Sunday grudges galore in Phil Mushnick’s latest column for the New York Post :

Rickey Henderson has been hired by the Mets to school young players in base running. But Henderson was a great base-stealer, never a great base-runner, not even close.

Out of the batter’s box, Henderson, a frequent home-plate poser, rarely seemed interested in reaching a base that he could steal. Consider that while his game was speed, power and longevity (25 seasons), he only had 66 triples in 10,961 at bats.

Last year, Jose Reyes had 17 triples. Henderson never had more than seven in any season. What’s Henderson going to do, teach the Mets to turn triples into doubles or doubles into singles?

Reyes’ impressive total for triples aside, even the most casual Mets follower is aware that the shortstop rarely walks and has an on-base percentage barely higher than his batting average. As such, Henderson, for all of his faults, might be a worthwhile tutor in teaching a lead-off hitter how to get on base. Presumably, Phil knows this and is just being an asshole for the sake of it.

Chris Russo last week insisted that figure skaters who fall during competition should be eliminated from winning Olympic medals, no matter how difficult their routines.

Arguing his point, he said that otherwise it would be like crediting a player with a double after he was thrown out trying to stretch a double into a triple.

Mike Francesa gently told Russo that players thrown out trying to stretch a double are, in fact, credited with a double.

I have nothing to add to this except WFAN should make an except of the above exchange and sell it on the iTunes Music Store.

What’s the big fuss about Bryant Gumbel’s remarks about the Winter Olympics? He has been spewing Afro-centric racist nonsense for years. If someone had spoken half as ugly about black athletes, Gumbel would have demanded his/her firing.

But it would be too late; the speaker already would have been fired.

Gumbel once told me that my problem with NFL showboaters is that they’re black. He was stuck to explain why the first guy I regularly slammed for such displays was Marc Gastineau.


(fight the power)

Phil, you aren’t getting off that easy. The fact of the matter is, Mark Gastineau is considered an honorary black person, much like Eminem, Bill Clinton, Justin Timberlake and Johnny Weir. When you hate on the Sack Dance, you’re not merely scolding Brigitte Nielsen’s paramour, you’re actually dissing an entire culture. I can’t believe I have to explain something like this to an experienced journalist.