Down the Stretch

Well, its crunch time and its time to see who really wants it most. I can't remember the last time there were so many uncertainties this late in the year with only the NL Central really looking done.

AL East
Boston are on top at the moment but are looking far from convincing. That pen still looks shaky and the rotation is not what it should be...I'll bet Red Sox fans are really thankful they still have Manny and Ortiz...I couldn't believe it when I heard The Yankees had acquired Matt Lawton as he should be the guy at the top of the order who brings consistency and speed and moves Jeter into the second spot where he excels. Cashman has actually made a move that helps his team...Wang has started his rehab in Columbus and his return would boost a rotation full of big names who aren't living up to reputations...The winner of this division is just going to come down to who gets hot at the right time because both Boston and New York have their strengths and weaknesses in exactly the same areas...Toronto should be happy with the way they've performed this year and while they've hit a bump in the road (common for young teams) and fallen away from the big two, there is plenty here to build on for the future and Ricciardi seems to be eyeing a number of big free agents for the off season...Surprise, surprise Baltimore! It wasn't Mazilli who was losing you games, its that poor excuse for a pitching staff who have come down to Earth. I hope Angelos is happy...Tampa have played some good ball in recent weeks but how frustrating must it be for D-Ray fans knowing they could have bolstered those efforts to claw back the feeble Orioles by plugging in Delmon Young and 'E6' BJ Upton. I guess there's always net year...Scott Kazmir has had a great rookie year covered up by his teams low profile and has looked strong in the second half...

AL Central
Well Podsednik is back in the line-up so The ChiSox should wrap up this division and get themselves set for the post-season and once again prove to everyone that pitching, speed and defence are always a good receipe for a consistent and successful team...Can Mark Buerhle get a Cy and lead this team to The Series?...Kevin Millwood and Jake Westbrook must be wondering why The Indian offence couldn't have hit like this sooner because that might have gotten them the wins their performances deserved. Now Cleveland are hitting they look like a very formidable team with a very good chance at the playoffs...If The Twins want to make the playoffs they better slap Morneau around the head so that he can give another post-concussion hot streak and be the power hitter in the middle of the order that they've needed because right now they just aren't good enough to mix it up with the big boys...Alan Trammell has done a good job getting his players to believe they can be winners...Detroit have some very lively arms brewing in the minors looking to join the impressive Bonderman and with the likes of Shelton, Granderson, Monroe and Rodney emerging and key glue guys like Polanco and Rodriguez signed up for a few years winning teams might be returning to Michigan...I've always like the design on KC's caps...

AL West
Oakland are riding their pitching on a serious hot streak since the All Star break and their offence has been sporadic enough to get them enough runs to win the only question is how long they can keep it up?...Huston Street Rookie of the Year?...I tell you why The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim haven't sewn up this division already, its the stupidly long name. Thats the only reason I can think of because this is a team with so much talent in all areas that they should be abusing the AL. If they can get it going they could win it all but they need to get going very, very soon...Texas seemed to really fall out of the race about the time of the whole Kenny Rogers incident that really seemed to knock them off their stride...I actually think Seattle fans should be optimistic about the near future with The Mariners having spent much of the year dumping aging salary eating players and giving some youngsters a chance to show what they can do at the Big League leve. They could well retool in the offseason to complement the youngsters...I do like Yuniesky Betancourt and that Felix Hernandez is a bit of alright...

NL East
Atlanta might not be safe in first place but they've gotta like their chances. Schuerholtz and Cox just don't seem to ever make bad decisions and its shocking how many rookies they've brought into the team and have produced...The pitching seems to be getting healthy so any playoff run will come down to how much pressure the likes of Smoltz and Hudson can take off the young bats...Its been a funny season in Florida. Their line-up has been nowhere near as productive as was expected, the pen has been severely shaken up (well done Todd Jones) and the pitching has been subject to so much conjecture but somehow The Marlins are still right in the thick of the playoff hunt...Florida has all the tools to beat anyone...Whats going on in Philadelphia? They look good for a while and then suddenly they look likely to crawl under a rock somewhere and then they get back up and make people believe in them again. Why can't they face up to the fact that its just not going to happen?...I have a theory that the horrific clash between Cameron and Beltran was just the baseball gods way of balancing up the fact that Cliff Floyd has lasted a whole year without serious injury...Of course The Mets have more important things to worry about now but they have done great for a team with no bullpen and Mike Piazza...We all knew it would happen and The Nationals have sunk from the top spot to the bottom of the East but thats more to do with the strength of the division...Can people please start mentioning Livan Hernandez as being one of the very best pitchers in baseball today?...

NL Central
St Louis have won the division. Pujols will win the league MVP and Chris Carpenter is looking good for the Cy. I think that covers the Cards...Even with no offence the Astros have hung in with the teams in the East for the Wild Card. There is no denying Houston's arms but how long can they scratch out just enough runs to win?...Milwaukee have come along leaps and bounds this year and with the youth in their team they might well be contenders this time next year...Its all gone tits up for Cubs fans. Aramis Ramirez is done. Wood is done. Lawton is gone. Patterson is back. And they're six games under .500. Derrek Lee has had a great year but even his MVP push is starting to fade...Cincinnati's season seems to have come down to whether or not they keep Junior Griffey...It even looks like Adam Dunn might lose his ML strikeout crown too, thats how uneventful life as a Reds fan is...Pittsburgh had something going for them with Zach Duke taking on all comers but he's likely done for the year...I just found at that the Pirates have a slogan for the year of 'Come Hungry'. Its interesting to see a team market itself on its food rather than the game they play but in The Pirates case it might be a good idea...

NL West
Jake Peavy has practically won this division by himself as he seems to be the only marquee pitcher in the division who can win games consistently for his team...Many people thought that the Padres would win this division but I doubt anyone thought it would be like this...Arizona have undoubtedly done enought to give them some credibility this year rebounding from last years mess and it is concievable that if their bats got hot they could make up the gap to San Diego but at this point if anyone got hot in this division they could make the playoffs...I'm sure you've heard that LA's farm team in Jacksonville have been voted the most talented team in the minors, I guess there's that to look forward to for Dodger fans. Right now Depodestra just doesn't seem to know how to win in Dodger Stadium with a small ball minded manager, playing in a pitchers park with a long ball team. Of course injuries haven't helped but someone needs to look at what has brought success to LA in previous seasons as change for change sake is never a good idea...I wonder if The Giants sit in the dug out looking across the field at the opposition and grumble about kids today?...Looking at San Francisco this year should remind us just how good Barry Bonds is...Todd Helton has gotten his bat going again in the second half and Jeff Francis has had a solid rookie campaign in the rarified air but we still can't ignore that purple is not a baseball colour....

10 Guys Who Want More Than a Cup of Coffee

10 Dioner Navarro,Catcher, Los Angeles Dodgers - When the incumbent at your position is hitting .238 and is ineffective in the field then you know you'll get a shot. Should give LA a shot in the arm and tide them over till Russ Martin is ready in a year or two.

9 Jon Papelbon, Pitcher, Boston Red Sox - I know its amazing that The Sox have promoted someone from the farm (there is hope for Hanley Ramirez still) but Boston are having serious problems with their pitching and he can definately help.

8 Jason Vargas, Pitcher, Florida Marlins - Everyone was going on about Scott Olsen and he just wasn't ready. Vargas has done well so far since moving to the rotation and is really auditioning well for the post-Burnett era in Florida.

7 Brad Eldred, 1st Baseman, Pittsburgh Pirates - Much like The Brewers, Pittsburgh are starting to blood some of their promising farm hands and this is one with some serious pop in his bat and whiffs with the best of them.

6 Edwin Encarnacion, 3rd Baseman, Cincinnati Reds - The top rated hitter in the Reds farm means there is one less hole on that infield.

5 Fernando Cabrera, Pitcher, Cleveland Indians - The Indians had so many problems in their pen last year and now they have this gem come through their system. Soon they won't worry when Wickman will eventually break down.

4 Bobby Jenks, Pitcher, Chicago White Sox - I still can't believe Anaheim let this one slip through their fingers. He might have a reputation as a trouble maker and a history of arm problems but his stuff is downright filthy.

3 Jeff Francoeur, Outfielder, Atlanta Braves - This guy is so much fun. A decent outfielder and one of the most aggressive hitters you will ever see. He comes up there hacking and when you're hitting .350+ you can get away with it. If you manage to walk him then you really need to ask yourself how?

2 Curtis Granderson, Outfielder, Detroit Tigers - The Tigers aren't just a bunch of pitching prospects, they also have this guy. He can do it all and will be the linchpin of this order when Detroit get all those arms up.

1 Casey Kotchman, 1st Baseman, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (they're the Anaheim Angels, who are we kidding?) - I was waiting all the way up to the trade deadline to see this guy dealt but he's up and showing the power Anaheim have been waiting for him to develop. This guy has been touted as one of baseballs next big things by many an expert and now he's going to be given a chance to show why.

BJ Upton - Bust or Next Coming

For a few years now BJ Upton has had his name at the top of several high profile lists of the best prospects in baseball and the principle building block of a promising Devil Rays team being built through the farm.

So far this year he is hitting .304 with an OBP of .390, a slugging percentage of .498 and you can throw in 37 steals to boot which is pretty damn good at any level and is exceptional for a 21 year old.

I have a slight problem with the 106 strike outs in 474 at bats but it seems K's aren't the big deal they used to be.

So why do I feel he might be a bust? The number 46 is all I need say.

Usually 46 is not a bad baseball number. Good for home runs, doubles, stolen bases and a few other things. Not good in errors though. Like I said to Neil M of 3,079 Miles..., I never thought anyone could commit that many errors until someone actually did...not even Cano!

46 errors is a ludicrous amount for a whole year and he's still got time to make more. Hitting more triples than K's is one of baseballs Holy Grails but more errors than doubles is not. The only way you could do worse is to have more errors than RBI (his 64 RBI would be a tall order to top, even for him).

They figure this guy will be the starting shortstop for a number of years and they hit the ball a lot harder and more often in The Bigs so I doubt that will happen, but where do you put such a natural athlete? The outfield is stacked and you wonder about a guy who commits 46 errors (46!!!) spending time at any infield position. Its possible he could DH and it looks like the best option but not what Tampa were expecting I'm sure.

Of course he still is 21 and has plenty of time to develop but you wonder what effect all this fallibility will have on the guy? If he is driven it will drive him nuts and if it doesn't then you wonder about his drive. This guy has serious talent but he could end up doing more harm than good if he doesn't sort out his D. Anyone remember Jose Canseco?

Only in New York - Flying Fans

Anyone with a daughter in their mid to late teens and lives in or around Armonk, New York should remember this name, Scott Harper. He is 18 years old and a total spack.

This young man is the sort of person who sits in the upper deck of Yankee Stadium and looks at the netting behind home plate and not only thinks about whether the netting could hold him but actually goes out to test his theory by jumping onto it.

This boy is dangerous and needs serious psychological help and if your daughter brings him home do your best to keep him busy whilst you wait for some friendly folk who will suit him up in a fetching white jacket with long sleeves and buckles on the back.

If ever there was a kid who needed a good slap to the back of the head its Scott Harper.

Angelos is an Idiot

Lee Mazilli has been dumped by Baltimore amidst the best season they've had in ages. If they had some quality in that rotation they might well be in first place still. Admittedly there have been some grumblings amongst the players in the clubhouse but they were still playing well (maybe not recently but...).

For a franchise that has made so many bad decisions we shouldn't be surprised. I'm just waiting to see what happens now but I wouldn't be surprised if they remain mired in 4th place and Lee Mazilli gets a shot somewhere else in the not too distant future.

Rafi the Drug Fiend?

Well, it couldn't have come at a worse time in many regards. After becoming the fourth guy to hit 500 homeruns and collect 3000 hits, Rafael Palmeiro has been found to be in breach of the MLB drug policy and will serve a 10 game ban. Of course everyone is asking if this will harm his Hall of Fame chances or even if this means Canseco was right and he's been juiced his whole career?

I have always been inclined to assume the best and think that maybe Palmeiro might have just taken the wrong cough medicine or something and this is just a mistake. The reason you have a three strike policy is to cover such eventuallities.

The really big question is what will Congress do? Unlike many of those fingered by Canseco, Palmeiro didn't take the fifth and stated quite clearly that he did not do drugs and in light of his recent failed test, Congress have begun investigating potential perjury charges and if they can prove that he actually took steroids before (I find the chances of them proving such a thing remote to say the least) then it really won't look good.

Of course we wouldn't need to be double guessing all this if MLB had instituted a drug policy sooner but as it stands I can still see Palmeiro making The Hall, albeit under a dark cloud. He's had a great career and there is some ambiguity as to any long term steroid use and a lot of writers seem to be able to look past such transgressions with certain players. Personally, I'm still bitter that Palmeiro stole a Gold Glove from David Segui and that Joe Carter was well and truly snubbed by The Hall so no one should ever be allowed in until that is sorted (I can be so petty sometimes).

We shall see what happens.

3000K Maddux

People would be disappointed if I didn’t use this slice of history to wax lyrical about Greg Maddux.

Not only has he recorded his 3000th K but of the thirteen only one other player has recorded 3000K with less than 1000 walks and Ferguson Jenkins only just classifies by 3 (997) whereas Maddux has done it comfortably with 106 to play with. Adding that to his 313 wins, a .634 winning percentage and 17 consecutive years of 15+ wins and you have a pretty decent resumé for being one of the true all time greats and possibly the best of a generation (not that he‘d bring attention to any of this).

The most remarkable thing about Maddux is that he has notched up 3000 K’s having never been a hard thrower and having never been someone who has games where he strikes out a tonne (he has 191 fewer ten strikeout games than Nolan Ryan which is a lot). The real key to him getting to this plateau is the same thing that has gotten him all those wins; consistency. Like day follows night you know what Greg Maddux will give you and while that might not mean the same thing now as it did in his untouchable days in the 90’s he still finds a way to do the job.

I could go on forever about why I consider him the best pitcher I’ve had the opportunity to watch and as good as anyone in the live ball era. In these days of ‘scout by radar gun’ and the ever growing number of pitchers who simply go up there looking to blow their fastball by hitters its just great to see a guy with just a high 80’s fastball carve hitters up without relying on stuff but relying on intelligence and guile. Greg Maddux makes baseball about skill and craft rather than muscle and testosterone.

10 Reasons to Look Forward to the Rest of the Year

10 Mo Rivera’s ERA going down.

9 Junior Griffey playing 140+ games for the first time in way too long.

8 Atlanta failing to extend their streak of consecutive division titles but making it to The Series.

7 Adam Dunn challenging his own special record.

6 The Yankees failing to make the playoffs after making some dumb moves at the deadline that don‘t address any of their problems.

5 The ChiSox holding onto the AL Central just beating out the Indians who will finally score some runs for Millwood and Westbrook (is there a less fortunate pitcher in baseball today?).

4 The Angels - They’ve been coasting so far and should wrap up their division in double quick time before they really start to pick it up going into the playoffs. Ominous.

3 Greg Maddux becoming just the second guy to strikeout 3000 while walking less than 1000. Oh, and another year with at least 15 wins.

2 The emergence of several young studs - Pitchers Justin Verlander and Zach Duke have been unleashed on the league and will lay the foundations for great careers. Rickie Weeks is doing it all and Grady Sizemore looks set for Rookie of the Year honours.

1 Delmon Young

Rafi Palmeiro - 3000 / 500

Rafael Palmeiro has joined a truly elite group of players that includes Willie Mays, Eddie Murray and Hank Aaron to become the fourth player ever to have both 3000 hits and 500 homeruns.
It seems hard to believe that a guy like Palmeiro who most people associate more with Viagra than with being a future Hall of Famer could get into such illustrious company and many will probably bring up that most of his career has been spent in homerun havens in Texas and Baltimore but however you look at it, this is an immense achievement and perhaps its time we started re-evaluating where Rafi sits amongst the pantheon of first basemen to have ever played this game.
Could he be the answer to the qusetion of who is the greatest first baseman of all time not called Lou Gehrig? Possibly not, but he should be having his name thrown into the discussion even though he robbed David Segui of a Gold Glove in '99.
Some doubted that he would make The Hall but I think this really cements his place so revel in seeing this guy finish out his career and salute a man who has done as much for the game as he has for men with unspoken problems everywhere.

The MLB Spurious Awards

Well, we’re half way through the season and although we couldn’t get Billy Crystal, we’re still going to go ahead with the first ever First Half Spurious Awards.
I have enlisted the help (if it can really be called that) of a couple of old friends who I worked with on the first ever British based baseball fan site (how’s that for alliteration) including one of the luminaries who put it together (Chris C) and Neil M who is one of the guys responsible for the 3,079 Miles to Fenway, 3,448 miles to Yankee Stadium blog (sadly the Yankee fan part of that duo) and might also be considered my arch-nemesis in most matters baseball.
We agreed on some things, were nowhere near agreeing on others but hey, we’re not sabretricians, we’re just fans and what would fandom be like if we didn’t disagree on...well…everything.
Its always interesting to see how certain people who follow certain teams tend to skew their opinions.

* Due to formatting issues which I'm probably not smart enough to sort out Neils nominations will be in blue, Chris in red and mine will be purple (I really need to learn how to do these things properly)
AL MVP : Brian Roberts, Bal; Manny Ramirez, Bos; Manny Ramirez, Bos
NL MVP : Albert Pujols, StL; Derrek Lee, ChC; Albert Pujols, Stl
AL Cy Award : Mariano Rivera, NYY Mark Buerhle, ChW Roy Halladay, Tor
NL Cy Award : Roger Clemens, Hou; Dontrelle Willis, Fla; Dontrelle Willis, Fla
AL Rookie Award : Chien-Ming Wang, NYY; Grady Sizemore, Cle; Grady Sizemore, Cle
NL Rookie Award : Jason Ellison, SF; Half the Braves line-up, Atl; Willy Taveras, Hou
AL Eck Award: Mariano Rivera, NYY; Mariano Rivera, NYY; Mariano Rivera, NYY
NL Eck Award : Jason Isringhausen, StL; Chad Cordero, Was; Brad Lidge, Hou
The Where the bloody hell did he
come from award for excellence out
of nowhere : Brian Roberts, Bal; Brian Roberts, Bal; Derrick Turnbow, Mil
The Award for a guy who probably
won't win any other award but deserves
something : Jesse Crain, Min; Bobby Abreu, Phi; Jesse Crain, Min
The Too Good For His Team Award : Carlos Lee, Mil; Jorge Cantu, TB; Rich Harden, Oak
Best Team : St Louis Cardinals, Chicago White Sox, Chicago White Sox
Most Improved Team : Washington Nationals, Washington Nationals, Washington Nationals

The picks that stand out for me have to be Wang over Sizemore for the AL Rookie and Clemens over Willis for the Cy as Neil is a Yankee fan and also chairman of the ‘We Love Roger Clemens No Matter How Much of a Non-Team Player he is Committee’. Thankfully in both instances Chris had more sense but then he did go for Bobby Abreu over Crain in the ‘Unlikely to Win Any Awards’ award but then Phils fans always seem to feel their guys get overlooked.
All in all it’s the usual suspects that everyone knows about (although I already rated Brian Roberts which is why Tunbow gets a mention) with a few real splits in opinion. The AL Cy had three good names thrown into the hat that are all tough to really argue with, similarly with the NL Eck (much catchier I feel than the Rolaids Award).
I do feel for Carlos Lee being thrown into the Too Good For His Team category or, to be more accurate, The Brewers who I feel are a better team than Neil is giving them credit for and I might be doing the same for Oakland but then again, this is my blog and I’m allowed to do such things.
The NL Rookie was an interesting one with Neil admitting he had ‘no idea’ who to go for and I must admit there really is no standout first year guy (that I know of) and Chris might have made the best pick by nominating half the Braves roster.

MLB Mid-Season Report

AL East - I’ll start off by saying that Tampa will be competing next year rather than this and the only thing to look forward to in Tropicana is when the young guys start coming up after they deal their more seasoned players (none of which is as good as Delmon)…Boston would be counting down their magic number right now if their pen hadn’t been so bad and Foulke’s injury doesn’t help things. Watch Theo go out and get some arms very soon and The Sox should cruise into the post-season and Manny could get that MVP nod (he really is smokin‘ right now…The Orioles are levelling off but Lee Mazilli has done a great job and that infield is awesome. They have a great chance to hold onto the second spot in this division…watch out for Palmeiro‘s 3000th hit (he might have robbed David Segui of a Gold Glove but you can‘t deny the rest of this guys career) …Well, I’ve already gone on the record by saying the Yanks won’t make the playoffs and until they get some speed or their pitching picks it up big time, they will continue to run hot and cold and that’s not good enough in that town…Toronto are brewing some nice players this year and have progressed nicely (watch Russ Adams now that he’s batting leadoff) but losing Halladay for a month will hurt. He has been the best in the AL so far.

AL Central - The White Sox are a great team. Speed, defence, power, great rotation, great bullpen, what else is there? They also have some guys they can deal to make themselves stronger and some nice looking prospects in their minors. If they continue being smart they could win it all…Minnesota haven’t been as good as many expected with Morneau seemingly needing to be hurt by someone in order for him to really crank it up and Santana lacking some of the sharpness of last year. Jesse Crain continues to make me look like a genius with his performances but this is a team that could click at any time and go deep into October but they need to get going soon…Cleveland were struggling early but now their hitters are coming through (can someone give some kudos to Hafner) they are definitely in the race and now Wickman is healthy (for now) that pen is strong…Detroit probably don’t have enough in the tank this year to mix it up in the race for the playoffs but they can definitely be big spoilers with Ordonez back, Shelton looking like he could be a great hitter for a good few years and Jeremy Bonderman really emerging as a true ace. Their big problem could be Percival who is definitely on the decline and they might be wishing they kept Urbina…KC are bad, real bad and I fear for Zack Greinke’s future (BE STRONG YOUNG MAN!!)

AL West - Anaheim (I’ll call them Anaheim until they get their name to something that’s less of a mouthful) haven’t really got it going on all cylinders but they still have all they need to beat anyone in the league and their rotation has been in good hands especially Colon who has been dominant for much of the year…Texas have been given some real fight in their rotation from Kenny Rogers (see what I did there) who is having a career year but its that infield lead by Mark Teixeira and that pen that is driving them…Oakland have been hot recently and have gotten over .500 but I still don’t know how they expect to win consistently with that offence, their pitching is good but not THAT good…Seattle are blooding some young’uns but their pitching has gotten very ordinary over the last couple of years. Not even Pat Borders can save their season…Say Adrian Beltre’s name then look about you. If they aren’t laughing then they’re probably a Mariner fan.

NL East - I’m still waiting for the wheels to fall off The Nationals but I’m also enjoying watching Livan Hernandez pitch, he deserved the Cy more than Clemens last year (one of a few) and is having a good run at it this year…I still don’t like Nick Johnson and I don’t care what anyone says…There are two reasons why Andruw Jones is playing centerfield. First his defence is legendary out there and secondly he is so hot that if anyone could stand near him they would burst into flames…Atlanta have done a great job of bringing in their youngsters to patch up the team through injuries and once they get their big starters back it could be another division title….Florida should be scoring more runs than they are, Pierre and Lowell have been almost non-entities this year and that line-up is stacked but if they want to really compete they need Beckett to be healthy, Penny to be consistent and Mota to stop pouting…I’m fed up with the Phillies, I’ve tabbed them to be among the best in the league the last two years and they have made me look like a fool. What they’ve got isn’t working but in Utley, Rollins and Howard (damn he takes some vicious cuts) they have the building blocks of a contender but they also have some good players who will be passed their prime when those youngsters peak so I say trade Wagner. Trade Thome. Trade Lieberthal and eat his salary. Trade Abreu while his stock is sky high...The Mets ran into Dorothy on the Yellow Brick Road and told her how they’d be leading The East if only they had a bullpen…I’m still looking for Cliff Floyd in The All Star Game but I might have to look for him in MVP voting…this division is stupidly tight.

NL Central - The Cards are winning this division at a canter and its hard to see who will challenge them. This could be the first of many MVP seasons for Pujols…The Cubs define the ‘if they stay healthy’ maxim better than anyone. Wood and Prior would win 30 games each if they avoided the DL for a year (I can say that because it will never happen). Maddux could win 15 games AGAIN (do you people realise how amazing a career this guy has had?!?!) but it will be tight…Derrek Lee won’t win the triple crown but he’s still had a truly amazing season so far…Houston have done so well to be as good as they have been and it really is testament to their pitching with Clemens and Oswalt continuing to be strong and Lidge is just filthy in the pen (they should ban that guy as he is just unfair). Taveras has done a fine job at the top of the order and Berkman’s return has been key but they really don’t have many bullets in that order, even in Ten-Run Field (I know its not Enron any more but I love that name)… Milwaukee is such a fun team this year with Carlos Lee leading those kids (including the heavily tooled Rickie Weeks) around the bases and Sheets and Doug Davies have given Turnbow (where did he come from?) enough leads to look good and there are more youngsters on the way...who will be at first next year for The Brewers? Fielder or Overbay?…Pittsburgh will be better in the second half especially if Zach Duke continues at his current pace and Oliver Perez got better as the weather got warmer but other than that there really isn’t much to look for in Pittsburgh…Cincinatti are well on their way to recording a bazillion K’s and there is no such number as a bazillion which says all you need to know about that line-up but they do score runs just not enough to help their pitching (they'd need Ruth and Aaron batting behind Rickey to do that).

NL West - Jake Peavy (I love that kid) has lead The Padres to the top of The West and no one else has come close to them. This is their division unless something drastic happens…Right now Arizona have gotten the better out of the Randy Johnson deal but their bats have cooled off after an early run and they won’t catch San D…I still don’t rate DePodesta as a GM, he has taken apart a winning team built on pitching and defence and has gone to a more offensive based scheme and now they just don’t seem to have the same cohesion. Admittedly they’ve had injury problems but even with the likes of Gagne I’m not sure they’d be good enough but you can bet he‘ll panic again at the deadline…What happens when you lose a seven time MVP and your best pitcher doesn’t perform? You become The Giants. They are old and full of holes and the big question is will/can they shift the oldies for prospects?…..What happens when your hot rookie gets injured and is out for the year and your only other hitter worth mentioning is playing nowhere near what you’d expect and you play in Coors? You stink up the joint...We should all be amazed how well Jeff Francis is doing in his rookie year.

10 Reasons to Like The All Star Game

10 If they replay footage of the Homerun Derby a couple of years back in Fenway, that can‘t be a bad thing.

9 We all like complaining (or should that be debating?) about who gets in and who is left out.

8 Good players on bad teams get a chance to play in the spotlight.

7 It’s the ‘best’ players in the world (except for the Cubans) all on the same field at the same time.

6 It marks out generations of great ball players - You can look back at previous All Star teams and imagine just how special those years were.

5 A full house in Detroit doesn’t happen often.

4 It’s the one time in the year when baseballs surly millionaires can smile on the field when they are robbed by a moment of brilliance.

3 Its so nice to watch a game and not care enough about it to not risk a coronary.

2 It gives Bud Selig another thing to tinker with and gimmick to death.

1 Its MLB’s big PR showcase for its talent around the world.

The Futures Game

I know its short notice but tonight is one of those events that I look forward to each year and thats The Futures Game. Unlike the big league All Star Game these guys always seem to have something to prove rather than feeling that its just good enough to show up. Its also free from Bud Selig and his gimmick laden tom-foolery (the Home Run Derby is going to be so crappy this year, I mean Hee Seop Choi is competing and he has no place at an All Star event).
Anywho, heres some of the guys I'm looking forward to seeing :

US Future Stars

Thomas Diamond, Pitcher, Round Rock (Texas Rangers AA) 1-0, 2.45 ERA, 11K, 5BB, 11.0 innings
For ages The Rangers have had great hitting but average to below average pitching and this guy could well change all that. He's still a couple of years away from the big club but he has butchered The California League (.191 opponents average, 101k in 81 1/3 innings) and is presently averaging a strikeout an inning in the Texas League.

Justin Verlander, Pitcher, Erie (Detroit Tigers AA) 1-0, 0.00 ERA, 18K, 3BB, 15.0 innings
Verlander recently made a brief appearance in Detroit and without his best stuff he still managed to put together a solid performance after a nerve ridden first inning.
This guy has some seriously nasty stuff and is well capable of getting into the high-90's with his fastball and its definately too much for anyone he's faced in the minors and at the moment The Eastern League is hitting .098 which reads like a typo but it really is .098.
He could be special.

Marcus Sanders, Shortstop, Augusta (San Francisco Giants A) .296, 56 runs, 5 HR, 29 RBI, 40 steals
Here's an interesting quote from Giants farm director Jack Hiatt, "He's a lot like Rickey Henderson or Bobby Bonds, a guy who used to lead off and hit with power." How can you not get excited about a guy with those sort of expectations? It might be tough on the guy but he's got the speed and a good approach at the plate and he's growing into his power.

Chris Young, Outfielder, Birmingham (Chicago White Sox AA) .265, 58 runs, 17 HR, 47 RBI, 15 steals
Chris Young is a guy who wasn't really expected to much in his career but is having a monster year for The Barons racking up homeruns, RBI, stolen bases and strikeouts. The K's are the only thing thats really holding him back at this point but an increased number of walks has seen his OBP get to a respectable level but he's much like Dallas McPherson in the sense that he can be highly productive despite his average.

Delmon Young, Outfielder, Montgomery (Tampa Bay Devil Rays AA) .333, 58 runs, 19 HR, 69 RBI, 24 steals
How's Delmon doing? Just fine. He's among the leaders in practically every offensive catergory and this year that includes steals. This guy is a machine and might already be the best hitter in the entire organisation and that includes the guys with the big club.
Tampa are reluctant to rush him but you have to wonder how long they will allow him to molest minor league pitchers instead of putting him to work in The Bigs because its hard to see him getting a lot better whilst he's playing at this level. This guy will be a star.

World Future Stars

Francisco Liriano, Pitcher, Rochester (Minnesota Twins AAA) 2-0, 3.46 ERA, 32K, 8BB, 26.0 innings
He's had shoulder problems that have hindered his progress but its been a year and a half since the last problem so this might be his chance to start making some big strides.
He can get the gun up into the mid-90's but has developed effective off-speed stuff that he is comfortable throwing at any time so it really is the time to see if he can do it or not.

Yusmeiro Petit, Pitcher, Binghamton (New York Mets AA) 3-2, 2.97, 75K, 10BB, 66 2/3 innings
This is the sort of guy I always like to see pitch. He doesn't light up the radar gun (he can barely hit 90) but he finds a way to be effective and get results. Its always tougher for guys like that to have sustained success at the big league level but there are a lot of teams making inquiries about him that obviously believe he can do it.

Kendry Morales, First Baseman, Arkansas (Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim AA) .256, 8 runs, 4 HR, 18 RBI
A 22 year old Cuban defector (probably means he's 30), Morales had a few problems getting his visa sorted in time for the start of the season but since he started he has shown power and discipline from both sides of the plate and great hands both with a bat and in the field. In short, he has looked fantastic and he's still getting used to life in The States.
Casey Kotchman must be wondering what happened as he's gone from a top prospect to someone wondering where he's going to end up because between Erstad and Morales he has nowhere to really go in this organisation.

Hanley Ramirez, Shortstop, Portland (Boston Red Sox AA) .276, 47 runs, 5 HR, 30 RBI, 18 steals
Ramirez already has the ability to be a plus shortstop at the big league level and his bat isn't far behind.
He has a decent combination of speed and power and should hit for average and the only real problem is that he's got Edgar Renteria in his position with the big club so talk has started circulating that he might be shifted to another position before too long but whatever happens you have to like this kids future.

Hernan Iribarren, Second Baseman, West Virginia (Milwaukee A) .314, 48 runs, 2 HR, 35 RBI, 29 steals
The Brewers are talking about how this guy will fill out and develop plus power. He already has good speed and instincts on the basepaths. Of course he hit .439 in The Arizona League last year which is the second highest in league history which isn't bad I guess.
Its kinda scary what you hear about where this guy could end up and even scarier when you consider that The Brewers have just uncorked a dose of Rickie Weeks on the big league team and if they could combine these two somehow with some of the other guys in their system then this could be a great team in a few years time.

London 2012

Well, where to start?

Firstly I would like to thank the Olympic committee for giving London the Olympics and aiding our mayor in his plot to remove all the riff raff from this great city by giving him to impetus to remove many people from their homes with enough money to enable them to not move anywhere else in London, not that it matters as many of the local businesses are being 'relocated' (or is that re-moved?) so they likely wouldn't have the jobs to keep them living their anyway. Hooray for escalating property prices....or something like that.

Anyway, The Olympic Games are on their way to London and one saving grace will be the increased exposure of baseball which has the potential to lift a growing marginal sport into a more prominent position in the UK subconscience. At least thats what we in the British baseballing community thought.

The IOC have decided to pull baseball and softball from the Olympic schedule for 2012 which pisses me off (it might upset the BBF too but they won't say anything to anyone in a way that we'll hear it). It will also piss off the Cubans and you can be sure that Jose Ramon Fernandez (the president of the Cuban Olympic Committee) will be most vociferous in any attempt to reinstate baseball by 2016 but even that won't help the British.

10 Reasons to Hate The All Star Game

10. Mike Piazza - I'm not saying I want to throw a splintered bat head at him but theres something not right about that guy.
9. This time it counts - Its so satisfying to know that an exhibition game involving a bunch of players who will not even be involved in the playoffs let alone the actual World Series will get to decide who gets homefield advantage.
8. Its on a Tuesday - Why Tuesday? To avoid conflicting with wrestling or something?
7. Each team has to have at least one representative - Why not just have the best players especially now these games 'count'? Would anyone miss Brian Fuentes?
6. Lets face it, more often than not the game is boring.
5. The increasingly annoying player intros that last a week - God I hope they don't trapse out their kids again.
4. Don't the US Airforce have better things to do than buzz a ballpark?
3. Do we really want our best players getting injured mid-season?
2. The ballot box stuffing by certain teams fans.
1. Does anyone really care who wins?

First Emery Boards Now This?

The folks in Korea were shocked when top KBO pitcher Park Myung-Hwan's hat fell off during his delivery and two iced cabbage leaves fell from his head.
His defence? The use of "Cabbage Therapy" helps him sweat less and enables him to focus more on hitters.
Park is 9-0 with a 2.26 ERA and 90 K's so maybe Cabbage Therapy can help others? Might be worth it but remember, if the umpire catches you then you run the risk of ejection or, even worse, the ridicule of baseball fans about the world. So in other words, it couldn't really do the Kansas City Royals any harm.

Who's In and Who's Out of the All Star Game

Well its that time again when the All Star line-ups are announced and fans everywhere are left to bitch and moan about why one guy is starting and why their guy isn’t even in the squad and in the spirit of this phenomenon (I am a fan after all) I wish to continue in this vein to honour my forebears.

I shall begin in the NL mainly because the AL side pretty much picked itself and the NL has one or two interesting picks particularly in the outfield where Beltran has once again shown how easy it is to make the All Star Game if you are a high profile guy in New York (of course Mike Piazza has become a master of this).

I may not be the biggest fan of Jim Edmonds (he wouldn’t play if there weren’t cameras at the game) but he’s had a good year and I can understand why he’s been picked but Carlos Lee and Andruw Jones (he’s not on fire with a capital ‘F’ he’s on fire with a capital ‘F’ ‘I’) are both having MVP type seasons and both are only on the bench but I guess the fans would rather have more familiar people. Thank God for Bobby Abreu getting in. Is he the best outfielder in baseball right now?

Cliff Floyd isn’t in the team?

Up the middle its nice to see David Eckstein get the start as he is someone who I thought didn’t have the allure to be an All Star but I’m glad to be wrong. Of course it helps that St Louis fans like to celebrate the guys who work hard for their team but in this instance I’ll forgive them even though I’d rather have Cesar Izturis there.

Jeff Kent is a guy who I can understand being selected as people love the long ball and there aren’t a lot of second basemen in the NL having great years (Luis Castillo has been nowhere near his best this year and has been picked as the reserve) but how about some love for the glove? Kent is only at second because....well I'm not sure why he plays second. Maybe he just likes the view from there.

Third base is interesting as you have the incumbent in Rolen once again getting the nod from the fans but its easy to make a case that both David Wright and Aramis Ramirez have been better and what I wouldn’t give to see Troy Glaus picked just so he could participate in the Homerun Derby. I suppose Wright will see plenty of these during his career anyway.

So lets get to the big debate which has been hovering around the All Star vote and that’s who should be the starter at first for the NL and Derrek Lee has won through even though Pujols is the best first baseman in baseball. Lee has had a great year leading the league in average (just ahead of Pujols) and up there in homeruns and RBI (like Pujols) and few are as good as anyone defensively at first (like….well Pujols is alright). I don’t think there is a team that would rather have Lee than Pujols and I would rather have Pujols starting for the NL All Stars.

As I said the AL team more or less picks itself with Varitek catching, Mark Teixeira at first (thankfully overtaking Tino ‘the one week wonder’ Martinez in the ballot), Brian ‘Brady Anderson in Disguise’ Roberts at second, Miguel Tejada at short (best player in baseball?) and A-Rod at third (I wanted Mora but then again I find A-Rod very disagreeable to put it very liberally). DH David Ortiz is big on talent and personality and exactly the sort of player the All Star Game is made for.

The outfield is a bit more interesting with Manny and Vlad obvious picks (Vlad + HR Derby = big time fun) but Johnny Damon has usurped Ichiro and as much as I like Damon, Ichiro is the most exciting guy in baseball and how he has missed out is beyond me.

No Cliff Floyd in the AL outfield either? Where is he? Will he be the mascot? He must be somewhere!

Biggio Sets Hits Record

Craig Biggio has passed Don Baylor to set a new record for being hit by a pitch with number 268 coming from BK Kim, although I doubt Baylor had the same protection Biggio has on his arm. You could probably fire a cannonball at Biggio and he would have no problems putting that heavily armoured appendage in front of it.
Don't get me wrong, I have nothing but respect for guys like Biggio who get the job done any way they can, especially at the top of the order, but some of the armour these guys wear is a tad excessive. How long will it be till someone comes to the plate wearing hockey goalie pads?

27th June Round Up

MLB - Well Interleague play is back again and hooray for Colorado who swept the mighty Royals in a game that wouldn't be possible if not for this 'innovation'....It must be a bad time to be a Giants fan, not only being swept by your bay area rivals but seriously, how can anyone give up 16 runs to Oakland?....whats up with Andruw Jones? Looks like he's stopped wondering why his parents don't like the letter 'e' and is absolutely raking it right now and boy do The Braves need it with their injuries....It must be tough when you can only hit .275 with 19 HR and 66 RBI but somehow Manny has managed to keep his spot in the Boston lineup when most teams would be sending him down to AAA. Honestly, who was it who started the whole Manny is struggling thing anyway? One things for sure, those people who doubted him are quiet now....Yankees avoid being swept by The Mets thanks to Braden Looper once again showing he is not a closer. Allows to many hits (especially to lefties), doesn't strike out enough guys despite having some serious gas and lefties are hitting .322 against him. It was also nice to see A-Rod score a clutch run so I guess thats him done for the year....Great to see Prior pitch 6 strong innings. You have to wonder if we'll get to see what he truly is capable of considering all the injuries he's had so far in his career....I don't care how many fans are going to these games, I still hate Interleague play and want it to suffer the same fate as Bambi's mum.....

Minor League Baseball - What happened to Kevin Barker? He used to be a top prospect but he's now 29 and on a tare down in Syracuse.....In Birmingham, Chris Young continues to spank it for The Barons with two home runs against Carolina and with Bobby Jenks earning his 17th save (why on Earth did Anaheim let him go?) you have to like the direction The White Sox organisation is going....Ryan Zimmerman is doing alright, with a streak of 8-13 with 2 HR and 6 RBI he has quickly been moved up to AA after just a month in The Nationals organisation....How's Delmon doing? Only leading the Southern League in most offensive catergories....

Japanese Baseball - Always nice to see a rookie do well, no matter what league and with the help of Tomoya Satozaki and Benny Agbayani (yes he is still alive), Yasutomo Kubo got a shut out win against The Orix Buffaloes as Chiba Lotte Marines continue to set the pace atop the Pacific Division....It must be great to play at the Yahoo Dome, at least it was for Keizaburo Tanoue who held The Nippon Ham Fighters to one run in a 5-1 Hawk win....Eagles 16 Lions 9 in 10 innings with a combined 33 hits over 5 hours 29 minutes. I hope the Japanese have comfy chairs.....

10 Reasons The Yankees Won't Make the Playoffs

10. Defence up the middle or lack thereof - I won't start the whole 'is Jeter really a Gold Glove calibre shortstop' argument but I will ask what they expect from Cano, Posada and Bernie 'I remember when this were nowt but fields' Williams?

9. Tony Womack - They had a servicable platoon at second last year but decided to splash the cash on the Moth Man. Womack has been consistently useless at a number of defensive positions in his career so you'd think he was brought in to be the sparkplug at the top of the order. In a nutshell, what does he do?

8. The payroll - Even if you believe the Yankees have bottomless pockets they have too much dead wood with high price tags that will be extremely difficult to move so you wonder how much flexibility they have to make moves at the deadline?

7. A-Rod - He's a feckin' jinx who lacks the cajones to deliver in the clutch.

6. The bullpen - Its like like that first car you ever bought, its only a matter of time till the wheels fall off and you have to take it to the scrap yard. If not for River, Mets fans would be laughing at you.

5. Yankees suck - Sorry, couldn't help myself.

4. They've given too many good teams a generous head start - New York will catch Baltimore (sorry Orioles fans but its true) but the Red Sox are starting to get into gear and have that 4.5 game lead already. Face it Yankee fans, the division is gone. As for the Wildcard, The Twins are a better team and play in a weaker division.

3. The Yankees live on the long ball and homeruns have never been a reliable source of wins. Expect your boys to keep being streaky unless they get some speed at the top of the order or, to put it another way, remember how they managed to be so unstoppable in the late 90's.

2. Brian Cashman - Yankee Stadium is built for lefty sluggers but The Yankees are structured around righty sluggers. You need lefty pitching to counter this threat and the pen has only one lefty and he's almost old enough to be a ballboy in San Francisco. What is Cashman's plan other than to spend a lot of money?

1. Aura and Mystique are on holiday - They hang out with Roger Clemens on those days he can't be bothered to turn up for games and cheer on his team mates.