I seriously, seriously doubt there's mob involvement here, and there's pretty much no proof that he had any intentions of betting on games. Also, the stakes are high, but not super high, especially in relation to the amount of money the players involved earn. A-rod is slated to earn nearly 30 million this year. He could lose huge at the these stakes every single day and it wouldn't really hurt him that much.
Source: He was betting according to their source. You're right, he lost sweet fuck all compared to what he makes, but it sounds like he was actively participating in the game that blew up and caused this whole stir. And I'd bet my tits there is indeed Mob involvement.
Oh, I have no doubt that he was betting. He was basically a fixture in the NY underground scene, and as somebody with a tenuous connection to that scene (i.e., I've played in it at massively lower levels), I've heard more than enough accounts of his gambling. I just don't think it's that big of a deal, and I've never heard of any sort of mob involvement with those games, or the California ones. He shouldn't have lied, but it really shouldn't be an issue in the first place. There isn't a casino that runs Hold'em that high, and what he does with his money outside of baseball, in private, should be his business. It's silly to suspend him for something he hasn't even done (i.e. bet on anything related to baseball). Full disclosure: I'm trying to be unbiased, but I'm both a Yankees fan and a poker player, so take that for what it's worth. Please don't bet your tits though, I would feel terrible winning that one.
Someone needs to tell Neftali Feliz that gaining weight has slowed his arm. He's not broken 100+ yet this year, as far as I've seen. That same someone should tell Kinsler to stop swinging for the goddamned bleachers at every at-bat. Popping up and out is getting old fast.
There was a lot of hubbub around Detroit that the Weaver vs. Verlander matchup last weekend should have been a national game. It definitely should have, it was an amazing game.
Because major networks (especially ESPN) have a hard on for the east coast. Specifically NY and Boston. Major markets means major money, I presume The Info on the TV for the Michigan vs Minnesota Duluth NCAA Hockey championship said something to the effect of "Last year Boston College beat Wisconsin for the title" without mentioning Michigan or Minnesota.
Me and the Fiance used to bet on what would be the first highlight on Sportscenter or Baseball Tonight....... The Yankees or Sox versus any other baseball highlight. I didn't keep stats, but if I had to guess it was around 85% of the time. Its fucking ridiculous. And I get it. Its all about money. Those two franchises have the most fans, then add in that everyone at ESPN (EastCoast Sports Propaganda Network) has a major hard on for either one of those teams....... Which equates into: they get the most coverage. Personally. I stopped watching ESPN well over a year ago,,,,,, with the exception of PTI. There is an entire channel dedicated to Baseball now. And while they still show a major preference for the BoSox and the Yanks in my opinion, its much less grandiose and easier to swallow. I'm a Cubs fan,,, and we get plenty of exposure. But I cannot even remember when the last time ESPN (or even Fox for that matter) had a Kansas City game on,,,, or Marlins,,, or Toronto? And god forbid ESPN even recognizes a West Coast team. So in closing. Fuck ESPN.
Beejays accused of sign-stealing. Hooker, to the white courtesy phone... That's some bold stuff, right there. Part of me wonders if something's rotten in Denmark, but another part of me thinks this is just a bunch of propaganda put on by the Yankees and Red Sox fans in the media (you may know of them as "ESPN"). It's on the front page of their website right now, so it's not exaclty being shied away from.
You think it has something to do with the Yankees and the Red Sox being two of the best three teams in baseball? What about far and away the two most popular teams in baseball? How about because they just had the most viewed Sunday Night Baseball matchup since 2007 surpassing a Yankees-Red Sox game. There's a reason there's a hard on for the east coast, the west coast sucks. As captivating as it is to watch the Padres/Dodgers/Giants try to break ten runs combined, I think I'd rather two rivals in the heat of a division race. And you're grasping at straws there with the college hockey argument. I guarantee if Miami had beaten Michigan St the year before it would replace the BC-Wisconsin tidbit.
It's not b/c of gaining weight. He likely isn't over his shoulder issue from earlier this season, causing him to drop his arm slot down & lose a bit of velocity, almost like he's pushing the ball instead of throwing. Even considering that, his avg fastball velocity is only a half-mile or so off last season, likely nothing to worry about possibly even an indication of a young pitcher reining things in a bit to work on control. I wouldn't be surprised to see him hit the DL later in the month or early Sept with something like "shoulder fatigue" so they can let Adams or Uehera close a bit, figure out of they'll want one of them in the role next year and try putting Feliz in the rotation again. Really poorly written article.
I didn't think there was much substance to it; just figured it'd make for interesting conversation. Like I said, it was all over ESPN.com this afternoon, so I might have warranted a look. The whole thing about guys in the stands and shit sounds like some real "Loose Change/2012" stuff to me. And if I had a nickel for every time I read a poorly-written article on ESPN... Probably, but keep in mind that only 5 other teams in all of baseball (BoSox, Yankees, Rangers, Cardinals, and Reds) have more runs scored than the Blue Jays. Toronto's problem is pitching the ball, not hitting it. Not that those numbers qualify the article in any way, but they still have shitty pitching.
I'm not a lover of all things Toronto just because I live here. If I'd heard the allegations and thought there was and merit to them, I'd have said so. I think the whole thing is sort of laughable. Mind you... I'm kinda drunk, so everything is laughable at the moment.
I don't know. The Red Sox thought they were stealing, the Yankees(Girardi) openly accused them of stealing signs a month ago and they have a team telling Bautista they are going to drill him in the fucking head if it happens again.
And all the articles won't name the sources or the team - which is so pathetic. I get it - we all need something to talk about. Don't you think their winning record at home would be a little better if they were actually doing it? I watched an interview with Arencibia, and he said it best. He asked the reporter something like, "Don't you think my average would be batting better than .200 if this was the case?" Obviously. I love how the fans and the team have reacted to it. What I meant in the previous post where I was talking about not being a lover of all things Toronto, is that I'm not like other sports fans in this city. I try not to drink the Toronto Kool-Aid. I'm looking at this as objectively as I know how, and it still sounds totally fucking ludicrous.
It sounds ludicrous because it is. <a class="postlink" href="http://www.insidethebook.com/ee/index.php/site/article/stealing_signs_in_toronto/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://www.insidethebook.com/ee/index.p ... n_toronto/</a> <a class="postlink" href="http://blogs.thescore.com/mlb/2011/08/10/on-false-evidence/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://blogs.thescore.com/mlb/2011/08/1 ... -evidence/</a> <a class="postlink" href="http://www.drunkjaysfans.com/2011/08/today-in-morons-amy-k-nelson-and-peter.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://www.drunkjaysfans.com/2011/08/to ... peter.html</a> <a class="postlink" href="http://www.anthopoulosanonymous.com/2011/08/stealing-signs-for-dummies.html?spref=tw" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://www.anthopoulosanonymous.com/201 ... l?spref=tw</a> <a class="postlink" href="http://preludetoabigbreak.com/2011/08/10/espn-as-entertainment/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://preludetoabigbreak.com/2011/08/1 ... rtainment/</a>
The White Sox were the team that initially started yelling at Bautista (who confirmed it). This dude came to the same conclusion (pre Bautista confirmation) and pinpointed where the mysterious man in white was sitting, based on the descriptions of the game. I have no idea how that middle man in white could possibly be in line with the pitcher, so that the batter doesn't even have to shift his gaze, even for a right handed hitter. <a class="postlink" href="https://stealofhome.wordpress.com/2011/08/10/blue-jays-caught-stealing-signs-but-by-whom/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">https://stealofhome.wordpress.com/2011/ ... t-by-whom/</a>
The Blue Jays were also no-hit at home this year. I don't think Bautista was playing in that game. But, against Verlander, knowing the pitches wouldn't help anyway. He's pretty good.
So apparently Zambrano has thrown his last temper tantrum: <a class="postlink" href="http://hardballtalk.nbcsports.com/2011/08/12/carlos-zambrano-says-hes-retired-after-giving-up-five-homers" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://hardballtalk.nbcsports.com/2011/ ... ive-homers</a> Although honestly I don't see this happening. Too much money is on the table.