Since this is my last column of 2007, I thought it would be appropriate to use this time to look back over the sports landscape during the last calendar year and recap the biggest story in each of the four major sports. So without further adieu, here's how the 2007 football, baseball, basketball and hockey seasons will be remembered.
Sport:
Baseball
Headline:
Mitchell report: the tie that Bonds
Story:
George Mitchell, a former senator and prosecutor, was appointed by baseball commissioner Bud Selig in March 2006 to investigate the use of performance-enhancing drugs in baseball. After 20 months, Mitchell's investigation is complete and even though several players and teams were unwilling to help out, the fall out is expected to be ugly. Having got my eyes on the report, Barry Bonds, Jose Canseco, Roger Clemens, Andy Pettitte, Gary Sheffield, Jason Giambi, Chuck Knoblauch, David Justice, Mo Vaughn, Denny Neagle, Paul Lo Duca, Eric Gagne, Troy Glaus, Jose Guillen, John Rocker, Rafael Palmeiro, Miguel Tejada, Brian Roberts, Jerry Hairston, Jr., Jay Gibbons are some of the bigger names I came across. And can we take a moment to congratulate the Baltimore Orioles? They don't come up near the top of very many lists, but they showed up for this party!
My take:
Bud Selig pays $50 million to Mitchell who, by the way, is on the board of directors of the Boston Red Sox (no conflict of interests there, right?) to open Pandora's Box and name the names of those players who have used steroids in baseball. At this point, common sense should kick in and the American public should be asking "Why didn't Selig save the money and just stand up two years ago, admit that baseball had a problem, apologize and implement changes to fix it?"
Bottom line:
This will forever be known as the Steroid Era in baseball and, fair or unfair, any achievements will be immediately subjected to scrutiny.
Sport:
Basketball
Headline:
What are the odds?
Story:
Tim Donaghy, an NBA referee for 13 years, pleaded guilty and faces a maximum of 25 years in prison on federal felony conspiracy charges alleging that he passed along inside information on NBA games. For four years, Donaghy bet on games – including games he worked – and tipped off high-stakes gamblers with inside information and recommended which teams to bet on. It's been reported he was paid $5,000 when his tips proved accurate.
My take:
This is every commissioner's worst nightmare because nothing scares away fans more than the thought of a dishonest league. There's a reason people still hold a grudge against would-be Hall of Famer Pete Rose for gambling while he was the manager of the Cincinnati Reds. Tons of undesirable questions are raised when people in positions of authority lack integrity. Don't believe me? Go ask Donald Rumsfeld.
Bottom line:
On a positive note, no one's talking about NBA players brawling in the stands anymore.
Sport:
Football
Headline:
Out of bounds
Story:
This story begins with the death of Denver Broncos cornerback Darrent Williams and ends with the death of Washington Redskins safety Sean Taylor. In between, you've got everything from Michael Vick's dog fighting, Chris Henry's and Tank Johnson's respective run-ins with the law and Pacman Jones doing everything from "making it rain" to collecting a paycheck from a wrestling federation instead of the NFL.
My take:
I don't know how much money NFL commissioner Roger Goodell makes annually, but he's worth every penny. There might only be 17 weeks of games scheduled during the regular season, but his job is definitely a full-time gig, and that's because a total of 24 NFL players and coaches have showed up on the police blotter just from August 1 to December 1. For those not very good at math, that's more than one incident a week. The league is consumed with expanding globally, which explains why games continue to be played in Mexico and London. But maybe that's not such a good idea, just yet.
Bottom line:
NFL Players can't behave in this country, so why force them on the rest of the world?
Sport:
Hockey
Headline:
Dude, where's my league?
Story:
Thanks to an owner's lockout, the 2004-2005 NHL season never happened. Fast forward to today when 30 professional hockey teams, spanning two countries, do battle on a nightly basis while no one notices. The NHL was always the fourth sport in any conversation about "The Big Four." But thanks to terrible commissioner Gary Bettman and the worst TV contract imaginable, the league has fallen so far it's embarrassing.
My take:
The only way for the NHL to truly begin to recover involves Bettman stepping down and the league getting back on channels people actually watch. Thanks to likes of Sidney Crosby and Alexander Ovechkin, there are tons of talented players throughout the league, but what good are they when no one can see them? Swallow your pride and do the smart thing, by working out a deal with ESPN to get back into their rotation. It won't fix everything, but it's a start.
Bottom line:
Bettman needs to go before there's nothing left for him to be in charge of.
Brian Murphy is the 2005 Defense Department's sportswriter of the year. And he still doesn't know what the hell he's talking about. Contact him at murf@the5holes.com.
