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Friday, August 24, 2001
Friday Thoughts, Opinions and Notes  By Ben Maller Chan Ho Park has cost himself at least 50 million dollars with his poor performances in recent weeks. How can a team like the Dodgers or Mets justify to their fans paying $15 to $20 million dollars a season for a guy with an 11-and-9 record who can't win the big game? At the Trade deadline I praised the Dodgers for the deals they made. They didn't give up anything but as it has turned out they also got nothing. I could not have been anymore wrong. Mike Trombley and Terry Mulholland have pitched like crap. Trombley has a 6.75era in 9 games since coming over from the Orioles. Mulholland has an 8.68era in 9 games since arriving from the Pirates DL. The boys in blue have no shot at winning with these guys pitching like stiffs. LA fan favorite Mike Fetters is doing well with his new team. Fetters has a 4.76 era and 2 saves is 6 games with Pittsburgh. Disney is getting just what they want from the Angels. A baseball team a few games over .500 that is good but not good enough to make the playoffs, Average all the way! Jeff Kent is now one of my favorite ballplayers. Being a Dodger fan its hard to say I like a Giant however Kent gets 5 stars in my book. In an SI article by Rick Reilly, last years NL MVP ripped the "jerk by the bay" Barry Bonds. Among other things Kent talked about how bad a teammate Bonds is I've seen it first hand and heard it from many players. Barry is as selfish a player as there is in the game... Click Here to Read the SI Article Wild Rumor of the Week. The report that Major League Baseball will fold the Tampa Bay Devil Rays and move the Montreal Expos franchise to St. Petersburg. Does this make sense to anyone? Can you imagine what Donald Fehr and the players association would do if a franchise just went away. I watched about 30 minutes of the Bronx, NY team play the Oceanside,Ca kids at the Little League World Series. Brent Musberger was in rare form! Musburger compared the matchup to the Yankees, Dodgers rivalry of the 1970's! I'm not kidding. If only Jim Healy was still with us and on LA Radio he would have had a field day. Brent's a nice guy I met him a few years ago when he was in LA doing a college game for ABC and was taping his daily radio feature. However there is no excuse for that line. I'm a big fan of Oklahoma Football. I was in Norman last year working the sidelines at the Nebraska vs. OU game and had a chance to spend some time with head coach Bob Stoops. Its hard to believe that the Sooners with a new quarterback are a 23 point favorite over an improved very athletic North Carolina team. Rick Neuheisel could be coaching at UCLA next season. Bob Toledo must have a monster season to save his job. I hear the Washington coach has an out in his contract should the Bruins come calling. Its Ironic that Cade McNown would end up with the Miami Dolphins. While at UCLA the bruins national championship dreams ended with a shocking loss to the Hurricanes at the Orange Bowl. Al Gore must be proud. UCLA, USC, Alabama and Arizona all closed practices to the public this week because they are concerned that formations and game plans will end up on the internet. If any of these teams were good it would not matter if other teams new the plays they were running. The NCAA nailed SC's football team for academic fraud. I don't believe that they cheated. Teams that cheat in college sports win. If you have no life and want to read the full report from the NCAA Click Here: USC Infractions Report The pride of the Trojans? Not in the last 11 years. USC Football has lost at least 5 games 8 times. Let me breakdown the numbers and put that in perspective for you. From 1950 to 1989 SC had a total of eight seasons that they lost at least 5 games. Big Ben Trivia:In the four major US professional sports, (Baseball, Basketball, Football, and Hockey) there are only seven teams whose nicknames do not end with an 'S.' Can you name them? (Answer later) When the Chargers finally move there franchise to Los Angeles they will fit in great. LA football fans are used to cheap ownership. LaDanion Tomlinson was the next to last first round draft choice to sign a contract. Congratulations! The Vegas oddsmakers did it again. Cincinnati a 2-1 favorite has won. Justin Smith the Bengals top pick is the last first rounder still unsigned! If it wasn't my job I would not watch NFL games with scab officials. I'm a member of AFTRA and a big supporter of unions. The National Football League is a billion dollar business and can afford to take care of the zebra's. I like to think most people understand when you drive a car over 200 Miles an hour and crash the chance of death is great. Maybe someone should tell the people of NASCAR this. Big Ben's Five Star College Pick of the Week Nebraska -28 vs. TCU in the Pigskin kickoff classic Ben's Take: The Horned Frogs lost 14 starters including six NFL Draft choices. They also lost there coach Dennis Franchione to Alabama. Defensive Coordinator Gary Patterson takes over. Nebraska is gunning for a National Championship. Big Red will try and make an early statment and they eat up on teams like TCU at home. This game should be over at halftime if the huskers are as good as advertised. FINAL SCORE: NEBRASKA 45, TCU 3  Tune into my radio show Saturday morning from 5am till 8am eastern time. I'll be with my partner Patrick O'Neal as we break everything down and give you in the inside scoop on FOX SPORTS RADIO! Sunday Jason Smith will join me! Big Ben's Top Three E Mail's of the Week: You're absolutely right about "The Piazza Curse" on the L.A. Dodgers... I remember how opposed you were to that trade. And I remember how your former partner (some idiot who thinks that he's a "Sports God"), who would berate you for being a "homer" and "houseman", came out in SUPPORT of the deal!!... Gee, maybe he knew when to suck-up, because he still works over at the Dodger station! Bimbo Bruce Huntington Beach I liked reading your take on the curse of piazza. The stories on the the bambino and the curse of the billy goat were also interesting. I think the dodgers must bring back Tommy Lasorda to a more important position in the organization to remove the curse. That or we can just use black magic. I miss the ben & dave show. You and dave should get back together. Chris Pasadena Ben, You are crazy. The Curse of the Piazza doesn't exist. The Dodgers haven't won a playoff game since 1988. If Piazza was so great with the Dodgers, he should have been able to get us one win against the Braves or the Reds in the 1990's. For you to say the Dodgers are cursed for trading the egotistical selfish player is completely ludicrous. Piazza led the Mets to a World Series and lost. That's great that he got to the World Series, but I don't think that's something worth boasting about. Sure the Dodgers haven't been to the Series in over a decade, but I'd rather win the big one, then sit there and say how great it was to get spanked by the Yankees (the 70's were bad enough --- how the hell did Jackson hit 3 HR's in one game?). When Piazza starts bringing in all the championship rings (which he never will) you can talk all you want about his accomplishments. Yes, Piazza will be the greatest offensive catcher, but in fairness to Johnny Bench, he is a first baseman. Hence, this is why Eric Karros is able to look like "The Flash" when playing the Mets. The guy didn't want to be a Dodger, so kudos to him. I'm glad we got a much better investment in Dookie who has a bigger heart than Piazza's ego. "Frankly, I'm surprised this trade happened. I expected to be a Dodger for life," claims Piazza. If so, why did he reject a 90 million dollar contract from the Dodgers, in return for an 80 million dollar one from the Mets? "The Dodgers obviously didn't want me around," says Piazza. They were willing to give him 10 million dollars more than anyone else! I don't see why Piazza was complaining, other than the fact that his Scott Boras wannabe agent couldn't get the 100 million dollar contract he was requesting. The Curse of the Piazza should be false, because the Dodgers never accomplished anything during Piazza's tenure. Sure, he put up great numbers, but we had no post-season victories, and were getting nowhere. This so-called curse can't even be compared to something of the magntiude of the Bambino. For future reference, please don't make Dodger fans like myself read anymore about the Piazza-Dodger era. It makes me sick to my stomach that someone that was loved by Dodger fans and the City of Los Angeles, and who was also given a chance in the majors solely because of the fact Tommy Lasorda was friends with his Dad, would turn his back on the organization by claiming he was not happy in LA, while the Dodgers will willing to lock him up for life, which is what he wanted. (Note: The person that sent this E mail did not leave there name) Big Ben's Trivia Answer:Basketball: The Miami Heat, The Utah Jazz, The Orlando Magic. Baseball: The Boston Red Sox, The Chicago White Sox. Hockey: The Colorado Avalanche, The Tampa Bay Lightning. Football: None.  SOUND OFF: Send questions and comments to Big Ben by CLICKING HERE permalink Tuesday, August 21, 2001
Ben Maller.com's First Annual Preseason "Top 20 college football poll" 1.) Oklahoma  LB Rocky Calmus leads OU Ben's Take: OU won the BCS title game vs. FSU and have six starters back on Defense. Bob Stoops is the best young coach in the game. The Sooners "D" will lead the way. 2.) Miami, Fla Ben's Take: One of the most talented teams in the nation. However road games at FSU and Virginia Tech and new coach Larry Coker are negatives. QB Ken Dorsey should shine in the spotlight for the Hurricanes. 3.) Texas Ben's Take: Is there anyway that Chris Simms can live up to the hype? Simms does have the best receivers in the country at Texas. The longhorns have a habit of getting upset early in the season. 4.) Florida Ben's Take: Rex Grossman & Brock Berlin will battle it out at the QB spot. This is a problem and the Gators defense has not been as good as in the past. 5.) Nebraska  Big Red QB Eric Crouch Ben's Take: Eric Crouch must have a monster season. Big Red gets Kansas State, OU and Notre Dame at home in Lincoln. 6.) Virgina Tech Ben's Take: Michael Vick is in the National Football League however the foundation of a power program is still here. The Hokies have a defense that should carry them through a soft schedule. 7.)Florida State Ben's Take: The last two times Bobby Bowden had to replace 12 or more starters including their QB they "only" finished 11-1 in 1992 and 10-1-1 in 1994... Never bet against the Seminoles. 8.)Tennessee Ben's Take: Casey Clausen is one of the country's best. DL John Henderson is a top 5 NFL pick able to lead the defensive. Last years young Vols will explode this year. 9.) LSU Ben's Take: Rohan Davey leads 17 starters back in the fold. The Tigers and coach Nick Saben have there two toughest games back to back weeks against Tennessee and Florida. 10.) Oregon State  RB Ken Simonton is the key beaver. Ben's Take: Dennis Erickson is a top 5 college football coach. The Beavers have Ken Simonton and Johnathan Smith back on offense. The Defense will be quick and fast as is Ericksons trade mark. 11.)Michigan Ben's Take: John Navarre must have a big soph year. The Wolverines lost Anthony Thomas and David Terrell to the NFL Draft. This is a down year in the big 10. 12.) UCLA Ben's Take: Bob Toledo must win in year six following a 6-5 season. Phil Snow is the new Defensive Coordinator and must work magic as well. Deshawn Foster will have a monster year and be a Top 10 NFL Pick. 13.)Notre Dame Ben's Take: The Irish have road games at Nebraska, Purdue and Texas A&M good luck. Special teams and touchdown Jesus were the keys' to a 9-2 season in 2000. 14.) Colorado Ben's Take: Everyone of note is back from last years 3-8 disaster. They lost six games by eight points or less. HB Marcus Houston will lead the buffs as far as they can go. 15.) Kansas State  Wildcat RB Josh Scobey Ben's Take: KSU must replace 27 letterman. Bill Snyder has placed the foundation for a great program in Manhatten. Never count out the wildcats. 16.)South Carolina Ben's Take: Lou Holtz is starting to bring talent to Columbia. The gamecocks have 9 starters back on offense and 8 on defense. RB Derek Watson is the key if he can stay eligible. 17.)Washington Ben's Take: Rick Neuheisel has the Huskies loaded. The Dogs have a tough schedule with Michigan and at Miami, Fla to open the season. Wash has rallied in 14-of-17 wins under Neuhisel. 18.) Georgia Tech Ben's Take: The Yellow Jackets have 16 starters back. The question is can they win on the road against Florida State? George Godsey is a good QB however this team takes advantage of a week ACC. 19.) Penn State Ben's Take: PSU missed a bowl game for the first time since 1988 last season. The eight losses were the most since 1931. Joe Paterno is too good a coach to let that happen again. Defense and RB Eric McCoo are the keys. 20.)Michigan State  MSU RB T. J. Duckett in action. Ben's Take: Heisman candidate T.J. Duckett will lead the way for the Spartans this season. MSU is 7-1 in there last eight games against top 25 teams permalink Monday, August 20, 2001
"The Curse of Piazza"
By Ben Maller I hated to think about... Never wanted to say it... However, the time has come. I guess you can say its the dark little secret that nobody wants to talk about. The proud Los Angeles Dodgers franchise has gone the way of the Chicago Cubs and the Boston Red Sox! Hide the women. Hide the Children. The Dodgers are cursed! May 15, 1998, was the day the Hex was placed on this proud franchise. I recall doing my nighttime show with Dave Smith and how the sports world in Los Angeles seemed to stop for three days. The headline read like this: "Dodgers trade Piazza to Marlins for Charles Johnson, Gary Sheffield, Bobby Bonilla, Jim Eisenrich and a minor leaguer." Fred Claire made many mistakes in his time as GM of the Dodgers. This deal was not one of them. It was the magic of two TV Guys: Peter Chernin and Chase Carey. Now let me say, as a Fox Employee, I love working for the company. However, as a Dodger fan, WHAT THE HECK WERE THEY THINKING?? The Day the trade was made, I went on Los Angeles radio and ripped the deal. It still makes me sick to think what could have been. Mike Piazza was the most popular Dodger since Sandy Koufax. Piazza was a reason to attend Dodger games. In 1997, the year before the deal he batted .362 with 40 Homers and 124 RBI's as a catcher! In 2000, Piazza led the New York Mets back to the World Series against the Yankees for the first time since 1986. Red Sox fans talk about the "Curse of the Bambino"  In 1920, the game's greatest player George Herman Ruth was sold to the New York Yankees for $100,000 (Plus a loan collateralized by Fenway Park.) The deal was made so Boston owner Harry Harrison Frazee could afford to finance a broadway play. Ruth went onto to hit 59 HR's and drive in 171 runs his first year with the Bombers. Boston has appeared in only four World Series since 1918, losing each one in game seven. Many consider Boston's performance after the departure of Babe Ruth to be attributable to "The Curse of the Bambino." Chicago Cubs fanatics talk about "The Curse of the Billy Goat."  The Curse of the Billy Goat goes something like this: Phil Wrigley,original owner of the Cubs refused to allow William "Billygoat" Sianis to bring his pet goat into Wrigley Field during the 1945 World Series. Sianis in return put a hex on the Cubs. This is where things get murky. Either the hex was for the Cubs:
Dodger Fans can now talk about "the Curse of Piazza"  Some examples of the Dodger Hex:
The question is how do we break the curse? How long will it last? Agree or Disagree with Ben's Takes. Big Ben's E mail Top e-mails will be posted on Friday! To Read More about the Curse of the Billy Goat Click Here:"Cubs Curse" To Read More about the Curse of the Bambino Click Here:"The Curse Of the Bambino" permalink |
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