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Tuesday, November 03, 2009

Programming Note

When I started writing ShysterBall in the spring of 2007, the idea was to give myself a place to be where I could escape the stress and unpleasantness of my legal career, if only for the briefest of moments. As time went on, it began to consume more and more of my waking hours and, in all honesty, interfering pretty significantly with that legal career. No, I never dropped the ball on a case, but it has been a struggle. I mean really, how is someone supposed to prepare for an oral argument when Roger Clemens is testifying before Congress? I'd like to say that I eventually managed to find balance with all of this, but that would be a lie. My life hasn't been in balance since at least 2006. Maybe earlier. Something has to be done. So I'm doing it:

I'm quitting the law. Starting November 30th I will be writing about baseball full time for NBC Sports.com.

Obviously this wasn't a unilateral decision on my part. NBC has decided that they want me all-in on Circling the Bases, and that's not the kind of thing you have to ask me twice. The people over there have been fantastic to me since I started moonlighting back in April. They've never censored a word I've written. They've never declared a topic off-limits. Their instructions to me when I started were to make some f*cking noise, and they've allowed me to do that non-stop since. When they asked me to do it full time, it was a complete no-brainer. I don't yet know how it's going to all work out -- the enormity of this is just starting to sink in -- but to say I'm excited would be something of an understatement.

Q: But Craig! Where am I going to go for my daily ATH fix come April?!

A: Right here. Well, to THT at least, because NBC has been good enough to allow me to keep doing ATH and posting it at The Hardball Times (see above about NBC being totally cool). It likely won't be in ShysterBall, because the ShysterBall name is going to go into mothballs. Right now the smart money is on it appearing as a daily post at THT Live, but we'll give you lots of advanced notice once the good Mr. Studeman and I figure it out. The upshot, though, is that everyone involved realizes just how valuable an outlet and how outstanding the readership and community is at THT, and no one wants to mess with a good thing. Day-to-day blogging will be at NBC, but ATH will continue to appear at The Hardball Times.

Q: But Craig! How can you subject yourself to the kind of abuse you get from the commenters over there every day?

A: I've learned a lot in a short period of time. I've also noticed a slight uptick in commenter quality as time has gone on. I credit many of you for that, as I have been seeing a lot of familiar commenting handles migrate over to NBC as the year has progressed. I hope that continues. And I'm sure that it can. None of you are the type who can't handle more baseball in your lives, so I'm sure you can make a point to be good boys and girls and read your THT, and then come over to NBC to see what I'm up to.

Q: So, like, what does this all mean for you?

A: I don't know. No shaving. Pants optional. Walking kids to the bus stop. Cheaper coffee. More time to go to the gym. Occasional cushion forts in the living room. I'm sure it's going to be an adjustment process. I'll ask Neyer what he does with his days.

OK, enough self-indulgent crap, we have almost a month to get all of that in. In the meantime, let me offer some thanks to some people.

  • Thanks Repoz, because without your generous links, no one starts reading ShysterBall in the first place;


  • Thanks Rob, because without your generous links, no one starts reading ShysterBall in anything approaching significant numbers. If I had a dime for every time someone has said "I found this blog via Neyer . . ." well, I'd have a shitload of dimes. Oh, it's also worth noting that I'm not even writing a word about baseball without your inspiration;


  • Thanks Studes for taking the chance on me and making me a part of the THT family. The sketchy, ne'er-do-well cousin of that family to be sure, but a great family all the same. It took a lot to give my ramblings a sheen of respectability, but THT did the job;


  • Thanks Aaron Gleeman and Matthew Pouliot for suggesting me to the NBC brass when you were getting CTB off the ground last spring. Before then, the only thing NBC knew about me came via the copious amount of Markie Post fanmail I've sent in over the years, and the attendant restraining order hearings. It was nice to be able to make a second impression;


  • Thanks Jason, and Ron and Josh and Josh (the other one) and Jay and Sara and Mark and Scott and lar and Mike and Tim and Keith and Joe and every other member of the bloggy neighborhood who has linked to and been linked by ShysterBall, all of which has added immensely to the quality of the proceedings; and finally;


    • Thanks ShysterBall readers of both the commenting and the lurking persuasion. I could bring more bloggy noise than anyone, but it's worthless if there's no one there to read it. I'm not the statcounter obsessive I used to be, but whenever I've lost the will to write, I've checked in to look at the numbers. When I see people who have way better things to do with their lives click and click and click like you've been doing for so damn long, I'm reinvigorated.

    And away we go . . .

    Posted by Craig Calcaterra at 1:52pm

    Comments

    kardo said...

    Good going there Craig.

    Maybe on top of ATH you can keep doing a “My Morning in Exile” (although it’ll be a day in exile now) on THT Live, just to make sure we don’t forget.

    Posted 11/04  at  03:58 AM
    Steve said...

    Many congratulations Craig.

    Much like an earlier commenter, when I started reading I was worried you were quitting baseball writing, so this news was a fantastic surprise.

    I look forward to all that is to come. I’m far, far from a baseball expert, being a British guy fairly new to the game, and your writing has certainly helped guide me and teach me more about how fun baseball can be. I would have been lost without ATH this season. Thank you!

    Posted 11/04  at  06:44 AM
    Bob S said...

    Craig-
    Let me get this straight…just a couple of weeks ago you got your first death threat and now you have an offer to write full-time? Typical blogger career arc. I’m very happy for you as you are a talented and interesting writer, and now that you’re full-time I hope to see more Shyster stuff each day. Which is good news for us all. Great news, best of luck.

    Posted 11/04  at  08:33 AM
    Gordon said...

    Eff yes, lawyer boy! Congratulations, and I’m thrilled for you!

    Posted 11/04  at  09:40 AM
    mtjofmcap said...

    Go get ‘em Craig!

    Posted 11/04  at  09:42 AM
    John Willumsen said...

    Good luck, Craig. You’re one of the good guys, and how often do we get to say that the good have gotten the reward they deserve? I hope it goes great for you.

    Posted 11/04  at  09:49 AM
    BCBarney said...

    Yet another one of the lurking persuasion here.  I didn’t find you until you moved to THT and I very much regret not finding you sooner.  You’ve been one of the few blogs that I check multiple times a day to see anything new.  I loved your unique take and view on things.  It always kept me thinking.  You’ve always been a baseball fan like the rest of us.  From the stories so far and the fact that you promoted Eric’s blog, I could tell that you were always willing to lend a hand.

    Congrats on the new gig!  Looks like I’ll be spending more time over at NBC.  Best of luck!

    Posted 11/04  at  09:58 AM
    Kelly said...

    Congratulations!!! 

    Now, about the MLB Extra Innings package…. :-D

    Posted 11/04  at  10:04 AM
    Derek Jenkins said...

    Congrats… You have certainly earned this.

    Posted 11/04  at  10:11 AM
    Nico said...

    I have to admit I got used to the around-work scheduling of this blog, and the fact that it was written by someone working in the non-virtual world had a certain appeal. That said, I can dig why you’d jump at it. Just keep the self-deprecating lawyer jokes in, because I like them.

    Posted 11/04  at  10:36 AM
    YankeesfanLen said...

    Upon further consideration, and while reading the congratulatory notices here for your achievement, it came to me that the Blue Network deserves some credit here as well.
    So here’s the deal- NBC is in a highly competitive emerging market for “eye” to boost advertising in a venue they’re not predisposed to- internet blogging.  Why wouldn’t the audience go to SI or (sigh) ESPN sites instead?  They need someone above the field of play, so there came this summer’s test, which you passed with flying colors due to your unique ability to churn things up on a different level.  And they can measure hits, but little else, and you get them, along with the obvious ability to play well with others on the corporate landscape.
    So, congrats to the weasels at GE as well.  As for Yankee-baiting, I’ve been a fan long enough to not let criticism of the Greatest Champions In All Of Sports too long to let that piss me off.
    Still Yankees in 6 because the Big Toad was in there.

    Posted 11/04  at  10:43 AM
    ecp said...

    I haven’t read all 90 comments, so I may be merely repeating what others have said, but I must echo all the same:  The law’s loss is our gain.

    And you have now safely extricated yourself from the “first, kill all the lawyers” maxim.

    Posted 11/04  at  10:43 AM
    Ahmet Hamdi Cavusoglu said...

    I just had to sit up and yell ‘what!’ at the turn of phrase ... I was afraid you were leaving at first (with good reason). That’s excellent for us to hear, Craig!

    It’s been a pleasure and good luck with continuing on the baseball commentary. We all wait anxiously for you to continue between here and NBC.

    And why not keep up the ShysterBall tag as a brand?

    Posted 11/04  at  11:31 AM
    Jason @ IIATMS said...

    And just for clarity, even as a Yanks fan, I love and enjoy the Yankee baiting.  If you can’t laugh at some of the lunkheads in your own fanbase, who can you laugh at anyways?

    What’s more fun: baiting crazy, loyal fanbases (Boston, NY, Philly, etc.) or fading, quiet ones (you know who, especially you Ron)?

    So continue to bring it, all in the name of fun and pageviews.

    Posted 11/04  at  11:35 AM
    Mark said...

    Congrats!

    As one that continued to go to the old Shyster site and then click through to THT for at least a month after you moved I guess I’ll have to get a handle on how CTB works.  I only went there through the links on your Morning in Exile posts.  Is there any way to get a list of all of Craig’s articles over there separate from the full CTB lineup?

    Posted 11/04  at  12:03 PM
    Craig Calcaterra said...

    Mark—if you go here:

    http://bases.nbcsports.com/

    You get the main blog page. Find an article I wrote (right now mine is on top, but it will change within the next half our or so). Click my name under the headline, and you should get an index of all my stuff.

    Posted 11/04  at  12:12 PM
    Rollo said...

    Today happens to be Markie Post’s 59th birthday?

    Posted 11/04  at  12:25 PM
    Rollo said...

    Today happens to be Markie Post’s 59th birthday.

    Posted 11/04  at  12:25 PM
    Craig Calcaterra said...

    Wow. 59?  Hmmm. OK, I’m still cool with that. Childhood fantasies make up for a lot of entropy.

    Posted 11/04  at  12:31 PM
    Motherscratcher said...

    Congrats Craig!  Fantastic news.

    But I’ve always thought:  You’re young and you have your health…what do you want with a job anyway?

    HOTROD will be thrilled (I love that idiot).

    Posted 11/04  at  12:42 PM
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