Frank Workman on Sports - ESPN doesn't make the grade

By Frank Workman

Like you, perhaps, most of my email survey-requests go straight to my spam folder. (Oh, if we could just do the same for the countless political ads on TV we’re going to be exposed to between now and the first Tuesday in November – can’t somebody please make an app for that?)

But this survey was from ESPN, so I took a few minutes to respond (besides, I was going to be entered into a drawing --- I might WIN something!).

ESPN wanted me to give them an overall grade, and to explain how I arrived at it.

They merit an A based solely on the sheer volume of ballgames they televise and the fact that they cover sports 24/7. They’re not the (self-proclaimed) Worldwide Leader In Sports for nothing.

But I gave them an F on the basis of their numerous contributions to the deterioration of sportsmanship in our society.

Whether I’m watching a game or one of their highlights shows, the plays that get the most attention and are replayed most often tend to be those showing an athlete in a team sport acting selfishly ---- celebrating themselves and not their team.

Too many times the cameras focus on the end-zone dance, and not on the downfield block that helped the ball-carrier score the touchdown.

They show us the dunk, but not the screen that enabled the player to get open.

Or we see the slugger who has just clouted the ball out of the park, but we don’t see the previous hitter’s hard-earned base on balls with two outs that kept the inning alive.

Worse yet, too many times the touchdown dance results in a celebration penalty that costs the scorer’s team 15 yards on the ensuing kickoff.

Or the dunker poses following his two-pointer, only to see the opponent take advantage of his absence on defense and hit their own basket (or even 3-pointer) that negates the dunk.

And often we’ll see long fly balls not leave the yard while the hitter watches admiringly from the batters box, his failure to adhere to the first lesson every school child learns early on (hit the ball and run as fast as you can) costing his team an extra base or two.

All the while, ESPN has the chance to call out the selfishness and me-first attitude, but with rare exception the players are not only not criticized for their actions, but they are frequently commended for their “stylish” play.

At the end of each SportsCenter, they show the day’s Top Ten plays.

I’d like them to make two additions to their programming.

One, I want to see each day’s most unsung plays, highlighting the pretty pass, the hard slide into second that breaks up the double play, or the good open-field tackle that prevents a big gain.

And I’d love to see a daily citing of those boneheaded selfish plays that wind up hurting the offending players’ teams, with ample verbal criticism coming from the announcers.

Until ESPN cleans up its act and remembers what it means to be a good sport, the best grade I can give them is a C.