"Playing games in the press?"

Not meaning to get too Detroit Tigers heavy on you here in Construda's early rebirthing days, but this story is too scrumptious to pass up.

Tigers third baseman Carlos Guillen apparently has such a horrendous case of hemorrhoids that they need lanced off, this according to manager Jim Leyland on Tuesday.

"He can hardly move -- he's got hemorrhoids so bad. He's been playing with hemorrhoids that probably need to be lanced. He probably shouldn't have been out there (third base on Monday when he committed two errors)."

Wow. As unpleasant as a bad case of hemorrhoids sound, what's equally as unpleasant is your manager telling everyone about your personal health problem.

Leyland popped off last week and said if his players wanted to play games in the press than he would. His explosion came on the heels of a USA Today story that portrayed a lack of camaraderie in the Tigers clubhouse along with "unfair expectations" for the 2008 season. One of the quoted sources? Guillen.

Common sense would say this is purely coincidental that Leyland is openly talking about Guillen's embarrassing personal issue. Or is this Leyland's rebuttal of sorts and his way of "playing games in the press?"

Contact? Yes. Foul? Doesn't sound like it.

San Antonio Spurs fans, L.A. Lakers haters, and NBA Fan Guy may see a foul in the closing seconds of Game 4 Western Conference Finals last night.

Contact was made, that cannot be denied. Derek Fisher jumped to defend Brent Barry's three-point shot attempt, Barry pump-faked, drew body contact from Fisher, dribbled once to his right, and then heaved a prayer from five feet behind the line that was way off mark. No whistle. Lakers win 93-91 and take a 3-1 advantage back to L.A.

NBA purists will say that's a no-call. Let the players decide the game in the final seconds. Fisher jumped, but was coming down when Barry was leaning forward. Had Barry been driving to the hole or was in the act of shooting, then maybe a foul call would be warranted.

NBA conspiracy theorists will say the league doesn't give calls to bench or role players. If that was Manu Ginobli or Tony Parker, they would gave gotten that call. Referee Joey Crawford has it out for the Spurs and intentionally swallowed his whistle. Even wackier, the NBA has a clandestine agenda to get the Lakers and Boston Celtics into the finals instead of those boring, half-court, grind-it-out offenses and tenacious team defenses of the Spurs and Detroit Pistons.

But the players and coaches from that game will tell you that's not a foul, even with contact made. Even if Crawford blew his whistle, the Spurs didn't deserve to win because they've blown opportunities in this series. They were out-rebounded, out-hustled and out-played on Tuesday night. They got what was coming to them.

(Photo by Stephen Dunn/Getty Images)

Tiger Stadium

I've been to three Major League Baseball games in my entire life - all within the past year, most recently last Saturday, and all at state-of-the-art Comerica Park in Detroit.

I've seen old Tiger Stadium the three times I've ventured to Detroit for those baseball games. But my view of the ballpark has been limited in more ways than one.

I've only seen the rundown exterior with faded and peeling paint, shredded banners, rusty light fixtures, and broken signage. I've taken dozens of pictures of the ballpark and even posed for a few near the front gate. That's as far as I could go.

A glorious game played on the shamrock green grass against a piercing blue and cloudless sky are alien to me. The only memories I have come from pictures, books and stories.

Tiger Stadium is locked up to the outside world. No one gets in. Perhaps, in its current state, that's the way it should be.

Opened on April 20, 1912, the ballpark that berthed on the same day as Boston's Fenway Park has been closed since the final day - Sept. 27 - of the 1999 season. Facing economic hardship and a seeming lack of awareness of historical significance, the city of Detroit has let Tiger Stadium rot for the past nine years.

When I stand outside the old ballpark, sometimes at The Corner, and look at it in its dilapidated state, I think about the thousands of games played by the thousands of players there. Tiger greats like Ty Cobb, Hank Greenberg, Al Kaline, or the 1984 World Series team. Babe Ruth once hit a 575-foot home run out of that ballpark - considered the longest shot in history. Roger Maris began his quest for 61 home runs inside those walls. Reggie Jackson smashed the right-field lights with a towering home run in the 1971 All Star game.

Given the ballpark's current state, those moments and games should forever be locked inside. My attempt to fill the void of never experiencing a living Tiger Stadium are what drive my endless curiosity. I want a perfect visual forever etched in my mind of what a game was like. What the inside walls entailed. The double-deck around the entire park. The World Series banners and retired numbers.

Tom Stanton, author of the 2001 book 'The Final Season: Fathers, sons, and one last season in a classic American ballpark,' precisely captivates my feelings:

"Old buildings brings life to stories. They put a foundation to memories. They link you to the past and help you feel rooted."

One day soon Tiger Stadium will be gone. The ballpark will likely face the wrecking ball next month unless $369,000 is raised by an advocacy group - and that only guarantees another six months of survival.

When the old ballpark tumbles to the earth, tears will be shed, stories will be shared and eventually people will move on. But the memories will always remain.

The troubling focus on high school sports

I just finished up writing a story about an area high school that was named to SI.com's top 25 national programs for the 2007-08 season. Conversely, the May 26 issue of the SI named the same school No. 14 in the entire country and No. 1 in Indiana.

The story made me recall the recent hoopla encircling an eight grader's commitment to the Kentucky men's basketball program. Before you jump all over UK, remember USC's Tim Floyd has accepted commitments from two eighth graders. There's been plenty more. The trend is troubling.

Though the NCAA prohibits coaches from contacting high schoolers about scholarships until the summer before their junior years, we all know the loopholes are there. Summer all-star and traveling leagues and camps for middle and high schoolers have always been around, but coaches attending them has grown more common in recent years. It's a recruiting edge.

Recall a former high schooler with me. Remember the buzz around QB recruit Terrelle Pryor's college selection? Signing day came in February and he waited until after his basketball season to make a decision. He even set up a press conference to make his intentions known - Ohio State over Michigan. What kind of 18-year-old high school senior does that? One who knows the excessive attention will follow.

How about former high school standout, one-and-done USC guard, and NBA draft lottery prospect O.J. Mayo? He just severed ties with his representation (or was it vise-versa?) after ESPN's Outside the Lines reported improper benefits, cash, etc. he received as an amatuer.

Mayo's had "advisors" at his side, in his ear, dating back to his early high school days. Knowing full well Mayo's talents would make him some money, these mooches hopped on the talent's coattails hoping to get a piece of the pie.

There's even websites which garner tons of hits from obsessed fans who scour player profiles and rankings and then discuss amongst each other on message boards. Rivals.com is the prime example.

In part, sportswriters like myself perpetuate the buzz around high school athletes - I write about their accomplishments, interview them and rank their teams. But most of what I write is for the families, friends and fans.

College and professional recruiters don't need a newspaper article to find a talented kid for their program. In fact, all they need, it seems, is to blend into the crowd of a summer basketball game.

MLB needs instant replay

I've become a sucker for baseball history. It's thrilling to learn about the guys who started it all, the plethora of leagues that eventually became the AL and NL, Babe Ruth, 1919 Black Sox scandal, Tiger Stadium, and Hank Aaron. I'll stop there.

The history of the game is tremendous and its what drives the sport today. Baseball is America's Pasttime. Always has been, always will be.

But we're past the time of instituting instant replay into the game. It should already be here. History and preservation of baseball shouldn't be paired with the human element that berthed in the 1870s with the game.

This is 2008. It's time baseball uses instant replay.

I don't want balls and strikes replayed. Nor do I want force outs, tag outs or if a ball was a hit or error. The human element will take care of that.

But I want home runs replayed. Three home runs in the past few days have been ruled... well, not home runs.

The umpires goofed up, admitted their mistakes, and baseball moved on. None of these non-home run calls played a significant role in their respective games. But we all know how baseball is played and there's plenty of opportunities for a blown call to ruin an outcome.

In brief time, I believe, baseball will fix this problem and we'll all continue to enjoy this tremendous game.

Leyland: A follow-up

It hasn't been two days since Detroit Tigers manager Jim Leyland's mini-explosion and his team has scored 21 runs and is 2-0.

Is this the response he hoped to elicit when he dropped the F-bomb and a nasty word for "terrible" several times when speaking with reporters on Tuesday afternoon?

Probably so. Leyland's words were piercing but also rife with truth.

"...with what some guys are doing on this club, the last thing they should be doing is popping off to the newspaper, because it’s diversionary tactics and they look foolish."

Focus should be on the reasoning behind Leyland's rhetoric, not his actual profanity-laden message.

Tigers players were recently quoted in USA Today about unfair expectations and the beastly offense that was supposed to produce 1,000 runs.

Leyland, obviously, didn't take well to those remarks.

Players certainly have reason to feel pressure. The Tigers haven't won a World Series since 1984. Much of the roster from the 2006 World Series runner-up remains in tact.

But the front office made a blockbuster trade this offseason for baseball's best young hitter Miguel Cabrera and former Cy Young runner-up Dontrelle Willis to bolster a talented and proven roster. Don't forget it's shelling out the second highest payroll ($135M) in baseball behind the league's perenniel top spender New York Yankees.

So, sorry guys, but the media and fans and especially Leyland's expectations are spot on. Get over it. Win some games. Prove to Major League Baseball that you are an elite team.

Twenty-one runs in two games and solid starts from your No. 1 and No. 2 pitchers is an admirable way to prove your worth.

Jim Leyland is fired up

It'd be a remission to claim knowledge of every time former Detroit Tigers relief pitcher Jason Grilli induced one of those thumb-to-left-temple and middle finger-to-right-temple forehead massages as he let another lead slip away.

Simply put, the guy was not good in Detroit. He blew more games than a fan would care to count. When Detroit faded down the stretch in 2007 and the talk was centered on the bullpen's deficiencies, Grilli was at the center of the ire.

In fairness, he started to pitch better when Detroit nearly pulled to .500 after its 2-10 start this season but he was traded to the Colorado Rockies.

His recent comments about Detroit letting Sean Casey leave via free agency after the 2007 season should have been kept to himself. It's understandable he was simply answering a question from a Rockies reporter, but to get into somewhat detail like he did served no purpose.

Unless, of course, he wanted to fire up Tigers manager Jim Leyland.

Leyland's response, while somewhat warranted, seemed over-the-top.

“Jason Grilli ought to just worry about Colorado.

“Jason Grilli isn’t here any longer because Jason Grilli didn’t pitch good under pressure situations and didn’t pitch very well in Detroit.

“Now you want to tell it like it is, and players want to start talking, then I’ll start talking.”

Leyland continued and delved into near tirade-mode. I wouldn't call it a blow up, even if he did drop the F-bomb.

Leyland is frustrated. The Tigers are 18-28. The payroll and talent indicate a much better team. He's made lineup changes, unloaded on them in at least one instance, and the front office has traded Grilli and cut oufielder Jacque Jones, but nothing has sparked Detroit at this stage of the season.

Perhaps the crotchety Leyland is fed-up... or is this a veiled ploy to motivate the underachieving Tigers?

Who's going No. 1?

Somehow, the Chicago Bulls defied odds and with a 1.7 percent chance won the NBA Draft Lottery last night.

This is an intriguing pick for the Bulls. Is Kansas State forward Michael Beasley finally the interior scoring threat Chicago so desperately needs? Or does point guard Derrick Rose fill the void of a true leader and become the conductor of the offense?

It's paramount to select a player that fits into the coaching scheme as well as embodies the values that the coach emphasizes for certain positions.

The Bulls, however, are still searching for their man after their target, former Phoenix Suns coach Mike D'Antoni, spurned the organization for the New York Knicks job.

Bulls GM John Paxson only said he wants a coach who can motivate and teach the players, leaving no insight into on-court style.

If Rose is the pick, he'll join a crowded backcourt of incumbent point guard Kirk Hinrich, shooting guard Larry Hughes, and backups Chris Duhon and Ben Gordon.

Talks have swirled around possibly trading Hinrich, who overall had a poor 2007-08 season. Gordon is a restricted free agent and the sharpshooter will likely get some offers from other franchises if Chicago doesn't first make a move to re-sign him. Duhon, I believe, will be an unrestricted free agent.

The selection of Beasley will also jam the frontcourt, which features 2006 and 2007 first round power forwards Tyrus Thomas and Joakim Noah, along with Drew Gooden. Neither youngster is a force on the post - Thomas prefers the wing and Noah is limited offensively. Gooden is soft and terribly inconsistent. Beasley is an interior force, has tremendous shooting range and is a better rebounder than all three.

Thomas or Noah could be on the move depending on the new head coach. Thomas has a sort of mean steak and can run, while Noah brings energy and defensive intensity. If Beasley is to be the pick, who is more valuable - Thomas or Noah - to the new head coach?

Detroit a busy sports town on Saturday

Two teams. Two major playoff home games. One big blunder.

It's unfair to blame the schedule makers of the NBA and NHL playoffs for this one.

Preseason prognostication and a smidgeon of common sense would indicate the requisite Detroit NBA and NHL franchises would make deep playoff runs in their respective sport. But not many of the league schedule makers could have guessed they'd pair Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals and Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Finals on the same day when they created the schedules several months ago.

That's right. In a blunderous move, the Redwings will host Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Finals (8 p.m.) on Saturday while the Pistons will battle the Boston Celtics in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals (8:30 p.m.) at the Palace at Auburn Hills.

The Tigers will also be playing the Minnesota Twins at 7 p.m. at Comerica Park in downtown Detroit. (I'll be at this game and when I bought the tickets obviously had no idea the Pistons and Wings would be playing in key playoff games on this day.)

So will the city be Hockeytown, Motown or TigersTown?

Well, it won't be TigersTown on Monday - when the Tigers are out of town, but (you guessed it) the Redwings and Pistons again host home playoff games (8 p.m., 8:30 p.m.).

Avid Detroit sports fans certainly have a reason to be angry at the scheduling gods or simply befuddled as to which game to attend, they should relish the fact their teams have made it this far. Besides, we all know the Lions would never be in such a situation.

Eastern Conference Finals: Who ya got?

Tonight we embark on the first game of the NBA's final four.

Making their sixth straight Eastern Conference Finals appearance, the Detroit Pistons will head to Boston to take on the revamped Celtics in Game 1 tonight at 8:30 p.m. on ESPN.

Boston is two days removed from a trying Game 7 against the Cleveland Cavaliers. The Pistons haven't played since last Tuesday when they closed their second round series against the Orlando Magic in five games.

Slumping Celtics shooting guard Ray Allen prefers the rhythm of regular competition over a lengthy rest period ala the Pistons. But Detroit's coach Flip Saunders said Pistons practices have been crisp and focused.

After back-to-back seven game series, will fatigue be a factor that works against the Celtics?

I've got to think so. It's more than just the physical wear-and-tear of 14 games. This was a Boston team that won 66 games and had the best road record in the league. But they played gutless and unfocused on the road in the postseason and didn't win a game. That's got to toy with the players' minds.

As Kevin Garnett said after Sunday's Game 7, "We’re more emotionally drained than anything, but we’re getting prepared for Detroit." And Detroit's been preparing for you and the Celtics for six days.

The swagger seems to be back in Motown. This is a playoff-tested team. When they're focused, no one can beat them. Pistons in 7.

A revamped Construda!

That's right. Construda is back. After a near three-month hiatus, this sports blog is back online and ready to go. But changes are abound.

Firstly, Construda is now just one blogger. Me, Nick West. I'm no longer anonymous. I believe I should stand behind what I post instead of using a goofy username (NDub wasn't too bad, was it?).

This blog will take on a much more positive tone, which makes it easier for me to post under my real name. Construda fired up in August 2007 with four guys. Gradually, the blog spiraled out of control with negativity and personal attacks. Construda was everything Buzz Bissinger so furiously said blogs were on the 'Costas Now' episode a few weeks ago.

I thought about changing the name and redirecting readers to a new blog, but this one still generates an average of 500 hits a day despite not a single post since March 4. So I'll just clean up Construda.

Often times in this blog's past, we focused on bringing originality to the blogosphere. Opinions were forced in an effort to bring a fresh voice. And as a result, lots of posts missed because they took a negative perspective.

I refuse to let that happen again.

I'm writing this blog so that I may interact with fellow bloggers while developing my voice as a sports journalist. A lot of my work entails coverage and reporting, not opinion. That's not necessarily a bad thing, but columns are part of the profession and I'd like to develop my style. Certainly, a blog independent of my employer will allow me to do so.

Plus, with the way media is evolving, a blog - if operated and written professionally and properly - can only enhance my experience in this field.

As this week progresses, I'll be making some changes. As you can tell, the template is different. The blogroll will be updated with some local and fan blogs I discovered in recent months. And I'll do my best to Paintshop a banner. The current one is pretty drab, no?