Random Thoughts: Watson, MLB, more

SCOTT TRUXELL/independent editor

The latest edition of Random Thoughts centers around the start of fall sports, the Monday Mailbag, DeShaun Watson, MLB contracts and Pigskin Pick’Em.

Fall sports

Fall sports practices began yesterday and the first high school fall sporting event will take place later this week.

Lincolnview’s boys’ golf team will face Wayne Trace at Pleasant Valley Golf Course at 1 p.m. Thursday. The girls’ team will hit the links against Minster at Arrowhead Golf Course at the same time.

Welcome back fall sports.

Monday Mailbag

The Monday Mailbag feature is slated to return to the Sports page on Monday, August 15.

If you have questions or comments about high school, college or pro sports, please email them to sports@thevwindependent.com.

DeShaun Watson

By now everyone knows DeShaun Watson has been suspended for six games for alleged sexual misconduct involving more than two dozen massage therapists.

The ruling game down Monday morning, but it’s not necessarily over. The NFL still has time to appeal the ruling and is now deciding if that will be the next course of action.

I’m not going to get into whether the suspension was appropriate. There are valid arguments for both sides and my opinion here doesn’t matter. But no matter what the decision was, people were going to be upset.

However, there is something I’d like to point out – it doesn’t seem like a very good idea for the NFL to appeal Sue L. Robinson’s recommendation. Why not? Why have a disciplinary officer at all if the league is going to overrule her punishment, especially her very first one? What kind of message does that send? By the way, the person who could overrule the decision is Commissioner Roger Goodell or his designee, who no doubt would be in complete agreement with him. If that’s the case, why not just have Goodell or his designee handle it from the beginning?

If the NFL appeals, this won’t be over for a while. It’ll almost certainly wind up in court and who knows what will happen there.

As I’ve said repeatedly, I wish the Cleveland Browns would have steered clear of this mess, i.e. not gone to the mat to trade for Watson.

Say what?

Who rejects a 15-year, $440 million contract offer? Apparently Juan Soto of the Washington Nationals.

Sorry, but that’s insane and it also shows that baseball needs more structure when it comes to contracts – a true salary cap and a minimum salary basement.

Pigskin Pick’Em

In order to get the weekly guest selector feature to work for Pigskin Pick’Em, we still need a few more brave souls who are willing to pick WBL, NWC, GMC and MAC games, plus Lima Sr. for one week out of the 10 week regular season.

If interested, drop me an email with your name at sports@thevwindependent.com.