So the Rangers are shopping A-Rod. If this weren't so sad, I'd have to laugh. The guy just won the AL MVP award (quite a feat for someone on a last place team). A-Rod consistently performs at a high level. The only objection the Rangers could have is his salary, and that's .... THEIR OWN FAULT! Is it any wonder baseball is in the tank with owners like this?

The NBA is re-aligning and adding two divisions. I guess they looked over at the NFL and saw the mighty 5-5 Bengals perched atop the AFC North and couldn't resist. The Bengals in the playoffs - who wouldn't want that kind of action in their league? What they forgot was that the NBA already has a system in place that permits the mediocre and undeserving easy access to the post-season.

Speaking of mediocrity and the NFL ... I hate parity. It is quite literally true that on any given Sunday any team can beat any other team, and in any given season any team can win it all. That may sound exciting to some, but I miss the days when a team could rise up and be a perennial contender for a string of years. I like having teams that I love and teams that I hate. You don't get a chance to build up any serious rancor when a team is deep in the playoffs one year, and in the cellar the next.

I also believe that you can't blame the whole thing on parity. A lot of teams just aren't getting the job done these days. Exhibit A: The Tampa Bay Buccaneers. This team has no excuse. At worst, they are just as good as the team that won the Super Bowl last year. I would argue that they are actually a lot better.

One last thing on the Bucs: Hats off for benching Keshaun Johnson. Gutsy call. As a John Gruden fan, I really hope the team responds positively to this. No one is bigger than the team. And to everyone else but Gruden in the Bucs front office, are you surprised? Johnson had a rep for this kind of behavior long before he came to Tampa Bay. I'm not saying KJ isn't a talented receiver. But, when you factor in his effect on team chemistry, I just don't think he's worth his salary.

For the last time, Sen. Robert Bennett of (R-Utah), mind your own business! This is the guy who wants a briefing from the BCS leaders, and is interested in holding hearings on the matter. As I thought about this, I wondered if my love of sports perhaps arises from the fact that it is one of the few things that has remained unmolested by government politicians. Senator please, do America a favor, don't try to fix anything at all. Just, you know, babble a lot, show up on TV talking about you are against this and this, let lobbyists shmooz you some, and all the other politician stuff. But at the end of the day, please don't try to do anything substantial

U of Oregon President Dave Frohnmayer had the right response. "We believe this is a matter that we can work out among ourselves." In other words, if we ever want College Football to start looking like some of the programs Congress has come up with, we'll call you. Otherwise, Senator, butt out!

The sad thing is, apparently the BCS guys had already come up with some changes. My guess is that this was due to what is going on with the Big East. Unfortunately some Congresspersons are going to come away thinking, "Yep! We turned the heat up on 'em and made things happen!"

More and more I find myself hoping that TCU will get into the BCS and then get blasted by whomever they face. I hate that. Personally I have nothing against TCU. They've had a great sesason, and you don't hear them whining about the BCS all that much. They deserve to go to a bowl where they have the opportunity to end the season with a hard-fought win.

By the way, there has been much hand-wringing over the inconsistencies in the computer rankings. College Football is probably one of the worst sports to try to measure statistically. There just isn't enough data. Teams only play 11 or 12 games to begin with, and scheduling is highly stratified by region and conference. How can you mathematically compare a Big 12 team to an ACC team? Members of the two conferences rarely play each other. You'd have to resort to looking at opponents of opponents to even establish a link.

This is made even more difficult by the almost complete elimination of margin of victory. If you're going to say that an overtime win is just as good as a 35-point annhilation, it's going to be very difficult to sort things out.

I guess what we could do is just settle this all on the field with a playoff!

Originally published at Terrible Swift Word.