Paul Kariya has played in the NHL for 15 seasons, since he was drafted by the Anaheim Ducks in 1993. At the age of 36, in an era where we've seen a player like Mark Recchi win the Stanley Cup at the age of 43, Paul Kariya is hanging up his skates.
Kariya missed the 2010-11 season due to post-concussion symptoms. This has become something of an issue for the NHL lately - it also saw Bruins' center Marc Savard miss most of the 2010-11 year, as well as Penguins' star Sidney Crosby. The MLB has seen its share of concussion-related problems, as well - most notable the Twins' Justin Morneau missing the second half of the 2010 season due to concussion.
I'll always remember Paul Kariya teamed up with Teemu Selanne. Those two were lightning quick and as deft as anyone on the ice. Kariya, especially, as a Duck and in his one year with the Avalanche, was as fast as anyone I can remember - Sergei Federov in the '90s or a current speedster like the Red Wings' Darren Helm. Combined with good stickwork, Kariya was a joy to watch play the game. It is good to hear, as he retires, that he is in otherwise good health - his post-concussion symptoms are resolving, but his most recent concussion from 2010, combined with past concussions from 1996 and 1998, have made it impossible to resume his playing career; the danger would simply be too great.
There's been a lot of noise about concussions over the past year or two. Advanced brain studies are starting to show the catastrophic damage done to people who sustain repeat concussions. Sports leagues are starting to beef up their rules on illegal contact - we've seen this most notably with the NFL's more stringent penalties last year and with the NHL's introduction of new rules and language to help prevent players from sustaining blows to the head. Concussions are a problem; a real problem. The more science comes out, the more we learn that even one concussion is too many. It wasn't too long ago that a player would get their "bell rung" and go right back in, almost like a rite of passage. Those days are over. Leagues have imposed post-concussion testing that must be passed before players can return: a concussion is almost always at least a week-long injury now.
The NFL makes the loudest noise about protecting its players, but when I look around the MLB and NHL and their concussion responses, I can't help but wonder. Sidney Crosby endured two concussions this past season and missed half the season. Justin Morneau, last year, took a single concussion and missed half the season. Aaron Rodgers, of the championship Green Bay Packers, sustained two concussions in the 2010 NFL season and missed only one game (although he was knocked out of another). As I watch the MLB and NHL response to concussions, I can't help but marvel at the medical miracles that NFL players seem to be, with their ability to return to action so quickly. This is part of why when the NFL talks about its commitment to player safety, I can't help but scoff. Maybe another part of it is due to the shorter (16 games) season of the NFL, versus the 82- or 162-game campaigns of the NHL and MLB, respectively. Maybe players in the NFL feel like their careers are shorter (they are) than an NHL or MLB player's, so they go for the gold when they have a chance, regardless of the risks. It's hard to say.
It's a sad day to see any player retire from a sport, from a career, when they're still able and wanting to do it, but simply... can't, for reasons such as above. Paul Kariya was a great hockey player. But perhaps this, and a tale like Marc Savard's, will help continue to push the envelope on concussions and true player safety. Sports like the NFL and NHL revolve around collision and impact - there's no avoiding that - but finding that happy medium where the majority of collision is safe and not likely to cause brain damage, well, that's the goal, right?
Around the MLB -
Cincinnati 4, Tampa Bay 3 - James Shields' complete game streak ends at 3 with Ryan Hanigan's 3-run HR in the 4th.
Minnesota 1, LA Dodgers 0 - The Twins take the series win on a strong shutout start by Scott Baker.
San Diego 4, Kansas City 1 - Padres sweep Royals in PETCO Park, where the Royals have never won a game.
Atlanta 5, Seattle 3 - Braves capitalize on two-out hitting to secure their sweep of the Mariners.
Cleveland 6, Arizona 2 - The Cabrera's notch seven combined hits of the Tribe's 15 to help them take the series win.
Philadelphia 2, Boston 1 - Vance Worley pitches another gem to give the Phillies the win.
NY Yankees 5, Milwaukee 2 - Video review leads to a HR and helps the Yankees get the victory.
NY Mets 16, Detroit 9 - Mets demolish Tigers starter Phil Coke and subsequent relievers despite Miguel Cabrera's two HRs.
St. Louis 5, Baltimore 1 - Chris Carpenter throws his second complete game this year, allowing only 1 run.
LA Angels 1, Washington 0 - Dan Haren secures a sweep for the Angels with a brilliant 2-hit shutout through 7.
Toronto 2, Pittsburgh 1 - Brandon Morrow tosses 10 strikeouts and allows only 1 run in seven innings to help the Jays take the series.
Chi. Cubs 2, San Franciso 1 - Aramis Ramirez's walk-off RBI single salvages the Cubs after they dropped both games of yesterday's doubleheader.
Texas 3, Houston 2 - Ian Kinsler's 2 HRs help the Rangers win the Lone Star Series for the fifth straight year.
Chi. White Sox 3, Colorado 2 - Buehrle and Jimenez duel it out through seven, with the winning run scoring on a ninth-inning sac-fly.
Florida 3, Oakland 0 - Ricky Nolasco throws a complete game, 5-hit shutout; only the second of his career.
Thursday, June 30, 2011
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Wednesday, June 29th - Will someone step up in the AL Central?
It's there for the taking...
I'm waiting for a team to really step up in the AL Central and run away with the division. As far as I can tell, it's wide open for almost anyone. Cleveland has played well early this season, but are now faced with some critical injuries to their lineup. Detroit has played well throughout and continues to, but every time they grab a lead, they seem to drop just enough games to let Cleveland take it back. In fact, these two teams seem to be playing musical chairs with the top spot over the past month.
The Chicago White Sox are floundering in the middle of the pack - about where I expected them to be this season. In fact, out of every team in the AL Central, the White Sox are the only one living completely up to my expectations of them. They get hot sometimes, cold at other times, and mostly just stay in the middle of the pack. Kansas City is awful, but no one is surprised by that - they are, however, worse than I expected. And the Minnesota Twins have collapsed entirely, something punctuated by Monday night's 15-0 blowout at Target Field.
Despite the distance of the Twins and Royals out of first place (9 and 10 games, respectively), it seems like all it would take is for either team to get really hot and they'd have a realistic shot at the division. Part of this is because neither team at the top - Detroit or Cleveland - seems to want to win the division so far. The AL Central is a notoriously weak division, commonly preyed upon in the playoffs by the AL East winner or AL East runner-up, usually referred to as the AL Wild Card. With the exception of the AL West, the Detroit Tigers have the lowest winning percentage (.538) of all division leaders. Cleveland, one game behind, is at .526. Both teams would be as low as fourth in the AL East, or third in the NL East and NL West.
I said at the start of the season that Detroit would take the division. I like the Tigers lineup a lot this year, but I've also argued that the true fulcrum of their season may very well be Rick Porcello - the third pitcher in their rotation. This is Porcello's third season. He had a magnificent rookie year in 2009, posting a 14-9 record and 3.96 ERA, capped off by a remarkable starting performance in Game 163, the one game playoff with the Twins (which was lost in extra innings). He slumped last season, posting a 10-12 record and 4.92 ERA. My opinion of the Tigers rotation was that Verlander and Scherzer would be steady, whereas Brad Penny and Phil Coke would be questionable, but good enough to fill out the 4th and 5th starter roles. It was Porcello upon which I felt much relied; if he bounced back, the Tigers would take the division. If not, they would falter. So far, his pitching is a lot like the Tigers season - at times steady, at times hot, and at times horrendous. He has posted a terrible June, going 2-3 in the month with a 6.97 ERA. On the season, he's 6-6 with a 5.06 ERA and only 45 strikeouts.
The Tigers are buoyed right now by the dominant pitching of Verlander and the reliable pitching of Scherzer. Like the Indians, it wouldn't take much to set their ship off into murky waters. The AL Central gets a bad rep as a weak division, partly due to teams being in the lower payroll brackets there. But over the past decade, both the Tigers and Twins have joined the $100-million club in their spending. Has it paid off? The Twins spending has earned them a collapse this year, as they appear to be in the same shape the Tigers were several years ago - too much of their payroll tied up in bloated contracts. Of their $113M payroll, the Twins owe $67.75M of it to five players: this was my fear for the Twins this season, that injuries would expose their lack of depth and doom them. So it has. The Tigers payroll is more balanced, with only two particularly gross contracts on unreliable or aged players (Magglio Ordonez and Carlos Guillen); indeed, that depth helps cover the fact that they have a team ERA of 4.23 and only one starter (Verlander) posting an ERA under 4. The Cleveland Indians, hot on the tail of the Tigers, have a team payroll of $48M.
It's possible that the division will chase itself through September. It happens often. But, for the first time in five years, wouldn't it be nice to see a team come out of the division chase strong and actually put up a fight against their almost-guaranteed AL East playoff opponent? While my bias always pulls for the Tigers, I'd happily take a dominant Indians or Twins team if it means they'll stick it to the Yankees or Red Sox in the first round of the playoffs. Sometimes, the only thing the chase does is tire you out at the end - and baseball, and the playoffs of any sport besides, are a marathon, not a dash.
Around the MLB -
Philadelphia 5, Boston 0 - Cliff Lee throws a complete game, his third straight shutout - he's gone 32 innings without allowing a run.
NY Yankees 12, Milwaukee 2 - Greinke only lasts two innings after the Yankees score 7 early.
Texas 7, Houston 3 - C.J. Wilson pitches seven solid innings, allowing 2 runs, and gets his first Major League hit: a triple.
NY Mets 14, Detroit 3 - The Mets blast two grand slams off reliever Daniel Schlereth to crush the Tigers.
St. Louis 6, Baltimore 2 - Two HRs and a solid start from Kyle Lohse propel the Cards to the win.
Arizona 6, Cleveland 4 - Wily Mo Pena wins it on a pinch-hit, two-run, walk-off HR after the Indians had tied it in the top of the ninth.
Pittsburgh 7, Toronto 6 - Jays hit four HRs in loss to Pirates.
Colorado 3, Chi. White Sox 2 - Rockies win in 13 on Ty Wigginton's walk-off single.
Tampa Bay 4, Cincinnati 3 - David Price throws 12 strikeouts in start; Evan Longoria bails out the Rays bullpen with a walk-off HR.
Minnesota 6, LA Dodgers 4 - Twins bullpen throws 4 scoreless innings to hold onto a big character win after Monday's loss.
Oakland 1, Florida 0 - Gio Gonzalez and Javier Vazquez duel it out through eight and seven sterling innings (respectively). Oakland wins on Kurt Suzuki's sac-fly in the 2nd.
San Diego 4, Kansas City 2 - Clayton Richard notches the win after seven innings and only two runs allowed.
LA Angels 11, Washington 5 - Vernon Wells goes 4/5 at the plate and crushed his 6th HR over the past 14 games.
Atlanta 5, Seattle 4 - Pineda walks the bases loaded in the seventh to give the Braves all the opportunity they needed to pull ahead.
San Fracisco 13, Chi. Cubs 7 - Giants score in droves (3 in first, 3 in third, 5 in fifth) to rampage to the win in the first game of a day-night doubleheader.
San Francisco 6, Chi. Cubs 3 - Barry Zito returns from the DL and notches his first win of the season.
I'm waiting for a team to really step up in the AL Central and run away with the division. As far as I can tell, it's wide open for almost anyone. Cleveland has played well early this season, but are now faced with some critical injuries to their lineup. Detroit has played well throughout and continues to, but every time they grab a lead, they seem to drop just enough games to let Cleveland take it back. In fact, these two teams seem to be playing musical chairs with the top spot over the past month.
The Chicago White Sox are floundering in the middle of the pack - about where I expected them to be this season. In fact, out of every team in the AL Central, the White Sox are the only one living completely up to my expectations of them. They get hot sometimes, cold at other times, and mostly just stay in the middle of the pack. Kansas City is awful, but no one is surprised by that - they are, however, worse than I expected. And the Minnesota Twins have collapsed entirely, something punctuated by Monday night's 15-0 blowout at Target Field.
Despite the distance of the Twins and Royals out of first place (9 and 10 games, respectively), it seems like all it would take is for either team to get really hot and they'd have a realistic shot at the division. Part of this is because neither team at the top - Detroit or Cleveland - seems to want to win the division so far. The AL Central is a notoriously weak division, commonly preyed upon in the playoffs by the AL East winner or AL East runner-up, usually referred to as the AL Wild Card. With the exception of the AL West, the Detroit Tigers have the lowest winning percentage (.538) of all division leaders. Cleveland, one game behind, is at .526. Both teams would be as low as fourth in the AL East, or third in the NL East and NL West.
I said at the start of the season that Detroit would take the division. I like the Tigers lineup a lot this year, but I've also argued that the true fulcrum of their season may very well be Rick Porcello - the third pitcher in their rotation. This is Porcello's third season. He had a magnificent rookie year in 2009, posting a 14-9 record and 3.96 ERA, capped off by a remarkable starting performance in Game 163, the one game playoff with the Twins (which was lost in extra innings). He slumped last season, posting a 10-12 record and 4.92 ERA. My opinion of the Tigers rotation was that Verlander and Scherzer would be steady, whereas Brad Penny and Phil Coke would be questionable, but good enough to fill out the 4th and 5th starter roles. It was Porcello upon which I felt much relied; if he bounced back, the Tigers would take the division. If not, they would falter. So far, his pitching is a lot like the Tigers season - at times steady, at times hot, and at times horrendous. He has posted a terrible June, going 2-3 in the month with a 6.97 ERA. On the season, he's 6-6 with a 5.06 ERA and only 45 strikeouts.
The Tigers are buoyed right now by the dominant pitching of Verlander and the reliable pitching of Scherzer. Like the Indians, it wouldn't take much to set their ship off into murky waters. The AL Central gets a bad rep as a weak division, partly due to teams being in the lower payroll brackets there. But over the past decade, both the Tigers and Twins have joined the $100-million club in their spending. Has it paid off? The Twins spending has earned them a collapse this year, as they appear to be in the same shape the Tigers were several years ago - too much of their payroll tied up in bloated contracts. Of their $113M payroll, the Twins owe $67.75M of it to five players: this was my fear for the Twins this season, that injuries would expose their lack of depth and doom them. So it has. The Tigers payroll is more balanced, with only two particularly gross contracts on unreliable or aged players (Magglio Ordonez and Carlos Guillen); indeed, that depth helps cover the fact that they have a team ERA of 4.23 and only one starter (Verlander) posting an ERA under 4. The Cleveland Indians, hot on the tail of the Tigers, have a team payroll of $48M.
It's possible that the division will chase itself through September. It happens often. But, for the first time in five years, wouldn't it be nice to see a team come out of the division chase strong and actually put up a fight against their almost-guaranteed AL East playoff opponent? While my bias always pulls for the Tigers, I'd happily take a dominant Indians or Twins team if it means they'll stick it to the Yankees or Red Sox in the first round of the playoffs. Sometimes, the only thing the chase does is tire you out at the end - and baseball, and the playoffs of any sport besides, are a marathon, not a dash.
Around the MLB -
Philadelphia 5, Boston 0 - Cliff Lee throws a complete game, his third straight shutout - he's gone 32 innings without allowing a run.
NY Yankees 12, Milwaukee 2 - Greinke only lasts two innings after the Yankees score 7 early.
Texas 7, Houston 3 - C.J. Wilson pitches seven solid innings, allowing 2 runs, and gets his first Major League hit: a triple.
NY Mets 14, Detroit 3 - The Mets blast two grand slams off reliever Daniel Schlereth to crush the Tigers.
St. Louis 6, Baltimore 2 - Two HRs and a solid start from Kyle Lohse propel the Cards to the win.
Arizona 6, Cleveland 4 - Wily Mo Pena wins it on a pinch-hit, two-run, walk-off HR after the Indians had tied it in the top of the ninth.
Pittsburgh 7, Toronto 6 - Jays hit four HRs in loss to Pirates.
Colorado 3, Chi. White Sox 2 - Rockies win in 13 on Ty Wigginton's walk-off single.
Tampa Bay 4, Cincinnati 3 - David Price throws 12 strikeouts in start; Evan Longoria bails out the Rays bullpen with a walk-off HR.
Minnesota 6, LA Dodgers 4 - Twins bullpen throws 4 scoreless innings to hold onto a big character win after Monday's loss.
Oakland 1, Florida 0 - Gio Gonzalez and Javier Vazquez duel it out through eight and seven sterling innings (respectively). Oakland wins on Kurt Suzuki's sac-fly in the 2nd.
San Diego 4, Kansas City 2 - Clayton Richard notches the win after seven innings and only two runs allowed.
LA Angels 11, Washington 5 - Vernon Wells goes 4/5 at the plate and crushed his 6th HR over the past 14 games.
Atlanta 5, Seattle 4 - Pineda walks the bases loaded in the seventh to give the Braves all the opportunity they needed to pull ahead.
San Fracisco 13, Chi. Cubs 7 - Giants score in droves (3 in first, 3 in third, 5 in fifth) to rampage to the win in the first game of a day-night doubleheader.
San Francisco 6, Chi. Cubs 3 - Barry Zito returns from the DL and notches his first win of the season.
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
Tuesday, June 28th - The Dodgers are bankrupt.
The plight of the Los Angeles Dodgers.
It's a sad day for baseball, I think, to see this mess with the Dodgers having gone so far as to the team declaring for bankruptcy. Remember that is one of baseball's most storied franchises - and it's been brought to its knees.
Sports ownership is an interesting concept. Owning a team and competently overseeing the running of one are, essentially, full-time, year-round jobs. Not all owners are sports fans. But every owner (almost) is a businessman, usually a successful one. They purchase a sports team for various reasons - out of love for the area, for a sport, for memories, or for profit. Sports franchises are notoriously profitable these days, after all. Owners foot the bill for the team out of revenue and their own pockets. Some owners stick around for more than that, like Jerry Jones of the Dallas Cowboys. Some hand the reins to another person - a general manager, typically - and return to their other avenue of business, such as the Ford family of the Detroit Lions. That's not to say the latter owner isn't emotionally connected or involved; but they're not at every game, even though the team is their property.
I wonder what that feels like? To make a ton of money in some sort of business - oil, investments, cars, etc - and then have the opportunity to purchase another business entity that's basically self-sustaining, but has the potential to earn you more money without much oversight from you, and at the same time, make you an odd sort of rock star, if you like (see: Mark Cuban). Fans know who the owners are. They know the buck stops there. Owners are heralded in good times and spat upon at bad.
When a team goes bankrupt, it falls on the owner, whose sole responsibility, in truth, is to manage the team's finances and make sure the bankroll stays in the black. To be honest, I'm not sure how a sports team goes bankrupt. It's hard to tell, often, when the team ends and the owner begins. Frank McCourt, owner of the Dodgers, said himself earlier this year that the Dodgers are profitable. If that's the case, Frank, then how are they bankrupt? Much of the blame being passed around is landing squarely on McCourt's shoulders and perhaps that's correct, for the reasons I stated above. I'm sure if he were to sell the team, there would be buyers. In fact, his proposed FOX television deal for the team (which commissioner Bud Selig vetoed) and subsequent Chapter 11 filing primarily serve to keep the team under his control. To that end, I wonder what Selig's motivation for nixing the TV deal was - was it to help eject an owner whose lost respect, admiration and the goodwill of his fans, or was it truly to maximize the brand value in a TV bidding war when the Dodgers TV rights expire in 2012? Tough to call.
In the end, this will fade. It'll be rectified and the franchise and the sport will move on. But, for right now, it's a smear on a storied franchise and a blemish on baseball. And it's what happens when you have an owner who looks at the team he owns as a business before he looks at it as a sports team, a symbol that means so much to so many. People mock guys like Jerry Jones and Al Davis for their extravagance and their outspokenness - but one thing that I've always thought was true is that both men understand what their teams are to their fans; that both men are fans themselves, sometimes for better, sometimes for worse. But they understand what it is to own a team in a way that I doubt Frank McCourt ever could.
Around the MLB -
Cincinnati 5, Tampa Bay 0 - Reds starter Mike Leake throws six innings to help shutout the Rays.
LA Dodgers 15, Minnesota 0 - 25 hits allowed by Twins pitching is an MLB season-high.
Cleveland 5, Arizona 4 - The Tribe wins on Orlando Cabrera's ninth-inning solo HR.
LA Angels 4, Washington 3 - Angels get 16 hits, the 16th being a bases-loaded RBI single by Maicer Izturis to end the game in the 10th.
San Diego 4, Kansas City 3 - Solid relief pitching helps the Padres hold onto the win at home.
Atlanta 3, Seattle 1 - All four runs scored off HRs; Braves rookie Brandon Beachy strikes out 9 in a strong six-inning performance.
Detroit 4, Toronto 2 - Red-hot Jhonny Peralta's RBI triple wins it in the eighth for the Tigers.
Chi. Cubs 7, Colorado 3 - Aramis Ramirez and Carlos Pena both homer twice to lead the Cubs to the win.
It's a sad day for baseball, I think, to see this mess with the Dodgers having gone so far as to the team declaring for bankruptcy. Remember that is one of baseball's most storied franchises - and it's been brought to its knees.
Sports ownership is an interesting concept. Owning a team and competently overseeing the running of one are, essentially, full-time, year-round jobs. Not all owners are sports fans. But every owner (almost) is a businessman, usually a successful one. They purchase a sports team for various reasons - out of love for the area, for a sport, for memories, or for profit. Sports franchises are notoriously profitable these days, after all. Owners foot the bill for the team out of revenue and their own pockets. Some owners stick around for more than that, like Jerry Jones of the Dallas Cowboys. Some hand the reins to another person - a general manager, typically - and return to their other avenue of business, such as the Ford family of the Detroit Lions. That's not to say the latter owner isn't emotionally connected or involved; but they're not at every game, even though the team is their property.
I wonder what that feels like? To make a ton of money in some sort of business - oil, investments, cars, etc - and then have the opportunity to purchase another business entity that's basically self-sustaining, but has the potential to earn you more money without much oversight from you, and at the same time, make you an odd sort of rock star, if you like (see: Mark Cuban). Fans know who the owners are. They know the buck stops there. Owners are heralded in good times and spat upon at bad.
When a team goes bankrupt, it falls on the owner, whose sole responsibility, in truth, is to manage the team's finances and make sure the bankroll stays in the black. To be honest, I'm not sure how a sports team goes bankrupt. It's hard to tell, often, when the team ends and the owner begins. Frank McCourt, owner of the Dodgers, said himself earlier this year that the Dodgers are profitable. If that's the case, Frank, then how are they bankrupt? Much of the blame being passed around is landing squarely on McCourt's shoulders and perhaps that's correct, for the reasons I stated above. I'm sure if he were to sell the team, there would be buyers. In fact, his proposed FOX television deal for the team (which commissioner Bud Selig vetoed) and subsequent Chapter 11 filing primarily serve to keep the team under his control. To that end, I wonder what Selig's motivation for nixing the TV deal was - was it to help eject an owner whose lost respect, admiration and the goodwill of his fans, or was it truly to maximize the brand value in a TV bidding war when the Dodgers TV rights expire in 2012? Tough to call.
In the end, this will fade. It'll be rectified and the franchise and the sport will move on. But, for right now, it's a smear on a storied franchise and a blemish on baseball. And it's what happens when you have an owner who looks at the team he owns as a business before he looks at it as a sports team, a symbol that means so much to so many. People mock guys like Jerry Jones and Al Davis for their extravagance and their outspokenness - but one thing that I've always thought was true is that both men understand what their teams are to their fans; that both men are fans themselves, sometimes for better, sometimes for worse. But they understand what it is to own a team in a way that I doubt Frank McCourt ever could.
Around the MLB -
Cincinnati 5, Tampa Bay 0 - Reds starter Mike Leake throws six innings to help shutout the Rays.
LA Dodgers 15, Minnesota 0 - 25 hits allowed by Twins pitching is an MLB season-high.
Cleveland 5, Arizona 4 - The Tribe wins on Orlando Cabrera's ninth-inning solo HR.
LA Angels 4, Washington 3 - Angels get 16 hits, the 16th being a bases-loaded RBI single by Maicer Izturis to end the game in the 10th.
San Diego 4, Kansas City 3 - Solid relief pitching helps the Padres hold onto the win at home.
Atlanta 3, Seattle 1 - All four runs scored off HRs; Braves rookie Brandon Beachy strikes out 9 in a strong six-inning performance.
Detroit 4, Toronto 2 - Red-hot Jhonny Peralta's RBI triple wins it in the eighth for the Tigers.
Chi. Cubs 7, Colorado 3 - Aramis Ramirez and Carlos Pena both homer twice to lead the Cubs to the win.
Monday, June 27, 2011
Monday, June 27th - Weaver/Kershaw duel in LA; we go Around the Leagues for the first time.
Starting this week, I'm debuting a new aspect to the blog, something I'll call simply "Around the League(s)." Every day, I'll go "Around the League" of any leagues in season - I'll recap scores and make a note about the game if anything remarkable happened. Every week, I'll go "Around the Leagues" - recapping the daily action like usual, but also touching base on any leagues not in season to keep you up-to-date on any draft, free agent, lockout or other off-season news.
Kershaw and Weaver duel it out in the Battle for Los Angeles.
I've been meaning to indulge more in MLB's lovely free telecast per day. It's a good way to broaden my baseball knowledge, after all, and besides that, I must say - MLB.TV is a rather solid service. I'm quite impressed and may yet subscribe this year. If not, I think I'm almost sure to next year. I can only hope the NHL online service is as good when I have need of it this fall. NFL - take note; it's a shame you don't offer similar, although I'm sure those fat TV contracts are a big part of why not.
Anyway, yesterday's televised game was an absolute pitching showcase as the Angels and Dodgers went at it in their interleague finale. The Angels had Jered Weaver on the mount and the Dodgers had a pitcher that this blog has talked about before on - Clayton Kershaw. Weaver is sparkling this year so far, with a 9-4 record and a 1.97 ERA. Kershaw remains impressive as well, his record increasing to 8-3 after last night and his ERA at 2.93.
The game was a 0-0 tie going into the seventh when the Angels took the lead on an RBI single. The Dodgers responded immediately in the bottom of the inning after Kershaw got on base (with his 11th hit of the season) and Tony Gwynn Jr. sent an RBI triple to center field that went careening off Vernon Wells' glove at the wall. Wells made up for his fielding in the top of the ninth when, still tied, he blasted a 2-out home run to the left field seats. The Dodgers, known for their ineffective ninth inning play of late, rallied this time, capitalizing on two walks, a stolen base and a sacrifice bunt to get baserunners on and moving. With two outs and runners at 2nd and 3rd, Aaron Miles hit a sacrifice fly that sent pinch-runner Dee Gordon flying towards home. A solid throw to the plate from the center fielder appeared to get to Angels catcher, Jeff Mathis, who was blocking the plate, in time, but Gordon was called safe. A tough call; it would have been the third out and the game. The next batter up - Tony Gwynn Jr. - lined a full-count pitch to right field to end the game in favor of the Dodgers.
Kershaw pitched a complete game - his second in a row and third this season - while striking out 11, walking 2, and allowing 2 runs on 6 hits. Kershaw also had the hit I mentioned above, raising his batting average to .297. Jered Weaver pitched seven innings, striking out 4 and walking 1. He allowed 1 run on 7 hits. Jordan Walden took the loss in the ninth inning for the Angels, giving up his fifth blown save of the year. With this game, Kershaw reclaimed the league lead in strikeouts, his tally moving up to 128. With the Dodgers and Angels playing another series next weekend, it's possible that the rotations might align these two stars again, most likely on Saturday, July 2nd - if so, it's well worth watching.
Around the Leagues - MLB:
Scores from last night include:
Detroit 8, Arizona 3 - Detroit takes the series on a 7-run eighth inning.
Philadelphia 3, Oakland 1 - Roy Halladay gets his 10th win and fifth complete game.
Boston 4, Pittsburgh 2 - Boston avoids a series sweep at Pittsburgh.
Baltimore 7, Cincinnati 5 - Baltimore takes the series on a day that saw 5 HRs hit.
Tampa Bay 14, Houston 10 - Longoria hits 2 HRs to help the Rays sweep the Astros.
NY Yankees 6, Colorado 4 - The Yanks win late on Old Timer's Day.
Milwaukee 6, Minnesota 2 - The Brewers sweep their once-again hapless AL rival.
Kansas City 6, Chi. Cubs 3 - The Royals take the series after a 4-run first inning.
Toronto 5, St. Louis 0 - Ricky Romero stellar in shutout to help the Jays sweep the Cards.
Washington 2, Chi. White Sox 1 - Espinosa's 2-run HR in the seventh gives the Nats the series win.
LA Dodgers 3, LA Angels 2 - Excellent pitcher's duel results in ninth-inning nail-biter, per above.
NY Mets 8, Texas 5 - Mets take series on strong outing by the 8-1 Dillon Gee.
San Francisco 3, Cleveland 1 - Baumgarner rebounds from his last performance to shutdown the Indians.
Seattle 2, Florida 1 - Dustin Ackley went 3/5 and scored the winning run in the 10th inning on a wild pitch.
San Diego 4, Atlanta 1 - Jonny Venters allows 4 in the eighth to sink the Braves.
Around the Leagues - NBA:
The NBA's collective bargaining agreement expires on June 30th and it appears that the players and the owners are headed towards a lockout. While there seems to be less vitriol being passed around than there was immediately before the NFL lockout began, I believe the NBA has a greater number of significant issues at hand and would not be surprised to see their lockout threaten the 2011-12 season.
Around the Leagues - NFL:
Lockout is still on, with no relief in sight yet. We've got about two more weeks for something to happen before the 2011 season starts to lose games.
Around the Leagues - NHL:
With the NHL Draft behind us, we look towards free agency, which begins on July 1st. Some of the most notable free agents are as follows:
Brad Richards (C) - the best player currently on the Stars roster, they clearly mean to let him go. He's 31 and would be a major boost to any Cup contender or mid-tier team that can afford him. He is the biggest prize of the crop.
Andrew Brunette (LW) - he may be 37, but he played all 82 games of the past two seasons and continues to produce, with 107 points in those two seasons. His talent and dedication is lost on a team like the Wild, but he might be invaluable to a Cup contender looking for a productive, reliable 2nd (or even 3rd) line wing.
Ville Leino (LW) - I loved watching Leino's rise in Detroit, mostly during the 2008-09 playoffs, where it was evident that he had some good hockey IQ. While not the most productive player (only 53 points last season), he tends to make his presence felt and always be near the puck. He's only 27 and still improving. He'll make whatever team signs him the better for it.
Kevin Bieksa (D) - Might be the best overall defenseman in free agency. He looked great for the Canucks and posted a +32 rating on the season. And how can you not like a guy who has a Gordie Howe hat trick in the Conference Finals?
Christian Ehrhoff (D) - Another Canucks defenseman, Ehrhoff is 28 and coming off the best season of his career, with 50 points and a +19 rating. He posted a +32 rating last season, evidence of his growing stability and maturity on the blue line.
Ed Jovanovski (D) - At 35, Jovanovski still proves to be as gritty as he ever was. Although he's seen less game-time over the last two years due to injury, he will likely be in demand due to his experience. Jovanovski would fit best on a Cup contender where he can bolster their second D-line pairing. A veteran of the game, I have no doubt he itches for a better shot at the Cup than Phoenix has given him.
Roman Hamrlik (D) - At 37, Hamrlik appears to be continuing the trend of ironman defensemen, as he's played over 70 games in each of the past five seasons and averages 30 points. He's as reliable as they come and has been a positive impact on every team he's played for. If the Canadiens don't re-sign him, he would be of value to any team looking to shore up their blue line for a year or two while younger players develop.
Dwayne Roloson (G) - The 41-year old Roloson had a surprise stand-out year for the Lightning, guiding them deeper into the playoffs than anyone expected. I'd be surprised if GM Steve Yzerman lets him go, but we'll see.
Tomas Vokoun (G) - Vokoun was an All-Star in Nashville and still maintained a high save percentage in Florida. At 34, there's no reason Vokoun can't still contribute at a high level to a team with goal-tending needs.
Kershaw and Weaver duel it out in the Battle for Los Angeles.
I've been meaning to indulge more in MLB's lovely free telecast per day. It's a good way to broaden my baseball knowledge, after all, and besides that, I must say - MLB.TV is a rather solid service. I'm quite impressed and may yet subscribe this year. If not, I think I'm almost sure to next year. I can only hope the NHL online service is as good when I have need of it this fall. NFL - take note; it's a shame you don't offer similar, although I'm sure those fat TV contracts are a big part of why not.
Anyway, yesterday's televised game was an absolute pitching showcase as the Angels and Dodgers went at it in their interleague finale. The Angels had Jered Weaver on the mount and the Dodgers had a pitcher that this blog has talked about before on - Clayton Kershaw. Weaver is sparkling this year so far, with a 9-4 record and a 1.97 ERA. Kershaw remains impressive as well, his record increasing to 8-3 after last night and his ERA at 2.93.
The game was a 0-0 tie going into the seventh when the Angels took the lead on an RBI single. The Dodgers responded immediately in the bottom of the inning after Kershaw got on base (with his 11th hit of the season) and Tony Gwynn Jr. sent an RBI triple to center field that went careening off Vernon Wells' glove at the wall. Wells made up for his fielding in the top of the ninth when, still tied, he blasted a 2-out home run to the left field seats. The Dodgers, known for their ineffective ninth inning play of late, rallied this time, capitalizing on two walks, a stolen base and a sacrifice bunt to get baserunners on and moving. With two outs and runners at 2nd and 3rd, Aaron Miles hit a sacrifice fly that sent pinch-runner Dee Gordon flying towards home. A solid throw to the plate from the center fielder appeared to get to Angels catcher, Jeff Mathis, who was blocking the plate, in time, but Gordon was called safe. A tough call; it would have been the third out and the game. The next batter up - Tony Gwynn Jr. - lined a full-count pitch to right field to end the game in favor of the Dodgers.
Kershaw pitched a complete game - his second in a row and third this season - while striking out 11, walking 2, and allowing 2 runs on 6 hits. Kershaw also had the hit I mentioned above, raising his batting average to .297. Jered Weaver pitched seven innings, striking out 4 and walking 1. He allowed 1 run on 7 hits. Jordan Walden took the loss in the ninth inning for the Angels, giving up his fifth blown save of the year. With this game, Kershaw reclaimed the league lead in strikeouts, his tally moving up to 128. With the Dodgers and Angels playing another series next weekend, it's possible that the rotations might align these two stars again, most likely on Saturday, July 2nd - if so, it's well worth watching.
Around the Leagues - MLB:
Scores from last night include:
Detroit 8, Arizona 3 - Detroit takes the series on a 7-run eighth inning.
Philadelphia 3, Oakland 1 - Roy Halladay gets his 10th win and fifth complete game.
Boston 4, Pittsburgh 2 - Boston avoids a series sweep at Pittsburgh.
Baltimore 7, Cincinnati 5 - Baltimore takes the series on a day that saw 5 HRs hit.
Tampa Bay 14, Houston 10 - Longoria hits 2 HRs to help the Rays sweep the Astros.
NY Yankees 6, Colorado 4 - The Yanks win late on Old Timer's Day.
Milwaukee 6, Minnesota 2 - The Brewers sweep their once-again hapless AL rival.
Kansas City 6, Chi. Cubs 3 - The Royals take the series after a 4-run first inning.
Toronto 5, St. Louis 0 - Ricky Romero stellar in shutout to help the Jays sweep the Cards.
Washington 2, Chi. White Sox 1 - Espinosa's 2-run HR in the seventh gives the Nats the series win.
LA Dodgers 3, LA Angels 2 - Excellent pitcher's duel results in ninth-inning nail-biter, per above.
NY Mets 8, Texas 5 - Mets take series on strong outing by the 8-1 Dillon Gee.
San Francisco 3, Cleveland 1 - Baumgarner rebounds from his last performance to shutdown the Indians.
Seattle 2, Florida 1 - Dustin Ackley went 3/5 and scored the winning run in the 10th inning on a wild pitch.
San Diego 4, Atlanta 1 - Jonny Venters allows 4 in the eighth to sink the Braves.
Around the Leagues - NBA:
The NBA's collective bargaining agreement expires on June 30th and it appears that the players and the owners are headed towards a lockout. While there seems to be less vitriol being passed around than there was immediately before the NFL lockout began, I believe the NBA has a greater number of significant issues at hand and would not be surprised to see their lockout threaten the 2011-12 season.
Around the Leagues - NFL:
Lockout is still on, with no relief in sight yet. We've got about two more weeks for something to happen before the 2011 season starts to lose games.
Around the Leagues - NHL:
With the NHL Draft behind us, we look towards free agency, which begins on July 1st. Some of the most notable free agents are as follows:
Brad Richards (C) - the best player currently on the Stars roster, they clearly mean to let him go. He's 31 and would be a major boost to any Cup contender or mid-tier team that can afford him. He is the biggest prize of the crop.
Andrew Brunette (LW) - he may be 37, but he played all 82 games of the past two seasons and continues to produce, with 107 points in those two seasons. His talent and dedication is lost on a team like the Wild, but he might be invaluable to a Cup contender looking for a productive, reliable 2nd (or even 3rd) line wing.
Ville Leino (LW) - I loved watching Leino's rise in Detroit, mostly during the 2008-09 playoffs, where it was evident that he had some good hockey IQ. While not the most productive player (only 53 points last season), he tends to make his presence felt and always be near the puck. He's only 27 and still improving. He'll make whatever team signs him the better for it.
Kevin Bieksa (D) - Might be the best overall defenseman in free agency. He looked great for the Canucks and posted a +32 rating on the season. And how can you not like a guy who has a Gordie Howe hat trick in the Conference Finals?
Christian Ehrhoff (D) - Another Canucks defenseman, Ehrhoff is 28 and coming off the best season of his career, with 50 points and a +19 rating. He posted a +32 rating last season, evidence of his growing stability and maturity on the blue line.
Ed Jovanovski (D) - At 35, Jovanovski still proves to be as gritty as he ever was. Although he's seen less game-time over the last two years due to injury, he will likely be in demand due to his experience. Jovanovski would fit best on a Cup contender where he can bolster their second D-line pairing. A veteran of the game, I have no doubt he itches for a better shot at the Cup than Phoenix has given him.
Roman Hamrlik (D) - At 37, Hamrlik appears to be continuing the trend of ironman defensemen, as he's played over 70 games in each of the past five seasons and averages 30 points. He's as reliable as they come and has been a positive impact on every team he's played for. If the Canadiens don't re-sign him, he would be of value to any team looking to shore up their blue line for a year or two while younger players develop.
Dwayne Roloson (G) - The 41-year old Roloson had a surprise stand-out year for the Lightning, guiding them deeper into the playoffs than anyone expected. I'd be surprised if GM Steve Yzerman lets him go, but we'll see.
Tomas Vokoun (G) - Vokoun was an All-Star in Nashville and still maintained a high save percentage in Florida. At 34, there's no reason Vokoun can't still contribute at a high level to a team with goal-tending needs.
Sunday, June 26, 2011
Sunday, June 26th - Sparky Anderson Day!
When I was growing up in Dearborn, MI, and being an enthusiastic young baseball fan as many boys are, there were always two figures who stuck out to me more than any others. One was the Tigers radio announcer - a wonderful man named Ernie Harwell, who passed away from cancer last year. Listening to Tigers games as a boy has left his voice imprinted on my mind: he's still calling every Tigers game I watch or listen to, in my mind's ear. The other was another elderly man, also not a player - it was Sparky Anderson, manager of the Tigers from 1979-1995. I can always see him leaning on the dugout, a crotchety look on his face.
Sparky was one-of-a-kind. He had his own set of firm beliefs and morals about managing a ballclub and he stuck by them. He pulled pitchers when he grew impatient with them. He benched guys. He insisted that his ballplayers be clean-shaven (remember those 80s mustaches?). He heaped praise on them. He famously called Kirk Gibson "the next Mickey Mantle" when he came up from the minors... both Sparky and Gibby acknowledged later that perhaps that put a lot of undue pressure on the young outfielder. But Sparky made the Tigers champions.
Sparky inherited a young, talented team that was the product of a strong Tigers farm system (a farm system which remains strong today). Kirk Gibson was still in the minors, but he had youngsters like Lou Whitaker, Alan Trammell, Jack Morris and Lance Parrish already up. Whitaker and Trammell formed an All-Star 2B/SS combination that would hold for almost two decades in Detroit. Both Lou and Tram played their entire careers as Tigers, which was something that marked Sparky's Tigers team - they felt like family. Parrish was a Tiger until 1986. Gibson until 1987. Morris until 1990. It was a different era in baseball then, compared to now, where it seemed like those franchise guys stuck around. But it was partly Sparky too, who loved his players so much that it got him fired from Detroit.
Sparky will always be remembered most in Detroit for the 1984 season - a magical year when the Tigers started out 35-5 (a major league record to this day) and ended the season with 104 wins, a franchise record for the Tigers. They beat the Padres that year, in five games, winning the World Series. For Sparky, it was his third World Series win and it made him the first manager to win it all with AL and NL teams. He'll be remembered, when Kirk Gibson took the plate in the eighth inning, the Tigers ahead 5-4, runners on 2nd and 3rd. Goose Gossage, who struck Gibson out in his first Major League at-bat, decided against an intentional walk. Sparky flashed Gibson five fingers. Gibson flashed back ten. A ten-dollar wager. Gibson hit the hit of his life - a blast to the right-field seats that sealed the game and the victory. It's a moment that lives on in Detroit's memory. It's Gibson's moment. It's Sparky's moment.
Sparky retired in 1995. He clashed with the Tigers ownership when he refused to manage replacement players at the start of the strike-shortened 1995 season. Ownership placed him on an involuntary leave; he returned to manage the Tigers when the striking players did. After the season ended, Sparky retired. Whether it was his choice, or the Tigers front office pushing him out as gracefully as possible, or a mutual realization that resentments lingered from his refusal to manage replacement players... no one knows for sure. What's known is the tragedy - that fences were never mended. That Sparky died this past November with his number not yet retired in Detroit. He was as important a sports fixture in Detroit as anyone else in the past quarter-century. It's deserved. And, thankfully, it's time.
Sparky's number 11 will be retired today at Comerica Park. Even more poetic is that the Tigers are playing the Diamondbacks right now and they'll be there for it - their manager is Kirk Gibson, their bench coach is Alan Trammell. Sparky's kids will be there. I hope Mike Illitch, the Tigers owner since 1992, is there, burying the hatchet once and for all as Detroit gives honor and praise to the man who helped reinvent the Tigers and bring a love of baseball back to the city. When I think of baseball, I think of Sparky Anderson, in his fabric Tigers jacket, looking like a grandfatherly curmudgeon in the dugout. Sure, I still hear Ernie Harwell in my ears, but when I look at the dugout of my mind's eye, Sparky Anderson will always be in charge there.
One additional note.
Justin Verlander is the best pitcher in baseball right now and he does not appear to be slowing down. I don't know what clicked for him this year, but it seems like during his brief struggles and then his no-hitter against Toronto, something just fell into place for him. It shows. Verlander is beyond dominant ever since. He's 8-0 in his last 10 starts with a 1.56 ERA. He's 6-0 with a 0.72 ERA in his last six. He's got his opponents hitting below .200 off of him. That's just hitting. And he struck out a career-high 14 last night against Arizona. Verlander is in the middle of the best streak of his career and, amazingly, it shows no signs of slowing down. He's throwing his 100-mph fastball in the eighth and ninth innings and displaying a degree of calm and control that's absolutely stunning to watch. You hear people say "he's a machine" - about anyone, at a job they're good at. Verlander is a machine this season. Watching him, he just looks that good. I don't know when he'll slow down, when he'll get torched again, but for now - Justin Verlander is the best pitcher in baseball.
At the ten-win mark, Verlander:
10-3 record, 2.38 ERA, 4 complete games, 2 shut-outs, 1 no-hitter, 124 strikeouts, 27 walks, 0.84 WHIP.
His 124 strikeouts and 0.84 WHIP are currently the best in the league. He's tied for most wins, at 10, with CC Sabathia and Jair Jurrjens. His 2.38 ERA is fifth-best in the league.
Sparky was one-of-a-kind. He had his own set of firm beliefs and morals about managing a ballclub and he stuck by them. He pulled pitchers when he grew impatient with them. He benched guys. He insisted that his ballplayers be clean-shaven (remember those 80s mustaches?). He heaped praise on them. He famously called Kirk Gibson "the next Mickey Mantle" when he came up from the minors... both Sparky and Gibby acknowledged later that perhaps that put a lot of undue pressure on the young outfielder. But Sparky made the Tigers champions.
Sparky inherited a young, talented team that was the product of a strong Tigers farm system (a farm system which remains strong today). Kirk Gibson was still in the minors, but he had youngsters like Lou Whitaker, Alan Trammell, Jack Morris and Lance Parrish already up. Whitaker and Trammell formed an All-Star 2B/SS combination that would hold for almost two decades in Detroit. Both Lou and Tram played their entire careers as Tigers, which was something that marked Sparky's Tigers team - they felt like family. Parrish was a Tiger until 1986. Gibson until 1987. Morris until 1990. It was a different era in baseball then, compared to now, where it seemed like those franchise guys stuck around. But it was partly Sparky too, who loved his players so much that it got him fired from Detroit.
Sparky will always be remembered most in Detroit for the 1984 season - a magical year when the Tigers started out 35-5 (a major league record to this day) and ended the season with 104 wins, a franchise record for the Tigers. They beat the Padres that year, in five games, winning the World Series. For Sparky, it was his third World Series win and it made him the first manager to win it all with AL and NL teams. He'll be remembered, when Kirk Gibson took the plate in the eighth inning, the Tigers ahead 5-4, runners on 2nd and 3rd. Goose Gossage, who struck Gibson out in his first Major League at-bat, decided against an intentional walk. Sparky flashed Gibson five fingers. Gibson flashed back ten. A ten-dollar wager. Gibson hit the hit of his life - a blast to the right-field seats that sealed the game and the victory. It's a moment that lives on in Detroit's memory. It's Gibson's moment. It's Sparky's moment.
Sparky retired in 1995. He clashed with the Tigers ownership when he refused to manage replacement players at the start of the strike-shortened 1995 season. Ownership placed him on an involuntary leave; he returned to manage the Tigers when the striking players did. After the season ended, Sparky retired. Whether it was his choice, or the Tigers front office pushing him out as gracefully as possible, or a mutual realization that resentments lingered from his refusal to manage replacement players... no one knows for sure. What's known is the tragedy - that fences were never mended. That Sparky died this past November with his number not yet retired in Detroit. He was as important a sports fixture in Detroit as anyone else in the past quarter-century. It's deserved. And, thankfully, it's time.
Sparky's number 11 will be retired today at Comerica Park. Even more poetic is that the Tigers are playing the Diamondbacks right now and they'll be there for it - their manager is Kirk Gibson, their bench coach is Alan Trammell. Sparky's kids will be there. I hope Mike Illitch, the Tigers owner since 1992, is there, burying the hatchet once and for all as Detroit gives honor and praise to the man who helped reinvent the Tigers and bring a love of baseball back to the city. When I think of baseball, I think of Sparky Anderson, in his fabric Tigers jacket, looking like a grandfatherly curmudgeon in the dugout. Sure, I still hear Ernie Harwell in my ears, but when I look at the dugout of my mind's eye, Sparky Anderson will always be in charge there.
One additional note.
Justin Verlander is the best pitcher in baseball right now and he does not appear to be slowing down. I don't know what clicked for him this year, but it seems like during his brief struggles and then his no-hitter against Toronto, something just fell into place for him. It shows. Verlander is beyond dominant ever since. He's 8-0 in his last 10 starts with a 1.56 ERA. He's 6-0 with a 0.72 ERA in his last six. He's got his opponents hitting below .200 off of him. That's just hitting. And he struck out a career-high 14 last night against Arizona. Verlander is in the middle of the best streak of his career and, amazingly, it shows no signs of slowing down. He's throwing his 100-mph fastball in the eighth and ninth innings and displaying a degree of calm and control that's absolutely stunning to watch. You hear people say "he's a machine" - about anyone, at a job they're good at. Verlander is a machine this season. Watching him, he just looks that good. I don't know when he'll slow down, when he'll get torched again, but for now - Justin Verlander is the best pitcher in baseball.
At the ten-win mark, Verlander:
10-3 record, 2.38 ERA, 4 complete games, 2 shut-outs, 1 no-hitter, 124 strikeouts, 27 walks, 0.84 WHIP.
His 124 strikeouts and 0.84 WHIP are currently the best in the league. He's tied for most wins, at 10, with CC Sabathia and Jair Jurrjens. His 2.38 ERA is fifth-best in the league.
Saturday, June 25, 2011
Saturday, June 25th - Nat's manager resigns; NHL Draft day trade.
Back from my so-soon day off! It didn't go quite as expected, but I was nonetheless out-of-town and unable to update. So, I've got a couple stories to mention today:
Riggleman? Or Wiggleman? Either way, he's out.
Jim Riggleman was the manager of the Washington Nationals until yesterday. I think the Nats are an interesting team - they're not good, but they're not atrociously bad and they often have periods of sustained success, although not usually enough for them to find .500 by the end of the year. Riggleman had been managing them since 2009 and was in the final year of his contract, with next year being a club option. The option had yet to be picked up. Riggleman, as the story goes, brought the issue to his GM and basically said "we need to have this conversation or I won't be on the team bus today." The GM declined to have the conversation; Riggleman resigned. And on top of it all, he does this while the Nats have won 11 of their last 12. I get a manager resigning mid-season... but when a team is on the upswing?
Maybe Riggleman was trying to use that as leverage to get his option picked up or his contract extended further. It'd be a reasonable, opportunistic move and I wouldn't blame him for that. There's no guarantee the Nats will have a winning stretch as good as this one later this year. But if his boss doesn't want to have that conversation, that's his business. As a manager, just as a player, or any other employee in the world who's contracted, you've signed a contract and you have to honor that. What disappoints me here is that Riggleman, who is a career sub-.500 manager, did not honor his contract. His gripe was with the front office, but really, the people who feel this the most are the players. It's the players he's abandoned, and I can't imagine any team will be chomping at the bit for a sub-.500 manager who abandoned his players because of a contract dispute, in the middle of a winning streak.
Maybe the Nats had no intention of picking up his option. I think that's likely. But even still, he's contracted. It's Riggleman's responsibility, in that case, to honor the contract and manage his team through the last day of it. If management doesn't extend him, well, that's unfortunate for him, but that's the business sometimes. After all, there's no clause in those contracts that dictates that his bosses have to extend or negotiate with him mid-season. The onus of that is on him and, unfortunately, he took a less-than-honorable path in dealing with it. A wiser man would play out the year, get let go, and talk about the good times he had in Washington and how he'll miss the team and that he thinks its unfortunate management didn't pick him back up. It leaves doors open. It makes you look good. Jim Riggleman, apparently, is not that wise. I can't see many doors being open to him in the Major Leagues after this episode.
Speaking of "the business"...
Who expects to get traded right after signing a 3-year, $9-million dollar contract with the only team they've played for? Devin Setoguchi certainly didn't. But that's exactly what happened to him. The 24 year-old winger for the San Jose Sharks was dealt to the Minnesota Wild on a draft-day trade yesterday. Accompanying him on the trade was the Sharks' 1st-round pick in the draft (28th) and prospect Charlie Coyle (San Jose's first-round pick last year). This delightful package was all for Wild defenseman Brent Burns.
I'll admit. I have no idea who Brent Burns is. I know that he's a solid defenseman who will help out the Sharks in that department, but I also know that he's in the last year of his contract next year and will command a high price. I also know that he's 26. Setoguchi, on the other hand, I know more about. I know he's a dynamic winger who had a 30-goal season in 2008-09. He's tailed off a bit since then, but he's still scored 20 and 22 goals in the last two seasons, respectively. He's also tied up, contractually, for 3 years now, and he's only 24 - lots of time to continue to develop.
Setoguchi has a habit of disappearing for the Sharks. He's a bit of a feast-or-famine player, if you will. Some might argue that his production will decline further playing on a team that's not as loaded offensively as the Sharks are. In truth, from a team need perspective, I like the Setoguchi-for-Burns trade. It's smart for the Wild - knowing that Marion Gaborik left in free agency and that Burns has the same agent, they got maximum market value for Burns while they could. And, to the Sharks credit, he's an instant upgrade for them defensively. Setoguchi was expendable for them because of their offensive depth. I feel like the Sharks overpaid, sending basically 3 solid players/prospects to the Wild for a single All-Star defenseman that they might only have for a year. But if he gets them over the hump and into the Stanley Cup Finals next year, they'll come up smelling like roses.
As for the Wild, assuming Setoguchi can produce on a line that doesn't have Joe Thornton or Patrick Marleau on it, he provides them an offensive boost they desperately need. Charlie Coyle could develop into another offensive playmaker and so could the player - Zack Phillips - that they used the Sharks' draft pick on. So all in all, I feel like the Wild got the better end of the deal, but only if things pan out right. To the Sharks' credit, Burns is a proven defender and could be a top-2 defenseman for their team. There aren't questions about his ability to produce relatively to his linemates, as there are for Setoguchi.
The NHL isn't known for blockbuster draft day trades, so this was quite the surprise to me. But I like it - it's a good trade for both teams and, if all goes right, will make both teams better in 2011-2012.
One more NHL note...
The Winnipeg Jets are back. No offense to Atlanta and the now-departed Thrashers, but... it sort of warms my heart to know that we'll have another Canadian team in the NHL, that it'll be a Winnipeg team, and that they'll be the Jets again. As it should be.
Another MLB note to close out.
There was an unlikely pitchers' duel last night between the A's Guillermo Moscoso and the Phillies' Vance Worley. Moscoso pitched seven shutout innings, allowing 2 hits in that time. Worley pitched 6 shutout innings, allowing only one hit. The relievers continued the shutout until the bottom of the ninth, when Ben Francisco, pinch-hitting for the pitcher, delivered a 2-out RBI single to close out the game. Moscoso is in his first year as a starter with the A's and has delivered a 2-3 record and 2.68 ERA so far. Worley is also in his first full year as a starter as the 5th-man in the Phillies All-Star rotation; he's managed to fit right in with a 3-2 record and 2.44 ERA so far, something the Phillies are likely happy to have with Roy Oswalt now on the disabled list with an as-of-yet unspecified back injury.
Riggleman? Or Wiggleman? Either way, he's out.
Jim Riggleman was the manager of the Washington Nationals until yesterday. I think the Nats are an interesting team - they're not good, but they're not atrociously bad and they often have periods of sustained success, although not usually enough for them to find .500 by the end of the year. Riggleman had been managing them since 2009 and was in the final year of his contract, with next year being a club option. The option had yet to be picked up. Riggleman, as the story goes, brought the issue to his GM and basically said "we need to have this conversation or I won't be on the team bus today." The GM declined to have the conversation; Riggleman resigned. And on top of it all, he does this while the Nats have won 11 of their last 12. I get a manager resigning mid-season... but when a team is on the upswing?
Maybe Riggleman was trying to use that as leverage to get his option picked up or his contract extended further. It'd be a reasonable, opportunistic move and I wouldn't blame him for that. There's no guarantee the Nats will have a winning stretch as good as this one later this year. But if his boss doesn't want to have that conversation, that's his business. As a manager, just as a player, or any other employee in the world who's contracted, you've signed a contract and you have to honor that. What disappoints me here is that Riggleman, who is a career sub-.500 manager, did not honor his contract. His gripe was with the front office, but really, the people who feel this the most are the players. It's the players he's abandoned, and I can't imagine any team will be chomping at the bit for a sub-.500 manager who abandoned his players because of a contract dispute, in the middle of a winning streak.
Maybe the Nats had no intention of picking up his option. I think that's likely. But even still, he's contracted. It's Riggleman's responsibility, in that case, to honor the contract and manage his team through the last day of it. If management doesn't extend him, well, that's unfortunate for him, but that's the business sometimes. After all, there's no clause in those contracts that dictates that his bosses have to extend or negotiate with him mid-season. The onus of that is on him and, unfortunately, he took a less-than-honorable path in dealing with it. A wiser man would play out the year, get let go, and talk about the good times he had in Washington and how he'll miss the team and that he thinks its unfortunate management didn't pick him back up. It leaves doors open. It makes you look good. Jim Riggleman, apparently, is not that wise. I can't see many doors being open to him in the Major Leagues after this episode.
Speaking of "the business"...
Who expects to get traded right after signing a 3-year, $9-million dollar contract with the only team they've played for? Devin Setoguchi certainly didn't. But that's exactly what happened to him. The 24 year-old winger for the San Jose Sharks was dealt to the Minnesota Wild on a draft-day trade yesterday. Accompanying him on the trade was the Sharks' 1st-round pick in the draft (28th) and prospect Charlie Coyle (San Jose's first-round pick last year). This delightful package was all for Wild defenseman Brent Burns.
I'll admit. I have no idea who Brent Burns is. I know that he's a solid defenseman who will help out the Sharks in that department, but I also know that he's in the last year of his contract next year and will command a high price. I also know that he's 26. Setoguchi, on the other hand, I know more about. I know he's a dynamic winger who had a 30-goal season in 2008-09. He's tailed off a bit since then, but he's still scored 20 and 22 goals in the last two seasons, respectively. He's also tied up, contractually, for 3 years now, and he's only 24 - lots of time to continue to develop.
Setoguchi has a habit of disappearing for the Sharks. He's a bit of a feast-or-famine player, if you will. Some might argue that his production will decline further playing on a team that's not as loaded offensively as the Sharks are. In truth, from a team need perspective, I like the Setoguchi-for-Burns trade. It's smart for the Wild - knowing that Marion Gaborik left in free agency and that Burns has the same agent, they got maximum market value for Burns while they could. And, to the Sharks credit, he's an instant upgrade for them defensively. Setoguchi was expendable for them because of their offensive depth. I feel like the Sharks overpaid, sending basically 3 solid players/prospects to the Wild for a single All-Star defenseman that they might only have for a year. But if he gets them over the hump and into the Stanley Cup Finals next year, they'll come up smelling like roses.
As for the Wild, assuming Setoguchi can produce on a line that doesn't have Joe Thornton or Patrick Marleau on it, he provides them an offensive boost they desperately need. Charlie Coyle could develop into another offensive playmaker and so could the player - Zack Phillips - that they used the Sharks' draft pick on. So all in all, I feel like the Wild got the better end of the deal, but only if things pan out right. To the Sharks' credit, Burns is a proven defender and could be a top-2 defenseman for their team. There aren't questions about his ability to produce relatively to his linemates, as there are for Setoguchi.
The NHL isn't known for blockbuster draft day trades, so this was quite the surprise to me. But I like it - it's a good trade for both teams and, if all goes right, will make both teams better in 2011-2012.
One more NHL note...
The Winnipeg Jets are back. No offense to Atlanta and the now-departed Thrashers, but... it sort of warms my heart to know that we'll have another Canadian team in the NHL, that it'll be a Winnipeg team, and that they'll be the Jets again. As it should be.
Another MLB note to close out.
There was an unlikely pitchers' duel last night between the A's Guillermo Moscoso and the Phillies' Vance Worley. Moscoso pitched seven shutout innings, allowing 2 hits in that time. Worley pitched 6 shutout innings, allowing only one hit. The relievers continued the shutout until the bottom of the ninth, when Ben Francisco, pinch-hitting for the pitcher, delivered a 2-out RBI single to close out the game. Moscoso is in his first year as a starter with the A's and has delivered a 2-3 record and 2.68 ERA so far. Worley is also in his first full year as a starter as the 5th-man in the Phillies All-Star rotation; he's managed to fit right in with a 3-2 record and 2.44 ERA so far, something the Phillies are likely happy to have with Roy Oswalt now on the disabled list with an as-of-yet unspecified back injury.
Thursday, June 23, 2011
Thursday, June 23rd - The 2011 NHL Awards
The 2011 NHL season makes its final curtain call.
One thing I like about the NHL is that it gives out its annual season awards after the playoffs conclude. It's like a little extra tidbit... if the Stanley Cup Playoffs are the main course, then the awards show becomes a light dessert. Not necessary if you don't want it, but nice for those who do. I always wonder about playoff bleed-through, with playoff performances affecting the vote for what are regular season awards, but that never seems to be too much of an issue.
I won't speak on all awards; but I'll make mention on the few I had strong opinions on. Admittedly, I can't speak with complete authority on them all because I'm limited in what regular season hockey I get to watch. Most of what I see comes from the playoffs. So, without further ado...
The Hart Trophy - MVP - Corey Perry, ANA. A deserved award; he was phenomenal on the ice this season and carried the Ducks into the playoffs with 19 goals in the last 16 games of the season. Arguably an upset over Daniel Sedin of the Canucks, but I'd argue that Perry had to do more with less, whereas the Canucks are pretty loaded on multiple lines.
The Norris Trophy - Top Defenseman - Nicklas Lidstrom, DET. The 41 year-old Lidstrom didn't slow down this year. I thought it would be a tight race between him, Shea Weber and Zdeno Chara and it was, but not enough to stop Lidstrom from getting his seventh Norris. Only Bobby Orr has more, with eight. Lidstrom's coming back next year and has shown no signs of slowing down yet.
The Selke Trophy - Best defensive forward - Ryan Kesler, VAN. Two-way forwards are as important to a team as anything. Detroit fans know that from watching Pavel Datsyuk, who is no stranger to this trophy. But Kesler has been a revelation this year - the Sedin twins aside, I think Kesler is the most valuable player on the Canucks team. He simply has great puck instincts and knows where to be. I expect he'll only get better as he continues to play.
The Adams Trophy - Coach of the Year - Dan Bylsma, PIT. I can't say enough about this. By rule, I dislike the Penguins, because of my Red Wings fandom and the 2009 Cup loss to them. But even I have to concede that Bylsma ran away with this award this year. Without Evgeni Malkin or Sidney Crosby, the Penguins still raced into a playoff spot and topped 100 points this year. Absolutely remarkable, given the injuries they sustained. That shows fantastic resolve and that comes from coaching. I tip my hat to you, Dan Bylsma. Well done.
The Vezina Trophy - Best goaltender - Tim Thomas, BOS. The Stanley Cup, the Vezina, and the Conn Smythe make for the best year a goalie can hope for. Thomas was, hands-down, the best goalie in the league this year. He was the difference for Boston in the playoffs and he got them there with stellar regular-season play. The 37 year-old took a long and arduous path to the top, but that only makes this success story all the more notable.
The Calder Trophy - Rookie of the year - Jeff Skinner, CAR. I'll be honest; I'm shocked it didn't go to Logan Couture, who absolutely carried the Sharks at times in the playoffs. He played like a veteran and was a constant thorn in the side of Mike Babcock when the Sharks knocked off the Red Wings. But again, that's why I say above - the playoffs can bleed into these awards sometimes, or so you'd think, but perhaps not here. Admittedly, I didn't get to see any Carolina games this year, but Skinner did post 63 points in his rookie campaign, with 31 goals and 32 assists. I like Couture's +18 to Skinner's +3, personally, but that's just me. Both men should be stalwart producers for their teams going forward. The race between them was one of the closest in the award's history, second only to the voting between Barret Jackman and Henrik Zetterberg in 2003.
The other trophy winners can be seen on NHL.com.
Quick baseball updates from last night.
The Twins saw their 8-game winning streak end in a 5-1 defeat to the Giants; the Tigers avoided being swept by the Dodgers in a 7-5 win. Cleveland also ended a 2-game skid, keeping pace with the Tigers, by beating Colorado, 4-3. The Padres took a series victory over the Red Sox in Fenway, 5-1, in a game plagued with rain delays that ultimately cost them the 9th inning. The Yankees got crushed by the Reds, 10-2. The White Sox also won last night, 4-3, giving them the series win this year against their cross-town rival Cubs.
Tomorrow.
The Daily Sports Update has plans to be out of town tomorrow and thus may not be able to update the blog. If not, look for an update Saturday. Without many games tonight in baseball (only 5), I don't think we'll miss too much. But with the All-Star Game coming up soon, look for a rant in the future about how ridiculous it is in sports these days, with All-Star and Pro Bowl voting usually starting before teams have even closed out the first complete month of the season.
One thing I like about the NHL is that it gives out its annual season awards after the playoffs conclude. It's like a little extra tidbit... if the Stanley Cup Playoffs are the main course, then the awards show becomes a light dessert. Not necessary if you don't want it, but nice for those who do. I always wonder about playoff bleed-through, with playoff performances affecting the vote for what are regular season awards, but that never seems to be too much of an issue.
I won't speak on all awards; but I'll make mention on the few I had strong opinions on. Admittedly, I can't speak with complete authority on them all because I'm limited in what regular season hockey I get to watch. Most of what I see comes from the playoffs. So, without further ado...
The Hart Trophy - MVP - Corey Perry, ANA. A deserved award; he was phenomenal on the ice this season and carried the Ducks into the playoffs with 19 goals in the last 16 games of the season. Arguably an upset over Daniel Sedin of the Canucks, but I'd argue that Perry had to do more with less, whereas the Canucks are pretty loaded on multiple lines.
The Norris Trophy - Top Defenseman - Nicklas Lidstrom, DET. The 41 year-old Lidstrom didn't slow down this year. I thought it would be a tight race between him, Shea Weber and Zdeno Chara and it was, but not enough to stop Lidstrom from getting his seventh Norris. Only Bobby Orr has more, with eight. Lidstrom's coming back next year and has shown no signs of slowing down yet.
The Selke Trophy - Best defensive forward - Ryan Kesler, VAN. Two-way forwards are as important to a team as anything. Detroit fans know that from watching Pavel Datsyuk, who is no stranger to this trophy. But Kesler has been a revelation this year - the Sedin twins aside, I think Kesler is the most valuable player on the Canucks team. He simply has great puck instincts and knows where to be. I expect he'll only get better as he continues to play.
The Adams Trophy - Coach of the Year - Dan Bylsma, PIT. I can't say enough about this. By rule, I dislike the Penguins, because of my Red Wings fandom and the 2009 Cup loss to them. But even I have to concede that Bylsma ran away with this award this year. Without Evgeni Malkin or Sidney Crosby, the Penguins still raced into a playoff spot and topped 100 points this year. Absolutely remarkable, given the injuries they sustained. That shows fantastic resolve and that comes from coaching. I tip my hat to you, Dan Bylsma. Well done.
The Vezina Trophy - Best goaltender - Tim Thomas, BOS. The Stanley Cup, the Vezina, and the Conn Smythe make for the best year a goalie can hope for. Thomas was, hands-down, the best goalie in the league this year. He was the difference for Boston in the playoffs and he got them there with stellar regular-season play. The 37 year-old took a long and arduous path to the top, but that only makes this success story all the more notable.
The Calder Trophy - Rookie of the year - Jeff Skinner, CAR. I'll be honest; I'm shocked it didn't go to Logan Couture, who absolutely carried the Sharks at times in the playoffs. He played like a veteran and was a constant thorn in the side of Mike Babcock when the Sharks knocked off the Red Wings. But again, that's why I say above - the playoffs can bleed into these awards sometimes, or so you'd think, but perhaps not here. Admittedly, I didn't get to see any Carolina games this year, but Skinner did post 63 points in his rookie campaign, with 31 goals and 32 assists. I like Couture's +18 to Skinner's +3, personally, but that's just me. Both men should be stalwart producers for their teams going forward. The race between them was one of the closest in the award's history, second only to the voting between Barret Jackman and Henrik Zetterberg in 2003.
The other trophy winners can be seen on NHL.com.
Quick baseball updates from last night.
The Twins saw their 8-game winning streak end in a 5-1 defeat to the Giants; the Tigers avoided being swept by the Dodgers in a 7-5 win. Cleveland also ended a 2-game skid, keeping pace with the Tigers, by beating Colorado, 4-3. The Padres took a series victory over the Red Sox in Fenway, 5-1, in a game plagued with rain delays that ultimately cost them the 9th inning. The Yankees got crushed by the Reds, 10-2. The White Sox also won last night, 4-3, giving them the series win this year against their cross-town rival Cubs.
Tomorrow.
The Daily Sports Update has plans to be out of town tomorrow and thus may not be able to update the blog. If not, look for an update Saturday. Without many games tonight in baseball (only 5), I don't think we'll miss too much. But with the All-Star Game coming up soon, look for a rant in the future about how ridiculous it is in sports these days, with All-Star and Pro Bowl voting usually starting before teams have even closed out the first complete month of the season.
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
Wednesday, June 22nd - How about those Twins?
Not a lot going on from yesterday or this morning, other than NBA Draft projections and some various NBA trade rumors. To be frank, I think the NBA Draft is the most hit-or-miss of the four pro drafts - NFL is second, but at least most of those kids have had a couple years or more of college seasoning. MLB and NHL Drafts are basically non-issues to me since those draftees spend time in farm leagues and take any number of years to reach the majors. So, as far as the NBA Draft goes, I don't see the big deal. It was known that a kid like Blake Griffin would be a stud (he is), but when you have a draft like this year's, where no one stands out so far, it's possible none of those kids will make an impact next year or the year after... assuming good things happen in the NBA's collective bargaining negotiations.
Those Twins, the good and the bad...
The Minnesota Twins are 32-39, putting them 6.5 games out of first place in the AL Central. This is testament not only to their recent resurgence, but also the bumbling of the Indians and the Tigers at the top. But the June numbers for the Twins don't lie - after a 9-17 start in April (arguably the toughest month of their schedule) and a follow-up performance of 8-19 in May, they're on an 8-game winning streak that has caused their record in June to soar at 15-3.
What's causing the change? Some might say that the return of veterans has helped, but guys like Mauer, Delmon Young and Jim Thome haven't exactly lit it up every night yet and besides that, this turn-around seemed to start before they came back, and they still have a myriad of injuries plaguing the lineup, including the two spring MVPs for the team, Denard Span and Jason Kubel.
My theory is that it has more to do with the maturation of young players. Guys like Alexi Casilla and Ben Revere, in particular. It was no joke when I'd call them a Triple-A MLB team; at times this spring, more than half of their lineup were Triple-A call-ups due to injury. Casilla has never been a line-up fixture, despite the Twins trying over the years to secure him in their infield, either at 2B or SS. Even this year, when he was made the starting SS, he absolutely fizzled at the plate and on the field - he was a popular scapegoat in the Twin Cities for the team's struggles. Revere, also, came on slowly when he was called up. But it would appear that both have found their stride - Casilla is hitting over .300 in June and Rivere has been enough of a bright spot to challenge Delmon Young in LF, although injuries to other outfielders will keep Revere on the field for a few weeks yet.
Another theory, one that Twins fans won't like as much, is that the June schedule has been favorable to them. Other than a series with the Indians and the Rangers - both series they won, 2-1, impressively - they've had the fortune of playing the other AL Central cellar competitors - the ever-hapless Royals (who may be worth keeping an eye on next year, but not this year) and Ozzie Guillen's ever-amusing White Sox. Their first interleague series this month was the Padres, who sit squarely in the NL West cellar. The Giants, who they crushed 9-2 last night, are a better challenge, but a wise man knows to always bet AL against NL (except maybe the Phillies), as the stats show the AL is typically the better of interleague play.
I'm not calling the Twins turn-around complete yet. They have two more games against the Giants before two 3-game series against the NL Central leading Brewers (they play the Dodgers in between). Depending on where they are by the All-Star Game, which sees them play the Rays and White Sox again before, we'll have a better idea of which month was the fluke - the hopelessness of May, or the dominance of June. After the All-Star Game, they'll have homestead for three series - against the Royals, Indians and Tigers. It's those series there, right after the All-Star Game, which could ultimately make or break this season for the Twins.
Those Twins, the good and the bad...
The Minnesota Twins are 32-39, putting them 6.5 games out of first place in the AL Central. This is testament not only to their recent resurgence, but also the bumbling of the Indians and the Tigers at the top. But the June numbers for the Twins don't lie - after a 9-17 start in April (arguably the toughest month of their schedule) and a follow-up performance of 8-19 in May, they're on an 8-game winning streak that has caused their record in June to soar at 15-3.
What's causing the change? Some might say that the return of veterans has helped, but guys like Mauer, Delmon Young and Jim Thome haven't exactly lit it up every night yet and besides that, this turn-around seemed to start before they came back, and they still have a myriad of injuries plaguing the lineup, including the two spring MVPs for the team, Denard Span and Jason Kubel.
My theory is that it has more to do with the maturation of young players. Guys like Alexi Casilla and Ben Revere, in particular. It was no joke when I'd call them a Triple-A MLB team; at times this spring, more than half of their lineup were Triple-A call-ups due to injury. Casilla has never been a line-up fixture, despite the Twins trying over the years to secure him in their infield, either at 2B or SS. Even this year, when he was made the starting SS, he absolutely fizzled at the plate and on the field - he was a popular scapegoat in the Twin Cities for the team's struggles. Revere, also, came on slowly when he was called up. But it would appear that both have found their stride - Casilla is hitting over .300 in June and Rivere has been enough of a bright spot to challenge Delmon Young in LF, although injuries to other outfielders will keep Revere on the field for a few weeks yet.
Another theory, one that Twins fans won't like as much, is that the June schedule has been favorable to them. Other than a series with the Indians and the Rangers - both series they won, 2-1, impressively - they've had the fortune of playing the other AL Central cellar competitors - the ever-hapless Royals (who may be worth keeping an eye on next year, but not this year) and Ozzie Guillen's ever-amusing White Sox. Their first interleague series this month was the Padres, who sit squarely in the NL West cellar. The Giants, who they crushed 9-2 last night, are a better challenge, but a wise man knows to always bet AL against NL (except maybe the Phillies), as the stats show the AL is typically the better of interleague play.
I'm not calling the Twins turn-around complete yet. They have two more games against the Giants before two 3-game series against the NL Central leading Brewers (they play the Dodgers in between). Depending on where they are by the All-Star Game, which sees them play the Rays and White Sox again before, we'll have a better idea of which month was the fluke - the hopelessness of May, or the dominance of June. After the All-Star Game, they'll have homestead for three series - against the Royals, Indians and Tigers. It's those series there, right after the All-Star Game, which could ultimately make or break this season for the Twins.
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
Tuesday, June 21st - Pujols out; a couple almost no-nos
Happy first day of summer, readers.
Pujols out 4-6 weeks.
Albert Pujols fractured his left wrist on a first-base collision on Sunday. Results came in yesterday afternoon. This injury - which should keep Pujols out til early August at the soonest - creates an interesting situation in the NL Central, which looks to remain tight all season with Milwaukee and Cincinnati playing well and the Pirates being better-than-expected. For the Cardinals, it's just another dose of bad news that started when they lost staff ace Adam Wainwright for the season in spring training. They've persevered without Wainwright, however, and I think this injury hurts the team's long-term playoff chances less than one might expect.
What this injury does potentially hurt, in my opinion, is the value of Pujols in the off-season, should he continue on his path to free agency rather than re-sign with the Cardinals. Admittedly, I'm not entirely sure what Pujols expects. He is, without a doubt, one of the best players in baseball, but the market for big-money first basemen isn't great. The teams that have money to spend are already locked up at first base - the Red Sox and Yankees, for example. It's going to be hard to find a team that has the available cash and desire to pay him $30M/year that isn't set at the position already. And I don't think even the Yankees will pay $30M/year for him and create an awkward platooning 1B/DH situation between him and Teixeira, but who knows. Those factors, combined with this injury, may very well pave his way to come back to St. Louis, ultimately, especially if he ends up posting lacking numbers after he returns.
Not quite, no-no...
Two pitchers threw shutouts last night - well, one threw 8 innings; the other threw all 9. Tim Hudson, for the Atlanta Braves, went 8 innings and threw 8 strike-outs and 1 walk, allowing 1 hit. His record improved to 6-6 afterwards. The Braves had closer Craig Kimbrel finish the game in the 9th; he allowed the second hit of the game for the Blue Jays. More amusingly, the only runs scored in the game - a 2-0 final - were scored on Hudson's 2-run home run in the 7th inning. His first of the season, second of his career.
The other shutout was a two-hitter thrown by Clayton Kershaw of the Los Angeles Dodgers. He went all 9 innings, striking out 11 and walking only 1. It was his second shutout of the season and improved his mark to 7-3; pretty impressive for the 23 year-old in his 4th Major League season. After going 13-10 last year with a 2.91 ERA, he looks poised to continue to improve this year (his ERA is currently 3.01). He currently leads the majors in strikeouts, with 117. Like Hudson, Kershaw decided to have some fun at the plate, too, notching his 10th hit of the season (the most among pitchers) when he hit a two-out, 2-RBI single in the bottom of the 8th to put the game away. Ironically, he was brought to the plate by an intentional walk before. For the Tigers, this was the first time they've endured a shutout since the 2006 season.
Pujols out 4-6 weeks.
Albert Pujols fractured his left wrist on a first-base collision on Sunday. Results came in yesterday afternoon. This injury - which should keep Pujols out til early August at the soonest - creates an interesting situation in the NL Central, which looks to remain tight all season with Milwaukee and Cincinnati playing well and the Pirates being better-than-expected. For the Cardinals, it's just another dose of bad news that started when they lost staff ace Adam Wainwright for the season in spring training. They've persevered without Wainwright, however, and I think this injury hurts the team's long-term playoff chances less than one might expect.
What this injury does potentially hurt, in my opinion, is the value of Pujols in the off-season, should he continue on his path to free agency rather than re-sign with the Cardinals. Admittedly, I'm not entirely sure what Pujols expects. He is, without a doubt, one of the best players in baseball, but the market for big-money first basemen isn't great. The teams that have money to spend are already locked up at first base - the Red Sox and Yankees, for example. It's going to be hard to find a team that has the available cash and desire to pay him $30M/year that isn't set at the position already. And I don't think even the Yankees will pay $30M/year for him and create an awkward platooning 1B/DH situation between him and Teixeira, but who knows. Those factors, combined with this injury, may very well pave his way to come back to St. Louis, ultimately, especially if he ends up posting lacking numbers after he returns.
Not quite, no-no...
Two pitchers threw shutouts last night - well, one threw 8 innings; the other threw all 9. Tim Hudson, for the Atlanta Braves, went 8 innings and threw 8 strike-outs and 1 walk, allowing 1 hit. His record improved to 6-6 afterwards. The Braves had closer Craig Kimbrel finish the game in the 9th; he allowed the second hit of the game for the Blue Jays. More amusingly, the only runs scored in the game - a 2-0 final - were scored on Hudson's 2-run home run in the 7th inning. His first of the season, second of his career.
The other shutout was a two-hitter thrown by Clayton Kershaw of the Los Angeles Dodgers. He went all 9 innings, striking out 11 and walking only 1. It was his second shutout of the season and improved his mark to 7-3; pretty impressive for the 23 year-old in his 4th Major League season. After going 13-10 last year with a 2.91 ERA, he looks poised to continue to improve this year (his ERA is currently 3.01). He currently leads the majors in strikeouts, with 117. Like Hudson, Kershaw decided to have some fun at the plate, too, notching his 10th hit of the season (the most among pitchers) when he hit a two-out, 2-RBI single in the bottom of the 8th to put the game away. Ironically, he was brought to the plate by an intentional walk before. For the Tigers, this was the first time they've endured a shutout since the 2006 season.
Monday, June 20, 2011
Monday, June 20th - Returning hockey veterans and changing baseball coaches.
Leading off with two bits of hockey news...
It amazes me the durability of some NHL players. I think the sport can be the most brutal of all popular American sports, yet the NHL often boasts the oldest and most veteran players of sports - Mark Recchi just retired and he was 43, for example! Anyway, two pieces of news regarding a couple of these ageless wonders:
First, probably to the surprise of no one, Nicklas Lidstrom plans to return for his 20th season with the Red Wings, at the ripe old age of 41. This is actually more significant than last year; with the retirement of Brian Rafalski, had Lidstrom gone as well, the Wings would be facing a sudden crisis on the blue line. As it stands, the Wings can replace Rafalski through free agency (Rafalski's retirement freed up 6M) and worry about Lidstrom's roster spot next year... if not longer.
Second, Jaromir Jagr wants to return to the NHL. Jagr is 39 and has spent the last three years playing in the KHL, which is, for lack of a better explanation, the NHL of Russia. I wouldn't call it the same as Triple-A baseball, but somewhere between that and the NHL. Anyway, Jagr has been productive there and voiced his desire to come back, provided certain teams were interested. Among them, rumor has it, are the Red Wings, Canadiens and Penguins. I particularly like the idea of him returning to Pittsburgh or donning the Winged Wheel - both are great spots for the veteran; he could mix in nicely with Crosby or Malkin in Pittsburgh, or with Datsyuk or Zetterberg in Detroit. In both cases, neither team would be relying on him for maximum production and it'd be a relatively low-pressure situation. I have no doubt Jagr will be back in the NHL next year - the question will be where. I predict he'll land in Detroit, for a one-year deal similar to Mike Modano's last season.
Interesting news out of Cleveland...
Everyone is expecting the Indians to sort of fade out of the AL Central picture in baseball, but I'm of a mind that they're going to be around all season. Their recent decision to replace their hitting coach makes me think that this is a team that's willing to shake things up to stay competitive. Some people smell disaster there - you're atop your division, why make moves? But I see a team still improving itself to try and maintain control on a division that can really go anywhere between now and October. The Tigers are playing good baseball and even the Twins, who looked as hapless as any team could a month ago (more on them later this week), look like they could end up being a surprise threat as summer rolls on.
Speaking of hapless...
The Florida Marlins are 1-18 in the month of June. Their record is 32-40. Before this amazing skid, they were 31-22 and looking like a threat in the NL East. So much for that. But to add insult to injury, in the midst of what is now an 10-game losing streak, their manager, Edwin Rodriguez, decided to jump ship. I always wonder about the mentality of that - obviously, you're probably avoiding an inevitable firing (although the Marlins were .500 under Rodriguez, dating back to last season), but as we've seen numerous times this year, baseball fortunes can change rapidly and unpredictably from month to month. Perhaps the problems are deeper than he wanted to deal with. It's one thing to have a bad month of ball; it's another when your skipper bails on you.
It amazes me the durability of some NHL players. I think the sport can be the most brutal of all popular American sports, yet the NHL often boasts the oldest and most veteran players of sports - Mark Recchi just retired and he was 43, for example! Anyway, two pieces of news regarding a couple of these ageless wonders:
First, probably to the surprise of no one, Nicklas Lidstrom plans to return for his 20th season with the Red Wings, at the ripe old age of 41. This is actually more significant than last year; with the retirement of Brian Rafalski, had Lidstrom gone as well, the Wings would be facing a sudden crisis on the blue line. As it stands, the Wings can replace Rafalski through free agency (Rafalski's retirement freed up 6M) and worry about Lidstrom's roster spot next year... if not longer.
Second, Jaromir Jagr wants to return to the NHL. Jagr is 39 and has spent the last three years playing in the KHL, which is, for lack of a better explanation, the NHL of Russia. I wouldn't call it the same as Triple-A baseball, but somewhere between that and the NHL. Anyway, Jagr has been productive there and voiced his desire to come back, provided certain teams were interested. Among them, rumor has it, are the Red Wings, Canadiens and Penguins. I particularly like the idea of him returning to Pittsburgh or donning the Winged Wheel - both are great spots for the veteran; he could mix in nicely with Crosby or Malkin in Pittsburgh, or with Datsyuk or Zetterberg in Detroit. In both cases, neither team would be relying on him for maximum production and it'd be a relatively low-pressure situation. I have no doubt Jagr will be back in the NHL next year - the question will be where. I predict he'll land in Detroit, for a one-year deal similar to Mike Modano's last season.
Interesting news out of Cleveland...
Everyone is expecting the Indians to sort of fade out of the AL Central picture in baseball, but I'm of a mind that they're going to be around all season. Their recent decision to replace their hitting coach makes me think that this is a team that's willing to shake things up to stay competitive. Some people smell disaster there - you're atop your division, why make moves? But I see a team still improving itself to try and maintain control on a division that can really go anywhere between now and October. The Tigers are playing good baseball and even the Twins, who looked as hapless as any team could a month ago (more on them later this week), look like they could end up being a surprise threat as summer rolls on.
Speaking of hapless...
The Florida Marlins are 1-18 in the month of June. Their record is 32-40. Before this amazing skid, they were 31-22 and looking like a threat in the NL East. So much for that. But to add insult to injury, in the midst of what is now an 10-game losing streak, their manager, Edwin Rodriguez, decided to jump ship. I always wonder about the mentality of that - obviously, you're probably avoiding an inevitable firing (although the Marlins were .500 under Rodriguez, dating back to last season), but as we've seen numerous times this year, baseball fortunes can change rapidly and unpredictably from month to month. Perhaps the problems are deeper than he wanted to deal with. It's one thing to have a bad month of ball; it's another when your skipper bails on you.
Sunday, June 19, 2011
The PW Sports Blog is becoming the Daily Sports Update!
Hello readers,
For awhile last year and earlier this year, mostly during football season, I maintained a sports blog. As football ended and other aspects of my life got busy, I waned in my blogging. Given the nature of football, it was easy to pop in and get an article written once or twice a week, but as that ended and gave way to the NHL and NBA playoff chases, as well as the beginning of the MLB season, I found myself unable to keep up. But no more! I have re-dedicated myself to bringing you as high a caliber sports blog as I can and I now intend to do it every day, with a wider array of coverage than I previously supplied.
I will do my best to cover a wide range of teams and sports as best I can, but be aware that as someone who lives in Minnesota, my eyes and ears are most inundated with the sports of the upper Midwest. As a Detroit native, I maintain a strong connection to those teams, as well. Don't be offended if I offer nuances about a regional team and less so about, say, a team in the southwestern part of the country. I can promise you, however, that unlike ESPN, I will not give undue amounts of attention to the New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox, Dallas Cowboys, or any other team we get sick of hearing about when they're not actually being remarkable.
Thank you for reading. I am always open and receptive to comments, so feel free to share your thoughts or opinions with me; it's one of the best ways to help me better this blog and that is my goal. Starting tomorrow, I'll be bringing you the relevant sports happenings of the day (or previous day, I suppose) as I see them. Some days will have longer articles, some days will be shorter - but it is my plan to give you something to read every day from here on out.
For awhile last year and earlier this year, mostly during football season, I maintained a sports blog. As football ended and other aspects of my life got busy, I waned in my blogging. Given the nature of football, it was easy to pop in and get an article written once or twice a week, but as that ended and gave way to the NHL and NBA playoff chases, as well as the beginning of the MLB season, I found myself unable to keep up. But no more! I have re-dedicated myself to bringing you as high a caliber sports blog as I can and I now intend to do it every day, with a wider array of coverage than I previously supplied.
I will do my best to cover a wide range of teams and sports as best I can, but be aware that as someone who lives in Minnesota, my eyes and ears are most inundated with the sports of the upper Midwest. As a Detroit native, I maintain a strong connection to those teams, as well. Don't be offended if I offer nuances about a regional team and less so about, say, a team in the southwestern part of the country. I can promise you, however, that unlike ESPN, I will not give undue amounts of attention to the New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox, Dallas Cowboys, or any other team we get sick of hearing about when they're not actually being remarkable.
Thank you for reading. I am always open and receptive to comments, so feel free to share your thoughts or opinions with me; it's one of the best ways to help me better this blog and that is my goal. Starting tomorrow, I'll be bringing you the relevant sports happenings of the day (or previous day, I suppose) as I see them. Some days will have longer articles, some days will be shorter - but it is my plan to give you something to read every day from here on out.
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