Off to London

Well, I'm leaving for London tomorrow, so I don't expect to be blogging tomorrow. I guess it's possible, but I would wait until Saturday, Sunday, or Monday before I would expect anything. It should be fun, and I'll be there for a month. I don't know what I'll do without baseball.

For details on my journey, I will have another blog entitled "American Wildcat in London" which you can find in the blogroll to the right. Just in case anyone cares.

Mid-Season Awards

Well, half the season is over now, so it's time to give away the mid-season awards (which is slightly idiotic, but I'm bored). Let's see how this turns out at the end of the season. Here are the biggies:

AL MVP

Josh Hamilton (TEX)

This is probably the easiest choice until I get to the NL Cy Young Award. He leads the AL in HR (19) and RBI (76; by 16), is 8th in BA, and is 5th in R. He's been the big story so far with his comeback from his drug addiction to baseball superstardom. Again, it just makes you wonder how good he'd be if he hadn't used drugs. Also, it makes you wonder how good the Rays would be with him.

NL MVP

Chase Utley (PHI)

I would have chosen Lance Berkman, but his team stinks, and I at least think the MVP's team should be at least good as a result of their performance. I would have chosen Chipper Jones, but the run production isn't their even with his obscene BA and OBP. I would have chosen Albert Pujols, but he's been injured and the stats aren't there. I would have chosen Adrian Gonzalez, but the Padres stink so the Berkman Rule applies here. So, why did I choose Utley over Dan Uggla when I gave Uggla the All-Star start over Utley (when was the last time two second baseman were this good with last names starting with "U"?)? Well, he's more valuable. Simply put, the Phillies are the better team and are winning the NL East over the Florida Marlins. Their stats are actually strikingly similar.

AL Cy Young

Joe Saunders (LAA)

I want to put Cliff Lee here, but the Berkman Rule again applies. I think of this award as the MVP (Most Valuable Pitcher), which is why I don't consider pitchers for the Most Valuable Player Award. Lee has been good and his ERA is almost .60 below Saunders, but no one means more to their team's success than Saunders. When John Lackey and Kelvim Escobar were hurt, most thought the Angels were sunk, but then Joe Saunders became the ace and more than kept the Angels in the race. His 11 wins are the most in the AL, and his 3.03 ERA isn't too shabby either. Ervin Santana deserves an Honorable Mention for essentially doing the same thing, but he has two fewer victories and an ERA .30 higher.

NL Cy Young

Edinson Volquez (CIN)

I wonder how many baseball fans still don't know who this is. I guess we might be able to call him Pedro Jr. I guess I also have to make an exception to the Berkman Rule, but when your stats are so obscenely good, you can make exceptions. As of now, Volquez leads in all but one Triple Crown categories: W (10; one down to Brandon Webb, but this is the least important of the categories), ERA (1.71; by .83 over Tim Lincecum), and K (110; by 7 over Lincecum). Webb started out as the heavy favorite, but he has really cooled lately. Lincecum has been awesome as well, but just not as good as Volquez.

AL Rookie of the Year

Joba Chamberlain (NYY)

None of the hitters have been phenomenal, but David Murphy gets the Most Valuable Position Player part of this award. However, you can't ignore Joba's 2.03 ERA and 56 K in 48.1 IP. Armando Galarraga deserves an Honorable Mention for his 7 wins and holding the Tigers rotation together when Justin Verlander stinks, Dontrelle Willis can't throw it over the plate, and Jeremy Bonderman and Nate Robertson are still thinking back on '06.

NL Rookie of the Year

Geovany Soto (CHC)

His .280/.367/.508 line with 12 HR, 46 RBI, 20 DB, and 26 R give him every right to the award. I don't want to give it to Kosuke Fukudome because, first, Soto is better and, second, because I don't think he should be a rookie with his Japanese League experience. Soto, without McCann, would be the starting catcher in the NL. Soto is also first among rookies in HR and RBI and third in BA. Pretty good. As for the pitchers, Jair Jurrjens has been the most impressive, but Soto has been an All-Star.

Killing Me Softly

Well, Tim Wakefield was at it again last night. He struck out one, gave up two hits, and only walked one. Miraculously, he has allowed three runs or less in the past six starts while going seven innings in all of them. That's pretty good for anyone. In Kentucky, we recently had our high school baseball tournament, and a team had a knuckleballer. He was only a freshman and couldn't throw hard, so they taught him to throw a knuckleball and eephus pitch. So his 13-17 team faced my high school team who was number three in the state, and predictably, my high school lost. At first, they weren't being patient, but when they were patient, they couldn't hit iit very hard. Just goes to show you that throwing 100 mph isn't the only way to get outs, and knuckleballs could save your arm.

Barry Bonds Refuses to Play in Minors or Indy Leagues

Good because no one wants you anyway.

Ichiro to Leave M's?

Jon Heyman wrote an article talking about possibly trading Ichiro. While it seems a far fetch right now, it may not be too bad of an idea. He makes $17 million per year for the next four years, so he's a bit expensive. The $17 million could be used on a couple good offensive players instead of one. With Sexson and Ichiro gone, the Mariners could spend money on actually improving their team. They could trade Ichiro and Bedard to get really good prospects, and then trade them to get really good players. Still, at age 34, he might be getting a little too old to spend quite so much money on. However, no one really looks down the road anymore, so there would be plenty of takers (Braves? Cubs? White Sox?). The advantage would be for Seattle based purely on baseball, but with the bad PR and loss of popularity from Seattle, they probably won't do it. I mean, if Ichiro's not there, why go watch?

100th Post

This sure doesn't mean much, but I think it's cool. Like a 100th HR or something like that. After 100 posts and about a month and a half, I hope I am not ending up as this blog, who is explaining the rules of how blogs die. Unfortunately, I say this as I am about to go to London for a month (on Friday), and I am unsure of how much I will be blogging. I can guarantee that I will be back, and I will blog again when I am back on July 27th. In between now and then, I don't know how much I will be able to blog, but I will be blogging from another Blogger site entitled "American Wildcat in London" (clever name right?) to chronicle my journeys through Oxford and London, if anyone cares (but I haven't posted anything on it yet; wait until Friday or Saturday). The site will be on the blogroll on the right. Hopefully, I will be blogging on both every day, so if I only post maybe once a day, don't worry too much. Anyway, here's to 100 more posts.

And the NL All-Stars Are ... (Final Edition)

Here's the second part of the final series of my condemnation of All-Star voters (the AL is here):

Catcher

Should be the starter: Brian McCann (ATL)
Lost in the glory of Chipper Jones' season, McCann has had a great season. His ..306/.379/.562 line with 14 HR, 44 RBI, 22 DB, and 35 R make him the best choice. However, this season, four catchers have a legitimate argument to be in the discussion.

Reserves: Russell Martin (LAD) and Geovany Soto (CHC)
My sincere and utmost apologies to Bengie Molina because he deserves to be here in any other year, but the time is now for the young catchers to take over the game. Martin was the easiest as his .315/.412/.451 line, 38 R, and 6 SB are better than the other two. Soto beats out Molina due to his better OBP (.358 to .333), SLG (.508 to .449), HR (12 to 6), and R (26 to 24).

First Baseman

Should be the starter: Lance Berkman (HOU)
His .354/.438/.683 is tops among NL first sackers except for Pujols' OBP (.475). Berkman was a favorite for the NL MVP until his Astros have fallen recently.

Reserves: Adrian Gonzalez (SD) and Albert Pujols (STL)
Gonzalez might be the most underrated and unheard of great player in the game. With 21 HR and 65 RBI while playing at Petco, Gonzalez is truly astounding and deserves to be in the game. Until Pujols' recent injury, Pujols may have had an argument for the starter spot with his .347/.475/.631 line, 16 HR, 42 RBI, and 41 R. He still deserves to be in the game. My apologies to Derrek Lee, but I can't have four first basemen.

Second Baseman

Should be the starter: Dan Uggla (FLA)
Yes, I said Uggla. Just a quick comparison between the two reveals Uggla's advantage. Uggla has a .294/.379/.643 line with 23 HR, 57 RBI, 57 R, and 24 DB to Utley's .291/.379/.643 with 22 HR, 63 RBI, 57 R, and 19 DB. It's so close, but Uggla gets the nod with the SLG being the big difference. You can throw the fact that Utley has 40 less K in my face, but I'm still taking Uggla.

Reserve: Chase Utley (PHI)
Who else? Maybe Brandon Phillips or Kelly Johnson, but I can't.

Third Baseman

Should be the starter: Chipper Jones (ATL)
David Wright and Aramis Ramirez have arguments, but how can you deny Chipper's .394/.485/.631 line compared to Wright's .272/.369/.466 and Ramirez's .299/.404/.530? Chipper's just been better.

Reserve: Aramis Ramirez (CHC) and David Wright (NYM)
I couldn't justify leaving either off.

Shortstop

Should be the starter: Hanley Ramirez (FLA)
It's a tough battle between Ramirez, Jose Reyes, and Miguel Tejada, but the lines tell the story. Ramirez has a .295/.386/.521 to Tejada's .294/.332/.468 to Reyes' .297/.356/.490. Ramirez also has more HR and R.

Reserve: Jose Reyes (NYM)
Quietly having a really good season despite the Mets not doing well. It's not his fault Beltran and Delgado can't knock him in. Reyes' line, five times the SB (26 to 5), and more R (55 to 53) give him the edge over Tejada, who has gotten worse each month.

Outfield

Should be the starters: Ryan Ludwick (STL), Nate McLouth (PIT), Ryan Braun (MIL)
Ludwick has been the man, as he is another unknown having a great year, with a .297/.370/.606 line with 16 HR, 56 RBI, 47 R, and 21 DB. McLouth has a .292/.375/.546 line with 15 HR, 51 RBI, 58 R, and 24 DB. Braun has also been awesome with a .288/.325/.565 line with 20 HR, 56 RBI, 44 R, and 19 DB.

Reserves: Carlos Lee (HOU), Pat Burrell (PHI), Carlos Beltran (NYM), Xavier Nady (PIT)
This wasn't as hard as the AL to pick, but there were some good ones left like Kosuke Fukudome, Aaron Rowand, Alfonso Soriano, and Corey Hart.

Pitcher

Should be the starter: Edinson Volquez (CIN)
His 10-2 record with miraculous ERA of 1.71 with 110 K in 95 IP makes this decision pretty easy.

Reserves: Brandon Webb (ARI), Aaron Cook (COL), Ben Sheets (MIL), Ryan Dempster (CHC), Tim Lincecum (SF), Brad Lidge (PHI), Jon Rauch (WAS), Kerry Wood (CHC), Billy Wagner (NYM), Brandon Lyon (ARI), Tim Hudson (ATL)

Rauch gets in because I need a National, and he has been pretty awesome (15 SV, 2.39 ERA). Tim Hudson gets in with a need for another starter and having more IP with almost the same ERA of Santana, but honestly, they are about the same. My apologies to Johan Santana (who could very easily be on the list with a better record), Kyle Lohse (who has the record but not the ERA or IP), Carlos Zambrano (because he's actually worse than Hudson and is injured), Dan Haren (because there were already enough Diamondback pitchers and had a higher ERA than Hudson), Brian Wilson and Jose Valverde (because they have high ERA's with their saves), and Matt Capps (because he just lost the competition with Wagner and Lyon at the end).

Pretty tough, but the lack of DH made the NL a little easier. Interesting note, each league should have the middle infields occupied by guys on the same team (Texas and Florida).

New Low?

Well, the Mets just lost, again. However, this time it was against the Mariners, the worst team in baseball. This time it was by the score of 11-0. This time it was R.A. Dickey who shut them down for seven innings. R.A. Dickey is the same guy who throws knuckleballs for a living, and not all that well I might add. Before tonight, Dickey was 0-3 as a starter with a 13.50 ERA in 11 IP with 8 BB and 7 K (he has a 1.96 ERA as a reliever). Not exactly the model of an outstanding pitcher. I guess everyone has their bad moments during the season, but this one was a doosy.

Haren Ices Sox (ESPN headline)

Wouldn't his feet get cold?

Francoeur Visits Eye Doctor

Jeff Francoeur went to the eye doctor in an attempt to end his season-long slump. For those who don't know, Frenchy was hit underneath his right eye by a pitch when he fouled off a bunt attempt, and the doctors said his vision would slowly deteriorate. Therefore, he has finally gone to the eye doctor (after doing God knows what else) to fix his hitting. Now, I know how helpful eye doctors can be for athletes, and his day (.320 with five HR and a .553 SLG in 26 day games) and night (.207 with three HR with a .323 SLG in 50 night games) splits indicate that he does't see as well at night.

However, I think most of his problems would be solved by him not stepping in the bucket. Every time he hits, he does that. He steps out, which causes his shoulder and hips to bail early. That causes him to not be able to see the ball as well or reach the outside pitch. When your hips bail early, your power goes way down because a big part of your power comes from your legs. But here's the thing. If Francoeur can't see very well, he might think the slider is a fastball, which would cause his hips to start to clear early in order to turn on the fastball, and that would explain what is going on. Also, for as long as I've known Frenchy, he's always stepped in the bucket, so maybe it is more of a sight thing. However, I think if he kept his shoulder and hips in longer, it would solve most of his problems because he seems to hit the ball, but he always gets under it (another indication of his shoulder because when the shoulder leaves, the hand becomes weaker and unable to sustain power through the swing, which causes pop ups). Actually, he's only struck out 54 times this season (on pace for around 110) which would be fewer than the 130 he has been striking out so far in his career. I hope this works because I think Frenchy has taken a lot of heat for his start this season, and at 24, I don't think he deserves it.

And the AL All-Stars Are ... (Final Edition)

As promised, here are my selections for the All-Star Game. Today is the AL, and tomorrow, I'll tackle the NL. For each position, I'll tell you who should be the starter and the reserves . I'll still use the "all teams get a representative rule" (even though I think it's dumb), so bear with me as I try to decide. Here goes:

Catcher

Should be the starter: Joe Mauer (MIN)
His .331/.417/.437 line should be enough, and it is the most impressive. However, let's add on an AL-catcher-leading 18 DB, 29 RBI, and 46 R just to make sure. There's no question he deserves it, even over the captain.

Reserves: Dioner Navarro (TB) and A.J. Pierzynski (CHW)
Pierzynski ties Mauer for the 18 DB and 29 RBI, and his .299/.338/.437 line is impressive as well. As for Navarro, he's been one of the quietest and most pleasant surprises for a surprising Rays team, possibly even giving Tampa a reason to pass on Posey. His .323/.365/.452 line is actually better than Pierzynski's, but he doesn't have as many AB's.

First Baseman

Should be the starter: Kevin Youkilis (BOS)
It's so close between Youkilis and Justin Morneau, but let's compare stats. Morneau's .305/.362/.485 line with 11 HR, 59 RBI, 42 R, and 14 DB is impressive, but Youk's .305/.377/.542 line with 13 HR, 47 RBI, 47 R, and 19 DB is just better. Miguel Cabrera and Casey Kotchman have been good, but their numbers aren't those of Morneau and Youkilis.

Reserve: Justin Morneau (MIN)
For reasons stated above. Impressive, just not impressive enough.

Second Baseman

Should be the starter: Ian Kinsler (TEX)
Numbers are numbers, and no one's are better than Kinsler's. His .306/.364/.497 line with 11 HR, 46 RBI, 63 R, 22 DB, and 19 SB are too good to ignore. This one isn't close.

Reserves: Mark Ellis (OAK) and Brian Roberts (BAL)
Polanco's .312/.366/.415 line with 16 DB and 37 R is pretty good, and Robert's .290/.368/.466 line with 25 DB, 43 R, and 20 SB is actually better. Jose Lopez has been good, but he doesn't get on base or steal bases. Mark Ellis is also close, but his .254 BA is the downer for me. However, Ellis gets in because of the annoying "everyone gets a representative" rule.

Third Baseman

Should be the starter: Alex Rodriguez (NYY)
He was out for a little bit, but his .332/.410/.615 line with 14 HR, 41 RBI, 17 DB, and 40 R are still really good. Joe Crede is really close, but A-Rod has the same stats in less time.

Reserve: Joe Crede (CHW)
His .275/.348/.521 line with 15 HR, 45 RBI, 33 R, and 14 DB are really good, and with a lack of real alternatives, he gets the nod. Casey Blake has had a surprisingly good season as a bright spot in a lackluster offense (and luckily for him, in a contract year), but he lacks the BA and SLG of Crede. Evan Longoria has done pretty well, but his .249 BA kind of kills it for me.

Shortstop

Should be the starter: Michael Young (TEX)
An all-Texas middle infield is my choice for the All-Star team. With a serious lack of production among shortstops, no one really stands out, but Young's .277/.330/.399 line with 54 R, 18 DB, and 38 RBI are tops among shortstops with Orlando Cabrera, Derek Jeter, and Bobby Crosby following steps behind.

Reserves: Orlando Cabrera (CHW)
Another White Sox reserve, Cabrera's .274/.324/.374 line is comparable to Jeter's and better than Crosby's. Crosby has more DB, RBI, BA, and OBP, but Cabrera has more R and SB. Jeter is is just worse than Cabrera.

Outfield

Should be the starters: Josh Hamilton (TEX), Jose Guillen (KC), and Carlos Quentin (CHW)
Josh Hamilton is the MVP at this point, so he is no surprise. Guillen's .294/.324/.518 with 13 HR, 60 RBI, and 28 DB really make him a logical choice here. Quentin's .280/.392/.533 with 17 HR, 56 RBI, and 49 R make him the next logical choice, maybe even slightly better than Guillen.

Reserves: Johnny Damon (NYY), Grady Sizemore (CLE), Manny Ramirez (BOS), Milton Bradley (TEX)
Lots of good choices here as I leave David Murphy, Ichiro Suzuki and Vladimir Guerrero off the list, but you have to draw the line somewhere. I would love to have a couple more slots for outfielders, and I have no doubt that a couple of these players will be on the 32nd player ballot. Choose wisely because this is a tough one.

Designated Hitter

Should be the starter: Aubrey Huff (BAL)
Oh yeah, Aubrey Huff. His .271/.342/.500 line with 14 HR, 42 RBI, 42 R, and 20 DB make him better than the competition. Hideki Matsui's .323/.404/.458 with 7 HR, 34 RBI, 37 R, and 13 DB and David Ortiz's .252/.354/.486 with 13 HR, 43 RBI, 36 R, 10 DB are good, but the injury really hurts him (literally and figuratively).

Reserve: Hideki Matsui (NYY)
Matsui is just better and healthier. Sorry Big Papi. Rest that hand.

Pitcher

Should be the starter: Cliff Lee (CLE)
This was a tough one. I also considered Felix Hernandez, Roy Halladay, and Joe Saunders, but Lee and his start and ERA seem to give him the ever-so-slight edge over the competition. His 2.45 ERA is at least .30 better than his competition. Saunders has the most wins, but loses due to his low strikeout rate, and Hernandez and Halladay lose due to their records (which I know aren't their faults, but how can you deny a 10-game winner for guys barely over .500?). Again, a tough choice, but I give it to Lee.

Reserves: Felix Hernandez (SEA), Roy Halladay (TOR), Joe Saunders (LAA), Ervin Santana (LAA), Francisco Rodriguez (LAA), Jonathan Papelbon (BOS), Mariano Rivera (NYY), Joakim Soria (KC), Joe Nathan (MIN), Gavin Floyd (CHW)
Do I really have to justify these picks because it would take too long. My apologies to Vicente Padilla and Mike Mussina (both of which will probably get in because of their 10 wins but inferior ERA's), Shaun Marcum and John Danks (who lack the wins but have the ERA's), Jon Lester (who deserves it based on making me want to weep when I think of what he's been through), C.C. Sabathia and Josh Beckett (who are having sub-par years but still might get in anyway), and Rich Harden and Scott Kazmir (who have been spectacular but have missed extended periods of time).

Man, this was hard. There were a lot of tough decisions. Anyway, I made some interesting observations. Chicago's five selections were the most, just ahead of Texas' four. Dioner Navarro, who almost no one knows about, was the only Ray selected even though they're second in the AL East, and Baltimore and Kansas City had two even though they are worse teams. Also, the DH takes up spots that could be given to more deserving players (ie. all the outfielders or more pitchers). They really should make it 35 players with the "representation" rule becoming defunct.

Mets Owner Praises Randolph?

Well, that's what the headline says, but listen to this:


"The intent here clearly was to respect Willie, to respect his feelings and to do it in person," Wilpon said. "It's never easy to fire anybody. Believe me, it is not easy to do, and Omar took a lot of time. We took a lot of time listening to him and thinking about it."


To do it in person? They couldn't have told him he was fired in person in New York before they had to fly across country to do it in Anaheim so that Randolph had to take a lonely plane flight home? And, didn't Randolph ask Minaya to just do it before they got on the plane? Why the excuses, especially the ones that don't make sense? Also, he says, "It's not easy to fire anybody", which makes me think he would rather have Minaya do the dirty work instead of him doing it to Minaya. Next, he says:


"It's all a matter of performance, and Willie knew this when he started," Wilpon said. "Recognize we gave Willie the chance -- Omar gave Willie the chance to be in this position. He had never been a manager in the major leagues or minor leagues."


Okay, I recognize that you gave Omar the chance to give Randolph the chance to manage, but that's a load of horses***. Don't give me any of the "Well, we did give him a shot didn't we?" stuff because you probably should have given him the chance to finish what he started.

Mark Teixiera Hits 3 HR's in Win

About damn time.

Sabathia Hits Monster Home Run While K'ing 10

I guess this means that NL teams will have to pony up an extra prospect now that C.C. Sabathia can hit as well.

Ricciardi on the Hot Seat

According to Tim Dierkes at mlbtraderumors.com, J.P. Ricciardi, the Toronto GM, is on the hot seat. Now, I don't agree with what he said about Adam Dunn, but I don't think he should be fired. I doubt that he would be fired based solely on what he said or else he'd probably be gone by now (unless the Blue Jays are like the Mets and want to make a long, drawn-out ordeal of this). He'll probably be fired because the Jays are in last place. However, let's look at a few things. First, the Blue Jays have the best record of any last place team, and at 35-41, a six-game winning streak puts them at .500. Second, he put together a great pitching staff that has given up the third fewest runs in the AL, and with the youth of Marcum, McGowan, and Litsch, they should be good for awhile. Third, this season is really Vernon Wells' fault. After signing a 7 year/ $126 million deal, he has not been the same. He only hit 16 HR with 80 RBI last season after hitting 32 with 106 in '06 and 28 and 97 the year before. At age 29, he should be in his prime as a hitter, and with him, he should be a great four or three hitter. However, this season he only has 7 HR and 28 RBI as this offense has really struggled. Sure, Ricciardi needed to add more offense, but everyone figured Alex Rios and Wells would be a formidable duo in the middle of the order. Fourth, they have been over .500 the past two seasons. $92 million is a lot of money, but if you are going to compete with the Red Sox and Yankees, you need more money. If you want to throw the Rays in my face, all other GM's would be fired because few have that farm system (stop pointing out the Angels and Rangers; I get it already; let me finish ... geez). Ricciardi hasn't been the best GM in baseball, but he really doesn't deserve to be fired. He could use Burnett to get a good offensive player (assuming Burnett can improve and have some trade value, but because he is a pitcher, he should have quite a bit anyway) and trade Overbay for a couple good offensive players. They need some offense, so maybe they should trade for Dunn. Wouldn't that be a fun press conference?

Lohse Wins His 9th

Explain to me who couldn't have used him this season. The Angels, White Sox, and the Blue Jays are the only exceptions I'll give. Everyone else is just plain stupid. I felt this way during Spring Training when no one had signed him yet. He sat at home until March 14th. Last season, he was a combined 9-12 with a 4.3 ERA in 192.2 IP. While the ERA wasn't that good and no one knew Lohse would be this good, I have a hard time believing that teams didn't have $4 million to spend to strengthen the rotation. The Cardinals did, and now, they have a pitcher with a 9-2 record with a 3.63 ERA in 94.1 IP. Who couldn't use that? The Phillies maybe?

Contenders vs. Pretenders

Well, we're almost to that half-way point in the season, so it's time to take a look at who still has a chance.

NL East

Philadelphia Phillies (C)- With that offense, they should have no problem winning a division that no one else wants to win. They could stand to get another starter to make them World Series-bound.

Florida Marlins (C)- Again, another good offensive team that needs a little pitching. Maybe this is why they didn't spend much this offseason. Now, they have the prospects and money to go after a big name if they want. If they don't, they won't make it to October.

New York Mets (P)- They have to add something. Anything really. Something to take their mind off of how crappy this season has been so far. They have a decent offense, decent starting staff, and decent bullpen. An addition to one of those could push them into a playoff spot, but I think the baggage is too much.

Atlanta Braves (P)- They can't get healthy and can't win on the road (unfortunately, half of their games come there). If they're going to make a push, they need to add a big starter and bullpen help. I just don't see it with them.

Washington Nationals (P)- Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha

NL Central

Chicago Cubs (C)- Most complete team in the NL by far. With Big Z down, they need another starter, but they needed one anyway. They'll keep the spot warm until he comes back, and they'll still be in the division lead.

St. Louis Cardinals (C)- They shouldn't be, but I've learned to never count out La Russa and his team. They could stand another starter, reliever, and bat to push them into the division lead, but they are easily the Wild Card team at this point.

Milwaukee Brewers (P)- They have the offense, the rotation, and the bullpen, but they just can't put it together. If they add another starter, they could swing back into this, but the offense just has to perform better.

Pittsburgh Pirates (P)- I like Huntington and his plan, but even he can't take away the onus of sucking from this franchise in his first season. They need more pitching as well.

Houston Astros (P)- Their offense held them above board for awhile, but the pitching just isn't what they need it to be, especially with Oswalt being the next Woody Williams.

Cincinnati Reds (P)- I love their young guys (Votto, Bruce, Volquez, Cueto), but they just aren't good enough (please trade Harang to the Braves, now).

NL West

Arizona Diamondbacks (C)- They're just the most complete team in the worst division. I thought they were better than this but they've been too inconsistent. Luckily, when it matters, they'll get to beat the crap out of the worst division in baseball.

Los Angeles Dodgers (P)- I never really saw the draw to LA's young players. They haven't really done much for me. Anyway, when they get Furcal back, they'll be much more formidable, but they need another arm ... bad.

San Francisco Giants (P)- Pretty much as expected -- good pitching, poor offense. Except, they just aren't as bad as most thought they would be.

Colorado Rockies (P)- Quietly positioning themselves for an '07-type run. The return of Tulo and some pitching give them hope. Unfortunately, they were so bad up until now that they probably can't come back.

San Diego Padres (C)- They just don't have any semblance of an offense, and the pitching just hasn't been good enough (or healthy enough for that matter).

AL East

Boston Red Sox (C)- Best team in the AL, and they will probably be the best in the MLB by season's end. Scaringly, they are still awesome with Ortiz.

Tampa Bay Rays (C)- Great team, great makeup. They could stand another power bat and another starting pitcher, but they have a really good team without any additions.

New York Yankees (C)- Wait weren't they just in the cellar last week? Damn, well we never can count them out can we?

Baltimore Orioles (P)- They've been better than expected, but you're kidding yourself if you think they can beat out the teams ahead of them. Actually, they might be able to take the Yankees this season, but not the Rays or Red Sox.

Toronto Blue Jays (P)- They really could use some offense to support an awesome pitching staff.

AL Central

Chicago White Sox (C)- The best pitching staff in baseball will get you far. But that inconsistent offense is going to kill you eventually.

Minnesota Twins (P)- How are they still here? Gotta give 'em credit though.

Detroit Tigers (C)- If Zumaya and Rodney are healthy, they will take a lot of pressure off of the starting staff. It also seems as though that offense is starting to figure out how to hit again. Uh-oh.

Cleveland Indians (P)- There really isn't much of a remedy for the Indians. The only way to get them back in it is to make a serious push for offense, but I don't see it happening if they weren't willing to buy low on Jason Bay.

Kansas City Royals (P)- They did just sweep the Cardinals, but they have to get lucky at some point.

AL West

Anaheim Angels (C)- If they can get Teixeira or another big bat, they'll take the Red Sox's place as the best team in the AL.

Oakland Athletics (P)- Who else is ready to claim that Billy Beane is the smartest GM in baseball? No way they should be this good, but the pitching staff is just doing it.

Texas Rangers (P)- Just the opposite of Oakland -- plenty of offense, not enough pitching. Trading away part of the farm for Sabathia would put them in contention for the division. This team would be scary to play.

Seattle Mariners (P)- Hahahahahahahahaha.

Why the Cubs Won't Win

Gene Wojciechowski, who I like to read, just wrote an article about why the Cubs will win, so I decided to write one against that because I don't really like the Cubs (not really sure why but it feels good). Anyway, he (let's call him GW because typing his name repeatedly is kinda hard) gave us ten reasons, so I'll give you eleven. This should be fun.

1. The Billy Goat Curse
They shouldn't have insulted a guy's goat. Now, they can't win a World Series until they leave Wrigley Field. If they change the name in the proposed separation of Wrigley Field and Cubs deal, then does it count? You don't think this makes a difference? See Bartman and the meltdown thereafter.

2. The NL Central
There's almost no doubt the Cubs will win the division. Yet, the Cardinals are without Pujols and still hanging in there. Anyway, only two division winners in the the past six seasons (3 of last 8) have made it to the World Series to begin with. Maybe they should lose the division.

3. The Nontrades
While I agree with everything GW says about DeRosa, I wouldn't congratulate myself on keeping Jason Marquis. Marquis, after pitching a combined 48-31 in the first half, is 25-33 in the second half in his career. Remind me, but aren't the playoffs closer to the second half than the first?

4. The True Rookie
Apparently, GW doesn't think Fukudome counts as a rookie either. Geovany Soto has been outstanding this season, but how many rookie catchers have won the World Series in the past 105 years? Four. At least those are better odds than the Cubs winning the World Series.

5. Big Z
Well, he's hurt and no one knows for how long. That's not good for your ace. Anyway, his stats in the playoffs? How about 0-1 with a 4.37 ERA and 5 HR in 22.2 IP. Ouch. In the playoffs, a team needs an ace to be dominant to win. I'll take Josh Beckett and the Red Sox in 6.

6. The All-Star Game
The NL hasn't won in 11 years, and there's no reason to think they'll win this year, especially because everyone is so convinced that the AL is much better than the NL. If the NL doesn't win, then the Cubs don't get home-field advantage. That means someone else has the advantage. Well, the guy did say the Cubs wouldn't win the World Series in Wrigley Field. Techinically, they could win it somewhere else I guess.

7. Cha-ching
GW says the Cubs have money to play with, but honestly, who doesn't? Most teams, especially those in contention, have the money to play with. Some of them, namely the Red Sox, Rays, and Angels, have better farm systems to deal from. If I'm dealing Teixeira or Sabathia, I'm going to those other teams first.

8. Sweet Lou
For all the talk about how good of a manager he is, he has only won one World Series. Terry Francona has more. Mike Scioscia has as many. Bobby Cox has as many. La Russa has more. Lots of competition to get through with guys as good or better than him.

9. Playoff (S)Lumber
Derrek Lee is .226/.286/.298 in the playoffs. Aramis Ramirez is .196/.308/.464 in the playoffs. Alfonso Soriano is .225/.279/.319 in the playoffs. That's your fire power not firing too well.

10. The Red Sox
They're a whole .003 percentage points behind the Cubs for the MLB-leading record. If we're talking about the World Series and who's best, then we have to talk about the two best teams. Both teams have equal chances to get to the World Series, so don't say how do you know the Red Sox will make it because the Cubs may not make it either. Honestly, I'll take Beckett over Zambrano, Matsuzaka over Lilly, Lester over Dempster, and anyone over Marquis. Also, Big Papi and Ramirez are better in the playoffs than the above three (.317/.418/.587 ;.269/.373/.513). In this section, I'm assuming Zambrano and Ortiz are fully healthy.

11. 100 Years
Everything seems to be in perfect harmony for this. Exactly 100 years after the last World Series championship. The best team in the MLB. A lot of money spent on stars. Everything seems to be shaping up for them to win it, but somehow, I have this feeling that they'll fail for the exact reason that everything feels so perfect for them. Why do I get this feeling that the baseball gods are just bringing them up to let them fall really far and really hard as part of some cosmic joke?

Reading Between the Lines

Update: Ricciardi told Olney that he let his guard down and said something stupid. You think? He is now in the process of trying to call Dunn and the Reds to apologize. Good luck. Just never walk in Cincinatti. Dunn's a big guy who could probabl kick Ricciardi's ***.


So J.P. Ricciardi said some really dumb things about Adam Dunn. None of them provoked. None of them make any sense. All of them show Ricciardi as a poor loser. Essentially, he said that Adam Dunn sucks and is a lazy SOB. Adam Dunn has every right to be pissed, so he says:


"I don’t know the clown. I don’t know, and you can use the word ‘clown’ if you like."

"I’ve seen it, I haven’t heard it. I really don’t care what one guy thinks, to be honest with you. If I’m a G.M., I don’t know that I’d go out of my way to discredit a player — if I’m a player. He’s obviously won more than me, I guess. Or hasn’t. I know nothing about him."

"He’s not even in our country. This guy’s in another country talking ****."

"I don’t care about the perception people have of me, if anything happens, it looks like I ain’t going to Toronto. I can eliminate one team. I’m not converting my dollars into looneys and twoneys just yet. They’re really good, actually."

Apparently, Dunn does care what Ricciardi thinks or he wouldn't have gone on a profanity spree which ends up in him saying that being in Canada makes Ricciardi dumb. First, where the **** did this come from? Second, Dunn has every right to be pissed, but he might want to apologize the Canadians he may have offended. As far as I am concerned, let Ricciardi have it. Reading between the lines, I think Ricciardi might actually want to get Dunn, but he's probably been asked about him thousands of times and failed to trade for him a couple. Therefore, he's pissed at everyone for pointing out that his team sucks and that he's failed as GM. So he let's a guy minding his own business in Cincinatti have it out of f***ing nowhere. In recap, not the best idea. I know he might want to bring some attention to his team, but I doubt this was the way.

Can I Get a What-What?

Willie Randolph didn't know he was going to get fired. You've Got To Be Kidding Me. Right? This might be the most messed up part of this whole ordeal. Seriously? You didn't see all the articles? TV stories? Writings on the wall? I mean, really. He said, and I quote:

"I thought he was talking about whacking a couple of my coaches," the ex-manager told several New York-area newspapers Wednesday outside his home in Franklin Lakes, N.J.

"That's why I was stunned. I didn't think it was going to happen," Randolph said. "At the time, I felt the way he was talking to me, that I was pretty secure for the time being."

Wow. This also may point out just how backstabbing this whole thing has been. When Randolph had those meetings with the owners and Minaya a few weeks ago, apparently they convinced him that he was safe. How does that change so fast? Not only does that mean that there was no communication, there was no truth in the communication they did have. Second, Randolph used the term "whacking" for his coaches. That's not a very loving term. Granted, the ones "whacked" were probably his followers. But seriously, "stunned"?