Do you really think baseball or any of our American sports are drug free? I am not talking about narcotics, steroids or even amphetamines. I am talking about legal, over-the-counter type of drugs that may be used a bit more than normal. Earlier this year, HBO’s Real Sports did a profile on the painkiller Toradol. ”You […]
It’s pretty hard to ruin Opening Day. For at least 9 innings the fan base can hope and dream about all the best-case scenarios that were laid out throughout spring training. If they win, it’s even grander since it could be the one and only time the home team can say they are in first […]
If you listen to the mainstream media, there appears to be no reason to watch the 2012 New York Mets. Some pundits (Michael Kay- ESPN) have the team winning 55 games. I would imagine that most publications will have them a lock for last place when they post their predictions later this month. Even the […]
Valley Fever, strained rib cages, declining payroll and the Madoff clawback lawsuit have been much talked about topics around Port St. Lucie this spring; especially the last week. There will be plenty of time for gloom and doom this year, but yesterday Johan Santana gave the Mets and their fans a ray of hope in an otherwise […]
The good news out of Mets camp was the 72 or 73 pitch bullpen session by Johan Santana, where the hurler reported no pain in his surgically repaired shoulder, and even though he wasn’t asked about it, his formerly surgically repaired elbow, either. Santana was able to replicate a two-inning stint by throwing some pitches, sitting down for […]
No one expects much from the Mets, but the reports of them being a 100-loss team are, in my opinion, greatly exaggerated. Vegas has their over/under at 74.5. I have also seen 70.5 as the number. I believe their offense and bullpen gives them a decent shot at about 75-77 wins, and that number doesn’t include Johan Santana in […]
Johan Santana is scheduled to make about $25 million dollars each of the next two years. There’s also an option for 2014, which adds another $25 million if he reaches awards incentives and/or innings threshold. The combination of Santana’s health and the Mets reduced payroll make this a very punishing financial commitment. I think Ben Nicholson-Smith of […]
I think we have done this exercise before, but in the spirit of the NBA being officially back, let’s do it again. The new CBA ratified by the owners and NBA players includes an amnesty clause. In short, teams can waive a player of their choice and stretch the payments out over twice the life […]
There have been many Mets connections in this postseason. J.J. Putz was closing ballgames for Arizona. Darren Oliver is coming out of the Rangers bullpen. During the NLCS we see K-Rod pitching the eighth inning and Carlos Gomez getting playing time in centerfield for Milwaukee. Gomez was a top Mets prospect when he was called up in 2007 after […]
We have discussed the Yankees need to decide on Nick Swisher‘s $10.25 million dollar option for next season. I already have gone on record saying it’s time to move away from Swisher and look for a replacement, preferably cheaper and of better value. Let Swisher build his brand and sell CDs on someone else’s dime. One […]
We can debate the merits of Curtis Granderson or Robinson Cano when it comes to the American League MVP award, but no Yankees player will win it. Why? It has nothing to do with Jose Bautista‘s stats or the fact that three Red Sox are having MVP-caliber years. Its institutional bias against the Yankees by the baseball writers. Take this […]
Johan Santana pitched two innings for St. Lucie last night. It appears there is a good chance we see Santana get a start in the big leagues this year, even if it’s for just a couple of innings. It got to me to thinking about how effective we can expect him to be, and if a change in […]
During my visit to the Hall of Fame I came across quite a few interesting pieces. Throughout the next week I will share some of my favorites, but you will also be able to access photos of the trip on Shutterfly. To start off, I took pictures of original scouting reports for Johan Santana, Tom […]
That’s the real tragedy of Barry Zito. It’s not that he was reduced to a mathematical proof in the winter of 2006. It’s that in the summer of 2011, he has become one: Sometimes the sum of faith and belief and love still isn’t nearly enough. -Chris Jones, Grantland. Chris Jones piece about Barry Zito at […]
Very sad news out of Rancho Palos Verdes, California as former Yankees pitcher Hideki Irabu committed suicide. TMZ is reporting he hanged himself to death. Irabu was certainly a disappointment with the Yankees when you consider the hype he came with to the States. He never lived up to the “Japanese Nolan Ryan” billing that was given to him […]
