Tuesday, May 29, 2012


John Smoltz…Starting and Closing

No bombshells, but new book reveals a few secrets about Braves' future Hall of Famer


 While many athletes are content with one successful career in professional sports, very few are willing or talented enough to go for two. But then not every athlete is John Smoltz. No, he’s not going to become another Deion Sanders and slip on a Falcons' uniform. Nor will he attempt to impress Larry Drew with his three-point shot. But, about five years from now, don’t be surprised if you see the affable Smoltzie teeing off at a PGA Champions Tour event. The Champions Tour pits mostly of the PGA stars of the past (Hale Irwin, Fred Funk, J.C. Snead to mention just a few) in series of events throughout the year for some big prize money. It’s not for sissies, but Smoltzie seems up for the challenge. Of course that won’t be the first time John Smoltz has made a change and delivered. In late 2001, after a stellar career as a starting pitcher, he became the Braves' closer and for the next three years was one of the most dominant in the game.                                                    


John Smoltz spoke to the Atlanta Press Club last Monday, promoting his new book, Starting and Closing, which is more about him than about baseball—though the two will be forever intertwined. He reaffirmed statements he had made earlier about taking his scratch golf game to the next level, but he also sprung a few other surprises on the audience of more than 100.

Frosty Relationship


For one, he discussed his frosty relationship with Braves General Manager (now president) John Schuerholz. He said he was brought in under Bobby Cox regime as general manager and the change to Schuerolz altered the negotiating dynamic. As he says in the book, “It’s safe to say we didn’t talk very much, but it’s not like we despised each other. Really, for the most part, our relationship was non-existent if we were not negotiating contract; he did his thing and I did mine. “


Schuerholz was also instrumental in setting up Smoltz with sports psychologist Jack Llewellyn, a story which the pitcher said was “blown way out of proportion.” Smoltz admits to seeing Llewellyn a few times and that the psychologist did help him by suggesting he create a highlight tape of his best moments that could be referred to when he was having problems. Smoltz said the technique worked and “helped him get the wheels back on track.” But despite all the press it received, there wasn’t anything more to the story than that.


After Atlanta 


Smoltz did not finish his career in Atlanta as he had hoped. After turning 40, he was peddled to Boston, where he said, “…it’s safe to say that I found myself disoriented and out of my comfort zone in so many ways…” His numbers reflected his discomfort. He made eight starts with the Red Sox in 2009, going 2-5 with an 8.32 ERA. The final chapter in his career came with the St. Louis Cardinals. After being released by Boston he was picked up by the Cardinals for their stretch run, one which resulted in one more playoff appearance for John Smoltz. Smoltzie did well striking out five in two-innings of relief, but the Cardinals fell in three to the Los Angeles Dodgers.  “Losing is certainly a bummer," said Smoltz in his new book, "but there was enormous satisfaction in simply proving I still had it. I had been able to deliver in the moment again…”


Today Smoltz is a busy as ever. He has started a school, The Kings Ridge Christian School, plays tennis and racquetball in addition to golf and also does commentary for the MLB Network.


The Perfect Pitcher


At the conclusion of last week’s Press Club session I asked Smoltz to identify the main ingredient he would be looking for in the ideal pitching prospect. He said simply “heart. A lot of guys have talent,” noted Smoltzie, “but you gotta want to be the guy. You’ve got to be the guy who’s willing to lay it on the line.”


In other words you''ve got to be a guy like John Smoltz.


Quick takes…There’s a lot of humor in Smoltz book as well. Check out the story about Greg Maddux inability to remember names, and what Smoltzie did to liven up the clubhouse…The Celtics are looking older by the day…I think the rash of injuries toward the end of the season in the NBA is the result of the shortened season and the number of injuries in baseball, particularly muscle pulls, are the result of poor conditioning. Players will loosen up before games and spend hours working on technique (batting cage, etc.), but stretching and strengthening of muscles is taken much more casually. Just my view.





































Thursday, May 17, 2012



Causing a Furor

Last year the American Sportscasters Association (ASA) issued their list of the top 50 sportscasters of all time-- http://www.americansportscastersonline.com/top50sportscasters.html. Unfortunately, as member of the organization’s advisory board, I was part of the decision-making process. Fortunately the names of individual voters were not revealed since the list caused quite a furor on talk radio shows across the country. Here in Atlanta I remember Chris Domino of 680 the Fan calling the list something like “idiotic.” Such is talk radio. But now as I look at the list, I still believe we were right in most cases, but there were some errors and omissions.

I was thinking about this list driving home from Turner Field the past two nights. Thanks to the miracle of Sirius/XM radio—and it is a miracle to those of us who relish hearing sports events from around the country—I was listening to the Dodgers and Diamondbacks from Dodger Stadium. The announcer was the incomparable Vin Scully. The next night, it was the San Francisco Giants against the world champion Cardinals with Jon Miller at the Giant’s mike. After listening to both it was easy to determine that the Scully choice as the No. 1 sportscaster of all time is irrefutable. But the ASA’s pick of Jon Miller in the No. 19 spot, was way off base. Miller is an incredible talent and probably deserving of a top 10 ranking, albeit against some very stiff competition.


Vin Scully--the best sports broadcaster ever
At 84, Scully still comes to each game as he has for the past 63 years with facts and anecdotes like no other broadcaster. He was a Red Barber protégé’. He moved with the Dodgers to L.A. in 1958 and covered all the great Dodger players on both coasts from Jackie Robinson to Sandy Koufax to Kirk Gibson. He also called football and golf. When he missed a few games at the opening of this season with a cold, he made headlines in every part of the nation.

Jon Miller has many of the characteristics of Scully—melodic voice, an uncanny ability to describe the details of a play, and the knack of moving flawlessly between radio to television. Miller was with the Baltimore Orioles but due to a dispute with ownership, left for the West Coast. California’s gain.

While Scully and Miller are outstanding there are other Hall of Fame announcers still on the air, including Bob Uecker, voice of the Brewers; Marty Brenneman of the Reds; and Milo Hamilton, once a Braves broadcaster, now in his last season with the Houston Astros. None are in the top ten on the ASA list, but there’s a good argument they all should be. In fact Uecker was not even among the top 50 and Joe Buck was. Although Joe is a budding Hall of Famer he hasn’t been around long enough to earn his stripes. His father, Jack, the Cardinals play-by-play voice, is another legend, who justifiably ranks 11th of all-time.

One of the problems with the ASA list is that it includes broadcasters from all sports. Hence, those who call baseball—the sport most conducive to radio listening—can’t all be toward the top. At No. 6 is Howard Cosell, who turned broadcasting into an issues-oriented pursuit and changed the field forever. Bob Costas comes in at No. 6, but if you created a category of the best sports interviewer of all-time he would head the list.

Then, of course, you have make room for the old-timers such as Graham McNamee, a journalist turned broadcaster in the very early days of radio; Marty Glickman, a voice for New York sports for four decades and a former Olympian; Jack Whitaker, a brilliant essayist for golf and horse-racing on CBS; Russ Hodges of “The Giants Win the Pennant…” fame; Bob Elson of the Chicago White Sox, known as “The Commander” for his experience in the U.S. Navy; and Clem McCarthy, who once called the wrong winner of the Kentucky Derby. You also had to leave room for specialists such as Bud Collins, the great tennis commentator.

Fortunately some of the greats still ply their trade and you can judge for yourself who’s among the best.

As for as the list, maybe that’s why lists are created—to cause discussion and controversy. The ASA list certainly did that.

Quick Take…Dusty Baker, manager of the Cincinnati Reds was in Atlanta this week. He also appeared on Dan Patrick’s FOX radio show this morning. One of the most genuine guys in the business, Dusty talked about coming to Atlanta as a kid just out of Del Campo High School near Sacramento. An African-American, Dusty had no use for the South in the 1960s but with Hank Aaron's support, he managed not only to adapt, but to thrive and went on to have an outstanding 16 year career, which included a World Series ring with the Dodgers in 1981…Also Dusty was the on-deck man when Aaron hit his historic 715th home run. When he came to the plate Baker doubled, but he said by that time no one cared. In fact, after the ovation for Hank,  Dusty said he  “heard the clanking of seats” as most of the fans headed for the exits.


















Friday, May 4, 2012


Public-Private Partnership Is the Right Answer for Falcons New Stadium


Myriad Reasons Justify Use of Taxes to Keep City’s Venues World Class


ATLANTA, Georgia --Several years ago when John Schuerholz first became general manager of the Atlanta Braves and Stan Kasten was the club president, one of their major concerns was the need for a new stadium. Many in Atlanta were skeptical since, in their minds, Fulton County Stadium seemed to be perfectly adequate. It wasn’t.


In addition to showing the wear and tear or almost 25 years of use, the stadium lacked the adequate number of amenities (e.g., suites, high tech scoreboard, LED signage) that drive revenue and make the facility a suitable representative for a world class city. When Atlanta was awarded the Olympics, the stadium project received a boost since it was first used for the Olympics then converted to a new home for the Braves.


Univesity of Phoenix Stadium added $3.8
billion in economic impact over 10 years
This time the city and the Atlanta Falcons will have no such assistance. But the need for a new facility is just as acute and the proposed public-private partnership is unquestionably the answer. Even better, local taxpayers will not bear the burden since the cost of the stadium will come from a hotel-motel tax already in existence.


Many believe that owners such as Arthur Blank should bear all or the largest share of the financial burden, but what is overlooked is the fact that this is not Arthur Blank’s stadium any more than the Falcons are his team and his alone.


Just ask the thousands upon thousands of fans who live and die with the Falcons, the Braves or the Hawks. Think of thousands of people who find full or part-time employment at our stadiums and the arena. Think of how Atlanta’s hotels and restaurants benefit from activity downtown. Think of businesses that attract employees to Atlanta by pointing to the city’s entertainment as a major quality-of-life advantage.


Atlanta is known worldwide because of one event—the 1996 Olympics, which just so happens to be the grandest of all sporting extravaganzas. Atlanta is known throughout the nation because every day of the year, the name of the city is mentioned on radio and television and on the web because of the Braves, Hawks or Falcons. Need more?


Major events such as the Super Bowl and All-Star games are driven by first class venues. The Super Bowl and the NBA, NHL and MLB All-Star Games would never have come here if the Omni and Fulton County Stadium were all we had.


This week the Atlanta-Journal Constitution ran a guest column, which offered a splendid argument for the necessity of public support of a new stadium. The writer, Corey Merrified of Minnesota, where a vote takes place Monday on funding for a new stadium in the Twin Cities, said “I have a message for Georgians who are on the fence about a new stadium: It is worth every penny.”


Merrifield points out that, “Stadiums are more than just playgrounds for the rich…Who in their right mind would build a $1 billion facility to use 10 to 12 days a year?...The stadium is a community asset the other 353 days a year.” He also notes that when he speaks to “people outside of Minnesota they think of three things: The Mall of America, cold weather and the Vikings. Without the Vikings we are just a cold state with a big Mall.”  Same could be said for Atlanta. Without our sports teams, we are a Southern State with a big airport that once hosted the Olympics.


Almost inevitably voters see the light and these stadium issues are resolved. Unfortunately, often there is undue angst in the process. The Cleveland Browns bolted to Baltimore because owner Art Modell could not get a new stadium. Five years later, the city of Cleveland, realizing the importance of an NFL franchise, built a new stadium and the new Browns were born. Same thing happened in St. Louis, where fans suffered through a multi-year hiatus from NFL football before the Rams came to town. Let’s hope Minnesota doesn’t suffer the same fate, and, for goodness sake, let’s hope Atlantans see the light and support the public-private concept for its new football stadium.


Quick Takes…No matter how you slice it, the number of injuries that have taken place in the NBA this post-season has to be related to the shortened schedule…When they say you never know what you will see when you go to a Major League Baseball game, they are certainly right. Who would have thought a game in early May would turn out be a classic, but the Braves 13-11 win over Philadelphia was certainly that, capped by a storybook walk-off homer by Chipper. Ah, the Grand Old Game.