Author: fartheroffthewall

Tom Hoffarth is a sports journalist in Los Angeles, born and raised (reared is the correct phrase, but it just sounds wrong) and specializing in the sports media business. A USC graduate from the School of Journalism (it still exists, somewhat) in 1984, he is also available for service at https://www.linkedin.com/in/tomhoffarth/

02.25.19: Five things you should plan for the week ahead based on unscientific evidence of guaranteed importance

fartheroffthewall

 

1oneThe UK’s Daily Telegraph once noted that an “unsettling silver statue of David Beckham toured the world” in 2012 as part of a promotion for H&M department store.
“Normally, extremely photogenic, the British superstar appeared to wear a concerned look on his face while posing for the artwork. Perhaps he realized that his head-high genitalia would be a target of countless comedy snappers.”
o-DAVID-BECKHAM-STATUE-570Ahem …
Now, because you don’t get to see a David Beckham statue unveiled in L.A.  every day – and should you? — the Galaxy will do so with dignity as they open the Major League Soccer regular season with a home match at the newly renamed Dignity Health Sports Park against Chicago (Saturday 5 p.m., FS1).
This could be some major erection for MLS lore.
Stop snickering.
You really want to bust out a bust of fame? Start chiseling that Zlatan statue now. When the granite dust settles, he’ll be the one we remember most, no matter how short his stay. Sure, we understand the impact that the former Man U footballer had on the boost for soccer in this region. Thanks for the 98 appearances in a Galaxy kit from 2007-12, and the 18 goals, and the back-to-back MLS Cup wins, and the Teen Choice Awards, and the 50 tattoos, then quitting with a year left on your deal.
We’re good. Go start that team in Miami.
The LAFC waits a day before opening its season at Banc of California Stadium against Kansas City (Sunday, 5:30 p.m., ESPN). No statues will be erected before its game.
Looking ahead for MLS ’19: First “El Trafico” isn’t until July 19 in Carson. Then Aug. 25 in downtown. Playoffs start the second week in October. It’ll be an interesting ride. Continue reading “02.25.19: Five things you should plan for the week ahead based on unscientific evidence of guaranteed importance” →

Who’s game for a revised ‘Top 10/Bottom 5’ sports media of L.A. ranking?

fartheroffthewall

Here’s the thing:

OldRadio

There was a good 20-year run when we presented the “Best and Worst of the L.A. Sports Media” rankings, at several Southern California media publications, during the 1990s and 2000s. It likely reached it shark-jump moment/let’s give it a breather decision at least five years ago. I could look it all up, but there’s no need to be specific.

indexSpecifically, there has been enough changes – additions and subtractions, with teams and broadcasters – to consider the merits of bringing it back. Vin Scully and Bob Miller have retired. Ralph Lawler is doing the same. Joe Davis and Alex Faust have had time to clear their throat, and they still may not be the best, in L.A., at what they do (consider the prime candidate to replace Lawler on Clippers’ games).

We have new crews with the Rams and Chargers. And LAFC. There’s an entire L.A. sports all-radio station that came and went over the years (think: The Beast).

We have old grudges that are hard to shake. We have new grudges ready to shake and bake.

Who do you believe the top play-by-play person is in Los Angeles? The absolute worst listen game analyst? The most effective studio host/sideline reporter? Does anyone watch local TV sports updates any more to have an opinion? And, what often draws the most attention because it leads to immediate debate, what’s left to listen to on local sports talk radio, aside from some national shows that seem to make up half the programming wheels?

Do we need to create a best L.A.-based sports podcast category? Seems it would be prudent.

shure-55sh-iiIf you have some time to chime in with your suggestions, I’m listening. Make comments here.

If you have more time for me to ponder, rank, re-rank, re-think and decisively post a revised Top 10/Bottom 5 list, we’re game. The plan: Let’s do it sooner than later. Let’s make the dreadful sports calendar of February great again and commit to a list a day from Feb. 25-28.

Who’s in, who’s out, and who is just going through the motions at this point? And why can’t we just all get along?

 

02.18.19: Five things you should plan for the week ahead based on unscientific evidence of guaranteed importance

fartheroffthewall

1oneHaving finally got caught on Netflix and finished up watching “The Ballad of Buster Scruggs,” it is time to ask: Where art thou, Lakers?
Buster, you best get back in the game.
The NBA All Star break may make us assume this was a mid-season exhibition, but check the calendar. Fifty seven games have elapsed in the Lakers’ 2018-19 schedule – with a meager 28-29 showing, two games out of the final Western Conference playoff spot. With 25 games left, if the Lakers don’t win at an .800 clip, are they finished? Fortunately, there are no more meetings with the Knicks. First game out of the break is a nationally TV appearance at Staples Center against Houston (Thursday, 7:30 p.m., TNT) and then on the road to (possibly) pay a visit to Anthony Davis at New Orleans (Saturday, 4 p.m., Spectrum SportsNet) and give the roster a chance to see what it would have been like at home in the Smoothie King Center.
The Clippers (32-27, eighth in the West) claim they haven’t given up on this season, either, and start the last two month-run at Memphis (Friday, 5 p.m., Prime Ticket) and at No. 2 Denver (Sunday, 2 p.m., Prime Ticket).

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1twoHow much more average can UCLA (13-13, 6-7) or USC (14-12, 7-6) get as they mildly build toward the Pac-12 Conference basketball tournament in Las Vegas. The Trojans’ Benny Boatwright at least appears to be engaged in the process, coming off a win over lowly Cal where he set a team record with 10 3-pointers.
This week’s visit by the Oregon schools won’t move any needles — the Beavers (16-8, 8-4) have a little run going — but here goes anyway:
Thursday:
* USC vs. Oregon, at Galen Center, 6 p.m., ESPN
* UCLA vs. Oregon State, at Pauley Pavilion, 8 p.m., FS1
Saturday:
* USC vs. Oregon State, at Galen Center, 3 p.m., Pac-12 Network
* UCLA vs. Oregon, at Pauley Pavilion, 7 p.m., ESPN2

In Southern California:
* Loyola Marymount (17-10, 5-8): At Pacific, Saturday at 12:30 p.m., Spectrum SportsNet
* Pepperdine (12-15, 5–8): At Gonzaga, Thursday at 6 p.m., at Firestone Field House vs. Portland, Saturday at 5 p.m.
* Long Beach State (9-18, 3-8): vs. Cal State Northridge at Walter Pyramid, Wednesday at 7 p.m.; at UC Riverside, Saturday at 5 p.m.
* Cal State Northridge (10-16, 4-6): At Long Beach State, Wednesday at 7 p.m.; vs. UC Davis at the Matadome, Saturday at 7 p.m., ESPN3 Continue reading “02.18.19: Five things you should plan for the week ahead based on unscientific evidence of guaranteed importance” →

02.11.19: Five things you should plan for the week ahead based on unscientific evidence of guaranteed importance

fartheroffthewall

1oneIf the higher-ups at the PGA Tour’s Genesis Open are open to not-so-nutty ideas, and even have a decent sense of humor, they’ll put Tiger Woods with Phil Mickelson in the same grouping for the first two rounds of this week’s event at Riviera Country Club.
Call it “The Re-Match,” if you need some branding. Outside of a major, this might be a rare opportunity.
Woods, who in the recent past has skipped this L.A. stop of the tour because of a poor success rate on the course, is now an avid supporter since his foundation benefits from the funds raised by this event. Problem is, he missed the cut last year and then disappeared on everyone. Woods made his PGA Tour debut here as a 16 year old with an exemption in 1992. He has never won in 12 events – still the course he has played the most on the PGA Tour without winning. He nearly won the 1998 event, but it was held at TPC Valencia that season, and he lost in a playoffs. He was also second in ’98.
Mickelson, a back-to-back winner at Riviera (2008-’09) and runner-up in a 2012 playoff, originally was going to skip this tournament on his early 2019 schedule, the same way he surprisingly passed on the Farmer’s Insurance Open at Torey Pines, considered to be his home event. Mickelson originally said he wanted a week off between Pebble Beach (where he holds a two-stroke lead with two holes to play when the final round finishes Monday — 8 a.m., Golf Channel) and the WGC-Mexico Championship, which he won last year. But Mickelson, who missed the cut at Scottsdale two weeks ago, decided to jump in at the Genesis Open before the deadline.
So now, on Valentine’s Day, Woods and Mickelson share a Riviera grass patch, in an event together for the first time since their odd pay-per-view “The Match” event in Las Vegas on Thanksgiving weekend, where Mickelson ended up with the $9 million winner-take-all share. Get these two on the kiss cam before it’s too late.
In an event that already has seven of the top 10 players in the world, now we have Woods (at No. 13) and Mickelson (No. 29), who finish sixth last year behind winner Bubba Watson.
For the record, Watson has won three of the last five years at Riviera, so if form holds, he will give it up this time. He had an emotional scene as he took a one-shot lead over Patrick Cantlay after three rounds a year ago and converted it into a two-shot win over Kevin Na in the finale to claim a $1.29 million paycheck. World ranked No. 1 Justin Rose and No. 2 Brooks Koepka have passed on Riviera. But No. 3 Dustin Johnson, the 2017 winner, returns. So does No. 4 Justin Thomas, No. 5 Bryson DeChambeau, No. 6 Jon Rahm, No. 7 Xander Schauffele and No. 9 Rory McIlroy. Former champions here coming back include James Hahn, Bill Haas, Steve Stricker, Charles Howell III, Adam Scott, Ernie Els and crowd favorite Fred Couples, the 59-year-old who won way back in 1990 and ’92. Other notables showing up: Jim Furyk, Sergio Garcia, Matt Kuchar, Davis Love III, Charl Schwartzel, Vijay Singh and Jordan Spieth. Continue reading “02.11.19: Five things you should plan for the week ahead based on unscientific evidence of guaranteed importance” →

02.04.19: Five things you should plan for the week ahead based on unscientific evidence of guaranteed importance

fartheroffthewall

1oneThe NBA calendar marks two events Thursday that carry a different degree of importance, but none the less are tied together.
First, the trade deadline is at noon, Pacific Time. The chances seem to dwindle, if you’re reading tea leaves and #Wojbombs, that the Lakers and Pelicans reach some kind of understanding that sends Anthony Davis to Los Angeles in exchange for a somewhat depleted Lakers’ roster. (As an aside: How would L.A. deal with two relatively high-profile Anthony Davises in its midst? The former USC big man on campus from the ‘70s, meet the future Lakers’ big man of the ‘20s).
A few hours after that happens, Team LeBron and Team Giannis will determine the rosters for the Feb. 17 NBA All Star Game with a draft that this year will finally air on TV (TNT, 4 p.m.). It’s not clear if this exercise will have already taken place and we just get to see the results, or if there’s actually the drama of how one players gets picked (or snubbed) over another like a supersized playground draft. LeBron James and Giannis Antetokounmpo, the leading vote-getters from fans for the West and East teams, can pick 10 starters in the first round (from Stephen Curry, Joel Embiid, James Harden, Kevin Durant, Paul George, Kyrie Irving, Kawhi Leonard and Kemba Walker), 14 reserves in the second round (from Davis, plus LaMarcus Aldridge, Bradley Beal, , Blake Griffin, Nikola Jokic, Damian Lillard, Kyle Lowry, Khris Middleton, Victor Oladipo, Ben Simmons, Klay Thompson, Karl-Anthony Towns, Nikola Vucevic and Russell Westbrook) and then  either Dirk Nowitzki or Dwayne Wade in the third round (they are the two special additions). Former Laker (and current Net) D’Angelo Russell has been added to the pool to replace the injured Oladipo.
The somewhat intriguing aspect of this, of course, is if James gets to draft Davis, who is in the mix of additional players. Get your mock drafts ready, or prepare to mock how this thing comes out in real time.
As the Grammy trip continues:
This week for the Lakers:
At Indiana, Tuesday at 4 p.m., Spectrum SportsNet
At Boston, Thursday at 5 p.m., Spectrum SportsNet, TNT
At Philadelphia, Sunday at 12:30 p.m., Channel 7
This week for the Clippers:
At Charlotte, Tuesday at 4 p.m., Prime Ticket
At Indiana, Thursday at 4 p.m. Prime Ticket
At Boston, Saturday at 5 p.m., Prime Ticket

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1twoThe storylines going into the NHRA 59th Winternationals at Pomona (Thursday through Sunday, with finals coverage on FS1 starting at 2 p.m.) start with Top Fuel champion Steve Torrence back at the track where he capped off his 2018 season. He won all six countdown races to the title a year ago, the first in NHRA history, for 11 wins on the season. His main competitors: Doug Kalitta (who won last year’s Winternational), Tony Schumacher, Antron Brown, Leah Pritchett and Brittany Force. In the Funny Car, J.R. Todd clinched his title at Pomona last season, the last of his six wins. Sixteen-time champion John Force returns with Robert Hight, Ron Capps and Shawn Langdon in full force. More info: www.NHRA.com.

Continue reading “02.04.19: Five things you should plan for the week ahead based on unscientific evidence of guaranteed importance” →