Thanks to Sale, White Sox Sail By Royals

April 7, 2014 @ admin → No Comments

Monday meanderings: The Chicago White Sox enjoyed a 5-1 victory Sunday against the host Kansas City Royals, as left-hander Chris Sale threw eight shutout innings. Sale is 2-0 with a 1.76 earned-run average. Meaning he is a prime contender for the Cy Young Award — especially if votes are cast after the first three weeks of the 2014 season.

Playboy Playmate Shanice Jordyn instead of Chis Sale? Yes. Any day.

* More good news for the White Sox: The Detroit Tigers lost at home to the Baltimore Orioles 3-1. Meaning the American League Central-leading Tigers will not go undefeated this season. In case any Sox fans were worrying they might (worrying seems to be a common denominator among Sox fans — and not necessarily without good reason).

* The Cubs defeated the visiting Philadelphia Phillies 8-3 with Carlos Villanueva the winning pitcher. Meaning he will not go 0-20 this season (he does have as many losses as Sale has victories, meaning he indeed was well on his way to reaching double-digit defeats by July 4, if not sooner). In case any Cubs fans were worrying he might. As if Cubs fans don’t have enough worries to begin with.

* Ex-Cub of the day: Houston right-hander Scott Feldman limited the Los Angeles Angels to one run on three hits in seven innings as the Astros prevailed 8-4. Feldman’s earned-run average actually went up to 0.66. Something says he can live with that.

* Regarding a recent National Labor Relations Board ruling that Northwestern University’s football players can unionize, NCAA president Mark Emmert said at a press conference Sunday: “To be perfectly frank, the notion of using a union employee model to address the challenges that do exist in intercollegiate athletics is something that strikes most people as a grossly inappropriate solution to the problems. It would blow up everything about the collegiate model of athletics.” Some of us would like to know who “most people” might be and also whether blowing up everything about the collegiate model of athletics would be a bad thing. The idea that major college football and basketball programs are amateur activities is beyond ludicrous.

* More Emmert: “There’s some things that need to get fixed. They’re working very aggressively to do that. No one up here believes that the way you fix that is by converting student-athletes into unionized employees.” Of course, the NCAA has had how many decades to “work aggressively” to fix some things?

* And while we’re at it, is there a reason not to award scholarships to Division III athletes? Are they somehow lesser human beings? Or are the schools somehow lesser instutions of higher learning? Or merely lesser income from their football and basketball programs (with other programs at all levels generally not particularly productive in generating much money).

* One of the joys of being older (other than still being alive) is being able to remember when Mickey Rooney was young. OK, maybe not young. But younger. And it is that person that some of us remember as we mourn the actor’s death Sunday at age 93. The jockey in “American Velvet” or the guy putting on a show with Judy Garland — among countless other roles — made for an incredible career.

* For those who might want to check out Playboy Playmate Shanice Jordyn and her “Sports & Torts” interview, you can click here.

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