Cheech Tremendous

I didn't think he was around long enough for anyone to get to know him.

He still needs two more seasons to qualify.

He's a PG for the Toronto Raptors. He's good, but he's put together like a season and a half of quality basketball. He's not even an All-Star, let alone a HOFer.

This is Nikita Koloff BTW They play football in Russia?!

I understood the qualifier you were using, I just didn't agree. To me, Cano's first four years look like a guy who could run himself out a job in a couple of years, not a future HOFer. The comps you used showed players who were growing into superstars, with strong OBPs, defense and baserunning. Cano is on the opposite track. But, hey, I respect your opinion and enjoy the debate.

I would've put him down, but I find it silly to put down players with not even a handful of seasons. It is just far too soon. A lot of the names mentioned so far have made me laugh, but I've kept it to myself. Oh, you have to share - that's half the fun of this. I nearly shit myself when YKRG mentioned Robby Cano earlier, but hey he had a POV and the debate was interesting. I've found some of these choices just absolutely bizarre, especially for my Red Sox. Beckett? Youkilis? You've got to be kidding me. W/R/T Pedroia: I don't see a future HOFer, but a ROY, MVP, GG and WS ring in two seasons is quite amazing. If 2008 is the norm and not the exception then he might have that sort of career. Still awfully early to even start that type of thinking. Hell Nomar looked like a Hall of Famer before he died.

I need Week 3 numbers from Fazzle, Pbone, Cuban Linx, Kinetic, Canadain Chris, Hollywood Spike, King Cucaracha and Krankor.

I don't want to go too far down the rabbit hole on Cano because we don't have enough of a sample size on him yet to make any firm judgments either way, but those numbers you posted from other 2B only reconfirm that Cano isn't in their league. He's had one very good season fueled by a fluke batting average. Other than that, he looks like a .750 OPS type with bad defense, which doesn't even make him a top five ballplayer at his position. My prediction: The Yankees look to upgrade sometime before the 2010 season.

It could be the Ray J thing, but you might be thinking of Real Chance at Love. I've never seen said show, but I consulted my VH1-watching friend. He informed me that the two gentlemen on this show are holdovers from a show called "I Love New York." New York, in turn, was originally a contestant on Flavor of Love. So now VH1 is actively recycling the losers from their dating shows for new dating shows. It's like a retarded Bachelor.

I don't agree with any of this. First of all, Jackie Robinson and Ryne Sandberg won MVP trophies in their first four seasons and were definitely considered to be amongst the top five players in the game. Their numbers were off the chart compared to Cano. The other five were definitely way ahead of where Cano is as well. I guess he's put up some decent HR and RBI already, but his other numbers pale in comparison. The other thing to consider is that by their fourth season almost everyone on that list was a superstar or damn close to superstar level. They were beginning meteoric rises. After four seasons, I don't even know if I'd call Cano a good player. He was below average at the plate and in the field last year. He has youth on his side and two good seasons to his name, but nothing that makes him even stand out among his contemporaries at 2B.

It'd be nice if they had some inside views. Best I can tell is it looks like Houston, Milwaukee, and Seattle all smushed into one. Look at the first rendering on the top row and then compare it to third one. Notice anything? There's two monstrous poles down the right field line that block the views for most of the fans. In the first rendering they still show people sitting there, but on the third they've removed those entire sections. It appears that someone royally fucked up on that one. It's funny you mention Houston, Milwaukee and Seattle, because that's exactly what this looks like. I've complained about this growing tradition of the new "cookie cutter" stadium. HOK is the firm that handles the design process and all of their stuff looks exactly the same. These cities have the opportunity to do something that is culturally and architecturally significant and they opt for the high-end mega-plex that everyone else has. It's so boring.

Update to earlier post: The Mariners have acquired SS Ronny Cedeno and P Garrett Olson from the Cubs for RP Aaron Heilman. Linky goodness That's a bit of a step down from using Olson to acquire Jake Peavy. I'm one of the few people out there that actually believe in Heilman, either as a high-leverage reliever or starter, but that seems like a lot to give up. Cedeno and Olson have shaky major league track records, but the upside of both is still great given their minor league numbers and age. Jack Z has shown in a couple months time to be one of the sharpest GMs in the game. If he can keep this act up I see a lot of division titles in Seattle's future.

I thought that this might an interesting exercise on a slow sports days. Take a look at the rosters of the teams that you follow and see if there are any future Hall of Famers. This could range from sure things to guys that you see on a HOF trajectory. For instance, I could look at the Red Sox and identify one sure thing (Smoltz), but I could also get crazy and try to argue that Dustin Pedroia is on that path if he continues what he's done already. Basically, it's up to you to make the case.

I don't think we've discussed the Beastie Boys in any sort of depth. While compiling my Favorite Albums list earlier this week, I accidentally forgot Paul's Boutique. What a great fucking album, and one that's unique in the fact that sampling laws will prevent the world from ever having a similar record. It's aged really well because of this and sounds miles better than their greatest commercial success, Licensed to Ill. The rest of the catalog ranges from good to great. Check Your Head is a really amazing record. I never fully bought into Hello Nasty or To the 5 Boroughs, but I haven't given either a good listed in years. Maybe I'd come around if I put them on again. The oddest thing about the Beasties is that you'll rarely find anyone that has them as their favorite band, but it is even more rare to find someone who dislikes them. From rap fans to punk to indie guys, just about everyone likes their output to some degree.

My buddy had a great idea that he thought they should employ on this type of programming. Any time someone is talking, they should flash their IQ at the bottom of the screen. This would give us some sort of reference point for the retardation that these people show on a consistent basis.

A couple of friends were in town about a week ago. While hanging out on Saturday night having some beers, we ended up watching about 5 hours of god awful "reality" television shows on VH1. Now, I hardly ever pay attention to these programs, but I know they're popular. Well, now I can see why. The train wreck appeal is off the charts. So, is anyone else watching, or am I representing the lowest common denominator here? Let's talk about your favorite shit shows from America's most worthless network. Here are few of my favorites: Rock of Love Skankbus Ok, I added the skank part. This one is total unintentional comedy from start to finish. Here are 10 or so of the sluttiest skanks VH1 could find following a washed-up 80s rock star on his "tour" or the US. First of all, Bret Michaels still performs? And people pay to see him? These girls throw themselves at a guy that had his last hit record before most of them were born. Great stuff. Celebrity Rehab Sober House I recommend this show for one reason: Steven Adler. The former GNR drummer is probably the most fucked up rock star I've ever seen, and that's saying a lot. The concept is a bunch of "celebrities" (and that term should only be used in the loosest sense here) fresh out of rehab are placed in a sober living house. Well, two episodes in and we have two heroin-fueled relapses by stroke-addled Steven Adler. If he doesn't end up dead by the time this series runs it course I'll be surprised. Tool Academy This is the lamest of the shows I've seen, but the concept is great. They went out and rounded up a bunch of fratboy faggots with lame haircuts and roided-out frames and told them there were going for the title of "Mr. Awesome." In reality, their girlfriends sent them to a "tool academy" to transform them from walking disasters into contributing members of society. Weak show, but laughing at these assholes is never not funny.

-D'Backs agree to a one-year deal with P Jon Garland -Cubs are close to acquiring P Aaron Heilman from the Mariners. SS Ronny Cedeno is believed to be part of the package. The Cubs are also trying to trade Rich Hill but I doubt he ends up in this deal with the M's. -Also, here are the latest renderings for the new Marlins stadium

Reminder to get me your Week 3 updates to me in the next day or so. I am down to about 187 this week, but that came after a bout of the flu over the weekend. I don't think that's an accurate representation of where I am. I know that I've shed a few pounds since I'm back into my gym schedule, but 8 pounds in 2 weeks doesn't seem legit at all.

Did they really have Shane McMahon beat up the company's top heel? The more things change...

You questioned TSM's love for III before and we discussed it here.

KOABing hard

The Beatles - Revolver The Rolling Stones - Exile on Main Street The Who - Who's Next Led Zeppelin - III AC/DC - Back In Black Neil Young - Tonight's the Night Guns n Roses - Appetite For Destruction Michael Jackson - Off the Wall Wu-Tang Clan - Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) Nas - Illmatic I'm quite disappointed in how "safe" this list ended up being, but I don't know what I could drop off this list. I could have easily swapped in a number of different Stones, Beatles or Zeppelin albums, but I tried to limit to one per artist. The fact that I didn't manage to get any Pink Floyd, Jimi Hendrix, Bob Dylan or Jay-Z on this list astounds me.

Is it too early to have a Zombie Marney gimmick?

Manny's a terrible fit for the Mets. That team was second in runs scored last year (in a pitcher's park), so it's not like they need to add any offense. I don't know how the dimensions are in the new park, but any scenario where Manny has to play the field is a bad one. Given his ridiculous salary demands, the Mets could find a much better use of their resources.

That'll never happen in a million years. A sales tax unfairly switches the tax burden to those with lower income. I don't see that being any more popular or efficient than a progressive tax.