2013 BBS Awards: Dan Shaughnessy Award for Most Irritating Sports Media Personality

This award once went to the worst sportswriter. But that term is too limited. Not many sportswriters are just sportswriters anymore. Past "winners" of this award include Ron Borges, Tony Massarotti, and Dan Shaughnessy himself. This year we have two "winners." And I'm surprised that I haven't even considered them for this award in the past.

The "winners" of the Dan Shaughnessy "Shank" Award are John Dennis and Gerry Callahan of WEEI's Dennis and Callahan.

You might not know who these two are. And judging by their dwindling listening audience, many of you don't. Dennis and Callahan rarely talk about sports on their morning show. They'll rant about politics or discuss who won the Oscars or talk about the latest episode of whatever TV show they've become obsessed with.

And when they do talk about sports, they never let lack of knowledge or insight stand in the way of making opinions. And these aren't interesting, contrarian opinions like you'd get from Michael Felger. These are just stupid.

They suck up to athletes who appear on their show. Most notably Tom Brady. They criticize everyone else but will never EVER say a negative word about any of the athletes who give them the time of day.

So they're annoying, stupid, generally wrong, biased, offensive, and arrogant. They've alienated women, liberals, moderates, conservatives (such as myself), and people who like sports talk. They suck. Worst sports radio show on the major stations, and that's saying something.

Fourth Line to the Rescue

I really thought the Rangers were going to steal this game. Fans up here in Boston had been feeling cocky about the Bruins "beating" Lundqvist for 8 goals, when he actually hadn't played that bad. I thought maybe the players would feel a little too overconfident as well. Lundqvist came out and made some Vezinian saves, and this game looked like it would end as a 1-0 Tortorella special. It would have if not for the play of the Bruins' 4th line.

Some people, such as 98.5's Michael Felger, like to complain about the 4th line. And even I sometimes get annoyed when they're on the ice in a potential scoring situation. The fact is, they play their roles and occasionally add a little more. Thornton is the enforcer. Paille is a speedy penalty-killer. Campbell also kills penalties and is sort of a jack of all trades, master of none. Sometimes they go above and beyond their roles. Like last night when they generated 2 goals. Shawn Thornton's numbers speak volumes to their contribution...

6:42 time on ice, 11 shifts, 2 assists, +2, 2 shots on goal, 3 hits, 1 blocked shot

He only played in 11% of the game, and he did all that.

You never fail to notice that the 4th line is on the ice. Sometimes you don't notice Lucic or Horton or Peverley. But you never fail to notice the 4th line. And they won the game last night. So from me, and from the 4th line, suck it, Felger...

Tuukka Rask's play made it so the 4th line was in position to win the game. The goal Rask allowed in the 2nd possibly could have been saved, but apart from that he was flawless. His 3rd period right-pad stop on Rick Nash during a 4-on-2 breakaway when the game was 1-1 was the biggest save of the game. Bigger than any saves Lundqvist made. It was also a timely save. And it could prove to be the biggest save of the series. That save is probably the difference between a 3-0 series and a 2-1 series. And just like the ball-strike count in baseball, that's a huge difference. The Bruins now have a 3-0 count in their favor, and a green light to swing away.

Continuing the baseball comparison, Rask was like a pitcher who gave up a solo homerun in the 2nd inning, but retired the last 9 batters he faced, starting with striking out the side with the bases loaded in the 7th.

Rask was an Ace last night.

And let's not forget Johnny Boychuk, who scored his 4th postseason goal. That's second most on the Bruins (behind Krejci's 5 and tied with Horton), and the most of any defenseman in the playoffs. He has 10 career playoff goals in 55 games. That's not bad at all for a defenseman.

I do have a question to pose: if the Bruins get all their defensemen healthy, should they put Torey Krug on the 3rd line as a winger? Obviously this is not a serious question. Or is it? It isn't.

Or is it?

Game 4 Thursday night. Expect a desperate Rangers team to fight tooth and nail. It could be the hardest game of the series for the Bruins. Or maybe the Rangers will quit on their coach and get blown out 5-1.

Photo Credit:
AP Photo/Seth Wenig

Felger and Mazz Were Morons Yesterday

So yesterday afternoon I would turn on Felger and Mazz, then after 3 minutes of listening to their inane, ignorant, and repetitive whining about the Patriots Draft, I'd have to turn off the radio.

What pisses me off is that they repeatedly admit that they don't know much about these college players, and just before they say they disagree with what the Patriots did, they say "I don't understand." They don't understand, so they disagree.

They questioned the Patriots trading out of the 1st round. But this was the most unremarkable, mediocre draft in recent memory. Unless you were looking for offensive tackles, this draft was like a buffet of bologna sandwiches. Some had mustard. Some didn't. None of them were worth cutting in line. And maybe it was better to wait longer to get more.

Neither Felger and Mazz asked or answered a simple question: Who would you have taken at 29? Who was so good at 29? All of the players out there, apart from a few taken at the front of the draft, were if-he-can players. All of the players available were chances. It made sense to take more chances than just one.

And other teams felt the same. The Chiefs waited as long as possible for someone to offer to take the #1 overall pick. Other teams traded out. It seemed like only the Jets and Vikings truly wanted to pick in the First Round.

Then Felger and Mazz criticized the amount of Rutgers players taken. Felger got emotional and accused the Patriots of taking players because Bill Belichick's son Stephen Belichick might have known them in class.

Rutgers had the #4 defense in college football last year (behind Alabama, Notre Dame, and BYU). They allowed 14.2 points per game, and only 20 offensive TDs (the same amount Bama allowed) in 13 games. The Patriots drafted two DBs and a linebacker from that defense. I doubt they went into the Draft planning to take three Scarlet Knights. But in the later rounds they were still there. They took three players from a good defense, who were coached well, who might fit into the Patriots system.

No matter what happened in the Draft, Felger and Mazz were going to have a Monday show revolving around how the Patriots think they're smarter than everyone else. They have fallen in love with that narrative based on selective facts, uninformed opinions, and emotional baggage from the 2005 Patriots offseason.

I know writing a blog post about what a pair of jabbering sportsradio personalities fill their 4 hours with is kind of lame. But these two reached an uncharted level of simple-mindedness, emotionalism, and whining. Felger was spouting baseless conspiracy theories. Mazz sounded like a C- student complaining that he didn't understand the test, even though the A and B students had no complaints. Mazz sounded the most like the kid who doesn't get algebra when Mike from Wayland called, and Mazz thought he caught the caller on a mistake. "Yes you did! Yes you did! Yes you did!"

I'm surprised Mazz didn't say "I am rubber, you are glue," or "Takes one to know one."

Every fact that was brought up to refute Felger's theories was dismissed. Every questioning of Mazz's complaints was misunderstood.

They don't understand, so they get frustrated. THERE WAS NOBODY BLATANTLY GOOD AT 29. Rutgers had a great defense. The Patriots have drafted well recently. They traded up last year when suitable talent was available. This year the situation was different. But such a thought is too complex for them to understand. And instead of trying to understand something that strays from the narrative they've constructed, they strongly disagree with it.

I'm done venting. Give Mike from Wayland his own segment on the show. Even if it's just to school Felger.

I Like How the Patriots Handle the Media

The difference between 4 Yawkey Way and 1 Patriot Place go beyond the differences between a clustered city street and an expansive suburban roadway. Fenway Park spews and leaks information like the Titanic leaked water, while Gillette Stadium is as air-tight with info as an astronaut's helmet.

Brian Waters is the latest example. For weeks, speculative theorists like The Sportshub's Michael Felger have been berating the Patriots for being cheap with Brian Waters. They had no facts to base their criticism. These weren't sharks that detected blood, Felger was more like a blind/dead/senseless vulture bumbling around for a provocative story, making up things until something he said wound up being true.

But it wasn't. The Patriots offered Brian Waters $4 million to play this year, almost triple his $1.4 million salary. But Waters wants to stay at home in Texas. And that's his right, and his choice. Waters might want to play for the Houston Texans, but the Patriots understandably would rather not help one of their AFC rivals improve.

Felger didn't get why the Pats would "nickel and dime" a Pro Bowl lineman when Brady's protection seemed so suspect in the preseason. Instead of acknowledging that he didn't know anything, Felger assumed. And people who assume make asses out of themselves. Felger was wrong. He didn't understand the Pats nickel and diming Waters because they didn't.

I think Shawn Thornton said it best...

Anyway, as unnerving and frustrating as it can be, I like how valuable the Patriots regard information. They don't talk about anything. Even when they talk, they say nothing.

They don't mind being perceived as cheap. They don't care about perception. They don't mind jagoffs like Felger flapping their jaws and spouting rubbish. Unlike the Red Sox who desperately try to control the narratives that sports media discuss.

I remember when the Pats traded Randy Moss they actually went out of their way to debunk stories that had come out about Moss's problems with the team. The Patriots defended a popular star player they dumped. That's something the Red Sox would never do.

It seems funny to me how much criticism the Patriots get in this town, even though they're the most successful Boston sports team in this century. It's because the media doesn't get juicy gossip, doesn't get the inside scoop, they get frustrated and make things up. See: Felger, Ron Borges, John Tomase, et cetera.

Fuck the media, go Pats!

Bruins Extend Shawn Thornton's Contract

For the last few years the Bruins have actively tried to lock down key players before they reach free agency. It's been a refreshing departure from the old ways of the Bruins' front office. The B's extended Shawn Thornton's contract for 2 years, keeping the enforcer in black and gold until the 2013-14 season. The deal is worth $2.2 million.

$1.1 million a year is a good price for a guy like Thornton. He leads the NHL with 19 fighting majors this season, but he's not just a pugilist. He's a great fighter with his gloves off and a solid player with them on. He plays on a line that energizes the rest of the team, he plays smart yet physical, and he contributes positively in his 9:07 of ice time per game. He even scored 10 goals last year.

The Bruins were 13-5 in the playoffs when Thornton dressed. 3-4 when he didn't. He's known for his fists, but he also has two rings on those fists, and he does more than fight to earn them.

Shaughnessey Award for Worst Sports Media Personality

This goes to the most annoying, condescending, pious, irritating, arrogant, and generally unlikeable sports media personality of the year. It used to just be for sports writers, but there really aren't any "sports writers" anymore. They're all multimedia, multi-platform personalities. And this year, the worst of them was Michael Felger.

I'll admit that I've turned to The Hub for the afternoon show as opposed to WEEI. I'll admit that I think Felger covers hockey very well. I'll admit that I often agree with him. And that's what makes him so irritating. When you find yourself agreeing with Felger, you feel dirty. It just feels wrong.

I think Felger and Tony Massarotti purposely yell dumb things on the radio. I think they know that they make mountains out of mole hills, and that they turn theory into fact, then take an unfounded premise and run with it as far as it will take them. I think they know this. And in a way, that makes it more infuriating to listen.

And when Felger is wrong, he's way wrong. His Tebow loving comes to mind.

He's just an irritant, a nuisance. It's an act. Yet it's still better than listening to Michael Holley ignorantly drone on and on.