Farewell to a local legend

Tonight marks the 35th home opener for the Seattle Mariners. No matter how you feel about the direction of the team or actions of the front office, it's always good to have real live baseball being played.

If there is one thing the M's have always done well, it's celebrate - even when there is nothing to celebrate, they've done it well. Opening Day at Safeco Field is first class production every year.



This year, one of the highlights of the evening will be the celebration of one of the most beloved Mariner players of all time, Michael Terrance Cameron. It is hard to imagine that he came to Seattle 12 years ago as a relatively unknown 27 year old who just happened to be the linchpin in the most heart breaking trade in Seattle sports history.

In February of 2000, Ken Griffey Jr. demanded to be traded to the Cincinnati Reds. As a 10-5 guy (10 years playing in the Majors, and five with the same team), Griffey had the power to approve or reject any trade to any team - and he wanted Cincinnati. The Mariners actually had no leverage. At all. If they didn't trade him, they would be stuck with a supremely talented cry baby who would not play hard (Randy Johnson, 1998, anybody?) until he got his way. They had to act. Somehow, Pat Gillick made a deal with the Reds for Brett Tomko, Jake Meyer, Antonio Perez and Mike Cameron.

Tomko was a middle of the rotation starter, and Meyer would never smell the Major Leagues. Perez was a prospect teams were drooling over, and Cameron was an athletic center fielder that now must do the unthinkable. Replace the greatest player in baseball, play his position in the stadium that he is directly responsible for getting built in the town where he helped save baseball.

I wouldn't wish that on the most obnoxious Washington State Cougar or Oregon Duck fan. That is an impossible task. Can you tell me who took Mickey Mantle's job after he retired? What about Willie Mays? Ted Williams? Babe Ruth? No - because you don't replace guys like that.

So, Cameron had to come in and replace Ken Griffey Jr. Good luck buddy. What did he do? He didn't try to be Ken Griffey, he was simply Mike Cameron. An engaging, fan friendly guy who played a magnificent center field and provided some occasional power. He left no doubt early on that he could flash some leather.  He also looked really cool in his hat.

He also provided one of the most memorable offensive performances in Mariner history. More than anything, he was a good dude. I remember Game Three of the 2000 ALDS against the White Sox, Cammy's first year with the M's. After Carlos Guillen's suicide squeeze scored Rickey Henderson (my favorite player of all time), Cameron stayed out on the field, and on the dugout to celebrate with fans for nearly an hour after the game. It wasn't contrived, it was just something he did because he was having fun. And the fans loved him for it. 

There is even a rumor that Mike Cameron has signed a one day Minor League contract with the M's so he can officially retire as a Mariner. I don't know if that's true or not, but it would be a fitting end to a guy who will always be one of the fan favorites. 

Best of luck to Mike Cameron.

Fat, Drunk and Stupid....

Is no way to go through life, son. I don't think Bobby Petrino was drunk, but he's certainly fat and CERTAINLY stupid. He hired a 25 year old ex volleyball player that he was having an affair with, despite the fact that he's married with four children. Then, he wrecked his motorcycle with his mistress on it, and lied about it.

He got fired yesterday, and rightfully so. As the face of an athletic department, when you do stupid things and tarnish your reputation as well as your school's, you deserve to get fired. I have no issue with that. What I do have an issue with are the morons who held a rally to support Petrino. HOW in the world can you defend him?Because he's a football coach? What if he was an English Professor? Would there even be a question that he should be fired? No. Not for a second.

As I read about the jabroni's who supported him, I began to think about the things that stupid sports fans do. There is a list of offenses that are so egregious that your viewing and rooting right should be revoked. In order of most offensive, they are:

1. Doing physical harm to opposing fans - We all remember last opening day in Los Angeles. Dodger fans literally beat a San Francisco Giant's fan half to death. Brain damage, coma, months of rehabilitation for a man who was a fan of the other team. That was it. Did he run his mouth? Maybe, even possibly. So what? That justifies the beating of a lifetime? This could be worthy of it's own post because there is so much wrong and awful with it. So I'll just say this - if you have ever done physical harm to an opposing fan, you're not a real fan. You're a goon. Even if it was an Oregon fan, no excuse.

2. Throwing something or running on the field during play - A drunk fan who runs on the field in nothing bus his boxers is funny, for a minute. It's even funnier when that fan gets tackled by security. Then they spend the night in jail, sober up and feel really stupid about what they did. But there is so much that can go wrong, and you never know what the intentions are - right, Tom Gamboa?

Chances are you're going to do something negative to hurt your team - technical fouls, penalties, messing up momentum. Oh, and 100% you're going to jail. You might make it on to Sportscenter, but you're going to jail, ass.

3. Celebrating and defending a coach when they screw up big time - This one has been at the forefront a great deal lately, starting in November with Joe Paterno at Penn State and now with Bobby Petrino. Both were great coaches (I use the past tense because Jo Pa is dead and Bobby Petrino will never coach again after his performances with the Falcons and Razorbacks). Let's get it straight - Both men failed their universities and teams. Joe Paterno, despite the immeasurable good that he did over more than 60 years at Penn State, allowed a pedophile to operate unimpeded on his watch. Even worse, he learned about it and didn't stop it. How did Penn State fans respond? They nearly rioted.

I get it - he was and is the face of Penn State and had been for decades. But he screwed up, badly. He allowed for children to be molested by not acting. I'm sorry Jo Pa, but you failed in every possible way, and you deserved to be fired. Are you a great coach? Yes. Did you stand for integrity? Yes. But when it mattered most, you failed to protect those who couldn't protect themselves. Bobby Petrino has no such legacy, and yet 200 people decided that despite the fact he cheated on his wife and used University of Arkansas money to employ his mistress then lied about his motorcycle accident that he shouldn't lose his job.    I mean, this guy doesn't have a real sterling reputation to begin with, so this type of behavior isn't shocking. He's a dirt bag, plain and simple. That's the kind of guy you want representing your Football program, Arkansas fans? Seriously?

4. Rushing the court/field when you beat a marginally ranked team - There are precisely three occasions when you can rush the field/court:

• When your team beats a Top 5 ranked team. For example, in 2004, the unranked Washington Huskies beat the #1 ranked and undefeated Stanford Cardinal in the final game of the regular season. It's not OK when your team beats the 19th ranked team in the country in mid January. That's bush league. 

• When you are playing your rival in a game that will cripple their post season/bowl hopes. The 2002 WSU Cougars were ranked #3 and if they beat UW in the Apple Cup, there was a chance that they could actually play for a national title (God, I just threw up in my mouth a little at the thought). UW won a triple overtime thriller in Pullman, and Husky fans rushed the field, as was appropriate. Cougar fans, ever the classy bunch, threw full bottles at Husky fans. Nicely done. To ease your pain, WSU fans, please relive the final moments of that wonderful day.

• If your team wins on a miraculous play or shot. No matter the context of the game, those things just don't happen that often. Often times this will coincide with upsetting a highly ranked team. A perfect (and sadly heartbreaking for me) example was the 2007 Apple Cup in Seattle. Tie game, and out of nowhere....Coug fans rushed the field. They had every right. 

There are more, no doubt - but these four simply scream ignorance as a fan. Just don't do them. You'll save yourself a lot of embarrassment. Hopefully you take my sage advice and don't end up like Frank The Tank...don't be that guy. 

When You Play the Game of Thrones...

You win, or you die. Thank you very much, Cersei Lannister for putting it so eloquently. Before I go any further, if you have not watched or read any of the Game of Thrones/Song of Ice and Fire books or episodes, stop now, because I'm spoiling some shit.

Right now, there is nothing better than HBO's adaptation of George R. R. Martin's series, "A Song of Ice and Fire." Period. It's perfect entertainment. It's a terrific story line with terrific characters. There is violence, politics, naked chicks, naked dudes (yup, full frontal - somewhere Lilly Allen is proud of her brother), plotting, scheming and humor. To top it off, you never know who is going to get killed. When the show premiered last spring, its headliner was Sean Bean, who played the stoic Lord of Winterfell, Ned Stark. After nine episode, Ned Stark got whacked. Episode nine, season one. When has THAT ever happened?

We are now two episodes in to season two, and it's as good as ever. King Goffrey might be the most hated villain on TV right now, except for the fact that his See You Next Tuesday of a mother is even worse than he is - never mind the fact that she's also schtupping her twin brother. Tyrion Lannister is hands down the best character on the show, expertly played by Peter Dinklage who won a Golden Globe for his portrayal of The Imp.



After last night's episode, which was somewhat slow, some serious business is about to go down. You have the lone remaining bastard son of King Robert still on the loose, you have several self proclaimed kings  making plans to impose their will on the others, and you have a creepy and also slutty-hot red witch throwing herself at the least baller of all the kings.

We still haven't been formally introduced to Brienne the Beauty (yes that's sarcasm), nor seen what Lord Renly is up to. We have seen that Jon Snow continues to ride with Ghost and Robb Stark even still appears to be in control. Don't worry, that won't last.

The long and short of it is if you haven't already, get on board with this, and quickly. Start by reading the books from the beginning. Thanks to the miracle of DVR and OnDemand, the episodes aren't going anywhere. The books are phenomenally written, and kudos to HBO for sticking very closely to the story line and not taking creative liberties.

For all who have read the books, you know what's in store for the rest of this season, and it's incredibly difficult to wait. One of the best parts about the whole experience is watching an episode with someone who has no idea what's about to happen. Case in point - the season finale last spring, when Danerys Targarean went into the funeral pyre of Khal Drogo and emerged with three dragons - I watched it with people who hadn't read the books - their faces and expressions were priceless. There were not even words spoken. Mouth's agape, no sound. There's no other way to describe it.  Actually, yes there is.

Blood of my blood.....

A Man of Action

As the Mariners further alienated their fan base this week, I wondered - where are the leaders? The guys who see an opportunity and take action to make something happen. Or, the guys who WANT something and are willing to do anything to make it happen? You know, like Mark Cuban? A guy who has money from other things, then uses that money to fund a dream of theirs - like buying a pro sports team. And then, they run that sports team not like a business, but to win. Period. Yeah, those guys. Where are they?

While I wondered this, Chris Hansen made his claim. After boldly declaring his intentions to fund an arena to bring an NBA and NHL team to Seattle (which already established him as a visionary compared to other leaders in this city), he countered the Mariner's PR nightmare of a letter by saying, "Ok, you don't think this will work? I'll fund a study to show you that it will."

Plain and simple. A C T I ON, action boys, action.

So I got ambitious, and did a bit of research. I Googled Chris Hansen. Turns out he's a helluva guy. He has hosted a really popular TV show about catching pedophiles.



 Obviously, this is the wrong Chris Hansen. But it's still awesome.

OUR Chris Hansen is, in the most basic terms, a guy who made a ton of money and likes sports - specifically Seattle sports. So he came up with a plan to build and fund an arena that would, in theory, attract  an NBA and NHL team and be able to host world class events, concerts, NCAA Tournament games, etc. He bought the land, agreed to finance almost $300 million of the arena and found a way to generate the rest of the money in a way that is not implementing new taxes on the community.

ACTION.

I don't know the specific details of any of this, nor do I pretend to. I don't know if this is actually going to happen, if teams will be available to move here, or if this will fall apart and up and vanish like a fart in the wind. The point is this - in a town known for its leaders sitting on their hands and hemming and hawing about getting anything done with any kind of immediacy (Frank Chop, Seattle City Council, State Legislature, Seattle Mariners, Sound Transit, need I go on?), someone finally stepped up and did something.

We need more Chris Hansens. And more Chris Hansens.

Who is advising these guys?

I am not writing this as an angry UW Basketball fan that just lost more than 40% of our offense. This isn't sour grapes. This is sheer bewilderment.

I mean, really? Tony Wroten, as phenomenally gifted as you are, you are not ready for the NBA. You turn the ball over at the worst possible times. You cannot shoot. Period. It's not that you're a bad shooter, you CAN'T shoot. Nobody has ever taught you how to shoot. You are going to go through workouts for teams, and they will watch you shoot and think, "What? WHAT? Is this real?"

I watched you play a high school game against Roosevelt in early 2011. You looked disinterested, you airballed two three pointers and a free throw. When the game got close, you used your superior athleticism to personally go on a 10-0 run and lock the game up. For parts of the 2011-2012 season, you were also able to use that athleticism to dominate games. Then you started playing better teams. Then you started seeing teams sag off of you and make you drive. Which you did, because you know you can't shoot. More often than not, you either forced up a bad shot or turned the ball over. Sure, sometimes you missed your layup and thanks to your supreme god given talent ( I am not being sarcastic, he's a freak of nature athlete), you were able to secure offensive rebounds and score on put backs.

And don't get me wrong, you were sensational at times this year.

When you felt like playing defense, you were a bulldog - you're defense singlehandedly saved us against Arizona in the desert. But too often you gambled and lost, which resulted in ball handlers running free and forcing your team to cover your missed assignments. Too often you rotated late on the perimeter. 

The thing is, it's ok, because you were a freshman. Freshman make those type of mistakes because they are still learning the college game. With the exception of Anthony Davis, I would be hard pressed to be find a more physically gifted freshman. As a freshman, you're expected to make mistakes, and learn from them. 

I'm sorry to say, it seems that you haven't learned. It seems to me that are relying on talent alone to carry you at the next level. The problem is, everybody in the NBA is as talented as you. Most of them can shoot, or know when to make the flashy pass versus the safe pass. They play defense, and are physical enough to stop you from bull rushing them. They will out jump you on offensive rebounds. They will allow you to play out of control and turn the ball over because they know you cannot and will not shoot a mid range J. 

To that end - I wonder, who is advising you? Who is telling you that you're ready? It's not the NBA guys - they already have you flagged as the biggest potential bust in this draft. It has to be people in your inner circle, guys who have been waiting for this day for 19 years, to cash in on your ability. They are tired of waiting, so they tell you want you want to hear - that you're ready, even when you're not. Because they are ready, even if you're not. 

I am the first to admit, I'm nothing more than a fan. I am not a scout, or talent evaluator. I call it like I see it. Isaiah was ready last year, the only reason he was picked where he was was his size. He had the skills and the intangibles. You have the skills and size, but not the intangibles yet. Unfortunately, this is what I see happening. 

1. Initially projected as a mid to late first round pick

2. Going through workouts, the fatal flaws in your jumper become apparent to all NBA teams

3. Your draft stock falls, but one team (all it takes is one) still loves your raw ability and picks you in the late 20's. 

4. You struggle on offense running a team, and you struggle with your defensive assignments in your rookie year and spend more time on the bench than at any point previously in your life. 

5. Your rookie contract expires, and you find it very difficult to find a new employer.

I hope it doesn't happen - I hope you succeed beyond any of our wildest expectations. I just don't see it happening. You're not ready. 

The Sad, Sordid Affair of Ryan Leaf Hits Close to Home

Any Husky or Cougar fan should remember the date November 22nd, 1997. On that day, two nationally ranked teams played a thriller in Seattle. A Rose Bowl berth was up for grabs, and at the helm of both teams were future NFL Quarterbacks. I sat in the stands at Husky Stadium and watched Ryan Leaf torch the Huskies for 41 points. Brock Huard did his best to keep up, but in the end, Leaf had too much fire power, and Cougars were Rose Bowl bound for the first time in approximately 200 years.

I remember thinking that day, as a 16 year old, "damn, that guy is good. Like, crazy good." And he was - physically gifted with the size and talent to be a dominant NFL Quarterback, Ryan Leaf literally had the world at his fingertips. 

The debate would rage for the better part of six months - who goes #1, Peyton Manning or Ryan Leaf? The Golden Boy from Football's First Family of Quarterbacks, or the brash superstar that lead an upstart team to prominence? 

It was a decision that would ultimately decide the fate of two franchises. Of course, the Colt smartly took Peyton, and the Chargers took Ryan Leaf. If this clip doesn't explain how badly things went for Leaf in San Diego, nothing will.

His failure as an NFL Quarterback is well documented. What happened to Leaf after football is almost as well documented. He is a drug addict, hooked on pain killers. He has been arrested, sent to rehab, and then arrested again. He had a benign tumor at the base of his brain, and went through radiation treatment. 

Not exactly an easy road. As of a week ago, Ryan Leaf was 18 months sober. It appeared that finally, at age 35, Ryan Leaf was getting it together. 

News began to leak on Friday that Leaf had been arrested again, this time for a string of burglaries and drug possession. The situation was so severe that a month long investigation was carried out by a special drug task force in Montana. 

Leaf was already on probation - after his arrest, he posted bail and went home to await trial. This was on Friday - like, three days ago Friday. 

On Sunday, like YESTERDAY Sunday, Ryan Leaf was arrested again. For burglary. Let me reiterate - in the span of 72 hours, Ryan Leaf was arrested twice for burglary and drug possession. 

The latest arrest does not provide Leaf with an option for bail - he will remain in prison. I am writing about this because, as an avid Husky fan that will take advantage of any situation to dump on the Cougars, I am heartbroken for Ryan Leaf. There it is, I said it. Heartbroken. 

I am the son of an addict. I watched my father piss away opportunity after opportunity, job after job, relationship after relationship until he was literally left with nothing. No family, no job...nothing. Once I was old enough to realize it, I was so angry I couldn't see straight. My anger turned to hurt, and my hurt turned to  pity. 

I learned over time that it's a sickness - an addict does not act on these impulses because they think it's fun. They are ill, and they have a disease - the addiction is the disease. There is nothing that an addict won't do to  fuel their needs, and it doesn't matter who it hurts or what it costs. It ruins families, it costs you friends....it will literally take away anything you hold dear. I know - I've seen it happen first hand, and I wouldn't wish it on anybody, ever. 

Ryan Leaf is a sick man. Is he an asshole? Probably. Was he a washout in the NFL? No doubt, maybe the biggest bust in NFL history. Maybe all of his struggles can be attributed back to his disease, and maybe not. Regardless, I feel for him. I want him to get healthy and get his life in order. Nobody deserves to go through what he has gone through and continues to struggle with. 

For once in my life, I'm rooting for a Coug. Let's go Ryan, let's go.