Paul Lukas-If you have nothing nice to say and don't know what you're talking about publish a piece about the LA Kings alternate uniforms

A few years ago, when the blogosphere first began to rise, what I found so promising was that the people blogging really enjoyed the teams or sports they were blogging about. (ie. AaronGleeman.com and metsblog.com being the sterling examples) They watched the games. They picked up on the nuances that me, as a fan, but nowhere near an obsessed fan would not have noticed, and as a result, made me a wiser fan.



This was most refreshing because I had grown tired of the standard sports opinion piece. I read these pieces hoping for some insight and instead often read a piece on why an athletes off the field comments were right or wrong instead of why he had been hitting lefties better this year. I suspect the reason for the rise in lazy opinion pieces was because they were easy to write, filled up space and many of these columnists were not in fact watching the games.



This is exactly how I would describe the recent Good riddance, Mike Piazza piece by Paul Lukas from ESPN's Page 2 (http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=lukas/080521)



Lukas starts by stating that he is in fact a Mets fan, and while he will admit that Piazza had a hall of fame career, he does not want Piazza to go into the hall as a Met. He puts together a list to back up his point. (the list below contains excerpts, not the whole article)



1.) "When it became apparent that he'd have to move from catcher to first base, Piazza's behavior ranged from disingenuous to manipulative. "

2.) "One reason he didn't want to play first base was that he was obsessed with that stupid record for most home runs hit by a catcher"

3)"Of course, once Piazza finally played first base, we found out the real reason why he'd been avoiding the issue: The guy's a horrible athlete. Great hitter, yes, but not a good athlete."



So Paul, let me make sure I have it right. You spent the first half of the article going on about how Piazza should have had no problem moving to first because it was for the good of the team and team should come first (understandable). You call him out as being selfish for not wanting to move (understandable). And then say that we later found out "the real reason" he did not want to move was because he was incapable of playing defense at first base at an acceptable level. Paul, if that was the "real reason" he did not want to move than why include your first two points? How was it selfish that he did not want to move? Are your first two points anything other than uninformed negative for the sake of negative arguments regarding Piazza?



4) When the New York Post implied that Piazza was gay he held that little press conference where he declared his heterosexuality... he missed a huge opportunity to say, "But what if it was true? What if I was gay? So what?...in city with a huge gay population, that was an opportunity to show some real community leadership, and he totally spit the bit.



Paul, this is a reason you do not want Mike Piazza in the hall of fame as a Met? The fact that a report came out that Piazza was gay and he denied that it was true is a reason he should not go in the hall of fame as a met? Paul, I'm pretty sure you're the only met fan who feels this way on this issue and I would go further and say that I bet most gay Mets fan don't agree with you on this issue. While we're here Paul, let me point out that you work for ESPN. You write columns that are read by thousands upon thousands of people. With your voice, you can make a difference that Mike Piazza was afraid to make. I suggest using your column as a vehicle for social change. Your thoughts?



5. Piazza: "I thought the DH could be a good thing for me later in my career,"..."because the pitcher can throw at the batter with no fear of retaliation." (but later in his career) He shopped himself to American League teams with hopes of becoming a DH. Hypocrite.



Paul, again these are really reasons Mike should not enter the hall of fame as a Met? I'm pretty sure what Mike was saying here was that a pitcher can throw at a batter with no fear that he, himself would be thrown at when he was up at bat. What this has to do with Mike Piazza trying to continue to make a living and continue his career I have no idea. What do you suggest Paul? Should Mike have retired early and tried to have a national boycott of the designated hitter in an inspired attempt to get rid of the designated hitter? Is that what you would have done?


Conclusion: Paul Lukas, I call you out as a casual sports fan posing as a sports writer who works for ESPN and wants to make a splash. I've heard better arguments at a sports bar among inebriated fans.