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Thursday, June 1, 2006
Clemens pitches to own beat
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Jeff Schultz
In addition to his unparalleled coverage skills, Deion Sanders excelled in one other important area: making money. When it came to gauging financial wind directions, nobody was better.
So it shouldn’t come as a surprise Sanders tried to cash in on this un-retirement thing long before Roger Clemens. Unemployed but not unemployable, Sanders wanted to sign with the playoff-bound Oakland Raiders late in the 2002 season. But he was denied by the NFL because his waiver rights had been claimed by San Diego. Deion passed because, well, playoffs, financial windfall and a spotlight were not available in San Diego.
Sanders was ahead of his time. Clemens is defying time. But don’t be surprised if what the 43-year-old pitcher just pulled off suddenly becomes a staple on the professional sports scene.
I’m thinking a year from now. Barry Bonds is retired and sulking somewhere in luxury. But his body is rested. He has healed, thanks partly to some magical substances that accidentally fell into a flaxseed bottle (which Bonds followed up with a Masking Agent 99 Smoothie fresh from a P.O. Box in Thailand). The Red Sox and the Yankees each are in a pennant race. And they need a power hitter to DH.
I’m thinking there’s a market one day for a “retired” Shaquille O’Neal during an NBA playoff race.
I’m thinking a goalie certainly could do this in the NHL — if Dominik Hasek hasn’t already.
I’m thinking this has Terrell Owens written all over it. He’ll “retire,” because he’ll think the NFL blackballed him, anyway. He’ll be in studio for ESPN. He’ll skip mini-camps and training camp. In November, he’ll look around and contact three teams in a playoff run. And somebody will bite.
I’m thinking John Smoltz.
“No,” Smoltz said Thursday. “I’m not in Roger’s category. We’re completely different personalities. I’m in awe of what he’s done. But I can’t see myself calculating, ‘OK, this is my last year. I want to enjoy it.’ And then when it’s over, say, ‘It’s not over.’ I don’t think I can do that.”
Of course, we really don’t know. Smoltz says he has at least another year left. After that, who knows? But an athlete never knows how he’ll feel in retirement. He’s a power pitcher with a thirst for competition, and he’s a bulldog in the playoffs. How would he react if it’s June or August and the Braves are holding on line one, the Yankees on line two and the Red Sox on line three?
Smoltz smiled.
“It’s an interesting scenario,” he said. “I’ll say this: If it works, there will be a lot more guys who’ll think about it than guys who don’t think about it.”
Start thinking about it. Not everybody is Roger Clemens. It certainly takes somebody with a special talent, durability and, yes, salesmanship to miss two months of the season, show up only on pitching days and draw a $3.7 million monthly salary.
But every sport has a few athletes annually who could fit into this scenario. A wide receiver, a cover cornerback, even a running back could play this game in the NFL. Maybe even a quarterback. Further, several teams suddenly are $10 million or more under the salary cap, which has skyrocketed to $102 million.
In the NBA, a big man, even a 3-point specialist, is often coveted down the stretch.
Baseball teams may need a starting pitcher. Or a power hitter. Or a closer.
Smoltz: “To pull that off, it really depends on the personality of the guy.”
When asked about Bonds, he said, “That’s the guy.”
Clemens parachutes in for games. He’s not a full-time Astro. That’s the part Smoltz has a problem with — and he’s not alone.
“Any time you hear somebody say, ‘I have to go to a wedding,’ or something, somebody will say, ‘OK, Roger,’ ” Smoltz said. “It’s become a running joke around the league. It takes a special person to deal with that.”
Smoltz has taken less money to stay with the Braves in the past. He figures the fact he has “passed that period of temptation” lessens the chance he would end retirement to jump into a bidding war. And he warns this whole Clemens thing could backfire.
“If Roger can come back and the Astros can come back, I don’t know if there’s a better story,” he said. “But if it doesn’t work, I don’t know if there’s a worse story.”
For better or worse, I’m thinking it’s not the last story.
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Cause: Shaq. Effect: Playoffs.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Mark Bradley
Dwyane Wade is a splendid player who got lucky. LeBron James is a splendid player who’s doing it the hard way. Wade gets to play with Shaquille O’Neal. James doesn’t.
Over an 82-game season, O’Neal isn’t the O’Neal of five or 10 years ago. In the compact world of the postseason, he’s still the most imposing force in the sport. Some of this has to do with the utter absence of other centers in the contemporary NBA, but more of it has to do with Shaq himself.
He’s not the greatest center of all time — I’d put him fourth behind Abdul-Jabbar, Chamberlain and Russell, in that order — but he cuts an even wider swath than any of those giants did. Chamberlain and Russell had to go against one another (and Nate Thurmond and Walt Bellamy, too). Kareem had to battle Willis Reed and Bob Lanier and (briefly) Bill Walton and Artis Gilmore (still the most underrated center ever).
Once Hakeem Olajuwon wore down, Shaq has had nobody of similar size and skill to test him. (Remember, the Spurs list Tim Duncan as a power forward.) O’Neal would have been a force in any era, but in this center-less age he’s disproportionately massive both figuratively and literally.
For all his outsized presence and personality, Shaq has always been underrated as a teammate. What was Penny Hardaway after he and O’Neal dissolved their partnership? How many playoff series has Kobe Bryant won without Shaq? (Answer: None.) Shaq, meanwhile, lands in Miami and elevates another budding star in Wade, same as he’d done with Hardaway and Bryant, and once again the huge man stands on the doorstep of the NBA Finals. Cause and effect, I’d say.
Permalink | Comments (34) | Categories: Mark Bradley, Quick Hit
