Whether you're at the end of your rope or merely the end of your week, welcome to Whitt's End:
*With the way the Texas Rangers have played and the way Andruw Jones and Elvis Andrus and Darren O'Day have performed, Jon Daniels gets my vote for MLB Executive of the Year at the season's halfway point. But Ron Washington for Manager of the Year? Um, has Fox Sports watched him scuffle his way through a game?
*Shawn Marion to the Mavs upgrades their roster. So does Marcin Gortat. But I still have Dallas ranked behind the Lakers, Nuggets and Spurs, who this off-season have added Richard Jefferson, Antonio McDyess and DeJuan Blair.
*Ian Kinsler's power numbers through four seasons are similar to Ryne Sandberg, but the Cub finished with an MVP and eight Gold Gloves. With the way Kinsler is upper-cutting every swing in an attempt to pad his homer numbers as a lead-off hitter, it's a good thing he didn't get validated as an All-Star. Beaten out by Brandon Inge, here's hoping Kinsler plays - and prepares - with a chip on his shoulder and a carrot in front of his face.
*Rangers' pitchers have exceeded all expectations this seasons, but what's with the gaudy necklaces? Seriously, Derek Holland and Jason Jennings are wearing thick, bulky, plastic-looking stethoscopes and C.J. Wilson's looks like a leather, woven bull whip.
*I coulda swore the Cowboys cut Greg Ellis. Right? You think he actually believes some of this stuff? I mean, really, DeMarcus Ware hiding so he could play. What is this, Pop Warner?
*Bitch and moan about Mark Cuban all you want, but just know that he paid - out of his pocket - $23 million for his team to be over the NBA's luxury tax threshold last season. Only seven teams went over. Need perspective? Two words: Tom. Hicks.
*We can pretend like the Mavs' signing of Shawn Marion is a big deal or even that Shaquille O'Neal's trade to Cleveland rocked our sports nation. But consider this: More than 80,000 turned out in Spain last week for the introduction of Cristiano Ronaldo as the newest member of Real Madrid's soccer club. Eighty thousand. Puts a little perspective on Duke's "Cameron Crazies" and the Raiders' "Black Hole" doesn't it?
*Just think for a moment: What if Roger Federer and his record 15 Grand Slam titles was from Seagoville instead of Switzerland. Then would we pay him proper tribute?
*I flipped on MTV the other day for the first time in a long time. What did I see? A show called Silent Library, where kids in Fear Factor-like dares have to remain quiet while eating caterpillar shit because, ya know, they're in a library. I am not making that up.
*Hot.
*Not.
*I don't understand fireworks. How come you can never see the back of one?
*I only hope to be half as cool as Jimmy Page when I'm 65.
*I could try to explain why the Mavericks shouldn't trade Erick Dampier, or I could tell you that keeping him through next season gives them even more leverage to be players in the lucrative free-agent rush of 2010. Trust me.
*As previously mentioned, I'll be on vacation (yes, again) next week. For the record, I'll be making it rain in the dry heat of this city. Let's reconvene Monday, July 20th shall we? It's a date.
