I use to like Alex Rodriguez. I thought he was one of the greatest baseball players to ever play the game. And more importantly, he seemed like a pretty decent guy. I never once blamed him for his $252 million dollar contract he signed with the Texas Rangers. Hey, if someone is going to offer me that money, I would have been more than happy to play for it.
The contract put baseball back in so many ways. With 32 teams and about half those teams unable to compete with the other half just because of the money they can generate. But Rangers' Owner Tom Hicks bought was Arod and his agent were selling and everyone was happy.
After the Rangers realized they couldn't compete because all of their money was tied up in one player, they traded Arod to the New York Yankees. The Rangers paid a good portion of the contract as he played for the Yankees. Arod made the playoffs each of his 4 years in New York, but failed to do make an impact. The Yankees-Arod marriage was a bust from the beginning and the saving grace was Arod had an out clause after the 7th year of the contract.
I had no doubt he was going to opt out. I thought him opting out during game 4 of the World Series was a complete scum thing to do. He had to steal the headlines from the Eventual World Series Champs, the Red Sox.
Well, there is something Baseball can do and I would applaud baseball and its owners if they did it. Don't pay this guy $27 Million a year. Infact, now is the time for baseball owners to show a little muscle and strong arm Arod, his agent and the system. How great would it be if Arod is only offered $10 million, a third of what his agent thinks he should get?
Monday, October 29, 2007
Friday, October 19, 2007
Bring Down The Evil Empire
The first peg of the demise of the Evil Empire was let loose. That classy organization known as the New York Yankees, low balled their leader with an insulting 1 year deal, less money than the old deal and incentive laden contract.
I don't blame Joe Torre for declining the Yankees offer. I am far from a Yankees fan and I don't even think he is a great manager, however he wins. He is able to mesh different personalities and lead his team to victories. It's not like he hasn't won a championship or 2 or 3 or 4?
I hope this leads to a mass exodus of Yankee Veterans to other places. I am just trying to figure out what is worse, being offered an insulting low-balled offer or being threaten to be fired every season?
I don't blame Joe Torre for declining the Yankees offer. I am far from a Yankees fan and I don't even think he is a great manager, however he wins. He is able to mesh different personalities and lead his team to victories. It's not like he hasn't won a championship or 2 or 3 or 4?
I hope this leads to a mass exodus of Yankee Veterans to other places. I am just trying to figure out what is worse, being offered an insulting low-balled offer or being threaten to be fired every season?
Thursday, October 11, 2007
Brett Favvvrrrerr
Or however his name is spelled? Anyway, I think I am the only person who watches the NFL who doesn't like him. When every talking head ohhs and ahhs over him, I can't see it. I don't put him up as one of the best QBs to ever play. The toughest? Absolutely, to play that many consecutive games at that position for so long is one thing. Greatest QB? Well that's another.
I think Favre is a gunslinger. He always tries to do too much and is very rarely called on that. He one 1 championship and probably could have won at least 1 more if he was a little more disciplined. So when the Talking Heads talk about Favre as a one of the best, I tend to put him lower on my list.
Here's the Top 10 QBs of my time (The last 20 years+)
Joe Montana
Troy Aikman
Tom Brady
John Elway
Steve Young
Peyton Manning
Dan Marino
Warren Moon
Brett Farve
Randall Cunningham
I think Favre is a gunslinger. He always tries to do too much and is very rarely called on that. He one 1 championship and probably could have won at least 1 more if he was a little more disciplined. So when the Talking Heads talk about Favre as a one of the best, I tend to put him lower on my list.
Here's the Top 10 QBs of my time (The last 20 years+)
Joe Montana
Troy Aikman
Tom Brady
John Elway
Steve Young
Peyton Manning
Dan Marino
Warren Moon
Brett Farve
Randall Cunningham
Monday, October 8, 2007
It's Been A Long Time...
For over three months, I have had a lot to say, but I just couldn't put it in words. I still don't know if I can put it all in words and I don't know if I am going to try. My goal is to get my websites running within the next month, but inspiration hasn't shed its light on me.
Instead of talking about the ways of the world, the good and bad, the ups and downs, I thought I would just talk about something a little easier, The 2007 Philadelphia Phillies.
Wow, what can I say. Back in Spring Training, MVP Short stop Jimmy Rollins called them the team beat in the NL East and they proceeded to start off 4-11. The slowly crawled their way to 500 and started to win somewhat consistently. Their pitching was unspectacular outside of Cole Hammels. Their Bullpen was a whos who of castaways and journeymen, but somehow they got through the season.
2007 will go down in history as how the Mets plummeted. Dropping 8 games in the standings with 18 to play, but the Phillies did sweep them twice coming down the stretch. I guess I am saying the Phillies deserve more credit than they will ever get.
Here's a grade for the 2007 NL East Champs:
GM - Pat Gillick - B. Would have been an A if it weren't for Freddie Garcia, who will go down in Phillies History as the WORSE signing in team history. Gillick deserves credit for signing Jayson Werth and Greg Dobbs. He got lucky with a desperation signing in JC Romero, who played his way into a nice contract for next year. The Kyle Lohse was also a nice pick up at the end of the season, he ate up innings and the Phillies won most of the games his pitched.
Manager - Charlie Manuel - B+. He got the most out of his bullpen, more than I ever thought he would have. He made a lot of questionable decisions, but most of them worked out, so who am I to judge. I really wish we would have seen a throw down with Eskin.
Offense - A. They are the most prolific hitting team in baseball. Hopefully, Ryan Howard will come into next season with confidence and a little more patience. He could become the best Phillie EVER. Rollins, Utley and Rowand had great seasons at the plate. Everyone else seemed to get into the action.
Defense - A-. They were pretty solid in the field, just wish we could combine Nunez and Dobbs to make one complete 3rd Basemen.
Starting Pitching - B-. Hammels was great. Moyer was a magician. Kendrick was a pleasent surprise, but far from great. Eaton, Lieber and Garcia Disappointments.
Bull Pen - C. Madson was hurt, which hurt them. Romero pitched nicely, but not spectacular. Gordon showed flashes of brilliance. Mesa, Alfonseca, Condrey, etc are okay as long as they are not on the same team. Finally, Brett Myers is a better Starter. Yes, he has a Closer's Disposition, but he can give you innings as a starter and be a dominant one too. Its so hard to find Quality Starting Pitching, and to use one of their best starters as a closer makes no sense to me.
Next Season, I expect great things from the Phillies. There will not be a lot available via Free Agency. They will probably lose Aaron Rowand which is too bad. They need to move Myers back into the rotation, find another starter (Lohse will probably sign for big money with a team like New York.) They need a lot of Bullpen help and hopefully through the minor leagues, a few players will step up. They can get by with a three headed monster at third, but it wouldn't surprise me if they sign a "big name" (Mike Lowell?) Burrell will play out his last season in Philly In Left, Victorino will play Center and Werth will play Right. All in all, the Phillies are much better off than other teams in their division.
I hope they learned from this experience and build on it
Instead of talking about the ways of the world, the good and bad, the ups and downs, I thought I would just talk about something a little easier, The 2007 Philadelphia Phillies.
Wow, what can I say. Back in Spring Training, MVP Short stop Jimmy Rollins called them the team beat in the NL East and they proceeded to start off 4-11. The slowly crawled their way to 500 and started to win somewhat consistently. Their pitching was unspectacular outside of Cole Hammels. Their Bullpen was a whos who of castaways and journeymen, but somehow they got through the season.
2007 will go down in history as how the Mets plummeted. Dropping 8 games in the standings with 18 to play, but the Phillies did sweep them twice coming down the stretch. I guess I am saying the Phillies deserve more credit than they will ever get.
Here's a grade for the 2007 NL East Champs:
GM - Pat Gillick - B. Would have been an A if it weren't for Freddie Garcia, who will go down in Phillies History as the WORSE signing in team history. Gillick deserves credit for signing Jayson Werth and Greg Dobbs. He got lucky with a desperation signing in JC Romero, who played his way into a nice contract for next year. The Kyle Lohse was also a nice pick up at the end of the season, he ate up innings and the Phillies won most of the games his pitched.
Manager - Charlie Manuel - B+. He got the most out of his bullpen, more than I ever thought he would have. He made a lot of questionable decisions, but most of them worked out, so who am I to judge. I really wish we would have seen a throw down with Eskin.
Offense - A. They are the most prolific hitting team in baseball. Hopefully, Ryan Howard will come into next season with confidence and a little more patience. He could become the best Phillie EVER. Rollins, Utley and Rowand had great seasons at the plate. Everyone else seemed to get into the action.
Defense - A-. They were pretty solid in the field, just wish we could combine Nunez and Dobbs to make one complete 3rd Basemen.
Starting Pitching - B-. Hammels was great. Moyer was a magician. Kendrick was a pleasent surprise, but far from great. Eaton, Lieber and Garcia Disappointments.
Bull Pen - C. Madson was hurt, which hurt them. Romero pitched nicely, but not spectacular. Gordon showed flashes of brilliance. Mesa, Alfonseca, Condrey, etc are okay as long as they are not on the same team. Finally, Brett Myers is a better Starter. Yes, he has a Closer's Disposition, but he can give you innings as a starter and be a dominant one too. Its so hard to find Quality Starting Pitching, and to use one of their best starters as a closer makes no sense to me.
Next Season, I expect great things from the Phillies. There will not be a lot available via Free Agency. They will probably lose Aaron Rowand which is too bad. They need to move Myers back into the rotation, find another starter (Lohse will probably sign for big money with a team like New York.) They need a lot of Bullpen help and hopefully through the minor leagues, a few players will step up. They can get by with a three headed monster at third, but it wouldn't surprise me if they sign a "big name" (Mike Lowell?) Burrell will play out his last season in Philly In Left, Victorino will play Center and Werth will play Right. All in all, the Phillies are much better off than other teams in their division.
I hope they learned from this experience and build on it
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