If it's Saturday -- and it is -- the weekend mail must be starting

Once again, you’ve come through in the clutch. Well done.

And there’s always tomorrow and while there are lots of fun things to answer, there’s always room for more.

You know the drill:

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Q: List? A while back you posited that a left-handed situational had to be the easiest job in sports. How about the opposite? What's the hardest job in sports (in your opinion)?

Tim H, Windsor

A: Not sure I should have said, or did say, easiest; probably meant “best” but you get my point.

Hardest? Or worst?

I’ll give you three off the top of my head and elicit suggestions from Irregulars:

Football centre: You need to get the ball to the quarterback and then take a beating from behemoths hellbent on doing you physical harm and then get knocked to the ground while other behemoths pile of top of you. Fun? Wow!

Catcher: Foul tips. Finicky pitchers. Collisions at the plate. And what’s with some umpires always having a hand on their back? How’d they ever get the first guy to do it?

Marathon rabbit: You never get to win, you do the bidding for the glamour boys and it’s hard. Or so I’d think, not being a guy who, you know, runs.

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Q: Doug, Any chance that you could use your pull with the basketball journalists association to get ALL media to just stop covering the NBA talks?

Seriously, what would send a better message that "we're tired of the dispute, call us when you decide to go back to work and we'll see if we're at all interested" than for Stern and Hunter and Co. to show up and find nobody covering the talks?

How many days do you think it would take for Stern to realize that they need to settle if there was no coverage at all? As much as they like their millions, I think he'd have to know that no publicity means no interest which means no fans paying for tickets or watching TV. Any chance a media blackout could hurry things along?

Chris C, Toronto

A: I think both sides would be quite happy if the media went away entirely and I don’t imagine it would have any impact whatsoever on how quickly they talk and/or settle, sadly.

But, regardless of my particular aversion to trying to figure out the nuances of the talks and the various levels of in-fighting, Ken Berger, Howard Beck, and Woj are doing an exemplary job and a segment of the population is well served by their efforts. I know I am.

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Q: Morning Doug. Here's one for you. You, Doug Smith (a slightly younger version perhaps), are the # 1 basketball player on Mars and you are sent to earth to play in the NBA. You know about the league and you'll definitely be a starter but you know nothing about the cities etc. Your overseers do not allow you to play in Canada, however as it turns out Canada and Mars do not have a reciprocal tax treaty. After closely evaluating every US based franchise for things like coaching, committed ownership and management, support from the fans, chance of winning, great place to live and bring up your Martian family, fun experience, enjoyment of playing the game etc. etc. etc., what team do you end up choosing and why?

Richard B, Mississauga

A: I thought they’d worked out that Mars-Canada tax thingy? Guess it’s stuck in committee or something.

Anyway …

Except for the zaniness of Paul Allen, I’d probably choose Portland right off the top; and then I’d go to Oklahoma City but we’re not sure how committed ownership is since it has come time to pay the young kids and figure out if you can afford to keep them all.

So, with those two crossed off the list, I’d going to pick San Antonio. There may be some issues with the state that the city is in – I’m not a big fan of Texas – but it’s got all those pre-requisites.

And I know there are parts of the city away from the tourist-trappy Riverwalk that are sublime to hang out in.

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Q: Hi Doug. Is it just me, or does the following Derek Fisher quote rankle you as well?

"The NBA and the owners have not allowed us to go back to work. So they have essentially turned their backs on not only the players, but the fans that have made them billions. I hope they decide to change that. It’s the only way everyone wins."

DFish isn't the only one among the players with the attitude of "let us get back to work. Let us play".

Basically, this reads to me as "they won't give us what we want, they should just give us what we want so we can get back to work" I don't know - that doesn't really seem like a proper take on negotiations such as these.

Recently also read something from an NBA player along the lines of "if you take $100 and split it 50/50 - then take that half and split is amongst 30 for the owners and 450 for the players"

Wow. What a load of BS. There's A LOT more people that owners side of BRI goes to - from the staffs of the arenas, to various front office personnel, etc - that split is much larger than 30 people. BUT - the other half and the supposed 450 person split?? That goes ONLY to the players - Annnnd...their agents. Give me a break.

Tom S, Toronto

A: Doctor, nothing anyone says rankles me in the least because it’s all public posturing to curry favour with fans, it’s spin, pure and simple.

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Q: Hi Doug. I'm told (because I have no experience in this field) that somebody's always making money from tough times. So who do you see benefiting from the lockout?

The owners might be 'saving' money, but that's certainly not the same as making money, is it? Can't see the players making a dime over the long run. I'd be surprised if they ever recoup their losses if this thing continues through Christmas.

I'd suppose the NBL might benefit. MSNBC suggests maybe hockey could get a bit of a boost south of the border. Anyone else? Anyone at all benefiting from this? Local basketball, maybe a little? But are there any big winners in any of this? Guess I'm wondering what the point of the whole exercise is, because I just don't see any from my cozy little spot at home here..._Thank you for keeping things lively in these dull times!

David M, Ottawa

A: I guess it’s all relative but I honestly think there are some owners for whom not losing money is making money and I don’t think there’s any doubt they’ll benefit far more greatly from missing games than any player will. But who outside of the game benefits? Maybe families that get sports-mad parents back? Beaus who don’t have to sit through 82 games and can start hanging more often with their significant others doing things they want?

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Q: Hey Doug. Big question for you. It seems as though the players do not have the upper hand in these arguments, not only in the negotiating room but the fans seem to generally favor the owners. So my question is that if the players move towards a decertification of the union, will that just not push the fans further away from the game, the fans that this players have claimed to care about? It seems counter productive to me, but what are your thoughts?

Thanks as always!

Brett F, Lethbridge

A: If decertification costs the entire season, it certainly would drive more people away. But, conversely, if it hastens a settlement by getting the owners to come to their senses, then I imagine some fans would be thankful.

It’s a gamble, for sure, but I caution this, as I have: This labour fight is in no way concerned with the fans, arena workers, neighbourhood businesses negatively impacted by the lockout. Never was, never will be.

Push seems to be coming to shove, finally

Okay, this is now officially a mess and who knows where things go next in this messy NBA labour thingy.

Not sure if you heard, or read, but there’s a faction of about 50 players – out of a union membership of about 450 – pushing for decertification, which opens a legal can of worms of untold consequences and may virtually assure an entire season of darkness in arenas.

I have no labour expertise at all so I’ll let Howard Beck of the Times explain the news here and Larry Coon of EPSN.com explain the ramifications here; there’s no way in the world I can possibly match their knowledge.

This would seem to me, however, to be as much an act of desperation by members of a union who know their side is being drilled in these talks and who have grown tired of all the give-backs they’ve had to make.

If it does stir the owners to at least take their feet off the necks of the players – to go for a resounding victory in these talks rather than a complete annihilation – that’s got to be seen as a good thing.

From the very start, the impression was that the owners were going to get their way and the lockout would end when they were satisfied with the concessions they had wrung from the union.

Now it’s up to them to get their act together and say, yes, this has been enough, let’s get this thing settled.

If not, see you next fall and then maybe we can figure out what they’ll do with the 2012 draft in the absence of a 2011-12 regular season.

And that’ll finally give me a way to answer the question.

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Kind of figures, after yesterday, that the Argos would look okay, win and draw more than 20,000 doesn’t it?

Remind before the opener next year to rant a little bit.

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One out of the mail and there are more than a few over there that look like a lot of fun but, as you know, there’s always room for more.

Let me know what’s on your mind by clicking here and typing, if you don’t mind.

Q: Hi Doug. Long time follower first time participant...How is it when a team signs a player to a contract they can then trade that contract to another team and the contract is still legal. It seems to me that the contract was between that particular team and player and anything different should make the contract null and void. If its because they are signing a contract under the NBA umbrella then why doesn't the league pay the contract instead of the individual team. If I signed a contract with my employer, even if it is an international company I wouldn't think they could just give my contract to another branch of the corporation and expect me to up and move. Thanks for the insight, I get to work early just so I can read your blog in peace.

Matt S, Muskoka

A: I guess, technically, there are three parties to each contract: The team, the player and the league, which establishes the parameters of the standard players contract. And by signing it – and accepting all its terms – players agree that they’re contracts can be assigned to other teams in the association at any point. It would be precisely the same in the NFL, NFL and Major League Baseball.

And, frankly, if the Tallest Foreheads at my company woke up one more and decided to re-assign me somewhere – business, features, fashion, the desk – they could and I’d have no redress except to resign.

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Commuters beware!

If you’re in the car between 5 and 7 tonight and flip on your radio to Sportsnet 590 or whatever they’re calling McCown’s station, you are sure to be (a) highly entertained or (b) driven to pulling over to the side of the road in exasperation.

Hope we talk a lot of pucks.

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Speaking of exasperation, on a Seamhead Day (this one and this one) there was a moment late in the afternoon where my head was spinning, the eyes were glazing over and I was begging for some kind of conference call meltdown.

That was when Alex Anthopoulos was trying to explain why it was best for all concerned that TOD release Adam (and you have no idea how many times I’ve typed Gary only to delete it) Loewen from the 40-man roster.

Something about options and length of service and this and that and the minutia of MLB’s contract rules and, bless his heart, Alex knew there were dopes on the call. Or he must have when he said, after offering an explanation:

“It’s really confusing, I hope that helps.”

Um, no. But a guy can bluff.

Anyway, then comes the call from Johnny Mac, who tells me how hard it was to take $3 million for Arizona and not give Toronto a shot because of his love and respect for AA.

And this after talking to Tony LaCava the other day about his decision to turn down a job only 29 other earthlings have because he believes in Alex and I’m thinking:

What kind of magical hold does this Anthopoulos fellow hold on mere mortals?

Strikes me – and the disclaimer is that I’ve only been around the team for 25 or so games and spoken to Alex about half a dozen times – that he’s the kind of modern-day GM that others should aspire to be.

He seems a man of his word – and lots of GMs have a tendency to tell people what they want to hear too often.

He has a vision – and too many GMs seem to fly by the seat of their pants.

He’s personable but firm – some GMs are too nice, too many are too standoffish.

He inspires loyalty – LaCava seems to be Example No. 1.

Now, if he’d only go out and make some wildly successful and splashy free agent signing and get his team truly into contention in the toughest division in baseball, all would be great.

But if you’ve got a guy at the top that seems universally respected and liked – and that’s a rare combination – it’s a pretty good starting point.

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A forgotten franchise and lamenting a dark opening night

I have a friend who shall remain anonymous for now – let’s just call him Coach Steve – who used to be one of the more fervent Argos fans, well, in the world.

Exhibition Stadium. SkyDome. Rogers Centre. Good years. Bad years. Sherwood Schwartz years. He’d dutifully buy his tickets and go to games, cheer when there was little to cheer about, revel in the odd victory or promising season. He could discuss linemen and defensive backs, break down the merits of quarterbacks and receivers and running backs like any true fan.

He’d go to open practices out here in Hazeiville, talk to the players and the coaches and front office staff and it was something he seemed to enjoy quite a bit.

Now?

Now I don’t imagine he could name you seven players on the roster, hasn’t been to a game this season or last and seems entirely put-off by the whole shebang.

And he was a fan. Imagine what people who only had a cursory interest in the team are feeling these days.

The 2011 Argos season comes to an end to tonight – in case you missed that piece of news – and I’m wondering if there’s really any future for a storied franchise.

There’s all kinds of blame to go around.

Absentee ownership hurts.

Sure, David Braley may be a fine nationalist who desperately wants the CFL to succeed but he’s a faceless guy who owns two teams, hardly someone to get excited about.

The lack of a recognizable “face” hurts.

Sure, Chad Owens in an exciting player with unique skills but he truly remains anonymous to the average guy or gal. But in the CFL, all too often the driver of exciting the general public is the quarterback and they’ve run through a series of average-to-worse guys in that job that few have ever heard of.

The stadium hurts.

Yes, Rogers Centre is a dreary football place, the pitch of the seats is horrid, fans can’t get close to the action, even a crowd of 20,000 gives it a mausoleum-type feeling. But there is no new park on the horizon so this is one that can’t be fixed.

Losing hurts.

Ah, there’s the biggie.

They just aren’t good enough to get many interested. This is a city that loves a winner and too many seasons without much hope have driven away most casual fans.

Now we’ll never get back to the days of Leo Cahill or Doug Flutie or Pinball Clemons or anyone like that, you can forget about it. The entertainment dollar is stretched too thin, other events have put them far on the back-burner, I do think people who go to one football game a year probably wait to spend their money on a Bills game.

But the Argos have shot themselves in the foot because of those things just laid out, many of which they could have fixed with dynamic leadership and a modicum of success. They’ve tried a lot of things, which is troubling because I’m not sure what the next step is.

I don’t know if they can ever get back to some semblance of prominence. They seem destined, for now, to be irrelevant and that’s too bad for guys like Coach Steve may be gone forever.

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I hear Oak’s around to sit in on TSN’s Off The Record with Tracy and Vince; might be worth a watch to sit back and live the good old days of more than a decade ago.

But what’s it say about the HOTH that the guys people still want to talk about and listen to guys haven’t been involved in the franchise in almost 10 years?

Yes, it’s been a rather dry time around these parts, hasn’t it?

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Total digression.

There’s some exhibition of Grace Kelly artifacts going on display at the TIFF -- that’d be Toronto International Film Festival and aren’t you proud I know that? – joint downtown.

And any time we can talk about Grace Kelly …

Rear Window (1954) Grace Kelly & Jimmy Stewart by jack_helltoy

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Now the TOD’s in trouble.

Never mind the whole ‘search for upgrades in free agency and trades’ thing, now they have to find a fan favourite journeyman who embodies effort, if not overall skill.

Yes (and, Sarah, please don’t do anything rash), Johnny Mac is not coming back as a utility man or a coach or anything.

He’s got a two-year deal in Arizona I read and, really, who can blame him.

If you’re 30-something and a great defensive player who hit about a buck sixty in your time with the Diamondbacks and they come calling with a two-year deal, you take it and run, methinks.

Yes, it was nice in Toronto and the Jays did turn him into a legitimate major leaguer and someone who felt he belonged – which was the most poignant point he made the day he was traded way – but a deal’s a deal and a contract is worth getting now before waiting to see what Toronto may do.

Too bad, though. He was a good guy and when he played, defensive magic seemed to happen.

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Here's one that continues an NCIS theme:

Q: Try Criminal Minds.

Very good.

Bruce M, Winnipeg

A: Beat you to your note but thanks.

Have been a big fan since almost the inception, much prefer the Joe Mantegna years as opposed to Mandy Patinkin. It was getting almost too spiritual or something with him at the end.

But did you see last night’s?

Odd. With a minor story arc of assisted suicide that was, to me, entirely out of place and rather odd.

Great show; hope it’s not on slippery slope like it was with the original cast.

I’d have to still keep it at the top of the network dramas we try to watch every week, wouldn’t you?

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Speaking of mail, despite the arduous task of wading through 100 or pages of Leaves Goalie Thingy, I’m finding some.

Just not enough and we need more. Now, please, here.

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Last night was supposed to be opening night for the HOTH down at the arena, Philly was in town, there most likely would have opened the season 1-0 and who knows what a Dwane Casey-coached team would have looked like.

Kind of sad there was no game – there still is a little something special about the first one of the season – and it’s kind of sad the over-riding emotion I’m getting from both fans and media is ho-hum.

I know there is some angst and anger out there, I’ve had more than a few notes from people who tell me, yes, they miss the game and miss it terribly, but the fact those people are in the minority should be worrisome to the folks who run things over at Raptorland.

I know fans will come back eventually, the game is still a wonderful game and there is a large hardcore group of followers, but the danger sign has to be that the Average Joe isn’t really up in arms.

And while I don’t imagine this organization holds a lot of sway league-wide – and it doesn’t have a representative on the labour relations committee – I would think they’d have to be urging the others to find some middle ground and get a deal done, if for no other reason than to stop the erosion of interest from both the fans and the media.

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Rants, ripping a boy singer and a goalie sings. What a place!

Oh yeah, we are soooooooo all over the map it’s not even funny.

Get used to it, folks.

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Hmm.

Edwin Encarnacion as a left-fielder?

Sure, why not.

It’s not like that was the most solid of positions in the TOD lineup last season – we saw the ups and downs of Snider, watched Eric Thames try to find his way and the funniest thing I saw all season was Corey Patterson and Thames trying to play left at Fenway – so why not give Encarnacion a long look?

He’ll have winter ball, spring training and the work he put in late last season and if he doesn’t catch on, there’d be no problem going back to Thames, I don’t think.

Besides, there are far more pressing needs, as we all know and Alex alluded to on the call.

They need a starter or two, a closer, more bullpen depth, a decision at second base and probably a backup catcher. DH and left field are so far down the list of priorities, it was best they got it at least partially resolved with the Encarnacion option decision.

One thing I like about Anthopoulos the more I deal with him?

He makes sense.

He tells you that, no, there is no “list” of things he wants to get done in any specific order; if something comes up out of some perceived need of moves, he’ll do it; if not, he’ll move on.

Putting together a team – in any sport – is not a linear exercise.

You don’t spend this week dealing with a small forward or a lefty starter or a wide receiver and then move on to shooting guard, second baseman, offensive lineman.

You see what’s out there when it’s out there; make your move when it makes sense and then start looking around for other people to fill your holes.

It might look to some fans like you’re all over the map – as in, “Why did they do that now when there are so many other things they have to get done?” – but, to me, it just makes entire sense.

Eventually, all the tasks on the list get completed; the order in which they do doesn’t matter a whit.

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Oh, oh.

Dilemma time.

Since Mavs-Bulls and Lakers-Thunder couldn’t keep me entertained, it was a couch night and I’m torn:

NCIS?

NCIS Los Angeles?

Usually, I’m in favour of originals in almost all cases – primarily Law Order and CSI – but this is tough.

I’m leaning towards LA.

You?

(See what life is reduced to?)

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So let me get this straight.

The other day, Derek Fisher sends a note to NBA players – dutifully and immediately offered to several media sites – defending himself against an anonymously-sourced report that suggests he’s in David Stern’s pocket, as ridiculous a charge as I can imagine.

Yesterday, Billy Hunter send a note to NBA players – dutifully and immediately offered to several media sites – urging union solidarity and fighting the good fight and all that jazz.

I see and read that the league has now set up a separate twitter account -- @NBA_Labor – to make its points in 160 characters or less and, I presume, to refute the tweets of the union.

Oh, and then I pick up the physical copy of my paper and see a full page ad from the HOTH extolling all the good things they’ll be doing in the next little while like a free run at a local gym and some court resurfacings in the city, all nice things indeed.

And the immediate reaction?

Go away.

The next time I want to see or hear from either the league or the union is when David and Billy are sitting side-by-side at some table, both holding their noses, and signing a new CBA that will let part-time arena employees to get back to work and allow businesses in the area of arenas to avoid laying off servers and staff because there’s no one around to fill the seats.

I don’t want tweets. I don’t want letters. I don’t want self-serving announcements solely trying to curry favour with the very people they’ve screwed over by messing around so long trying to figure out how to equitably split a pot of money that’s so incomprehensibly big no one can actually comprehend it.

I don’t want to see Kevin Durant play flag football, as cute as that can be; I don’t want to hear about some cockamamie “world tour” of NBA players that’s got a snowball’s chance of ever coming off and whoever believed it did should be setting up the house for the impending arrival of Santa Claus.

Just go away and get a deal done.

And then apologize, grovel, offer discounted tickets to every game in every seating level of every arena and pray to whatever deity it is that you pray to that the people you’ve utterly disregarded since July will forgive you and line your pockets with gold, again.

End o’ rant.

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Best.

Conversation.

Of The Night.

Super Wife: Hey, Super Son! Your favourite’s on TV: Bieber!.

Super Son: He’s annoying.

Me: Yay! Why?

Super Son: He can’t sing. Wait ‘til he hits puberty. Oh, and he’s annoying.

Beaming, I retire to couch.

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We’re apparently polling the zillions of pucks fans about who might have been the greatest of Leaves goalies of all time (And I don’t see an option for The Monster!) and it’s causing me all kinds of trouble.

The answers are going into the same spot the usual mail goes and, as you’d imagine, there are pages and pages and pages of replies and it’s quite a pain in my butt to waft through them to look from Missives From Irregulars.

But it being Wednesday and all, it’s time to solicit mail so click here, let me know how you feel and I’ll find the questions.

Oh, yeah:

I’ve got Broda, Bower, Sawchuk.

But then I remembered this and it doesn’t matter what they did on the ice, Johnny Bower Rules!

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So we’re running this little poll over at the Facebook thingy (go here, find it, hit the like button if you so choose, let the Tall Foreheads know I’m working over there) on who’s to blame for this NBA mess.

So far, A Pox On Both Their Houses is killing Owners and Players and I suppose that’s kind of telling.

But it truly is unscientific and I’m wondering if it’s really how the majority of you feel.

Is it?

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A thankless, tough job that someone has to do

Wondered when the first “anonymous source” story about rifts in the NBA Players Association would really break and how they’d handle it.

Happened on the week, some column says some players think Derek Fisher’s too sympathetic and friendly with David Stern and the owners, it suggests there is a conflict between Fisher and Billy Hunter and Fisher lashed out with this letter to the players that a handful of media outlets got their mitts on yesterday afternoon.

No real surprise in it – it’d be a far better story if Fisher said, “yes, I (Heart) David and I want a deal now” – but it was the story on an otherwise slow day.

(And until they decide to meet again and guys like Ken Berger and Howard Beck and Steve Aschburner and Brian Mahoney can keep us wildly entertained with Tweets From The Lockout Lobby, slow is going to be the order of the day).

But I tell you what, I wouldn’t want Fisher’s job for almost anything in the world.

With the disparate personalities in his union, some with unimaginable wealth, others with unimaginable personal issues and backgrounds, the balancing act he has to strike must be incredible.

I am sure he’s hearing from players and their agents who want a settlement and want it now, people who are quite willing to take the financial package that’s on the table and get on with their often brief professional sports careers.

And I know there are hard-liners who want to give back nothing and who would be urging him to keep the union out as long as is necessary to maintain what they have now.

That would strike me as quite different from the job of a regular union leader; as we’ve pointed out in the past, this is not an employer-employee dispute in the normal scheme of things, there are factions on each side that make it, as a friend says, like herding cats to keep everyone in line.

That he’s done it so far is nothing short of amazing to me, there seem to be far fewer public rifts this time than there were in 1998 and 1999 and that’s to the credit of Fisher and Hunter.

Now, if they’d just find a way to get this thing over and done with, we could really laud them.

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This is kind of topical, given the dearth of sports for my little mind to get around:

Q: Hey Doug: You've obviously been a grunt for more than just basketball (especially this summer!). So, how about two lists - they don't have to be long. In descending order, what sports events do you feel most 'comfortable' with? (If you want, you don't have to limit it to sports, if want to include, say, fashion shows.) Then, what events did you cover that you enjoyed the most?

Thanks for keeping us entertained during the lack of basketball - even if some, apparently, don't like you to veer 'off the beaten path.' The majority obviously enjoy it!

Tim H, Windsor

A: Took some time to come up with these but, luckily, time is something I have.

Let’s stick to just sports, we all know fashion is hardly my forte, the music is mostly old and stuff I just like for no specific reason and, well, that’s about it.

Comfort Level

Hockey

Yeah, I know. Un-Canadian of me. It’s not that I don’t like the sport – although I still say scripted fights are the most ridiculous thing in the world and prove nothing – it’s that I don’t possess a great depth of knowledge.

And I do like how easy it is to tweak the passion of fans.

Football

Takes a while to get back into the swing of things but it’s pretty easily done.

Olympic sports

Great stories, great drama. Hugely fun.

Baseball

Wrote it. Like it. Probably the only other sports beat I’d think about but it’s a long summer to give up.

Basketball

If for no other reason than the time I’ve put in during the last decade and a half. Besides, it’s a brilliant game of near-constant motion and at least one ‘Holy Crap’ moment a night.

But you know what?

Good sports writing is more about telling stories about people, narratives about games, being entertaining while also being informative. So, really, you should be able to plop any of us down anywhere, gives us some time with a guy or a team and we’d give you something interesting.

Now, can you give me a day or two to come up with top events? We need to parcel good things out piecemeal around here these days.

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How the hell did it get to be Nov. 1?

Can’t wait for the Christmas sales to start.

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Today’s Opening Night.

Dallas-Chicago.

Thunder-Lakers

Jazz-Spurs.

Damn.

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So Tony LaRussa’s retired?

Bet he didn’t try to phone in his resignation.

Anyway, not sure where I’d place him on the list of modern era great managers because the two things that come quickly to mind with him are how he managed a team with Mark McGuire and Jose Canseco and never once seemed to twig to the, um, pharmaceutical nature of their accomplishments.

And there always seemed to be some sort of, I dunno, condescending nature to him. As if he was the smartest guy in the room in his opinion and he wanted to subtly let you know that. Kind of what I feel about Phil Jackson except that Jackson tended to win an awful lot of championships.

So give LaRussa his due for hanging around the game for a very long time; don’t put him in the pantheon of greats quite yet.

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Know what stinks?

Having a Super Son who gives up going out for Halloween so you can’t reap the benefits of the stuff he doesn’t like and getting more kids than expected so there’s not much stuff left in the bowl and a night of couch and candy ends quickly.

Just sayin’.

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