Midseason Power Report

I love the All Star Game. It was fun to see the never-ending pregame program, see my team's players get in the game, see power pitching at its finest, and then see the game fall apart at the end. I can't believe ARod didn't get a chance to bat in the 9th inning. And that there was no one left to pinch run for David Ortiz.

My wife and I went to a new sports bar/restaurant and ate some absolutely awesome buffalo wings. It was a new place that had a lot of older folks, not the rowdy young people that usually spice up watching a game, but it was quiet and enjoyable. My wife got tired so I went home and watched it on a Chinese channel online. Better than Buck and McCarver.


Power Report

1. Yankees. Bombers are on pace for 103 wins, they'll top 105. Considering how slow Teixeira, ARod, and Vazquez started, and Joba pitching awful in 8th innings, things can get better. Three starting pitchers have 11+ wins at the Break. The Yankees don't need to make any trades, but they'll probably get a pitcher anyway. If so, Hughes goes to the bullpen.

2. Rays. It was nice seeing David Price pitch, I don't get many chances to see him. Sweeping the Red Sox propels them back up to the two spot, and a series in New York could help their cause even more.

3. Braves. Best record in the National League. Tim Hudson shut down the Mets, outplayed Strasburg, and cruised past the Rays. Congrats to Brian McCann winning the All Star Game.

4. Rangers. What can you say when a first-place team gets a new ace and then loses four in a row at home to the Orioles? Elvis Andrus, what was he doing running past 2nd base in the ASG?

5. White Sox. 8 wins in a row, they have 25 wins in the last 30 games to cruise into first place. Carlos Quentin, Miguel Cabrera, and Brandon Boesch are leading the way.

6. Tigers. It was really fun seeing Jose Valverde strike out the side in the All Star Game.

7. Padres. San Diego has stayed in first place the entire first half. They still have the best team ERA in baseball. Petco Park helps.

8. Red Sox. David Ortiz has square wheels. Fortunately, he doesn't need to run in the Home Run Derby. Players are going to start coming back, but adding Youkilis and Beltre to the mix of hurting players is sad. Francona has done an incredible job getting this team to win but the Rays and Yankees are looking really good and really healthy, too.

9. Reds. Yes the Reds got swept by the Phillies, but how much can you fault them? Three of the four games were on walk-off hits in extra innings.

10. Rockies. It is hard to comprehend that Ubaldo Jimenez has 15 wins at the All Star break. With a possible 14-15 more starts, 23-25 wins is well in reach. Depending on avoiding the DL, I predict 23.

11. Dodgers. I was glad to see my Taiwanese friend Hong-Chih Kuo get into the game, but that throw over first base made me laugh every replay. Poor guy.

12. Phillies. Everyone expects the Phils to make a run in the second half but I'm not quite so sure.

13. Mets. 0-3-1 in last four series. I think this is a .500 team the rest of the way.

14. Cardinals. Wainwright, Carpenter, and Jaime Garcia are a dominant rotation but the bullpen has been anything but a sure thing. It's weird because they have the fewest blown saves in the National League, but all of them have been in pretty dramatic fashion. Pujols and Holliday have been steady but not breaking out like one would expect them to.

15. Twins. Morneau is hurt and Mauer is hitting only .233 over the last month. The pitching, as always, is good not great. With the resurgence of the White Sox and the steadiness of the Tigers, Twins will really have to pull out another miracle to make it to October.

16. Angels. Only 3 games over .500 and their biggest rival upgraded their starting rotation. I thought they would succeed because of Mike Soscia, but the Angels haven't woken up this whole season. Lucky for them they won't fall lower than 2nd with the Athletics and Mariners in the division.

17. Giants. Buster Posey looks to be the slugger that the Giants have been lacking. The rookie catcher is on fire. As for everyone else, Lincecum has not been his dominant self, Matt Cain has pitched poorly over the last month, and Pablo Sandoval appears to have been a one-hit wonder.

18. Florida Marlins. Josh Johnson is a pitcher I hope I can see more often. It was also nice to see Hanley Ramirez mashing in the Home Run Derby.

19. Blue Jays. For a team that's not very good, Jays had a lot of All Stars get in the game.

20. Royals. Most hits and best team batting average. Too bad it couldn't help Zach Greinke early in the season. Royals are playing like a .500 team lately.

21. Nationals. Finally scored some runs for Strasburg. Its too bad he got left in double- and triple-A so long and his season will end near Labor Day. I'll enjoy it the rest of the way.

22. Athletics. I don't like the A's and I don't think they are very good. The end.

23. Cubs. Marlon Byrd, the Cubs representative, may have saved the game by gunning out Ortiz at second. About the regular season: Cubs are a depressing mess. No wonder Milton Bradley hated it here.

24. Brewers. Ace Gallardo is out, Fielder is likely trade-bait, and Trevor Hoffman is still giving up gopher balls. Ryan Braun made a real nice catch last night.

25. Astros. I don't want to let go of the possibility of a nice run in the second half like they usually manage but really, there isn't much to like about the Astros. Oswalt should be traded, Berkman should too but nobody will want him. On a better note: I went to Minute Maid Park last month and had a good time.

26. Mariners. Only team in the AL to have scored less than 300 runs (Red Sox are closing in on 500). There's only so much that Felix Hernandez can do.

27. Diamondbacks. They may have gotten the best of Mariano Rivera in 2001, but who's laughing now? Bullpen ERA: 6.59.

28. Orioles. Congrats on their first road 4-game sweep in 15 years.

29. Indians. Who's in worse shape, the Cavs, Browns, or Indians?

30. Pirates. Run differential of -194, 52 runs worse than the Orioles. Will we ever see this team improve?

Baseball loses a couple legends

As a Yankees fan and fan of all of baseball, I must mention briefly the passing of two American icons this week: George Steinbrenner, The Boss, and Bob Sheppard, The Voice. Steinbrenner is one of the most controversial figures in sports over the last 30 years, but he also did more for his team than any other owner in sports. He bought the Yankees in 1973 for around 10 million dollars, 37 years later that organization is worth billions. There is no substitute for winning, and love him or hate him, nobody put their team in a better position to win than King George. What other team in sports are fans/ownership/players more disappointed in a second place finish than the Yankees? No owner is more demanding than Steinbrenner and appropriately no team wins more than his.

In main message in Field of Dreams is "if you build it, they will come." George Steinbrenner built great teams and wins came. Win lots of games and fans will come. His example of ownership is something most teams should note: if your team has a weakness, go fix it. Result: 7 championships during his time. You may say that The Boss was bad for baseball, but then remember that almost every stadium that the Yankees play in (on the road) sells out.

I've been a Yankees fan for 15 years so I missed most of the crazy Steinbrenner years. But there's a reason that last season's World Series championship was dedicated to The Boss.

The other person was no less memorable than Mr Stenbrenner. Who can forget that great voice declaring, "Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Yankees Stadium." "May I have your attention. Now batting for the New York Yankees, num-ba two, Derek Jee-tah, num-ba two." Elegance, eloquence, gentleness, dignity, and precision best describe Bob Sheppard, the long time public announcer for Yankees Stadium. Has anyone had such a beautiful command of the English language? I really miss hearing his voice coming through the radio during games, but I'm glad that we get a little taste with Derek Jeter's name continuing to be used by recording of Sheppard's voice. Not only was he an amazing speaker, but he was an incredible human being who was loved by all who ever came across him. While unfortunately I never had the opportunity to meet him, I'm grateful that I was able to visit Yankees Stadium, where hearing his voice was itself as great an experience as seeing the game.

A couple links:
Announcing his last game
a tribute

Midseason Review

There is no better time to review the season than the All Star break. I believe in accountability. Here's a link to my preseason expectations.

It's true that the Padres may reach my preseason win total prediction next week (with two and a half months left in the season). In fact, I'm a bit all over the map in the NL. But I was pretty close on everything in the AL.

If you don't want to look at numbers, skip below.
Actual standings (wins/win percentage):
American League
East
Yankees 56/.64
Rays 54/.61
Red Sox 51/.58

Central
White Sox 49/.56
Tigers 48/.56
Twins 46/.52

West
Rangers 50/.57
Angels 47/.52

National League
East
Braves 52/.59
Mets 48/.55
Phillies 47/.54

Central
Reds 49/.54
Cardinals 47/.53

West
Padres 51/.58
Rockies 49/.56
Dodgers 49/.56
Giants 47/.53

Midseason Awards
AL MVP: Miguel Cabrera
Red-hot Josh Hamilton comes into the All Star break tied with Cabrera in home runs and batting average and his team is in first place while Cabrera's Tigers just dropped into second. I give the slight edge to Miggy since he doesn't have the same caliber sluggers around him in Detroit and he leads the league in team runs production percentage (runs + RBI divided by total team runs). But it's really close.
I was a bit off on Mark Teixeira, but after a pathetic start he's really heating up.

NL MVP: Joey Votto
The media's favorite forgotten All Star is among the NL leaders in just about every offensive statistic and his surprising team is in first place. Sounds good to me. Runner up has got to be Adrian Gonzalez, who's also mashing for a first place team with production from no one else.
Pujols was my pick, and he's doing fine but not his regularly dominating self.

AL Cy Young: David Price
The guy leads the league in wins and ERA and his team is looking good for the playoffs. Sounds good to me. Cliff Lee is probably the runner up, averaging an incredible 8 innings pitched per game, and on pace to shatter the strikeout to walk ratio record.
Felix Hernandez, Cliff Lee's former teammate is doing fine, but gets even less help from the Mariners than Lee did.

NL Cy Young: Josh Johnson
The National League pitching may be having the best season ever, with Johnson, Halladay, Ubaldo, and Adam Wainwright cruising. Sixteen straight quality starts, and twelve games allowing one or zero runs gives Josh Johnson the edge here.

AL Rookie: Brandon Boesch
Okay, so Miguel Cabrera does have this guy in his lineup.
Feliz has been great in the Rangers' closer position.

NL Rookie: Jaime Garcia
Heyward and Strasburg may overtake this spot by season's end, but Garcia hasn't missed a start for the Cardinals and has a 2.17 ERA.

AL Manager: Terry Francona
Red Sox have had tons of injuries (read my last baseball blog for details) and still lead the majors in runs scored. The pitching has been sketchy, too, but the Sox are still in competition for the division or Wild Card. I don't think it will last, but I've been wrong before.

NL Manager: Bud Black
No question, Black has turned a team full of no-names into a competitive division leader.

Update Playoff Predictions
Tigers and White Sox will be a great race to the end. I guess I like the White Sox pitching a little better, and NEVER doubt Ozzie Guillen. And while I don't understand how the Phillies could miss the playoffs, the hole is getting a little too deep to dig out of.

Yankees over White Sox
Rangers over Rays
Yankees over Rangers

Rockies over Reds
Braves over Padres
Braves over Rockies

(Say what, Miles is picking the Braves to be in the World Series?)

WORLD SERIES:
surprise surprise: Yankees over Braves

LeBronomania

So the LeBronathon is all but over after The Decision, the special on ESPN where King James announced he will play on the Miami Heat. Here's my two cents on the whole situation.

There have been a lot of people in the NBA and the media (especially ESPN) who were "furious" that LeBron James would make his announcement on a one-hour Special Program on ESPN. What a selfish, classless, egotistical maniac! Did Kobe, MJ, DWade or Bosh make a big deal out of saying where they would go? Who does LeBron think he is?

I listen to a lot of sports radio and watch a lot of ESPN. Anyone who watches ESPN will tell you that there has been nothing but LeBron LeBron LeBron for the last three weeks, two months, even the last two years! The second most annoying thing about it that the coverage has been purely "RUMORS". Everybody had a different opinion, the rumors changed every 20 minutes, and ESPN covered it 24/7 even while the NBA Playoffs were going on.

Is it shocking that LeBron would call for a 1-hour TV special on ESPN to make his announcement? It seems only appropriate that the network that doesn't shut up about him would host this joke of a program.

Next group, NBA owners and coaches: For two years now, several teams have thrown away the last two seasons in attempts to shed money and cap space to lure LeBron. A half dozen team execs came in to Cleveland to meet with him and woo him to their city. They helped create this chaotic mess. They made him seem bigger than the NBA.

LeBron James is the most special physical specimen the NBA has ever seen. He has also never won a championship and his raging ego has made him become one of the most disliked athletes in America. But much of the blame goes to ESPN and NBA executives for this silly program.

But the good news: hopefully in a couple days we won't have to hear any more LeBronomania for months... hurray for baseball All Star Game, hurray for NFL!

Other notes:

- As for me, even though I have been a big fan of LeBron for the last 7 years, I will be rooting against the Miami Heat this season.

- Amare Stoudemire, who signed with the Knicks for $100M declared, "the Knicks are back!" Did his signing bring them up to the 7th seed or 8th seed, or still looking up from below? They are not even close to the top 6 teams in the East.

- Atlanta Hawks resigned Joe Johnson for a max contract of $120M. Why? Who were they bidding against? Does he make them better? Where was he when the Hawks got destroyed by the Magic?

- Seems like there is more money to go around then quality players. What can the Knicks, Bulls, Nets and Cavs do now?

Baseball Notes, 7/8/10

1) Has anybody looked at the baseball standings lately? If the playoffs started today, this is how the National League would shape up:

Braves
Padres
Reds
Mets (wild card)

Yawn.

Last year three of those teams finished in 4th place and the other in 3rd place in their divisions.

2) In case you missed it, the Colorado Rockies came back to win on Tuesday after trailing the Cardinals by 6 runs in the bottom of the 9th. With one out, two on base, one run in, Ryan Franklin came in and allowed 3 singles, a double, and 2 home runs, allowing the Rockies to put up an improbable 9 runs in the 9th inning.

The next day, the Rockies made another colossal comeback against the Cardinals after trailing 7-4 in the 8th inning. You can't blame Coach Tony La Russa for abandoning his closer this time. In the 8th inning, La Russa brought in a new reliever to start the 8th, gave up a double and a groundout. New reliever: walk. New reliever: three-run homer. Brings a new reliever out for the 9th inning, first batter: game winning home run.

That sounds like La Russa's Cardinals from April. This is why St Louis is not the playoffs right now.

3) Not to pour salt on my friend's wounds, but the Red Sox' injury report is turning into a full-length novel. Right now the disabled list includes: Clay Buchholz, Josh Beckett, Dusin Pedroia, Victor Martinez, Jacoby Ellsbury, Jeremy Hermida, Mike Lowell, Jason Varitek, and reliever Manny Delcarmen. This does not include Daisuke Matsuzaka who just came off the DL and Kevin Youkilis who is hurt but not allowed to join the DL. They managed to squeak by for a while but the recent sweep in Tampa Bay is a hit of reality to Beantown. It doesn't help that they are in the same division as the two best teams in baseball.

4) Time to can the Home Run Derby. Due to people dropping out or declining the invitation, this year's group drops from 8 contestants to 6, including Vernon Wells, Corey Hart, Matt Holliday, Miguel Cabrera and an over-the-hill David Ortiz. Yawn. Pujols declined, Howard declined, ARod never does it, Cano pulled out due to a "sore back", nobody's coach wants them to participate, etc. Is there any reason to watch? The steroids scandal has practically eliminated the appeal of the long ball. I'm still interested in some kind of skills competition that could alternate with the Derby to highlight the other stars in the league, like a race around the bases, long distance target shooting, precision/target batting, etc. Like the NBA's slam dunk contest, the home run derby isn't worth staying up for.

If I Were King...

The fan votes were counted, the managers made their decision, and mass debate has ensued regarding the Baseball All Star Game rosters, with cries of "What about Joey Votto?"

First, let me say that of all the major sports all star games, none compare to baseball's Midsummer Classic. The game is meaningful and exciting. The player introductions before the game are a must-see for baseball fans. And the controversy of player selection is guaranteed.

Here is the criteria for selecting players for each league's roster:

-Fan voting (8 players): Baseball fans vote on the starting position players for the All-Star Game, with ballots distributed at Major League Baseball games before mid-season and on the Internet. The designated hitter for the AL team is also selected in this manner.

-Player voting (16 players): Eight pitchers (five starters and three relievers) and one back-up player for each position are elected by the players, coaches, and managers. If the top vote-getter at a position has also been selected via fan voting, the second-place finisher in this category is selected.

-Manager selection (9 players): The manager of each league's All-Star team will fill his team's roster up to 33 players. The NL manager will also select his team's designated hitter. At this point, it is ensured that every team is represented by at least one player.

-Final vote (1 player): After the list of 33 players for each league is announced, fans vote for one additional player, chosen from a list of 5 players that is compiled by the manager of each league's team and the Commissioner's Office.

-Replacements: All Star managers and the Commissioner's Office replace players who are injured, decline to participate, and pitchers who start the Sunday before the game.

The selections are completely subjective. But I agree with ESPN Radio's Colin Cowherd who says there are basically 3 parts to the process: 1) Reputation/Legacy 2) Popularity 3) First half performance (statistics). And that little caveat, every team is represented.

Here's your LINK for the actual All Star selections.

Using the criteria mentioned above, here's how I would fill the teams.

American League
Deserving Starters
C Joe Mauer MIN
1B Miguel Cabrera DET
2B Robinson Cano NYY
SS Derek Jeter NYY
3B Evan Longoria TB
OF Ichiro SEA
OF Josh Hamilton TEX
OF Carl Crawford TB
DH Vladimir Guerrero TX

Pitchers
Cliff Lee SEA
David Price TB
Clay Buchholz BOS
Jon Lester BOS
CC Sabathia NYY
Andy Pettitte NYY
Phil Hughes NYY
Jered Weaver ANA
Mariano Rivera NYY
Joakim Soria KC
Rafael Soriano TB
Andrew Bailey OAK

Reserves
C Joe Buck TOR
1B Justin Morneau MIN
1B Kevin Youkilis BOS
1B Paul Konerko CHW
2B Ty Wigginton BAL
SS Elvis Andrus TEX
3B Adrian Beltre BOS
3B Alex Rodriguez NYY
OF Torii Hunter ANA
OF Jose Bautista TOR
OF Alex Rios CHW
OF Shin-Soo Choo* CLE
DH David Ortiz BOS

National League
Deserving Starters
C Brian McCann ATL
1B Albert Pujols STL
2B Martin Prado ATL
SS Hanley Ramirez FLA
3B David Wright NYM
OF Ryan Braun MIL
OF Andre Ethier LAD
OF Corey Hart MIL
DH Joey Votto CIN

Pitchers
Roy Halladay PHI
Ubaldo Jimenez COL
Josh Johnson FLA
Adam Wainwright STL
Tim Lincecum SF
Mat Latos SD
Yovani Gallardo* MIL
Stephen Strasburg WAS
Billy Wagner ATL
Jonathan Broxton LAD
Heath Bell SD
Brian Wilson SF
Carlos Marmol CHC

Reserves
C Miguel Olivo COL
1B Adrian Gonzalez SD
1B Ryan Howard PHI
2B Chase Utley* PHI
2B Dan Uggla FLA
SS Jose Reyes NYM
SS Rafael Furcal LAD
3B Ryan Zimmerman WAS
OF Matt Holliday STL
OF Andrew McCutchen PIT
OF Carlos Gonzalez COL
OF Michael Bourn HOU

* injured, but deserving

It was especially difficult to select a player from the Athletics, Astros, and Indians. Shin-Soo Choo is injured and won't play, but he leads the Cleveland Indians in every offensive statistic, and since the rest of their team sucks he can be their representative. Michael Bourn leads the NL in stolen bases, so while I wanted to award the spot to Nats outfielder Josh Willingham or Dodgers reliever Hong-Chih Kuo, Bourn is more deserving than Hunter Pence, and there isn't room for any Astros' pitcher like Roy Oswalt. Andrew Bailey made it as a rookie last year for the A's, and I'd rather have a good closer than the 3rd pitcher on a bad team (Cahill).

Utley's spot can be replaced with Brandon Phillips, Gallardo's spot by Chris Carpenter or Kuo, and Choo by David DeJesus. I know there are other replacements that need to, have been, and will be made but those are secondary situations.

It was tough to keep the teams to the limited number of slots, especially the NL. I don't know how Charlie Manuel gets away with Omar Infante, Evan Meek, Arthur Rhodes, and Matt Capps, especially after knucklehead voters selected Yadier Molina and Jayson Heyward to start. I thought Girardi did a great job with the AL.