Park at Camden Yards the wall is 25 feet
high. Having a short wall in right field that is easy for a power hitter
to reach favors the Orioles. They have a lineup that is stacked with
power hitting lefties. Matt Wieters has 23 home runs, Chris Davis has 33,
Ryan Flaherty has 6 in limited at bats, and Jim Thome is number 7 on the
all-time career home run list. These are the four key players to watch
for home runs to right field, as it is much easier for a lefty to hit a ball to
right field (in baseball terms it's called pulling a ball) and vice versa,
easier for a righty to hit the left field. The Orioles do have power from
the right side of the plate though that easily have enough muscle to hit
opposite field and out. Adam Jones (32), Mark Reynolds (23), and J.J.
Hardy (22) can all lift it out of the ballpark on a consistent basis.
The Baltimore Orioles do not hit for average. Their team batting average was .247 during
the regular season, which ranked 20th out of 30 major league
teams. They win ball games through the
home run and in fact just under 50% of all the Baltimore runs scored this
season have come via the home run. In 3
series at Yankee stadium this year the orioles won each of them 2 games to
1. For a team that lives and dies by the
home run, moving to one of the best home run ballparks will be very
advantageous. Just by virtue of being
the away team the Orioles will be considered underdogs, but the smart money in
Vegas will be on them.
Tuesday, September 25, 2012
Orioles Doubleheader
On Monday September 25, 2012 the Baltimore Orioles played a
doubleheader (two games back to back) against the Toronto Blue Jays. Doubleheaders are rare in baseball and
especially this season, as the only other time the Orioles participated in one,
was on May 9th. Doubleheaders
present a unique challenge for the broadcast team in the booth during
play-by-play and color commentary, especially for the 2nd game. They have a lot more information that needs
to be included in the broadcast as they have the task of reviewing the previous
action while keeping the viewers focused on the current game. I noticed a couple ways that the broadcast
team chose to accomplish this feat.
For one,
they clarified any changes that might have confused a fan who watched the first
game. The broadcast team tried to do
this as early as they could. Some
examples would include the play-by-play announcer Gary Thorne addressing the
Orioles uniform changes (they switched from white to orange) and giving the
reasoning behind the switched. His
response: “just because they can.” As
well as the new umpire behind the plate and how he calls his strike zone.
During the first inning most of
the time was spent going over statistics of the batter’s last game and how he
played. This is unusual because that
time is usually spent going over season statistics. I noticed that information got pushed back to
the player’s next at bat. Additionally,
the color commentator’s (Mike Bordick) role was diminished at the beginning of
the game, because the play-by-play had to go over more review and spend less
time on analysis of that current game.
Something else I noticed was the
type of play the color announcer would talk about. He didn’t attempt to analyze every second of
the game. Sometimes an ordinary
first-pitch-fastball doesn’t need to be broken down. He tried to pick out the significant
developments and the more important plays, the ones that stick out in
everyone’s mind. This allows for more
in-depth analysis of the game and also helps to make him look like even more of
an authority. His words are rarer, and
therefore perceived as more valuable. Something
else important would be the descriptiveness of his analysis, where the more
details the better. One instance that
stood out for me occurred after the Baltimore pitcher threw a strike. Bordick said: “Great pitch by Wei Yin Chen to
follow that fastball. Down and away it
looked like it was going to be in the same location as the last pitch, which
gives the batter a huge advantage but it had great movement at the end and
tailed off just in time.”
These are two skills I am going
to be working on while doing sports broadcasting for the university. As a play-by-play announcer I will try to get
background information and statistics done early so that the focus can be on
the current game. As a color commentator
I will work on picking and choosing my analysis so that I can give better more
relevant information.
Monday, September 17, 2012
The "Replacement" Refs
It’s Monday morning. What are football fans talking about? If their team won it’s who surprised and
who’s next. If they won and have a chance
at the playoffs it’s “how many Super bowls can they win in a row?” If they lost
it’s the cold silence of a deep frustration and six day depression until the
next game. And whether their favorite
team came out on top or got toppled, everyone agrees the replacement refs
simply stink! It must be a great unifier
if Steelers and Ravens fans can come together on the issue. Skip Bayless and Stephen A Smith can finally
agree on something (though they’ll find a way to argue about how bad these refs
actually are!)
These great rivals have concurred
on a few issues before. Chiefly being
the class action lawsuit filed by former players regarding concussions, and the
payroll collusion suit filed by the NFLPA.
In the concussion lawsuit 3,236 former NFL players have filed class
action lawsuits alleging the NFL knew the effect of concussions on the brain,
but willfully ignored the evidence.
These players are suing for millions in damages.
The collusion lawsuit was filed in May 2012 and
alleged that during the uncapped 2010 NFL season the team owners had a secret
agreement to set a $123 million salary cap, in violation of labor laws and the
NFL’s own collective bargaining agreement.
The ownership can’t even agree on whether they colluded or not. According to Fox News (1), when asked about
the accusations “NFL spokesman Greg
Aiello responded with: "There was no collusion. There was no agreement.
These claims are totally unfounded."
However NBC Sports (2) writes:
In support of the claims, the NFLPA cites
comments from Giants co-owner John Mara (who said the issue “came up several
times in [ownership-level] meetings,” that the teams in question “attempted to
take advantage of a one-year loophole, and quite frankly, I think they’re lucky
they didn’t lose draft picks,” and that the teams knew “full well there would
be consequences”)
The NFLPA wants $4 billion in damages from the NFL. Over 3,000 former players have filed lawsuits
alleged gross neglect of their health and safety. That’s a lot of bad press for the
owners. The NFL ownership is using the
replacement referees as a way to distract fans, players and the press from covering
and talking about the lawsuits. They
have a found the perfect scapegoat, and a way to save money by not paying the
old referees higher salaries. The
replacement officials aren’t bad for business either, as Sunday Night
Football’s broadcast achieved their highest ratings in 14 years last week (3). These replacements (maybe we should started
calling them the permanents) are good for business, and they will be here for a
long time.
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