By Ted Sillanpaa It’s that time of the year when a person who might find pleasure in placing a wager on a football game or two is thankful for online wagering. I’m not really well versed in how it can be legal to deposit money in an online account and then bet football, or some other sport, but it is possible. (Wow! I wouldn’t really have to drive to Nevada if I wanted to take Texas plus the points …… Read More »

By Ted Sillanpaa Roger Clemens is desperately trying to make people forget that he is every bit the poster boy for the Steroids Era that Barry Bonds became in the last decade. Nice try. The 50-year-old Clemens made a comeback to pitch three innings for an independent minor league team called the Sugarland Skeeters. Indy minor league teams are made up of guys who can’t hook on with a big league organization. The media, and many fans, fell all over… Read More »

By Ted Sillanpaa Wish I’d written what I’ve been saying all season to fans and co-workers who insisted that the Giants just had to sign Melky Cabrera to a multi-year, zillion-dollar deal before he even enters free agency. There are people who looked at me like I was a nutty conspiracy-theorist when I pointed out that the Yankees let Cabrera go before the Braves released him and that it seemed odd that out of the blue he became a .350… Read More »

By Ted Sillanpaa Take gambling and fantasy leagues away from the National Football League and interest in the sport diminishes greatly. Take any ability for fans to believe in the certainty of a player or team’s performance and much of the interest that separates the NFL from the NBA or Major League Baseball is gone. The NFL is well past being a Sunday and Monday night phenomenon. Fantasy football league players spend all week studying matchups and piecing together their… Read More »

By Ted Sillanpaa The Giants don’t have a hitter in the system to provide the type offensive firepower down the stretch that Melky Cabrera has provided all season. It doesn’t seem likely that their sudden desperate need for a proven big league left fielder makes easier the act of snagging a veteran via some sort of waiver deal. Sure, Bruce Bochy said that Gregor Blanco will get the majority of starts in left field now. He also handed the third… Read More »

By Ted Sillanpaa While Major League Baseball players across the country took the stand we’d expect when one of their own tests positive for using performance enhancing drugs, Buster Posey emerged as the voice of reason and the San Francisco Giants. From Melky Cabrera’s former teammates with the New York Yankees to his current teammates in San Francisco, players typically responded to his 50-game suspension Wednesday by yammering on about what a hard worker he is, about how sad the… Read More »

By Ted Sillanpaa Remember that Friday night about a month back when a report surfaced that Giants left fielder Melky Cabrera had tested positive for a banned substance? The All-Star Game MVP, in the middle of an inexplicably great season, responded to the rumor by … calling his agent to see if it was true. No outrage. No disgust. Just, “Oh, really? Lemme’ call my agent.” While the everyday members of the Giants’ media caravan backed away from the rumor,… Read More »