Diamonds and Ice

Just sitting here at Memorial Stadium through a long double-header and started thinking about some things:

— Are there any worst scourges on this earth than professional sports agents? Pitcher Francisco Liriano’s agent is having the MLB Player’s Union investigate the Minnesota Twins because they haven’t called up his client from Triple-A, yet, despite him pitching well. The impetus behind the investigation is money. Liriano could have been granted arbitration had he been up with the club this season long enough. That’s not going to happen, so ….. an investigation to see if the Twins are leaving him in Triple-A on purpose. Guess no one remembers that Liriano (coming off Tommy John Surgery) made the club out of spring training and got lit up before being sent to the minors.

The whole situation prompted this response from Twins Manager Ron Gardenhire: “I don’t know who is throwing this out there, but it is a joke,” Gardenhire told the Minneapolis Star-Tribune. “We have a player in Double-A who’s got like 18 homers. His agent is going to start calling us. They cannot dictate what we are going to do.”

Well said, Gardy.

— Congratulations to Cedar Rapids Xavier’s baseball team for another trip to the state tournament. But why did the Saints get to play every one of their postseason games leading to state at home? Xavier takes a 16-22 to Des Moines next week. That doesn’t seem right.

— Go away, Brett Favre. The former/current Green Bay Packers quarterback has lost a lot of his luster in these eyes with his I’m-retired, I’m-not-retired Prima Donna act. He has put the Packers in a tremendously difficult situation and has bashed their front office publicly. No one player is bigger than the game he plays, Mr. Favre. No one player is bigger than the team he plays that game for.

— Gotta think the Chicago Cubs lost the World Series the other night when the American League outlasted the National League in the MLB All-Star Game. The Cubbies have been out of sight at Wrigley Field this season but ordinary at best on the road. And here’s another point no one has brought up: the Cubs finished Interleague play with a losing record. They may be a very good team, but that’s a very good National League team.

— Still waiting for the Los Angeles Angels to even acknowledge there has been a flood in Cedar Rapids. The word is the Angels are waiting for the Cedar Rapids Kernels to tell them where it’s best to donate some money. Why are you waiting, Angels? It’s not hard to figure out: try the Red Cross, try the Kernels Foundation, try something! Despite what certain members of the Kernels front office and board of directors believe, there is absolutely NO loyalty in professional sports. The quicker you learn that, the better off you’ll be. You are running a business, and it’s very apparent you are not giving your business its best chance of success by continuing to partner with a Major League organization that NO ONE around here cares about. Or apparently doesn’t care much about you.