And 5.5 games back from first place.
I really did want to buy a Pirates T-shirt this year . . .but I'm not just gonna give away my money. You boys gotta EARN it!
Come ON!
Wednesday, August 03, 2011
Tuesday, August 02, 2011
The Emotional Trade
We are now in the throes of normal August-ness. Baseball is heating up and Football is back in camp. Much of the news in the 'Burgh, ironically has been about baseball which is kind of nice. But as the Steelers have come back to camp there is once again controversy about the James Harrison article recently published in Men's Journal. Stirred into this pot of controversy are the remarks Rashard Mendenhall made via twitter over the summer about Osama Bin Laden. Oddly, not many people are talking about Hines Ward's DUI, but it's not far from MY mind.
Whenever the news breaks of one of these kinds of "happenings" off season part of me just groans and rolls my eyes. And of course, this years crop of shenanigans makes me think of the major drama last year of Ben's late night dalliances with a college girl in a bar bathroom. Duly noted, of course this year he's a little altar boy. Fresh from his summer wedding and now he's being princely in re-working his deal to help the Steelers stay under the salary cap. What a guy.
At times like this, I find it interesting that disgusted fans, at least in Pittsburgh - want them traded. Public was outraged last summer with Ben. Repeated calls made to radio stations and conversations over my own dinner table were akin to "I'd rather lose than win with him". Similarly with James Harrison and Rashard - "This is going to cause trouble in the locker room. Trade him". Or - "This guy's an idiot, trade him". (Still not sure how Hines has managed to keep his name generally out of this . . .I mean he could have KILLED a person, that's certainly a far greater offense than running your mouth on twitter). Even toward the end of the NHL season when Matt Cooke was banned for the 1st round of the playoffs for hockey thuggery, all over town people wanted him traded for repeatedly playing stupidly and putting the team in harms' way.
It has been my impression that people in Pittsburgh have prided themselves on not having the big ego super star (jerk) players. (So, bye bye Plaxico, no thanks Randy Moss, no WAY Terrell Owens). Teams around here only want to make the news for being awesome at sports - not who the athletes are dating or how famous they are. After all, that kind of attention tends to be followed by trouble; unless you're Derek Jeter. So this pride in teams constructed around athletes who are just good at their jobs, are suddenly in the news for something other than sports then suddenly everyone wants them traded. I must admit I count myself among these people - especially with Matt Cooke.
I can't help but wonder, is this common everywhere or just in Pittsburgh?
And more importantly, isn't all forgiven if the team wins? Truthfully?
Whenever the news breaks of one of these kinds of "happenings" off season part of me just groans and rolls my eyes. And of course, this years crop of shenanigans makes me think of the major drama last year of Ben's late night dalliances with a college girl in a bar bathroom. Duly noted, of course this year he's a little altar boy. Fresh from his summer wedding and now he's being princely in re-working his deal to help the Steelers stay under the salary cap. What a guy.
At times like this, I find it interesting that disgusted fans, at least in Pittsburgh - want them traded. Public was outraged last summer with Ben. Repeated calls made to radio stations and conversations over my own dinner table were akin to "I'd rather lose than win with him". Similarly with James Harrison and Rashard - "This is going to cause trouble in the locker room. Trade him". Or - "This guy's an idiot, trade him". (Still not sure how Hines has managed to keep his name generally out of this . . .I mean he could have KILLED a person, that's certainly a far greater offense than running your mouth on twitter). Even toward the end of the NHL season when Matt Cooke was banned for the 1st round of the playoffs for hockey thuggery, all over town people wanted him traded for repeatedly playing stupidly and putting the team in harms' way.
It has been my impression that people in Pittsburgh have prided themselves on not having the big ego super star (jerk) players. (So, bye bye Plaxico, no thanks Randy Moss, no WAY Terrell Owens). Teams around here only want to make the news for being awesome at sports - not who the athletes are dating or how famous they are. After all, that kind of attention tends to be followed by trouble; unless you're Derek Jeter. So this pride in teams constructed around athletes who are just good at their jobs, are suddenly in the news for something other than sports then suddenly everyone wants them traded. I must admit I count myself among these people - especially with Matt Cooke.
I can't help but wonder, is this common everywhere or just in Pittsburgh?
And more importantly, isn't all forgiven if the team wins? Truthfully?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)