Cardinals still have the goods to win

Now is the time to pay attention to the baseball season, as we have now arrived at Flag Day on the calendar. That means teams have dealt with weather, injuries, streaks, slumps and hope, not to mention disappointment. Managers now know who can do what, and general managers now know what to look for to help their teams. 

Some teams get hot out of the gate and surprise some in doing so. The real surprise is how they fade or put distance on the rest of the teams. Yes, we know the Cubs will fade for sure, as the rebuilding continues, and some will awaken and wonder how they got to the spot they are in.  Every team knows who they are and some will try to improve.  How that is done will be interesting, as some will try to dump salary, others will add youth and yet others will just be patient and see what happens.

The fans, they are all in for winning now, as they buy tickets of the present and not the future.  Everyone is now a manager, general manger or owner wannabe.  That used to be fun for sports talk radio, only now it exposes how little some know about what it takes to win, who can play, who is hurt, and who can help provided you move someone else. We all think we are a little smarter than the old days of calling sports radio open lines and making preposterous trade proposals, only to be met with “thank you for your call” and a roll of the eyes. Now you can tweet your ideas.

That brings us to the St. Louis Cardinals. In the spring, most said they would win the division if they stay healthy. 

When the Peter Bourjos and Randal Grichuck deal was made for David Freese, those who charged with being experts decided that Borjous would be the second coming of Jim Edmonds or Willie McGee. One  has to wonder if those experts ever saw Bourjos play.  If they had, they would have learned that he struggles at the plate.  He has shown flashes, but nothing like what we were led to believe.  His defense has been more than solid, as he has caught everything in the vicinity.  Maybe that is what they meant when it came to the Edmonds comparison. 

While they were at it, most tried to bury Jon Jay who has been on two World Series teams.  How he was treated by some in the media was just plain wrong, and yet Jay remained a pro – as did Bourjos, though some wanted a cat fight.  Good for the center fielders to focus on being good teammates.

There have been struggles in all areas, and in most cases fixable solutions have been set forth by manager Mike Matheny and his staff.  The Cardinals are younger than last season, and there is more responsibility being put on these players to play and, in some cases, lead.  Without Carlos Beltran and Chris Carpenter, it is a different team and everyone needs to find their role and then execute.

There are some interesting debates on when and where Oscar Taveras plays. He comes with great promise, but at some point promise has to lead to results provided that opportunity is afforded. 

The Cardinals should still win this thing, only it will be more challenging than we thought in the spring.  There will be more streaks and slumps, along with injuries, but they are deeper than everyone else in the division and they have a wealth of experience in playing down the stretch. If they need something to get them over the hump, they have the means to get it.  Enjoy the real season.

NCAA on trial

The long-awaited trial involving Ed O’Bannon and the NCAA is now under way and, no matter what the outcome may be, the NCAA will never be the same.  O’Bannon and other former college athletes sued the  NCAA a few years ago claiming they were not compensated from the merchandise and marketing bonanza the NCAA now relishes.  The old standard set forth by the NCAA said that the athletes are getting a free education, seeing the world and getting three square meals a day.  That almost sounds like what the U.S. Army is offering, with the exception of getting shot at from time to time. O’Bannon is out to prove that nothing was free, as he put in more work playing basketball than he did going to class.

Before trial started, the NCAA offered to settle by paying $20-40 million to all of the plaintiffs.  After the lawyers, some stood to make a few hundred dollars, while others could make as much as $15,000. Not even close on what they were due, so O’Bannon used his college education. He knew how to say, “Bring it on.”

Win or lose, the NCAA will have to change how they do business.  Why they did not offer more up front is a mystery that will cost them. Remember Curt Flood and his challenge of Major League Baseball’s reserve clause. Flood lost, but the owners knew something had to be done. Say hello to free agency as we know it today, where players are paid for their services in a more equitable manner. 

At the end of the day, the NCAA will have a different look and perhaps a different role in college sports. The next hurdle they will have to clear is dealing with the major conferences, as it will not take much now for them to bolt and form their own entity.  Yes, the new day for college sports is just around the corner and I cannot wait.