A Little Bit off the Top

Before I dive into my ramblings, here’s a bit of what I’m here for.  My best friend is always asking me questions about sports because he is under the impression that when it comes to sports I know everything there is to know.  Now, while I wish that was true, sadly it is not.

That said, I’m here to share what knowledge I do have.  This knowledge comes from twenty years of studying, not just watching, the strategy and statistics that accompany the basic elements of each sport.

Like most people I have my own personal preferences that color how I view the issues of the day.  Baseball is the sport that I have followed the longest and therefore holds the most sentimentality to me.  Unfortunately, the many stories of steroids use involving players like Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens, who have statistically put themselves in the company of the all time greats, has drawn the focus away from the game on the field.  That game is still at it’s core one of tremendous skill and strategy that harkens many back to their childhood days on the sandlot dreaming of being the one driving the ball deep into the night in the ninth inning of game seven of the World Series.

Generally speaking I prefer college football and basketball to the NFL or NBA in large part because I’d still like to believe there’s some amateur love of the game left at the college level that gets lost by many of the high priced professionals that just want you to “throw them the damn ball”.  Although, I’m not naive enough to think that money doesn’t play a major role in both college football and basketball.  To that subject I love the NCAA basketball tournament and think the BCS has one too many letters.

In recent years I’ve gotten more and more into hockey, even buying my first season ticket packages to any sport with partial packages to the Los Angeles Kings the last two years.  If anyone out there questions the appeal of hockey I suggest sitting down by the glass at just one game where you can truly appreciate the spped of the game.  To see the players go flying by right in front of your face will truly take your breathe away.

Other sports that I’ll touch on from time to time as major issues arise are golf (I love to play, but admit it can be a bit tedious to watch), tennis, NASCAR, and soccer.

So there you have it, why I’m here and where I’m coming from.  Ultimately, in the words of Dennis Miller “That’s just my opinion, I could be wrong.”