Yes, I do. I have gone on record before that Jill Byrne brings more to the table than any TVG analyst, though all of them have an interesting niche. When one learns how to impliment the proper filters on the network, the final product is very useful.
Since this thread is about 58 Flat, I will touch on the
Carothers Filter.
Matt is as well prepared as any handicapper I have ever seen. His perspective tends to approach the game from a place I am not familiar, and his attempts at humor fall short of what I find to be funny, therefore, he comes off, at times, as irratating. As a result, I need to turn off the schtick to get to the core of his analysis. He can breakdown a speed scenerio rather well, and often sheds light on projections I couldn't perceive. Now, most of the time, what I viewed as a skewed perspective, is easily dismissed, but he can bring a valid point into the mix better than most.
I believe the best analogy to successful handicapping is found in baseball stats. If you hit at a clip over .300, you should be considered successful, (providing you're not only playing favorites) but one needs to bring some pop to the plate. The ability to go yard is a good arrow to hold in your quiver, but the ability to take the hard breaking ball off the plate to the opposite field with men on base demonstrates added skill. Dick Mitchell used to advocate swinging for the fences. I could continue demonstrating the analogies ad naseum, but the parallels should be evidient.
It would be interesting to analyze the TVG hosts and analysts from a baseball perspective. Who would be the power hitters? Who would be the RBI leaders? Who would hit for average? I think Ken Rudulf would make a decent long reliever, but who would be the best starting pitcher? My choice would undoubtably be different than yours.
TVG is in the show, and the objective should be to field a solid team, in every position. Truth be told, if I were starting a horseracing network, I would want to have many of TVG's personel on my roster. I would shake up the lineup a bit, drop a couple of guys down in the order until their stats improved and give the team a new look. It is a good team, but it needs some adjusting.
The release of Gary Stevens and acquisition of Frank Miramahdi is definitely a step in the right direction.
As for Christina posing...... one would think that offer has been made, and my guess is that Ms. Olivares didn't find the proposal flattering.
