DHL Dan XLVII - Picked Up Pablum

In today's installment of the Picked Up Pieces column, we have confirmation of Shank's bandwagon Patriots columns being complete and insincere bullshit. While the majority of the column is the standard, boilerplate Shank filler to fill his meager monthly quota, the real intent of the column is to pile on the New England Patriots, like that's a shocking revelation. Why else would he repeat this little snippet from a New York gossip column?

■ Thanks to the New York Post, we know that Judge Richard Berman and Bob Kraft had a brief conversation at a large party in the Hamptons a few days after the judge vacated Brady’s suspension.

According to a piece in the Cornell Daily Sun, Berman’s wife teaches at Wellesley College three days a week.

“She said that in Boston, I could become a celebrity,’’ Judge Berman told the student paper. “Or maybe I already am.’’

Judge Berman said that observing the post-verdict reaction of Patriot fans “was a lot of fun.’’

Here’s former NBA commissioner David Stern speaking to Sports Illustrated regarding fanboy Berman: “In a court with one of the busiest dockets in the nation, Judge Berman was dazzled by the headlights of professional sports and crossed into the wrong lane and engaged the federal courts in the intricacies of running a sports league. Where they have no business.’’

I would pose a few questions for our intrepid Boston Globe columnist:

Is there any evidence that Berman is, in fact, a 'fanboy' of the New England Patriots, or is that just poetic license?

Is there any indication that these conversational snippets are anything other than standard 'small talk' that is the norm at 'a large party' and / or that they may have influenced his decision? Or is that insinuation now on the table, regardless?

Did you take issue with any of Berman's legal reasoning? It sure as hell doesn't show here; in fact, it's quite the opposite.

When you're Shank, you pile on public figures. If they were not public figures, the following would be borderline slander:

■ There’s a lengthy profile of Kraft in October’s Boston Magazine. Written by Robert Huber, the theme of the piece is, “Something about Robert Kraft feels . . . off.’’

Big Papi's post-baseball career is revealed:

■ When David Ortiz was asked by the Players Tribune what his dream job would be if not for baseball, Ortiz said, “Porn star.’’ A day after that was revealed, Ortiz got an offer of $100,000 from porn boss Steve Hirsch of Vivid Entertainment.

Speaking of shithead media types:

■ This from the intro of Colin Cowherd’s new book, “Raw’’: “It was nothing short of jaw-dropping to witness the performance of the Boston media during the entire [Deflategate] episode. In one of America’s most educated cities, with perhaps our nation’s richest sports history, local outlets transformed themselves into pom-pom waving, jersey-wearing, fist-pumping superfans . . . It was a hazmat spill of homerism . . . Do we want a media that makes us comfortable by placating and pandering to the dimmest and least discerning?’’

Cowherd recently left ESPN and can now be heard on Fox Sports.

Anyone in the New England area could tell Cowherd the opposite, including listening to Felger & Mazz for any stretch as well as reading certain Shank columns like this one, or these tweets, or this column.

Other than that - great column!

On This Day In DSW History

2014 - Shank takes a world-class shit on the New England Patriots.

So here you go.

The Patriots are free-falling and it’s open season on the arrogant/smarter-than-you “System.” Folks are lining up to skewer the franchise that has consistently given the NFL and the national/local media the finger during a decade and a half of division dominance and Super Bowl contention.

Listening to the postgame fallout from Monday night’s 41-14 Arrowhead massacre made your ears bleed. It was a field day for Patriot haters. And they are legion.

You could tell that folks have been waiting for this.

Including a certain Globe sports columnist!

Curses - Foiled Again!

Three weeks into the Patriots' 2015 season, Shank is predictably declaring them AFC champions and riding his new Curse cliché hard:

Patriots romp while Curse of Deflategate rages on in rest of AFC

FOXBOROUGH — Can we just fast-forward to Feb. 7 in Santa Clara for Super Bowl 50? The Revenge Tour looks like it’s going to roar into Levi’s Stadium where the Patriots will dare Roger Goodell to show up and present another Lombardi Trophy to Bob Kraft.

The Patriots clinched another AFC East title Sunday with a 51-17 blowout of the Jacksonville Jaguars. The non-contest featured another glut of Patriot riches while The Curse of Deflategate raged on in the rest of the AFC. The Deflategate-ratting Ravens lost yet again (now 0-3), the Jets were beaten by the winless Eagles, the Steelers’ Ben Roethlisberger suffered what could be a season-ending injury, and Philip Rivers got hurt and was pulled from a Chargers loss. Looks like Cincinnati’s overmatched Bengals and clueless Marvin Lewis might be the best bet to get crushed at Gillette in the AFC Championship game come January. The Waltz of the Tomato Cans is a marathon dance number that never stops playing on the flagship station of the New England Patriots.

UPDATE AT 9/30/2015, 2:25 PM - Linked to article added; apologies.

Column of Contradictions

"Hope" a word not often found in The CHB's vocabulary, and when it does make one of its rare appearances, it's typically delivered in snide fashion. Which is why today's column is a treat -- ostensibly on the increasing odds of the Red Sox improving in 2016 but in fact a true column of contradictions in which The CHB even manages to refute himself in a single paragraph.

With that, on with the show:

Contradiction 1. "[U]nlike last year, the Hub’s hardball high hopes might be rooted in reality rather than ball club propaganda and wishful thinking."

Compare that to April 3, when The CHB's pick to win the AL East was none other than the Orioles saying, "Why does everyone think the Red Sox made up 25 games on these guys?" Which came just a few months after he wrote that the Red Sox should be applauded for spending money.

Those Orioles, by the way, are same team the Red Sox beat three games straight this weekend while allowing ZERO runs, and which the Sox are now in position to relegate to the cellar.

Contradiction 2. "Despite the shattered dreams and yet another lost summer of meaningless games, the Red Sox have managed to make changes and showcase skills that generate legitimate hope for 2016."

What changes, exactly, have they made? A bunch of front office hires who have yet to put their imprint on the team. The other "changes" were made for them: John Farrell started cancer treatment, Pablo Sandoval and Hanley Ramirez hit the DL, allowing the Sox the convenience of replacing them with better players (Sandoval and Ramirez had a combined WAR of -2.0 this season). What's really happening is that the Sox are at least playing to their level of ability; it just came too late to make a race of it.

Contradiction 3. "New boss Dave Dombrowski is an old-school baseball guy who’s got prospects, cash, and vision. Now all he has to do is rebuild a terrible pitching staff."

Yet in May and in August this year, The CHB called those same prospects "universally overrated" and "over-valued."

Miley, Porcello and Kelly combined for 4.7 wins above replacement this year. Not great, but hardly "terrible." Buchholz, the guy who wasn't a No. 1 in Shank's eyes, was on a All Star caliber pace (2.7 WAR in 113 innings) before getting hurt. In truth, the starters were decent if occasionally erratic. The bullpen dragged everyone else down.

Contradiction 4. Again on April 3, The CHB predicted the Red Sox would make the wild card this season. If the Sox were so overrated -- "ball club propaganda and wishful thinking" is how he now describes them, why did he pick them for the playoffs?

Contradiction 5. Will Dave Dombrowski trade "some of the coveted prospects who were always overprotected in the slow-moving Cherington regime"? That slow-moving regime produced two outstanding players in Betts and Boegarts (the latter of whom is having one of the six best seasons for a 22 year old shortstop in major league history)

Contradiction 6. "We don’t have enough space here to address the Hanley/Pablo problem."

In October and again in November of 2014, The CHB insisted the Red Sox sign Sandoval. "The Red Sox can’t sign Pablo Sandoval fast enough," he wrote. (For the record, we argued against it.) Sandoval was flat-out awful. Against all odds, Ramirez was even worse. Yet The CHB called his signing a "boffo day." John Henry and Bill James are looking smarter and smarter.

Contradiction 7. All these changes will "undoubtedly vault the Sox back into contender status with media outlets and in Vegas." Besides the O's and Sox, here are the rest of The CHB's picks for the rest of the MLB playoffs were the Tigers, Angels, Indians (wild card), Nationals, Cubs, Dodgers, Giants (wild card), Pirates (wild card), with the Nationals over the O's in the World Series.

How did that compare to the Vegas preseason favorites? In order by division, they were: Red Sox, Tigers, Angels, Mariners (WC), Athletics (WC), Nationals, Cardinals, Dodgers, Cubs (WC), Padres (WC).

So not only did Vegas match The CHB with three correct picks each, but Shank did no better in forecasting the World Series participants. So much for old school.

Sunday Patriots Tweets, By Dan Shaughnessy

Here's Shank, beating a dead horse:

Pats win toss. Defer. Anybody examined how often Pats win toss? I smell scandal.

— Dan Shaughnessy (@Dan_Shaughnessy) September 27, 2015

We already ran the numbers for you; do try to keep up!

Here, a pasty-white Irishman with curly hair makes fun of other people's physical appearance / stature:

This game is such a layup, Kraftshave abandoned high-chairs. Bob and Jon at eye--level with others in box.

— Dan Shaughnessy (@Dan_Shaughnessy) September 27, 2015

Did he start early today?

Here comes the Pats' patented double score

— Dan Shaughnessy (@Dan_Shaughnessy) September 27, 2015

Whatever that's supposed to mean...

Tongue-in-cheek humor or mathematically challenged? You make the call!

With Jets loss to Philly, Pats can clinch AFC East today

— Dan Shaughnessy (@Dan_Shaughnessy) September 27, 2015

Quality Trolling, By Dan Shaughnessy

It seems the folks at the Indianapolis Star noticed Shank's most recent column.

The Curse of a Quick Buck

You had to know it was coming. The CHB now wants everyone to know that those who dare question the Patriots will be met with quick and debilitating misfortune.

It's his favorite literary cliche: The Curse! All the teams that blew the whistle on the Pats over the Deflategate are now 0-2.

It's silly and pointless. Like just The CHB.

Nothing better to write for a Wednesday, I guess.

Another Meme Revived

Shank continues to lead the Patriots bandwagon (for now) by a) setting up high expectations for the team so he can pound on them if / when they lose, and b) attributing their path to winning to unnamed, mysterious forces that assist the Patriots whenever possible. While he's wise to not explicitly name anyone or anything, it reeks of tin-foil hat conspiracy theorists that pin the world's ills on the Bilderbergers, the Illumnati, the Rothschilds and / or Area 51 types.

And now that meme lives again. Here's Shank on January 3, 2015:

As NFL playoffs begin, remember: whatever makes the path easier for the Patriots is what will happen.

— Dan Shaughnessy (@Dan_Shaughnessy) January 3, 2015

And here's Shank yesterday:

Same old story. No romo/des vs.patsweek 5. Whatever is easiest 4 pats will happen

— Dan Shaughnessy (@Dan_Shaughnessy) September 20, 2015

Is it safe to assume that Shank owns stock in Alcoa and gets some of his dividend checks in the form of 100 yard rolls of Reynolds aluminum foil?

Frontrunning / Bandwagon Dan 2015

Another pretend 'I Love The Patriots!' column by the Globe's resident weathervane.

Now they take their show on the road. It’ll be different for the Patriots.

Four hundred and fifty miles from the Safe House of Gillette, far from the Hub’s radio signal where daily four-hour shows are devoted to protecting the Patriots and destroying New England’s horde of enemies, the Patriots Sunday will play their first road game since haters punctured the Patriot narrative after the AFC Championship game. They play the Buffalo Bills in Orchard Park, N.Y., at 1 p.m. Sunday.

We know that folks in western New York will arrive at the stadium singing songs and carrying signs designed to mock the Patriots as cheaters. We know that “all sports inflating pumps’’ are a prominently featured item in the Bills Team Store. We know that the vaunted “Bills Mafia” is ready to take a torch to the Patriots and their legacy. We know that the Bills are better than they’ve been in a while and blowhard coach Rex Ryan is versed in how to attack Tom Brady.

Naturally, expect more of this tone from Shank until it becomes convenient for him to jump off the bandwagon.

The One Where Shank Pretends To Like Bill Belichick

I can just imagine the following scene at the Boston Globe:

(John Henry) - Dan? it's John. Can you come into my office for a minute?

(Shank) - Sure thing, boss...

(John Henry) - Dan, I know you're a miserable, negative bastard, writing the nastiest columns about the Patriots, Deflategate and MY FUCKING RED SOX TEAM! Would it kill you to write one god damn positive column a month, even though next to no one will believe it's sincere for even a second?

(Shank) - Sure thing, boss.

(John Henry) - Outstanding. Now get the fuck outta here!

Today, we get one of those columns.

Maybe the rest of the country doesn’t see it this way. We don’t care.

What do you mean we, kemosabe?

At the age of 63, after 40 years in the NFL, Bill Belichick is at the absolute top of his game. Defiant, unapologetic, protective of his guys, and master of the pro football universe, Belichick in the last week has been on a roll like Larry Bird in 1986, like Bobby Orr in 1970.

This latest surge of appreciation and awe of the Hoodie started last Wednesday with the release of “Do Your Job,’’ an NFL Films propaganda documentary taking us behind the scenes at Super Bowl XLIX in Glendale, Ariz.

Or maybe they were just doing a documentary on the most successful pro football coach in the modern era, or perhaps all time?

No matter - even when he tries to write a positive column, his cynicism simply cannot be contained.

Let's review a few other positive Shaughnessy columns about Bill Belichick, shall we? We all remember last year's Kansas City Massacre, right?

By the end of the night, the darts and arrows were coming from every direction. Bill Belichick was grilled about his musical-chair offensive line and the notion of starting two rookies in front of Brady in a loud enemy theater. The coach was asked if he might have to “evaluate” his quarterback position; the question from CSNNE’s Mike Giardi elicited a smirk with no comment.

There were hysterical calls for out-of-work Charlie Weis to replace Josh McDaniels as offensive coordinator. Darrelle Revis was compared to Carl Crawford (OK, that one was me). It was noted that no Belichick defense had ever surrendered 300 yards in a first half. There was a television graphic explaining that the Patriots offense ranks last in the NFL, averaging 4.6 yards per play. We were told that Brady has missed his target more than 25 percent of the time.

“I’ve never seen a team so unprepared,’’ former Patriot Rodney Harrison said on WEEI.

And who can forget the infamous '4th and 2' column?

This was as bad as anything the Red Sox ever did. Had it been a playoff game, it would be right up there with Bucky Dent, Bill Buckner, Aaron Boone, and History Derailed in Glendale, Ariz.

And Bill Belichick played the part of Grady Little.
...
Even the legions of zombies who say “In Bill We Trust’’ and the formidable pay-for-play Patriot media machine will have a hard time defending the brilliant coach on this one.

As we noted at the time, this is the column Shank has been waiting nearly a decade to write. He hates the Patriots (and Bill Belichick) so much, he wrote another column about that loss the next day.

The Patriots spin machine was in overdrive yesterday (speaking of spin, nice try by the Red Sox - raising ticket prices on the day after Belichick channeled Grady Little).

There are New England football fans who’d support Belichick if he pledged to eradicate indoor plumbing. And the Kraft family’s media partners do a nifty job spreading the gospel of Bob, Bill, and Tom. But the blind loyalty was put to the test on the day after the disaster at Lucas Oil Can Boyd Stadium.

And now Shank is singing Belichick's praises, probably from the wrong end of a gun. Who's buying this? We sure as hell aren't, and this insincerity will be amply demonstrated if the Patriots lose big this season.

Doubling Down

Get used to it, folks; when Shank latches onto something, he is relentless:

On @ZoandBertrand today from 11-1. They agree with me that whole AFC is shelf of tomato cans.

— Dan Shaughnessy (@Dan_Shaughnessy) September 15, 2015

Shank Revives The 'Tomato Cans' Meme

Knock us over with a feather - sure didn't see this one coming!

The AFC East is a beast. Every team in the division is undefeated after the first week of play. This hasn’t happened in the AFC East since division realignment in 2002.

Buffalo is a bully. The Dolphins have their 1972 forefathers worried that this might be another undefeated season in Miami. The back page of Monday’s New York Post screamed, “BRAND NEW JETS,’’ in the wake of Sunday’s 31-10 demolition of the mighty Cleveland Browns.

Finally, some competition for the Patriots.

We were warned about this all summer while mired in Deflategate. Rex Ryan, a man who knows how to beat the Patriots, was bringing swagger and good players to Orchard Park, N.Y. The Dolphins went out and bought Ndamukong Suh, the baddest man in the whole damn town (still dating yourself, Shank! - ed). The Jets took Darrelle Revis away from the Patriots, then put a Harvard man at quarterback.

Now they are all unbeaten. There’ll be no cakewalk for the Patriots this year.

Sorry, people. I’m not buying any of it.

Of course he's not buying it - he's not about to abandon his long standing tradition of setting up the Patriots for the highest of expectations just like he did last year so he can take a world class shit on them just like he did last year if / when they lose a game, all the better (and a more venomous column) if they lose big.

You'd think Shank could update his pop culture references - you'd be wrong!

The AFC East is still Gladys Knight and the Pips, and the Patriots are Gladys Knight.
...
It speaks to the greatness of Tom Brady and Bill Belichick, but it also speaks to the “clowns to the left of me, jokers to the right” competition from Buffalo, Miami, and New York.

Remember Shank's pledge 'never to rip Sandoval for being out of shape or going on the disabled list.'? Jokes don't technically count, right?

Belichick devours untested quarterbacks like Pablo Sandoval at the postgame spread.

Last but not least, the phrase that's been on the shelf for the last six months, polished up for heavy use in another NFL season:

The AFC East still has more tomato cans than Stop & Shop.

...aaand scene!

Shank's Second Attempt At Humor In A Week

Shank just loves working all sides of an issue in order to piss off his readers. A week ago here he is, dead serious:

I think they were doing it. We know all the flaws of the Wells Report and the unfairness and bias the NFL brought to process, but I find it impossible to explain the texts, the noncompliance, lawyering-up, destruction of evidence, suspension of two team employees, Robert Kraft’s acceptance of the whopping punishments, and the Patriots’ history of rule-bending, without concluding that the Patriots were up to something. They had a system. Brady wasn’t necessarily ordering the Code Reds, but the balls were deflated and he was generally aware. That’s my takeaway.

You don't like his opinions? That's okay - he has others! In today's installment of As The Deflated Ball Turns, half-cleverly disguised as humor:

It did not start with Bill Belichick and the 2001 Patriots. No doubt you already knew that. This goes way back. And it’s time we made amends.

Let’s start with some of the most memorable moments.

John Havlicek stealing the ball to clinch the 1965 NBA Eastern Conference finals for the Celtics? Sorry to burst your bubble. Havlicek stealing the ball was not on the level.

Johnny Most knew the dirty deal, but he took the secret to his grave. The Celtics had their backs to the wall on that April Friday night. They were engaged in a vigorous seven-game series with the hated Philadelphia 76ers and it looked like Wilt Chamberlain was finally going to get the better of Bill Russell.

Trailing by a point with five seconds left in Game 7, the 76ers were set to inbound the ball under their own basket after an awful turnover by Russell. Fortunately, Boston had karma and cleverness on its side in the person of Ernie Adams, a young Celtic ball boy from Brookline. During the timeout, after Russell’s turnover, young Adams snuck into the 76ers’ huddle and offered towels and water cups to Chamberlain and guard Hal Greer. Adams saw 76ers coach Dolph Schayes drawing up a play that had Greer inbounding the ball out deep to Chet Walker from underneath the basket. Adams went back to the Celtics’ huddle and relayed the news to Havlicek. Then Havlicek Stole The Ball. The rest is radio history, NBA history.

Points are awarded for creativity, but points are deducted for his mention of the most recent 'controversy, dubbed 'Communicategate', in which the NFL exonerated the Patriots of wrongdoing.

Unfunny Tweets, By Dan Shaughnessy

From yesterday's Patriots / Steelers game, Dickhead Dan still thinks this is funny stuff:

The Coin Toss in Context: Pats win toss. Defer. Game over. Again.

— Dan Shaughnessy (@Dan_Shaughnessy) September 11, 2015

Give it a rest, moron...

Shank is 'Steel' Up for Hating the Pats

Around 11:30 p.m. last night the Patriots sealed the win in the opening game to the NFL's 2015-16 season, rising above all the sound and fury from last season's Deflategate debacle with a convincing win over the Steelers.

It took just a few more hours for The CHB to dive back into the mire.

"[G]et ready for another round of accusations from the haters," writes The CHB, following the Patriots' victory.

But who, exactly, are the haters?

Following the game, the Steelers complained about the headsets occasionally not working or getting crossed with other broadcasts. Well, the Patriots acknowledged the headsets weren't working. That's hating?

No, what feels more like hating is when The CHB writes:

"No fan base is more angry or defensive than the proud Patriot Legion ... "

or

"[W]inning is never enough for the Patriots and their fans. They need to grind their enemies into dust."

or

"Nothing has changed for many of us ... the Patriots quarterback was not 'exonerated.' "

or

"Why so many 'experts' (including ESPN) saying the weather could have deflated balls when ESPN says all 12 colt footballs tested ok? 

Who's the real hater?

We Can Hazard A Guess

So, Shank goes on ESPN, presumably to talk about the Patriots:

Going on outside the lines on espn2 at 530est

— Dan Shaughnessy (@Dan_Shaughnessy) September 10, 2015

Were the Shank comments positive or negative? Do I even have to ask?

If anyone saw it, please leave your impression in the comments. Thanks!

More Dumb Tweets, By Dan Shaughnessy

Presumably after reading this interestingly timed Outside The Lines ESPN column, Shank comes out with an original idea:

Maybe Pats best option is just to secede from the NFL and start their own league.

— Dan Shaughnessy (@Dan_Shaughnessy) September 8, 2015

We can call it... the USFL!

Shank's Annual Golf Column

...is about as underwhelming as you'd imagine. There's proforma praise for winner Rickie Fowler, a cheap shot at runner-up Henrik Stenson, and Shank's lifelong man crush on Tiger Woods hasn't abated.

A Tiger-starved golf world needs more Rickie, and less Henrik.

Sorry. But you know it’s true. With Tiger Woods’s world ranking down to 266, golf needs a double shot of what the late George Frazier called duende.

What A Difference Two Days Makes

Shank, on Thursday:

"Tom Brady wins. Roger Goodell loses. So when does Bob Kraft reverse himself once more and go after the NFL to reclaim the $1 million fine and loss of two draft picks?"
...
There is great glee in Foxborough. It’s another championship day for Brady, Bill Belichick, Bob and Jon Kraft, and The Wells Report In Context. Judge Berman has validated and vindicated Brady, while thoroughly spanking Goodell and the NFL’s punishing process.

Shank, about an hour and a half ago:

Berman (has he been fitted for a Patriots onesie?) only verified what we already knew: Brady was overpunished for his alleged awareness of the alleged scheme. But contrary to instant local mythology, the Patriots quarterback was not “exonerated.’’
...
Mercifully, it feels like it’s over now. Kraft is unlikely to go back on his word and seek to reverse the team punishments, and the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit won’t be heard from for a year or two. So let’s all get on with our lives.

Shank = Not Exactly Alan Dershowitz

As my co-blogger notes below, it's always amusing to see Shank do a 180 degree turn on a subject. A mere five weeks ago, Tom Brady was a cheater. With today's column, you do not see the faintest hint of the notion that Tom Brady's a cheater, do you?

"Hey, Tom, sorry about calling you a cheater a while ago. Glad that's all cleared up now. We're good, right?"

Sadder still is Shank's lack of due diligence with respect to the following sentence:

"Tom Brady wins. Roger Goodell loses. So when does Bob Kraft reverse himself once more and go after the NFL to reclaim the $1 million fine and loss of two draft picks?"

It's sad, but not surprising, that Shank has had seven months to examine this situation and still have little to no idea about contract law, legal precedents with respect to the NFL or collective bargaining agreements, all stemming from his laziness or lack of curiosity. I was able to blow through the Berman decision in the better part of an hour and conclude that Berman's decision (last part of p. 18 to about page 39) was based on numerous violations / misapplications of NFL precedence and due process procedures by commissioner Goodell with respect to the existing collective bargaining agreement during the arbitration hearing, which makes Shank's contention about half right. Further of Brady's contentions (the rest of the Scribd link above) were dismissed by Judge Berman.

If he had bothered to read Berman's report, he would realize that Berman did not rule against anything in the Wells Report itself, never opining on the underlying allegations against Brady and thus not providing Kraft any basis for an appeal of the team fine and loss of draft picks. This is just a further demonstration of Shank's laziness.

Intercepted

So back on Jan. 22, when The CHB tweeted this:

do you think it ever crossed his mind that he would someday (as in today) write this:

"Tom Brady wins. Roger Goodell loses. So when does Bob Kraft reverse himself once more and go after the NFL to reclaim the $1 million fine and loss of two draft picks?"

Of course not. Which is why most of us learn by the time we reach grade school not to speak out of turn or lob grenades without knowing what the consequences of doing so might be.

But not The CHB! Reversing himself is what he does best.* Now it's the "blundering NFL" and the "stubborn" NFL commissioner Roger Goodell who are in the wrong.

Perhaps changing your mind is "just part of the editorial process."


*The bartenders at The Four's might disagree.

Shank And The Globe's Editorial Process

Having read Mike's recent post about Shank and the deleted Don Orsillo sign removal sentence, a Globe hack responds thusly:

That led David Skok, the Globe’s managing editor for digital and general manager of BostonGlobe.com, to respond: “Story was published early, sourcing was weak so the line was removed. Our coverage on this speaks for itself.”

It speaks, all right, and just furthers this blogger's contention that Shank does not have an editor, or doesn't until something blows up in Shank's face.

This is by no means an exhaustive list, but a cursory review of this site's posts since inception for the search word 'editor' shows 24 results. Out of the first twelve, I rediscovered five clear indicators of this lack of editorial oversight:

* Dec. 30, 2007 - three spelling mistakes, never corrected.

* Dec. 7, 2008 - Semi-confusing (and definitely annoying) references to the (Sea)Hawks and potentially the Atlanta Hawks.

* Jan. 26, 2010 - same as above.

* Nov. 23, 2014 - misstatement of fact; a Google search of two minutes could have prevented this one.

* July 9, 2015 - misstatement of fact / complete lack of research. Again, a two minute Google search was all that would have been required to get this story straight.

Oh - and my all-time favorite is right here:

Skaters know there’s a purity about the outdoor game. No Zamboni fumes.

A quick Google search turns out the following:

Drive Train:
Four-wheel drive. Rugged Spicer axles have high capacities. Full floating rear axle. General Electric 17.5 HP electric motor provides superior on-ice power even at low speeds.

By the way, Zamboni machines have had electric drive trains for over fifty years.

The only time a Globe editor is mentioned in the same sentence as Shank's is in this case or when Shank's wife donates $250 to Nikki Tsongas' congressional campaign from a joint checking account and a Globe editor has to pull Shank's ass out of the fire, piously declaring nothing to see here, move along.

If any of you want to continue to buy into the notion of Shank having constant editorial oversight, these examples out ought to persuade you otherwise. It is clear to me that the offending sentence in Shank's latest column was removed after someone, presumably at NESN and / or the Red Sox organization, spotted it and 'requested' that it be removed.

Hacktastic!

UPDATE at 5:28 PM - Commenter Anonymous points out this egregious example, to wit: Dodgers StadiumThe Coliseum opened was the Dodgers baseball field in 1958, and Shank's article as linked to above has Humphrey Bogart attending at least one game at that stadium. All well & fine, were it not for the fact that Bogart died in January 1957, one year before the stadium opened.

Like I noted before, this is not an exhaustive list of evidence that Shank has no immediate editorial oversight; any additional examples would simply be shoveling more dirt on this notion.

UPDATE at 7:11 PM - Typo has been corrected as noted above, which makes this site more accountable than Shank's columns on this sort of thing...

UPDATE, 9/2/2015 at 12:58 AM - Change of Los Angeles baseball venue as noted above, thanks to commenter Anonymous.

New suggested DSW masthead - 'At least we acknowledge and correct our mistakes!'

The CHB's Belichickian Response

As Anonymous was so good to note in the Comments to the post below, The CHB's piece today on Don Orsillo's pending departure had the following line deleted: "Two Sox employees told the Globe that workers at Fenway turnstiles were ordered to confiscate any signs supporting Orsillo as fans entered Fenway."

Media watcher Dan Kennedy, who has the story over at Media Nation, asked The CHB about the
edit." The CHB, naturally, is less than forthcoming in his response, claiming the deletion is "just part of the editorial process" and not commenting further.

But Deadspin is on the attack, asserting that Shank's sourcing is either weak or outright wrong.

Only Flounder from Animal House can do this justice:

Shank Talk on Orsillo Exit Just a Lot of Hot Air

Looking for threads, The CHB continues to yank John Henry's. But his goal, if he has one (doubtful), remains vague.

In typical hyperbolic fashion, The CHB claims the "firings" of Red Sox CEO Larry Lucchino, GM Ben Cherington and announcer Don Orsillo were "classless."

But were they? Let's take them one at a time, shall we?

1. Lucchino: The CHB has repeatedly argued that the Red Sox has underachieved. So, if that's the case -- and three World Series titles in 10 years would bring out the ecstasy of every MLB team, Yankees included -- shouldn't the architect been canned? After all, it was more than a year ago that Shank called him an "absentee owner." Going back to 2013, The CHB said Lucchino deserved blame for the 2011 collapse and 2012 wipeout. And even before that The CHB was claiming Lucchino was on his way out because he didn't have a contract.

Then last month The CHB asserts Larry is bailing because he "just got tired of being there."

Make up your mind, Danny Boy. Was it Lucchino's choice or not? And was it time for him to leave or not?

 2. Cherington: See above. If the team is as bad as The CHB claims it is, why shouldn't the general manager be shown the door? Back in early 2013, The CHB was mocking Cherington was being -- can we say it? -- dumb: "Some of us (me) think Cherington is a little slow-moving for the combustible Lucchino." We can read between those lines. After all, the point of the piece was that Cherington wasn't getting blamed for the Red Sox' 2012 performance, but that he should have been.

3. Orsillo: His contract was also up. And yes, it's a huge shame he is getting the boot. It happens. Before he became the drunken face of the Cubs (something The CHB probably can relate to) Harry Caray was dumped by the Cardinals. His son, Skip, was relegated to Peachtree TV after 20-plus years calling Atlanta Braves games on TBS. The handling of this was inelegant, to say the least, but it happens, even to Hall of Fame announcers.

My take: The CHB has been frozen out of the loop on what remains the region's biggest beat -- the Red Sox -- and he's seething over it. As is his passive-aggressive style, this is his response.