What we hate about sports

[SabresRule]

A few weeks back, Sandra had a "What we love about Sports" thread.

I'd like to do the opposite- a negative thread, if you will.

There are things in sports that really annoy us.

My list of negatives won't be monstrously long, though.

Here are mine, in no particular order:

1. The MLB All-Star game's rule where the managers in last year's World Series automatically are the managers for the Midsummer Classic. Last year, Rockies manager Clint Hurdle was the N.L. manager, even though his Rockies were 18 games under .500 at midseason! Why can't they do what the NBA and NHL do- allow the coaches of the team with their respective league's best record do so. Maybe, just maybe, the NL could actually WIN a Midsummer Classic if managers with better records were allowed to do so. Perhaps Lou Piniella could have made a move that may have made the game shorter than it was!

2. Televising the NFL Combine. Who cared about jumping really high? So many good players have dropped because of this. How else do you explain Mike Mamula getting drafted ahead of Warren Sapp or Derrick Brooks in 1995? I'm not saying get rid of it- just don't make a big deal out if it!

3. The Senior Bowl and these other "bowls after the bowls."

4. The disrepsect that the NHL gets. Hockey has some magical players- Crosby, Ovechkin, Malkin, Brodeur- yet they get 1/10th of the media attention of a moron like Pacman Jones (Terrell Owens is at least good at playing football- second-most TD's ever. I can name 40 cornerbacks I'd rather have than Mr. "Make it Rain")

5. The fawning over USC after every Rose Bowl. I hear the same stuff every year- No team is playing better, no team has better players, etc. Maybe if they actually beat the teams they are SUPPOSED to beat, they are playing for something bigger.

6. The NFL Network eliminating Saturday games on the major networks. I can't get the damn channel!

7. Arena naming rights, if the new name sounds really dumb. As a Sabre fan, Marine Midland/HSBC Arena doesn't sound so bad. HD, no offense, but whatever happened to the Gund Arena? You love to call the Cavs' arena "The Q," but I don't know what Quicken Loans?

If the name makes sense- Petco Park, Coors Field- it's fine.

If not- Ameriquest Field in Arlington- I hate it!

 

[Jimbo]

A few weeks back, Sandra had a "What we love about Sports" thread.

I'd like to do the opposite- a negative thread, if you will.

There are things in sports that really annoy us.

My list of negatives won't be monstrously long, though.

Here are mine, in no particular order:

1. The MLB All-Star game's rule where the managers in last year's World Series automatically are the managers for the Midsummer Classic. Last year, Rockies manager Clint Hurdle was the N.L. manager, even though his Rockies were 18 games under .500 at midseason! Why can't they do what the NBA and NHL do- allow the coaches of the team with their respective league's best record do so. Maybe, just maybe, the NL could actually WIN a Midsummer Classic if managers with better records were allowed to do so. Perhaps Lou Piniella could have made a move that may have made the game shorter than it was!

Using the managers with the best record would be fine with me, but I don't see a real problem with the way it is now.

2. Televising the NFL Combine. Who cared about jumping really high? So many good players have dropped because of this. How else do you explain Mike Mamula getting drafted ahead of Warren Sapp or Derrick Brooks in 1995? I'm not saying get rid of it- just don't make a big deal out if it!

I like the Combine being on TV, NFL Network, the Combine being on TV has nothing to do with players rising or dropping, don't you think the teams go to the event and watch them regardless ?

3. The Senior Bowl and these other "bowls after the bowls."

I use to like the Hula Bowl.

4. The disrepsect that the NHL gets. Hockey has some magical players- Crosby, Ovechkin, Malkin, Brodeur- yet they get 1/10th of the media attention of a moron like Pacman Jones (Terrell Owens is at least good at playing football- second-most TD's ever. I can name 40 cornerbacks I'd rather have than Mr. "Make it Rain")
Zetterberg, Datsuk, Lindstrom ect.

5. The fawning over USC after every Rose Bowl. I hear the same stuff every year- No team is playing better, no team has better players, etc. Maybe if they actually beat the teams they are SUPPOSED to beat, they are playing for something bigger.

If USC loses one game and an SEC team loses 1 game and a Big 12 team loses 1 game .... how do they determine who goes ?
Looks like USC has gotten the shaft this time , YES I DO think they were playing better than many other teams.
Oklahoma normally plays terrible in BCS games, look at thier 1-5 record of late (from memory).
Florida and USC would have been a great match up, great place for a PLAYOFF

6. The NFL Network eliminating Saturday games on the major networks. I can't get the damn channel!

Isn't it time you GOT the NFL Network ?

7. Arena naming rights, if the new name sounds really dumb. As a Sabre fan, Marine Midland/HSBC Arena doesn't sound so bad. HD, no offense, but whatever happened to the Gund Arena? You love to call the Cavs' arena "The Q," but I don't know what Quicken Loans?


If the name makes sense- Petco Park, Coors Field- it's fine.

If not- Ameriquest Field in Arlington- I hate it!

I don't care for the naming right being bought from the owners, a classy thing to do would be to buy the rights and let the team use the name they should use.

Ala TIGER Stadium or Tiger Park even ... I was very disappointed when they named it after Comerica

btw, I heard something about Citi bank park in the news today, but didn't hear the whole article, whats up with that ?

Jimbo

 

[SabresRule]

Florida and USC would have been a great match up, great place for a PLAYOFF

If USC got a few tackles on Jacquizz Rogers, then there's be a different tune being sung.

 

[anders5189]

My complaint with the MLB All Star game is that they have to have a representative from every team. What? Either you're an all star or you're not. Enough with some guy with a .230 ave from the Pirates or a pitcher from KC with a 5-6 record and a ERA of 6.00 making the team.

 

[JonE]

The list is getting longer. I still like sports but not near as much as I did, and I refuse to watch NFL Football anymore since it's all kickoff-commercial-timeout-commercial-touchdown-extra point-commercial-you get the idea. Here goes:

1. sports talk radio - I'm not so interested in sports that I would wish to listen to it all day. On an average day I'll listen to Tirico and Van Pelt and that's pretty much it. I try to listen to Bob Valvano but I'm never up that late anymore. Those are the only two I can stomach on ESPN Radio anymore. And Local sports talk radio is unlistenable.

2. Commercial Breaks in NFL Football - as I mentioned previously, there are WAY too many opportunities to get commercials in during the course of a game. NFL Football in general is now unwatchable. And the quality of the commercials is declining (those god-awful Coors Light press conference commercials make me want to pull an Elvis on my HDTV). Seems like College football doesn't have that issue.

3. Sideline Reporters - Is Tony Siragusa really necessary on the sidelines? Aren't Johnston and that other guy enough? At least if the sideline reporter is eye candy that makes it bearable, but really, do we need a reporter down there full time?

4. Athletes who are lousy interviews - When, you know, they interview athletes, who um, you know, can't talk to save their lives. Maybe there should be a requirement for college athletes to at least minor in Communications. I always appreciate it when the athletes has some brains to go along with that athletic ability.

5. Interviewing some shmuck in the stands/in the booth who has nothing to do with the game. Do we really need a game to turn into Entertainment Tonight?

 

[anders5189]

2. Commercial Breaks in NFL Football - as I mentioned previously, there are WAY too many opportunities to get commercials in during the course of a game. NFL Football in general is now unwatchable. And the quality of the commercials is declining (those god-awful Coors Light press conference commercials make me want to pull an Elvis on my HDTV). Seems like College football doesn't have that issue.

I haven't sworn off the NFL but I am SO with you on this. The timeouts after kickoffs are the most annoying thing. Then inevitably some guy gets hurt on the next play or there's a challenge and yet another timeout. Actually going to NFL games is even worse because you have to just sit there and stadiums innondate you with ads and promos during the timeouts. Just play some music!

 

[SabresRule]

inevitably some guy gets hurt on the next play or there's a challenge and yet another timeout.

I can't imagine what it was like when, after all those turnovers in the playoff game, you had to see all those commercials.

 

[SamCdbs]

BASEBALL - The game's business side is run by idiots. It is a testamony to how wonderful a game it is that it survies Bud "Light" (Kenesaw Molehill) Selig and its fundamenally broken economic system, its idiotic marketing system, and its out-of-touch players. If this crew ran the NBA or NHL, we would not have an NBA or NHL.

HOCKEY - People who will not let up on hockey. Back in the day, people refered to the "big 4" sports, but the truth was that south of I-70 there was no hockey, live or via media. Then the sport expanded and now belittle hockey because of its perceived weekness relative to the other three sports. Whatever hocky is in the south and southwest today, it achieved from flat zero in my lifetime.

PRO BASKETBALL - The massive overcoverage on ESPN and others. If someone was smart enough (and nerddy enough) to make a chart where the amount of time spent on SportCenter, PTI, Sports Reporters and Around the Horn, was on the X axis and the TV ratings of the events was on the Y axis, the NBA would be, by a huge margin, the most over-covered event going.

COLLEGE BASKETBALL - The over-coverage of the Big East. Its a good conference. At the top, but the bottom 6 teams are kidding themselves. A Rutgers @ Seton Hall game does NOT belong on TV nationally. Duke. Davidson. The consistant whining of coaches who finished in the bottom half of their "big" conferences about all the good teams they lost to, come NCAA pickem time. The key word is "lost" and I assure you that, given the chance, the #2 team in a one-bid league would have lost to those teams too.

COLLEGE FOOTBALL - The BcS. People from non-college football states that want to ruin the sport by making in AAA NFL via playoffs. They simply do not, and cannot, understand what college football is and means to the rest of the country.

PRO FOOTBALL - Cannot think of much relative to the games, but the talking heads who spew out research about a team they were poo-pooing just a few weeks ago is sad.

NASCAR - Everything Brian France has done. Bring back racing back to the caution. Enforce the rules about mult-car teams (and thus reduce the ROI of spending a million dollars to increase speed by 1 MPH, since it could not be amortized across 8 or 10 sponsors). Start the races around noonish on Sundays. Fire Bill Weber. Require pit crews to actually do other work for the team (and thus not spend all day practicing, and thus be so perfect as to make it dull).

IRL - The minority of IRL fans who have petty jealousy of NASCAR. Road courses. Foreign drivers who are there because of rich daddy and not talent. The fact that the pace car for the Indy 500 is a politically correct "American" make rather than from a company that actually supports the series.

COMMENTS ON THE ABOVE:

- The one player from each team rule in the ASG should go. Agree.

- I do not understand watching the Combine or the Draft. Just look at the internet after its over.

- College ASGs are cool. I liked the Blue-Grey game, which was players from I-A schools that did not make a bowl plus I-AA and small college players. Look at any NFL roster and see that all the best players are not from BcS schools for many reasons.

- If you don't have NFLN, get NFLN. If you live in the US of A, you might "don't" get the channel, but do not tell me you "can't".

- Arena naming rights. AGREE. Deals that make sense and sound OK are OK, like Coors Field or the Carrier Dome. Quicken Loans Arena, Quallcomm Stadium, and such like are just stupid. BTW, I always though Marine Midland was a great name for a bank. I also like "The Boatmen's Bank" which was out of St. Louis, IIRC. These spell the name stupid non-bank bank "brands" like "citi" or "corestates" or "banknorth" are dumb. Nothing wrong with a good solid traditional name like "First National Bank".

 

[KCK_Halo]

4. The disrepsect that the NHL gets. Hockey has some magical players- Crosby, Ovechkin, Malkin, Brodeur- yet they get 1/10th of the media attention of a moron like Pacman Jones (Terrell Owens is at least good at playing football- second-most TD's ever. I can name 40 cornerbacks I'd rather have than Mr. "Make it Rain")

The NHL dug it's own grave. The disrespect it showed for the fans and in fact for ITSELF with that horribly long strike...OK! OK! "lockout" is something that cannot be forgotten or overlooked. It has hit rock-bottom...let it regain our interest and ultimately our respect. They are doing a great job with these long term signings of young wunderkind. But Gary & Co. have to "earn their wings" again.

They are off to a good start...

 

[cosmo_kramer]

btw, I heard something about Citi bank park in the news today, but didn't hear the whole article, whats up with that ?

Jimbo

House members Dennis Kucinich, D-OH, and Ted Poe, R-TX, this week urged Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner to intervene.

"Citigroup is now dependent on the support of the federal government for its survival as an institution. As such, we do not believe Citigroup ought to spend $400 million to name a stadium at the same time that they accept over $350 billion in taxpayer support and guarantees," Kucinich and Poe wrote.

Citi Field or Bailout Ballpark? - Jan. 30, 2009

 

[ehren]

1. Yes Gary Bettman has ruined hockey for many years, what else is new, I still love hockey in general, especially College.

2. Whoever created those LED/LCD ad banners that go all the way around new stadiums now, YOU CAN'T EVEN WATCH BASKETBALL WITHOUT THOSE THINGS FLICKERING ACROSS THE ENTIRE WAXED FLOOR!!!!!!!! Just more useless sh*t we don't need!

3. THUNDERSTICKS!!!! KILL KILL KILL!!!!!!!!!!

4. Will the NBA ever get rid of annoying sounds and music during the action?

 

[CeltsHD]

2. Whoever created those LED/LCD ad banners that go all the way around new stadiums now, YOU CAN'T EVEN WATCH BASKETBALL WITHOUT THOSE THINGS FLICKERING ACROSS THE ENTIRE WAXED FLOOR!!!!!!!! Just more useless sh*t we don't need!

This is a good one. I HATE those things.

The one in the Cavs arena is the worst. It's closer to the floor than the other arenas.

 

[JonE]

I'm one of those people who could easily quit watching sports any minute. It's becoming a chore to view the games, and when you do there's usually something to complain about with the game itself, or the broadcast, or the announcers. Like in football where they show the face-painted drunks in the stands every five minutes. Or they have some gimmick to keep 'casual fans' interested when all it does is drive casual fans like me away.

We are also very close to the point where any major sports are no longer viewable on 'regular' TV. When if you are like me and don't watch TV other than sports, that's the only reason you turn it on during the course of a week.

 

[ehren]

Me it's the other way around, I prefer watching on tv so I don't have to deal with the drunks, thundersticks, waving towels, screaming annoying arena announcers telling us...oh by the way if your a complete moron, the score of the game at halftime is 32-30.

I like to turn the tv down and listen to music while watching games myself.

 

[KCK_Halo]

Me it's the other way around, I prefer watching on tv so I don't have to deal with the drunks, thundersticks, waving towels, screaming annoying arena announcers telling us...oh by the way if your a complete moron, the score of the game at halftime is 32-30.

I like to turn the tv down and listen to music while watching games myself.

Yes sir! Unless it a a broadcaster or broadacast team that I completely trust (and there ain't many) I do the same. Nothing like watching an easy-going baseball game and listening to the music that fits my mood of the day to wind it down. PRICELESS!

 

[JonE]

Yes sir! Unless it a a broadcaster or broadacast team that I completely trust (and there ain't many) I do the same. Nothing like watching an easy-going baseball game and listening to the music that fits my mood of the day to wind it down. PRICELESS!

On the other hand it's nice to watch a fairly physical football game with something like Rammstein in the background.

And I don't mean quit watching it, but quit following it completely. Quit caring who won or who lost. I'm closer than ever to that point.

 

[ehren]

any Black, Funeral, Death, progressive, symphonic metal works for me.

LOL I found a jazz/metal band with a female singer yesterday called To-Mera

Therion is my fav.

Give me anything heavy, all underground tho, none of this mainstream crap! And overseas too

 

[salsadancer7]

I haven't sworn off the NFL but I am SO with you on this. The timeouts after kickoffs are the most annoying thing. Then inevitably some guy gets hurt on the next play or there's a challenge and yet another timeout. Actually going to NFL games is even worse because you have to just sit there and stadiums innondate you with ads and promos during the timeouts. Just play some music!

Soccer does it with no problems. I have seen alot of games on TV and I don't remember a single commercial during the 1st or 2nd half. They usually have the advertisement/commercials UNDER where the score and the time is there.

Here is my list.

- I hate the DH
- I hate the 162 game MLB season and wish it was 148 games and the season would start in May and end by mid October INCLUDING the World Series.
- I hate that there is no salary cap in MLB. NO PLAYER should make more than $500,000......ESPECIALLY starting pitchers.
- I hate the BCS

My list will grow while I think some more.

 

[SabresRule]

Here is my list.

- I hate the DH
- I hate the 162 game MLB season and wish it was 148 games and the season would start in May and end by mid October INCLUDING the World Series.
- I hate that there is no salary cap in MLB. NO PLAYER should make more than $500,000......ESPECIALLY starting pitchers.
- I hate the BCS

My list will grow while I think some more.

You forgot Al Davis.

 

[ehren]

150 games for MLB would be perfect.