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 Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Favre's Return: A Surprise Or All Part Of The Plan?
Posted by Tuff Stuff
This just in: Brett Favre has come out of retirement (for the
326th time if you're scoring at home) and pending a physical, will
become an official member of the Minnesota Vikings very soon.
Vikings coach Brad Childress was apparently so happy to finally have Favre in the fold, that he personally picked him up at the airport. Can you  imagine Bill Belichick, Bill Parcells or Mike Ditka
doing that? I wonder if Childress rubbed his feet on the ride back, or
perhaps a back rub? Are you kidding me? Childress' show of good faith
would've been understandable had Favre not already dissed him and the
Vikings, not once, but twice already. Just when the jokes about him
being left at the altar had started to subside, Childress somehow
managed to divide his team and make himself a punchline all over again.
But before Childress gets your vote for "Clown of the Year"
consider the possibility that he may have actually made the best of a
no-win situation. Perhaps last month when Favre met with Vikings
officials and ultimately determined that his surgically repaired
throwing arm wasn't ready for a another comeback attempt, it was just
some good ole fashioned spin doctoring to hide the truth.
Perhaps Favre, the ultimate gamer who's never been shy about his distain for Training Camp,
told Childress that he would love to play for the team but would rather
join the team after Camp was over. Instead of going public with Favre's
conditions and facing the media backlash of allowing one of the inmates
to run the asylum, Childress and Co. came up with a Plan B that would
allow them to save a little face. Maybe last month's meeting was purely
a meet and greet to see if Favre would be physically able to perform.
Then maybe, just maybe, Favre sensed the Vikings desperation to bring
him in at any cost and came up with his own plan that would ultimately
end with him joining the team, but only when he was good and ready.
At that point, the already all-in Vikings might have transformed
into hostage negotiator mode and decided that they would meet Favre's
demands before he destroyed the team and the organization altogether. Maybe
the Vikings informed their players of the agreement during last month's
circus and that explains how several players leaked this latest bit of
news Monday before Favre and the team made it official on Tuesday.
Hmmm? Makes you wonder doesn't it? Could the whole thing have been
orchestrated so Favre got what he wanted (no two-a-days, no Training Camp, no bunking at the dorms with his younger, little-in-common teammates)
and the Vikings saved a little face by appearing to be just as
surprised as anybody else when Favre announced his latest reversal?
Only time will tell if some or all of my "Spin Doctoring" Theory
holds any water, but one thing is for sure, if this was a well-thought
out script designed to be win-win for all involved, whoever came up the Childress-picking-up-Favre-at-the-airport scene should be fired immediately and forced to write Infomercials for all of eternity because that was lame no matter what the circumstances were.
Tuesday, August 18, 2009 8:43:20 PM (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00) 
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Monday, August 17, 2009
Beat The Blogger Results
Posted by Tuff Stuff
While the Blogger didn't put up much of a challenge, scoring just four for the week, it didn't matter in the end, as Sandy bested the field with score of 8. Sandy picked the golf question correctly and also hit on her doubler and will take home the weekly prize for her efforts. Congrats to her and thanks to everybody for playing. This week's matchups will be posted later today or tomorrow so make sure you check back to make you picks.
While I
enjoy giving prizes to several people vs. having just one weekly
winner, from this point forward contestants will be asked to provide a tie-breaker on the week's last game so we narrow our winner down to one. Contestants
will now be asked to predict the total score from the last game on the
list and the closest to the actual score will be deemed the winner). I'll also require contestants to post their e-mail address with their picks so I can track down the winners easier.
For those unfamiliar with the Beat the Blogger contest,
the idea is simple. The Blogger posts 10 matchups each week and then
selects his  choices for the winners of those matchups. Contestants
enter the Beat the Blogger contest by clicking on the "Comment" section below the post with the matchups and then select their own 10 winners. You can also designate one of your picks as a "Doubler"
and you will receive an extra point if you're correct so don't forget
to designate your "Doubler" pick and increase your chances of winning.
If you Beat The Blogger's total and post the high score for the week, you win. The regular weekly prize is an authentic signed 8-by-10 color photo of stars such as LaDainian Tomlinson, Drew Brees, Marshall Faulk, Santonio Holmes, Gale Sayers, Catfish Hunter
and many more. From time to time, the Blogger will sweeten the pot for
the weekly contest so look for special prize packages.
This week's Matchups (Winning picks in parenthesis)
Thursday Aug. 13
PGA Championship
Which pair will have the lower combined score in Rd. 1?
(Tiger Woods/Sergio Garcia)
Saturday Aug. 15
MLB
Philadelphia at Atlanta (Atlanta)
Cleveland at Minnesota (Cleveland)
Colorado at Florida (Postponed)
Washington at Cincinnati (Washington)
LA Dodgers at Arizona (Arizona)
Sunday Aug. 16
LA Angels at Baltimore (LA Angels)
San Diego at St. Louis (St. Louis)
Chicago White Sox at Oakland (Oakland)
New York Yankees at Seattle (Seattle) (tiebreaker: Total runs in this game (13)
Monday, August 17, 2009 3:17:36 PM (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00)
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Thursday, August 13, 2009
Beat The Blogger Picks
Posted by Tuff Stuff
While I
enjoy giving prizes to several people vs. having just one weekly
winner, from this point forward contestants will be asked to provide a tie-breaker on the week's last game so we narrow our winner down to one. Contestants
will now be asked to predict the total score from the last game on the
list and the closest to the actual score will be deemed the winner). I'll also require contestants to post their e-mail address with their picks so I can track down the winners easier.
For those unfamiliar with the Beat the Blogger contest,
the idea is simple. The Blogger posts 10 matchups each week and then
selects his choices for the winners of those matchups. Contestants
enter the Beat the Blogger contest by clicking on the "Comment" section below the post with the matchups and then select their own 10 winners. You can also designate one of your picks as a "Doubler"
and you will receive an extra point if you're correct so don't forget
to designate your "Doubler" pick and increase your chances of winning.
If you Beat The Blogger's total and post the high score for the week, you win. The regular weekly prize is an authentic signed 8-by-10 color photo of stars such as LaDainian Tomlinson, Drew Brees, Marshall Faulk, Santonio Holmes, Gale Sayers, Catfish Hunter
and many more. From time to time, the Blogger will sweeten the pot for
the weekly contest so look for special prize packages.
This week's Matchups (Blogger picks in parenthesis)
Thursday Aug. 13
PGA Championship
Which pair will have the lower combined score in Rd. 1?
Tiger Woods/Sergio Garcia or Phil Mickelson/Padraig Harrington
(Tiger/Sergio)
Saturday Aug. 15
MLB
Philadelphia at Atlanta (Philadelphia)
Cleveland at Minnesota (Cleveland)
Colorado at Florida (Florida)
Washington at Cincinnati (Washington)
LA Dodgers at Arizona (LA Dodgers)
Sunday Aug. 16
LA Angels at Baltimore (LA Angels)
San Diego at St. Louis (St. Louis) (Doubler)
Chicago White Sox at Oakland (Chicago)
New York Yankees at Seattle (tiebreaker: Total runs in this game 8)
Thursday, August 13, 2009 3:41:03 PM (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00)
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Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Beat The Blogger Matchups
Posted by Tuff Stuff
While I
enjoy giving prizes to several people vs. having just one weekly
winner, from this point forward contestants will be asked to provide a tie-breaker on the week's last game so we narrow our winner down to one. Contestants
will now be asked to predict the total score from the last game on the
list and the closest to the actual score will be deemed the winner). I'll also require contestants to post their e-mail address with their picks so I can track down the winners easier.
For those unfamiliar with the Beat the Blogger contest,
the idea is simple. The Blogger posts 10 matchups each week and then
selects his choices for the winners of those matchups. Contestants
enter the Beat the Blogger contest by clicking on the "Comment" section below the post with the matchups and then select their own 10 winners. You can also designate one of your picks as a "Doubler"
and you will receive an extra point if you're correct so don't forget
to designate your "Doubler" pick and increase your chances of winning.
If you Beat The Blogger's total and post the high score for the week, you win. The regular weekly prize is an authentic signed 8-by-10 color photo of stars such as LaDainian Tomlinson, Drew Brees, Marshall Faulk, Santonio Holmes, Gale Sayers, Catfish Hunter
and many more. From time to time, the Blogger will sweeten the pot for
the weekly contest so look for special prize packages.
This week's Matchups
Thursday Aug. 13
PGA Championship
Which pair will have the lower combined score in Rd. 1?
Tiger Woods/Sergio Garcia or Phil Mickelson/Padraig Harrington
Saturday Aug. 15
MLB
Philadelphia at Atlanta
Cleveland at Minnesota
Colorado at Florida
Washington at Cincinnati
LA Dodgers at Arizona
Sunday Aug. 16
LA Angels at Baltimore
San Diego at St. Louis
Chicago White Sox at Oakland
New York Yankees at Seattle (tiebreaker: Total runs in this game)
Wednesday, August 12, 2009 2:29:09 PM (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00)
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Tuesday, August 11, 2009
Beat The Blogger Winners
Posted by Tuff Stuff
Sorry for the delay but for two lucky contestants, I'm guessing it will be worth the wait. First off, the winner of last week's Beat The Blogger tiebreaker was Greta Francis, who scored 7 out of 11 possible points to edge the rest of those who qualified. For her efforts Greta wins a prize package that includes several boxes of sports cards, (3) 8-by-10 photos and a mini helmet signed by future HOFer Alex Rodriguez. The prize package was awarded because for the first time in the history of the contest, we had more than 300 players. Congrats to Greta.
In our regular weekly Beat The Blogger contest, Harry K was one of three people to score 9 but won the weekly prize by virtue of his tie-breaker. Congrats to Harry K and good luck to everybody this week. This week's matchups will be posted Tuesday night so make sure you check back and get your picks posted before the start of the week's first game (Golf this week so picks will need to be in by Thursday at 8 a.m. CST) to be eligible.
While I
enjoy giving prizes to several people vs. having just one weekly
winner, from this point forward contestants will be asked to provide a tie-breaker on the week's last game so we narrow our winner down to one. Contestants
will now be asked to predict the total score from the last game on the
list and the closest to the actual score will be deemed the winner). I'll also require contestants to post their e-mail address with their picks so I can track down the winners easier.
For those unfamiliar with the Beat the Blogger contest,
the idea is simple. The Blogger posts 10 matchups each week and then
selects his choices for the winners of those matchups. Contestants
enter the Beat the Blogger contest by clicking on the "Comment" section below the post with the matchups and then select their own 10 winners. You can also designate one of your picks as a "Doubler"
and you will receive an extra point if you're correct so don't forget
to designate your "Doubler" pick and increase your chances of winning.
If you Beat The Blogger's total and post the high score for the week, you win. The regular weekly prize is an authentic signed 8-by-10 color photo of stars such as LaDainian Tomlinson, Drew Brees, Marshall Faulk, Santonio Holmes, Gale Sayers, Catfish Hunter
and many more. From time to time, the Blogger will sweeten the pot for
the weekly contest so look for special prize packages.
This week's Matchups (winner's in parenthesis)
Saturday Aug. 8
MLB
Cincinnati at San Francisco(SF)
Texas at LA Angels(LA)
Boston at NY Yankees(NY)
Minnesota at Detroit(Minnesota)
Milwaukee at Houston(Milwaukee)
Sunday Aug. 9
Chicago Cubs at Colorado(Colordao)
Atlanta at LA Dodgers(LA)
Tampa Bay at Seattle(Seatle)
NY Mets at San Diego(Mets)
Florida at Philadelphia (Marlins)
(tiebreaker: Total runs in this game=15)
Tuesday, August 11, 2009 3:06:48 PM (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00)
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Friday, August 07, 2009
Not So Deep Thoughts: Don't be fooled by new Topps deal
Posted by Tuff Stuff
After hearing the news that Topps would once again be the sole card producer for baseball cards beginning next year, one thing came to my mind: money.
While MLB officials and the folks at Topps can talk about a renewed focus on getting children back involved in the hobby and Michael Eisner's involvement until their blue in the face, but the new deal all boils down to the all mighty dollar and Topps' willingness to pony up whatever it took to control the market.
As we saw with the agreement made between Panini and the NBA to be the sole provider in the basketball card market, the leagues, just like the rest of us, have been affected by the recession. Selling rights to the highest bidder has become fashionable because it provides the leagues with a quick infusion of revenue and leaves the trouble that often accompanies a monopoly for another day.
Don't get me wrong, I think Topps running the baseball card show is fine but let's not kid ourselves on why they're the sole provider and Upper Deck is left out in the cold. They offered a higher bid, plain and simple. They obviously wanted to control the market and were willing to pay and pay big time, to do just that. And more power to them for doing so, literally and figuratively.
Friday, August 07, 2009 8:28:45 PM (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00)
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Beat The Blogger picks
Posted by Tuff Stuff
First off, I'd like to thank all the new contestants to Beat The Blogger who helped us achieve a new benchmark in the history of the contest. The Blogger posted a
respectable total of 8 but it was enough to beat the 7 contestants who tied scores of 10. Those 7 contestants were: Tim W, Danielle Kee, Andrew Greb, Justin C. Byers, Mercy R., Sam Davis and Greta Francis. Each
of the 7 members will win a signed autograph photo and they'll also be
eligible for the prize package I assemble. We'll break the tie with
this week's contest for the prize package, while the non-qualifiers will compete for a signed photo as usual.
So all of you who have qualified for the tie-breaker make sure to get
this week's picks posted by the deadline and as always, good luck. The Blogger picks are listed below in parenthesis.
While I
enjoy giving prizes to several people vs. having just one weekly
winner, from this point forward contestants will be asked to provide a tie-breaker on the week's last game so we narrow our winner down to one. Contestants
will now be asked to predict the total score from the last game on the
list and the closest to the actual score will be deemed the winner). I'll also require contestants to post their e-mail address with their picks so I can track down the winners easier.
For those unfamiliar with the Beat the Blogger contest,
the idea is simple. The Blogger posts 10 matchups each week and then
selects his choices for the winners of those matchups. Contestants
enter the Beat the Blogger contest by clicking on the "Comment" section below the post with the matchups and then select their own 10 winners. You can also designate one of your picks as a "Doubler"
and you will receive an extra point if you're correct so don't forget
to designate your "Doubler" pick and increase your chances of winning.
If you Beat The Blogger's total and post the high score for the week, you win. The regular weekly prize is an authentic signed 8-by-10 color photo of stars such as LaDainian Tomlinson, Drew Brees, Marshall Faulk, Santonio Holmes, Gale Sayers, Catfish Hunter
and many more. From time to time, the Blogger will sweeten the pot for
the weekly contest so look for special prize packages.
This week's Matchups
Saturday Aug. 8
MLB
Cincinnati at San Francisco(Cincy)
Texas at LA Angels(Texas)
Boston at NY Yankees(NY)
Minnesota at Detroit(Detroit)
Milwaukee at Houston(Milwaukee)
Sunday Aug. 9
Chicago Cubs at Colorado(Cubs)
Atlanta at LA Dodgers(LA)
Tampa Bay at Seattle(TB)
NY Mets at San Diego(Mets)(Doubler)
Florida at Philadelphia (Philly)
(tiebreaker: Total runs in this game=9)
Friday, August 07, 2009 1:53:13 AM (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00)
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Wednesday, August 05, 2009
Beat The Blogger Matchups With Some Changes
Posted by Tuff Stuff
First off, I'd like to thank all the new contestants to Beat The Blogger who helped us achieve a new benchmark in the history of the contest. The Blogger posted a
respectable total of 8 but it was enough to beat the 7 contestants who tied scores of 10. Those 7 contestants were: Tim W, Danielle Kee, Andrew Greb, Justin C. Byers, Mercy R., Sam Davis and Greta Francis. Each
of the 7 members will win a signed autograph photo and they'll also be
eligible for the prize package I assemble. We'll break the tie with
this week's contest for the prize package, while the non-qualifiers will compete for a signed photo as usual.
So all of you who have qualified for the tie-breaker make sure to get
this week's picks posted by the deadline and as always, good luck.
While I
enjoy giving prizes to several people vs. having just one weekly
winner, from this point forward contestants will be asked to provide a tie-breaker on the week's last game so we narrow our winner down to one. Contestants
will now be asked to predict the total score from the last game on the
list and the closest to the actual score will be deemed the winner). I'll also require contestants to post their e-mail address with their picks so I can track down the winners easier.
For those unfamiliar with the Beat the Blogger contest,
the idea is simple. The Blogger posts 10 matchups each week and then
selects his choices for the winners of those matchups. Contestants
enter the Beat the Blogger contest by clicking on the "Comment" section below the post with the matchups and then select their own 10 winners. You can also designate one of your picks as a "Doubler"
and you will receive an extra point if you're correct so don't forget
to designate your "Doubler" pick and increase your chances of winning.
If you Beat The Blogger's total and post the high score for the week, you win. The regular weekly prize is an authentic signed 8-by-10 color photo of stars such as LaDainian Tomlinson, Drew Brees, Marshall Faulk, Santonio Holmes, Gale Sayers, Catfish Hunter
and many more. From time to time, the Blogger will sweeten the pot for
the weekly contest so look for special prize packages.
This week's Matchups
Saturday Aug. 8
MLB
Cincinnati at San Francisco
Texas at LA Angels
Boston at NY Yankees
Minnesota at Detroit
Milwaukee at Houston
Sunday Aug. 9
Chicago Cubs at Colorado
Atlanta at LA Dodgers
Tampa Bay at Seattle
NY Mets at San Diego
Florida at Philadelphia (tiebreaker: Total runs in this game=)
Wednesday, August 05, 2009 4:21:00 PM (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00)
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Not So Deep Thoughts: Here's hoping Albert is clean
Posted by Tuff Stuff
As I continue to follow Albert Pujols' career in amazement, I can't
help but wonder if and when the day might come when King Albert is
knocked from his thrown as the game's best player amid steroid
allegations. In today's era of MLB where outstanding performances tend
to go hand and hand with PED use, are we expected to believe that
Pujols was almost literally the only one who steered clear of the
juice? Not sure of the answer to that one but I sure hope so.
With today's MLB stars falling from grace quicker than the records
they've fraudulently destroyed, somehow, almost miraculously, Pujols
has remained absent from any of the damning lists that have tainted the
careers of so many before him. And unlike when Barry Bonds was
assaulting the record books in 2002, there's no outcry of foul play,
just applause and admiration. Not sure how Pujols got on the
"untouchable" list but I'm sure glad he did and I hope he stays on it forever.
Pujols is currently 1st in the NL in HRs (36), Runs (85), OBP
(.443), OPS (1.125), slugging (.682) and RBIs with 97. He's already wrapped up the MVP award and is now batting .321 after breaking out of a two-week "slump." After last
night's heroics against the Mets, Pujols is now 7-for-9 with 5 grand
slams and 27 RBIs this season which is the true definition of clutch.
How long will it be before opposing pitchers start intentionally
walking Pujols when he bats with the bases loaded. Not sure, but I hope it's a long time because Pujols is one of the only players I can ever remember that has ever made me feel privileged to watch him play.
Deep down do I believe Pujols never touched steroids and his impressive skills are part god-given ability and hard work? I must admit I have my doubts. But until there is some proof to the contrary, I'm going to continue to watch in awe as the best right-handed hitter of all time continues to amaze. Not bad for a 13th-round pick, that's for sure.
Wednesday, August 05, 2009 2:51:02 PM (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00)
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Tuesday, August 04, 2009
With Apologies: Updates From The National
Posted by Tuff Stuff
(Editor's Note: First off, I'd like to personally apologize for announcing we'd be blogging live from The National and then providing no live updates as promised. Some major technical issues prevented us from doing any live blogging from Cleveland but we'll try to catch you up on some of the storylines with the following "tape delayed" version of SCD's T.S. O'Connell's Infield Dirt blog.)
 Here’s the blog I wrote up on Friday at the National Convention. I
didn’t exactly write it up on the back of a cocktail napkin, but it’s
close. My reasons for not sending it have been discussed, but I pass it
along here under the heading of “better late than never.”
You want to know how cool it is at the National Convention? In the
space of a half hour after I walked in the door last Wednesday in
Cleveland, I saw old friend Dave Czuba, Alan Rosen’s right-hand
man who is coming back from a battle with cancer, spotted an
eye-popping trio of unopened Topps baseball boxes from the mid-1950s
and heard a couple of great stories about Ted Williams signing
autographs back in the earliest days of the organized hobby. It’s nice
to get the immediate reinforcement and reminders of those things that
make the National Convention so special.
Those three
things sum it up pretty nicely: good friends, good stuff and good
stories. All of that contrasted sharply with the gloomy rumblings on a
day later as the hobby reeled from yet another mainstream media story
casting a negative light on the hobby at the moment of its showcase
event, followed by unsubstantiated reports that the FBI was visiting
once again and passing out subpoenas to various dealers, auction houses
and grading services.
This time it was the revelation of
inquiries into stolen historical documents from public libraries in
Boston and New York City, and it was the second consecutive year that
somebody rained on the National’s parade. In Chicago last year, the New
York Daily News reported that federal agents had waded through
the dealer tables interviewing a number of dealers about alleged shill
bidding and card doctoring. As might be anticipated, finding
individuals who want to go on the record saying they have been thusly
visited by Justice Department minions is more than a little problematic,
By Thursday night in Cleveland, Michael O’Keefe, the Daily News
reporter who wrote the bylined piece about stolen library archival
material, was appearing as a guest speaker at a reception for the
online chat forum Network 54. He shared speaking duties with one of the
most visible names in the auction world, Josh Evans of Lelands.com, who as always spoke candidly about some of the challenges facing the hobby/industry.
The controversial always competes with the day-to-day proceedings at
the National, but it wouldn’t be fair or accurate to say that it sucked
the air out of the room. A show as long running and dynamic as the
National has always been able to juggle the competing forces of
damaging news events and the traditional hoopla surrounding the hobby’s
biggest event of the year.
But even as the 700-plus
dealers trudged back to Cleveland for the third time in the span of
seven years, it might not have been too much of a stretch to suggest
that many of the assembled hobby elite might have been looking past
Cleveland in anticipation of a much ballyhooed inaugural trip to
Baltimore’s Inner Harbor next year. To muddy up a sports cliche just a
bit, we typically do them one National at a time, but this year might
have been a bit of an exception.
Still, I managed to fight
off any inclination to mope in that august (August?) setting. While I
didn’t see quite as much spectacular memorabilia as I have in recent
years, the array of vintage cards never disappoints. A quicky visit to Steve Hart’s
Baseball Card Exchange booth revealed full, unopened boxes of 1954
Topps and Bowman baseball, and another of 1955 Topps Baseball. That
trio almost certainly came from the famous Alan Rosen find in Paris,
Tenn., in October of 1987. The freight was a cool $50,000 each, which
naturally left me without any particular strains from temptation.
On the morrow, I’ll recount those stories about Teddy Ballgame, courtesy of hobby pioneer Pat Quinn of Sports Collectors Ltd.
Tuesday, August 04, 2009 8:34:32 PM (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00)
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