Category Archives: Sports

AN UMPIRE MAKES HIS RATING KNOWN.

Posted on May 28, 2009 by Philip

AN UMPIRE MAKE HIS RATING KNOWN. I have urged in several posts, including here, that the grading of the performance of sports officials should be made public. Now an umpire has made his rating for a game public. Umpire Bob … Continue reading →

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OPTICAL ILLUSIONS AND CURVE BALLS.

Posted on May 16, 2009 by Philip

OPTICAL ILLUSIONS AND CURVE BALLS. There is a long-standing contention, alluded to at the end of this wikipedia article on the curve ball, that the curve ball is an optical illusion. As described, in the article, physicists have no trouble … Continue reading →

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NOT CARING ABOUT THE SCORE.

Posted on May 5, 2009 by Philip

NOT CARING ABOUT THE SCORE. The seventh game of the series between the Chicago Bulls and the Boston Celtics featured something I have never seen in any high school, college or professional sporting event. As reported here and here, the … Continue reading →

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ACTS OF KINDNESS—J. R. RICHARD.

Posted on April 27, 2009 by Philip

ACTS OF KINDNESS—J. R. RICHARD. Here is a recent interview with J.R. Richard (link via Baseball Musings). I have posted before on an act of kindness that rescued a life. How did J.R. Richard rescue his life when he found … Continue reading →

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THE HARDEST THROWER IN THE MAJORS.

Posted on April 27, 2009 by Philip

THE HARDEST THROWER IN THE MAJORS. A 95 mile an hour fastball is considered a dominating fastball. Few major leaguers can sustain that kind of velocity throughout a game. When Bobby Jenks or Joel Zumaya reaches 100 miles per hour … Continue reading →

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WHEN EACH UMPIRE MADE HIS OWN RULES.

Posted on March 29, 2009 by Philip

WHEN EACH UMPIRE MADE HIS OWN RULES. It’s not so long ago that each major league umpire had his own strike zone–and was proud of it. These strike zones were often lower and wider than what the rule book specified. … Continue reading →

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IMPROVING UMPIRE PERFORMANCE.

Posted on March 29, 2009 by Philip

IMPROVING UMPIRE PERFORMANCE. I posted here in 2007 on umpire ratings for balls and strikes. An article in Baseball America (March 23 to April 5) says that major league baseball is going to install a new computerized camera system to … Continue reading →

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SCAMS: FLOOD PREPARATION.

Posted on March 28, 2009 by Philip

SCAMS: FLOOD PREPARATION. The article by Pablo Torres tells about an athlete ” who invested almost $70,000 in an invention: an inflatable raft that would sit under furniture. The pitch was that when high-rainfall areas were flooded, consumers could pump … Continue reading →

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IT’S NOT ONLY MADOFF: ATHLETES AND INVESTMENT SCAMS.

Posted on March 28, 2009 by Philip

IT’S NOT ONLY MADOFF: ATHLETES AND INVESTMENT SCAMS. This article from Sports Illustrated by Pablo Torre says that 78% of National Football League players have either gone bankrupt or are under financial stress within two years of retirement. For National … Continue reading →

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IT’S ALL IN THE GODFATHER AND ANIMAL HOUSE.

Posted on March 17, 2009 by Philip

IT’S ALL IN THE GODFATHER AND ANIMAL HOUSE. I have two friends, both lawyers, who claim that all situations encountered in public life can be explained by a scene in either the GODFATHER movies or ANIMAL HOUSE. For example (referring … Continue reading →

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