Five Things About Sports to Be Grateful For

It's that time of year again when we pause from our daily activities and give thanks for our many blessings. Even amidst our difficulties, we can always find something to be grateful for.

While it's been a trying year (to say the least) in the Chicago sports world this past year, here are a few things I'm grateful for (in no particular order):

* The Chicago Blackhawks -- The resurgence of the Hawks is one of the most incredible comeback stories in recent times. Last night, they dominated the San Jose Sharks en route to a 7-2 victory, they currently lead the league in penalty killing, and they've won eight games in a row. Winning the Stanley Cup would be the cream on my pumpkin pie.

* The Chicago youth movement -- Derrek Rose of the Bulls, Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane of the Hawks, Gordon Beckham of the White Sox, and Randy Wells of the Cubs lead the youth movement in Chicago sports. Even while our local teams struggle (except the above mentioned Hawks), these young, talented athletes are fun to watch and give us hope for a brighter future.

* Two Chicago professional baseball teams -- Imagine living in a city that did not have a baseball team, or any professional sports team for that matter. We get so caught up in the on-field play and off season personnel moves, that we forget to appreciate the fact that we HAVE not just one, but two ball clubs to follow throughout the year. Many places in the country don't even have one.

* Universal Sports -- Part of the NBC network, Universal Sports broadcasts Olympic sports. It's nice to have an outlet like Universal to keep up with my other favorites sports, like swimming, gymnsastics and figure skating.

* The Internet -- Where would we all be without the Internet these days? Thanks to the World Wide Web, we can find out everything we want about our favorite sport, team or athlete. It makes blogs like Woman's Eye on Sports possible, and for that I am truly grateful.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Study: Fewer Fouls Called on Home Team

Just as I’m heading out to watch a college basketball game tonight between my alma mater, Illinois State, and the University of Illinois-Chicago, I find this interesting piece on ESPN.com about foul calls in college basketball. It seems a recent study by a couple of college professors finds that the home team often gets fewer fouls called during these games.

The study, which appeared in The Journal of Sports Sciences earlier this year, finds that the chances that the visiting team would get a foul called on them was 7 percent higher than on the home team. When the home team is leading, the probability of the next foul being called on them was 6.3 percent higher than when the home team was trailing. Teams that are leading on nationally televised games also tend to get more fouls called than those leading in locally televised games.

Also, the bigger the difference in called fouls between the two teams, the more likely the next foul would be called against the team with fewer fouls. And when the home team had five or more fouls than the visiting team, there was a 69 percent chance that the visiting team would get the next foul.

While this is all supposedly happening subconsciously by the referees, it is somewhat amusing to realize that there really is something odd going on with the ref calls. And supposedly, it all evens out in the end, although the home team gets a slight edge. All the more reason to root for the home team.

Beckham Settles for Fifth in ROY Voting

Several weeks ago, White Sox infielder Gordon Beckham was named the Players Choice and the Sporting News Rookie of the Year, both based on the opinions of fellow baseball players. Today, he had a chance to win the trifecta when the Baseball Writers of America voted. Not only did Beckham not win Rookie of the Year honors, he placed a distant fifth, garnering only two second-place votes and four third-place votes.

Why the discrepancy? I’m still scratching my head over this one. Kinda makes you wonder what the baseball writers were looking at.

Instead the writers chose Oakland A's reliever Andrew Bailey who had 26 saves with a 1.84 ERA. Great numbers, I must admit. But I think Beckham's play made more of a difference for the White Sox, who were divisional contenders for most of the summer.

I can understand it if Beckham finished a close second, but a distant fifth with only six votes after nabbing top honors by his peers is something that's difficult to understand. Perhaps it’s a case of the writers looking at Beckham’s two previous honors, assuming that other writes will vote for him, and decide to vote for someone else.

Beckham’s numbers were just as good, if not better, than the other top rookies in consideration. After being promoted from Triple A in early June, Beckham went on to lead all AL rookies with 28 doubles, 43 extra-base hits and 63 RBIs in just 103 games, while finishing second in home runs (14), runs scored (58), hits (102), on-base percentage (.347), slugging percentage (.460) and total bases (174).

Those are impressive numbers. But they clearly did not impress enough of the baseball writers.

Breaking Down the Mark Teahan Trade

It's official now. The White Sox announced they have acquired OF/IF Mark Teahan from the Kansas City Royals in exchange for 3B Josh Fields and 2B Chris Getz.

At first glance, I was surprised that Getz was part of this deal as GM Kenny Williams has repeatedly said the team needed more youth and speed. Getz was an average player offensively, but his speed on the base pads cannot be overlooked. He stole 25 bases last season in 27 attempts, a better percentage than Scott Podsednik. I had visions of Getz becoming a lead off hitter if he could work the bat better. Still, Getz just concluded his first full season with the Sox and was hampered by injuries in each of the last two seasons. His durability and inconsistent performance at the plate may have been a concern.

Teahan is a versatile player, and he has played second and third base as well as the outfield. He's only 28 and has been in the league about five seasons, so he brings more experience to the infield, which the Sox need. He batted .271 for Kansas City last season, but batted .277 against the Sox, which might be another reason why they wanted the guy on their side.

The Sox plan to put Teahan at third, his natural position, and move the talented Gordon Beckham over to second base. Beckham played some second base during the Arizona Fall League and with time, he should do well. He's a fast learner and should pick up the position quickly.

Fields had a stellar year at third base in 2007 after Joe Crede had back surgery, but never quite played at the same level since then. He played mostly in the minors in 2008 during Crede's final year, and struggled early last season before losing the job to Beckham. Fields was sent to the minors mid season amidst speculation that he would soon be traded before the July 30 trade deadline. While his stint in Chicago overall was not memorable, Fields will be remembered for hitting a grand slam in Mark Buehrle's perfect game last July.

Despite losing Getz, which could come back to haunt the Sox down the road, this deal could work out well for both teams.

Memories of "Sweetness"

It's hard to believe that it's been 10 years since Walter Payton died of liver cancer. To commemorate this anniversary, the Chicago Bears honored "Sweetness" during half-time of Sunday's game at Soldier Field. You can watch the video of the tribute on the Bears' Web site.

I have a few of my own memories of Walter Payton. During the mid 1980s, a friend and I made several trips to the Bears' summer camp facility in Platteville, Wis., to watch the team's practices. I have only one photo of Payton from those trips. Yes, that's Walter in yellow lightheartedly brandishing a golf club to ward off fans as he got into a car. This was about as close as I would ever get to football's greatest running back.

We miss you, #34.