It was an energetic atmosphere at the Staples Centre last night, as the Los Angelas Lakers edged the Washington Wizards 115-108, in what wasn't a very competitive game, until the third quarter, in which Phil Jackson's squad was hustled, out rebounded and outscored, 28-18 and narrowed the defecit to just 3.
Rookie point guard John Wall took charge during the game, sparking the 11-4 run, finishing with 22 points and 14 assists in a valiant effort. Pau Gasol led the Lakers onset, two assists short of a triple double, with 21 points, 14 rebounds and 8 assists. Bryant added 32 for the home squad on 12-23 shooting, and Gilbert Arenas chipped in 23 points, while turning the ball over 7 times...
Rebounding was the difference in this contest, as the Wizards outgunned the Lakers 50%-44% off the floor, but were outhustled and lost the count 45-34 on the glass, especially 22-9 offensively.
The secdon consecutive win puts Los Angeles 4th in the West (15-6), 2.5 games behind the streaking Spurs; yet drops Washington, albeit in a rebuilding stage, 14th in the East (6-14).
Washington looks to rebound tonight against Sacremento (4-15) tip-off slated at 10 pm. The Lakers are in an intracity battle as they play host to the Clippers, timed to go at 10:30 Eastern.
Key note, Washington Forward Trevor Brook shot 7-9 from the field, in over 20 minutes of playing time.
Wednesday, December 8, 2010
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
Back to the Hardwood and One Hundred and Six.
Image by Getty Images via @daylife
Critical to the win was Ray Allen going 0/0 from behind the arc, including a clutch three late in the 4th quarter to put the Celtics up by 6. Rajon Rondo dished 17 assists, and the Wade-Bosh combination went -31 on the floor... Of course Lebron James was strong, shooting roughly .500 but included a game high 9 turnovers, and Miami as a team shot .365.
I know it is a long season, so I will be reluctant to bash the Heat right away, but it should be noted, only 3 teams, since 1990 have won the championship after losing the opening game, and most recently Detroit in 03-04. Just sayin'... Although if Miami drops their game tonight against Phillie, you can expect to hear it tomorrow, and from some acclaimed sources higher than me.
The Lakers held off the Rockets last night to solidify the home opening experiance, after recieving their championship rings in style to a standing ovation at the Staples Centre. Pau Gasol lead the way for the Lake show with 29 points and 11 rebounds, and Kobe, being Kobe jacked up 27 and had 7 assists as they edged Houston 112-110. Noteworthy was Streakin Shannon, as Brown added 14 points, in a 6 minute stretch, as well as Yao Ming's return to the league since April 2009.
Finally, the event Giants fans have been waiting for since 2002, another World Series! The Giants and Rangers start the best-of-seven series tonight at 7:56 PM PST at AT&T Park. This may not be the matchup many expected, or wanted, but is, contrary to popular disrespect, going to pull through, and give the fans some solid baseball. Both teams know how to play the game, they have swinging bats, can put runs on the board, and the pitching matchup displays some of the finest show downs the 2010 post season could offer. Tim Lincecum gets the nod tonight against Cliff Lee, in what could be Lee's last start, or series in a jersey, not decked out in pinstripes, as it is believed the Yankees, who have infinite revenue, are making a pitch at the 2008 A.L Cy Young southpaw during this offseason.
Sadly, in less important news, the Toronto Raptors get their season started this evening against New York, but with the World Series going, I doubt I will watch that game, though all the best to Jay Triano. I'll leave a link down below to ESPN's Toronto Raptor's season preview.
That's all for today, this was my first post in a while, if you haven't noticed I write in bunchs, and figured with the World Series, and the NBA Season Tip-Off , I might as well get back into it!
Raptors Preview : http://espn.go.com/nba/preview2010/team/_/name/tor
Sunday, August 29, 2010
As Promised!
Lebron James, the most (in)famous basketball player in North America, depending on your Geographical location, and NBA team preferance. If you live in Southern
Florida, forget Orlando, or just cheer for the Miami Heat you probably worship this guy. Anyone else, anywhere in the continent, or a fan of the other 29 NBA franchises aren't a fan...
He ditched his home team, and well... If you don't know the story by now, go to your nearest Wal*Mart, buy a television, and an issue of Sports Illustrated while you are at it.
But WHY don't I like him? There are tons of reasons why, the trait to his team, the ditch for money, the lies, and the list goes on and on but one of the biggest reason would be lack of competitiveness.
What am I talking about? I am talking about the conspiracy that Lebron, and Bosh also flaked out in the end of the season, and for the Cleveland Forward, in the Post-Season.
Usually, for a post like this I would provide infinite amount of reasoning for why I feel a certain cause had the dismounting effect, but really that isn't completely necessary for this example. There is only one reason to make one seriously consider Bosh, and more specifically Lebron flaked out, and did not compete as hard in the twilight of 2010...
It all boils down to the "King"'s main reasoning for heading to Miami, as he quotes, yet I don't fall for, "Miami gives me the best chance to win." You should already know how I feel about that BS, but let's take that excuse for a minute here. If they had won a title with Cleveland, honestly, do you think Lebron can say, well "Even though we won a title here in Cleveland, I just want to win, and Miami is the best option at the moment." No, he couldn't because, well a defending champion beats a 45 win team. Hands down.
Chris Bosh, well Chris didn't keep it a secret, we also didn't hold our breath, it was inevitable, Toronto really was not and will not be going anywhere for several years, which upsets me, but helps his case. I do not blame him for leaving, although he still can go eff himself :)
I made a larger mistake than Miami did though, by posting this tonight. I'm really tired, and not thinking straight, definitely not a writing mood. I could have made this post TEN times better if I had waited until tomorrow night, but I chose to follow up on my promise and write tonight... Now excuse me, my pillow's calling my name!
Florida, forget Orlando, or just cheer for the Miami Heat you probably worship this guy. Anyone else, anywhere in the continent, or a fan of the other 29 NBA franchises aren't a fan...
He ditched his home team, and well... If you don't know the story by now, go to your nearest Wal*Mart, buy a television, and an issue of Sports Illustrated while you are at it.
But WHY don't I like him? There are tons of reasons why, the trait to his team, the ditch for money, the lies, and the list goes on and on but one of the biggest reason would be lack of competitiveness.
What am I talking about? I am talking about the conspiracy that Lebron, and Bosh also flaked out in the end of the season, and for the Cleveland Forward, in the Post-Season.
Usually, for a post like this I would provide infinite amount of reasoning for why I feel a certain cause had the dismounting effect, but really that isn't completely necessary for this example. There is only one reason to make one seriously consider Bosh, and more specifically Lebron flaked out, and did not compete as hard in the twilight of 2010...
It all boils down to the "King"'s main reasoning for heading to Miami, as he quotes, yet I don't fall for, "Miami gives me the best chance to win." You should already know how I feel about that BS, but let's take that excuse for a minute here. If they had won a title with Cleveland, honestly, do you think Lebron can say, well "Even though we won a title here in Cleveland, I just want to win, and Miami is the best option at the moment." No, he couldn't because, well a defending champion beats a 45 win team. Hands down.
Chris Bosh, well Chris didn't keep it a secret, we also didn't hold our breath, it was inevitable, Toronto really was not and will not be going anywhere for several years, which upsets me, but helps his case. I do not blame him for leaving, although he still can go eff himself :)
I made a larger mistake than Miami did though, by posting this tonight. I'm really tired, and not thinking straight, definitely not a writing mood. I could have made this post TEN times better if I had waited until tomorrow night, but I chose to follow up on my promise and write tonight... Now excuse me, my pillow's calling my name!
Saturday, August 28, 2010
Considered Yourself "Philled In"... No?
Hey guys, so usually after a 2 day break I would have posted something already, but sadly that is not the case, and if you are looking for an update, I do have one of sorts.
So between work, and running around, I may have had the time to post but just haven't. For the few of you who check regularly sorry!
On the plus side though, tomorrow I'll have another post out, concerning the conspiracy of Lebron James... No more details ;), sounds interesting though. Hopefully I make it interesting.
Last two things, I went ahead and put up a search bar, and an ad spot anyways, even though 2 of the 6 voters said no. Uhm, it depends on how often they get clicked, which im not directly hinting you should, but I could make anywhere from 10-60 bucks a month off of that so, hopefully it isn't a nuisance. Finally, I know there are a handful of viewers who return often, and I would GREATLY appreciate the extra 30 seconds if nothing else to vote in the poll, or any other type of feed back as it would improve eveyone's experiance!
Anyways guys, I could have put a post out, as I notice this is getting long, but check in tomorrow evening and you should be set! Thanks!
So between work, and running around, I may have had the time to post but just haven't. For the few of you who check regularly sorry!
On the plus side though, tomorrow I'll have another post out, concerning the conspiracy of Lebron James... No more details ;), sounds interesting though. Hopefully I make it interesting.
Last two things, I went ahead and put up a search bar, and an ad spot anyways, even though 2 of the 6 voters said no. Uhm, it depends on how often they get clicked, which im not directly hinting you should, but I could make anywhere from 10-60 bucks a month off of that so, hopefully it isn't a nuisance. Finally, I know there are a handful of viewers who return often, and I would GREATLY appreciate the extra 30 seconds if nothing else to vote in the poll, or any other type of feed back as it would improve eveyone's experiance!
Anyways guys, I could have put a post out, as I notice this is getting long, but check in tomorrow evening and you should be set! Thanks!
Thursday, August 26, 2010
Basketball, Basketball and Basketball
Image by Getty Images via @daylife
So the panelists are STILL talking , analysing and comparing, trying to figure out what team is going to win the NBA Championship and hoist the Larry O'Brien trophy in 2011. As a recent ESPN poll, of their panelists shows, the majority believe that the Lakers are going to three-peat... Who else said that? I'll definitely leave a link below for you guys! But another subject arose that intrigued me. Who is going to win the NBA MVP award in 2011?
In my opinion, the three main candidates were also the top three finishers from 2010. If you were not aware, Lebron James took the award, as per a landslide finish ahead of Thunder forward Kevin Durant. Kobe Bryant of the Los Angeles Lakers finished a distant third. I believe all three of those guys are the top contenders for this prestigous award.
Of course only one guy can win it right? Well technically two COULD split it... But that is not going to happen. Instead of announcing the winner right away I'm going to slowly eliminate the other two!
Lebron James. Yes the reigning M.V.P, and King of basketball will not get another shot at the award. Why? Well Lebron is playing with two other great players, and along side Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh, his points per game are going to drop from very high 20's (29.7) to low 20's. With so many large options, wade will drop to what I see being 19-22 a night. Now I wouldn't be surprised either to see him and wade average their 30, and have the rest of the team only pitch in 30 some a night, but I'm not expecting that. Main point I would like to make is that with his ppg dropping up to ten, even with his assists going up, as he'll run the offence, he wont be able to compete with the winners stats. As we saw with Captain Canada, Steve Nash, the NBA journalist's who vote for MVP jerk off to points as opposed to the assists...
Kobe Bryant. For a guy who finished third in the voting, you could say this is over. He is dwindling his career. He should ride it out for as many possible shots at a title, make Shaq take em ALL to the bank and retire a legend. This guy will average his 30 points a game. We can all agree on that! Hopefully anyways! But Kobe realised this year, that for his team to win, he doesn't have to be the go-to guy. There are many great players on that L.A squad and he can rely on them. He won't win another MVP title, only because simply put, the Lakers are too deep. Other options can score, and other options can shut down opposing stars, so Kobe doesn't have to match Anthony's or any other players 25 points a game for the Lake show to dominate.
The final candidate is the one who I believe is the most likely of the three to win the Most Valuable Player award for the 2010-2011 campaign. Kevin Durant has it all going for him. He has a team that will make the play-offs and compete. Most of the MVP winners have took their team at least to the post season if not beyond! He also while being on a good team, is the main option, another reason why he should be the MVP. His team is honestly only really good because of him. Sure he has other ballers, but take lebron outta miami, you have two good players ready to roll, take Kobe out of LA such as for injury, which we have seen, and you have a solid line-up that can win!
So as you can see, KD has it going. Fan relations, solid foundations and an important role in his franchise. Just as I called the NBA Champs for 2011, I follow suit with the MVP! Just remember where you heard it first!!!
Just a few things here!!! Please check out my friend Mark Brook's site. Its baseball orientated, but if you even REMOTELY like mine, you'll LOVE his. It's legit, it has a blog, tips, a forum and everything else!!! Link RIGHT below ! Check in later, including this weekend for some new posts!
PS!!! Vote in the poll I REALLY want to know what you guys think about ads! And suggestions are greatly welcome, whether they are general or about topics! You can email me at penguinfan_8787@hotmail.com
http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?page=SummerForecast10-NBAChamps ESPN take LA!
http://www.artofbaseball.net/ Mark's site. Definitely a good read!
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
Another DL Trip, a Countdown, and the 39th, 40th and 65th!
Image via Wikipedia
This time, as I mention the rookie phenom, he once again has been D.L'd. He has recieved a strained flexor tendon in his right forearm. Mark Zuckerman, espn's National's Insider, mentioned the possibility of the pitcher being shut down for the rest of the season. He didn't say whether or not he believed it was inevitable, but he said he wouldnt'be surprised. It mainly depended on the MRI results. I personally believe that if the results show anything requiring more than the 15 days on the list to recover we may have seen Strasburgs last start in 2010. I mean at 53-72 the nationals arent even making a push for .500. I think it would be wise to allow Strasburg time to recover. This is his second trip to the list in roughly 5-6 weeks. Even though it is for a different injury, it shows his body is beginning to wear out!
October 27th, 2010. And December 25th, 2010. Two of the big days in the 2010 portion of the 2010-2011 NBA Season. October 27th being of course opening day! And although December 25th is Christmas, for the NBA it may be the largest match up on paper for 2010... The game between two of the best teams in the association. The Lakers and Heat tip off at 5 pm eastern, in what will looks to be a very promising game. I for one will be watching. And then everyone who expects the Heat to storm the league won't be laughing.
Finally, the three big numbers from Blue Jay's action yesterday. Jose Bautista hit his 39th and 40th bombs of the year as the Jays won their 65th game of the year against the powerhouse Yankees. The final bomb puts José just 7 behind the Jays season record of George Bell's 1987 (47) mark. Teammates agree that even though the team played well on the defensive side, and every win is a team achievement, Toronto owes the win to Bautista and Morrow, who went 6 innings, with only 2 runs, and 12 strikeouts!!!
The game included as most A.L East matchups (excluding every game Baltimore is in) a heated, intense and competitive atmosphere. Several ejections were dished, including manager Cito Gaston, after José was almost hit by a pitch. For all teh details on the ejections, and heated battle check the link below!
Alrighty guys thats about it for today, I hope to get a youtube video up there. If not I at least posted, and will do tomorrow. Im thinking of getting a regular time up so you guys can expect when to check in, but with school starting soon that may be pointless...
http://toronto.bluejays.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20100823&content_id=13826164&vkey=recap&fext=.jsp&c_id=tor Toronto Recap
www.nba.com - schedule
sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=5490425 - Strasburg DL
http://twitter.com/GiantJosh23 -Follow me on twitter!
http://www.facebook.com/walltowall.php?id=564675384&banter_id=528830127&ref=nf#!/pages/Sport-16/129777907064913?ref=ts -Sport 16 facebook!
Sunday, August 22, 2010
Oregan Highschool Takes Blow, Grounded.
Recently an Oregon Highschool experianced a disastrous "epidemic" of sorts, on the football field, which lead to five emergency room admittances, and included 19 cases of extreme enzyme levels. This case is alarming for several reasons for several different levels of interests.
As a parent this is alarming because , well because of the alarming fact that your child was just hospitalized. Nothing more, because you shouldn't have to have something as serious as hospitalization to bring your attention..
For the coaches. What the FUCK where you thinking... OK, you're thinking the same thing as every other coach in the nation, I have to win. Whatever the cost, but this is obviously getting out of hand... This may be the first time something this drastic has occured, but then again, it had better be the last. It has to be the last. Im sure tons of coaches push it upon their athletes to work out hard, take supplements, but the amount of creatine found in their blood levels were way too much. They were over a thousand times past the level of advised safety.
As a writer, a fan, and an avid high school athlete this scares me as well. Whos fault it is , we don't officially know.. Even though I blame the coaches for their influence and supervision, I know that it could easily be led to the ingrediants of the actual mix they were using to supplement their muscles, something I as well as hundred of thousand of other athletes use. The worst part is, because the cause is unknown it could even happen to me... how much is too much.
In the end, it really is hard to make accusations, without proper verdict, but it doesn't the reality that maybe we as a nation, and a race are pushing the limits too hard, and what we believe to be natural isn't exactly so...
* on a side note, I want to say sorry for not getting a post out before I went to work today, I hope to have one out early tomorrow morning! Keep looking in! Thanks Guys!!!*
As a parent this is alarming because , well because of the alarming fact that your child was just hospitalized. Nothing more, because you shouldn't have to have something as serious as hospitalization to bring your attention..
For the coaches. What the FUCK where you thinking... OK, you're thinking the same thing as every other coach in the nation, I have to win. Whatever the cost, but this is obviously getting out of hand... This may be the first time something this drastic has occured, but then again, it had better be the last. It has to be the last. Im sure tons of coaches push it upon their athletes to work out hard, take supplements, but the amount of creatine found in their blood levels were way too much. They were over a thousand times past the level of advised safety.
As a writer, a fan, and an avid high school athlete this scares me as well. Whos fault it is , we don't officially know.. Even though I blame the coaches for their influence and supervision, I know that it could easily be led to the ingrediants of the actual mix they were using to supplement their muscles, something I as well as hundred of thousand of other athletes use. The worst part is, because the cause is unknown it could even happen to me... how much is too much.
In the end, it really is hard to make accusations, without proper verdict, but it doesn't the reality that maybe we as a nation, and a race are pushing the limits too hard, and what we believe to be natural isn't exactly so...
* on a side note, I want to say sorry for not getting a post out before I went to work today, I hope to have one out early tomorrow morning! Keep looking in! Thanks Guys!!!*
Saturday, August 21, 2010
Death by the Long Ball.
Image by Getty Images via @daylife
The only downfall (aside to the stacked A.L East.) is the fact that it appears as if the Blue Jays live and die by the bats, and more specifically the long ball. In a game where Toronto dominated 16-2, the lineup hit 4 homeruns. Although the teams bats are ranked 25th in the league, as per batting average, they light up the Red Sox and their star pitcher Jon Lester for 20 hits over 9 innings.
I tried for around half an hour to find a stat which would show the Toronto Blue Jay's record when they hit a homerun, or multiple bombs. If you happen to find a link, let me know!
But more over, this game was a stepping stone for the Jays. Admittedly, the chances of postseason ball this year in Canada is as slim as ever, but we at least got a laugh at the Red Sox's expense. The 16 runs were the most ever scored against the Massachusetts rival. It also marks the largest run differnce in our favor at 14.
What should really be noted is that Lyle Overbay, after clearing waivers just over a week ago, the 33 year old first baseman led the onslaught, with 7 RBI's and 2 of the teams homers, while going an impressive 4-5. Although I'm a fan of Overbay, it just goes to show that in the baseball world anything can happen. Someone who is expected to go 1-4 or 1-5 can belt 2, in a 4 hit night, tearing apart a considerable opponent!
Well, I was running out of time today, so the post in my opinion isn't as great as it could be, I had to go to work early! But please vote in the poll and come back later!
Friday, August 20, 2010
Rivalry, taken a bit further!
Image via Wikipedia
1. Never tweet during a game
2. Once a Laker never a Celtic.
3. Once a Celtic never a Laker.
Now the first rule was not written until this year after Brandon Jennings did so, and was fined 7,500 dollars by the National Basketball Association. Yet Shaquille O'neal has pulled a travesty, and completed all three. Considering the third is a co-existing reversal of the second. This is not new at all. Shaq agreed to the 2 year, 3 million dollar deal in what I believe was early August. Why did he do it?
There are a number of possibilities one could brainstorm when considering a professional athelete's career choices. Was it the money, usually the big seal. Perhaps it was the chance to win, and secure a ring. Or it was a competitiveness between the two of the best apples and oranges ever to play the game.
Let's break it down, and assess each scenario, bit by bit. I cant gurantee you that the negotiation wasn't about money. That's not just apparent because the big fellow will make league minimum ths year, but because Shaq has accumulated over 300 million dollars over his career, whether it's endorsements, shoe line, his own television show, or through hefty contracts. Botttom line Shaq become washed up in a tub of moolah. Shaq could have gone to Europe and made so much money, become a star, and sell merchandise to that large audience.
It wasn't in my opininon that he wanted to just win, because the guy already has 4 rings. The reason he wants win is to shove it in Kobe Bryant's face. The reason they are apples and oranges are because obviously Kobe is a guard, and Shaq is a centre. I don't usually obey that rule that but I don't feel like comparing the two, I believe I will later because it's common interest.
Gettign back to the point, by signing with the Boston Celtics, Kobe's largest rival team, Shaq gets a shot at a title, and with the Western Conference favorite being the Lakers, he will get a free shot at Kobe. What's more frustrating to Shaq was Kobe, after the 2010 finals stating publicly Shaq can take his 5th title to the bank.
All in all, if you compare the facts, Shaq can at minimum give the Celtics money to spend elsewhere, the Celtics will give Shaq a reason to play like he hasn't in years, and personally take revenge on his once ally, now turned arch-rival. At first I was skeptical and believed that the move was asinine, as per rule 2. But really this is probably the best thing that could have happened to Shaq in the dwindling years of what was a stunning career.
Thursday, August 19, 2010
Polar Opposites.
Image by Getty Images via @daylife
Haynesworth, the Washington Redskins Defensive Tackle, who after much controversy and multiple attempts finally passed his conditioning test a few weeks ago took his poor responsibility level to new heights. He was sidelined, as per his personal trainer, after 10 minutes of field time during Wednesday's practice, due to de-hydration. This comes after Big Al missed the first nine days of training camp, apparently due to his sore knee that was hampering his conditioning performance.
Whether or not Haynesworth actually was de-hydrated, or just is that lazy, as a professional football "star" you have a commitment, to the other 40 some grown adults on your team to be in the shape that allows you to compete at your highest day in and day out during the season. Haynesworth isn't upholding any such commitment, and he's become such a joke to me that I don't believe it's justified to take the time to type out his full last name... I doubt he has enough initiative to do that either.
The other big story that is not just hitting the NFL today, but sport fans all over, even equestrian riders. Well perhaps not THAT far, but Brett Farve, after contemplating his 3rd retirement in as many years, has come to the idea that this, indeed shall be his last season. At the age of 40, with 20 years of poise, the veteran quarterback will return reportedly for one last time, whether not this is true shall take until next August to figure out, as per the previous attempts.
In a press conference officially stating his return to the NFL, Farve stated that his arm was feeling better, (One of the reasons he doubted a return) and more importantly he was doing it for the other guys, to give them a chance at a superbowl. Let's face it, the Vikings chances at a superbowl title were considerabley slimmer without grey-haired Farve. If he had waited until late August to ditch, the team would have been in deep trouble, yet if he had stated he was going to retire in June, they would have been able to trade for a better, more poised QB.
This is what I love about sports, the fact that on any given day, anything can happen, even on two completely opposite ends on the spectrum. Yes Farve may take his sweet time deciding what he needs to do, but let's be honest, the guy loves football, and yet we have hayn- whatever his last name, a guy you apparently loves money.
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
Mellow intends to leave Denver, Say hello to the Big Apple?
Image via Wikipedia
This really bothers me, for two reasons. The first is that because I've wanted to see a several superrstars come together to storm a title, yet since the Lebron ordeal, I realised it was not for the best, at least not done the way the Miami Heat did it. You need the superstars to take large paycuts, not all making 25% of the cap, say 5-6 million. This allows for the three to play together on an all-star team, allowing for a strong bench and support, the main reason the Los Angelas Lakers will smash the heat this year.
Finally the fact that, yes it is ok to leave a franchise AFTER your time is up. Serve for the team as hard as you possibly can over your signed years, and collect an honest days pay. When you mention you want to leave while under contract you show extreme dis-loyalty to thee fans. The same fans that pay for the tickets, that end up paying your massive, over-blown, out-of-proportion contracts. What Chris Bosh and Lebron did is arguably correct. While on the other hand, through his manipulative selfish ways, Carmelo Anthony has put the Nuggets in between a rock and a hard spot.
So what do the Nuggets do? Should they use him for the whole 2010-2011 season and then let him choose to walk July 1st? Should they set a date for him to agree to resign and if he denys completely screw him over and send him somewhere EARLY where they wont win more than 25 gamess? (Toronto). What I believe they should do is deal him at the trade deadline.
This would give them the most options. Dealing him before would send him under the false pretense that the Big Three in Miami are going to win a title. You have to give them time to play other large contenders, LA, Boston, Orlando, Oklahoma CIty and even Denver before we all assume they have their name on the title. Perhaps Mellow will decide against forming what would be in my opinion a lesser three in New York , especially after the Knicks stated they would buy him outright. Leaving less room for a bench, as per Miami. Secondly, don't keep it a secret. IF he states, come deadline time he still is planning to do his own thing, fine. You won't be getting him back, but there are TONS of teams looking to get talent like his, whether its for a championship run, or they believe they could lure him in for a deal. Either way you could have 20 of the NBA's 30 teams interested in a deal, that would with so many options send you a legit package back, and allow you to continue as a contender.
So in a nutshell, tell this selfish forward he has limited time to make a decision, and if he doesn't realise he has a commitment to that organization your going to openly deal him and get a more loyal player back, if not a couple and send him potentially where he will have a horrible 20 remaining games! How bout them apples Mellow? Sour, not big.
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
One hit wonder... Literally
How about them Blue Jays? What a question! Sometimes it is brought up to change the conversation, or in my case to start one. The Jays have been playing great baseball in the month of August, going 9-5 and winning clutch series against the Yankees, (2-1) and sweeping the Tampa Bay Rays in 3 games. We already know that, but the Jays continued their late summer ways into Oakland through a California Road trip and not only came away with Ricky Romero locked up but Shaun Marcum, perhaps the only Jays pitcher to be struggling threw literally in all sense a one hit wonder, going the nine strong innings against the Athletics, while giving up only a single 7th inning homer to Connor Jackson. The club batted in 3 runs, enough to give them the win as they improved to 63-55 on the year.
Jose Bautista went yard, even if not legally, the hard way as he hit his league leading 37th homerun, off of Anderson in the fourth inning. The shot, which was knocked off a 3-0 count hit the foul pole, subsequently leaving left fielder Conner Jackson stunned. Jim Timmins the third base umpire had called the shot fair, yet Jackson was aware the ball had been foul and he left it for the ball boy, who never, because of the blown call got a chance at it.
It was like every other controversial call, especially when the games are close, raises the question how much is too much... Concerning the inclusion of instant replay... I do understand that it is crucial and if implemented could save many games, possibly including this one had Marcum not thrown Canada's boys another gem. Yet on the other hand it takes away from the originality of the game... But so do steroids and the league isn't too hyped to remove the name and asterisk away so why not?
For those interested, I'm going to do a video tonight on my Youtube channel, GiantJosh23, last video was when I started the blog in April, it's very poor quality but the site here has picked up some ground since then so feel free to take a look, for a heads up it's basically a recap of today! Finally I'd appreciate your thoughts on Instant Replay being implemented into the MLB on a wider scale! Poll box is to your left, or feel free to comment! Thanks!
http://mlb.mlb.com/schedule/index.jsp?c_id=TOR Jays Schedule
http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/gameday/index.jsp?gid=2010_08_16_tormlb_oakmlb_1&mode=wrap Game Cap
Jose Bautista went yard, even if not legally, the hard way as he hit his league leading 37th homerun, off of Anderson in the fourth inning. The shot, which was knocked off a 3-0 count hit the foul pole, subsequently leaving left fielder Conner Jackson stunned. Jim Timmins the third base umpire had called the shot fair, yet Jackson was aware the ball had been foul and he left it for the ball boy, who never, because of the blown call got a chance at it.
It was like every other controversial call, especially when the games are close, raises the question how much is too much... Concerning the inclusion of instant replay... I do understand that it is crucial and if implemented could save many games, possibly including this one had Marcum not thrown Canada's boys another gem. Yet on the other hand it takes away from the originality of the game... But so do steroids and the league isn't too hyped to remove the name and asterisk away so why not?
For those interested, I'm going to do a video tonight on my Youtube channel, GiantJosh23, last video was when I started the blog in April, it's very poor quality but the site here has picked up some ground since then so feel free to take a look, for a heads up it's basically a recap of today! Finally I'd appreciate your thoughts on Instant Replay being implemented into the MLB on a wider scale! Poll box is to your left, or feel free to comment! Thanks!
http://mlb.mlb.com/schedule/index.jsp?c_id=TOR Jays Schedule
http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/gameday/index.jsp?gid=2010_08_16_tormlb_oakmlb_1&mode=wrap Game Cap
Sunday, August 15, 2010
Romero!!!
Image by BaseballBacks via Flickr
Romero 25 years of age, and 10-7 on the season signed a comforting 5 year, 30.1 million dollar contract extension, including a sixth year club option. The move is a mixed emotion. It is not surprising the Jays showed initiative in resigning their rotation's second man, as he is having quite the year, regularly providing the team chances to win against every team in the Majors, and striking out 137 hitters this year.
Yet sadly on the other hand, when asked to comment on the teams resigning of Ricky, manager Cito Gaston stated "We almost sent him out last year". Coupled with the choice this year, shows Ricky although quite inexperienced, shows quite some promise, and at a young age could be a force to reckon in the Jays rotation until 2015, granted he keeps up his apparent work ethic. Obviously, I'm a big fan!
In other recent news, Cincinnati's acquisition of Jim Edmonds shows they are looking to contend for that wild card spot and perhaps the division lead. The San Francisco Giant's ace Tim Lincecum was battered today as the Padres took the series and spread their lead to 3.5 games, the Giants still hold the NL Wildcard Lead but desperately need to pick it up or they may find them self free from October baseball. (The Giants are 5-5 in their last 10 games, where as the Padres are 7-3)
On a final note, my favorite Major League hitter, and vote as most likely to hit 700 homers, Albert Pujols hit his 30th bomb today, and for extends his streak to ten years CONSECUTIVELY with 30 or more homeruns! What makes Pujols a better player than A-Rod, is his .300 batting average, his on-pace 40 homeruns, and 100 RBI's, which are all higher than Alex's except the RBI's which are arguable, but when you are on a New York Yankees squad, batting 4th, you had better rack in a 100 runs a year, for the sake that you have 100 million dollars in bats ahead of you in the lineup... Did I mention that Pujols is steroid-link free? Deal. If Big Al could continue to hit 30 for the next 6 years, until he is 35, A-Rods age, he would hit number 600 roughly 60 games later than Alex did. That is taking for granted Pujols ONLY hits 30 a year... He appears to be a tad more consistent than Alex, but I've touched on that before!
That's pretty much it, the big thing on my mind today was Romero, the Jays really need to string together some wins here down the stretch and his contract will help for the next few years! Check back in a few days for another post!
Trivia Question! Did you know Alex Rodriguez' middle name is emmanual?
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
Back from vacation, but Jays on the grind!
Hey guys, it has been a long time since I've posted, a lot and I mean a lot has happened. I find it easier to write when i was in California , I guess it was because I didn't have to worry about going to the gym, playing ball, hanging out or work, I was just doing whatever I wanted but back to structure!
Ok so I couldn't possibly bring up and give my take on all the events that have found their way into happening while I've been out, but what's really on my mind is the 600th bomb of Alex Rodriguez, Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Brendan Morrow almost throwing a no-no, with 17 strike outs! Finally my imagination caught up to me again, and I will consider the possibility of the Toronto Blue Jays making the playoffs this year.
First up to the plate is the not so recent 600th plateau of Alex Rodriguex. By hitting this monumental number he joins an elite group of 6 others who have hit over 600 homeruns in the history of Major League Baseball. The sad part is that this number was really only considered special for three of the group. Ken Griffey Jr, Hank Aaron and Babe Ruth and Willy Mays are the clean members where as Sammy Sosa and Barry Bonds have been linked to steroids and more importantly , Alex has actually admitted to using them BUT "only" while in Texas. In my opinion admitting he used them shows some maturity but in baseball retrospect doesn't take away from the fact he is a cheater, nothing more. The 600 club has never seemed less inviting because of PED's , and I'm behind the move of completly retiring the names of those who have used PED's directly from the stat books and the Hall of Fame altogether. Many people have been pouring over Alex's eventual historic homerun, and so have I for an extent but for different reasons. I know enough to realise that being able to witness someone hit their 600th homerun doesn't happen everyday, far from it, and I am glad to see something that will inevitabley stand as legit in the record books, I did not want to miss history , but with that said I won't have to worry about seeing A-Rod's record breaking 763rd homerun, because I unlike a lot of analysts and fans, believe he will not reach the milestone to set him at number one. At 35 years of age he has 6 or 7 years left, but if at the youngest he will be in those next years he can't top 35 how can he expect to hit the 160 he'll need over those years to break the record. Seeing a hitter blast 30 homers at the age of 40 is something off the top of my head I don't believe has been done. If he tops out at an average of 25 homeruns over the next 6 years he would come close, but Alex hasn't had the power the last 300 games that he has had the previous seasons of his career, especially three years ago or so when he hit over 50. I think the all-time homeruns leader, or the only star I forsee actually honestly hitting the 600 homerun barrier in the next 10 years would be the clean Albert Pujols...
Second, Brendan Morrow came literally this close to a no hitter Monday night when he went 8.2 innings against the Tampa Bay Rays, when Evan Longoria broke it up with a nasty in-field single. Morrow's performance wasn't to no avail as the Jays took the game 1-0, while striking out 17 Ray's batters as the streaking Jays improved their record to 59-52. Moving them four games behind the Red Sox and only 8.5 behind Tampa for the wild card. If all goes well, which never does the Jays could with a sweep of the Boston Red Sox hit 62-52, and while still at fourth in the AL East.. WTF? They would only be a game behind Boston and creep ever closer to the Wild Card. Though I know that is really unlikely to happen, it would greatly interest me to see how MLB Comissioner Bud Selig handles it when the AL east finishes the year with four of the five teams potential 90 game winners. In particular concern the Jays (4th in the division) would be second in the AL West, and third in the AL Central, behind the tied White Sox and Twins, both scenarios only 4 games out of a play off spot. If the Yankees, Rays, Red Sox and Blue Jays finish the year with playoff caliber records, I sincerely believe that Bud Selig will need to do something legitimate to help even out this competitive yet limiting division we know as the AL East...
On a side note, I hope to get back to regular postings, I know there are some of you who check the blog regularly , and I dont want to disappoint! And! The link down below states and backs me up that the Rays are the best team in baseball, just thought I should put that out there!
Ok so I couldn't possibly bring up and give my take on all the events that have found their way into happening while I've been out, but what's really on my mind is the 600th bomb of Alex Rodriguez, Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Brendan Morrow almost throwing a no-no, with 17 strike outs! Finally my imagination caught up to me again, and I will consider the possibility of the Toronto Blue Jays making the playoffs this year.
First up to the plate is the not so recent 600th plateau of Alex Rodriguex. By hitting this monumental number he joins an elite group of 6 others who have hit over 600 homeruns in the history of Major League Baseball. The sad part is that this number was really only considered special for three of the group. Ken Griffey Jr, Hank Aaron and Babe Ruth and Willy Mays are the clean members where as Sammy Sosa and Barry Bonds have been linked to steroids and more importantly , Alex has actually admitted to using them BUT "only" while in Texas. In my opinion admitting he used them shows some maturity but in baseball retrospect doesn't take away from the fact he is a cheater, nothing more. The 600 club has never seemed less inviting because of PED's , and I'm behind the move of completly retiring the names of those who have used PED's directly from the stat books and the Hall of Fame altogether. Many people have been pouring over Alex's eventual historic homerun, and so have I for an extent but for different reasons. I know enough to realise that being able to witness someone hit their 600th homerun doesn't happen everyday, far from it, and I am glad to see something that will inevitabley stand as legit in the record books, I did not want to miss history , but with that said I won't have to worry about seeing A-Rod's record breaking 763rd homerun, because I unlike a lot of analysts and fans, believe he will not reach the milestone to set him at number one. At 35 years of age he has 6 or 7 years left, but if at the youngest he will be in those next years he can't top 35 how can he expect to hit the 160 he'll need over those years to break the record. Seeing a hitter blast 30 homers at the age of 40 is something off the top of my head I don't believe has been done. If he tops out at an average of 25 homeruns over the next 6 years he would come close, but Alex hasn't had the power the last 300 games that he has had the previous seasons of his career, especially three years ago or so when he hit over 50. I think the all-time homeruns leader, or the only star I forsee actually honestly hitting the 600 homerun barrier in the next 10 years would be the clean Albert Pujols...
Second, Brendan Morrow came literally this close to a no hitter Monday night when he went 8.2 innings against the Tampa Bay Rays, when Evan Longoria broke it up with a nasty in-field single. Morrow's performance wasn't to no avail as the Jays took the game 1-0, while striking out 17 Ray's batters as the streaking Jays improved their record to 59-52. Moving them four games behind the Red Sox and only 8.5 behind Tampa for the wild card. If all goes well, which never does the Jays could with a sweep of the Boston Red Sox hit 62-52, and while still at fourth in the AL East.. WTF? They would only be a game behind Boston and creep ever closer to the Wild Card. Though I know that is really unlikely to happen, it would greatly interest me to see how MLB Comissioner Bud Selig handles it when the AL east finishes the year with four of the five teams potential 90 game winners. In particular concern the Jays (4th in the division) would be second in the AL West, and third in the AL Central, behind the tied White Sox and Twins, both scenarios only 4 games out of a play off spot. If the Yankees, Rays, Red Sox and Blue Jays finish the year with playoff caliber records, I sincerely believe that Bud Selig will need to do something legitimate to help even out this competitive yet limiting division we know as the AL East...
On a side note, I hope to get back to regular postings, I know there are some of you who check the blog regularly , and I dont want to disappoint! And! The link down below states and backs me up that the Rays are the best team in baseball, just thought I should put that out there!
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
Who's at the top of the A.L???
Image via Wikipedia
Usually you can't say look at the win-loss record of the teams to automatically rule out any or all the rest, but in this case, the Hard-Hitting Texas Rangers are ruled out standing at an impressive but second tier record of 61-44. By no means are those numbers laughable, especially as they are 6.5 games ahead of the beloved Blue Jays but the two teams really competing for the A.L (East) lead and perhaps as the best team in Major League Baseball are the Yankees and Rays.
If you compare the numbers, both teams have 5 more wins than the Rangers, and stand 5 games ahead of them, but what is more impressive is that both these teams play in a division way better than the AL West. The East has 279 wins,over 5 teams compared to the West's 207, the imaginary team to fill out the 4 team division would need over 70 wins to smooth the numbers out. A more appropriate stat to compare would be division winning percentage.
AL East : 279/ 527 = .529
AL West : 207/ 423 = .489
When they are crunched, the AL East is home to a much more competitive division, with four play-off quality teams pitted against each other. These characteristics rule out the Texas Rangers as the American Leagues best team.
So who is better? New York or Tampa Bay? Well head to head the Rays have won the series so far this year 6-5. The series is not over, with another seven games down the stretch that will undoubtedly play the largest role in determining which of these two teams are baseballs best, regardless of the league. I have to give the edge to Tampa Bay, mainly for putting together a solid team, without spending a billion dollars, well actually 206,000,000 (206 million). On the list of MLB team payrolls, Yankees are first, where as the Rays slide in at number 21, spending 135 million dollars less. In all comparison I believe the Rays are the best team in the A.L and the MLB because they have spent 1,089,749 dollars per win, compared to the Yankees 3,126,263.
NYY - $206,333,389
TBR - $71,923,471
TR - $55,252,545
Disagree? Feel free to comment, either here, or on the Facebook page if you do not own a google account.
P.S There won't most likely won't be a post, for those of you who know me, I'm heading back home tomorrow, but the next post I put out might be knocking the Yankees. Not a big fan... Just sayin. Thanks for checking again!
http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/standings/ Standings in the AL
http://www.cbssports.com/mlb/salaries/teams Team Caps
Sunday, August 1, 2010
Second on the First
Image via Wikipedia
The first one is Albert Haynesworth has denied another test run after complaining soreness in his left knee. The condition test is actually a retest of a condition excercise that is manditory for all players hoping to put on the pads for the 2010-2011 NFL season. Haynesworth fresh off of a new 100 million dollar, seven year deal with the Washington Redskins opted out of the team's offseason conditioning program. He is the only player the test is mandatory to because of his option. The problem with the NFL contract, as I see it is if Haynesworth fails this test, he will not be able to practice with the organization until he passes this test and he will still recieve his money. I find it awfully sad that a considered professional can not be trusted to keep in a variable shape...
The final issue is Alex Rodriguez. The all-star third baseman for the Yankees who has admitted to using steroids (no, I could not leave that out) has gone over 40 At Bats since hitting his 599th Major League Homerun. This has done much to provide a thickening tension, and actually has become quite annoying to fans, and starts to wear on me. Personally, I believe for a player making 33 million dollars this year (thats one dollar per every person living in CANADA)a batting average of .270 and only 16 homeruns is absolutely unacceptbale. Only in today's world I figure.
All in all I'm starting to realise sports are roughly 80% disappointment, but that other 20% is just pure awesomeness, and when it occurs, makes you realise why it is all worth it.
*Cough* Showtime Lakers *Cough*
http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/trainingcamp10/news/story?id=5427920 Haynesworth's Story
http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/players/5275 A-Rod's recent struggles.
Miami's Beat
Ok, so I was recently suggested to write about how well the Miami Heat are going to do in the upcoming 2010-2011 season. I believe the exact words were "Miamis gunna go undefeated". Regardless, bigger money has been spent, to no avail, as per New York Yankees.
Am I a "hater"? Well I suppose, or you could describe me as someone with an opinion and a legitimate point. I'm going to go out on a limb and defy star power, and boldly state the Miami Heat will NOT win the 2011 NBA Championship. Remember where you heard it first.
Lebron James was a liar. Is a liar, and until he realises it and stops being a selfish young adult may very well continue to be. When he states that Miami gave him the best chance to win a title, or that he wanted to go where he had the best chance to go win a title what he really meant was ; " I want to go where I can make a MAX salary, while competeting at a high level" If Lebron really wanted to go where he had the absolute best shot to win a title this upcoming NBA season, it would not have been with the Miami Heat who finished the season at 47-35, but with the already dominant Los Angeles Lakers, who finished at 57-25, a whole ten games ahead of the Heat. Or perhaps not just burn Cleveland into the ground, after all they are you home team right?
The Cleveland Cavaliers had the best record in the NBA last season at 61-21, yet the Lakers playing in a much tougher, more competitive, and tighter western conference were in reality the team to beat, but they couldn't offer "The King" a max salary, but what they could, with out a doubt was offer him the best shot at a title that any team in this Association could. With one setback, he couldn't make 15.8 million dollars. Which sadly even with upwards of 30 million dollars a year through endorsment with Nike etc money is still his primary goal.
Now aside from Lebron's childish ways, as well as his decietful and betraying moves, there are three main reasons the Miami Heat will not win their already engraved title, at least not in 2011. They are the fact that two number one options barely ever work well together, not at the prime they should, nevermind three! Secondly their bench is way to weak, but that is expected as roughly 47 million of the $58,044,000 salary cap is dedicated to three players, leaving only 11 million free for another nine positions. Finally the most important reason they will not achieve their goal immediately is because of the L.A Lakers.
I have already minutely compared the starting rotation of the two power house teams and have given the edge to the Miami Heat, but the Heat's roster is basically only three of the five starters, and when they turn to the bench you recieve a bunch of no name, low rate players with polyster pants, helping to warm the bench. The lakers have a much better eight man rotation then the Heat and that will be a large factor. The Heat can rely on their big three, and dominate a growing eastern conference but in retrospect after 82 regular season games and roughly 16 post-season games before the finals, the big three that were depended heavily upon every night to win , without any other options will be fatigued, and as Tark the Shark (Jerry Tarkanian), the great NCAA coach once said...
"The secret is to have eight great players and four others who will cheer like crazy."
So Kobe has his great eight, but Lebron... Do you ?
Enough said.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NBA_Salary_Cap Breakdown of the Salary Cap
http://www.nba.com/standings/team_record_comparison/conferenceNew_Std_Cnf.html - Why L.A's record is more impressive, 8 teams have 50 w's in west.
Am I a "hater"? Well I suppose, or you could describe me as someone with an opinion and a legitimate point. I'm going to go out on a limb and defy star power, and boldly state the Miami Heat will NOT win the 2011 NBA Championship. Remember where you heard it first.
Lebron James was a liar. Is a liar, and until he realises it and stops being a selfish young adult may very well continue to be. When he states that Miami gave him the best chance to win a title, or that he wanted to go where he had the best chance to go win a title what he really meant was ; " I want to go where I can make a MAX salary, while competeting at a high level" If Lebron really wanted to go where he had the absolute best shot to win a title this upcoming NBA season, it would not have been with the Miami Heat who finished the season at 47-35, but with the already dominant Los Angeles Lakers, who finished at 57-25, a whole ten games ahead of the Heat. Or perhaps not just burn Cleveland into the ground, after all they are you home team right?
The Cleveland Cavaliers had the best record in the NBA last season at 61-21, yet the Lakers playing in a much tougher, more competitive, and tighter western conference were in reality the team to beat, but they couldn't offer "The King" a max salary, but what they could, with out a doubt was offer him the best shot at a title that any team in this Association could. With one setback, he couldn't make 15.8 million dollars. Which sadly even with upwards of 30 million dollars a year through endorsment with Nike etc money is still his primary goal.
Now aside from Lebron's childish ways, as well as his decietful and betraying moves, there are three main reasons the Miami Heat will not win their already engraved title, at least not in 2011. They are the fact that two number one options barely ever work well together, not at the prime they should, nevermind three! Secondly their bench is way to weak, but that is expected as roughly 47 million of the $58,044,000 salary cap is dedicated to three players, leaving only 11 million free for another nine positions. Finally the most important reason they will not achieve their goal immediately is because of the L.A Lakers.
I have already minutely compared the starting rotation of the two power house teams and have given the edge to the Miami Heat, but the Heat's roster is basically only three of the five starters, and when they turn to the bench you recieve a bunch of no name, low rate players with polyster pants, helping to warm the bench. The lakers have a much better eight man rotation then the Heat and that will be a large factor. The Heat can rely on their big three, and dominate a growing eastern conference but in retrospect after 82 regular season games and roughly 16 post-season games before the finals, the big three that were depended heavily upon every night to win , without any other options will be fatigued, and as Tark the Shark (Jerry Tarkanian), the great NCAA coach once said...
"The secret is to have eight great players and four others who will cheer like crazy."
So Kobe has his great eight, but Lebron... Do you ?
Enough said.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NBA_Salary_Cap Breakdown of the Salary Cap
http://www.nba.com/standings/team_record_comparison/conferenceNew_Std_Cnf.html - Why L.A's record is more impressive, 8 teams have 50 w's in west.
Saturday, July 31, 2010
Yanks Make a Move
The MLB Trade Deadline was creeping ever closer, and very few teams were as active and aware as the New York Yankees. Looking to fill two important spots, a set up man, and a flexible Designated Hitter, the club looked to move two potentially key players to the Big Apple today to help come October.
The Major's most prestigous franchise made a deal that finalized many rumours circulating around the world of sports Saturday, and it was a very good deal at that! Lance Berkman was traded from the Houston Astro's the only club he had ever played for, and lifted to the Bronx after a trade that was agreed upon Friday, but was not able to be announced as finalized until saturday as per Article 19, which allows players waiving their no-trade rights twenty-four (24) hours to reconsider their decision. The acquisition of Berkman comes with two VERY important features. Options, and experiance. The presence of the All-Star first baseman means he can take to the pitch and field when needed, or hit in the middle of the linup as a fearsome DH. Being 34 years of age actually plays into his advantage, because it gives him plenty of experiance, something that is going to be crucial in the Yankee's October run. Yet the best part about this "steal" of a deal is that the Astros have agreed to pay $4 million of the $7.5 million Berkman is due between the rest of his salary this year and the buyout on his $15 million option for 2011. Meaning that even though the Yankee's can spend whatever they want, they save at best roughly 55% of Berkman's salary and at worst 20% of his cut over the next two years. This deal was made in part to the fact the Astros recieved Triple-A reliever Mark Melancon and High-A infielder Jimmy Paredes.
The Yankee's also solidified their state as winners this 2010 Trade Deadline by picking up reliever Kerry Woods. This move was more "iffy" than that of Berkman's, and this being because Woods has been struggling this year, and a bit last as well. This trade brings more rumours about current 8th inning set-up man Joba Chamberlain's status as a Yank, then his 6.30 E.R.A. The only real reason I'm willing to look past his wretched numbers this year would be because he has only pitched 20.0 innings this year and those with the Indians, a team that has commited nearly 30 more errors, and has a lower fielding percentage than the Yanks/
Overall, I have to consider the best winners at the 2010 Trade Deadline to be the contenders, who have loaded up for another title run this year, the Philidelphia Phillies, and the New York Yankess. If the Yankees can not manage to win it all this year, with all their star power, and money spent, well blame it on the Bambino, what can ya do?
The Major's most prestigous franchise made a deal that finalized many rumours circulating around the world of sports Saturday, and it was a very good deal at that! Lance Berkman was traded from the Houston Astro's the only club he had ever played for, and lifted to the Bronx after a trade that was agreed upon Friday, but was not able to be announced as finalized until saturday as per Article 19, which allows players waiving their no-trade rights twenty-four (24) hours to reconsider their decision. The acquisition of Berkman comes with two VERY important features. Options, and experiance. The presence of the All-Star first baseman means he can take to the pitch and field when needed, or hit in the middle of the linup as a fearsome DH. Being 34 years of age actually plays into his advantage, because it gives him plenty of experiance, something that is going to be crucial in the Yankee's October run. Yet the best part about this "steal" of a deal is that the Astros have agreed to pay $4 million of the $7.5 million Berkman is due between the rest of his salary this year and the buyout on his $15 million option for 2011. Meaning that even though the Yankee's can spend whatever they want, they save at best roughly 55% of Berkman's salary and at worst 20% of his cut over the next two years. This deal was made in part to the fact the Astros recieved Triple-A reliever Mark Melancon and High-A infielder Jimmy Paredes.
The Yankee's also solidified their state as winners this 2010 Trade Deadline by picking up reliever Kerry Woods. This move was more "iffy" than that of Berkman's, and this being because Woods has been struggling this year, and a bit last as well. This trade brings more rumours about current 8th inning set-up man Joba Chamberlain's status as a Yank, then his 6.30 E.R.A. The only real reason I'm willing to look past his wretched numbers this year would be because he has only pitched 20.0 innings this year and those with the Indians, a team that has commited nearly 30 more errors, and has a lower fielding percentage than the Yanks/
Overall, I have to consider the best winners at the 2010 Trade Deadline to be the contenders, who have loaded up for another title run this year, the Philidelphia Phillies, and the New York Yankess. If the Yankees can not manage to win it all this year, with all their star power, and money spent, well blame it on the Bambino, what can ya do?
Friday, July 30, 2010
Chillin
Hey guys, there won't be a post up today because I have my cousin over and my visit is almost over, but i'll put something up tomorrow for sure, and perhaps tonight, you never know...
Oh and thanks again everyone, were almost at a 100 visitors, I hope to crack that today!!! Later!
Oh and thanks again everyone, were almost at a 100 visitors, I hope to crack that today!!! Later!
Thursday, July 29, 2010
Transactions, Missed Flights and an Trip to the DL
There are three things that happened today in the world of sports that really grasped my attention. Rookie pitcher Stephan Strasburg was sent to the DL, former Astro's pitcher Roy Oswalt finally dealt and Terrel Owens gets his way.. again.
The balance of the Washington National's future rests heavily on one player, and that is Pitcher Stephan Strasburg, the rookie phenom who throws 98 mph heat. Quite frankly they are not letting anything get to him, including himself. Their intentions of protecting him were quite clear Thursday when they placed him on the 15 day Disabled List, after complaints of an inflammed right (throwing) shoulder. This is not the first time a vacancy has been made to accomadate the prodigy. On July 22, 2010 before making his 10th MLB start, he was scratched after feeling soreness in the same shoulder. Keep mind that this would have been his last start before the DL move. I am behind these cautious moves that will hopefully prolong this amazings pitchers career, I just hope that Washington raises this rookie right, preventing any spoiledness. He can't be 100% baseball's Lebron James
The second topic slightly more interesting than the potential souring of Stephan is the trade that send highly debated pitcher Roy Oswalt to the Phillies in exchange for pitcher J.A Hap, two minor league prospects and ELEVEN million dollars. I have to disagree that the acquisition of Oswalt was a good movie, although it helps buff the rotation and takes some pressure of amazing (ex-Jay) ace, Roy Halladay. Yes I do realise that this is Major League Baseball and the salary's have no cap (which doesn't control things anyways) but in a sense the Phillies depleted 25 million dollars, towards Oswalt, who's numbers are not worth that kind of money. ( 15 Million salary + 11 Million in evening the trade + the contract of the prospects - J.A Happ's salary) I completely understand that with the sub .500 Astro's hitting around .240 run support is hard to come across and his record should flourish in Philly but the 1.11 WHIP and mainly the 3.42 ERA are stats that aren't guranteed to dip as much as the Win Loss record, and before I can agree and support this trade those will have to change. Seeing is believeing.
Finally really quick I just want to complain how much I despise Terrell Owens as a person. He was, and may still be a great football player and talented reciever, but his attitude, work ethic and immaturity have continued to sink since 2008. The latest news on the once glamorous WR was that Antonio Bryant gave up his already possessed number eighty-one to Terrell as an older brother would give the younger sibling an attractive toy. Bryant's idea was that he was not going to be childish over two digits, all he asked in return that Owens made a donation to a Miami based little league. This whole event doesn't show that Bryant respects T.O as much as he is mature. For those of you who state that Terrell never asked for the number the two HAD talked, and the responsible things for Owens to do were to let Bryant keep the number, first come first served, no matter how whiney you are and to not miss his Ohio bound flight the night before. But we as fans should know by now what to expect...
Thanks for taking a look today! The post was long, hopefully that's what you like, if not the rest have been awfully short! Basically those are the three storys that have grabbed not only mine, but the rest of the sporting nations attention today! Check back tomorrow for another post!
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=5419721 - Story on DL
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?playerId=30373 - SS's Stats
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?playerId=4575 Roy's Stats
http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/trainingcamp10/news/story?id=5419405 TO story
The balance of the Washington National's future rests heavily on one player, and that is Pitcher Stephan Strasburg, the rookie phenom who throws 98 mph heat. Quite frankly they are not letting anything get to him, including himself. Their intentions of protecting him were quite clear Thursday when they placed him on the 15 day Disabled List, after complaints of an inflammed right (throwing) shoulder. This is not the first time a vacancy has been made to accomadate the prodigy. On July 22, 2010 before making his 10th MLB start, he was scratched after feeling soreness in the same shoulder. Keep mind that this would have been his last start before the DL move. I am behind these cautious moves that will hopefully prolong this amazings pitchers career, I just hope that Washington raises this rookie right, preventing any spoiledness. He can't be 100% baseball's Lebron James
The second topic slightly more interesting than the potential souring of Stephan is the trade that send highly debated pitcher Roy Oswalt to the Phillies in exchange for pitcher J.A Hap, two minor league prospects and ELEVEN million dollars. I have to disagree that the acquisition of Oswalt was a good movie, although it helps buff the rotation and takes some pressure of amazing (ex-Jay) ace, Roy Halladay. Yes I do realise that this is Major League Baseball and the salary's have no cap (which doesn't control things anyways) but in a sense the Phillies depleted 25 million dollars, towards Oswalt, who's numbers are not worth that kind of money. ( 15 Million salary + 11 Million in evening the trade + the contract of the prospects - J.A Happ's salary) I completely understand that with the sub .500 Astro's hitting around .240 run support is hard to come across and his record should flourish in Philly but the 1.11 WHIP and mainly the 3.42 ERA are stats that aren't guranteed to dip as much as the Win Loss record, and before I can agree and support this trade those will have to change. Seeing is believeing.
Finally really quick I just want to complain how much I despise Terrell Owens as a person. He was, and may still be a great football player and talented reciever, but his attitude, work ethic and immaturity have continued to sink since 2008. The latest news on the once glamorous WR was that Antonio Bryant gave up his already possessed number eighty-one to Terrell as an older brother would give the younger sibling an attractive toy. Bryant's idea was that he was not going to be childish over two digits, all he asked in return that Owens made a donation to a Miami based little league. This whole event doesn't show that Bryant respects T.O as much as he is mature. For those of you who state that Terrell never asked for the number the two HAD talked, and the responsible things for Owens to do were to let Bryant keep the number, first come first served, no matter how whiney you are and to not miss his Ohio bound flight the night before. But we as fans should know by now what to expect...
Thanks for taking a look today! The post was long, hopefully that's what you like, if not the rest have been awfully short! Basically those are the three storys that have grabbed not only mine, but the rest of the sporting nations attention today! Check back tomorrow for another post!
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=5419721 - Story on DL
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?playerId=30373 - SS's Stats
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?playerId=4575 Roy's Stats
http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/trainingcamp10/news/story?id=5419405 TO story
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Barnes chooses home team over super team
Image via Wikipedia
Matt Barnes and the Los Angeles Lakers agreed to a one year 1.7 million dollar deal that will help the Lakers compete with the Eastern Conference All-St- uhm, Miami Heat in the following 2010-2011 NBA season. With the acquisition of PF Crhis Bosh, and SF Lebron James this past month the Miami Heat have begun stacking up for a championship, "run" or as the longer term deals suggest, "marathon". Looking as the only team able to compete with them, the lakers need to make a couple adjustments this season to cement their contendership.
The deal that brings Barnes, 6'7 ,226 lbs and only 30 years of age to L.A is in my opinion a great one. This is considering the matchups of the two teams respectful rosters.
The teams stack up quite evenly when the starting five are compared, with Miami taking a slight edge, but importantly both benches were horrid. The Heat addressed their biggest concern of snagging a legitimate centre, with Zydrunas Ilgauskas joining, take a lot of the pressure off undersized (6'8) Udonus Haslem and weak face up player Chris Bosh. Yet L.A won the padding of the bench through Barnes because he's a versitile slasher, who has size, and can guard. More importantly giving Artest and Odom breaks.
All in all I strongly believe that by siging Matt Barnes at such a low price will prove an efficient move for the Lake show this coming season as the look to three-peat because he's a much larger piece of L.A's puzzle then the Big Z is to Miami.
http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/players/profile?playerId=1765
http://www.nba.com/lakers/roster/
http://www.nba.com/heat/roster/index.html
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
More Than One
Image via Wikipedia
The first is in the fact that because of the Mitchell Report, and the crack down of the league on performance enhancing drugs, not only are the .340 hitting and 60 homerun seasons diminishing but baseball is a game of numbers and it always has been yet steroids have walked in and completely rearranged that. You can not tell how many players have used steroids at any one point in their careers, you can not begin to realise how many or how few hits, homeruns, stolen bases, and intentional walks have occured because of PED's but you can realise that all Major League Baseball Players are human. They do make mistakes, and unfortunately these mistakes can tarnish the game I and so many others love, and even though the law states one is innocent until proven guilty, in the assumption of who has used steroids and who hasn't you have to broaden the picture...
Secondly pitchers are actaually just getting better, Troy Glaus stated to an ESPN reporter when he came into the league (which was not that long ago) there were just a handful of pitchers throwing over 98 miles an hour, but as recently as the last week, his Atlanta Braves squared off consecutively against five starting pitchers with heat that fast.
So in the last decade, as the steroid era wormed it's way out of the field and into the press, the pitchers that were used to the supped up hitters of the late 90s and early 21st century carried over into this decade, and proving two things, that 2010 is really the year of the pitcher, and that Darwin was perhaps onto something..
Some extra links providing some information I used for the post
Monday, July 26, 2010
Year of the Pitching... ?
Alrighty so it's been a long time since my last post and regardless if anyone besides me and my mom check this out I had a moral obligation to get off my lazy self and get a new post out there! So tonight on 26th of July 2010, Matt Garza threw MLB's 5th no-no of the season, which is a lot.. about three times the average year would recieve, which upon controversy media, fans and analysts begin to ask why, but by asking why it creates more controversy and in which A never goes away and B gives me something to do! So hopefully tonight I'll get to offer some insight why in my opinion we have some stunning pitching statistics recently.
First off congrats and hats off to Tampa Bay Ray's pitcher Matt Garza, for throwing the organizations first ever no hitter, first no hitter on July 26th, and for being the first pitcher named Matt to hurl one. With only a second inning BB tarnishing this spectacular gem, Garza continued the year of the pitcher, in which are being single handedly pointed to the fact that the steroid era, which is winding down brought awareness to hitters as a whole..
My initial thought is to side with everyone idiotic enough to propose that because a few of the best hitters in baseball are now off steroids pitchers have gained some sort of magical superiority over all the combined hitters, but A) That isn't what they propose and B) it doesn't work like that. I'm not going to lie, at the moment im iffy as between what I believe the cause of the pitching surge is.. .Is it because the steriods, is it a fluke? Just coincidence, maybe theres a conspiracy in the league with Bud Selig leading to a lock out, who knows? Definitely not me right now, I would LOVE to finish a complete thought and a post tonight, especially being my "return" but I'll have to pick a side for tomorrow's post and I'll make sure that it's backed enough to change your idea !
First off congrats and hats off to Tampa Bay Ray's pitcher Matt Garza, for throwing the organizations first ever no hitter, first no hitter on July 26th, and for being the first pitcher named Matt to hurl one. With only a second inning BB tarnishing this spectacular gem, Garza continued the year of the pitcher, in which are being single handedly pointed to the fact that the steroid era, which is winding down brought awareness to hitters as a whole..
My initial thought is to side with everyone idiotic enough to propose that because a few of the best hitters in baseball are now off steroids pitchers have gained some sort of magical superiority over all the combined hitters, but A) That isn't what they propose and B) it doesn't work like that. I'm not going to lie, at the moment im iffy as between what I believe the cause of the pitching surge is.. .Is it because the steriods, is it a fluke? Just coincidence, maybe theres a conspiracy in the league with Bud Selig leading to a lock out, who knows? Definitely not me right now, I would LOVE to finish a complete thought and a post tonight, especially being my "return" but I'll have to pick a side for tomorrow's post and I'll make sure that it's backed enough to change your idea !
Thursday, April 15, 2010
| Hey , Im soooo sorry for not posting in several days. I plan to post this friday, tomorrow on the Blue Jays home opener series which they are looking to split 2-2 putting there record at I believe 7-3. Anyways im sorry, homework, sports and my new job have kept the posts few and far between but check back later friday to get the newest update! Thanks!
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