One More Year for James Edward Rice

He was one of the most feared hitters in the game and a perennial MVP candidate from 1975-86. He was so strong that he once broke a bat simply by checking his swinging on a pitch. He was an 8 time All Star and won the MVP Award in 1978 with over 400 total bases but with all his accolades and numbers, Jim Rice fell just 2.8% short of the votes needed to get in to the Baseball Hall of Fame this year.

This was Rice’s second to last chance to get elected. Since he retired and became eligible, he has been turned down 14 straight times and now next year will be his last chance to be on the ballot. With the modern game being tarnished in steroid allegations, many think Jim Rice’s chances of getting into the HOF have improved, but the once mighty slugger whom Hank Aaron thought would break his HR record someday only finished with 382 home runs. A total that many think doesn’t belong in Cooperstown. However, having played in seven less seasons, Rice has 3 more HR’s and a higher overall batting average than recent HOF inductee Tony Perez. Also, one could argue that had he played 20 seasons like HOF Eddie Murray, that Rice would have enough home runs to get into the Hall.

Either way, Jim Rice still has a chance. The last player to win election during his final year on the ballot was Ralph Kiner. Ironically the year was 1975. The same year Jim Rice broke into the league and got the attention and respect of Hall of Famers like Hank Aaron.

A New Big Baby in Boston!

Some of you may already know but I became an uncle last weekend. Around the time the Celtics were being lead to victory over Detroit by rookie Glen Davis, another big baby made an appearance. Brody Getchell was born to my sister Dana and her husband Brian on Friday, January 4th.

I was told that it was merely coincidence that he was induced during the Patriots play-off bye week. However, with a grandfather already working on the chain gang at Gillette Stadium you can be assured baby Brody will be a big Patriots fan. Congrats and go Pats!

Celtics Get Revenge- Beat Pistons in Round 2

Wow, what a game! Saturday night the two best teams in the NBA Eastern Conference squared-off in the second match-up of the season and this time the Boston Celtic beat the Detroit Pistons 92-85 at Auburn Hills, MI. First year player, Glen ‘Big Baby’ Davis contributed 16 points down the stretch to defeat a Pistons team that won 11 straight games.

This game was not on National TV but too good to pass up, so I cancelled my HBO (luckily ‘Entourage’ doesn’t start up until June) and forked over the big bucks for the NBA Package. I never thought I would be spending any money on NBA entertainment but the 2007-08 Boston Celtics are a special team and on a record breaking pace, so every game is a must see event.

These games are fun to watch but also important for Boston GM Danny Ainge. With two open roster spots, Ainge must determine what assets are needed for the Celtics to compete for a title down the stretch. Before ‘Big Baby’ stepped up in the second half, the Celtics struggled when Kevin Garnett got into foul trouble. The challenge to back-up Garnett and to support Rajon Rondo at the point may be addressed January 10th when teams have to decide whether to guarantee contracts for the rest of the year. After that date, the Celtics may be able to pick-up a couple needed pieces that could lead to their first championship in 21 years. In the meantime, with a 29-3 record the entertainment value is well-worth the price.

New Breed of Football Coach

With all the coaching changes occurring in College football and the NFL, many of the same names get recycled every year. As everyone focusses on a similar pool of candidates, General Mangers and Athletic Directors need to start looking outside the box for new talent. On that note, I am nominating a High School football coaching legend that is ready for the next level.

Head Coach Ricky Jimmy has been leading the Eisenhower Screaming Eagles of Rialto, CA for 35 seasons. During his tenure Coach Jimmy lead his teams to 352-3-1 record and has coached such athletic luminaries as Rob Chow, Rick Chow, and NFL Hall of Famer Ronnie Lott. During the Summer, Coach Jimmy runs his highly successful "I Will Make You Cry" football camps and also acts as a special advisor to Pete Carroll running clinics at the USC Trojan football camps. Aside from his unparalleled football instruction, Coach Jimmy is also a solid citizen who enriches his community every day. He is the Junior Varsity Water Polo coach and even moderates the bingo night at the local Rialto Senior Living Center every week.

In short, Ricky Jimmy is a leader both on and off the field and should be considered for one of the many coaching vacancies available in both College and Professional football. Hopefully somebody will give this guy a shot.

Neuheisel is fit for L.A. battle

When the UCLA Bruins announced that their new football coach would be Rick Neuheisel, I wondered what took so long. Neuheisel had been a star quarterback and an assistant coach under Terry Donahue (the most successful coach at UCLA) and some thought his would be successor until he left to coach Colorado before Donahue’s last year.

Then after both success and controversy at Colorado and Washington, he left the college game and went on to be a coordinator in the NFL. But Neuheisel never looked comfortable in the pro game or in cold climates for that matter. So when his former UCLA teammate Karl Dorrell was fired it was time for Neuheisel to return home.

Rick Neuheisel now brings the same youthful exuberance and swagger to UCLA that has been so successful for USC and Coach Pete Carroll. Like Carroll, Neuheisel will charm both alumni and the parents of top recruits in an effort to compete with USC and bring UCLA football back to the glory days of Terry Donahue.

For the love of Pete!

The USC Trojans completed another stellar season by trouncing the Fighting Illini in the 2008 Rose Bowl 49-17. I didn’t remember the score because I watched the game or saw the endless highlights on ESPN’s SportCenter. I know the score because that is all anyone talked about on local sports radio in Los Angeles.

Without an NFL football team in LA (even though they try, the SD Chargers don’t count), USC is the closest thing to professional football...literally. The program is so deep with talent and such a powerhouse that some years they might be able to compete with NFL teams. They are winning and have a strong alumni base but is there any danger of over-exposure?

I woke-up New Year’s Day only to hear the USC pre-game show in progress on LA sports radio. The show began at 7 AM, a full 7 hours before kick-off! How much can you analyze a game in which a majority of the players aren’t old enough to drink yet? Even the 16-0 New England Patriots of the NFL don’t have a pre-game show that long. That wasn’t the end. Following the game, the post-game show lasted until midnight. By the end of the show, the hosts were so tired and punchy that they were forgetting players’ names!

Anyway, thankfully USC has one of the greatest fight songs of all time, but in an effort to free-up local radio, will the NFL please come back to Los Angeles?!

NHL Winter Classic game - Saving the sport?

I watched the NHL's first US outdoor game between the Penguins and Sabres on New Years Day. Pretty cool. With 70,000 fans and the snow falling, the game was fun and totally lived up to the hype.

The experience reminded me of skating on cranberry bogs when I was a kid in New England and showed the rest of the country how historical and cool hockey can be. Gary Bettman said it cost the league $1 million to put the game on, so I don't see it becoming a regular event but I wouldn't be opposed to watching two 'Original 6' teams like the Bruins, Canadiens, or Rangers playing at Gillette Stadium sometime soon.

Anyway, with the NHL struggling to carve out an identity in the shadow of the NFL, NBA, and MLB in the lower 48, I thought I would look at some recent complaints and theories as to why the league is not as popular...

13.) NHL tickets are too expensive:
But so are NFL tickets, so it really shouldn't matter if the product is good.

12.) The Goalies' pads are too big:
The shooters are bigger, faster, and more skilled so it really shouldn't matter. Scoring is not down because the goalies have extra padding.

11.) The players are too big:
People have talked about things like removing the red line, making the trap illegal, or widening the ice surface all to open up the game. Just like in basketball, players evolve and get bigger and better but you don't see the NBA widening the court or raising the rim.

10.) The game is too fast and hard to follow:
I am confused. Is the game hard to follow or does it need to be opened-up more? Although I do feel a long camera angle of the rink will show new viewers more of the excitement, movement and strategy of the game, we don't need anymore gimmicks like glowing pucks.

9.) There is no top American superstar in the league:
Contrary to what American marketers may think, the presence of great US players like Roenik, Modano, and La Fontaine does not directly affect the success of the league.

8.) Players all wearing helmets takes away the personality of the game:
Initially this was a concern when the mandatory helmet rule was passed in the NHL several years ago, but there has been no evidence of this affecting the very successful NFL. Besides NHL players are notoriously more accessible.

7.) Except Detroit, the 'Original 6' franchises have not done well recently:
Since history and tradition are so important in the NHL, I think this is a legitimate issue.

6.) There isn't any fighting anymore:
A few years ago the NHL nearly eliminated pugilism from the game but as young stars in the league emerge, so has a new of group of bodyguards.

5.) No National TV contract in United States:
Chicken -or- the egg. Improve the game and exposure will follow.

4.) All the team uniforms look the same:
This is more a pet-peeve of mine. In the years after the LA Kings got Gretsky and changed their uniforms to black and white, it seemed most teams incorporated black into their color scheme. To me it takes away from the uniqueness of the teams and pageantry and history of the game. Hockey sweaters were once colorful works of art. The Rangers and B's have gone back to some original designs, but how cool would it be if teams like the Penguins (light blue) and Kings (purple & gold) adopted their retro sweaters again full time.

3.) There are just too many teams:
If the product is not good, then expansion will hurt any league.

2.) Franchises in top media cities have not been successful:
Since team success in a top media market (especially an 'Original 6' city like NY, Bos, or Chi) would naturally create more interest, this does have some validity.

1.) The dreaded 'Quick whistle' is ruining play:
The more I watch this game the more I notice how a simple thing like a quick whistle can affect a game. It was instituted to protect goalies and clamp down on fisticuffs. Instead of players crashing the net after a loose puck , the referee now blows the whistle and stops play once the goalie has control of the puck or worse, whenever the puck is out of sight. I understand the intention, but the goalies are already well protected as mentioned earlier. Besides, if you are already cracking down on fighting and activity within the crease, why mess with the flow of the game? Now the excitment of loose pucks and all the intensity around the net is missing. Also, goalie stickhandling was always high drama. Now once a goalie corrals the puck he can get a whistle simply by skating in the direction of an opposing player and face-offs routinely break the momentum and flow of an intense, action-oriented game. If you remove the 'quick whistle', the action again will be more continuous, the game will be more exciting, and thus the product more appealing to new viewers and traditionalists.

BC's Line was Offensive - No BCS

After watching a slew of college football bowl games over the Holidays, it is a shame that the Boston College Eagles did not make it to a BCS bowl game. Earlier in the year they were undefeated, had a Heisman trophy candidate, a senior team, and were ranked #2 in the polls but then everything went south and instead we were forced to watch an over matched Hawaii team and a barely above .500 Michigan team play on New Year's Day.

With all the accolades that have been thrown towards first year BC Coach Jeff Jagodinski this past season, why hasn't anyone mentioned the ineffectiveness of the offensive line? Sure Coach Jags brought a Favresque looseness to the offense this year but his major impact was to to slim-down the lineman in an effort to make them faster and more productive in his new zone blocking schemes.

In the past, BC was known for their large, dominating offensive fronts. A line so big that they would wear down the opposition in the second half of games. This year not only were they giving up a multitude of sacks but they were the ones wearing down in games often forcing Matt Ryan to roll out of the pocket and throw or run for his life.

I appreciate Coach Jags enthusiasm but one could argue that if it weren't for his offensive line tweaks and schemes, Ryan may have had a lot less INTs and BC may have had an ACC Championship, another Heisman trophy winner, and a BCS bowl bid.

So long Johan…

It's time for the Boston Red Sox to just move away from the whole Johan Santana trade option. The Minnesota Twins and new GM Bill Smith are holding things up and I get a sense that they would rather trade him to the National league or hold on to him all together before dealing him to the Sox. First the Twins wanted positional players, then pitching, and now it seems they want a whole farm system for their prized pitcher. Enough already! They have tried to pit the Yankees against the Red Sox in negotiations but now even the Yanks have lost interest and so should the Sox. Even David Ortiz doesn't believe his good friend Johan will be with the Red Sox next year.

We just won our second World Series Title in four years, have a great farm system, and a manageable payroll. We don’t need Santana and as long as the Yankees don’t get him we should move on. At this point we need to focus on moving Coco Crisp and rounding out the rest of the roster before its too late.

New Celts Beat Knicks by 45!

I finally got to watch the new Celtics last night on TNT. I'm not entirely sure if the Celts are really this good or the New York Knicks are just that bad but either way it was nice to see the hometown team in a blowout. However, I was a little miffed at what happened at the end of the game.

The Celtics had the ball with 26 seconds left in the game and like true sportsman in a lopsided contest, they did not take a shot at the basket and instead choose to take the 24 second violation. The Celtics took this approach a couple of games ago and in appreciation the opposing team just inbounded the ball until the game-ending buzzer sounded. Last night the Knicks' Nate Robinson chose another approach and instead heaved the ball and effectively nailed a 3-point shot at the buzzer. I don't care what the score is, I thought this was totally unsportsman-like and was surprised no one called the Knicks on it. Had the Celts known the Knicks were still so eager to score, why doesn't the Celts' Rajon Rondo just pass the ball to Robinson?! I guess this unpredictable action by the Knicks does support the Patriots and Coach Belichick's statement about scoring whenever and wherever you can, but just remember one thing New York...karma can be cruel.

The Red Sox can resign Mike Lowell

At age 32, Jason Varitek (now 35) came off a year in which he hit .296 with 18 HR and 73 RBI in 2004. Going against their formula, the Sox signed him to 4 year extension at $10 mill a year because they realized how valuable he was to the orginization.

Mike Lowell is now 33 and one could argue that with his leadership, defense (11 errors this past season was an abberation), clubhouse personality (bridge between Spanish and American players), his offense and the ability to play both in Fenway and Boston, he may be almost as valuable as Varitek to this team right now.

Also, hopefully the Red Sox are finally understanding that you can spend tons of money on the Renteria's and JD Drew's, but you never know how they will perform in this environment until it's too late. If the Sox can give JD Drew (31) a 5 year $70 mill deal and Julio Lugo (31) a 4 year $36 mill deal, then they cany pony up at least a 3 year $13 mill a year deal for Mike Lowell.

Salary coming off Sox Payroll:

• Schilling $13 mill


• Clement $9.5 mill


• Gagne $6 mill


• Hinske $5.7 mill (half paid by Blue Jays)


• Tavarez $3.1 mill


• Donellely $1.4 mill

We are the Champions!?

It's been awhile but these truly could be the best of times for a Boston Sports fan.

ESPN's Mike Greenberg (a New Yorker) in talking about the recent success of the Boston sports teams this morning;"It makes you want to throw-up!"

1985-1986:

• Red Sox go to World Series
  
• Patriots go to Superbowl


• BC Football finished ranked #19


• Celtics win Championship


• Bruins make play-offs
  

2007-2008:

• Red Sox win World Series


• Patriots undefeated


• BC Football ranked #2


• Celtics are favored to win division


• Bruins have best start in years