I was quite pleased that Schilling accepted a trade to the Red Sox rather than holding out for a deal with the devil (the Yankees). Mind you, I have no particular loyalty to the Red Sox, other than their rivalry with New York, but I do feel that there are some serious heart-of-a-champion issues involved in Schilling's choice between the two (a test that Karl Malone failed earlier this year).
Schilling could have taken the attitude that going to NY would practically assure him of another World Series ring. That would be great, and what player wouldn't want to have two? But winning a World Series for the Yankees would be nothing more than riding the coat tails of an already great team (just like Karl Malone felt he needed to ride the coat tails of Shaq and Kobe to get a ring). But by choosing the Red Sox (he could have chosen other teams and still qualified as a champion), Schilling has shown that he wants to be the difference maker on a decent team and take that team to the next level. How much sweeter will a second title be for Schilling if he does it in Boston? A championship in Boston would be a huge accomplishment, whereas another title in NY is just that, another title (ho-hum).
The other benefit for Boston is that now they have a true ace-pitcher. A pitcher that wants to go the extra innings. A guy that always wants to throw in the big game. Sorry, Pete, but I don't think Schilling would take the day off because of a sore throat.
Posted by at December 2, 2003 08:41 PMWhy you gotta be hatin' the Mailman, Yo?
Posted by: Christin at December 3, 2003 08:10 AMYeah, what's wrong with ol' Karl? That man, in my opinion, has paid his dues in the NBA, and as much as I despise all things "Laker", I do hope he can get a championship before it's all said and done. BTW, the same thing applies to Gary Payton. Go Grizzlies.
Posted by: andy at December 3, 2003 03:26 PMi agree with you about malone and schilling. a good reason to "hate" malone (not that you do) is that he has been frequently voted the dirtiest player in the nba by the players themselves. ive never liked him.
Posted by: dp at December 3, 2003 04:53 PMI have always generally liked Malone, and I can even come to grips with him leaving Utah for championship reasons. But I would rather see him go to Dallas or Sacramento or another team that really needed that extra push to get the title. That way Karl could be credited as the leader on a championship team, rather than a role player to the real stars (in this case Shaq and Kobe). Years ago Clyde Drexler left the Trailblazers in search of a ring and he went Houston, a team that was on the brink. Drexler was a huge part of that championship team - he was a difference maker. The Lakers can win titles with or without Malone.
Posted by: the booth at December 3, 2003 06:42 PM