Latest News

a, Men's Varsity, Sports

Basketball: Redmen repeat as RSEQ champions

by Aaron Rose on

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After taking down the Laval Rouge et Or with a 80-62 victory in Saturday’s RSEQ semifinal game, the McGill Redmen moved on to face the conference pre-season favourite Bishop’s Gaiters in the RSEQ Championship for the second consecutive season. Contrary to last season, which came down to late game heroics from now-graduated guard Adrian Hynes-Guery, the Redmen started the game hot and didn’t let up as they trounced the Gaiters 73-47.

Fresh off of winning RSEQ Player-of-the-Year honours, third-year shooting guard Vincent Dufort refused to let an injured ankle slow him down, dropping a game-high 18 points. The 6’4” physical education major nailed four-of-five three-pointers en route to capturing Player-of-the-Game honours.

“[When we face] Bishop’s I have the advantage on the perimeter against their big post players,” Dufort said. “They take chances on leaving me open at the three-point line, and today I was fortunate enough to be able to make [the shots].”

Dufort’s co-captain Simon Bibeau finished his spectacular RSEQ career as a two-time champion. Though Bibeau’s  time is coming to a close, the Redmen program revival that he initiated is in full swing. With an astonishing nine freshmen having played a role in the squad’s great season, the future looks bright.

“Playoff games are [very] different than regular season games in terms of intensity,” Dufort said. “For the freshmen to come in and play the way they did in that type of atmosphere is amazing. We have a very special group of guys. Every single guy stepped up and played a big part this weekend.”

Freshman forward Francois Bourque finished his RSEQ season with his sixth double-double as he registered 10 points and a game-high 12 rebounds. Bourque has dominated all season, often operating as the team’s lone interior threat. However, it was his teammate Dele Ogundokun who took home the RSEQ Rookie-of-the-Year award before the tournament.

“It is an honour to win the award, but none of it could have been possible without my teammates and coaching staff,” Ogundokun said. “As a team, we are always pushing each other to get better and strive for greatness.”

While the Redmen offence showed no mercy against Laval or Bishop’s by scoring 82 and 73 points respectively, it was McGill’s defence that sealed the team’s championship.

Redmen Head Coach David DeAveiro has emphasized defensive intensity all season, with the game against the Gaiters serving as the culmination of the team’s hard work throughout the year. Bishop’s scored a season-low 47 points, including two quarters in whch the Redmen held their opponents under double-digits.

“We have our defensive principles that we stick to, but what it really came down to was trust, effort, and who wanted it more,” Dufort said. “It took an entire team effort as opposed to just a couple of guys playing good defence.”

The team now heads out to Ottawa for the CIS National Championship tournament, which the hometown Gee-Gees enter as the no. 1 seed having upset the Carleton Ravens in the OUA Finals. McGill will take on a tough Victoria Vikesteam in the first round, who will be looking to bounce back after a close loss to Alberta in the Canada West Finals.

The Redmen took down the Vikings 80-68 in last season’s CIS tournament to capture fifth place, but are looking to improve upon last year’s finish. Coach DeAveiro lost seven players from that squad—including three starters; but his Redmen have not missed a beat. The team now has its eyes set on bringing home McGill’s first national championship.

“This weekend, our goal is to win the national title,” Dufort said. “Anything short of that will be a disappointment.”

a, Science & Technology

Science from Science Fiction: Gravity

by Abhishek Gupta on

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From invisibility cloaks to light sabres, many recent scientific advancements have made it possible for researchers to get a little bit closer to reproducing some of our favourite technologies portrayed in films. However, while science inches towards science fiction, science fiction can still take a lesson in recreating science. One of this year’s most popular science fiction films Gravity made a concerted attempt to correctly reproduce astronauts’ experience in space, but ultimately faced some bumps in accuracy along the way.

This Academy Award winning film turned out to be a stunning display of the cosmos and the dangers lurking thousands of miles above us on earth. The film’s beautiful graphics and bird’s-eye view of the globe, distracts from the inaccuracies of the film.

Neil deGrasse Tyson, the director of the Hayden Planetarium in New York’s American Museum of Natural History, posted a series of tweets highlighting technical errors in Gravity (along with much positive praise) after the film’s release. One of Tyson’s qualms was the plausibility of the physics at work when the characters struggled in the vacuum in space.

According to Tyson, when two people are floating in zero gravity, even a small tug can bring their bodies together. Therefore, when Bullock catches Clooney’s tether as he tumbles past her, this tug would be enough to save him from having to sacrifice himself and drift off into space. Unfortunately, if Clooney’s trajectory were to have obeyed the rules of physics, there would not have been much of a film.

The debris shown to be orbiting the Earth also violates natural physics laws. Nearly all satellites orbit Earth west to east; however, in Gravity, the satellite debris were depicted moving east to west.

In addition to physics, the astronaut’s outerwear was tailored more to the Hollywood appeal than to an astronaut’s actual gear in space. Bullock should not have been able to strip down so easily to her undergarments after taking off her suit—she should have been equipped with a liquid cooling and ventilation garment beneath the space suit she wore on screen.

Furthermore, the actual fate of the protagonists would likely have been different had they been wearing their Simplified Aid for Extra-Vehicular activity (EVA) Rescue (SAFER). This small backpack is required for astronauts working on EVA missions, as it acts as a backup plan in case the tether breaks and the spacewalkers are in danger of drifting away.

Despite its inaccuracies, Gravity has been praised for its representations of space. Former NASA Astronaut Garrett Reisman applauded the film’s depiction of spacewalking, where the actors realistically portray the ease of starting a motion and difficulty of stopping one. For Reisman, director Alfonso Cuaron’s artistic licence and creative vision adds to the excitement of Bullock and Clooney’s journey into space, even if the same can’t be said for its plausibility.

Politics

Obama and Leaders Reach Debt Deal

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Image Source: Center for American Progress Action Fund
Image Source: Center for American Progress Action Fund

This is some dummy copy. You’re not really supposed to read this dummy copy, it is just a place holder for people who need some type to visualize what the actual copy might look like if it were real content.

If you want to read, I might suggest a good book, perhaps Hemingway or Melville. That’s why they call it, the dummy copy. This, of course, is not the real copy for this entry. Rest assured, the words will expand the concept. With clarity. Conviction. And a little wit.

In today’s competitive market environment, the body copy of your entry must lead the reader through a series of disarmingly simple thoughts.

All your supporting arguments must be communicated with simplicity and charm. And in such a way that the reader will read on. (After all, that’s a reader’s job: to read, isn’t it?) And by the time your readers have reached this point in the finished copy, you will have convinced them that you not only respect their intelligence, but you also understand their needs as consumers. (more…)

a, Arts & Entertainment, Music

Kanye can’t touch the sky with his ego weighing him down

by Morgan Alexander on

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“I am the next Walt Disney. I am the next Steve Jobs.”

When you bring up Kanye West in conversation, you’re likely to be greeted with two very distinct opinions. On one hand, we have the adamant defenders, die hard ‘Yeezies’ who can spend hours attesting to West’s creative brilliance; opponents can be seen rolling their eyes, mumbling about the egotistical media junkie who had the audacity to compare himself to Jesus on the cover of Rolling Stone.

All this being said, why is it that Kanye West—a man who has clearly secured his place in hip-hop history through his outspoken tirades and lyrical antics—has failed to move past his defined role as fanatic producer/rapper into the business world like his peers Jay-Z and Pharrell Williams? Contrary to what West might have you believe, it all comes down to his ego.

“There are only two types of people in this world: haters and dreamers. The only difference between them is that haters let go of their dreams.”

Just the other week, West performed at the Bell Center, making up for the previously planned November show that was cancelled due to technical difficulties. West took 22 minutes out of his performance to give what some news outlets have dubbed a “quality of life” speech. He spoke to the crowd on a large array of topics; ranging from his potential, his hopes, his dreams, and most importantly, his legacy. Public opinion, West claimed, is what has been holding him back from reaching his greatest potential. In the speech, he acknowledged his egotistical ways and his borderline manic outbursts in the past year—but he largely dismissed them, calling them the ideals of a genius, not the ravings of a lunatic.

“It ain’t about me. It’s about y’all, and it’s about us.”

Perhaps West is exaggerating how harshly the industry has stifled his potential. His performance was nothing short of mesmerizing, exactly what you’d expect from a man who’s referred to himself as both a “pop enigma” and “this generation’s greatest rapper.” There were explosions, women dressed in what can only be described as nude pantyhose  suits, an imitation Jesus, and Yeezus wearing a variety of bejewelled masks. The bass reverberated with every note and the crowd was electric. They knew every line, bounced to each individual beat; any minor change that took place on stage was noted and greeted with boisterous cheers and high-pitched squeals. West was a god among his worshippers.

“I’m a celebrity… I am God’s vessel.”

However, Kanye West is not doing himself any favours to counter the stereotypes being thrown at him by his detractors. His view that the media wants to stifle him because he is a black man from a low socio-economic upbringing is interesting when you consider that his net worth is $100 million, making him one of the most successful college dropouts in the business. West claimed during his monologue that the walls he was hitting in his efforts to produce his own clothing line were a result of corporations’ greed and unwillingness to break away from what was expected of them. Public opinion is holding him and all of the other innovators back. As he described in what was my favorite line of the night: “Someone wants to walk over here [to the Bell Center] without a coat on because they’re naturally hot inside or some shit and they tryna walk over here and public opinion be like ‘motherfucker, put a coat on!’”

 “All of y’all gave my voice the power and I never take that for granted. And since you gave my voice the power, I will have the courage to use my voice whenever necessary.”

Is public opinion holding Kanye West back? Does he have a point when he says that racism and class stratification are not only alive in America but also thriving? Well, yes and no. No one can reasonably doubt that things like racism and class discrimination still exist—not just in America but also throughout the world. Public opinion too does play a large role in how we as consumers perceive people, events, and products, and West’s outbursts have arguably been overplayed to stir up a widespread opinion that he is nothing more than a self-absorbed lunatic. But West is lying if he claims he doesn’t play the media game just as hard as it plays him. Standing in a crowd full of adoring fans asking them to cheer if they agree with him is not a difficult task.

“Let’s see if they print anything I said tonight. That would be surprising.”

Ultimately, it isn’t the media, big business, or corporations holding West back—it’s his ego. I have been a fan of West for years because of his larger-than-life personality and his steadfast belief that he can do anything; but when you constantly aim for unreachable heights, one day, you have to face that even “god” has his limits.

a, News

EUS VP Communications sanctioned for mocking Farnan apology

by Jessica Fu on

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An executive in the Engineering Undergraduate Society (EUS) has apologized to the Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) for mocking an apology issued earlier this month by SSMU Vice-President Internal Brian Farnan.

On Feb. 9, Vice-President Communications Luis Pombo sent a satirical apology through the EUS listserv, which mimicked the format and nature of Farnan’s Jan. 27 apology for racial insensitivity.

Pombo’s joke triggered an EUS equity complaint. In response, the EUS executive team, in consultation with the EUS equity commissioner, imposed a number of sanctions on Pombo. In addition to Pombo’s apology to SSMU, these include equity sensitivity training and the revocation of EUS listserv and publications responsibilities, which will now fall under the president’s portfolio.

EUS President Carlos Marin said the problem stemmed from Pombo conveying personal opinions from his position as an executive.

“[He] as an individual may disagree with SSMU’s Equity Policy […] but [he] cannot, as a representative of the EUS, make a joke out of that; that’s completely unacceptable,” Marin said. “[He] cannot send an official e-mail from an official communication channel of the EUS making fun of the concept of equity.”

Pombo accepted full responsibility, noting that his mock apology was part of his initiation into the Plumbers’ Philharmonic Orchestra (PPO), an Engineering student group.

“As part of my PPO initiation I was given a set of tasks,” Pombo told SSMU Council on Thursday. “One of these tasks, however, was to send out a fake apology to all engineering students. In what can only be described as a lazy attempt at comedy, I decided to satirize Brian Farnan’s apology.”

Without the listserv and work on publications, Pombo will continue to manage the EUS web developing team and the yearbook, among other tasks.

Some students, such as Alex Grant, U2 Engineering, said the response was appropriate.

“I think [the sanctions] are probably a good middle between taking him out totally and leaving him how he is,” Grant said. “There’s absolutely no way that he could just be let off the hook for that.”

Other students such as Morgan Grobin, U3 Engineering and a chief of the PPO, said the response to Pombo’s mock apology was too harsh.

“I think anyone who is mildly intelligent realizes that [the e-mail is] mocking the SSMU equity process itself, and not mocking equity or Brian Farnan personally,” Grobin said. “What Luis did was a mistake [… but] I don’t think he should be stripped of all of his powers [….] Maybe something that would have been more productive would have been an open forum with Engineering students to talk about equity.”

Grobin also criticized the process by which the sanctions were decided.

“The [executive team] is only eight people; they’re elected representatives, but they only represent the interests of the EUS executive, and there wasn’t consultation from year representatives who represent all the students in the Engineering body,” Grobin said. “That’s why Council exists—so that no decision gets pushed through that’s inappropriate or unfair.”

However, Marin argued that the executives abided by EUS Equity Policy.

“That’s how our process of the Equity Policy works […] and the fact that [the complaint was about] someone from our team made it more appropriate,” he said.

Marin also said that despite negative reaction surrounding the incident, increased discussion about equity among students was a positive outcome.

“There’s this stereotype that in Engineering we don’t care about these things,” he said. “As leaders of the [Engineering students’] community, [we] have to make sure that this discussion happens. And I think it’s happening.”

a, Recipes, Student Life

Mind-blowing baking with Betty, Duncan, and Mr. Christie

by Marlee Vinegar on

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Triple threat brownies

(tastykitchen.com)
(tastykitchen.com)

A classic dessert combining Oreos, chocolate chip cookies, and brownies to make a glutinous trifecta.

Ingredients:

1 box brownie mix

1 roll cookie dough

1 box Oreos

2 eggs

¼ cup water

¾ cup oil

1 handful chocolate chips

 

 

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 oF.

2. Grease a baking dish and linebottom with cookie dough.

3. Press a layer of Oreos on top ofcookie dough.

4. In a bowl, mix together brownie mix,eggs, water,chocolate chips, and oil.

5. Pour mixture on top of cookies.

6. Bake in oven for 45 minutes oruntil cooked through.

 

Cookies and cream cake

(tasteofhome.com)
(tasteofhome.com)

It’s like cookies and cream ice cream, but in a super moist cake.

Ingredients:

1 cup vanilla cake mix

1 cup icing sugar

¼ cup butter

¼ cup milk

1/2 box Oreos, crushed

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350oF, and blend together cake mix, eggs, and ice cream together until thoroughly mixed.

2. Split cake mix between three greased 8 x 8 inch baking dishes.

3. Bake for 25 minutes or until cooked through, then place in refrigerator until cakes are cooled.

4. Remove cakes from pans.

5. Frost top of one cake and sprinkle with Oreo crumbs.

6. Stack second cake on top and repeat previous step.

7. Repeat with third cake.

8.  Frost sides of cake. Cover with remaining Oreo crumbs.

 

Oreo fudge

 

(claremanson.deviantart.com)
(claremanson.deviantart.com)

Because no one has time for stoves and candy thermometers.  

Ingredients:

1 box vanilla cake mix

3 eggs

1 pint melted vanilla ice cream

2 12 oz tubs vanilla frosting

1 box Oreos, crushed

Directions

1. Mix together cake mix and sugar in microwave safe bowl.

2. Add butter and milk, but do not stir.

3. Microwave for 2 minutes on high.

4. Immediately add crushed Oreos and stir.

5. Spread mixture into pan.

6. Refrigerate for 1 hour.

a, McGill, News

Senate debates fairness of exams weighted over 75%

by Remi Lu on

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Rules regarding professor adherence to exam weight may stay the same, despite student concerns raised at the Feb. 19 Senate meeting.

Deputy Provost (Student Life and Learning) Ollivier Dyens responded to questions raised by student senators as a result of a motion passed at the Winter General Assembly of the Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU).

The question demanded improved adherence and visibility to requirements in the university’s Student Assessment Policy. For example, it cited the rule that a final examination cannot comprise more than 75 per cent of a student’s grade, and that any examinations constituting more than 50 per cent of a course grade must take place during the final examination period.

Dyens acknowledged that professors’ compliance with the policy may have depended on varied interpretations of the rules. He also stated that justifiable exceptions to the policy already exist, and that any other exceptions could be brought to the administration.

“Justifiable exceptions are already built into the policy,” the response reads. “As long as students have been informed well ahead of time, usually prior to the end of the add/drop period, a final exam worth more than 75 per cent of the final grade is permitted and can be scheduled.”

Cameron Butler, Macdonald Campus Students’ Association representative, said that despite such justifications for exceptions, students continued to feel that greater adherence to the policy was necessary.

“I took linear algebra—MATH 133—which is a required course for science and engineering students, and that   course’s final was 85 per cent,” Butler said. “It’s a required course for freshman students in first semester where they have a final that is virtually their entire course [….] There isn’t the choice to drop that course because you think the evaluation is unreasonable.”

Although the question from SSMU proposed the mandatory inclusion of relevant sections of the assessment policy on course outlines, Dyens said he was hesitant about taking this course of action or making promises.

“We’re going to wait before we inquire on whether that is the best policy or not,” Dyens said. “The course outline is already long enough. We don’t want a course outline that goes on for 20 to 28 pages, because it defeats the purpose—people don’t read it.”

Discussion on Interdisciplinary Research

Interdisciplinary research collaborations were the topic of another discussion at Senate. Two main focuses included obstacles and barriers to interdisciplinary learning, teaching, and research, as well as practical steps for McGill to promote interdisciplinary collaborations.

Numerous senators touched on their personal experiences and offered a range of proposed resolutions.

“The biggest obstacle in my experience is a lack of awareness of what other people are doing in the topic that you’re interested in,” Sean Ferguson, dean of Schulich School of Music, said.

Political Science professor Catherine Lu proposed ideas for removing such obstacles.

“Interdisciplinary research is actually very difficult to do,” Lu said. “I trained in a specific field, and I feel like I need a whole lifetime plus another lifetime to get to know [another….] I have a suggestion about incentivizing people for pursuing for obviously intellectual reasons, but also for the institution to provide support [….] One thing to be done may be team-teaching, and giving rewards or at least not creating barriers to [interdisciplinary research].”

Budget

Provost Anthony Masi presented further developments to the 2015-2019 projected budget.

He unveiled an estimated value of $27.1 million—the provincial government’s forecasted reinvestment in the university for the 2015 fiscal year. The new number is McGill’s share of the total $1.8 billion to be invested into provincial universities in the next five years.

“The Quebec Government has announced a reinvestment for universities over the next five years,” Masi said in his presentation. “In theory, that should provide $27 million in our budget next year. Now, [there was] an ongoing $19 million cut in our budget, so this looks like progress.”

Masi also presented an updated deficit value, which had dropped to $10 million, compared to the $10.4 million proposed last Fall.

PPP Protest

Outside of senate, several members of the McGill community held a demonstration demanding increased transparency on the People, Processes, and Partnerships plan (PPP).

Set to come into effect on May 1, the PPP aims to centralize 13 departments in the Faculty of Arts into four administrative service centres.

Protesters distributed copies of a letter addressed to Principal Suzanne Fortier to attendees of Senate, which stated that Dean of Arts Christopher Manfredi had ignored the community’s objections to the PPP.

“We believe Dean Manfredi is steamrolling the PPP over the concerns raised by faculty, students, and staff,” the letter reads. “In addition, he has disregarded evidence that the PPP is harmful rather than helpful. Dean Manfredi’s actions have eroded our confidence that he is acting in the best interest of the faculty.”

Gretchen King, a graduate student in art history and communication studies, said Manfredi’s lack of transparency throughout the process has created a tough situation for academic support staff.

“The PPP creates new positions—new managerial positions—but we don’t know what those job descriptions are,” she said. “We only anticipate absolute failure in a situation in which staff are being overworked, and we staunchly oppose that.”

In addition, King said Manfredi had not consulted unions of affected workers.

“We ask you to support our request that the Dean create a democratic process and respond to the following demands: [to] release the details—including budgets, job descriptions, alternative plans, and process mapping—on the PPP website [and to] respect and act in accordance with the collective agreements of affected workers,” the letter reads.

Another protestor, Cayley Sarochan, a graduate student in art history and communications studies, said the protest was also held to point out larger issues in the decision-making process of the university.

“One of the main reasons this is important is because it’s also an issue of democratic governance in the university,” Sarochan said.

a, Arts & Entertainment, Theatre

Players’ production of Peter Pan forces audiences to grow up

by Rachel Burk on

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A university is the ideal place to stage the story of a boy who never wants to grow up; few understand the sentiment of wanting to be a little kid and have fun forever better than those of us on the cusp of adulthood. As we stress over midterms, job recruitment, and our impending entrance into the “real world,” the Peter Pan way of life becomes the unattainable ideal. Peter is the ultimate procrastinator, using his particular brand of fantastical avoidance to stay young forever.

Our admiration of Peter’s eternal youth makes it all the more ironic that the Players’ Theatre interpretation of J.M. Barrie’s Peter Pan is not intended for children. Those nostalgically searching for the Disney-esque adventure of their childhoods had best look elsewhere; director Kelly Richmond and her cast have restored Peter Pan to all of its violent, tragic, and somewhat unsettling glory. The characters are darker, the body count is high, and the sexual tension is unexpectedly prominent for a story about youthful innocence. Parental discretion is advised.

The play begins when lights fade in on an ordinary-looking bedroom. As the familiar-looking members of the Darling family enter the scene, the audience relaxes and settles in for a story they presumably know well. Once the characters begin to interact, this sense of ease disappears—these are not the characters imagined by Walt Disney. Mr. Darling (Jeff Araujo) is deceitful and childish; Wendy Darling (Charlotte Doucette) is antagonistic; the usually sweet Mrs. Darling (Maka Ngwenya) comes off as harsh. Despite the slow pace of the first scene, these unexpected personalities and the dynamics between the characters stave off any potential dullness.

As the story moves to Neverland, the pace picks up. With an impressive set change facilitated by the cast themselves, the audience is transported to a land of adventure. More unexpectedly nasty characters appear, from a spiteful Tinkerbell to murderous mermaids. The pirates are loud and fearsome, Tiger Lily and her braves are quietly unnerving, and fights erupt every few minutes. The use of contrast between the fantasy world and the real one emphasizes the other-worldliness that exemplifies Neverland.

The play’s main character, Peter Pan, is brought to life by Rebecca Pearl. Pearl brings new dimensions to the captain of the Lost Boys, successfully portraying the fear and mania beneath his cocky exterior. Through her impressive performance, Pearl creates a tragic hero: a character to both applaud and pity as he fights against the inevitable passing of time.

Much needed comic relief comes in the form of the Lost Boys. Jordan Pollock, Shanti Gonzales, James Worsnop and Sophie van Bastelaer bring a wonderful childishness to Nibs, Slightly, Curly, and Tootles. Their amusing antics and adorable misunderstandings add lightness to this otherwise heavy tale. You will be hard pressed not to ‘aww’ at Tootles’ pouting and Slightly’s naiveté.

One of Richmond’s most interesting directorial choices is the inclusion of a narrator—a voyeur of sorts—in the form of the author himself: J.M. Barrie (Mark Weissfelner). Barrie sits with the audience, explaining the story and commenting on Peter’s thoughts and actions. Weissfelner perfectly portrays an author’s connection to his characters, giving Barrie’s interactions with Peter a paternal feel. Often voicing what the audience is thinking, Weissfelner as Barrie connects the dream of eternal youth in Neverland to reality, where wanting only to have fun is our greatest fantasy.

Turning a well-known children’s story into something challenging and thought provoking is no easy feat, but the Players’ production of Peter Pan pulls it off. Richmond and her crew shatter expectations, creating a show with depth that manages to surprise even those who think they are familiar with the tale.

 

Peter Pan runs from Feb. 26th – March 1 at 8 p.m. at Players’ Theatre (SSMU Building). Student tickets are $6.

a, Baseball, Sports

Moving an MLB team

by Mayaz Alam, Wyatt Fine-Gagné, and Elie Waitzer on

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In 2005, the Montreal Expos packed up their franchise and moved to Washington D.C., changing their name to the Nationals in the process; this is just the latest instance of a professional baseball franchise relocating. In other leagues, the topic of franchise relocation has its usual suitors. For the NBA, the city of Seattle is proposed every summer as a potential destination for a new franchise. The NHL’s possible scenarios include moving a team to Seattle or to Quebec City, while the NFL’s perpetual destination with which to threaten underachieving franchises is Los Angeles. However, the MLB’s answer is not as clear. Pitchers and catchers have already begun to report to their teams, and the annual migration to Arizona and Florida for spring training is only a few weeks away. If a ball club were to express an interest in moving, where should it relocate?

 

Moneyball in Mexico City

Despite a metropolitan population exceeding that of New York City, Mexico City is often overlooked as a potential landing spot for an MLB team. It was one of nine cities that placed expansion requests in 1994, with Tampa Bay and Arizona eventually being rewarded teams. Twenty years later, it’s time that America’s national pastime finally move south of the border. With the MLB doing all it can to expand the game internationally, a team in Mexico seems logical. While owners would certainly have concerns about the ability to generate revenue in a market with a lower GDP per capita relative to current MLB markets, a team in Mexico City could potentially capture an entire  nation, as the Blue Jays do in Canada. Although Mexico is a soccer-crazed country, it still plays host to a 16-team professional baseball league and a few minor leagues.

Mexico City would not be without its problems. A new stadium would need to be built, one that takes into account the home-run-friendly altitude at which it sits—about 2,240 metres above sea level. Even with the risk associated with this move—a failure in Mexico City would significantly hurt the league’s prospects for further international growth—the potential rewards make it well worth it.

—Wyatt Fine-Gagné

 

A field of San Jose dreams

Last year, the Oakland Athletics won the AL West for the second year in a row. That’s the kind of dominance you would expect to see rewarded by sold-out stadiums every night of the season, right? Wrong. The A’s came in a hair ahead of the Mariners—losers of 91 games in the very same division—with an average attendance of 22,337, the seventh-worst mark in the league.

If I were Lew Wolff, the owner of the A’s, that disparity would be plenty reason to start looking for a new home. Luckily, Wolff doesn’t need to look far. A mere 40 miles away, the city of San Jose presents the perfect opportunity for the A’s to relocate. Situated in the heart of the affluent Silicon Valley, San Jose is the fastest growing city in California, boasting a population of almost a million people compared to Oakland’s 400,000. The mere addition of Santa Clara County to the A’s territory would increase the team’s fan base by up to 70 per cent. Plus, the close proximity of Oakland to San Jose would eliminate the risk of alienating fans in nearby Contra-Costa and Alameda counties.

—Elie Waitzer

 

Charlottebound and down

During the 2013 MLB season, there were 24 players from the state of North Carolina—the eighth-most in the United States. In addition to this, the Charlotte metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the Southeastern United States, and continues to be the fastest-growing in the whole country—making it a logical choice for the location of the next big-league ball club. North Carolina’s current sports teams are limited to the NBA’s putrid Charlotte Bobcats, the NFL’s resurgent Carolina Panthers, and college basketball’s blue-bloods at Duke and the University of North Carolina. Fans have shown that they are more than willing to support a team if the on-field product is above-average—the Panthers have averaged a near 99 per cent attendance by capacity for home games in the past three years while going 25-23 over the same time span. Furthermore, there would be very little overlap between the regular seasons of the NBA, NFL, the NCAA, and the 162-game schedule of professional baseball. On an economic level, this just makes sense. Owners will have the option of moving to a market that is not saturated with other ball clubs, while tapping into an area that will welcome a new team to support.

—Mayaz Alam

a, Men's Varsity, Sports

Hockey: McNicoll, Rose pile on the goals in Redmen’s sweep of Stingers

by Ben Carter-Whitney on

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The McGill Redmen put their best-of-three OUA East quarterfinal series to an early close last week with back-to-back wins against the Concordia Stingers. The series ran the gamut both on the scoresheet and on the ice; while the first game was unusually quiet for the two rivals, the second was punctuated with an abundance of goals and frequent trips to the penalty box for both teams.

Wednesday night’s matchup at McConnell Arena got off to a subdued start, and remained that way until sophomore forward David Rose opened the scoring early in the second period. Although Concordia struck back less than a minute later, another goal by Rose and an insurance marker from third-year Marc-Olivier Vachon sealed the deal by the end of the period. Along with Rose’s two-goal effort, the game featured a spectacular playoff debut by freshman goaltender Jacob Gervais-Chouinard, who recorded 30 saves in the 3-1 Redmen victory.

Game 2 on Friday opened to a markedly different atmosphere. In front of a lively home crowd, the Stingers brought the desperation of a team facing elimination. However, Concordia played catch-up through the first half of the game before the Redmen finally pulled away for good, posting a resounding 8-4 victory. Sophomore centre Cedric McNicoll led the charge with a hat-trick, while winger Neal Prokop tallied two of his own, including the game winner. Both are in their first seasons as Redmen, and have had a profound impact on the team’s success this season.

“Prokop is a 6’4” forward, and he has been able to bring [a] big, physical, rangy presence that we lack,” Redmen Head Coach Kelly Nobes said.” McNicoll played three years of pro hockey […] in the American Hockey League. He’s clearly a star in the league. He has exceptional vision, and he makes guys around him better.”

The McGill offence has been explosive of late, averaging 6.6 goals per game in its last five matchups and registering a hefty 41 shots on the Concordia goal on Friday. Much of the Redmen’s success came courtesy of their special units, which received no shortage of opportunity with both teams combining for a total of 42 penalty minutes. McGill capitalized on their opportunities, burying four goals.

“Special teams are a factor in the playoffs,” Nobes said. “In terms of our power play, it has been real good since Christmas [….] It’s good to have a power play that works for you because it keeps the other team honest in terms of taking penalties.”

This dominant showing in the first round is sure to come as a comfort to the Redmen, who suffered a shocking early exit in the first round of last year’s playoffs. The team fell at the unlikely hands of the Nipissing Lakers, despite having won the University Cup at the CIS National Championships the year before. Last year’s squad was marred by injuries, an issue that the current team has been able to avoid so far.

“Last year we had 150 man games lost to injury, [and] we had eight regulars sitting in the stands in the playoffs,” Nobes explained. “When we have had injuries, we’ve had a very deep bench that we’ve been able to use, so we haven’t had to play shorthanded. ”

The Redmen now travel to Trois-Rivieres, where they will face off on Wednesday, Feb. 26 against UQTR in the OUA East semifinals, and will be back at McConnell on Mar. 1. The no. 2 seeded Patriotes are fresh off a series sweep of their own, having faced little resistance from the seventh-place UOIT. They can expect McGill to provide stiffer competition; so far, the two teams have split their season series 1-1.

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