Tomorrow at CGBB, I will begin a series about the changing climate of ethnicity in baseball. In the wake of globalization efforts, the decline of African-American participation, and the influx of international talent to the game, each part will focus on a different facet of the changing ethnic culture of baseball as we know it. We’ll explore some of the causes and the potential effects of the trends and even suggest some things to consider as we move forward into a new era of the game.

Over at CGBB, I have invited several guest bloggers to post season outlooks of the Major League Baseball teams they follow. So far, we have about half the teams covered and are looking for a few more who would be interested in contributing.

When you get a monent, visit CGBB and review some of the ‘07 outlooks. If you happen to be a fan of a team that isn’t yet spoken for, consider contributing. BE credits and some free links are a small reward that could be yours!

Cap’nSwag here, with my first of hopefully many installments tackling the good, bad and ugly in sports.

I watched a few NCAA Tournament games yesterday and it’s officially official: College basketball can’t even hold a candle to the pros. I’m no longer even entertaining the argument. I used to get into it all the times with older types who would continually repeat the same mantra, “they care more in college, it’s more of a team game, the pros are overpaid, we’re scared of black people rap culture, anum sheba, anum sheba, anum sheba, anum sheba!” and then a shaman would reach into their chest and pull out their heart. Just kidding… kind of. But it’s true, that’s the fall-back position, that they think the collegiate athletes have more heart because they aren’t paid, and that the lack of overpaid, overhyped stars leads to a more cohesive team game. All I can say to all that is this; bullshit. Don’t hand me a bunch of loose rhetoric based on what you saw in some games during the, admittedly, dark ages of late 90’s NBA play. The bottom line is the NBA is the cream of the paltry college crop. The talent pool isn’t diluted by forcing one or two good players to play on a team of rejects, and though it may not be as lily white as the college game, it’s high time we let go of that foolishness and embrace the new game.
So there are a lot of black dudes in the NBA. I don’t see why that should turn white audiences off from the game. It’s called racism. Trying to justify it with any other qualifyers is bull$h@t. The craziest part is that there are really only a tiny handful of these black athletes that actually “represent a hip hop lifestyle,” that terrifies white America. The only truly gangster dudes in the NBA are Stephen Jackson, Ron Artest and Jamaal Tinsley. And who put those dudes on the same team? The great white hope, Larry Bird.

As for team play being better in college, that’s just hogwash. The stars in college get the rock in their hands on every play, just like in the pros. The only difference is that in college the team’s lone stud gets triple teamed every time he touches it, forcing him to get his worthless teammates involved.

As for “heart,” frankly my dear, I don’t give a sh%t. I’ll take a heartless, cold blooded, rim rocking, three draining, crossover blinding, defensive stalwart like Kobe, who does get paid more than God, any day over some “full of heart” star like Kevin Pittsnogle, who was so good and “hearty” in college that he couldn’t even make a pro team. He’s currently languishing in the NBADL hoping 25 seven footers simultaneously die of heart attacks and he gets called up to the bigs.

As for being overpaid, they get paid what the market will bear. If we didn’t love the game so much, they wouldn’t get paid crap (see Major League Soccer, or the NHL for examples of what that looks like). They don’t get paid as much as Baseball players, who do demonstrably nothing for most of the game as they wait for someone to make contact.
I watched Indiana and Gonzaga run up and down the court as a formless mess last night, chucking threes and committing turnovers and it struck me: these guys are so inferior to the NBA, I wouldn’t even accurately describe it as the same sport.

For more of the Cap’n’s snarkiness, come visit me at my blog, SportSwag, or on First Bounce Fly to which I contribute articles.

If you read my baseball blog at all, you know I have been following the Josh Hamilton story for quite a while now. I am not sure what it is that intrigues me so much, other than the fact that I always root for underdogs and love stories like his. When all is said and done, no matter the outcome, I would love to be the one to collaborate to help him share his story with world.

By now, I am sure most of you are saying, “What the heck is he blogging about? Who is Josh Hamilton and what is the story?” Take a moment to see for yourself.

Hamilton’s Story Shines Despite Lack of Coverage

Are you getting Spring Fever? Do you have a favorite Major League Baseball team? If so, you may want to be a guest blogger over at Chad Gramling’s Baseball Blog (CGBB). Click here for the details.

If you know me at all, you know I have been anxiously awaiting publication of my first book; Baseball in Fort Wayne. Yesterday, an envelope from Arcadia Publishing was waiting for me. It contained my advance copy. Words cannot say how cool that is to me.

By the way, the book (Baseball in Fort Wayne) goes on sale the week of February 26th. You can order it from pretty much any on-line retailer. Search for ISBN 073854129X. Keep up to date on the book and events involving it and more at BaseballinFortWayne.com.

Wow. It has been a really long time since I have posted over here at BAYB. As some of you may know, I have a book that is rapidly approaching its release date. I am starting to get pretty excited. If you are a subscriber of Pinstripes & Ponders, you already know most of this.

Arcadia Publishing has set a February 26, 2006 release date. The book is listed on pretty much every on-line retailer I can think of (see three options below - but if you want to order elsewhere, the ISBN is 073854129X).

Last week I received word that local retailers have begun receiving postcards to announce the book, so it looks like I am in store for a fun ride over the next couple months. Stay tuned for more updates (and contests) as the release date gets closer.

Photo courtesy of the Fort Wayne Wizards.

Amazon.com | Barnes & Noble | Arcadia Publishing

Many people are familiar with notification services like Bloglet. They’re nice because they allow readers of blogs to keep up-to-date with the latest posts at blogs they frequent. The same can be achieved with RSS feed readers too. But all these services are limited in their ability to deliver content (and sometimes their not the most reliable).

As an author, it’s crucial to keep those who are interested in my work updated. For this reason, I also publish a monthly newsletter that combines my writing news with my blogging endeavors. It’s titled “Pinstripes & Ponders” because this quick little publication nicely ties together the primary things I cover as a blogger and author of books, articles and more.

The next issue is scheduled to be broadcast on New Years Day and will contain the release information of my upcoming book “Baseball in Fort Wayne” as well as a promotional video and a contest where you can win a FREE signed copy of my book. To sign up, just click the image below and complete the quick registration. If you’re a BE user, make sure you enter your BE user name and maybe I’ll send you some credits just for subscribing!