MARLBORO, NY-Here we are ready to make the foray into the dog days of August in a few days and that means only two things are worth talking about– baseball and the return of NFL Training Camps. Two things caught my attention very recently and without further ado here they are…
First, baseball: On Friday night, I’m sitting with a Maker’s Mark on the rocks at the Middletown Elks Lodge when a baseball highlight catches my eyes on one of the flat screens. My reaction causes others to look up and see another batted ball (from the St. Louis Cardinals’ Luke Voit) careen off the bean of the opposing pitcher (Robbie Ray of the Arizona Diamondbacks). Frighteningly enough, there was enough of a carom off of Ray’s head that an out was registered when third baseman Daniel Descalso dove and caught the ball in foul territory for the unlikely 2-5 putout. It seems like this is happening a little more often these days and my argument is directed to those in charge of MLB’s player safety. Batters wear helmets for all the right reasons that a 100 miles per hour fastball can justify. What about the 108 miles per hour exit-velocity of a batted ball like the one propelled from Voit’s bat on an unprotected head like the pitcher’s? Yes, I have seen the soft-cushioned halo band around a hat’s circumference but something better can be designed with all the technology at hand today. A cap insert made of a thin protective material needs to be devised and made mandatory by the high and mighty player’s union for the health of its members going forward in a time where a death will ultimately occur if this issue is not addressed accordingly.
New York Jets: On more than one occasion, I have been labeled a misogynist or a flat-out pig based on some unpopular opinions expressed within a few columns I’ve penned in the past. As a nation, we should have a woman occupying the White House right now and it’s only a matter of time before one does. I am on board with this since men have proven to screw things up in recent history. It’s time. But politics is one thing, sports is another. I see where the Jets have hired a “preseason intern”, Coquette Collette Smith to assist with the Jets defensive backs. A former player in the Independent Women’s Football League, (who knew there was such a thing?), Smith is either the second or third woman’s “coach” in the NFL. Let me clearly state that I am all for women’s movement into professions otherwise once deemed “out of reach” but I don’t want estrogen accompanying testosterone on football fields or hockey rinks. This is where I draw the line and I’m sorry if you don’t agree. This hire had to be signed off by a guy named Woody Johnson–you really can’t make this stuff up. It’s a good thing defensive back Antonio Cromartie and his omnipotent seed isn’t with the team or HBO could have filmed “Knocked Up–Training Camp With The New York Jets” as cameras follow the player’s pursuit of scoring a touchdown on his coach.
Direct your hate in the comments section as MTM Editors are at the ready.
That’s it. Please comment below and come back tomorrow for a man fathering kids all over – DJ Eberle. And please follow us on Twitter – @CheesyBruin & @MeetTheMatts, @Matt_McCarthy00, Instagram @MeetTheMatts and like our Facebook page, Meet The Matts.
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