Worst Idea Ever?

We apologize for the month-long hiatus, but the real world reared its ugly head once again. I hope you’ll all join in me in congratulating fellow Official Scorer Josh on graduating from law school. He will likely be MIA for a few months while studying for that pesky little bar exam. The good news is that I have plenty to write about. I was going to start off with an in depth analysis of the NBA playoffs but with all the pressures of finals Josh forgot to get the express written consent of the NBA. So much for that idea, I guess.

Some of you may have picked up on the fact that we are poker enthusiasts. Well for me it goes a bit farther than that. I have been playing poker semi-professionally (which is to say that the majority of my income has come from poker) for the last eighteen months. I even cashed in a 2007 World Series of Poker event. So when I was doing a little research to determine what World Series events I would be playing in this year and I came across this from ESPN, needless to say I was more than a little befuddled.

In summation, players who play in the $10,000 Main Event this year (beginning July 3rd) will play down to the final nine players who will make up the final table. This will happen sometime on July 14th. The tournament will then be ‘paused’ for a full 117 days and resumed on November 9th. All players will be payed ninth place money right there (9th place paid $525,934 in 2007, $1,566,858 in 2006) and then paid the difference between that and their final placing in November. The remaining prize money will be placed in a high yield savings account with the interest accrued being added to the prize pool. The four month hiatus will be used to promote the final table. All nine remaining players will be booked on talk shows, sign endorsement deals, and be followed around by ESPN camera crews.

I was so dumbfounded by this that I immediately hit the forums (www.twoplustwo.com) to see what people were saying. As I thought, the natives were restless. People were pointing out all sorts of potential hiccups. What if a player dies in the interim? What if one is arrested? In rehab? A foreign player could be denied a Visa to return. Two or more players could work out a way to collude. These people would be targets for bribery, blackmail, extortion, etc. There are a million ways this could work out terribly and I see very little upside.

ESPN says that "[t]he innovative change -- offering fans an enhanced way of following the excitement and drama of high-stakes tournament play -- was made in collaboration between the WSOP, ESPN and the WSOP Players Advisory Council." Well now I had a hard time believing that the Players Advisory Council (PAC) actually signed off on this. The PAC is made up of fifteen professional and amateur poker players including Annie Duke, Daniel Negraneu, Howard Lederer, Steve Zolotow, Phil Gordon, Steve Cloutier, Cindy Violette, Tom Snyder and Robert Williamson III. They work with Jeffrey Pollack, the Commissioner of the WSOP, and they represent the players, advising Pollack on player concerns and recommendations.

So I decided to call one of the members of this committee and see what he had to say. I called Robert Williamson III, professional poker player, bracelet winner and one of the best Pot Limit Omaha players in the world. He also happens to be an all-around nice guy. Robert said that initially he was vehemently against the idea, but after thinking it over for a while he decided that there were some distinct upsides. Poker suffered a critical blow to its legitimacy and growth in September of 2006 when President Bush signed the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA) into law. Online poker rooms, the easiest and many believe the best venue for new players, have lost many of the ‘fish’ that makes poker so profitable for the pros. Poker had been making strides toward legitimacy year after year. Participation in the WSOP Main Event had been growing at a near exponential rate every year. In 2003, the year of the famous Moneymaker boom, there were 839 entrants. The following year there were 2,576, there were 5,619 in 2005 and 8,773 in 2006. But in 2007, following the passage of the UIGEA (which caused Harrah’s to announce that it was no longer accepting third party satellite registrations -- online satellites for example) there were only 6,358. In the entire thirty-six year history of the event that marked only the second time that there was a decline in registration numbers (14 fewer players registered for the 1992 event than the 1991). But I digress. Robert told me that while he felt the four month break was excessive, there was a real opportunity here to show people the merits of the game. He pointed out that if we end up with even two well spoken players at the final table making the rounds on the talk shows to build up hype, it can really call attention to a real problem that affects many Americans; the UIGEA. As it stands now, poker gets one new “ambassador” every year, this year it would get nine. He also pointed out that the PAC had very little actual say in the final decision and that while they were consulted they had no real ability to veto the decision.

Well, after a nice long conversation with Robert I felt a little bit better about this whole thing, but not much. The NFL takes a two week break between the Championship games and the Super Bowl. Two weeks is a reasonable amount of time to hype up the big game, though truth be told I am beyond sick of the coverage by the end of week one. I think a week or two would have been sufficient time to hype up the event. Robert reminded me that the only people who stand to lose here for real are Harrah’s and ESPN. He also mentioned that it isa one year experiment and if it doesn’t end well, it will be back to normal next year.

Stay tuned for a detailed accounting of my WSOP trip next month, as well as an interview with Robert Williamson III sometime in the future. You can visit Robert at www.RWIII.com.

End Of An Error

On April 18th, Knicks fans throughout the country (if there are any left) finally had reason to rejoice. The day of reckoning had finally arrived. The Isiah Thomas error, erm… era, had come to end. New team president Donnie Walsh announced that Isiah’s tenure as head coach of the organization was over. This barely two weeks after he had replaced Isiah as team president. Excellent! Isiah Thomas is no longer a member of the Knicks organization!

What’s that you say? He’s still with the team in some capacity? Surely you jest! It was announced that Thomas would remain with the team in an as yet determined capacity. All that is known is that he will report directly to Donnie Walsh. Oh, right, we know one other thing too. ESPN reported yesterday that Isiah Thomas is barred from having any contact at all with any player on the team.

Does anything about this seem odd to you? Who was the last head coach, in any sport, fired for cause to remain with the team in any capacity? I’m not talking about a Billy Martin here, who was fired and rehired more times than we can remember. It makes absolutely no sense. There are only two possible scenarios. Fellow Official Scorer Josh feels that this makes perfect pragmatic sense from a business perspective. You put Isiah in any important meeting you have, and this exchange becomes commonplace:

Donnie Walsh: Isiah, we have two options; ABC or XYZ, what do you think would be the better move?
Isiah Thomas: ABC.
Donnie Walsh: Excellent, XYZ it is, lets take lunch. Chinese or Deli?
Isiah Thomas: Chinese.
Donnie Walsh: Carnegie Deli then.

I agree that this would be an intelligent way to run the organization, but it seemed unlikely to me. I stand by my original theory; in fact I think this seals it. Three weeks ago, I presented the theory that Isiah Thomas has some sort of blackmail material on team owner James Dolan. Doesn’t this just prove that theory? Tell me you aren’t one hundred percent sure that this conversation happened behind closed doors somewhere:

James Dolan: Listen, Isiah, I can’t keep you on as head coach, we’ll go bankrupt.
Isiah Thomas: I understand, but if you fire me outright, you know what happens…
James Dolan: Yea, I know, I’ll find something less high profile for you within the organization.

Think about it. Have you ever been fired for gross incompetence? Did you then get another job within the company? Have you ever fired someone for gross incompetence? Did you then give them a different job within the company? NO! I really want to know what this blackmail material is, don’t you?

A Numbers Game

Well, I have finally found something that irked me enough to make me post. It is something so trivial, so banal, so... stupid that I could not pass up the chance to rant. Uniform numbers are one of the more important superstitions in sports. While some people could seemingly care less about them, others are amazingly attached to a particular number for one reason or another. This brings me to two number related issues that have popped up this week. First, we have the great Yankee controversy over the number 21.

Paul O'Neill, a much beloved Yankee from the days of the last dynasty, will always be remembered for his intensity and his true warrior spirit. When Morgan Ensberg arrived in Tampa as a non-roster invitee in February, he was assigned the number 21. This had marked the first time since Paul O’Neill had retired following the 2001 season that the Yankees even allowed the number to be worn. When Ensberg made the team at the end of spring training, he decided to give up the number that had been assigned to him rather than continue to be booed by Yankee fans. He said he would not wear Paul O'Neill's number, and many fans appreciated that simple gesture. Just as it seemed like a great controversy have been averted, LaTroy Hawkins, a newly signed free agent (one year deal I might add), snapped up the number in order to honor the late, great Roberto Clemente. This led to some predictable booing and chants of "Paul O'Neill" at the stadium during the team’s first homestand.

According to Peter Abraham, LaTroy has bowed to pressure and changed his number to 22 (the Roger Clemens lobby is significantly less...existent). Abraham chides Yankee fans for behaving without class. While I do agree with the general theory that booing your own player is counterproductive unless he is dogging it, I think Peter is wrong on this one. LaTroy showed a frightening lack of foresight in taking a number that had just become available because a teammate opted to show respect for its previous wearer. Maybe Paul O'Neill was not good enough to justify retiring his number, but it is obvious that a lot of fans disagree. A new player, especially a mediocre relief pitcher, should probably avoid such obvious pitfalls if he wants to be loved by the fans. LaTroy makes a lot of money being a marginally useful player; I cannot really summon up outrage at the fact that he had to be exposed to the horror of verbal taunts for doing something so obviously shortsighted.

While we are on the subject of uniform number lunacy, this Jackie Robinson thing is giving me a bit of a headache. Junior Griffey started this whole thing as a personal tribute to Robinson, and asked his widow last year for permission to wear 42 for one day. I can respect that, especially the part where he asked permission. At this point though, anarchy has taken over. There is no rhyme or reason to who wore 42 the other day. The entire "Just Rays" team wore the number, including random white guys (yes, I'm being racist, sue me. EDITOR'S NOTE: Please don't sue us!). Meanwhile, four Yankees wore 42, including Robinson Cano, who was named after the Dodger great (and wears 24 as a tribute to him). Also sporting the number was of course, Mariano Rivera, who incidentally will be the only player in baseball wearing 42 today. If Major League Baseball mandates that everyone wears the number for one day, fine. But this manner of “tribute” is just plain silly, and vaguely annoying to boot. Incidentally, Fellow Official Scorer David finds it hypocritical that you can honor a player both by making sure no one ever wears his number again and by having everyone wear his number for a day.

Some interesting number-related phenomena for you to consider:

• The Yankees were the first Major League team to sport uniform numbers when they did so in 1929. Originally the numbers corresponded to the batting order (Ruth - 3, Gherig - 4)
• Ricky Henderson, upon being traded to the Blue Jays in 1993, paid teammate Turner Ward $25,000 to give up the number 24 that Henderson had always worn.
• When Roger Clemens was traded to the Yankees following the 1998 season, he couldn’t get his traditional 21 because it was being worn by none other than Paul O’Neill. He originally opted for the reverse number 12, but eventually decided to just move up one and go with 22.
• When the 2007 season began and the Yankees were in the running for Clemens’ services once again, Cano changed his number from 22 to 24 to make way for Clemens return.
• When Ensberg decided to give up the number 21 he wanted to wear 14 instead. He reportedly offered fellow benchwarmer Wilson Betemit $5000 for the number to no avail.
• Assuming that the Yankees are not issuing the number 6 (which will likely be retired one day) the lowest number that could be worn by a player signed by the Yankees today would be 21.
• Turk Wendell was so superstitious about his number, 99, that when he was given a three year, ten million dollar contract by the Mets following the 2000 season, he reportedly asked to be paid one cent less so that his contract would be worth $9,999,999.99.
• Bill Veeck, owner of the St. Louis Browns and known for his shenanigans, once secretly signed dwarf Eddie Gaedel (who was 3’7” and had a strike zone measuring 1.5 inches high). Gaedel had one plate appearance in the second game of a doubleheader in 1951. He walked on four consecutive pitches and was removed for a pinch runner. His uniform number was 1/8.
• Ty Cobb, considered by many to be one of the greatest (and most racist) baseball players of all time did not have his uniform number retired by the Tigers. He retired in 1926 and never wore a number on his uniform.
• When pitcher Andy Messersmith signed with the Atlanta Braves in 1976, owner Ted Turner asked him to put the word “CHANNEL” on his uniform instead of his name. When combined with the 17 that Messersmith wore, the jersey read as a free advertisement for the channel on which Braves games aired. Major League Baseball quickly ended this shenanigan.

Letter To Donnie Walsh

Donnie Walsh
President of Basketball Operations, New York Knicks
Madison Square Garden

Two Pennsylvania Plaza

New York, NY, 10121-0091

cc: James Dolan

Dear Mr. Walsh:

Congratulations on being named as the President of Basketball Operations for the New York Knicks! Here at The Official Scorers we could not be happier for you. You have said that the first thing you will do is evaluate every key member of the organization, from coaches down to players. You will (hopefully) come to the inevitable conclusion that current head coach (and your predecessor as team President) Isiah Thomas needs to be given a one-way bus ticket out of town. Therefore we thought it would be helpful if we provided you a comprehensive list of qualified replacement candidates who make sense from both a business as well as a basketball perspective. We have listed both pros and cons of each candidate for easy reference.

Mark Jackson:

The Daily News is reporting that Jackson is the leading candidate among fans to take over the Knicks Head Coaching job. You have said that you are willing to embrace the Knicks history in your search for new personnel. Jackson has no coaching experience, and the last thing the Knicks need right now is another neophyte coach hired based on nepotism. I know that you have a tendency to do just that however, as you gave both Larry Bird and Isiah Thomas their first head coaching jobs in Indiana. The former first round draft pick who played five seasons in two stints with the Knicks would be an odd choice for the top job, but he would probably make a good assistant coach, opening the door for future consideration

Cons:
No coaching experience

Pros:
Knows New York, the Knicks and the Garden
The Fans love him

Patrick Ewing:

Despite reportedly endorsing Mark Jackson for the top spot, Ewing may be the more intelligent choice. While he also lacks head coaching experience, Ewing has at least been an assistant coach with three different teams (Washington (2003-04), Houston (2004-06) and currently Orlando). If Mark Jackson is a fan favorite than Ewing would have to be a fan deity. If nothing else, this move would put butts in seats, at least until the novelty wears off. Ewing’s stock has never been higher after being elected to the Hall of Fame this week. This would also provide Ewing an opportunity to change people’s perception of him as a choker.

Cons:
No head coaching experience

Pros:
Knows New York, the Knicks and the Garden
The Fans love him
Experience as an assistant coach
His stock has never been higher
He would sell tickets



Scott Skiles:

The former head coach of both the Suns and the Bulls is currently unemployed and would be a good fit for this Knicks team. For starters, he’s one of the few logical candidates who actually has legitimate NBA coaching experience. On the downside, he never played in New York, or coached in New York and may not be ready for the pressure cooker that is Madison Square Garden. He is a defense oriented coach, and that would be a good fit for the Knicks.

Cons:
Doesn’t know New York
Isn’t loved by fans
May be seen as a “safe” choice
Won’t do anything to sell tickets

Pros:
Has legitimate coaching experience
Values defense

John Calipari:

Calipari just came within one Mario Chalmers miracle three-pointer of winning his first NCAA national title. His stock has never been higher. He’s an excellent player’s coach. And who better to run the 2008 draft for the Knicks than a man who intimately knows all the talented players entering the draft? He even has NBA coaching experience, having coached the Nets in the late nineties for two and a half seasons. Its hard to know for sure if he can make the transition from elite college coach to elite NBA coach, but he would certainly sell some tickets and would be a popular choice among fans and pundits alike.

Cons:
College coaches sometimes have a hard time coaching in the NBA
His record with the Nets was an unspectacular 72-112 with one playoff appearance
Might not be ready for New York pressure

Pros:
His stock has never been higher
He has intimate knowledge of the 2008, and much of the 2009 draft classes
His intensity would be welcome in New York
He would sell tickets

Spike Lee:

You would be hard pressed to find someone who knows the Knicks better than Lee. He attends every single Knicks home game. He’s been to more Knicks games at the Garden in the last three and a half years than Stephon Marbury has! Of course his deep love of the Knicks could be a weakness, and you never know when he is going to get a technical for taunting an opposing player. But he is going to be on the floor for every home game anyway, may as well put him to use.

Cons:
He’s Spike Lee

Pros:
He’s Spike Lee

Krusty the Clown:

A dark horse candidate to be sure, but he would still be an upgrade over the current coach. He would definitely sell tickets, and would gain popularity for thinking outside of the box. He would probably be able to handle the New York pressure, though most likely by drinking.

Cons:
He’s a fictional, cartoon, alcoholic clown

Pros:
You probably won't see a discernable difference in team performance

The Isiahs

We here at the Official Scorers felt that it was vitally important to acknowledge the sheer lack of intelligence that is so pervasive in the sports world. After much debate as to how to go about this, Josh had a breakthrough: How better to pay homage to sports idiocy than through the best current example? Therefore, we have created a scale with which to rate sports-related stupidity. The scale is in terms of a man whose levels of ineptitude are so great that he ran the CBA right into the ground. That’s right, we’re talking about the man who destroyed the Toronto Raptors. None other than the man who has ruined one of the NBA’s most beloved franchises… both as their president and as their head coach… no easy feat, I assure you. Ladies and Gentlemen, The Official Scorers are proud to present The Isiahs:

David Stern:

There is no love lost between the city of Seattle and the commissioner of the NBA. His duplicitous dealings pertaining to the Sonics leaving Seattle are downright sleazy. He helped billionaire Clay Bennett in his attempts to blackmail the Seattle legislature into approving public funding for a five-hundred million dollar arena to replace the perfectly functional Key Arena in which the Sonics currently play. Despite Seattle’s deep love for the one professional sports team to bring home a championship (1979), the city refused to be blackmailed. Good for them! Professional sports teams are among the most profitable business models in the United States. They are owned by billionaires and multi-national corporations. Why the hell should the fans that pay for the tickets, pay for the merchandising and root for the teams have to buy them a place to play when they already have one?! It is deplorable. But we expect this kind of thing from scumbags like Bennett. But for David Stern to allow him to move the Sonics to his hometown of Oklahoma City (and we all know what a major cash cow that market is for sports teams), that is just plain despicable.

2 Isiahs

Jose Canseco:

The 1988 American League MVP has cemented his legacy… as one of the biggest douchebag crybabies of all time. This is a man who made it clear that he wrote his first book Juiced because he was pissed off that he was unable to find a team to play for at the end of his career because he was the poster boy for steroids. So he decided to throw under the bus anyone he knew to be juicing. Fine. We get it. We don’t approve, but we get it. Now its three years later, the backlash from his book has played its course and the spotlight is no longer on his diva-ness. So what does he do? He spends six months telling anyone who will listen that “he has plenty of shit on A-Rod”. Then he releases another book naming more names and unveiling the “shit” he has on A-Rod. It turns out that the big scandal is that Canseco once introduced A-Rod to a man who happened to have sold steroids. Well, duh! We imagine it would be damn near impossible to be introduced to anyone at Canseco’s barbeques that didn’t use or sell ‘roids! Oh. Right, did we mention that apparently A-Rod also hit on Canseco’s wife while they were still married? (Have you seen his ex-wife? Can you blame him?) And did we mention that Canseco has publicly said that because of this he “fucking hates A-Rod”. Here, enjoy one of our all time favorite bloopers:



3.5 Isiahs

James Dolan:

As Josh mentioned in his AL East Preview, James Dolan is the second worst owner in professional sports. We simply don’t have the time or space to properly list all of his transgressions, but lets name a few. He gave Allan Houston a six year, one hundred million dollar contract in 2001 when no other team had offered him even seventy-five. He paid Larry Brown approximately twenty-eight million dollars (between salary and buyout) to coach the Knicks for one season to a 23-59 record. He made Isiah Thomas, a man whose professional accomplishments (as mentioned above) included destroying the CBA and the Toronto Raptors, the General Manager and President of Basketball Operations. Since Thomas became the GM on December 22, 2003 the Knicks are a staggering one hundred games under .500 (133-233 including playoffs). They have zero playoff victories. This, combined with his stellar 131-115 record (and three first round exits) as the Pacers’ head coach between 2000 and 2003 made him the obvious candidate to take over as head coach (in addition to keeping his position as GM) after the Brown debacle. Finally, after Isiah’s adolescent-style sexual harassment cost Dolan eleven and a half million dollars in damages, Dolan reiterated (as he has many times) that Isiah’s job is 100% secure.

4.5 Isiahs

Isiah Thomas:

The man himself… where to begin? Since his complete and utter ineptitude at everything that isn’t the actual playing of basketball has already been well documented in this inaugural presentation of the Isiahs, we will just ask the one question that has been eating away at us for the past five years: What the hell does Isiah Thomas have on James Dolan?!? Is it photographic evidence that Dolan murdered a hooker? Proof that he flew to Thailand on the company dime to have sex with a twelve year old boy? Evidence that he owns a sweatshop? Is Isiah holding Dolan’s family hostage? There has to be some blackmail involved here, right? Nothing else makes sense! Isiah runs the team into the ground as general manager, making sure the team has no cap space for the next five years, making horrible trades (including trading away desperately needed first round picks!) and horrible signings and Dolan announces that his job is safe. The 2005-2006 team had the league’s highest payroll at one-hundred thirty million dollars and finished dead last in the East at 23-59 and Dolan not only announces that his job is safe, but that Isiah will be taking over the coaching duties for the following season! Isiah costs the organization eleven and a half million dollars because of his sexual harassment suit and Dolan announces that his job is safe. Droves of fans begin chanting “Fire Isiah” at games, selling “Fire Isiah" merchandise outside the Garden and Dolan announces that his job is safe. Donnie Walsh is hired to replace Isiah as President of Basketball Operations and Dolan announces that Isiah’s job as head coach (where he currently sports a 53-103 record in most of two seasons) is still not in jeopardy. What the hell does a guy have to do to get fired under Dolan? We can reach no conclusion except that somewhere in a safe deposit box owned by Isiah Thomas, there is blackmail material that is so terrible, so damning, so inflammatory, that James Dolan cannot fire him for fear of shame, reprisal or perhaps even prosecution.

A Perfect 5

Interview: Davin Anderson

Davin Anderson is not really a household name unless you happen to be an avid poker fan. So for those of you who don't know I'll clue you in. Davin finished 25th out of a field of 2,576 in the 2004 World Series of Poker Main Event. It was the year Greg Raymer took home poker's most coveted prize, but for six days, it looked as though the poker gods had a different horse in mind. Two bad beats on the penultimate day doomed Davin's run to the final table. His voice can still be heard on the intro to ESPN's World Series of Poker broadcasts declaring triumphantly "this is the greatest sport in the world!" At thirty-eight years old, Davin has won well over a million dollars playing high stakes poker and just about anything else one can gamble on. If you have $250 per session to spare you can hire him as a poker coach. Or you can just visit Poker Room Radio and check out his articles on poker, you'll find them under kamikazekorean.

The Official Scorers: Davin, we just want to start out by thanking you for your time. How old were you when you started playing poker?
Davin Anderson: I started playing poker with the older kids in my neighborhood when I was eight. We started with penny poker, but that quickly grew to nickels, dimes, and then quarters. The most popular game was called Acey-Deucey which is a form of a casino game called Red Dog. A simple game in which two cards are turned face up, and the player can bet up to the size of the pot that the third card’s value will be between the first two.
When we started to ante $1, the pots could become large quickly. I believe I was the first kid to figure out that if you kept track of the cards in the deck, eventually you would be able to predict accurately the remaining cards. I became the richest kid in the neighborhood when I won a $2800 pot (mostly IOU’s). After I tried cash in the several IOU’s from the parents in the neighborhood, the kids weekly poker game was over.
All my life I have been passionate about games and learning the best strategies to win. At the age of 12, I couldn’t find an adult that could beat me in chess. During my first two years in college, I made a nice consistent income playing Rummy, Ping-Pong and Poker in the dorms.
At the age of 18 I walked into a pool room for the first time and fell into a world of hustlers and gamblers that educated me in almost every form of gambling and street hustles imaginable. Poker for the first time became a serious past time. The games were very different from what I was used to, the stakes were serious and the competition was serious.

TOS: When did you know this was something you wanted to do professionally?
DA: I was first exposed to casino poker in 1997 and fell in love with it right away. I loved the game selection, the structure, and most of the earning potential for someone with superior skill. But, like most I went broke at the tables a hundred times until I finally had enough experience and reached a skill level that I could hold my own consistently. I moved up in limits quickly at that point, until I was playing the biggest games available in Atlantic City (400-800 limit poker).
Even though I considered myself a professional poker player (playing 40-60 hours a week) by the end of 1998, I maintained a professional business life as well. I believe that was crucial in my survival and ability to move up in the poker world. By the end of 2001 I was making just as much or more money playing poker than I was as an owner of two businesses. This is when it became very hard for me to justify maintaining and growing my businesses while playing poker at least 60 hours a week (mostly Thursday night to Sunday night).
I believe it is a great misconception for 99% of the young poker players today to think that all they have to do is play poker. Over half of all the successful poker professionals past and present that I know, have outside business interests that provide consistent income and enhance their annual bottom line. In reality, most poker professionals are not just poker professionals.

TOS: Have you always been good at reading people, or was it something you learned as you played?
DA: I believe that many things have lead to my ability to read people and situations properly and effectively. From the very beginning, being an abandoned and adopted child lay the foundation for me to be more aware of my surroundings and the people around me. I also give lots of credit to my adopted parents. They are educated and thoughtful people, and they taught me to question and research things that are important and interest me.
Probably the most important factor besides my childhood is my pool hall education. I will always hold academic education in high regard and hold my college degree as a personal accomplishment. But, the most practical and useful tools I’ve learned in the past 20 years have all come from being exposed to the huge spectrum of people that can be found in pool rooms. Pool hustlers, street hustlers, bookies, criminals, and self made millionaires were some of my best teachers.
In that Darwinist environment, you can only survive and prosper by honing your people skills. After 12 years of pool rooms, reading people and my environment has become an unconscious reflex. Being able to identify and profile the person I’m dealing with in the first 60 seconds is a tool I use everyday. In poker, I can usually have a working profile of everyone at the table in the first 5 minutes. This is most valuable in a poker tournament situation when you are forced to deal with table changes and new opponents all the time without the luxury of getting to know them first.

TOS: Are there certain tells that you see more often than others?
DA: For most beginners the obvious tells of body language are cool and fun to learn. When you’re playing with experienced and skillful players, these tells usually go out the window. I always start with my profile and psychological read of my opponent first. That is the most dependable and consistent method, and all the information and tells that follow are exponentially more valuable and accurate if you start with a profile first.

TOS: Do you have a different personality at the poker table than you do in real life?
DA: “You are who you are at the poker table.” My experience has taught me that most of the time people can’t help but be themselves at the poker table. All their strengths, weaknesses, and tendencies come out eventually. A liar and a cheat will be a liar and a cheat at the poker table. A housewife will be a housewife, and an aggressive salesman will be an aggressive salesman.
Based on this theory, I usually try to keep a low profile at the table when I’m in a serious situation. Most of the top players will try and project an image of strength, either quiet confidence or loud and cocky. Just like a false physical tell, these are false images of themselves.

TOS: What’s the most you’ve ever won in one session?
DA: I’ve had several winning sessions of $100-120k. My biggest holdem pot ever was just over $34k, and my biggest Stud pot was just over $48k.
The holdem pot was funny because I walked down from my suite in the Taj around 9AM, found a $400-800 Limit Holdem game had just started. I posted behind the button, and 5 hands later I got KK second to act and got 8 way capped action pre-flop. I didn’t post my blinds, racked up and went back to bed.

TOS: Most you ever lost?
DA: The most I ever lost in one session was 96k playing $300-600 Stud8 and Holdem for three days.
The biggest holdem pot I ever lost was $36k in a Pot-Limit Holdem game. I made a blind raise on the button, flopped the nut straight versus a set of Queens and lost to a full-house on the river.

TOS: What’s the longest session you’ve ever had?
DA: I’ve had two sessions last just over 72 hours. That will never happen again.

TOS: How do you feel about online poker?
DA: I believe the best times are long gone for the professional poker player who is playing online. When I started playing online, the average internet player was 3 times worse than the average casino player. Now the exact opposite is true.
The best two positive arenas of online poker are the huge multi-table tournaments and the accelerated experience you gain by playing online.

TOS: Tell us about your 2004 run.
DA: It was one of the greatest times of my life, and hardest things I’ve ever done. I got my 15 minutes of fame and became a minor poker celebrity from it. Everyone always asks me about the money I won, but at the time the $120k I won wasn’t a big deal. The cash games I was playing in had 6 figure swings almost every session.

Some of my favorite experiences and memories from the 2004 WSOP main event:

• The atmosphere and feel of tradition at The Horseshoe can never be replaced!
• It was the first huge field for the main event and had the most first timers to that point. The air was filled with fear from the players on the first day. It was so prevalent you could cut it with a knife!
• The exposure to so many great tournament players from around the world. Especially the Europeans who at the time, I believe were the best NL tournament players in the world.
• Playing perfect poker for 5 days straight. Never having all my chips in the middle needing help on the river.
• The experience showed me I could play great under the tremendous pressure and on the biggest stage.

TOS: Do any hands stand out for you now, four years later?
DA: Usually the hand that knocks you out is the hand most remember the most. For me it was the first two hands of day 6 that I remember most because they set me up to be knocked out later.
On the 6th day of the tournament, I had 1.45 million in chips, which was good enough for 3rd chip position out of the remaining 32 players. First hand of the day, I’m on the button and everyone folds to me. I look down at my hand, AK offsuit, what a beautiful way to start the day! I liberally toss about 70k in for a raise (blinds were at 6 and 12k with a 1k ante), and the small blind thinks for a minute and declares himself all in! I beat him into the pot, knowing this young internet player from the past three days has made several dumb moves.
For a very brief moment I had him, his head slumped on his shoulders and he turned over A6 off. On the first hand of the day, he shoved over 400k into the pot against the chip leader of the table completely dominated. A single 6 fell on the flop and his blunder turned into roses for him and I lost almost a third of my chips to a 3 outer.
Less than 5 minutes later, another young internet player decides to shove about 400k under the gun. I look at my cards, Aces! I smooth call hoping to get extra action. We are heads up, the director tells him to turn over his hand, and he shrugs and mumbles, and turns over 99. Another dominating situation for me aces against nines. I briefly think about my opportunity to recover most of the chips I lost just minutes prior.
The flop comes 9 high, and my head exploded. I stood up and smashed my huge stack of chips and said, “Your name must be Moneymaker!”
After playing perfect poker for 5 days straight, I was rewarded by losing just over half my chips to a 2 and 3 outer. Two hands that if I won, would have easily positioned me for the final table and over a million guaranteed. My road to poker glory would have been all but complete. Instead, I lost both hands and was left in a position that I had to gamble and play aggressive to regain my top position. This lead to my ultimate demise of having the eventual winner Greg Raymer to my left and he busted me after the first break.

TOS: How often do you think about the key three hands on that sixth day that ended your final table run?
DA: It took me a full year to recover mentally from being robbed by the poker gods of the greatest win a poker player can have. Even now, every time I talk about it, it brings some emotions to the top.

TOS: What is your favorite hand?
DA: As a professional poker player and cash game grinder, you are not supposed to have a so called favorite hand. But as a gambler, I have a weakness for 98 suited in cash games, and Ace Queen suited in tournaments.

TOS: Aside from poker, what do you do for fun?
DA: As a new father and family man, I truly enjoy spending time and having fun with my kids. Even the anticipation of experiences to come is great.
I still play pool once a month and will I probably never get the chalk dust out of my blood. I also enjoy writing and teaching about poker and other things.
I have been a die hard NY Giants fan for twenty-five years and an avid NFL and college football fan for almost twenty years. I like fantasy football and sometimes join five to six leagues. I have also been a successful football handicapper for over a decade.

TOS: So what does the future hold for you?
DA: I have decided to leave full time poker to raise my kids and take care of my elderly parents. I will be focusing on starting a new career or business probably for the next 10-15 years. Poker and my poker dreams will always be there when I’m ready to return.

TOS: Davin, thank you so much for your time, and good luck to you in all your future endeavors.

NL West Preview

Our last baseball preview comes after the second game of the regular season has already been played, but they happened in Tokyo so they don't really count. I hope you all enjoyed my previews. I tried to combine insightful analysis with sharp and witty humor all while staving off my hatred for David for making me do this. I'll be back when I feel like it. Don't wait up. Ladies and gentlemen... the NL West:

NL WEST

Arizona Diamondbacks
2007 Finish: 90-72, 1st, Lost to COL in NLCS
David’s 2008 Prediction: 85-77 (-5) 3rd

Josh’s Analysis:
The 2007 Diamondbacks were third worst in the National League in runs and gave up twenty more runs than they scored. Yet they still finished with a record eleven wins better than their expected win-loss tally. What does that mean? Yes, that’s right, glad you’ve been paying attention: they were lucky! And luck is not a repeatable skill (I’ve tried to convince David to make that our new motto to no avail). Arizona’s run to the NLCS was surprising to say the least. I tip my hat to GM Josh Byrnes who could have stood pat after building a team that reached the penultimate playoff series. Instead, he made a significant and fiscally responsible acquisition when he traded six prospects for Oakland’s ace Dan Haren. Haren is under contract through 2010 at the very reasonable price of $16.25 million… total. With that acquisition, the D’Backs now have one of the best one-two punches in baseball. Brandon Webb, who turns twenty-nine in May, already boasts a Cy Young award on his mantle and Dan Haren is already an elite pitcher and he’s just twenty-seven. Some might chide Byrnes for trading away young phenom Jose Valverde after his monster season but I applaud him for selling high. The Astros gave up three players for the closer including two that can help immediately (Chad Qualls and Juan Gutierrez), both of whom will compete with frontrunner Brandon Lyon for the vacated closer position.

While Byrnes made some very significant moves insofar as his pitching goes, he basically stood pat with his lineup. I can’t really fault him for that. Though his lineup lacks a true superstar, he has a nice mix of steady production guys. That said, BJ Upton's younger brother Justin is at the beginning of what many scouts think will be a hall of fame career; he should be fun to watch. Arizona’s big power threat is sophomore center fielder Chris Young, who hit 32 homeruns in his rookie campaign. Young needs some work, particularly in plate discipline, but most scouts agree that he is a five-tool player with an extremely high ceiling. Seven of the Diamondback’s eight anticipated opening day starters put up at least ten homeruns in 2007 (Chad Tracy, was on pace for 16, but was limited to only 76 games due to injury). There’s a lot to be excited about for Diamondbacks fans, reigning NL Manager of the Year Bob Melvin has a nice collection of young, high-ceiling talent to work with and the D’backs should be a power in the West for a number of years. Still, in light of how much luck Arizona needed to finish where they did last year, combined with the fact that the West is looking like the NL’s toughest division means the snakes will need to see significant improvement from their young players, which I think they will get. I’m picking them to take the West, but in this division expect only a handful of games to separate first place from fourth.

Diamondbacks Questions:

1. Will Randy Johnson stay healthy long enough to rediscover some of the magic he had in his first stint in the desert? (Unlikely, he turns forty-five this season and his back has been a big problem for the last few seasons)
2. Will Dan Haren dominate the weaker National League? (Well, the league is weaker but that might be balanced by moving from a great pitcher’s park to a hitter’s nirvana, still I vote yes on proposition Haren)
3. Will Doug Davis get back to 200 innings? (If he stays healthy he should, he’s a workhorse)
4. Will Stephen Drew outperform big brother J.D. in 2008? (They both sucked last season, so one of them is likely to improve…Stephen is younger so my money’s on him)
5. Will this be Arizona’s year? (Probably not, but one never knows…)
   
   
   

Los Angeles Dodgers
2007 Finish: 82-80, 4th
David’s 2008 Prediction: 90-72 (+8) 1st

Josh’s Analysis:
When the talking heads discuss the big market teams that outspend the rest of the league trying to buy championships, they are typically referring to the Yankees, Red Sox and Mets (who boast a combined six championships and nine pennants since the realigning of the divisions in 1995). But they are also referring to the Dodgers, who are a permanent resident among the top six team payrolls since 1999. And for all that money spent they have exactly one playoff victory (in three appearances) since they last won it all in 1988. So is this going to be LA’s year? To win it all, probably not. To make the playoffs and maybe even win a game or two once there, could be! GM Ned Colletti made some good moves this winter, but none spoke louder than the pilfering of the winningest manager in the majors over the last twelve years. Hiring Joe Torre to manage the Dodgers was a clear sign that the team is going to be competing now.

As far as players go, there’s a lot to be optimistic about. The Dodgers outbid the Mariners for Japanese pitcher Hiroki Kuroda, a groundball specialist with a deceptive delivery. Since we’re talking about both a pitcher and a Japanese League transplant we’ll flip two coins to see if he’ll have a good season. Colletti also picked up perennial gold glove center fielder Andruw Jones this off-season. While I am entirely confident that Jones will return to form in 2008, and I do think it was a good risk for the Dodgers, I still say the fact that following a .222 season he commands a contract that makes him the fifth highest paid player in baseball by average salary is simply insane. Speaking of insanity, someone from the Dodgers organization needs to explain to me the thinking behind playing Juan Pierre on a daily basis. Pierre is such a bad baseball player that it is just plain criminal to allow him to clog up a roster spot when there are talented youngsters waiting in the minors for a chance to shine. The Dodgers would be better served by just swallowing nine million dollars a year and cutting him.

Good news! Nomar is already in mid-season form… his wrist is broken and he will be missing at least the first week of the season. All joking aside though, Penny, Lowe and Kuroda are a solid top three. Broxton is a very good reliever and Takashi Saito was one of the most dominating closers in baseball last season. Furcal and Kent make for a solid middle of the infield. Right fielder Matt Kemp had a breakout season and will look to build on that. Scouts love him and he has a nice compact swing. The Dodgers have a great mix of veterans and young talent and Joe Torre knows how to get the best out of both. They should be a fun team to watch this year.

Dodgers Questions:

1. Will Andruw Jones have a bounce back year? (Since I’ve already used the comeback player of the year joke twice now, I’ll just say there’s no way he doesn’t improve on his 2007 showing)
2. Will Nomar finally get back to 500 at-bats? (Surely you jest… he’s already injured!)
3. … How about Jeff Kent? (The oft-injured second baseman missed the mark by six in 2007, but he’s not getting any younger or healthier)
4. Will Juan Pierre continue to have a starting job despite being so criminally horrible that he is hurting the team? (Excellent question! Upper management has nearly fifty million invested in him and Torre is infamous in New York for continuing to play horrible players to the team’s detriment. See: Farnsworth, Kyle)
5. Will Torre keep his streak of thirteen straight playoff appearances alive? (If his team stays healthy I think there is an excellent chance)
   
   
   

San Diego Padres
2007 Finish: 89-74, 3rd
David’s 2008 Prediction: 89-73 (NC) 2nd (WC)

Josh’s Analysis:
I enjoyed the Padres collapse over the last two games of the season because it shined a glaring spotlight on something I have been saying for years: Trevor Hoffman is not the greatest closer of all time, simply the best saves compiler… and a bit of a choker to boot. Hoffman needed only to put away a .260 pinch hitter to close out a one run lead and clinch the wild card on the last day of the season. Instead he gave up a run scoring triple to Tony Gwynn Jr. and the Friars were forced into a one game playoff with streaking Colorado. In what became an instant classic, the Pods took a two run lead into the thirteenth inning and once again they called upon the all-time saves leader to notch the final three outs and send them to the postseason. But for the second consecutive game he blew the lead and the Padres were sent packing. Still, Hoffman is certainly a competent enough closer and Heath Bell and Cla Meredith are two of the best middle relievers in the sport (though they had a combined 161 appearances in 2007, so their arms may actually fall off in 2008).

San Diego has a very good pitching staff, anchored by perpetual Cy Young contender Jake Peavy, who won the NL triple crown in 2007. He has a good supporting cast in Chris Young and an ageless Greg Maddux, but they are two of the worst pitchers in the majors at keeping runners close, and with catcher Josh Bard throwing out a paltry 7.6% of would-be base-stealers in 2007, I would look for many teams to run on them. Disabled List poster-boy Mark Prior supposedly has his eye on the fifth starter job, but he has been met with understandable skepticism.

Adrian Gonzalez is the Padres’ big power threat, but he needs to work on his plate discipline. He is slow as molasses but a very good defender at first base. Kevin Kouzmanoff had a very respectable rookie outing and will look to build on that. He destroys left handed pitching, but needs to work on his plate discipline. He also needs someone to teach him the fundamentals at the hot corner where he is a below average fielder with a strong, but erratic arm. Khalil Green is an above average shortstop with a strong bat, but he needs to work on… wait for it… his plate discipline! The Padres sport a lineup that goes to the plate to but bat on ball, they don’t see a ton of pitches and they don’t walk much. Headed into their fiftieth season, the franchise with the worst winning percentage of all time (for a team not from Tampa Bay) will continue their quest for that elusive first World Series championship. They will likely be in the mix until late in the season, but they’ll have to wait another year at least for that ring.

Padres Questions:

1. Will Kouzmanoff suffer from a sophomore slump? (How the hell should I know?)
2. Will Mark Prior start at least ten games? (Absolutely! Oh, you mean at the Major League level? No, probably not)
3. Will Maddux and Young have solid seasons behind Peavy? (Call it in the air…)
4. Will Trevor Hoffman choke at a key moment in the season? (Its what he does)
5. Will this be their year? (I could lie to you, but then that would be wrong, wouldn’t it?)
   
   
   

Colorado Rockies
2007 Finish: 90-73 2nd (WC), Lost to BOS in WS
David’s 2008 Prediction: 84-78 (-6) 4th

Josh’s Analysis:
Houston, Detroit… Colorado? The last two World Series runners-up didn’t even make the playoffs in defense of their pennant, will Colorado join them? Sadly for the mile-high faithful, it looks like they may. As I’ve already mentioned, the West is shaping up to be a truly competitive division, with four legitimate contenders for the top spot. Colorado had to win thirteen of fourteen games to finish out the regular season and get some help from Milwaukee just to force a one game playoff for the right to advance as a wild card. Colorado has a good young core of players, but as the saying goes, if you’re standing still, you’re moving backwards. The Rockies didn’t do anything significant by way of improving their team this winter and that’s going translate into problems this season.

Still, I wouldn’t be too shocked if the Rockies made a legitimate run at the West. They have some really good players and their mediocre ones look better because of the benefits of playing at Coors Field. Garrett Atkins and Troy Tulowitzki make up the best left side of the infield on both sides of the ball outside of New York and Detroit. Matt Holliday is a legitimate MVP contender every year and he gets a nice boost on the offensive side of things from playing where he does. Willy Taveras is bargain shopper’s Juan Pierre with one notable exception: he’s much better! Taveras is a speedster with very little pop in his bat, but he actually gets on base enough to make up for the lack of slugging. He also takes good routes to balls in center thus increasing his range. Lastly he has a strong, accurate arm which is crucial in Colorado’s cavernous center field. Ryan Spilborghs had a good showing in limited appearances and will likely platoon in right field with Brad Hawpe, giving the Rockies four true outfielders to work with.

Colorado has an above average pitching staff, led by Jeff Francis and power sinkerballer Aaron Cook. Ubaldo Jimenez had a respectable showing for a rookie and the Rockies are counting on him improving in his sophomore season. Manny Corpas was one of the best closers in the NL in the second half last year, and Brian Fuentes is a very good setup man. On paper, this team is just one or two pieces shy of being a legitimate power, and I would look for GM Dan O’Dowd to look to pick up another starter and maybe an upgrade at backstop at the deadline. Then again, they play the games because what’s on paper doesn’t usually translate into predictable results. Just ask the 2007 Rockies.

Rockies Questions:

1. Will Matt Holliday finally win that MVP? (He’s always in the running)
2. Will Tulowitzki have an impressive sophomore campaign? (All signs point to this kid being the real thing)
3. Will commentators continue to misunderstand what the humidor does and how it helps? (Sadly, yes)
4. Will the Rockies make the playoffs? (I’m not discounting the possibility, but they would need a perfect storm)
   
   
   

San Francisco Giants
2007 Finish: 71-91, 5th
David’s 2008 Prediction: 72-90 (+1) 5th

Josh’s Analysis:
I refuse to spend more than a paragraph discussing the Giants. Seems only fair, their front office refuses to field a competitive team. This is an organization whose one bright light in the last two decades was their 2002 run to game seven of the World Series. This is an organization that believes the best option for them at shortstop is forty year old Omar Vizquel with his career .621 OPS (who they re-signed this winter). This is an organization who gave Barry Zito a seven year one hundred twenty-six million dollar contract. Finally, this is an organization that rivals Baltimore in their complete and utter lack of hope for the future. They have an absolutely horrid farm system. They insist on signing and playing aging over-the-hill veterans (Vizquel, Durham, Winn) and slightly above average overpaid free agents (Aaron Rowand and Zito) instead of just admitting that they need to be rebuilding. They have two of the best young pitchers in the game and they spent the winter shopping one of them! They need to open up roster spots for youngsters, why spend that kind of money when they have no hope of competing? Finally, much like the O’s the only thing the Giants have going for them is a gorgeous stadium.

Giants Questions:
(Note: I’m doing something a little different for this one and actually asking questions someone should be asking the Giants organization)

1. Why commit sixty million dollars to a mediocre center fielder when you have no hope of competing in the next four years?
2. Are you telling me that there isn't a kid somewhere who would make twelve million less than Vizquel, be as useless at the plate and as efficient in the field?
3. If you are stupid enough to resign Vizquel because he is a fan-favorite, and you are stupid enough to overpay hacks, why not sign fan-favorite Bonds, controversy and all, to a one year deal and at least draw fans to the park?
4. Why the hell did you give Barry Zito a hundred twenty-six million dollars?
5. Why would you spend the winter trying to trade away one of two bright spots in your organization (Lincecum) for a handful of mediocre stopgaps that won’t improve your chance of competing in the short term?
6. Why do you hate your fans?
7. Do you kill puppies too?