Tank's Take August 1, 2003

What Deadline?

Yesterday at 4pm EST was the trade deadline in Major League Baseball. The word trade deadline seems to infer that no more deal can be made, and if you were to improve your team this is the last chance.

However, it is a complete misnomer. Trades can still be made if a player passes through waivers. This means a player is place on waivers and if no team claims him he can be traded to any team. In August many players are placed on waivers and hardly ever is a player claimed, as teams don't want to step on toes of others or get stuck with the player they claimed, which can happen, unless the team attempting to trade the players pulls him off waivers.

Confusing enough for you?

Well that's just another example of Baseball double talk. The whole waiver deal concept in August is ridiculous. A trade deadline should mean no more trades past a certain date like in the NHL and NBA. Either baseball should set July 31st as the firm no trade deadline or move it August 31st the last day a player can be added to the roster to be eligible for a spot on a postseason roster. Or perhaps it should be placed somewhere in between, but this waiver trading period just adds more confusion to a sport famous for inconsistencies and double talk.

While most teams were either having a fire sale to retool for the future or loading up for a run at the playoffs, the Montreal Expos were forced to sit in limbo after MLB refused to allow them to make a trade. This is yet a further example of how this insanity of the team being owned by the league must be stopped.

It is understandable to get good value for the team the Expos must be able to keep players like Vladimir Guerrero, Jose Vidro, and Javier Vasquez. However, with the upcoming free agency of Guerrero if the ownership situation is not resolved how will they be able to keep him? So instead of getting prospects they will get nothing when he leaves via free agency. Beam Me Up SCOTTY!

This will only make matters worse for teh Expos this is yet another reqson why they must solve the Expos ownership situation and find a permamnt home for this team ASAP. Before they essentially become a minor league club for players that nobody wants or who are not free agents yet.

Speaking of trade deadlines I bet the tax payers of Cincinnati are proud. First the Bengals promised if they get a new stadium they will be able to contend again, last year they the Bengals won 2 games, and became the laughing stock of the NFL.

Then the Reds promised when they get a new ballpark they would be able to become a contender. Well as the Reds entered the Great American Ball Park the ownership would not allow the team to go after any free agents to improve the team. Granted Ken Griffey Jr. is one of the highest paid players in baseball, but they had no pitching entering the season, and it resulted them in falling out of the race leading to a complete house cleaning as GM Jim Bowden who just a few years ago was considered one of the best young General Managers in baseball, and Manager Bob Boone. In the meantime they completely purged their roster and they are left with essentially a minor league team in a new ballpark they begged to be built to help them contend. Do I hear the people of Cincy crying refund?

On paper the big winner of the baseball-trading season appears to be the Boston Red Sox, who vastly improved their pitching staff and bullpen by acquiring players like Scott Williamson, Jeff Supan, and Scott Saurbeck, along with the earlier acquisition of Byung Hun Kim. This has fans in Boston dreaming of a World Series. However, doesn't it seem that when the BoSox fans get their hopes this high its when they end up being crushed? Some how something will go wrong and the curse of Babe Ruth will live on, it's just the natural order of the universe.

While baseball is passing it fraudulent trade deadline, and entering the dog days of August, the preseason is starting in the NFL. I for one could not be looking forward to the NFL more. It promises to be another exciting season with many old faces in new places, including Junior Seau in Miami and Emmittt Smith in Arizona.

Acquiring Emmittt Smith the NFL's all-time leading rusher must mean the Cardinals intend to contend right?

Wrong. He was just brought in to attract fans that will be watching a bad team wallow at the bottom of the NFL. While bring in Smith who is well past his prime the Cardinals allowed QB Jake Plummer, and WR David Boston to walk away via free agency. Plummer and Boston were supposed to be the future in Arizona now they will be coming of age in the AFC West. The Cardinals made no effort to replace them either instead signing journey man QB Jeff Blake to replace Plummer. This is why the Cardinals have only won 2 playoff games in 80 years, this why they are constantly one of the worst teams in the NFL.

Emmittt Smith joining the crummy Cardinals brings to mind other surprising finishes among NFL Hall of Famers who left the team where they became famous and finished their careers elsewhere. Included in this list are Johnny Unitas who finished his career with San Diego Chargers, Joe Namath who ended his career with Los Angeles Rams, Franco Harris who played 1 season with the Seattle Seahawks, and Joe Montana who ended his career with the Kansas City Chiefs. Of this list only Montana had any success. However he never looked right in Kansas City, ane Emmittt will never look right in another other uniform besides the Cowboys. However the Cowboys needed to move on and Emmittt wants to continue his career. By October he will be regretting his decision to come to Arizona as the Cardinals lose lose and lose again.

All this player movement does make one long for the days when a player and a team basically stayed together for years. However, in this day of big contracts big money and must win pressure that has become impossible to sustain. Instead fans root for the uniform and not the players in the uniform. Sadly there will be no going back in this trend. However, it probably is a major reason their has been a disconnect between players, fans, and the team, and that is unfortunate.

Hero of the Week: This week's hero of the week is a hero for the ages Lance Armstrong, whose story is well known by now. Diagnosed with cancer his chances for survival were not good after it spread through out his body. After beating cancer he was not expected to return to competitive cycling. He did and he won the sport's biggest race 5 times in a row equaling the record held by Miguel Indurain. Armstrong has become an inspiration for all and he has become a beacon of hope for cancer patients and their families. The 5th straight win now solidify Armstrong in the all-time sports pantheon of legends larger then life with players like Babe Ruth, Michael Jordan, Joe Montana, and Wayne Gretzky. For now on when one thinks of competitive cycling they will think of Armstrong, who intends to go for 6th straight Tour win next year. Weather he gets it or not his place in history is secure, as he has managed to make Americans actually care about the tour de France, a race that would get no attention at all if not for the exploits of Lance Armstrong, if that does not make him one of the sports giants I don't know what does.

Geek of the Week: Raul Mondesi, after being lifted for a pinch hitter Sunday Mondesi showed his team spirit by taking a shower and leaving the stadium while the game was still going on. Less then 48 hours later Mondesi was no longer a Yankee, being essentially dumped on the Arizona Diamondbacks for David DeLucci. The incident in Boston was just the latest, after he showed up late in spring training, and missed other team functions. The deal may hurt the Yankees on the field in that they will miss Mondesi's RF arm that by reputation alone held players on the base paths. However, what it does do is establish a line of discipline one many teams fail to recognize any more. Sources say Raul Mondesi hates playing baseball, which is utterly incredible, because there is not a person who would not want to trade places with him, especially for the millions he makes. It's sad that players like Mondesi are given the gift of talent and waste it by mopping around. That is why it's refreshing that the Yankees unloaded his ass to Arizona. It is also the reason the Toronto Blue Jays gave him to Yanks last year for next to nothing. With in a few years his career will be over, and one day he will look back and be sorry for how he went through his career, and the missed opportunities he had to be better then he was, as well as the missed opportunity to be part of a World Series team, if the Yankees do go to the series this year. I hope Raul enjoys watching it on TV.