* When it comes to St. Petersburg and the Rays, maybe the best approach is that of City Council Chairman Charlie Gerdes. He says the sooner the city lets the Rays look elsewhere, the sooner the Rays will see for themselves that St. Pete is the best location.
No, I don’t agree with his reasoning, but if that rationale can carry the day, the better off everybody will be. And that includes would-be developers eying the Tropicana Field acreage for scenarios that don’t include baseball.
* Because I live here, I hope the teams based here do well–from USF and UT to the Rays, Bolts and Bucs. But the Bucs are a challenge to watch. That’s because it’s the National Football League. That’s because network cameras and preening players find each other after every play.
Regardless of context, there’s always something to self-congratulate, someone to denigrate. Football as lounge act.
* Ronda Rousey lost the other night and it warranted a (sports) page-one, above-the-fold piece in the Tampa Bay Times. Twitter had gone crazy with the news that the icon of mixed martial arts had been defeated. Not unlike Serena Williams, she was bigger than her sport, it was noted. A mixed media marvel. Lady Gaga and Donald Trump even chimed in. It was THAT huge.
My reaction: Who? What? I was reminded yet again that I can still be a pop-culture alien.
I mean how slow a news day was it that this was page-one stuff? Moreover, isn’t mixed martial arts, which features punching and kicking, what used to be called a street fight or an ugly brawl? Often of the drunken variety. Now it’s a sport with millions of fans and a billion Google results.
Hell, I had a problem rooting for the rags-to-riches Hillary Swank in “Million Dollar Baby.” Something about, “You go, girl, kick her ass” that seemed more off-putting exercise than inspirational, Horatio Alger tale.
* ESPN analyst and Pro Football Hall of Famer Cris Carter made news with some candid comments about white NFL receivers. He implied they were victims of racial stereotyping and that they don’t get enough credit “for their athleticism.”
Among those not needing Carter’s commentary: the New England Patriots.