Sports Page

NFL Predictions

noreply@blogger.com (Trevor) — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 04:18:00 +0000

As the NFL season quickly approaches (regular season starts in roughly 18 hours), I find myself getting more and more excited. I already wrote my NFL preview, so we know who is going to win each division and all that fun stuff. These are the real issues, the real things to watch this season. And you might ask, why is there an odd number of predictions like 21? Because, I couldn't think of 50, and plus, this is my site, you can choose your own numbers on your site.

1. Aaron Rodgers will ease the minds of Green Bay fans after the "loss" of Brett Favre. The kid is a player, and he'll do just fine. He has done and said all the right things in Favre's shadow for the last four years. He never once said anything bad about Favre, but he let it be known that he thought the job should be his this season. And it should. He's waited patiently for the last four years, and now its his time to show everyone what he can do. Do I think he'll be the next Brett Favre? No. But all he's got to do is be Aaron Rodgers, and everything will follow. He's got plenty of weapons around him, and a good defense on the other side of the field, if he can limit the amount of bonehead turnovers he has this season, they'll be just fine.

2. Adrian Peterson will win the rushing title. Bold, I know. But when he's healthy, he's simply the best running back in football. He fell 133 yards short of the title (to LT) last year, and he only played 14 games (9 starts). He might not have the all around game that LT has, but it will come. He can run over, or out run, just about anybody in football. Trust me, defensive coordinators know about this kid, and they don't like it. The Vikings are going to have to run the ball a lot this year. Tavaris Jackson is sure to go through growing pains, again. I'm still not convinced he's their answer, and judging by how badly Minnesota was trying to get Favre, I don't think they're convinced either. There simply isn't a more dangerous runner in football right now, and if you didn't wise up to his act last year, you will this year.

3. AFC Rookie of the Year: Darren McFadden. Run DMC run. Thats what Oakland coaches will tell him to do all year, and that is just what he'll do. He's dynamic, he's electric, and he's just what the Raiders need. He's their type of person, and he plays their type of football. He probably won't gain 1800+ yards on the ground this year like he did last year when he tore up the SEC, but he'll get his touches. In three seasons with the Razorbacks, he had 785 rushing attempts, 46 receptions, and 22 passing attempts. All in all, he touched the rock 853 times, and had exactly 0 fumbles. For that reason, he's going to continue to get his touches, and he's going to continue to scorch opposing defenses.

4. Herm Edwards will be the first coach fired this season. He has this year, and next year remaining on his contract. He'd essentially be a lame duck next year if he were kept around after an unsuccessful campaign in 2008. And believe me, it will be unsuccessful. Larry Johnson is overrated, his average YPC (yards per carry) have gone down in each of the last three seasons. And who is their QB? Exactly. They have targets in Dwayne Bowe and Tony Gonzalez, but even they might not be enough to get that offense going. Herm Edwards seems like a great guy. He seems like someone you'd love to have in your corner, but he's not going to get it done in KC this year, and as a result, he'll be done.

5. The Patriots will flirt with perfection once again. Now hear me out. I didn't say they'd do it. As we all saw last year, not losing a game for an entire NFL season is pretty tough to do. A lot of things have to fall in your favor (see the Baltimore game last year). All I'm saying is that 14, or even 15 wins could, and should, be expected. They were 14-2 in the regular seasons of their back to back Super Bowl wins. And I say they win the Super Bowl this year, so why not 14-2 again? Or even 15-1? And I'm not the only one thinking this either. They're 16.5 point favorites against the Chiefs in Week 1. I know, its the Chiefs, and I just wrote that their coach would be fired, but honestly, 16.5 point favorites? In Week 1? Someone else is impressed besides me. They have two games on their schedule (@ IND, @ SD) where they might not be the Vegas favorites, but they probably will be. What it all boils down to is they're going to win a lot more games than they lose. And they're going to win a lot of games by a lot of points. Brady may not toss 50 TDs again, but they'll score, a lot. So be ready for an "I told you so," when the Patriots hoist the Lombardi trophy at Raymond James Stadium in February after 14 regular season wins.

6. MVP: Tom Brady. See above. Quarterbacks overall are pretty important to their team's success. It isn't very often when the starter gets hurt, and the second string guy makes you forget about the starter (see the Eagles last year, see the Patriots in 2001). Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying the Colts would be fine without Manning, or the Cowboys would be fine without Romo. But Tom Brady is the most indispensable player in the NFL right now. He has started every game for the Patriots since Drew Bledsoe got hurt. Last sesaon, everyone saw what he could do with go-to wide outs (68.9 comp %, 5o TDs, 4,806 yards, the list goes on). This year, everyone will feel his wrath again. Some haters will also say that he was only that good last year because of Moss. To them, I say this: he has never completed less than 60% of his passes in any season, regardless of who his targets were. Peyton Manning has completed less than 60% in a full NFL season before, and it is a feat that the legendary Brett Favre has accomplished FIVE times. He has never thrown more INTs than TDs in a full season (Manning one time, Favre three times). And speaking of interceptions, the most he's ever thrown in a season is 14 ('02, '04, '05). Manning? 28 in '98, 15 in '99, 15 in '00, 23 in '01, 19 in '02, and 14 last season. And Farve has done it so many times I won't even list them for you, but lets just overview and say that he's thrown 14 or more interceptions 13 different times. With as many as 29 in '05, and back to back 23 INT seasons in '98 and '99. Oh right, and he's also thrown at least 15 INTs for the last 11 straight seasons.

7. NFL Offensive Player of the Year: Tom Brady. See above.

8. NFC Rookie of the Year: Chris Long. This will come down to long, or Jonathan Stewart (CAR). I'm giving long the edge because he has the change to make an immediate impact. He will be playing on what is already a pretty decent defensive line (La'Roi Glover, Leonard Little and Adam Carriker). But the biggest key is that he will be playing. Right now, Stewart is playing behind the incumbent DeAngelo Williams. Also not in Stewart's favor, the Panthers haven't had a 1,000 yard rusher since Stephen Davis rushed for 1,444 yards in 2003 (no Panther has even rushed for 900 yards since then).

9. Anquan Boldin will have more TDs than Larry Fitzgerald. I'm predicting Boldin will shut up, and play football. If he does that, he is one of the most dangerous receivers in the league. He has so much intensity running after the catch, its what he lives for, he just wants to punish other teams. And when he does that, he's a man to be feared. For his sake, hopefully Kurt Warner plays all season, and he can play himself into a monster contract next year. Who knows, if Boldin would just play, maybe he'll even have more yards than Fitzgerald too. That would be scary for opposing teams.

10. Reggie Bush will rush for over 100 yards in a single game. It will happen. I'm telling you right now. He can do it. He has to do it. I don't know why, I just have this feeling in my gut that he's going to get over the hump this year. I don't think he'll be a stud running back, but he's going to prove some nay-sayers wrong. I also believe the addition of Shockey will help the offense immensely.

11. Best off season addition: Jeremy Shockey. Speaking of Shockey. He seems to be happy now. Which should make opposing defenses unhappy. He plays with a chip on his shoulder. He wants to hurt defenders when he has the football. Its almost like he wished he was a safety, lining guys up over the middle, but he just had too much offensive talent to ignore.

12. Brady Quinn will not start a game this season. I don't get why this is even a topic of discussion. Derek Anderson is the guy. He gave the Browns a legit shot at the playoffs, and should give them a shot again this year. He protected the ball relatively well in his first season as a starter (started all but Week 1). His nineteen interceptions were not a highlight, but that number should go down. He also only lost 2 fumbles all season. Its almost like people want the poor guy to fail, and I don't get it. He's set up for success. He's got a highly touted young QB behind him to keep him sharp, plus he's going to be throwing to Braylon Edwards and Kellen Winslow again.

13. Kellen Winslow will become the premiere TE in the NFL. Gonzalez will still have his catches. Clark will still get his TDs from Manning, Gates will as well, and Whitten should help the Cowboys score in bunches, but it will all be about Kellen Winslow in the end. He's 6'4", 250 lbs, 25 years old, and healthy. He is a physical specimen. He creates a mismatch almost anywhere on the field. Linebackers aren't fast enough for him, and DBs aren't strong enough to bring him down every time. Expect him to improve on just about every statistic from last year (82 receptions, 1,106 yards and 5 TDs).

14. Worst off season addition: Brett Favre. Brett Farve is overrated. There, I said it. He is not the greatest quarterback of all time. He was very good, great, amazing, or any other adjective you'd like to use to describe him for a long period of time. He's still overrated. Now that we all know about my bias, let me attempt to explain myself. He might not have a bad season. He had a great year last year, I'll be the first to admit I had thought he was done before last season. He could impress with 25+ TDs and 3,500 yards this year. It certainly isn't out of the realm of possiblity. But when it is all said and done, he will be disappointing this year for a number of reasons. Favre is certainly an upgrade, and has hyped up the Jets' season chances, but he still doesn't make them a playoff team. He's also most likely a one and done scenario for the Jets. So they trade away their other "best" option in Pennington for a one time shot with Favre. I think Favre will play again next year, I just don't think it will be with the Jets. He never seemed to enthusiastic about it. So to sum up why he's a lousy addition: Favre comes in for one season, gets the fans excited, the team ends up trading their other QB, the Jets miss the playoffs, Favre somehow gets himself out of New York for the final year of his contract, and the Jets are up a creek without a paddle in 2009. See, this is why I should be a GM, I think ahead.

15. NFL Defensive Player of the Year: Patrick Willis. Willis might be the lone bright spot in an otherwise dark season for San Francisco. He led the NFL last year with 174 tackles. He should contend for that again. Another year in the NFL should also improve the mental part of his game, and eventually make him a leader on the field. He gets sideline to sideline as well as anyone in football, and can match up 1 on 1 against most tight ends or running backs.

16. Shaun Alexander will go quietly into the night. It is a little bit sad. For a back that had so many remarkable seasons as Alexander did. But I don't think he'll ever play in the NFL again. I get the impression that if he really wanted to play, he would have been in training camp with someone. Or, if someone really wanted him to play, they would have invited him. I think it comes down to this, he's a former MVP, looking for former MVP money, which no team will pay him. And he's lost his desire to play. As I said, if he really wanted to play, he'd suck it up, take a veteran minimum contract, and play himself into a job. As this hasn't been done, I find the chances that he plays again to be getting smaller by the day.

17. Ricky Williams will be the Dolphins leading rusher. From all signs in the pre-season, Ricky Williams is back in football shape. When he abruptly "retired" or "quit" before the start of the 2004 NFL season, most were shocked. I was angry myself, being that I was a proud Ricky Williams owner in a "keeper" fantasy football league. But I'm over it, seriously, I am. Williams was the best running back in football before his hiatus. I'm not saying he'll be back to that form, and he's also got some pretty stiff competition now, but he's going to turn some heads this season. Don't be surprised if he rushes for over 1,000 yards.

18. Dallas will not win the Super Bowl. Duh, I already told you the Patriots would. But let me give some lovin to Big 'D' fans and at least explain why the AFC will reign supreme again. The Cowboys are the best team in the NFC, hands down. That is like being the best team in the NL West right now (currently Arizona by the way, 3 games over .500, and 1.5 games up on the .500 Dodgers), it simply isn't good enough. They are good, don't get me wrong. Dallas will score more points this season than any team not named the Patriots. And their defense is solid at all three levels. But their coach is a moron, and they have TO. Of course TO was happy last year, I don't buy that again this year. Plus, even when he's happy, he still drops balls that make you cringe. I'd like to point out that Dallas is the lone NFC team ranked in my top 6 teams in the NFL right now. I know, most people would say top 5, but I'm not most people, and I'm using 6 teams, because I think the biggest gap is between the 6th best team, and the 7th best team. (1. Patriots, 2. Cowboys, 3. Chargers, 4. Jaguars, 5. Colts, 6. Steelers)

19. David Garrard will throw 20 TDs, single digit interceptions, and make a serious playoff run with Jacksonville. He really could be that good. He is a mistake free quarterback. Last year he was played like a quarterback that was out there trying not to lose. This year, he will be out there to win the games for the Jaguars, and win he will. He played in 12 games last year, and threw 3 interceptions. I expect that number to rise, but I also expect a rise from 18 TD passes and 2,509 yards. End result: a second round playoff exit, 3,000 passing yards, 21 TDs and 9 INTs.

20. The Bengals will wish they had traded Chad Ocho Cinco. Notice how I didn't put Ocho Cinco in quotation marks? That is because it is his real last name now. He is not Chad Johnson. He is legally Chad Ocho Cinco. See, even right there, I had to backspace and re-type that four different times. Because each time I either put quotation marks there, or tried to type "Johnson" instead. Thats how silly it is. I'm all for fun and games, but that is just rediculous. There was a point where I thought Chad was fun. The riverdance celebration was fun, as was the pylon putt, but there reaches a point where enough is enough. Now I realize all he cares about is himself. Sure he says he wants to play for a winner. He's not stupid, he says the right things. But we're talking about a guy who legally changed his last name to a nickname that he gave to himself. And the reason he gave himself the nickname was because he said it was "Spanish Heritage Month." It was actually Hispanic Heritage Month. And 85 in Spanish is not actually "ocho cinco," it is "ochenta y cinco." Great tribute.

21. At least half my predictions will be incorrect. I'm just saying. I'm not psychic. They're pretty good predictions. But if I get more than 75% of these right, I'm looking for a new job, and hopefully it will be six figures.

NFL Preview

noreply@blogger.com (Trevor) — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 06:34:00 +0000

So I watch a lot of sports. I would even be considered a "sport's nut" by most. I am not, however, psychic. If you read my MLB predictions, you'd see that the latter is definitely true. But thats what makes sports so great. You can be an expert, and you can be wrong, you can be the office secretary, and win your March Madness Pool.

Here is, yet another opportunity to show you that A) I probably watch sports too much, B) All that watching, translates to precisely squat when it comes time to predict the upcoming season. And while I generally start off with the division that my team is in, I'm going to throw a curve here, and not only not start with the East, but I'm going to go through the NFC first.

NFC WEST: Seattle Seahawks
This division is awful. Seattle should run away with it, and they better. This might be the last hurrah for an aging team. Matt Hasselbeck is as good a QB as you'll find outside of Brady and Manning (Peyton, obviously). As long as Holmgren can find it in himself to run the ball a little bit with the addition of Julius Jones, Seattle might have a pretty good offensive attack. JT O'Sullivan is starting for the 49ers this season, so there should be little competition from them, again. The Rams and Cardinals should both be better than they were last year, but neither has the defense to trump the Seahawks.

NFC SOUTH: New Orleans Saints
Tampa Bay is a good team. New Orleans is a better team. The Saints are most certainly a better team than they were in 2007. Whatever was the cause of their abysmal start in 2007, I don't expect to bother them again. One of the major reasons that the Saints will beat the Bucs out for the division is Drew Brees. Brees is the big time QB John Gruden wishes he had. Colston and Moore should continue to improve, and the dual threat of McAllister and Bush in the backfield will give any defense fits. And if Jeremy Shockey can remain healthy this season, he might give the team that little extra fire it needs to get to the playoffs. Shockey amazes me, I'm not his biggest fan, but I've got to admit he is incredibly entertaining to watch. Gamers want the ball. Jeremy Shockey is a gamer. But he doesn't want the ball for the same reason everyone else does. Everyone else wants to score, wants to end up on ESPN, Shockey wants the ball so he can punish people. I have never seen someone punish another player the way he punishes other players while he is holding the football. So in the NFC South this year we'll see: the Saints win the division, the Bucs clinch a Wild Card berth, and Reggie Bush rush for over 100 yards in a single game this season. I swear, its going to happen this year. Reggie will make one of those highlight reel runs, where he makes someone miss, by making his own body twist in a way you don't think someone's body should be able to twist at such a high speed, and leap over the pylon on his way to a 100 yard rushing performance.

NFC NORTH: Detroit Lions
Thats right, I said it. I said the Detroit Lions are going to the NFL playoffs this season. Adrian Peterson should be a stud in Minnesota for years to come, but I'm not convinced that there's enough around him (specifically at the QB position), to produce a winner this season. Chicago? Rex Grossman is our quarterback. Rex Grossman is our quarterback. Rex Grossman is our quarterback. Kyle Orton is our quarterback. Uhh... at least they still have Urlacher. Donald Driver, Donald Lee, Ryan Grant and Greg Jennings should all help to ease any growing pains Aaron Rodgers might be about to go through, but replacing a veteran QB with a brand new starter is not usually a recipe for immediate success. If John Kitna, Roy Williams, and Calvin Johnson can all be on the field together this season, even the Monsters of the Midway won't be able to stop them. This is the year that Kitna should have predicted ten wins. And, if the Lions don't make the playoffs this year, and Matt Millen still has his job next year, I think I'm going to run for President in 2012. Hey, anything is possible right?

NFC EAST: Dallas Cowboys
This one is a no-brainer. Of the top five teams in the NFL, only one calls the NFC home, and they are the Dallas Cowboys. So it's only fitting that they make the playoffs. The 'Skins should provide some competition, as usual. Jason Campbell is maturing into an NFL quarterback quite nicely. The addition of Jason Taylor on defense should provide a little bit of fire to a unit that lost its heart and soul last year. But it won't be enough to knock off the 'Boys. There was a team that won the Super Bowl last year. And it was the New York Football Giants. They won't even make the playoffs this year.* Not without Michael Strahan, Osi Umenyiora and Kawika Mitchell. And trust me, they won't be sneaking up on anyone this year. And trust me again, Eli has matured, yes, he is a bona-fide NFL starter now, but he is not his brother, he cannot carry this team. The main competition in the NFC East for the Cowboys will come from Brian Westbrook and the Eagles. I already told you that the Detroit Lions are going to the playoffs this season, so I might as well back it up with another bold statement, Donovan McNabb will play 16 games this year, and he and Brian Westbrook will lead the Eagles back to the playoffs. Brian Westbrook is the most versatile player in football since Marshall Faulk was a part of the Greatest Show on Turf. With Westbrook turning in another 2000+ total yards, and 12-14 TD's, all McNabb needs to do is play, and the Eagles will march into the playoffs.

NFC WILD CARDS: Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Philadelphia Eagles

AFC WEST: San Diego Chargers
This is the year... that the Chargers make the playoffs yet again. LT is amazing. Philip Rivers is not, and Shawne Merriman's season is currently in doubt. The Chargers are a good team, and they play in a bad division. No other team in the division should even come close, regardless of the status of Merriman. The end result should be another trip to the playoffs for the Chargers, and another disappointingly (if you're a sucker, and you actually think that the Chargers are that good) early exit from the playoffs.

AFC SOUTH: Indianapolis Colts
Listen, one of these years Peyton Manning will retire, and someone other than the Colts will win the AFC South, but I'm just not that crazy. As long as Peyton Manning is there, the Colts have a chance, and as long as Joseph Addai, Reggie Wayne and Dallas Clark are there with him, the Colts will remain a Super Bowl threat. But mark my words, watch out for the Jacksonville Jaguars. They are one of the top 5 teams in football, and by a stroke of poor luck, they play in the same division as the Colts (also top 5), so they'll have to settle for a Wild Card spot. But Wild Card or not, the Jags will be a team that nobody wants to play in the playoffs. David Garrard is not electric, but he is safe, efficient, and surprisingly good. He might not catch your attention like Devin Hester, but he also won't catch your attention like Rex Grossman, if that makes any sense. I expect the Texans to take a step forward, the Titans to take a step back, and the Jags to play second fiddle in the AFC South to the Colts yet again.

AFC NORTH: Pittsburgh Steelers
Someone has to knock Big Ben and the Steelers off before I will believe that it can be done. The Steelers have one of the hardest schedules in football, but should be able to win enough games to hold off the Browns. Wait, did he just say hold off the Browns? Not the Bengals? Why yes, he did. And I have one word about the Bengals for you: Overrated. Yes, Carson Palmer threw 26 TD passes last year, but he also threw 20 interceptions. Take away the Week 2 air assault at Cleveland, and in the other 15 games he had 20 TD's, 18 INT's, and 3,730 passing yards. Hardly awe inspiring for a QB with such targets as Chad Johnson and TJ Houshmandzadeh. Oh, and they just brought Chris Henry back. After releasing the troubled receiver, and possibly taking a step in the right direction, they just took another step back. The real competition will come from the Cleveland Browns. I look for Derek Anderson, Kellen Winslow and Braylon Edwards to continue on their spectacular 2007 season and clinch a Wild Card berth this season.

AFC EAST: New England Patriots
Talk about saving the best for last. As if there was any doubt, the New England Patriots will run away with the division. For those of you that say that Brett Favre will put the Jets into the playoffs, I want you to go get checked out... mentally... no seriously... do it. This will be a one horse race from Week 1. The only questions that remain, how many TD's will Brady throw to Moss? And can they please lose a game other than the Super Bowl this year. And if the offense wasn't enough, the Patriots have the best collection of defensive linemen in the NFL in Seymour, Wilfork, Green and Warren. Adalius Thomas should improve with one season in the Pat's system under his belt. And how would you like to go over the middle? Would you rather have John Lynch, or Rodney Harrison line you up? The Patriots are the best team in football, period. They will march to the playoffs, march through the playoffs, and win the Super Bowl that they should have won last year.

AFC WILD CARDS: Cleveland Browns, Jacksonville Jaguars

Wild Card Weekend:
Chargers over Browns
Jags over Steelers

Buccaneers over Lions
Eagles over Seahawks

Divisional Weekend:
Colts over Chargers
Patriots over Jags

Saints over Buccaneers
Cowboys over Eagles

Championship Weekend:
Patriots over Colts
Cowboys over Saints

Super Bowl Champions:
New England Patriots

There you have it. No holds barred. Some crazy predictions, some obvious predictions. And the fourth Super Bowl Victory in seven seasons for the New England Patriots.

* I'm not a hater. I'm not. It's been a while since the Patriots lost the Super Bowl to the New York Football Giants. I'm over it. I feel that I can rationally speak about what happened that night at this point. When I say that the Giants won't make the playoffs this year, I speak only the truth. I don't hate them because they beat the Patriots last year, I simply hate them because they're the Giants, always have, always will.

Man that Super Bowl sucked. Brady played like garbage. The Giants defense played the game of their lives. David Tyree made one of the sickest catches I've ever seen, after Eli Manning somehow got the ball off to him, instead of being brought down by any of the three Patriots defenders that were all trying to pick his pocket, but apparently not bring him to the turf.

But honestly, it wasn't until that final play that I was convinced the Giants were going to pull it off. Had there been a bit more air under the third and long ball from Brady to Moss, Randy would have been off to the races, and everyone, not just me, would be talking about the greatest team they had ever seen.

The 2007 New England Patriots were the best team I have ever seen play football in my life. I got to witness a game in person, and let me say, Randy Moss is really something else. They played good team defense, and they scored at will, until the Super Bowl. I know they went 18-1, and the one loss was obviously the biggest one, but there is no comparison. The Giants' defense played the best game they had ever played as a unit that night. And the Patriots didn't. Simply put, the Giants were the best team on the field that night. But play that game 100 times over, and the Patriots win 99.

I am not taking anything away from the Giants. They had a remarkable run through the playoffs. They proved all the doubters wrong, time after time. And one last time, on Super Bowl Sunday (actually, they didn't prove Merril Hoge wrong, because he was smart enough to pick the Giants to win in the first place. See what I did there? That 'smart' in italics means I'm being sarcastic, and Hoge is anything but).

Anyways. I'm not bitter. I'm not a hater because the Patriots lost last year. But to all of you that thought it was funny that New England lost, watch out. To all of you who became insta-Giant fans that night, watch out. To anyone that thinks that was the beginning of the end for the Patriots Dynasty, you ain't seen nothin yet. To all of you who are haters because you're jealous, we'll see you in Tampa February 1st.

2008 MLB Predictions

noreply@blogger.com (Trevor) — Sun, 30 Mar 2008 23:55:00 +0000

Well, that wonderful time of the year is upon us. Baseball season is here. And for the second time in four years, the Boston Red Sox are the defending champs. I always wondered when I'd get to say that. As "fun" as it was being the lovable losers for 86 years, being the defending champs is way more fun. So, without further ado, here it goes...

AL EAST CHAMPS: Boston Red Sox
Am I a homer? Admittedly so. But even still, Boston is primed for another run at it. Toronto could be competitive, but with all their pitching concerns (Halladay, Burnett and Ryan), they could falter easily. I'm sure the Yankees will be there all year long, as they are every year. Their offense is going to be phenomenal, yet again. But concerns with their veteran pitchers, with Mussina on the backside of his career, and Pettitte with all of his off the field concerns, mixing with the fact that you have no idea what to expect from their youngsters of Hughes, Kennedy, and Chamberlain, make for an inconsistent staff. The backside of their pen should again be lights out with Mo and Joba, but I think it will only be enough for second place in the AL East. While the Red Sox have concerns of their own, the emergence of Buchholz and Ellsbury should give a nice mix of veteran and young talent. And David Ortiz on two good knees will make all the difference.

AL CENTRAL CHAMPS: Cleveland Indians
Yes, it was the Detroit Tigers making the moves in the offseason, but they still have some concerns. Dontrelle Willis' numbers have declined steadily for the past three years in the Senior Circuit, so the move to the AL may leave something to be desired. The Tigers offense will score in bunches, especially when Granderson gets healthy, but there are too many concerns in their bullpen, such as the health issues with Zumaya, and the already inconsistent Todd Jones is pushing 40 years old. The Indians are just too solid all around. They have a bona-fide ace in CC Sabathia, backed up wonderfully by Fausto Carmona, as well as an incredible mixture of youngsters in the field, and one of the best bullpens in the AL. The race might be close for a little bit, but the Indians should run away with the division in the end.

AL WEST CHAMPS: Seattle Mariners
If you had asked me a month ago, I would have told you the Angels would win easily. But fortunately for us, I waited a month to write this. Lackey and Escobar will both start the season on the DL, with Escobar unlikely to return this season. I believe the addition of Torii Hunter might actually be better than people think, not as good as his contract, but better than expected. Unfortunately, it won't be enough to overcome the loss of 18 game winner Kelvim Escobar and 19 game winner John Lackey. On the flipside, the Mariners have added a sure #1 starter in Eric Bedard to an already good team. This should also take an immense amount of pressure off of King Felix, who should be able to relax this year, and just do what he does without the pressure label of being the #1 pitcher. And on the back end, JJ Putz might not get the attention of a Rivera or a Papelbon, but he's been similarly effective in recent history.

AL WILD CARD: New York Yankees
Come on, you didn't really think I was going to predict that the Yankees would miss the playoffs did you? There might be some competition for this spot from the Detroit Tigers, but the Yankees just have too much veteran talent and experience to let a less than perfect roster keep them out of the playoffs.

NL EAST CHAMPS: New York Mets
The Phillies and the Braves will give the Metropolitans a run for their money all season long. But something tells me the Mets won't allow themselves to implode in September like they did last year. With the addition of Johan Santana, John Maine slides nicely into the #3 spot in the rotation. The roster is loaded with talent of the likes of David Wright and Jose Reyes, Beltran is still talented enough to be a 30/30 guy, and Wagner can still close out games for them. Their key factor will be the health of Pedro Martinez. And Johan Santana has nothing to do with it. Johan isn't taking any pressure off of this guy. I'll tell you what, I'll buy pressure relief for King Felix, but not for Pedro. This is a guy who was the most dominant pitcher in baseball for five years, in one of the most pressure packed environments in baseball, oh, and he also pitched 7 scoreless innings in the 2004 World Series to clinch the first Boston World Series in 86 years. This guy eats pressure for breakfast. A healthy Pedro Martinez is the only Pedro Martinez you need to worry about.

NL CENTRAL CHAMPS: Milwaukee Brewers
Prince Fielder, JJ Hardy, Ryan Braun, Corey Hart and Rickie Weeks should be all you really need to know. But a healthy Ben Sheets, as well as the inning eating Jeff Suppan should round out a good NL staff. The biggest concern will be the ability of Eric Gagne to close out games on a consistent basis. But even if he blows a few, a fitter, 23 year old Prince Fielder, coming off a 50 home run season should be able to counter some of that. The Cubs could challenge for a little while, but I just don't think they can remain healthy. It will also be interesting to see how Kerry Wood handles pitching back-to-back days.

NL WEST CHAMPS: Arizona Diamondbacks.
Really, any of the teams (with the exception of the Giants) could win the NL West. But I'm going to go with the D-Backs. They're a very good hitting young team. Another season under Chris Young and Stephen Drew's belts should only help the team. Oh yeah, and they also added that Dan Haren guy. They're beginning to resemble the D-Backs of 2001 with a 1a and a 1b on their staff. The Rockies can hit, but their pitching remains a question. The Padres can pitch, but their hitting remains a question. The most intriguing team might be the Dodgers here. People say that Joe Torre infused the locker room with confidence the first day he walked in. They still have a competitive staff, and enough hitting to survive in the NL West. That said, I think the Diamondbacks hold on in what should be a tight race for the last few months of the season.

NL WILD CARD: Philadelphia Phillies
This race should consist of the Phillies and the Braves all year long. As much as anyone in the West has a chance to win the West, I just don't think they have what it takes to compete with the East for the WC spot. And even if they are talented enough, unfortunately they have to beat each other up all season in division play. The Braves pitching, and the Phillies hitting, should make for a fun race to October. In the end, I expect Rollins, Utley, Hamels and crew to be too much for the Braves.

ALDS: Sox over Mariners, Yankees over Indians
NLDS: Phillies over Brewers, D-Backs over Mets

ALCS: Sox over Yankees
NLCS: Phils over D-Backs

WORLD SERIES: Red Sox in 6

AL MVP: Big Papi
It was true in 2004 and 2006, and it will be true this year. David Ortiz will be the MVP in the AL. There's no doubt that A-Rod deserved it last year. None. But Papi went 35/117/.332 last year essentially on one knee. Two good knees has got to be good for something right? I don't care if he doesn't play in the field, or if he wants to pitch too, his value to the team is unquestionable. I'd rather have him do his thing hitting and be the DH, than do his thing hitting, and commit 30 errors at first base. And its not even like he's that terrible at first actually, there's just a better defensive first baseman on the team, and health is a concern, so being a DH makes sense.

AL CY YOUNG: Eric Bedard
This will probably come down to one of three pitchers, Bedard, Sabathia, and Beckett. I'm giving a slight edge to Bedard because I don't really think people actually know how good he is yet. He played on a terrible team last year. He's now starting for a playoff hopeful team. His ERA and K's were already there last year, so a good team should improve his win total. Also, with the pitching woes of the Angels, Beckett and Sabathia will probably face much more competitive teams on a consistent basis.

NL MVP: Prince Fielder
Listen, he's 23. He's not even entering the age yet where people would say one is at their athletic prime, and he's coming off a 50 home run season. He's said to be in the best shape he's ever been in. The sky is the limit for this kid. He needs to work on his strikeout totals, and be a bit more efficient with runners on base, but he's already a very good hitter, on a pretty good hitting ball club. There should be plenty of people on base in front of him to drive in this season. And if the Brewers win the Central as I predict, he should be a shoe in for the MVP.

NL CY YOUNG: Johan Santana
With all due respect to Jake Peavy, whom I believe is one of the top 5 pitchers in baseball, Santana's move to the NL might have just swept the rug out from under his feet. Santana has been the most dominant pitcher in baseball for the past three seasons, and now he's pitching in the senior circuit. He's going to have one of the top offenses in the NL behind him, so wins shouldn't be hard to come by. He'll almost certainly still get the K's, and have a ridiculously low WHIP. The only stat of his that might suffer this year from the move to the NL would be his ERA, if he so happens to get taken out a bit earlier sometimes for a double switch or pinch hitter.

So there you have it. In writing, my predictions for the 2008 baseball season. Whether I'm right, or wrong, I can't wait to find out. Let the games begin.

Slow Rolled in Indy

noreply@blogger.com (Trevor) — Mon, 05 Nov 2007 07:22:00 +0000

For almost three and a half quarters on Sunday afternoon, Peyton Manning and the defending Super Bowl champions almost made New England fans believe their team could be beaten. Almost made them believe that perhaps the critics were right. Maybe those experts that so wildly picked the Colts to win the game, weren't so wild after all. It was a heavyweight fight, and the champs were winning.

The Patriots simply looked over matched. Tom Brady spent more time on his butt in that game than he had all season long. And on the other side, Peyton Manning felt virtually no pressure, from a team that prides itself on the pass rush in their 3-4 defense.

Maybe we had missed something. Maybe with all of the media attention the Patriots had gotten since "camera-gate," the defending champs really had gotten overlooked. They had after all, won twelve straight games, including their first seven this year by an average of just over 17 points. They were the defending champs. They had home field. And for most of the game, they had the lead.

But then again, the Patriots had a secret weapon. It wasn't Tom Brady, it wasn't Randy Moss, and it wasn't Adalius Thomas. It was a man possessed. It was a man that doesn't wear a helmet. Their secret weapon was no more than the monotone, and often boring Bill Belichick. A man that is so even keeled it gets a little bit creepy. The Patriots had just won one of the most hyped regular season games in the history of the NFL, and you'd have thought they lost. Now in fairness, they did play poorly, and as a coach, he does realize that there is a lot to work on during their bye week. But he was no different after this game, than he is after any other game. Perhaps the only time that he's happy and smiling is after a Super Bowl win. Which it seems, is right where they're heading.

The statement by the Pats might have been more resounding had they blown the Colts out. But make no mistake, the statement made by squeaking it out, was just as effective. The Colts were manhandling the Patriots. They doubled Tom Brady's season interception total in one game. They were up by ten points with just over eight minutes left in the game. Joseph Addai was having a career day, and even without Marvin Harrison, Manning looked right at home throwing to Dallas Clark.

So what does this game say to the rest of the NFL? What does it tell the seven remaining opponents the Patriots have left? And the teams they could potentially play in the playoffs? It says watch out, and pay attention, because you're witnessing history. For weeks, fans and experts had debated the best team in the NFL. For weeks it came down to one of two teams, the Colts, or the Pats. So if there was no clear cut favorite before this week, there is now.

Of the Patriots remaining seven games, two intrigue me as possibly good games. Three stare at me as sure fire wins. One game has history written all over it, and one has all the makings of what could perhaps be the funniest game ever played in the NFL. At the Ravens on Monday night, and Steelers at home the following week should be good for a half. The Dolphins, Bills and Eagles better just get out of Brady and Moss' way. The Giants game could have historic implications if the Patriots really make it to the Meadowlands 15-0. But the funniest game of all, will be the Jets at the Pats in week 15. If Bill Belichick is a man possessed, then Eric Mangini is the reason. The current Jets coach, and former Belichick protege was the whistle-blower in the camera-gate controversy earlier in the season. If people thought those post game handshakes were cold before, wait until the Patriots drop 50 points on the Jets. It will give new meaning to "running up the score."

My friend texted me last Tuesday during the Red Sox World Series victory parade in Boston that the "Pats should have just had their parade today too." I laughed. I'm not laughing anymore. Look, the Pats played their three worst quarters of football this year all in the same game, and they won. They were down by ten points to the second best team in football with eight minutes to go in the 4th quarter, and they won. Tom Brady doubled his interception total for the season, and they won. And the game was indoors, AT Indy, where the Colts play much better, and the Patriots won. So if there's a team in the NFL that thinks they can take on the Patriots, please let me know. See you in Arizona.

And the Awards Winners Are...

noreply@blogger.com (Trevor) — Thu, 27 Sep 2007 08:41:00 +0000

AL MVP - Alex Rodriguez
Listen, I hate the Yankees. I greatly dislike A-rod. And I still think, a season later, that the Tigers are (were) a great story. Magglio Ordonez had an amazing season. He carried a team that played much of the year without Gary Sheffield to protect him in the lineup. He finally showed what everyone thought, that if he could stay healthy for an entire season, he could do this. But A-rod showed us again the same thing he has shown us since he broke into the bigs. He can hit. He can hit it far. And he can hit it often. The Yankees were all but dead in the water back in May. They were 14.5 games out of first place. Their signing of Kei Igawa, to offset the Sox signing Dice-K, worked out so poorly, he was sent down to the minors. Mike Mussina was removed from the rotation. Johnny Damon was hurt, Jason Giambi was hurt, Bobby Abreu had a terrible first half. Their $28 million pitcher was so-so. The only other constants were Posada and Jeter. Jeter is overrated, and Posada is no A-rod. If A-rod didn't have the season he did, we might still be talking about a 14.5 game lead for the Red Sox.
(Honorable mentions: Magglio Ordonez, Vlad, Grady Sizemore)

AL Cy Young - CC Sabathia
With all due respect to Josh Beckett, CC Sabathia has been the ace the Indians have been waiting for. He's top 5 in the AL in wins and strikeouts. He's sixth in the league in ERA (out of the top 5 by 0.03). Second in starts, and first in innings pitched. Beckett has pitched very well all season. He's been there when the Red Sox have needed him the most. But CC Sabathia has also gone 4-1 when matched up against aces Justin Verlander and Johan Santana this season. Beckett will have his day. At some point he'll win a Cy Young, or two, or three. But this season belongs to CC. The Indians needed Sabathia to step up and be the ace he's always made them believe he could be, and he has delivered. He's also turned in 24 quality starts in 33 tries. (note, I believe Beckett will win the actual award, benefits of playing in the media heavy East, but if I had a vote, it would go to Sabathia.)
(Honorable mentions: Justin Verlander, Josh Beckett, John Lackey)

AL ROY - Dustin Pedroia
This is a two horse race between Pedroia and Delmon Young of the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. Pedroia started the season terribly. All of Red Sox nation was wondering if the youngster had been rushed to the bigs. Could he handle big league pitching? Well, 5 months later, you have your answer. Delmon might leads all rookies in hits and RBI's. But Dustin Pedroia is first in average, slugging, OPS (100 points better than Young) and is second in OBP. And nothing against Delmon, he's shown that he has what it takes to be a star for years to come in this league, but Pedroia has done all of this in the middle of a pennant race. And Hall of Famer Peter Gammons points out another interesting statistic about Pedroia's consistency and diversity as a hitter, on the season he had 48 XBH, 47 BB, and 42 SO. He's become a face of a franchise in one of the biggest baseball cities in America. He's listed generously at 5'9", but he plays like he's Big Papi. He's adjusted better to Boston than the highly overpaid JD Drew, without ever having played a significant big league game before this season.
(Honorable mentions: Delmon Young, Reggie Willits)

NL MVP - Jimmy Rollins
I'm not sure what was more amazing. The New York Mets epic collapse, or the Philadelphia Phillies amazing comeback in the NL East. On September 13th, the Mets were 6.5 games in front of Philadelphia. On September 30th, the Philadelphia Phillies won the NL East by a game. Say all you want about the amazing season that Matt Holliday had. And unfortunately it was all for naught from the Prince of Milwaukee. Ask any Philly what the constant was all season long, and I bet not a single player would hesitate to answer Jimmy Rollins. Chase Utley is a phenomenal second baseman, and figures to be one for years to come, but while he missed 30 games on the DL this season, it was Rollins that kept them afloat. Brett Myers has been off and on all year, and Cole Hamels started the season like a bat out of hell, but then slowed to the pace of five wins in the final half of the season. So what did Jimmy Rollins do that was so important? Let's see... he hit .296, slugged .531, had an OPS of .875, hit 30 homers, and drove in 94 runs. He also played in all 162 games the Phillies had this season. Oh, and he, along with Curtis Granderson of the Detroit Tigers, became the first players since 1957 to go 20-20-20-20. What does that all mean? 20 triples, 20 doubles, 20 homers and 20 stolen bases all in the same season. Only four players in the history of baseball have ever done that. Not Tris Speaker, not Ted Williams, not even Ty Cobb. Just Jimmy Rollins and Curtis Granderson in 2007, Willie Mays in 1957 and Frank "Wildfire" Schulte way back in 1911. You'd be hard pressed to find a player in baseball that did more for his team this season, let alone in the NL.
(Honorable mentions: Matt Holliday, Carlos Zambrano)

NL Cy Young - Jake Peavy
The pitching triple crown hardly seems as exciting as it's offensive counterpart, but it's certainly no less impressive. Peavy went 19-6 this season with a 2.36 ERA, and 234 strikeouts in 217 innings. He led all NL pitchers in ERA (by over half a run, 0.65), WHIP, K's and wins, and he was also top 5 in the NL in innings pitched. Of Peavy's six losses, half were quality starts, and his worst start of the season, the only one of all 33 in which he gave up more than 4 earned runs, was on 3 days rest. And in September, when the Padres needed him to be Cy Young, he was. Minus the start on 3 days rest, he made 5 others, in those 5 combined, he gave up 6 earned runs and won 4 of them. The lone loss was a 2-1 loss in 14 innings to Colorado in which he went 7 innings, struck out eight, and gave up 1 earned run. After two promising seasons in '04 and '05, he seemed to take a step back last season. Well, it seems that after career bests in wins, strikeouts and innings pitched this season, the 26 year old right hander is here to stay.
(Honorable mentions: Brandon Webb, Brad Penny)

NL ROY - Troy Tulowitzki, Ryan Braun
I know, how can I do that. I can't, you can't have two winners for one award. Well, I'm going to. For every other award, there is someone that sticks out head and shoulders above the rest. There is something that puts each player above his peers. Well in this race, that isn't the case. Both youngsters had amazing seasons on teams that were in a playoff race, Braun's ended a little earlier, and Tulowitzki's didn't start until later, but his is actually still going, 163 games strong for the NL Wild Card. In 113 games Ryan Braun hit .324, slugged .634, had an OPS of 1.004, stole 15 bases, hit 34 homers, drove in 97 runs, had 26 doubles, 6 triples, 91 runs scored, and a partridge in a pear tree. In 154 games, Troy Tulowitzki hit .287, slugged .472, had an OPS of .829, hit 31 doubles, 24 homers, drove in 98 runs, scored 101 runs and had 173 hits. Each season a little different. Each season very impressive for anyone, let alone someone playing in their first full season in the bigs. Braun had 56 XBH's and Tulowitzki had 59. If there is only one NL Rookie of the Year, you tell me who it is, because I can't find just one.
(Honorable mentions: Are you serious? These guys are it. Then again, if Hunter Pence hadn't missed 50+ games, we might be talking about a triumvirate of winners)

There you have it. Straight from the horse's mouth. Go ahead and argue, but you know I'm right. Just a little clarification on Zambrano as an honorable mention for NL MVP, but not as Cy Young, he deserves it. He wasn't the best pitcher in the NL this year, but he's certainly a legitimate MVP candidate. He went 4-2 in September. He shows more emotion on the mound than Paris Hilton showed when she was getting hauled off to prison. The city of Chicago lives and dies with the Big Z. Sure he went 18-13 on the season, but he got a decision in all but three of his starts. And sure the Cubs were only 18-16 in games started by Zambrano; but ask any Cub who they want on the mound in a must win game, there wouldn't be a vote except Zambrano. Only one Cub drove in over 100 runs this season (Aramis Ramirez, 101). Only one hit over 30 homers (Alfonso Soriano, 32). But somehow they're in the playoffs.

I don't buy it that a starting pitcher can't be the MVP. Pedro Martinez should have been the AL MVP for Boston in 1999. Mariano Rivera should have been the AL MVP for New York in 2004. And sometimes, the big statistics aren't always the big statistics as exampled by Randy Johnson in 2004, where he should have been the NL Cy Young award winner, not Roger Clemens, despite going 16-14. The award is for best pitcher, not most wins, not most popular. And now you wonder how someone could lose 14 games and still be the "best pitcher?" Like this: Randy Johnson, 2004, 16-14, 245.2 innings pitched, 290 strikeouts, a 2.60 ERA, the 17th perfect game in baseball history, and get this, a 0.90 WHIP. It probably didn't have a whole lot to do with Johnson that the Diamondbacks went 51-111 that season. But it probably had a lot to do with the Diamondbacks that Johnson went only 16-14. And you can't help but to wonder, if they were even a .500 team, how many more wins might he have had, or how many fewer games might he have lost? But hey, what do I know?

The Vick Effect

noreply@blogger.com (Trevor) — Tue, 21 Aug 2007 07:53:00 +0000

Money can buy you a lot of things. Apparently common sense isn't on the list. I can think of a lot of things that I would do with infinite athletic ability, a Madden cover, a substantial contract with Nike, and oh yeah, a $100 million contract. Fighting dogs is not one of them. I'd buy my parents a house, I'd buy me a house, I'd buy myself a lot of cars, and I'd probably buy something that might return some money too. And when I wanted to get my gambling fix, I'd charter a private jet to take my friends and I to Vegas, and I'd gamble like there's no tomorrow. And when I wanted to see some fighting, I'd take my money, and I'd buy ringside tickets to the next Roy Jones Jr. fight.

See fighting in and of itself isn't bad. We have boxing matches; even UFC is mainstream these days. But the dogs don't have a choice. When dogs get feisty at a dog park, that's one thing. But putting them in a confined space with no choice but to fight or die, that's completely different. Some idiots think it would be a good time to step into the "cage" with Chuck Liddell, I'm not one of them, but its their choice.

There are cliche statements like "you can take the boy out of the hood, but you can't take the hood out of the boy." Sports is a stage unlike any other that lets us see that, magnified to the hundredth degree. So many young boys dream of one day playing professional sports, so few actually get there. But it seems that in this day and age, more and more try their hardest to piss it all away. Darryl Strawberry, Jason Giambi, Tank Johnson, Chris Henry, and now Michael Vick.

Its funny that Pacman Jones didn't get charged with anything in his latest run-in with the law, yet NFL commissioner Roger Goodell suspended him for the season. But in this new "get tough" NFL, Michael Vick still has technically not been suspended by his team, or the NFL, even though he's about to plead guilty to Federal dog fighting and racketeering charges. What a wonderful world we live in.

I'm not sure which commissioner of the four major sports has the worst job at this point. David Stern probably hasn't slept since the Tim Donaghy scandal surfaced. Now that Donaghy has plead guilty, and plans on naming other NBA officials in his gambling ring, Stern will probably continue with many a restless night.

Or how about Bud Selig? Baseball is America's sport. Everyone loves it. But then again, there was that whole Barry Bonds thing. Now I really don't care one way or another if Selig showed up at the record breaking game or not. But he should have come out and taken a stance on it. Recently, he was interviewed on HBO's sports show 'Costas Now' and it was almost painful to watch him. He was squirming in his seat like he forgot to put his Preparation H on that morning. And he beat around the tough questions as if he were afraid of his own shadow. Now in fairness, Bud Selig has brought a lot of good to baseball. Hate it or love it (I hate it), he's brought us inter-league play. He has also expanded baseball, given us the always exciting Wild Card, and kept baseball running without a work stoppage since 1994. But no matter what else he does, he'll always be remembered as the commissioner during the steroid era. An era that, like it or not, will not have an asterisk next to it in the record books.

Then there is Gary Bettman. Right about now you're all asking, who? And that's exactly the point. I've played hockey for as long as I can remember. There is no sport or activity that I enjoy more hockey. But America's interest in hockey is at an all-time low. Nobody cares, the league is more irrelevant than the Celtics were in Boston before they got Ray Allen and Kevin Garnett. And its a shame too. They actually have a good product to market, with young guns such as Alexander Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby, the game is getting more and more exciting. The future is bright for years to come. The only problem is that nobody is watching it. Major networks wouldn't pick up TV contracts with the NHL. And who could blame them after the league and players combined turned their back on the fans for an entire season?

And then there's Roger Goodell. The commissioner of perhaps the most marketable league in America right now. No work stoppages in a long time, the most watched single sporting event (Super Bowl) year in and year out, young marketable players, golden boys Peyton Manning and Tom Brady. Seems the job couldn't be easier. Well, it probably isn't all that its cracked up to be right now. How do you handle a situation like the one he's in right now? One of the biggest stars in your game all of a sudden you find out is also one of the biggest stars in dog fighting.

There are a lot of terrible things that you could tell your mother, and I'm sure she'd still love you, but even mama Vick can't be proud right now. Mike Vick could probably run a 40-yard dash, and go back to the starting line before I could finish. He can probably throw the ball 50 yards farther than I can, with ten times the velocity. He can jump higher, turn quicker, stutter-step better, and do pretty much anything athletic better than I can. But there's one thing that I'll be able to do for the next three years better than Vick, anything I want. Because Mr. Vick will be on the schedule of a Federal penitentiary. Sure he'll get three square meals a day, but that can't be as appealing as it sounds.

So in this steroid era, pissing everything away will be known as pulling a Mike Vick. An eight figure bank account, and a world of athletic talent couldn't keep Vick from throwing away his future. Now the NFL, Nike and the Falcons are throwing Vick away instead. Though, the really funny part is that someone is going to do this again. Maybe it won't be dog fighting. But someone is going to screw up on a national stage again. And that time, it will not only have a name, but it will be infinitely stupid. Vick should be an example to all the athletes out there. Just like the first time you tried to play ball in the house, and broke a window, and your parents got mad, lesson learned. But instead here, you have millions of dollars, play a kid's game for a King's ransom, you see one of your peers flush it all down the toilet like late night Chinese food, and you're still going to do it. So the next time a star athlete decides that he wants to transport 300 pounds of marijuana in his car, it'll have a name. Or the next time one of those guys decides he wants to get drunk, blow some yay and kill a hooker, it'll have a name. But the next time you, who were blessed with common sense, thinks about doing any of those things, you'll say to yourself, "oh no, I'm not pulling a Vick."

So here's to wishing Vick a pleasant time in prison, and hoping that he never gets the chance to play another snap in the NFL again.

For Someone who Always got "it"

noreply@blogger.com (Trevor) — Sun, 20 May 2007 07:07:00 +0000

Maybe he just doesn't get "it" anymore? I am of course talking about the great Roger Clemens. No doubt one of the top 3 pitchers to ever play the game of baseball, and no doubt the best pitcher baseball has seen in the modern era.

This is a guy who always understood the game. He always understood his place. He knew what it meant when he struck out 20 hitters in a single game... twice. He knew what it meant every time he won a Cy Young award. This is a guy that relished the limelight. He works out hard in the off-season so that he can step in front of fifty thousand people and not have a doubt in his mind what he can do out there.

Love him or hate him, this guy was a legend in Boston for the better part of ten years. Then of course he hit the infamous "twilight of his career" (according to Dan Duquette), and he moved on to Toronto; where he went on to resurrect his career by winning consecutive AL Cy Young awards. Then he moved onto the Yankees where he finally won his coveted World Series rings, along with another Cy. And then the next stop, which many believed might be his final stop, was in Houston, where he led the Astros to an NL pennant, and in the midst of all the chaos, he won his record seventh Cy Young.

For the last three seasons the Rocket made about $18 million per, pro-rated of course during the years in which he came back mid-season. He got a free Hummer H2 to drive around during his tenure there as well. So as this season began, and Roger never filed those official retirement papers, the question in the back of everyone's mind was "where will the Rocket land?"

Of course he'll stay in Houston. Why wouldn't he? He had grown comfortable there, it is home after all. His son is in the Astros farm system. He doesn't have to travel when he's not pitching. He gets a free car to drive around, as if he needs a free car. Make no mistake, Drayton McLane and the Houston organization was more than accommodating to the desires of an over the hill (if only in age) pitcher. Not to mention that the NL is as wide open as it has been in a long time. So a chance to go deep in the playoffs, for your hometown team, a team that owns the minor league rights to your son sounds pretty good, right? Well, what about...

Boston? Boston certainly had the money. But its funny, it seems to always come back to that word, that driving word in sports, money. Now I don't begrudge the players for making the exorbitant amounts of money that they make. Hell, I buy team hats, I own a t-shirt, I pay to go to games, and I help the television ratings out whenever I'm at home. So I can't complain about the money in the game when I, myself am part of the mass that feeds the beast. But it seems to me that there has to be a certain point that a player reaches in his career where it might actually not be about the money. Doesn't there? I don't know. Thats why I said it seems, but then again, I've unfortunately never had the tough task to choose which million dollar contract I'd like to sign.

But Clemens back in Boston? The hysteria, the history. Imagine, finish the storied career where it started. Showing fans first hand how wrong Duquette was way back. Getting #21 retired for eternity, never to be worn again by another Boston player (the Red Sox have certain criteria for retiring numbers, one of which is that you must finish your career in Boston, the lone exception being Carlton Fisk).

How about joining a team with a legitimate shot at the pennant. A team with a bullpen to close out six inning starts. All for the measly salary of a pro-rated $18 million. Sounds pretty good to me. Sounds like something out of Hollywood. Add to those 348 wins, move into the 1a ranking in all time strikeouts (1a because lets face it, 5,714 strikeouts will probably never be touched). Find out what it is like to be absolutely revered by a city. Revered in only a way that Bird or Jordan or Gretzky knows what it feels like.

But back to reality. Back to the world that is. Back to the money driven world of sports. Again, I don't mind the money, but on the day when Clemens announced he would return to the Yankees for a pro-rated salary of $28,000,022, I felt a twinge of disappointment. Its not that I would have rather the Sox shell out that king's ransom for the Rocket, in fact I'm rather glad that they didn't. I don't even mind that he's in New York, he's pitched there before, he's got friends on the team, and I'm sure its a great place to play.

No, I was disappointed for another reason. I was disappointed because I really truly thought this man got "it." There really isn't anything left for him to do in New York that he can't do anywhere else. He cannot single-handedly turn around a team at this point in his career. He will not go much deeper than the sixth inning in a large number of his starts. And I don't doubt that he still has the stuff to be a good pitcher. But Clemens committed a baseball sin. You can chase records like Bonds all you want. You can come out and apologize for "doing that stuff" like Jason Giambi and continue to play. You can even be a hired gun, one last run at the end of your career to chase that elusive title. But you cannot transcend the game. As great as Albert Pujols is, and as big as Magic and Montana were, they never thought they were bigger than the game. It seems at this point that the Rocket is coming back for the Rocket, and for no other reason. He's coming back for a payday, he's coming back to try to pad some stats, all while doing it for a team that doesn't seem to have a snowball's chance in hell of even making the playoffs.

Sometimes staying at home is the best idea. I can't wait to see what happens the first time Clemens is photographed playing golf when a teammate gets hurt in a day game, or when the New York press catches him sitting down for a porterhouse at Smith & Woll while "his team" gets swept in a double-header. I wonder if he's got an idea up his sleeve that required him to be in the media capital of the world while he pitches at age 45. Be careful what you wish for, because sometimes, you just might get it.

Booty Call

noreply@blogger.com (Trevor) — Tue, 02 Jan 2007 01:07:00 +0000

Take a bow John David Booty. If there were any doubters before the Rose Bowl about the Trojan's newest quarterback, they've since been silenced. Before he was taken out with just over two minutes remaining in the game, Booty had already put up 391 yards and 4 touchdown passes against the vaunted Michigan defense. And it wasn't just the amount of yards or touchdowns. It was the way in which they were amassed. With deep outs and straight up streaks down the field, Booty put perfect touch on his deep balls to make him look more like his counterpart Chad Henne who was touted as the strongest arm in the country.

It wasn't all good for the junior QB out of Shreveport, LA though. He threw to Dwayne Jarrett all day. And Jarrett responded with a season high 11 catches for a season high 203 yards and 2 touchdowns. One might wonder how this could possibly be a bad thing? Well, Steve Smith is a senior, and Booty might have just played his star junior receiver (Jarrett) into the first round of the NFL draft.

But forget about the negatives for the time being. Forget about the draft, forget about where a top junior WR like Calvin Johnson or Dwayne Jarrett might end up if they declare for the draft (the Lions again pick in the top 5, they can't possibly take another WR, can they?). And forget about next season, for a minute. John David Booty is a star. He was shunned from the first game of the season. There was no way USC could fill Matt Leinart, who had no chance to fill in for Carson Palmer, could they? Who was this John David Booty guy? Before starting in his first game this season, he had only seen action in eight games in his previous two seasons at USC.

Apparently that was all he needed. In 13 games this season, Booty amassed 3347 yards passing with 29 TD passes and only 9 interceptions all season long. Those stats look awfully familiar. Oh that's right, former Trojan Matt Leinarts stats when he won the Heisman in 2004? 3322 passing yards, 33 TD's and 6 INT's.

He may not be the next Carson Palmer. He may not be the next Matt Leinart. But he is the next great Trojan QB in a historic line. So if Trojan fans were worried after their disappointing season ending loss to UCLA, the Rose Bowl victory and Pete Carroll's proclamation that he has his best recruiting class coming in next year in his tenure at USC should allow them to stop worrying. Here's to the 2007 preseason #1 team.

Random Quickie

noreply@blogger.com (Trevor) — Sat, 02 Dec 2006 08:31:00 +0000

Farewell to a Dirtdog, maybe...
Tonight, the Boston Red Sox officially opted not to offer right fielder Christopher Trotman Nixon salary arbitration. This action could potentially end the Red Sox career for Trot. Now, under the new free agency rules, the Red Sox are eligible to sign Nixon again anytime during the off season, but the chances seem less likely everyday.

I'd like to take a quick minute to say a possible farewell to my favorite Red Sox player of all time. Sure he had difficulty hitting lefties, and sure he spent a lot of the last few seasons on the disabled list, but everyday he stepped on the field, he played his heart out. And sometimes, that's all it takes. So farewell (maybe) to a consummate professional, farewell (maybe) to one of the last true dirt dogs, farewell (maybe) to the guy who had the audacity to swing through a take sign on a 3-0 count in game 4 of the World Series, a swing by the way, that gave the Red Sox a lead they would never relinquish to win their first World Series title in 86 years; so farewell (maybe) to number 7.

Enough of USC
Please. For the love of God. They're good, no doubt about it. Considering they lost two Heisman winners in the same off season. Then again, John David Booty is doing a pretty good Matt Leinart impression. They're good, but they're not number 2 good, not if it bumps the University of Michigan down a peg. Lets review:

Both teams have lost 1 game. USC's loss? At unranked Oregon State by 2 points. Conference foe, always a tough game, still an unranked opponent. Michigan's loss? At #1 Ohio State by 3 points in an instant classic. A loss, at the horseshoe, by a field goal to your most hated rival.

Not enough? How about a common opponent. Both teams played Notre Dame. Both teams beat Notre Dame, and both did it pretty handily. Now it should be noted that I believe the Irish are highly overrated, they're a top 20 team at best, but they're still a common opponent. Back to the point. Michigan's win over Notre Dame was a 26 point slaughter in South Bend. It was a game that wasn't even close. USC's win was an almost equally impressive 20 point win, but it was in LA. What's more impressive? 26 points in South Bend? or 20 points at home?

I understand style points. And I understand that losing late in the season can kill your hopes. But I also understand that some people are hating on the idea of a rematch. Critics have said "Michigan has already had their crack at #1, USC should get its turn." How about #1 should play the second best team in the country for the National title? And here's a hint, USC is not #2.

Trade Manny? Keep Manny?
The Cubs are shelling out $17 million a year over the next 8 for Alfonso Soriano and the Houston Astros are going to do virtually the same thing over the next 6 for Carlos Lee, and the Sox still want to trade Manny? I just don't get it. Unless he publicly comes out and says from his own mouth that he wants to be traded, I'm going to assume that he's going to play here for his $17-18 million as well. Those two contracts make Manny look like an absolute bargain. He's an RBI machine, and he's one of the best right handed hitters in the last 25 years, protecting the games best current left handed bat.

But he seems disinterested. And he quit on his team last year. Those might be true, and there is absolutely no excuse to ever quit on your team, especially when you get paid a king's ransom to play a kid's game. But I believe there's enough positive in Manny that he can remain productive and happy in Boston. Most insiders agree that there's no way the Sox will get equal value in return for Manny, so why do it? Why trade for Loney or LaRoche? Players that might turn out to be the next Manny, but could just as easily become the next Kevin Maas (who? exactly my point, move along). Boston is not the place where people are going to be patient waiting for prospects to develop. We have a habit of bringing them up too quickly, hell, in Boston, we honk while the light is still red, to let the person in front of you know that it is going to turn green. And you want to trade a player who is currently one of the most productive in the game? My advice to Theo: keep Manny, sign Matsuzaka, and worry about more important things like...

...not signing JD Drew
WHY?? Please. Give me one good reason? OK, so he has a world of talent, I need more than that. In this day and age, that icky word "potential" gets thrown around in the sports world quicker than K-Fed is losing his assets. Forget that he can't stay healthy for a minute, the real problem is that he doesn't care. Why are players like Varitek, Papi, Brady and Bruschi beloved in this town? Because they give a damn. They realize that even though in this day and age it might all be about the money, that they'll never transcend the game. JD Drew doesn't even know what that means. He could strike out to end the World Series, and his facial expression would be identical to the one you'd see on him if he were in a bar and just wet himself after drinking one too many. He just doesn't care. Some say "it works for Manny..." I say Boston fans couldn't put up with two Manny's. And Manny does care, he just cares about himself more.

Oh, and remember the fact that he can't stay healthy? Yeah, about that. He can't. Would throwing $14-15 million a year at him all of a sudden make him a model of health? I doubt it. Now I realize that he played 146 games last year, and he even played 145 in 2004, but sandwiched in between those two seasons was a 72 game season for Mr. Drew. I'm not saying there are better players available. But there are certainly better values available out there.

And on a side note: JD Drew's full name is David Jonathan Drew. So either I'm retarded, or we should actually be calling him DJ Drew. Maybe he's just dyslexic? But hey, at least he can hit a baseball.

In Belichick I Trust
I knew he wouldn't let me down. After uncharacteristically abandoning the running game in the loss to the Colts, it seems as though the hooded sweatshirt mentality has returned. No more fancy red sweatshirts with new cuffs. Back to good 'ol Patriot football. Football where every team member buys into one idea, winning. Football that brought New England three Super Bowl victories in four seasons. The defense is going with the old bend, but don't break attitude (scary as it is, especially with out 37 back there). The running game is going, and Brady is again a legitimate MVP candidate. I really have nothing specific to say about the Patriots here, but I figured I couldn't leave them out.

The Greatest

noreply@blogger.com (Trevor) — Mon, 13 Nov 2006 21:44:00 +0000

Congratulations to Patrick Roy on his recent induction into the Hockey Hall of Fame. The waiting period was simply a formality for the greatest money goaltender the game has ever seen.

If you want intangibles, the man had those. He had a knack for getting into the head of other teams. He had a knack for turning it on, and shutting down other teams when the game was on the line and it really mattered. Playoffs? He lived for them. Roy was the backbone of four Stanley Cup winning teams. Twice in Montreal, and twice in Colorado. He was without question, the best playoff goaltender of all time. He took a '92-'93 Montreal Canadiens team to the top behind a patchwork lineup to win his second Stanley Cup. In the '95-'96 season, he lived up to his word by bring a Stanley Cup victory the the Colorado Avalanche (formerly the Quebec Nordiques). After being embarrassed in a loss to Detroit after his coach in Montreal kept him in the game, Roy demanded a trade. While he was getting ready to leave Montreal for Colorado, he told his former teammates that he was going to win the Stanley Cup, and thats just what he did.

Not enough? Want some statistics? How about an NHL record 551 regular season wins? Or an NHL record 151 playoff wins? He's also played more minutes, and started more games than any other goaltender in both the regular season and the playoffs. His career was also littered with awards, three times he won the Vezina Trophy as the league's top goaltender (1989, 1990, 1992). The Jennings trophy five times, for fewest goals allowed (in 1987, 1988 and 1989 shared with Brian Hayward, and then in 1992 and 2002 by himself). Roy was a first team NHL all star 4 times, and a second team all star twice in his career. He also played in eleven all star games.

Perhaps the most impressive stat? His record three Conn Smythe trophies as playoff MVP. No other player has ever won three Conn Smythe trophies as the playoff MVP. Not Wayne Gretzky, not Guy Lafleur, not Bobby Orr, not Mario Lemieux. Only Patrick Roy. The first of which coming at the tender age of 20 in 1986 as the youngest player to ever win the award. The second came in 1993 behind the patchwork Canadiens lineup. After losing the first two games in the first round against the Nordiques, Roy got fired up after hearing the Quebec coach proclaim that they had figured Roy out. How did he respond? By backstopping the Canadiens to four straight wins over the Nordiques to win that series, four more straight wins to sweep the Buffalo Sabres in the second round, and then three more in a row to start off the third round against the Islanders. All in all, 11 straight victories, including 10 consecutive overtime victories. Read that again, 10 overtime victories in a stretch of 11 games. Good players can win in the regular season, great players win in the playoffs, with the game on the line, 10 times in a row. His final Conn Smythe came in 2001 with the Colorado Avalanche when he won all 16 games for the Ave's, while posting a 1.69 GAA and a .934 save percentage.

So as if there were any question that Patrick Roy would be inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame after the required three year waiting period, here it is. Congratulations to Roy, and the rest of the 2006 Hockey Hall of Fame class: Dick Duff, Herb Brooks and Harley Hotchkiss.

Hot Stove

noreply@blogger.com (Trevor) — Sun, 12 Nov 2006 08:08:00 +0000

$38 to $45 million. Got your attention? Thats how much money the Red Sox have reportedly bid to the Seibu Lions for the right to negotiate with their 26 year old phenom pitcher Daisuke Matsuzaka. Ten figures to negotiate with a pitcher from Japan. A pitcher who has never pitched a single inning in Major League Baseball. That enough to warm up the talks for off-season baseball moves? In no particular order, let us discuss a few moves the Sox will be considering during the off-season.

Relief Pitching
The Sox have declined their club option for reliever Keith Foulke, instead opting for the $1.5 million buyout, and Foulke has reciprocated by declining his player option to return to the Sox for $3.75 million. The funny thing? Nobody has seemed to have made even a little noise about it, positive, or negative. Now I was never a big fan of Keith Foulke, if you know me, you know that. But make no doubt about it, if Keith Foulke doesn't pitch the way he did in the 2004 playoffs, we'd be working on an 89 year drought in Boston. If there were a baseball playoff MVP, rather than an MVP for each individual round, the 2004 winner would have been Foulke. Not Manny, not Papi, and not even Schilling. Still, nobody is saddened by the news. Maybe it was his "Johnny Burger King" comments, or maybe it was his seeming lack of passion, but either way, nobody is batting an eye.

And the other relievers? Papelbon is gone as well. Thankfully, he's only left the bullpen for the starting rotation, but there wasn't a better closer in baseball for the majority of the season last year than Papelbon. Hopefully he can bring the same fire and intensity to the rotation.

Timlin? Can he still pitch? Sure, in mop up situations. With all due respect, he couldn't pitch last year. I love the guy, he's been a team guy and a gamer ever since he arrived in Boston, but he was a walking corpse on the mound last season. Maybe it was because he pitched in the WBC, maybe it was because he was just plain done. But either way, it doesn't seem likely he'll regain his '04 form for this season.

The bottom line is that the bullpen needs help, and lots of it. The Sox have plenty of young arms, but reliability is at a premium. One of their biggest off-season tasks is to rebuild the psyche of young prospect Craig Hansen, who got shelled after being called up late last season. Overall, there is a lot of work to do, but it can be done. Year after year, the closer position seems to be more mental than anything. Look at Brad Lidge. Closers are made just as easily as they can lose their jobs. Todd Jones? Bobby Jenks? JJ Putz? Not necessarily the BJ Ryan's and Mariano Rivera's of the world.

Manny
What would a hot stove in Boston be without talking about Manny Ramirez? And what kind of a person would I be if I tried to feed you sweet nothings about how much better off the Sox would be without him? Manny is not going anywhere. Nor should he. Is he a headache? Maybe. A distraction? At times. Overpaid? Sure. Worth every penny? You tell me. The fact is that the Sox are paying him a lot of money, and the fact remains that they would continue to pay him a lot of money, regardless of the uniform he's wearing next season.

And what would the return be for Manny? I'd accept nothing short of Howie Kendrick and and Ervin Santana for Manny at this point. But lets face it, Manny was placed on irrevocable waivers two seasons ago, and nobody took him. What would make someone give up two top tier prospects for him now? Probably nothing. And hopefully nothing. Why would a team want to get rid of one of the best right-handed hitters the game has ever seen? According to the Bill James handbook, if Manny stays healthy for the rest of his career, his career numbers would end up looking something like this: .305 batting average, .405 OBP, .580 slugging, 691 home runs and 2,288 RBIs. Seems pretty decent to me.

Catcher
V-Tek is here for another two seasons, unless the Sox think they could unload the contract they signed him to. I said it two years ago, and I'll say it again, this was a bad contract. Tek's offensive production dropped last year, again. He got hurt and missed a good portion of games in the middle of the season last year, again. Don't get me wrong, I'm a big Varitek supporter, I think he's a stand up guy, and he calls one of the best games behind the plate. Pitchers, young and old, both feel comfortable working while throwing to him. But to think, we could have had Babe Ruth Bard backing him up, and perhaps getting ready to take over an everyday role this year? Oh well. It will be interesting to see who Theo has in mind for a back-up, and possible platoon player for Varitek this year. I think Bellhorn used to play a little catcher back in the day.

Starting Pitching
Alas, the most important one of them all. Your number one going into the season is Curt Schilling. No harm there. This is the guy who risked the rest of his career to pitch in the postseason for the Red Sox, had a terrible season following the World Series win, and bounced back marvelously last year. If anyone ever questions the dedication and toughness of this guy, they've got some serious issues. This is supposedly going to be his final season. It is the final year of his current contract. And he says that he owes his family too much for putting up with him being on the road his whole career that he promised this will be his last season. But on the other hand, the thought of playing for a team wherever he may settle down in the same role as a Roger Clemens the last two seasons has to be intriguing. At this point Schilling is 40/60 (in/out) at best for a bust in Cooperstown. But this is a man that knows his place in the game, and it might intrigue him to play for a team when he only has to travel if he's pitching. Either way, he's your ace going into this season.

Holding down the #2 spot in the rotation will again be Josh Beckett. One has to hope that his performance last year was simply an aberration, and not what to expect for the rest of his contract. But Beckett has done plenty in his young career to allow us to believe that he can bounce back and finally be the pitcher everyone thinks he can be.

Papelbon makes the move from the back of the pen, closing down games in pressure cooker situations, to the middle of the rotation, starting up some games in pressure cooker situations. Sure he's got the stuff to be a great pitcher, not a good pitcher, but a great one. But its his intensity that I love more than anything. The fist pumps leaving the mound, and the audacity to want the ball, no matter how grim the situation may look make me want him on the mound every 5th day.

Wakefield is potentially your #4 starter right now. But that might be subject to change. Wake has been nothing but positive since the day he first donned a Red Sox uniform. He closed, he came out of the bullpen, he's started, and he's given up post-season starts in order to keep the rest of the rotation intact and help win games. Whatever his role might be in '07, he will be a welcome sight. I will never complain about a man who has never complained about his own.

The fifth starter, or first starter, depending on how the off-season works out is the most intriguing part of this hot stove. The Sox have reportedly submitted the highest bid to the Seibu Lions for the right to negotiate with Daisuke Matsuzaka. This Japanese phenom reportedly has top of the rotation stuff. The Sox have offered $42 million to the Lions to negotiate with their star. If all reports are true, the Sox now have 30 days to negotiate a contract with the young pitcher. If Matsuzaka ends up in Boston, he would be their 5th starter, but that might not end up being his slot in the rotation. A lot of people might think that this is a lot of money to spend for a pitcher that hasn't pitched in the bigs, but its a smart move too. It solidifies the Red Sox in the East, it shows that they fully intend to remain contenders. It also gives them a chance to get a top of the rotation starter without waiting for him to develop for four years in the minors. Lastly, and possibly most importantly, it keeps Matsuzaka out of pinstripes. Very similar to the way putting Johnny Damon in pinstripes last season kept him out of a Sox uniform.

So there we have it. There are many more positional changes to talk about, most notably the middle infield. But that should be enough to get the pot going for now. This off-season shows the potential, as always, to be extremely interesting for Red Sox fans.

MVPapi (again)

noreply@blogger.com (Trevor) — Wed, 09 Aug 2006 04:38:00 +0000

Scoop Jackson beat me to it here on ESPN.com, but that doesn't make it any less true. Actually, if you'd like to get technical, I beat him to it, a year ago right here on this very page. It was true a year ago, and it has been true ever since, Big Papi is the AL MVP.

Even if the Red Sox (ghasp) miss the playoffs, there is very little argument that anyone has meant more to their team in the AL this year. And if the Sox make the playoffs? There is no argument.

Listen, say they even win the AL East and make it over the mighty Yankees. Who is the MVP from that season? Derek Jeter? Please. Listen, I respect the guy, I kind of even like him. He's a magnificent player, he's a winner, and he's having a career year. But even with the injuries to outfielders Gary Sheffield and Hideki Matsui, the Yankees offense has been far from their problem. Jorge Posada is having his best season in three years, Giambi is stroking the ball with more power than he has in recent memory (and hopefully peeing in a cup after every home run). So what A-rod is having an off year, there's still Mo. The point is, Jeter is having a very good season, but the numbers he is putting up are not league MVP type numbers. He gets to bat behind the best leadoff hitter in the game, and again, even with those outfield injuries, the Yankees 3-4-5 hitters still make any pitcher cringe.

So what about the Central? I mean come on, there's gotta be someone in the Central that can garner more MVP votes than a DH right? How about the Tigers? They've been a great story all year long. And they are going to win the AL Central. But who on that team is the MVP? Their BA leader is hitting .307, their home run leader has 21, their stolen base leader has 16 and their RBI leader has 79, and guess what? All of those guys, are different players on the team. In an age run by superstars, the Tigers are doing it the old fashioned way, as a team. There are no superstars there, there are just a bunch of good baseball players, having good seasons at the same time, and a wealth of talented young pitchers.

The White Sox? Sure. They've got 2, maybe even three legitimate candidates. But therein lies the problem. Paul Konerko is doing what Paul Konerko does. He's on pace for 40+ HRs and 100+ RBIs... again. Jermaine Dye is proving, again, what he is capable of when he's healthy for an entire season. And Jim Thome is basically a lock for comeback player of the year, while also putting up MVP type numbers, as a DH. All three are probably worthy of some votes. The problem for them is that they all play on the same team, so instead of splitting votes two ways, like candidates often do (Manny and Papi), they're going to split votes three ways. Which, in the end, doesn't work out well for any of them.

And Minnesota is in a similar boat to Chicago. Cases could be made for any number of players on their team from Joe Mauer and Justin Morneau to Francisco Liriano. Unfortunately, Liriano's season might be over. And as impressive as Mauer's .363 average is, he's mainly a singles hitter, for now. So tell me honestly then, would you take Morneau over Papi?

From here, we can pretty much eliminate anyone in the West as a candidate for the MVP award. As much as I like Vlad, and as much as I think he should have been second in MVP voting last year, he's simply not putting together that type of season this year. And nobody else in the West is even close.

So why are we so afraid to give an MVP award to a DH? Is there something taboo about the position? Is it not the same position in the lineup that each of the other teams get to use when playing in an AL park? Sure is. David Ortiz is also capable of playing in the field, as he's shown in the World Series and interleague play. The Sox simply have a better choice to put in the field at first base.

Barry Bonds has won 7 MVP awards, including 4 straight between '01-'04. Yes, he has also won Golden Glove awards. But none recently. In fact, for those 4 straight MVPs, Bond's fielding percentage was .980, hardly award worthy, but the fact that he was nowhere near his former Gold Glove self in the outfield seemed to go unnoticed. Other less than stellar defenders who also doubled as MVP award winners? Try Slammin' Sammy. NL MVP in 1998. Sosa compiled a .974 fielding percentage in the OF that year with 9 errors. Alright, but anything worse? I'm glad you asked. How about the now infamous Ken Caminiti? He sported an awful .954 fielding percentage with 20 errors playing the hot corner for the Padres when he won the award in 1996. Twenty errors at the hot corner?! Isn't that an important position? Are you kidding me? Twenty errors and you win the MVP?? Because why? He showed the effort by playing in the field? Now I know there was no option for him to DH in the NL, but the point remains, how much did Caminiti playing in the field really help his team? I'd say somewhere between a little bit, to not at all.

So back to my man Big Papi. Nobody would argue his importance to the Red Sox. But how valuable would he be if he played in the field? The same? Would his numbers offset his defensive inefficiencies? Or would they hurt the team too much? How about a limited sample, so far this season Papi has started 10 games at first base, and made 2 errors. Which projects to roughly 34 errors in a whole season. So my man plays the season at first, instead of DHing, drives in 160 runs, cranks 50+ longballs, and sports 34 errors at one of the most important defensive positions in the game, still MVP caliber? Now, let me be fair to Papi, as I stated, that is a very limited sample from this season. Take his '03 stats, 45 games started, 3 errors, projects to 10.8 errors on the season in 162 games. Not too bad. The point is that he can play first base, the fact is that he doesn't. He simply hits.

Now I'm a stats guy. Show me the numbers and I'll listen to you. Argue with me based on the SportsCenter highlights you saw last night and I'll laugh in your face. The numbers don't lie. I've read numerous articles, with substantial statistical support that say that clutch hitting does not exist. In the end, players are going to hit for their average, and get on base at the same clip that they always get on base. Jeter and Ortiz both come up to bat a lot in clutch type situations, therefore, it seems that they succeed more than others. But as little as I believe in the myth of clutch hitting, I'll still answer Papi when you ask me which Sox hitter I'd most like to see at the dish with the game on the line.

There's just something magic about that guy. There was something magic in the '04 ALCS. And there has been something magic ever since. He's so charismatic that men, women and children all love him just the same. He's been carrying such a big stick since the end of the '04 season, that it seems that everyone except opposing managers have discovered that pitching to Papi in late and close situations is just a bad idea.

Courtesy of the Elias Sports Bureau, and thanks to the research work of Scoop Jackson, we have this staggering statistic: since the start of the 2004 postseason, Ortiz has come to the plate in 19 walk-off situations. And he has successfully reached base 16 times, hitting 11-for-14 with seven home runs. Nineteen chances. Eleven hits. Two walks. Sixteen times he has successfully reached at least first base. Sure that is a small sample size, too small for me to give into the myth of clutch hitting. But it sure is impressive, and it does prove one thing, this guy is good. Regardless of clutch hitting existing, or not existing, the fact remains that opposing teams would probably rather see anyone on the Sox come to the dish in a walk-off situation other than Big Papi, as much as everyone who likes the Sox loves to see the third spot in the order come up to bat with the game on the line.

The man is just plain good. Manny is just Manny, and other than getting more than advertised from Alex Gonzalez at short, the Sox have gotten less than advertised from pretty much everyone else, namely Coco Crisp and Jason Varitek. Papi has come through when it has counted, and stayed away from hurting the team with poor play in the field. He propelled the Red Sox to the cover of Time magazine after helping them win their first World Series title in 86 years in 2004, and hasn't looked back since (the '05 World Series Champion Chicago White Sox weren't even the feature story on the cover of Sports Illustrated after they won). Not only does he put up staggering numbers, but he has the ear of his teammates, the heart of the city, and the attention of every opposing manager.

It was true in 2005, and it is true in 2006, glove or no glove, David Ortiz is the American League MVP.

At Long Last

noreply@blogger.com (Trevor) — Thu, 22 Jun 2006 05:53:00 +0000

Jon Lester has arrived. With a swift pump of his fist, Jon Lester showed Red Sox fans what all the hype was about on Wednesday night. His final pitch of the night was a 92 mph fastball fanned on by Matthew LeCroy of the Washington Nationals. That pitch (his 107th), marked his tenth strikeout of the evening. The most by any Red Sox pitcher in a single game this season.

Now it might be a bit too early to think of him as a lock as a top of the rotation starter, but if tonight was a sign of things to come, I like what I saw. Four plus pitches, and a fist pump filled with emotion. As he left to a standing ovation in front of 36,464 screaming fans at Fenway, Lester said things "started to slow down a little bit," which has allowed him to "appreciate things more."

Sox fans have been dying for the chance to see all the young guns that the team has collected over the last few years. Manny Delcarmen, Jonathan Papelbon, Craig Hansen, and now Jon Lester. Red Sox nation can finally see why as soon as trade talks with other teams mentioned Lester as part of the deal, the trade talks came to a screeching halt.

Besides that little World Series ring, perhaps the best thing Theo Epstein has brought to the Red Sox is youth. A team that was clearly aging quickly last season, has suddenly become a lot younger this season. With the additions of Coco Crisp and Wily Mo Pena in the outfield, and Josh Beckett in the rotation, the Sox instantly added some competetive years to the team. Now with the influx of their own young guys like: Kevin Youkilis, Jonathan Papelbon, Manny Delcarmen, Craig Hansen, and now, Jon Lester, the Sox seem to have a good mix of veterans and youngsters.

Curt Schilling, generally regarded as one of the best prepared pitchers in baseball, certainly liked what he saw as shown when he joined the stading O for Lester. If that performance was good enough for a guy who can pitch 8 innings against the Yankees, allow only 3 runs, walk nobody, strike out 4, get the win, and still not be satisfied with his performance, then it's good enough for me.

Hopefully it's the time for the young guns to light up the summer months. Papelbon is locking down saves like it's his job (get it? Keith Foulke!). Delcarmen is starting to throw some first pitch strikes. And now Lester is getting into the action. If Beckett can get himself off his schneid, Schilling can keep being Schilling, and the offense can give Wake more than zero runs in support, this might be as close to a rebuilding year as we'll have to get for a while.

Return of the World Series Champ

noreply@blogger.com (Trevor) — Mon, 01 May 2006 05:01:00 +0000

The current headline at Dirt Dogs reads "Stand. Because he delivered." I couldn't agree more. If you read anything I write, you're probably thinking to yourself, wait, what?! This guy has been doing nothing but ripping on Damon since he left, and now he's saying we should stand at the game?? Yep.

I want to set something straight, I was expressing my distaste for the choices Johnny made after his contract was up in Boston (namely signing with the Yankees), not my distaste for what he did while he was here. Lets recap, he played hard, everyday. He crashed into outfield walls, and even Damian Jackson. He was the best leadoff man in the game for four seasons (and probably still is) on one of the best offenses in the league. He was a team guy, who always stood up for his teammates, and was the first one to take the blame for the Sox going down 3-0 to the Yankees in the '04 ALCS. Oh yeah, he also helped the Boston Red Sox win their first World Series title in 86 years. EIGHTY-SIX years of heartbreak, of losing, erased in one single moment. Not because of one guy, not because of five guys, because of every player that donned a Red Sox uniform that season, including Johnny Damon.

Now assume for a minute that Johnny Damon had retired. Or assume that he had gone to "just any other team" like say, the Dodgers, or the Reds. There wouldn't be a single boo in Fenway Park. Boo Raffy Palmiero because he made you believe with all your heart that he never took steroids and then failed a drug test. Or boo a guy who doesn't care if the team wins or loses more than he cares about his next paycheck. But don't boo Johnny Damon. Get rid of your Damon memorabilia, burn his book, or turn your back on him when he's not playing in Fenway, but don't boo.

A lot of players have come through Boston over the years. Some have left good impressions, and some have left nothing but a bad taste. But all have left something, because Boston fans are anything but forgetful. Any Boston fan can vividly recall Fisk's homer just as easily as they can recall the ball going through Buckner's legs.

There are certain players in Boston that are remembered above all others. What do guys like Larry Legend, Roger Clemens and Cam Neely have in common? They were consummate professionals, and relentless competitors. Every game to them was game 7 in the finals. There was no such thing as a meaningless game, or taking a night off. Winning was at the top of the list. Sure they were making plenty of money, but when they were playing, it wasn't about that paycheck, it was about having more points on their side of the scoreboard than the other team had on theirs at the end of the game.

Sounds a lot like Damon huh? So when he stands at the plate for his first at bat Monday night, if you're among the lucky to have a ticket to the game, take a minute to stand, clap a couple of times, and send a few cheers his way if you're so inclined. Because regardless of what you might think of him now, regardless of what you believe about his choice to end up in New York, and regardless of the uniform he's wearing when he steps onto the field, he's earned it. Though his allegience might currently be elsewhere, wearing a Sox uniform for four years meant something to him, and in Boston, that should mean something to us.

Witch Hunt

noreply@blogger.com (Trevor) — Fri, 31 Mar 2006 16:33:00 +0000

If you know me at all, you know that I dig Barry Bonds. I believe he's the best baseball player in the past 25 years. I believe he's a hall of famer, and I believe he's one of the top 5 players of all time. And I believe all fo this with, or without steroids. Here's the most simple fact for all the haters who wouldn't vote for him to get into the Hall of Fame: he hit his record breaking 73 home runs in 2001, so let's throw out the stats since then. At the end of the 2000 season he had 494 career home runs. At the end of the season he had 471 stolen bases. Now lets assume for a minute, that all of the steroid allegations are true. And lets assume for a minute that he didn't hit 73 home runs in 2001, and just continued on his regular career pace. He would still be the first and only person in baseball's 500/500 club. He is also one of three players ever to join the 40/40 club (1996). So anyone who believes that Barry Bonds was not a complete player, he was, and still is.

Even if you wipe out Bonds' stats from the last five seasons, he's still a Hall of Famer. I'm not sure what this witch hunt initiated by commissioner Bud Selig is trying to prove. It is a third party investigation. It is an investigation where players cannot be subpoenaed to testify. What exactly is it that baseball hopes to find out? But more importantly, what is it exactly that baseball plans on doing if they do indeed find something out?

Commissioner Selig did not once mention Barry Bonds' name in his press conference announcing the launch of the investigation yesterday. But that doesn't mean Barry wasn't the focus of the launch. The timing of the investigation should be questioned as much as intent. Why is it that everytime a book comes out, or everytime there is an outcry from the public that baseball feels they need to do something? Are they a puppet to the public? One has to question why a full investigation was not launched in 2002 when Ken Caminiti came out and talked about steroids. Why now? Why four years later?

Why not eight years ago? Everyone remembers the summer of '98 when Slammin' Sammy and Big Mac were going for Roger Maris' home run record. The country was on the proverbial edge of their seats. With each passing day in the summer, games not involving the Cardinals or Cubs were being interrupted everytime Sosa or McGuire came up to bat. But baseball didn't care then. That summer probably saved baseball in America. So MLB couldn't possibly turn up the heat on the juice then. But then what of the following three seasons where Sosa topped 60 home runs twice more? Before the '98 season, only two players had ever hit 60+ homers in a season (Babe Ruth and Roger Maris, each only once). Sammy Sosa does it three times in four years, and nobody raises an eyebrow? Nobody thinks to test him? Nobody thinks the insurgence of power in baseball is the least bit odd?

So now, a book comes out, accusing Bonds' of steroid use, and suddenly there's an investigation? Now I don't have first hand knowledge, Bud Selig is not my friend, so I couldn't tell you for sure that this book is the reason for the investigation. But nor am I a fool, and I can say with a good deal of conviction that the book clearly played a major role in the launch of the investigation. An investigation that is going to go back to September of 2002, with the authority given to George Mitchell to expand the investigation. On what grounds? That they find one player took steroids during '03? That they found 75 players took steroids?

Baseball didn't even start testing for performance enhancing drugs until 2003. And then they didn't penalize players for positive tests until 2004. I don't condone steroids, and if you ask me, I think baseball has dragged their feet on the issue. But how is an investigation that goes back four years fair? Now turn this around, say the investigation is partially successful, say they overturn evidence that 2-3 All-Star caliber players were using performance enhancing drugs in '02 and/or '03. Now what? What about the rest of the players that they cannot find anything on? What about the journeyman player who got one last contract because steroids helped pad his stats in '03, but we were unable to catch? What about the rookie that made it to "the show" because he was able to get through the non-existent testing?

The problem with the testing is not that I don't want to know who was cheating. By all means, those players should be made public, and they should be ashamed. But my problem is with the fairness. What if one team has preserved urine samples while another does not? Does that mean the 25 players from the team that does not keep samples are exempt? What if they find some key player like Bonds to be guilty? Do they stop then because one scapegoat is enough?

Jeff Horrigan of the Boston Herald said it best when he wrote, "I begrudge the era that tolerated this more than I begrudge the man. You can't wipe out the 90's." No, you can't. Not now. Not 8 years after the home run boom. Baseball messed up, the media messed up, and fans messed up when nobody stepped up to question the power surge. When nobody cared that massive men were jacking long balls all over the place. And now because a book comes out, Selig is trying to make someone else the scapegoat in his place.

So I say keep sluggin Barry. I can't definitively say he's on anything, nor can I or anyone else definitively say he ever was. The only person that probably gets tested more than Barry Bonds is Lance Armstrong. And correct me if I'm wrong, but neither has ever failed a drug test. Was Bonds on something? Its possible. But it is worth noting that men generally add bulk in their 30's. It's also worth noting that since the ban and all the testing started, Barry's remained the same size. Our current era has also seen the construction of bandboxes, or hitters ballparks like Minute Maid Park in Houston, or The Great American Ballpark in Cincinatti.

So show me a positive test belonging to Barry Bonds from his record breaking 2001 season. Show me a picture of Bonds with a needle in his rear. Show me some type of hard evidence rather than a wash out like Jose Canseco, or some author claiming dates and times that Bonds and other players took steroid injections. I'm sorry, but anyone could come out and claim that they saw someone getting injected with steroids. What is it that Selig could know now that he didn't know weeks or months ago? Probably nothing, besides the release of the book. And I hope the information remains nothing, and Selig's witch hunt turns out to be nothing more than that.

AL East Preview

noreply@blogger.com (Trevor) — Tue, 28 Mar 2006 16:11:00 +0000

Fantasy draft day is upon me, I feel like a kid on Christmas day. What an exciting time. So, I figured since I'm not going to spend my time leading up to the draft to do my paper that is due tomorrow, I might as well preview the AL East. First, lets get some things out of the way as far as criteria goes. Age can, and will be factored in. Both youth inexperience, as well as veteran's with the possibility of breaking down. But unless your team is basing their success solely on the likes of Juan Gone or the Big Hurt, injuries will not be taken into consideration. I get it, people like Beckett and Burnett are injury prone, fine, but I can't predict if and when they will get hurt. And then someone like Halladay last year, taking a ball off the shin, complete freak accident. I'm not going to base predictions on Halladay possibly avoiding another bean ball off the shin.

New York Yankees (Division Champs)
Wins: 95-99
Positives: Derek Jeter is the best leader since Mark Messier. And A-rod and Mariano Rivera are the best in the league at their respective positions. Jason Giambi seems to have found his stroke again as well. This team has the ability and experience to win yet another AL East title. Joe Torre will again be the key should there be a losing streak to freak out the Boss. And not only is Johnny Damon one of the top lead-off hitters in the game, he's also not playing for Boston (or against the Yankees for 19 games) anymore.
Negatives: Outfield depth is far from an issue, but outfield defense could be. Matsui has been better than advertised defensively, but he's still no wiz. And neither Damon nor Sheffield can cover the amount of ground that they used to, plus, Damon's weak arm will be harder to hide in Yankee Stadium than it was in Fenway Park. There is also the question of whether the likes of Shawn Chacon and Aaron Small were one year wonders. Can Jaret Wright come back from injury? And Miguel Cairo is the only known back-up infielder on the team.
Outlook: I don't think they can win 100 games this year. The AL East has gotten much stronger, with the Blue Jays looking better than they have in over a decade. These teams will beat up on eachother all season long, and 100 wins will be tough to come by. I do think they have what it takes to win yet another AL East title though. Torre knows how to handle sticky situations. And contrary to what everyone has said in years past, Wang and Cano are two very nice prospects on the Yankees team that other teams will covet. Plus, is there any doubt that Steinbrenner will fork out the cash to bring in a missing piece at the deadline?

Boston Red Sox
Wins: 90-94
Positives: Youth. By far the best thing the Red Sox were able to do this offseason was to get younger in all areas. As beloved as guys like Kevin Millar and Bill Mueller were, they were no spring chickens. Not only were the offseason additions of Coco Crisp (26) and Josh Beckett (25) valuable on the field, they should hopefully be valuable for years to come. Spring training additions of Hee-Seop Choi (27) and Wily Mo Pena (24) added even more depth, and also gave the Sox two bright young outfielders under 30 years of age (Pena and Crisp). All of this was without having to give up the likes Craig Hansen, Jonathan Papelbon, Jon Lester and Manny Delcarmen.
Negatives: The middle infield and the outfield are covered as far as depth goes, but after that, the ship gets shaky. With Wakefield's personal catcher Doug Mirabelli on the West coast now, Varitek's back-up is in question. The corner infield is covered by Youkilis, who had only 79 AB's last year, Mike Lowell, who has had a dismal Spring, Choi, and JT Snow, who is on the downside of his career, to say the least. And all of the starters that everyone has been raving about suddenly seem mediocre at best if the team can't get 300 innings out of Foulke and Schilling.
Outlook: This is as close to a rebuilding year as it will get for a while with the infusion of young talent in the offseason. But with question marks as big as Schilling and Foulke, its hard to think that if the teams of '03-05 couldn't knock off the Yankees as division champs, the '06 version does not seem a likely choice either. However, they should still make a push at the division crown, and at the very least, make the playoffs as the Wild Card.

Toronto Blue Jays
Wins: 85-89
Positives: One of the busiest teams in the offseason suddenly looks like a contender. They added a flame throwing closer in BJ Ryan, a 40 HR threat at third in Troy Glaus, a good young first baseman in Lyle Overbay, and a pitcher with one of the best fastballs in baseball in AJ Burnett. With Roy Halladay healthy, their first three starters (Halliday, Burnett and Lilly) are as strong as any other team in the East.
Negatives: Regardless of all the hype, Burnett's career record is still a game under .500, there's no garantee he'll develop into the pitcher they paid for. There's also the issue of division alignment. If the Jays played in the NL West, they'd run away with the division, no questions asked. Unfortunately for them, they play in the AL East, which is even more competetive than American Idol.
Outlook: Its going to be a battle for the top three teams in the AL East this year. I don't expect the Jays to fade as much as they have in years past, but I don't expect them to be playing for the division in September. A Wild Card berth is not out of the question though.

Tampa Bay Devil Rays
Wins: 70-75
Positives: Rocco Baldelli is scheduled to return this season. With both he and Crawford roaming the outfield, I could pass as the third outfielder. Fortunately the Devil Rays don't have that problem as they have speedster Joey Gathright. Jorge Cantu is only 24 years old and can play both 2b and 3b, and they can always hope that Aubrey Huff will bounce back from a less than notable season last year.
Negatives: Scott Kazmir is their only really good pitcher, and he's still developing, though, this could be a breakthrough year for the young lefty. After that, Edwin Jackson shows promise, and then there's everyone else. Factor in a first year manager, and the fact that Sean Burroughs was their biggest pick up of the off season, and it is going to be yet another long summer in Tampa Bay. A positive is that you can always see the Sox or Yanks for cheap if you're willing to travel.
Outlook: The Rays won 67 games last season, but aren't quite ready to jump up another 10 wins this season. They (like the Jays) unfortunately have to play in the AL East where everyone just takes turns walloping on eachother. Still, the return of Baldelli is intriguing, although we'll have to wait and see what he can do after missing an entire season. At least Rays fans will get to watch the young Kazmir every five days.

Baltimore Orioles
Wins: 67-73
Positives: Miguel Tejada is still an Oriole, for now.
Negatives: Everything else.
Outlook: This seems so doom and gloom. And even though it might look it, I don't hate the Orioles. The problem is that Tejada wanted them to improve, and I think they've taken a step back instead. Millar will be a good clubhouse addition, but little else. They lost a top 5 closer in BJ Ryan. There isn't a single Ace on their staff, and Kris Benson is hardly even a #2. Javy Lopez is 35, and his knees can't take catching anymore. And Eric Byrnes was probably their best outfielder last year, and he's gone. Brian Roberts, Melvin Mora and Tejada certainly have their work cut out for them this year. Are they necessarily in worse shape than the Devil Rays? No. But they are certainly in worse shape than they were last year.

And there you have it. Pretty much same 'ol stuff, different season for the AL East. And I truly believe that the battle for 4th place will be just as close as the battle between the Yanks, Sox and Jays, albiet, not as exciting.

Preseason Awards

noreply@blogger.com (Trevor) — Wed, 01 Mar 2006 21:51:00 +0000

Thankfully, its almost that time. Spring training games are in full swing starting this week, and the season opener is right around the corner. Oh, and there's that whole World Baseball Classic thing to hold us over until then, which could actually be entertaining to watch (minus the Little League-esque rule of calling the games after 14 innings). If I get around to it in the next few weeks, I'll come up with some team predictions for the season, if not for the whole MLB, maybe at least for the AL East. But anyways, we all know that with the exception of a select few players, individual awards are just as important.

AL MVP: David Ortiz - Boston Red Sox. Am I biased here? Yes. Am I delusional? No. Listen, we've heard the arguments before, he doesn't flash the leather, I get it. But Mo Vaughn wasn't exactly a Gold Glover when he won the MVP back in '95. In fact, Papi actually probably helps his team by DH'ing over playing the field. It keeps him fresh enough to play almost everyday, and the Sox don't have to deal with mediocre play at first place. So arguments in his favor? How about being one of the most feared hitters in baseball. How about being a lefty, where a lefty specialist isn't always your best option. How about being a fun-loving, mango salsa making, clubhouse guy. And mark my word, if Manny isn't a huge headache in Boston this season, Papi will be a large reason why. Honorable mention: Vladimir Guerrero - Angels, Alex Rodriguez - Yankees.

NL MVP: Albert Pujols - St. Louis Cardinals. The Cards still have what it takes to win the NL Central, but they won't do it without another great season from Pujols. Which, as he's proven over the past few years, is not far fetched. He held the lineup together last year with injuries to Scott Rolen, Larry Walker, Jim Edmonds and company. If he can do what he did last year without a supporting cast, there's no reason to believe he can't repeat the feat, hopefully with more help this year. Albert is clearly the elite hitter in the NL. Honorable mention: Andruw Jones - Braves, Derek Lee - Cubs.

AL Cy Young: Rich Harden - Oakland Athletics. This young A's team is shaping up. Run support for pitchers should be better this season than it was last year. As with any candidate for any award, health will be a main concern for the young Harden. Barry Zito has also looked good early on in spring training which should take some pressure off of Harden. His wicked fastball should allow him to continue striking out plenty of people, while getting his WHIP down again. In three pro seasons he has 355 K's in 392.1 innings, and his WHIP has dropped from 1.50 to 1.33 to a marvelous 1.06 last season. Honorable mention: Johan Santana - Twins.

NL Cy Young: Pedro Martinez - New York Mets. Until Pedro proves otherwise, he is still one of the best pitchers in the major leagues. People didn't think he'd be able to cope without a 98 MPH fastball, well guess what, he did. Toe injury or not, Pedro will be the best of the best again this season. And with the addition of Carlos Delgado, the maturation of Jose Reyes and David Wright, the pressure that should now be off of Carlos Beltran, oh, and a guy named Billy Wagner to close out the games and hopefully preserve some more wins, Pedro should finally get the team support to show the voters that only care about wins and losses that he is deserving of the honor. Honorable mentions go to: Jake Peavy - Padres, Ben Sheets - Brewers, Chris Carpenter - Cardinals.

AL ROY: Felix Hernandez - Seattle Mariners. Without a doubt the best young pitching prospect since the oft-injured Mark Prior. In 12 starts last year he went 4-4 with 77 K's in 84.1 innings pitched. He also held opponents to a .203 BAA and sported a flashy 1.00 WHIP. The future is getting brighter in Seattle, and now fans have something to get excited about every 5th day instead of just watching Ichiro slap his way to the single season hits record.* Oh, did I mention he'll turn 20 years old on April 8th?

NL ROY: Rickie Weeks - Milwaukee Brewers. The future is also bright in Milwaukee. Seriously. Ben Sheets should bounce back from a less than exciting season last year. And the young duo of Rickie Weeks and Prince Fielder should finally get their shots to play everyday for a young team. With Carlos Lee in the lineup, at least until the trade deadline, expect these two young hitters to flourish without the pressure of playing in a city like Boston or New York. Honorable mention: Prince Fielder - Brewers, Ryan Zimmerman - Nationals.

AL Fireman of the year: Mariano Rivera - New York Yankees. Without question, the best closer in the history of baseball. Tell me he's only got one pitch, tell me he's getting old, tell me the Red Sox have gotten to him, and I'll point you to his 1.38 ERA and miniscule 0.87 WHIP from last season. Case closed. No need for honorable mentions.

NL Fireman of the year: Billy Wagner - New York Mets. Wagner still has one of the nastiest sliders in baseball. He's got a good set of starters ahead of him, and a lineup that can get him the ball with the lead. Honorable mention: Brad Lidge - Astros.

MLB comeback player of the year - Barry Bonds - San Francisco Giants. To quote 50 Cent:
Hate it or love it the under dog's on top
And I'm gon shine homie until my heart stop
Regardless of your feelings of Barry Bonds, he is one of the greatest baseball players of all time. If you look at his stats before his record breaking 73 home run season, his stats were still staggering. He would still have been the first (and only) member of the 500-500 club. Hate him because he's abrasive, hate him because he seems insincere, hate him because he allegedly took steroids, hate him because he's going to break Babe Ruth's, and possibly Hank Aaron's home run marks, or hate him because like Kobe says, people love him for the exact same reasons. You have no doubt seen the cross-dressing Bonds display from spring training earlier this week. Regardless of his intentions, this can only help his cause in a clubhouse people always argue is separated. If he gets any protection this season, and that knee holds up, Albert the Great might not be the NL MVP. Honorable mention: Ben Sheets - Brewers, Jim Thome - White Sox, Frank Thomas - A's.

There you have it. As if I wasn't already anxious enough for the season to start, thinking about all this baseball stuff isn't helping the situation. Flame me, post comments, agree or disagree, I always welcome other people's opinions, even if they're wrong. As always, I can be reached via email at bchcky@yahoo.com.

*With all due respect to Ichiro, he is not a great hitter. He is a great lead-off man. His record setting 262 hit season in '04 pales in comparison to the 1920 season of George Sisler, the previous record holder with 257 hits. To go along with his 257 hits, Sisler also had: 19 HR, 122 RBI, 42 SB, .407 BA, .632 SLG, and a .449 OBP, which dwarfs every number Ichiro put up in the same categories in his record setting season: 8 HR, 60 RBI, 36 SB, .372 BA, .455 SLG and a .414 OBP. Is Ichiro the new record holder for single season hits? Yes. Complete like Sisler? No. Remember, most does not always equal best, just ask Emmitt Smith.

Twist

noreply@blogger.com (Trevor) — Fri, 10 Feb 2006 15:23:00 +0000

Now pretend for a moment that you don't despise Johnny Damon. Pretend for a moment that you did not see the other rendition of this ad on DirtDogs with the S's replaced by $'s. Well in that case, beautiful send off right? Not exactly.

Its more of an insincere apology for shooting his way out of town, and then turning around and shooting again once he was out. Its the proverbial twist of the knife in an open wound. Now don't get me wrong, I'm excited about Coco Crisp. I even like the way this Red Sox team is shaping up. But before all this debauchery surrounding Jonny Damon, I actually wouldn't have minded seeing him return (for less than 4 years and $52 million of course) to the Sox.

But since he did shoot his way out of town, and then try to recruit Manny and Big Papi to the Yankees, he can take his full page ad and... do whatever he'd like with it. I'm certainly not going to rush to the news stand to pick one up (albiet I am a day late). I think perhaps the saddest thing about this ad was that it is so basic, and so simplistic that Damon might have actually written this himself.

"It was a privilege and an honor." Please, that's something you would say after serving for General Patton, or some half-assed send off to a high class escort. Take it from my boy Drew Bledsoe here about a heartfelt thank you. A thank you is more than just signing your name to a boneheaded quote.

The problem is that some players just don't get it. They don't get it like Orlando Cabrera got it when he came to Boston. After playing the start of his career in Montreal where maybe 2,500 people showed up for the game, coming to Boston was like culture shock. It was like putting a fat kid in front of an all-you-can-eat buffet and suddenly it hits him, this is what I've been missing. Boston is what it feels like to play in front of fans that care. Boston is what it feels like to not sit in front of an empty seat. Boston fans boo and hiss and cheer because they like you. Sometimes they boo and hiss and cheer at you all in the same at bat, but either way, its because they care. Trust me, I didn't waste my time booing Ramiro Mendoza. He was a spy, or a bad pitcher, perhaps even a blend of the two. He sucked, I get it, why waste my breath booing him and risk spilling my beer about something we all know?

Boston appreciates players like Curt Schilling. We appreciate him because he talks to the reporters, and runs his mouth about computer games and politics, and nobody cares, because when the game is on the line, he comes through. We like him because he didn't just want to come here to win another ring, he wanted to come here to drive away 86 years of agony. And of course, we like that bloody sock. We like Jason Varitek because he broke his elbow diving for a routine and meaningless foul ball. We like him because he plays everyday he's allowed to, and never says a word. We like him because he never throws someone under the bus after a crushing defeat, but he's the first to praise someone else after a good win.

Johnny Damon crossed the line. And I'm not even talking about state lines, I hope he has fun in his pinstripes. He crossed the line with fans. He crossed the line with a city. Its not about the money he decided to take. Its about the lack of respect for where he came from. He can bad mouth the Sox all he wants from here on out, but nobody will ever forget his performance in Game 7 of the 2004 ALCS at Yankee Stadium.

Listen, you're in New York, you've got your money from the Boss, and you've got your Ferrari from Puma, enjoy it. Thats all. We don't want your full page, half-assed ads. And we certainly don't need you filling Manny's head with any ideas that don't involve hitting a baseball. When you leave New York in 4 years, if its for a destination other than retirement, you should take a look at Drew's ad. Take a look and steal some ideas for your farewell to New York. Ideas that involve building a team, and feeling like you and the city both got something good out of the deal. A realizaton that no matter how quickly the 4 years went by, you couldn't help but take a little bit of the city with you. Even if you hate that place, and you want out so bad you can taste it like a frat pledge and his first kegstand, at least pretend it wasn't that bad. At least have some class, and decency. Just because you had girly hair doesn't mean you can't be classy.

Vin-sanity!

noreply@blogger.com (Trevor) — Thu, 05 Jan 2006 05:33:00 +0000

On Wednesday night at the Rose Bowl there were 3 Heisman finalists on the field, 2 Heisman winners, 2 undefeated teams with storied pasts, and 1 dominating performance. Texas quarterback Vince Young looked like a man playing with boys on Wednesday night. On fire? Please. On fire doesn't do his performance justice. Young started the night going 10/10 on passing attempts to finish 30/40 for 267 yards through the air. That alone is not a bad ball game, no interceptions, 75% passing, I'll take that on my team anyday.

But when Texas needed a big play, Vin-sanity was there. And much to USC's dismay, so were his legs. With three second half rushing touchdowns and a 10.5 yard per carry average for 200 yards, Young was all the Longhorns would need for their first national title in 35 years.

Young was cool under pressure all night long. Dancing on the sidelines throughout the game, he kept his team loose. And when they were down, and needed a play, he always seemed to call the right number, his own. Down a point in the third quarter, Young stiff-armed USC safety Josh Pinkard to the ground en route to a 14 yard touchdown scamper to regain the lead.

When Texas finally got the ball back in the fourth quarter, the burnt orange section in the stands of Pasadena was as quiet as a mouse. And why not? They were down 38-26 and USC had scored on 5 consecutive possessions. It seemed that the Heisman voters were right, and Reggie Bush would indeed get his three-peat. Enter Vince Young.

Winners always want the ball in their hands when the game is on the line. And whether it was his call, or coach Mack Brown's, #10 made sure the ball stayed where it was safe, gripped firmly in his right hand. Looking to throw Young couldn't find anything he liked, except for a huge running lane to the end zone with his name on it. A pump fake and 17 yards later, and suddenly Texas was only down 38-33.

Call it cocky, call it swagger, but in the end, there was only one thing that mattered about USC's 4th and 1 attempt, it was short. Time again, for #10 to shine. And think about the finish. Fourth and 5 on the 8 yard line, 0:26 seconds left, down 5 points, and oh yeah, the national title on the line. For Mack Brown and the rest of the Longhorns, In Vince We Trust pretty much sums up the game. According to Young after the game, he took his three reads on that 4th and 5, and immediately he knew, it was all on him. His third rushing touchdown of the night capped off a dominating performance, and sealed Texas' fourth national title.

The Heisman voters were right. Reggie Bush was the most outstanding player in college football this year. Lucky for him, bowl season doesn't count in the voting. Vince left New York clearly dejected by the margin by which he lost the Heisman to Bush. But on January 4th, #10 was twice as nice as #5 in more ways than one.

Moving Sale (Soul Pending)

noreply@blogger.com (Trevor) — Wed, 21 Dec 2005 04:09:00 +0000

Breaking news on Tuesday night tabbed former Red Sox center- fielder Johnny Damon as the newest member of the New York Yankees. At first I thought Say it Ain't So would have made a good name for this article, but then I saw the numbers for the deal. Damon has reportedly agreed to a 4 year, $52 million deal with the Yankees, as opposed to the 4 years and $40 million that the Red Sox offered, and now I think that Good Riddance Benedict Arnold might have been the ideal title.

Now, let's straighten something out, as common folk. And I use the words common folk in the nicest way possible because I highly doubt the likes of Bill Gates and Tiger Woods read what I write. It IS about the money. It's probably also about sticking it to the Red Sox a little bit too. Ok, a lot. But it's really about the money. I swear. Remember back to the days before everyone realized what a prissy prima donna A-rod was? When he first signed that outrageous $252 million deal with the Rangers. And then he was introduced as a Ranger in a press conference and his first line was "the first thing that I want to say is that it's not about the money." Yeah, he was lying.

Now, you might be wondering to yourself, if I were already a millionare, what could I possibly do with another $52 million that I couldn't do with $40 million? Probably not a whole lot. But let us not forget pride and ego here as well. To an athlete that makes millions, being able to say that they make $13 million a year as opposed to $10 million is like one of us telling our friends that we make $120k a year instead of $70k. Both comfortable livings in their own right, but one sounds nicer, and also accrues more interest. Putting yourself in Johnny Damon's shoes from a financial standpoint is like comparing apples to oranges, it is not going to work, and it isn't worth the headache. We don't know what its like to decide between million dollar contracts, and he doesn't remember what its like to have to mortgage a house, instead of buying it outright, so don't even try.

Honestly though, the toughest part in this deal is not the fact that he's going to the Evil Empire. Does it add salt to the wound? Yeah I guess so. But strangely enough, that is not my issue with Damon signing in New York. It's the fact that Johnny Damon will no longer be able to be Johnny Damon. The long locks will no longer flow. And naked pull-ups in the locker room probably won't fly anymore either.

For the original "idiot" of the Red Sox and the the "rock star" of the team, with his wavy locks, which also garnered him nicknames like "Jesus," those Yankee pinstripes might end up feeling more like prison stripes to him. But then, that's probably what it feels like when you sell your soul to the devil. And this is officially what it feels like when you're amongst a sell out. Damon released a book entitled Idiot! before the last season. In it he describes how he used to train for the season by running after cars that drove through his neighborhood and seeing how long he could keep up with them. Now, I never read the book, but I'm sure it also mentioned how he was the one that kept the clubhouse loose, and how he was the fun one. Well Mr. Damon, I'm sorry to say that there is no fun allowed in New York. If you thought fans in Boston were demanding, wait until that first losing streak in the Bronx.

Wait until you're battling for the spotlight in NYC. When Damon first came to Boston he came here because he could be noticed. He said in so many interviews that he liked the idea of being a star, he wanted to be in the spotlight. Which ended up being fine. Before parting ways we found out how Nomar really felt about the media. We know Manny wants nothing to do with it. And though he seems so in control on the field, the rock behind the plate would just assume stay out of the media. And it's not as if Curt relishes the media more than everyone, he simply embraces it, he loves being opinionated, and thats fine, as long as you realize that you don't have to follow everything he says. The only person in Boston that Damon really had to fight for limelight with what the charismatic David Ortiz. In New York however, there are a few people that Yankee fans like to call Jeter, A-rod, Shef, Mo, Giambi etc. The point is that Damon will soon realize that he is far from the top of the totem pole in NY.

How do you separate yourself in NY? It's going to be hard winning fans over by making weak throws from the cavernous depths of centerfield at Yankee Stadium. It's probably not the easiest thing to make a mark when you're no longer one of the top three hitters on your team, in fact, Damon might not even be in the top five in the Yankee lineup (unless we exclude guys on steroids).

The problem is that the fans in Boston loved Damon for who he made them believe he was. They loved him for the rock star they believed he was. They loved him for being the Jesus reincarnate when he hit two homers and drove in six in game seven of the 2004 ALCS. They loved him for shaving his beard for charity, and they loved him for being an idiot. And then someone blew the marketing scheme and allowed him to talk.

Immediately following the season ending loss to the White Sox this past October Damon said, "You need someone who can put people in the seats and I'm the kind of guy who can do that. I'm looking for five plus. I'm looking for a lot. For what I bring to the table night in and night out. We know how good Manny and David are, but I also help make them look real good. They make me look real good." This is immediately following the team's elimination and the only thing you could think about was...you? I can't say I didn't see Damon leaving the Sox this offseason. I just didn't think he'd be selling out and going to the Yankees. I guess I actually believed him when he said "I could never play for the Yankees" before the start of the '05 season. I guess I was the idiot for believing that one.

It hasn't taken Damon long to start drinking the New York Kool-Aid either. Right after the story broke, Damon had this to say to Boston media, "We're going to be tough to beat...Our policy with the Yankees is to go out there and win...Our job is to try to win another American League East title and hopefully we can go back to the World Series and bring another championship." The truth is, Damon does make them tough to beat. But seeing Damon sell out is even tougher to swallow. After Damon was asked if he'd cut his hair and beard he replied, "Without a doubt. Mr. Steinbrenner has a policy and I'm going to stick to it." So let me get this right, you were an idiot, you were a crazy clubhouse guy and supposed great teammate. And you cowboyed right up with Kevin Millar in '03, but you wouldn't shave you head then, when everyone else on the team did. Everyone else on the team shaved their head, as a team building thing, and you wouldn't do it because you said "I have to still look good for the ladies." But Mr. Steinbrenner has his no personalities allowed rule, and you're going to stick to it now. No more beard. No more hair. No more caveman. No more rock star. For all intents and purposes, no more Johnny Damon. Nobody is above selling out, everyone has their price, and apparently Johnny Damon's is $12 million.

Daily Quickie

noreply@blogger.com (Trevor) — Sun, 18 Dec 2005 08:57:00 +0000

Actually, the title is a lie. This is not going to be a daily thing as most of you could probably tell if you look at the time gaps in my archive. I have a hard enough taking care of myself on a daily basis, let alone sitting down to write something once a day for your infinite enjoyment. But alas, Daily Quickie sounds better than just Quickie. So deal with it. Without further ado, here are a few things I want to get out there in short, cause I don't have the patience for a full article right now.

Farewell Mr. Mueller
Thank you for being a consummate professional for the past three years. Thank you for teaching us that Mueller, is pronounced mil-ler and not buel-ler. Thank you for for hitting .429 en route to the first Red Sox World Series title in 86 years. Thank you for making great digs at the hot corner. Thank you for moving to second when Mark Bellhorn was hurt, even though you didn't feel comfortable. Thank you for performing above your contract. In a town where it's hard for a baseball player to fly under the radar, you just might have done so. But we won't forget the batting title and flashy defense. Good luck in La-La Land, and say hello to Derek Lowe for us.

Hello Playoffs
For the fourth time in five years, the New England Patriots are the AFC East champions, and playoff bound. The only people who didn't think it was possible were the yuppies who picked the Bucs from ESPN. Not only did the Pats win today, they destroyed the Buccaneers, holding them to 138 total yards. Its time now for the bandwagon to slow down so that all of the doubters can jump back on, at least for the next two weeks when they face the Jets and Dolphins. Then when its playoff time, people can start doubting them again. As for me, In Belichick I Trust.

What the!?!?
Let me get this straight, Andy Marte is probably the brightest young third base talent in all of baseball. The Sox gave up Renteria and are still paying for him in order to land Marte. Now, they're thinking of packaging him up with Guillermo Mota and shipping them off to Cleveland for Coco Crisp? Don't get me wrong, Crisp is a good young (26) player, and would definitely be good insurance in the instance that Damon or Manny are not playing for the Sox next year, but this deal just does not make sense. I hope these rumblings are just that, and nothing more.

Can a GM fire...himself??
Ok, so its not the coach's fault. Maybe we'll trade one of the 5 best players in the world away to the Sharks for an above average defenseman and some throw-ins. The Joe Thornton trade was like reaching into the bin for a grab bag, it could turn out alright, cause it was cheap, but more than likely, you're going to be disappointed. Though Mike O'Connell stands by his moves, I just wish he'd stand by them somewhere other than in the Bruins front office.

This just in: The BCS....Worked?
Thank teams like Louisville, Michigan and VaTech for losing games they could/should have won. But this year the BCS got it right. The top two teams in the country will actually be playing for the national title this year. But not only that, the computers and the humans both agreed on who the top two teams were. Who says computers can't be trusted?

So, there you have it. Short and sweet. Just a few things I had to get off my chest. Oh, and get your TV lineups ready because bowl season is upon us, and the commercials don't lie when they sing Its the most wonderful time of the year. Except for the part where FSU backed their way into the ACC title game and screwed Boston College into an irrelevant bowl. Whatever, the Eagles still have the nation's longest bowl winning streak with 5 in a row.

Why Can't We Just Leave Donovan Alone?

noreply@blogger.com (Trevor) — Fri, 16 Dec 2005 07:19:00 +0000

First Eagles fans booed when the team drafted McNabb over Ricky Williams. Then Rush Limbaugh. Then Freddy Mitchell. Then TO. Then TO again. Now J. Whyatt Mondesire. So who is Mr. Mondesire? Besides the latest McNabb basher, he is the president of the Philadelphia chapter of the NAACP. In his column that was published in the Philadelphia Sunday Sun, he wrote, "by claiming that everybody expects black quarterbacks to scramble not only amounts to a breach of faith but also belittles the real struggles of black athletes who've had to overcome real racial stereotypcasting in addition to downright segregation."

The Philadelphia Eagles were a doormat team before Donovan joined them. And all he's done since leaving Syracuse is go to four Pro Bowls and lead the team to four straight NFC championship games, and one Super Bowl. It seems to me that the only person in the city of brotherly love that can't get any love is Donovan McNabb. According to Rush Limbaugh all of these things, along with his gaudy statistics mean only one thing, McNabb is overrated, because he's black.

According to Freddy Mitchell and TO, he gave up in the Super Bowl. Now, I wasn't in the huddle on the last drive, and I can buy that he might have been tired, but that can hardly be the reason that they lost the Super Bowl. Let us not forget, this is the same player that threw four TD passes in a game after he broke his leg a season before.

And now Mr. Mondesire has blessed us with the latest tabloid material for McNabb. Right, McNabb is belittling black athletes by saying that people expect black quarterbacks to run the ball. When is the last time that you saw Peyton Manning or Carson Palmer reel off a 50 yard run? It is by no means racial to make a generalization that the majority of good running quarterbacks are black. Is it coincidence? Maybe. Is it biological? Possibly. Is it ignorant to say? Not exactly, its true.

This guy played the first nine games this season with a sports hernia, bum leg and a bruised chest before he was forced to finish out the season on the IR list. So if anyone is entitled to do a little bit of questioning in Philadelphia, it is their four time Pro Bowler quarterback. Only problem is, he's too nice of a guy to say anything back. What does a poor guy have to do in Philly to get a little bit of appreciation? Actually, I'm sure he could do without verbal praise, as long as people would stop choosing him to throw under the bus without provocation. At least the NAACP president Bruce Gordon got it right when he responded to Mondesire's comments by simply stating, "the NAACP has many civil rights issues that require our attention, criticizing Donovan McNabb is not one of them." Now if only everyone else would find someone else to pick on.

Winners and Losers

noreply@blogger.com (Trevor) — Thu, 08 Dec 2005 23:00:00 +0000

With baseball's Winter meetings winding down, there have been winners, and there have been losers. Here are some of the biggest in each category:

Mets - winners - Funny as that may sound, the Metropolitans are looking up. Sure they lost one of the best hitting catchers in the history of the game, but they have made some good signings. Perhaps the most notable being the flame-throwing lefty Billy Wagner, who many had tabbed to remain with the Phillies. He will add stability to an otherwise shaky bullpen, allowing them to move hot and cold closer Braden Looper into the set up roll. The addition of Carlos Delgado also bring in a powerful left handed bat, and gives them one of the best set of corner infielders in the business. With the addition of Xavier Nady, the Mets also have some good young talent to go with Jose Reyes (and Wright). And let's not forget the signings from last year, Carlos Beltran cannot possibly do as bad again this year, can he? With all that said, its still going to be a battle for the Wild Card for the Mets, because if you read anything I write, last year was the year to knock off the Braves in the NL East.

Red Sox - winners - No Theo? No problem. At least so far. Someone is pulling strings, and I like it so far. Andy Marte for Edgar Renteria? Brilliant. A young 22 year old third baseman that should grow into a stud for years to come, in return for a disgruntled (though not disruptive), overpaid shortstop, who frankly, wasn't all he was hyped up to be. Beckett, Lowell and Mota for Hanley Ramirez, Anibel Sanchez, and another prospect? Brilliant. Health permitting, the young Beckett has all the makings of an ace. And as seen in game 6 of the '03 World Series at Yankee Stadium on three days of rest, the moxie of an ace as well. Mota adds depth to a young, and often patchwork bullpen. And Mike Lowell might be in the best situation in the majors. He's making big bucks, and there are absolutely no expectations for him to do anything this year. He was essentially a throw in in the trade, a piece the Sox had to take on in order to get Beckett. So the Sox took him, knowing at worst they were getting a Gold Glove third baseman, but also knowing that bringing him to Fenway, with that short left field porch, Lowell could rediscover his power stroke again. So just how good does he have it? If he hits .250 with 10 homers, nobody will bat an eye, but if he suddenly hits .275, 25 homers, and drives in 80 (which are all well within his career averages), he'll be a Godsend. Throw in Mark Loretta, a promising young second baseman, and suddenly losing Theo doesn't seem like the crisis it once was in Boston. They gave up an aging back up catcher, who played at most once every five days, for a young talented middle infielder. And don't get me wrong, Mirabelli was no slouch, but he was still a back up. And the Red Sox group of GM's also made a wise PR move by talking to Tim Wakefield before trading away his personal catcher. And besides, how could a team be a loser when they didn't lose Manny Ramirez? Man-ram, is not getting traded. They couldn't give him away last offseason, and they couldn't trade him this past season to teams that could clearly have used a mighty right handed bat in their lineup in the midst of a playoff race. Manny will play for the Sox next year, or he won't play.

Yankees - sleeping giant - No major moves from the Yankees. Surprising? Not really. They're still targeting plenty of free agents. The fact is that the Winter meetings have traditionally been more for trades, not so much free agent signings, and the Yankees just don't have the chips to trade. But make no mistake, even though they reportedly lost money last year, Steinbrenner will not stand pat this offseason. Look for some big moves down the line to add a few more bats to an already potent lineup.

Philadelphia - losers - Billy Wagner? Gone. Jim Thome? Gone. Granted, young phenom Ryan Howard looks to be the real deal and is ready to take over for Thome, but the Wagner loss is huge. The Phillies main concern is pitching, and the loss of one of the best closers in baseball. There were a few rumored deals, the most notable sending Bobby Abreu to the Red Sox in return for Matt Clement and Trot Nixon, but that never happened. With big free agent pitching names already signing (Kenny Rogers, AJ Burnett, Wagner, BJ Ryan), the Phillies are back to the drawing board to hook up some pitching for the upcoming season. I don't see them swooning Kevin Millwood back to the city of brotherly love, but with the Nationals making deals as well, I do see another long and heartbreaking summer for Phillies fans.

Rangers - losers - God that young lineup is good. But for some reason the poor Rangers just can't draw pitching to the lonestar state. They lost out on the bidding for Kenny Rogers, though I'm not sure how interested they were in him. And the market out there for 2nd baseman Alfonso Soriano just wasn't what they thought it would be. Texas was hoping for pitching, they ended up with Brad Wilkerson, Terrmel Sledge and a pitching prospect, hardly immediate big league help for a team desperate for pitching. While they're still looking for pitching, perhaps trying to turn around and trade some combination of Wilkerson, Laynce Nix or even Hank Blalock (gaining interest from the Twins), the market is not going to get any easier from here on out.

Blue Jays - biggest spenders - You can laugh if you want to, but the Blue Jays aren't laughing. They've got the money to spend, and they're doing it. The problem with teams who have been cellar dwellers in their respective divisions for years is that they have to overspend. Just look at how much money the Tigers gave Magglio Ordonez and Troy Percival last year. The Blue Jays are closing the gap on the Sox and Yankees, and it's closing fast. The Jays have catapulted themselves into a possible 90 wins. And, as ESPN's Peter Gammons reported, if the Yankees and Red Sox end up dropping to the 93-95 win range, anything can happen.

Marlins - losers - The biggest losers here would actually be the Marlins fans. Firesales are never fun, unless your team is reaping the benefits (see Josh Beckett). What is poor Dontrelle Willis to do? We know he can hit, but I'm not sure he can play all 9 positions as former teammate AJ Burnett suggested. So, firesale of the team, raising ticket prices for individual games, and no refunds offered to irate season ticket holders, what a mess in South Florida. In all fairness, ownership is not in the easiest of situations in Florida, part of the reasons they have asked MLB for permission to scout out new locations for the team. So the fans won't go to the games anyways, but they get mad when the team trades away all their big contracts, it seems that in this battle, nobody is right, and everybody is a loser in the end.

Kenny Rogers - winner - Perhaps the biggest winner of the Winter meetings was the 41 year old lefty. Sure there are arms over 40 that can still hurl it with the best of them, but Rogers is no Rocket or Big Unit. I'm not sure which part of the deal is more surprising, the two years he was given, or the $16 million he will be given. Either way, Rogers should be smiling from ear to ear about the contract that he just got from the tigers.

White Sox - winners - Sometimes teams that win a championship make the mistake of thinking that they won it this year, why can't this same team win it next year? Because everyone else is getting better around you, thats why. The addition of Jim Thome as a DH will add some much needed protection to the lineup for Paul Konerko, who they luckily retained through free agency. The pitching is still there, and maybe one or two moves makes the White Sox the team to beat in the AL Central for another year.

And the winners are...

noreply@blogger.com (Trevor) — Wed, 09 Nov 2005 02:05:00 +0000

In a few days we'll know how everyone in the Baseball Writer's Association (BBWA) voted for this year's Major League Baseball awards. But I'm going to let you in on a little secret, I'm going to let you know who the real winners should be. The BBWA works sort of like the Academy, rewarding people for past accomplishments. Nobody doubts Denzel Washington has been an Academy Award winning actor, but most wouldn't list his role in Training Day as his finest. In the same respect, Alex Rodriguez has had some magnificent, MVP-caliber seasons, but 2003 was far from his best. So without further ado, here are this season's baseball awards, based on, well, this season:

AL MVP
Big Papi. Enough said.

NL MVP
Andruw Jones. Albert Pujols had a phenomenal season, as usual, and one day, he'll probably start racking up the MVP awards. But not for this season. Sorry to fans of teams in the NL East not named the Atlanta Braves, but this was your season to overtake the division crown. Unforunately for them, Jones realized this. He realized that they had one solid pitcher all season, he realized that they had to play a lot of the season without All-Star third baseman Chipper Jones, and he realized that even the Braves' own fans would have a hard time naming their starting line up with all the youngsters that filled it out. So what did Andruw Jones do with that knowledge? He picked the Braves up when they were down, and he carried them on his back into the playoffs. Pujols was great, but his team got the pitching, and the team around him was far better than the one surrounding Jones. Don't worry Cards fans, he'll get his soon enough.

AL Cy Young
Mariano Rivera. Without question the best pitcher in the AL this past season. I don't buy into the whole notion that a closer isn't worth of the Cy. And as a Red Sox fan, I get to see my team face Rivera more than I'd really like to. Rivera's stats after his first series of the season were nothing short of remarkable, and it makes me appreciate the fact that the Sox were actually able to get to him in the playoffs last year that much more. Colon had the wins, but little more, Buehrle, Garland and Santana all had the ERA and innings, but they lacked the wins. Rivera had the saves, the record, and the ERA to earn himself a Cy Young award this season.

NL Cy Young
Chris Carpenter. With a phenomenal start to the season, this youngster had the Cy Young locked up before his September woes. He finished the season 5th in ERA, and 2nd in innings pitched, wins and strikeouts. Sure the Rocket didn't get quite the run support, but he also pitched 30.1 less innings than Carpenter. And while the D-train finished with one more win than Carpenter, he didn't have to do it as the ace of the staff (though he might have become the ace) as Carpenter did.

AL ROY
Huston Street. Apparently losing Octavio Dotel for the season wasn't as bad for the A's as was originally thought. The A's young gun fired his way to 23 saves with a remarkable ERA of 1.71 and even better 1.01 WHIP. Everyone thought Beane was a lunatic when he traded away Mark Mulder and Tim Hudson last offseason, but apparently that lunatic knew what he was doing. At a mere 22 years of age, this flame-throwing rookie should be a force for years to come.

NL ROY
Ryan Howard. Jim Thome has been a fan favorite in Cleveland and in Philly. But young guys like Travis Hafner and Ryan Howard are making a habit of replacing him. Braves' rookie Jeff Francoeur made a good first impression, but faded down the stretch. While Phil's rookie sensation Ryan Howard mashed 22 homers and drove in 63 in only 88 games this season. Thome has again become a tradeable commodity.

AL Manager of the Year
Eric Wedge. With all due respect to Ozzie Guillen, we must not forget that post season accolades are not included in the voting for the award. Clearly, the winner should come out of the Central no matter who it is. And while nobody picked the White Sox to do what they did this year, even fewer expected the Indians to be competing for a playoff spot in the final series of the season. The Indians' coach brought the youngsters together and created a force to be reckoned with. In order for the White Sox to even consider a repeat next season, their real battle is going to be with the young Indians team next season.

NL Manager of the Year
Bobby Cox. See the above statement about this year being the missed opportunity for teams not named the Braves to try to win the NL East. Granted he's only got one World Series title to show for it, but the fact that the Braves are there year after year is amazing. What is even more amazing is the way in which he does it. With such a dominant staff in Atlanta for so many years, Cox has kept the streak alive recently with hitting, good rookie play, and a bit of magic.

What did he say?

noreply@blogger.com (Trevor) — Fri, 04 Nov 2005 06:24:00 +0000

Now before everyone jumps down TO's throat for opening his mouth yet again, there might actually be some merit to what he said. But then again, he probably shouldn't have opened his mouth either. ESPN analyst Michael Irvin recently stated that he thought the Eagles could be undefeated right now if Brett Favre was their starting quarterback. When asked in a recent exclusive interview, TO replied "That's a good assessment, I would agree with that just with what [Favre] brings to the table."

So McNabb has been plagued by the injury bug this year. He's suffering from a bruised chest and shin, and has also been playing with a sports hernia since week 1. There have been times in the past where players have had to swallow their warrior-like mentality and sit rather than hurting their team's chances of winning by playing (McNair), but the truth is that there isn't a better realistic option for the Eagles at this point of the season than a hurt McNabb.

A wise man once said, "there are two guys you don't go after on the football team, the quarterback, and the 'ol ball coach." Though TO has yet to go after coach Andy Reid, he's sure made a habit of saying some uncomfortable things about McNabb. I mean, lets think about this for a second, when healthy, McNabb is a lock as one of the top 5 quarterbacks in the league. But even hurt, he's played well enough recently too.

The team has bigger issues than Donovan's health. Two weeks ago, McNabb made a career high 54 pass attempts. I'm sorry, but you know your QB is hurt, the other team knows your QB is hurt, hell, everyone knows Donovan is playing hurt, yet you put the game in his arm 54 plays in one game? Ever heard of a running game? For a guy who is supposed to be one of the prolific receivers in the game, you'd think he'd be doing a little bit more when the passing game comes up on offense 70% of the time as opposed to the 30% of the plays that go for runs. Donovan threw the ball 54 times, and all you could come up with was 7 catches for 53 yards? Clearly, McNabb is not the only issue.

Its not like TO catches everything thrown his way. There has been more than one game this season when he's caught fewer balls than he has missed or dropped. Randy Moss doesn't drop balls. Steve Smith doesn't drop balls. Its hard to ignore the fact that TO is quick to point the finger at someone else, while never taking any part of the blame. It wasn't the great team effort, or even marvelous individual effort that he made last year in the Superbowl that he was talking about when they almost pulled off the victory. It was Donovan botching it in the closing drive, faltering in the waning seconds of the game that TO decided to talk about instead.

Brett Favre is one of the best quarterbacks to ever play the game, one of the toughest, and an all-around nice guy. But he's not going to be suiting up for the Eagles anytime soon, so don't worry about it. Rodney Harrison is not going to return to shore up the Patriots secondary. And as fun as it might be to see, LaDanian Tomlinson is not going to be suiting up in a Colts uniform anytime soon. Speculations and what-ifs are best left up to the media and analysts, not to the players like TO. Though Peyton once referred to him as their "idiot kicker," I'm sure he's just fine with Vanderjagt being their kicker. Can you imagine the outrage that would have been had Peyton instead said, "Well, if we had Adam Vinatieri instead, I'm sure we would have won the Superbowl by now."

It seems that TO is the only person in the league that doesn't believe in team chemistry. In New England, everyone is accustomed to the phrase "its just Manny being Manny," but Manny doesn't throw teammates under the bus. People defend their teammates on a weekly basis against comments from other coaches or other team players. And in the brotherhood of the NFL, sometimes players even compliment players from another team. Just last week when asked about Tedy Bruschi's return, former teammate, and current division rival (Buffalo Bills) Lawyer Malloy said "If anyone can do it, it's Tedy Bruschi."

But wait, there's more. TO also criticized the Eagles organization on Thursday. In last Sunday's game, TO caught the 100th TD pass of his career. But *ghast* the Eagles didn't celebrate it. Owens said "if it were anyone else they would have shot off fireworks." He further criticized the organization because "they consider themselves one of the classiest organizations," but what? They didn't set off fireworks for your 100th career touchdown? Please, have some class yourself.

Maybe TO should take a page from one of the NFL's positive poster children. When Peyton Manning broke Dan Marino's single season passing touchdown mark last year, it was all business. Stokley gave him the ball on the sideline, there was possibly a bit more cheering than usual, but it was afterall the middle of a football game. Or consider the game he played the week before that. Colts ball in the red zone against the Ravens in the waning moments of the game. The home crowd of Indianapolis booed when Manning took a knee with the game in hand rather than going for the record setting touchdown pass. When asked about it after the game, he simply replied "thats how you play the game." And right he was. You don't run up the score on an opponent when the game is already won simply so you can set a record. Nor should you stop the game for your 100th career touchdown reception. Its not a record, and you're not even the active leader. Take the ball, give it to your mother, and get ready for the next offensive series. Talk to me when the Eagles organization remains dormant when you break a Jerry Rice record and maybe I'll listen then.

I'm sick of TO getting a free pass for everything that he says. Shut up and play football. Yes, you are a great receiver. Yes, you are one of the best in the game. Yes, you are a physical speicman that few are capable of covering. And yes, you are a clubhouse cancer. Though, with all the negative, I must admit, there is one TO quote that I actually enjoy. Following his sharpie debacle, TO said in the December '02 issue of ESPN The Magazine, "Guys are beating their wives, getting DUIs and doing drugs, and I get national attention for a SHARPIE?" At first I was dumbfounded, thinking, hey, this guy is right. There are much more important things out there than being a blow hard on the football field. If the guy wants to play ball with a sharpie stuck down his sock, fine by me. But the more I think about it, I realize the truth. TO brings it upon himself. He's such a whore for the media. He loves it, he can't get enough of it. And if he can't be front page simply for his antics after he scores a touchdown, he'll find a reason to be on the front page. So on second thought, jump down his throat.