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Manny, Don't Be Manny Anymore
by David Heffernan
5/7/09
It was the news this morning that once again shook up the baseball world. Another star and another face of the disgraced game had been found using steroids. Manny Ramirez, the star leftfielder for the Los Angeles Dodgers has been suspended for 50 games by Major League Baseball and he has said he will not appeal. Like every other player that has stepped forward Ramirez expects us to believe that it was not his fault and that he was completely naive in the matter. A physician gave it to you? I don’t know what type of physicians you are going to Manny but they don’t just hand out steroids like they are candy. This was just another slap in the face to the game that has seen arguably its’ best hitter, Barry Bonds, and best pitcher, Roger Clemens, accused of steroids and backed into corners. This comes just months after Alex Rodriguez admitted to taking steroids. As a fan of this beloved game I do not think I can sit and watch anymore of its’ stars be found guilty of using steroids. If Albert Pujols and Derek Jeter are found using steroids I may just have to give up the game completely and I’m sure many more would soon give it up as well.
Hot Corner of Fame: Where Does Chipper Stand?
by Josh Roth
Chipper Jones has been the cornerstone of the Braves for over 15 years. He has won an MVP award, Silver Slugger Award, a batting title, and a World Series. His career numbers are absolutely fantastic:
Name AVG OBP SLG OPS HR Runs RBI
C. Jones .310 .408 .547 .955 410 1390 1382
So where does Chipper stand amongst the rest of the Hall of Fame? His hitting numbers are in the top five amongst all of the Hall of Famers including top slugging percentage and OPS. His run and RBI totals should rise as well and could possibly be the best in both of those respective categories. After looking over all the statistics there were three other candidates that could put up a case for being better than Chipper Jones: Wade Boggs, Eddie Mathews, and Mike Schmidt. Eddie Mathews had a great career, but the only thing in the end that will separate him from Chipper is the homerun totals, so I will place Chipper ahead of Eddie Mathews.
Next in line is Wade Boggs, who seems to go under the radar, but his stats are actually very good. He has the best average and OBP of any Hall of Fame third basemen, plus he won a couple of gold gloves. Boggs also is part of the 3,000 hits club, which it would likely take five more good seasons for Chipper to reach. However, the thing that separates him and Chipper Jones is the power. Chipper’s slugging is over a hundred points better, he has 292 more homeruns than Wade Boggs. He also has more RBI and has an MVP, unlike Boggs.
So that leaves Mike Schmidt, with the stats being very close. Mike Schmidt has more homeruns at 548 and has more RBI. However, Chipper Jones could surpass that RBI total given he averages 71 RBI in the next three seasons, but will likely not pass the homerun total unless he can play four more seasons and average 37 homeruns. Chipper has a better average, slugging, OBP, and OPS. Both have won a World Series, but Schmidt has won ten Gold Gloves and two more MVPs than Chipper. Overall it may seem like Schmidt is the clear winner, but Chipper makes a good case for himself. If we are looking at pure hitters, Chipper probably is the top hitter out of any third basemen in the Hall of Fame. All of his offensive numbers could be better than Mike Schmidt’s with the exception of homeruns. However, the ten gold gloves could be the key to the argument which would make Schmidt the best all around third basemen. Yet the fielding percentage is very close, with Mike only having a 1 point better fielding percentage. Either way one looks at it, Chipper will be a Hall of Famer and should, by the time he retires, be amongst the top two hall of fame third basemen. Here are the stats of some of the hall of fame third basemen:
Name AVG OBP SLG OPS HR Runs RBI
C. Jones .310 .408 .547 .955 410 1390 1382
M. Schmidt .267 .380 .527 .907 548 1506 1595
W. Boggs .328 .415 .443 .858 118 1513 1014
E. Mathews .271 .376 .509 .885 512 1509 1453
So you decide who is the best third baseman of all time? (Excluding Alex Rodriguez at this time)
MLB Playoff Predictions
By Josh Roth
(Check out http://thegoldenwhip.wordpress.com/ for more in depth coverage, including team by team previews)
ALDS:
Boston Red Sox defeat Cleveland Indians
Minnesota Twins defeat Los Angeles Angels
NLDS:
Chicago Cubs defeat Atlanta Braves
Los Angeles Dodgers defeat New York Mets
ALCS:
Boston Red Sox defeat Minnesota Twins
NLCS:
Los Angeles Dodgers defeat Chicago Cubs
World Series:
Los Angeles Dodgers defeat Boston Red Sox (MVP: Andre Ethier)
American League Preview
By Josh Roth
(Check out http://thegoldenwhip.wordpress.com/ for more in depth coverage, including team by team previews)
AL East
1. Boston Red Sox
2. New York Yankees
3. Tampa Bay Rays
4. Baltimore Orioles
5. Toronto Blue Jays
AL Central
1. Minnesota Twins
2. Cleveland Indians
3. Chicago White Sox
4. Kansas City Royals
5. Detroit Tigers
AL West
1. Los Angeles Angels
2. Oakland A’s
3. Texas Rangers
4. Seattle Mariners
MVP Candidates
1. Grady Sizemore
Grady Sizemore has a chance to have 100 runs, 100 RBIs, and 100 BB. Not to mention that he may wind up with 40 HR and 40 SB. There will be two things standing in his way. One will be whether or not the Indians make the playoffs, which I think they will. The second will be his average, which is slightly overrated. If he brings up the average and his team makes the playoffs he should be near the top of the MVP race.
2. Justin Morneau
Justin Morneau has been a beast when it comes to driving in runs, driving in over 110 in the last three years. Expect him to do the same this year. The one discouraging thing from last year was that his homerun total went down, but I expect him back to 30 plus homeruns this year and if he keeps his average around .300 he should be a top three candidate. The one thing that may hold him back would be whether the Twins make the playoffs or not, but I believe they will.
3. Kevin Youkilis
Kevin Youkilis had a career year last year and probably should have won MVP. The power seems to be increasing and we all know he his patient, he is the Greek God of Walks of course. One big question mark will be his homerun total, there wasn’t too many guys with massive homerun totals last year, but that may change this year, so if he wants to sway the votes he will have to hit around 30 HR again, which I believe he will do. Another factor will be Pedroia, as long as the media doesn’t fall in love with him again, Youkilis should be fine. Expect the OPS and RBI totals to be near the top of the AL again and for him to be a top 5 candidate for MVP.
4. Vladimir Guerrero
Vladimir Guerrero is a constant contender for the MVP award. He has a career .323 avg which is rather insane. He is also good to hit 30 HR if he stays healthy and should have around 100 RBIs too. The big keys will be whether he can get guys in front of him to get on and if has protection following him, which he should with the addition of Bobby Abreu and the power of Mike Napoli, that is if he is in the lineup. Another big key will be the Angels pitching; if they can get healthy soon they should have a good chance to make the playoffs, which would help Vladimir’s chances for MVP.
5. Jason Bay
Jason Bay is my sleeper pick. This was a great pick up for the Red Sox last year and should get a lot of RBI chance batting 5th or 6th in that great lineup. There will be a good chance he hits 30 plus homeruns again and his slugging will go up playing with the Green Monster in Fenway. He is also patient which will bode well for his OPS. However, the problem with Bay is that he plays on the same team as Youkilis, Pedroia, and Ortiz. So it will be difficult, but he does have a shot, look out for Jason Bay.
CY Young Candidates
1. Jon Lester
This is a bit of a stretch, but I like Jon Lester here. He had good numbers in the second half of the year last year posting and ERA below 3. His strikeout rate also was over 7 post all star game and his walk rate went down. Lester also plays for the Red Sox so he should have a good chance for a good amount of wins. He may need to continue to raise his strikeout rate, but I think Lester could have a big year.
2. C.C. Sabathia
Sabathia was very impressive last year for both the Indians and Brewers, but he will have a lot of pressure on him going to New York. I still expect to have a big year for the Yankees, though. He has really good strike out to walk ratios and he struck out 251 guys last year. As long as he doesn’t let the pressure get to him and the Yankees can give him wins in his starts he should have a real good chance to take home the CY Young award.
3. Roy Halladay
Halladay is one of the best pitchers in AL. He put up great stats last year including an ERA under 3 and had a 5.28 BB/K ratio. The only thing that held him back from winning the CY Young last year was the phenomenal year of Cliff Lee. The thing that could hold him back this year will be his team, which will probably finish near the bottom of the division, but he did wind up with 20 wins on a mediocre team. He will have a good chance to win this year and will probably, at the very least, be a top 5 candidate.
4. James Shields
James Shields has arguably been the ace of the Rays staff the last couple of years. He is still very young, but his ERA and WHIP have dropped in the past couple of seasons and he has a very good strikeout to walk ratio. It was tough deciding between him and Kazmir, who barely missed this list, but I will give the slight nod to Shields. If the Rays can stay competitive and stay above .500, he should have a good chance to rack up more wins.
T5. Kevin Slowey
Yet again another stretch, but you got to love Sloweys BB/K ratio (5.13), the stat I love to rave about apparently. I think the most impressive thing is that he only walked 24 guys last year. His WHIP is also very low at 1.15 and if he can do better job at keeping the ball in the yard he should have good success. However, like Derek Lowe in the NL he may not get a lot of strikeouts which could hurt him, but the thing he needs the most is the Twins to get him some wins. Like I said before it is a big stretch, but I think there could be big things from Slowey this year.
T5. Jered Weaver
I know I am going with a 6th option, but I really like the chances of Jered Weaver. He strikes out a decent amount and overall has a solid BB/K ratio. In fact those rates have been getting better including his WHIP. The only thing that didn’t improve was his ERA, but I expect him to have a good year this year and to continue to improve upon those numbers. Look out for Jered Weaver this year, he is a major sleeper.
National League Preview
By Josh Roth
NL East Standings
1. New York Mets
2. Atlanta Braves
3. Philadelphia Phillies
4. Florida Marlins
5. Washington Nationals
NL Central Standings
1. Chicago Cubs
2. Milwaukee Brewers
3. St. Louis Cardinals
4. Cincinnati Reds
5. Houston Astros
6. Pittsburgh Pirates
NL West
1. Los Angeles Dodgers
2. Arizona Diamondbacks
3. San Francisco Giants
4. Colorado Rockies
5. San Diego Padres
Wildcard
1. Atlanta Braves
2. Philadelphia Phillies
3. Arizona Diamondbacks
4. Milwaukee Brewers
5. St. Louis Cardinals
NL MVP
1. Manny Ramirez, LAD
With Manny back for his first full year with the Dodgers, he should put up monster numbers. It also helps with Furcal and Hudson at the top of the order right in front of Manny, he should put up a lot of RBIs.
2. Aramis Ramirez, ChC
Here is the dark horse in the competition. He has quietly been one of the top third baseman in the league. Last year he was more patient and with his homerun total to be around 30 hit should bode well for his OPS. Not only that, but he will drive in more runs and put more numbers up due to the addition of Milton Bradley, but Bradley needs to stay healthy, which could be a big question mark. He still put big numbers up even without Bradley though.
3. David Wright, NYM
If the Mets do make the playoffs expect David Wright to be right in the mix for the MVP award. He will no doubt put up the numbers to win the award and is a fan and press favorite.
4. Albert Pujols, StL
It is obvious why his name is on the list, considering he is the best hitter in the National League and probably in all of baseball. Oh yeah and he won the award last year. The only question one may ask is why he is so low, well I think he will have enough competition this year and his team will likely miss out on the post season.
5. Ryan Braun, Mil
The best hitter on the Brewers and is turning into one of the best hitters in the National League. He has nice protection with Fielder, Hardy and Hart. He could improve his chances if guys like Weeks and Hall produce and if the Brewers make the playoffs. However, I think the Brewers will just miss the playoffs, thus decreasing his chances on winning.
NL Cy Young
1. Dan Haren, Arz
Many people may consider Brandon Webb to be the best pitcher on the Diamondbacks, but I think this year Haren will be. Haren strikeout rate was at his highest point last year, had his lowest WHIP number last year, and walked only 40 guys last year (that makes for a good K/BB ratio!). Expect big things from him this year with an ERA right around 3.00, quite possibly below that.
2. Johan Santana, NYM
Expect big things for Johan in his second year with the Mets, not that he didn't do well last year. He might be the best pitcher in baseball, but I see him coming up a little short. However, it won't be a surprise if he wins it.
3. Derek Lowe, Atl
Derek Lowe had a very good last year and if he would have gotten more wins could have made a case for the CY Young last year. He is an underrated pitcher, partly because he doesn't put up big strikeout numbers. If the Braves make the playoffs he should get more attention and should be a big reason why they get there.
4. Tim Lincecum, SF
Coming off a Cy Young year I expect a little drop off, but should still be a top ten, probably top five pitcher in the National League. Lincecum struck out a whopping 265 guys last year, but did walk over 80 guys. If his walk totals stay high and he winds up striking out less he may be less fortunate. He is only 24, going on 25 and should be a CY Young candidate for the years to come.
5. Yovani Gallardo, Mil
This guy has ace stuff and will clearly be the Brewers best pitcher with C.C. Sabathia being gone. The big question will be health which has hampered him a bit in his early career. If he does have a healthy year expect him to put up big strikeout numbers, a low WHIP, and a low ERA.
(Check out http://thegoldenwhip.wordpress.com/ for more in depth coverage, including team by team previews)
1st Weekend of the NCAA Tournament
by Brandon Hurley
As usual, we got a taste of some excitement over the first weekend of the NCAA tournament. Most of the top seeds struggled on in the second round except for UCONN, who blew out a solid Texas A&M team, 92-66, after coming off a 56 point smackdown over sixteen seeded Chattanooga. Louisville slithered their way from an up and coming mid major power house, Siena. North Carolina had to rely on banged up point guard Ty Lawson in order to sneak past LSU, and Pitt got a giant game from Sam Young dropping 32 points and also received a few clutch baskets from point man Levance Fields to overcome the fight of the Cowboys from Oklahoma State.
While on the topic of the no. 1 seeds, I believe Ty Lawson showed absolutely no signs of his toe injury. When the Tar Heels needed a basket, Lawson pulled a quick crossover and used his speed to get to the rack. After a few plays mid way through the second half I had already forgotten about his injury showing us why he won ACC player of the year. The Heels are a completely different team with Lawson in the lineup. He makes them run like a well oiled machine. Now if he can stay healthy for the rest of the tournament there is no doubt UNC will reach the Final Four. They only have to get past Gonzaga and either Syracuse or Oklahoma.
Even though Louisville struggled in their first two games I still have no doubt they will run through the rest of their bracket. They have nothing to be concerned of because, T-Will, Terrance Williams, had another NBA caliber game dropping 24 points while snagging 15 boards and knocking done four trey balls along the way, and Earl Clark had a double-double as well pulling down 12 rebounds and adding 12 points in the win against Siena. I see the Cardinals making the Final Four but they will get tested by Arizona and the winner of the colossal coaching matchup of Tom Izzo's Michigan State Spartans and Bill Self's defending champion Kansas Jayhawks. Each of these games Lousiville will have to fight to pull out the victory but I don't see anyone being able to bring them down. Pitino's squad just has too much overall balance for anyone to keep up. If T-Will isn't getting his points he can affect the game in other areas with steals and assists.
Then on the other side of the bracket, Pitt looks to have the tougher road to Detroit. The Panthers have to face a Xavier team out of the Atlantic 10 that is totally outmatched. They don't have enough players to shut down Dejuan Blair down low, Young on the wing and Fields at the point. They only way I can see Xavier pulling the upset is if the fairy godmother comes out of nowhere and blesses the Musketeers with superior shooting ability and Blair is eliminated from Pitt. Other then that it's highly unlikely that Xavier gives Pitt a fight for the entire game. The elite eight game is where it gets dicey for the Panthers. They have to face either either Villanova or Duke. I definitely see Nova over Duke with the way they are playing, but if the Dukies hit a hot streak anything can happen. Now when Nova gets past Duke, it's nearly a toss up from here. The Wildcats beat Pitt at home earlier this year and this game is in Boston, so the crowd will most likely be split. It's tough to say who will win, but if Nova keeps shooting like it did against UCLA, and Dante Cunningham keeps roaming the paint down low, and Pitt continues its struggles, I could very easily see Nova punching it's ticket to Detroit.
No doubt UCONN has the easiest route of the four top seeds. They face a slow Purdue team in the Sweet Sixteen, then face either Mizzou or Memphis in the elite eight. Memphis hasn't really been tested in the last two months besides it's opening round matchup against upstart Cal State Norhtridge who gave the Tigers a giant scare and Mizzou can play with anyone because of their pressure D, but they can also get blown out like they did at Phog Allen Field House against Kansas about a month ago. So UCONN should make the final four with relative ease, especially after not even having to play their starters the whole game for either of the first two games.
For those harping that the Big Dance doesn't have anymore stunning upsets, I say to them, big deal. The NCAA was made to settle who the best team in the nation is, and if a fifteen seed doesn't beat a two seed every year it's nothing to cry about. We got our fair share of first round upsets with thirteenth seeded Cleveland State blowing out fourth seeded Wake Forest, 12th seeded Arizona taking down fifth seeded Utah, even though that wasn't much of an upset because 'Zona was actually favored in Vegas, 11th seeded Dayton knocking off sixth seeded West Virgina, 12th seeded Western Kentucky upsetting a five seed for the second year in a row against the Fighting Illini of Illinois and 12th seeded Wisconsin beating fifth seeded Florida State. The upsets haven't been major, but they have been there. If you really know basketball, you will appreciate the top seeds moving on. So what if it is chalk? It makes for good basketball games between great teams. We don't need a George Mason going to the final four every year. Parity is good, but the reason most people watch the NCAA tournament after the first two rounds is because they want to see the best teams in the nation face off against eachother. What game would you rather see, Cleveland State vs. Western Kentucky, or North Carolina vs. Pitt? Case and point. If it was the regular season, nobody would even watch that first game probably just the fans of the team. Prennial powerhouses are what people want to see, not the Horizon League versus the Atlantic Sun. It has no draw to it.
Even the games that weren't upsets were exciting. Gonzaga had to come down to a last second layup to beat Western Kentucky in the second round, Utah State missed a three pointer near the end of the game and Marquette escaped with a first round victory, then staged a monstrous comeback behind the courageous play of senior guard Dominic James only to fall short to Missouri in the second round. Michigan State held off an upstart USC team behind a career high 18 points of Travis Walton to give Izzo another trip to the Sweet Sixteen, and Oklahoma held off a feisty Michigan team. Heck Duke pulled a typical coach K style game getting favorable bounces and calls to knock off a very underachieving Texas team. Scheyer's save was an incredibly lucky and skillful play. Then to make matters worse Texas is out rebounded one Dukie while they had three guys lined up around him. The Sweet Sixteen is filled with many coaching geniuses which include; Izzo, coach K, Self, Jamie Dixon, John Calipari, Roy Williams, Jim Boeheim and Mark Few. Not only is the Sweet Sixteen loaded with talented players, but also with bright minds, so settle in and enjoy some more exciting March Madness in the weeks to come.
A Real Humm(el) Dinger
by Jordan Loperena 3/15/09
In what was probably the best game of the weekend, the Purdue Boilermakers captured the Big Ten Tournament title today over the Ohio State Buckeyes by a final score of 65-61. The Buckeyes made quite a run and gave a very outstanding effort, as they did all weekend. However it was not enough.
E'Twaun Moore, JaJuan Johnson, and Chris Kramer were spectacular for the Boilers and so was Keaton Grant off the bench. However, the Most Valuable Player award belonged to Robbie Hummel. He was not only statistically impressive throughout the entire tournament, but Hummel defined the phrase "lead by example". He's not your 30 points per game type of leader. He's not your double-double every single game type of leader (but close). Robbie Hummel is your put the ball in the basket, grab the rebound, down to business type of leader. You will rarely see him holding his jersey up so the crowd can read "Purdue". He won't jump up on the scorers' table after scoring the game winning shot. He definitely won't be found taunting his opponents' players or fans. He plays the game the way it is supposed to be played and respects it the way it's supposed to be played. That is why I was more than happy to see Purdue take this tournament. Ohio State will get into the NCAA tournament after an impressive showing this weekend and Evan Turner will continue to turn heads after he made his best efforts for Big Ten Tourney MVP this weekend.
Time for the real March Madness to begin, should be a fun month!
See Ya Later Sparty ... or Should I Say "#2"?
by Jordan Loperena 3/14/09
Ohio State took care of business in impressive fashion today and looked hotter against the #1 team in the tournament than they did against the #4. Maybe it was the matchup. Maybe it was the pre-game and halftime speeches. Maybe it was the beds in the hotel they were staying in. All I know is that today, Ohio State looked like the team fighting for a #1 spot in the NCAA Tournament. While North Carolina was in the process of losing and Pitt, UConn, and Oklahoma had already lost - a #1 seed for the Spartans seemed almost automatic if they could just win the Big Ten Tournament. Not the case today, my friends.
P.J. Hill was outstanding on defense for the Buckeyes as he may have been the speediest defender I had ever watched live. The Spartans could not make the shots when they needed to and could not seem to find their rythm. The Buckeyes were the team playing with authority and let me tell you know - this rotation of B.J. Mullens and Dallas Lauderdale could become deadly for their opponents in the NCAA Tournament. That's 10 fouls that you can give total to two very legitimate Centers vs. teams who only have one big man and thus will only get 5 fouls. Evan Turner also has made probably the best campaign for tournament MVP than anyone else who has taken the floor at Conseco Fieldhouse this weekend. Let's just say it was a gloomy scene at the Westin Indianapolis, where we were staying along with the Michigan State Basketball squad and what seemed to be a mass amount of their fans.
Purdue came out and ran circles around the Illini in the 2nd game of the day and Illinois failed to capitalize on opportunities to grab momentum and Kramer, Moore, and Hummel were too much for the Illini as their close to dominant performance against the Wolverines was all for none as they fell to the Boilers 66-56. The atmosphere inside Conseco was more electric for this game than any other game this weekend. Illinois traveled a bunch of fans, unlike their football team - their basketball team knows how to bring along a road following. Purdue brought a fan section that you would imagine them bringing, playing about an hour away from West Lafeyette.
Tomorrow's championship game featuring #5 Ohio State and #3 Purdue should be a dandy. These two teams have been the most impressive in their games. I know you're thinking "obviously Jordan, you idiot, they are the most impressive teams because they are in the championship". However, what I mean is that these are two teams that won their games and were in control of the entire game for the most part. These are not the teams who threw down some crazy Cinderella 3's in the final seconds. These are not the Top Dogs who underperformed but managed to shatter this time of the year's favorite Disney Princess's glass slipper in the final minutes. These are two teams who came to Indianapolis to play some basketball and that they have done. If Ohio State can pull of their 3rd straight upset in as many days - Mr. Turner will be the tournament MVP. If Purdue wins, the field will be wide open for that honor. I'm just hoping for a great game, a buzzer beater would be nice to see this time of year.
The Big Boys Are in Town
by Jordan Loperena 3/13/09
INDIANAPOLIS, IN - In the 2nd day of Big Ten Tournament Action, the big boys came out to play and did so in impressive fashion. An Illinois team that suffered a stunning and potentailly momentum stopping loss to Penn State for the second time this year to wrap up their Big Ten regular season showed that they were here to play. A Michigan team that knocked down 70% of its shots from the field against our Iowa Hawkeyes yesterday was held to 33% from the field. That was basically the story as a late run from Michigan wasn't enough but at least closed the gap to make the final score look respectable as the Illini took this one: Illinois 60- Michigan 50.
Ohio State took care of Wisconsin in a 61-57 behind Evan Turner's 19 points. Dallas Lauderdale and B.J. Mullens were able to control things down low as they held Wisconsin's Joe Krabbenhoft to 4 points. The Badgers put three players in double digits but that wasn't enough as Ohio State wrapped this one up in the final minutes.
Michigan State takes care of Minnesota with no problem as they were firing on all cylinders. They never quite let Minnesota have a chance and the more interesting game going on during this time slot feautred the ACC Tournament. Virginia Tech lost to UNC in the final minute and caputred a lot of attention at the local Hooters - not that I was there, just happened to hear it from a little local birdie.
Purdue also put Penn State away early and never let them in to the game. Talor Battle was contained in the first half and Penn state never had a chance. A disappointing day if you were looking to catch some upsets, but one thing was made apparent to me. There are some teams here that don't belong on the bubble. They should either be in the tournament with no bubble talk or have their bubble burst.
As of today
In - Ohio State, Michigan (Despite the loss)
Out - Penn State (looked like they rely way too much on one player and don't appear to have much depth)
Bubble - Minnesota, Wisconsin (remained competitive but a loss to an unranked team could hurt. If Ohio State knocks off Michigan State this loss may be less harmful).
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