By updating RealClearSports I read hundreds of articles every week but sometimes there are particularly passages that need highlighting. And to make these passages more palatable I'm doing them in award form! The awards are completely random and will change weekly (though some may become reoccurring).

I'm really torn about the Yankees and Phillies losing. No, I'm not a bandwagon fan. I'm a fan of fairness in competition and the Yankees and Phillies (among others) have a huge advantage with their ridiculous payrolls. So when these teams lose it gives hope to other franchises and allows others to believe a salary cap is unnecessary in baseball. Do people really think spending more money isn't an advantage? Just because they sometimes spend lavishly and unwisely doesn't mean having more money isn't an advantage. What if well-run teams like the Rays, Giants and Rangers (did I just say the Rangers were well run??? Times have certainly changed.) had the money the Yankees have? Baseball has surprisingly had a lot of parity in recent years with eight different champions in the past nine years (Red Sox won twice) but that doesn't mean there shouldn't be a cap in baseball. Aren't Yankees' fans sick of hearing the stats of how one of their players' salaries is equal to the entire payroll of the Marlins? Don't they want to feel the thrill of winning a championship as opposed to the relief when what was expected to happen happens? It seems unlikely to happen any time soon and the Yanks and Phils losing doesn't help convince people of its need.

Blaming Lack of Replay for All Baseball's Woes

Christine Brennan of USA Today wrote an entire column with this basic premise: As the rest of the sports world rushes by on the information superhighway, poor MLB stands by the side of the road, kicking dirt and watching with wide eyes as it holds on for dear life to its charming 1950s ways.

The sport's consistent refusal to institute expanded replay to give its umpires and players the opportunity to see what millions of people watching at home already know makes the sport look, well, old.

You really think lack of replay is why people don't watch baseball? How about 162 games? How about pitchers that take forever to deliver? How about a pitcher like David Wells can pitch a no-hitter drunk? It's not replay keeping people away from baseball, it's baseball. It's a slow sport that now lacks some of its pop from cracking down on steroids. I'm not saying that's a bad thing but it will take some time for people to get used to. NFL didn't have replay for awhile and it did just fine and basketball just recently expanded the ability to use instant replay. It's an absurd premise to blame the lack of replay for baseball's problems.

Bashing Yankee Fans

Bruce Arthur of the National Post isn't a fan of the Yankees' fans: If you ever doubted that Yankees fans deserve your scorn, then Game 4 was the closing argument. There was the douchebag army in right-centre that interfered with Rangers outfielder Nelson Cruz as he attempted to chase a Robinson Cano home run, and who then gesticulated enthusiastically after their interference went uncalled. There was the faceless fan who dumped a beer at Cal Ripken Jr. as he sat on the TBS panel set, though luckily the fan was the A.J. Burnett of beer tossing. There was the corpulent Yankees fan who interfered with a Rangers foul ball, and narrowly avoided becoming his city's Steve Bartman.

Aren't Canadians supposed to be friendly and courteous? Can New Yorkers taint even the most docile creatures? Have Yankee fans surpassed Phillies' fans as the worst in baseball?

Best Advice

Nick Canepa of the San Diego Union-Tribune believes the Chargers could take a cue from Seinfeld: "If every instinct you have is wrong, then the opposite would have to be right."-- Jerry Seinfeld to George Costanza, on "Seinfeld"

Maybe Chargers head coach Norv Turner and his staff should do the same, say, for one week. Maybe they should conduct practice like the Opposite George.

I like this game! Can they also borrow advice from other TV shows? Can they all move in to a house together where they stop being polite and start getting real? Can Philip Rivers move in with his uncle in Beverly Hills? And can Norv Turner try to hide an alien in his house? Since the Chargers' season is pretty much over they might as well at least entertain us.

Could Use a (Slight) Re-Write

Adam Schein of Fox Sports wrote about the "hapless and hopeless" Bills: The only question as we enter Week 7 is whether or not the Bills will score a single point on the road in Baltimore this weekend.

The Bills didn't win the game but did force overtime and scored 34 points against the Ravens. That's a pretty good performance on the road. Maybe things aren't so bleak. He also wrote mentioned the Bills' mistake to draft Aaron Maybin when Michael Oher was still onthe board and wrote, " But the Bills have been sans a left tackle for what feels like forever." You really got to go WAY back to 2008 to find a good left tackle. Remember Jason Peters? He went to three straight Pro Bowls from 2006-2008?

But actually, pretty much everything else he said was right on about the pathetic Bills. As a fan of the franchise I'm hoping for the number one pick and hoping Andrew Luck doesn't return to Stanford to avoid being drafted by this dreadful franchise.

Piling It on Favre

You could say Jim Souhan of the Minneapolis Star Tribune isn't a huge fan of Favre: Those who don't want to see you (Tarvaris Jackson) play will point out that you are no Brett Favre. At the moment, I think that is the greatest compliment you could receive.

He takes Favre to the woodshed for what he thinks has been selfish play all season long. The Vikings knew the risk when they signed the aging QB. There was a great chance he'd break down (as he did with the Jets) and a great chance he'd be a gunslinger and throw some game-losing interceptions. Now you're getting both. Should anyone be so surprised?