A’s trade Coco Crisp to Indians and I am going to miss him

Thank you, @Coco_Crisp, for many years of good times. Best of luck in Cleveland. #GreenCollar pic.twitter.com/n7gwty5j5i

— Oakland A's (@Athletics) August 31, 2016

I am going to miss Coco Crisp. He was one of the rare modern Oakland A’s players that stuck around for over five years. He was the rare kind that embodied the city and was beloved by fans. He wasn’t great all the time and he had his flaws, but he was so essential to so many great moments during his time with the team. Even though the A’s didn’t win a championship during that time, he brought some great moments for Oakland.

I had interviewed him on the phone in January 2010 and he was a great guy to talk to. Here is part of the interview. 

Colin Kaepernick’s refusal to stand during national anthem: Both sides are right and wrong

"Players are encouraged but not required to stand during playing of national anthem." – NFL statement on Kaepernick pic.twitter.com/7DVhqzKCEQ

— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) August 27, 2016

So here is the controversy from last night that has spilled over into Saturday.

During the national anthem, Colin Kaepernick did not stand while the rest of his team did. Kaepernick explained that he couldn’t stand for the national anthem and support a country who oppresses black people and minorities. As you can see above, the NFL has responded.

And there we have two sides of this situation. One side believes that Kaepernick has the right to voice his feelings in this way and it’s well within his constitutional rights. Others believe that it’s disrespectful to what the flag and all those who have served our country mean to the nation.

And I think both sides are right.

Can you get any closer to a no-hitter than what Matt Moore did? I think you can

San Francisco Giants starting pitcher Matt Moore was one out away from a no-hitter. He was so close but couldn’t get the job done. In response to this, Major League Baseball’s official Twitter account made this comment.

You can’t get any closer to a no-hitter than what @MattyMoe55 did vs. rival Dodgers: https://t.co/PbqoPQgKcc pic.twitter.com/ywFbnHz1BF

— MLB (@MLB) August 26, 2016

One out away from a no-hitter is pretty close. But can you get any closer? How do you quantify it? Does being one strike away from a no-hitter qualify as being closer? Or what about this guy?

https://twitter.com/JamesPomar/status/769070831167242240

I had a discussion with my friend about this and we were both on a different spectrum. I didn’t quite agree with the wording of this tweet. I believe that there have been people that have been closer. I brought up the example of Pedro Martinez when he was with the Expos. He was perfect through nine innings but because his team didn’t score, they had to go to extra innings. In the 10th, Martinez gave up a hit. But on paper, he went nine hitless innings. On paper, he matched the requirement to reach a no-hitter. His team didn’t deliver on offense.

Warriors leaving KNBR for 95.7 The Game

Warriors announce new radio flagship partnership with 95.7 The Game.
Full details: https://t.co/gmjG5jnZnU

— Warriors PR (@WarriorsPR) August 25, 2016

This is big news.

Since 95.7 The Game’s inception, they have always been trying to one-up KNBR. From mocking ads to recruiting former KNBR talent, it always seemed like a battle they never won. The Game has the A’s, but KNBR has the more popular baseball team on their station. The Game has the Raiders, but KNBR employs the more popular football team. And for years, the Warriors also called KNBR home.

Not anymore.

I suppose that with the Warriors’ rise in popularity in recent years, they wanted a radio station that was clear on the FM dial. But after a while, it just seemed like a new change might be something worth trying.

I met Bill Walton last night and he’s chill and cool as I always imagined he would be

Last night I was in San Diego to see The Fab Four, a very cool Beatles tribute band. When I sat down in my seat, I noticed this very tall fellow sitting on a specially designed chair. I looked at the man’s face and instantly recognized him. It was Bill Walton!

It made perfect sense. He is from San Diego and he would be at a show like this. I was nervous about approaching him because he was on his phone the entire time. I know famous people don’t like to be bothered when out in public so I decided to just let it be. But then after, I saw one fan approach him and take a photo. I then decided that if he was cool with that fan, then he may be cool with me.

I walked up to him, and said “Hi Mr. Walton, I am a big fan.”

He smiled. That Bill Walton smile. He replied,”Hi my name is Bill.” He was so chill. I told him about a classmate of mine that was actually related to him. I think it was my classmate’s mom’s cousin’s daughter or something like that. Bill didn’t recognize the name. But that’s OK. Then changing the subject briefly, Bill said he really liked my shirt. I was wearing this NBA memed Beatles shirt. Of course he would like it. I had shook his hand and asked him if I could take a selfie real quick. As you can see above, he obliged.

Nike using the NFL to help with their NBA transition’s merchandise sales

We all know that Nike will be taking over the NBA’s uniform and merchandising after this season. Nike isn’t new to the NBA. They used to have a deal with them and they have been all over the college basketball scene.

But the other week I saw that they are adopting a basketball-cut style jersey for the NFL. A little weird but it makes sense. After all, with Nike going to the NBA, let’s see how they transition back to the pros. They have some experience in it but venturing out into this was a very smart move. It’s a little odd and I doubt many fans would get a basketball jersey for the NFL. But this helps Nike.

They can get a glimpse of the market, test out if they want to use new templates or fabrics. Or in the end, it’s just Nike taking this chance to once again show that they are back on top in the NBA.

Either way, it’s a very interesting way for Nike to seek out a small market of basketball jerseys in the NFL. They might learn something new from this and use it for their NBA contract.

Sharks unveil new logos because of marketing reasons

The San Jose Sharks announced that they will be using these new secondary logos for the upcoming campaign. They confirmed that these will not be used on uniforms but for various marketing and merchandising opportunities.

I don’t even know what the point is other than for money. I hope it doesn’t mean that somewhere down the line this might become the primary or the team may be emphasizing more white and less orange.

Overall, the logos are fine but it feels disconnected to the current team’s identity. But as long as it doesn’t make its way to the uniforms, I am OK with it. I guess…

Ichiro’s 3,000th MLB hit was just so Ichiro

This is Ichiro.

His power was unassuming. Yet here he is nearly driving the ball over the wall for his 3,000th MLB hit. He sped around the bases for a triple. Of course he would.

He didn’t over-celebrate. His teammates hugged him and he tipped his cap to the fans.

But this is the Ichiro we knew. Of course he’d leg out a stand up triple for the milestone. How else would Ichiro do it? What another great accomplishment to the greatest hitter (you can debate that) this league has ever seen.

Eddie DeBartolo’s Hall of Fame speech was special

This is Eddie DeBartolo’s Hall of Fame speech. This was a speech we have been waiting for a long time.

I personally love all the talk about family and that is what made Eddie D so beloved.

But it’s that final story about how Bill Walsh prepared a gift for Eddie D for his induction into the Hall of Fame. It just showed how wonderful that bond was. It was spectacular.

Watch the entire speech above.

Tape delay makes me not want to care about the Olympics again

.@NBC My channel guide says the opening ceremony doesn't start for another 3 hours. Are all these sportswriters tweeting from the future?

— Stewart Mandel (@slmandel) August 5, 2016

It’s crazy that the Olympics is on tape delay by NBC again. Even though it’s in the same time zone, it’s still tape delayed. Money hungry NBC won’t give us the goods.

People on the East Coast have to wait an hour before they can watch it. West Coasters have to wait four hours. This is ridiculous but NBC wants their money. I just can’t stand watching sporting events on tape delay. There is no fun in that. Maybe that’s why my care for the Olympics has not been strong. It’s just hard to care about something when the results have already been revealed.

I might watch the opening ceremony still but it won’t be any surprise since I will have read all the tweets and screenshots of everything already.

Besides, the summer Olympics doesn’t fascinate me. Give me the winter Olympics and curling!