Archive for December 14th, 2012

WATERCOOLER CHAT: HAMILTON HEADS TO RIVAL ANGELS, KOBE CONSULTS MAGIC, GOODELL WANTS TO EXPAND PLAYOFFS

BASEBALL

The #1 prize of the off-season was Texas Rangers slugger Josh Hamilton.  The Rangers gave him a second chance after he had serious alcohol issues, and Hamilton rewarded them with major dividends — becoming one of the best hitters in the league.  But, this off-season, he was a free agent, and many teams were salivating to get him.  Well, it looks like Hamilton isn’t headed back to the Rangers, but rather to their division rival:  The Los Angeles Angels.  With the acquisition, the Angels are seriously building a juggernaut.  With Hamilton batting either before or after Albert Pujols, that team is going to be very difficult to stop.  You can’t walk them both.

BASKETBALL

Elsewhere, in the NBA, with the Lakers seemingly on a losing skid that could end in a serious wreck, their star Kobe Bryant was looking for answers.  The Lakers are currently 9-13, and wouldn’t even make the playoffs if it started today. Things with new coach Mike D’Antoni aren’t working out, and they have to make adjustments quickly.  So, in search of some possible solutions, Kobe decided to call Magic Johnson directly. Johnson was very vocal about the Lakers troubles at a Dodgers press conference the other day, and clearly Kobe has taken that to heart.  Kobe wouldn’t reveal the specifics of their conversation, but said it was mainly about transition.  Magic shared some things about how he adjusted to playing after Kareem Abdul-Jabaar retired, and told Kobe how to cope when things aren’t going well.

FOOTBALL

And in the NFL, it looks like commissioner Rodger Goodell mixing things up again.   He’s already changed the game in reducing the amount of kickoff returns by moving the kickoff up to the 35 yard-line, and he’s also responsible for making some teams play on Thursday every week of the year.  Many criticize that it’s not a lot of rest for players, and those games haven’t always been the best.  Now he looks to be making another move that’s very controversial.  Goodell said the league is thinking of expanding the playoffs to 14 or even 16 teams (from 12).  If he did this, it would render the regular season more meaningless, as teams could fight for the bare minimum to get in, and then turn on the jets.  Plus, teams that earn byes would likely have to sit for too many weeks, and that could make them cold and stiff, losing all their momentum from the regular season.  People like change, but not necessarily too much change in the NFL, and it looks like that may be where things are going.

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