Thursday, August 10, 2023
The Bronx Bummers
Wednesday, May 24, 2023
Thank You for Your Service
Wednesday, March 15, 2023
Fly the Frugal Skies
Economy-class Billionaire |
On one hand, this was not an anonymous leak by a disgruntled player so I doubt anyone is really broken up about it. A bunch of multi-millionaires can certainly afford $9 per flight to post selfies on Instagram.
On the other hand, SERIOUSLY YANKEES?
Reportedly, an in-flight Wi-Fi plan costs approximately $40,000 per year for the team. Let's put that cost into some ludicrous perspective:
- The Yankees' payroll in 2023 is expected to be $272 million
- $40,000 would add a bit more than 1/100 of 1% to that total (0.0147%)
- Forbes estimates the value of the Yankees franchise at $6 billion, with annual revenues of $482 million
- $40,000 is a bit less than 1/100 of 1% of that annual total (0.0083%)
- It would cost someone earning $100,000 the equivalent of $8.30 to pay for Wi-Fi annually
- A single season ticket on the Field MVP level (lower tier, wrapping around home plate) costs up to $18,079
- Aaron Judge's new contract pays him approximately $246,000 per game, or around $27,000 per inning
Thursday, January 5, 2023
As Clear As Mud
After flirting with the Minnesota Vikings last year -- depending on who you talk to, it was either an interview he didn't get, or a nice conversation -- the rumor mill has started again. Harbaugh has been attached to the Denver Broncos and Carolina Panthers in recent days. Amidst all this swirl, though, one voice was absent. The one voice that could put to rest all the speculation.
On Wednesday, the Coach finally spoke:
“Although no one knows the future, I think I will be coaching Michigan next year.”
Thanks, Jim, that certainly settles matters. Or, read another way: "If no NFL team offers me a job, I will be back in Ann Arbor."
While this idle speculation is mostly fun and games for the media, it doesn't come without a cost. Harbaugh returning to Michigan is all well and good, but one group appears to be considerably less enthusiastic about the coach's constant waffling: top recruits.
Nothing says "Come join our football program" quite like the constant rumors that the coach recruiting you will soon be working on Sundays instead. Is it a coincidence that coming off their best season in decades and another appearance in the CFP that Michigan's ranking for the 2023 Recruiting Class has plummeted to #17?
For the 2023 class, not a single 5-star prospect decided to commit to the next 3 to 4 years under maybe? Coach Harbaugh. If the coach can't commit, how can you blame a recruit? You can bet Nick Saban is selling Nick Saban as much as he's selling Alabama. What is Harbaugh's answer in those living rooms when the "Are you going to the NFL" question inevitably arises?
This is not to say that Harbaugh's equivocation is the sole reason for Michigan's recruiting struggles. In the immediate term, Michigan's haul of the 4th-ranked group of transfers will boost the 2023 team even more than some talented freshmen. But it would be nicer to have both.
Jim Harbaugh is gonna Jim Harbaugh, and that applies to any team that employs him. For years, it seemed like Michigan only got the nonsense part. Now they have the success, too. Unfortunately, it just seems harder to buy into the rah-rah-Michigan-Man act when his true desire seems to be a return to "the league where they play... for pay."
Wednesday, December 21, 2022
Everyone Wants an Uncle Steve
Image courtesy ESPN |
For as long as anyone can remember, or at least as long as George Steinbrenner had been throwing money around in the Bronx, fans have complained about the Yankees buying the pennant. (In recent years, though, no amount of Yankees' largesse has brought home a title.) It's ironic, then, that the Mets' fan base is so loudly cheering their own good fortune in the form of the fortunes of Steve Cohen. And the Mets are not making any apologies about spending whatever it takes to win.
While no roster is perfect, I can't recall a team in recent memory with such an abundance of top-level performers throughout:
- A starting rotation that features Max Scherzer, Verlander, Quintana, Senga and Carlos Carrasco
- A lineup of Correa, All-Stars Pete Alonso, Jeff McNeil, Starling Marte, plus SS Francisco Lindor
- A bullpen with Reliever of the Year Edwin Diaz and newly-signed set-up man Robertson
Monday, October 31, 2022
Guessing Game
- Georgia
- Ohio State
- Tennessee
- Michigan
- Alabama wins out, finishes 11-1 and captures the SEC West
- Georgia beats Tennessee and finishes 12-0, winning the SEC East
- If Alabama beats Georgia, a 1-loss SEC Champ is almost guaranteed a spot in the playoffs
- If Georgia, previously ranked #1, has only 1 loss in the championship game, they make a strong case for inclusion
- Meanwhile, the 1-loss Volunteers, having BEATEN Alabama and whose only loss would be to former #1 Georgia, would be the odd team out
Monday, August 8, 2022
Of Streaks and Swoons
This past weekend, the Yankees were swept in a series for the first time this season, losing all 3 games to the St. Louis Cardinals. But that was only the icing on a very bad cake. In a stark contrast to their electric start, the Yankees have limped through the opening weeks of the 2nd half. Over the past 30 games, the Yankees are a woeful 12-18, including their first 5-game losing streak.
So what does this all mean? As the expression goes, "You're never as good as you look when you're winning, and you're never as bad as you look when you're losing." The 2022 Yankees, therefore, aren't going to win 117 games, but they're not likely to finish .500 either.
Thanks to their historic start, the Yankees are still a virtual lock to make the playoffs. Their hold on the best record in the league, though, is tenuous. Fortunately for the Yanks, Houston has been scuffling, too. Otherwise the Astros would have passed the Yankees already. All that said, it doesn't seem like it's time to panic, but context is quite important here.
Say that instead of winning 56 games by July, the Yankees started the first 30 games of the season the way they've played of late. At 12-18 on May 4, that would have been good enough for 4th place in the A.L. East. Very few people would figure that team to win 22 games in a calendar month.
The case could be made that the Yankees' current swoon impacted their moves at the trade deadline more than their hot start. They reinforced the lineup with Andrew Benintendi, and the rotation with Frankie Montas, both newly-apparent areas of need. Unfortunately, both players have blended seamlessly with their now cold-as-ice teammates. Benintendi is an abysmal 4-30 since donning pinstripes, while Montas got bombed in his first start for New York.
Where do they go from here? A trip to Seattle is up next, where the Yanks will face the one who got away, Luis Castillo. And though the Red Sox have been lost all season, one can imagine how they would relish playing the role of spoiler in a weekend series at Fenway.
Beyond that, though, could be the stretch that defines the entire season: 9 straight games against the Rays, Blue Jays and Mets, all teams currently in playoff position. If the Yankees can't right the ship by then, even a division lead could be in jeopardy. It remains to be seen which Yankees team will show up over the next few weeks.