Let's Make a Deal

It's the Major League Baseball Trade Deadline this week. As the deals come across the wire, I'll be analyzing them.

Phillies acquire Cliff Lee and Ben Francisco from Indians for prospects Carlos

Carrasco, Lou Marson, Jason Knapp and Jason Donald.

From the Phillies POV:

Lee is the reigning Cy Young winner from the American League. He costs about $8

million less than Halladay would for next season. They keep Happ, Drabek and Donald. I can't think of one negative. Donald would most likely play third base when Feliz's contract ended. Now they must re-sign Feliz or look for another third baseman but that's not a huge problem. Marson has all the making of a stud catcher but he's not ready to play everyday in the big leagues and Carlos Ruiz is more than serviceable. Francisco is nothing special but he is a little more seasoned than Mayberry.

This deal overloads the Phillies with left-handed starters. Hamels, Lee, Moyer and Happ. Blanton is pitching better than anyone on the team now and Pedro Martinez is working his way through a rehab stint and will be back soon. Rodrigo Lopez is as good as gone, which is a shame because he pitched well, but he will undoubtedly be scooped up by another team and could earn himself a nice paycheck this offseason. With 34 games over the final 34 days of the season, including two September double-headers, the Phils will need extra arms. Amaro knew the Phils would wrap up the NL East, but with this moved he may have wrapped up another pennant and perhaps more.

From the Indians POV:

No point spending $9 million on Lee when you have no chance at the playoffs. Save some money and get some young guys in return. Francisco is addition by subtraction as his long swing was not helping anyone and his roster spot was blocking Brantley or LaPorta's call-up.

Marson would allow the Indians to trade Victor Martinez now, which could net a big pitching prospect as well. This trade signals not only a white flag for this season (which was obvious) but for next year as well.

Shapiro may have faltered in this one. Carrasco has great stuff but it hasn't translated in games. There's a reason Cleveland turned down a deal with the Phillies last year centered around Carrasco for CC Sabathia. There's also a reason the Phillies called up Bastardo, not Carrasco, to replace the injured Brett Myers and then called up Lopez, not Carrasco to replace the injured Bastardo. The kid hasn't developed. At only 22, there's still hope, but the Phils must be thrilled to get rid of him and keep Drabek in their system.

The City of Doctorly Love

Despite being in first place and ten games above .500, the Philadelphia Phillies aren't sitting back and doing nothing. Pedro Martinez will be taking a physical tomorrow and if all goes well signing a contract shortly there after.

Kyle Drabek, coming off a solid outing in the MLB Futures Game yesterday has all but made himself untouchable. The Phils still have the pieces to go out and make a play for Blue Jays ace Roy Halladay. Halladay has said he would welcome a trade to the Senior Circuit especially if it gave him a shot at a World Series ring. As a player with 10 years Major League service and 5 with the same team, Doc can veto any trade agreed upon. With this kind of bargaining power, I would take advantage of it and demand some things from Philadelphia.

We've all seen how awesome the Blue Jays look when they wear their 1993 World Series uniforms. The powder blue blue jay is one of the best logos ever constructed. So if I'm Doc Halladay, I would tell Phillies GM Ruben Amaro that I would agree to come to Philly only if the Phils bring back the maroon unis on home games when I'm pitching. It's a simple request and one that the city of Philadelphia has been clamoring for all season. 

Halladay would be the right-handed Steve Carlton. Imagine a rotation with righties Roy Halladay, Pedro Martinez and Joe Blanton and lefties Cole Hamels, Jamie Moyer and J.A. Happ. Happ would likely get kicked to the bullpen as would Brett Myers if/when he returns from hip surgery in September. It wouldn't surprise me if the Phils made a run at former Blue Jays closer BJ Ryan as well. It never hurts to have an extra lefty in the 'pen. 

Do it Doc. It can't hurt to ask. It would make the perfect transition to the NL. The Phillies can't waste this opportunity. A pitcher of Halladay's caliber don't come around often. This is why you build the farm system. The Phils will get a good look at him tomorrow evening when Halladay toes the slab in the All-Star game. And with five Phillies taking hacks against him and Charlie watching from the dugout, I expect the recruitment process to be heavy.

Threes a Crowd

Raul Ibanez will have some friendly faces in the outfield with him Tuesday in St. Louis. Ibanez earned a starting spot on the All-Star team by putting up stellar numbers over the first half of the season. With the fans given the opportunity to send one final player, fellow Phillie Shane Victorino was given the nod. One day later, a replacement for injured Mets outfielder Carlos Beltran was appointed. Jayson Werth will now be packing his bags for St. Louis too.

Many will argue that J-Dub only got it because his skipper, Charlie Manuel made the selection. The numbers tend to disagree. Werth smashed his 20th homer of the year last night, his fourth in as many games. His range and arm strength undoubtedly helped his cause.

Membership has its privileges and nowadays it pays to roam the outfield in Philadelphia. Now if only they could get their starting pitching straightened out. Matt Stairs better stay close to his phone, because if Ryan Braun pulls a hammy this weekend...

Bulls 1 Spaniards 0

A man was killed at the annual Running of the Bulls in Pamplona, Spain this year.

In my short 22 years on this planet, I've accomplished many of the things I've wanted to. But one thing yet to be crossed off my bucket list is running with the bulls. Call me crazy, but this is one of the coolest things I think a human being could do.

Most people would object to jogging with 20,000 pounds of wild bulls. It may not be the smartest way to depart this life, but it's got to be one hell of a story when you get to Heaven. I've got to assume that there's special sections at the bar in the clouds for those who died in amusing ways. And being gorged by a bull will probably earn you free drinks for eternity. 

BRING ON THE BULLS!

Oh Charlie

The rosters for the 2009 All-Star Game in St. Louis were announced yesterday afternoon. These rosters did not include any of the top ten active career home run leaders. Perennial all-stars like Alex Rodriguez, Manny Ramirez and Ken Griffey Jr were all conspicuously absent. Many feel this is a statement from the fans condemning the use of performance enhancing drugs. A lot has changed since last season. Both A-Rod and Manny have admitted to PED use, while Griffey's numbers have dropped dramatically with a limited role and advancing age in Seattle.

Phillies skipper Charlie Manuel was able to pick eight players from his roster of 33. He took his own first baseman, Ryan Howard, but mainly made the right moves. Ramirez, despite his 50-game suspension, was sitting in the top 5 in votes for outfielders. When push came to shove, Manuel failed to add Manny's name to the roster.

But did Charlie have a plan?

Mets center fielder Carlos Beltran was elected by the fans, but due to a knee injury, will be unable to participate. In this scenario, Manuel will get to pick his replacement. He could go with his own center fielder, Shane Victorino. The Flyin' Hawaiian is on a list of five players who could potentially get the nod based on the fans' final vote.

And then there's Manny.

Manuel has said in the past that Manny is like a son to him. Going back to their days in Cleveland, when Manuel was the Tribe's hitting coach and Ramirez was setting the world on fire en route to the 8 year $160 million contract he signed with Boston. While eyebrows would absolutely be raised, Manuel could easily justify picking Manny.

Thanks to the wonderful Allan H. 'Bud' Selig, the All-Star game determines home field advantage in the World Series. With the Phillies in first place in their division, why wouldn't Manuel want a lethal bat like Manny on his bench? Last year's game went 15 innings before a winner was decided. Manny doesn't have to play all 9 innings to make an impact. One swing and he could send the NL home with its first victory in a decade. Charlie has an obligation to his employer, the Philadelphia Phillies, to do everything he can to secure home field advantage for them should they repeat as NL Champs.

And there's no better bat in Major League Baseball that isn't already heading to St. Louis than Manny. The argument that he shouldn't be available to play, given his suspension for essentially cheating seams valid. Manuel, however, is in the unique position to stake a serious claim to Selig's decision to 'make the game count'. For a regular, meaningless exhibition, maybe Manuel leaves Ramirez at home. But could anyone blame Charlie for trying to put together the best possible group of players?

It's called the All-"STAR" game. Not All-"STARS WHO DIDN'T GET SUSPENDED" game. Manny's a star. For Manny, the Phillies and the NL's sake, I hope Manny gets the call. And Charlie, you've got a cheese steak and a beer on me if you pick him.

Why Shouldn't We Wonder?

Philadelphia Phillies left fielder Raul Ibanez has been turning heads all season long. At 37 years of age, Ibanez is having a career year. With 22 home runs already, he is only one shy of the 23 he hit last year, while playing in all 162 games.

Recently, a Philadelphia sports blogger speculated that Ibanez was surpassing his usual production because of performance enhancing drugs. Normally, when a player reaches his late 30s, the stats go down.

Ibanez exploded when a reporter asked him to respond to the bloggers accusations. Ibanez said he would give urine, hair, blood and stool samples for drug testing in order to prove his innocence. It seems the media's questioning of his talent struck a chord with the veteran.

While I believe it is unfair to accuse Raul of juicing without any evidence besides inflated numbers, I think it's reasonable to wonder. As a product of the steroid era, which saw the greatest home run hitter statistically in Barry Bonds and the projected greatest home run hitter in A-Rod, both test positive for performance enhancers, questions will emerge. With such prolific names like Mark McGwire, Raphael Palmeiro and Roger Clemens all tied to steroid allegations, why shouldn't we speculate that a 14 year veteran, suddenly looking like a man amongst boys, is on the juice?

For starters, Ibanez spent ten seasons with Seattle, including the last five. He averaged nearly 25 home runs per season during his second stint with the Mariners in a ballpark that is widely considered one of the tougher parks to hit a homer in. Now, he has switched to the bandbox that is Citizens Bank Park. There's a reason Ryan Howard, Jimmy Rollins and Chase Utley regularly lead their respective positions in dingers each season. Citizens Bank Park is extremely friendly to left-handers with any kind of pop. Simply put, if Ibanez can hit 33 hr in SafeCo, there's no reason he can't hit 40+ in Citizens Bank.

It's a shame that Ibanez has to face steroid allegations (if he is in fact clean), but he shouldn't be mad at the media. Instead, focus that blame on Major League Baseball and commissioner Bud Selig who sat back and did nothing while steroids ran rampant during the past two decades. Maybe it will take something like this for players around the league to give-in to blood testing for HGH and other performance enhancers that cannot be detected through urine analysis.

Don't feel sorry for Jose Canseco or Eric Gagne or any other player who ruined his career by taking steroids. Feel sorry for those who haven't and are still lumped in with those who have. The fallout from the steroid scandal isn't tainted numbers. It's people questioning and doubting a great man and athlete who has worked his tail off in the pursuit of a World Series ring in the twilight of his career. And that is the biggest shame of all.

How Quickly We Forget

Ten minutes ago I settled down to take a nap. I had Pardon The Interruption on in the background but wasn't really paying attention. My dog was fidgeting around trying to get comfortable while simultaneously taking up 2/3 of my bed. I, myself found a comfortable spot and was just about out of consciousness when I heard "Swing and a loooooong drive....".

Immediately I snapped out of my daze. The voice continued, "...that ball's outta here". For a moment I thought that I merely dreamed that Harry had left us and that with his deep voice resonating from my television I was back listening to the legendary voice of the Philadelphia Phillies.

And then reality hit. I was hearing a commercial for Super Pretzels. They were trying to say that their pretzels were just as good as ballpark pretzels and there was no need to go to the park. The commercial commenced with an old black and white photo of Harry the K and the text of "Harry, we will miss you" in the bottom right corner.

I'm not trying to play into the dramatics, but I turned into a Native American watching someone litter. A single tear rolled down my cheek. It was two months ago tomorrow that Harry left us. It still feels like yesterday. RIP HK.

The Royal Unit

Randy Johnson won his 300th career game against the Washington Nationals Thursday night in what was a great moment in baseball history. The Unit, in all likelihood, will be the last person ever to record 300 victories.

While his stuff wasn't as filthy as it used to be, Johnson looked like the old Unit. Six innings and only two hits. We tend to forget how dominate this man was during his prime. Last year, NL Cy Young winner (and current teammate) Tim Lincecum struck out 265, a number that separated him largely from the field. Johnson has six seasons with over 300 strikeouts and three seasons in the 290s. When he took the hill for Seattle and Arizona (the first time) the game was over before he even threw a pitch. With 100 complete games in his career, Johnson finished what he started in an era largely dominated by bullpen strength and managers that played the percentages on late inning match-ups.

In the ninth inning, with the Unit on the bench, his son, who served as bat boy was standing with one leg up on the top step of the dugout. With the cameras fixated on the always stoic Johnson, his son was loving life. A smile that stretched from ear to ear was quickly erased as he shot quick glances in his fathers direction after every batter Brian Wilson faced reached a full count. Finally, with two outs, the elder Johnson called over to his son who took his place beside his father on the bench and posed for pictures. That was the first time I've ever seen Randy Johnson smile before the 27th out was recorded. Folks, it's a game and even the mighty Unit enjoys himself.



Albert Einstein said the definition of insanity is doing something three times and expecting a different outcome the fourth. Clearly I'm insane because I didn't think Tiger Woods had a snowball's chance in hell at winning the Memorial this afternoon. Is there anyone more clutch in all of professional sports than TW? It's difficult to make comparisons across sports, especially with the four major sports all being team sports and golf, clearly is not, but I'm willing to make the argument that Woods is the most clutch athlete in professional sports (Sorry Big Papi).

Anyone who has ever golfed knows that making up four strokes, even against the goofballs you and I play with on the weekends, is a daunting task. Now try and do it against the best in the world, a group that included Davis Love III and Jim Furyk. Tiger is on another planet and will not only break every record ever recorded in PGA history, but do so with relative ease.









Not much can pull me out of bed before noon on Sunday, but when Roger Federer is in the final of a major, I'm up before the roosters.

This morning, Federer won the French Open, completing the career Grand Slam and tying Pete Sampras for the most majors won at 14.

Tennis, much like golf, looks extremely easy on television. When you lace 'em up yourself and grab a racket, it's a whole new ballgame. The ease at which he blasts backhands down the line with pinpoint precision amazes me.

Federer has taken the backseat to Rafael Nadal over the past few years and although his victory at the French did not come against Rafa, Federer looked spectacular. Even in the post-match interview, he addressed the crowd at Roland Garros, first in French and then in English for the American television cameras in front of him. Tennis majors aren't exactly the Super Bowl, but anytime two superb athletes with insane competitive drives are pitted against each other, I'll be tuning in.

Ripe with Anticipation

The 2009 MLB season will commence with the reigning World Champion Phillies host the Atlanta Braves on Sunday, April 5th. The time has come for my long awaited 2009 season predictions.

STANDINGS
AL East
1. Boston Red Sox
2. New York Yankees
3. Tampa Bay Rays
4. Baltimore Orioles
5. Toronto Blue Jays

AL Central
1. Cleveland Indians
2. Minnesota Twins
3. Chicago White Sox
4. Kansas City Royals
5. Detroit Tigers

AL West
1. Los Angeles Angels
2. Oakland Athletics
3. Texas Rangers
4. Seattle Mariners

NL East
1. Philadelphia Phillies
2. New York Mets
3. Atlanta Braves
4. Florida Marlins
5. Washington Nationals

NL Central
1. Chicago Cubs
2. St. Louis Cardinals
3. Cincinnati Reds
4. Milwaukee Brewers
5. Houston Astros
6. Pittsburgh Pirates

NL West
1. Los Angeles Dodgers
2. Arizona Diamondbacks
3. San Francisco Giants
4. Colorado Rockies
5. San Diego Padres

AL Wildcard
New York Yankees

NL Wildcard
New York Mets

World Series
Red Sox defeat Dodgers in 5 games

Awards
AL MVP: Grady Sizemore
NL MVP: Manny Ramirez
AL Cy Young: Jon Lester
NL Cy Young: Dan Haren
AL ROY: Matt Wieters
NL ROY: Cameron Maybin
AL Comeback: Carl Pavano
NL Comeback: Chris Carpenter
AL Manager: Bob Geren
NL Manager: Joe Torre

AL All-Star Starters
C - Victor Martinez
1B - Mark Teixeira
2B - Dustin Pedroia
SS - Derek Jeter
3B - Evan Longoria
OF - Ichiro
OF - Josh Hamilton
OF - Grady Sizemore
SP - John Danks

NL All-Star Starters
C - Brian McCann
1B - Albert Pujols (Howard should get it but the game's in St. Louis)
2B - Chase Utley
SS - Hanley Ramirez
3B - David Wright
OF - Manny Ramirez
OF - Ryan Braun
OF - Carlos Lee
SP - Cole Hamels (Charlie Manuel is the skipper for the NL)

Bold Prediction: At least 7 of these players will go 30/30 this year.
1. Hanley Ramirez
2. Grady Sizemore
3. BJ Upton
4. Alfronso Soriano
5. Brandon Phillips
6. Nate McLouth
7. David Wright
8. Nick Markakis

The Darkest Day

The city of Philadelphia lost a great man yesterday. A man with more heart, spirit and dedication to the city than anyone before him. The Philadelphia Eagles, who are roughly $47 million under the salary cap, declined to re-sign safety Brian Dawkins. Dawkins signed a 5-year, $17 million contract with the Denver Broncos.

Earlier this week, Donovan McNabb said he would not consider signing an extension with the Eagles until he saw a commitment to improve the team around him by the front office. How did Andy Reid respond? With a disrespectful and down right pitiful one year offer to the heart and soul of the Eagles for the last 12 seasons. As sad as I am to see Brian go, I'm glad he's going to a team who wants him. The Eagles should be ashamed of themselves.

Anyone who has ever attended an Eagles game knows the effect Dawkins has even when he's not on the field. His optimism and encouragement is unparalleled. The tenacity and all-out effort he exerts on every play has left him suffering self inflicted wounds from his bone crushing hits. He did that for the other 52 guys on the team, for the coaching staff that put in brutal hours to prepare the team and for every member of the city of Philadelphia.

Brian Dawkins wasn't just an athlete in Philadelphia, he was Philadelphia.

As stated by sportsonbroad.com:

Enjoy your cheesesteak tonight Andy. I hope you choke on it.

Lebron's World - The Rest Of Us Are Just Living In It

In the copycat society we live in, I can't say I'm shocked at what I've witnessed in the NBA in recent years. But I am disappointed.

This past weekend's All-Star festivities were just another reminder of why I don't watch basketball anymore. The so called 'savior' of the game, LeBron James, is the sole reason I won't watch the NBA no matter what the circumstances are. Now, if I happen to be at a bar that has it on I might cast an interested eye toward it, or if I'm watching SportsCenter I won't change the channel just because he's on, but it's getting closer to that.

On Saturday night, during what was a rather entertaining Slam Dunk competition that featured polar opposites in Dwight Howard and Nate Robinson, LeBron decides to get the cameras on him by mentioning he 'might' consider competing in next year's dunk contest.

Taking it further, he called for the Western Conference to stand down in the final ten seconds of the All-Star game while he performed a ridiculous jam by lobbing the ball off the backboard to himself before slamming it through the cylinder. Exhibition game or not, you don't ask for a free lane to the basket in order to look good, do it in competition and we'll talk. As an aside I must thank LeBron because I took the Over at 264 and his dunk made the total combined score 265 but I digress.

Why does he feel the need to make everything about him?

There are superstars everywhere in this league, yet LeBron constantly shines the spotlight on himself. Earlier in the year, he began commenting on his impending free agency, which I might remind you doesn't occur until after the 2009-10 season. He said he doesn't know if he'll re-sign with the Cavs and that it has been a dream of his to play in New York. He further evidenced this by slapping hands with partial New Jersey Nets owner and rap mogul Jay-Z who regularly sits court side at Nets and Knicks games. Jay-Z has made no secret of his intentions to move the Nets to Brooklyn and sign James as their superstar.

Even before games he tries to make a spectacle of himself. He pours an extravagant amount of talcum powder into his hands before sending it skyward in a cloud of dust. Where could he possibly get this idea from? Could it be Kevin Garnett, one of the original high school defectors who paved the way for LeBron and so many others. KG has been doing the talcum cloud since his early days in Minnesota.

LeBron needs to come up with his own gimmick and start establishing himself as someone who is unique. Did Michael Jordan ever make things about himself? The answer, as we all know is no. MJ left during the pinnacle of his career to explore other endeavors. He didn't need to prove anything to anyone, regardless of how much he disappointed fans. Jordan won six NBA titles in his career largely because he made everyone around him better. How did LeBron fare in his only trip to the Finals so far? Swept at the hands of another selfless and team oriented MVP, Tim Duncan.

If you've ever watched a Cavs game, you will see LeBron cry that he was fouled every time he drives to the hoop. He does get hacked fairly hard but that doesn't mean you need to lobby for the call every time. Superstars generally get all the calls, but LeBron's crybaby rants are getting old and deterring officials from listening when he has a legitimate gripe. James is still young and can restructure his image but it's got to start by letting go of the limelight. Until then, he will never achieve the legendary status he thinks he has.

The More Things Change, the More They Stay the Same

On August 7, 2007 Barry Lamar Bonds broke the most hallowed record in sports. He hit his 756th career home run deep into the San Francisco night. The Giants' fans erupted as their hometown hero trotted around the bases. The rest of the baseball world had a different reaction. Many of them were disgusted that a record of this magnitude was broken by a man who used performance enhancing drugs. Shirts adorned with "756*" across the chest clearly show how some people feel. The general consensus around baseball was that this atrocity would only have to be tolerated until Alex Rodriguez broke Bonds' record. At 33 years old, Rodriguez has amassed 553 career home runs. With nine years remaining on a 10 yr/$275 million contract, he would only need to average just over 23 dingers per season to surpass Bonds.

The prospect of ten years of Bonds on top was tough to swallow, but the wait would all be worth it when a natural, non-steroid using athlete broke the record. That was until today, when Sports Illustrated reported that Alex Rodriguez tested positive for two steroids during the 2003 season; the very season in which he won the home run title and his first MVP award. While it is assumed that Rodriguez is clean now with the inception of MLB's drug testing procedure, his marks are forever tainted.

Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa, Rafael Palmiero and Roger Clemens have all fallen out of favor with the public following steroid allegations against them. McGwire has failed to gain admission into the Hall of Fame since he became eligible in 2007. The eighth most prolific home run hitter of all-time with 583 bombs received less than a quarter of the vote to gain election.

With Bonds inability to gain employment since his record breaking 2007 campaign, baseball seemed to be distancing itself from the steroid scandal of the last two decades. The reports of an alleged positive test from A-Rod is devastating to the image upgrade baseball has so desperately been working for. Rodriguez' name is undoubtedly the most significant to date connected to a positive sample. It is unclear whether the names of the remaining 100 players who tested positive along with Rodriguez will be leaked.

The most ironic aspect of all the steroid controversy is that Jose Canseco seems to be the most reputable and accurate source to date. Everyone he fingered in his book "Juiced" vehemently denied his allegations, most of whom have had other outlets corroborate Canseco's claims. Even Joe Torre's depiction of A-Rod as "A-Fraud" in his new book seems more accurate than abusive.

The Mitchell Report was supposed to be the final chapter of the devastating steroid era. Now, however, we have reason to doubt any and every player who hit an opposite field home run off the fists, who played in all 162 games and who had the courage to sign multi-million dollar contracts that they never statistically fulfilled. With close to 100 players still without jobs as we sit a mere week before pitchers and catchers report, this is a prime example of how greatly steroids still affects baseball. The out-of-this-world numbers that were produced during the late '90s and early '00s caused player salaries to skyrocket. Now, the wage scale is so inflated that quality ball players cannot find jobs without accepting contracts at a third of what their counterparts make.

The game of baseball needs to rid itself of this black eye. Unfortunately, as long as A-Rod and other past offenders are still on active rosters, the eyebrows of the media and fans will remain raised with skepticism.

Hugs Not Drugs

Olympic athletes failing drug tests is nothing new. Since the German engineered super athletes of the 1930s, there have been gold medal hopefuls looking for unfair advantages. Some resort to steroids. Some get caught.

It's an altogether new thing for a 14 time gold medal winner to be photographed smoking marijuana from a bong.

Michael Phelps, the greatest swimmer to ever compete in the Olympics, had his picture taken while at a party in South Carolina engaging in what some might classify as 'suspect behavior'. I don't want to come off as supporting pot smoking by Olympic athletes but let's put some things into perspective.

First of all, the man has the lung capacity of a bottle nosed dolphin. He would have to smoke more weed than Tommy Chong to even feel anything.

Second, the man is on vacation. He worked his ass off for years and was rewarded for it with the most record breaking and remarkable three weeks anyone has ever had in China. If he wants to celebrate by taking a bong rip, I say God Speed John Glenn.

Third, with the amount of calories he was burning in the pool, he needed to intake around 12,000 calories per day. There's really only one way to do that. It's called the munchies.

Finally, if he can smoke pot, a drug that among other things, makes you lethargic and winded easily, and still win 8 gold medals, more power to him. All he was really doing was leveling the playing field. Without the pot, his races wouldn't even have been close.

They say he is no longer a role model for aspiring young athletes to look up to. That's the kids problem, not his. He's paid to swim fast and look good doing it. He's not a 65 year old CEO of a publicly traded company, he's a 23 year old freak of nature kid who likes to party. There's more important things in the world to worry about than this kid puffing on a joint.