KC Confidential

Chiefs quarterback Alex Smith  got a $70 million contract a couple years back…

Not a bad deal, with $30 million of that guaranteed and he becomes a free agent in 2019.

That said, the Chiefs picked quarterback Patrick Mahomes as their No. 1 this year.

So Mahomes will be hopefully be the Chiefs starter at some point, likely next season. Meaning that Smith will have to play better than ever to keep his job as a starter in 2018, unless Mahomes is looking bad when he does play.

So it’s likely this could be Smith’s final season in Kansas City as a starter.

Would he accept a back-up roll and teachers spot next year to get his final payday?

Apparently Smith was a bit unhappy with his brief talks with Mahomes.

“It’s his job to seek me out for help not really mine,” Smith said.

And while Smith never said he wouldn’t help his Mahomes,  reality has sunk in for Alex that this is likely it.

The question being, will Smith try and become a starter somewhere else as soon as next year? Will the Chiefs cut him next year if this season is like the past few, one playoff game and done?

Would Smith go somewhere else as a back up?

Lots of questions no answers. Not yet. Continue reading →

I waited a few weeks to see if the Kansas City Royals could right the ship and…

so far so good!

Kansas City swept Baltimore – a top team in the East – then took three of four from Tampa. Eric Hosmer is back to being his old self, raising his batting average from under .200 in April to .298. Lorenzo Cain is now hitting over .300 and Sal Perez has found his bat with a .283 average. Moose has nine homers and is doing well at the plate – his fielding has been great as well as of late.

So the Royals are now 16-21 – still in last place – but only five games under .500 and 4 1/2 out of first. That’s not where you’d want to be, but hey, it’s a long way from being 10 or more under .500 and on the way to a fire sale of ball players in June.

The $64 million question: Can this team compete for a playoff spot? 

There are two reasonable reasons for hope. Continue reading →

As I’ve gotten older I’ve lost a number of my closest friends…

In just the last few weeks I’ve lost my uncle Morton Glazer, a friend I grew up with that was a manager at Stanford’s, Joel Weinberg and another best friends wife.

Which means I have fewer stops to make on holidays to visit relatives because they’ve checked out. Thus my world seems to be growing smaller.

Which makes me wonder what those last thoughts are when we go.

Do those magic moments in life come back in our final memories or is it just the pain of seeing it all end?

My guess is it’s different for each of us.

Yet rich or poor – well known or not – we all face the end of days at some point.

It’s part of life – the end part.

My Uncle, who I loved very much, was an older man, 83. He dropped from a heart attack. He’d been ill the last few years and was lucky to have a great wife at his side to see him to his final days.

Joel Weinberg was in his early 60’s and also had a loving wife to help care for him in his final days.

Most of us work so hard in our daily lives from childhood dreams to sorting out adult issues – trying to make it all matter and count for something.

We all have ‘those magic moments.

Having that Eagle Scott badge planted on our chest or winning a trophy for our team as kids. Those special women we met and dated thinking, “This is as good as it gets.”

Until it wore off and ended in a sad, painful split.

Doing well in business or in our careers – getting that big promotion – or opening that smash hit store. But often those things disappear in time.

As most of you know I had an unusual life. Continue reading →