Two Thoughts Today …

Given the nationally televised bed-wetting achieved by the Dallas Cowboys yesterday, there are speculative pieces out there this morning suggesting that Jerry Jones ought to hire Bill Belichick to replace Mike McCarthy on the sidelines and, failing that, just replace McCarthy with anyone other than Charlie McCarthy (not known to be one of Mike’s blood relatives).  Putting emotion and hyperbole aside, let me suggest that you take a moment to read a recent Washington Post column by Sally Jenkins where she makes the case that a smart NFL owner should hire Bill Belichick post haste.

Here is the lead paragraph from that column:

“If somebody told you to trust your money to Bill Belichick to invest, would you? Now turn the question around. Why would you trust football decisions to a mall developer? It’s that time of year again, the NFL hiring cycle, when billionaire superegos confuse their industrial or inherited wealth with locker room expertise and go haphazardly shopping for a new coach who will establish “a winning culture.” Instead, what most of them will get is what they deserve: organizational misalignment.”

Personally, I think the marriage of Bill Belichick and the Dallas Cowboys would be about as stable as a barrel of nitroglycerin.  Cowboys’ owner, Jerry Jones, is the most “hands on” owner in the NFL and the last thing that Bill Belichick is likely to tolerate is “kibbitzing” by the owner – – in the building or on a weekly radio program.  Sally Jenkins is right; owners should be seriously considering Belichick for openings around the league – – but not in Dallas.

Moving on …  Here is a story that has been around for at least 20 years and has yet to bear fruit.  Dig deep onto your memory bank and recall the last time you heard that there was a plan being formulated to renovate Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore and the area around the racetrack to assure that the Preakness States would forever be contested at Pimlico.

The framework for this version of “Save Pimlico” revolves around a report to the Maryland State Legislature by a group known as the Maryland Thoroughbred Racetrack Operating Authority suggesting:

• “Centering” racing in Maryland in Baltimore at Pimlico
• Building a new training facility elsewhere in the State
• Transferring the Preakness Stakes temporarily to Laurel Race Track
• Redeveloping Pimlico on a schedule whereby it would open in 2027 and Laurel would be abandoned.

The proposal has a $400M price tag – – which makes sense since the previous idea(s) for dealing with the dilapidated condition of Pimlico were in the $300M range; so, with inflation, etc. …  The 2024 Preakness is scheduled to take place on May 18^th and the idea would be to run the race at Pimlico at that time; then, shut the track down; move racing to Laurel; tear down Pimlico and rebuild it along with some hotel facilities and an event facility which would be developed and also be ready for business in 2027.  At that point, the new Pimlico would host racing on a “year-round basis”.

Let me set the scene here:

• Pimlico has been a royal mess for about 30 years now; it has all the charm and appeal of a pile of rotting flesh.  The facilities there make an eyesore appear to be a work of art.
• Pimlico is in a diverse neighborhood in Baltimore.  Some areas proximal to the track are old residential neighborhoods with upper middle-class residents; other areas proximal to the track are about as appealing as the track facilities themselves.
• Horse racing is a dying sport in the US.  I have no doubt that the Maryland Thoroughbred Racetrack Operating Authority can find animals to compete “year-round” at whatever sort of track facility exists at the end of these planned activities, but this is not going to be a gold mine for the area or the State.
• Yes, off-track betting and sports betting will help with the economics – – but remember that there was already off-track betting available at Pimlico in the past and that was insufficient to keep the operation in the black.

So, all this falderal boils down to this:

• Pimlico needs lots of work just to be able to host one special race per year.
• The business enterprises at the “new Pimlico” would not belong to the State; in this plan, they would be “privately developed”.
• Is that worth $400M to the Maryland State Legislature?
• Are the neighborhoods around Pimlico worth a $400M investment?

Finally, since Pimlico is in Baltimore, let me close with this observation from the “Bard of Baltimore” – – H. L. Mencken:

“Self respect:  the secure feeling that no one, as yet, is suspicious.”

But don’t get me wrong, I love sports………