The major sports in the U.S. have become a melting pot of nationalities. No matter the sport, you'll now find players from nations around the world participating.

So why do they still conduct events like the Ryder Cup (right now the U.S. vs. Europe) and host hockey All-Star games with the U.S. vs. the world? Don't the Olympics cover the arena enough, where one country can say they are "better" than the other? And actually, now that athletes can pretty much participate with whatever country they want, even that's not a true testament to a country's athletic prowess.   

I think the time of one country trying to say it's the best in the world at any sport is ridiculous in this day and age, and this contrived competitions are done simply for ratings.

So why don't they have U.S. vs. Japan in hot dog-eating contests? Or make the American Gladiator series a country vs. country spectacle? Bowling anyone?

Perhaps someone can explain this to me.

Ichiro Suzuki matched Willie Keeler's major league record of eight straight 200-hit seasons last night. That's a pretty remarkable feat, no matter how Ichiro hits them.

I wasn't sure what to expect of this Japanese phenom when he first entered the league, but he has been nothing short of great. On a team that failed expectations miserably this year, he just continues to produce - out of the spotlight.

And because of his hit record, I asked Joe Clemens, Sports Collectors Monthly's baseball card pricing analyst, to pull some rookie card prices for me on Ichiro. As you can see, these prices range from the high-end to affordable. I wonder, do the Japanese jump on sports memorabilia as much as collectors in the U.S.?

Here are some values for Ichiro rookie cards:
2001 Upper Deck Ultimate Collection #120, $1,800.  
"I guess its obvious that this is his best rookie card judging by the crazy price. It's autgraphed and serial numbered to 250." - Joe Clemens

2001 SPX #150, $750.
"This one is also autographed and has a jersey swatch, too." - Joe Clemens

2001 Bowman Chrome #351, $80.

Peter Gammons said Ichiro is on a straight path to the Hall of Fame. He's have to play awhile to reach the vaunted 3,000-hit club (while on U.S. soil; he has 3,000 combined hits from Japan and Seattle). But maybe he doesn't need that many to prove that, while here, he was among the best in the game.
 
 

Sometimes the news from the East Coast cracks me up. Not only is any hang nail that affects the Yankees or Red Sox the most pressing news of the day, but the sensationalism is just too much.

Derek Jeter just set the record for hits in Yankee Stadium. So? You bet some great players have played on those "hallowed" grounds, but why is this such big news on ESPN, etc? Sure, the stadium is being torn down after this year, but this statistic - in general - seems pointless to me.

Team records are fine and dandy to keep track of. But stadium records that stray from first home run, first no-hitter, etc., aren't fodder for headlines.

The Yankees are out of the playoff hunt, their stadium is being torn down and now it won't get the press it deserves as the season winds down. Baloney - I'm sure there are many specials in the works for those last few games so everyone and their grandmother can learn about this great stadium and the Yankees franchise, again.

I expect some Yankees fans to jump all over this, but sometimes news is news just because it's New York. And that gets old, quick.

Anyone catch the Vince Young saga the last few days? He plays like crap, gets booed off the field, pouts like a little kid in the huddled and then four plays later, hurts his knee. And then it gets fun.

His mom calls the team about her son's "depressed" state, and the media runs with it, questioning his commitment to the team and football in general. Of course, Young then piped up and said he's all about football and no one should worry.

Well, if I was a Titans fans, I'd be worried. Here is the leader of the team playing badly in the first place. But then he can't handle adversity enough to the point his mom brings it to the public's attention? That's never good.

I think part of it is that some of these young athletes never have to grow up. Everything is handed to them on a silver platter, and as soon as one little thing doesn't go their way, they can't handle it. With millions of dollars thrown at them at such a young age, no one says "No" and most problems are taken care of because no one wants to upset them.

Now imagine being a coach and having to work with 50 of these types of characters. No thank you.

I'm not even going to try and spin this into a collecting angle or whatever. This is a pure rant on the Milwaukee Brewers, one of the most putrid franchises in professional sports.

Being in Wisconsin, I've followed this team since I could talk. Even then, I don't remember 1982 when the team last made it to the World Series much less the playoffs (of course, they didn't win). I'm sick of 1982, don't care about 1982 any more and wish the team would burn that banner.

So I was pleasantly surprised when the team took off from June-August, building a nice Wild Card lead. And then the real Brewers showed up once again.

Since September appeared on the calendar, the Brewers got all scared their vacation might get postponed and started playing like crap, dropping seven of nine and forgetting how to field, hit and occasionally pitch. If one of their pitchers gives up more than two runs, you can chalk up a lose for the Crew. Ridiculous. The team is batting about .200 for about two weeks. Don't ask about their average with runners in scoring position.

I hear all about how great all of these young players are now that they have a few seasons under their belts, and they wilt under pressure. The veterans are washed-ups part-timers being asked to contribute every day.

With something like 17 games left (and they still - somehow - had a Wild Card lead yet today), they could still turn it around. And then I hope I look at this blog post and chuckle at my extreme fandom.

Does anyone else get like this about their team?

I was doing some editing on one of our sports trade magazines the other day when I came across an article talking about ways hobby store owners could attract customers to their store.

Some of the logical suggestions were to offer fair prices, be friendly and offer a selection of material to appeal to a wide audience. Some of the more interesting thoughts were to hold events (such as a BBQ, movie showing or box break gathering) to attract new customers.

So I ask the diehard collectors of Tuff Stuff's Sports Collectors Monthly, what makes you go to the hobby shop to pick up packs or boxes of cards? Do you go just to feed that collecting need, regardless of any gimmicks used to get you in the door? Are you looking for high-dollar or low-buck items in particular? Are you walking through the door because it's kind of like Norm in "Cheers" - you feel at home and love the people and customers that are already there?

Other factors that were suggested to attract customers was a well lit, organized store. But I have to say, some of those shops that are crammed full of stuff and haven't been dusted in years are kind of fun to check out. It's like a treasure hunt - you don't know what you're going to find.

But maybe the best part is walking in the door and just chatting with link-minded fans about the local nine or the gridiron greats. If a hobby shop can offer that, I'm always visiting. 

How did you spend your Labor Day weekend? I spent mine working the National Fantasy Football Championship run by our company. I got to head to New York City (with other locations in Orlando, Las Vegas and Chicago).

We had about 17 leagues in NYC, with sizes ranging from 12-14 teams in each league, so it's a pretty sizable event. Oh, did I mention the entry fee ranges from $650 to $1,250? Which brings me to my point. If you're paying that much money to play fantasy football, shouldn't you have a pretty good idea who's hurt, who isn't, depth charts, etc? That's what I thought.

But no, Rudi Johnson was still being selected fairly high. And when after one draft it was announced that he had been released, I wonder how many owners just cringed. Sure, he's with Detroit now, but can he be expected to do much there?

Other players were gong to be out for quite some time (Bobby Engram, for one) and yet they were drafted. I know it's a long season and some of those injured (or suspended) guys could help down the line, but draft them later, not earlier.

Here are some other observations from three days of drafts. Running backs still rule the roost, though Tom Brady, Randy Moss and Terrell Owens did crash the first-round running back party in nearly every draft. And Tony Romo did go fourth overall (yes, fourth) in one particular draft.

Selvin Young, Josh Morgan and other rookies Kevin Smith, DeSean Jackson and Matt Forte were popular picks. With Dustin Keller, Matt Ryan and Joe Flacco getting PT early this season, it looks like rookies will again be offensive weapons in the NFL.

LT was the first pick in nearly every draft (or auctioned for the most money in auction drafts). Speaking of auctions, it seems one of the popular strategies was to spend big on the marquee players and fill in the roster after about pick seven. There are a lot of bargains in the latter rounds when money is tight. So spend big early and often in auction leagues. It's the only time you'll ever get Tomlinson and Peterson on the same roster.

And my final observation was that many of these guys and gals were also involved in baseball leagues that were down to the final month. How do they keep everything straight and up to date? They're spending a lot of time online and keeping track of the tickers.

Now that I think about it, doesn't that sound like fun?

The next issue of Tuff Stuff's Sports Collectors Monthly to hit newsstands and mailboxes will have a focus on the World Series, since it's the October issue. So I bring out the call - what's the great World Series moment?

I offer a few suggestions:
- Don Larsen's perfect game (and no, he's not in the Hall of Fame)
- Kirk Gibson's Game 1 walk-off home run
- Joe Carter's Game 6 walk-off home run
- Bill Mazeroski's Game 7 walk-off home run
- Babe Ruth's called shot
- Bill Buckner's ball-through-the-legs error
- Carlton Fisk's Game 6 foul-pole home run

My personal favorite is Gibson's home run because I remember it so vividly and because it propelled the Dodgers to a sweep of the mighty A's. It didn't happen in Game 7, but I just remember being stunned that it happened.

Now, the bigger question - how did Gibson win MVP that year if the voting was supposedly done BEFORE the postseason?

Feel free to post thoughts here and in the forum.