Don’t Overreact to Week 1

There’s a special feeling to the first game of the season and unfortunately for Browns fans, the excitement felt at the beginning of the game is often replaced with anger and negativity by the end of it. The Browns have a tough first week opponent in the Baltimore Ravens and if the Browns lose it is important to not overreact.

To start off, the Ravens are a good team. They went 14 – 2 last season and in many ways have only gotten better and deeper. They added DEs Calais Campbell and Derek Wolfe to their vaunted pass rush and added rookies Patrick Queen at linebacker, running back J.K. Dobbins, and wide receiver Devin Duvernay amongst many more. They also have last year’s MVP, QB Lamar Jackson, still running the same offense he did last year. This is going to be a big test for the Browns.

The Browns are also a good team. They have talented players on both sides of the ball, a revamped offensive line, and many players who are ready to prove they were worth the high draft picks spent on them.

Unfortunately, the Browns also have a lot of new pieces and a new philosophy on offense and defense, which they were only able to practice amongst themselves. While many players might not have missed preseason games, the opportunity to see how well they can perform against others is an opportunity they will be missing.

I have faith in new Head Coach Kevin Stefanski. I believe that he and OC Alex Van Pelt will put QB Baker Mayfield in a great position this season to regain what he did best in his rookie season. I trust running backs Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt to have amazing seasons in an offense that is designed to get the very best out of running backs. I have confidence that new DC Joe Woods will help the development of young cornerbacks Denzel Ward and Greedy Williams as he has done with the many teams he has coached previously. But most importantly, I know that all this takes time.

In week 1, half the teams win and half the teams lose. Not all the teams that win in week 1 make the playoffs and not all the teams that lose in week 1 miss out on the playoffs. Getting too excited if the Browns win is as bad of an overreaction as being very negative if the Browns lose. It is only one week!

So, while the season is going to be a good one Browns fans, it is extremely important not to get too down if the Browns lose in week 1. Had the world not had to deal with COVID-19, this game would still be tough, but with the lack of a full off-season, it is hard to get too down and negative if they do lose, so please do not overreact.

Minor League Teams Are In Jeopardy And Advocates For Minor Leaguers Is Trying To Help

While every fan is having fun enjoying the riches of having sports back, especially Major League Baseball. Many minor league players are worried about their future and the idea that minor league teams may be cut.

This is where a relatively new organization called Advocates For Minor Leaguers is stepping in and trying to help players that are in need of financial relief and some type of hope for their future.

One of the team members of the organization, Raul Jacobson, was a former minor league player himself and his contributions to the team are coming a long way in support of players themselves. He is currently trying to pass the Bar in order to become a lawyer and with that, he will be able to help minor league players even more.

“I was an undrafted free agent, so I knew I was at the bottom of the totem poll in the Mets eyes, when I was a player I got a notice for this class action about this minor league wage class action lawsuit and I didn’t want them to give them any reason for them to cut me.”

This was Jacobson’s first look at someone taking a stand for minor league players, but like many now, he was afraid of the power that the Major League organization had and he didn’t want to give a bad impression. He would end up playing professionally for about two seasons until he would end up pursuing a law degree and also reaching out to Advocates For Minor Leaguers.

“About a year ago I was like you know what? I have nothing to lose, I’m going to reach out to Garrett Broshuis, he’s just like me former minor leaguer, current lawyer, he has literally filed my dream law suit.”

This is how Jacobson would go on to work with the organization and help them in their quest to fight for higher wages for minor league players, however, having a lawsuit would only do so much and if they wanted to make a significant impact, they would have to think bigger, such as a union.

This is met with uncertainty from players however, as just like Jacobson was during his minor league days, players today are afraid of the organization they play under and don’t want to risk losing their only chance at the big leagues. While Advocates For Minor Leaguers is for providing financial aid for players that are struggling to make ends meet, Jacobson is also aiming at a bigger target for the future of Minor League Baseball.

“A lawsuit would only do so much it’s going to be a temporary band-aid essentially but it’s not going to change the system. To change the system we need some advocating for minor leaguers, providing them a voice that they’ve never had and like ideally that would be a union.”

So clearly there have been obstacles to get to a point in which wages are increased for minor league players and while a union would provide some much-needed strength, rallying all minor league players is something that Jacobson doesn’t seem feasible at the time. There is also various other obstacles that are in the way such as the greed from ownership, having all the minor league players on the same page, but there may be one that’s more significant than all of those, the backing of the MLBPA.

The MLBPA (Major League Baseball’s Players Association) is the union that represents all Major League Baseball players and they had already dealt with one battle in getting the 2020 season up and running.

“If you had Tony Clark and like Mookie Betts and Mike Trout into minor league locker rooms, they would sign up in a heartbeat (minor leaguers).”

So clearly representation is the main problem when getting major support and there may not be major movement until then, but if and when a huge Major League Baseball player gets involved then the wheels will start turning. Jacobson understands that and showing people that there are players that deserve that type of representation is one of the quests that advocates for the unionization of minor league players need to pursue.

In addition to the support from the MLBPA, the minor league players will also need support from their stories as well. While Jacobson understands the value of making it to the Major Leagues and with it comes to the big bucks and overall better quality of life. He noticed a difference between players from the United States and Latin born players.

“For the most part American baseball players are middle/upper-middle class so it’s one thing if you have a family to fall back on and their finances to fall back on. But the other 50% of pro baseball is Latin Americans who don’t have any resources to fall back on. So, what really made me want to do something and change the system was seeing my Dominican teammates have to pull their money together to go buy frozen food from Wal-Mart because they can’t afford three meals a day.”

These types of stories show you why Jacobson is pushing for change in the minor league system and why an increase in wage shouldn’t just be seen as a want, but a need.

Four Players Who Should Find Their Way onto the Browns Practice Squad

With teams making their way down to their 53-man opening day roster, many players from training camp have been released. Some notable and recognizable names fill the lists across the NFL and with the Browns there are numerous players who have contributed in past seasons.

With teams being allowed to carry 16 players on their practice squad due to COVID-19 and the uncertainty that comes with it, here is a list of four players that were released today by the Browns who I would like to see make the Practice Squad, as long as they don’t get claimed by another team.

 

QB Garrett Gilbert

Photo Credit: NFL Trade Rumors

The Browns only kept two quarterbacks, Baker Mayfield and Case Keenum, on their roster. Of course, this is the right move, but in case of injury to either Mayfield or Keenum, the team will want to have a quarterback who is already within the system. Keeping Gilbert, who is the all-time leader in passing yards in the AAF, gives the Browns a solid extra quarterback.

 

RB Benny LeMay

Photo Credit: Charlotte Athletics

While most people would consider Dontrell Hilliard the best guy to bring back as he has been with the Browns for a few years already, I am thinking LeMay will be the one getting the opportunity to come back. LeMay brings excellent balance and vision to a team that uses the wide-zone scheme where balance and vision are two of the most important qualities.

 

T Brady Aiello

Photo Credit: Browns Wire – USA Today

The Browns just signed Aiello on Friday, so why sign him if you’re just going to cut him a few days later unless you want to get a quick look at him before adding him to the Practice Squad. Aiello was an undrafted free agent who played collegiately for the Oregon Ducks.

 

CB A.J. Green

Photo Credit: Brian Bahr/Getty Images

The undrafted free agent was given the most money for an undrafted free agent this past off-season. This should tell us that the Browns liked him. Sadly, as he might not have had as many opportunities to show what he can do, due to the truncated off-season, he is currently on the outside looking in. That’s why a spot on the Practice Squad makes sense.

Only time will tell if these four will be among the 16 players that GM Andrew Berry and head coach Kevin Stefanski bring back for the Practice Squad. Let’s hope that the NFL season goes on without a hitch and the Practice Squad players will not be integral for Browns success this season.

Why Momentum Is Leading The Charge In Creating Content For The Younger Generation Of Sports Fans

The media company “Momentum” was started by Cincinnati Reds pitcher Trevor Bauer and one of his best friends and content creator Taiki Green. I got the opportunity to talk to Taiki about his experiences and how Momentum was created

For Taiki, baseball seemed to always be with him as he started from a young age playing the sport and being good enough to even play the sport in college.

“I played baseball all the way through when I was like four or five. Started playing then, played all the way through technical college, I had a scholarship for the University of New Mexico as a left-handed pitcher.”

He explained that baseball had always been in his life even when his career shifted and got opportunities to work in the sport from different capacities. His journey in baseball would end up taking him to DriveLine Baseball, which is a facility that helps players rehab and possibly helps other players revive their playing career in hopes of reaching their dreams.

“I worked there as a trainer initially, when I hurt my shoulder after New Mexico, I went to Driveline to rehab and while I was rehabbing I was working part time helping around the facility and what not.”

This eventually would lead him into a career opportunity that he didn’t see coming as he states, “In order for me to visualize guys’ mechanics, I would just take a video of them and just kinda analyze through slow motion.” He then would take it a step further by adding some notes and edits that would be easier for players to look at and interpret in order for them to perform better.

“Some of the guys that I was meeting at the facility were just super interesting characters, guys that were journeymen, you know played in the big leagues for two or three years and then got hurt or were out of baseball for like five years and wanted to make a comeback.”

One of those players, Casey Weathers, was able to benefit from Green’s videos as he filmed throwing 98 mph which eventually led him to a job as a coach for the Cincinnati Reds.

Taiki then started transitioning into more of a media role with Driveline after asking the team over there if it was okay to which they were perfectly fine. He then started taking it more professionally and started doing freelance work which eventually helped get him to work on a documentary for Beyonce. It also led him to work with various sports companies like EPSN and FoxSports which when asked about that experience.

“FoxSports hired me as a producer, they wanted some like young person to bring ideas in for them. So I worked for them for a short little, like six months, just kinda helped generate ideas for their programming. Things to kinda help liven up the audience and bring new fans versus the old.”

This would end up leading him to work on a piece with former Indians pitcher, Trevor Bauer, during the World Series run in the 2016 season.

What people may not know, is that Taiki is good friends with Bauer, and it eventually led them to start discussing about making a platform that was better suited for the players and their personalities. He ended up taking a drive with Bauer to Sedona, Arizona, while Bauer was there for Spring Training and he was dealing with some media issues at the time.

Bauer’s agent, Rachel Luba, had mentioned something about starting up their own platform that’s specifically meant for the players, which is where some of the discussion happened between Taiki and Bauer. After months of discussion between both of them about starting something up due to their busy schedules, Momentum was finally created in January 2019 with Taiki being the only running everything at the time.

Eventually, the platform started attracting the attention of fans and also content creators that were wanting to work for the platform. This led to the hiring of more people, even though Taiki had mentioned that their plan at the start was to take it slow.

“We have like 6 full time people and then probably like four to five sub contractors, so it’s a small little team still, but we’re still able to do a lot of stuff now. Even with Corona(COVID-19) we’ve been able to pivot which has been nice.”

Even with having more staff, Bauer is still definitely the star of the channel as most of their content is focused around him. Taiki had praised Bauer’s work ethic and his commitment to the platform as he helps Taiki with ideas and producing content, all while being a full-time professional pitcher at the big league level.

“You know he’s having a historic year this year and he’s texting me at 3:30 in the morning like ‘Oh should I do this in the vlog tomorrow?’ Yeah man, but you should also just sleep.”

Taiki says this to show the dedication that Bauer has to their platform, so put in the work ethic of Taiki in combination with his friend in Bauer, they have a killer combo that can take their channel to new heights. The vlog that Bauer had mentioned, is their vlog that is filmed by Bauer as to give fans an inside look into what a season looks like with COVID-19 as no one has ever seen something like it. It helps answer questions on what fans may have about players and how they are dealing with the new season and it’s this type of content that helps separate them from being any average platform.

As far as their channel goes, building up a reputation and following is huge when dealing with any social platform, and Momentum is trying to do just that as they are still relatively new when trying to reach out to players for content. As they are continuously looking for ways to produce new content for their viewers, they have also done something that is definitely new to this side of the sport in an effort to grow the game and interest fans with entertainment.

The future is definitely bright for Momentum as the channel keeps growing and relationships with players and faces of Major League Baseball find their platform and are willing to help. This is an all-in effort to grow the game as a whole and appeal to a new generation of baseball fans, and it shouldn’t go unnoticed.

Trusting the process could be coming to an end

Before making the playoffs in 2017, the Philadelphia 76ers were the laughing stock of the NBA, especially recording less than 20 wins from 2013-2016, and the league record worse ten wins in the 2015-2016 season.

With the horrific seasons, the 76ers were able to bring in talented players through the draft like center Joel Embiid and guard Ben Simmons. Injuries stalled both their debuts but the fans knew that better times were coming which resulted in the slogan “Trust the Process.”

The 76ers were able to make the playoffs for the past three seasons and have brought valuable players to join them like Jimmy Butler via trade, Tobias Harris via trade were able to resign him, then Al Horford via free agency and Josh Richardson via trade.

Many thought during these past three seasons they could be an NBA Finals contender, but they have kept falling short and there have been issues between themselves in chemistry.

As of right now, the 76ers are down 2-0 in the first round of the NBA Playoffs to the Boston Celtics and the frustration is clearly visible.

Embiid as been carrying the 76ers for the past few seasons and hasn’t received any help in this year’s playoffs. Richardson and Harris are struggling, Horford is averaging five points and Simmons hasn’t played due to injuries.

After failing expectations for the past three years, it might be time to think of something different. Horford has been a disaster, Harris has struggled in the playoffs, Simmons has been injury-prone and continues to be one-dimensional, then Embiid has been the only bright spot.

The 76ers dished out big contracts where Horford signed a four-year, $109 million contract this past season, Harris is his first year of a five-year, $180 million contract, Embiid is in his second year of a five-year, $148 million deal, then Simmons is entering his five years, $170 million contract.

It might be tough getting rid of Horford, Harris could be easy to ship out, but the return might not be satisfying, then who knows if the 76ers would ever get rid of Simmons and/or Embiid.

Simmons hasn’t lived up to expectations, but there have been some trade packages being thrown out there like to Golden State or Chicago.

This doesn’t rule out Embiid as he could be a possible trade candidate as there would be a bigger return for the superstar center. A lot of teams would be on Embiid including the Warriors, Bulls, New York Knicks, and many others.

It’s unclear if any players would get traded from Philadelphia or it could just be they revamp the whole coaching staff, but the 76ers have some decisions to make this offseason and trusting the process could be running out.

Why The Unwritten Rules Need To Be Silenced

After watching the absolute bomb Fernando Tatis Jr. hit for a grand slam, Texas Rangers manager Chris Woodward clearly didn’t like it. This led to a backlash towards Tatis Jr. with his teammate, Manny Machado, being thrown at and having a lesson in the Unwritten Rules of baseball.

After the game, Tatis Jr. made an apology for swinging on a 3-0 count and hitting the grand slam when his team, the San Diego Padres, were already leading the Rangers 10-3 in the top of the 8th inning. It was said that he missed the sign to take the pitch which would have resulted in the count going to 3-1.

However, he fully committed to swinging and he should have no regrets with it as the point of the game is to win no matter what. Assuming he doesn’t hit that home run, what if there is a consequence for the Padres? Like if the Rangers make a comeback, or what if Tatis Jr. doesn’t lead the league in home runs anymore just because of an unwritten rule.

The point of the game to my understanding is that your team has to battle to the last inning, to the last out, so unless something changed, what is the problem? There was no need for Woodward to get upset over it, and there is no need for Padres manager, Jayce Tingler, to get upset over his player hitting that home run as he states in an interview, “It obviously wasn’t the right call.”

Whether Tatis Jr. missed the call or not, Tingler shouldn’t have made the call to have him take the pitch, to begin with. If he truly missed the call, then this problem should fall on Tingler for making the call, by basically taking the bat out of his star player’s hands, and the only problem Tatis Jr. made was missing the call which is just a communications problem with the team.

Players and the media alike all took stances on the issue of the unwritten rules by posting their reactions to the whole ordeal on social media. Most of them took the side of Tatis Jr. which should make the player feel better about what he did, which was only helping his team win.

This goes back to growing the game of baseball for the next generation of fans which is something Major League Baseball has been trying to address. If the league wants more fans to enjoy the game and attract more athletes to its sport, then it needs to fully support the shift in how young star athletes are changing the game for the better. It also needs to recognize what kind of example this situation is setting for younger fans of the game that wouldn’t know any better. It shouldn’t have to fall on others to teach them about unwritten rules, because they shouldn’t even exist.

The response to the Texas Rangers and any player that was upset with this? Play better, the response to Tatis Jr. for hitting a grand slam to help his team even more ahead? Don’t apologize, you’re doing your job, and doing it well, very well.