Page 301 of 2956

      In the end, the NFL and players are seemingly back to square one

      May 17, 2011 /
      New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees (R) hugs NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell after they defeated the Indianapolis Colts in the NFL’s Super Bowl XLIV football game in Miami, Florida, February 7, 2010. REUTERS/Hans Deryk (UNITED STATES)

      It’s maddening to think that after nearly 70 days, we’re right back to where we started when it comes to the NFL labor dispute.

      I don’t pretend to know everything that’s going on with the current lockout situation. Just like most fans, I try to stay up on what’s current by reading news stories, columns and tweets from so-called experts, but I feel like I should have a law degree in order to completely grasp what’s going on. I have to read NFL-themed content about 12 times nowadays in order to fully understand it (which isn’t completely surprising seeing as how I’m not that bright).

      But by now everyone understands the basics. The Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals recently ruled that its temporary stay is now a full-blown, ironclad mega stay and the NFL lockout will resume. It was a major victory for the owners, who will likely win their appeal on June 3 if the two sides can’t come to an agreement on a CBA before then.

      In essence, we’re right back to where we started when the NFL officially locked its doors in mid-March. The owners want to stay out of court and are blaming the players for preferring litigation. The players continue to claim that they’re only interested in playing and the owners are the bad guys for preventing them and the fans from enjoying the game.

      But what this really comes down to is lack of communication. If that’s too simplistic a take on the topic, I apologize. But that’s what it comes down to, right? When the old CBA was still in place and a lockout was looming, all everyone kept saying was how the two sides would be better staying out of court and negotiating a new deal on their terms. Instead, the players had always planned on decertifying and taking their chances in litigation, and now we’re right back to square one. As previously mentioned, if the players continue to press on in court, they’ll probably lose and the lockout will continue uninterrupted (which means no free agency, no mini-camps and absolutely zero enjoyment whatsoever for fans). Thus, in the end, negotiation has always been the best policy.

      Nothing has changed here, at least not really. The NFL and players need to negotiate a deal. It’s the same thing they had to do months ago before the court system got involved. Think about all the time that has been wasted and for what? I get it: Labor disputes are nasty business. But what has changed here? After all this, the two sides still have to negotiate and as a fan, it’s nauseating to think that the best course of action has been right in front of the players and owners’ faces for months.

      It appears as if the 2011 NFL season is doomed unless these two sides can work out an agreement for a new CBA. What’s funny/ironic/makes-you-want-throw-up is that the same thing could have been written back in February and March before the lockout became official. Here’s hoping the two sides are done wasting everyone’s time and will actually come to an agreement when this latest round of mediation begins.

      External Sports, NFL

      Hall of Famer Harom Killebrew dies at the age of 74

      May 17, 2011 /
      A jersey bearing the number of Minnesota Twins Baseball Hall of Famer Harmon Killebrew hangs in the dugout of the Twins before the start of their American League baseball game against the Toronto Blue Jays at Target Field in Minneapolis, May 13, 2011. Killebrew, 74, announced he has ended his fight with esophageal cancer and has entered hospice care. REUTERS/Eric Miller (UNITED STATES – Tags: SPORT BASEBALL HEALTH)

      Hall of Famer Harmon Killebrew lost his battle with cancer on Tuesday, passing away at the age of 74.

      From the Los Angeles Times:

      He hit 573 home runs during 22 seasons with the Washington Senators, Twins and Kansas City Royals, including eight seasons in which he hit at least 40 home runs. Killebrew helped the Twins reach the World Series in 1965, where they lost to the Dodgers, and he was named the American League’s most valuable player in 1969.

      A 13-time All-Star, Killebrew was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1984.

      At 5 feet 11 and about 210 pounds, Killebrew was a stocky first and third baseman, outfielder and designated hitter who was particularly known for his ability to hit memorably long home runs.

      “He hit a ball in Minnesota that went over 500 feet and broke two chairs,” former Twins Manager Cal Ermer told the Chattanooga (Tenn.) Times Free Press in 2002.

      Paul Richards, then manager of the Baltimore Orioles, said during Killebrew’s breakout season in 1959: “He has enough power to hit home runs in any park — including Yellowstone.” Killebrew hit 42 home runs that season for the Washington Senators, who moved to Minnesota in 1961 and became the Twins.

      I didn’t have the pleasure of watching Killebrew play in person, but I’ve read nothing but kind words about the legend. He was known as a quiet, kind man and didn’t partake in the partying lifestyle. In fact, he famously told a reporter, “Well, I like to was dishes, I guess,” when asked what he liked to do for fun.

      Even though I never had the opportunity to see him play, I know what he meant to the game of baseball. RIP, “Hammerin’ Harmon.”

      External Sports, MLB

      Report: Posada told Yankees that he wanted out

      May 17, 2011 /
      New York Yankees GM Brian Cashman watches Jorge Posada shake hands with NCAA Kentucky head coach John Calipari before the game against the Boston Red Sox at Yankee Stadium in New York City on May 15, 2011. UPI/John Angelillo

      According to a report by Bill Madden of the New York Daily News, designated hitter Jorge Posada told GM Brian Cashman that he wanted off the Yankees when he found out that he was hitting ninth against the Red Sox last Saturday. But a friend of Posada’s says the former catcher was just speaking out of frustration.

      In the heat of his anger and frustration Saturday night, Yankee icon Jorge Posada told general manager Brian Cashman amid a flood of F-bombs that he not only wanted out of the No. 9 spot in the Yankee batting order – he wanted out of the Yankees, too, according to team sources.

      “It was just something said in the heat of anger and frustration,” a close friend of Posada’s said of the former catcher’s angry comments to Cashman and manager Joe Girardi in which he took himself out of the lineup an hour before Saturday’s game against the Red Sox.

      “What happened had nothing to do with being dropped to ninth in the batting order. It was just the combination of everything building up in him – his frustration at not helping the team and the feeling that, right now, he sucks, and that everything in his world is pretty (expletive).

      “He didn’t want out, and doesn’t want out,” the friend added. “He was just frustrated and said a lot of things.”

      Posada is currently hitting .165 as the Bombers’ DH and is going through some personal issues as well. His son, Jorge Luis, is scheduled to undergo surgery to correct craniosynostosis, which is a condition in which normal brain and skull growth are affected. The procedure, which will take place on June 8, is hoped to be his last surgery to correct the problem.

      There have been many fans on the internet boards that are screaming for the Yankees to cut ties with Posada and move on. But nobody knows what this guy is going through and he has already apologized to the team for his immaturity over the weekend. He was in the wrong and he apologized. If he doesn’t start hitting then Cashman and Joe Girardi can figure out what’s best for the team and go from there.

      But how many of us get so tired of our situations that we burst out in frustration and say things we don’t mean? Hell, I think I do it on a weekly basis. Let’s cut Posada some slack and see how the situation plays out. He’s a four-time World Series champion and a five-time All-Star. If he’s done, the Yankees will make that decision when the time comes. For now, let’s give the man a little time.

      External Sports, MLB

      Western Conference Finals Commentary

      May 17, 2011 /
      Dallas Mavericks small forward Peja Stojakovic (L) ,forward Dirk Nowitzki (C) and center Tyson Chandler (R) walk to the bench for a timeout in their win over the Los Angeles Lakers during Game 3 of the NBA Western Conference semi-final basketball playoff in Dallas, Texas May 6, 2011. REUTERS/Mike Stone (UNITED STATES – Tags: SPORT BASKETBALL)

      Sekou Smith, NBA.com: This matchup between these two outfits in the Western Conference finals provides a unique glimpse of the past (Mavericks), present (whoever wins this series) and perhaps the future (Thunder) of the elite in the West. … So instead of Kobe Bryant and Tim Duncan waging a battle of seasoned champions to reach yet another NBA Finals, twin freaks of nature and dueling superstars Dirk Nowitzki and Kevin Durant are left to fight it out for the right to face either the Bulls or Heat for that coveted Larry O’Brien trophy. Had either one of their teams made it this far and faced the Lakers or Spurs to get to the championship round, it wouldn’t have been much of a shock. But now that they’re here facing one another, this clash between these two would-be rivals can take its place among the many interstate showdowns folks in Texas and Oklahoma have enjoyed over the years.

      J. Michael Falgoust, USA Today: This is the Mavs’ first trip back to the conference finals, and they — like their star — are fighting the label that still defines them from their three first-round exits since. In 2007, they became the first No. 1 seed to lose to a No. 8 after the NBA switched to a seven-game series format. Even after winning 57 games this season and entering the playoffs as the West’s No. 3 seed, the Mavericks appeared to be heading down a familiar path. They lost a 23-point lead in the second half of a first-round game against the Portland Trail Blazers and fell into a 2-2 tie in the series. But they closed out the Blazers by winning the next two, the finale coming on the road, then made the NBA take notice by sweeping the Lakers. It was a big step for Nowitzki and the Mavericks toward getting that first ring.

      Barry Tramel, The Oklahoman: Old means wise. Old means experienced. Old means skilled, since one thing the NBA doesn’t tolerate is old and bad. Young means fresh. Young means fast. Young means never having to say you’re tired. The Western Conference Finals begin Tuesday night at American Airlines Center, and it’s a classic matchup. Can the Mavs make the Thunder pay for youthful mistakes? Not finding Terry on the wing. Leaping to block a Dirk Nowitzki shot that has yet to be launched. Can the Thunder make the Mavs pay for old joints? Not having anyone with a prayer of guarding Russell Westbrook. Not getting back quickly when the Thunder seizes possession and takes off like the Oklahoma Land Run. … If the Thunder pushes the ball, turns this series into a sprint relay, the Thunder is NBA Finals bound. But if the Mavericks control tempo, if this series becomes a game of halfcourt offense, Dallas will win and probably easily.

      Jennifer Floyd Engel, Dallas Star-Telegram: And all of this happy-happy, joy-joy local May basketball fun is brought to you by the Mavs’ good friend and frequent companion in recent postseason, sports disappointment. I submit the catalyst for all this happiness was the ugly Game 4 meltdown in Portland on April 23. Every long playoff run has a seminal moment, a point in hindsight that you look back upon and go, “Aha — that is where this run started.” Dallas’ seminal moment, for me at least, was the immediate aftermath of that Game 4 choke as well as the team’s Game 5 reaction a couple of days later. The Mavs took it in, sucked it up and punched back hard. They have been whaling on opponents ever since.

      External Sports, NBA

      Appeals court sides with NFL, lockout remains

      May 17, 2011 /
      NFL commissioner Roger Goodell (C) enters a federal courthouse to resume talks regarding labor and revenue issues between the NFL and the NFL Players Association in Minneapolis, May 16, 2011. REUTERS/Eric Miller (UNITED STATES – Tags: SPORT FOOTBALL EMPLOYMENT BUSINESS)

      The owners received a major victory on Monday night when the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals granted the NFL’s stay, meaning the lockout is no longer temporary.

      While this may not be good news for fans in the short term (because the lockout continues), it should force the players and owners to head back to the negotiating table. The owners want to stay out of court and have blamed the players for preferring litigation. The owners are now expected to draw up a new CBA proposal soon, which could be viewed as a positive sign.

      The owners are in a great position here because the same panel that sided with the league to keep the lockout in place will also hear arguments next month on the legality of the NFL’s work stoppage. Thus, it could be assumed that the owners would win their appeal on June 3 if the two sides can’t come to an agreement before then.

      The most frustrating part about this labor dispute is that the answer to the lockout has been in front of the owners and players’ faces this entire time: Negotiation. Way back in February and March when the old CBA was still in place, observers kept commenting on how the best course of action was for the two sides to come to an agreement and stay out of the courts. But the players seemingly made up their minds that they wanted litigation when they decided to decertify, which made it hard for the two sides to come to an agreement at the start.

      Now we’re right back where we started from, and negotiation is the best way to end the madness. Maybe this time the two sides will get it right and actually hammer out a new CBA deal before even more damage is done.

      External Sports, NFL

      « Older posts Newer posts »

      © 2026 The Scores Report – The National Sports Blog

      Theme by Anders Noren — Up ↑