San Fran no different than Chicago

It seems as though the San Francisco 49ers will have as much trouble with their quarterback situation as the beloved Chicago Bears. Alex Smith took a salary cut in a restructured contract and will compete against Shaun Hill for the starting spot. According to a San Francisco Chronicle story, Smith has undergone surgery on his shoulder twice and is optimistic how it will pan out over minicamp starting Mar. 20.

So it seems as though the journalists in San Fran can be just as critical of their hometown NFL team as the Chicago counterparts. And I say just as and that's it. Chicago journalists are almost too critical of the Bears in my opinion. I think there is a fine line between being a journalist, objectively covering the wheelings and dealings, and being a fan, so wrapped up in the team one can't see outside the box.

On to another sport: another San Francisco Chronicle article focused on Giants' catcher Buster Posey. Apparently the only thing the former Florida State stand out needs is experience calling his own pitches behind the plate. I read this and thought: What?! Is this typical in college baseball, to have coaches signal the catcher from the dugout on which pitches should be thrown? I was mind boggled. I went to a small D-II school and our catchers called their own games. I also worked for a wood bat summer league, and those catchers called their own games as well. I never thought someone would enter the majors having done. Fortunately for the Giants, Posey seems willing to learn and has all the other fundamentals to have a successful career.