College Football Picks: Week 14

After taking a one-week hiatus for the Thanksgiving break, I am back and better than ever (ok, probably not). But this is the final weekend of the regular season in college football, so there are games of some relative importance, including conference championships, and a game that will determine [in all likelihood] who makes it to the National Championship. And generally that's pretty important. But enough rambling.

(2) USC @ UCLA
It's pretty simple for USC... win, and they're almost certainly in the national championship. Again. UCLA has already accepted a bid to play in the Emerald Bowl (!) against Florida St., so all that's left to play for is pride. Looks like the Trojans are already making ticket plans for the BS Championship, and it's hard to blame them. Trojans are better offensively, better defensively, and a lot better coached. I'd like to think UCLA can win, and I'll be cheering for them, but my optimism about Bruin football isn't very high. USC 38-17.

(16) Wake Forest vs. (23) Georgia Tech
This is your ACC Championship game! Looking strictly at the team names, it seems underwhelming, but (as is obvious by the records) both teams have had very nice years, though it's hard for me to wrap my head around the fact that Wake Forest could be in a BCS Bowl. Georgia Tech has the best player in this game in Calvin Johnson, but the guy throwing him the ball hasn't been all that good. For the 4th straight year Reggie Ball's completion % went down, all the way to where it now sits at 45.8%. Make no mistake, that's pretty awful. For Wake, they're not flashy, they're not the most talented team, but they get the job done. I expect them to find a way to get it done one more time and continue the dream. WAKE FOREST 20-17.

(13) Rutgers @ (15) West Virginia
After both teams lost a game they shouldn't have in recent weeks, this game has lost a little bit of its luster. However, it's maintained its importance. For Rutgers, its simple... win, and they're in a BCS Bowl. Lose, and they're not. After losing to Cincy, they bounced back to dominate Cuse, and will be coming into this game highly motivated. Obviously they are led by their fantastic rushing attack and defense, with Ray Rice being a fringe Heisman candidate. But as good as their rushing attack is, it's not comparable to West Virginia's at this point. Both Steve Slaton and Pat White are over 1000 yards and averaging over 7 yards a carry. They've combined to run for 31 TDs. Pat White may not have a great arm, but I think the Mountaineer's come in with something to prove, and I'm not sure Rutgers will be fast enough to slow the offense down. WEST VIRGINIA 27-21.

(19) Nebraska vs. (8) Oklahoma
By a show of hands (ok, that might not work here) how many of you thought Oklahoma would be in the Big 12 Title Game after Adrian Peterson went down? I know I sure didn't. But thanks to the magic of Bob Stoops combined with the late season meltdown from Texas, and here the Sooners are. On the backs of a solid defense and surprisingly solid offense, they might be a contender for the national title if the refs in the Oregon game had made the right calls. But that's neither here nor there. For the Huskers, they have a balanced offense capable of scoring lots of points. Zac Taylor has been an efficient leader of the offense, while Brandon Jackson and Marlon Lucky provide balance in the run game. Oklahoma will try to pound the ball and run the clock, but I like this Nebraska offense. I think they'll have just enough to get by. NEBRASKA 23-21.

(4) Florida vs. (8) Arkansas
Admittedly, this game lost a little bit of luster after Arkansas lost last week, but it's still a very intriguing matchup between two teams with different styles. Florida can't really run the ball, Arkansas can't really throw the ball. With Adrian Peterson injured, Darren McFadden is the best RB in the nation right now. He returns kicks, he's got speed, power, and even the ability to line up at QB. Combined with Felix Jones, they have the best backfield in the nation. For Florida's offense, everything comes off of the passing game. Chris Leak is experienced, and when he's not getting pressured much extremely accurate. In short yardage, Tim Tebow's a weapon. What does it all mean? Well, I just can't get over watching that Arkansas/LSU game and watching Casey Dick try to throw on LSU. I don't know of many teams that are markedly better when their QB is OUT of the game, but that was Arkansas last week. Florida's defense is no pushover either. FLORIDA 17-16.

Last Picks: 3-2
Season: 40-20

Podcast worth listening to

Normally I'm not a guy for podcasts (or sports radio), but I have made an exception.

This one is run by a couple of guys I know, one of them being the writer of Divine Interception. But the podcast itself is called "The Sam and Sam Show," obviously starring a couple of guys named Sam, both of whom I've known online for awhile now and both of whom I can vouch know their stuff.

As from the site, their show this week contains:

Today, Jonathan Forman joins us on the Sam and Sam Show as we catch up on the ridiculous baseball free agent signings. Also, Michael Strahan on the prowl, Tony Romo’s “ancestors”, Carlos Lee’s weight problem, Mark McGwire’s HOF bid, Ben Wallace’s headband issues, the BCS and Week 13 NFL picks.

Today is the first chance for all you listeners to win free baseball memorabilia in 360’s Reel Baseball Giveaway. Our first question was announced in the show. Check it out.

A lot of what they say, especially on the topic of baseball free agents agrees with what I wrote about it, which only enhances their credibility! For example, it was pretty much agreed that Juan Pierre sucks and was an awful signing. Lots of great topics, lots of good stuff on there.

So there you have it. Listen to lots of good sports talk and maybe even win a baseball book. From what I understand you can even listen to it on iTunes. What could be better?

The Sam and Sam Show

Chris Paul or Deron Williams?

At the end of last season, it looked pretty obvious to a lot of NBA followers that the Utah Jazz had made a mistake on draft day when took Deron Williams over Chris Paul. Not that Williams played poorly, but Paul was just so good. He was the NBA Rookie of the Year, and in an even greater achievement, was named the first team PG on my 2011 All-NBA team (ok, maybe that's not the greater achievement).

But this year Deron Williams has evened the playing field a little bit. He appears to have lost some weight, is a little quicker, and is playing some great basketball for the 13-3 Utah Jazz. Which begs the question, if the Jazz had to do it all over again, would they take Deron Williams or Chris Paul? Let's take a quick look at the numbers.

First Paul, the incumbent PG of the future. He has continued to be excellent, upping his scoring average from 16.1 PPG to 17.9 PPG this year. Likewise, the Assists per Game are almost 1, to 8.6 APG so far this year. The rebound numbers are down a little, but still a solid 3.9 a game. He's also getting 2 steals a game.

As for Deron Williams, all the numbers are up. He's up to 17.1 PPG and 9.0 APG, which is 4th in the NBA (Paul is 5th). His 3-point shooting is down a little bit, but he's making 30% of those. Like Paul, he's averaging about 3 turnovers per game, for a solid 3:1 Assist: TO ratio.

So what does it all mean? Well, I'd take either on my team. Deron Williams is the better outside shooter of the two... his FG% is higher, and the 3 point% is much higher (and smartly, Paul tends to avoid taking 3s). As is obvious by the high assist totals, both are excellent at finding teammates and creating easy shots for others. Both are solid defensively, with probably a slight edge to Paul.

So who's my choice? Well, for all of the great work Deron Williams has done, I'm still on the Chris Paul Bandwagon. Williams has caught up to Paul in a lot of categories, but Paul is still better at getting to the rim and getting to the FT Line. This year Williams has gotten only about 3 FT attempts per game, while Paul has had 5.4 (and 6 per game last year). This helps obviously to get teams in foul trouble, but also to get easier points and not be as reliant on the outside game.

So while Williams is greatly improved from his rookie year, I'd still take Paul. But really, you can't go wrong with either guy.

If you were the GM of the Jazz, and you could go back in time, which PG would you take?

UEFA CUP NEWS. SPANISH TEAMS SEVILLE FC & OSASUNA WIN COMFORTABLY

UEFA Cup night & two Spanishteams have played their games.Both SEVILLE FC & OSASUNAhave won their respective matches with goals & great play.In the case of Seville, they continuein their fantastic form, playing abeautiful stylish game. Osasunawho is not going so well locallyhave played a gutsy match to stayalive in the UEFA competition.DANIEL ALVES stood out for his team scoring twice as pictured

Update on David Stern and NBA Player Autonomy

An update on our coverage of David Stern and the NBA's recent efforts to regulate NBA player behavior (a subject which I examine here and here, and be sure to check out the excellent reader comments associated with those posts):

1) I was interviewed by True Hoop's Henry Abbot on his podcast show and we talked about David Stern and the NBA. The interview lasts about a half hour and can be heard at this link. For a written description of the interview, check out this link. It was a lot of fun to be on the show and thanks to Henry for having me on.

2) T.J. from Michael Redd Boat Ashore has an excellent reply to my reply from yesterday on NBA player autonomy. T.J. is a very thoughtful and insightful writer and his analysis makes for a great back-and-forth exchange. I'll definitely be reading his blog regularly, he has some great commentary.

3) Skip Oliva, President of the Voluntary Trade Council, e-mails me this comment:

Stern's actions should raise serious "corporate governance" concerns. In what other business is a CEO permitted to silence shareholders who criticize management? If a publicly-traded company imposed such a gag rule, it would obviously be ignored, and I doubt the SEC would be happy.

4) Gregory Bowman, a colleague on my faculty and author of Law Career Blog, e-mails me this comment:

One interesting issue, from a league structural perspective, really is "Why do we care?" Sports says a lot about our society, so we enjoy sports. But why should we care about who has the power, and the money, and the ability to shape the future of the sport? When we just look at sports as its own little microcosmic view of society, do we really care who has the power? If so, why, and what should the power structure be? Or perhaps more appropriately, what should the rules be for how power shifts amongst owners/the league, the players, and the municipalities that benefit from (and sometimes support) these teams?

MAX MERKEL EX ATLETICO DE MADRID COACH DIES AT 87

Sad loss today for ATLETICO DEMADRID , SPANISH & WORLDFOOTBALL fans.Austrian coach MAX MERKEL has passed away at the age of87.He is loved , specially by At.Madridfans for coaching & taking the teamto win the SPANISH CUP ( 1972) &SPANISH 1º DIVISION TITLE ( 1973).He also coached SEVILLE FC, Borussia Dortmund, Schalke04, Augsburg & Karlstruhe.Rest in peace Atletico!

David Dunn Accepts 18-Month Suspension

Two weeks ago, I raised some questions regarding the proper role of unions in disciplining agents and mentioned that agent David Dunn was appealing the NFLPA's 2-year suspension of his license. This week in Street & Smith's Sports Business Journal, Liz Mullen reports that Dunn and the NFLPA avoided arbitration and agreed to an 18-month suspension ["Dunn and NFLPA agree suspension will last 18 months" (subscription required)]. According to NFLPA general counsel Richard Berthelsen, “This suspension will take Dunn through two drafts and two free agency periods, so it is essentially equivalent to a two-year suspension.”

The NFLPA's agent regulations mandate that all disputes be resolved through arbitration. The settlement evidences that Dunn didn't think he had any chance whatsover in defending his case in front of the NFLPA's arbitrator, Roger Kaplan. As Berthelsen correctly notes, the end result here is essentially a 2-year suspension, which is no different than the suspension originally imposed by the NFLPA. So does that really constitute a settlement?

Dunn represents over 60 NFL players. The ramifications of this suspension, which include the strong likelihood that he will lose clients to other agents as well as the lost revenue on contracts he would have negotiated during this 18-month period, would seem to give Dunn every incentive to vigorously fight it. He could have at least tried to convince the arbitrator to reduce the suspension to one year. So why didn't he?

The NFLPA's agent regulations regarding the selection of an arbitrator state: "The NFLPA shall select a skilled and experienced person to serve as the outside impartial Arbitrator for all cases arising hereunder." There is also a provision stating that the fees and expenses of the arbitrator shall be borne by the NFLPA. These provisions raise some interesting questions. Is an arbitrator that is selected, and paid for, by one of the parties to a dispute really "impartial"? Maybe Dunn's decision to accept the suspension was influenced, in part, because he doesn't feel Kaplan can be impartial. And when the same arbitrator is selected on a continuous basis, is he really an "outside" arbitrator or does he gradually evolve into an "insider" through repeated use?

The counter argument is that, by deciding to represent players, agents consent to all of the union's agent regulations. But are agents really consenting when they have no choice or ability to negotiate any of the provisions? Could it be argued that union agent regulations are adhesion contracts?

CHELSEA EYES VALENCIA CF FORWARD DAVID VILLA

The English tabloid "TheSun" has been picked upby Spanish Football press,with the news that CHELSEA FC is interestedin the services of SpanishInternational & VALENCIACF striker DAVID VILLA.The transfer market opensup in January 2007 - "WinterMarket" - & Chelsea arewilling to pay 33M€ to getthe lad over to "StanfordBridge".SFS personally doubts that DAVID VILLA will leave Spain or Valencia foran

A look at the ACC/Big 10 Challenge

As always at this time of year, we've got some interesting matchups in the ACC/Big 10 Challenge. Historically, the ACC is 7-0 in these challenges and things point to them making it 8-0, but there are some intriguing subplots nonetheless. Here's a look at what happened today:

(10) Duke 54, Indiana 51
For all of the talk about Josh McRoberts and Greg Paulus, I'm not even sure they're that good. Ok, McRoberts is a very athletic big man, dribbles well for his size, and is a good passer. But as a #1 scorer? I've not been convinced. He had 7 points against the Hoosiers and is only averaging about 11. As for Paulus, I think he was ok last year when he didn't have to do much. I'm not convinced he can do any more than just be a caretaker for the offense. He can't shoot, he can't get to the hole that well, and he's not quick enough defensively to stick with quick PGs. Ok, Duke won, but that does not mean all is well for the Dukies.

(13) Wisconsin 81, Florida St. 66
Someone wrote this, and I don't remember who, but FSU is like the Michigan of the ACC. They always seem like they have the talent to do things, but they never do. I mean, losing at Pittsburgh and then at Wisconsin is not unreasonable by any means... but they've just looked so bad doing it. Wisconsin, meanwhile, looks strong as expected. They are deep, talented, and one of the top 2 teams in the Big 10.

(19) Maryland 72, Illinois 66
Very interesting matchup here, as Maryland snapped a very long Illinois non-conference home winning streak, continuing their great run to start the year. The Terps are now 8-0 and one of the most impressive teams in the country. With the Terps youth/experience blend, they very well could be the second best team in the ACC after North Carolina. Duke is down, BC is not playing well, and Georgia Tech is still very young. At the very least, a return trip to the NCAAs is in order for the Terps.

(24) Georgia Tech 77, Penn St. 73
I know the Nittany Lions have had a tough loss earlier this year to Stony Brook, but they're still a solid ballclub. Geary Claxton and Jamelle Cornley are one of the top duos in the Big 10. But once again, GT got things done. Javaris Crittenton scored 14 points and doled out 5 assists, while Lewis Clinch continues to just knock down shots, draining 4 threes on his way to 20 points. Nice win for the Yellow Jackets as they try to distance themselves a little from the middle of the pack in the ACC.

Northwestern 61, Miami 59
Move along, nothing to see here.

ACC holds the 4-2 lead so far, with a few more games remaining. Here are the games to be played Wednesday, with my picks in bold.

Michigan St. @ Boston College
Iowa @ Virginia Tech
Virginia @ Purdue
Ohio St. @ North Carolina
Clemson @ Minnesota

CANNAVARO - FRANCE FOOTBALL GOLDEN BALL 2006 WINNER. HAVE YOUR SAY IN SFS BLOG

Controversial decision, 24 hours later & the World Football pressis in full debate if Real Madrid & Italian defender CANNAVARO deserves to win over Buffon, Henry, Ronaldinho...etc.SFS would like to ask its readers for their opinion & comments:Do you think its the right decision?Who would you have given the prize to?

Loyola L.A. to Host Symposium on Collective Bargaining & Individual Contract Negotiation in Pro Sports

Loyola-LA's Sports Law Institute will host what looks to be an interesting symposium on January 26, 2007. The best part is that law students from any law school will be admitted free. Panels include "Q & A on entry into sports law," "Individual Contract Negotiation," and "Collective Bargaining." The symposium looks to have a good slate of speakers. Check out the full brochure here.

NBA Player Autonomy: How Should We Define It?

On Tuesday, I posted on recent efforts by the NBA and Commissioner David Stern to regulate NBA players, and to do so without the consent of the players' association. I also discussed how some owners appear to be finding Stern's style a bit too autocratic, and how these topics tied into some of my scholarly research. The post generated great discussion in the comments and also the websites that are linked from it.

In response to the post, T.J. from the blog Michael Redd Your Boat Ashore has posted a highly substantive, 1,500+ word review of my law review article The Reckless Pursuit of Dominion: A Situational Analysis of the NBA and Diminishing Player Autonomy, 8 University of Pennsylvania Journal of Labor & Employment Law 819 (2006). The review is thoughtful and balanced, and I am incredibly grateful that someone would take the time to read my stuff and respond to it so carefully. It's the same reason why we appreciate you reading our blog and making comments.

In terms of T.J.'s questions, he is correct to say that I never specifically define "player autonomy" in the article. It's an amorphous phrase, no doubt, and a phrase that can be perceived differently by different people. However, there are patterns of behavior that perhaps give some life and even specificity to it. For instance, if players object to a league-instituted dress code and believe it is a mixture of condescension and overbearingness that infringes upon their right to be who they are in ways that don't affect the lives of other people (i.e., the clothing other people wear should not bear on other people around them, perhaps save for not wearing any clothing or clothing that contains expletives), and they have no choice but to abide by it--it's not, for instance, a team rule or a collectively-bargained one, and pro basketball isn't a sport where there are rival and equivalent leagues offering substitute employment opportunities--that can be suggestive of autonomy. Autonomy can also relate to race and culture, a topic that has been raised in regards to the dress code and whether it endorses the clothing of one demographic group while condemning that of another. In those respects, autonomy, as I conceive it, is more of a situational concept than a rigid one. In that same vein, some principles obviously can't have bright-lines, but are nevertheless worthy, and autonomy, in my view, is one of them.

T.J. also asks about the appropriate limits of an autonomy argument. For instance, he asks if it includes Bulls' head coach Scott Skiles enforcing a team rule that prohibits Ben Wallace from wearing a headband. My response is to first consider that Ben Wallace choose to sign with the Bulls, which already had a rule in place against headbands. That's a materially different fact-pattern from a league instituting a rule that affects all players, particularly after they have already entered the league and particularly without the protection of collective bargaining. There is no question that Wallace would argue that his autonomy should include the option of wearing a headband (and there are even medicinal reasons for wearing a headband, such as not letting sweat get into one's eyes, but that's a separate argument). But Wallace's argument is undercut by his own behavior. He could have easily signed with another team as a free agent, and yet opted for the Bulls (much like Johnny Damon signing with the Yankees and having to abide by their appearance code). In law, we might call that an "assumption of risk"; in contrast, a unilaterally-imposed, league-instituted dress rule obviously presents no alternatives for players--they can't sign with a particular team and not have to deal with it--and it also circumvents collective bargaining.

Maybe a more difficult example would be if the Bulls drafted a player who likes to wear headbands, and now he can't. Hypothetically, let's go back to the 2003 Draft and assume the Bulls, and not the Nuggets, have the number three pick. And Carmelo Anthony--he of the headband--is on the board. And the Bulls draft him. And they tell him, look Carmelo, we think you're great but the headband has to go, we have a team rule against it. What would be Carmelo's options?

First off, consider that some would argue the draft itself is an infringement on player autonomy. Players have to play for a particular team in a particular city, neither of which they may like, and the only alternative would be to play minor league hoops or play in Europe; it's like being a law student at UCLA and planning to practice in L.A., but then there is a law firm draft and you get picked by a law firm in Bismarck North Dakota, and have to stay there for at least four years or you can't practice law in the U.S. (or at least practice law in the U.S. without having to give up 95% of your salary). For related commentary on this, check out Alan Milstein's post Reggie Bush Sweepstakes from last December.

But even if the draft (and also the rookie salary scale) aren't infringements on player autonomy, would the Bulls' rule infringe upon Carmelo's autonomy? One could say that Carmelo can still get around the rule and continue with his NBA career, because if he really cares that much about the headband, he can holdout and not get paid and hope the Bulls eventually either carve out an exception to the rule or trade him to a team that doesn't have the rule. And there are NBA teams that do not have this rule and that would love to have Carmelo, and in this alternative history, the Bulls drafted Carmelo knowing that he likes to wear a headband. So I suppose one could say that Carmelo's autonomy here remains, at least in some form. Contrastingly, with the league-imposed dress code, there aren't any teams that can opt out of it for players who don't like it; it is a league-imposed rule.

But let me argue against myself on that point. Couldn't a group of NBA players, from various teams, simply not show up to work and hope the NBA relents on the dress code, much like Carmelo could not show up and hope the Bulls change their policy (or trade him)? Yes, but the reality is that neither Carmelo nor the players would likely do so because each manifestation of one's autonomy has some finite value, particularly in relation to other forms of one's autonomy and also one's practical considerations, such as earning a paycheck. But that doesn't make the infringement right or socially-desirable. It just means that it only hurts a player "less" than would be required to keep his autonomy.

This post is probably too long, but just to quickly respond to T.J. on couple of other comments:

1) My statistical research was assessed and confirmed by two editors of ESPN the Magazine and two producers at HBO when I was on the Bob Costas show in 2005, as well as the editorial staffs of four law reviews (Case Western Reserve Law Review, Brooklyn Law Review, the University of Pennsylvania Journal of Labor and Employment Law, and the Virginia Sports and Entertainment Law Journal). There is no "statistical sleight of hand," as you put it.

2) I whole-heartedly disagree with your remark "I find it off-putting to employ the discourse of labor rights in a conversation about multi-million dollar athletes. I prefer to save the efficacy of that language for underpaid blue-collar laborers, undocumented immigrants, and sex workers-just to name a few." You are basically saying that the fact that these guys make a lot of money means their autonomy is not really a concern for you. Aren't they still people or do they somehow become less human because they make a lot of money? Or is it their wealth as much as who they are that bothers you: would you feel the same way about Bill Gates as you do about Allen Iverson?

What has been the worst FA signing so far this offseason?

Call it inflation. Call it teams having money to spend. Call it whatever you want. But there's no denying that there are some awful contracts being doled out right now in the MLB. Which one is the worst? Well, I'm on the case to find out.

The four that stick out most to me are Alfonso Soriano (8 years/$138 million), Carlos Lee (6 years, $100 million), Gary Matthews Jr. (5 years/$50 million), and Juan Pierre (5 years /$45 million).

If Gary Matthews can perform like he did this year (doubtful, but you never know), then $10 million/year is decently reasonable, so I'll take his name off the list. Carlos Lee's 6 year deal at over $16 million per is excessive in most markets, but almost looks reasonable after Soriano's deal. So I'll toss him out of consideration as well.

Which leaves us with just Alfonso Soriano's deal with the Cubs and Juan Pierre's deal with the Dodgers. Both awful, but which is worse? First, let's look at Soriano's.

No denying Soriano was solid last year. Heck, at the reported age of 30, it was the best season of his career. Can he keep it up? For a couple of years, maybe. For 8 years? Not a chance. One of Soriano's best talents is that he's really fast. Unfortunately, that tends to go quickly with age. And another thing is that even though he is fast, he's not that good at stealing bases. 41 SB is nice, but it's counterproductive when you get caught 17 times. Then there is his most glaring weakness... he's not that good at getting on base (and neither were the Cubs last year). The .351 OBP was ok, but again, can he keep that up. Then there's also the fact that the Cubs will ask him to play CF, which he's never been done before. All in all, if they signed up for $18 million per for 4 or 5 years, ok, that's a little more reasonable. But 8 years? By the time the contract is over, he'll be 39, have less power, less speed, and will probably not be a good player. But the Cubs will still be paying him like it.

Then there's Juan Pierre. He'll be getting $9 million a year to get on base at a below average rate, hit for no power, play bad defense, and steal bases at an ok rate. Everything about his game is predicated on speed... stolen bases, no power, etc. And of course, speed is generally one of the first things to go. He was good in 2004, below average in 2005, and even worse in 2006. That's generally not a good trend. He's a 4th OF type making $9 million a year... I need to hire his agent, I think.

Verdict: Alfonso Soriano's deal was really bad, but at least he'll have to chance to be worth something close to what he's making. Juan Pierre has no shot to be worth $9 million a year at any point in his contract. Which makes the Dodgers signing of Juan Pierre for $45 million over 5 years the worst deal of this offseason.

Mimicking Japan and Cuba? Hugo Chávez to Restrict Access to Venezuelan Baseball Players

Graham Dunbar of The London Times has an interesting article on Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez's plans to restrict Venezuelan baseball players who seek to play in the United States ("Game Over? Politics May Pitch Baseball into a Crisis," Nov. 25, 2006). Currently, Venezuelan players, like Dominican and other Latin (but not Cuban) and South American players, can be directly recruited by Major League Baseball teams, and can be signed by as young as 16. Indeed, amateur baseball players from countries that are not subject to the MLB Draft, an agreement between MLB and the host league (Japanese Professional Baseball), or law (Cuba), may be signed by any Major League organization at age 16, provided they turn 17 prior to either the end of the baseball season in which they are signed or September first of the year in which they are signed. In contrast, if an amateur baseball player is from the United States, including its territories, or Canada, he can only sign with a Major League organization if he first enters the MLB draft, and he must have graduated from high school.

With this less regulated set-up for signing most international players, including Venezuelans, nine MLB teams have invested millions of dollars in setting up baseball academies in Venezuela, and most have set up at least one academy abroad. As a result, "changing the rules" on how big league teams sign Venezuelan players could jeopardize those teams' investments in academies and recruiting. It could also curtail the influx of Venezuelan players into the United States. It probably goes without saying, but there a number of terrific Venezuelan players in the big leagues, including Johan Santana, Bobby Abreu, and Magglio Ordóñez, and many top prospects are on the way.

Here are some key excerpts from Dunbar's piece:

Baseball fans in both countries fear that President Chávez may deprive the American game of one of its prime assets — the flow of rich talent from Venezuela.

One of the greatest concerns among the middle class, who increasingly steer their sons towards baseball academies rather than academic college, is that Mr Chávez will close the domestic professional league and restrict the rights of sportsmen to play in America. Ron Rizzi, a scout for the Los Angeles Dodgers, has served the game for 39 years and has been coming to Venezuela to watch players for the past decade. He said: “Chávez is so anti-US that he may inhibit players’ ability to get there. If he wins the election they might have to come out on a boat.”

It's not entirely clear what Chávez--who is up for re-election next month--actually plans to do, but he's no doubt hoping to extract more money from MLB teams that pursue Venezuelan players.

I have no idea if there is any connection between Chávez's plans and the $51 million the Red Sox are paying Daisuke Matsuzaka's Japanese team, the Seibu Lions, for the right to negotiate with him, but the timing seems noteworthy. After-all, the arrangement between MLB and Japanese baseball is far from a free market, and requires a complex posting procedure that involves MLB teams bidding for the right to bid for Japanese players. So maybe Chávez wants to build a competitive Venezuelan professional league that would justify a posting system, and perhaps Chávez figures that if MLB is willing to capitulate to Japanese baseball, then it would do the same with him. And if he's right, then other Latin countries could follow in his lead, which in turn would seem to boost Chávez's political stock in Latin and South American countries as a regional leader.

Or maybe Chávez, who is said to idolize Fidel Castro, simply wants Venezuelan baseball to mimic Cuban baseball, where it's nearly impossible for players to leave in the absence of defection, which itself is often dangerous, both for the players and their families. That doesn't seem like a terribly good ambition.

Or maybe, and in Chávez's defense, he's genuinely trying to improve the conditions under which Venezuelan players are signed by big league teams. After-all, a number of thoughtful observers have criticized MLB baseball academies as symbolic of American imperialism and exploitative of economically-disadvantaged countries. For instance, check out the following:

• Marcos Bretón, Fields of Broken Dreams: Latinos and Baseball, Color Lines (2000)

• Alan M. Klien, Sugarball: The American Game, The Dominican Dream (1991)

• Colman McCarthy, Bittersweet Stint in Big Leagues, Baltimore Sun (2001)

• Rita Mukerji, Review of Alan M. Klien's Sugarball (1999)
  

• Vanessa Marie Zimmer, Dragging Their Devotion: The Role of International Law in Major League Baseball's Dominican Affairs, 4 Northwestern University Journal of International Human Rights 418 (2005)

Related Coverage on Sports Law Blog:
The Citgo Sign Behind Fenway Park and Fearing Hugo Chávez
Bidding for Matsuzaka Poses Interesting Legal Issues

One Man's NFL Power Rankings

We are 12 weeks into the NFL season, and I must admit I still pretty much don't have this NFL thing figured out (Raiders almost beating the Chargers? Titans scoring 24 unanswered points?). Of course, this only makes me all the more qualified to contribute a list of my NFL Power Rankings, or at least the Top 10 teams as I see them. But I will delay no longer.

1. Indianapolis Colts - Edgerrin James who? As The Edge wastes away down in Arizona, Joseph Addai is doing just fine, thank you very much. Despite Indy's seeming insistence on giving Dominic Rhodes carries, Addai managed to rush for a not-so-pedestrian 171 yards and 4 TD against the Eagles. And just for good measure he had 37 receiving yards. Yeah, he's pretty decent.

2. San Diego Chargers - Ok, so they squeaked by the Raiders. I'll give them a pass. They still have league MVP LaDainian Tomlinson joining talented Philip Rivers in the backfield. The defense ain't so shabby either. They sometimes lose focus against lesser teams, but now that it looks like Marty Ball has gone out the window, the Chargers are a force to be reckoned with.

3. Baltimore Ravens - All season long I've been ragging on "Air" McNair and saying that he's pretty much washed up, and while he's not his old self, he's still got something left in the tank. And with the Baltimore defense, that makes them very dangerous. However, if I were a Ravens fan, the biggest concern for me would be with the fact that Jamal Lewis is averaging only 3.5 YPC, and that could put a lot of pressure on McNair come playoff time.

4. New England Patriots - I have a hard time figuring the Pats out... by all accounts, you should lose when you turn the ball over 5 times, but I never really felt like they were not in control against Chicago. Maybe that's just because I've become such an unbashed Tom Brady lover. He moves around better in the pocket than anyone in the NFL.

5. Chicago Bears - The Bears will not win the Super Bowl with Rex Grossman as their quarterback (for the record, I wrote this even before I read The Sports Pulse!) I don't care how tantalizingly good he's looked at times this year, or how good the Bears defense is. Put a little pressure on Rex and he starts to rush throws, make bad decisions, force the ball, and throw off his back foot. His two best plays against New England were when he threw ducks off his back foot and then got bailed out by pass interference calls. He was awful today.

6. Denver Broncos - I fully endorse the move to Jay Cutler as starter and think it will benefit Denver. Plummer is ok when you have a great run game and a great defense, and at times the Broncos have had that. At other times the run game has become inconsistent, and they've tried to rely on Plummer. More often than not that has failed miserably.

7. Dallas Cowboys - I believe in a thing called Romo. I mean, obviously this has been beaten to death, but how good has he been? Poised, accurate, and fairly mobile. With him at QB I have the Cowboys just a smidgen behind Chicago, but with another week like this one I might have to reconsider that.

8. Kansas City Chiefs - With all due respect to LDT, I would probably take Larry Johnson as a runner over him. Tomlinson's more versatile all-around, but LJ is bigger and stronger as a runner. In the games that Johnson rushes for 100 yards, the Chiefs are 6-1. In the games that he fails to reach the century mark they are 1-3. Correlation does not always equal causation, but suffice to say Johnson is pretty important.

9. Seattle Seahawks - Seneca Wallace did a very nice job of keeping things afloat in Seattle while both Matt Hasselbeck and Shaun Alexander out. As a result, the Seahawks still have the division lead and everything is looking rosy in Seattle. As long as they beat GB Monday night.

10. New Orleans Saints - Tomlinson is probably the MVP of the NFL so far, but Drew Brees is on the short list. He continues to be excellent for the Saints, and even has a shot at breaking Dan Marino's passing yards record for a single season. And the rest of the offensive weapons aren't so bad either. Deuce and Reggie Bush are a formidable duo, and the WR corps is getting better every week. This is an offense that is to be reckoned with.

So where did I go horribly wrong? What does your top 5 look like?

SPANISH FOOTBALL - "LA LIGA". ROUND 12 RESULTS & SCORERS

Fantastic round 12 of "LA LIGA" with 32 goals ( maximum so far thisseason for any round), with goals of extreme beauty & greatly foughtgames.The big match this Sunday was the VALENCIA CF v REAL MADRIDclash in which REAL won, after Valencia dominanted & missed plentyof chances. The football maxim of ..."those who miss lose", came true.Real Madrid via its Italian coach Capello applied a classical

Danish sport newspapers

Danish newspapers participate to the social and political life of the country. Sport newspapers are very well represented, every major newspaper has it's own sport department. Danish sport newspapers write about popular sports like winter sports or team sports: football and handball where Denkark won many olympic, world and european medals.

Tips-bladet: www.tipsbladet.dk
Berlingske tidende: www.berlingske.dk/sport

Dagbladet Borsen: http://borsen.dk/?treeid=362

Ekstra Bladet: http://ekstrabladet.dk/sport/

Jyllands-Posten: http://www.jp.dk/sport/

Dagbladet Politien: http://politiken.dk/sport/

B.T.: http://www.bt.dk/sport/

SPANISH FOOTBALL ROUND 12 SATURDAY GAMES RESULTS & VIDEO OF RONALDINHO´S EXTRAORDINARY GOAL

Two games played this Saturday in Round 12 of "LA LIGA". ATLETICODE MADRID drew with REAL SOCIEDAD & FC BARCELONA wonagainst VILLAREALAtletico de Madrid played a weak & boring game & drew luckilyagainst a Real Sociedad side that at least took the iniciative.RONALDINHO was again the main "mover" & scorer for his side.He helped enormously in his team´s 4-0 win over Villareal.INIESTA got his name on

The Forbidden Fruit (or Cheeseburger): Deliberate Food Posioning of NFL Players?

Oakland Raiders' defensive tackle Warren Sapp probably eats a lot of food and probably eats it often. After-all, he weighs at least 300 pounds, and a good portion of his game is based on his ability to use his girth to flatten running backs.

But while on road trips, Sapp won't eat at restaurants. And that's because he believes that his meals were purposefully poisoned on at least three occasions from 1995 to 2003, during which time he played for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He claims that deliberate food poisoning was especially a problem when traveling to Philadelphia, so much so that he "even went so far as to book two hotel rooms -- one under an alias -- so he could order room service and not worry about his food." Sapp doesn't charge that the visiting teams had anything to do with the poisoning, only their diehard fans who happen to serve food.

Could Sapp be right? Keep in mind that Sapp may not have become sick on those occasions due to food poisoning; he might have instead caught a bug, which he attributed to something more sinister and purposeful, if less likely, such as a crazy Eagles fan--which actually is likely--poisoning his food (much less likely). It is sort of self-affirming to think that a fan is so afraid of what you could do to his favorite team on game day that the fan would actually try to stop you from playing. That's not to say that Sapp didn't suffer from food poisoning, but I could see why he might want to believe that his symptoms resulted from food poisoning rather than a cold or flu.

Also, Sapp says that he was poisoned on three occasions over an eight-year stretch. If he's correct, that does seem unusually often, unless, perhaps, he frequented Jack in the Box a bit too regularly. But even then, the food poisoning wouldn't have been intentional, only the result of gross negligence on the part of one of our nation's beloved fast food companies.

See Also
Hold the Spit, Please: Food and Beverage Security at Sporting Events
Hold the Blood, Please: More Concerns for Food Security

SPANISH FOOTBALL TEAMS IN EUROPE. FC BARCELONA & REAL MADRID CHAMPIONS LEAGUE VIDEOS

Hello Football fans across the globe, SFS posts 2 videos ofChampions League matches between LEVSKI - FCBARCELONA,& REAL MADRID - OLYMPIQUE DELYON. Watch all the goals[GR A] JOR-05 - Levski 0-2 Barça[GR E] JOR-05 - Real Madrid 2-2 OL Lyon

Happy Thanksgiving!

Obviously because of the Holiday weekend I'll be pretty much nonexistent on here until next week... I might come back to make some college football and NFL picks, but then again I might not.

Either way, enjoy the Thanksgiving holiday for all of you Americans... hope it's a good one!

CHAMPIONS LEAGUE. BARÇA & VALENCIA WIN

SFS would like to say sorry to its readers for the late actualizations,but its author is currently on a business trip that does´nt allow toactualize on time. SFS will however try its best to at least inform.FC BARCELONA & VALENCIA CF keep the Spanish flagflying high with wins in tonights Champions League matches.Barça won 0 - 2 against LEVSKI with goals by GIULY - pictured- & INIESTA.Below is the

Oakland Raiders Lose in Case Against Stadium

The Oakland Raiders, source of so many wonderful sagas of sports litigation (see here for another one), produced a new installment last week. The latest case concerns allegations that the team was duped into leaving Los Angeles based on mispresentations about season ticket sales made by the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum (OACC). The Raiders initially won a multimillion dollar jury verdict, although the award was far less than the amount sought. And, as reported here, in

a split opinion Friday, California's 3rd District Court of Appeal set aside a $34.2 million judgment that favored the football team, ruling that Davis and the Raiders gave up their right to sue for fraud when they reworked a 1995 lease agreement with the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum.

The court expalins in its opinion, Oakland Raiders v. Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum, Inc., 2006 WL 3334402 (Cal. App. Nov. 17 2006):

California law has, for more than a century, recognized that a plaintiff claiming to have been induced into signing a contract by fraud or deceit is deemed to have waived a claim of damages arising therefrom if, after discovery of the alleged fraud, he enters into a new contract with the defendant regarding the same subject matter that supersedes the former agreement and confers upon him significant benefits.

The court continued:

In this case, the Raiders admittedly discovered the falsity of the OACC's "sellout" representations regarding . . . ticket sales not later than the end of the 1995 football season. In 1996, without any mention of fraud, they negotiated and executed a new agreement concerning the same subject matter, which modified the rights of the parties, granted the Raiders significant benefits, and otherwise reaffirmed the validity and enforceability of the August 7 agreements. . . . [T]hese facts establish an implied waiver of the Raiders' claim for fraudulent inducement.

The Raiders also lost out on a bid for attorney fees, which will likely cost the franchise another $10 to $20 million.

This is why I place no significance in MLB Awards

Here's a quote from Aarom Gleeman that pretty much tells me all I need to know about the MVP Awards process:

The single most ridiculous of those five Mauer-less ballots without question comes from Joe Cowley, who covers the White Sox for the Chicago Sun-Times. Cowley somehow couldn't find a place for the MLB batting champion on his ballot, but did see fit to include a different catcher: Chicago's own A.J. Pierzynski (whom Cowley no doubt relied upon for juicy quotes throughout the season). For those of you wondering, here's how the two catchers compare:

Mauer beat Pierzynski by 52 points in batting average, 96 points in on-base percentage, and 71 points in slugging percentage, all while coming to the plate 65 more times. Mauer also caught the league's second-best pitching staff and threw out 38 percent of would-be basestealers, while Pierzynski caught a staff that surrendered 111 more runs and threw out just 22 percent of basestealers. Faced with that overwhelming evidence, Cowley gave Pierzynski a 10th-place vote and left Mauer off his ballot.

John Hickey of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer also left Mauer off his ballot, yet found room for Mariners left fielder Raul Ibanez, whose OPS was 67 points lower than Mauer's without even accounting for the massive difference in their defensive value. Joe Roderick, who covers the A's for the Contra Costa Times, left Mauer off his ballot while giving a second-place vote to Oakland's Frank Thomas and a 10th-place vote to Tejada, who won his aforementioned 2002 AL MVP with the A's.

Even Jason Williams, who covered Mauer all season for the St. Paul Pioneer Press, narrowly found room for him on his ballot with a 10th-place vote. Among the nine players Williams deemed more valuable than Mauer were four designated hitters. That's right, one of two Twins beat writers given a vote for AL MVP felt that four guys who didn't even play defense were more valuable than a Gold Glove-caliber catcher who batted .347. For better or worse, these are the people who made Morneau MVP.

Another Agent Suing NFLPA Over Due Process

In September, I discussed Carl Poston's lawsuit against the NFLPA claiming that the union violated its agent regulations when it imposed a 2-year suspension as a result of his dealings with the Redskins on behalf of his client LaVar Arrington, including a breach of the union's contractual obligation to provide a "neutral" arbitrator in which to appeal the suspension (because the arbitrator is selected, and paid for, by the union). Poston also claims that it's a conflict of interest for (1) union counsel Jeffrey Kessler to use certain information obtained in LaVar's grievance against the Redskins without LaVar's consent and (2) Kessler to pursue a disciplinary complaint against Poston (which Arrington opposes) because it's against the interest of Kessler's client (Arrington) to do so.

Two days ago, veteran agent Steve Weinberg filed a lawsuit claiming that the union stripped him of his past, present and future income and all of his NFL clients when the union decertified him back in 2003 for violations of the union's agent regulations. Weinberg is seeking $36,750,000 in damages -- $12,000,000 in compensatory damages and $24,750,000 in punitive damages. The press release, drafted by Weinberg's lawyer, states:

Weinberg believes that this lawsuit will show that he received disparate treatment from other contract advisors, partly for speaking out against the NFLPA's failure to abide by and enforce its own regulations. Weinberg also believes that discovery in this case will uncover certain valuable information that the NFLPA has previously kept from its members.

The NFLPA's ability to immediately strip an agent of his certification -- overnight and without due process -- has a chilling effect on all agents and stifles their advocacy for their players. The NFLPA took away Steve's livelihood and he wants it back. He's fighting for his constitutional rights. One day he had a livelihood and 42 NFL clients. The next day he had neither.

After the NFLPA immediately revoked his certification in February 2003, all 42 of Weinberg's NFL clients, including 25 free agent players, most of whom he was preparing to represent in upcoming free agent contract negotiations with NFL teams, suddenly were forced to seek out new player representatives. The suit contends that these NFL players were financially harmed by the NFLPA's actions against Weinberg, even though the mission and sole purpose of the NFLPA is to protect the players.

The NFLPA's agent regulations are the strictest of any of the unions' regulations, and the NFLPA (unlike the other players associations) obviously takes the position that enforcement of its regulations is the best way to combat agent misconduct. But stricter regulations and vigorous enforcement doesn't appear to be deterring agent misconduct. So here's my question: Is the huge expense of enforcement, as well as the time and expense involved in fighting lawsuits against agents, an efficient use of the union's resources?

After Weinberg was decertified, NFLPA general counsel Richard Berthelsen made an interesting remark: "Players aren't lawyers. They're players .... at the very least, the agent has an obligation to keep his players from being interfered with as they prepare for an important game." Berthelsen is absolutely right. In my recent Willamette Law Review article I take it one step further and discuss how even "permitted" player solicitation and recruitment by agents substantially interferes with players. I also discuss how the agent commission fee arrangement, combined with the rise in player salaries over the years, is providing a huge incentive for agents to vigorously compete for players, which naturally leads to agent misconduct in a variety of forms.

Last week, I raised some questions about the proper role of unions in disciplining agents. I question whether enforcement is the answer. It requires the union to make subjective assessments about particular agents over others as well as difficult factual determinations. And as the "exclusive" representative of the players under the NLRA, should the union be fighting claims brought by agents that it arbitrarily and unfairly applied its agent regulations?

Why not give players the option (not a requirement) of having a union representative negotiate the contract? With its access to information and highly qualified lawyers, the unions are arguably better equipped to negotiate contracts and oversee the process than agents anyways. One could argue that the utility of an agent is also diminished with respect to "rank and file" and "franchise tag" players that don't have much room to even negotiate. If a player then decides to go outside the union and hire his own agent and is harmed as a result, the union could say, "I told you so."

Report from Maui

Ok, I'm not actually in Maui... but I did watch the UCLA/Kentucky game and part of the Georgia Tech/Memphis game from the Maui Invitational, and here's what I saw.

- I only saw the last 10 minutes of the GT/Memphis game, and thank goodness for that! I kid you not when I saw the last 10 minutes took one hour real time. Lots of fouls, no flow, etc. A combined 64 fouls and 87 free throws shot. That's awful.

Onto the UCLA/Kentucky game... excellent ballgame all around as UCLA won 73-68. Here's what I noticed:

- Jordan Farmar was excellent for the Bruins last year, but thus far there has been absolutely no dropoff with Darren Collison in the lineup. The numbers were good (10 points, 7 assists, 4 rebounds, 3 steals), but it's everything else that is impressive. He is FAST, and gets down the court on the break in a hurry. He plays great pressure man-to-man defense (the area of the game where he is much better than Farmar ever was), and he is a very good passer. Backup PG is a little bit of a concern, but Darren Collison is just fine replacing Farmar.

- Ryan Hollins who? Excellent game for Lorenzo Mata down low, with 12 points and 12 rebounds. He flashed some moves with his back to the basket, but more importantly was excellent on the glass and held Morris to only 11 points (though UK guards helped there).

- UCLA is definitely one of the top defensive teams in the country. As excellent as Collison is man-to-man, Arron Afflalo is even better. Down low, they've got lots of depth that all play solid defense... Mata, Alfred Aboya, Ryan Wright, etc. And then there's Luc Richard Mbah a Moute, kind of a hybrid defender... he can block shots down low, and he's athletic enough to get outside and guard. And all of this with the attitude of Ben Howland. They're a fun defensive unit to watch.

- I've heard lots of talk about how improved Kentucky will be this year... and they are... but I think not as much as people think. Randolph Morris is their only real threat on the block, and that leaves the guards to do a lot of dribbling. At times Ramel Bradley and Joe Crawford can just become black holes and just dribble seemingly endlessly, and that destroys any flow. I don't see them being higher than a 6 seed in the Tourney at all.

- Kentucky's best player was freshman Derrick Jasper. He scored 12 points (on 4 shots), grabbed 8 rebounds, and doled out 4 assists. He was unselfish, confident going to the hoop, and provided the spark the Wildcats needed to get back in the ballgame in the first half. Very impressive day for him.

- UCLA was 2/19 from downtown and 13/23 from the FT line... and they still won by 5. I don't think Ben Howland can be too upset about that.

UCLA vs. Georgia Tech Wednesday at 9 PM CST for the Maui Invitational Title... I like UCLA's experience and defensive toughness to be the difference here. Once GT slowed the game down against Memphis the Tigers could not handle it... UCLA will not have that same problem.

CHAMPIONS LEAGUE: REAL MADRID FIGHTS BACK TO DRAW

SFS is currently on a business trip & is trying to keep up withevents. This post is going to be a quick round up of the REALMADRID - OLYMPIQUE DE LYON match will I found time toview.Great match with 2 contrasting sides; the 1 half all Lyon & the2 half a gutsy Real pulling back a draw. Recovering pridematerial.CAREW scored for Lyon first & was a star, great match & verydangerous.MALOUDA scored

A Revolution Against David Stern and Creeping Orwellianism?

Dictatorships are never popular, at least in hindsight. They always seem to crumble as people tire of losing their freedom and being told what to do. Perhaps that is why Victor Hugo once said,"When dictatorship is a fact, revolution is a right."

While events over the last week do not necessarily suggest a brewing "revolution" against NBA commissioner David Stern, they do indicate that professional sports' most powerful and arguably controlling commissioner may be headed for some rough waters. Here are some of the key events:

I. Nutrition, Power, and Going Around Collective Bargaining

As detailed by Liz Robbins in the New York Times, the National Basketball Players Association, without the permission or acquiescence of the NBA, has entered into a one-year promotional agreement with Abbott Nutrition. The terms of the deal are not terribly earth-shattering, but the motivations of the NBPA are: the NBPA is tired of the NBA unilaterally imposing rules, such as with the dress code and the new ball:

The union’s unilateral action — albeit over energy bars and protein shakes — comes as [NBPA Executive Director Billy] Hunter is voicing strong objections to the N.B.A.’s actions. He said he was frustrated that the league had not consulted the union on decisions ranging from the dress code to the new ball to the officials’ crackdown on complaining. If the agreement with EAS is not a pre-emptive strike, then it is a sign of an increasingly strained relationship between the union and the N.B.A.

“A lot of that has been precipitated by the league, the moves that the commissioner has decided to make and implement — many we feel are beyond scope of the collective bargaining agreement,” Hunter said. “At a minimum, we should have been consulted. As a result, maybe I feel less compelled to consult them on things.”

II. Working Conditions, Race, and Unfair Labor Charges

The NBA's insistence on using a new kind of basketball with different microfibers has drawn harsh rebuke from a number of players. Basically, a lot of players hate the feel of the new ball and believe it is hurting their game. But the NBA and Stern in particular believe the new ball looks nice and is a better visual. Henry Abbott over at True Hoop has all of the details.

Last week, Mitch Lawrence of the New York Daily News reported that the NBPA plans to file an unfair labor charge over this new ball. The gist of their beef is that the ball adversely affects their working conditions. Lawrence reports that the NBPA is also opposed to various other new rules implemented by the NBA without the players' consent. Some of the rules seem like they belong in George Orwell's 1984:

When the Knicks played the Wizards at the Garden last night, there was a newly assigned official who was at the arena for the expressed purpose of watching for players pulling their jerseys out of their pants when they came out of the game. As of this season, that move is illegal and subject to fines. Those same set of eyes were looking for players wearing rubber bands with their names on them. Anyone caught displaying those would be subject to a call from the league, with a warning to stop. That same spy was busy during the playing of "The Star-Spangled Banner," watching for players chewing gum and shifting as they stood in line, which have been outlawed . . .

Billy Hunter had some especially harsh words for Stern in Lawrence's piece:

"I've never seen a group of rules that has upset the whole group of players like these have. I normally have to really work on galvanizing the players for our next collective bargaining period. Not this time. I've heard from all the marquee ballplayers . . . Kevin Garnett, Kobe Bryant, Steve Nash. Our guys are feeling stifled."

"The image problem is a subtle way of talking about black ballplayers and how they appear to the populace. When we had our last round of negotiations, David told me that he was consulting with one of President Bush's political consultants. The issue was, what they can do to make the game and players more appealing to the red states?"

As reported in this week's Street and Smith's Sports Business Journal, agent Bill Strickland seems to agree with Hunter that Stern has too much unilateral power: “I definitely think he has too much power. ... We’ve had situations where we’ve talked about freedom of speech issues relative to tattoos and content of responses to questions postgame, so I don’t think there’s any question about it."

III. NBA Owners Growing Tired of Stern's Unilateralism

The greatest challenge to Stern might come from within. According to the Philadelphia Inquirer, when Charlotte Bobcats owner Robert Johnson--arguably one of the most respected and successful businesspersons in America--challenged Stern at the latest Board of NBA governors meeting, Stern "went ballistic." Here are the details:

The muzzling of Mark Cuban by the NBA did not go over unanimously at the recent Board of Governors meeting. We hear Bobcats owner Bob Johnson, while not necessarily leaping to Cuban's defense, did ask David Stern if such draconian measures - giving the Commish the power to suspend any owner who disparages the league publicly - were in everyone's best interests. And shouldn't this be handled by a committee of owners instead of by Stern alone?

Then, according to two sources, when Johnson further suggested that this was a personal matter between Cuban and Stern that the two of them should settle, Stern went ballistic, telling Johnson that this was a league matter, not an individual one, and that the value of investments such as Johnson's $300 million to get the Charlotte expansion franchise were hurt when Cuban constantly belittled the on-court product. In the end, Stern got his way.

Will Stern be ousted? There is no tangible evidence, but his recent behavior suggests that his dictatorial powers might have gone too far. Embarrassing Bob Johnson in front of his fellow owners was probably not a good idea and will seemingly have some consequences down-the-line.

No matter the outcome, it's good to see the NBPA become more vigilant in protecting the players' interests. The conclusion of my article The Reckless Pursuit of Dominion: A Situational Analysis of the NBA and Diminishing Player Autonomy, 8 University of Pennsylvania Journal of Labor & Employment Law 819 (2006) advocates such an approach. We'll see how far they are willing to fight.

Update: See True Hoop, Jones on the NBA, RaptorsAddict, and PistonsForum, for some thoughtful reactions. Also see the comments below, which are terrific (and thank you all for taking the time to comment, it is much appreciated).

McCain-Feingold and Shays-Meehan for College Sports? The NCAA's Hard and Soft Money

Last week, NCAA President Myles Brand wrote a 25-page letter to the House Ways and Means Committee arguing that the NCAA deserves its tax-exempt status. According to Brand, the NCAA is foremost about education. We've examined the validity of this claim on numerous occasions.

Will Li e-mails some great commentary about Brand's letter. Will suggests that we might want to re-conceptualize how we look at NCAA funding through "hard money" and "soft money" lenses:

I wonder how Brand justifies things like 7 figure salaries (Charlie Weis) and/or exorbitant stadium expenditures (Texas/ HDTV Screen)? The article says he does (by saying that coaches are paid commensurate to other highly recruited faculty? Is that true?).

It seems to me that the conflict isn't between federal funding and TV rights, though.

The real problem is that, to use an analogy, there's so much soft money in the system. In that analogy, if college sports and the NCAA are a party or a candidate, the hard money is the money they collect from sponsors and ads and television rights, the amounts of which should theoretically be publicly available. But (correct me if I'm wrong), we have no way of knowing how much boosters are spending on donations, incentives, athlete recruitment and other in-kind contributions to the schools.

I think what the NCAA needs is an equivalent to McCain-Feingold.

While NCAA rules obviously limit boosters (see e.g., Sacrificial Gyro? Pete Carroll's Big Fat Greek Recruiting Methods), do we know how much they actually provide? And to whom? And when? Are boosters a less-detectable way for schools to get what they want, much like, until McCain-Feingold and Shays-Meehan, financial contributions to political parties had been a less-detectable way for politicians to get what they want?

New Sports Law Scholarship

New this week:

Jonathan C. Benitah, Student article, Anti-scalping laws: should they be forgotten?, 6 TEXAS REVIEW OF ENTERTAINMENT & SPORTS LAW 55 (2005)

Christian Dennie, Is Clarett correct? A glance at the purview of the antitrust labor exemption, 6 TEXAS REVIEW OF ENTERTAINMENT & SPORTS LAW 1 (2005)

Bennett Liebman, Reversing the refs: an argument for limited review in horse racing, 6 TEXAS REVIEW OF ENTERTAINMENT & SPORTS LAW 23 (2005)

Cubs Sign Alfonso Soriano for 8-Years, $136 Million: Does His Age Matter?

The Chicago Cubs have signed Alfonso Soriano to an 8-year, $136 million contract. The free agent outfielder had what many consider to be an excellent 2006 season, hitting 46 homers, 41 doubles, 95 RBIs, and stealing 41 bases. On the other hand, he batted an uninspiring .277, struck out 160 times, and his OPS of .911, while impressive, was only 13th in the National League. But the Cubs haven't won a World Series since 1908--the 100 year anniversary looms--and fresh off a 66-96 season, it's probably fair to assume that GM Jim Hendry has to make a splash this off season for his own job security.

Soriano's contract is the fifth-largest in MLB history, behind Alex Rodriguez ($252 million for 10 years), Derek Jeter ($189 million for 10 years), Manny Ramirez ($160 million for eight years) and Todd Helton ($141.5 million for 11 years).

But what makes Soriano's contract so interesting is that he'll be 31-years-old when the 2007 season begins, and presumably in the latter portion of his prime. In contrast, when they signed their mega-deals, the players noted above were in, or about to enter, their primes: Alex Rodriguez was 26, Derek Jeter was 27, and both Todd Helton and Manny Ramirez were 28. Granted, their contracts--other than Ramirez's--were for longer terms than Soriano's, but at least their employers were clearly paying for what was to come.

So are the Cubs paying Soriano more for his past accomplishments? That begs the question of when a player's prime occurs. Seattle Mariners GM Bill Bavasi says it begins at age 27. Kevin Whitaker of Between the Lines says it's between ages 26 and 30, with age 27 typically a player's peak year. Ron Cook of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette says it's between ages 28 and 32.

Economics professor J.C. Bradbury has conducted some empirical research on baseball players' primes and he also links to some other studies (which generally find that players peak between ages 26 and 28). Bradbury finds that most players peak at age 29, although superstars tend to peak between ages 31 and 32.

Regardless of when a player's prime occurs, Soriano's career path will not necessarily follow the typical trajectory. In fact, he'll probably continue to put up excellent numbers for several years to come, and even if he is no longer a 40/40 threat by age 34 or 35, he could still be a very productive player--34-year-old Manny Ramirez is still one of the most feared hitters in baseball and 36-year-old Jim Thome hit 42 homeruns last season.

But an 8-year, $136 million contract for a 31-year-old still seems very risky, especially one whose speed is such a significant portion of his value. Then again, if the Cubs win the World Series with Soriano, there is no doubt the fans will think he was worth every penny.

Update: See Jonathan Weiler's remarks on Sports Media Review.

Who deserves to be #2?

One thing we know for sure is that Ohio St. is in the Championship. But who will join them? Who should join them?

First thing's first... who should join them? In my mind, Michigan is at least the 2nd best team in the country (I think if the game was at a neutral field, they might be the best team in the nation), which would naturally lend credence to the theory that we should have a rematch for the National Title. But doesn't that make the BCS meaningless? The whole point of the BCS is to make regular season games have meaning, but if OSU/Michigan meet up again, doesn't that render the regular season game meaningless?

I still don't see why a playoff isn't perfectly logical. If I remember correctly, the reasoning is that the NCAA doesn't want to pull the players out of school anymore than they already are... which is funny because the lowers levels of college football (where I've found players are more academically inclined in general) implement a playoff system just fine. But as always, that makes way too much sense for the NCAA. And they want a lot of money.

But moving on, who will face the Buckeyes for the Title? The obvious choice is USC. They're right behind the Wolverines for #2 in the BCS Standings, and if they beat Notre Dame and UCLA they almost certainly will leapfrog Michigan.

But what if they lose? Does Notre Dame (who beats USC in this hypothetical scenario) or the SEC winner have a shot at passing the Wolverines? Unfortunately for the Irish, I doubt they have a shot. Their best win so far this year is probably Penn St., who has limped their way to 8-4. Not a bad win, but nothing to hang your hat on. Obviously USC would be their big one, but I don't think it'd be enough to bypass a Michigan team that stomped them earlier this year.

So what about the SEC teams? Arkansas would have a tougher road and therefore more impressive ending if they won out, but I think they're just too far back in the standings. But the Gators may not be. They're fairly close, and end with games at Florida St. and against Arkansas in the SEC Championship game. I can envision one scenario where they could pass Michigan: They win out (obviously) and Arkansas beats LSU next week. If Arkansas beats LSU they'll be either 4 or 5 in the polls, which will make an SEC title win for the Gators even more impressive.

So in my not-very-scientific mind USC and Florida are the only teams with a chance to pass Michigan for a chance to play Ohio St. for the Title... a complex process, no? At least one thing seems pretty simple to everyone... this would be a whole lot better and a whole lot more fun with a playoff.

SPANISH FOOTBALL - ROUND 11 RESULTS OF "LA LIGA"

Here are todays results of Round 11 in the SPANISH 1º DIVISION- "LA LIGA" - were ATLETICO, ZARAGOZA, ESPANYOL,VILLAREAL, FC BARCELONA, RECREATIVO & CELTA won their matches.Atletico won comfortably Levante , with 2 goals from its Portuguesmidfielder MANICHE - pictured above.Zaragoza continues in its winning ways defeating Nastic 3-0with AIMAR - pictured above - opening the scorelineVillareal won

Steve Spurrier Could be the Next Miami Hurricanes Coach

Not a lot of detail here, other than that sources tell CSTV that Steve Spurrier might leave South Carolina after only 2 years to become the next head coach of the Miami Hurricanes.

Spurrier's Gamecocks are 6-5 this year and 13-10 in his 2 years thus far. In his time at Florida, Spurrier compiled a remarkable 122-27-1 record in 12 years.

So if indeed The Ole Ball Coach does return to Florida, what is your reaction? I'm not in favor of anyone leaving 2 years into a 7-year contract, but if the rumors are true, it'll be very interesting to see him try to turn around Miami. I always got the feeling that while he could have success at South Carolina, he would be inhibited a bit just because the Gamecocks don't have as much of a football reputation, and Spurrier may not have any of his old pipelines. He'll have no such problems if he goes to Miami.

It's going to be real interesting to see how this plays out.

NFL Picks Against the Spread: Week 11

My picks lately have pretty much just been me embarrassing myself... even so, I'm resilient, and so I'll make my picks again and the risk of public embarrassment.

Redskins (+3) over Bucs
I think getting the ancient Mark Brunell out of the lineup will give the Redskins a spark... it was time to give Campbell the call.

Titans (+13) over Eagles
Picking games involving the Titans this year has basically been an exercise in futility for me. They've lost by 30+ points 3 times already this season. They've also played a lot of good teams very close. I'll throw my hat into them keeping it relatively close in this one.

Rams (+6.5) over Panthers
Carolina is still a little too inconsistent for my liking. Everyone is down on St. Louis because they've lost 3 straight, but those games were all against good teams. I think they'll bounce back and surprise the Panthers.

Steelers (-4) over Browns
A last-minute playoff push for the Steelers? Maybe too little, too late, but they are playing a lot better now.

Chiefs (-9) over Raiders
Raiders defense is actually ok, which makes me a little leery about picking against them with the 9 point spread. But then I remember how bad the offense is, and it becomes a little easier.

Patriots (-5.5) over Packers
Packers have been playing well, New England has not been playing well, game is in Lambeau. It seems so simple. I've found that it usually isn't, which is why New England is my pick.

Vikings (+3) over Dolphins
Brad Johnson is playing for his starting job, and at his age, maybe his career. I believe in a thing called desparation (and a thing called the Vikings defense).

Bills (+2.5) over Texans
I'll be honest, I don't have the slightest clue here. This is basically a random guess.

Jets (+6) over Bears
If Rex Grossman delivers two straight solid performances on the road maybe I'll trust him again... but it's hard to get the images of the Dolphins and Cardinals games out of my mind.

Bengals (+3) over Saints
This is probably a desperation game for the Bengals. They're 4-5 and a loss here would make it very tough for them in the tough AFC. I see a good effort for Cincy, and Carson Palmer putting up some big numbers.

Ravens (-3.5) over Falcons
Well Michael Vick, you almost fooled us. But it's good to have the Vick we've all come to know and love back.

Lions (+2) over Cardinals
The Cardinals are favored to win? Is there something I'm missing?

Seahawks (-3.5) over 49ers
I'm VERY tempted to take the Niners here, because they've been playing pretty decently well. But, well, the Seahawks haven't been playing so bad either. Hasselbeck and Alexander may even be back... I'll take the Seahawks.

Colts (+1) over Cowboys
Some of the odds I've seen have the Colts favored by 1, some have Cowboys, etc. The ones i go with every week have the Cowboys by 1. And I don't understand it. Obviously "America's Team" is better with Romo in the lineup. But two weeks ago they lost to Washington. The Cowboys are 5-4. The Colts are 9-0 and their offense looks unstoppable. I don't get it.

Chargers (+2.5) over Broncos
That sound you hear is Jay Cutler warming up on the sideline.

Giants (+4) over Jaguars
I thought David Garrard would be excellent in the starting role last week... and he threw 4 INT and basically did everything possible to lose the game. I know this one is in Jacksonville, and the Giants are banged up, I just think they'll respond after that Bears game. I think it'll be a tight game, and I'll go with the Giants.

Last Week: 7-9
Season: 63-75-6

SPANISH FOOTBALL. 2 MATCHES OF ROUND 11 - REAL MADRID & SEVILLE FC WIN (SEE VIDEO & GOALS)

Two matches were played tonight in Round 11 of the SPANISH 1ºDIVISION - "LA LIGA". REAL MADRID & SEVILLE FCwon their respective matches conviencingly & with plenty of goals.Real Madrid paid tribute to the great PUSKAS, a Real legend, beforethe match. The spirit of Puskas must have stayed on the field becauseReal scored 3 goals against the 1 of Racing de Santander.The 1º goal for Real was scored

WSJ Law Blog on the Michigan-Ohio State Game

The WSJ Law Blog has an amusing post entitled, "Ohio State v. Michigan: The Legal Edition." I must say, here at the border of Michigan and Ohio, it's definitely the event of the month, and it's nice to know people are paying attention even in New York! Law Blogger Peter Lattman has provoked an email exchange and a friendly wager between the deans of Ohio State's and Michigan's law schools (which, if you read it too closely, takes a bit of the fun out of the upcoming game).

SPANISH FOOTBALL - "LA LIGA". ROUND 11 FIXTURE & CURRENT TOP SCORER - "EL PICHICHI".

Great weekend of Spanish football coming up. Here is thefixture for Round 11 of the Spanish 1º division - "La Liga"- followed by the TOP GOAL SCORER - "El Pichichi"table.Real Madrid - Racing ( Saturday)Seville FC - Valencia ( Saturday)Real Sociedad - BetisLevante - At.MadridVillareal - GetafeZaragoza - NasticRecreativo - OsasunaEspanyol - At.BilbaoMallorca - Fc BarcelonaDeportivo - CeltaTOP GOAL

Judge Denies Russian Team's Request for Injunction in Malkin Suit

Here's my monthly update on the Malkin lawsuit. According to USA Today reporter Kevin Allen, in rejecting Metallurg's request for an injunction to prevent Evgeni Malkin from continuing to play for the Pittsburgh Penguins, U.S. District Court Judge Loretta Preska said that the Metallurg would not likely prevail on the merits because she believed that the NHL "would be able to demonstrate" that the league's transfer fee policy was collectively bargained with players, which makes it "immune" from antitrust scrutiny."

HUH??? This is the first time I have ever heard that the league and the union collectively bargained for a transfer fee policy. They can bargain all they want about something, but since when does the non-statutory labor exemption preclude alleged restraints on competition that primarily affect parties outside the collective bargaining relationship? [Oh well, I love reading decisions involving the interplay between antitrust law and sports.]

I am interested in reading whether Judge Preska felt that the Mettalurg is unlikely to prevail on the merits of its tortious interference claim. But in any event, I think denying the injunction is the right result for a completely different reason; that being that the Russian teams "are unlikely to be able to prove that they cannot be compensated by money damages." As the judge properly noted, "These cases are always about money, the only question is how much."

Thus, the Mettalurg will still have its day in court. They just can't stop Malkin from playing right now.