Cheech Tremendous

Max Kellerman subbed for Dan Patrick on ESPN Radio last summer and I thought he was fantastic in the role. He was extremely knowledgeable and didn't really seem like the same guy from ATH. He was still arrogant as hell, but really backed his arguments up with good, hard data. And yes, he is a big sabermetrics guy, and it wouldn't surprise me at all that he was pimping Guillen over Morneau.

Wily Mo Pena hit .300/.348/.478 on the year, and had a nagging wrist injury that took away most of his power. He showed improvement in hitting breaking pitches. The K/BB rates are still troublesome but he could still show a bit of improvement. He's only 24 years old, and never really had a minor league career to work these issues out. As for the defense, it's not his fault that they stuck him in RF. He's actually decent in CF and LF. Trading Arroyo for Pena was one of Theo's only good deals this year. It hurt them this year because the pitching staff was terrible and Pena was hurt, but this will make them a better team going forward. Theo also got rid of Clay Meredith, Josh Bard and Freddy Sanchez for nothing in return. Which has what to do with Wily Mo Pena exactly?

I know that everyone has their own rating system and qualifications for an MVP, but how could you leave Hafner off of your ballot? Even with his missed time, wouldn't you agree that he was the best hitter in the American League this year? Hafner has three things going against him. His team's lack of success, his lack of defensive value, and time missed due to injuries. The time missed is probably a bad argument given that I listed Manny who played 130 games and isn't about to win a Gold Glove. Hafner simply has no intangible arguments going for him beyond his hitting numbers. He certainly deserves consideration though, and would probably rank 11th on my ballot. Not to beat a dead horse, but I don't understand how you can knock Hafner for those reasons when Ortiz, Thome and Ramirez all make into your top 10 (who each had their missed time and lack of defensive value). The Indians lack of success had nothing to do with Hafner's hitting. Their pythagorean record was 90-72. They struggled because of bad situational karma and a horrendous bullpen. Hafner had an excellent hitting season, and even though he only played 129 games, his aggregate numbers were superior to everyone else in the American League. It just seems odd that you would exclude him.

The analysts did a quarterly report during the postgame coverage tonight. Michael Irvin picked Steve Smith as MVP through the first four weeks. Didn't anyone tell him that Smith has only played two games?

Wily Mo Pena hit .300/.348/.478 on the year, and had a nagging wrist injury that took away most of his power. He showed improvement in hitting breaking pitches. The K/BB rates are still troublesome but he could still show a bit of improvement. He's only 24 years old, and never really had a minor league career to work these issues out. As for the defense, it's not his fault that they stuck him in RF. He's actually decent in CF and LF. Trading Arroyo for Pena was one of Theo's only good deals this year. It hurt them this year because the pitching staff was terrible and Pena was hurt, but this will make them a better team going forward.

I know that everyone has their own rating system and qualifications for an MVP, but how could you leave Hafner off of your ballot? Even with his missed time, wouldn't you agree that he was the best hitter in the American League this year?

Well they sacked Dave Wallace and replaced him with Al Nipper (cue the Clemens conspiracy nuts). Garbage in, garbage out. I had no problem with hitting coach. Not sure why they 86ed him.

AL MVP 1. Derek Jeter 2. Travis Hafner 3. Johan Santana 4. David Ortiz 5. Joe Mauer 6. Grady Sizemore 7. Jermaine Dye 8. Carlos Guillen 9. Miguel Tejada 10. Manny Ramirez NL MVP 1. Albert Pujols 2. Ryan Howard 3. Miguel Cabrera 4. Lance Berkman 5. Carlos Beltran 6. Chase Utley 7. Jose Reyes 8. Matt Holliday 9. Brian McCann 10. Hanley Ramirez AL Cy Young 1. Johan Santana 2. Roy Halladay 3. Chien-ming Wang NL Cy Young 1. Roy Oswalt 2. Brandon Webb 3. Chris Carpenter AL Manager of the Year 1. Jim Leyland 2. Ron Gardenhire 3. Ken Macha NL Manager of the Year 1. Joe Girardi 2. Willie Randolph 3. Bruce Bochy AL Rookie of the Year 1. Francisco Liriano 2. Justin Verlander 3. Jered Weaver NL Rookie of the Year 1. Hanley Ramirez 2. Dan Uggla 3. Josh Johnson

Red Sox - Gets the biggest contract in team history, turns into a fat tub of lard and sucks in the last couple years of his contract. Signs with the Jays, slams Boston on the way out, gets on the juice and wins back to back Cy Youngs. Blue Jays- Signs as a free agent, regains form, and then forces the team to trade him to the Yankees. Yankees- Declares himself a Yankee lifer and admirer of Joe Torre, goes on a farewell tour in pinstripes and then turns around and joins the Astros in the offseason. Clemens has made a living off of burning bridges with his former team. He'll do it to you, too.

I don't know how I feel about the Barry Zito sweepstakes. On one hand, he's had declining peripheral numbers for several years, he's struggled against some of the better hitting teams in the league and even though he's perceived as an ace starter, his numbers suggest he's actually more like a number 2. I'd be hesitant to offer him 6/$80 mil or whatever Boras is seeking. On the other hand, he's the best pitcher by far on the free agent market and he's young, incredibly durable, is a lefty, has had continuing success in the American league and is fairly consistent (both in performance and innings pitched). I'm a Red Sox fan, and I know that their offseason shopping list starts and ends with starting pitching, but I don't know if Zito is worth it. Do you overpay for the known commodity like Zito, or do you maximize upside and risk in going after Matsuzaka, or two of the lesser FAs (Schmidt, Lilly, Padilla, etc.)

I think we have a new record for misspelled words in one sentence.

I think someone missed the point of the thread. If anything, each of those matches looked like shit on paper and ended up being entertaining. Who expected a McMahon to be in a **** match ever?

The most frustrating part for me is that the Clemens to Boston rumors are already creeping back up on ESPN and on Sons of Sam Horn. It was hard enough dealing with the issue last offseason, at the trade deadline and during the waiver deadline. I really don't want another 6-10 months of debate on the merits of a Clemens homecoming.

FWIW, here are the top 5 MVP candidates in each league by VORP (not always the most perfect statistic, but a good starting point). AL 1- Hafner 2- J. Santana 3- Jeter 4- Ortiz 5- Sizemore NL 1- Pujols 2- Howard 3- Cabrera 4- Berkman 5- Beltran

It's weird to think that Richard Christy was once a respected in musician in an actual band.

Iced Earth... isn't that the band that Richard Christy drummed with?

Just a quick note since we are talking about it, ALL of PWI's awards were fixed. There was no legitimate voting.

With guys like this on the prowl, how are there going to be any ladies left for the rest of us?

Yes, that was terrible. Luger winning was no doubt fixed. As opposed to their other awards, which are all legitimate, right?

Godwinn sucked in 1996. I doubt spending most of the last decade sitting on his ass has improved him that much. EDIT: At least HHH can get his job back.

I miss fanofcoils. At least when he derailed a thread it was entertaining. WP just made everything about him and his gimmick.

At least if the Yankees sweep them this weekend, I doubt anyone will actually notice.

Oh WP, we hardly knew you.

Or how about Brian Westbrook, Ronnie Brown, Steven Jackson, and Lamont Jordan. Thomas Jones and Willie Parker are nice, but they are not amongst the top 15 backs in this league.

For someone looking to get into Roth's work, what's a good starting point?