A-Rod Saves Baseball

With a little cooperation from all parties involved
that's exactly what can happen. You see opting
out of his contract can do exactly that.
If the owners don't drop the ball, no pun
intended, this could be just what baseball needs.
By opting out of his contract, the possibility
actually exists, and a realistic one at that.


Alex Rodriguez was due approximately $75
million dollars on the remainder of his deal,
basing that on three years left on a $252 mil.
10 year deal. If owners realize that he is
actually kind of stuck between a rock and a
hard place and don't offer him any more than
$25 million per, and don't give him another
10 year deal, then it could pave the way, if they
want to pave the way that is, for a more
responsible spending trend. Twenty five
million dollars should almost never be
preceded by the word "only", but this will
insure that his opting out won't get him
more money, and hopefully make maggots
like Scott Boras think twice before advising
their clients to opt out of contracts such as
his, when it was clear that the Yankees
would have made him richer by extending,
and padding his present/past contract

Look, let's not fool ourselves, I'm not, by
thinking this is easy, but if the owners
really want to ensure that prices don't
continue to spiral out of control, then
to make an example of the biggest fish
is the best way. Offer him what he was
already making, what's he gonna say?
How am I gonna feed my family on $25
per year? Stupid like Latrell Sprewell
doesn't happen everyday.

Two things that immediately come to
mind though is this. Now we know why
he was willing to take less money from
the Red Sox to make the trade from
Texas go through.; Boras knew he could
opt out of his contract and shoot for more
money later. The other being that he does
NOT want to be a Yankee, period, don't
BS us into that garbage. Alex can also
reflect back on one other thing if he never
wins a WS ring. If the Baseball (Devil)
Union would have allowed him to take
less money from the Red Sox, he might
have a ring, for now he doesn't, and any
team that over pays to get him will most
probably not be able to afford to put
together enough players around him
for A-Rod to ever win a ring.
Perhaps that will be the most poetic
justice of all, because for all the money,
many of these athletes can't stomach it
when they are tagged as losers, just
ask Dan Marino, or Charles Barkley.

Hits, Runs, And Errors

What a week in baseball, and not all of it
good either. Let's take a look shall we?

Hits
First off I got the chance to listen to a piece
Don Mattingly's conference call with the
media today, and one thing was very, very
clear. He is one super super classy man.
I grew up a Met fan and what I remember
is that no matter how much I hated the
Yankees, I never hated him. It's easy to
see why that was.

Runs
Grady Little resigned today amid his name
being further dragged into the mud by the
Dodgers GM Ned Colletti, as he continued to
negotiate with people to fill the position of
Dodgers manager while the position was still
held by Little. Grady Little may not be the
best manager out there, but he certainly
seems to deserve the respect that he has
shown during his career.

Errors
Scott Boras is the snake in the Garden of Eden
that was once baseball. What a lame ass
apology for his A-Rod opt out announcement
in the middle of game four of the World
Series. Immensely disrespectful to the
Red Sox and the Rockies. Even if you are
his client you have to have lost some respect
for him after one more in a line of many
underhanded moves.

Yankees, Red Sox & The Sports Spage

At the start of the Yankees managerial search they
had three candidates. Mattingly, Girardi, and Pena.
Of the three many thought Mattingly was a slam
dunk to get the job, for no other reason than the
fact that he was a Yankee, not that he was actually
the best candidate. Girardi was the bonus choice
because of what else, he too had Yankee ties, but
a better choice because in his one year as a major
league manager, he won manager of the year
honors with the Florida Marlins. Tony Pena was
supposed to be the token minority interview, but
turned out to be far more than that because he
was the best qualified of them all. Pena too was
once manager of the year, but managed for a longer
period of time with an overachieving KC Royals
team, and was loved by his players.

Today the Yankees offered their job to Joe Girardi,
and as of this writing he has yet to accept, but they
are in negotiations. I wonder, if Giradi and the
Yankees were not to agree to a deal, and they are
out on Don Mattingly, because he has already stated
that he doesn’t want to return because he wasn’t
offered the job, would they then offer it to Pena?

They certainly made sure they moved quickly to steal
that sports page from the Red Sox winning another
World Series, didn’t they?

A-Rod Opts Out & The Red Sox Rule

Now that A-Rod has opted out, will the Yankees
keep their word and not negotiate with him or
did they bluff, and he just call it?

More importantly, now that the Red Sox have
begun their dominance of the 21st century can
the Yankees afford not to deal with him, and risk
having the Red Sox land him now that Mike
Lowell is a free agent? It's clear that the Yankees
are way too far ahead the Red Sox in total
number of titles to be threatened, but you and
I both know that all that matters to "The Boss"
is the here and now, and as long as he is even
mildly coherent, this is going to be a big deal.
Let the drama begin.

NFL Picks

OK three straight 3-0 weeks for me, and I
want more. The record now stands at 15-3
and even I didn't think it would go this well,
spread or not. Here we go again.

Indianapolis

Chicago

Denver

There were easier ones, but I didn't want to
seem greedy about it.....................Good Luck

A Different Boston Tea Party

It's a great time to be a New Englander/
Bostonian these days. Number two in the
college football rankings, Boston College
won last night to break a three game losing
steak for teams that have been ranked
number two this season and improved
their record to a perfect 8-0.

The Boston Red Sox won game two of
the World Series last night as well, and
took a commanding two games to none
lead over the Colorado Rockies.

The New England Patriots seem to be
invincible after a 7-0 start and look to
be heavy favorites to have a perfect
season if they get past the Colts next
week.

And last but not least, the Boston Celtics
are heavy favorites to represent the East
for a shot at an NBA title after some heavy
and substantial trades this off season.

The Bruins better hope no one is watching.

Quickies

NHL
Now that the New York Rangers have decided
to spend money like the NY baseball teams
they better at least start scoring like them.
Back to back shutouts and a 2-5 start are no
way to show a return on your investment.

MLB
So Barry Bonds says he's a tad bitter about his
departure with the Giants. He says he was
fired. YEAH ! The nerve of them pretending
he was steroid free ! ! !

MLB II
It was only game one, I know, but the rout is
already on. And oh, if the Sox do lock this this
Championship up can we stop looking back
at the 80 plus year drought, since this one
will give them seven, and they will trail only
the Yankees and Cardinals in that dept.
I think that whole sympathy thing is now
a little played out.

NFL
Can some one please tell Bill Belichek that he
isn't being rated in the BCS poll or the coaches
poll, and running up the score will not improve
his ranking.

NBA
Hey it's a good thing that Greg Oden, and Kevin
Durant are slated to save the NBA since they will
be able to see it first hand from the sidelines.
Uh, What's plan B for 2007?

Red Rocks

The World Series starts this week and much
is being made of the fact the Rockies have had
eight days off. Have they cooled off? Have they
lost there momentum?, etc. Much is also being
made of the fact that they handed Josh Beckett
his first loss of the season and that they won
two of three at Fenway during inter league play
this season.

Well let's not get disillusioned here, MLB
would love for you to believe that this will
be a great match up, and from a Red Sox nation
standpoint it will be. That's where MLB's rating's
are going to come from. A Cleveland Indians vs
Colorado Rockies World Series would have been
bad for both MLB and of course FOX Sports.

That's where the Cinderella story ends.
Realistically the Rockies have no chance,
hot or not, there run ends here. Sorry to
be so harsh, I applaud their run, grit, and
perseverance, but that fat lady has sung.
The Rockies are over matched in every
category, and that will show up in a
hurry. This series will end quickly.
I firmly believe that this will be a sweep
in four straight, I am however of the
school that believes it is possible for it to
go five, but my number is still four,
so let's see shall we.

Red Letter Day

I know you might expect me to start with
the Red Sox following that story title, but
I'll get to them, I promise.

Kimi Raikkonen and Ferrari kick started
Sunday's "Red Letter Day". Ferrari
known by their fans for their fiery red
color, showed that fire when they made a
seemingly improbable comeback to win
the Formula 1 title by one point, when at
the start of the day they trailed by eight.

After enduring a spy scandal that knocked
McClaren Mercedes out of the Constructors
championship and should have knocked out
the McClaren drivers as well for gaining
advantage from the information, they stayed
strong and steady. They trailed for the entire
season except the last day when it counted
most. Congratulations to them.

The Red Sox then capped off a three games to
one deficit to the Cleveland Indians by
making a comeback of their own and
winning game seven an advance to their
second World Series appearance in four years.
Though their Japanese import Dice-K was
slightly better than average this time out,
he was able to manage a victory.
Congratulations to them as well.

NFL Picks

After my second 3-0 week in a row the record
is now up to 12-3 and the term NFL Locks is
living up to it's name. Get ready for another
shot at perfection;

New Orleans

Washington

Seattle

Their were easier ones, but I didn't want to be
accused of really hamming it up, so these should
at least pose some challenge..........Good Luck

Tough Guys

Now that the Yankee brass has shown Joe Torre
just how tough they can be, by low balling their
EX manager, and calling it respectful, let's see if
they can manage to stick to their guns with A-Rod.

The Yankees have come out publicly and said that
if Alex Rodriguez opts out of the final three years
of his contract, they will not negotiate with him.
Why? Well THAT is simple. The Yankees have had
their way with A-Rod while the Texas Rangers
foot a hefty chunk of that contract as a part of the
trade that was made for him, but if he opts out and
re signs then they are on the hook for the whole
ball of wax. I like their stance on this one, but can
they stick to it. This is the same ownership that
said they would not bring back Torre if they lost
to the Indians in the ALDS, and even though it was
a low ball offer that they made to Torre, it was an
offer, albeit a backhanded one.

Guys like Scott Boras have had their way with
owners George Steinbrenner for as long as I can
remember now, and I hope I'm starting to see a
trend in the opposite direction. The Oakland Raiders
made a point of sticking to their guns when it came
to the number one overall pick in this years draft,
and though I still think they gave too much in the
end, they definitely made him, sweat, wait, and
give some stuff up. Al Davis and company are
without question a much more savvy group than
the Yankees, and though Championships might
say otherwise, they don't just try to buy a ring,
and actually have a REAL salary cap to work with.

I really think that they might show some guts if
they stick to their guns on this one, as opposed to
being as spineless as they were with Torre. I mean
they can always take the stance that they didn't
fire him to their fan base, and save their face, but
we know that the NY sports fan is much too savvy
for that load of garbage.

I also believe that A-Rod, as big as his numbers were
this year would be taking a HUGE gamble if he opts
out and the Yankees are out as players for his
services. I can't see him making more than $20
Million per outside of NY and if owners are smart
they'll see that he is stuck between a rock and a hard
place as far as millionaire ballplayers go, so he can
be had for similar numbers, instead of inflated ones.
I CAN'T BELIEVE I JUST WROTE THAT.

I do however expect some idiot like Tom Hicks to
come along and bid against himself and give the
farm away when it isn't necessary. They may be
loaded, but I will argue that they ain't always bright.

This should be interesting.

Bombs and Blasts

MLB

The Rockies just keep wining, but did they
win too fast? I personally think they don't
have a good shot at winning it all, especially
with their pitching depth. Now with all this
time off, it sure is gonna be hard to get
things revving again.

NCAAF

Nebraska Athletic Director gave Bill Callahan
a contract extension during this season and
heading into the USC gave at home it looked
well deserved, but USC blew out the Huskers,
the team is 4-3 and has dropped way out of the
top 25, now the AD is gone and Tom Osborne
is in as interim AD. How long do you think before
Nebraska decides to eat Callahan's contract and
move on? After all in today's sports economy
it's quite small by standards.

NCAAF II

You have to wonder if the apple has lost it's shine
for Charlie Weiss in South Bend. The Irish this
week will start their third different QB, they lost
their fourth player to transfer, well fifth kind of,
one of them returned, and they have only one win,
losing to such rivals as BC, and Michigan, with USC
just around the corner.


NFL

Eric Mangini last year took the NY Jets to
10 wins, this year they get out of their own
way. Easy schedule last year or are teams
more aware of his tactics this year?
One thing is certain by the sound of the NY
sports talk radio shows, no ones calling him
"Man-genius" anymore.

NFL II

With 25% of the starting quarterbacks already
out due to injury this year, you have to wonder
how long it will take for the NFL to implement
a two hand touch rule for the QB position.

Diced K

Before this years baseball season began the Boston
Red Sox were in a huge bidding war with other teams
for just the rights to negotiate with Japanese phenom
Daisuke Matsuzaka, and after that was done agent
Scott Boras wanted then to pony up additional
millions to have him sign with Sox.

In August he "Suggested" that the Sox might want to
cut his innings because he wasn't used to that many
innings or starts in Japan, and knows that Daisuke
would never ask for reduced work.

Well Scott why didn't you mention this when you were
trying to suck the life out of the Boston coffers.
Don't worry baseball fans he's not done yet.
Boras is presently trying to convince A-Rod how
lucrative it would be to opt out of his Yankees contract.
Well after Matsuzaka's 14-12 4.40 ERA season and
a less than sub par post season he should be able to
get A-Rod a BILLION easily.

Sounds like "rookie" of the year honors to me folks.

NFL Picks

Working on 75% after a 3-0 week last week,
but I have to keep this up if I want to keep
the title of "locks" for my picks. OK so I'm now
9-3 and off of my second 3-0 week, so here goes.

Jacksonville

New England (Not wimping out here)

Philadelphia

and let me tell you, this is one tough week.

Rockies & Rolling

The Colorado Rockies just keep chugging along,
and as a bonus they have done something that
hasn't been accomplished in about 30 years.
Not since the "Big Red Machine" Cincinnati Reds
has anyone won the first five games to start the
playoffs. Add to that the fact that their streak of
wins is now at an impressive 19 of 20 going back to
the final two weeks of the regular season.

Another point worth making is that the Baltimore
Orioles last night added to their keystone cops
routine by firing pitching guru extraordinaire
Leo Mazzone, and that's important because another
person who shares a similar title is NY Mets
pitching coach Ric Peterson, who's staff was miserable
down the stretch. Well Bob Apodaca's Staff with the
Rockies has an ERA of 1.91, in these playoffs.
Apodaca is a former pitching coach with NY Mets.
________________________________________
On a different note, Dusty Baker interviewed for the
Reds managerial position this week. I can't see him
in that spot, but if he takes it, he should definitely look
up Mazzone, I just think Baltimore is a little unlucky
right now, and I'm sure Eric Bedard will have plenty
of good things to say about him.

Of Note

NFL

Cowboys vs. Patriots Advantage Patriots

The Cowboys are real light 5-0


Romo vs. Brady Advantage Brady

Experience, Rings, Rings, Rings


Owens vs. Moss Advantage Even

Bigger Mouth vs. Bigger Malcontent



MLB Playoffs


The Rockies just keep on rolling, now at 17 of 18.

Their lack of starting pitching should catch up to

them should they get to the World Series, but

we shall see.

The last time the Red Sox & Indians met in the

playoffs Pedro Martinez was making a legendary

appearance out of the bullpen to cap a classic

and storied comeback.



NBA


Kobe Bryant was keeping his mouth shut, but his

genius of an owner had to bring up trade talk again.


The NBA has slated a bunch of pre-season games

vs. foreign teams, just another indication that

sooner or later Toronto isn't the only NBA stop

where you'll need a passport.



NHL


Matts Sundin became the Toronto Maple Leafs

leading scorer last night, but still no sign of his

name on a Stanley Cup yet. Maybe he can be

traded to a true contender at the deadline

someday follow in the footsteps of Ray Borque.

Torre's Replacement

If the Yankees fire their manager now that
they've been eliminated from post season
contention who are the front runners to take
his place. The NY Daily News reports that
reports that Tony LaRussa is a candidate,
but that's just a paper pegging a big name
where a ego maniac owner is in the mix,
so that was an easy guess with nothing to lose.

LaRussa would be a bad mix, with New York,
Steinbrenner, and with a very uncertain job
security situation, something he has never
had at any stop in his career.

Other names include Don Mattingly, and Joe
Girardi. Mattingly is not high profile enough
for George, and might be over matched in his
first assignment. Girardi has at least one go
at it before as Marlins skipper, but that was a
nothing to lose job, nothing was expected.
People also wonder if his loyalties to Torre
would allow him to take the job, but he
turned down the Orioles and Nationals
jobs in back to back years, so I don't think
loyalty is a factor here.

The Wildcard here is Bobby Valentine, and
though we know he can handle it, this isn't
his type of team, he likes to platoon and rest
way too many teams for a star laden line up
like George Steinbrenner teams.

Let the speculation continue, but I say odds
are real good he winds up staying. Just a
gut feeling I have. We'll see.

Timeout!

Three weeks ago Denver Broncos Coach
Mike Shanahan called a timeout a split
second before Oakland Raiders kicker
Sebastian Janikowski kicked an apparent
game winning field goal. Upon retry, after
the timeout the kick hit the upper left upright
and went wide left. The strategy worked, and
the Broncos won.

A week later the Raiders were faced with
the same dilemma after the Cleveland Browns
had driven to within field goal range at the end
of the game to attempt a game ending and
winning field goal. Raiders Coach Lane Kiffin
taught a lesson a week earlier, tried the same
thing, he called a timeout a half second before
the snap and though the attempt would have
been good, it didn't count. Upon retry it was
blocked and the Raiders were the victors this
time.

Last night Dick Jauron, the Buffalo Bills
head coach showed he too was paying attention,
and did the same thing to the Dallas Cowboys
kicker Nick Folk, and after hitting what
appeared to be a 53 yard game winning field
goal, that too didn't count. Upon retry though
he did connect once again and the strategy
failed for the first time in it's most recent birth.

There you have three recent instances were
an edge is trying to be gained by rattling the
kicker. This isn't new however, icing the kicker
is an age old tradition in our beloved NFL, but
only in the past three years has the coach been
able to call the actual timeout, as opposed to a
player on the field. It seems that this is leading
to a trend that may stick around, though many
rumblings are already being heard around the
sports community, especially the burnt fans.
Sports talk radio has already made many a call
for the league to take away the coaches ability to
call these types of time outs or time outs all
together and leave it to the captains on the field.

Whatever the end result, it is obvious that
has found another way to keep it interesting.

Quick Hits

Yankee Doodle Dumb

I agree that it's his money, his team and his choice,
but firing Joe Torre if the Yankees lose to the
Indians in the playoffs, as George Steinbrenner
stated on Sunday, would be pretty D U M B.
Not one Manager presently holding a job has
more than two rings, Torre Has four and 13
straight playoff appearances.

Run Forrest Run

Seeing Marion Jones apologize publicly the other
day kind of makes you wanna forgive her.
That's your choice, but it also makes you wonder
if selling your soul eventually eats you up so bad
inside that it makes you wanna bust. Or maybe
it was the check cashing scandal. I wonder if
the IRS will eventually do that to Barry Bonds.
I'd pay to see that day, for more than one reason.

Sophomore Jinx?

Second year coaches in the NFL this year have
a combined record of 13-29, two of those teams
are winless. The Saints are one of those winless
teams. I wonder how long before the shine wears
off on last years magical season.

Scraping The Bottom Of The Barrel

Jacques Villeneuve made his NASCAR debut
today. He is a former Champion in Formula
One racing, and the F1 track in Montreal is
named after his father. That being said,
the rest of the racing world today either
laughed or just didn't care. Oh how far
he's fallen.

NFL Picks Time

Last week my locks where anything but,
however I'm still a respectable 6-3 on
the season, but not what I would call
a lock. So I have make it good, here goes.

Tennessee

Dallas

Indianapolis

Good Luck,
I won't need any.

Lord of the Flies

An instant Yankee legend and fan favorite the
impenetrable Joba Chamberlain's Achilles heel
may have been found. Swarm him with flies,
lots of them. This prompted Yankee fans to take
to the sports radio airwaves Friday night and
scream their lungs out, and it wasn't long
before fingers were being pointed.

Suddenly not everyone was a fan, and the city of
Cleveland was a trash bin, how amusing.

As you can imagine the accusations didn't stop
there. This was A-rod's fault. No matter that
the team had a total of three hits over 13
innings. A-rod was 0 for six for the two games
with two measly walks and nothing to show
for it. I'm sure the last one to be blamed
here will be Derek Jeter though even with
his one for eight in the two games.

Like fans everywhere when things start to
crumble there is plenty of blame to be passed
around, and even though the Yankees are
plenty capable of turning this series around
and winning it, one thing is sure to Yankee
fans, Derek Jeter is "Lord of the Flies"

Yes You!

Travis Henry of the Denver Broncos has tested
positive for Marijuana use by the NFL, and may
now be suspended for a year according to the
Collective Bargaining Agreement and league
rules on substance abuse.

But wait!

Mr. Henry is sueuing the league to stop the
use of these results against him because he
claims his representatives were not present
during the samples testing. Because You and
I both know that the league is conspiring against
him and the results would have been negative
were his reps present, and of course they
wanted to make sure the they would violate
the CBA so that they could have their results
thrown out.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
That was sarcasm for those of you that need a clue.


The truth here is, he is guilty and a repeat
offender, the kind that deserves less of our
benefit of doubt. He is also trying to save his
own behind and year's worth of game checks.
He should have thought of this before lighting
up. I mean if you wanna light up, that's your
business, but don't give me this conspiracy

crap when you get caught red handed.
Perhaps he can get help from Floyd Landis.


This case is now headed to Federal court
because the CBA is covered by labor laws.
Feel free to laugh at any time.

What Happens Now?

Three teams had notable second halves this year in
Major League Baseball. The New York Yankees,
who had a tremendous second half to dig out of
a first half deficit that was hideous.
The Philadelphia Phillies who coupled with a
huge choke job by the NY Mets made the surge
they needed to overtake the Mets for first place
in the eastern division of the National League.
And last but not least, the Colorado Rockies who
won 13 out of their last 14 games to finish the
season and then a play in game to decide the NL
Wildcard spot against the Padres with a dramatic
three run rally in the bottom of the 13th inning to
make it 14 of 15.

So "What Happens Now?" is the question.
Well the Yankees got crushed 12-3 in their
playoff opener, now that's only one game, but
clearly the second half momentum didn't carry
over in game one. The Phillies opened their
playoff season at home against those very same
aforementioned Colorado Rockies, and of course
the buck had to stop somewhere, and though a
split of the first two games could have easily
occurred, it didn't The Rockies crushed the
Phillies in game two to take a two games to
none lead.

It's still early and much can and will happen,
but it sure is curious how some teams just
keep on rolling and others fine themselves
asking "What Happens Now?"

KA(ra)Z(matic) Rockies

It the play in game for the National League
Wild Card spot on Monday the Colorado Rockies
went into their half of the 13th inning down two
runs and facing a Hall of Fame closer in Trevor
Hoffman. It seemed all but over, and if they had
displayed the heart that the NY Mets showed in
September, let alone Sunday, it would have been.
But up stepped the man Mets fans wanted to get
out of New York so desperately, Kaz Matsui.

In his time in NY the fans expected so much, and
booed so loud when they didn't get it. Well maybe
it's that kind of attitude that drove the Mets to be
so tight in the end, because they seemed afraid of
their own shadows, and their lead off man Jose
Reyes, who know one will argue is truly one of the
bright stars of the game, was any thing but that.

Back to the Rockies though. Matsui led off with a
double, and set the table for a tremendous comeback
worthy of high praise. They made a single out and
scored three runs to erase their two run deficit,
The only out being the sacrifice fly that led to the
winning run. Now you can make a case that they were
destined to win that game, but you can't argue that
the spark that Kaz Matsui gave them just that, a spark.

A wise man once said be careful what you wish for,
you may get it. I have all too often learned that lesson.

Let us not forget that the the Rockies and Clint Hurdle
deserve praise for more than just last night. Down the
stretch the Rockies won 13 of 14 games and put themselves
in a position to be there Monday. Also worthy of note
is that going into the final three games of the season
they still had a shot at first place, but lost the only one
of those 14 games, and in the end made it 14 of 15 with
4 straight over a Padres team that although hurt couldn't
win one at home in a three game series. The Rockies
showed tremendous heart, and had fun along the way
GOOD FOR THEM !!!!! A truly well deserved spot in
the NL Playoffs. now let's see which of these two
juggernauts wins the Phillies Rockies match up.
Either w2ay, it should be fun.