Manny Ramirez

The daily link dump for Sports Business Digest

The case for MLB contraction

Just say “NO” to drugs.  If you’re around my age (28) you probably heard that a lot growing up.  Drugs are bad, they make you dumb, they kill you…”If you take drugs, you aren’t going anywhere in life.”  Clearly many athletes were absent during those school days when the D.A.R.E. program came to visit.

For as long as sports have existed, athletes have been looking for an edge; a way to get a leg up on the competition.  In years past, its been weight-training, or wind-sprints, or eating right.  As sport evolved, that training was coupled with vitamin supplements and protein shakes.  When that wasn’t enough, people began looking to the various drugs you hear about today; the various steroids, other PED’s, HGH, etc.

The straw polls for the Presidential elections will begin as soon as the upcoming conventions will end, and the sampling size and diversity of spin will give us so many takes on what is going to be a very hotly contested election.  However we leave it to Mike Veeck’s Goldklang Group, and their six minor league teams from Florida to Minnesota and points central and east, to leave the first bit of (bobble) head to head sampling to the fans.  Each team gave the fans a choice of a Senator McCain or Senator Obama bobblehead doll to pick, with the first to 500 declared the primary winner in the ballpark.  The results are listed on milb.com, along with the spin put on the overall “campai

The 24/7 news cycle now, especially around major dates on the team sports calendar (the drafts, trade deadlines etc.), continues to explode the feeding frenzy for news and up to the second information, factual or not.  However even with all the access to information and creation of rumor, in team sports the simple fact remains that a trade is not a trade until both sides, the leagues and all parties involved, agree.  Rumors are great on those crucial days for brand awareness and buzz, and they build interest, but until the pros consumate the deal that is all they are.  After the deadlines pass, we move on as fans and those involved in the business, trying to put the best face on whatever side we are on, or speculate on what was best that did not hap