If you answered with anything but the word, Never, then you are WRONG, just like the moronic hockey fans in Montreal and Philadelphia.  I don’t care where it started [Montreal] or where it finished [Philadelphia], you just don’t do that. 

Here’s what you need to do during the singing of the National Anthem, no matter what country’s national anthem is playing:

• Take off your hat. 
• Put your right hand over your heart or stand at attention
• Stand silently or sing if you care to and know the words.
• Show respect. 

Here’s what you don’t do:

• Talk.  And no stupid shouting to signify your team — that means you, Baltimore Orioles fans and Atlanta Braves fans.
• Walk, run or otherwise transport yourself [unless it's an emergency]
• Drink, eat, smoke or engage in any other carnal activity [I think you know what I'm talking about].
• Boo.

The National Anthem stands for something more important than national rivalries.  Show your true colors by standing up to those idiots who have no pride or respect.  Say something to the knuckleheads.  But do it AFTER the whole anthem is played.

TORONTO — Slumping designated hitter Frank Thomas was released Sunday by the Blue Jays, who cut the 19-year veteran one day after he became angry for being taken out of the lineup.

The move leaves the Blue Jays on the hook for $7,081,967, the remainder of his $8 million salary this year in the $18.12 million, two-year contract the 39-year-old Thomas signed in November 2006.

The guy is going to get paid $25M NOT to play!  AND he’s allowed to negotiate with any team that would have him.  I am sure that there are at least a handful of teams that will take a flyer on him at a reduced rate - say $2M to get an angry superstar to just hit the ball for them.  Nothing else.  Just hit and sit.  And sulk if you’re not playing.  For heaven’s sake. 

However, this has an even bigger impact on us, the fans.  Who do you think eats that $25M?  The Blue Jays?  Oh hell no.  Every price will go up at the stadium.  Have you ever once seen the prices go down? 

I really don’t like Frank.  He’s not my type of ballplayer. Oh yeah, he’s a superstar and a possible first ballot HOF guy, but he’s a whiner and a cry baby and he’s not a complete ballplayer. He’s a fat-a$$ sitting and waiting on the bench for his turn at bat designated hitter.  Aren’t older players supposed to serve as role models and mentors?  Rather than go home and watch ESPN all day or play MLB Baseball 2K8 on your XBox, wouldn’t you rather ride the pines for 2 years and talk baseball with your friends all day for TWENTY-FIVE MILLON DOLLARS?

The fat lady ain’t singing yet, but she’s warming up.  Can’t you hear her, Frank?  She’s singing the scales and it’s your song.  “ME ME ME ME ME ME”

The rest of the story

I had a business meeting with a couple of Canadian friends the other day and they were bemoaning the fact that back in the days of the six team NHL, kids would pick their favorite team and then be able to cheer on their favorite player for years and years.  It’s definitely not like that anymore in hockey, to say the least.

And it’s not like that anymore with baseball.  But back in the day it was the same as hockey.  I’ve been a Cardinal fan my whole life and I can tell you the starting lineup for the 1967-8 Cardinals teams that were NL Champs 2 years in a row, winning the world series in 1967 and losing the seventh game to the Detroit Tigers a year later.

I thought to myself with the era of free agency dawning shortly after my hero, Bob Gibson, retired, WWBGD if he in fact became eligible for free agency.

It’s a difficult quandary.

Because of his fierce competitive nature and because he would always want to play for the championship, one could assume that he would rather sign with a perennial contender than stay with one team out of loyalty if that team had fallen on bad competitive times.  And I would imagine because of his close friendship with Curt Flood [another hero of baseball and should be in the HOF, IMHO], he would have wanted to seize control of his own destiny.  He could go to wherever it was best for him, his career, his family and his team.

So, I could see him signing on with the great Oakland A’s teams of the early 1970’s or with the pitching and defense laden Baltimore Orioles or anchor the lackluster starting pitching staff of the famed Big Red Machine.

However, I would dare say that he would be loyal to the city, his team and teammates and would choose to make the best deal he could with his current team.  He’d be a Tony Gwynn or a Cal Ripken.  People who stayed with the home team because they wanted to spend their career in one place. He would dance with the date that brung him to the dance.  I believe he would be pissed off when one of his teammates left just for the money.  He would throw at them the first chance he got.

Just ask his best friend, Bill White.

Remember back when it was a game?  When the hitters didn’t wear body armor, the pitchers wanted to own their half of the plate, the catchers weren’t afraid to whip one past the batters’ ears if he thought they were doing something wrong.  And the umpires called the strike zone in accordance with the rules and let the players play according to the unwritten rules.   Everyone knew what they were.  I could have titled my part of this blogosphere What Would Don Drysdale Do? or What Would Nolan Ryan Do?  Since it’s my column and my hero, I went with What Would Bob Gibson Do. 

Here’s an old skool real-life scenario — Frank Robinson would dig-in against the pitcher trying to intimidate him.  And if you were any pitcher not named Gibson or Drysdale you would be intimidated.  Drysdale or Gibson would simply throw at him or anyone for that matter.  In the HBO documentary, When It Was A Game, they show a video highlight of 4 pitches.  Mano a Mano.  Robinson against Drysdale.  On each pitch Robinson would dig in and Drysdale threw at him.  4 balls.  One walk.  Neither man gave in.

So, I was wondering, in today’s game, where everyone seems to be so lovey-dovey, WWBGD?  A few weeks ago in Spring Training, a young Yankees player slid spikes high into a young Rays player.  The names aren’t important.  What is important is that back in the Pete Rose bowling over Ray Fosse in an All-Star game day this would have been an everyday getting ready for the season experience. 

I didn’t hear one of the talking heads say anything positive about the play.  They talked about the  outrage of someone playing dirty like that in Spring Training.  To quote Animal House, “What was he supposed to do, you Mo-Ron.” 

And I asked myself, “WWBGD?”  My wife heard me say this and asked, “what?”  I said, “nuttin’ honey.”

Here’s what I think.  If he [HEAVEN FORBID] was a NY Yankee, when the Yankees player arrived at the dugout, Gibby would have been sitting there alone with a wry smile on his face and he probably would have gotten up, simply shook the young man’s hand and said something innocuous like, “Good job, son.”

If OTOH he was a Tampa Rays pitcher and was on the mound, he would have put his first pitch in the middle of the first Yankees’ batter’s back, who would have simply trotted down to first base, trying to show that he wasn’t hurt by the pitch.  The umpire would have picked up the ball, rubbed a bit, thrown it back to Hoot and said, “Batter Up.”

Watch this space for more WWBGD.  Or if you have WWBGD question, feel free to contact me here.

Reasons why I love Spring Training Games:

• You are this close to the field - in the two games I attended this Spring, I was no further than 8 rows from the field
  
• Day Games - All of them in the bright sunshine.
• Old folks - I talked with the gentleman in front of me — a Sawx fan. After I told him that I was a Cards fan and went to game 4 of the 2004 WS, he told me he was still bitter about the World Series against the Cards. I asked, “1967?” He said, “no, 1946.”
• Play Ball! - I was pleasantly surprised to see the players on the field in Clearwater for the singing of the national anthem. And disappointed that they didn’t do the same in Sarasota
  
• Weather reports - “In Minnesota, it’s 34 degrees, in Cincinnati, it’s 53 degrees. Here in Sarasota….”
• Spring Training Numbers - The Twins had players wearing numbers from 91 to 95 on the field at one time.
• Not playing to win - I love the lack of pressure.
• You can leave early - and we did leave.
• Kids - the kids who are into the game really make me think that baseball has a future
  

I love Spring Training games so much that I put ketchup on my niece’s hot dog.