Unabashed

In the world of women’s sports, for me, softball is the best to watch. I do like soccer (football to you Euros), but I’m not into women’s basketball at all, nor golf. The thing that makes it fun for me is primarily that it’s just a little bit different from baseball. And if you’ve ever seen one of those girls pitch and you weren’t impressed, you and I clearly are of different minds. They don’t wear hats, like the men do, they usually have long hair pulled back in a pony tail, often with little ribbons or bows (cute). And the fact is that these girls have skill.

In soccer, the game is just a carbon copy of the men’s, ditto for basketball (Okay, in basketball the 3-point line is closer to the goal. But that’s about it). But softball is just different from baseball. The pitcher is closer to the batter (43′ compared to 60′6″ in baseball) and the outfield fence is a lot closer in, the ball is bigger, the pitchers pitch differently (and it is frickin cool the way they pitch), and I don’t care how big the ball is, when it’s coming from just 43′ away at 67 MPH, it’s dang hard to turn on it… it’s just a different kind of game, and it seems like a game tailored better to fit the athleticism of ladies.

I would support a professional softball league before any other women’s sport. Soccer, maybe, but I just can’t get into the WNBA. I’ve tried. I hate it. It just doesn’t seem like a sport that’s made for women. But give me a local pro softball team and I’ll buy a hat (so long as it isn’t pink, aye?) and maybe a jersey as well. And with athletes like Taryne Mowatt (pictured) who’s a phenomenal, record-setting pitcher, it seems a shame they have no opportunity to become professional players.

I want a pro girls softball league.

Give it.

I also like to watch women’s tennis. More than the men’s. There aren’t many sports like that; the athleticism of the men is just too phenomenal not to watch. But men can be gross, too, I agree, so… at least girls aren’t gross, eh? :-)

Um, just a final note that Alabama just knocked off Taryne and the Wildcats to advance in the CSWS. Roll Tide!

written by Matt Mitchell \\ tags: Alabama, Arizona, crimson, football, girls, ladies, league, mowatt, pro, roll tide, soccer, softball, sport, taryne, tide, wildcats, women

I’ve overheard dozens of arguments in private and public forums concerning what should and should not be considered sport. This classic argument usually comes from Nascar or Golf fans whenever someone says that either one is not a ’sport.’ Some say they are coordination sports rather than athletic sports. Some say there’s no way you can call it a sport because it doesn’t require athleticism. And still others will maintain that golf, bowling and Nascar all require some athletic skill to be able to master–you’d be crazy to think that Tiger Woods is not an athlete.

At the same time, there are those who will say that even baseball isn’t a sport. I once heard an interview with John Kruk (Philadelphia Phillies first baseman from 1990-94) in which he was being asked about being an athlete when he interrupted and said “I’m not an athlete; I’m a baseball player.”

The arguments are many and the classifications are varied. There are athletic sports, non-athletic sports, spectator sports, and non-spectator sports, contact sports, combat sports, team sports, target sports, external-power sports, display sports, strength sports, etc., etc., etc. For this list, I’ve compiled the ‘A list’ of the best sports that do not require an abundance of athleticism, but do require endurance, skill, coordination, strategy or some combination thereof.

• Auto/Motorcycle racing (includes anything motorized)
• Pool/billiards
• Bowling
• Miniature golf
• Iditarod/dog sledding
• Fishing/hunting
• Foosball
• Darts
• Horseshoes
• Ping Pong
• Video Games
• Badminton
• Poker
• Dominoes
• Chess
• Checkers
• Polo
• Curling

And now, I give you the Top 5 non-athletic sports according to Unabashed:

5. Curling/horseshoes — Curling is like horseshoes on ice. Horseshoes you can play in your backyard; curling? Only if you live in Greenland or Minnesota. Curling is fun to watch, and horseshoes is one of those things that you don’t necessarily have to be good at to enjoy.
4. Poker — Chris Moneymaker’s victory at the ‘03 World Series of Poker almost convinced me to omit poker from this list. It’s shameful that someone so untested–such an utter weinie–should win the sport’s most hallowed prize, but there’s no denying the amount of skill and self-control that is required of anyone who excels at poker. In America during the 1800’s, ‘Poker Player’ was considered a legitimate occupation.
3. Video Games — Yes, to dominate this sport you must be, at most, ten to twelve years old. But there are very few things as exciting when you’re embroiled in the competition of a video game contest.
2. Chess — If you’re really, really good at chess, you receive the title ‘Grandmaster.’ Automatically, if someone is identified as a Grandmaster you know that they are intense competitors, they are master strategists with uncanny levels of concentration and focus, and that they are just a little bit crazy.
1. Iditarod — What other sport requires this level of endurance, concentration, and desire to win? None.

Honorable mention: Foosball (the Unabashed favorite) — All the excitement of soccer but you can drink beer while you play. Requires intense concentration and motor skills. In case you are wondering: Spinning the foosmen is NOT ALLOWED.

As always, if I’ve forgotten anything or didn’t consider something, let me know.

written by Matt Mitchell \\ tags: , chess, curling, foosball, iditarod, non-traditional sports, poker, sport