DEFLATEGATE ?

Does anyone out there really think a couple of pounds of air pressure in a football is going to make that much of a difference or give an NFL team any significant advantage in a game ? Or, that at Heinz field in Pittsburgh as just an example, the ball boy doesn't do the same thing, filling that football to the liking of Big Ben ? I mean come on people, wake up already.

In major league baseball, them boys attempt to steal signs among other things on a regular basis. Is it cheating ? Of course !

But, in the case of Tom Brady and supposedly underinflated balls, I think way too many people are quite jealous of the fact he, Belichick and the rest of  the Patriots have dominated the league for many years now and quite simply, have produced an ongoing dynasty. I will have more to say on this topic in the near future as the NFL is appealing the court ruling allowing Brady to play football !

DAVE BURKEY
daveywriter@yahoo.com

NBA REF SUSPENDED

In an AP story out of New York, one of the NBA's top referees, Joey Crawford was slapped with an indefinite suspension by commissioner David Stern after Crawford apparently challenged San Antonio Spurs star Tim Duncan to a fight.

Crawford called a second technical foul on Duncan while the Spurs star center was sitting on the bench, thereby automatically ejecting him from the game.

Crawford's suspension will last at least through the NBA finals. Stern, in a statement, criticized Crawford's lack of professionalism as well as game management.
It seems this is not the first time Crawford's actions on the court have come under question.

DAVE BURKEY
daveywriter@yahoo.com

NFL ADDS MORE TESTING

The NFL and the NFLPA have come to an agreement to have their players more thoroughly tested for performance-enhancing drugs. In addition, they have added EPO, a blood-boosting substance to the NFL's list of banned substances.

Even more significantly however, players suspended for using steroids or other performance-enhancing drugs will forfeit a prorated portion of their signing bonuses.

The new policy makes the NFL the only North American sports league to regularly test for EPO. In 2005, major league baseball did a round of testing for EPO but no violators were detected.

One provision of the agreement increases the unpredictability of random testing during the season and offseason, making it harder for players using performance-enhancing substances to regulate their usage because they won't know when they might be tested.

Dave Burkey

LABOR PEACE FOR MLB

The players union and major league baseball have reached accord on a new deal that will run through 2011.

The deal includes adjusted formulas for revenue sharing, a higher threshold for the competitive balance tax, a revamped draft for amateur players, changes in draft pick compensation for free agents and the elimination of long-standing deadline dates for free agents which gives teams additional flexibility in re-signing their players.

Let's hope that the timing of the new deal is a good omen and indicates that there will be labor peace for major league baseball for years to come.

Dave Burkey

HOCKEY CLUB FILES SUIT

The Metallurg Magnitogorsk, a Russian hockey club has filed an antitrust lawsuit against the Pittsburgh Penguins and the NHL, according to a recent AP report out of New York.

The Russian club maintains rookie Evgeni Malkin should not be allowed to play in the NHL at this time because he is still under contract for $3.45 million to the club in his native country for one year.

The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Manhattan, demanded unspecified damages from the Penguins and the NHL.

The 20-year-old Malkin, who left the Russian Super League team during August's training camp in Helsinki, Finland, cites a Russian labor law that permits an employee to leave a job by giving two weeks notice.

The lawsuit, however, was filed after a ruling by a Russian arbitration panel that Malkin remains under contract to his native club. It maintains that the NHL as well as the Penguins violated antitrust laws by conspiring in a group boycott and by refusing to deal with Russian hockey clubs pertaining to player transfers.

Dave Burkey

TERRORISM AND SPORTS

There is an AP report out of Sydney, Australia that terrorists plotted to kill the English and Australian cricket teams by pumping poisonous gas into their dressing rooms at an Ashes test last year.

I don't know what an "Ashes test" is, but I know what terrorism is, and this is definitely yet another case of it, only this time affecting the sports world.

It seems the only reason the plot didn't go forward is because one of the two attackers happened to be a cricket fan and apparently had a change of heart.

Nevertheless, security personnel at stadiums and sports arena's all over the world should take notice. It's only a matter of time before these wacko suicide attackers and terrorists decide to brew up another plan sometime somewhere.

Dave Burkey

YANKS FALL SHORT AGAIN

The New York Yankees and their 194 million major league leading payroll will not make an appearance in the World Series this year as they couldn't even get past the Wild Card Detroit Tigers in the post-season.

Poor George Steinbrenner with his All-Star lineup of A-rod, Jeter, Posada, Damon, Abreu, Sheffield and Co. Manager Joe Torre has got to be wondering about whether he's going to keep his job right about now.

However, the Yankees have a lot of company as the Boston Red Sox ($120 mill.), Los Angeles Angels ($103 mill.), and the defending champion Chicago White Sox ($102 mill.) failed to even make post-season play.

The Oakland A's however have advanced to the ALCS with a mere $62 million payroll .

Dave Burkey

BORAS AT IT AGAIN

It seems as if MLB superagent Scott Boras has once again been caught with his hand in the cookie jar. That he more or less has been attempting to "steal" a major client from yet another fellow agent.

It was recently reported by an ESPN writer that someone representing Boras had made several (as many as ten) phone calls to a top prospect in order to get that player to switch over to Boras. If so, he needs to be more sternly reprimanded by MLB officials than merely what's tantamount to no more than a minor slap on the wrist.

Such a blatant and unethical disregard for the rules and a pure lack of respect for a fellow agent is absolutely ridiculous and should not be tolerated by MLB.

Is such conduct by a high profile and successful agent as Boras due to him needing the money ? Such a scenario could hardly be the case, he's made many millions already. It's more probable that he needs to feed a huge ego in an attempt to "hog" as many top clients as he can in order to proclaim himself, "king of the hill".

Dave Burkey

RBI or RBI's ?

I don't know about anyone else, but I am fed up with hearing these schmos on the radio, and TV, whether it be an in-progress broadcast of a major league baseball game, or on ESPN radio, continually refering to RBI's (Runs Batted In ; more than one ; many) as RBI.

It sounds stupid, plain and simple, and it's bad English. Enough to make old grade school English teachers roll over in their collective graves !

For example. When Travis Hafner of the Cleveland Indians belts yet another of his record-setting grand slams, he is credited with 4 RBI's, not 4 RBI. Now, if you are going to say the words, "runs batted in", you say, Hafner had 4 runs batted in, or Hafner had 4 RBI's. Check your AP (Associated Press) style books folks.

It's as if these ESPN geeks, some of them anyhow, are trying to rewrite history. Well, it ain't happen'in !

Dave Burkey

The Beginning....

This is my first post and I'm not at all sure I know what I'm doing. I wrote for Mark Conrad on www.sportslawnews.com back in 2001, and also for a Cleveland Browns online publication in 2000-02, originally called BrownsTNG, which later became www.berniesinsiders.com. It has since changed names yet a 3rd time. I loved writing for both sites and realized at that time that I wanted a future career involving sports law and economics.

My long-term goal is to have a "Sports/Talent" agency in the future, possibly even to include some video production involving such things as shooting commercial spots.

By the way, Mark Conrad, who is a professor at Fordham in New York City, has a new text out, "The Business Of Sports". You can check it out on the first page of his website.

Dave Burkey