Six years of bad baseball in Anaheim and when I say bad baseball I'm Talking about the players around Shohei Otani. A player of his talent and arguably one of the best players beside him in Mike Trout and neither of them in 6 years saw the playoffs. Now Otani is signed with the Dodgers. Good for him. But I hope he's ready for the let downs when they win 100 games and don't get to the Worlds Series or lose the series. Can you imagine a man who can pitch a full game and turn around and hit the game winning homerun? 

With the understanding he wanted to play in the American League with the DH and now the entire league has the DH. 

What bothers me is sports can be like political polling. Always some rumor. Things can go one way or the other. At one time I'd seen Otani coming to the Cubs because they already have another Asian player. He would fit right in. And last week some fool report he was going to Toronto. That made no sense to me because he wanted to stay on the west coast. 

The Cubs sign Craig Counsell and then what? Does that mean the division is in our laps automatically? There may have been a reason Milwaukee let go of Counsell. Sure he could win some division Championships. Make the post season and be one of the first teams out. As Harry Caray would say, "Holy Cow." the Cubs have so many holes to fill and so far none of the other division teams are making a splash so the Cubs might have a chance. 

This is the same case in all sports  whichever city you're in: what is my team going to do to get better? You know they have holes to fill but you watch the good free agents come off the board or you sign a guy for a year and he has a career year but walks in the off season (Cody Bellinger). Or an annoying habit baseball has which is to trade players for a guy who is going to walk at the end of the season. G©

“Man it makes me so happy just knowing my career isn’t going down the drain.” Former Bear linebacker Roquan Smith on his time in Baltimore more beneficial than his time in Chicago and if Chicago had given him the money he wanted to be the highest paid linebacker in the league. Truly after his departure the Bears defense fell apart. Since 2018 there have been a number of notable departures from the Bears acquired by draft or trade. And the thousand yard stare and the losses pile up. With constant change in front office administration and a need to turn over the roster. Since the end of the Lovie Smith/ Brian Urlacher time in Chicago the Bears are a hot mess. Up and down since the 90’s. However Lovie Smith was the last coach to get the Bears to the Super Bowl in ‘06/’07. Even then it was a cluster fuck particular at quarter back which is clear when you make it to the Super Bowl with Rex Grossman under center. Maybe not the reason they lost the Super Bowl but reasons why they didn’t win. Football is a physical sport. Probably the most physical of all American sports. How much can a body take in constant losing without guaranteed contracts as in other sports? Regardless of sport it’s hard to watch one of your star players walk or get traded particular when there’s genius in acquiring that talent. The last few years if you want a linebacker the best place to go is the University of Georgia. Smith is the second Georgia linebacker in the last few years after Leonard Floyd who ends up winning a Super Bowl with the Rams in ’21. It’s like saying “get out while you can.”  Even if you don’t play linebacker, Ahem, Justin Fields. Really baseball and basketball are sports where an athlete is willing to go through a rebuild. The NFL you want to get past your rookie contract and sign a big contract with a team on the verge of winning and they’re willing to pay. Sports being a business so you’re not playing for one team in a league with 32 sets of eyes. Each week is an audition. The last thing you want is to feel is your career is going down the drain. Which if considered is a rough thing to say about any team in any sport. Smith did say, “it was bittersweet to be traded.” He knows the regard for the position of linebacker in Chicago. Certainly he would have been a legend here. But how many coaches would he have to suffer before he’d reach the success he’s had in Baltimore? There is no burying the lead in this one. But Brian Urlacher was in Chicago for 13 years and might have a problem with that statement. And the recently passed Dick Butkus. With that in mind we have been hurt by linebackers leaving. Does anyone remember Wilber Marshall?  

 The Cubs let go of David Ross after four tough seasons at the helm of the Cubs including seeing the club through covid. There is a lot of love on the North Side for "Rossy" because he was a pivotal part of the 2016 World Series winner Cubs. Including hitting a homerun in game seven of the World Series against the Cleveland Indians/Guardians. It can be said that under him the Cubs got rid of their core of Kris Bryant, Anthony Rizzo, Wilson Contreras and Javier Baez. They weren't winning and the only one who ended up on a winning team was Rizzo with the Yankees. Can we say that is "Rossy's" fault? I don't know but one trend I did see under him was the team would start off looking like they're going to compete in a bad division where the Cubs ended up in second place and still end up missing the playoffs. 

Too many times I've seen Chicago players leave Chicago and end up on a team from the division. It is funny to see a division rival come here. I didn't think it would be Craig Counsell who I remember from his playing days in Milwaukee. And it took him several years for the Brew Crew to become relevant under him. And then he dominated a bad division except the years the Cardinals made things interesting while the Brewers slapped the Cubs around. 

I do think David Ross has a right to be angry. He's finally given players to win with and a minor league system that is ranked in the top 5 in baseball. And he has one season with this on his side. Unfortunately after having a three game lead for the second wild card they choked. This has to be the reason they chose to remove him. Not to say he wouldn't have dominated going forward but the Cubs felt they had to take this chance on Counsell. I must say that Counsell has not really fared any better then Ross other than having the players to make the playoffs. 

Since joining the division the Brewers have been a thorn in the Cub's side. I can remember '07 when the Brewers started the season with a nine game lead. These were the Ryan Braun days. The cheater Ryan Braun. But they languished long enough for the Cubs to come back and win the division. This is the way it went for several years until they finally became like the Packers owning the Bears. 

Milwaukee's success has been recent and never sniffing the World Series. It seems like we're trading one "Rossy" for another. Perhaps Ross didn't handle the pitchers well it has been said. And maybe a few other mistakes but sports is all about the bottom line and when you have a chance to make the playoffs after management gave you more than they have in the past you have to take advantage. That is my opinion. There is no fact in that as I don't know what makes Counsell better than Ross. 

Hell Yes there is a quarterback controversy at Halas Hall. But first congratulations to Tyson Bagent and the Chicago Bears for winning a big game of backups. Against a former Bear Quarterback who hasn’t won a game since he left the Bears. It’s a great story like the kid who hits a grand slam his first major league at bat.

Bagent played well in a way that showed the coaching staff went into this game with a game plan to win this game. There is a Quarterback controversy at Halas Hall because Bagent was hardly touch during that game. The offensive line was nearly perfect. The defense played well. It was a complete team win. Bagent wasn’t put in there to manage the game and try not to make mistakes like they do most rookie or backup quarterbacks who don’t get a lot of reps during the week. They opened the play book and let it loose. If they had the same game plan for Justin Fields he’d have won more than 6 games in his career. Admittedly if I was Justin Fields I would be furious. None of his games seemed so smooth. For once they looked like and actual NFL team.

The Bears would’ve won that game no matter who was at quarterback. Not to  say that Bagent doesn’t have any talent but it was the best game for him to make his debut. If Jimmy Garropolo had played the game might have either been closer or the Bears might have lost.

 I’m not one to speak on a mans job but I think the Bears should move on from their current coaching situation or some of the coaches on the offensive side of the ball. The Bears have a franchise quarterback where other teams have drafted more than one. Look at the Vikings. They’re holding tight to a former back up because they realize there isn’t much out there and Colin Kaepernickis persona non grata  whether or not he’s willing to accept it. I suggest to save Justin Fields career he request  a trade to the Jets or New England both teams which recently drafted quarterbacks.   

I said Deion Sanders should not rely on rivalries to drive his team. I was wrong and right. I was wrong because criticizing him and the Property values of Boulder, Colorado goes up. Driven by disrespect catch you on the wrong side of the score board. I was right because the teams that learn not to kick dirt on the midfield logo. They could have set themselves up on a chance at the conference or division championship. And a step closer to bowl eligible. Then we'd really get to see how Colorado fans travel. 

This is year one and after a five year contract he can pick where he wants to go and no one will turn him down. Remember Deion keeps receipts. Again with the chip on the shoulder gets you to penalties at pivotal points in the game. When you're no longer underdogs do what you do best. When his boys are gone from Colorado, hopefully in the NFL, and he has roster he has to further turn over be prepared for the moments when they are  a mainstay in the top 25. G©

Deion Sanders says he would never coach in the NFL because he cannot deal with players getting paid big money before they play a game. Yet his son, Quarterback Shedeur Sanders got a 10 million NIL deal before he took the field against TCU. I have always been for paying players beyond their educational costs and I remember when boosters would pay players under the table but nowhere near what they're getting now. I understand at football schools it is king. And players are putting their bodies on the line like Travis Hunter, two way player for the "Buffs who got injured against Colorado State. In my opinion the 'Buffs haven't seen the hardest part of their schedule yet and Sanders is being admonished by The G.O.A.T. Tom Brady for buying a Rolls Royce when he should be in the video room trying to get better. Sanders response was, "I saw you have one so I bought one." 

What  bothers me is a student athlete making that kind of money while those who cannot throw a ball or anything to do with a ball struggle to pay their tuition and student loans while these athletes walk out of school whether they have a future in sports with no debt. Ten Million is ridiculous. I've also noticed that no one knows what his major is or if he's even going to class. I get that schools make different rules for athletes and it might not be the school who is paying this money. Sanders has definitely put up some great numbers and probably has a future in the NFL but as I said he hasn't played the hardest part of the 'Buffs schedule yet. Regardless how the rest of his time in Colorado goes he's going to be able to say what very few students can say while the Biden Administration is trying to give aid to those who have large educational debt Shedeur Sanders will drive away in style and owe nothing for his "education." 

Do What You Do

I would warn Deion Sanders not to let the chip on his shoulder get to be too big. You have maybe 11, 12, games in a season are you going to find something in every one of those games to piss you off? No one should be surprised that The Buffaloes are winning. While I never figured Sanders for a x's and o's man he certainly got it down with over 900 hundred yards passing in two games. Deion Sanders is not going to let anyone out work him no matter who he pisses off along the way. He is an Icon and a hall of fame athlete who really does not need to be doing any of this. But he was asking if people believe in his program after one win. The same amount the last coach won. Then he had to beat Nebraska who is absolutely terrible and heartbreaking from what they were in the eighties and nineties. Now the real coaching begins. The difference between Jackson State and Colorado is he needs to win just 6 games to be bowl eligible. 
I said that when he left Jackson State every coach in the Pac 12 (soon to be defunct) got a tape of all his games. The one thing they didn't see on that his tapes is his ability to inspire and compete. Take a difficult situation and turn it around. Forget the plays and the schemes, there isn't a coach in college football right now that is doing what Deion is doing. Please Deion take that chip off your shoulders you have/had nothing to prove from day one. Let the pundits trip over their tongue in judgement of you but you knew something they didn't know whether they played college football or even professional football no coach in history ever prepared their team to take the field better than Coach Prime and it shows. I've heard players and coaches alike say we had a great week of practice and they still got blown off the field. Personally I would let my kids graduate and go back to coaching high school football, remembering I have nothing to prove. The Colorado Buffaloes will not get anywhere near the national Championship and they don't need to. But Sports writers have memories like elephants and they will remember how great Deion is as a coach but as well the feathers he will ruffle especially if he starts calling out teams that do not show up for the Colorado pro day. I am not saying turn down the passion but turn down the side show and do what you do.