Professional athletes have been making headlines for many years here in the United States; however, some have been making headlines based on posts that they made on their Twitter pages. For those who do not know, twitter.com, is a microblogging social media outlet. Posts are 140 characters are less and many celebrities, athletes, and TV personalities have been using it to gain more fans and followers. Today athletes have been causing arguments based on how professional it is for them to be using Twitter especially during competition or about their team that they are employed by. Two of the more controversial tweets  by athletes over the past two years have been by NBA mega-star Lebron James. He tweeted:

This was in response to many people who criticized him on his decision to leave the Cleveland Cavaliers for the Miami Heat. The other one was by Pittsburgh Steelers starting running back Rashard Mendenhall:

This was in response to the news that Osama Bin Laden had been killed.

The bottom line is that these men and women are in the limelight 24/7 whether they like it or not. That is what they signed up for when they became a pro athlete. They do not have to be role models per se and everyone is entitled to their own opinions, but I think some of these athletes need to be more conscientious about their social media “game.” Twitter is a great use and following many celebrities and athletes is worth while, but due to their place in the public eye it is their duty to make sure that they are responsibly keeping up with their social media networks. That is my opinion, what is yours?

The Bad: 18 straight losing seasons, fan’s have jumped “ship” (pun not intended), rumors of potential re locations

The good: A bright future

For most people who know nothing about baseball, they say the pirates will never be good. These naysayers say that new management will just trade the good talent, and around and around we will go just like the past 18 years.

Well I want to take a few weeks and instill some baseball sense to these people. So far so good for the new management in Pittsburgh. If one looks around at low market teams who win (Marlins in ’03, Oakland, Rangers, and Tampa Bay, etc) they will find a winning formula. While these teams payroll have increased due to this formula, they do not have the same payrolls of teams such as The Yankees, RedSox, Mets, etc..

What is this formula?:They draft very well, they develop these players, they add low cost free agents and trade them for younger talent. After getting the core players in the majors, they continue to develop and then surround these players with veterans who know how to win.

This is just the ground work, a foundation per se, for future posts about what the Pirates as an organization are doing. Keep heart Pittsburgh, there is a light at the end of this long dismal tunnel.

Discraft, the leading manufacturer of disc products for ultimate frisbee and a producer of both freestyle and golf discs, has been around since 1981. Because of the internet, Discraft is a healthier company then previously imaginable. As a wholesaler today, Discraft is able to sell products online in large batches to clubs, retailers, and individuals.

They have a great website and good use of social media. Their online presence is huge as there are dozens of websites that sell Discraft merchandise. They in fact do not sell discs in any stores.

This lean, low-cost structure is one of the entrepreneurial facets of Discrafts business. Without expensive shelf space in stores, Discraft has managed through word of mouth and web marketing to become the greatest player in its niche. This small company has found ways to beat out a huge toy producing corporation by efficient use of internet marketing.

Lacrosse is a special sport that many would consider to be a gruesome and violent. Now what happens when that same gruesome and violent sport has a team that hits the big-time? Well, I’ll tell you what they do… They get a twitter! Yes, that’s right folks! Grove City Men’s Lacrosse team has a twitter and has been tweeting since last year’s semi-final appearance in the conference playoffs. This is a promising year for the Wolverine’s after last year’s winning season and many agree that Grove City is a team to watch this season in the Men’s Collegiate Lacrosse Association (MCLA).

This week, in the division 2 polls, Grove City is ranked 11^th in the nation after beating number 9, Elon, and number 15, Scad, in a round-robin play-date this previous weekend. So go to GCC Men’s Lacrosse twitter page and follow as their dreams to win their final game, God willing, at Denver Colorado’s national tournament become a reality.

With the NBA All-Star weekend coming up, many of us are reminded why we are so disappointed with the NBA.

The All-Star game has turned into nothing more than a popularity contest, which is demonstrated by the fact that Allen Iverson is starting for the Eastern Conference All-Stars. Iverson is arguably having the worst year of his career, with career lows in point, assist and rebounds, while only appearing in 25 games, but somehow remains a fan favorite, receiving over 1.2 million votes.

This embarrassment begs for the NBA to change the way they do things. The starting 5 for each conference are currently chosen by fan voting, while the reserves on each roster are determined by coaches. This is why we will have to watch the washed up A.I. play, instead of a more deserving player such as David Lee, Josh Smith, or Joakim Noah (all of whom will be watching from home).

At least the NBA avoided the catastrophe that is Tracy McGrady, who was slated for a starting bid on the Western Conference roster going into the last few days of voting… until people realized that he has only played in 6 game this season (because of injuries and lack of production), which resulted in him finally getting thrown out of a starting spot.

I understand that people vote for their favorite players, and want to see them in the All-Star game, but it isn’t fair to the more deserving players that they stay home  because they weren’t “popular” enough.

All-Star Rosters: http://www.nba.com/allstar2010/players/

Social Media sites have been sweeping the face of the internet for the past few years, bringing people young and old together with a common goal. That objective has been school, business, church, general meetings and so on. Now sports cans be added to that list. I Love to Play have come up with a unique concept allowing people to look for athletic events in your city. This site serves as a meeting place where sports participants and organizations can find each other and communicate.

They solve the problem of:

• Find the right workout partner
• Find the right team to play with
• Find casual or competitive games, tournaments, and leagues
• Find replacement players in the event of injuries or vacations
• Find facilities to play in
• Broadcast your sports needs or promote your sports activities
• Discover what others are looking for in your sport

It’s free and easy to set up a profile as it is for many other social media sites. The list of athletic events is endless from basketball and soccer to badminton and yoga classes. It’s great because no matter what sport or leisurely activity you enjoy can be found on ilovesports.