Victims of Perfection

Philip Humber (#41) achieved the greatest thing a major league pitcher can achieve during the regular season: a perfect game.

For those who need a definition, a perfect game happens when a pitcher plays the entire game without giving up any hits or walks. In other words, everyone who comes to bat is put out. Humber did this Saturday afternoon, playing for the White Sox in Seattle. He is just the 20th pitcher ever to pitch one during the regular season. More humorously, Humber is now the seventh ex-New York Met to throw one, and the Mets are still looking for their first perfect game.

But what wasn't so funny that afternoon, was how the game ended, especially to the Seattle Mariners. How quickly many of us forget about the team on the other side of history. Many Mariner fans were happy for Humber. He received a standing ovation at the end of the game. But fans at the game and at home were crying "foul", or "walk" rather, over one call...

That's because of the last out.

That was PH Brendan Ryan at the plate, as a last ditch effort to stay in the game for Seattle. Ryan worked the count to 3 balls and 2 strikes, and as you saw, Humber threw one low and away, an obvious ball four. But in the umpire's judgment, Ryan's bat movement was enough to count as a swing. The catcher didn't catch it, so he had to throw it to first base for the out. One can only imagine what would have happened if Ryan did not pause to argue the call with the umpire, before running to first.

Humber still would've had a no-hitter, and the M's haven't been held to no hits since the 90's. This is a rare feat, and by averaging one strikeout per inning, Seattle did not come to play this afternoon. If you're a Mariners fan upset by this one call, think about your team's shortcomings. Or at the very least, think about what it would've felt like if Seattle was in position to pitch a perfect game, only to come up short on the last out.

For all the M's fans who applauded Humber after the game, I salute you. For those who are still sour grapes over the issue, maybe you should listen to your Manager Eric Wedge, who said after the game, "When [Humber] did get behind and had to come in, we missed fastballs. It's a bad combination... I don't even want to talk about [the call]."

West Coast NBA: What's going on?

The NBA season is almost over, and what does the West Coast have to show for it?

Last month, I wrote about how the West Coast does not shine very bright right now when it comes to college basketball. The same appears to be case in pro ball... at least there's a momentum shift. There might be a bit of a talent migration, too... With two regular season games left, we'll analyze.

We'll start in Portland. Rip City became nip-tuck city this year. I hardly recognize this team now. It looks like the Blazers got a face lift, but only time will tell if this team is heading in the right direction. The changes made did not appear to improve their play. With no home games left, Portland is out of the playoff picture. Current record: 28-35

Sacramento is also out of the playoff picture. Although the Kings have been out for awhile, and this type of play is nothing new, have they thrown in the towel? Do they want to relocate? You'd think a team with a fanbase desparately trying to keep the team in Sactown would be a little better. Bottom line: small market = can't afford the talent. Current record: 20-42

Golden State. This is another franchise that has a history of medicority at best. They're just a shoulder shrug above Sacramento right now in the Pacific division. The Warriors appeared to have things heading in the right direction at the beginning of the year, but like Portland, fell and fell hard. They're out this year, and if they don't get it together soon, next year as well. Current record: 22-39

Phoenix. Finally, a team with a chance. The Suns aren't in the playoffs yet, but they're a game behind Utah for the final spot. Houston is tied with Phoenix, so once again, this might not happen. Current record: 32-30.

The Los Angeles teams are the highlight of the pack. The Lakers AND Clippers are doing great. Large market teams make large amounts of money and have large success. But what's weird is how these two teams have changed. We're no longer in the era of Laker dominance. In fact, the Clippers are only a half game behind the Lakers. Oh the times have changed. The Lakers (40-23) are 3rd in the west, the Clippers (39-24) are 4th. They could make a run in the playoffs.

That said, I don't think there's a team in L.A. who can even make the conference finals.
Short season or not, this is sad. If only the OKC Thunder were still playing in Seattle...

Track the playoff picture and the playoffs at NBA.com.

The NFL Schedule: Follow-Up

It's here! The 2012 NFL schedule is finally here, and with it, the road to Super Bowl XLVII.

Before I get to the highlights for the West Coast and post a link, I need to mention a few changes. The league changed two rules about the schedule this year that I did not cover previously.

First, the NFL got rid of the "no more than five primetime appearances rule". Although, eight different teams will have five primetime games. With the additional games on NFL Network for Thursday nights, the league decided to change the rule to "every team must have at least one primetime game".

And second, the NFL will make sure every team playing a Thursday primetime game will not have a road game in the prior week. This is another effort to give more rest time for players.

One other note, ESPN moved it's final Monday night game in Week 16 to Saturday night, since the Monday that week is Christmas Eve.

Here's a look at how the West Coast teams fared:

San Francisco and San Diego are set to appear in primetime the most. A few of these games could be flexed out of primetime however. We'll see.

Right out the gate, San Francisco will travel to Green Bay for a late afternoon game in Week 1. SF hasn't won there since 1990. Monday night in Week 11 features the 49ers at home against the Bears. Thanksgiving week (Week 12) has some of the best games to watch all-around this year, including 49ers at Saints, a huge rematch, this time on dome turf. Finally, the Week 15 Sunday night San Fran/New England game looks like what should be a rematch of last year's Super Bowl.

The 49ers will travel to MetLife Stadium this season... to face the Jets. But seriously, there will be a rematch of the NFC Championship this year in Week 6, albeit in San Francisco again (I'm not complaining). As it stands, the 49ers will have their fewest number of games on FOX this season since the 90's.

San Diego gets the Monday night late game in Week 1 at Oakland. They also close against the Raiders in Week 17. At the Saints in Week 5 Sunday night will be huge, as will the following week vs. Denver on Monday night. Who doesn't want to watch the Week 9 Thursday night game vs. KC? Let's not also forget the Rex Ryan/Norv Turner storyline for Week 16, with the Bolts playing in New York.

The Raiders get a great historical matchup against the Steelers in Week 3 at home. Then it's the at Peyton Manning (Denver) game in Week 4, plus home against the Broncos in Week 14. Oakland gets to host the Saints in a rare FOX game Week 11, the week SF is on Monday night. Not least this year will be QB Carson Palmer's return to Cincinnati in Week 12 on CBS.


Arizona will be looking to fight SF and Seattle this year for the NFC West title. Seattle games are both on FOX, with the home match in Week 1 and at the Hawks in Week 14. QB Kevin Kolb will be looking to prove himself against his former team in Week 3 vs. the Eagles. Week 8 puts the Cards at home on a Monday night vs. San Fran... very interesting, that was the 49ers only division loss last year. In Week 9, it's a trip to Green Bay on FOX. The Cardinals will end their season at the 49ers.

And finally, Seattle's key games this season could very well be their matchups with San Francisco. The first one in is San Francisco on a Thursday night (Week 7), then in Week 16, it will be a Christmas Eve eve rematch in Seattle. Other key games include Week 2 vs. Dallas, a Monday night HOME game vs. the Packers, and a trip to Chicago in Week 13 to prove playoff worthiness.

Follow the link to see the entire 2012 NFL season schedule.
The Kickoff Game is Wednesday, September 5, 5:30pm PT on NBC.

Red Hot Dodgers

We've seen a lot of weird things happen already in 2012 pro baseball.

I'm not just talking about injuries. Take a look at the standings and you'll get the idea. Right now, Baltimore is in first place in the AL East. The Nationals are leading the NL East, and the Mets aren't far behind. The Angels and Red Sox are in last place in their divisions. The Giants and Phillies both have losing records (but they play each other this week, so something's bound to change there).

And the Los Angeles Dodgers are 9-1?!   That's the best record in MLB right now.

It's hard to believe this team went bankrupt last year, and had issues with their TV rights and all. I seriously did not think this team would be worth the $2 billion invested into them during the offseason. Time will tell, but for now, this team is getting the job done on all levels.

The team doesn't just rely on flukes like that triple play last week. Just how are they getting it done?

Two names: Matt Kemp and Andre Ethier. These two, both outfielders, are #1 and #2 in RBI's currently in all of Major League Baseball, respectively. Kemp also currently leads all of MLB in home runs (6) and batting average (.487). Last I heard, these two are responsible for more than half their team's scoring, ten games into the season. Now there's no "I" in offense, but there is in pitching...

The Dodgers are also red hot on the mound. Surprisingly, most of the production has not been from top starter Clayton Kershaw. Going into today, starter Chad Billingsley leads all pitchers in wins and is #2 among all pitchers in ERA (0.63). Plus, Dodgers closer Javy Guerra leads all closers in MLB with five saves. Superb playing on all sides of the baseball.

Kemp and Ethier especially have had seasons of success in the Dodgers abysmal records of the last few years. Kemp nearly won a batting title for the team last year, as L.A. barely finished with a winning record, 3rd place in the NL West. So go ahead and "think blue" when putting together your fantasy team lineup, and go ahead and smile smugly, Magic Johnson. If this team stays healthy, they will be a tough out.

A lot of weird things have happened this baseball season, the weirdest so far might just be me writing a blog praising the Dodgers on their early success.

The L.A. Dodgers are available regionally on FS Prime Ticket.

The NFL Schedule: Or Regional Action

Please excuse my lateness. Now the final part... Part V:

FOX/CBS (and NBC) are all national broadcasters with 100 - 200 regional affiliates and some owned-and-operated stations each. So all games played on Sunday are available for free, and the games you see that day depend where you live and which game(s) your local station selected to air. Each station picks the game(s) they want to air that week from the list of possible games, and the FOX/CBS network center in Los Angeles/New York City will send the game via satellite to your local station. So networks show games regionally, usually, depending on where certain teams' fans are located. Places where there's no real fan following get the top advertised game that week.

FOX/CBS may switch your market's game to a more competitive one during the game, but only if one team is ahead by at least 18 points in the second half. However, NFL rules say a primary team market must show the local home team's game the whole way through. Stations also have the option of requesting a constant feed of a game.

If a primary market team is part of the second game of a doubleheader, that game takes priority and must air at 4:15 ET, whether the game before it is over or not. This rule is also for secondary markets if the team is playing on the road. Stations may also request this. The rule conversely works when the local team's game starts at 1:00 ET. The late game is then joined in-progress.

The 49ers and Raiders are not scheduled to start games at the same time, unless they are playing each other. To help this scheduling problem, both teams are usually forced by the NFL to be scheduled for at least one primetime game each year, regardless of how well either played the year before. Even if they played on different networks at the same time, one game would have to be blacked out due to NFL rules. This can also be resolved in part by scheduling home games for one team during the other's bye week, especially the week the 49ers (NFC) play a game on CBS or the Raiders (AFC) play a game on FOX.

The New York Giants and Jets are in a similar situation, except, because both teams play in the Eastern time zone, occasionally the scheduling conflicts can be fixed by putting one of their games in the early time slot and the other in the late time slot. However, it is impossible for both teams to play a home game in the same day, since they share the same stadium. The only exception is if both teams play a game on a neutral field outside the country, as you'll read below.

Finally, the NFL also schedules special games during the regular season, such as an annual game in London and a few Buffalo Bills home games in Toronto. The London game is treated just as any other AFC or NFC road game, where the NFL alternates each year which conference is the home/road team. While the Toronto Bills games could be in primetime, CBS/FOX usually air all of them depending on the opponent.

When a market's regionally televised game ends before the others, FOX/CBS may change to bonus coverage of the ending of another game. However, the NFL has two rules designed to maximize the ratings of the late games on the network with the doubleheader. First, bonus coverage after any early time slot games cannot be shown past the start of the late time slot. This prevents people from continuing to watch the bonus coverage instead of seeing the beginning of the late doubleheader network's game. A station originally getting the game featured during bonus coverage will stay with it unless they are leaving to show a local team.

Second, bonus coverage cannot be shown after a late game on the single-game network because it will run in opposition to the ending of the late doubleheader network's game(s) and NBC's pre-game show. However, the single-game network usually schedules most of its top games in the early 1:00 ET time slot, so this does not tend to be an issue.

If the doubleheader network's games all finish before 7:30 ET, it is supposed to conclude the post-game show within ten minutes to not compete with NBC's Sunday night pre-game show. If any games finish after 7:30, the post-game program can run until 8:00 ET.

These complicated scheduling practices are a large part in why it takes so long for the NFL to put it's regular season schedule together. I hope these series of blogs has done a great deal of good in explaining this often over-looked process.

The NFL Schedule: Sundays Are for Football

And now, Part IV.

Sunday Afternoon

As far as TV scheduling, all that's left are the Sunday afternoon games. We know the NFL picks these games to air on Sunday to maximize ratings. CBS airs the AFC road games, and FOX airs the NFC road games. Each week, that leaves a total of somewhere between five and eight games each Sunday to air on either network.

1pm ET / 10am PT


Both networks start by scheduling the majority of their matchups for this time slot. The majority of teams and viewers are located in the Central and Eastern time zones, and the NFL has a rule that requires teams playing at home in these time zones to start at the above time, with kickoff coming about a minute later.

Now this rule is more of a guideline. FOX/CBS may move one or more of these games to the later time slot to make good on a minimum number of games available for the later time slot.


4pm ET / 1pm PT


The games scheduled for this time slot are almost always games played in the Mountain and Pacific time zones. The NFL has a rule (this is not a guideline) requiring all day games played in these time zones to be in this time slot. Kickoff in these games starts at either 4:05 ET or 4:15 ET, depending on which games are for solo broadcast that day or part of a doubleheader, respectively. In this way, no games will start before 12pm local time.


Doubleheaders

Doubleheaders are Sunday game coverage, where FOX/CBS air two games in full, back-to-back, to a national audience. The NFL allows FOX & CBS to have an equal number of "doubleheaders" during the season, where the two networks alternate which weeks one has the doubleheader. These do not have to be every other week, so long as each gets eight. FOX & CBS usually figure this out during this month.

Usually, FOX has the doubleheader in Week 1, due to CBS coverage of the tennis U.S. Open.
In Week 17, both FOX & CBS have doubleheaders, to maximize the number of still significant matchups in the final week.

Flex-Scheduling


NBC, FOX, & CBS, as broadcasters have the rights to change which games they air, or what time they air them during the season. Up to ten days before the game, NBC has the right to trade their Sunday night game with either CBS or FOX, starting in Week 11 and through Week 16. FOX & CBS have one game each week they can protect from NBC, but NBC picks the game they want. This way, FOX may end up with an AFC road game, or CBS might end up with an NFC road game. However, according to NFL rules, only three teams may make as many as six prime time appearances. The remaining teams may make a maximum of five prime time appearances.


FOX & CBS have up to ten days before the game during Week 11 to Week 16 to change game start times to their own games. Once again, this is all to maximize ratings.


And as late as six days before Week 17, the NFL can change start times for any games for that final week.


Blackouts / No opposing games

The NFL used to have a rule that forced a station carrying the day game to not air it in the market where the game was being played, to encourage tickets sales. But if a game was sold out, the game was still blacked out. The NFL changed the rule on an appeal to where games are only blacked out now if they are not sold out. The stadium has up to 72 hours before kickoff to sell out or risk blackout. If there's only a few thousand or hundred seats left, they get 48 hours. Most NFL games are sold out. The markets that are affected by blackout are all markets within 70 miles of the team's stadium.

Also, due to home team coverage rights, the NFL requires that every time a team is playing at home, the network that is not airing that game cannot air another game at the same time. This increases ratings and team awareness. This is also why the Bay Area market never has 49ers/Raiders games at the same time if at home. Jets/Giants in New York City are also like that, although, neither team can play in NYC at the same time, unless they are playing each other.

Regional Games (esp. Bay Area/NYC)

FOX/CBS arrange the games they promote for each week, based on how many potential viewers they get. The "Game of the Week" is always the game that reaches the most viewers. You can check the games airing in your area each week at sites like this.

I'll have more details on regional game coverage in my final blog, coming early tomorrow.

The NFL Schedule: Maximizing Ratings

Part III:

With the league putting the games together by week following their format, it then becomes the NFL broadcast and cable networks' responsibility to decide which games they will carry. This is all according to their contracts. Currently five American English-language TV networks have the rights to air regular season games (the fewest of any major pro sport), excluding local broadcast networks in team markets, who air games over-the-air when a local team has a game on cable.

The order in which networks get to pick games for air goes according to how many they are under contract to air, starting with the station that has the fewest.

Regular season broadcast rights and scheduling break down like this:

1. The NFL Network (cable channel) has the right to air 13 regular season games as of this year. This network is owned by the NFL, and all games are Thursday night games. They will air one game a week during Week 2 through Week 15, excluding the Thanksgiving week. The network snatched up additional games in the last contract renewals in an effort to gain more national attention, being the youngest network to air NFL games. They get first pick. In doing this, each NFL team is guaranteed one game in primetime starting this year. They are stuck with the games they choose before the season.

2. ESPN (cable channel) has the right to air 17 regular season games. They get next pick. Their contract requires all games to be Monday night games. Because the league made the rule stating all games in Week 17 must be played on a Sunday, ESPN does not get to air any games the last week of the season. Usually then, ESPN will air two games in Week 1, and then one game a week through Week 16. Like the NFL Network, ESPN does not get to change which games they carry once they make their initial picks.

3. NBC (broadcast channel) has the right to air 19 regular season games, one more than last year. They get third pick, but first of the broadcast stations. Their contract requires all games to be Sunday night games, however two exceptions are granted. NBC airs the Week 1 Thursday night game or Kickoff Game, which the league determines, plus they now get to pick and air the Thanksgiving night game (8:20 ET). They choose one game for each Sunday night of the season except for Week 17. The NFL decides which game NBC will air that week, and we don't know until after Week 16. This way, the NFL tries to maximize ratings, since one does not know which teams will be strong at the end of the season.

4. FOX (broadcast channel) has the right to air all remaining NFC road games and one Thanksgiving day game (approx. 110 games). All of these games minus Thanksgiving are played on Sunday afternoons. FOX has the right to determine when their games will start, either at 1pm ET or 4pm ET. They get to pick at the same time as CBS, since their games are pre-determined by contract.

5. CBS (broadcast channel) has the right to air all remaining AFC road games and the other Thanksgiving day game (approx. 110 games). Just like FOX, all of these games minus Thanksgiving are played on Sunday afternoons. CBS also has the rights to determine when their games will start, either at 1pm ET or 4pm ET. They also alternate with FOX by week, determining when national audiences will receive more than one game. We'll have more on that later.

In part IV tomorrow night, we'll discuss something called flex-scheduling and how FOX and CBS choose to air their games since they have the majority of match-ups. Once again, the West Coast teams complicate the process.

The NFL Schedule: The West Coast's Fault

Now for part II:

Before the networks with NFL broadcasting rights get to pick their games, the NFL has more work to do to make sure each of the 17 weeks logically work for the season. The committee puts together which games will be played week-by-week, making sure of a few key things.

1. The first game of the season has to be on the Thursday night before the first Sunday of the season and include last year's Super Bowl champion.* This game airs on NBC.

2. Throughout the season, the NFL must make sure teams that play home games in the Mountain and Pacific time zones have a "balanced" number of home games each week compared to the number of home games for Central and Eastern home games. This is because games played in western markets have to start at different times for home audiences. There are only six teams that play at home in the Mountain and Pacific time zones, so these games will always be greatly outnumbered each week anyway.

3. The San Francisco 49ers and Oakland Raiders are both West Coast teams and share the same TV market. Since start times are limited for West Coast teams, the NFL must make sure both teams do not end up with home games the same week. If they do, one of those games must be played at night on either NBC, NFL Network, or ESPN. They also cannot play games with the same start time, unless they are both on the road that week, on different networks.

4. Because the New York Giants and New York Jets share the same TV market and the same stadium, the NFL must make sure they are not playing a home game during the same week. Occasionally, this does happen, forcing one of those games to be played on a weekday night (Thursday or Monday) on either NFL Network or ESPN. They also cannot play games with the same start time, unless they are both on the road that week, on different networks.

5. Week 12 or 13 is the Thanksgiving Day week. The NFL makes sure to keep the tradition of Dallas and Detroit both having home games this week, with Detroit always having the early game (12:30 ET) and Dallas the late game (4:15 ET) on that Thursday. Each year, they alternate who they play. One plays a team from the AFC and the other plays a team from the NFC. This switches each year so CBS and FOX each carry one game, alternating which game annually.

6. The NFL moves playable game dates off of Christmas Eve night and Christmas Day for obvious reasons.

7. For Week 17, the NFL makes sure that every game played is a division game. The NFL implemented only intra-division scheduling during Week 17 in order to discourage teams who have secured playoff berths from resting key players and phoning in games at the end of the season. This has a tremendous impact on the 49ers and Raiders. Based on the above information, this rule means in Week 17, the 49ers either have to play at St. Louis or the Raiders have to play at Kansas City to avoid having games at the same time. Games are also only played on Sunday this week to avoid giving playoff teams an unfair advantage in preparing for the post-season.

The committee then finally decides which week teams will take their day off (bye weeks or OPEN DATE). Days off do not usually happen in the first few weeks and usually not after Week 10 or 11.

Next it's time for the broadcasters to pick their games! We'll have those details in tomorrow's blog.

As usual, if you have questions, please comment below.

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*this changed for the 2012 season, as the NFL decided to move the game a night up to Wednesday, saying they do not want to "interfere" with the Democratic National Convention.

The NFL Schedule: Breaking It Down

Late April means one thing in the NFL:

The official 2012 season schedule release.

...OK, it means two things.

No, we won't be talking about the draft here. Posts this week are specifically written to answer any questions you might have about not only how the National Football League schedules games, but also what determines the days and times the games are played. In particular, how the dates and times are determined is a very often overlooked area of sports.

The NFL, composed of 32 teams in two conferences of four equal divisions each, begins by gathering a committee to put together individual teams' opponents for the season. Each team plays 16 games over 17 weeks, one game a week and one week off, eight home games, eight road games.
-Every team plays the other three teams in its division twice, once at home and once on the road (6 games).
-In addition, teams from one division will play all the teams from two other divisions, one from their own conference and one from the other conference (4+4=8 games). These games are also split evenly into home and road games.
-A team's final two games are determined by the last season's final division standings by conference, where the teams they will play are the two teams who finished with the same ranking in their respective division, in the same conference (not from the division the team is set to play), one at home and one on the road. This makes a team's strength of schedule a little more "fair".

The NFL then rotates each year which divisions will match up against each other. In this way, every team will play each other no longer than every four years.  The NFL also takes no consideration into account where past meetings have been played between two teams in different divisions. The only exception is usually in the case of keeping East Coast teams from traveling a lot.

All of that... was the easy part. Next come the actual dates and times, determined by broadcasters with TV rights and the NFL, of course. Trust me, it gets complicated, and you'll see just how complicated in part II, coming tomorrow. In fact, the West Coast teams tend to be the ones who do the most complicating.

Any questions? Go ahead and comment below.

Saints' Bounties Cost 49ers Super Bowl?

OK. We all know about the New Orleans Saints injury bounty scandal by now. The NFL is coming down very hard on the Saints for this. We also know the 49ers came two lost fumbles away from the Super Bowl in January. Readers of an earlier post know both fumbles were lost by Kyle Williams (#10) against the New York Giants. They also know the only reason Williams got to play as a special teams returner (where he lost the fumbles) in the NFC Championship was because Ted Ginn Jr. (#19) was out due to injury.

But how was Ginn injured?

Rewind to the week before, and who were the 49ers playing? That's right. New Orleans. Granted, Ginn was already not fully recovered from a previous injury coming off the regular season, but he was healthy enough to play. During a play, Ginn hurt his knee on the turf, after a tackle from a New Orleans player. Was the hit legal? Yes. Did the ground play a factor? Yes, but new evidence is putting this play and every play from that divisional playoff into question.

We now know due to audio recordings released from the Saints locker room before that game, former New Orleans Defensive Coordinator Greg Williams encouraged his team to injure various 49er players, although Ginn does not appear to be one of them. Kyle Williams, who we know plays Ginn's position, was listed. We also don't know if this encouragement to injure has a direct link to bounties, but with the evidence of bounties, it's hard for a fan to not see a connection.

Does this mean the shadow of blame is lifted from Kyle Williams? Probably not, but it does bring up a good point. Where do you draw the line on putting the blame on someone or something to determine the outcome of a sporting event? I'm not saying I believe this is what cost the game for San Francisco, I'm just shedding light.

Even before the Williams speech was released yesterday, former Head Coach Sean Payton was suspended for the entire 2012 season. It appears the Saints are getting their just desserts, and then some, despite a recent appeal to the league. However, no one will be able to make up for the 49ers season that should have been, whether you can blame the Saints for this one or not.

Will Cain Be Able... to Peform?

Major League Baseball payroll always has its astonishing moments. Most recently, we read the news of San Francisco Giants pitcher Matt Cain signing a contract extension for $112.5 million over five years. That puts his total contract as it stands now at $127.5 million, the priciest contract ever for a right-handed pitcher. And let's not forget, this guy is San Francisco's number two starter.

But the big elephant question in the room is will he perform up to his $$$? Now, there's always the chance of injury, just like in football. But with baseball being a less perilous sport despite more games, I'm sure it can be pretty tempting for a pitcher making that much to sit on the money, so to speak. Let's look at the stats.

Personally, I think Cain had arguably as good a season as Tim Lincecum, the Giants number one starter, did last year. But on paper, you might not see it. Cain was 12-11, but with a 2.88 ERA, better than the 2010 season. He was only 13-11 the year the Giants won it all, and had a perfect 0.00 ERA in the World Series. But when it was time for the Giants to perform last year, and even the year they won the World Series, this picture says it all.

The Giants giving Cain little to no run support each game he'd start became so "regular", it was a sad joke.

Let's look at his current and former teammates. I have to bring up Barry Zito. In 2006, Zito signed a seven-year deal worth $126 million, plus an $18 million option for 2014 with a $7 million buyout. That was the biggest pitcher's contract ever at the time, and every Giants fan knows he hasn't been anywhere near that expected level of performance since. He currently holds the #4 or #5 spot on the pitching rotation. There's also Jonathan Sanchez, who played with Cain last season. Sanchez is having a mediocre spring, and SF might see that it's good to not have him on the roster this season.

So, did the Giants make a good decision in agreeing to this contract? Ultimately, time will tell. In the short run, I think he will perform well, but I'm going to say no. The contract is too long. I don't think he's worth that much money. As a member of the organization, I'd feel too uncomfortable knowing Cain's got that much time with the team. But to Cain's credit, he had a great spring, 4-0 with a 2.1 ERA in six starts with 26 strikeouts. This is a man who has patiently been performing well for a while now.

Prove me wrong, Cain, may you prove you're more than able. Go Giants!

Giants opening day is Friday @ Arizona, 4pm Pacific on ESPN2. Cain will make his first start Saturday @ 1pm on FOX.

Nike Goes Big, Seattle Fans Say 'Go Home'

Nike, one of the most successful Pacific Northwest businesses has finally hit the big stage, but not without upsetting many local football fans.

By now, even the casual NFL fan knows about the Nike Elite 51 Uniform. After grabbing national attention, mostly by using University of Oregon football to showcase their product, Nike signed a contract with the National Football League to design and produce all 32 team uniforms, taking over for Reebok.

Each franchise had the option of letting Nike take their current uniform design and go anywhere from zero to full creative control. New England, for example, gave Nike no creative control, opting to stick entirely with last year's design. Oakland, among others, decided on only adding the shoes and gloves from the Elite 51 program to the ensemble. And I've got to say, those team logo gloves are pretty cool.

The only other really noticeable changes are the designs around the shoulder pads and the creative leg stripes, and even these were not for all teams (Jacksonville & Arizona have no stripes). But, Seattle, San Diego, and Cincinnati are among the lucky ones. This picture might explain why many Seahawk fans are up in arms over the new uniform.

Too bad so many Seattle fans aren't happy with the results. I believe Nike made more changes to the hawks' uniforms, because of the regional connection, a tribute if you will. Nike even said, "The new uniform colors are rooted in Seattle's own environmental hues -- the deep blue of the ocean water that tucks into the harbor near downtown and the Seahawks' stadium... The new color addition called Action Green represents the green of the ubiquitous trees, ferns, and moss literally covering the Pacific Northwest landscape." Sounds pretty endearing.

Meanwhile, the Bay Area teams are the only West Coast teams whose uniforms will basically stay the same, and Arizona will be looking pretty sharp in those full red outfits.

To see more of Seattle's new uni's, go here. To see the NFL's whole array, go here.

MLB West Coast Quick Preview

If you include the state of Arizona, which is fickle by my count, there are seven major league baseball teams in the pacific time zone, more teams than any other professional sport. We're coming up on MLB 2012, with the first game on Wednesday and most west coast teams starting Friday.

It's also the longest season for any major professional team sport in the country, so there's lots of material for this blog (shameless plug). However, for how long this blog has been around before the start of the MLB year, I'll make this quick.

I'm awarding seven predictions for the west coast teams this baseball season. Don't expect one award to go to each team. No, we can't all be winners.

1. The Home Run Leader: Los Angeles Dodgers

2. The Strikeout Leader: San Francisco Giants

3. Most All-Star Selections: Arizona Diamondbacks

4. Most Errors: Oakland Athletics

5. Team that fails to meet the most expectations: San Diego Padres

6. Most improved team: Seattle Mariners

7. Best overall team in 2012: Los Angeles Angels

Remember, this is only among west coast teams. And would you look at that? I used all seven of them.
If you demand I explain myself, please respond below.

Catch the MLB season on ESPN, ESPN2, FOX, TBS, MLB Network, and your regional sports network.

The Talent Migration: SF Ho!

SF fans will remember the 2011 NFC Championship forever as the game the Giants didn't win, but rather, the 49ers lost. Special teams returner Ted Ginn Jr. was injured and stayed out, so Kyle Williams played in his place. Williams' two fumbles are what had to have cost the 49ers that game. Clearly, SF was the better team.

The media announced last Wednesday, former New York Giants running back Brandon Jacobs agreed on a one-year contract with the 49ers, according to one league source. New York released him this month. "Jacobs started most of the Giants’ games in 2008 and 2009, but was the starter in just 11 games over the past two seasons." Nevertheless, the 49ers are getting another piece of last year's Super Bowl champions. That's all that matters.

This follows recent contract agreements from WR Ted Ginn Jr. (one-year contract), WR Randy Moss (one-year contract), QB Alex Smith (three-year contract), and former Giants WR Mario Manningham (two-year contract). Yes, they couldn't get Peyton Manning, but as long as Harbaugh remains the head coach, I'm not worried about Alex Smith.

Why the migration from a Super Bowl team? It's simple. When you win, people want to be winners with you. The Giants may have won the NFC Championship and the Super Bowl, but New York only won 9 games in the regular season, compared to the 13 San Francisco won. San Francisco also already has a top defense, so they are willing to spend the extra money to have an intimidating offense.

The 49ers are building a team very similar to the championship teams they've had in the past. After coming so close last year to the Super Bowl, losing in a game they really should have won, the team is pulling out all the stops to return to their former glory. After all, the season will be tougher, with another rematch against New York, and trips to New Orleans, Green Bay, and New England coming in the 2012 season.

Most recently, the 49ers built a Super Bowl champion team in 1994, with notable acquisitions that offseason. They got former Dallas LB Ken Norton Jr. and former Falcon CB Deon Sanders, among others, signing them to short contracts to win the Super Bowl quickly.

Here's the story of that 1994 season below. We'll see if 2012 turns out in similar fashion.

The Closest Playoff Race Nobody's Watching

It's a question I know all you Northerners, Midwesterners, and Northeasterners have: do Westerners actually watch the NHL?
Canadians don't ask such questions.

It should be obvious by now that Southerners tend to not watch hockey. The few NHL teams down south regularly have trouble getting high attendance for their home games. Let's not forget the Atlanta Thrashers moved to Winnipeg last year, and this year, I've already read that Quebec City is building an NHL-style area. Look out Phoenix.

While some in the Pacific Northwest would love hockey to move to Seattle, let's face it, ice hockey is not a very popular sport out west or down south.
Nationally, the National Hockey League is already in a battle. Here's a list of the most popular professional sports leagues in the U.S:

1. NFL
2. MLB
3. NBA
4. MLS
5. NHL

And it won't be long before MLS passes NBA. But you can still watch games on NHL.com and regionally on cable for every game. And with commercials like this, who wouldn't want to watch?

South of the border, the west coast is home to the San Jose Sharks, the Los Angeles Kings, and the Anaheim Mighty Ducks (yes, I still use the Disney adjective). I'll include the Phoenix Coyotes in this group... for now. And right now, we're nearly in that "got to watch" time of the season. There's just two weeks left in the regular season, and then it's the playoffs. Don't complain. The NBA playoffs are basically the same, but the NHL uses points to determine playoff seeding in each conference, after the division winners.

Two points for a win, one point for an overtime game (there are no more ties in hockey), and zero points for a loss. Right now, the Western Conference has six teams, all within two points of each other, four of them are in the Pacific Division. That is a tight race. And as it stands right now, only three of them will make it to the playoffs. That means with about six games left for each team, everyday there's a change in the playoff standings. How often can you say that about your favorite league?

So support the sport, and all you west coast hockey fans proudly put your hands up!
... now you all get two minutes for high sticking.

Catch the NHL playoffs soon on NBC Sports.

The State of Washington: The Best of the Rest?

OK. I'll admit it. College basketball is not so hot on the west coast.

Of the six (yes, six) teams from the pacific time zone that made it to this year's Big Dance, only Gonzaga actually won a tournament game. California, UNLV, Long Beach State, San Diego State, and St. Mary's also made the field of 68, but Cal didn't even make it to the field of 64. It's a case of medicritology.

It was especially a depressing year for Pac-12 hoops, with the top team during the regular season (Washington), missing the entire tournament field, something that hasn't happened in decades. There were a lone two teams from the conference of champions in the tourney, leaving one to wonder, what happened to all of those previous Pac-12 powerhouses?

While there's a deeper answer for another day, for now, let's just say, most of them made it to the consolation tournaments. That's right: the NIT and the CBI!

If you've been too distracted by this year's march mediocrity, you might be surprised to find out what's been going on in the runners up tournaments. For starters, the Pac-12 has been dominating them. We'll start with the CBI. This year, Oregon State and Washington State, oh, and San Francisco too, all made the field of 16. The Cougars took down the Beavers in the semi-finals, and just tonight, Wazzu won game 1 of the 3-game series for the championship over Pittsburgh. That's right. WSU beat a Big East team, granted the final score was 67-66. A WSU win Wednesday or Friday, and they'll be #101. That means something, right?

Just like the CBI, in the NIT, the Pac-12 sent more teams than any other conference (tied with the SEC): Washington, Oregon, Stanford, and Arizona. The Huskies, who most west coasters think was the biggest snub from this year's Big Dance, is poised to win the NIT right now, as a top seed. They'll play Minnesota tomorrow in the semi-finals. On the other side of the bracket, Stanford plays Massachusetts tomorrow for a chance to meet Washington in New York City. Did I also mention Nevada made the NIT?

These examples prove to me that west coast teams, this year for some reason, are saving their best for after the regular season. But a win for UW in NYC would of course prove what the committee decided all along. They're still #69.

Catch the NIT on ESPN2 and the CBI on HDNet.