WHO'S AT FAULT HERE?

"You have to go to other people's funerals otherwise they won't come to yours."  -- Yogi Berra 
 
I'm sure we've all listened to or read about the Papelbon-Harper confrontation and everybody is weighing in on it. The arguments for each are compelling but not foolproof.

Bryce Harper has always been lax in running out easy ground balls or lazy fly balls. That's just in his nature (wink-wink). So if he's always been doing it it's okay, right? Sorry, it's not. How about this one: why risk running hard on a sure out and risk pulling a hamstring or turning an ankle. If someone were to use this argument with me, I would ask him to please step outside while the grown-ups were talking. If you don't want to take a chance on getting hurt, don't play the game. You're being paid millions of dollars (that's millions, sir) to play a game. Play as hard as you can.

Jonathon Papelbon is certainly no saint in all this. This is a guy who hit batters for no discernible reason, made an obscene gesture to fans who were riding him and has noticeably quit on the mound when things didn't go his way. So who was he to be telling anyone to "play the game right?" Well, the message was right even if the messenger isn't.

The real culprit here is the National's manager, Matt Williams. He has never been able to get through to Harper that his actions are not displaying the attitude you need to play the game honestly: to try as hard as you can in all situations and to respect the game and all the players who do give a full effort. Harper should have been fined or benched EVERY time he gave up on a play. If that was Williams attitude, I'm sure some of the veteran players on the team would have stepped up before. I'm sure if Dan Uggla or Ryan Zimmerman had confronted Harper, the press would not have taken Harper's side in this. And choking wouldn't have been necessary.

Brad Dickson's Bottom Ten:
 4. New Mexico State (0-3): The Aggies use the bye week to practice their turnovers.
 7. Idaho (1-3): It’s never a good sign when your pep squad takes the field waving white surrender flags.
9. SMU (1-3): The Mustangs lost to James Madison 48-45. You think that’s bad, the team would be one-point underdogs to Dolly Madison.

I think everyone, including the Yankees, know they are not going to overtake the blue Jays for the AL East title. Again, the Yanks fail to hit and they lost. They need home runs and with Teixeira out for the season, McCann on the bench and A-Rod showing his age, where will the power come from?  This could be a very short post season for NY if the power hitters don't show up.

The real race is between Houston the Angels Texas and even Minnesota for the last two spots. Houston finishes the season against Arizona, while the Angels fate appears to be in their own hands with the last four games of the season being against Texas. That should be some series.

***THEY SAID IT***
"Who knew that Papelbon-Harper would turn out to be far more riveting than Mayweather-Pacquiao?"  -- Janice Hough
"The Arizona Diamondbacks named a corn dog after Randy Johnson. The way baseball concession fare goes, the corn dog is 6 feet, 10 inches long."  -- Brad Dickson
" The Atlanta Hawks launched an Ashley Madison promotion to sell ticket packages. Presumably for games broadcast in high definition but low fidelity."  -- RJ Currie
"The Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Circus agreed to phase out the elephants in their shows next year. “If it were only that easy,” said the Red Sox, referring to Pablo Sandoval."  -- Dwight Perry
"Just returned from Yankee Stadium where I paid $22 for two Bud Lights and ‘commemorative cups.’ I know why they’re commemorative, because I’ll never forget that I paid $22 for two Bud Lights."  -- Yankee fan Frank Vignuli
"Gotta love those stats. A’s reliever Drew Pomeranz allowed three hits and two earned runs in two-thirds of an inning Saturday. It was his 12th hold."  -- Phil Mushnick
" Bad news for the New Orleans Saints – Drew Brees will miss Sunday’s game. Good news for the Chicago Bears -  ‪ so will Jay Cutler."  -- Janice Hough
"During the pregame show before the Rams-Steelers game, fireworks caught the turf on fire. That almost sounds entertaining. I mean, if I had to choose between another Bruno Mars Super Bowl halftime show or a burning field, I'm voting for B."  -- Brad Dickson
" An extra point try in a Texas high-school football game caromed off a referee’s head and through the uprights. Who was the ref, Jose Canseco?"  -- RJ Currie

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