Call me crazy, but I love the World Cup. Not in the Hollywood "the underdog back up QB throws the game winning touchdown" love. Its not what I would call a "poor, inner-city kid strikes it big in basketball story" love. Those are subplots. Subplots are a crutch that sports writers depend on far too much. If I turn on ESPN, I can find Bob Ley talking about some Outside The Lines, see a running ticker on the bottom about a distraction/obstacle/memory that a player has dealt/dealing with and has/had to overcome to get where he/she is. Subplots suck. Subplots are an escort mission* in video games. They're always thrown in, and honestly, always when no one wants them to be.
*Seriously. Escort missions suck. I played Goldeneye** the other night and I had to escort Natalya on 007. She has a penchant for running into a hail of bullets I swear. Its the single hardest level of the damn game! Fortunately, one of my best friends little brothers and my good friend Steve, thought of a brilliant circumnavigation of Natalya being an idiot: leaving her locked in her cell til I shoot all the Soviets in the head...Shut up. We were like 12 and he was 6. It was big at the time.
**If you don't love and have fond memories of Goldeneye, then your childhood sucked and I feel bad for you.
Anyways, I love the World Cup Its not even about the wins and losses, despite the fact that that is exactly how success is defined. To me, the WC has a galvanizing force, a force that creates something that makes the whole larger than the sum of the parts. Yesterday the WC started. It is hands down the largest sporting event in the world. I woke up early on my day off of work to see a game that had zero personal ramifications whatsoever. I got up that early to see not only the sporting event, but to see the fan-dom. The patriotism if you will. The moment that the first National Anthem began playing, even through the TV, it felt like there really were 2 nations, not just 2 teams going into the match.
Now I've been to enough college basketball and football games to appreciate fans going crazy: I'm looking at you Breslin Center Izzone and Illinois Orange Crush...The Big house can suck it however. I can't believe the depth that scope of the WC. Its simply astonishing. People who probably couldn't name 10 out of 23 USA rostered players are getting in on the act. Call them bandwagon fans, call them fair weather soccer fans, call them whatever. Anything that brings a nation together at this high of a level is either A: Really, really good, or B: Really, really bad.
The last time I saw this many American Flags, USA shirts or heard this many people talking Team USA this, The United States that was the 2010 Winter Olympics, when the US Hockey team almost took the gold. Before that? The 2008 Summer Olympics, with the "Redeem Team." Think about it. Political elections have their own bi-partisan affiliates. Politics splinter nations, but thats an entirely different rant. National Champions always have the "strength of schedule/they got lucky/etc" arguments. Professional titles too. The World Cup is truly unique. Before the 08 Olympics, I would have to go all the way back to what happened September 11th, 2001 to really find this much patriotism.
Like I said, really good, or really bad.
But again, it isn't the mean of the act, as long as the end is being proud of your nation. I don't even mean just the United States. I was asked by good friend David today, if given the choice, which team would I play for, The United States - where I've called home almost my entire life and where I retain my citizenship, or South Korea, my nation of birth. With no hesitation I said South Korea. He just kind of looked at me and said "Really?" Now, keep in mind that I can't speak Korean, I've never been to South Korea, kimchi is really the only food I know of and I lived in South Korea for a grand total of almost 3 and a half months...but I would play for them long before I would for the US. I guess the home country just has a soft spot in my heart.
The (longwinded, I know) point here is that the World Cup brings out the best in people's hopes and thoughts. At work, there were 2 apparent strangers. One had a Ghana shirt on, the other was wearing a Donovan jersey. They struck up a casual conversation about the advantages and disadvantages of running a 4-4-2 vs a 3-5-2. Unreal. When else does that happen? I promise you that if those 2 guys had been in regular "street" clothes, there a considerably smaller chance of 0% that they would of even looked twice at each other. They didn't argue, they didn't debate how one was wrong, they just made their points, actually shook hands, wished each others teams good luck, and went on their merry way. Cheesy moment? Absolutely. I was waiting for the soft music to be slowly pumped in, as the the screen fades to black and the credits roll. Instead Ke$hsa came blasin over the speakers, and a little kid asked to go to the bathroom. Oh well, not quite Hollywood.
But not to take away from the grandeur of the moment, I really was touched. The conversation couldn't of lasted more than 5 minutes, but I'll remember it forever. Two different men, from different countries, brought together by a soccer game. Incredible. I love the World Cup.
Congrats to South Korea on the win and best of luck to Greece. I have a South Korean flag, and I plan on getting 2 South Korea shirts and a scarf. Rather than my emotion, my patriotism will (literally) be worn on my sleeve. Where's yours?
Sunday, June 13, 2010
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
A closer look at the real numbers
10 games started. 9 wins against just 1 loss. 71 innings pitched, and 61 strikeouts to go with that. Pretty tidy numbers, no? While it appears that Mr. Ubaldo Jimenez is tearing up the league, allow me the following comparisons.
Walks + Hits per Innings Pitched:
2010 - 0.93
Career - 1.27
Batting Average On Balls In Play:
2010 - .226
Career - .284
Left on Base %:
2010 - 91.7%
Career - 73.3%
Line Drive %:
2010 - 14.4%
Career - 17.8%
Home Runs per 9 Innings Pitched:
2010 - 0.13
Career - 0.54
Fielding Independent Pitching (scaled to ERA):
2010 - 2.71
Career - 3.66
True Earned Run Average(tERA, scaled on total runs allowed, not just earned runs):
2010 - 2.64
Career - 4.08
What do all these numbers mean? Its means he is going to regress. Is Jimenez an ace? Absolutely. But do not get confused, his LOB%, LD% and HR/9 will normalize. No one starter can sustain those rates. Few 'closers' can for that matter. He isn't getting as lucky as Livan Hernandez or even Mike Pelfrey, but make no mistake, Jimenez is good...but not this good.
Now the entire point of this was not to rip on Jimenez, but to really take a step back and look at the absurdity of most of the worlds popular baseball "statistics." Every time someone cites Wins, ERA or even Saves, my blood boils. To judge a pitcher based on ERA and Wins alone is about as naive as judging a hitter on Batting Average and RBI's. ERA, Wins, Batting Average and RBI's are about the worst stats in the history of the known world. They were invented along with the game. To say the game of baseball hasn't become mainstream and evolved since its conception would be absurd. Why haven't the statistics to judge the players evolved into mainstream society as well?
If you don't believe me? Then Sabremetrics ain't dead yet.
Walks + Hits per Innings Pitched:
2010 - 0.93
Career - 1.27
Batting Average On Balls In Play:
2010 - .226
Career - .284
Left on Base %:
2010 - 91.7%
Career - 73.3%
Line Drive %:
2010 - 14.4%
Career - 17.8%
Home Runs per 9 Innings Pitched:
2010 - 0.13
Career - 0.54
Fielding Independent Pitching (scaled to ERA):
2010 - 2.71
Career - 3.66
True Earned Run Average(tERA, scaled on total runs allowed, not just earned runs):
2010 - 2.64
Career - 4.08
What do all these numbers mean? Its means he is going to regress. Is Jimenez an ace? Absolutely. But do not get confused, his LOB%, LD% and HR/9 will normalize. No one starter can sustain those rates. Few 'closers' can for that matter. He isn't getting as lucky as Livan Hernandez or even Mike Pelfrey, but make no mistake, Jimenez is good...but not this good.
Now the entire point of this was not to rip on Jimenez, but to really take a step back and look at the absurdity of most of the worlds popular baseball "statistics." Every time someone cites Wins, ERA or even Saves, my blood boils. To judge a pitcher based on ERA and Wins alone is about as naive as judging a hitter on Batting Average and RBI's. ERA, Wins, Batting Average and RBI's are about the worst stats in the history of the known world. They were invented along with the game. To say the game of baseball hasn't become mainstream and evolved since its conception would be absurd. Why haven't the statistics to judge the players evolved into mainstream society as well?
If you don't believe me? Then Sabremetrics ain't dead yet.
Sunday, May 30, 2010
Euphoria
You.
Yourself.
You look at yourself, and you know exactly what you bring to the table. You might be enthusiastic, lethargic, or even indifferent. All things considered, you know what you are.
You see them. You notice things that you like about them. There might be a few flaws, but they look good now. The only question is when the going gets tough, then what happens? Sometimes a little adversity is what most loves truly require to know what you have. You almost have to have some bad times to fully realize the good times. You've had up days, and down days, and you will forever remember that one perfect day together.
You keep growing closer. You spend some more time together. Minutes turn to hours. Hours to days. Soon its been almost 2 full months and things are really looking good. Every moment you spend together you appreciate more and more. You've got a great outlook on everything, and things just seem to be steadily falling into place. Have you had a rough spell yet? Of course, nothing is every quite perfect. But its worth it. In the end, one day, it will be worth it. You will look back at all the times, good and bad, and appreciate everything. That culminating moment, that state of pure euphoria. That is what I'm looking for.
I can't wait for the day that my Oakland A's to win the World Series...and you probably thought this was a sappy love story
Yourself.
You look at yourself, and you know exactly what you bring to the table. You might be enthusiastic, lethargic, or even indifferent. All things considered, you know what you are.
You see them. You notice things that you like about them. There might be a few flaws, but they look good now. The only question is when the going gets tough, then what happens? Sometimes a little adversity is what most loves truly require to know what you have. You almost have to have some bad times to fully realize the good times. You've had up days, and down days, and you will forever remember that one perfect day together.
You keep growing closer. You spend some more time together. Minutes turn to hours. Hours to days. Soon its been almost 2 full months and things are really looking good. Every moment you spend together you appreciate more and more. You've got a great outlook on everything, and things just seem to be steadily falling into place. Have you had a rough spell yet? Of course, nothing is every quite perfect. But its worth it. In the end, one day, it will be worth it. You will look back at all the times, good and bad, and appreciate everything. That culminating moment, that state of pure euphoria. That is what I'm looking for.
I can't wait for the day that my Oakland A's to win the World Series...and you probably thought this was a sappy love story
Saturday, May 29, 2010
Another 1st Amendment Rant
"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances."
-The Constitution, Amendment I
Now, if you haven't ever actually read any of the Constitution, I highly recommend it. It is without a doubt the most eloquent piece of writing that I have ever come across. Maybe its the style of prose used is just something that is simply no longer heard of at these times. However, what has really drawn me to write about this topic is the recent actions taken by the Viacom corporation. The most troubling issue at hand is obviously the First Amendment. I'm sure you're captivated as to how I'm going to tie the 3rd largest media conglomerate in the known universe to the Holiest of Holy Amendments, but stay with me here.
On April 10th, 2010, one of the greatest acts of destroying the Constitution was displayed. Actually, allow me to rephrase that, it was not displayed. On that date, Comedy Central censored the South Park episode "201." Specifically, Comedy Central censored anyone saying the name "Muhammad," all thing said by Muhammad as well as the final speech. Comedy Central is merely the tip of the iceberg that we all know as Viacom. Viacom is directly responsible for an artists censorship. I'm not here to argue or state a case for or against the rights of an employee, in this case, the brilliant Matt Stone and the magnificent Trey Parker, against the company that has employed them, Viacom. As a Republican, I'm here to pose the rarest of questions: Where was the government?
I'm not advocating any lawsuits, any government agency kicking the doors in of anyone's homes, but what I'm asking is where was the Judicial branch of our government?(Allow me this sole caveat, of course an employer has the right to censor an employee. I would be fired if I showed up to work on Monday naked, or sporting a competing company's logo etc. I don't want to blur the already hazy lines of the dominance of an employer over their serfs. Oops, I meant employees.) The entire nature and existence of the judicial branch is to interpret the Constitution, and at times, when to over-turn or uphold previously established interpretations. I won't cite the cases rallying for Freedom of Speech, as I'm sure you all know them. The point is that Freedom of Speech is as old as the day the ink finished drying on the Constitution. 8 days is all it took for the Constitution to be ratified and then amended. The 1st Amendment was adopted so quickly because it was crucial to the survival of the Colonies. Long story short (too late, I know) is that by now, the US Supreme Court really should have a good idea of what Freedom of Speech is, and how to go about defending it.
Now I know, all you're thinking right now is "Okay, well thank you for making me burn 3 minutes of my time reading a history lesson about the Constitution, where is the fear? Where is my South Park? Speaking of South Park, whats on TV right now? And do I have any new Facebook notifications?" Here is the meat and potatoes of what I'm getting at, long winded thought it may be: If Viacom was so afraid of a radical reaction being realized (like that alliteration?) after airing the episode "201," where was the governments interjection to protect?
I know that the NYPD stepped up their security for Viacom's office there, and I commend the fine work done by all of the boys and girls in blue in the great city of NYC. That is not the protection that I'm speaking of. I'm not talking about the kind of protection that certain parents wish they had, and thus would not be calling themselves parents right now...although that's really important too. The most type of protection that I am calling for is simple. Protection from fear. This is not a call to arms, a plea for action or inciting of violence. This is a begging of one man to the rest of the nation.
Since when was it okay for a company or people to be so paralyzed by fear that they're too afraid to air a 25 minute show in its allotted time slot? Have we fallen so far down the "politically correct" well that we can't get ourselves out of it? What will it take for us to wake up and come to grips with the world around us? At what point do the citizens begin to ask the hard questions? Is this the type of non-reaction that U.S. citizens can expect from their government when one of our own companies is threatened? Are we going to wait until we have Catholic extremists demanding things, then Jewish fundamentalist forcing issues, all the while we have Islamic radicals continuing to make threats? To me, the government missed a golden opportunity to stand up and not take one on the chin. The powers that be simply rolled over and took no action. By doing nothing, the government sent an incredibly potent message to its citizens, and an enthusiastic answer to the radicals:
We will cave under pressure.
Am I reading too much into the lack of one of my favorite shows being aired in its entirety? Perhaps. On the other hand, what if you're not reading into things enough?
-The Constitution, Amendment I
Now, if you haven't ever actually read any of the Constitution, I highly recommend it. It is without a doubt the most eloquent piece of writing that I have ever come across. Maybe its the style of prose used is just something that is simply no longer heard of at these times. However, what has really drawn me to write about this topic is the recent actions taken by the Viacom corporation. The most troubling issue at hand is obviously the First Amendment. I'm sure you're captivated as to how I'm going to tie the 3rd largest media conglomerate in the known universe to the Holiest of Holy Amendments, but stay with me here.
On April 10th, 2010, one of the greatest acts of destroying the Constitution was displayed. Actually, allow me to rephrase that, it was not displayed. On that date, Comedy Central censored the South Park episode "201." Specifically, Comedy Central censored anyone saying the name "Muhammad," all thing said by Muhammad as well as the final speech. Comedy Central is merely the tip of the iceberg that we all know as Viacom. Viacom is directly responsible for an artists censorship. I'm not here to argue or state a case for or against the rights of an employee, in this case, the brilliant Matt Stone and the magnificent Trey Parker, against the company that has employed them, Viacom. As a Republican, I'm here to pose the rarest of questions: Where was the government?
I'm not advocating any lawsuits, any government agency kicking the doors in of anyone's homes, but what I'm asking is where was the Judicial branch of our government?(Allow me this sole caveat, of course an employer has the right to censor an employee. I would be fired if I showed up to work on Monday naked, or sporting a competing company's logo etc. I don't want to blur the already hazy lines of the dominance of an employer over their serfs. Oops, I meant employees.) The entire nature and existence of the judicial branch is to interpret the Constitution, and at times, when to over-turn or uphold previously established interpretations. I won't cite the cases rallying for Freedom of Speech, as I'm sure you all know them. The point is that Freedom of Speech is as old as the day the ink finished drying on the Constitution. 8 days is all it took for the Constitution to be ratified and then amended. The 1st Amendment was adopted so quickly because it was crucial to the survival of the Colonies. Long story short (too late, I know) is that by now, the US Supreme Court really should have a good idea of what Freedom of Speech is, and how to go about defending it.
Now I know, all you're thinking right now is "Okay, well thank you for making me burn 3 minutes of my time reading a history lesson about the Constitution, where is the fear? Where is my South Park? Speaking of South Park, whats on TV right now? And do I have any new Facebook notifications?" Here is the meat and potatoes of what I'm getting at, long winded thought it may be: If Viacom was so afraid of a radical reaction being realized (like that alliteration?) after airing the episode "201," where was the governments interjection to protect?
I know that the NYPD stepped up their security for Viacom's office there, and I commend the fine work done by all of the boys and girls in blue in the great city of NYC. That is not the protection that I'm speaking of. I'm not talking about the kind of protection that certain parents wish they had, and thus would not be calling themselves parents right now...although that's really important too. The most type of protection that I am calling for is simple. Protection from fear. This is not a call to arms, a plea for action or inciting of violence. This is a begging of one man to the rest of the nation.
Since when was it okay for a company or people to be so paralyzed by fear that they're too afraid to air a 25 minute show in its allotted time slot? Have we fallen so far down the "politically correct" well that we can't get ourselves out of it? What will it take for us to wake up and come to grips with the world around us? At what point do the citizens begin to ask the hard questions? Is this the type of non-reaction that U.S. citizens can expect from their government when one of our own companies is threatened? Are we going to wait until we have Catholic extremists demanding things, then Jewish fundamentalist forcing issues, all the while we have Islamic radicals continuing to make threats? To me, the government missed a golden opportunity to stand up and not take one on the chin. The powers that be simply rolled over and took no action. By doing nothing, the government sent an incredibly potent message to its citizens, and an enthusiastic answer to the radicals:
We will cave under pressure.
Am I reading too much into the lack of one of my favorite shows being aired in its entirety? Perhaps. On the other hand, what if you're not reading into things enough?
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