In physical chemistry courses, I learned about entropy. A simple explanation of entropy is that things tend toward chaos/disorder unless energy is added to the system. That leads to a conclusion that the universe will die an “entropy death” once all its energy is expended; it is a long way off, but it is inevitable.
Over the weekend, there was an occurrence that was about as inevitable – – the LA Dodgers acquired the services of Tarik Skubal in a trade with the Detroit Tigers. One school of thought on that exchange might be:
- The owners are happy to see the rich get richer because it bolsters their argument that MLB needs a salary cap and floor as its economic system.
On second thought however, I wonder if the owners are capable of executing such an extended time plan. Normally, I think of MLB owners as people who consider “long range planning” to include such items as to where to have lunch next Tuesday.
Moving on … The Women’s Pro Baseball League (WPBL) had its inaugural games over the weekend. The league has a TV deal with ESPN to stream 30 games plus the league’s playoff games; I do not get ESPN streaming – and this set of games is not sufficient to get me to subscribe – but the connection between ESPN and a new league has to be beneficial to the new league.
Take your mind back about 10 years and recall Mo’ne Davis who is the first girl to pitch a shut out in the Little League World Series. Well, she is an adult now and she is a member of the LA Queens – – one of four teams in the new WPBL. The last time there was a women’s pro baseball league in the US was back in 1954; Dwight Eisenhower was in his first term as President then. To put a baseball timeline on that, the Sacramento/Oakland/Kansas City A’s were still in Philadelphia in 1954.
The new league has 4 teams – – NY Boston, LA and SF – – but it will play all its games this season in Springfield, IL. That arrangement will save the league a ton of transportation money and give it a chance to build some brand recognition and interest in those home areas. According to a report I read, Springfield, IL has some historical significance in relation to the WPBL. Springfield, IL was the home of the first women’s baseball game where fans paid money to get in and see the game; that was in 1875 when Ulysses S. Grant was President and General George Custer was still alive.
Switching gears … The “Tony Romo OWI Incident” took a turn over the weekend. Recall last week when I said it would be “AWKWARD” for him and the network to have him doing NFL games in Week 1 and Week 2 when his mandatory court appearance is the day after the Week 2 games. Well, the folks at CBS must have decided that they could not contort themselves to that degree; so, they have suspended Romo “indefinitely” and have announced that JJ Watt will replace him as the color analyst alongside Jim Nantz at least for now.
Since a first offense for OWI in Wisconsin is a civil matter and can be remedied with a fine and a suspension of a driver’s license, I find the term “indefinitely” a bit strange. There were no injuries or fatalities involved; it is unlikely that a sordid/steamy civil lawsuit will come out of this incident. It certainly appears as if everyone will close the book on this matter by the end of September – – so why is the suspension “indefinitely”?
Some folks have concluded that CBS wants to get out from under Romo’s contract which pays him $18M per year over the next 4 years and some folks hint at friction between Jim Nantz and Romo. I know nothing about any of that stuff, but if the CBS poohbahs have soured on Romo, then that $72M contractual overhang could well be a motivation for them to think about how to wiggle out of it. If this turns out to be the case, perhaps this story will stretch out well beyond the end of September.
Before anyone asks, I have not seen any announcement of who will step in for JJ Watt on the CBS #2 NFL broadcast team with Ian Eagle. Charles Davis and Trent Green are the most experienced color analysts in the CBS bullpen and moving either of them would create a vacancy down the line. I think Davis is the best choice there – – unless CBS can find a way to poach Greg Olsen away from FOX.
Finally, Benjamin Franklin famously said “In this world, nothing can be said to be certain except death and taxes” which seems appropriate for the “Skubal to the Dodgers” item above. Franklin also said:
“Remember not only to say the right thing in the right place, but far more difficult still, to leave unsaid the wrong thing at the tempting moment.”
But don’t get me wrong, I love sports………