Baseball Begins!

Today marked the true beginning of a new era for my favorite baseball team, the Minnesota Twins, with the official opening of their new outdoor stadium, Target Field. This will be the first season since 1981 that the team will play its home games outdoors, since their home has been the Metrodome for the past 28 years. Gone are the cramped locker rooms, no longer do the players and fans have to share an arena with the local NFL football team – this is a place they can truly call home, with all the modern amenities of any state-of-the-art ballpark.

I have been waiting for this my entire life. The Twins won two World Series’ in my first four years of existence, and have been relatively miserable until very recently. But I believe that they run their organization the right way, and like no other team in the big leagues. They preach fundamentally sound defense and value “small ball.” They relentlessly scout and home-grow their talented players within their own farm system, making shrewd trades and draft picks in order to survive in a league that mostly values money and the long ball. No team has done more with less over the past decade, and now they are finally reaping the fruits of their labors.

There definitely has not been a more exciting time for Twins fans – the team could not look much better on paper, and they have won 5 of their first 7 games on the road against the formidable Los Angeles Angels and their division archrival, the Chicago White Sox. The recent blockbuster deal for hometown hero Joe Mauer could not have come at a better time. The organization clearly realizes that they play a special brand of baseball and have some of the most devoted fans in the Majors, and they have responded in kind by locking up some of the fan favorites like Mauer and power-hitting first baseman Justin Morneau for long-term contracts.

They have the talent, they’ve begun paying their players the big bucks, they now have a place to truly call their own – all my beloved Minnesota Twins need now is a World Series victory. They definitely took the first step this afternoon – they won the first game in their new home – a 5-3 thriller against the Boston Red Sox – and moved into sole possession of first place in the American League Central Division. Only 154 games to go…GO TWINS!!

- Michael Flattery, ND 2010
Social Foundations of Coaching

Is LeBron’s Free Agency Hoopla Bad for the NBA?

LeBron James will be facing his first free agency opportunity this upcoming offseason, as I’m sure you have heard at least once by now, if not for the 792803024 time. Mr. James has embraced the opportunity by making a circus-like atmosphere around each game, media appearance, even celebrity parties with guests the likes of Drake, Beyonce, and none other than Shawn Carter, aka Jay-Z. This season, more than others, LeBron seems as focused on winning an NBA championship with his current team, the Cleveland Cavaliers in case you’ve forgotten, as would a blue-collar worker who was a few months away from signing the most financially lucrative contract of his life. The problem is that LeBron is acting like he has never been able to drop millions on whatever he fancies. Let us not forget the $100 million contract he has with Nike, and the $83 million contract he is currently still under. While he has never before been a free agent, he certainly is behaving like he has never been there before. Instead of averaging the triple-double he is well capable of, it seems as though he is toying with the opposition on the court, and enjoys preoccupations such as dancing on the sidelines, changing jersey numbers, paying homage to Michael Jordan, eating fans’ popcorn in-game, entertaining with rap stars, and most of all, cultivating the fan-fair surrounding his impending free agency.
Although each of these non-basketball related issues affects only LeBron and his teammates, the structure of the NBA may be taking a hit due to LeBron’s eagerness to indulge in the rumors that he is bound for New York. Let’s make a few things clear; LeBron is just as entitled to his free agency as any other player, he is entitled to earn as much as the market will pay for him, and he is entitled to play where he chooses if they will have him. However, there is something wrong when he seems to be hinting at a future in the Big Apple while he is still in the championship-chase with Cleveland. It is one thing to be BFFs with Jay-Z, self-proclaimed king of New York and part-owner of the New Jersey Nets soon to be relocated to Brooklyn, but it is another when you spend your free time at shows and parties in New York sporting Yankee ball-caps, and even taking it as far as wearing custom-made signature shoes with NY etched on the base of the shoes while playing for the Cavs! Just because the Cavs new retro uniforms happen to share the same colorway as the Knicks jerseys does not give one right to put an opposing city’s name on your shoe. Now keep in mind, LeBron is not from New York, he has never even lived there; rather he is playing for his hometown team; he is Cleveland born-and-raised.
Not only are these actions a slap in the face of his current teammates and fans, but teams’ reactions to LeBron’s hints that he wants the bright lights of Broadway have been nothing short of sabotage. Fans in New York, New Jersey, Los Angeles (Clippers), and Chicago are all waiting on pins and needles to see if the King James will grace their throne; however they may all be disappointed for more than just one reason. If LeBron fails to join any of the aforementioned squads, they will have failed at the two, even three-year plans that they have been attempting to execute. Dumping salary, not signing players who could improve their teams immediately, and darn near losing games on purpose to secure better draft picks have been employed by each of these teams just to have a shot a LBJ, but what cost does this have on the league? At the current moment all of these teams are outside the playoffs looking in, with only Chicago having a remote chance to break in as the eighth seed in the eastern conference. These cities’ fans have reason to be upset if they don’t land LeBron because of the years of suffering would be all for naught. Lets face it, Dwyane Wade or Chris Bosh aren’t consolations to sneeze at, but they would definitely not be reason enough to lose for a few years just to have a shot at. Any time one player needs to be praised in a bigger city with brighter lights, more storied arenas, more famous crowds, all with no promise of a better team, fans should take a step back and contemplate what is really happening. The competition in the NBA, especially the eastern conference, is at an all time low, and the magnetism of one player is polarizing the field even more. If LeBron and the others coveted in the summer end up remaining with their respective teams, this theory will become clearer, especially when teams question their future and have to answer to 20,000 livid fans every night while LeBron continues to put on a show in Cleveland.
Ryan Woods
Social Foundations of Coaching

Take Me Out to the Ballgame

Last week, the Minnesota Twins took the field for the first time at Target Field, a $425 million brand new outdoor baseball park in Minneapolis. Despite an afternoon of rain, thousands of fans flocked to the new park in the evening to watch their beloved Twins take on the Cardinals. Naturally, the event was a major feature on every form of media in the state, and news stories debating the pros and cons of the new facility have been running since the plan for the project was announced years ago. Although there have been countless arguments made and statistics gathered about the value of the ballpark, what impressed me most about the inaugural day at Target Field was the photo on the front page of the Saint Paul newspaper the day after the event. This photo featured Anneka, a 3-year-old girl, giggling in pure delight as her father holds her high in the air between innings at the game.
To me, these are the standards by which the success of Target Field should be measured. Especially for young children, attending sporting events should be fun, playful, exciting and memorable times. By cheering with other fans, watching the players in action, spending quality time with family and friends, and learning the workings of the game, children learn a love of sports by watching. These are the same children who grow into future athletes, or at the very least, lifelong fans. If Target Field, or any athletic venue, can bring families together, give children lasting memories, and provide a great experience for all attendees, it is a successful facility.

Emily Stewart
Social Foundations of Coaching
University of Notre Dame 2010