Who doesn’t love Brady bunch?
So next season let’s end the fake sports drama: Give the Patriots England 20 bye weeks then let them play an NFC team in the Super Bowl. Russell Morgan Carson
With all the mystery and intrigue surrounding Tom Brady’s injury I thought perhaps he secretly had a sixth finger added to ensure that with another win all of his Super Bowl rings could be worn on one hand. Steve Ross Beverly Hills
I heard after the game there were pictures of Tom Brady playing catch with his model wife Gisele Bundchen outside their Boston mansion. I can guarantee every man in the world would pay anything ... to play catch with Tom Brady. Richard Katz Los Angeles
Watch the kids
Bill Plaschke’s article on parental responsibility in the gymnastics scandal was sobering, as was its conclusion, “If you are the parent of a child athlete, only one system of protection can be totally trusted. That protection is you.”
Then I considered the article about the appalling parents of the Turpin family of Perris, adjacent to Plaschke’s article. Maybe this brings us back to the axiom, “It takes a village to raise — and in this case, to protect — a child.” Mary Rouse Los Angeles
Plaschke makes an excellent point. It isn’t brain surgery to figure out that a bunch of young women installed in a training center in the middle of nowhere, under the supervision of a handful of men, with restricted visiting of the parents, is a recipe for disaster. Jack Spiegelman Los Angeles
Hall passes
I must be mellowing as I age. I am a Giants fan, which also makes me a Dodgers hater. But I actually have something nice to say about one of the Dodgers: Fernando Valenzuela should be in the Hall of Fame.
Fernando may not have had as long of a career as some other pitchers, but what he accomplished is much more impressive than some Hall members who just played a long time. Don Sutton played more than 20 years and amassed more than 300 wins. But he just happened to play on good teams that got him wins. And he did nothing to advance the game.
Valenzuela, though, captivated the baseball fans (and nonfans) of two countries. He was responsible for packed stadiums. Dare I say it? He was like Babe Ruth, at least on the field. He created such a frenzy that there really was “Fernandomania.”
The Hall voters should not be so concerned with statistics and recognize all that Fernando did for the sport. (And while we’re at it, Maury Wills should be in the Hall too).
I’m feeling a little woozy. I have to go back to hating the Dodgers now. Rich Rudy San Diego
Great news about Vlad Guerrero becoming the first Angel in Cooperstown. Will Mike Trout have to change his No. 27 or will this team have two Hall of Famers with the same number? Nate Gleiberman Sherman Oaks
Welcome back
Fair-weather L.A. fans just can’t help themselves about Chris Paul. CP3 did so much for the franchise and the city in six years. He leaves and, first game back, he’s already Darth Vader. Why? Because he left the Clippers (for reasons we cannot completely know). Or because he displayed his competitive side (which is what you loved about him)? Perhaps it’s because he was passionate about what [Blake] Griffin did and then said to Mike D’Antoni?
And when he “stormed” the Clipper locker room, why wasn’t he fined? Because he was chasing after teammates to prevent an altercation. Interesting how the facts put it all in a different light. He’s still the same man and competitor that you used to love. Mark Berman Brentwood
Foul play
When did Shaq become the Lakers’ free throw shooting coach? Tom Lallas Los Angeles
Results to the contrary, the Lakers regularly practice free throws. But somebody please tell me they’re not doing it with bricks. Robert Fulton Murrieta
Forget Hack-a-Shaq, now it’s Hack-a-Laker! Darren Melamed Los Angeles Bruins falling
I wonder when UCLA fans are going to realize that one championship in over 40 years does not make the school a basketball powerhouse. The lost weekend in Oregon indicates that. Seems that those who lived during Coach Wooden’s incredible run are still living in the past.
And then you look at the schools that consistently get top-25 rated players and you don’t see UCLA very often getting those recruits. Just noticed that Duke has announced the signing of the top three rated high school players.
And then I remember UCLA reopening Pauley Pavilion back in 2012 and thinking, how many sellouts have there been since that day? The total could be counted on two hands.
So I have no blame, but maybe just a reality check. Barry Levy Hawthorne
As a UCLA alum, I’m embarrassed that fellow Bruin Dylan Hernandez would write such an absurd column Friday.
Keep Steve Alford because he made three Sweet Sixteens in four years? Steve Lavin made five (including an Elite Eight) in his first six. Did that make him a good coach? Furthermore, Alford’s six wins in the NCAA tournament included wins against a No. 12 seed, a No. 13 seed and two No. 14 seeds, not to mention a game where an SMU player gifted them with a dumb goaltending violation in the final seconds.
UCLA is a program that aspires to much greater goals than Sweet Sixteens. For some reason, Hernandez doesn’t seem to understand that. Bennett Beebe Westwood
Alford can try and hide behind the “China Incident” as an excuse for his team’s poor performance this season, but the truth is that he is just a poor in-game manager. His only real success came last year when he had off-the-chart talent in Lonzo Ball and TJ Leaf.
Will we honestly wait until USC vaults ahead of us on the national stage before we act and go get a top-tier coach capable of elevating the program to national relevancy? AD Guerrero finally woke up to go after it in football. Time now to step up and finish the the job by hiring a basketball coach who will actually compete for national titles instead of just paying it lip service. William David Stone Beverly Hills
Ticket takers
So Bill Plaschke writes another article about how Dodgers fans are being disrespected through ticket price increases and lack of TV access. Yet the subjects of the article buy the tickets anyway, and we know the Dodgers led the majors in attendance last year.
We can all argue about what makes someone a fan, but the simple economics of the situation is that if the Dodgers raise ticket prices and people still fill the stadium, they will raise them again, and again.
There was a point years ago at which I thought fans would say “enough is enough,” and walk away from the exorbitant prices, and send the franchise a message, but I now wonder if that will ever happen. Mike Flanagan Silver Lake
As a 50-plus-year Dodgers fan, I can remember 75-cent tickets to sit in my favorite seats in the left field pavilion at Dodger Stadium. I know those days are only memories now and these days if I’m lucky or up to it or feel like breaking the bank, I might get to one game a year.
Face it, fans, until these players we hero worship finally say, yeah I’ll take the same or less on my next contract, we’re all going to continue to have to dig deeper in our pockets. Phillip Trujillo Ontario
To all Dodgers fans suffering from their ridiculous ticket price increases as pointed out by Bill Plaschke, I feel, well … very little of your pain.
My Angels season tickets went up from $8 to $9 for the upcoming season. It’s never too late to come over from the darkly expensive side. Ron Reeve Glendora
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