I know there's a lot of sports fans here, me being one of them. Although I expect everyone to say that their prefered sport requires the highest difficulty to play, I'm hoping that some might look towards other sports. Hmmmmm... something tells me that ain't gonna happen.

But anyhoo...

Baseball
Having played baseball in high school, I understand the dynamics of fielding and hitting. Hitting wise, you have to understand situational hitting. If up come up to bat with a man on 2nd base you have to get him over to 3rd. Of course you have to recongnize where the infield is playing and if the man on 2nd is being closely shadowed by the shortstop.

There's also that little thing called making contact that at times can be difficult. Some batters can get away with an upward swing, but the proper way to approach a ball is to have a downward swing(Where the top hand turns over ontop of the ball when contact is made). Many people like to uppercut the ball up and out of the park. They feel it gives them a higher percentage of making contact. With the varied spins that pitches have when it arrives to the plate, a downward swing is more level and more of the surface area of the bat has an opportunity of hitting the ball.

Similar to situational hitting, knowing how to run the bases is esential. One rule is to freeze on a line drive except when there are two outs. I'm not going to go on, but if you watch a game you'll notice that the runner is always taking ques from the 3rd base coach when the ball is hit so he can know if he has a chance to make it to third.

Baseball has so many aspect to it that knowing what to do at the right time can determine the outcome of a game.

Bowling
....... Moving on.

Golf
It seems that "the swings the thing". I've heard players say that their swing is off or needs tweaking. It's also interesting how they study the landscape of the greens, the direction and speed of the wind, and pin position of the tee.

I've played the Tiger Woods games and just like the pros, I find my self throwing my controller on the floor and repeatedly saying, "I give up!", "I should have made that damn putt!", "Why did I go for that drive?", or my favorite "I shoulda layed up!" But two hours later I pick the controller up and go back at it again.

Tennis
The way I see it, covering all that ground has to be one of the hardest things to do physically. I've seen matches where players gave up their bodies to cover an open space when they find themselves out of position. On of my favorite players who would run down everything was Michael Kim and that's why I liked him.

American Football
The game is 90% mental and 10% physical! If you're not playing within the system of the team, then the team will suffer. Every year teams come up with playbooks that range from several dozen pages to nearly a hundred.

Every one must know ehere to be on every play. You can see this when a WR and QB get mixed up on a play where the WR doesn't run the right route or doesn't complete it. Blocking and turnovers both saves and wins games. If the up front blocking breaks down and the QB recieves pressure, he's likely to either fumble or make a bad throw that could be picked off by the defense.

Special teams can keep games with in reach. Without good field position after a kickoff or punt, the team has long drives that may not yield positive results.

There's loads more, but I'm gonna stop there.

Basketball
I find it somewhat watchable, but the egocentric nature of a lot of the players turn me off. The days of Jordan, Derxler, Pippen, Bird, M. Johnson are gone. Although, Detroit surprised me with their team play, especially on defense!

Adjusting to defenses and execution from the team is esential for a game to be won. These days, one dynamic player can spark a team to some wins, but without a supporting cast, a team can go nowhere. Ask Toronto and NOW LA.

Making the mid range shots is a lost art in this era of jump shooting, but when done effectively, it along with free throw shooting will both keep you in the game and put an opposing team away. The Bulls of the 90's are a prime example.

Football(Soccer)
I'm not at Football fan, but it's truly a "team" sport. With so much field to cover, it seems that everyone has to be in position both on defense and offense. Maybe someone else can speak on this more.

Hockey
I have to admit that I only watch it after the All Star Break cause that's when the games count more. But since the Capitals suck, I haven't watched it in quite some time.

It's similar to Football in many ways. The full contact nature of the sport make it difficult to play, but there is a simplicity about it that allows individual players to shine which makes it also similar to Basketball.

There's more sports, but these are the most watched by the masses.


GD