Virginia Tech tragedy, cont'd: I don't usually embed video clips, but this one says (and does) more than I (or anyone) could write about the Virginia Tech tragedy. Hopefully, you've already seen it:
Here's another must-read post from The Dugout and AOL Fanhouse's Nick D, a Virginia Tech student. (Fanhouse's Michael David Smith has a great take, too.)
MLB Studs: The Nationals, for wearing Virginia Tech hats yesterday in their 6-4 loss to the Braves. (Affirming that sometimes, a team can claim victory, even in defeat. I've never been prouder to be a Nats fan. All 4 weeks of it.)
MLB Duds: The Cardinals, whose 6-7 start is the worst by a defending W.S. champ since the '98 Marlins. (But these Cards weren't imploded in the offseason like that
Matsuzaka Watch: 10 Ks in 6 IP will be forgotten after his bases-loaded walk sent home
Sosa Watch: Well, of COURSE Sammy hit a home run in his return to
NBA Regular-Season Finale: The Warriors basically have a play-in game tonight. They can lock up the 8-spot in the West with a win over
NBA East: Wow, the Wizards are struggling enough that the 6-, 7- and 8-seeds are all up for grabs in tonight's season finale, meaning the 1-, 2- and 3-seeds don't know who they are playing yet. (Whoops: We don't even know who the top seeds will be; the Cavs could still get the 2-seed.)
NBA: Jerry West leaving Grizzlies. Well, that happened about 3 years after I thought it would. (Ah, yes: But will he regret it when they land Oden or Durant? Maybe he's got one more blockbuster trade in him to ship out Pau Gasol for a totally revitalized roster.)
More NBA: David Stern banishes ref Joey Crawford indefinitely, including the playoffs. That's for effing with Tim Duncan. (Actually, that's Stern asserting his authority and enhancing his already substantial cred with the fans, teams, players... and refs.)
NBA Draft: By winning last night, the Hawks have assured themselves of the 4th-worst record in the league. If the Ping-Pong balls follow, they will have just won their way into giving the Suns the No. 4 pick in the Draft. Forget losing: The Hawks can't even WIN right.
NFL Draft: I saw a Mock where the Texans got RB Adrian Peterson. That would be smart (even with their signing of Ahman Green in the offseason).
Is it possible that the combination of Peterson and DE Mario Williams is better than the woulda-coulda-shoulda combo of Reggie Bush and the best-available '07 DE (say Adam Carriker or Jamaal Anderson)? Who's going to argue that Bush is a better every-down RB than Peterson?
(On second thought, forget it: He won't last until
College Football: Wait, is the NCAA really going to get rid of the "unlimited text" plan for hard-working coaches? That must set a record for reactivity by the NCAA. (But get this: They're going to allow the coaches to continue to email players unlimitedly. Guess what: A coach with a Blackberry can email a kid with a Blackberry or EnV or Treo or whatever just as easily as he can text him.)
Arena League QB throws 800 TDs: I'm a day late on this, but if the Pro Football Hall of Fame is going to consider Warren Moon's CFL career in judging his Hall bonafides, wouldn't this Arena QB at least merit a sniff? (To position yourself as the Hall for ALL things Pro Football and not have the most prolific Arena player in it seems wrong.)
Do you remember the post where I compared Gilbert Arenas to Barack Obama? The geniuses at Wizznutzz (who helped me produce the Florida T-shirt you see in the upper-right corner – get yours!) have produced a companion T-shirt. Click here for a link to the must-have shirt of the 2008 Presidential campaign.
-- D.S.
124 comments:
third round of bloggers mock will be held here if anyone who drafted in the first two is interested
http://drdoomvote.blogspot.com/
TANK ALERT - Minnesota needs to lose tonight to assure that they are going to get a top 10 pick in the NBA Draft. If they win and they do not get a pick in the Top 10 they lose there draft pick because of a trade they made and this years pick is protected in the top ten.
So they will be tanking against memphis.
Win - No 1st round pick
lose - top 10 draft pick
not a hard choice
I was watching the Braves/Nats game last night and was impressed with the gesture. There were also fans with signs of support and banners.
Please, please, please, let the Warriors take the 8 spot. That would make the first round in the west, potentially the best ever. The matchups are great.
Re: the 800 touchdowns in Arena. Its not even close to comparing apples to apples or even apples to oranges. Half the field, different rules. No comparison at all.
anyone else think Dice-K was cursing is offense in japanese yesterday. 3 games pitches a 1-2 record but he only given up 6 runs but the Red Sox have only scored 5 runs for him.
The Nats wearing the VT hats last night was pretty special. It was actually suggested by a fan, so the team ordered them late in the afternoon. First Nats game I miss all season and they do something like that...
If I knew how to put links in here, I would link to this:
http://www.thesabre.com/message_board/general/2007/April/17/511671.php
The Beta Bridge is a bridge on the campus of UVa that the students paint for all types of occasions. I am sure this is the first time this bridge has ever been maroon.
This Friday, April 20th...wear your orange and maroon to support and remember those affected at Virginia Tech.
"Hokie Hope," an alumni-led declaration of a national "Orange and Maroon Effect" day.
Yeah, when you make a post about a guy throwing 800 TDs and you don't even mention his name... he probably isn't hall of fame worthy.
Jays win against Dice-K on only 3 hits. Great start to season other than the injuries!
NHL - Rags, Nucks, Sens all take commanding leads in their series while Wild, Flames stay alive.
Quit pushing the shirts
Portland and Golden State aren't division rivals any more.
Also, the Nats cap tribute was awesome.
Dan~ Thanks for the links to Nick D's posts...I have enjoyed reading about his firsthand experience through this.
Year o' the quaterback.
Looks like the boys at Kissing Suzy like Shanoff's idea...haha!
Dan, I like the shirts, we bought a few, including one for my dad.
No Darko ankle injury mention? Oh well.
As for the VT speech, very good, I watched it lived yesterday in between classes.
cmfost, I thought the wolves had a bottom ten finish wrapped up. If I am looking at it correctly they cannot catch Philly in the 11th spot.
Wild hockey last night...great game other than all the cheap shots missed by the refs, both ways. The fight at the end can be put on the refs letting the game get out of hand, IMO. There's nothing better that 20,000 fans chanting "Boogard" at the end of a game. Jacques Lemaire (coach) had perfect timing in sending the enforcer out to send a message....that he is our only big guy.
Also, we finally broke through the Bryzgalov Wall.
There's also a really nice tribute/piece that Curtis Granderson did for his blog on ESPN, which showed a lot of class.
Major DUD: Jake Westbrook- 1.2 IP, 8H, 8ER, 3 dingers
Boy, I bet the front office is so glad they got him to sign that extension.
Dan, totally off topic but completely relevant in my opinion. You should do something about the look of your site. Checking out KSK and a few others, they have color mixed in and all that junk. It's much easier on the eyes then the white, especially when you're staring at a computer screen all day. Any chance we can work on that buddy?
Jake Westbrook should die. He killed me in fantasy yesterday.
Wow...that Curtis Granderson piece brought a tear to my eye.
Forgot my stud: I'll give props to Dave DeJesus. 4-for-5 with a home run, lifting his average to .362...starts off strong, but tends to fizzle with the Royals' nose dive in the Central.
b1b - if they lose they can finish no worse then 7th and they way the draft lottery works is you can not go back more then 3 spots. Thus they would gaurantee the pick being in the top 10.
MLB Studs/Duds from yesterday:
Studs:
1. Tom Gorzelanny
2. Moises Alou
3. Chad Gaudin
4. Ian Kinsler
5. Gustavo Chacin
Duds:
1. Jake Westbrook
2. Jeff Weaver
3. Jorge Julio
4. Jermaine Dye
5. Matt Murton
When you're doing a mock draft, are you allowed to predict the team on the clock will use up its time allotment and get beaten to the podium by the next team, a la the Vikings a couple of years ago?
NBC's going to be pissed if Ottawa eliminates Pittsburgh. But Pitt needs that first season to "get their feet wet" in the playoffs.
And my prediction of Dice getting the Roger and Pedro treatment (no run support every time out) seems to be coming true. Chacin owns the Red Sox, though.
cmfost, I stand corrected. Thanks for the clarification, forgot about the moving back three part of the lottery.
brian in oxford, did you have to bring up the Vikings draft debacle of a few years ago. We are stil trying to forget about the Mike Tice/Red McCombs era of football.
Todd:
Take it easy on Jeff Weaver, he has a specific role with the M's: wear out the other team's bats the day before F Her pitches. Besides, it's not everyday a pitcher lowers his ERA 14.75 points in one outing (30.5 to 15.75).
Cards' excuse: World Series hangover plus injuries.
Neither of which is a good excuse.
This is looking like 1983, 1986, or 1988 all over again...
Todd, is it bad when 2 of your 5 duds are on my fantasy team? Wow I'm really screwed...
I hated the Virginia Tech speech. I heard it on the radio on the drive home yesterday. It was a memorial service, not a pep rally. If I had a friend or family member killed, I would have been deeply offended.
I'm compiling a list of pitchers that I would go see if they were in town. As I am within range of the O's and Nats they could be in either the AL or Quad-A. So far I have this:
Johan Santana
Daisuke Matsuzaka
Curt Shilling
Roy Halladay
Jered Weaver
Felix Hernandez
Justin Verlander
Chris Carpenter
Carlos Zambrano
Not active list:
Fransisco Liriano
Roger Clemens
Under consideration:
Roy Oswalt
Josh Beckett
John Lackey
John Smoltz
Brandon Webb
Chris Young
What are your lists? Dis I miss someone you love?
Discuss.
I just read Granderson's blog post and he has quickly become one of my favorite non-Orioles. I have been reading his blog since opening day and have been entertained. This morning I read it and I was moved. Very good guy.
Sorry, I left Pedro Martinez off the "not active" list.
Guy~ You forgot Jake Westbrook...he'll give the O's a good lead. LOL
Ok, so my humor is a little off today.
Back to sports:
The Nets just passed the Wizards (well tied and own the tie-breaker) and get Toronto now in the first round if they win their last game. Whoever gets the Wizards in the first round is going to be very happy.
Rangers pulled out two close 1 goal games in Atlanta and then demolished them last night in NY 7-0. Talk about Altanta being totally demoralized. I love the hats being thrown on the ice for the hat trick.
Being a casual hockey fan, I am probably one of the few people who can root for both the Rangers and Islanders. Most local hockey fans despise one of the two teams.
This morning on the Mike and Mike show on ESPN, they were saying Roy Oswalt is the best pitcher in the NL. Hard to argue with that statistically. He doesn't seem to get as much press though.
guy-
You need to move Oswalt into the "must see" list. I've never seen him live but watching him on TV he just looks absolutely phenominal.
@Guy,
List looks about right. Jake Peavy appears to be a glaring omission. I'd definitely go see Oswalt though, and probably Matt Cain or Dan Haren. Also once they're called up, I'd love to see Phil Hughes, Tim Lincecum, Homer Bailey, and Yovani Gallardo pitch.
Also, there has to be some mention of Joel Zumaya, even if he's not a starter.
@Chipp, I really hope F-Her isn't widely used for King Felix (maybe for Brett Myers?). Your whole post did make me laugh though. Well done.
@Andy, Aren't we not supposed to talk about our fantasy teams here? But it's a H2H league, so a couple bad outings won't kill you.
Guy, your little joke calling the NL the "Quad A" is completely retarded. This isn't the first time I've heard it and I'm sure it won't be the last, but at least the NL plays a real form of baseball. The DH is completely against the traditions of baseball. Those guys don't even play defense. I barely consider them baseball players when they only play half the game.
I'd go to see Maddux pitch once, if I knew he was going to be on that day (that's part of the vote against him at this point, I suppose)....that sun-pop double in the 5th killed his chance at a win (did someone say fantasy roster?) yesterday. I have seen Wakefield pitch, that was more fun than anything to be in awe of. That works better with good seats so you can appreciate the movement.
I wonder how many Rangers fans are thinking, hmmmm....win 2 close ones, then a rout in the third game...this is just like....uh oh!
Roy Oswalt and Roy Halladay are only 2 of the top 3 pitchers in baseball.
Bash the NL all you want Guyinthecorner. They have the World Series Champion.
@Andy, without rehasing an argument from a couple weeks ago, the AL has just dominated the NL in the past few years. Since then I found a great article describing the disparity between the leagues in 2006.
And you can cry all you want about the DH, but I think that baseball is a better sport with guys like Ortiz and Hafner. Also, who wants to see pitchers hit?
I'd rather see Hafner and Ortiz if they were also playing somewhere in the field. When you think of the best players of all time, who do you think of? You think of the Babe Ruth's and the Ted Williams'. Those guys were not only great hitters but also great fielders, and in Ruth's case, a pretty good pitcher, too. I'm sorry but a complete baseball player plays defense. Hafner and Ortiz will never be considered a complete player in my opinion until they play in the field. I personally think they're a bunch of cowards to not play in the field. If they aren't very good, practice. Get better. I will guarentee you that Ortiz or Hafner or Thome will NEVER make it to the Hall of Fame.
uh oh, another AL v. NL debate? I smell another chance to be called an idiot.
Anyway, that's a pretty large list guy. If I was being as all-inclusive as you, I'd probably substitute Ben Sheets for Curt Schilling (washed up).
"I will guarentee you that Ortiz or Hafner or Thome will NEVER make it to the Hall of Fame."
...and Andy has reached a new low.
Thome did play a fair amount of 1B, so I'm not sure he fits in that description. Hafner and Ortiz could play 1B (Ortiz isn't terrible... he's not good and his range sucks, but he's not terrible).
But I ask this again, who wants to see pitchers hit? Isn't that pretty much a joke too though?
Also, I don't think I'd put Ruth or Ted Williams in the category of being "great" fielders. At least I'd use Willie Mays or Bonds as a better example of that.
And as for playing half the game, couldn't I then criticize most of the Cubs who can't seem to make it through half a season (if that)?
Dont laugh since this is coming from an O's fan, but how about Daniel Cabrera?
On any given start he could throw a perfect game, strike out 10 in 5 innings, walk 10 in 5 innings, throw numerous wild pitches or completely fall apart. No matter what, it wont be boring.
So I guess by Andy's standards, starting pitchers should never even sniff the HOF, considering they play 2/3 of a game every five games.
Good call Verbal, I'd definitely pick Sheets over Schilling. Though if I weren't a Sox fan, the opportunity to heckle Schilling might be worth it, right?
Also, I think Thome has a chance at the Hall if he can put together 2 or 3 more solid seasons, but I think his injuries really hindered his chances. Plus he gets lost in the steroid era, as his contemporaries (Bagwell, McGwire, Palmeiro, etc., all have had crazy stats). Ortiz and Hafner were both late bloomers, so I couldn't see either of them going for that. But it's not because they're DHs.
I'd move Smoltz to the must see list. You'd be able to see a (hopefully) HOF pitcher who is still on top of his game.
Pitching is slightly more difficult than any other aspect of the game. Me? I can hit a baseball. But I can't throw one more than pry 70 MPH and can't get any movement on it. So pitchers deserve a heck of a lot of credit. DH's don't even play half the game. They play, well, say 4-5 AB's out of let's say an average of 40 AB's per game and that's 10%. They play 10% of the game.
I'll also criticize Prior and Wood all the time and have. I'm sick of them. But you know what? We finally have a pitching staff that isn't counting on them. I personally love the Cubs' current staff.
And I'd like to see Zambrano or Arroyo hit anyday. They may be the exception, but I'd still say they're more of a baseball player than a DH.
Thome was the Indians' third baseman from before he was moved to first. I think injuries have limited him to DH now.
Not sure where Hafner played before the pros.
I've seen both Wakefield and Pedro Martinez pitch. Very cool.
If pitchers weren't babied into not hitting all along their development, a few more of them might hit .200. Nothing sickens me like hearing a pitcher was sent up and told not to swing. I think having pitchers who can and do hit provides a strategical advantage over teams whose pitchers can't. How about when D-Train hit 7th a couple of years ago?
It's like when Clemens was losing all those 1-0 games for Houston. You want runs? Make your own runs.
I do want to see pitchers hit, and more importantly, I want to see them TRY to hit.
Here's a perfect example for the argument against the DH: Edgar Martinez. He's probably the best DH to ever play (yes, better than Ortiz or Hafner) with a .418 career OBP, but many, if not most, analysists and writers say he won't get in the Hall when he's elidgible in 2009 because he was a DH and rarely played in the field.
@cycledan
A pep rally it wasn't. A rallying cry, however, is what the people of Virginia Tech needed. When something happens that so many people can't find the words to describe, you fall back on the simplest unifying things.
I would have been one to scoff too, had it been somewhere else. But that is what was needed here yesterday.
Arroyo hit .111 last year, with only 9 hits the entire season. Awesome dude, yes. Good hitter, no.
Dontrelle, Marquis, and Mike Hampton also come to mind as being pretty good hitters. I'm sure I'm leaving out some others though.
Smoltz, Glavine, and Maddux were all pretty good during the Braves' run. Smoltz probably the best of the three, but they were all good bunters, if nothing else. Hell, most shortstops these days can't even bunt right.
Even if Edgar played 1B, his "counting stats" aren't good enough to get him in the HOF anyway. Edgar was only top-5 in MVP voting once, and hit only 309 HRs. Solid, very good player, yep. HOFer, no.
I will agree that there should be a different standard for a DH to get in the HOF, but I wouldn't say it's patently impossible. They'd just have to compare favorably with some of the elite 1B of all-time.
@Guy
Must see pitchers!
D-Train, Cole Hamels, Matt Cain, Scott Kazmir and maybe Phil Hughes in the near future!!
First Basemen in the Hall of Fame (post-dead ball era), done by career .avg/HR/RBI:
1. Lou Gehrig: .340/495/1995
2. Jimmie Foxx: .325/534/1922
3. Harmon Killebrew: .256/573/1584
4. Willie McCovey: .270/521/1555
5. Eddie Murray: .287/504/1917
6. Johnny Mize: .312/359/1337
7. Hank Greenberg: .313/331/1276
8. Orlando Cepeda: .297/379/1365
9. Tony Perez: .279/379/1652
10. Bill Terry: .341/154/1078
Not in the Hall:
1. McGwire: .263/583/1414
2. Palmeiro: .288/569/1835
3. Thome: .282/475/1308
4. Mattingly: .307/222/1099
5. Mo Vaughn: .293/328/1064
6. Will Clark: .303/284/1205
7. Keith Hernandez: .296/162/1071
DHs:
1. Edgar Martinez: .312/309/1261
2. David Ortiz: .283/235/775
(Didn't include Hafner since I think he still hasn't hit his prime, which is scary to think about)
Best NHL draft moment last year!
In what was one of the most memorable moments in National Hockey League draft history, Philadelphia Flyers general manager Bobby Clarke began announcing his first round pick at the 2006 Entry Draft before pausing to seemingly confirm the name of their pick.
The confusion created an interesting story line but for Claude Giroux, the confusion didn't take anything away from the accomplishment.
"I wasn't really sure," Giroux said when asked if he thought the Flyers might have been changing their pick. "I was hoping they weren't going to change their mind but he just forgot my name."
Revised list...
Must see:
Johan Santana
Daisuke Matsuzaka
Curt Shilling
Roy Halladay
Jered Weaver
Felix Hernandez
Justin Verlander
Chris Carpenter
Carlos Zambrano
Roy Oswalt
Not active list:
Fransisco Liriano
Roger Clemens
Pedro Martinez
Under consideration:
Josh Beckett
John Lackey
John Smoltz
Brandon Webb
Chris Young
Ben Sheets
Jake Peavy
I would agree that if I were not an O's fan that I'd go see Eric Bedard and Daniel "the heat" Cabrera.
On the NL being Quad-A...
It's just that there are less good hitters and less good pitchers. Look at the interleague records. My must see list is 7 AL and 3 NL. It's just a reality. Don't give me the Cards. When the regular season ended they were like the 11th best team in baseball. They wouldn't have contedned in the AL.
The whole "the NL has the world series champ" arguement is weak. The Heat won the NBA title last year and I don't hear anyone saying the East is better than the West. In a series anything can happen and the best teams don't always win.
Anyone see that Ortiz-Posada commerical for espn? This absolutely cracked me up. Here's the link.
http://sports.espn.go.com/espntv/espnShow?showID=SRDA
Hip Hip, Jorge!
Yeah, that ad is pretty hilarious. For all we may criticize ESPN for, the Sportscenter Ads have been pretty awesome over the years. Though nothing can touch the "Follow me to Freedom" ad.
OK, Jhawk, I have to say that that statement was dumb when you said "In a series anything can happen and the best teams don't always win". If a team beats another team, they are the better team. That's the whole concept of sports. The better team is the team that wins. If that's not the case, than this whole thing we call competition is worthless and paying attention to sports is pointless.
The winning team is ALWAYS the better team. That is exactly why they won. If the losing team were really better, then they wouldn't have lost.
I'm not trying to offend you by saying that statement was dumb either. I make dumb statemtns all the time.
andy-
You have to be joking. The best team does not always win. What about when the Cowboys went 1-15 one year but their win was against the Redskins who won the Superbowl?
How does that work? The Cards got very lucky. They came across a team that was not experienced and fell apart at the end. That doesn't mean they are better.
It's best to just ignore andy. He NEVER says anything that resembles intelligent thought.
Can you explain the concept behind competition then if the better team doesn't always win? Because I'm pretty sure there isn't one then.
Well, then you'd have to explain why no team goes 162-0 or 0-162, if they're the best or worst team in the sport!
Andy, the fact is that the Cardinals were not the best team in baseball last year. They weren't even the best team in the NL (the Mets were, and beat them in the season series 7-6 by your logic).
Objectively, the AL was just better than the NL last year. If you read through that article I posted there's no way you could disagree.
But if we're to follow your logic, the fact that the AL had a .611 winning pct. over the NL last year means that they were the better league.
Can't have it both ways. You can say you prefer the NL style, but the facts are just too obvious, the AL was by far the better league in 2006. (This year it's too early to make any conclusions)
Regardless, don't call anyone dumb for disagreeing with you on an opinion. I mean, other than Verbal, everyone here is pretty sharp (we kid because we love Verbal)...
Also, [rare] props to the Yankees for honoring Jackie Robinson in their momument park. Very classy move.
The point I'm trying to make is that the argument of one team being better is irrelevant. It is all relative because it changes every time they play. Were the Cowboys better than the SB winning Redskins?? ABsolutely, on that particular day. The next time they played or time before that, which ever it happens to be, they weren't. It's all relative though to that particular day/game/series though. Were the Cardinals the best team last year? Yes, because they played the best when it mattered. I'm a Cubs fan so you know I hate saying that but it's true. Were the Cards better than the Yankees?? Yes, because they beat the Tigers, who beat the Yankees. Whether you like it or not, that is the truth.
I also didn't call anyone dumb. I called jhawk's statement dumb. Maybe I could have used a different word, but hindsight's 20/20 right?
Why is this so hard to understand?? The Cardinals beat the Mets in the NLCS. By logic, they are the better team. I don't give a hoot what the regular season series looked like because the championship is determined in the playoffs, not the regular season. If the championship is the whole point of sports, which it is, then by logic and basic common sense, the Cardinals were the best team last year.
For the millionth time,
The Cards didn't just get lucky last October, they got healthy too. Too many people get hung up on the 83 wins and forget that they rolled through the first half of the season before Pujols went down for 3 weeks, and then everyone else started getting hurt.
The playoff lineup (ie, the everyday lineup) was used only 5 times after the trade deadline.
stud: Sammy Sosa,Joe Mauer,Washington Nationals
Dud: Red Sox's offense.
How come there are no closers on the list? What about Francisco Rodriguez or Bobby Jenks - two young studs that bring the heat and an assortment of pitches? Or even Lidge if your team is trailing in the late innings.
To say the Mavs tanked last night is just plain dumb. They have secured the #1 seed and would be bucking a trend if they didn't rest their best players when they have nothing to gain by playing them in the final remaining games.
oh and Dan,Have you seen The latest ESPN commercial?
http://sports.espn.go.com/espntv/espnShow?showID=SRDA
ranks up their among the greats with Y2K and Field Turf.
tbender-
The Cards almost missed the playoffs by playing the worst month of baseball I've seen in my lifetime by a team that claimed to be decent. In September weren't they a bottom 3 team in the league?
If it isn't plainly obvious to anyone how much better the AL is as a whole, we can wait till interleague to see if the AL can hit a .700 winning percentage.
And as for the DH, it needs to go.
There's something illogical about allowing an offensive substitute for one guy just because he can't hit. Should the Astros ask to hit for Everett and Ausmus because they can't hit either?
@Tbender,
You do make a valid point, that we hadn't seen a relatively healthy Cards team down the stretch. But, they did also get lucky, in that Jeff Weaver somehow pitched the games of his life out of nowhere, that Isringhausen got hurt which arguably made them better, and also that the Mets were far from healthy (no Pedro, no El Duque, a hobbling Cliff Floyd).
But you do make a solid point in distinguishing the Cards as being healthy in the postseason.
I still strongly disagree that they were the best team in baseball last season, but you do make a very valid point. And the transitive property does not work in sports. Can't we all agree on that?
Actually, I'm pretty sure the DH rules do not say it must be used for the pitcher. So if your catcher hits .180, you could in theory use the DH for him and put the pitcher in the lineup.
Guy,
A piecemeal lineup and a piecemeal rotation in the second half. I don't think you read everything I wrote. There was no continuity from day-to-day in the second half.
Too much focus on September and not enough on they games they were winning in April and May.
Hmm... I just thought of a good argument the NL-homers can use for the NL getting better.
Jeff Weaver went from the NL to the AL.
That automatically improves the NL, doesn't it?
But here's the thing about the NL last year, while I understand the Cards were hurt, it doesn't change the fact that a team that won 83 games last year made the playoffs. Considering they were in the same division with 2 of the worst teams last year (Pitt and the Cubs), and played the worst team in MLB during interleague 6 times (KC), it doesn't say a whole lot for the NL if its largest division was that weak.
Tbender, was Pujols out during the interleague games against the White Sox and Indians?
Todd...
I agree completely that luck was involved, but it wasn't the primary factor like so many people I hear say.
I do believe that on any given day the best team does win.*
*except for Denkinger, the Tuck rule, and US-USSR basketball games.
Correction: Tampa actually had a worse record than KC last year.
I agree TBender, they had Pujols. No team could be "bad" with Albert Pujols.
Still though, you can let us all in on a secret now, it really was Jered Weaver pitching for you guys, right? I mean, there's no frickin' way that was Jeff Weaver. And Detroit's pitchers making all those errors?
But they did play very well when it mattered. And no matter what we say, the Cards still got their rings.
I will still argue though that the World Series is just too small a sample size compared to interleague play in determining which league is better.
Don't forget C.C. Sabathia in your pitchers to watch. He is a giant out there and can gas it but has learned to pitch to spots and slow down if he has to. Since the end of '05 he has definitely been one of the best pitchers and his wins have only suffered due to bad luck with the bulpen blowing games.
Whoa, wait a second, if the Raiders were the better team, why were they on the road?
Pujols came off the DL for the last game vs Chicago -- the 1-0 game where Chicago was 1-hit by Reyes (HR by Thome).
Edmonds was hurt in that same time period, as Taguchi is listed in CF, per Baseball-Reference.com, for most of the Interleague stretch.
St. Louis lost all 3 vs Chicago, all 3 vs Detroit, and the first 2 vs Cleveland (and two more against KC...Ick, June was bad.)
By the end of May, St. Louis was 34-19, best in the NL (NY 32-20). Detroit was 35-18, best in the AL.
As a stranger in this Country, I don't understand, how cops couldn't do better job? Hundreds cops and SVAT tim and even students couldn't stoop only one person who wasn't professional soldier or trained to kill? He killed 33 people in front of higgle trained Home land security professionals? And what could happened if there wasn't only one shutter, if he didn't kill him self, or he was enemy solder trend to kill. I think, a lat of mistake are made here and a lat of question must be answered.
But now, everything is clear: if this Country have so smart generals like you Mister Repings Wine, then what can we expect from soldier like Mister Vinn Marine.
This is my respond to you, and now I tell you my opinion about this event:
- "THEY WERE AT WRONG PLACE AT WRONG TIME" president Bush set speaking about 33 people dead at Virginia Tech.
- How "COLLEGE" can be a "WRONG PLACE" and "STUDYING" at " WRONG TIME"?
It is just shameless cowering of failure of this administration to make americens safe in there homes. Innocent people are paying price for that.
Do something. America.
Just changing politic, the leaders, and way of interacting with rest of the World after WWII, made Germany the most prestigious country at World today.
Wake up America. "COLLEGE" newer was "WRONG PLACE" and " STUDY " NEWER WAS " at "WRONG TIME" (except in middle age) , but "OUR KNOWLEDGE" can be late, and price what 33 fallen heros at Virginia Tech payed, is to high. But, like all heros, they tried and they succeeded, living this world with powerful message : Coexistence and Peace at Earth.
Make your choice. You have so many good choices in next presidential election, and I hope, your choice will be "Peace". And do not forget, I am telling you from refugees experience: only truly democrats can build democracy and make Peace work.
White, black, women,.. Doesn't matter if Country or peace is in question.
- "Let America be America again"...
My condolences to You, to fallen American Heros families, and to all Mankind. It is really planetary tragedy for all of as. Ibrahim Pelesic
Thanks Tbender. I was hesitant to use St. Louis' interleague record against them if Pujols were out. I knew it was somewhere around then, but wasn't sure exactly when.
As for the patched up rotation, how was their September rotation different from their October rotation, other than that Jeff Weaver no longer was Jeff Weaver?
I'm a Cardinals fan and I will tell you their excuse...they were not a good team last year. They just caught the breaks and played well through October. They didn't improve. I'm not surprised by this start at all.
I love the Tuck Rule!!! Adam V still had to kick 2 field goals after that to win the game in OT!
Regarding the Portland comment, aren't the Blazers now in a different division than the Warriors?
As a Virginia Cavalier, I feel bad for the kids, but I also cringe at the b.s. "feel good" stories that will make Tek "America's team" next year.
Ibrahim, don't EVER use the Va Tech Massacre to make a stupid political statement. Politics had nothing to do with what happened in Blacksburg. It was hard enough reading your statement with the broken english of yours, and I'm not trying to criticize you for that, but what you said really made my blood boil. President Bush, for all of his mistakes, did and said the right things yesterday, if there even are right things to say.
PS: This is a sports blog. Take that junk somewhere else.
I was thinking that was randomly posted on a ton of blogs, including Dan's.
In some sports, there is a higher likelihood of the better team winning most games. In other sports, a strong individual effort could easily propel a much weaker team against the better team. For example, last year, Ramon Ortiz had a no-hitter through 8 1/3 against the Cardinals late in the season when the Cardinals line-up was getting healthy. The Nats won the game (Pujols hit a monster homerun in the 9th).
I say, the sport where an individual performance could most change the outcome of a game is hockey... My rank order is this:
1. Hockey -- a hot goalie can carry a team all the way through the playoffs even.
2. Baseball -- Maddux and Pedro both have Cy Young awards on losing teams
3. Basketball -- but it isn't a gimme -- the Lakers were 6-6 in Kobe's streak of averaging almost 40.
4. Football -- Really hard for a single player to have much impact. Even Brady and Manning have been let down by their defense (which they can't control) giving up more points than they could score....
C.C. Sabathia should be on the list because he can bat, too.
natsfan...did you not watch the USC-Texas game last year?
The sport where a single player can dominate the most is in basketball. In a single baseball game it is the pitcher but since a pitcher can't throw 9 innings every day or hit more than once every nine ABs, I got with basketball. Let us say a Div III college team plays a high school team with on pro on the high school team.
Put the top goalie in the NHL on the High School team and they still lose. Put the top MLB pitcher on a HS team and he probably shuts down a college team but can only do it for one game but they probably get shut out as well. However put Kobe on a high school team and I bet they can beat almost any Div II or III college.