Mike Claiborne
The rumors started to swirl about town that Cory Spinks was about to have the big payday fight with the self-anointed pound-for-pound champion Floyd Mayweather Jr. Outside of St. Louis, everyone else around the country thought it was somewhere between a dream and a joke. I like what Cory has done for St. Louis, so I will call it a dream. As for the joke element, Kevin Cunningham has worked hard to get his fighter in the position to get paid. The problem is that the challenger (Cory and Kevin) decided they were going to announce the fight was on. That is a no-no in the fight game. Secondly, why would Floyd Mayweather fight Cory Spinks? Spinks has an awkward style that is not conducive to a fan, nor is he a television draw. Throw in the fact that Mayweather has signed to fight Carlos Baldimir on the proposed date of November 4, and the Spinks-Mayweather fight is further on the back burner. Baldimir beat Zab Judah and I am sure people remember what Zab did to Corey. So where does Spinks go from here? Stay tuned.
Do the math
If there is anything that is more boring than the first game of the preseason, it is the second game of the preseason. No cuts have been made and while we may see the starters for an additional series or two, that is about all she wrote. Hence, the reason why the Rams did not sell out the first game. It is about time that fans have said enough is enough when it comes to paying regular season prices for watching many players that will not even be in the league in a month or so. Pre-season ticket sales is found money for the owners because they do not have to pay the players until the start of the regular season. Full price on the ticket, full price on the concessions and half price on the talent. Do the math, and tell me is it worth it to you?
Woe are the Cardinals
What has gone wrong with the Redbirds? As the Cardinals battle for their playoff lives you have to wonder – when did the wheels start to come off of the wagon? The one item that many felt good about coming out of spring training was pitching. Remember? They were going to trade a starter at some point for a bat in the outfield. Really? Aside from Chris Carpenter, youngsters Anthony Reyes and Adam Wainwright, who has any trade value for anything? Jeff Suppan may be the one guy that might be kept around because you know what you are going to get, but the rest? I think it is pretty obvious that the trade decisions have been the biggest Cardinals letdown of this season. The blame should not solely be put on pitching coach Dave Duncan. At some point, Duncan needs more talent to work with. The Cardinals have to get out of the reclamation business and find real players. There are over 40 games left and there is time, but the Cardinals have the one thing to overcome – themselves.
