Love: Pedro Martinez

http://soxblog.mlblogs.com/Pedro%20and%20Nomar.jpg

Pedro Martinez is my favorite player of all-time.

This is an obviously biased opinion; he did after all reach his dominance at a time during my most fervent fandom of baseball(1) and happened to be pitching for the Red Sox. But it is also a completely and wholly valid choice for a favorite player on a more objective level. He was perhaps the best pitcher in the steroid era. He had a Koufax-like streak of a few years where he put up insane numbers. Years where he made the best hitters in game look stupid. His 1997-2000 for example:

1997	25	MON	NL	17	8	.680	1.90	31	31	0	13	4	0	241.1	158	65	51	16	67	5	305	9	1	3	947	219	0.932	5.9	0.6	2.5	11.4	4.55	AS,CYA-1,MVP-16
1998	26	BOS	AL	19	7	.731	2.89	33	33	0	3	2	0	233.2	188	82	75	26	67	3	251	8	0	9	951	163	1.091	7.2	1.0	2.6	9.7	3.75	AS,CYA-2,MVP-21
1999	27	BOS	AL	23	4	.852	2.07	31	29	1	5	1	0	213.1	160	56	49	9	37	1	313	9	0	6	835	243	0.923	6.8	0.4	1.6	13.2	8.46	AS,CYA-1,MVP-2
2000	28	BOS	AL	18	6	.750	1.74	29	29	0	7	4	0	217.0	128	44	42	17	32	0	284	14	0	1	817	291	0.737	5.3	0.7	1.3	11.8	8.88	AS,CYA-1,MVP-5

Holy Crap!

Keep in mind he’s 5-11. For years he was doubted as being a starting pitcher because of his slight frame. but he made up for it with control and a contortionist-like movement and grace with his freakishly weird hands (2). He could unleash a mid-90s fastball in his heyday but didn’t have the ability to throw it 85 percent of the time like most power pitchers. Instead he relied on his world famous change-up. Yes world famous. A pitch that looked the exact same as his fastball until you already swung. And if you were lucky enough to time it right you’d still miss cause the thing had so much movement it was stupid. It traveled in and down on righties and he could catch the inside edge on lefties. It is easily in the top 5 pitches of any pitcher ever. Up there with Ryan’s electric fastball, Clemens’s splitter, Randy Johnson’s slider, and Koufax’s curveball. Oh yeah, and Pedro had the ability to break up the rotation of those two pitches, with his reserve curveball, which he threw from THE SAME EXACT arm slot. This is insane for a pitcher throwing at that 3/4 angle and he had to use the weirdest grip possible to make it work. With every other pitcher that curveball drops straight down 12 to 6, but Pedro could make that puppy hook out and down. He still throws it as a looper and it’s STILL nasty. The best part of that curveball was it could easily be most guys #1 pitch, but with him it was his #3.

And now he’s definitely in the twilight of his career. His fastball is 85-88. He’s just gassed. Hampered by injuries (which were definitely real and inherent to a guy of his size putting that much strain on his body), he’s had to go the finesse route, but he’s still startlingly effective. He’s not striking guys out, but he’s scraping for every ground ball, pop fly, and sly K he can get.  Even this year people thought he was done and then Charlie Manuel trots him out against the Dodgers and he just owns them. Even in his Yanks start he pitched pretty great, out-thinking guys, like with his awesome “quick pitch” in his last start against Jeter.

Look, calling someone a “gamer” is as banal and mundane as it can get, but nobody fits that description more than Pedro. A fierce, prideful guy who’s always going to go out and think he’s the best player on the field.

And that’s why I’m looking forward to his next start tonight. Some highlights from his conference yesterday: (via boston globe)

Pedro Martinez is in the interview room now at Yankee Stadium. His comments are too good not to share with you in (nearly) real time:

On Red Sox fans: “I know they don’t like the Yankees to win, not even in Nintendo games.”

He also said that he still considers himself a Bostonian and that he treasures his relationship with Red Sox fans. Earlier, he joked with reporters that he “wants his props” now and not when he dies.

Pedro faces Andy Pettitte tomorrow. Their first matchup was in 1998. Now they’ll take the mound in Game 6 of the World Series. It’s a very intriguing matchup.

UPDATE, 5:55 p.m.: More Pedro:

On Red Sox fans: “I’m pretty sure that every Boston fan out there can feel proud that I’m going to try and beat the Yankees and I’m going to give just the same effort I always did for them. They’re special fans and they will always have my respect.”

On Johnny Damon: “He’s a tough out and he’s going to give you a battle and he’s not going to get unraveled for anything. He’s always going to make it fun. J.D. is just a special human being and special player. I’m glad he’s doing well, too. That’s one of the guys I will always root for.”

On his legacy: “I’m pretty sure my name will be mentioned. I don’t know in which way. But maybe after I retire, because normally when you die, people tend to actually give you props about the good things. But that’s after you die. So I’m hoping to get it before I die. I don’t want to die and hear everybody say, ‘Oh, there goes one of the best players ever.’ If you’re going to give me props, just give them to me right now.”

What’s better than that?

He’s the anti-Clemens. A charismatic, thoughtful, brash-but-in-a-good-way, perennial all star, who in the dwindling days of his career reinvented himself as a finesse pitcher who’ll take the ball any time you give it to him. He regards all his fans and the fans of his teams with true respect. He remembers his friends and teammates with fondness. Yes, he once threw an old man on the ground, but the dude was asking for it (3).

And so he finds himself tonight going up against the New York Yankees yet again, with the entire season on the line. He’s going against a tough gamer guy as well in Petite (4), and I love it. I’m still pulling for Pedro. My fandom of him would continue for years no matter what team he played for. He was that much fun to watch.

I wish him way more than luck.

 

1 – not necessarily my most attuned. that would probably be the last few years. I was just simply my most fervent. I was young and bullish. whereas now I find myself waxing philosophical on the game of games.

2 – seriously, look that shit up

3- come on. it’s funny. no one got hurt… luckily

4- a great stand up guy, but admitted PED user. not going to point out as a bad thing.  just saying if we’re going to compare to pedro, than it should be mentioned.

Like: This Patton Oswalt Quote

“Man. Having babies. God. You smell bad when you don’t sleep. You know? You get that weird BO? You smell like cake mix and violence.”

I don’t have babies or anything, but I still find that hilarious.

This was on a recent Sports Guy podcast.

Don’t Like: The National League

AKA “What John Smotlz and Brad Penny have been able to do there.”

Don’t get me wrong. I love the idea of the league: having pitchers hit keeps a certain nice symmetry with things. 9 players. 9 Hitters. The games are shorter. That’s good. It’s all very romantic. And if romance is the goal then the AL is certainly “ruining” it with DH rule.

Now. Here’s the problem. American League Teams are simply superior.

This is not to say top flight NL teams can’t win it all.  They both can and have, though not as frequently as AL teams the last fifteen years. It’s just that if you do a complete survey up and down of National League Lineups,you realize that only three of them compare (phillies, dodgers, cards) with top flight AL teams (ny, boston, tampa, white sox, detroit, angels, texas). That’s a difference of 3  to 7. There are also three AL teams with 2nd tier lineups (orioles, minnesota, seattle). I only see one in the NL in the Cubbies (the mets would be but are excempt because of injuries). That leaves the bottom teir  of only four teams in the AL: toronto, cleveland, kansas city, and oakland VS. the following bottom teir lineups of the NL:  braves, marlins, brewers, astros, reds, rockies, giants, dbacks, and padres. And that means the pirates and Nationals have AAA lineups.

There are 11 bottom teir lineups in the NL and only 3 good ones. Any self-respecting analyst would tell you the same thing. You may love your NL team. You may love the NL league. But I’m sorry. That’s the reality. The Orioles would be a good to mid range lineup in the NL.  Unfortunately they play in the AL east and are therefore last.

Now the above rankings do not figure in total team quality w/ account of pitching. The giants, cards, and braves all have decent staffs with some excellent pitchers. But in terms of overall quality hitting, which you need to use for foundation and base indicator for team (because even the best pitchers are inconsistent), then it’s not even a comparison.

… This does not even include the fact that pitchers have to hit in the NL.

You may wonder why I’m so passionate about this.

Easy: Smoltz. Penny. Julio Lugo. Cliff Lee. Matt Holiday.

The first three guys were practically RUN OUT of Boston. They had long enough periods of time to prove that they could indeed play in the AL, but completely crapped out. Suddenly Penny goes to giants and his first time with a new catcher he threw 8 SHUTOUT INNINGS????!!? Against the “best NL lineup” Phillies? Are you serious? This could just be a simple fluke, but I doubt it. I watched him all year. He was throwing the same stuff last night and the Phillies were whiffing consistantly.  Maybe he was just NL familiar, but even that’s a stretch. This was Night and Day. He couldn’t get out of the 5th inning ALL YEAR. It’s absurd. Look at Holliday too. He couldn’t hit anyone in the AL (even the west). But now on the cards he’s destorying. Cliff Lee is suddenly amazing again now that he’s on the Phillies.

If there isn’t a huge difference why are big time pitchers all but demanding (and in some cases actually demanding) to go to the National League in trades? Seriously. Peavy. Halliday. Lee. They all demanded NL (though only one got it). Seriously, why are they only signing in the AL if they get huge money? CC despretly wanted to stay in the NL after he dominated there, but there was no way he could turn down that contract.

It’s not a secret. The NL is not as good. If you’re a hitter. You can do better. If you’re a pitcher you can do MUCH better. And will for the rest of time because every 9 guys is an easy out. Yes the NL is baseball in the “more pure” form… but honestly, AL teams are a lot of fun to watch. These are truly great teams getting to play and it’s especially fun when they play each other and every at bat is dangerous.

Now, this may all be an over reaction and I’m exaggerating the differnces… but it’s just just one of those dumbfounding things. The AL is truly better. People say the league is cyclical and the NL will be better soon, but that won’t happen unless some clubs get some more money and every good pitcher goes to sign there (an actual possibility). But guys will keep getting lured by those big money contracts on top AL teams. Thems the breaks I guess.

Okay hold on. Phone call.

[time passes]

… I just got signed by the Pirates.

Don’t Like: The New York Post’s Decision To Post Erin Andrews Spy Video Pictures and Including A Distasteful Cartoon As Well

(note: this is not page with the picture… I’m not going to do that)

Ragging on a rag like The New York Post (eh, get it?) seems like a waste of time. It’s a nonsense paper, with a nonsense agenda, designed to make money, and it does. Fine.

I’m also not here to get political. That would be pointless. Dismissing a sensationalist paper for it’s politics completely misses the point as they are inherently designed to piss people off or go the extra step out of bounds on a given angle (politically speaking of course). Does it potentially have a negative effect? Sure. Do I like that so many people read it? No. It’s just doesn’t make sense to rail against this because it’s an inherent reality of the mud slinging business. And most of their gossip rag stuff is completely trashy, but appropriately trashy in the larger sense. In other words it’s exactly the kind of nonsense you’d expect to find in any magazine like that.

So then The Post went along the other day and ran a story on page 1 referencing the now unfolding and infamous Erin Andrews story. If you have not heard, the ESPN sideline reporter was recently filmed with a peephole camera as she was changing in her hotel room. It is a significant offense. Highly illegal. And rotten to the core. Honestly, I did not find that it happened that surprising. Erin Andrews has a vehement, vocal, and often juvenile fan base, stemming from the fact that she is an attractive, capable woman and is a member of the sports world, particularly college sports. That lends itself to a certain kind of attention. She is also a decent sideline reporter (my qualms are more with actually sideline reporting and not her performance itself). The problem with having this kind of celebrity-like admiration is that she also a sideline reporter and NOT a giant celebrity with security and protection and all the like. Honestly, I’ve worried for her safety in a variety of situations.  Sure, she seems tough and no nonsense and all that good stuff; she’s probably perfectly capable of taking care of her self… but still. I worried about, I dunno, something like this.

Most of the major papers have and simply abstained from referencing the story all together… but The Post? They ran an article about her outrage… including a screenshot from the video (a barely censored one).

This is absolutely deplorable.

More than than that it is actually illegal. They are posting a pic which was from an illegally shot video. Admittedly, I do not know the finer points of the law concerning this issue, but I know that that kind of act is illegal and grounds for legal action. The Post have since taken it down on the website version of their paper. But probably more because people are pissed (even within their regular readers). This sentiment is also not to imply that I, or some of the people who complained, are some kind of prude or believe that sexuality has no place in modern media. Who can’t understand why a lot of people would want to see a naked video of someone famous? Particularly an attractive famous person.  It’s just that I recognize the inherent difference of a video obtained through such incredibly dishonest and violating means. Not helping matters is that some people are confusing the release of this video with the “release” of some other famous celebrity videos; they don’t understand what the big deal or difference is and why this video can’t legally be posted.

There isn’t even a comparison. Those videos were released with pre-made deals and financial compensation. It was planned. This video was not.

Which leads to something else The Post happened to do in that edition of the paper. They printed this cartoon.

There are three possible meanings you can take from this cartoon. The first is that modern corporate/celebrity culture uses sex and personal stuff to sell sell sell. Which would be valid. But that would be giving a lot of credit. See the problem is those 5 blatant ESPN signs, which means the second possible meaning and perhaps most obvious is that ESPN planned or wanted this video to come out. Or is somehow glad. Which is malicious and implies they are a morally bankrupt organization… which I find to be anything but the case for the company. It also completely discounts the fact they’ve been running around like crazy suing websites and LEGITIMATELY trying to shut it down. If anything ESPN has been the one major sports coverage unit that has really, and truly tried to abstain from sexualizing sports. They consider themselves a family network. They really do and seperates themselves from Fox Sports, which has no qualms about doing so (the great irony of this being that Fox sports is 1000 times more likely to have the kind of behavior/viewpoint shown in this cartoon). The third meaning, and most offensive, is that Erin Andrews was in on it. Which if that is the intent, is probably the most heinous, sexist, cynical, violating tone I can think of for a situation like this.

Once again… this is absolutely deplorable.

Yes the cartoon probably falls under free speech and probably has the legal standards to run… but then I have the right under free speech to say this probably should never have seen publication and if I ran a paper it wouldn’t… ever.

This sounds like I’m getting all high and mighty and holier than thou… I know… I’m sorry. True, should I expect anything less from society? Is this really THAT big a deal? I’m not sure. But sometimes I get tired of being cynical. I get tired of just ignoring shitty behavior just because humans are inclined to be shitty sometimes. But every once and awhile it’s okay to call a duck a duck. Their actions are egregious. It deserves to be called out.

In response to the whole affair, ESPN has blacklisted any Post reporters from their coverage and removed their access to any ESPN broadcast. This will have an immediate effect on their coverage and will hopefully hurt them financially.

But for Erin Andrews, in a perfect world, she would sue for posting the picture and defamation of character for the cartoon. She has a legit claim with the picture, but the cartoon claim would be thrown out under free speech. And since the post is part of the News Corp empire the history of two mega corporations suing each other tells us that it would be so bogged down in various stalls and litigation as to be a complete waste of time.

So in the end, ESPN made the right call.

For me, the whole thing has no effect, really.

I will continue to never read The Post.

Don’t Like: That Stan Van Gundy Turned Into Stan Van Gundy Again. Seriously. HOW do you not foul Derek Fisher???

Ohhhh SVG. You old so and so!

Seriously, how do you not foul Derek Fisher?????

I’ve been saying for a good long while that the Magic simply are a mediocre team who can occasionally go on a great shooting run. Plus SVG is the certified “Master of Panic.”

And it was all proved last night.

Why coaches don’t foul when they’re up 3 is beyond me. Afriad they are going to take a “shot”???!?! Nonsense. The seconds it’s touched across half court. Wrap em. It’s that easy. Let em shoot. Do your job and rebound. That’s how you close games.

What SVG??? You like going toe to toe and LETTING Jameer Nelson give one of the ice cold closers of the game HAVE his 3.
And this is not take away from Derek Fisher. The guy was supposedly too old and busted to be effective. Over the course of the game he just can’t put 35 minutes together any more. All game he couldn’t hit the side of a bus. But in the last two minutes you STAY on him at the three line. He’s a great closer. He’ll hit that last one. Like big shot Rob.  Like Ray Allen. Like Reggie Miller. You STAY ON HIM. You don’t give him three feet.

And you FOUL him before it even gets there.

Just absurd.

And it helps prove why Orlando should never have been in this finals in the first place.

Just a joke.

I can’t believe I actually like the Lakers better in this series.

Is it possible to not want either team to win? How glorious would that be.  Kobe not getting his ring on his own, and the Magic being laughed off the court.

Just Ideal.

Don’t Like: Orlando Magic being up 3-1 in a series they have no business being up 3-1 in… and ensuing deductions you have to make about modern sports as a result

Orlando is up 3 to 1 against the Cleveland Cavaliers.

How the hell is this possible? Cleveland was supposed to have a cakewalk to the finals and for good reason, they played fantastic all year long. So how is this happening?

I’m calling it the NY Giants Corollary. A team that was pretty much dismissed as dysfunctional meanders into the playoffs, gets hot at that moment and suddenly becomes a complete different team. It happened again last year with the Arizona Cardinals. They were a joke and suddenly they were in the super bowl. And we’re watching it right now with the Orlando Magic. Don’t get me wrong, I like seeing Dwight Howard come of age right before us. I like underdogs playing above their talent. One of the greatest sports runs I’ve had as a fan was th e2001 Pats playoff run (even including apparent divine intervention and tuck rule discrepancy in Oakland).

But the sports fan in me also hates it with a vehement passion. Because what happens with the minority occurrence becomes the majority occurrence. It robs the moment of any kind of meaning. Every year any team can just “put it together” for a few weeks and contend. I’ve watched this Orlando team all year. They were streaky. They had major problems. Guys wouldn’t show up. Either Howard played well or the rest of the team did. As of Game 6 in the Boston series, they became a radically different team. They were efficient. Their “3 Ball” game suddenly became less reckless and desperate. They found a functional ball movement with Howard. He figured out better ways of getting down low (he still has no post game though). Petruis (Spelling?) suddenly became lights out… or SVG finally just, you know, starting playing him. And speaking of SVG I’m supposed to believe the ultimate headcase has suddenly just become and excellent coach? Cause that’s what he’s been doing this series: coaching the hell out of it. No. That’s not “who he always was.” This guy had shown a complete lack of coherence and confidence his entire career. Now he just “figured it out”? I don’t get it.

It’s a completely different team and we’re just supposed to say they were there all along?

I don’t know. The Cavs have been the best team in the NBA all year long. They’re not just suddenly sucking or anything. Maybe this is the Magic coming of age but part of me believes this is just like the Colorado Rockies in 2007; they’re just getting hot at the right time. Statistically they’re on a whole other level right now. It’s seems to come out of nowhere.

Maybe I’m wrong. Casual and some serious sports fans seem to love it. But that makes no sense to me. I like seeing teams just play at incredibly high levels. I don’t need to see a close game. I need to see great basketball. Great football. Great baseball, etc. When both teams play great? Perfect. But when a team is just playing at its height, dominating a season then coming to the playoffs to take care of business and go toe to toe with rivals? That’s the best. The 90s bulls. The 80s lakers/celtics.  That’s the best basketball. And yes Orlando is playing wonderfully but I just get this sick feeling in my stomach that its inconsistent with who they are.  They haven’t shown even flashes of this ice cold killer instinct they’ve had on display since game 6. I’m less amazed and more bewildered.

In an age where the exception becomes the rule, I’m still trying to be a fan of the rule.

Don’t Like: The Probable Truth of David Ortiz’s Demise

I hope I’m wrong… I desperately hope I’m wrong.

But David Ortiz, for all intents and purposes, is done. He won’t be the same. He won’t crush 50 dingers. He won’t be automatic. He won’t be Papi anymore.

We have the evidence. And no, I’m not talking about his terrible start to this season which everyone seems to be think is the smoking gun. People get out to bad starts all the time so that’s not the indicator.  I’m talking about all the other facts. He’s 34 and over-sized (not to mention the fact that a stunning amount Dominican players are 1-2 years older than they are listed). When guys of his similar build get to that age they often shut down (like power forwards in the NBA). It’s just a matter of body type and age. He’s had symptomatic wrist injuries which even the best players simply do not come back from (witness: Ken Griffey Jr, Nomar). It so difficult to swing when your wrist isn’t the same.  But the real kiss of death, is that he’s had 3 straight years of huge drops in statistics.

No one comes back from that. They might rebound slightly, but for all intents and purposes he won’t. Look at his stance. He’s not getting low anymore. He used to crouch and lock in. He’d scowl and be angry. Then he’d jump on a low inside fastball like it was a can of pudding. Now he can’t catch up to a 92 mph fastball right down the middle. It’s sad kind of. He’s choking up on the bat. He’s standing upright and far back. He’s playing catch-up.

How does something like this happen? Rather easily. It happens all the time, but we just hate to admit it. When is a superstar not a superstar anymore?

When does he get moved down in the lineup? Can he still be an effective hitter? Of course. He’s going to have to redefine his game a bit and he’s already been hitting in the other direction to avoid the shift. But with his size he should be richoceting those balls off the monster, not dropping them into bloopy left field. His timing is way off. He can’t get his bat speed up. It’s not looking good.

David Ortiz is probably done being David Ortiz.

I really, really hope I’m wrong.

End note-

-there’s a lot of steroids specualation in all this… which i refrained from because we have absolutely no evidence for. Does he kinda fit the profile? GULP. Yes. This was a guy who was cut by the twins after all. But the way things have shaken out we have no idea. There are no other physical indicators whatsoever. It’s all conjecture. So it gets an endnote and that’s it.

Like: Patriots’ Day

So I got to work this morning and checked my fantasy baseball scores. I was flabbergasted when I realized the red sox game started already. Then I remembered… it was Patriots’ Day. Perhaps, I was too preoccupied remembering it was my dad’s birthday (happy birthday dad) and had completely forgot that it was the greatest day on the Boston calendar.

How did I forget this? Because I live in Los Angeles and no one here gives a shit.

One could say Boston is more influenced because the holiday is meant commemorate the nearby battle of Lexington and Conchord (towns full of assholes, it’s a middlesex league thing… okay that was faux townism) and so there is historical significance yada yada yada.

The real reason it is awesome is because Boston basically shuts down. Most Schools are off. Some workplaces get off. And there is the 10 AM Red Sox game in which something memorable always seems to happen. Better yet there’s the Boston Marathon which is always a wonderful thing to behold (often referred to as MARATHON MONDAY!). Since it runs through the heart of back bay Boston, it effectively shuts down the city. People skip work (or take a break and watch). More importantly, people get drunk. Not just regular drunk. There’s about 9 college on the marathon route, so those kids get “I’m deciding to wake up and go black out by the afternoon” drunk. There’s nothing like watching people celebrate athletic fortitude and talent by skipping out on responsibility and drinking booze.

Patriotic? You betcha.

GO AMERICA!

(note: while it’s not exactly my thing, the fact that for 2009, this all coincides with 4/20 is just absurd. It’s like the perfect storm of debauchery)

Like: Overblown Opening Day/Week Baseball “Stories”

OH MY GOD! CC SABATHIA SUCKS! NEW YORK HAS WASTED 190 MILLION! TEXIERA CAN’T HANDLE THE PRESSURE! THE RED SOX ARE BETTER THAN THE RAYS THEY BEAT THEM 5-3! ELLSBURY CAN’T HIT ANYMORE!

Saying opening day results are prone to hyperbole is like saying I am using a simile right now.

Really,we shouldn’t we be better than this? But hyperbole sells papers and I even seen legit people at least addressing the issue of “well, you want to get off to a good start.” For the fans, yeah sure, whatever. But statistically speaking CC Sabathia has had many awful starts to his seasons. Last year especially and then he got it going on. Texiera is also another notoriously slow starter and yet no one seems to pay attention to these trends.

The fact of the matter is whatever seeming deduction that has come out of the last two days will be supplanted by another one once the week is out. And then another one by the end of the month. Trends will layer themselves and start to define a larger context. That’s baseball. It’s a law of averages, not the recent singular moment. Every guy goes 0-5. Every guy puts together a decent streak. The singular stuff only seems to matter in the post-season.  There’s about 160 games left so let’s wait and see how everyone shapes up.

Just started watching the Red Sox game now. Lester strikes out ANOTHER! CY YOUNG HERE HE COMES!

Don’t Like: Watching a Boxing Match Between Two Guys With AWFUL Jabs

I’m an armchair boxing fan; in the sense that my dad is a big fan and has given me a knowledge base with which to appreciate the sport. So I casually watch at work or catch fights I’m interested in. I was watching a fight on “Nothing but Knockouts” (great show) and caught one of the worst things that happens in boxing:

Two fighters with awful jabs.

It’s just most painful thing ever to see two guys circle each other and get the most awkward, slow punches as they pretend to have some boxing skill. They can’t even use it to distance themselves and create space. It’s like watching two kids make an action movie in their back yard, it’s almost cute that they’re even trying.

The good news is once they expend some effort trying to box, they get tired and just start brawling.

This is much more fun.

The fight descends into a basic barfight where two guys slug each other til the other one goes down. While it’s not exactly a wonder to behold, it satisfies part of the pugilistic reasons we watch boxing in the first place: to watch someone who is not us get hit really hard.

Oddly enough, the fight had a spectacular finish where one dude was finally starting to lose after 4 rounds of draw boxing. He’s getting absolutely pummeled, then the other dude drops his hands almost to brag. BOOM. Connects with a stealth right and he’s down for 10. The guy barely even knew he had been knocked out and thought they had called the fight for some reason.