Oscar Gamble Society

Catching up on some recent issues of Sports Illustrated, and came upon this item in the February 5 edition:

“… someone got the idea to bring speed dating to Fenway Park.  In July, NESN, which airs Red Sox games, will unveil a segment called Sox Appeal.  At selected home games one fan will go on three two-inning dates and then decide which prospect he or she wants to watch the rest of the game with.  NESN executive producer Joel Feld said the idea gives viewers another reason to watch the game, whether the designated daters ‘hit a home run or strike out’.”

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For so many years, there were four major sports in the US - baseball, football, basketball, and hockey. From year to year, and definitely from city to city, it was some ranking of those specific four… and then everything else came after. But now, NASCAR’s popularity boom is undeniable - and many would suggest it’s passed hockey (at least) amongst the list of “most popular sports in the US”. But how do we measure that?

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The finish to Daytona was nothing if not exciting - at the Tank Family Compound we were all hoping Mark Martin would hold off Kyle Busch and never saw Harvick coming on the outside until well into the final lap. And while Harvick won fair and square, we were in the same camp as probably everyone other than Richard Childress and Mrs. Harvick in being disappointed that Martin didn’t take the checkered flag. Class act that he is, Martin seemed to take the change of fortune far better than I did.

My guy, Tony Stewart, did indeed have the car to beat - going to last place after a pit row speeding penalty but working his way back to lead the race yet again before he wrecked. Did anyone else think they should check his trailer for pods based on the equanimity he displayed after getting taken out? Is it the new girlfriend? The personal trainer? Either way, it seems like big bad Tony is sweet Anthony now. If he keeps it up I may have to switch allegiance to Robby Gordon; no risk of him getting his head on straight. Still, this crash was one case where I think Kurt Busch was way too hard on himself. Once Tony got loose in front of him, there was no Earthly way for Kurt to be able to steer clear.

Overall, a good race albeit without any really spectacular wrecks except on the last lap. The #07 did flip over and catch on fire, so I guess that’s something. More importantly, the season is at last underway. On to Fontana.

I know nothing about NASCAR, and I’ve never watched a race.  I understand the fever is sweeping the nation (and of course, if I get the fever… there will only be one cure… more cowbell - but I think that’s just common sense).  I’ve actually been asked a few times of late who “my driver” is?  Initially, I was confused by this.  Who am I… Richie Rich?  Do I bear a striking to resemblence to some rock star or Hollywood denizen?  Then I realized… it’s NASCAR-speak.

Well… my driver is Dale Earnhardt Jr.  The reason?  His answers to the questions posed in a recent Sports Illustrated article.  To wit:

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Kevin Harvick started the 2007 Busch season the same way he spent most of last season - in first place, after winning the first race of the season, the Orbitz 300. Look, I like Kevin Harvick. He’s a good guy who doesn’t take himself too seriously, and everyone respects the dignified way he took over Dale Earnhardt’s ride six years ago this weekend. But in finishing 800-odd points ahead of Carl Edwards last year, he is emblematic of what is killing the Busch series - full-time Nextel Cup drivers competing in what is ostensibly NASCAR’s developmental series. In today’s race, 12 of the top 15 drivers were guys with Nextel Cup rides. I can understand why sponsors would prefer to have their Busch cars driven by guys like Harvick and Tony Stewart instead of actual up-and-comers, but to me, as a fan, it undermines the credibility of the series. It’s as if Peyton Manning still spent his Saturdays quarterbacking Tennessee, or Lebron James pulled double duty with his old high school when not playing for the Cavaliers. If it were up to me there would be a window of, say, 2 or 3 seasons, after which guys who move up from Busch to become Cup regulars are barred from competing in the Busch series.

This weekend the NBA holds the All-Star Game in Las Vegas. Which of course brings to mind the man who became synonymous with the city, the King. In addition to his status as artist-in-residence at the Las Vegas Hilton (where they continue to secure performances from musical titans; current artist-in-residence? Barry Manilow.), one of his most popular films was set there - Viva Las Vegas. But that film doesn’t begin to encompass the King’s dramatic versatility. Which brings us to the following brain teaser: try to name the Elvis movies featuring the following highly distinct plots:

B) Elvis plays a singing race car driver who falls in love with Nancy Sinatra

C) Elvis plays a singing race car driver who falls in love with Shelly Fabares

D) Elvis plays a singing speedboat racer who falls in love with Shelly Fabares

click through for the answer key

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An article in today’s WSJ previews the upcoming book “The Baseball Economist: The Real Game Exposed,” by Prof. J.C. Bradbury of Kennesaw State University in Georgia. It sounds like a valuable contribution to the body of work pioneered by Bill James and Palmer & Thorn, and most famously chronicled by Michael Lewis in Moneyball. On the issue of the benefits of larger markets to their home teams, Professor Bradbury’s regression analysis shows that every incremental 1.58 million residents in a market yields one incremental win for the team. A win is a win (tautologically speaking), but clearly the magnitude of the market size advantage is dwarfed by the impact of deciding whether or not to spend $3 million on a declining Chan Ho Park, or multiples of that to bring geriatric former Cy Young winners to the Bronx.

Is there a sweeter sounding phrase in the sporting world? Well, except for “….and here are your world champion [insert favorite team name here]”, I suppose. But I digress….

Except for pro hoops, I love sports, both to play and watch - football, hockey, soccer, tennis, college baskeball, college hockey, etc. However, my first - and still - true love is baseball. Always has been, always will be.

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Still can’t let go of football just yet… so I was playing around with QB ratings for all the Super Bowl QBs.  More specifically, it’s a passer rating, as it doesn’t account for rushing statistics, fumbles, etc - but I still find the stat interesting for comparison purposes.  I looked at all the starting QBs, and then a few that had substantial relief appearances (Grogan for Eason, Reich for Kelly, Morrall and Unitas for each other).  I previously discussed the *actual* “worst ever” (and it’s not Rex Grossman, as much as lazy columnists and uninformed fans want to believe it is cuz… you know… he’s the most recent one).

But let’s take a look at some “best ever” lists.  First, the top-5 passer ratings for individual games (note that a rating of 158.3 is the highest attainable passer rating):

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