Mets AA Prospects

You probably heard the hype surrounding the Mets having 5 prospects named to the AA All-Star game and F-Mart playing in the futures game. Just wanted to let you look at their numbers and judge for yourself. F-Mart got called up from A ball so there is some adjusting period that is normal for a 19 year old. But check out Daniel Murphy, he looks like a complete player (except his atrocious defense). Quietly, Salvador Aguilar has a 10 and 2 record with a 2.97 era.

Nick Evans - 296 ab, 52 runs, 14 hr, 53 rbi, .311 ba, .365 obp, .311, 2 sb
Mike Carp - 332 abs, 42 runs, 10 hr 48 rbi, .307 ba, .386 obp .449 slg, 0 sb
Daniel Murphy - 298 abs, 45 runs, 10 hr, 55 rbi, .302 ba, .361 obp, .466 slg, 10 sb
F Mart - 221 abs, 32 runs, 4 hr, 21 rbi, .294 ba, .338 obp, .421 slg, 5 sb


Jonathan Niese - 110.2 ip, 3.09 era, 1.30 whip, 97:40 k:bb, 5-7 record
Salvador Aguilar - 106 ip, 2.97 era, 1.25 whip, 70:34 k:bb, 10-2 record
Robert Parnell - 105 ip, 3.94 era, 1.41 whip, 76:49 k:bb, 9-4 record


Still think the Mets farm is depleted?

OK. So on the surface this looks like a great photo. One of the ones that will be made into a poster and sold every place that sells NBA things.

But let's take a closer look at it.

All the players are in height order, Dwight Howard to Chris Paul (Left to Right). All of them seem to be posing the same way. All of them except for Mr. Howard, who coincidentally is the only player not sponsored by Nike, Team USA's sponsor. Howard's pose just so happens to cover the Nike "swoosh" on his shorts.

As a veteran of basketball team photos, I can say that it is not common to have your tallest player holding the ball. That job usually falls to the PG.

Hmmmm I smell a topic on 1st and 10.

Yankees v Red Sox

What a great weekend this is going to be. Good weather, fireworks, grilling, pools and beer. All of these are great things. These are things that I love. But what is going to make my weekend?

Yankees-Red Sox.

You've got to be psyched if you're a Yankee fan right now. One night after an offensive outburst, the likes of which haven't been seen all year, the team with the most losses on the road come into The Cathedral, on the heels of being swept by the Rays. Oh by they way its The Bosses birthday weekend too.

So with this being The Bosses birthday weekend, I've got a feeling that Mr. Steinbrenner might be in attendance for some, if not all the games this weekend against the reeling BoSox. The Yankees have made it a habit of responding to criticism from the Steinbrenner's positively. Even this year with Hank at the helm.

Call me crazy like my Mets counter-part but I see a 4 game sweep. The highlight of which will be a through beating of the Sox on Friday (George's B-Day) and it will all culminate with a dominating performance by Joba in front of a national audience on Sunday.

Like I said call me crazy.

Let's Go Yankees.

See Yall on Monday.

What the Fuck (Joe) Buck?

Ok, so Joe Buck no longer likes baseball games. He said he can no longer sit through a 3 hour game on a daily night. He was on The Herd with Colin Cowherd. http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x5zr1p_buck0001_latino.

What a moron.

Yo

It is absolutely ridiculous the level of criticism that the NY media, including SNY heap on the Mets. As I sit here SNY is taking calls from the New Yorkers that hate on the Mets to the extreme and want them to trade Jose Reyes for Johnny Peralta and Fausto Gopherball Carmona. It's just so dumb to take calls while covering a live baseball game.

I listened to the post game show Saturday and it was the same garbage. From what they were saying you would think the Mets are the worst team in baseball and then the next night Ollie shut down the Yankees.

The media is the biggest problem the Mets have and thats real. SNY and WFAN have combined to increase pressure on the Mets players than all of their other problems. And It's not like I'm a Mets fan with a bias about this I like the BoSox.

Baby's Got Back

First of all it is great to see that jeezy has learned basic grammar skills in 22 years of life.

Second, I must say there is a stark difference between Joba fist pumping and Jose Reyes throwing his glove down in frustration after his teammate drops a catchable ball. Joba's fist pumps are done after he strikes someone out. This is an act of jubilation and passion, if you will.

There is no way around it, Reyes was clearly frustrated with Delgado for not making the play. Granted his throw could have been better but a major league 1b should be able to make that play.
The "passion" he displayed during his new managers first inning was indeed NOT passion. It was him being immature and clearly showing that he thinks he is above the team. I'm all for arguing to stay in the game if it stops at that, but it didn't he kicked the dirt and threw his helmet like a child and gave the impression that he thought the manager had no right taking him out of the game, which is ludicrous because that's the guys' job. So please the hate you are talking about sir is that is perceived that the Yankees can do whatever they like and the Mets get ridiculed for everything. Them's the perks of being the Kings of NY.

You can throw all the stats that you want about Reyes and how he is a great talent, which he is, but what happens when he looses a little bit of that blinding speed? Has he shown the metal toughness that he can draw upon when he can no longer get by on skill?

BTW.

Hey Melky, you might want to start hitting the ball because Mr. Gardner is here. Cash has said that he's not here to sit on the bench and you know Abreu and Damon are shoe-in at the corner spots, (except for the occasional day at DH to rest his legs) so where does that leave you. I'll be the first to admit that you're numbers have dropped like a 13 year old kids testicles and if your name came up in any trade discussions for top of the line starters, I might not be so heartbroken. Your best attribute is your D. You prance through CF like you've been playing there your whole life, but word is Gardner can too and even though he doesn't have the arm you have, which is way down the checklist for things a CF should have, you still better start hitting like you were in April.

More Draft

This is an amazing video that was posted on Awful Announcing. If you have disdain for Screamin' A. Smith grab a bag of Cheez Doodles and enjoy. BTW, Kevin Love has just become my favorite NBA player. ENJOY.

http://deadspin.com/5020510/stephen-as-career-never-too-dismal-for-heckling

PS. Check out the Awful Announcing's Live draft blog and check out the comments via BK. (that's me)

Draft Thoughts

Thanks to the rain delay in Pittsburgh that ultimately postponed the Yankee game, I hate to say it but I watched the entire 2008 NBA Draft. Anyone who watched that horrible broadcast and still considers Stu Scott to be a good anchor/host has lost their mind. The 4 guys on set were awful. And that's all I'm going to say about that because writing about it will make me mad that I wasted 5 hours watching them.

Anyway here are some of my thoughts about the draft, which as I look at the players selected is pretty weak.

Now that it seems the T-Wolves have traded O.J. Mayo and some bums to Memphis for Kevin Love, Mike Miller and some bums, I think they shoot up to near the top of the list of winners.
At least Mayo got out of Minnesota, it takes a special kind of player to be surrounded by snow for the entire season. But seriously why does the GM of Memphis get paid. He clearly sucks at his job.

New Jersey Nets made out like bandits getting 2 steals in Brook Lopez and CDR, both of whom will have that chip on the shoulder type attitude for their careers or until they get paid. (The NBA where playing hard for 3 years to get paid and then mailing it in happens.) The only thing I know about their 2nd pick is that he was the guy that got fouled against UCLA in that corner trap only a foul wasn't called, thus starting UCLA's run of non-calls that ultimately got them to the Final Four.

Portland is going to be SICK. Joey Dorsey coming off the bench to give energy and put-back dunks when Greg Oden is double teamed will be nuts. I'm putting the over/under on shattered backboards for Dorsey's career in Portland at 1.5. Trading Brandon Rush for Jerryd Bayless is a great move. Rush is the same type of player Brandon Roy is, now Roy can move to the 2 guard and Bayless can run the show.


Wooooooooo. The MAAC gets some love. Rider's Jason Thompson get taken 3 rounds to early by the Sacramento Kings. Huh? I do like the Kings pick of Patrick Ewing Jr., who can potentially be a poor man's Gerald Wallace, but I don't like it enough to overcome the fact that they picked a guy from the MAAC. If they were going to pick from that conference why not pick Tay Fisher. Everyone who reads this blog LOVES Tay Fisher. (Seriously. Think about it. You all do.)

The Bobcats have still yet to prove that they belong in the NBA. D.J. Augustin and Alexis Ajinca. Right positions but wrong players. Michael Jordan is really bad at this GM thing, isn't he?

Oh well. It's been a long night. So I leave you with a little bit of absurd trivia that you all know I love so much.
Q: Who was the first player ever selected from the NBA D-League?
A: Mike Taylor, PG. He was selected 55th overall.

NBA Draft

Alright, alright, alright. Time for some NBA prognostication.

Tomorrow the futures of 60 young men will be determined. Some of these young men will be set in their financial situations for the rest of their lives. Others will regret the day they listened to their cities version of Big Time Willie. (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0809793/)

No one can fault guys like like Johnathan Bender, DaJuan Wagner and Stromile Swift for jumping at the opportunity to make money, hell its the part of the American Dream. But you do have to question their commitment and love of the game if they are hell bent on leaving school (too) early or heading straight to the pro's without ever trying to better themselves in the NCAA, which is in all intents and purposes is the NBA's minor leagues. All be it a minor league that doesn't pay so maybe it's justifiable.

Everyone knows the 2 hot prospects that everyone is ga-ga over, Derrick Rose and Michael Beasley. Both had excellent freshman season's but in different ways. Rose was blessed to be the PG of a title contending team that allowed himself to be exposed to national media. Beasley on the other hand was a BEAST for a mid-level Big-12 team that, if they had a coach that didn't look like a manikin, might have contended in a down year for the conference.

Both are excellent players and will undoubtedly put up numbers, Beasley will probably have the eye-popping stats that will do wonders in fantasy leagues but will his game translate into overall team success?

With the emergence of CP3 and Deron Williams and the success of Steve Nash, the NBA is becoming a point guards league. And Rose fits in perfectly with Paul and Williams, he is willing and able to get his but is unselfish enough to find his guys so they can get theirs. In all likely hood Rose will fall into a perfect situation playing along side guys like Ben Gordon and Luol Deng, and I can't wait until the first lob pass from Rose that goes up to Tyrus Thomas and he throws it down. They might be the next Paul-Tyson Chandler, in terms of ally-oops.


OK so tomorrow I'm going to do a mock draft. I'm doing it tomorrow just in case of any trades and what not.

Stay Tuned.

Yankees vs Reds

Interesting series this past weekend. Much like the series where the Yanks played the Rockies last year and I got a man crush on Matt Holliday it seems that the man crush has left the Rocky Mountains and headed east toward the 'Natti.

I know that everyone seems to have a man crush on Jay Bruce; I on the other hand have fallen head over heels for Joey Votto.

As David Cone mentioned in the broadcast yesterday, the Reds are full of guys that belong at a casting call on The Sopranos. Even though the guys he mentioned had Spanish names not Italian.
But my boy Joey full fledged Canadian-Italian.

Votto's first inning at baseball's cathedral was spectacular. In his first at bat, he took a Mike Mussina pitch and crushed it about 10 rows deep in the right-centerfield bleachers. Then in the bottom of the inning, he made a specatular stab at first base. He went to the right and snagged a ball that took a bad hop. It was a great play by a very athletic fielder. He finished the series 7-for-12.

The Reds look set for the future. They have two potential 30-40 homerun guys in Bruce and Votto. And they have two big pieces they could trade, in Adam Dunn and Ken Griffey Jr., which could get them some quality major league ready prospects. Their pitching staff has some nasty stuff but they suffer from playing in a Little League ballpark. Michael Kay made a good point on the air saying that the Reds need to have guys that strike people out on their staff not guys that are "fly ball pitchers." And from watching this weekend series where their three top prospects were put on display, I'd have to say they look like they'd be a good fit.

Uhh You're Fired

The Mets, the good ol' Mets. They continue to prove themselves to be the red headed step-child of New York baseball. Firing Willie Randolph is a justified move. He is at the helm of one of the most disappointing teams in MLB this year and let's not forget he was at the helm of one of the single worst collapses in baseball history. Blame is a bitch and more often than not managers are the ones that usually take the blame, like it or not.

I am not familiar with the Mets situation but I do watch their games whenever I can, especially in the last couple of weeks since SNY-Gate. Now from what I gather from Mike and the Mad Dog, Kellerman and Kenny, The Michael Kay Show and other SNY and YES talk shows, most Mets fans were less than enamored with Willie.

One thing I do know is that the way they fired him was CLASSLESS, DISRESPECTFUL and any other synonym you know. Now according to TMKS, before the Mets left for the airport on Sunday night, Willie, while sitting on the bus, got off twice to ask Omar face-to-face if he was safe, and according to TMKS Omar told him both times that he had nothing to worry about. Fast-Forward to 3:15 am EST Willie is out of a job. Also according to TMKS, who had a source in the room when Omar was dropping the hammer, Omar was not able to look Willie in the eye and Willie had to ask Omar what his job status was after Omar had told him that they were letting go his pitching coach and his first-base coach.

Now the spinning has begun and the Wilpons seem to be placing the onus on Omar and we'll have to see what Omar has to say at his 5 pm presser.

I hope Mets fans are happy and I wish Jerry Manuel all the luck in the world. But if Mets fans wanted some fire from Willie, good luck getting it with Manuel.

Funny Shit

Courtesy of the boys at Awful Announcing. Chris Bosh is a man.


http://www.redlasso.com/ClipPlayer.aspx?id=47747b6a-252d-433d-a6c3-bc1a9966dea8

Moustaches

So I'm back in NY and one of the great things that NY brings to the table is the YES Network. This is a place where sports fans can listen to some of the great sports minds ever. Mike and his Mad Dog, Michael Kay broadcasting games and then interviewing celebs, Bobby Murcer, a great baseball player in his day but most importantly a great man.

Unlike the "NO" Network (SNY) we never go into too much critique of what our team is doing. You never heard Torre complain about comments Kay made, because he'd never dare question St. Joe of the South Bronx. Which is the point of having your own network, your supposed to be biased. Mets fans just don't get that yet. Maybe because they've never been true winners and strive to be better than the Yankees at something and maybe broadcasting is it. Who knows.

Another great thing about the YES Network is the in depth coverage they give to the happenings inside the clubhouse. And what is the recent buzz going on about the clubhouse? Moustaches.
If you look carefully you'll see them on as many people as has worn the Giambino's thong.(I must give the credit first and foremost to Tony Pena, our stellar 1st base coach who has sported the 'stache for a couple of years.) Johnny Damon, Jason Giambi, Ross Olendorf are all sporting them. And you know what? I have the crew at the YES Network to thank for letting me know why they have them. During the 3rd inning of tonight's game Kay and David Cone were talking about superstitions and Kay mentioned that Giambi didn't shave his upper lip one game and started hitting so he let it grow, as was the case with Damon. Olendorf isn't worthy for Kay to talk to so maybe when Olendorf becomes Jeff Nelson maybe Kay will talk to him but for now we can only speculate.

Thinking back throughout my generation of Yankees I can say with out any doubt that Giambi and Damon both rank pretty high on the list of Yankees with 'staches. (Cuz I can only remember 4)

Jeff Nelson-Sorry Kiviat but Giambi's 'stache doesn't come close to comparing to Nellie's. Nelson had that "Hey I'm a hick, and I don't give a fuck," look.
Giambi-After baseball I could definitely see him doing some porn.
Damon-He looks like a cop, but anything Damon does, I love.
Sal Fasano-Are we sure he was a catcher and not a plumber?

Game 1

Great way to start the NBA Finals. The Celtics really put it too the Lakers in the second half. I thought they did the a decent job vs Kobe by running different guys at him making it difficult for him to get free and ultimately tire him out. The C's better hope that Kobe doesn't get 26 shots again during this series because if he gets that many in any of the upcoming games he might go for 40 in every game.

Paul Pierce. Wow where to start. Willis Reed Jr., nah, I'm just kidding. What a joke that was. Now I don't question that he was hurt, I've had someone step on my shoe and me twist my knee during a game. Yes its painful but for Christ sake man, walk off on your own power or throw your arms around 2 teammates and limp off. The wheel chair was a bit much too. Who do you think you are? John Locke.

Finally, I'd just like to remind all of you that think the C's will ride the momentum of this game to sweep or win in 6. Way back in the 2001 Finals AI went off and carried the Sixers to win game 1 of that series. Eerie parallels to that game. The star of the team goes by his initials, that same star waited their entire career to get the the Finals and went off. (AI might have had better stats but KG's end of the game put back dunk ended the game with a little more than a minute to go)

The Lakers biggest weakness was exposed, rebounding, and it will continue to be exploited for the remainder of the series. Still, Lakers in 5.

A Few Thoughts.

OK so now its June and I thought I would return from my sabbatical, (smart college word I picked up) and drop some knowledge.

This really is my favorite time of the year. Baseball is starting to mean something, all the quaint pseudo-sports, like tennis, golf and horse racing, are becoming fun to watch and the NBA Finals start tonight. And of course because Kimbo has arrived.

Even though I'm in Florida, (coming back to NY soon) I still remember the spring fever that I would get New York the past 20 years. It's always this time of year that you can rest your mind (with school being over) and just kick back and watch baseball, letting yourself drift away into the game, getting so involved you start shouting at the TV and your family secretly question's your sanity. I'm only 22 and my parents have secretly thought I've been insane for almost 5 years, my friends, they've known a little longer.

I digress.

Baseball is now to the point where people who love the game can start to make educated predictions, because that's what we all live for, to see our picks actually achieve what we hoped they could. And you can check My Articles and see my March season preview. As you can see I clearly was drinking the AL Central Kool-Aid. I was high on the Tigers and Indians and why wouldn't I be. Everyone at ESPN was telling me that the Tigers were going to score a bazillion runs and throw shutouts every night. It wasn't just the ridiculous ESPN people like Steve Phillips, Orestes Destrade and EY. It was the respectable guys like Gammons and Krukjian selling the Kool-Aid too. So of course I bought it and now, I want my choice back. And I can have it back now that I have a blog.

The NL champion is going to be the team that gets hot at the end of the season. The Cubs and Brewers are the hottest teams now but the season doesn't end for four more months. The Mets, Phillies, D-Backs, Dodgers and Braves are all inconsistent. The Marlins are young. So who is going to represent the NL in the World Series? The team that roars through September winning 18 of 23 or something like that.

The AL champion is going to be the Angels. Sucks but who else is going to put it together long enough to last the season. The White Sox are a powder keg, just like the Balkans pre-WWI, waiting for one event to spark a war but they'll make the playoffs. Boston is now in first place and will make the playoffs but you've got a better chance of seeing me in a Jenna Jameson porno than you would of seeing me pick the Red Sox to win the World Series. So that's 2/3 of the division leaders in the AL. And then there are the Rays. I'll dye my hair fuckin pink if they make the playoffs. Your looking at 3 of the 4 teams who'll make the playoffs. The fourth? The Yankees.

We all have our allegiances to certain teams, mine is to the Yankees (shocker)but first and foremost I am a baseball fan. Now don't get me wrong every season for the last 15 or so I've picked the Yankees to make the playoffs. Does that make me a homer? Maybe. But ask anyone whose been around me the last four postseasons. The confidence I've had in the Yanks has diminished exponentially every year since The Collapse.

This is not supposed to be about the Yanks so I'm going to stop.

More about my favorite time of the year.

NBA Finals start tonight. This is great for the league and hopefully will turn people who love basketball but for some reason hate the NBA back to liking the league. But I have one beef with ESPN about the coverage. I'm less of a fan because I didn't see the Lakers-Celtics battle during the 80's? Fuck the 80's. The only cool things about the 80's were the cool people who were born during that decade. (Random Thought: Remember in Dazed and Confused when the chick with the red McNeil 'fro (inside MW joke) said the 60's were bitchin' the 70's "obviously" sucked and that the 80's were going to be awesome. How stupid is she. No wonder she never got any roles after that.) So what if I didn't see two tall white guys clothesline each other. Imagine if that happened tonight. Jay Marriotti's head would explode. Were the 80's a great period for the NBA? Yeah, but they wore short shorts. Any way, I really like the Lakers chances to win because of Kobe and I'll feel like an asshole for not picking them to win, but ESPN is picking them so once again I'm buying bunk Kool-Aid. (Another random thought: OK, say for the last 5 years you've been basing your decisions about cars from a car magazine. They send out people to look and test drive cars and give their reviews. This magazine then becomes so big because it's the first of it's kind and whatever they say is taken like its one of the missing gospels in the Bible. People become so enamored with their presentation they look to them for everything to do with cars. But for those 5 years you've bought 5 cars and they all sucked. Wouldn't you stop listening to them? Why don't we stop listening to ESPN? I have no idea about the validity of what I'm going to say but when was the last time ESPN gotten anything right. Weather it's picking MVP's, league champions or sideline reporters.)

Yay for the little sports too.

Horse racing is back and I don't think anyone under the age of 35 cares. I do like Big Brown's trainer, he's a cocky prick and I hope the horse wins the triple crown. But he better watch out for Josh Hamilton because he might win it too. Then we could have a race between them to see who the real triple crown winner is. It wouldn't matter who would win because Kimbo Slice would kick their ass. I'm a huge Chuck Norris guy and I love Walker Texas Ranger but Kimbo would wear his ass out. Chuck isn't a ground fighter and neither is Kimbo so we'd be right in Kimbo's wheelhouse. Jack Bauer wouldn't stand a chance.

Contest: Anyone who saw the Kimbo Slice fight in HD please give your best description of the cauliflower ear the Colossus had. Winner will be immortalized in the eyes of the youth movement. And I'll think of something cool that the winner can do or have.

PS. The NHL might be back. I watched the third period of Game 5 and all the overtimes. That was a crazy game, everyone in the room thought so too. Intensity, fast paced action and great goal tending. Welcome back NHL. Maybe.

Bill Simmons is baaack.

After a fairly public, (depending what you read) spat with ESPN the man who I should most hate has returned.
He had a chat on Monday, which are always a great read and a ESPN Mag column about Lakers-Celtics.
His column today was biting and a sort of Eff You to those in Boston who have begun to recently question his commitment to the C's.
I'm posting the two things here and here.

Nah here.

http://sports.espn.go.com/espnmag/story?id=3422313

http://proxy.espn.go.com/chat/chatESPN?event_id=20902

Joba News

The day has finally come. The Savior has been in our presence but only now we are going to unleash his true power. Of course I'm talking about Joba Chamberlain, the boy wonder. Your not going to get an argument from me about him. The 44 and 1/3 innings he has thrown have been, except for midges and David Dellucci, phenomenal. But it's only 44 innings. Through 2 months of the season and a little over a month from last year, he has created a buzz that hasn't been seen since the days of Fernando Valenzuela.
Will Joba be an ace of the staff for the next 10 years? I don't know. But isn't it worth the chance to see what the kid can do?
I've wavered on this ever since the ideas was floated by Hank in the off season. At the beginning of the year I told jeezy that he should stay in the bullpen. But now? You'll see me leading the charge to get him into the rotation. I might even return to the Church to see if we can get a little Divine intervention on Joba's behalf.
Even though I'm of the belief that Joba should be in the rotation I'm not stupid. I know that it's impossible for him to maintain that 99 mph fastball for 6 or 7 innings and any Yankee fan who thinks that, should become a Pirates fan, because you know nothing about baseball. Joba will probably pitch somewhere in the neighborhood of 80-100 innings. He'll most likely miss a couple of weeks getting some starts in Charleston, Trenton and Scranton.
Now if Joba can pitch to league averages the Yankees will make the playoffs. (That sound you heard is our most faithful reader Kevin's jaw hitting the floor) If Joba can pitch around 6 innings per start have a solid 4.00 ERA he'll give the Yankees life much in the way he did last year. Let's hope the Joba well hasn't dried up.

ps. Mets fans leave Wille alone.

Big Sunday

Today should be a wonderful sports day.
First, we'll have a Game 7. There is no reason to think that LeBron and Co. will be able to figure out the Celtics D.
The only way for the LeBron's to win the game is if he gets his teammates involved early, which means him not scoring, which could be a problem. KG acts like every game is a Game 7, I wonder what he'll act like in an actual Game 7. His head might explode when he puts the powder on his hands before the jump ball.
The C's should and will win this game. I just don't think LeBron will be able to carry the load for 48 minutes. He's good at taking over the last 12 but the entire game is a different story.
Then for the nightcap, it's Yankees vs Mets. Wang against Perez.
Wang needs a good performance tonight and I think Perez will do well with out lefty heavy lineup. This will be a good opportunity for Wang some what prove to the Yankee faithful that he can be a stopper. We haven't played well in 2 weeks.
That series against the Rays was pathetic.
No offense whatsoever. Pitching was OK.
It's not often that Mo will blow the game against the Rays.
I never like to question a manager but on Thursday's game, which I was at, Girardi didn't have Abreu or Matsui in the lineup. I know it's a day game after a night game, but Giambi has been fielding well at first, so there is no need to have Ensberg at first and Gonzalez at third. Combine the 2 of them and you still wouldn't have a decent Major League hitter.
Boy those Rays fans here in Tampa are sure getting a little bit testy with their team being over 500. They just don't seem to grasp the concept that the season still has 4 months left. That's a fucking eternity.
No worries Yankee fans.

Absence

I just graduated from college so I've been away for awhile taking in the nice FLA sun. After watching the pitiful series the Yankees just played in Tampa, all of which I watched and 1 I actually paid to go see, I plan on giving my thoughts on the season to this point. Hopefully the 4 train will demolish 7 train in the Subway Series.

Oh Well

Good pitching performance all around. Cliff Lee is pretty damn effective. He just gets outs which is the name of the game. Chien-Ming Wang did as much as he possibly could. I'll take 3 runs on 5 hits any day of the week.
Where has the hitting gone?
Without A-Rod, Posada and a legit table setter the Yankees look pedestrian. Damon is no longer a lead off guy. Sorry but Girardi has to experiment with moving him down in the order, he doesn't work the count, he can't run anymore. He's a fly ball hitter in this stage of his career. Matsui is the only guy hitting with any consistency in this lineup. Abreu is good at what he does but his approach just pisses me off. He never swings at the first pitch is always behind 0-2 and if I hear "he likes to hit with 2 strikes" again I'll stab myself in the eye with toothbrush.
That being said it is still relatively early and I'm not worried yet. This has been the norm for the Yankees for the past couple of years. The Red Sox are within striking distance. And no one has established themselves as the class of the AL. I see a trade in the future that gets them a pitcher I'd like to see an effort to get Roy Oswalt away from Houston or maybe if Milwaukee falls out of it they will trade Ben Sheets because they don't want to loose him at the end of the year.
Who knows. I sure as hell don't.

Buck does it again.

Another good point by Buck Showalter. Cliff Lee had to throw 11 extra pitches after Abreu beat out the play at first and how that might cost him an inning. With the bullpen issues the Indians have and how well Lee is pitching it might be beneficial to see their bullpen.

This Game Sucks

This game is awful, not too much going on.
So lets dabble in some politics.
Sen. Clinton, you are the junior senator from my state but I don't support you. I know your trying to win the nomination. Sure you've gotten almost half of the Democratic votes this primary season. But what are you really doing?
Are you trying to win at all costs to the party? I think so. Sen. Obama has more than proven that he is not the average politician. He seems to be a genuine person. He gave his friend (Rev. Wright) a chance to atone for his wild remarks then when the man he called a friend called him just another politician he told him to go to hell. He didn't throw him under the bus like Wright did to Obama.
Sen. Clinton are you serious about your image you've changed so many times this year I'm starting to believe that you are a regular women that isn't elite.
Who are you kidding. You are a Yale law grad. I'm pretty sure that puts you in elite company and you have elitist views. Obama is elitist too. So are Bush and McCain.
Why is it so bad to have an elitist president. Don't we want to have our president more knowledgeable than average citizens? I know the basics but that's it.
Sen. Clinton please drop out and unify this party before it's too late. McCain is not the McCain of 2000 who we all loved.
Obama in 2008.

C & C Boys

Melky just nailed a shot to right and then Cano just pulled his hands an blooped a shot in right. Now, instead of going to a Right Now can't Buck break down how Cano was able to get his hands in and how he just got the ball in front of Francisco. Is that too much to ask?

May 7th

Happy birthday Bizzle.

Carlos Beltran led center fielders in plus/minus last year. And was in the top 10 in range factor. He also finished runner up in the Fielding Bible Awards. If you don't know what any of that shit means. Look it up.

The knock on Beltran is that he plays too deep. Maybe he doesn't have the speed that Andrew does to track down fly balls on the wall by playing so shallow. However in Shea Stadium, a gap hitters dream park, Beltran prevents a lot of extra base hits by playing so deep. You'd much rather have your center fielders allowing singles and keeping everything in front of them, than giving up extra base hits all the time. He reads the ball off the bat very well and he's got one of the strongest arms to roam center field in the majors.

He's not homegrown, but he's well worth the money we're giving him. His all-around game and 30+ hr pop negates any overrated chants he hears in visitors ballparks.

Now I'll be fair...he should definitely get that sick mole removed.

Kissinger

Dr. Henry Kissinger is at the Stadium. WHO CARES. What kid watching this game knows who he is? I know who he is, but why is he famous again. He was some presidnets Secretary of something, but who cares. At least we know O'Brien can make Buck giggle like a girl.

Cig Break

Sorry if I miss anything time for a cigarette.

Why

Cliff Lee is pitching to his defense. He looks like he puts the ball in spots where people can hit it to the fielders. Much the same Wang makes people but the ball on the ground.

Who Cares?

I don't care that A-Rod passed out during the birth of his child. He probably didn't pass out, he was probably just overwhelmed and needed to lay down. Talk about the game and analyze the struggles of hitters and talk strategy.
SportsCenter Right Now's suck. Way to many during the game. Please take away the bottom line too and shrink the scoring line thing.
How many people need constant updates of the Mets-Dodgers game. And who cares about what Dale Earnhardt thinks of his step-mother?
Stick to baseball during baseball games. Update at the top and bottom of every hour. I bet we will get more updates of Joey Vatto's game rather than that of the Magic-Pistons game.

Casey Blake

According to Buck Showalter he is a winning player. Don't you have to win in order to have that distinction?

WOW

Every Bobby Abreu at bat I've seen this year starts the same way. First pitch he doesn't even move. Don't you think if I've noticed that every other video guy in MLB has? Swing the bat Bobby.
Cliff Lee. Is his real name Clifford? Like the Big Red Dog. Or the Martin Short movie? Wonder if he's a fan of either.

Cliff Lee

How will Cliff Lee deal with a patient Yankees lineup.
So far he's faced Oakland, twice. Minnesota, Kansas City and Seattle.
All of which are young teams with young hitters who are aggressive.
The Yankees aren't aggressive and will make a pitcher work and throw pitches. If Bobby Abreu gets a first pitch ball he will get on base.
BTW, I have Derek Jeter in my 56 game hitting streak contest at www.prosportsdaily.com

Cleveland

Why are we supposed to be afraid of the Indians lineup? Dellucci hitting third, Peralta hitting fifth and Hafner not even playing. Martinez is a stud, really really studly.
A very Angles like scoring route. Walk. Seeing Eye Single, FC, Sizemore to third, Francisco out at 2nd. Then a SF scoring Sizemore.
Not your average way of scoring, weird FC 9-6.
Midway through the 1st:
1-0

Joba isn't human?

4 minutes into the game and I've heard that Joba might be human 3 times already. Really Joba is human. I know he's got a weird name and all but I'm pretty sure he's not an alien.

Role Call

God damn is there anything better than the Role Call?

Yankees vs Indians

Running diary of tonight's Yanks Indians game. ESPN telecast. God Help us if Steve Philips is in the booth.

Starting lineups

Yankees Indians

Damon LF Sizemore CF
Jeter SS Francisco RF

Abreu RF Dellucci LF

Duncan 1B Martinez DH

Matsui DH Peralta SS

Cabrera CF Caberea 2B

Cano 2B Blake 1B

Ensberg 3B Shoppach C

Molina C Marte 3B

Wang P Lee P

Yikes. Dave O'Brien and Buck Showalter in the booth. I suggest if you can do not watch ESPN's telecast of the game. We could be in for a rough one.

Few thoughts about the lineup.

Who would've thought Melky batting ahead of Cano. I like how Girardi has split up the lefties which could be the reason for the Cabrera (6) and Cano (7).

10 Years

2 notable anniversaries.

1. Kerry Wood-10 years ago he struck out 20 batters. WOW. 10 years.
2. Roger Clemens- Last year he was so graciously welcomed back to the Bronx. "Oh my goodness gracious,"to quote Suzyn Waldman. What a sad sad year for Mr. Clemens.

Like I said in my previous post, I don't like to compare players until their careers are over. So all I was trying to say is that its hard to project players and no one would have said Bernie would be in monument park after his first 3 years. Plus, I only care what Yankee fans think of their players. Mets fans wouldn't know a good CF even if he grew out of the grass at Shea Stadium.

Whoa what?

I'm not a yankee fan, but I'm offended. I stopped reading the sentence after you compared Melky to Bernie Williams. Don't get me wrong, I love milk. I drink a gallon a day literally. But that comparison is almost as bad as Mike Francesa comparing Ryan Church to Paul O'Neill.

Stop.

Wait.

At the end of the '09 season if either one of them hits over 20 homeruns. Then let's chat.

Melky Cabrera

I don't claim to be a statistical genius that can break down a baseball players stats and project them to be a player that came before them.
I can try though. So I'm going to take a stab at it.
Melky Cabrera is the starting CF for the New York Yankees. He's done the job so well he forced the Yankees brass to move a two-time All Star in Johnny Damon to LF. Now we can all say it was a move that was a long time coming due to Damon's lack of arm strength and you'll get no argument from me.
Damon is not the Yankee CF I'm going to draw comparisons too.
I'd like to compare Melky to a Yankee near and dear to my heart, #51, Bernie Williams. Now everyone who is probably reading this knows of my allegiance to Bernie, his is the only Yankee jersey I own.
Bernie broke into the major league in July of 1991, played in 85 games and was nothing special. .230/3/34/.336. That's batting average, home-runs, RBIs and on-base-percentage. I'm old school, I like to stick to the proven statistics.
Bernie again played for the Yankees in '92 playing in 62 games and posting .280/5/26/.384, again for 62 games they are decent stats. There is one thing that we can conclude from seeing these numbers, (and i know numbers don't tell the whole story) Bernie Williams was not headed toward immortality and a place out in Monument Park.
Bernie's first full seasons in '93 he posted .268/12/68/.333 while scoring 67 runs and the strike-shortened season of '94 (108 games) he posted .289/12/57/.384 while scoring 80 runs. In all intents and purposes we can say that this would have been a stellar season for Bernie had they played out the rest of the season. Also we can say that this was Bernie's third season in the majors.
Melky is entering his third full season on the Yankees. He was a September call-up in 2005 and played in 6 games, nothing we can draw conclusions from. So i won't.
In 2006 Melky was thrust upon the scene after a rash of early season injuries to our multi-million dollar corner outfielders, Hideki Matsui and Gary Sheffield. He posted solid numbers hitting in the 9-hole, .280/7/50/.360. He also scored 75 runs.
In 2007 Melky made the team as the 4th outfielder, and was awarded the CF job after Johnny Damon had chronic calf problems. With a healthy Matsui manning LF and Bobby Abreu fitting in nicely into RF, Melky posted .273/8/73/.327.
Nothing great, I'll admit it. But how many runs did Melky save with over-the-wall catches and frozen ropes from CF?
Bernie for all his offensive prowess was never a great fielder. His arm was more comparable to that of Damon, not Cabrera.
Through 31 games this year Melky is posting .291/6/18/.359. He has not been slotted into one spot in the lineup like Bernie's customarily hitting #3. Melky has hit lead off, second, sixth, seventh, eighth and nineth.
Melky is a fan favorite at the Stadium with his exciting plays and for the youthful exuberance he displays with fellow youngsters Robinson Cano and Shelly Duncan. He and Cano have also taken to doing the same pre-game routine A-Rod has started since his time in the Bronx began.
All in all, I say the "Melk Man" has and will continue to deliver.

Rangers

What a disaster. To quote the ever so literate Joe Beningo. The Penguins were clearly the better team. I just have one beef. Why did Ryan Malone's high stick on Chris Drury (which drew blood) not get called for a 4 minute penalty, let alone even a 2 minute? Yet Drury's high stick on Malone (which drew less blood) was accurately called for 4 minutes. A 4 minute powerplay can easily change a game. Kudos to the Ranger penalty kill units for killing Drury's 4 minute. Oh the pain.

Halt!

For all Chien-Ming Wang is,
(http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2008/writers/albert_chen/04/15/wang0421/index.html) he is the Yankees ace.
What else do we want from him?
He has clearly shown this season that he can stop any losing streak. It's not his fault that every time he pitches we have lost the last 4 games.
He does what an ace is supposed to do. He takes the ball, throws his pitches and you know what, the results might not be sexy, but he is effective.
Wang, (6-0) has taken the burden of being the ace of the most famous team in sports and done the job. It might not be Beckett-eske but he gets the job done.
Wang-Jo-Mo is how the Yankees are going to win the Pennant.

Playoffs? You Kiddin' Me?

Well, Well, Well. Tonight is to be a Tony the Tiger great night of basketball.
3 elimination games.
I'm feeling an epic game by LeBron, somewhere along the lines of 38 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists in a close game that he'll take over.
The Boston 3 party will close out the Hawks who have put themselves in a Catch-22 for next season. If they struggle, they'll be blasted for not living up to their potential that was on display during games 3 and 4, and if they have a better season they really have no shot of winning the East because the C's have 3 more years of dominance.
T-Mac, who I like very much, has to have a big game tonight to force a game 7 back in Utah. He needs to play out of his mind these next 2 games. It's likely all the NBA eyes will be on him to see if he can get off the snide.

Kiefer Sutherland

Theres nothing better than at 7pm on the Versus Network when Jack Bauer himself states "This is a presentation of the National Hockey League".

There is nothing better than playoff hockey.

Fucking ESPN

I'm watching ESPN break down Tyler Hansbrough's jump from a frat balcony into a pool. Can we please give these college athletes their life back? And can we break down actual sport events instead of sports drama? I haven't learned anything about any sport from ESPN in the past 4 years. Can we debate why Joe Girardi would walk a slumping Travis Hafner to pitch to V-Mart, or do we have to listen to Jessica Simpson getting the train run on her by Tony Homo and the gang, and how it impacted Tony Homo in his mediocre passing game.

Yeah I said it. Fuck Tony Romo. Fuck ESPN. Can we please have another sporting news network grow some balls and take on ESPN straight up?

Clint Barmes

Look for this young stud to fill Tulowitzki's void with 20-20 numbers.

Bush and the G-Men

I've been noticing for awhile that when every Republican speaks about the Democratic Party they always say the Democrat party. It was once again put on display when the New York Football Giants visited the White House.
“We’re going to send Jessica Simpson to the Democrat National Convention."
That was straight off the MSNBC page dedicated to the story.
Why has no one called the GOP out on this?
I fear that this subtle but effective tactic will become the norm for GOPers and their media henchmen.
ps. For all of George W Bush's blunders as president, like starting an unnecessary war, tearing the constitution apart line by line and letting a major city sit under 4 feet of water, he has shown when sports teams come to visit why he was elected by so many dimwits. He's a pretty funny guy and knowledgeable sports fan.
Maybe he should be reading the NIE instead of listening to Joe Buck call the 'Boys-Giants game.
It's just a thought.

Ohlendorf for Heilman?

If you're Brian Cashman would you do it? The knock on Cashman has been his inability to secure long term starting pitching. Any team would have taken Pavano so we'll leave him out of this. But there's a plethora of other questionable acquisitions I'll spare you. Heilman is a pitcher that needs to start. He has a very good change up that keeps getting hit out of the park in the 8th inning for the metropolitans. He needs a change. Ohlendorf is being stretched out in the Yankee bullpen. Are they grooming him to be a starter? Are they interested in his stamina? He is still young. And he's 6'4, 240 lbs. He's got 20 strikeouts in 20 innings so far this year for the Yankees. Not bad. Heilman is a cheap option. He's a free agent at the end of 2008. Mets fans have had enough of Aaron Heilman. Seriously. Get him out.

I asked Shorty-Lowe if he'd trade 6 ice houses for Aaron Heilman. He said Heilman isn't worth $4.31. I think he forgot to factor in the $0.05 deposit per can. But he's only an econ major so what do you want from him. George W. Bush was an econ major. As was every president since JFK. I'm ending this conversation before I start going off on the current state of the economy.

Bottom line. Minaya should wine and dine Cashman and get us a reliever that has a different first name then James Shields' first cousin, whose batting stance is atrocious. (He plays CF for the worst team in baseball)

vote, invest, and blaze (stud valediction)
peace

Micah Owings stop hitting home runs.

Ok. so here I am fulfilling my destiny of becoming a blogger. Even though it's for this schwag website that gets no exposure what so ever. But maybe I can lose the nickname of "Skip Bayliss" so kindly provided by my admiring peers. Maybe they will see I'm not out of my mind when I say that Mike Pelfrey is a stud. I won't even talk about basketball because in 22 years I have never learned how to shoot a jumper. I'll leave all that talk to BK. When the Knicks win more than 30 games, then maybe I'll talk. For now, I'll tackle Fantasy Baseball and suggest players that you should or should not add, but should definitely be aware of. It's mostly all coming from a deep keeper league perspective.

3 Pitchers:
Dana Eveland
Greg Smith
Chad Gaudin

I'm sure you're all aware of the latter, but the other 2 young (studs) have tremendous minor league numbers, with about 400 innings work. Generally 500 is a benchmark you would like your minor league pitchers to gain before coming into the show. Both were acquired by Billy Beane's ridiculous quantitative brain coming over in the Danny Haren trade. We all know what has come out of Oakland in the past ten years, especially on the pitching side of things. These two young (studs) should post low whips (1.20-1.30) and should each win over 10 games.

3 Hitters:
Clint Barmes
-Potential (emphasis on potential) 20/20 2b for the Rockies. Posting a high OPS so far.

Matt Laporta
-Hasn't had enough minor league at bats to see if the power will sustain, but the average certainly does. So far in 202 at bats he's hit 19 hrs, with a .300 average, .380 obp, and a .670 slug. Be aware he hasn't even seen AAA yet.

Wladimir Balentien
-Just got called up by Seattle. Signed when he was 14 or 15. Ridiculous. If he gets 400 at bats he could probably hit 20 homeruns and steal 10-15 bags. Just check his minor league stats to really see how consistent a player this kids been. Would like to see his average and OBP about 20 points higher each, but that could happen in the big leagues. Tricky how baseball works.

These names should all be familiar with you by now if you want to call yourself a fantasy player. I have Clint Barmes in my keeper league, basically to get some work in for Cano while he's struggling, and also because he has SS elgibility and I had Rollins go down. Keppinger has done a nice job filling in for Rollins, but Barmes provides a little more pop and SB then Keppinger. Keppinger is a high OPS guy, but Barmes has maintained his OPS so far this year. Rollins is back sooner or later but I haven't suffered that much. This is where these young guys come in handy, especially when they are hot.

vote, invest, and blaze.
peace.

Game 5

I didn't get a sense of what transpired in game 5 but hearing Jon Paxson speak about the "team" made me think that Kobe is on his way to having the same success MJ had. Kobe and Pau as the leaders. Lamar and Bynum as role players with Walton, Vujicic and Fisher as the shooters. Even though Kobe might not have the relationship with the entire team that MJ had with his team, Rony Turiaf seems to interact with Kobe well and he might not like D-Fish but he's won with him and to Kobe that is probably enough.

Games 3 and 4

Boom. I just saw what separates MJ from every other player that ever played. MJ's game tying shot was a higher degree of difficulty than the Game 1 shot. From the 3 minute highlight reel I saw of Game 4 it looked like MJ got his guys fired up and wouldn't let them loose. That is what great players do, they instill fear in their teammates so that they don't mess up. Not only will they have the internal disappointment but they'll have to look MJ in the face and explain why they didn't win.

Game 1 & 2

I know I can't get a full grasp of what went on during Games 1 and 2 of the 1991 Finals by watching a 24 minute recap of it but, I can't help but notice the difference between the stars of then and the stars of now.
Maybe it has something to do with the constant media attention. How bad would MJ have been ripped on 1st and 10 by Skip Bayless for missing the game winning shot at the end of Game 1.
Magic's post-game interview was awesome. You could clearly hear the respect he had for Michael. I don't think you'd hear LB J or Kobe talking about each other like that.
"It was his game tonite and he took it over."

ESPN

Just a reminder, from 1:00 until 2:30 this afternoon NBA Finals Films. It's going to show the first Bulls 3-peat. Should be good TV.

TNT Halftime

The more I hear Kenny Smith talk the more impressed I am. Even if he doesn't get the Knicks GM job he will be an assest to some team someday. His breakdown of Sam Cassell's first-half was very well done. The two mid-range jumpers that he hit were from nearly the exact same spot. Well done Jet.

Celts-Hawks

So, here we are. Somewhere we thought we'd never be. Boston and Atlanta tied at 2. WOW. I can't put my finger on what it is about Dick Stockton.
9:38- Leon Powe and Sam Cassell just left the game. I don't think the applause was for Sam, Dick. I don't think Boston is in love with Sam I Am as much as they thought they would be.

NBA Playoffs

I've been infatuated with the NBA this season. The first Finals I remember watching were in 1994, with my hometown Knicks facing Hakeem's Rockets. This was the Finals that was interrupted by the O.J. chase.
I've been a fan of the NBA ever since.
I watched the second 3-peat, the emergence of the Kobe-Shaq dynasty and the Tim Duncan dynasty. I remember disliking the Lakers so much because of, what seemed to me watching on TV, a clear discrepancy on the foul line. It seemed every time the Blazers or the Kings got close to beating them, the refs would start to call fouls on whomever was guarding Shaq, be it Brian Grant, Rasheed Wallace, C-Webb or Vlade Divac. I'm sure the stats don't back me up or that even in some games the Blazers had more free throw attempts than the Lakers.
But I digress.
I look back on those days of the NBA on NBC and can't help but think the announcers were better back then. Marv Albert, Bob Costas, Tom Hammond, Steve "Snapper" Jones, Doug Collins, Isiah Thomas, Bill Walton, Matt Guokas and the Czar, Mike Fratello.
Now I can only claim to be fans of Mike Breen, Mike Tirico, Hubie Brown, Doug Collins, Mark Jackson, Jeff Van Gundy.
Marv somewhere along the line jumped the shark. I think the Czar blew a gasket during his most recent stint coaching in the NBA.
TNT broadcasting pairs are so all over the place. Doug Collins is the best and really the only TNT guy I will listen too. Reggie Miller has his moments and his chemistry with Marv is great at times, but his voice. I can't believe this has never been mentioned. I think Dick Stockton is asleep for half the game, and he relies way too much on telling the viewer where the last guy who scored went to college and how long he's been in the NBA.
I beg TNT to not invite Coach Dunleavy back for the second round. I know he coaches and can get access to the coaches and players because they have respect for him but what does he really know about the Hawks or Raptors? He just finished an 82 game struggle with the Clippers, how much does he know about the players and their styles. Maybe he's coached 1 or 2 players somewhere along the line, but I would rather an NBA writer like Mike Wilbon sit with Matt Devlin. What is the worst that could happen. Devlin and Dunleavy have no history together and neither would Wilbon, but at least we know he watches more than 1 team.