A look at the sporting landscape.

Well, back from a short break and I’m ready to make up for skipping a week by going off on several topics this week. The first being the biggest story in baseball this year. What is it you ask? Well, I’ll tell you, a baseball legend is just about ready to enter a statistical land that only Willie Mays and Hank Aaron inhabit. Who is the superstar? Let me first tell you his accomplishment. This man, perhaps this year, will become the third man in baseball history to have both 3,000 hits and 600 home runs. Now you know who it is, Barry Bonds, right? Wrong, this superstar is Rafael Palmeiro.

Yes, Palmeiro by all appearances is going to end his career as the quiet legend. His numbers are going to be as good as any baseball player who ever played the game, yet no one is talking about him. I don’t think we have ever seen a player put up these types of numbers and receive virtually no recognition. I remember when Palmeiro hit home run number 500 and the media started asking the question, “Does Palmeiro belong in the Hall of Fame?” It turns out that is one of the dumbest questions ever asked. If you look at Palmeiro’s numbers now, he is a lock for the hall. Just because a player is not on TV or in magazines every week does not mean he doesn’t belong in the Hall. By the numbers Palmeiro is one of the best to ever play the game. Check out them out and educate yourself on one of the best to ever play the game.

Another topic I wanted to spout off about is the whole Larry Brown mess in Detroit. Just do something, anyone. According to ESPN, the Pistons are about to do something. ESPN was reporting on Monday that the Pistons were going to fire Brown and hire former Timberwolves coach Flip Saunders. The way I see this is Larry Brown never stays forever and he is always looking for his next job. Detroit won a title with him and that title team is still intact and can go back to multiple NBA Finals. Get rid of the Brown headache and begin anew. Now Larry Brown can go home to his “dream job” and coach the Knicks and try to coach one of the biggest team killers in NBA history, Stephon Marbury. Marbury has so much talent it is scary, but if you check his history, he kills a team’s chance of success everywhere he goes. Good luck with all that Larry and I look forward to seeing where you head next, in about four years.

Another topic that I would like to discuss is the MLB All-Star Game this Tuesday night. I am writing this before the game and I have just received word that NL manager Tony LaRussa is going to have Chris Carpenter start the game. I’m fine with that, so long as Roger Clemens or Dontrelle Willis have a debilitating disease and are in no way able to play in this game. I’m not saying that Carpenter doesn’t have the numbers, he does, and he has had a great year so far. I know you are waiting for the but, so here it goes. But, he is not Roger Clemons and he is not the very charismatic Dontrelle Willis. Clemens numbers hold up on there own, better ERA, about 20 fewer hits given up than both Carpenter or Willis. Oh, one more thing, Clemens is the greatest of all time. Clemens’ only knock against him would be his win total, but with an ERA of 1.84, you have to think that his team isn’t exactly helping him out. If your team can’t score 3 runs a game consistently, then you aren’t going to win as many games as you should. As far as I’m concerned, Clemens should start every All-Star Game until he decides to retire.

Willis has roughly the same numbers as Carpenter, but is better known, I believe, and baseball should promote their young charismatic stars any chance they can. Plus, Willis is African American and baseball is searching for ways to get African Americans interested in playing baseball again, instead of basketball and football. What better way of generating some interest than have Willis start the “Mid-Summer Classic.” Put it this way, if Chris Carpenter walked into my office wearing his uniform and carrying a sign reading, “I am Chris Carpenter.” I wouldn’t know who he was. On the other hand, if Willis walked into my office and just demonstrated his corkscrew windup or flashed his smile, I would know him instantly. Bottom line, Carpenter is not bad, but it seems like a hometown pick by LaRussa when you consider the alternatives.

The last topic I want to discuss has been raging for a couple of weeks now. It is about Kenny Rogers. Kenny Rogers “assaulted” a couple of camera men and the media has gone crazy. I know I am in the majority on Kenny Rogers, but I can’t change how I feel. Most people think the “Coward of the County” is his best song, but I have always thought “The Gambler” was the best. Well, at least until he hit the camera man.

He was invited to the MLB All-Star game and many are not happy about it. Rogers deserves to go to the All-Star game if for nothing else but all the great teams he has been a part of in his career. Who could forget his teaming with Dolly Parton or Sheena Easton or the great Dottie West? Kenny is one of the greats, and if Major League Baseball is going to allow him to attend the All-Star Game, I’m all for it. I have a feeling his performance will be unforgettable, that is assuming he doesn’t forget the words to the “Star Spangled Banner.”