SBNation.com User Blog: GhettoBear04

OT: A Memory of Light (Nerd Alert)

GhettoBear04 — Thu, 03 Jan 2013 04:46:50 -0000

The Wheel of Time turns, and Ages come and pass, leaving memories that become legend. Legend fades to myth, and even myth is long forgotten when the Age that gave it birth comes again. In one Age, called the Third Age by some, an Age yet to come, an Age long past, a wind rose around the alabaster spire known as the White Tower. The wind was not the beginning. There are neither beginnings nor endings to the turning of the Wheel of Time. But it was a beginning.

More than 15 years ago, a friend who didn't like reading long books but owned lots of them lent a nerd who did like reading long books but didn't own any a book called The Eye of the World. After reading the first book that progressed the genre to bigger, more complex and more detailed heights than the Lord of the Rings, this nerd was cautiously excited that he had stumbled onto something great. So he borrowed the next book, The Great Hunt. And the next book, The Dragon Reborn. And at some point the friend didn't have any more and the nerd started buying them.

15+ years is a long time to do anything. Maybe it's that A Memory of Light comes out in the same year that I turn 30, but I can't help but look back nostalgically about where I was when I first read each book in the series. I remember having a conversation a decade ago about how Robert Jordan needed to hurry up (this was around Book 6) because of the possibility that he died before he finished writing it. I often think of that conversation and then think of how happy I am with the result of such difficult circumstances in getting out the 'last' book. Brandon Sanderson is somebody who wrote what is probably my favorite stand alone novel in the genre; the fact that he is who was chosen makes me happy for a number of reasons.

Unfortunately, no longer being surrounded by college age guys means that I don't really have anybody with which to talk about this. So, once again, I turn to the LSB community. What are you most excited about? What are you most disappointed by? What loose ends do you think won't get tied up? (This book is going to be roughly 910 pages, so I don't see how they can possibly tie everything up.)

Here are some of the things I wonder about:

How do you reconcile the seemingly disparate Prophecies? At first there were differences between the main Prophecies and those of the Seanchan, but that could have been dismissed as just weird Seanchan stuff. But the last book introduced Prophecies known only to The Dark One/Forsaken (Moridin showed it to Graendal) and they seemed to disagree with what the 'main' Prophecies say. I can't help but feel that in most fantasies written by Americans, even though there's a definite Middle Ages in Europe feel to them all, that there is a very American 'we don't care about your stinkin Prophecies' thread in them, at least for the main protagonists.
Building off of that, do you ever get the impression that certain countries in the TWoT (are supposed to) mimic or create a feel of a real country? For example, Andor reminds me of England. The Seanchan remind me of China.
What is to become of Padan Fain?
I don't frequent the sites that contain theories/spoilers/predictions for TWoT because I'm always afraid that I'll mix something 'fake' in with the canon, but has anybody read any interesting theories?
Who do you think dies? Who do you most want to see live? How different is the world after Tarmon Gai'don?
What would you do differently if you had been Rand?

via www.tor.com

Here are some of the things I wonder about:

How do you reconcile the seemingly disparate Prophecies? At first there were differences between the main Prophecies and those of the Seanchan, but that could have been dismissed as just weird Seanchan stuff. But the last book introduced Prophecies known only to The Dark One/Forsaken (Moridin showed it to Graendal) and they seemed to disagree with what the 'main' Prophecies say. I can't help but feel that in most fantasies written by Americans, even though there's a definite Middle Ages in Europe feel to them all, that there is a very American 'we don't care about your stinkin Prophecies' thread in them, at least for the main protagonists.
Building off of that, do you ever get the impression that certain countries in the TWoT (are supposed to) mimic or create a feel of a real country? For example, Andor reminds me of England. The Seanchan remind me of China.
What is to become of Padan Fain?
I don't frequent the sites that contain theories/spoilers/predictions for TWoT because I'm always afraid that I'll mix something 'fake' in with the canon, but has anybody read any interesting theories?
Who do you think dies? Who do you most want to see live? How different is the world after Tarmon Gai'don?
What would you do differently if you had been Rand?

via www.tor.com

SI: NCAA fails miserably, turns a blind eye to UNC infractions

GhettoBear04 — Sat, 01 Sep 2012 15:41:28 -0000

SI: NCAA fails miserably, turns a blind eye to UNC infractions

You seem too calm right now. Let's raise that blood pressure.

Grantland Tries to Lift the Rangers Curse

GhettoBear04 — Tue, 14 Aug 2012 19:36:32 -0000

Grantland Tries to Lift the Rangers Curse

Well, one of their writers does, anyways.

"Now, to be clear, I didn't want El Profesor to help me place a curse of my own — on, say, David Freese, C.J. Wilson, whoever plays for the A's, or, for old time's sake, ex-owner Tom Hicks. Nor was this a Damn Yankees thing: my soul for a World Series ring. No, my motives were pure. El Profesor would be my spiritual cutoff man between the suspicious stuff happening on the field and the possibly wicked stuff happening in the heavens.

I needed to reverse a jinx."

Pras does a Q&A about Perry Jones III for SBN's OKC Thunder Blog

GhettoBear04 — Mon, 02 Jul 2012 16:14:18 -0000

Pras does a Q&A about Perry Jones III for SBN's OKC Thunder Blog

Grantland: Chelsea F.C.- Can't Buy Me Love

GhettoBear04 — Thu, 24 May 2012 21:41:07 -0000

Grantland: Chelsea F.C.- Can't Buy Me Love

Grantland is the website started by Bill Simmons that looks to combine (American) pop culture and sports coverage. Their football coverage has been fairly below average, but I enjoyed this article for expanding on this idea:

"If it hadn't been Chelsea — a massively well-funded English club with global reach and an owner who owns multiple submarines — we would have talked about this as if it were the Cinderella run to end all Cinderella runs. No matter how dire their situation looked, Chelsea just kept surviving, trailing streams of exclamation points, and somehow repeatedly blowing up the clock a split second before the minute hand touched midnight."

Grantland article about the Rangers East

GhettoBear04 — Tue, 15 May 2012 21:45:33 -0000

Grantland article about the Rangers East

Mostly about the Orioles, but it features some happy thoughts about the Rangers like this:

If there's one take-home lesson from the Orioles' success this year, it's this: When in doubt, find the most talent-laden team in the sport and start begging for its table scraps like a street urchin in Les Misérables..

Former NBA Star/GM Steve Kerr: NBA should raise the minimum age to 20

GhettoBear04 — Tue, 08 May 2012 14:05:22 -0000

Former NBA Star/GM Steve Kerr: NBA should raise the minimum age to 20

At Grantland, Steve Kerr gives 6 reasons why the NBA minimum age level should be raised to 20. I can't help but read some of these and think of Quincy Miller.

McShay: Early 2013 Draft Prediction

GhettoBear04 — Thu, 03 May 2012 01:56:49 -0000

McShay: Early 2013 Draft Prediction

This one is a lot different from the others I've seen. I have a hard time seeing how a DT (from Utah!) could go #1 overall, but that's not the most interesting part to Baylor fans:

#12: Terrance Williams, WR, Baylor to Seattle Seahawks

Dave Cameron: Yu Darvish's Command Problems

GhettoBear04 — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 19:57:13 -0000

Dave Cameron: Yu Darvish's Command Problems

An excellent take on why Yu Darvish's stuff isn't quite translating into the expected results using velo charts and heat maps.

"This is the repertoire of a guy who should miss a lot of bats. And yet, after three starts, Darvish just isn’t fooling anyone. 333 pitches into his big league career, and opposing batters have made contact on 81.6% of the pitches he’s thrown. Major League average for a starting pitcher in 2012 is 81.7%.

The main reason appears to be directly related to..."

That was a more diplomatic version of the answer that Baylor women's basketball coach Kim Mulkey...

GhettoBear04 — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 23:31:23 -0000

That was a more diplomatic version of the answer that Baylor women's basketball coach Kim Mulkey gave last fall when asked if her team would continue to play Texas A&M: "If a man wants to divorce me and says our relationship has no value to him, and then he asks me if he can sleep with me, the answer is no," she said.

Read more: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2012/writers/seth_davis/02/06/kansas.missouri/index.html#ixzz1leDAEtyt

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2012/writers/seth_davis/02/06/kansas.missouri/index.html

Mark Titus (@Grantland) does it again - Best Powerful Power Rankings in the Unknown Universe

GhettoBear04 — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 22:23:31 -0000

Mark Titus (@Grantland) does it again - Best Powerful Power Rankings in the Unknown Universe

I like to think that thousands of years from now, archeologists will discover the section of Scott Drew's playbook that outlines his zone defense, and it will require millions of dollars and decades of study to decipher it. Cryptographers from all over the world will be flown to Waco to examine this mystery code that nobody can crack. Many will succumb to insanity and possibly suicide, forcing the government to step in and end the madness once and for all by destroying the playbook. But here's the thing: Drew's zone defense is like the Kardashian family's fame — not only does it defy explanation, but it also can't be destroyed

Latest AP and Coach's Polls show short memories

GhettoBear04 — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 19:13:32 -0000

Latest AP and Coach's Polls show short memories

Remember how Baylor had their worst week of the season recently in large part because they were blown out in Lawrence? You do? Because apparently the pollsters are struggling to remember it...

4. Mizzou
6. Baylor
8. Kansas

Granland on National Signing Day

GhettoBear04 — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 15:05:44 -0000

Granland on National Signing Day

"And then there are the contradictions within our own thought processes. A common one is the praising of a recruit's character and goods sense3 based on nothing more than his choosing our school. When a recruit is up for grabs, we hope he makes the "right" choice, and if he doesn't we'll say: "If he wants to go there, he's not the kind of kid we thought he was. Him and Rival U will be perfect for each other." That's how we do it. We want the kid until he doesn't want us. Look, kid, you're gonna do the hooking or you're gonna get hooked. You're either a Gator or you're gator bait. A recruit who selects my school made a well-reasoned decision. If he selected Rival U then he's been sweet-talked and I feel sorry for him, sorry that he fell for whatever lies and gifts they showered on him. I'm not sure I would want a kid so easily swayed, a kid of such flimsy character, playing for my team anyway.

If my team has a need at corner and a great in-state cornerback decides to go elsewhere, my response is: What's wrong with these kids? Don't they have computers? Can't they see the depth chart? That other program must have given him a Lincoln Navigator and a bunch of gift cards to Chipotle! Yet when a guy who might have to wait a couple years to play commits to my school, that young man is a bastion of wisdom and foresight. Instead of being seduced by the siren song of immediate playing time, he has chosen his new home according to higher concerns. He liked the family atmosphere and the commitment to doing things the right way."

SI's Don Banks Mock Draft

GhettoBear04 — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 20:16:49 -0000

SI's Don Banks Mock Draft

RG3 at #2 to....not the Redskins who draft Tannehill #6. If I promise to only laugh on this inside, can this happen?

Also, he notes what many of us have observed: there's a battle for #2 WR between Notre Dame's Michael Floyd and our own Kendall Wright (you'll see Alshon Jeffery included sometimes, but I think there are questions about his speed). The winner will probably go to the Bears.

RGIII meets with Coach

GhettoBear04 — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 23:17:13 -0000

RGIII meets with Coach

Subsequently, Griffin III, in a text to ESPN.com's David Ubben, and a Baylor spokesperson both said Griffin III had not yet made up his mind.

"It's a situation where he's really contemplating what he feels like is the thing that's going to give him peace," coach Art Briles said.

FanGraphs: Christian Villanueva rates as rare Rangers sleeper

GhettoBear04 — Fri, 06 Jan 2012 20:50:47 -0000

FanGraphs: Christian Villanueva rates as rare Rangers sleeper

A comp to Braves Martin Prado is imperfect, but provides some insight into the type of value Villanueva projects for at the Major League level...Villanueva will never be a true centerpiece of a deal for a player such as Matt Garza, but would be an excellent addition as a third or fourth piece of a larger package.

Matches: Ron Washington, The Fatigue Problem, And The Heat

GhettoBear04 — Thu, 25 Aug 2011 16:17:41 -0000

Matches: Ron Washington, The Fatigue Problem, And The Heat

He keeps the mic hot, he heats it up kid.

JoePos on Playoff Expansion

GhettoBear04 — Sat, 20 Aug 2011 21:05:57 -0000

JoePos on Playoff Expansion

JoePos considers an extra wild card spot on SI. After reading it, I'm left feeling similar to how I do now...which leads me to the thought, if there's this much angst about how unfair it is the TB and TOR (though really, it feels like there's this much angst to the idea of BOS or NYY missing the playoffs), then why not go to 4/8 4-teams divisions (outside the whole needing 2 teams thing)? Ostensibly, BAL and TOR have enough money to compete (reasonably well) with NYY and BOS, right?

OT CFB: A&M closer to SECeding

GhettoBear04 — Tue, 09 Aug 2011 19:36:59 -0000

As I'm sure most of our resident Aggies are already aware of, apparently there as been a very large amount of smoke today saying A&M is putting the wheels in motion to leave the Big12 for the SEC. From the SBN Aggie Blog:

Once again the twitterverse has exploded with rumors of Texas A&M moving to the SEC. The latest story is that lawyers representing A&M has sent a letter of intent to the SEC and that all the member schools have already voted to accept the Ags. I was under the impression that A&M would announce their intention to join the Southeastern Conference this spring. The Ags did not want any distractions during football season and definitely did not want to receive the "officiating" that Nebraska got during their farewell tour of the Big 12 last year. It looks like the timeline has been sped up. Billy Liucci is reporting that although the Ags are not going to make a move this week or the next, the wheels are definitely in motion.

With the recent rumors that Tech has been talking to the Pac 12 about moving West (and likely taking OU and OSU with them) we may not have to deal as many issues with the legislature as some had thought. Right now I would guess that Missouri would try to go to the Big 10 again. Kansas and KSU will make a move for the Big East. Baylor will do everything they can to go to the Pac 12 with everyone else.

I think Tech's recent overtures to the Pac 12 are due to ESPN and the LHN offering Tech a deal to televise the Tech-tu game this year. Supposedly ESPN and the LHN offered Tech $5 million to televise the conference game this year, and the promise to televise games against Nevada and New Mexico in future years on the LHN. To his credit, Tech President Kent Hance turned down the offer. It is plain to see from their actions (and Liucci stated as much) that tu and ESPN fully intend to broadcast a second football game on the LHN this year, and intend to go forward with televising high school games

I don't think the Pac12 is interested in Tech, especially without UT or A&M. Maybe they take an OSU if they get OU. And we all know that Berkley is going to stonewall a Baylor addition. Another take from Mr. SEC:

Twitter has blown up today with more rumored reports of a Texas A&M-SEC marriage. Among the rumors:

1. A&M and SEC officials have been working on a membership agreement for the Aggies.
2. Representatives from all 12 SEC schools have voted in favor of accepting A&M into the league.
3. A “letter of intent” has already been sent from A&M to the Southeastern Conference.

As you know, A&M to the SEC is an old standard by now. We wrote last summer that the school and the league have had flirtations going back to the mid-to-late-1980s.

In our Expanding On Expansion series we suggested A&M would be a better fit for the SEC than higher-profile Texas — same TV markets, same recruiting inroads, less ego...

But we still don’t believe that time is now.

We could be wrong, of course, but we would be surprised if an announcement of a planned move is made today or tomorrow. Those doing the rumor-spreading so far have been Twitter-users and hometeam bloggers...So far, this remains a social networking story. And our sources are silent.

And since this all based on source-less rumor, I'm going to fabricate my personal favorite theory for Baylor: The Big East with Kansas and KState.

Skip Holtz, in his second season as coach at South Florida, sees a benefit to emulating the growth of other conferences by moving to 12 teams. He also warned against expanding merely for the sake of expansion.

"I don't think it's all about adding teams. It's adding value," Holtz said. "What are the three teams that add the most value? That is what a lot of people are deliberating."

Central Florida, East Carolina and Houston have been mentioned as possibilities to join TCU and the current membership of Connecticut, Cincinnati, Louisville, Pittsburgh, Rutgers, South Florida, Syracuse and West Virginia.

One more (very long) addition, via DFWAg and The Midnight Yell:

This post is the work of our friend Spadilly and full credit for what you read here should be given to him. We have simply offered up our blog space to him to be able to share with everyone what he had found in an Open Records Request sent to the University of Texas. This work is his, and we were very happy to work with him in this. He has taken all the right steps here, even contacting the Office of the President at Texas A&M last week.

Once again the twitterverse has exploded with rumors of Texas A&M moving to the SEC. The latest story is that lawyers representing A&M has sent a letter of intent to the SEC and that all the member schools have already voted to accept the Ags. I was under the impression that A&M would announce their intention to join the Southeastern Conference this spring. The Ags did not want any distractions during football season and definitely did not want to receive the "officiating" that Nebraska got during their farewell tour of the Big 12 last year. It looks like the timeline has been sped up. Billy Liucci is reporting that although the Ags are not going to make a move this week or the next, the wheels are definitely in motion.

With the recent rumors that Tech has been talking to the Pac 12 about moving West (and likely taking OU and OSU with them) we may not have to deal as many issues with the legislature as some had thought. Right now I would guess that Missouri would try to go to the Big 10 again. Kansas and KSU will make a move for the Big East. Baylor will do everything they can to go to the Pac 12 with everyone else.

I think Tech's recent overtures to the Pac 12 are due to ESPN and the LHN offering Tech a deal to televise the Tech-tu game this year. Supposedly ESPN and the LHN offered Tech $5 million to televise the conference game this year, and the promise to televise games against Nevada and New Mexico in future years on the LHN. To his credit, Tech President Kent Hance turned down the offer. It is plain to see from their actions (and Liucci stated as much) that tu and ESPN fully intend to broadcast a second football game on the LHN this year, and intend to go forward with televising high school games

Twitter has blown up today with more rumored reports of a Texas A&M-SEC marriage. Among the rumors:

1. A&M and SEC officials have been working on a membership agreement for the Aggies.
2. Representatives from all 12 SEC schools have voted in favor of accepting A&M into the league.
3. A “letter of intent” has already been sent from A&M to the Southeastern Conference.

As you know, A&M to the SEC is an old standard by now. We wrote last summer that the school and the league have had flirtations going back to the mid-to-late-1980s.

In our Expanding On Expansion series we suggested A&M would be a better fit for the SEC than higher-profile Texas — same TV markets, same recruiting inroads, less ego...

But we still don’t believe that time is now.

We could be wrong, of course, but we would be surprised if an announcement of a planned move is made today or tomorrow. Those doing the rumor-spreading so far have been Twitter-users and hometeam bloggers...So far, this remains a social networking story. And our sources are silent.

And since this all based on source-less rumor, I'm going to fabricate my personal favorite theory for Baylor: The Big East with Kansas and KState.

Skip Holtz, in his second season as coach at South Florida, sees a benefit to emulating the growth of other conferences by moving to 12 teams. He also warned against expanding merely for the sake of expansion.

"I don't think it's all about adding teams. It's adding value," Holtz said. "What are the three teams that add the most value? That is what a lot of people are deliberating."

Central Florida, East Carolina and Houston have been mentioned as possibilities to join TCU and the current membership of Connecticut, Cincinnati, Louisville, Pittsburgh, Rutgers, South Florida, Syracuse and West Virginia.

One more (very long) addition, via DFWAg and The Midnight Yell:

This post is the work of our friend Spadilly and full credit for what you read here should be given to him. We have simply offered up our blog space to him to be able to share with everyone what he had found in an Open Records Request sent to the University of Texas. This work is his, and we were very happy to work with him in this. He has taken all the right steps here, even contacting the Office of the President at Texas A&M last week.

Through an open records request I sent to the University of Texas on July 8, 2011, I was able to acquire a redacted version of the License Agreement between ESPN, The University of Texas at Austin, and IMG Communications, Inc...

And if If University of Texas does in fact become an Independent in the near future for whatever reason, ESPN would have an already written in "Right of First Refusal" for Texas' media rights that are now currently held by the Big XII conference, which is basically their 1st and 2nd tier rights. ESPN would have a 60 day window of negotiations to become the only carrier of University of Texas content, and then 48 hours to match any kind of offer from a competitor. In the long run, that may be worth $300 million to ESPN alone.

OT: College Football

GhettoBear04 — Mon, 01 Aug 2011 16:49:57 -0000

It looks like ESPN/UT/LHN is going to end up being the end of the Big 12. I am one of those optimistic fools who thought that there would be enough new TV money to keep the Big 12 together despite the shenanigans of last year. I think that a conference can withstand losing a team or two if it is proactive about adding back or finding other ways to make up for the loss.

However, it appears to me that UT and ESPN have too much riding on the LHN. It's going to be a constant source of division amongst the Big 12 teams as it offers UT an advantage that even the other top tier programs don't have.

More thoughts from an Aggie perspective can be found here. I'm not familiar with the quality of David Sandhop, but he makes some good points and adds in something I didn't know:

He [Dan Beebe] hoped the edict would stop ESPN in its tracks and placate agitated conference members Texas A&M and Oklahoma that felt the LHN was expanding into programming areas that violated the spirit of the conference agreement cobbled together hastily last year in the face of realignment rumors that threatened to destroy the conference.

Since that pronouncement by Beebe, the big issue really focuses on the response of ESPN which is the entity absorbing the financial and business risk for the LHN. After all, how can the Big 12 or any conference dictate to ESPN the games they can or can’t televise that were purchased and the rights secured? Well, based on recent moves by the sports leader, ESPN doesn’t believe the Big 12 can interfere in their programming choices and the ability to make a profit. After the Beebe announcement, ESPN and the LHN finalized contracts with Brenham High School and Lamar Consolidated to become the first high school football broadcast on the network. The Longhorns currently have two verbal commitments from that Brenham team, linebacker Tim Cole and highly-regarded defensive lineman Malcolme Brown.

Pearland Dawson officials indicated last week that the LHN has contacted the school inquiring about the possibility of airing one of their games this fall. The school is home to highly-rated offensive lineman Kennedy Estelle who happens to also be a Texas verbal commitment. There have been others similar reports of ESPN contacting high schools across the state about broadcasting games

Whether the NCAA decides to eliminate high school broadcasts on team-specific networks is really moot at this point. ESPN basically showed its poker hand to the Big 12 through its actions last week. They will not respect the authority of the Big 12 Commissioner.

And what I didn't know and found to be interesting:

Apparently, Oklahoma was told by several SEC sources that a future deal including Oklahoma State was highly unlikely...that they would need to split if they wanted to be seriously considered for inclusion. That explains recent rumors that OU has been inquiring about the PAC-12’s interest level in expanding the conference with both Oklahoma schools. If that doesn’t pan out, then the Sooners may come back to the SEC and consider working the politics of splitting with OSU. But, Missouri is ready to go now and if the chips start falling pretty soon, it looks like Missouri could be in line to get that western division SEC spot along with the Aggies.

What is also helping out Missouri's cause right now is that Arkansas is pushing the SEC to take both Missouri and A&M as a package. For the Razorbacks, that would be a great addition with the proximity of both schools and the built-in rivalries along with the enhanced recruiting possibilities in Texas and Missouri.

Sigh. As much as it pains me to say it, the Aggies were right all along. UT's arrogance is going to be the death of the Big 12. Where do you think the schools end up?

More thoughts from an Aggie perspective can be found here. I'm not familiar with the quality of David Sandhop, but he makes some good points and adds in something I didn't know:

He [Dan Beebe] hoped the edict would stop ESPN in its tracks and placate agitated conference members Texas A&M and Oklahoma that felt the LHN was expanding into programming areas that violated the spirit of the conference agreement cobbled together hastily last year in the face of realignment rumors that threatened to destroy the conference.

Since that pronouncement by Beebe, the big issue really focuses on the response of ESPN which is the entity absorbing the financial and business risk for the LHN. After all, how can the Big 12 or any conference dictate to ESPN the games they can or can’t televise that were purchased and the rights secured? Well, based on recent moves by the sports leader, ESPN doesn’t believe the Big 12 can interfere in their programming choices and the ability to make a profit. After the Beebe announcement, ESPN and the LHN finalized contracts with Brenham High School and Lamar Consolidated to become the first high school football broadcast on the network. The Longhorns currently have two verbal commitments from that Brenham team, linebacker Tim Cole and highly-regarded defensive lineman Malcolme Brown.

Pearland Dawson officials indicated last week that the LHN has contacted the school inquiring about the possibility of airing one of their games this fall. The school is home to highly-rated offensive lineman Kennedy Estelle who happens to also be a Texas verbal commitment. There have been others similar reports of ESPN contacting high schools across the state about broadcasting games

Whether the NCAA decides to eliminate high school broadcasts on team-specific networks is really moot at this point. ESPN basically showed its poker hand to the Big 12 through its actions last week. They will not respect the authority of the Big 12 Commissioner.

And what I didn't know and found to be interesting:

Apparently, Oklahoma was told by several SEC sources that a future deal including Oklahoma State was highly unlikely...that they would need to split if they wanted to be seriously considered for inclusion. That explains recent rumors that OU has been inquiring about the PAC-12’s interest level in expanding the conference with both Oklahoma schools. If that doesn’t pan out, then the Sooners may come back to the SEC and consider working the politics of splitting with OSU. But, Missouri is ready to go now and if the chips start falling pretty soon, it looks like Missouri could be in line to get that western division SEC spot along with the Aggies.

What is also helping out Missouri's cause right now is that Arkansas is pushing the SEC to take both Missouri and A&M as a package. For the Razorbacks, that would be a great addition with the proximity of both schools and the built-in rivalries along with the enhanced recruiting possibilities in Texas and Missouri.

Sigh. As much as it pains me to say it, the Aggies were right all along. UT's arrogance is going to be the death of the Big 12. Where do you think the schools end up?

Matches: A very good 24 hours

GhettoBear04 — Sun, 31 Jul 2011 23:10:41 -0000

Matches: A very good 24 hours

When I was 17 27
It was a very good ~~year~~ day,
It was a very good day for JeDi GM's
On a warm summer night.
We'd hide from Bell's price,
Getting reliever heaven
When I was 27.

Matches: Five Myths (And Facts) About The Texas Rangers' Offense

GhettoBear04 — Wed, 15 Jun 2011 15:09:18 -0000

Matches: Five Myths (And Facts) About The Texas Rangers' Offense

Bill Barnwell @ Grantland: Moneyball 2.0

GhettoBear04 — Tue, 14 Jun 2011 16:39:22 -0000

Bill Barnwell @ Grantland: Moneyball 2.0

Introduction to and discussion of 2010-2011 teams in relation to Marginal Payroll/Marginal Win, Fielding Metrics, and Bullpen. Solid, if long, primer for those new to stats and a nice league-wide look at how teams are performing in these new stats for those more familiar with them.

Matches: The Draft Bucks

GhettoBear04 — Tue, 07 Jun 2011 15:10:40 -0000

Matches: The Draft Bucks

Rangers Day One MLB Draft Recap: Bucking The Mainstream

Parks and Cole: Rangers Top 20 Prospects

GhettoBear04 — Wed, 01 Jun 2011 20:22:41 -0000

Parks and Cole: Rangers Top 20 Prospects

Great stuff @Texas Farm Review

Alexi Ogando, The BABIP Monster, And The Greatest Pitcher Ever

GhettoBear04 — Tue, 24 May 2011 15:12:55 -0000

Alexi Ogando, The BABIP Monster, And The Greatest Pitcher Ever

The time has come, Matches said, to talk of many things.
Of pitchers - and BABIP - and ceilings max
Of history and kings
And why regression has not caught—
This Ogando of whom we sing.

Get Happy Fast(er)

GhettoBear04 — Mon, 16 May 2011 15:20:19 -0000

Get Happy Fast(er)

Who else do you know that is giving you Rangers coverage with Divine Comedy in it's true form and writes through The Wire?

OT: Big 12 gets shown $

GhettoBear04 — Wed, 13 Apr 2011 23:36:52 -0000

$$$

Financial terms were not disclosed. Sports Business Journal has reported that the contract, which starts with the 2012 football season, will pay the conference $90 million a year.

The Big 12 also has a deal with ABC-ESPN running through 2015-16 that would raise the conference's total TV rights revenue to a reported $130 million annually.

Commissioner Dan Beebe said the Fox contract positions the 10-team league favorably with other major conferences.

The 12-team SEC generated $205 million from TV rights last year and the 12-team Big Ten $220 million. The Pac-10, which becomes the Pac-12 this year, made only $60 million on TV rights but is working on a new television package that would include its own network.

So $17M per SEC team, $18.3M per Big10 team and $13M per Big12 team...if they did even revenue splitting.

Good news for those who actually like watching games:

The 40 Big 12 regular-season games that will be carried by Fox nearly doubles the number under the current agreement. Many telecasts will be distributed on FSN, which reaches more than 85 million homes. Several other games will also be scheduled on FX, which is in 99 million households, the network said.

Every Big 12 home football game will be broadcast on ABC, a Fox network or by institutional platforms such as Texas' new Longhorn Network. Big 12 schools will have the option to retain rights to one home football game per season for distribution on their own networks.

I heard on the radio that some games may be broadcast on FX.

$$$

Financial terms were not disclosed. Sports Business Journal has reported that the contract, which starts with the 2012 football season, will pay the conference $90 million a year.

The Big 12 also has a deal with ABC-ESPN running through 2015-16 that would raise the conference's total TV rights revenue to a reported $130 million annually.

Commissioner Dan Beebe said the Fox contract positions the 10-team league favorably with other major conferences.

The 12-team SEC generated $205 million from TV rights last year and the 12-team Big Ten $220 million. The Pac-10, which becomes the Pac-12 this year, made only $60 million on TV rights but is working on a new television package that would include its own network.

So $17M per SEC team, $18.3M per Big10 team and $13M per Big12 team...if they did even revenue splitting.

Good news for those who actually like watching games:

The 40 Big 12 regular-season games that will be carried by Fox nearly doubles the number under the current agreement. Many telecasts will be distributed on FSN, which reaches more than 85 million homes. Several other games will also be scheduled on FX, which is in 99 million households, the network said.

Every Big 12 home football game will be broadcast on ABC, a Fox network or by institutional platforms such as Texas' new Longhorn Network. Big 12 schools will have the option to retain rights to one home football game per season for distribution on their own networks.

I heard on the radio that some games may be broadcast on FX.

Joshua Garoon on why it may be smart to have Feliz close

GhettoBear04 — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 19:22:43 -0000

Joshua Garoon on why it may be smart to have Feliz close

You know that song that goes from the windoooows to the wall? This is like that, but from the ceiliiiiiiing to the floor!

If you're Happy and you know it...

GhettoBear04 — Tue, 08 Mar 2011 15:39:43 -0000

If you're Happy and you know it...

Everybody just clap, clap, clap your hands.

Oh, and click the link and go read what a green dino has to say about Feliz closing, how WAR treats relievers differently from starters, camaraderie and chemistry, and who bucks the trend of the Rangers inability to develop All-Star level pitching...