In Defense of Uncle Bud

When people think of Bud Selig, they immediately have the image of an older man with an expression of complete and utter bewilderment. They think of someone who inherently seems as trustworthy as a used car salesman, which is ironic since Selig made his money through running an automotive leasing company. In general, they think of incompetence.

Part of that thought process is due to several situations that occurred during his tenure as acting commissioner and when he officially became the commissioner of baseball. First was the strike of 1994, and the cancellation of the World Series. That work stoppage effectively ruined baseball in Montreal, and it took years before the sport was able to get back to the level of popularity it had been at previously. This has been a huge black mark for Selig; yet since that point in time, baseball has had unprecedented labor peace. In fact, while the NFL and NBA are staging lockouts, the collective bargaining agreement for baseball is also up after this year, and there has been no talks of strikes or lockouts there. They are already working on the new CBA, which they hope to have done by the end of the year.

Selig also presided over the tied All-Star Game in 2002, which he takes an undo amount of flak for. While he could have created a way to determine the winner with some contest (home run hitting derby, skills competition, whatever), the managers were the ones that ran out all of the pitchers. Not Selig. This definitely could have been handled better, but that is not entirely his fault, as a lot of people seem to think.

Then there was the steroid era. Technically, steroids were being used in baseball as far back as the mid to late 1980's, when he was not even commissioner. In fact, the steroid era taints the reigns of at least four commissioners - Peter Ueberroth, A. Bartlett Giamatti, Fay Vincent, and Selig. Selig catches the most heat for the steroid era because he was the commissioner when it all came to a head in 2005. However, steroids helped the game of baseball get back into the national consciousness with the McGwire-Sosa home run chase. Also, other sports, notably football, have a far greater issue with steroids and PEDs, but no one cares. Selig is the victim of a double standard here.

Now, lets look at some of the positives of his tenure. First, baseball has had labor peace for almost 20 years at this point. The union and the owners, while not exactly friends, are no longer as adversarial has they had been in the past. Selig has a large part in this, as the face of the owners at the negotiating table. Also, the sport has had tremendous financial growth during his tenure, outpacing the United States GDP by almost 150%. From 2007 to 2008, baseball had an increase in revenue of over $400Million, despite selling 800,000 fewer tickets. This is partially due to the revenue sharing plan Selig instituted, which is helping smaller market teams invest money into their product, and also due to MLB embracing the internet and new media.

Selig also brought about radical realignment after the 1994 strike, and added the wild card. More teams now have a better chance to make the playoffs, which keeps fans interested. Without the wild card, the Florida Marlins would not have won either of their championships. It would have been 2007 until the Red Sox won a World Series. In total, nine wild card teams made the World Series, with four of them winning it. In fact, in 2002, both teams (the Giants and Angels) were wild cards.

Interleague play was another creation of Bud Selig. While there are issues in terms of the interleague schedule, there is no doubt that fans want to see it. Ticket sales increase during these games, and it creates fun situations where the Cubs played at Fenway for the first time since the 1918 World Series. Yes, people may want to see it eliminated, but it still draws attention to the game.

Selig has also made it where the American and National Leagues are controlled by the same office, the umpires are no longer split according to league, brought about the World Baseball Classic, helped create a stricter PED testing policy (and got the union to agree to it), and created Jackie Robinson Day. Is Selig perfect? Hell no. But everything he does is due to his true love of baseball, and his desire to help improve the sport. In the end, the good far outweighs the bad.

Bud Selig has been a good commissioner, and has been good for the game of baseball. He deserves a lot more credit than he gets.

The Legacy of Yao

Earlier today, reports surfaced that Yao Ming has decided to retire from the NBA, due to knee and ankle injuries that have robbed him of all but five games last season. Yao had been dealing with injuries over the past several years, having surgeries on his feet and ankles in an attempt to be able to keep playing.

Over his eight year career, Yao averaged 19 points, 9.2 rebounds, and 1.89 blocks per game. However, his contribution to basketball, and the NBA, goes beyond the numbers. Yao, while not the first Chinese basketball export (that would be Wang Zhi Zhi), was the most prominent. His playing ability, as much as his size and presence, helped to further the international growth of the NBA. Yao was already a beloved figure in China prior to coming over the the US to play in the NBA; afterwards, he became legendary.

To some, Yao's career may be a bit of a disappointment due to his injury issues, but look at what he accomplished. He was an All-Star every year he was in the league. He made the All-Rookie team. Three times he was an All-NBA third team member, and twice made All-NBA second team. If anything, the most disappointing part of his career was that the Rockets did not truly take advantage of one skill that Ming had - his ability to pass the ball. Yao Ming was a great passer, perhaps even the best passing center since Arvydas Sabonis in his prime. The Sabonis that eventually came over to Portland was merely a shell - look him up on YouTube in his younger days and you will see a truly great player. His greatest asset was his ability to pass the ball, and Yao was almost as talented there as he was. Only Houston could never figure out a way to utilize that skill.

So, the question will inevitably be asked if Yao is a Hall of Fame player or not. He is fairly borderline as a player looking at the raw statistics. Yet Yao is bigger than the numbers. He helped bring the NBA into the Asian market. Roughly 200 million Chinese would watch the NBA on CCTV, their television network. 50 million of those were strictly for Rockets games, just to watch Yao. He essentially brought to Houston the equivalent of not one major market city, but FIVE. At a time when the NBA is claiming that 22 of their teams lost money, Yao helped bring major revenue to Houston. He helped further the globalization of the game that David Stern keeps promoting. Yao was one of, if not THE face, of international basketball.

Will Yao make the Hall? He should. If not as a player, he definitely deserves to as a contributor to the game. Furthering the appeal of the NBA overseas, and for being the driving force behind their ability to tap into the Asian market is more than enough for enshrinement in Springfield.

The end of an era

Today, Brett Favre's consecutive start streak ended at 297 games when he was listed as inactive with a sprained SC joint. Thus far through the 2010 season, he had played with a broken foot and severe elbow tendinitis. He has taken shot after shot after shot behind an offensive line that essentially best resembled a turnstile this season. There were points in time when Favre could barely walk, yet still rose up each time. Now, some of this may have been an overdramatization, since he very much enjoys being the center of attention, yet somehow these hits may have hurt more than even he let on.

Watching the Vikings struggle this season, one has to wonder how often Favre questioned his decision to return for one final year. He did not get along with his coach, the now deposed Brad Childress. His primary option at receiver had a severe hip injury, and was not even on the field for most of the season. He seemed a step slower, and never got in sync with the players around him. The receiving corps was a bit of a revolving door, with Sidney Rice hurt, Greg Camarillo being brought in right at the end of training camp, Randy Moss being there for a month, and Percy Harvin's ongoing migraine issues.

If this is truly the end for Favre and he does not play any further this season (as of now, there is talk of placing him on the injured reserve list), what will his legacy be? Some will remember him as the Ol' Gunslinger, who was out there firing the football around and having fun with his friends like it was an afternoon pick up game. Others will remember the narcissistic soap opera that was his waffling between being retired or being unretired, which stretched over four offseasons. Still others will recall how he is the main reason as to why two head coaches (Childress and Eric Mangini) got fired from their jobs.

When looking at Favre's legacy, it is important to remember all of this about him. It is also important to recognize his accomplishments, both positively (most touchdowns in a career, most career passing yards, the multiple MVP's) and negatively (most career interceptions, most career turnovers). Yes, Favre accomplished a lot of milestones and some achieved some potentially unbreakable records. Yet, how many of them are seemingly out of reach due to his ability to avoid injury (or his ego forcing him to continue playing) and the sheer length of time that he did play? To draw a parallel, Nolan Ryan has a lot of the same going for him. A lot of positive milestones (most strikeouts in a season and all-time, 300+ wins, seven no-hitters) and negative milestones (most career walks, never won a Cy Young award). Yes, both were great, but both played for a long time and managed to compile statistics just from the volume of games played.

In the end, Favre's last pass (fittingly intercepted) may have been thrown, and he is now set to limp off into the sunset, until the point in time when he arrives in Canton to wear the mustard yellow blazer signifying his due place in the NFL Hall of Fame. When recalling his remarkable career, don't just focus on the positive, but keep in mind the full portrait of this unique player who seemed incapable of receiving criticism from the pundits. Perhaps that is his greatest legacy of all.