My Three Sons was a highly successful sit-com that ran from 1960-1972 starring Fred MacMurray. In the truest sense it was a sappy show following the life of the widowed Fred MacMurray character raising and caring for his three boys. He had a bit of help from Uncle Charlie who ran the house on a daily basis but the mentoring was all about Fred MacMurray. It was a show that I watched on a regular basis as each son had their share of growing pains and one had to tune in weekly to see who caught Dad's attention.

Moving forward, Deb and I have been blessed to have raised three sons. Each fulfilling their call in life with their families but always connected as brothers. They sometimes don't notice how similar they really are. Take the recent training of Robert and Craig for hiking rim to rim of the Grand Canyon and Mark's continued training for his upcoming Iron Man. Neither of these endeavors can be viewed as a "walk in the park' rather a strong commitment to months and weeks of training. 

Robert, Craig and Mark, independent of each other set out a plan and committed to their plan to train in a way where they would only succeed in their quest. It required Craig and Robert getting up some days at the crack of dawn to train on mountain paths for hours at end. I Mark's case, it meant hitting the pool doing lap after lap at the same time also making sure his proficiency on the bike and run were to his standards.

As their Father, I could not be more proud of their accomplishments. Robert and Craig were full of wonder in what they saw and experienced. And maybe the best part, they were proud of themselves. And for them, it'll last a lifetime. 

Mark sets out on is Iron Man in another week and I'm more than sure he'll kick ass as he has in prior race years. He prepares like a professional, so his results will be his reward.

Lastly, I tip my hat to my Three Son's. I only wish I could be doing these thing along side you. 

I love you guys!!

61*

I was 9 years old in 1961 when the M&M Boys (Maris & Mantle) chased down the Great Bambino's (Babe Ruth) home run record of 60 homers in a season. There was no ESPN nor internet in those days that would instantaneously provide statistical updates on a moments notice. I had to wait until the afternoon's newspaper, Rochester Times-Union, was delivered to see the results from the previous days ball scores. I made a habit to fall asleep listening to Mel Allen calling Yankees games on the radio. I can remember the sports page had a chart showing where Maris and Mantle stood versus the Babe on a per game basis. As the season neared the end, Mantle suffered from numerous nagging injuries, leaving Roger as the lone pursuer. Only saw delayed broadcast of Maris breaking Ruth's record but as a true blue Yankee fan I was thrilled.

Coming forward 61 years (just a coincidence it being 61 years later and 61 homers once again), I am again enthralled by Aaron Judge's pursuit of Roger Maris's record 61 American league home run record. Sure, Barry Bonds holds the record at 73 and Sammy Sosa cranked out 66 long balls in 1998 but that was the steroid era and while many baseball historians acknowledge Bonds accomplishment, there are many others believing the clean record belongs at least for now to Roger Maris.

For me, it's been a frustrating Yankee year. Other than Judge, they haven't forced me into non-stop TV hawking. I don't ever think I've been more distant in any year. But Judge is a complete other story. He turned down a massive Yankee contract before the start of the year, instead betting on himself. The pressure to succeed would be immense, in NYC no less where each at bat is critically analyzed. His resilience has been off the charts. He has put together a statistical year that will rank with the all-time greats. A Triple Crown is with reach. Only the great Mickey Mantle has a Yankee Triple Crown.

Watching the game the other night with my wife when he tied the Babe at 60 was exhilarating in it had me thinking back to being 9 years old again and wishing I had the ability to have watched Roger break the record. When bat hit ball, we both jumped out of our chairs knowing the ball would travel deep into the left field bleachers. It was a sense of more Yankee pride. My grandmother made me a Yankee fan and its times like these that I thank her for doing so.

There are more games to be played and Judge will have every opportunity to further write his history. So, for me it's back to where I always belonged. Watching Yankee games and screaming at the TV.

But this time I have the resources to watch Judge break a 61 year old record. It only took 61 years but so what.  

 

If you have been a fan of baseball as long as I have, this picture has unfortunately become an all too familiar scene. STRIKE 3, YOUR OUT. Today's players are far too concerned with jacking homers with little regard for  batting average. There was an Nike ad campaign years ago centered around Greg Maddox and Tom Glavine with the saying "Chicks Dig the Long Ball" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qLECMCargd8). So, the chicks changed the game?

Where have all the contact hitters gone? Is there no room for the single hitters. Imagine no Ichiro or Wage Boggs. How about gap hitters. A double would be nice now and then. Throw in a Triple every other week or two so I can remember the good old days.

Launch angle and exit velocity are all the rage in today's game. I remember hearing Don Mattingly say if you execute a proper swing plane, the ball will indeed leave the ballpark. I truly believe we are teaching young players the wrong batting fundamentals. Putting bat on ball and putting said ball in play has taken a back seat to attempting to put said ball over said outfield fence. Boring!! 

I went to the Diamondback game the other night and I was thrilled with what I saw what Diamondback hitters do, they basically hit the ball, singles, doubles a triple and a home run. It was the full hitters gambit. Not only did they hit, they ran the bases. They are a young athletic team full of youthful exuberance. They are not a team build on old age and bulk.

My favorite player of all-time was Mickey Mantle. I adored how far he could hit a baseball. But, he also was a Triple Crown winner and in his youth was the reputed fastest from home to first.

I know not every player can be a Superstar but what we can expect players fully versed in all aspects of the game. For now, I'm back on the D-Back bandwagon with there youth movement. Sometimes you don't have to win World Series to entertain.

My Turn

1. Mookie Betts - arguably the 2nd best position player in all of Major League Baseball was shipped out of Boston late last night as the Red Sox embark on the pursuit of lowering their current payroll under the luxury tax threshold. Betts is off to LaLa Land and those free wheeling spending Dodgers. This maneuver could make for a rating bonanza for Fox Sports with a Yankee / Dodger World Series come October. Where it leaves the Red Sox will probably years away. Payroll flexibility will allow them to reconstruct their rooster, rebuild their farm system and pursue free agents that fit their new norms. What id doesn't do is put them in the business of winning championships the next few years. The Yankees and Rays and to some extent, the Blue Jays are positioned to rule the AL East.
   Bottom Line - How will the Boston fans who already are paying the highest tickets prices in all of baseball going to react to losing the best position player to come through their system since the likes of Fred Lynn or Jim Rice? I would suspect there will be tickets available.
   
2. Pete Rose - Now here's a guy either full of persistence or just plain old ignorance . Given the sign stealing scandal of the Houston Astros and Boston Red Sox, "Charlie Hustle" is taking the opportunity to ask for reinstatement from MLB. He has to be kidding, right! Even though no players in the recent scandal have been suspended or fined, Pete is seizing on the opportunity that two wrongs will somehow make his betting on baseball right. 
   Bottom Line - Pete has always been the truest definition of a huckster, peddling his innocence with every paid autograph or ball he signs. Pete should be always remain on the outskirts of Cooperstown.

     

                    Baseballs Trifecta                                 

                                  

The last two American League Champions are looking for new managers, as both A.J. Hinch of the Houston Astros and Alex Cora of the Boston Red Sox have been fired by their organizations due to their involvement in the on-going sign stealing investigation conducted by Major League Baseball. And now, it's being reported Carlos Beltran, who was the only player so named in the MLB investigation will never even have a chance to mange a single game and is out of his job as manger of the Mets.

My turn to sound off:

MLB did an incredible job under the leadership of Commissioner Manfred. He got results and applied the hammer to those who violated the rules. Surely different than old Bud Selig and the days of the steroid scandal. I'm not totally sure though the players should have been granted immunity, for they certainly bought into the crime.

Let's me say it a bit stronger. Those players both on the Astros and Red Sox who participated in this maneuver to exploit an unfair advantage are SCUMBAGS. They willingly padded their stats to the disregard or disrespect of their opponents and the game itself. There can be no silence. Knowing what a pitcher is about the throw is bullshit. I would love to know the analytics of what hitters averages were on breaking balls during their crime spree. Now we know precisely why the 2017 Astros and 2018 Red Sox seemed to be impossible to beat at their home ballparks. 

As a long time Yankee fan, I already have disdain for that team in Boston and I've now grown to have the same disdain for the Houston chapter. But even with that said, I'm not naive to think that this sort of technological cheating hasn't been used by other organization to some regard and if found to be true, they should be dealt with in the same manner.

So what's the solution? First, mine is a very simple one. Eliminate all on-field technology from the sport including replay. Put the umpires back in charge and if they miss a call or two, accept them for being human. The game has a long history without the help of modern technology. Besides, think of the time savings. 

Lastly, those who are caught inflicting damage to our American Pastime are ushered out of the game for life. No exceptions and no 2nd chances. If you want to run a clean ship, the consequences of cheating in any way shape or form should be extreme. 

Yankees Go All in on Gerrit Cole...Again

If you are a believer in the saying "third times a charm", better get Cole's uniform measurements because he's heading to the Bronx. It's already been widely reported many many, many times over how the Yankees after initially drafting Cole only to see him politely decline the offer and enroll at UCLA. They then tried to entice the Pirates to trade for him only to see him shipped instead to the Astros. Cole is a now the cream of this years free agent crop and with Scott Boras as his agent, looking to break the bank in terms of a total dollars deal. And the Yankees are chasing once again with their tremendously heavy wads of cash. Talk about persistence. Cashman is out to get his MAN.

It's being reported total dollars to get Cole's signature on a contract will exceed $300 Million over 9-10 years. Seeing that Cole is entering his so called baseball prime at age 29, what exactly will the Yankees be getting over that time span? Will a couple World Series championships be enough for the payout and take what you get toward the end of the contract. Pitcher's contracts have never been well suited to the back-end. But could his back-end be another Roger Clemens without the juice?

Bottom line...Cole is key in evaluating the Yankees plans going into the 2020 season. No Cole will not sink the optimism but would send that optimism to new all-time heights.

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Adios Muchacho! 

Lane Kiffin was abruptly fired in the wee hours of Sunday morning after the team's charter flight taxied to the gate as his team returned from a 62-41 thrashing at the hands of the Arizona State Sun Devils. Kiffin had been the #1 whipping boy for USC as he lost his fan base, his team and more importantly games. He inherited a football program caught cheating and the NCAA slapped them with heavy sanctions. This is not the first time USC has faced the wrath of the NCAA for their cheating ways. The arrogant fan base demands nothing but their old glory days when Heisman Trophy winners dotted the sidelines and that damn white stallion raced around the track.

I'm no Kiffin apologist and I certainly am no fan of Southern Cal (they don't like being called that anymore) but the true villain of why this once highly esteemed football program has fallen as far as it has now resides in the Pacific Northwest. Yes, it's that gum chewing, smirking cheerleader, one Pete Carroll. He cheated and cheated until he was caught and fled for the millions Paul Allen and the Seattle Seahawks threw at him. And without even the slightest hint of remorse. I wish there was an NFL rule that prohibits coaches who put a university into NCAA sanctions from taking a NFL job until their prior university exits from probation. I'd pay to see that smirk wiped off Pete Carroll's face if that rule was in place today.

So I was wrong again! What's new? I usually make my picks with my heart and not that other important part of my anatomy. That said, I still think Michigan had the better talent, they just didn't have the best "college" talent. What Louisville and Pitino did to win works best in my opinion at the college ranks. Pitino has already crashed and burned twice tying to bring his full-court hackathon to the NBA. I also thought Michigan was victimized by a rather poor effort by the officiating crew. Louisville is hard to officiate in that they press the issue of bumping the ball handler as much as they can and the boys blowing the whistles didn't want to consistently stop the action. I get it but it's not fair to what Michigan wanted to do.
Finally, I would ask Coach Beilein why he elected to have the game dictated by Louisville's pint sized guards getting to the rim. Why no zone or packing the lane? I only ask because while at West Virginia he ran a 1-3-1 zone. He gets paid millions and he had the better future NBA talent, so I am a bit perplexed. In my opinion you never know when you'll get this opportunity and I would do anything I could to insure a better result, like winning.
In the end it was a great game to watch and will go a long way to supporting college basketball. So much better than having to watch a Wisconsin type game.

Okay, so I jumped right to tonight's championship game between Louisville and Michigan. I basically shipped over the entire Sweet Sixteen and you know why, I didn't care. My bracket had been destroyed. There was plenty of warnings heading into this year's March Madness that hailed it was any one's tournament but did you really think that a Cinderella  would actually win. It almost happened. Wichita State almost crashed the ball before turning back into a pumpkin.
We are now left with a battle between two power conferences. The Big East vs the Big Ten. It had to be. CBS didn't pay all that cash to watch two Mid-Majors battling it out.
So tonight, who wins? Is it the pressure of Louisville or the talent of Michigan? I'm going with "Go Blue". Look for a quick paced game with the 3 point shooting of Michigan to be the deciding factor.
It's officially Baseball Season!

  

Day 4

Play and survive was the tone Sunday with a number of great games decided by late buckets.

Ohio State/Iowa State had it all. Two teams evenly matched playing their tails off. A true March Madness buzzer beater that will enrich the highlight reels for years to come. Controversy... was it a charge or wasn't it a charge? In the end Ohio State moves on and sets up a classic match up of former Xavier coaches, Thad Motta and Sean Miller. You didn't think I wouldn't get a Xavier plug in did you.

Kansas found themselves down by nine at half to North Carolina and had made zero three pointers for their first three halves of the tournament before blitzing the 3-point arc for a quick 4 or was it five to take complete control over UNC and they move on.

Temple and LaSalle made the city of Philadelphia proud in their efforts Sunday although only LaSalle moves on. Temple battled tournament favorite Indiana to the every end before falling to the Hoosiers while LaSalle used a late tip in for their first appearance in the Sweet Sixteen since high top Converse were the rage.

The only question I have for Florida Gulf Coast is, how did you lose to Lipscomb twice this year? These guys are both talented and extremely entertaining to watch. I only wish more coaches preferred their fast breaking style of play.

It's now time for the Sweet Sixteen and time for the chalk to step up. I fully expect teams from the so called power conferences to take back the tourney. My picks for the Final Four are Duke, Michigan, Arizona and Indiana. Then again, I'm stuck near the cellar in my Tourney Bracket, so don't take these picks to Vegas.

  

Day 3

On the hits just keeping on coming.

Gonzaga, do you realize what you have done? Never again in the history of March Madness will a team outside the so called power conferences ever be trusted with a #1 Seed. You may be able to run the table in the weaker than weak West Coast Conference but you puked when it counted, March.

Best game of the day featured Butler vs Marquette and they didn't disappoint. These two teams met back in Hawaii in a game decided by a miracle three buzzer beater and judging how close the game was throughout they could keep this going for hours. Wait till next year when Butler joins the Big East.

VCU ran into a team with a handle and it was curtains for the hackers from Richmond. Great to see them get manhandled.

Arizona sent the Crimson of Harvard back to Beantown but let's give it up to a team of true student athletes and how college sports should be.

It's now time for the Sweet Sixteen and how's your bracket? Mine is utterly been destroyed but that's why we are hooked yearly on March Madness.

 

Day 2

Let me get right to the point. Georgetown is a fraud year in and year out. Given that John Thompson II only won one title over all the years he roamed and intimidated the sidelines with the talent he acquired on a yearly basis it's no surprise his kid, John Thompson III has no freaking clue what he's doing. My problem is I get hooked every year on picking these sorry saps to advance in my bracket and every year I get hosed by the Hoyas. The Princeton offense needs to be kicked out the door.

I am exuberant though over the early departure of the Wisconsin Badgers. I hate there style pure and simple. Slow and slower. Isn't it time for Bo-ball to be extinguished.

Nortre Dame needs a makeover and I'm not talking about the players. They simply need to tell Adidas to stuff those neon green uniforms. You are a great school with a great athletic tradition and you do not need any gimmicks. The Yankees don't break out new uni's at playoff time.

I need to give a shout out to the A-10. They have been dominate so far. As a Xavier alum, I'm proud of what our conference has accomplished even though it's sickening we aren't in the tourney.

UCLA is another flawed program that needs a makeover. I think that's coming rather quickly with Ben Howland being shown the door.

One last thing and it's about style. So called expects like to say the NBA is a players league and college basketball is about coaches. I would hope to think that after watching teams like Florida Gulf Coast that it is all about the players and their love of the game. Basketball at it best is meant to be played fast.

Day 1.

March Madness is off and running and there is plenty to talk about already.
First and foremost, New Mexico has to have been the most over seeded team in the history of the tournament. If I had seen even five minutes of any one of their games I would have had them losing right away instead of advancing to the Sweet 16. Go Crimson!
Hey Seth Davis and Jay Bilas, what sort of weed have you both have been smoking, considering your shout outs that Arizona and Syracuse were heading home early. Just a quick question, did you even see Belmont or Montana play this year? Belmont wasn't exactly blown out but they were never, never a serious threat. I turned off the Cuse game right away as it was blow out city.
You had to feel sick for Davidson. The played a near perfect game. Marquette, so far the luckiest team in the tournament was 1-10 from beyond the arc and then quickly flushed three 3's very late to get themselves back in the game. The ending was miserable as Davidson threw the ball away and then played no defense on a nearly uncontested layup for the Marquette victory.
Hey Zags, you were almost a trivia answer as to who was the first #1 seed to lose to a #16. It's tough sometimes to play that first tournament game but at least you won.
Great comeback by St. Mary's as they nearly provided one of those patented buzzer beater March Madness moments.
Finally, how many comericals are there? These kids can never get tired playing two minute shifts. Take the timeouts away from the coaches and we'd really see games decided by the players

Who Who !!

I took a step back to my youth and stayed out late last night attending  "The Who" concert in Phoenix, AZ. I say that because the first time I saw The Who in 1967 I was fifteen. It was their initial American tour and they were but the warmup band. The headliners that night were Herman's Hermit's but my buddy Bill Moriarty and I went to see The Who. They were a brash loud British band that closed out their concerts by tearing up the stage and destroying their instruments, something I just had to see. Their play list was a short one but offered early hits like Substitute and My Generation. We didn't get to hear any on their early stuff last night as they performed music from the album Quadrophenia followed by a five song encore that had the arena rocking. I left knowing that I got my money's worth and if they offer me another opportunity down the road, I bet I'll be there again. Not waiting 45 years between concerts this time.