* It’s been a very good fortnight for former Tampa Bay Buccaneer All-Pro John Lynch. He’s the general manager of the San Francisco 49ers, who will be in Super Bowl LIV. He was also named the NFL’s executive of the year. And he could soon be hoisting the Lombardi Trophy in Miami. Congrats, John. You’ve always been a class act.
* Maybe it’s a good thing that former MLB manager–and Tampa native–Tony La Russa, 75, is already in the Hall of Fame. Now his name is circulating amid the sign-stealing scandal currently consuming MLB. Former Cy Young Award winner Jack McDowell has accused La Russa of installing a sign-stealing system involving a camera in the 1980s when La Russa was managing the Chicago White Sox. La Russa was elected into the Hall in 2014.
* With the firing of MLB managers in Houston, Boston and New York (Mets), the Rays Kevin Cash looks even classier. It’s what he does with what he has–while remaining loyal to the game and its ethics.
* Who knows if this changes anything about Pete Rose’s pariah status with the Hall of Fame, but if context matters, infamous bet-placing might deserve reconsideration in the post-steroids, post-video sign-stealing eras. What are the odds?