Thicker than water

I came across this article today:
http://www.philly.com/inquirer/sports/20091021_Gonzo___Kobe_has_gone_totally_Hollywood.html

Basically it's about how Kobe is disloyal to Philadelphia by showing up to a Dodgers game and flashing an LA with his fingers.

Read it. It's short and absolutely ridiculous. This is perhaps the dumbest article I've ever read in my life.

Here are my issues with it.

- Why should Kobe have any loyalty to the Philadelphia Phillies?

He went to high school in Philadelphia, yes, but Kobe did NOT grow up in there in the sense that his major developmental years were not spent there. He was born in Philly, moved to Italy when he was 6, moved back for high school and then moved to LA. I'll spare you the math. Basically Kobe has lived in Philadelphia for 11 years and Italy for 7 years. The Philadelphia 11 years was a broken one. And besides he says in the article himself that Kobe grew up a Mets fan. Why would he change just because he was born in Philadelphia?

Not only that, let's say he has no rooting interest one way or another. What would he have to gain by rooting for Philadelphia at Dodger Stadium? He's probably going to live in LA the rest of his life. Making enemies with his community probably isn't high on his list of priorities.

- Why should Kobe have any loyalty to the city of Philadelphia as a whole?

Remember when Philly fans booed Kobe before, during, and after the All-Star game in Philadelphia? The one where he won the MVP? I don't have a problem with the boos, just don't expect love from someone you've treated that way.

From the article:
"It was like watching Zell Miller at the Republican National Convention or Arlen Specter cozy up to President Obama and the other Democrat fat cats - the defection was complete and the insult was obvious."

Okay drama king! How is that anything like Kobe cheering for the Dodgers? Philly has no pride for Kobe! They don't identify with him because 1. He doesn't play for the Sixers 2. He grew up in a posh SUBURB of Philadelphia, not in the inner city. Not to mention we're not even talking about Kobe's profession. We're talking about something totally unrelated. It would be like if we found out Allen Iverson likes to drink Swiss Miss instead of hot cocoa made with Hershey's Syrup. TOTALLY UNRELATED.

Are Philly fans THAT sensitive that one gesture by someone they don't even like, but linked to thim in the distant past can cause such backlash? I don't think so. I personally don't think anyone in Philadelphia cares if Kobe roots for the Dodgers or Mets or the New Britain Rock Cats. I think Philadelphia washed its hands of Kobe Bryant as soon as it was pretty certain he was never going to play for the Sixers.

Another quote from the article:
"Even though there's a lot of infighting and dysfunction, Philly has a family feel to it. You're either one of us or you're not."

Infighting and dysfunction is booing McNabb when he does poorly and calling for another QB, but cheering for him when he does well and buying his jersey. Philadelphia has never cheered Kobe since he turned pro. One of us or you're not? Judging from the way Philadelphians have treated Kobe in the past, they made the decision for him, haven't they?

John Gonzalez of the Philadelphia Inquirer, you are an idiot. Just because you were born somewhere and lived part of your childhood there doesn't make you obligated to root for every team in that city.

So Manny Options

I've been trying to avoid the Manny/many pun for as long as possible, but every man has a breaking point.

So Manny is coming back in a month or so, and Joe Torre has said that Juan Pierre will be moving back to the bench upon Manny's return.

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/dodgerthoughts/2009/06/june-10.html

I know I'm a lowly sports blogger and Torre is a future Hall of Fame manager, so he'll probably show the world that he is right in the long run, but I personally think this is a wrong move on a couple of fronts.

1. Why would you risk deflating Juan Pierre's confidence? He's playing well enough to start on any other major league team, and quite frankly he doesn't deserve to go to the bench. Torre also went on to say that Kemp is the best center field option (which he is) and Ethier gives them good power (which he does) but that's basically saying that he values Ethier's power more than Pierre's speed and ability to get on base. I'm sure Torre had spoken to Juan Pierre personally, but it's another thing to announce it through the media. Most importantly, there's still about a month left before Manny comes back and anything can happen in terms of injury. Again, there's no reason to risk jeopardizing Pierre's confidence in case Ethier or Kemp get hurt and Pierre has to play full time.

2. Why move anyone to the bench? Health is a major concern in a 162-game MLB season. Why not rotate Pierre, Kemp, Ethier and Manny? I know Torre likes to bring Pierre off the bench to replace Manny in the 6th inning or so if the game is in hand, but the Dodgers haven't been able to put opponents away early enough in games to effectively use that strategy.

Each outfielder will play 3 games, rest one game, play 3 games, rest one game, etc.

The biggest concern is that players will lose their rhythm if they are hitting well, but I think this is an overrated concern. Teams have days off between series all the time. Also, health is more important than any perceived increase in production due to playing every day.

The best part of the plan is that you don't actually have to "bench" anyone.

Defensively, since Pierre can play all three OF positions (Pierre hasn't played much RF to my knowledge, but if he can play LF and CF, how much harder could RF be for him?), Manny can always play LF and Ethier can always play RF when they play.

LF Ramirez, CF Kemp, RF Ethier
LF Pierre, CF Kemp, RF Ethier
LF Ramirez, CF Kemp, RF Pierre
LF Ramirez, CF Pierre, RF Ethier

The only drop off defensively happens in the last formation, but it's only 25% of the time, and if the Dodgers are leading after 6 innings, Kemp can come in as a defensive substitution.

Obviously, this would be a moot point if the National League had a DH, but that's another topic for another day.

Of course, another intriguing option, with the decent, although thus far short-lived, play of Xavier Paul and Jamie Hoffman is to trade Juan Pierre, maybe for some starting pitching help the Dodgers have been hurting for.

The Dodgers can do any number of things, but in my opinion benching Juan Pierre would not be the most prudent choice.