HarleyQuinn

Well my reasoning for that placement is the following besides the defense being near the bottom of the majors. Kevin Brown can be decent however he is going to be 39 next year so I expect 12-15 wins, gives up nearly 1 hit/IP which may hurt him. Mussina is good for 16-18 wins and is a capable pitcher. Vazquez, despite having one good year of 16-11 has been barely .500 so he'll likely have anywhere from 9-12 wins. Jon Lieber's 2001 season was a fluke if you look at his career numbers. I think 9-11 wins would be normal here. Depending upon who the 5th pitcher is, they could do better/worse. At worst, b/w the 4 current starters only they could get 46 wins or at best, 56 wins. The bullpen, offense and 5th starter have their work cut out for them if they really want to reach 2nd place because IMO and bias aside, the Sox have improved too much in all the problem areas of last year to finish anywhere but 1st as they have improved the starting rotation, bullpen and added more depth then they had last year on the bench.

The Yanks' defense will probably cost them 4-8 games alone. Toronto still has a solid offense now combined with a very capable pitching staff. Sox bring a great staff/bullpen and a dare I say, improved offense with the acquisitions of Daubach(Love the guy), Burks and Reese who also helps the D tremendously. Baltimore just doesn't have the pitching IMO so I'll predict the AL East order as... 1st Place: Boston(96-66) 2nd Place: Toronto(90-72) 3rd Place: New York(83-79) 4th Place: Baltimore(75-87) 5th Place: Tampa Bay(71-91) Only way the Yanks can beat out Toronto(and maybe the Sox) is if they get some MAJOR pitching help and a very solid replacement defensively at 3B.

Just a quick Q, what was the initial problem with A-Rod's contract provisions? Was he accepting less cash for more years? Deferring the money to the team?

Man, if that goes down then this feud will only jump like 100 levels in terms of hatred

Count me in for yours then Tom

News from my source Phillies signed infielder Placido Polanco to a one-year, $3.95 million contract. Polanco asked for $4.5 million in arbitration and was offered $3.4 million. He'll be eligible for free agency after the season, and with Chase Utley ready to step in at second base, he probably won't be back with the Phillies in 2005. Diamondbacks signed third baseman Shea Hillenbrand to a one-year, $2.6 million contract. Hillenbrand asked for $2.875 million and was offered $2.4 million in his first year of arbitration eligibility. The 28-year-old is expected to start at third base and bat sixth for Arizona this season. Athletics signed RHP Chad Bradford to a one-year, $965,000 contract. Bradford, who had been eligible for arbitration for the first time, will remain a tremendous bargain for Oakland. He had asked for $1.125 million and was offered $850,000. Johan Santana lost his arbitration case and will make $1.6 million this season. He had asked for $2.45 million. It's very understandable that the Twins didn't want to sign Santana to a long-term deal now, but if the left-hander stays healthy and continues to establish himself as a top pitcher, the team better make a real effort to get a deal done next winter. With the way he's been treated so far, Santana probably doesn't have any real feelings of loyalty to the Twins. Robert Person suffered a ruptured Achilles' tendon during a workout last week and is out for the season. No Esteban Loaiza here. Person will undergo surgery next week. His elimination from the competition for a rotation spot in Chicago makes Dan Wright and Jon Rauch better sleepers. Comments: Nothing real major although the loss of Person for the ChiSox means they'll plug somebody else into the rotation at the 5 spot(where Person may've ended up). The other news basically concerns the arby players although the A's got a steal by signing Bradford for the amount that they did.

Hells yeah I'm interested Bored! I'll sign up ASAP PS: Make it H2H for the rivalry factor

Some news from Rotoworld.com According to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, the Cardinals have agreed to terms with John Mabry on a minor league contract. Mabry could get a chance to compete for the starting job in left field, but he's likely to be a bench player if he makes the Cardinals. His addition could push Steve Cox off the roster. Devil Rays signed RHP Jorge Sosa and infielder Antonio Perez to one-year contracts. Sosa was adequate as a starting pitcher last season, but the Rays intend to put him back into the bullpen this year. Since he'll probably return to the rotation at some point, AL-only leaguers should keep an eye on him. Perez, who spent too much of last year wasting away on the Tampa Bay bench, will play regularly for Triple-A Durham. Mets signed RHP James Baldwin to a minor league contract and invited him to spring training. Baldwin will get a chance to compete for a spot in the Mets' rotation, but if he makes the team, he'll probably be a middle reliever. The most likely scenario has him opening the season at Triple-A Norfolk. He's not much of a sleeper. Orioles signed outfielder Jay Gibbons to a one-year, $2.6 million contract. Gibbons asked for $2.8 million in arbitration and was offered $2.4 million. The Orioles have now avoided arbitration with all five of their players who had been eligible. Expos re-signed first baseman-outfielder Joe Vitiello to a minor league contract. Back in the majors for the first time since 2000, the 33-year-old Vitiello hit .342 with a 946 OPS in 38 games for the Expos last season. He might earn a spot on Montreal's bench, but he probably won't have any fantasy value. Jack Wilson beat the Pirates in arbitration. He'll earn $1.85 million this year. It's not often that a player looks overpaid in just his first year of arbitration, but that is the case with Wilson, who was offered $1.4 million by the Pirates. He's going to have to step it up offensively if he doesn't want to be non-tendered after the season. David Eckstein won his arbitration case and will make $2.15 million this year. Eckstein, who was eligible for arbitration for the first time after making $425,000 last year, had been offered $1.6 million by the Angels. He's expected back in the leadoff spot this year despite a disappointing 2003 season.

Baseball Primer article dealing with sabermetrics involved I've been working on this in Excel for most of today and figured I would post it. I wanted to see how much a player overachieved or underachieved compared to the hits a player hitting the league average and getting the same number of AB's would get. Notes: This is only the American League, I'll have the NL done by tomorrow probably. American League average is .267. rHits is the residual hits(the difference) between the two. The Residual Hitting Stats for the AL in 2003 Apparently I can't post it here since it won't line up properly so just click the link to see it. Some of it is surprising, an example being the Red Sox as the only team to have all it's players overachieving.

118 VGM's last night, now up to 6th place

Toon Zone Toon Zone's apparently confirmed the voice cast Rino Romano: Batman Alastair Duncan: Alfred Kevin Michael Richardson: The Joker Tom Kenny: The Penguin Gina Gershon: Catwoman Steve Harris: Clayface/Evan Bennett Adam West: Mayor Grange Ming Na: Detective Ellen Yin *scowls at Kevin Michael Richardson(Kramer from Seinfeld) and Rino Romano* So much for Conroy and Hamill... *goes off to watch old B:TAS eps*

Some more news from my fav. source Mets signed RHP Ricky Bottalico to a minor league contract and invited him to spring training. Bottalico spent most of last year in Triple-A and had a 3.66 ERA in 39 1/3 IP for Tucson. He did make two appearances for Arizona, giving up one run in 1 2/3 innings. The Mets will give him a chance to compete for one of the open spots in their bullpen. He's probably no longer capable of being an above average reliever, but he might not be a bad fit as the 11th or 12th man on a pitching staff. Rangers signed RHP Willie Banks to a minor league contract. Banks had a 3.07 ERA and 20 saves in in 56 relief appearances between the Triple-A affiliates of the Yankees and Cubs last season. He picked a better situation to join this year, but he's still not likely to make the Rangers out of spring training. Dodgers signed RHP Guillermo Mota to a one-year, $1.475 million contract. Mota, who had a 1.97 ERA in 105 innings last year, had asked for $1.75 million in arbitration and been offered $1.2 million. In both real and fantasy baseball, he's one of the valuable setup men around. Cubs signed RHP Kyle Farnsworth to a one-year, $1.4 million contract. Farnsworth had asked for $1.7 million in arbitration and been offered $1.1 million, so the two sides settled at the midpoint. The addition of LaTroy Hawkins to the Cubs bullpen means that there's almost no chance that Farnsworth will do any closing this season. Still, as an asset in three categories, he should be fairly valuable in NL-only leagues. Orioles signed LHP B.J. Ryan to a one-year, $1.275 million contract. Ryan, eligible for arbitration for the second time, had asked for $1.55 million and been offered $1 million. Used more strictly as a specialist than ever before, Ryan amassed the best numbers of his career last season, finishing with a 3.40 ERA in 76 appearances. Since the Orioles have another lefty ready to join the pen in john Parrish, there's a good chance that either Ryan or Buddy Groom will be traded this summer. Comments: Bottalico could be a decent reliever but he issues too many walks for the amount of innings that he pitches. Also a career 4.25 ERA(4.248) in 8 seasons(Didn't include last year, 2 games or 94'(3 games)) however that's horrible. Also gives up a lot of hits so IMO, the Mets could've done a lot better. Banks has an even worse ERA at 4.81(4.806) in 6 full seasons and nearly gives up as many hits as innings pitched. Had a career year in 2002 although I'd be wary if having him on my pitching staff.

How many teams are/have Saber minded GM's? I can think of... Oakland(Billy Beane and his crew) Boston Red Sox(Theo and his crew) Toronto Blue Jays(J.P. Ricardi) Possibly Los Angeles Dodgers(Paul DePodesta) About time it started moving out towards the west heh. I was beginning to wonder if it'd turn into an AL Saber League vs NL Traditional League

Not including the Colorado Seasons or the 4 game stint with Houston after the Colorado trade or the 7 game stint with the Mets last year, he has a career 3.77(3.772) ERA in 7 seasons which is pretty good actually. Detroit would get a hell of a bargain there if Astacio can stay healthy and be solid throughout the season. Seasons used: 92, 93, 94, 95, 96, 97(Only when he was with the Dodgers, started 24 games) and 2002

Some more news from Rotoworld Free agent Randy Keisler, back throwing in the high-80s again after being limited in 2003, is expected to sign this week. The Mets are one of the teams interested in him. "He really wants to be back in New York," agent Greg Genske said yesterday. "There's a good chance it could happen with [the Mets], but the other teams in the bidding may be more serious." Keisler would be a bit of a sleeper this year if he's back to where he was before hurting his shoulder two years ago. The Tigers are considering signing free agent Pedro Astacio. Astacio is a risk as he comes back from shoulder surgery, but he's a better bet than pitchers like Scott Erickson and Todd Ritchie to make an impact in fantasy leagues. The Tigers have nothing to lose by pursuing him. Mariners signed outfielder Eric Owens to a minor league contract. Is it too late to take back the Quinton McCracken-Greg Colbrunn trade? Owens and McCracken are similar players, so there's no reason for the Mariners to keep both. Still, they might do so unless they can find another right-handed bat. Mariners signed LHP Terry Mulholland to a minor league contract. There's no way Mulholland should make the Mariners after this week's addition of Ron Villone, but if he does, he'll get a one-year, $600,000 contract. Comments: Astacio could be a decent #4/#5 for the Tigers if he can manage a decent record. His ERA has never been that great though he possesses a career 7K/9 IP and 3 BB/9 IP record which if he can manage to cut down on the walks, should make him solid. Mulholland probably won't and shouldn't make the Mariners roster. His career ERA's barely better then Astacio's(4.37 to 4.58) and he has a .476 winning percentage for his career plus he's going on 41. Eric Owens could be a decent/solid bench player as he has a career .264 batting average in 9 seasons, 3 of which he had less then 60 AB's and the other 6 he's had 200+ AB's. He doesn't K that much but also doesn't walk that much. He could be a good pinch runner if the need be arises though, 126 steals in 174 chances for a 72% success rate.

106 VGM's as Brand and Cassell underperformed greatly 2.12 Lineup PG: Andre Miller SG: Ray Allen SF: Shareef PF: Zach Randolph C: Marcus Camby Coach: Jeff Bzdelik

I'm just waiting for the moment that the NCAA finally smartens up and bans shit like this from happening. Sooner or later something like this would happen and if they want to celebrate, let 'em celebrate after the game at the dorms or whatever rather then mobbing the court and putting the players & coaches in dangerous situations.

Correct Al and it's a baseball simulator Vern. It can found at www.ootp5.com

Bringing the content from Today as of 5:02 and Yesterday Credit Rotoworld Nick Johnson lost his arbitration case and will make $1.25 million this year. Johnson had asked for $1.68 million. Teams are now 2-0 in arbitration this year. Free agent Russ Springer has decided to retire after failing to draw interest from teams close to his home in Louisiana. Springer, 35, was offered a minor league deal by St. Louis, but he wanted to play for Atlanta, Houston or Texas. Free agent Lance Painter has opted for retirement after undergoing shoulder surgery over the winter. Painter might try a comeback if he feels healthy next year, but if not, he finishes his career with a 25-18 record and a 5.24 ERA in 28 starts and 286 relief appearances over 10 seasons. Phillies signed RHP Kevin Millwood to a one-year, $11 million contract. Millwood is settling for a $1.1 million raise. He had asked for $12.5 million in arbitration and been offered $10 million by the Phillies. Cubs signed RHP Hector Carrasco to a minor league contract and invited him to spring training. After a one-year absence, Carrasco made it back to the majors with Baltimore last year and had a 4.93 ERA in 40 relief appearances. The Cubs have a superior bullpen and plenty of young arms for depth, so they shouldn't need him at any point during the season. Cubs signed outfielder Calvin Murray to a minor league contract and invited him to spring training. Murray, a reserve outfielder for the Giants in 2000 and 2001, hit .260/.322/.385 for Triple-A Las Vegas last season. He should be just a part-time player for Triple-A Iowa this year. Red Sox signed LHP Ed Yarnall to a minor league contract. Yarnall was viewed as a deep sleeper at this time last year, but he had some arm troubles and didn't see any time in the majors with the A's. He ended up going 3-3 with a 3.76 ERA, 72 H and 46/30 K/BB in 64 2/3 IP for Triple-A Sacramento. The Red Sox will take a look at him this spring and then send him to Triple-A Pawtucket before the season starts. Red Sox signed RHP Paul Rigdon to a minor league contract. Rigdon, a University of Florida product and former Brewers' fifth starter, has missed much of the last 2 1/2 years with shoulder problems. He won't have an easy route back to the majors with the Red Sox. If he shows he's healthy, he'll probably be a part of Triple-A Pawtucket's rotation. Red Sox signed infielder Jesus Medrano to a minor league contract. Medrano, who had spent his entire career in the Marlins organization, was viewed as a candidate to eventually replace Luis Castillo after a 2002 season in which he hit .297/.411/.413 for Double-A Portland. He wasn't nearly so impressive last season, batting .251/.356/.351 in 73 games for Double-A Carolina and .228/.310/.298 in 31 games for Triple-A Albuquerque, and the Marlins elected not to protect him on their 40-man roster. The Red Sox are curious to see whether he can turn it around this year, but his record prior to his excellent 2002 would seem to indicate that it probably won't happen. Marlins signed RHP Nelson Cruz to a minor league contract and invited him to spring training. Cruz, an adequate middle reliever for the Astros in 2001 and 2002, is coming off a disastrous 2003 in which he posted a 7.21 ERA in seven starts and 13 relief appearances for Colorado. He should have an opportunity to win a spot in the Florida bullpen, but he has little in the way of upside. Marlins signed outfielder Armando Rios to a minor league contract and invited him to spring training. Rios, who hit .323/.389/.510 in 45 games after being sent down by the White Sox last season, may still be worthy of a bench spot in the majors. He'll compete with Brian Banks, Abraham Nunez, Gerald Williams and Ryan Christenson for two vacancies on Florida's roster. Marlins signed outfielder Mike Colangelo to a minor league contract. Colangelo would have at least turned into a solid reserve outfielder if he could have stayed healthy after being drafted by the Angels in 1997. The 94 games he played in for Triple-A Syracuse last season was the second highest total of his career. He hit fairly well (.281/.375/.413), but the Marlins probably won't give him much of a chance to make this year's team as a fifth outfielder. Royals signed RHP Doug Linton to a minor league contract. Linton, one of the best pitchers in the minors while with Triple-A Richmond in 2002, went 2-10 with a 5.28 ERA for Triple-A Syracuse last season. The Royals will give him an invitation to spring training, but the 38-year-old right-hander is not going to be a serious contender to make the club. Royals signed outfielder Adrian Brown to a minor league contract. Brown hit .282/.347/.359 in 122 games for Triple-A Pawtucket before joining the Red Sox last September. His solid defense in center field would make him a decent fifth outfielder for Kansas City, but the Royals are likely to use Rule 5 pick Rich Thompson in that role. Athletics signed RHP Steve Woodard to a minor league contract. Woodard, still just 28 years old, is going to need to pitch well in Triple-A before he gets another chance in the majors. That's especially true since he picked the A's to sign with. The former Brewer had a 4.69 ERA in 11 starts and 20 relief appearances for Triple-A Pawtucket last season. Twins signed outfielder Brian Simmons to a minor league contract. Simmons, who spent half-seasons in the majors with the White Sox in 1999 and the Blue Jays in 2001, bounced around last year, playing in 42 games for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, 10 games for Triple-A Portland and nine games for the Atlantic City Surf of the Atlantic League. He'll contend for a spot on Triple-A Rochester's roster. Padres signed RHP Justin Kaye to a minor league contract. The 27-year-old Kaye had a 2.49 ERA in 31 relief appearances for Triple-A Pawtucket and a 7.20 ERA in 20 appearances for Triple-A Iowa last season. He's always had pretty good stuff, but it doesn't look like he's ever going to refine his control enough to allow him to become a successful major league reliever. Padres signed LHP Tim Byrdak to a minor league contract. Byrdak, who spent time in the majors with the Royals from 1998-2000, had a 3.78 ERA in 15 starts while pitching in indy ball last year. The 30-year-old won't be anything more than a candidate for a spot in Triple-A Portland's bullpen. Devil Rays signed RHP Chad Gaudin and LHP Jon Switzer to one-year contracts. Gaudin and Switzer are similar talents who were rushed to the majors last season and are expected to begin this year in the minors. They each figure to take turns in the rotation before season's end, but neither is a particularly good sleeper for fantasy purposes. Mariners signed LHP Ron Villone, who had been with the Astros, to a one-year, $1 million contract. Villone had success as a starting pitcher for the Astros last season, but his ERAs the three previous years were 5.43, 5.89 and 5.81. Since he's no better against lefties than versus righties, the Mariners are probably going to be disappointed with his performance as a reliever. Twins signed infielder Jose Offerman to a minor league contract and invited him to spring training. Offerman hit .295/.383/.466 in 98 games in the Atlantic League last season and .276/.347/.390 in 28 games in the Dominican Winter League. Since he's no longer much of an option at second base, he should be through as a major leaguer.

110 VGM's last night 2.11 Lineup PG: Sam Cassell SG: Jerry Stackhouse SF: Peja Stojakovic PF: Elton Brand C: Brad Miller Coach: Eddie Jordan

Eh, if the other teams don't want to get beaten down so badly don't let them score. I want the return of the helmet cam(Madden preferably or NCAA). I'd like to see more options on stadiums and more playbooks realistic to the coaches/teams then the generic plays in all the playbooks.

Whoa...didn't even realize she was Ruthie in Carnivale! Meh, if I listened to the voices harder I'd probably recognize it a bit. Here's hoping Gina does well but I'm too attached to the voice actors from B:TAS

Just saw this and loved it. Loved the tension/chemistry between Johannsen and Murray SPOILER~! Also loved the bit with the blonde friend(Kelly?) of the photographer singing the karaoke to the two people, found that kinda cute and funny at the same time.

*demands Hamill as voice of Joker* Anybody know if Gershon voiced Catwoman in B:TAS? I have a feeling she did but I can't remember

MVP: Kevin Garnett Rookie of the Year...erm Mid-Season: Lebron James 6th Man: Antawn Jamison Defensive: Allen Iverson(2.5 SPG last I saw) Most Improved: Zach Randolph Coach: Rick Adelman