edicate this list of links to blogs that can be found within the ESPN website. For those who are too loyal (or too lazy) to get acquainted with another sports website, these blogs will keep you informed enough to stand tall in any barstool sports conversation.To gain a small measure of credibility for these evaluations, I used the IMSA criteria, which includes (but is not limited to), blog materials, blog Influence, content, depth, language, timing, bias, and usefulness. I also separated the blogs into categories, MLB, NBA, NFL, and Fantasy Sports. If you notice the absence of NHL here, good for you. Until the NHL leaves its ridiculous deal with the VS. Network and comes back to basic cable, I will refuse to follow it or acknowledge its existence. Lastly, you can find the links to the following blogs under the linkroll section on the left side of the page. Some blogs can only be viewed in full form by ESPN insiders.
The first baseball blog is probably the one I frequent most on ESPN, given that I am both a baseball loyalist and die hard Red Sox fan. Peter Gammons' credentials need little mention, beyond the fact that he is enshrined in the MLB Hall of Fame outstanding writing. For a straight forward, old school approach to baseball journalism, a better read than Gammons is hard to find. Year in and year out he provides a solid combination of reporting, news, speculation and MLB updates. For those who want a little less Boston/East Coast bias in their MLB blogs, Buster Olney is a solid alternative to Gammons. Olney writes a similar blog to Gammons, providing a good mix of reporting, insider information, and speculation. Unlike Gammons, Olney also provides good advice for any fantasy baseball players out there who like to get their advice from established journalists as opposed to gurus. The third and final MLB blog here belongs to Curtis Granderson. Granderson is the starting center fielder for the Detroit Tigers, and an up and coming MLB star. His blog lacks the polish of either Olney's or Gammons', but he often writes about subjects that have nothing to do with baseball, which gives his readers a unique insight into the ways players distract themselves from the stress and rigors of an MLB season.
Three NBA blogs that I spend much of my time on are True Hoop (which was already mentioned in that last linkroll entry and will not be further discussed here), Chris Broussard, and Agent Zero. Of the several NBA blogs on ESPN, Broussard's is probably my favorite. Instead of dedicating post after post to the upcoming NBA draft, which I could care less about until June, he focuses on a range of current topics, from the MVP race, to the playoff chase, to each team's coaching state. His writing is polished, and if you want to read a good opinion piece each week, he's your bet. Agent Zero is the last blog. This blog belongs to Washington Wizards' star, Gilbert Arenas. Arenas, along with Curt Schilling, was one of the first star athletes to embrace the blogosphere. He adds something new nearly everyday, and provides his readers with a rare glimpse into the mind of one of the NBA's most eccentric stars.
Ever since the Patriots lost the Super Bowl I haven't been able to stomach ESPN's NFL pages. That said, the first NFL blog I frequent is definitely John Clayton. John Clayton probably knows more about football than any man on the planet outside of Bill Belichick. His blog posts aren't going to remind anyone of James Joyce, but if you want the best source for NFL information on ESPN, John Clayton is your man. Much like Clayton, Len Pasquarelli is another good source for the most up-to-date information about the NFL. Every so often, he also writes very good opinion pieces. Unlike some ESPN writers (cough, Gregg Easterbrook), he rarely gets swept up by the hoopla of an incident (see his very grounded articles on Spygate for example).
The final three blogs are for those in search of fantasy sports advice and information. Probably the best source of advice is Eric Karabell. Winning your fantasy league is all about speculation, and few writers on ESPN have the background, knowledge, and foresight to lead your team to first that Karabell has. Best of all, he covers all three major fantasy sports (NBA, MLB, NFL), so as long as you aren't one of the three people in America who plays fantasy Nascar, you should be able to live off of Karabell. Matthew Berry is another fantasy guru for ESPN. When I read Berry, I'm often torn regarding how I feel about him. On one hand, he provides very sound advice, and often offers you the kind of risky advice that will win you a league (giving us the Corey Harts and Ryan Brauns of the world). On the other hand, at times he gets sidetracked when talking about his personal life. It's funny to hear a joke now and then, but who really wants to read a paragraph about his lack of a dating life when they're looking for fantasy advice. The last blog belongs to Stephania Bell. Stephania is the newest fantasy guru, and while she doesn't offer the same quality advice that Karabell and Berry offer, she often provides in depth, insider information that, in the right hands, can be deadly.
1 comment:
I am very pleased to have read your blog post on ten threads within ESPN's webpage due to your writing skills and obvious knowledge of sports journalism. Thank you for not only reporting on sports writing, but being a writer yourself and communicating the pros and cons of these linkroll items with style and purpose. I would additionally reference your point of view as an avid sports fan as well as web surfer in highlighting the greatest strength of this post. You are obviously one of the sports super-fans that your post is targeting. As a result you achieve a strong and confident voice that makes me believe your linkroll is a valuable resource.
Unfortunately, I am not a sports fan, nor a super-fan. I love going to the games, mind you, but that is where my interest ends. Therefore, it was both highly stimulating to read this post, while also somewhat confusing. This is more my fault than yours. I feel that while the strength of this post resides in your insight, it leaves readers that have little knowledge of the sports blogosphere at a loss. I am not sure if this is a strength or a weakness. Clearly you would want to write it to someone interested in sports, and thus steeped in terminology and insight, but I think you would also want to make it more accessible to any reader. This may be achieved by first detailing what you find to be the ideal blog or site and then follow up with your analysis of each link's strengths and weaknesses. Overall, I feel this post maybe perfect for your target audience. Unfortunately I am not one of them. The links are minimal, but it is clear that was your intent. Lastly, I wish the graphic could have been more dynamic, rather than the simple ESPN logo.
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