EVIL~! alkeiper

I'm not a fan of Nascar, but I do place it in the Sports category. As for soccer, the problem in America is that maybe 1-2% of the world's best players play here. Baseball, Basketball, football, etc. are popular here because we feature the world's best players in those respective sports.

Get ready for bad segways every time Babe Ruth is discussed.

In all seriousness, George Washington would get the nod from me. If I were to pick a non-political American, I would probably take Muhammad Ali.

Isn't God Canadian too?

Dale Earnheart

He has players to pass to. Passing the ball last year was just asking for trouble. Ironic, since an accident led to the movie's creation in the first place.

The Kinks - Alcohol

Venezuela would also benefit from the relief pitching of Rafael Betancourt, and I think Miguel Cairo would be in the infield mix. As for manager, Ozzie Guillen makes sense. Canada looks about right. The infield needs work, but overall they have a better team than they could've fielded at any point in their history, save for the Ferguson Jenkins era.

I think Blanton could easily eclipse Redman's numbers this season. Particularly since Redman's K rate took a plunge this season, while Blanton looked dynamite at times in the Oakland bullpen. Look at Blanton's 4:1 K/BB ratio in AAA, and its hard not to like. I think the key for Oakland is the bullpen. It was awful for half a season, and it might have cost them the division. Dotel, Bradford and Rincon form a nice starting three. Justin Duchscherer should contribute again, and indications are that Huston Street will make the big club soon. The A's have a ton of pitching depth, so they should be able to piece together a decent bullpen.

Various news outlets are reporting that a deal sending Pirates catcher Jason Kendall to the Oakland Athletics for Mark Redman and Arthur Rhodes is close to reality. Oakland fans have got to love this trade, as they merely dump two pitchers they didn't need anyway. Oakland's lineup for next season... C- Jason Kendall 1B- Scott Hatteberg/Dan Johnson 2B- Mark Ellis SS- Bobby Crosby 3B- Eric Chavez LF- Bobby Kielty/Eric Byrnes CF- Mark Kotsay RF- Nick Swisher DH- Erubiel Durazo Johnson and Swisher both posted .400+ OBPs in Sacramento last season. Eric Chavez found his bat against lefties. There is some serious sock in this lineup now, and hardly a weak spot. Now the pitching staff. Mark Mulder Tim Hudson Barry Zito Rich Harden Joe Blanton Mark Mulder may very well be only their fourth best starter. That's insane. I really like the A's chances next year with this squad. The Pirates? They're idiots. They will save a chunk of change on Jason Kendall. Will they use it to improve the club? It's unlikely. The club finished 13th out of 16 NL clubs in runs scored, and they just traded their second or third best hitter. Apart from Jason Bay and Craig Wilson, there is little punch in their lineup right now. If J.R. House isn't ready to take over at catcher, it could be a long season. But this trade COULD go right for Pittsburgh, if House develops, Rhodes rebounds, and Redman solidifies the pitching staff. It is a longshot, but this trade might work.

-I'm thankful for living in a golden age to be a baseball fan. It is possible to get live broadcasts of any game around the country live on your computer. Next season, thanks to satelitte radio, I will be able to catch live baseball no matter where I happen to be.

Sometimes you need to buy low. Look at how the Yankees built their team in the first place. Paul O'Neill slugged a meager .373 in Cincinnati before the Yankees traded for him. Scott Brosius hit 203/259/317 the year before in Oakland, when the Yankees traded for him. David Wells compiled a gaudy 5.17 ERA when the Yankees picked him up the first time. Darryl Strawberry came off of three years of batting .237, .140, and .239, respectively. You can't always have players who are 100% reliable. But if you are willing to overlook the warts, you can find some gems.

For those unaware, the Keltner List is a Bill James creation used to eavluate the worthiness of a HOF candidate. You may have seen the list in other guises, particularly Meltzer's Wrestling Observer HOF. Most lists are a spinoff of this one. I've done about a dozen of these, which can be found using the board's search function. I have a list of names, and I draw one at random. Today's candidate is Lon Warneke. 1. Was he ever regarded as the best player in baseball? Did anybody, while he was active, ever suggest that he was the best player in baseball? No. 2. Was he the best player on his team? Yes, a good argument exists that Warneke was the best player on the Chicago Cubs from 1932-35. 3. Was he the best player in baseball at his position? Was he the best player in the league at his position? Warneke was the best pitcher in the National League in 1932. Soon after, he was eclipsed by Dizzy Dean. In all of baseball, Lefty Grove was better. 4. Did he have an impact on a number of pennant races? Warneke's Cubs won the National League twice, in 1932 and '35. Warneke won two games in the 1935 World Series, allowing just one run in 16.7 innings. 5. Was he good enough that he could play regularly after passing his prime? No. Warneke suffered an arm injury near the end of the 1936 season, limiting his effectiveness. He effectively retired at 34, only returning when the war created a shortage of talent. 6. Is he the very best baseball player in history who is not in the Hall of Fame? No. 7. Are most players who have comparable statistics in the Hall of Fame? Some are and some aren't. Pitchers of Warneke's stature walk a thin line when it comes to the Hall. Pitchers such as Rube Marquard, Stan Coveleski, and Bob Lemon find their way in with similar win-loss records, while others miss the boat. Of Warneke's ten most similar players, four are in the Hall. 8. Do the player's numbers meet Hall of Fame standards? Probably not. Warneke scores below average in the Black Ink, HOF Standards, and HOF Monitors scales. He scores decent on the Gray Ink test. 9. Is there any evidence to suggest that the player was significantly better or worse than is suggested by his statistics? None apparent. 10. Is he the best player at his position who is eligible for the Hall of Fame? No. My vote would go to Bert Blyleven. 11. How many MVP-type seasons did he have? Did he ever win an MVP award? If not, how many times was he close? Warneke finished second in the NL MVP voting in 1932, losing out to Chuck Klein. Had the Cy Young award existed in 1932, he certainly would have won it. 12. How many All-Star-type seasons did he have? How many All-Star games did he play in? Did most of the players who played in this many All-Star games go into the Hall of Fame? Warneke pitched in five All-Star games. He would have pitched in six had the All-Star game been played in 1933. 13. If this man were the best player on his team, would it be likely that the team could win the pennant? Yes. The Cubs did win in 1932, with Lon Warneke as their best player. 14. What impact did the player have on baseball history? Was he responsible for any rule changes? Did he introduce any new equipment? Did he change the game in any way? None apparent. 15. Did the player uphold the standards of sportsmanship and character that the Hall of Fame, in its written guidelines, instructs us to consider? Yes. Conclusion: Warneke is a borderline Hall of Famer. He was certainly quite good for half a decade. However, the evidence isn't overwhelming, and there are too many candidates at Warneke's level to merit his induction.

Glenn Robinson has been ousted in the starter's role by Andre Igouldala, and given the popularity of Kyle Korver, I doubt he'll ever get serious minutes in Philly again.

Wells' back troubles hastened the end of the 2003 World Series, for what its worth. And I am not sure having two starters of exactly the same ilk in Wells and Lieber is a good idea. You can have one control, low strikeout guy. But back to back? Milton's no star. But he's not that bad. He'll give you a 4.50 ERA and eat up innings. I am NOT suggesting the Yankees shell out big money for him. But IF, and I emphasize IF, a fair price comes along, the Yankees could use him.

That assumes you find a starter who can hold the best offense in baseball to one run. It's unlikely. The Yankees are making a serious run at Randy Johnson, and they are exploring other options. But beyond the aces, they need pitching across the board. Now is Milton a great pitcher? Of course not. But he'll eat innings, and you can do alot worse for your #5 starter. The problem the Yankees have is that there are really no ace starters available, outside of Pedro Martinez. You can swing a trade, but the Yankees have little to offer in their farm system right now. Their options are limited, and they need to patch the holes first and foremost. A group of average pitchers might not be the best solution. But it might not be possible to go otherwise.

The Washington Nationals traded Antonio Sucre to the Pittsburgh Pirates, for J.J. Davis. Quite a good deal for the Nationals, as Sucre doesn't have many apparent skills, while Davis can make a useful platoon partner for Termell Sledge.

Average pitching cost us the American League Championship. El Duque walking 37 people in four innings. Jon fucking Lieber being asked to beat Pedro Martinez and Curt Schilling in consecuative starts, because there was no one better than him. (And to his credit, he almost did) Kevin Brown and Javier Vazquez in general. Average pitching doomed us. The idea that the Yankees need more middle of the line pitching is absurd. We have the God damn market cornered on "eh" or "goodish" starters. The idea that defense is going to make a team of mediocre pitchers into five Walter Johnsons is insane. You don't have to get five HOFers, but is it so much to ask to get a god damn ace? Or even someone to match Mussina? And to PLEASE stay away from the bad pitching? The idea of Eric Milton pitching to a David Ortiz at Yankee Stadium scares the crap out of me. That ball won't land. Average pitching in games 4-6 kept the Yankees in the game. Hell, the Yankees LED games 4 and 5 in the late innings, before the bullpen lost the lead both times. Game six was a loss because the Yankees only scored two runs. The only bad game for the starters in that group was game seven, and Kevin Brown and Javier Vazquez were clearly substandard in that situation. If you have an ace starter, he is only going to start one of those games. Could he have won the series? Possibly. But alot of unexpected things occured in that series, and its hard to tell. Besides, the best pitchers are not all that identifiable. Kevin Brown was the very definition of an ace, big game pitcher at the beginning of the season.

It is not ok to lift text and stories directly from ESPN Insider's Rumor Central. However, since ESPN's Rumor Central pretty much just gets their stories from other sources, and supplies the sources, one can easily track the rumors and provide readable sources. Here's what we've got for today. http://www.nj.com/sports/ledger/index.ssf?...79056297450.xml Another Johnson/Vazquez deal in the works, but Arizona is weary about paying Vazquez's full contract. http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/sports/st...all+in+place%22 The Cardinals are also making a play for the Big Unit. http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?...SPG60A0KPU1.DTL Athletics talking trade with Pirates regarding Jason Kendall. http://www.nytimes.com/2004/11/24/sports/b...html?oref=login (Registration Required) Leiter and Mets deal unlikely. Yankees could make a play for Leiter, as could Florida. Since this is a New York paper, they would obviously focus on the Yankee angle. http://www.boston.com/sports/baseball/reds...sox_short_list/ Orlando Cabrera rumors. http://redsox.bostonherald.com/redSox/view...articleid=55517 Mets showing interest in Pedro Martinez. http://redsox.bostonherald.com/redSox/view...articleid=55510 Nomar Garciaparra rumors. http://www.twincities.com/mld/twincities/s...ll/10258034.htm Twins close to signing Mike Redmond, and are negotiating with Brad Radke. http://www.philly.com/mld/philly/sports/10258220.htm Phillies increase offer to David Wells.

The Milwaukee Brewers sign C Damian Miller for three years. The move is a bit of a risk, but Chad Moeller and Gary Bennett were absolutely terrible last season. Miller's hitting will look fairly good there. The Cleveland Indians resigned closer Bob Wickman for one year. If the Indians upgrade their pitching staff, they can make a run at the AL Central title. The Indians used 30 pitchers last season. If they can solidify the bullpen, they will greatly improve the team. Sticking Wickman in the closer role is a good start.

I agree. Color me shamed, as I really should have looked at the record more closely before passing judgment.

It's legitimate conversation in a hot stove type thread. The Yankees have absolutely no valid game plan, and I really think that in this rush to get young at all costs, people have brain washed themselves into thinking that backing Mussina up with four back end of the rotation type starters (An old, injury prone Wells, Lieber, Vazquez and Halsey/Duque/Milton) is a legitimate championship rotation. Do you have a source on the Yankees game plan? Have you spoken with Brian Cashman? I've seen the Yankees reported as speaking with just about every decent free agent starter on the market, including Pedro Martinez, Carl Pavano, David Wells, and Brad Radke. Besides, the Yankees do NOT need front line pitching talent. Their problem wasn't a lack of stars. It was that they had TERRIBLE pitchers once their front line crumbled. Their bullpen in particular was horrid after Quantrill, Rivera and Gordon. Many fans want stars. What they do not realize is that replacing a poor player with an average player does just as much good as replacing an average player with a good one. With Sheffield, Rodriguez, Jeter, Matsui, Posada and Rivera, the team will compete. It has all the great players it needs. They just need to ensure that they aren't pushing pitchers on the field with 5+ ERAs. Furthermore, Yankee pitching had the third best BB/K ratio in the American League. The team let an unusual number of balls in play become hits. You have not once addressed the issue of team defense. I am sure we can agree that a good defender will prevent hits. I am also sure we can agree those show up on a pitcher's stat line. This is not a defense of Javier Vazquez, just the pitching staff in general. Mike Mussina and Jon Lieber's ERAs in particular were much higher than one would suggest based on their peripherals. If the Yankees keep splurging for front-line talent, they are going to run the potential of a bigger disaster than the one they have now.

Kris Benson. In seriousness, Minaya traded away farm players while receiving little in return. Except for the Livan Hernandez trade, he's done little to inspire any sort of confidence.

I don't know Al, the overpowering suckititude of Ed Wade may override the garbage that Bowden and Minaya can churn out. Maybe the NL East should just be called "Schulerholz, Beinfest, and Dumb(Minaya), Dumber(Bowden), and Dumbest(Wade)." At least Wade got Abreu for Kevin Stocker. What did Jim Bowden ever do? Wade's problem is that he overvalues pitchers (relative to the market). It is troublesome, but it is something that the team can overcome. Wade does have his bright spots. Minaya and Bowden have less of them.

Yes, but the point is that they have clear ties to the Washington area.