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PGA needs to make some adjustments
I was going to go out to watch Phil Mickelson play after concluding business in Chicago on Thursday night. The exciting finish on Monday had me line up tickets and book a hotel.
However, Phil's announcement sent me home to Salt Lake City.
Phil's comments make it pretty obvious that the top players do not think this "playoff"ˆÅ¥ system is all that important, which makes all the hype the PGA Tour has been plastering all over the FedEx Cup seem like a hollow effort to garner some interest in a few tournaments after the last major has ended.
If the PGA Tour really wanted to ensure all the top guys play, they would schedule more free time into the tour earlier in the season so pros like Phil and Tiger would be pumped to finish the year in a playoff.
John Harrington
Salt Lake City
Listen up, PGA
I think both Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods not playing in one of the PGA Tour's playoffs shows the system is flawed. How can you take off, attain no points for one week and still have a better than decent chance at winning the playoffs?
The whole idea of a playoff is that the players restart on level ground and fight like heck to win. But when points are carried over from the regular season, so many that players can actually opt out of competition - the field of 144 is really limited to about 20 players with a chance.
How about this? Starting the postseason, every player starts at zero points. Then the first tourney is a Stableford (scoring system), the second is stroke play, third is a bracket of the top 64, and then the winners of each bracket play skins that amount to $10 million?
That way the best rounded of the postseason really comes out.
Tyler E. Rousseau
Trenton, N.J.
No sympathy for Z
Speaking as one who was never a big Carlos Zambrano fan, I can't help but be amused at Monday's departing gesture to the fans after yet another poor start.
So he doesn't like to be booed? Let me tell you, Carlos, Cubs fans don't like being the laughing stock of baseball. You boys in Cubbie blue come and go, but we stay.
Cubs fans are anxious. Cubs fans have high expectations. If we happen to be a little bit disgusted after a string of subpar performances, oh well.
Let me leave you with this thought, Carlos... you haul in with every 4 1/2 inning mess what Sandy Koufax made the entire year of his final 27-9 campaign.
Go ahead and cry, Carlos, all the way to the bank.
John Canger
Lake Zurich
My White Sox roster
My buddy and I have been making next year's White Sox roster since June, so I thought I'd write.
This 2007 team showed that they were old and slow since spring training. There was one game this year when the Sox won with small-ball, pitching and defense. It was great to watch - and reminiscent of 2005.
But I believe that game had a healthy Scotty Pods and Jerry Owens. I think Kenny Williams will give Ozzie Guillen more of an "Ozzie small-ball" team next year. To do so, he'll be forced to make some unpopular moves. Kenny has a lot of wheelin'-n-dealing to do.
Here's my 2007 roster:
• Josh Fields, left field and backup third base
• Aaron Rowand, center field (never should had left)
• Jerry Owens, right field (unless we get a great trade value)
• Joe Crede, third base (he has through June to prove he's back, figuratively speaking. Pablo Ozuna and Fields back up)
• Miguel Tejada or David Eckstein, shortstop
• Danny Richar, Ozuna, Darin Erstad, second base (Richar will be the Brian Anderson experiment of 2008)
• Paul Konerko, first base (but he may be gone if we can't move Jim Thome and/or Jermaine Dye)
• A.J. Pierzynski, catcher (lost focus this year. Not much on the market)
Pitchers: Mark Buehrle, Javier Vazquez, Jon Garland (needs an attitude adjustment, focus), Jose Contreras (won't be able to move him), John Danks (stronger arm and more endurance next season), Gavin Floyd (plug in and replace No. 3, 4 or 5 if he earns it and someone falters)
Kevin Jacobsen
Schaumburg