Sporting News 03.31.12

• What could you do in the third grade? San Francisco Chronicle
• Oops!: David Beckham promotional poster for schools deemed inappropriate Daily Mail 
• Blowup: Houston Dynamo's Colin Clark player fined for gay slur SBNation
• Cribs: Take a peek at the most expensive athlete homes Bleacher Report
• Rookie San Jose Shark helps spread the message that "You Can Play" San Jose Mercury News
• San Francisco 49ers QB Alex Smith joins effort to find Sierra LaMar Yahoo Sports!

Assignment: Cause and Effect Essay

On 2002, Billy Beane revolutionized baseball's approach to winning games

Under the stewardship of general manager Billy Beane, the 2002 Oakland Athletics won an unprecedented 20 games in a row, an American League record. To do so, the A's needed to take a new approach to scoring runs. What was that new approach and what precipitated the change? Likewise, besides the winning streak, what effect did Beane's methodology have on Major League Baseball? Cite extensively (and exclusively) from Michael Lewis' Moneyball to support your thesis.

Requirements:

• MLA Style, including parenthetical citation
• 3-page minimum
• Include a works cited page

The best papers will:

• Stay within the parameters of the prompt, examining the circumstances that precipitated Beane's novel approach to scoring runs, as well as the impact of his methodology
• Have a concise thesis that both addresses the subject matter and contains a viable argument
• Clearly support their thesis utilizing solid evidence presented in a logical structure
• Properly cite evidence from Moneyball using MLA's parenthetical citation method
• Conclude with a summation of the main points
• Be formatted according to MLA Style 

Due: We 04.04 (Draft 1—Bring 3 copies)

Week 10: Julio Cesar Chavez, Boxing

Mexico's Chávez won six world titles in three weight divisions

Mo 3.26
No class: Spring break

We 3.28
No class: Spring break

Upcoming:

Week 11: Walter Payton, Football
Mo 4.2
Read: MONEY—“The Human Element” – Postscript: Inside Baseball’s Religious War”
Class: Reading discussion; Presentations

We 4.4
Class: Reading discussion, Writers workshop
Due: CAUSE AND EFFECT ESSAY (DRAFT 1—BRING 3 COPIES)

Week 09: Shaun White, Snowboarding

White is a two-time Olympic gold medal winner

Mo 3.19
Read: MONEY—“The Science of Winning an Unfair Game” – “Scott Hatteberg, Pickin’ Machine”
Class: Reading discussion; Lecture—“The Cause and Effect Essay—A Primer”

We 3.21
Read: MONEY—“The Trading Desk” – “Anatomy of an Undervalued Pitcher”
Class: Watch— Excerpts from Moneyball (2011)
Due: REFLECTION 5

Upcoming:

Week 10: Julio Cesar Chavez, Boxing
Mo 3.26
No class: Spring break

We 3.28
No class: Spring break

Week 11: Walter Payton, Football

Mo 4.2
Read: MONEY—“The Human Element” – Postscript: Inside Baseball’s Religious War”
Class: Reading discussion; Presentations

We 4.4
Class: Reading discussion, Writers workshop
Due: CAUSE AND EFFECT ESSAY (DRAFT 1—BRING 3 COPIES)

Reflection 05: Crossing the Line—Athletes Behaving Badly

Some athletes, like Michael Vick, can't seem to fully escape their scandals

Professional athletes are people, too. And like people, they sometimes do bad things. However, in recent years, pro athletes have been involved in a variety of scandals, both minor and serious, including sexual assault (Mike Tyson, Kobe Bryant, Ben Roethlisberger) steroids (Mark McGuire), illegal betting (Pete Rose), murder (OJ Simpson), sexting (Brett Favre, Ron Artest), drunk driving (Charles Barkley), sexual harassment (The New York Jets), infidelity (David Beckham, Tiger Woods), dogfighting (Michael Vick), domestic violence (Tito Ortiz), prostitution (Wayne Rooney), assault (Tonya Harding, Jason "Mayhem" Miller), and drug use (Jennifer Capriati). Still, in the court of public opinion, some athletes transgressions are judged more harshly than others. Some athletes have the ability to sail past scandal (e.g. Michael Phelps), while others' images remain permanently impaired (e.g. Barry Bonds). What is the line between what fans can forgive and what they cannot forget? Has a favorite athlete of yours ever been embroiled in controversy? If so, did you continue to support him or her?

Include at least two of the following in your discussion:

• "Most Disliked Athlete? America Still Hasn’t Forgiven Michael Vick" (Yahoo! Sports)
• "Rich Athletes Behaving Badly" (Forbes) 
• "'How Could You?': The Fan's Response to Athletes Behaving Badly" (Psychology Today) 
• "Sports: Where (Almost) All of Your Sins are Forgiven, Maybe" (TheSportsManifesto)

Required:

• MLA Style
• Must be exactly one page in length*
• A Works Cited page 

*Note that this reflection should not exceed one full page

Due: We 3.21

Week 08: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Basketball

Abdul-Jabbar is the NBA's all-time leading scorer with over 38,000 points

Mo 3.12
Read: MONEY—“The Curse of Talent” – “The Enlightenment”
Class: Reading discussion; Presentations
Due: REFLECTION 4

We 3.14
Read: MONEY—“Field of Ignorance” – “The Jeremy Brown Blue Plate Special”
Class: SHORT ANSWER RESPONSES

Upcoming:

Week 09: Shaun White, Snowboarding
Mo 3.19
Read: MONEY—“The Science of Winning an Unfair Game” – “Scott Hatteberg, Pickin’ Machine”
Class: Reading discussion; Lecture—“The Cause and Effect Essay—A Primer”

We 3.21
Read: MONEY—“The Trading Desk” – “Anatomy of an Undervalued Pitcher”
Class: Watch— Excerpts from Moneyball (2011)
Due: REFLECTION 5

Sporting News 03.06.12

The Saints have admitted to paying bonuses fro injuring specific players

• The New Orleans Saints' big money "Bounty Program" comes to light Wall Street Journal
• New NHL project targets homophobia in the league Huffington Post
• Seventy-years-young: Septuagenarian qualifies for the London Olympics Washington Post
• Go for it: Judge blocks latest attempt to block 49ers stadium in Santa Clara San Jose Mercury News
• Floyd Maryweather: Boxing's number one fans are Mexicans BoxingScene
• Six months in jail for the rugby player who broke an opponent's jaw Daily Mail