J Soul

Last month, I wrote a pretty bad, yet cheesy, poem about Jose Canseco, and what I thought about his ‘name calling’ in his books and interviews. I made up my mind about him from the beginning, and never gave his word a chance. But that changed today, when I finally gave in and bought one of his books. I bought his newest release, ‘Vindicated’, from a Penn Station bookstore that was selling it at 20% off (not that the discount is what led me to buy it). It was time for me to give ‘Jose’ another chance. After all, my former opinion of his ‘allegations’ and ‘name calling’ was mostly fueled by the media bigwigs at ESPN or CNNSI, instead of my own cerebrally-formed opinion. So, here it goes.

[Start of 'Bizarre Story' Break]

I was riding the LIRR with my girlfriend, on our way to visit my grandparents, when a whole bunch of Mets fans got on the train at Woodside (I say Mets fans because they all had Johan Santana jerseys on). One of them caught a glimpse of what I was reading, and said down at me, “What does it say about A-Rod?“. I ignored him, and kept on reading, because I wasn’t about to get into a conversation with a guy on his way to a baseball game who already looked drunk (at 11:00am, mind you). He turned to a friend of his and continued by saying, “This kid is reading that Canseco book. Man, @&#% Canseco… and @$&% A-rod too“. Kid? Amazing how an 18 year old “kid” calls a 26 year old a kid (I know he was 18 because a friend of his had said “you’re NOT drinking at the game, you’re only 18″). Okay, how in the world would he know I’m 26 anyway… but that’s besides the point. Back to the post…

[End of 'Bizarre Story' Break]

I’m not going to give away the meat of the book, because I believe everyone (who has an interest in this topic) should buy the book and give it a chance. The guy is simply recalling his life, from start to present day. Sure, he names a bunch of players and recalls a lot of conversations, but that’s purely secondary to what he really talks about in the book. The majority of this new book was focused on two things (at least from what I took from the book):

A) Why steroids and performance enhancing drugs were kept so ‘quiet’ during the post ‘Strike of 1994′ years of baseball. (I happened to have the same ‘theories’ that he had)
B) How steroids created a ‘Level Playing Field’. (That’s where I was a little skeptical)

My opinion on Jose’s claims haven’t change dramatically, but simply looking at what he has to say (lie-detector passed and all) has given me a whole bunch of new theories to rack my brain with. I will agree with him on this, though. “Chicks Dig The Longball”. How many of you remember that commercial with Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine, and Big Mac? Jose made a reference to that commercial in the book, and how it was a funny reference to the state of baseball back in the (now referred to as the ‘Juiced’) era. Fans (and sports coverage hounds like ESPN and others) love the home run ball. Whether it’s a solo shot, a grand slam, or a game-winner… there’s something about the ball being crushed into the next atmosphere that gives baseball fans an incredible rush. After reading this book, I’m starting to believe in the idea that Steroid use was kept quiet because it kept fans (notice I didn’t say ‘all fans’) in their seats, buying more tickets, buying more food/alcohol, and fueling the baseball economy.

None of this means I’m a believer in everything Jose says. What it means, is that I was knowingly hand-fed media garbage and used their opinions as my own. I accepted it without questioning it, and now I want my own opinion back.

So what have I learned from all this? While I never did know a whole lot about Jose Canseco, his book has given me some neat theories to play around with. Thanks Jose!

Believe what you want. Believe who you want. We’ll all believe who we want and what we want. It’s our god-given right to do so. But me? After all of the ‘Canseco Nay-Saying’ I did? I’m glad he opened his big mouth. Then again, the media-opinion-hungry kid on the inside wants this guy to fade away into the darkness that is the “Steroid Era” and never been heard from or seen again, along with everyone else involved. But then I’d just be a media-puppet… and we all know that’s no fun!

Respect My Authoritah!

Wade Korpi, of the Notre Dame, was clocked in the head with a ball off the bat of opposing hitter Dan Betteridge of Rutgers University. Luckily, Korpi was able to walk off the field under his own power. This is a video of the ‘beaning’, recorded right behind the catcher.

Ouch!

Doing my usual web-browsing for baseball news, I came across this Yahoo article on Alex Rodriguez and the Florida Marlins. The article had nothing to do with statistics or the game itself. It had to do with money. This article was about how Alex Rodriguez ($28 million) makes more money, annually, than the entire current roster of the Florida Marlins ($21.8).

If you’ve read my previous “Major League Greedball” post, you’d know my stance on the flow of money through sports, and where I believe it should really be going. I have nothing against Alex and his talents, or any other player in baseball and their talents, for that matter. I just have a hard time believing in the sport with so much money being dumped into it, when all that money could be going to more important places (in my opinion), like into the pockets of educators. Now, I’m not saying that highly paid players don’t give back to their communities. A lot of players have foundations, charities, or donate money because of a clause in their contract. That’s all wonderful and great. But at $28 million a year… if Arod doesn’t win any World Series rings as a Yankee, that’s one big waste of money, in my opinion.

I’ll feel a little better when the $21.8 million Florida Marlins make a playoff run… or will Jeff Loria sign a truck-full of high-priced Free Agents at the end of the season to win a World Series, and fire everyone when they finally win it? How very “Huizenga” of me to say…

Opening Day… It’s supposed to be a wonderful occasion for Major League Baseball, the players, and the fans. But down in the District of Columbia, Opening Day turned into Opening Boo. George W. Bush was announced to throw the first pitch before the Washington Nationals played their first game in their new ballpark. What was supposed to be a pretty sweet moment in Nationals history, turned into yet another example of just how much us Americans look forward to the end of Bush’s presidency (including myself). Enjoy!

Boooooooooo!

~ by J Soul
(Also found at the Global Mets Fan Blog)

Go Away Jose
I don’t care what you have to say
Stop publishing your greed-driven books
Because I’ll be the last one to pay

You’ve tarnished the reputations of many
With a disgusting smirk on your face
How much money is it going to take
To put you in your place

What’s important now are the children
And the harm these drugs can do
But you don’t care about all that
Just the careers you want to screw

Now that I think of it
You probably needed the ‘roids in your ass
We all know that without them
You couldn’t have hit the ball over of the infield grass

Let it be known that nobody is safe
As long as Jose raises his brow
If you can hit or throw a baseball
You must’ve gotten the drugs somehow

This morning, I read an article on ESPN.com about another “big” signing in Major League Baseball. The Detroit Tigers are all set to sign newly acquired 3rd Baseman, Miguel Cabrera, to an 8-year contract worth $153.3 Million! If I wasn’t annoyed about salaries in professional sports, I am now. I’m not going to make any “Statistical” arguments about why nobody in baseball should make nearly that much. I’m going to make a more practical argument.

Everyday in this country, teachers are getting short-changed. Teaching is one of the most important professions in the world. I’m not a teacher, but I have a lot of friends who are, and who are struggling to make a living for themselves because they don’t make nearly as much as they deserve. What can a teacher do for you? A teacher can give you building blocks and motivate you to be whoever and do whatever you want to be successful. A teacher can show you that you should always reach for your dreams and goals. Education is so important in the growth of our children in this country, and all over the world. As a matter of fact, teachers are so important, that they could teach people like Rosanne Barr how NOT to sing the National Anthem like this…

I remember this… and I remember throwing up afterwards…

They could also give Ashlee Simpson’s sound guy come sound career advice when he screws things up for poor Miss Simpson…

“Saving her voice” my @ss. If she can’t hold her own on stage and resorts to ‘over-dubbing’, then she shouldn’t be performing live…

What kind of message does this Cabrera contract signing send towards the children of this country who need education and teachers? In my own opinion, it doesn’t send any positive messages towards the kids of America, except for a message of greed. Basically, if you can play baseball well, you’ll be rewarded with all the money you could dream of. So, play the game to get rich… because if you play the game unselfishly and because you love the game, you’ll end up making as much as a Tampa Bay Ray. (I still think of them as the Devil Rays)

When I see my elementary school, middle school, and high school teacher friends making as much as professional athletes, I’ll be more interested in the sport of baseball, and other professional sports, like I was when I was growing up. It’s one thing to earn a living, being a professional athlete. But to play the game for greed is a whole other story.

But on another note, as a Mets fan, I sure am glad to see Miguel in the American League. Happy Trails, Miguel!

Seriously! When I saw this video of Dodgers pitcher, Clayton Kershaw, my jaw dropped! When you see this curve, see if you can identify the expression on Sean Casey’s face. It’s such a good curveball, that Vin Scully calls it “Public Enemy Number One”! Well, enough of the waiting. Here’s Clayton Kershaw making a mockery of Sean Casey.

Calling Public Enemy… Flava Flav, where are you?

MLB Advanced Media had the video taken down because they don’t want to lose any money from people clicking over to YouTube to watch a 20 second clip, when you could be spending actually money paying for an mlb.tv account to watch tiny highlights. Some logic, huh? Anyway, his curveball was sick. If you have an mlb.tv account, try looking for the video.

I may have called him a jerk because he should realize that he’s gonna be on TV, being a MLB ballplayer and all… and because kids watch baseball games too… but I laughed… a lot!

[ This post can also be found on the Global New York Mets Fan Blog ]

I’m sure this post will bring in a lot of flack from Phillies fans and fans of other NL East teams, but I’m not concerned. I’m confident there are “decent typing” fans out there who can tell the difference between a direct insult and a generalization (which is what I’m doing here). So what might be on the mind of Mets fans going into the 2008 Season? After a conversation with a friend, and fellow Mets fan, I thought I would share his mindset in the form of a picture show. Each one of these photos speak thousands of words into how my friend felt about the events of last season, the events of the offseason, and what he wishes for the upcoming season. Please enjoy: Inside the Mind of a Mets fan: A Picture Show!

“What I wanted was a repeat of…”

“But then there was…”

“And I felt like…”

“But then I saw…”

“And then we got…”

“And it would awesome if he could…”

“Because what I really want now is…”

The End