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Wednesday, October 29, 2008

S.I.: Posnanski: In appreciation of Bud Selig

Poppin’ Protty II!...Capgras syndrome musta stormed through Kansas City! (Joe? Joe? Is that you?)

So yeah, in the end, I’ve come to like that confused look because there’s something real about Bud Selig. People often comment how he just doesn’t seem like a commissioner, he doesn’t have any of the polish of NBA commissioner David Stern or the cool forcefulness of NFL commissioner Roger Goodell. That’s no doubt true. He still babbles off point, he gives himself powers that nobody seems to believe he has, he stubbornly insists that sometimes the weather gets better later in the fall.

But more and more, in this age of pre-packaged candidates and prepared statements and tortured spinning of every word, Bud Selig seems more to the point. He is incapable of politics. He is sensitive to every criticism. He does not look his best during a crisis. He is just trying to do the right thing. He seems a whole lot like me and just about everybody I know.

“If I told you tonight what I think of meteorologists ...,” Selig grumbled as he tried to explain why they had even tried to play Monday night’s World Series game. The meteorologists, apparently, had given Bud a bum forecast, one that called for very light rain throughout the night. The rain was not light at all.

And so, while one of those other slick commissioners or practiced politicians would have been up on the podium speaking in platitudes and ducking the subject, Bud Selig sat up like every American guy in every barber’s chair who has ever had a picnic or an afternoon of golf rained out, and he blamed the weatherman.

Repoz Posted: October 29, 2008 at 05:58 PM | 18 comment(s) | Login to Bookmark
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   1. robinred Posted: October 29, 2008 at 06:33 PM (#2998871)
, Bud Selig sat up like every American guy in every barber’s chair


Bud should be blaming his barber rather than the weatherman.

and he blamed the weatherman.


More Ayers crap.
   2. phredbird Posted: October 29, 2008 at 08:25 PM (#2998934)
He is incapable of politics.


my head splode
   3. Athletic Supporter leads the nation in drifters Posted: October 29, 2008 at 08:37 PM (#2998939)
But he does have the complete incompetence of Gary Bettman!
   4. Miko Supports Shane's Spam Habit Posted: October 29, 2008 at 09:30 PM (#2998965)
my head splode

Uh oh. I was afraid this would happen. Posnanski. Praising Bud. BTF.
   5. Harveys Wallbangers Posted: October 29, 2008 at 11:19 PM (#2998997)
Alright, I need to mention something.

Bud is ALL about politics. Only the kind of politics behind closed doors. Cajoling. Wheedling. Pleading. Bullying. Whatever it takes to get his way.

Bud is akin to the LBJ of baseball. LBJ had no presence in public. But in a small room or one on one none better at getting his way.

That's Bud......
   6. susan mullen Posted: October 30, 2008 at 02:38 AM (#2999272)
It is impossible to take seriously anything this writer says again. Politics? Forget baseball, how about the federal government, the importance of the anti-trust exemption, his collusion conviction, that the new stadium deals are all about manipulation of various levels of politicians. Selig is about little else except completely fooling some people with his persona. There are sweet documentaries on TV about brutal murderers and if so disposed one can come away thinking what swell guys they really are. From what I've read of Doug Pappas' work, he would not agree with the writer's assessment of Selig.
   7. with Glavinesque control and Madduxian poise Posted: October 30, 2008 at 03:35 AM (#2999310)
Susan:

Really? You're not going to take Joe Posnanski seriously ever again, one of the most thoughtful and effective sportswriters currently active, because he thinks Selig blaming the weatherman was a genuine thing for him to do?

Edit: Also, JoePo has a take on this subject on his blog with a slightly different emphasis.
   8. An Athletic in Powderhorn Posted: October 30, 2008 at 04:00 AM (#2999319)
I love Posnanski, but his biggest weakness is he hates to say negative things about people. Every commenter on his blog is a "brilliant reader," and whenever he criticizes someone's decision-making, he makes a point to mention that the guy's probably a good man trying to do his best. So unless Joe Pos sees My Bud standing over a corpse with a bloody knife in his hand, he'll probably try to emphasize the good in Bud.

I break down Bud's Game 5 decisions like this:

1. Play the game and hope for the best.
2. Keep playing as long as possible.
3. Stop the game while it's tied.
4. Postpone it and finish later.

IMO, 1 is defensible, though I wouldn't have done it myself. 2 is irresponsible. 3...well, see 1. 4 was absolutely the right call. I blame Bud for the season stretching this late, and for the game starting that late at night. But his decisions on Monday don't make me want to burn him in effigy, which makes Monday different from most days.
   9. Gonfalon Bubble Posted: October 30, 2008 at 04:26 AM (#2999333)
But more and more, in this age of pre-packaged candidates and prepared statements and tortured spinning of every word, Bud Selig seems more to the point... He is just trying to do the right thing. He seems a whole lot like me and just about everybody I know.

And how! I'd love to kick back and drain a brewski with the guy some time. I'm not saying it was fun, repeatedly violating labor law by colluding against the people that enable my own industry. But a fella's got to make a living. Anyhoo, I felt a lot better after my next-door neighbor Ed pulled the Expos out of Montreal and tried to whack the Twins. That was unfortunate, but at the end of the day he's just good folks. And I love my kid brother Jerry to death, but the guy actually swears he was leading the fight against steroids a decade before he said he heard about them for the first time. God love 'im, though, his heart's in the right place. Now, would you like to see my photos of all the swell neighborhood barbecues we had in October 1994, after the schedule opened up?
   10. Exploring Leftist Conservatism since 2008 (ark..) Posted: October 30, 2008 at 06:36 AM (#2999366)
Posnanski. Praising Bud. BTF.
It's like that really weird sequence of colliding events in comic books that culminates in the complete destruction of the universe.

Susan:

Really? You're not going to take Joe Posnanski seriously ever again, one of the most thoughtful and effective sportswriters currently active, because he thinks Selig blaming the weatherman was a genuine thing for him to do?
I'm going to guess it was less Selig blaming the weatherman and more when Posnanski claimed:

[Selig] is just trying to do the right thing.
This is the sort of remark that causes us to pick up the morning paper and read about thousands of deaths during the night by aneurysm.

And this:

He seems a whole lot like me and just about everybody I know.
A planet of Hitlers!!

[thus endeth the thread]
   11. Long John McCaine Mutiny on the Bounty (scott) Posted: October 30, 2008 at 06:53 AM (#2999368)
A planet of Hitlers!!

We are all Hitlers in our own small way. Except Jesus, that holier than thou punk.
   12. Slinger Francisco Barrios (Dr. Memory) Posted: October 30, 2008 at 12:38 PM (#2999484)
Jesus and Hitler both had mustaches.
   13. Repoz Posted: October 30, 2008 at 12:40 PM (#2999488)
And Jeff Kent.
   14. Fancy Pants Handle is the AntAgonizer Posted: October 30, 2008 at 12:46 PM (#2999493)
It's like that really weird sequence of colliding events in comic books that culminates in the complete destruction of the universe.

When are they firing uo the Large Hadron Collider again?
   15. Barry`s_Lazy_Boy Posted: October 30, 2008 at 12:47 PM (#2999494)
I love Posnanski, but his biggest weakness is he hates to say negative things about people.

Considering 99% of journalists/bloggers/internet commenters only say negative things, I'll gladly take his misplaced optimism.
   16. Designated Sitter (GGC) Posted: October 30, 2008 at 01:09 PM (#2999502)
Considering 99% of journalists/bloggers/internet commenters only say negative things, I'll gladly take his misplaced optimism.


So, does this mean that I shouldn't have singled scareduck out in the Herzog thread for being a nattering nabob of negativism?
   17. Jeff K. Posted: October 30, 2008 at 01:42 PM (#2999538)
Uh, Susan, what TV show can you watch about a brutal murderer and come away thinking they were a good guy?
   18. Harmon "Thread Killer" Microbrew Posted: October 30, 2008 at 02:59 PM (#2999639)
Uh, Susan, what TV show can you watch about a brutal murderer and come away thinking they were a good guy?


Dexter
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