The feel-good story of the 2012 baseball season appears to be over, and for all the new ground Jamie Moyer broke in his quest fighting Father Time, ironically what may be the end of the road set yet another milestone, On Wednesday, Moyer became the oldest player to be designated for assignment.
We here at Dubsism have been following Jamie Moyer since before his nearly-miraculous recovery from Tommy John surgery at age 49; we’ve been trumpeting the Moyer story for two years now, when Moyer was still an effective fifth starter for the Philadelphia Phillies. Check out this graphic from 2010 when there was a point in time when a legitimate case could be made that Moyer was as valuable pitcher as two-time defending Cy Young winner Tim Lincecum.
Even today, the day Moyer was designated for assignment, Moyer’s ERA is 5.70; Lincecum’ s is 6.41.
Over the last few months we’ve watched the “johnny-come-latelies” descend on this story, and why shouldn’t they? It was a fun, if not inspirational story; as a guy closer to 45 than 35, I was pulling for Moyer. It wasn’t just because he’s six years my senior and still pitching in the major leagues. It wasn’t just because Moyer seemed to set a record every time he took the mound. He was the oldest player to record a win. He was the oldest player to drive in a run. He was the oldest player to score a run. Moyer just seemed like a guy who kept going out there because he loves the game.
The trouble is that Moyer had a 5.70 ERA in 10 starts with the Rockies, and he allowed a league-high 75 hits in 53 innings. He also gave up 11 home runs, which would be a lot even by Coors Field standards, but five of them came in his last two starts on the road in Miami and Cincinnati.
It’s not like we didn’t see this coming; our Jamie Moyer Update most previous to this one bore that out. Moyer’s ERA and WHIP were both trending in the wrong direction, and with the Rockies looking to build for the future and looking to get their young pitchers some innings, it was clear Moyer was the odd man out. To replace Moyer in the rotation, the Rockies called up Carlos Torres, a 29-year-old right-hander who had a 2.45 ERA and 32/12 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 33 innings at Colorado Springs.
Rather than bemoaning the probable end, let’s look at what Moyer has accomplished.
Check out how many Hall-of-Famers are listed on that chart. Check out how many Hall-of-Famers Moyer outpaces. Check out this sample of ex-big leaguers with whom Moyer shares his birth year (1962): Oddibe McDowell, Danny Tartabull, Wally Joyner, Kevin Seitzer, Darren Daulton, and Darryl Strawberry. Moyer is 12 days older than Bo Jackson.
OK, enough of pointing out the age thing. The real truth is Moyer was only designated for assignment; he wasn’t executed. Jamie Moyer will land somewhere in baseball again. If the role he snags with another team happens to be on the field, then Your Jamie Moyer Update will continue as you have come to know it. I hope that is the case, if for no other reason the man has been a great source of content for us here at Dubsism. After all, we’ve made a lot of blog hay off Jamie Moyer.
If not, it isn’t hard to picture Moyer as a pitching coach. Now, we just wait to see what the next chapter in the Moyer saga brings.
The numbers from last night’s history-setting performance: 7 innings pitched, 2 walks, 1 strikeout, 3 inning-ending double plays all while allowing nary a single earned run. But the number that really mattered…49 years, 150 days. That number sets the new standard as it passed Jack Quinn’s win for the Brooklyn Dodgers on September 13, 1932, when he was 49 years, 70 days old.
That’s the number that will get Moyer’s uniform, and other assorted memorabilia a trip to Cooperstown as Moyer became the oldest pitcher to win a regular season game. Let’s be honest, no matter where you are on the “Is Moyer is a Hall-of -Famer” debate; no matter what there will be Moyer memorabilia in the the Hall of Fame.
Whether it is shipping a package to Cooperstown, or tossing seven effective innings against the Padres, Moyer delivered. Moyer not only set this record, but more importantly, his performance stopped a two-game skid for Colorado. This record-setting win was Moyer’s 268th, which ties him with Hall-of-Famer Jim Palmer at 34th place on the career list. To get there, Moyer dealt the Padres a steady diet of a wood-dodging cutter, his usual marshmallow curve, and a “heater” that never once topped 79 mph which allowed him to scatter six hits and two unearned runs by being the classic Jamie Moyer…keeping the Padres’ batters off balance and guessing.
This now also means the Moyer Watch here at Dubsism now becomes an exercise in a) how long can Moyer continue this miracle run and b) how many more Hall-of-Famers can Moyer pass in some career statistics?
And as always, we will continue to offer some fun Jamie Moyer facts: For example, did you know Jamie Moyer has allowed more home runs (513) than several current players have hit:
Player (years in the league, age) Home Runs
Chipper Jones (19, 40) 456
Vladimir Guerrero (16, 37) 449
Albert Pujols (12, 32) 445
Jason Giambi (18, 41) 428
Andruw Jones (17, 35) 421
Paul Konerko (16, 36) 397
David Ortiz (16, 36) 378
Adam Dunn (12, 32) 366
Lance Berkman (14, 36) 358
Carlos Lee (14, 36) 350
Todd Helton (16, 38) 347
Alfonso Soriano (14, 36) 340
Derrek Lee (15, 36) 331
Aramis Ramirez (15, 34) 315
Mark Teixeira (10, 32) 314
Adrian Beltre (15, 33) 311
Ivan Rodriguez (21, 40) 311
Scott Rolen (17, 37) 308
Carlos Beltran (15, 35) 305
Miguel Tejada (15, 38) 304
Magglio Ordonez (15, 38) 294
Pat Burrell (12, 35) 292
Ryan Howard (8, 32) 286
Bobby Abreu (17, 38) 284
Torii Hunter (16, 36) 281
Miguel Cabrera (10, 29) 280
Mike Cameron (17, 39) 278
The only current players who have hit more home runs than Moyer has allowed are:
Player (years in the league, age) Home Runs
Alex Rodriguez (19, 36) 630
Jim Thome (22, 41) 604
Manny Ramirez (19, 40) 555
Here’s another fun fact about Moyer’s career. There are 102 pitchers who have appeared in at least 700 games, and Moyer is not one of them; yesterday’s win was his 689th appearance in a Major League Game. Now, since this stat favors relief pitchers (Jesse Orosco is the all-time leader at 1,252 and Mariano Rivera is the active leader at 1,046), Moyer is one of only five pitchers with more than 4,000 innings pitched and less than 700 appearances.
Pete Alexander* – 5, 190 innings pitched, 696 career appearances
Eppa Rixey* – 4, 992.2 innings pitched, 692 career appearances
Bert Blyleven* – 4, 970 innings pitched, 692 career appearances
Early Wynn* – 4, 564 innings pitched, 691 career appearances
Jamie Moyer – 4, 038 innings pitched, 689 career appearances
* Denotes Hall-of-Famer
It gets even better if you look at what happens if Moyer makes 12 more appearance to pass 700 total. This list also contains nothing but guys who are in the Hall-of-Fame or should be (don’t start the “Steroid” argument here with me over Clemens). Seriously, look at how many Hall-of-Famers are on the list of pitchers with more than 700 appearances and more than 4,000 innings pitched:
Cy Young* – 7, 356 innings pitched, 906 career appearances
Walter Johnson* – 5, 914.1 innings pitched, 802 career appearances
Phil Niekro* – 5, 404 innings pitched, 864 career appearances
Nolan Ryan* – 5, 386 innings pitched, 807 career appearances
Gaylord Perry* – 5, 350 innings pitched, 777 career appearances
Don Sutton* – 5,282.1 innings pitched, 774 career appearances
Warren Spahn* – 5, 243 innings pitched, 750 career appearances
Steve Carlton* – 5, 217 innings pitched, 741 career appearances
Greg Maddux – 5, 008.1 innings pitched, 744 career appearances
Roger Clemens – 4, 916 innings pitched, 705 career appearances
Tommy John – 4, 710.1 innings pitched, 760 career appearances
Jim Kaat – 4, 530.1 innings pitched, 898 career appearances
Again, you can decide which side of the “Is Moyer a Hall-of-Famer” fence you want to be on, but this is yet another set of numbers where Moyer is living on a street where many of his neighbors have Cooperstown addresses.
Now for the obvious comparison. Since Moyer is the oldest pitcher to win a regular-season game, just how big the the age difference between him and the youngest winner?
If you really want to crawl into the “Wayback Machine,” Willie McGill was born on November 10, 1873 and he won his 1st game on May 8, 1890, making him 16 years, 178 days old when he notched his first “W,” ironically for the Cleveland Infants. Since 1900, the mark belongs to Philadelphia Phillies’ southpaw Rogers McKee, who was born on September 16, 1926 and won his 1st and only Major League game on October 3, 1942, making him 17 years and 17 days old.
As for the youngest “pitcher of note” to tally a major league win, that distinction belongs to Hall-of-Famer Bob Feller, who racked up the first of his 266 wins on August 23, 1936 at the ripe old age of 17 years, 201 days.
When you stop to think about it, you had to expect something like this to come up, didn’t you. After all, for as much of a feel-good story as Jamie Moyer’s comeback from Tommy John surgery is, you knew there was going to be some pain. Or if not pain, some stiffness perhaps; like the kind Moyer felt in his left leg that prompted Rockies’ Manager Jim Tracy to push Moyer’s minor-league start on Friday back to an undisclosed time.
The good news is that all signs point to this being a precautionary measure since Moyer’s left leg is his drive leg for pitching. Also, at least it’s nothing to do with Moyer’s 49-year old, surgically rebuilt elbow. However, when you are on the verge on qualifying for the early-bird special with your AARP card at the local diner, the significance of any little twinge becomes just all that much more concerning.
As of now, the Rockies’ have not established a timetable for Moyer to pitch again, but it is a certainty that if he is able to take the hill, he will because Moyer is in the mix for the fifth starter’s spot after posting a 1.80 ERA in five innings.
With such a full weekend of college and NFL action, let’s just cut to the chase…
1) We still don’t know if Notre Dame is any good
Every year, Notre Dame gets over-rated, and every year, they prove that by the time they get to Purdue. This year, they’ve done nothing but send a mixed message; lost to South Florida and Michigan, and now have won three straight. but honestly, those wins are over mediocre Michigan State and Pittsburgh, and most recently against West Lafayette Junior High Purdue. It doesn’t get any better since the Irish start their usual parade of service academies with Air Force this week.
2) Speaking of Purdue…
Yeah, I know Giant Drum A&M gets picked on every once in a while here, but they might get more respect if they quit doing things like this.
3) As long as we are in Indiana…
Memorial services for any hope of the Colts having a watchable season will be held Thursday at noon at Lucas Oil Field. When the most glowing reviews of Colts quarterback Curtis Painter are “not completely horrible,” it’s going to be a long season in Indianapolis.
4) The Detroit Lions – The Anti-Colts
Let’s face facts, this team has more upside that in all its previous 50 years combined. The Lions boast an emerging star at quarterback, a dominant weapon in Calvin Johnson, and a defense that is vastly improved, which is why they are the first team in NFL history to make two straight comebacks from 20+ points behind.
5) When is a fumble not a fumble, part III
First, there was the Rob Lytle “fumble” in the 1977 AFC Championship Game, then there was the infamous Tom Brady ”Tuck” rule from 2001, now there’s Victor Cruz fiasco this past weekend. Now I know why there is no coincidence between why Ed Hochuli is the best referee in the NFL and he just so happens to be an attorney; you need a law degree to even understand half the rules in the NFL anymore. Note to the Rules Committee…it is time to start simplifying.
6) Illinois – Your Cup-Check University
If picture is worth a thousand words, you would think an animated GIF would be worth more, yet this one is only worth two…
7) As The Romo Turns
With all the ups and downs, one would think you would find the “Romo-Coaster” at Six Flags over Texas rather than Cowboys Stadium. Week 1, he’s a choke-artist. Weeks 2 and 3, he showed “a rare brand of guts and leadership.” Now, he sucks again. Even ESPN doens’t know what to do with him.
There’s the “pro” side, as evidenced by Eric Mangini.
“But ex-Jets coach Eric Mangini said a couple of Romo’s picks against the Lions were not his fault. The gutsy Romo has also led the Cowboys to two victories this season despite playing with injured ribs.”
“Really, you saw the best of Tony Romo in a brilliant first half as he pushed Dallas to a 20-3 lead that swelled to 27-3 after the Cowboys took the second-half kickoff and drove for a touchdown. Then we witnessed the worst of Romo. He threw three second-half interceptions — two were absolutely awful decisions — providing the catalyst for Detroit’s comeback.”
After all the hand-wringing and gnashing of teeth, NBC’s Bob Costas probably has the best observation…
“Here’s a guy who see-saws between hero’s laurels and goat horns, seemingly game to game. And today, it was half to half. Romo had three TD throws in the first 33 minutes against the undefeated Lions, but then, three picks – two of them returned for touchdowns,” said Costas.”This has been the pattern of Romo’s season, and, as it’s shaping up, his career. At any moment he is apt to rescue his team with feats of daring do, often showing the presence of mind to improvise his way out of one crisis after another. And then, the next week, or maybe the next moment, he’ll turn in a performance or make a decision that sends Cowboys fans to the ledge.”
After all, good Romo or bad Romo doesn’t matter…Cowboys’ fans ripping their collective hair out is what’s important.
8 ) By The Way, Romo’s Not The Only Thing Wrong in Dallas
Remember that crap Rob Ryan was spouting about how Detroit’s Calvin Johnson would “be the third’ best receiver on the team” if he played for the Cowboys. Who else took comfort in watching Johnson pack that bilge firmly in Ryan’s “Head and Shoulders commercial wannabe ass? Did anybody else notice the part where Ryan’ s “vaunted” defense had 12 guys on the field and STILL didn’t double-cover Calvin Johnson?
What has two thumbs, Lynyrd Skynyrd-hair, and a football in his ass from Calvin Johnson? THIS GUY!!!
9) As long as we are in Dallas…
Remember last year when Jason Garrett became the poster-child for uptight, straight-laced white guys everywhere when he was the guy who saved the Cowboys? Remember how this was all supposedly due to Garrett’s being a “disciplinarian?”
So, can somebody explain to me why this Cowboy team looks as undisciplined as ever? Seriously, this team can’t even manage it’s own snap count, half the roster looks like they don’t even know the playbook, and nobody is calling out Howdy Doody Jason Garrett, the supposed Princeton Prince of Discipline.
Forget Jason Garrett...It was Mrs. Garrett who knew how to keep the girls in line.
10) Oh, and before I forget about the other Ryan brother…
Rex, you are one of my favorite guys in all of sports, but…
It’s “put up or shut up” time. I’ve watched your teams gag two straight AFC Championship games, and now your team is looking suspiciously over-rated. Start winning games you are supposed to win so I don’t have to start bashing you.
11) Speaking of “Time To Prove My Love” – The All-Pennsylvania Edition
The Eagles have managed in four short game to go from “The Dream Team” to “The Nightmare Team.” Two reasons – the hardest hit the offensive line has made all season was on their own quarterback, and in the immortal words of Jets’ linebacker Bart Scott, the defense “couldn’t stop a nosebleed.”
But the award for the worst offense in the Keystone State goes to Penn State. Don’t get me wrong, as a Nittany Lion fan, I’ve seen some Joe Paterno offenses that literally dated from the Paleozoic era, but this is the worst I’ve seen under the Galen Hall/Offensive Coordinator regime. With all due respect, GET RID OF THAT GODDAMN TWO QUARTERBACK SYSTEM!!!! I get they both suck, but pick one, shoot the other in the head and let’s move on.
12) Cam Newton Is Now A Poster Child
There’s new mentality in the football world…throwing the football is Nirvana, outcomes be damned. Cam Newton exemplifies this. The world is singing his praises as a young quarterback because in four games he has nearly 1,400 passing yard and 5 touchdowns.
But he also has 5 interceptions and more importantly, only one win as a starting quarterback. This makes him a stud in fantasy football, but not so much in the real game. But, for some reason, we let the fantasy mentality rule the day.
If you doubt that, look at it this way. This past weekend saw 11 quarterbacks post 300 passing yards, but only 4 of them won their games. In contrast, the running game (which has been relegated to the NFL scrap heap) saw 8 running backs rack up 100 rushing yards , and 5 of them played on winning teams.
13) The Dubsism Simplified College Football Top 25
First, let me define the concept of Cubsism. Named for the Chicago Cubs, Cubsism is an ideaology that permeates a sports franchise. It is characterized by the ability to be essentially viable while remaining an exercise in futulity on the field. It is named for the Cubs because no other franchise in sports embodies it nearly as much as the Chicago North Siders do.
A microcosm of most recent century of futility of this franchise lies in the last eighteen months. Look at what has happened before and after the sudden retirement of Lou Piniella last summer.
Usually, when a team makes a change at manager, the idea is to change the culture of the clubhouse by changing the leadership. Sometimes, when you make a change, the team doesn’t respond. That’s what happened last year at this time. Why? Because Lou Piniella was a respected “baseball guy.”
Just a few weeks ago, the rumors began circulating that new manager Mike Quade and general manager Jim Hendry will return next season in their respective positions. The logic is that Hendry is the guy who made the decision to hire Quade, knowing that Quade was never intended to be a long-term solution. The thought was Quade would be a bridge until the Cubs found an established manager when the team is ready to contend.
The problem is Quade should have never been the Cubs manager in the first place. There’s so many reasons why, and they all illustrate the concept of Cubsism.
Go back to the day Piniella pulled the plug. Not the day he walked for good; rather go back to the day he said he was leaving at the end of the year. While every sports writer rejoiced at the thought of not having to write another ”fire Lou Piniella” column, they all missed the main point.
Why let a manager appoint himself into a “lame-duck” status? To that point, the team was certainly going nowhere; they were lifeless and unmotivated, and now they are playing for a manager who has decided to fall on his own sword. There was nothing left to inspire the team to play hard; to not look they rolled over and died. What is to be gained by that?
The answer is absolutely nothing. There’s one thing the Cubs have seemingly forgotten about their fans is that they live on hope. They have little other option; the Cubs have given them nothing else in over a century.
Flash forward one year, and the Cubs find themselves in essentially the same position. The Cubs collapsed early, fingers were pointed, and it looks like another change is coming somewhere in the leadership chain of the Cubs.
I don’t know how much hope that inspires in Cub fans, because I don’t know what the changes are going to be. Suffice it to say the Cubs are likely to make what I call a “Cubs-Type Decision (CTD).”
CTDs are the heart of Cubsism, and Cubsism is caused by four contributing factors, all of which have a long association with the Cubs.
1) Leadership and a fan base that doesn’t understand the difference between “good” and “great.”
This point is exemplified by Quade. He was a terrible hire not because he is a terrible manager, rather there was a much better and completely obvious hire, and he was already in your organization.
Face it, Chicago. Mike Quade was the “good” hire; Ryne Sandberg was the “great” hire. He was perfect for the job; let’s review why.
Sandberg became a Cub hero in the 1980′s being the best second baseman of that decade and arguably one of the top five at that position ever. Sandberg became the Wrigley fixture Cub fans latched onto as a transition in to the Harry Caray-less days after 1998. Sandberg was one of the smartest players in the game, and few played the truly complete game he did. Not only that, but Sandberg is not some Hall-of-Fame guy who thinks he should be able to blow into town and get the manager’s job on his name alone. Whether in his playing days or in his managerial career in the bus leagues, Sandberg has never been a guy to trade on marquee value, although he clearly could.
But instead of waltzing into the Cubs front office and saying “The fans that you need to keep want me in the dugout; I will be by before the Winter Meetings to pick the keys to my office,” Sandberg had spent the past four seasons prior to last year managing in the Cubs’ farm system. In fact, few managers in the minor leagues have built the reputation Sandberg has, and due to his humility, most of that has happened well beneath the radar. Sandberg has clearly “paid his dues” all while showing himself to be a cerebral skipper who can get his players to think before they act (Carlos Zambrano, I’m looking at you…)
In other words, he was the perfect man for the Cubs’ managerial job. How could the Cubs possibly entertain the idea of doing anything other than hiring the perfect candidate to end all perfect candidates? Because they are the Cubs, and they make Cubs-Type Decisions.
2) Terrible player/personnel decisions
In case you need a refresher, let’s review a few of my favorite CTDs:
Trading Lou Brock to the Cardinals for Ernie Broglio (future Hall-of-Famer for washed-up pitcher)
Trading Rafael Palmeiro to Texas for Mitch Williams (3,000 hit/500 home run guy for a relief pitcher whose stay in Chicago wasn’t as long as some people who change planes at O’Hare Airport)
Drafting Josh Hamilton as a Rule 5 player, then promptly trading him to Cincinnati for a small amount of cash (3-time All-Star and reigning American League MVP for a few dollars when the Cubs were one of the richest teams in the league)
Trading Sergio Mitre and Ricky Nolasco for Juan Pierre (one serviceable starting pitcher and one on the verge of becoming an ace for a “legitimate leadoff hitter” for a guy who in his ONE season as a Cub got caught stealing 20 times in 78 attempts).
Letting Greg Maddox go to free agency (deciding a guy who would go on to win 355 games and 4 Cy Young awards wasn’t “the kind of pitcher who could help us long-term”)
Trading Dennis Eckersley for three minor-leaguers (Once in Oakland, Eckersley becomes the dominant closer of his era)
Trading Bill Madlock for Bobby Murcer (a solid defensive third-baseman who also would win four batting titles for a slugging outfielder whose career decline began immediately after this trade)
Trading Bruce Sutter for Leon Durham and Ken Reitz (another dominant closer for two “bags of magic beans”)
Trading Lee Smith for Calvin Schraldi and Al Nipper (another dominant closer for two “bags of magic beans”)
Trading Manny Trillo for Barry Foote and Ted Sizemore (a second baseman who still holds the record for most consecutive chances without an error for one of the great mustaches of all-time )
3) Belief in the “quick fix” for decades of problems
The Fukudome era...only slightly racist while being completely futile.
Just in the past dozen or so years, I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve heard (insert new phenom and/or big free-agent signing) will change the fortunes of Cub nation…Kerry Wood, Todd Hundley, LaTroy Hawkins (even if he was only supposed to save the bullpen, I still can’t believe I just wrote that), Mark Prior, Nomar Garciaparra, Alfonso Soriano, Kosuke Fukudome, Milton Bradley, blah, blah, blah…Look at the knob-slobbing happening for Tyler Colvin, Darwin Barney, and Starlin Castro. How much you want to bet at least two of those names are on this list in five years? Doubt that? Just look back at what Cubs fans were bleating about Geovany Soto and Ryan Theriot…
This is the same reason Cubs’ fans always love deals like Carlos Silva for Milton Bradley. Remember, they loved Ernie Broglio for Lou Brock, too…
4) A fan base ignorant of the fundamentals of the game
Picture it…Chicago, sometime in the late 90′s. I’m at Wrigley taking in a summer afternoon affair against the Dodgers. It’s the top of the ninth inning, the score is tied and the Dodgers have a runner on third with one out. The Dodgers hit a long fly ball into left field, and the family seated in front me (resplendent in their Cubs gear) is wildly cheering the out, completely unaware the Dodgers had just scored what would prove to be the winning run on the sacrifice.
That family is the Cubs fanbase in a nutshell.
Having said all that, the next time you are looking to explain a franchise’s long term dysfunction, refer back to the four points of Cubsism. It runs rampant in professional sports; it takes little to see it.
Now for the fun part – here are ten franchises we have identified as having a very high Cubsism rating. Remember that Cubsism is not a short-term affliction; to be on this list a franchise must have shown a track record of futility for decades or have a generally dismal record with only the fleetingest glimpses of non-suck.
Editor’s Note:Mr. McGrath has long and storied history in the management of professional sports franchises, most notably as the general manager of the Charlestown Chiefs of the now-defunct Federal League. Oh, and this is probably a good time to mention that Mr. McGrath’s views are his own, and do not necessarily reflect those of Dubsism, our staff, or anybody else whose house you might want to burn to the ground.
I will keep this simple. The NFL has been without a franchise in Los Angeles for close to two decades. One the primary stumbling blocks to putting a team in the Southland has been the lack of a suitable venue. However, now that Los Angeles City Council has voted unanimously to approve a stadium proposal, the question is this: which team or teams will move to the City of Angels.
I say “teams” because the rumor is that the new model being kicked around as a cost-savings measure may be to emulate the sharing arrangement the Jets and Giants have used in New York. It is important to keep that in mind as we move through this discussion where I will rate the teams in contention to make the move based on their likelihood to do so.
1) San Diego Chargers – Odds To Move: Almost Certain
The minute the shovel breaks ground in Los Angeles, the boxes will start being loaded on the trucks in San Diego. They won’t do it in the fly-by-night manner like the Irsays took the Colts out of Baltimore, but relocating this team 120 miles north has been an open secret for a while. Current owner Art Spanos in nearly 90, in failing health, and has been looking to sell at least a minority stake in the team. It doesn’t take a giant leap of faith to see the word “minority” turn into “majority” or “complete” in this case. Even if it doesn’t, the group looking to build the Los Angeles stadium would settle for a 30 percent ownership stake if there’s a commitment to move by May 2012 (upon completion of a stadium). Couple that with the fact the Chargers only need to make a $24 million payment to escape their lease at Qualcomm Stadium, and the fact San Diego has a flaky fan base, and you can start printing the Los Angeles Chargers T-shirts now.
2) Minnesota Vikings – Odds To Move: Pretty Damn Good
Take a good look at that picture. This is the one team that doesn’t want a new stadium; it desperately needs one. The Vikings’ lease at the Metrodome expires after this season, and if Minnesota makes a commitment to build a new stadium before the end of that lease (the Governor may call a special legislative session in the fall to hammer out a deal), the Vikings stay. Keep in mind that Vikes’ owner Zygi Wilf isn’t looking to sell the team, but he has met with the President and CEO of the Los Angeles stadium group, and the Vikings’ vice president of public affairs Lester Bagley has said the Vikings are solely focused on staying in Minnesota. That means two things – first, there has been a serious discussion about moving this franchise, and secondly Bagley knows he needs to say that to keep any hopes of a Minnesota stadium deal alive. In other words, if a stadium deal doesn’t get done in Minnesota, look for the Vikings to announce their departure.
3) St. Louis Rams – Odds To Move: Better than 50-50
Again, here’s a team in a crappy dome, the team has a lease which expires right around a feasible completion date for a Los Angeles stadium (after the 2014 season). The only way to improve the Edward Jones Dome is to raze it and build a new stadium, which isn’t likely to happen since the city of St. Louis is still paying for the construction of the dome. That makes the infusion of public money on a stadium project not very likely.
Go back to that “two teams in Los Angeles” thoery. There’s a key in this which sweetens this deal for the Rams, but also makes the Vikings and our surprise “dark horse” very viable options as they all share similar characteristics. According to ESPN Los Angeles, there’s a set of criteria involved in the consideration of a franchise on this list.
The St. Louis Convention & Visitors Commission has until Feb. 1 to give the Rams a preliminary proposal for how it plans to give the Dome “top-tier” status. The Rams can either agree to the offer a month later or reject it and make a counter-offer by May 1, which is the most likely scenario. The commission can then either agree to the counter-offer by June 1 or reject it and go to arbitration. If such a scenario unfolds, the lease could be voided and the Rams could rent the Dome on a year-to-year basis or choose to move elsewhere…
…It seems the chances of the Rams getting a new stadium in St. Louis are as remote as they are for the Chargers in San Diego. Having the Chargers and the Rams relocate to Los Angeles would be the most ideal scenario for the league, which would like to see one AFC West team and one NFC West team move to Los Angeles (preferably with Los Angeles ties) so the geography of the current divisions still work and each of the conference’s television broadcasters (currently CBS and FOX) will get a team in the country’s second-biggest media market.
Like I said before, keep this model in mind…
4) San Francisco 49ers and Oakland Raiders – Odds to Move: Not Very Good
This is another example where the “two team” model comes into play. If the Chargers move as expected, the league and the networks won’t want two division-rivals in the same stadium. Not to mention the stadium owners would lose two dates worth of parking and concessions under such an arrangement. If the Raiders don’t move, it makes it much easier for the 49ers and Raiders to get a shared-venue proposal. Both teams need a new stadium, and the 49ers proposal on a Santa Clara site has been gaining momentum. A partnership with the Raider could push that deal across the goal line.
5) Buffalo Bills – Odds To Move: Drawing to an Inside Straight
Let me be clear – this team is moving, but it isn’t going to California. Considering this team has agreed to play eight home games in Toronto over the next five seasons, once 93-year old Ralph Wilson is gone, this team will move north of the border.
6) Jacksonville Jaguars – Odds to Move: Slim and None, and Slim Just Left Town
Seven words: Owner Wayne Weaver and an honerous lease. It’s Weaver’s team, he wants it in Jacksonville, and he structured the lease on EverBank Field to be nearly impossible to escape until 2029.
Surprise “Dark Horse”) New Orleans Saints – Odds to Move: Much Better Than You Think
Actually, the Saints can check many of the same boxes on the “moving” criteria list as the Vikings and Rams, which is why the “dirty little secret” is the Saints are as good a candidate to move.
1) They are in an old, crappy dome that is falling apart.
While there is an $85 million dollar plan on the table to upgrade the Superdome, the fact remains this is a stop-gap fix. Within the next few years, there will be no covering the fact the Superdome is obsolete.
2) There’s a state money entanglement.
Right after Katrina, there were concerns Saints’ owner Tom Benson was ready to move to San Antonio. To head that off, the state of Louisiana pays the Saints $6 million per year in direct funding. That’s already a tacit admission that post-Katrina New Orleans is simply no longer a major-league city. The aforementioned stadium upgrade is also an admission that there is no chance of a completely new facility anytime in the near future.
3) They make the most sense.
According to the “two team theory,” the league wants one team from each conference, and making such a move without making massive re-alignments would be preferable. Los Angeles like will have either the Chargers or Raiders from the AFC, and that means they other teams likely to load up and head west are from the NFC. The Saints could easily be “traded” to the NFC West of the St. Louis Rams, just as the Rams could be swapped to the NFC North for the Vikings.
In any event, somebody is moving to Los Angeles . Who will get into this Southern California NFL version of “‘musical chairs?”
Time for some brutal honesty, men. Every one of you has taken a “C-list” woman on an “A-List” date just because you knew it dramatically increased your odds of breaking a “dry spell.” Picture the Washington Nationals as Mr. Dry Spell, and free-agent pitcher Chien-Ming Wang as the C-list chick and you get the idea.
But the Nats are soooo lonely. They haven’t had a taste since Montreal, so you really can’t criticize the Nats for dropping $2 million just to get some Wang back in their clubhouse. they’ve waited through two years of Wang injuries for this moment, as Wang takes the bump tonight, but you can make a lot of dick jokes. A name like Wang takes the hard out of dick jokes. A name like Wang begs to be given head…lines.
That’s why were here at Dubsism have started our own hash tag on Twitter. Just head to #wangheadlines and hit us with your best shot.
This leaves us all on tinterhooks until the day some copywriter in D.C. gets the nads to whip out his dick joke chops. I think the Wang wait won’t be long.
We started with 64, and after four weeks, six rounds, and tons of votes, we are down to one. According to you, the readers of Dubsism, the greatest sports movie in history is:
After all the upsets, the highs, the lows, the whatevers, we have a championship match. The only two #1 seeds to make the Final Four face off for the title of greatest sports movie ever according to the readers of Dubsism, which, lets be honest, is the only audience that matters.
Vote away gang; voting closes on Sunday at midnight.
Here we are…down the the Final Four. There have been upsets, there have been Cinderellas, but let’s be honest. Any movie that has survived this far must be both pretty good and has a fair amount of fans. Now, it is time to see which will be the last one standing. The voting will close at midnight on Wednesday.
Editor’s Note: Mr. McGrath has long and storied history in the management of professional sports franchises, most notably as the general manager of the 
