And now the Athlete of the Decade

[jaminjim]

The AP just announced that .... Drum roll please Tiger Woods was just named Athlete of the Decade.

 

[aristotle]

The AP just announced that .... Drum roll please Tiger Woods was just named Athlete of the Decade.

Can't take anything away from Woods for his accomplishments on the golf course. They stand on their own merit. Reminds me of my beloved Pete Rose. When baseball turned its back on Pete, they lost me as an avid fan.

 

[Moot]

What Pete Rose did directly involved baseball.

 

[aristotle]

What Pete Rose did directly involved baseball.

This is true. I wish baseball could have found a compromise allowing Pete to redeem himself. Bart Giamatti went for the kill. Too harsh in my estimation.

 

[jaminjim]

What Pete Rose did directly involved baseball.

Yep and that sucked.
But dang he was one of the best ball players in the game. If todays "players" played with his intensity I might start watching again.... well not really. I've actually grown to really, really dislike most of the Pro Athletes.

 

[jaminjim]

Can't take anything away from Woods for his accomplishments on the golf course. They stand on their own merit. Reminds me of my beloved Pete Rose. When baseball turned its back on Pete, they lost me as an avid fan.

Actually it sounds like his play off the course was just as intense as on.

 

[chefdennis]

No argument from me on Tiger getting this award, he is certainly ,more then deserving.....as for Pete Rose....no one played baseball with more heart and desire then "Charlie Hustle"...he wasn't the best, but what he lacked in ability, he made for in heart and drive.....baseball screwed him over...the punishment didn't fit the crime.....

 

[aristotle]

Intensity was watching Pete Rose face St Louis pitcher Bob Gibson... full count, fouling off six or seven straight pitches before knocking one over the right field wall. Intensity was watching Pete make an unassisted double play not once but twice in the same game. Intensity was watching Pete hit homeruns from both sides of the plate in the same game. Intensity was watching Pete round third base then colliding with catcher Ray Fosse in an All Star game. He was an electrifying player. And intense.

 

[highway star]

baseball screwed him over...the punishment didn't fit the crime.....

Wagering money when your in a position to directly influence the outcome of the game is pretty serious stuff. If you have true love for the game, why put yourself in that position? He got what he deserved, and that's not just because I think he's an arrogant pinhead.

 

[chefdennis]

the lifetime ban from "playing and or managing a baseball team", i have no qualm with, to keep him from the "Hall of Fame", nope that was over the top and too much....getting into the hall is based on "performance on the field"...nothing more....

And for what it is worth, i totally agree with you and those that would say he is arrogant....but he is still one of the best to ever play the game.....

 

[jaminjim]

Truth be known most pros are probably arrogant.

 

[xiggi]

IMHO Pete Rose made his own bed now he is sleeping in it and deservedly so. I know there is a tiger pun somewhere in there.

Not sure I consider a golfer an athlete but that could be debated forever.

 

[chefdennis]

Yeap. those that i have interacted with are and id also think most are....and one of the big knocks against Tiger is his arrogance...towards both some of those he plays with and fans...and now it looks like towards his wife and marriage...well maybe not so much since she came after him with a 9 iron....but he is still the best to ever haave played his sport....

 

[Tennesseahawk]

Wagering money when your in a position to directly influence the outcome of the game is pretty serious stuff. If you have true love for the game, why put yourself in that position? He got what he deserved, and that's not just because I think he's an arrogant pinhead.

He bet on his team to win. How does that influence you to do anything but get your team to play hard?

 

[Jack_Berry]

how many of the 1919 white sox are in the hall of fame. maybe there can be hall of shame for people like rose, the white sox and other athletes who turn out wrong.

those yankee pitchers who swapped wives back in the 70's? IN!
that phillie pitcher who beat his wife on the street in nyc? IN!
pete rose? IN!
1919 white sox? various members IN!
brian bosworth? IN!
lawrence phillips? IN!!
isiah thomas for harassing ny knock female staff? IN!
the atlanta pitcher who defamed gays? really IN!

got any other candidates?






here is a thought about tiger....ever wonder how he mended so quickly after knee surgery? was there any hgh in his blood? does the pga test for drugs?

 

[jaminjim]

Should pro Athletes be held to a different standard then the people that pay to watch them?

Heck, are we going to hold them to a higher standard than our elected officials?

Additional question for Jack, you must be a dodgers fan: (the "D" was not capitalized on purpose)

 

[Turtle]

IMHO Pete Rose made his own bed now he is sleeping in it and deservedly so.

That's just it, though, he really didn't make his own bed. Getting banned from baseball, yeah, he made that one, but being ineligible for the Hall of Fame because he has been banned from baseball, newp, they screwed him on that one.

The Hall of Fame eligibility rule that states anyone who has been permanently banned from baseball is ineligible for induction into the Hall of Fame is affectionately known as The Pete Rose Rule. All the time that he way playing, and all the time he was managing and betting, that rule did not exist. Once you leave the game, there is a five year waiting period before you can be included on the ballot for HoF voting. It was after Pete Rose left the game, and before his five year waiting period was over, that the Hall of Fame put that rule in place. They knew, based on an informal poll of voters from the BBWAA, that if there were no such rule, that Pete Rose had about a 95% shot at getting into the Hall on his first ballot. They couldn't stand the thought of that happening, so they invented the Pete Rose Rule. It's like putting up a stop sign at an intersection, and then giving people tickets for running it 6 months earlier. They changed the rules of the game after the fact, and made the punishment retroactive.

He bet on his team to win. How does that influence you to do anything but get your team to play hard?

If he bet the same amount of money on every single game, that would be a valid argument. But he didn't. He placed no bets on some games. That causes several ripples. One, when sports booking agents, say, in Las Vegas, see that Pete fails to put a bet down on a particular game, they assume it's because he doesn't think his team will win that game. That drastically changes the odds for many reasons, not the least of which is that Pete as the manager may hold back a particular reliever or position player and not play them in a game he doesn't think they'll win, and instead hold them back and have them well rested for the next game, a game in which he places a bet. The bookmakers see that, too, and the odds are again changed.

In a game in which he places a bet, but is in the midst of losing, in order to try and win that game he may use a player who should otherwise be resting, like a pitcher who has pitched in 4 or 5 consecutive games, or a player with a minor injury who should be taking a game or two off to heal. Not only is that detrimental to the players and thus the game, but it will have a dramatic effect on how he manages the upcoming games, and thus an effect on betting odds, as well.

The primary purpose of MLB, as stated in the Rules, is to win the game. If you manage to win a bet, instead, you aren't playing by the Rules, you aren't managing to win the game. You aren't managing in the best interest of baseball, you're managing in your own best interests at the expense of baseball and the players. It's a seemly business, and for that he absolutely should have been permanently banned from baseball. But he should still be eligible for the Hall of Fame.

 

[layoutshooter]

At least this is fun to argue about, it is so truly unimportant to real life.

 

[aristotle]

Cooperstown is a sham without Pete Rose. It's like the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame pretending The Beatles never happened. Political correctness as practiced by MLB.

If it is determined Tiger Woods used performance enhancement drugs to gain an edge on the golf course, will the PGA rescind all his accomplishments? Would Tiger be shunned? Somehow, I think not.

 

[greg334]

OMG, it is a game played by adults who make millions.

Pete Rose is an unethical arogant a** - period.

His position was one of power and trust, not just to do the right thing as a profession but who could have thrown a game to win his bets. He was a highly paid profession who was there to do a job while ensuring he maintained the trust and integrity of the game - he failed and got only a portion of what he deserves.

The Words GREED mean anything to anyone? It doesn't matter if he bet on his team or bet on someone else's team, he crossed that line from professional to an utter POS of a person.

This is also a game where there is a limited amount of positions within any team and millions are and have been made since it turned into a commercial venture. At any time, the claim to these guys being the best at what they do is always false because as one owner pointed out a long time ago, there are people out there that are always better than the best players we have on our teams.

About Cooperstown, can't figure out why the HoF is there, like why the RoR HoF is in Clevland, either of those things didn't start at either those places.