Mike Lupica Endorses World Baseball Classic, Witty Wordplay.

"It is called the World Baseball Classic, but for now, the only classic thing about it is George Steinbrenner's reaction, from his world."

"It is called the World Baseball Classic, but for now, the only classic thing about it is George Steinbrenner's reaction, from his world."

Uh huh.


See what he did there? Did you see with the "world" and the "classic"? He took you this way and that way and then ... boom! ... he dropped the punchline like a right hook from Rocky Marciano!

Oy.

Is this microphone working? What do you know from comedy, anyway?


Did Mike Lupica just jump the shark? I'm thinking, with that sentence, Lupica's patented strained wordplay has gone beyond all credible bounds of journalistic decency.


"Around here, we are supposed to believe that the World Baseball Classic is bad, bad, bad. Why? Because the Yankees say it is bad, bad, bad, that's why."

First of all, we're not supposed to believe anything the Yankees say. We're supposed to think for ourselves. Most intelligent observers know by now that everything Steinbrenner says is spin and hype.

Sell the product. Sell, sell, sell! Twenty-four hours a day!

Too bad the commissioner of the league hasn't learned that lesson.


Let me flip the question on Lupica: Am I supposed to believe the WBC is good because esteemed intellects like Roger Clemens think it's good? Am I supposed to believe the WBC will expand baseball internationally because Bud Selig says it will?

Because of Selig's stellar track record in Tampa Bay? The guy who wants to expand the game is the same guy who had the Twins on the chopping block?


The WBC is neither bad nor good, it's simply uninteresting to most American baseball fans. I have no rooting interest and I don't care which team wins. I think there's a good chance Team USA will tank because they simply don't care that much.

Will this mean Japan has the best players in the world? If that floats your boat, cool with me. I still say the White Sox are the World Champs and it's a beautiful thing because they were brought together by the Pure pursuit of money rather than the Artifice of ethnicity.

There is only one Race (dramatic pause) -- the Human Race.


"And you never know, if Jeter or A-Rod or Damon ends up getting the big hit to win the championship game, maybe Steinbrenner will want to call the thing 'Pride of the Yankess.' "

Ha ha. Good one, Mike. "Yankess" instead of "Yankees." Just like the sign!


And you never know, if Jeter fouls a ball off his foot while playing South Africa, then I guess Lupica really will have to watch snowboarding or NASCAR.

Because "let's face it, the Yankees aren't the Yankees when Jeter's not in the game."