The People vs. LeBron James

If there's one thing that everyone in this country has in common, it is this: nobody knows what they want. This rings true in Who-like loudness when it comes to sports. We want Tiger Woods to be more human, but cry foul when he makes human mistakes. We bash Michael Jordan for his obsessive competitiveness off the court, but laud him for it with the ball in his hand. We never know what we want out of our athletes.

Really, we've asked for them to be perfect. To be funny but not cartoonish, confident but not arrogant, not a thug but also not smug, etc. Well, the NBA has this superstar. You might have heard of him. His name is LeBron James.

LeBron is as perfect as any athlete you will ever see. On the court, he scores, he dishes the ball, he hustles on defense. He simply makes his entire team better. Take Kobe Bryant off the Lakers, and they are still a very good team. Take LeBron off the Cavs, and you go from #1 team in the league to picking in the lottery every year.

But off the court is where he excels even more dramatically. There have been no rumors of drugs, alcohol abuse, treating people like crap or anything that could destroy his character. In an age where we are obsessed with the sex lives of celebrities, have you ever heard of one story about James with multiple groupies like Wilt or hitting up bars for skanks like Roethlisberger? None.

While I'm sure LeBron has employed an entire staff devoted from keeping his name strictly on the sports page, let's be honest here - you can't hide anything from the internet. If he truly was a ladies' man or a party animal, we would know. The truth is, James is a basketball phenom who is not only charismatic and likeable, but a stand up guy who knows his responsibilities.

And America hates this. Why else would we eat up scandals like Woods and Sandra Bullocks'? We love it when people that have more than us fall from grace. Though we pine for celebrities with just a smidgen of respectability, when someone like that actually comes around, we punish them for it.

First, there was Lebron James getting dunked on by a college kid, and the ensuing "controversy" of Nike stealing all documented footage. Either you have never heard of this event or you completely forgot about it. That's because it is, and was, a non-story. But at the time, it fueled the agendas of people like Skip Bayless, who put all their eggs in the "LeBron will never be the greatest basketball player" basket before he even entered the league.

Then there was the scandal of James not shaking hands with the Orlando Magic after being ousted in last year's Eastern Conference Finals. I wrote at the time and then reiterated my point a few months later how this was Jordan Part II. It's just being a competitive guy. Now we think of LeBron as a great guy and an ambassador of the league. Try again, haters.

Try, they did. Leading into this year's playoffs, James was railed for sitting out games. One writer even went as far as saying he owes his fans a refund and refused to vote for him as MVP. Now with LeBron banged up and the entire city of Cleveland holding their breaths for the series against Boston, let me ask the question: do you think he should have played all of those meaningless games?

Anything short of a 40/15/15 throughout the playoffs will leave the door open for people to call him out. The facts are there. He is the best player on the court and a truly respectable human being off it. This is what we all wanted. What more can LeBron James possibly do? And don't say win a championship, because if it's not against the Lakers with a healthy Kobe on the floor, the excuses will keep coming.

He is the NBA evolved. Get over it.

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Divorcing the Royals

I am in a very bad relationship. She beats me, hurts me, leaves me emotionally scarred almost every single night. Sometimes it can ruin my whole day just thinking about her. And yet, I keep coming home. I endure. My friends and family tell me to leave, that I deserve better. But I can't.

She, of course, is the Kansas City Royals. We've been together for 24 years now. Sadly, the last time she was even somewhat of a decent person was the year before we met. I do love her, but the pain has increasingly become much higher than the pleasure. I'm thinking of divorcing the Royals.

It's the most dreadful thing a sports fan can think about. There is no turning back once you let go of a sports team, because if you return when things start going well, then you become the worst kind of fan there is. It's permanent. No remarriages.

But enough is enough. It's one thing not to spend money. A lot of teams have small payrolls. Actually, there are ten teams that spent less this year than Kansas City did. One of those teams, Tampa Bay, might be the best team in baseball, and made a World Series appearance two years ago. It's not about the money, honey.

It's about the lack of caring. When you trot out the likes of Kyle Farnsworth and Bruce Chen to ruin the careers of Zack Greinke and Luke Hochevar, then there is a problem. When you lead the league in batting average, but come in dead last in team ERA, then you are wasting talent. Joe Posnanski tweeted the other day that since August of 2008, Greinke has had an ERA of 2.11, and in those games, the Royals are 22-24. This is unacceptable.

It seems that every decision this organization makes is the wrong one. The youth never pans out, the veterans are already washed up. I can get over the fact that we couldn't keep Jermaine Dye, Carlos Beltran and Johnny Damon; we're a small market team, it happens. But when you do have those guys and let them waste away and get bitter because you're unable to surround them with anything resembling a major league ball club? That is when it gets hard to swallow.

The scouts are never right, and somehow, through regime changes and everything, still this team seems incapable of understanding how to put a decent team on the field. Bad luck is one thing. Not every high draft pick will be a Hall of Famer. But to ignore stats, ignore history and ignore the windows of opportunity when they appear is just offensive to me. Why the hell should I support a team who at worst doesn't care about winning, and at best is completely ignorant and helpless?

I'm not breaking up with you yet, Royals, but I'm definitely taking some time away. Perhaps see some other people (don't worry, not your sister, the Cardinals. I hate that bitch). When I come back next Spring, you have better changed your ways. I simply cannot take any more of this. I don't want to, but I will divorce your ass. And if I'm lucky, I'm taking the kids, Zack and Billy, with me.

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Don't Buy The Hype

I'll put this out there right now: I'm not a Tim Tebow fan. I don't like him as a pro quarterback, and I certainly hate his holier-than-thou, good two-shoes personality. For his entire college career, every NFL expert agreed with me. Well, the part about him not making it as a pro, anyways.

In the few months between the end of his reign at Florida and the NFL draft, something changed. The conversation regarding Tebow's NFL future went from a 3rd to 5th round prospect to a possible 1st round threat. How did this happen?

An endless amount of publicity surely helped. You couldn't hear any talk about the draft without Tim Tebow's name coming up. Everyone wanted to know what round he'd go, what team what take that flier, if his throwing motion had changed, etc. The simple act of his name being heard surely advanced his status. But that's not the main reason.

There is this notion out there that Tebow is the ultimate warrior. He practices harder, plays harder and cares more than anybody else. For the sake of argument, I'll concede that. Let's say he really is the one guy who gives 110% every play. So what?

Remember Byron Leftwich? Click on this video. Forget the picture of Tebow with blood running down his face, Leftwich couldn't even walk down the field. You could say that nobody was tougher or cared more than Leftwich did. Very few people think that Tebow will be as successful as Leftwich was in the NFL, and he's currently the backup for the Pittsburgh Philanderer, Big Ben, traded for a mere 7th round draft pick.

Toughness means something, sure, but it isn't everything. You still need the tools. NFL teams will take the lazy Brandon Marshall over the hard-working Doug Flutie every day. And guess what, Sam Bradford, Jimmy Clausen and Colt McCoy aren't exactly bums. They too work their asses off and deeply care about the game. But they have one thing that Tim Tebow doesn't - a style of play that translates into the NFL.

Maybe Tebow will make it as an NFL quarterback. Nobody knows. But he doesn't have a monopoly on heart. Other guys have just as much desire as he does. They just have other qualities that shine brighter, while that's the only thing Tebow has to lean on. Good luck, Denver.

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Vote For Ben

I'll admit, Draft Day is getting to me. I have publicly come out against this new format, where Round 1 is now prime time on Thursday night. I still believe that it will take the excitement out of the later rounds. But today has a different feel than other NFL drafts. It almost feels like Election Day.

With the old Saturday/Sunday format, it started early enough that you couldn't think about things all day. There was just an hour or so of pre-draft specials, not the all day, CNN-esque coverage like today. When you have to wait all day long for the thing to even start, well, you start begging for more information.

This year, we all want to know one thing: Is Ben Roethlisberger going to be a part of it?

That's the story, because what we're talking about here is a 2-time Super Bowl winning quarterback, a young franchise quarterback, who instantly makes your team better. And you can get him fifty cents on the dollar. Pittsburgh seems ready to let him go.

The odd thing is, nobody seems eager to get him. I'm not talking about the actual teams (who the hell knows what they're thinking), but the fans. All I hear is how Big Ben is nothing but trouble and only suited to be a Raider. This is all based off his off-field performances, because before this offseason there was nothing short of Manning or Brady straight up that would've pried him away from the Steelers.

So are we really that moral, or do we just want to be heard that way? Remember how everyone hated Michael Vick's return? Well, it didn't take long for Philly fans to start chanting his name. When it comes down to it, we'll take a winner no matter what. Ray Lewis proved this. So did Pacman Jones.

I would bet the farm that Roethlisberger cleans up his act. I mean, he has to, right? So imagine getting his productivity, then add the fact that he won't be running around trying to get ass and pounding Jager-bombs. Shouldn't we expect his numbers to go up?

As a Chiefs fan, I'll give up the #5 pick and Matt Cassel if they want him. Reports are that a first round pick is all the Steelers really want. Other than Eric Berry, I have a hard time making a case of a home run pick at #5, and even then your taking a potential Pro Bowl safety over a proven, possibly Hall of Fame quarterback in Big Ben.

Say what you want about character issues, I want to win. I vote for Ben.

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2010 MLB Predictions (American League)

Predictions, like most sports analysis, are a win/win situation. If you get things wrong, nobody remembers. However, if you somehow strike gold and guess right, you can brag about it all year long. Now how could I pass an opportunity like that up? So here are my 2010 MLB predictions.

AL EAST

Winner: Boston Red Sox

I'm quite aware that the Yankees won the World Series last year. I am also privy to the fact that Steinbrenner & Sons spend more than anybody in baseball. But none of that matters. You know what matters? Pitching matters.

The Yankees had a team ERA of 4.26 (12th in the majors) in 2009. But their "ace" (more on the quotes later) didn't even have a win in the World Series. Oh, and that Hall of Fame closer? He's 40 years old. Scooby Doo is 40 years old. Think about it.

Anyways, here's the big "if": can C.C. Sabathia keep a sub 3.50 ERA again? He's only done it twice with the same team (Cleveland) and that was in the AL Central, where he won't be facing the offenses he will see day to day in the AL East. If he struggles just a little, the ground lost is enough to give the Sox the crown.

Seriously, what was the Red Sox's downfall in 2009? Offense. But look at the numbers. They were 3rd in the majors in runs scored, 2nd in OPS, 2nd in slugging, 6th in batting average, 3rd in RBIs and 4th in home runs. They were also in the top half of every pitching statistical category except for batting average, but every AL East team was in the top half in the batting category. So the question you gotta ask yourself is, was that Boston's fault or the result of good hitting?

I say it's a result of just a good division. If the addition of John Lackey and a healthy Dice-K/Beckett combo teams up with Cy Young dark horse John Lester and best 5th-man in the league Clay Buchholz ends up anchoring this team? Turn the lights out in New York.

AL CENTRAL

Winner: Minnesota Twins

Baseball Prospectus has the Twins winning this division at a forgettable 81-81 record. And you know what? I kind of agree. Though I do think the White Sox could be a sleeper here.

What killed Chicago is both their batting average and OPS. But don't think that key addition Juan Pierre (who's career BA and OPS gains ground in Chicago, especially against the 13th, 23rd, 26th and 29th worst ERAs in the majors) won't make a difference. If Jake Peavy can regain the San Diego form he once had (sub 3.00 ERA in 4 of 6 seasons), beware.

But that's a lot of "ifs". I like the sure bet. I like experience and a trustworthy program. I like the Twins.

AL WEST

Winner: Texas Rangers

The West isn't quite the best, as far as high level baseball. But as an arms race? To quote Sarah Palin, "You betcha!" To give you some perspective, Baseball Prospectus has my last place team, the Oakland Athletics, tied for first. Ugh.

Here's my take, in short: the Angels lost too much, the A's don't have quite enough, the Rangers have enough and the Mariners are said to have enough. You got that?

I understand the Seattle fixation. They were 6th in the majors in ERA last year and added Cliff Lee. But they were also next to last in batting average in the majors (they had .352 Ichiro Suzuki, mind you), finished last in the AL in runs and 26th in the majors in OPS. And did I mention that Milton Bradley is involved?

Give me the Rangers. Offense? Check. Pitching? Always getting better. Fielding? 5th lowest error total in 2009. Weak division? You got it.

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