Thanksgiving Day Deceit

Just want to point out that the abundance of "tryptophan makes you drowsy" stories on the news over the last couple of days are incorrect. Turkey does not contain a significant amount of tryptophan relative to other poultry (there is about the same amount of tryptophan in chicken, for example), and turkey has similar amounts of tryptophan to cheddar cheese, salmon, pork chops, beef, and lamb. If you eat a large amount of any of these products over dinner you'll feel as drowsy as would after eating a turkey dinner.

Instead of the turkey causing post-Thanksgiving-feast drowsiness, scientists (such as myself) believe it is caused by the large amount of carbohydrates ingested. Carbs release insulin, which in turn results in the production of sleep-inducing melatonin and seratonin in the brain. Ever wonder why you feel drowsy after the Christmas feast, even though you ate ham or chicken? It's not the tryptophan, it's the carbs. It's also why Dr. Atkins was so goddamn active and was able to mass-market his diet - he never slept. All of my research was done here, so I may be absolutely wrong.

Maurice Jones-Dropped

For those of you who missed the ridiculous block put on Shawn Merriman by 4'10" Maurice Jones-Drew this past Sunday, here it is one more time:

I Hate Jimmy Rollins

So he barely beats out Troy Tulowitzki for a Gold Glove, even though Tulo has better fielding stats across the board. Now, he beats out Matt Holliday for the MVP. Holliday led the league in RBI's and Average in '07. Holliday had more hits, doubles, and homeruns than Rollins. Holliday also had a higher OBP, a higher slugging percentage, and thus a higher OPS than Rollins. You can say it's because of Rollins' defense (and that's one thing I'm not going to argue with you about), or because Rollins steals a lot of bases, but I say it's because of that good ol' east coast bias. I'm not saying Rollins isn't a great player, I'm just saying Holliday is better and he's more important to his team than Rollins, who is surrounded by Chase Utley, Aaron Rowand, and Ryan Howard (all of whom received MVP votes). Some dumb sportswriter had Holliday ranked 6th in MVP voting. What? 6th?! Why? Well, that's fine sportswriters. All you've done is made Rollins beat out A-Rod as my most hated player in the majors.

Mayflower

With Thanksgiving approaching, I figured I'd review a book with a Turkey-Day-esque feel to it. Mayflower: A Story of Courage, Community, and War, by Nathaniel Philbrick, is an excellent read this time of year if you like reading about history or war, or if you're from the Bay State. I've been unable to read anything except non-fiction for a few years now, and this book is one of the better ones I've come across.

The book chronicles the original 102 Pilgrims who made the journey from England to Holland and finally to the New World on board the Mayflower. The book really starts getting interesting once they spot land. The reader follows along as the Pilgrims attempt to build a small town in modern-day Plymouth center, communicate and trade with the several much more powerful native tribes, organize themselves into a pure democratic government, and deal with incredible loss as more than half of the original Pilgrims fail to live through the first bitter New England winter. We also learn about individuals without whom America would not exist - the forefathers to our forefathers - such as the military general Miles Standish, who brutally attacks a tribe of natives to make the English appear stronger than they are, Governor William Bradford, whose steady and sound leadership make our current crop of politicians look like children playing politics, and Massassoit, the sachem of the Pokanokets, who befriended the English and protected them during the infancy of their colony.

Mayflower was meticulously researched and is complete with so much factual information and so many characters that it is sometimes dry. However, it also comes replete with maps, pictures, and old photographs that serve to put things into perspective and assist the reader in keeping a clear understanding of the events as they unfold. As I was reading, I was often flipping back to see which tribes lived where along the New England coast or to see where the forts were built in relation to where the tribes lived. We celebrate the birth of our country on the Fourth of July, so this Thanksgiving check out this book and celebrate our country's conception.

You can read better reviews from professionals here and you can buy the paperback for about $10 here.

The Robbing of Troy

In another indefensible example of east coast bias, Troy Tulowitzki, phenom rookie shortstop of the Colorado Rockies, lost the 2007 Gold Glove to Phillies SS Jimmy Rollins. This award is not based solely on fielding percentage (if it were, Troy would have won, as he had the highest fielding percentage in the league at .987). Instead, the Gold Glove is awarded to the player who exhibits "superior individual fielding performance" as voted on by coaches and managers in each league. Every casual fan of baseball knows Jimmy Rollins, and he's a stud at short. But Troy Tulowitzki is one of the greatest shortstops I have ever seen - and if you don't live in the Denver metro area or you're not a huge fan of baseball, you've probably never heard of him. He routinely throws people out from the grass, he has snatched up grounders that were on the first-base side of second, and he helped the 2007 Rockies achieve the highest fielding percentage of any team in the history of Major League Baseball (no Rockies earned a Gold Glove this year). As a bonus, he turned an unassisted triple play this season, the first in the MLB since 2003 (and the 13th in MLB history).

But forget my personal opinion of the guy, let's take a look at the stats:

• Both Rollins and Tulo had 11 errors on the season


• Tulo had 561 assists to Rollins' 479


• Tulo had a .987 fielding percentage to Rollins' .985


• Tulo was involved in 114 double plays to Rollins' 110


• Tulo's Range Factor per Nine Innings is an unbelievable 5.39 to Rollins' paltry 4.41

For those of you who aren't familiar with Range Factor, it was developed by Bill James (of Moneyball fame) as a better statistical indicator of defensive ability than fielding percentage alone. Read about Range Factor here.

Troy Tulowitzki was robbed, pure and simple. Rollins fans will point to the fact that he started 7 more games than Tulo this year. Awesome. Rollins is an excellent shortstop and a scrappy guy to play all 162 games of the season. But Tulo started 155 games - is that difference what cost him a Gold Glove? He deserved the '07 Gold Glove award, and if not for Milwaukee's Ryan Braun, he would have had the Rookie of the Year award to go along with it (that award isn't awarded until November 12th, this is just a prediction). Tulo also serves as a refreshing departure from the whiny, spoiled, Carl Everett-type complainers who play in the Majors - Troy always has a smile on his face in the field and in the dugout, he's always willing to talk to a reporter or sign autographs for kids in the stands, and he always acts grateful to have the chance to play baseball for a living. He's a stand-up guy and a class act, not to mention one hell of a ballplayer. You may hear more from me about the Rockies getting screwed by east coast bias if Holliday doesn't win the MVP after coming in first in two of the three categories of the Triple Crown.

35 Years of Imperfection

Don Shula made headlines this week when he claimed that an asterisk would need to be placed next to the Patriots' 16-0 record if they manage to win out the rest of the way, due to the "Spygate" scandal. This is his quote:

"The Spygate thing has diminished what they've accomplished. You
would hate to have that attached to your accomplishments. They've got it. Belichick was fined $500,000, the team was fined $250,000 and they lost a first-round draft choice. That tells you the seriousness or significance of what they found. I guess you got the same thing as putting an asterisk by Barry Bonds' home run record. I guess it will be noted that the Patriots were fined and a No. 1 draft choice was taken away during that year of accomplishment. The sad thing is Tom Brady looks so good, it doesn't look like he needs any help."

Whoa, Don - back up a second. If I remember correctly, the "Spygate" scandal came out in Week 1 against the Jets. You can read the full story as reported by the NY Daily News here, but I'll just point out the important things: A cameraman on the Jets sideline was stopped right before halftime by security as he tried to enter the Patriots' locker room with the tape. The tape was seized by NFL security, sealed into a box, and sent to the league. Thus, the Patriots didn't have access to it during the game.

This was wrong, blatant, and against the rules - and I'm not defending what the Pats did at all. But as far as giving an "unfair advantage" to the Pats, was it that different from video taping the sideline from the stands, using binoculars in the owners box, or hiring staff with photographic memories to study the opposing play calls? The NFL rules are clear, as reported in the same story by the Daily News: No video recording devices of any kind are allowed on the field, in the locker room, or in a coach's booth during the game. The Pats broke that rule and Belichick was fined. We'll never know the extent to which it gave the Pats' an advantage in prior years, but it sure seems to be overblown. Belichick video tapes the opposing defensive calls and learns that when a D-Coordinator pats his left elbow, the defense blitzes. Tony Dungy's guy in the owners box studies the D-Coordinator with binoculars and learns the same thing. It's obviously easier to study tapes, but this kind of thing goes on in every game in every stadium.

My point is this: First, the Pats had the tape seized before halftime of game 1, before they could even look at it. Why would we add an asterisk to this season if they weren't able to look at the tapes this season and thus gained no competitive advantage this season? Second, the tactic of stealing opposing players signs is overblown, it happens in every sport, and it hardly constitutes cheating. If Dusty Pedroia is standing on second and he's looking in to Jorge Posada's signs and then relaying them back to Ortiz, is that cheating? Hardly.

My last point is the hypocrisy that comes out of Don Shula's embalmed trap. In 1969, while coaching the Baltimore Colts, Don Shula was approached by the owner of the Miami Dolphins, Joe Robbie, to inquire about Shula's future coaching plans. Shula went behind his own team's back and negotiated a contract with the Dolphins to become their next head coach. Clearly this isn't cheating, but it was against the AFL's rules (this was pre-merger), it put the Colts at an unfair disadvantage, and guess what - the Dolphins were fined a first-round draft pick. Sound familiar? There is a great write-up about the comparison between what Belichick did in '07 and what Shula did in '69 in the Honolulu Advertiser, which you can read here.

Don Shula is a legend. He is clearly one of the two best coaches in the history of professional football (along with the late great Vince Lombardi). But I wasn't surprised at his comments about the Patriots. Since his "Perfect Season" in 1972, Shula has been celebrating every time the last undefeated team loses their first game of the season. In 1985 it was the Bears, in 1991 it was the 'Skins, in 1998, the Broncos, and in 2005, the Colts. All of those teams started the season 11-0 or better, and they all had Don Shula and some of the 'Fins from '72 reaching for their Zantac. All of these teams eventually lost during the regular season, preserving the one undefeated team in the history of the NFL: the 1972 Miami Dolphins.

So the timing of Shula's statement reflects his nervousness. He didn't say anything after this scandal made light in week 1. He kept his mouth shut after the Pats blew away the Chargers in week 2. He probably started getting worried as the Pats continuously dismantled their opponents by at least 17 points per game. Then the two undefeated teams met in week 9, with the Patriots narrowly taking out the excellent Indianapolis Colts, to remain the sole undefeated team this season. Of course Shula released a statement now. The Colts were the best competition the Patriots will have this season (although I'll be watching the Steelers game on the edge of my seat in December), and if they can't stop Brady to Moss, who can? My only question is this: did Shula have a different statement prepared had the Colts won and Indianapolis was now the team threatening Shula's prized record - something about how free agency has changed the game or Peyton Manning plays indoors and the Colts can't compare to the '72 Dolphins? Don Shula, ladies and gentlemen - one of the best coaches of all time, and one of the worst ex-coaches.

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Okay, as I was typing this up, I learned that Don Shula had 100% backed away from his earlier statements. Good for you, Don. I no longer consider you one of the worst ex-coaches in NFL history. Here is some of what Shula said on ESPN Radio's Mike and Mike in the morning (read the full story here):

"If they run the table, and they win all the games, then they are doing it within the rules of the National Football League, and there shouldn't be any asterisk to it. That would be the accomplishment that they made. It would be the best in all of sports."

Don Shula also went on to say that if the Patriots win their next 7 games to finish the season 16-0, and then win the Superbowl, they "will deserve to be called the best team." I'd say so. Anyway, Shula's retraction has pretty much rendered this entire posting obsolete, and so I guess nothing that you've read thus far matters much.

In other news, the Celtics took apart the Nuggets last night (Why is Denver constantly on the losing side of Boston teams?) to start the season 3-0. Two of their wins have been by 20+ points. It's still very early, but the Celts look pretty dominant. I might have to fly home to check out the Celtics/Bulls at the Garden in March. Is this the Golden Age of Boston Sports or what? 2007 City of Champions - Red Sox have a ring, the Pats look like the best team in the history of the NFL, and the Celtics are looking like the early favorite in the Eastern Conference. I'm sure this will be a recurring theme throughout the next couple of months here at Fool's Platinum.

A vs B

I've always enjoyed optical illusions. This is one of the better one's I've come across. Check it out, and I'll explain it below.

Which is the darker square, A or B?

Answer: They're the exact same shade of gray. The mind can be easily tricked with patterns, and in this case your mind tells you that the B square is much lighter than the A square. It's not. If you want to see for yourself, open this picture up in paint, crop a piece of each square and place them next to each other. It is the exact same shade of gray. I don't know who Edward Adelson is, but I like his work.

An Inconvenient Sunset

I apologize in advance for the noticeable lack of intelligent writing about to appear on Fool's Platinum, but due to events outside of our control, you may notice a decrease in your reading pleasure in the near future.

Daylight savings time is gone for the year, and while the extra hour of sleep is appreciated, the sun setting before the end of the work day is not. If daylight savings time was implemented to save energy in the evenings with an extra hour of sunlight, not to mention all the car accidents it prevents when the afternoon commute is during daylight hours, why not just keep daylight savings year round? Well, in 1973 they tried just that. They repealed it after one year because of all the school-bus-related accidents in the dark pre-dawn mornings. Seriously - you can read about it here.

In other news, Nobel Peace Prize recipient and former Vice President Al Gore has announced plans for a new national bus-tour to spread awareness of Global Darking. Gore, a vehement opponent of ending daylight savings time, has claimed that the earlier sunsets and longer darker nights during the winter months are anthropogenic (human-caused). "There is almost unanimous consent in the scientific community that 'turning back the clocks' results in approximately one hour of less daylight during the afternoon and evening hours," he told The Today Show on Monday. "Scientists have learned through studying the ice in Antarctica that 500,000 years ago, there was no recordable evidence of Daylight Savings Time." If you would like to donate to Al Gore's latest enviro-campaign, or for more information, or if you fear that we are only 30 years or so away from 2- or 3-hour daylight savings time changes, go to http://www.climateprotect.org/.