Sunday, August 11, 2002
Enquirer's Page Two power rankings
Top five
1. Major-league players. The proposal on drug testing probably isn't the most stringent, but it's a start. Let's hope the players who don't cheat were the ones pressing the union to make the proposal. (Don't worry, Power Rankings isn't getting soft. We're reserving a spot in the bottom five for next week when the spoiled sportsmen set a strike date).
2. Barry Bonds. It seems the surly superstar has softened in his old age. He HAs handled his home run rampage of the past two seasons with relative grace. But it's not just the 600th home run we salute. How about 30 or more homers for 11 consecutive seasons? How about a .565 on-base percentage this season? And a .359 batting average. Wow.
3. Halls of Fame. First baseball's, then pro football's, then college football's Saturday. Maybe we're just getting old. But didn't sports somehow seem better back when Ozzie Smith was playing, or Dave Casper, or Anthony Carter, or the Oklahoma teams of Barry Switzer?
4. Steve Spurrier. A classic still. You had to love the way he ran up the score on the San Francisco 49ers in his Redskins' preseason opener. Who knows if his system will translate to the NFL. But he's gotta be a breath of fresh air compared to all those NFL copycats.
5. Tony Stewart. He's becoming NASCAR's renegade. He was fined by NASCAR and his sponsor after he hit a photographer. Sure, his behavior is out of line, but it's entertaining. But after awhile that “Shucks, we're just some good ol' God-fearin' boys racin' ” shtick gets old.
Bottom five
1. The National Sports Collectors Convention. Daddy, can I have $350 for Muhammad Ali's autograph and $200 for Cal Ripken's? Yeesh. The idea of getting an autograph is to interact with your sports hero. And paying that money to be railroaded through a roped-off line like a head of cattle doesn't cut it. Let's hope this is the next market to take a big hit.
2. Tickets for UC and Ohio State football. We understand how the Bearcats are positioning themselves for a big financial windfall from this game. All college programs are always in need of money. But forcing people to buy a season-ticket package to get one of the remaining tickets for the Buckeyes is a bit heavy-handed.
3. Jon Kitna. Hey, he looked pretty darn good Friday. But his complaining last week that he's tired of having to prove himself year after year seemed a bit silly. That's what professional athletes do. (Doesn't he have access to the stat sheet?)
4. The ATP Tour. The tour's CEO came out this week talking about how a lot of big cities want to snatch the Masters Series event from Cincinnati. Great, some more sports extortion.
5. The Rockies. This is great. They throw a gazillion dollars at Mike Hampton and Denny Neagle and now hope someone simply will claim them. For free. Assume the salaries and they're yours. No players required in return. Nah, baseball's not too messed up.
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Reds 9, Padres 0
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Astros 8, Braves 5
Cardinals 5, Mets 4
Notes from Saturday's games
John Fay's MLB power ratings
Lieberthal hits three homers against Dodgers
Little progress in labor talks
Williams' son ends his baseball experiment
Columbus 5, Louisville 2
Quarterback derby heats up for Bengals
Bengals Q&A
Contract on table would lock up LB for 5 years
Saturday's NFL Preseason Games
Miami-UC meeting first since 1997 game
3 GGCL volleyball teams in Top 25
Prep girls golf preview
Enquirer's Page Two power rankings
