Aaron Rodgers

Saw this interesting note in the USA Today, despite Aaron Rodgers' terrific start in his first two games as quarterback of the Green Bay Packers, and as the replacement for future Hall of Famer Brett Farve, all may not be roses yet.

According to USA Today football columnist, Jarrett Bell, Rodgers is the first Green Bay quarterback to start 2 and 0, other than Farve, since Scott Hunter in 1971. Who is Scott Hunter you ask. And why is this a sign that the future may not be oh so rosy in Green Bay? Scott Hunter replaced a Hall of Fame quarterback, too, this one was a multiple Super Bowl winner, you might have recognized his picture above, Bart Starr. Hunter was out of Green Bay within three years without ever having led them to the playoffs, let alone the Super Bowl.

Baseball notes

A couple of baseball quickies the Clarion heard or noticed in the last week; one we liked, one we loathed, and one that is transcendentally more important than our opinions.

The one we liked was Matt Holliday talking about playing in Fenway Park. Holliday felt like it was substantially better to play in Fenway than any road stadium of his career. He cited the difference between the Boston atmosphere and the atmosphere almost anywhere else with uncanny accuracy. As Peter Gammons related the story, Holliday said the key was in almost every other ballpark fans reacted to the action with their cheering and booing, whereas in Fenway fans anticipated the action with their sound. The comparison is hardly the same, the anticipation keeps the players on edge creating a playoff like atmosphere every game.

The one we loathed was Peter Gammons in the same radio interview waxing on about the Tampa Bay (Devil) Rays knowing they were for real because of how good their run differential was. What? Talk about a meaningless stat!!! Run differential couldn't be less important, games count the same 1-0 or 15-1. It is our belief that Gammons was swayed by the fact that the Mothership started carrying run differential in their standings page. Come on Peter, you're better than that. Don't be fooled. (Just like last season in the NL where run differential signified little about who even made the playoffs, run differential is wrong again this year.)

The third one is a charitable cause, strikeoutsfortroops.org This is a charity started by the San Francisco Giants lefty pitcher, Barry Zito. It has given over a million dollars to wounded war veterans since its establishment. It is highly rated for its proper allocation of funds to the cause rather than overhead. It came to the Clarion's notice on September 11th when Zito was on the Jim Rome radio program discussing that USAA had agreed to make a $500 donation for every strikeout in the major leagues that day. The Clarion believes in the collective obligation of all American citizens to wounded war veterans.

Just desserts

For the first time in thirteen years, it has become apparent that the New York Yankees are going to miss the playoffs. The curse of the A-Rod continues.

Loyal readers know that the Clarion strongly opposed the re-signing of Alex Rodriguez and the firing of Joe Torre. It has long been our view that A-Rod is a me guy, who comes up big at the smallest moments and small at the biggest moments. His teams have never won. Clearly, the manager matters less than the every day clean-up hitter, but keeping A-Rod, and losing Torre were two huge mistakes. To complete the these things happen in threes short-sighted trifecta, the Yanks, fixing what wasn't broken, moved likely future ace closer, Joba Chamberlain, to the starting rotation, and from there, rapidly to the disabled list. Hopefully, they haven't irreparably injured his career. Surely, they have derailed his progress, while messing with his confidence and his state of mind.

The Clarion appreciates the irony of Joe Torre's surging Los Angeles Dodgers led by the inimitable Manny Ramirez making the playoffs while the the Yankees miss out. The Dodgers aren't there yet, but the Yanks are toast.

NFC East preview

It is hardly fair to call the tiny capsules we are going to do this year a preview, but we wanted to go on record with our NFL picks before the season started. The first game in recent years has been on a Thursday, this year is no different. It involves two NFC East foes, the defending Super Bowl champion New York Giants and the Washington Redskins under first year coach Jim Zorn. The Giants were a shocking revelation to the Clarion last year. We predicted against them the whole way. This year brings nothing different. Without further adieu then, our NFC East picks.

1st place

Dallas Cowboys

We like Tony Romo. We are unconcerned about the so-called Jessica Simpson curse. T.O. is a super talent on the field. Besides Owens the receiver corps is thin, but the running back stable is full. Bruiser Marion Barber III is ably backed by the rookie phenom Felix Jones. Their superb defensive line is good enough to make their linebackers and secondary appear almost Pro Bowl caliber. Over 10 wins.

2nd place

Philadelphia Eagles

Here at the Clarion, we love Donovan McNabb and we don't really care what anyone thinks about it. If the Eagles had ever, ever gotten the guy any wide receivers, he'd of brought them a couple of Lombardi trophies by now. The one year they gave him T.O., the only legit number one, let alone Pro Bowler that McNabb has ever played with, Donovan got them all the way to the Super Bowl. Brian Westbrook is a terrific back, running and receiving. Andy Reid is good coach, the defense is solid. Over 9 wins.

3rd place

Washington Redskins

Jason Campbell, this is it. This is the year for Redskins QB, Jason Campbell to breakthrough. He quarterbacked an Auburn squad, on probation, through an undefeated SEC season, which was the last time that has been done. The Clarion has always believed in him as a leader. He has the savvy, the composure and the arm strength to be a good NFL starter. It helps to have Clinton Portis in the backfield and Santana Moss and Antwan Randle-El split wide. Folks are worried about first year coach Jim Zorn, but the ancient editors at the Clarion's desk have confidence in Zorn dating all the way back to the Steve Largent era Seahawks. Zorn is a sharp football mind, given time he'll be fine. If it all comes together on the defensive side of the ball, especially with the addition of defensive end Jason Taylor, the Skins could make it three NFC East playoff teams. The Clarion predicts at least 8 wins.

4th place

New York Giants

The Giants fans should delight in this prediction, if only because predictions of success by the Clarion are the kiss of death for sports franchises. Still it is hard to love the Giants when they lost both of their starting defensive ends from last year, Michael Strahan to retirement and Osi Umenyiora to injury. Worse they let underrated linebacker Kawika Mitchell depart via free agency. On the offensive side of the ball the Clarion has never been a fan of Eli Manning. (One David Tyree miracle catch from 0-1 in the Super Bowl.) Nor have we ever thought much of Plastic-o Burress, the Giants number one wideout. Amani Toomer is finishing a borderline Hall of Fame career, but he has to get old sometime. Says here that the Giants win around 7 games this year.

The rest of our NFL preview will be in the Clarion Sports section later this week.

Yankee ticket prices

In perhaps not the most well timed announcement, although as the inevitable becomes more and more clear, perhaps there really was no good time, the Yankees announced next season's ticket prices in the new ballpark yesterday.

They range from the scandalous, the first nine rows behind the home plate cost between $500 and $2,500, to the merely outrageous, "Field level seats" will go for from $75 to $325, the "main level" from $40 to $100 and the best seats in the front part of left and right field will be $75 to $100. There are a few seats in the barely palatable price range, "upper decks seats" from $20 to $65 and a few more in the best of luck category, nine sections of bleacher seats for $12.

At least these ticket prices will help the Yanks pay to keep A-Rod in town. If you're scoring at home, a pair of $2,500 seats behind home plate would be $405,000 for season tickets.

Special thanks to the New York Times for the assist on this one.

Manny

Manny Ramirez. Manny Ramirez. It bears repeating. What can you say? Sometimes they make them, and then they break the mold. One highly doubts we'll see another Manny. And as much as the Clarion was critical of Manny's lousy behavior and piss-poor attitude before his departure from Boston, and as much as we thought he be good in LA, we never thought he'd be this good. He is singular and unique in an age that hardly comprehends such.

The guy is hitting .419 since he got to LA, with 9 dingers in 105 at-bats, averaging nearly an RBI a game. He is out of his gourd. He is demonstrating that he is the best offensive player in the game bar none. (If A-Rod makes $30 million per, what are they going to give Manny on the open market?) Los Angeles is a town that loves star power.

What boggles the mind is that after a brief surge upon arrival the Dodgers have been unable to take advantage of Manny's offense. Manny has been pounding the ball all over the yard and before yesterday the Dodgers had still lost eight straight. How many times during that slide did the Clarion look at a Dodger box score that showed Ramirez with two or three hits and the rest of the LA line-up with a pathetic two or three hits. Nomar is finished. Kent is close. The kids, Martin, Loney, Ethier and Kemp, are they ready for prime time?

The Clarion is rooting for a Dodger surge, for Joe Torre's sake and because we had the Dodgers over 86.5 wins at the beginning of the year. There is still enough time, but just barely. Manny is more than doing his part, can the team come through?

College Football Quickies

The Clarion read recently that the Big 12 has eleven out of twelve possible starting quarterbacks returning. Yikes! Chase Daniel of Missouri has to be a leading Heisman candidate. And then there is Graham Harrell of Texas Tech, he threw for a mere 48 TDs and 5700 yards last season. He has the best wideout, and possibly the most dynamic player, in the country at his disposal, Michael Crabtree. Many prognosticators pick these two squads no higher then 3rd and 4th respectively in the Big 12 behind perennnial powers, Oklahoma and Texas. Either way, look out the conference is positively loaded.

The are only two squads the Clarion could envision stopping the Big 12 from winning the national championship. One is, of course, Pete Carroll's USC Trojans, who are dripping with pearls all over the defense. Unlike the Big 12 squads however, the Trojans do have some question marks at QB, where starter Mark Sanchez is returning to action from a dislocated kneecap. And egomaniacal back-up, and Arkansas transfer, Mitch Mustain is channeling the bad Brett Farve, "I can throw any pass I want to. I'm Mitch Mustain. Who is that old guy(the coach) to try and tell me what to do. He can't throw the ball like me." (Our spies with the parabolic mikes at USC practice are paraphrasing.)

The other squad that the Clarion could see derailing a Big 12 national champion is West Virginia, new coach and all. They have a solid returning starter at QB, with an outside shot at the Heisman, Pat White. Folks think they will miss starting running back Steve Slaton, but the Clarion believes they will be even better with the diminutive but lighting quick, Noel Devine.

As for the other contenders, Ohio State: we don't believe the hype, USC will beat them going away in September. The SEC will beat up on each other as usual, which is not to say that the BCS frauds might not let a two loss SEC team play for the title ahead of a host of other deserving contenders.

One other note, not a team that will contend for a title, but a team far too many of the so called experts are underestimating, it says here, "Don't sleep on Rutgers. Yes, superb running back, Ray Rice, is off to a big time NFL career, but Greg Schiano's boys won't miss a beat."

National Championship Game prediction: USC-Oklah0ma

Tampa Bay-Minnesota

Tampa Bay-Minnesota. Tampa Bay-Minnesota, we were flicking around the radio dial yesterday morning in the Clarion's offices, when we hit ESPN Radio's Mike and Mike in the Morning program. The first words we heard out of Mike Greenberg's mouth, were Tampa Bay and Minnesota.

And for the first time, possibly ever, in early August, the Clarion mistook a NFL discussion about those two places for a baseball one. Greenberg and Golic were chewing over what cities' franchises might went old Brett Favre.

Here the Clarion was, thinking about the Twins and the Rays, both in first place. The Rays surely for the first time ever this late in a season. We're talking about a franchise that has never won 70 games.

Baseball is ruling in Tampa and Minnesota?? Though the first place Rays still aren't selling out the Trop, it was only 67% full last night. Now that Farve has been dealt to the Jets, the next time Mike and Mike talk Tampa Bay-Minnesota, might it really be about baseball? Possibly even in September or October?

Same old Michelle Wie

Michelle Wie once again this week followed her typical path, happier to be the sideshow freak than the competitor. She decided to skip the Women's British Open, an LPGA major, which she would have to qualify her way into, to take a wild card to appear at a men's PGA tournament. Why do the work of qualifying when you can be handed an entrance ticket, albeit to an event where you will be a non-competitor? Which will generate more hype failing to qualify for the Women's British Open or failing to make the cut (again) at a PGA event?

As usual Wie opted to play with the men, as usual she garnered scads of media attention, and as usual she failed to make the cut. She shot an 80 on Friday to finish tied for a cool 118th place. Not to mention, this was the B men's tournament of the week. The top 50 male players in the world weren't playing with the scrubs and Michelle in the Reno-Tahoe Open. No, they were at the WGC event, the Firestone, battling it out for supremacy. That is not Michelle Wie's style or mantra, she isn't interested in winning, just publicity. She needs to find a carnival or state fair, since she can't and is afraid to compete with the world's best women.

Not yet

Manny Ramirez, aka the Man-Ram, had a chance to do something spectacular in his debut for the LA Dodgers. He came to the plate in the ninth against the NL West division leading Arizona Diamondbacks with the Dodgers trailing 2-1. The heretofore punchless Dodgers are a couple games behind the Arizona for the West lead. Facing their closer, Brandon Lyon, with Russell Martin on first base and nobody out after a leadoff single, Ramirez grounded into a 6-4-3 double play, and the Dodgers went quietly into the night.

Fear not Dodger faithful, it was only one night and Manny did have a couple of hits. They'll be more late inning situations to come, more big at-bats and the Man-Ram will come through like the October bopper he is. As part of the trade that shipped Manny from Boston to the left coast, the Dodgers agreed to waive the option years that the Red Sox held on the end of Manny's contract. This means Ramirez is set to be a free agent at the end of the year. Says here, the Man-Ram will be motivated by the contract drive and will be mashing down the stretch.