Archive for October, 2009

young doesn’t know what he’s into,

Hockey observers had long suspected that something was not right with former Calgary star Theo Fleury and now he admits in a new book what they knew all along—he was sexually abused by youth hockey coach Graham James.

For those who don’t recall, James—a popular and successful junior league coach in western Canada—was convicted in 1997 of sexual abuse after one of his former players, NHLer Sheldon Kennedy, confessed that James had abused him for several years. Although Kennedy was the only one who spoke out, James himself implied that there were other kids involved. He was often accused of giving special treatment to his “favorites” and also severely punishing those who fell out of line.

Since Fleury was a protege of James and even played on the same team as Kennedy when they were 16, some had long believed that he was also a victim. (Kennedy says now that he new Fleury was also abused, but refused to “blow the whistle” on anyone.) Fleury had a fantastic pro career, but spent most of it addicted to drugs and alcohol, problems that he directly attributes to James’ abuse.

He also says in the book that he “failed 13 drug tests during his career, but was never prevented from playing.” (He was eventually suspended indefinitely in 2003 and then failed in his comeback attempt this season.)

The new book will certainly revive interest in the scary tales of young, impressible hockey kids being shipped off into the care of unscrupulousness traveling teams and their creepy coaches, but James was clearly an exception and not the rule. Plus, he’s out of jail and coaching in Spain now so he can’t hurt anybody there, right?

Theo’s secret Calgary Sun
Theo Fleury claims sexual abuse by junior hockey coach in new book On The Forecheck
Sheldon Kennedy: “I hope Theo’s ready for what’s going to come out” Calgary Herald
Theo Fleury: I was sexually abused by junior coach ESPN

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Post your replies below!

Every day should be opening day when you open your checkbook and see the logo of your favorite Major League Baseball team proudly displayed. All 30 teams available. Matching labels and cover are also available. These baseball checks are only $27.90 at DesignerChecks.com

Brandon Guyer ripped a two-run home run over the LF fence in the 5th, made a spectacular run-saving diving catch in right-center in the 7th, and sliced a game-tying single to right with two outs in the top of the 9th, but the A’s took advantage of a Ryan Flaherty error in the bottom of the 9th to score an unearned run and edge the Cubs 5-4 in AZ Instructional League action at the Oakland A’s Papago Park Sports Complex Field #2 in Phoenix this afternoon.

The 23-year old Guyer is one of the most experienced players at Instructs (he has a half-season of AA experience), and he was invited to Instructs specifically to work on improving his arm strength, HR power, and outfield play in CF and RF.  

Guyer was a third-baseman in HS before enrolling at the University of Virginia in 2004, where he was moved to LF because some guy named Ryan Zimmerman had already staked-out 3B for the Cavs. The Cubs drafted Guyer in the 5th round of the 2007 Rule 4 Draft, and kept him in LF at Boise.

Guyer began to display HR power at Peoria in 2008, hitting 14 dingers in just 88 games (he missed the first half of the season rehabbing an elbow uinjury at Extended Spring Training),.and he was so impressive at Minor League Camp this past March that he was jumped to AA Tennessee to start the 2009 season.

But Guyer struggled at Tennessee and was demoted to Hi-A Daytona in May. Then after hitting 347/407/453 in 73 games for the D-Cubs, Guyer was moved back up to Tennessee again in August. Combined at Daytona and Tennessee in 2009, Guyer hit 282/339/385, with 28 doubles, five triples, 3 HR, and 30 SB (7 CS) in 130 games.

Even though he is not a “natural” outfielder, Guyer plays OF with the “crash & burn” spirit, energy, and enthusiasm of a football free-safety (like a Reed Johnson or an Eric Byrnes), which has (unfortunately) resulted in all too-frequent injuries But when healthy, Guyer can make the run-saving or game-saving spectacular catch, as happened today.

It’s likely that Guyer will begin the 2010 season back at AA Tennessee (where he finished the 2009 season), probably playing all three OF positions to help him develop the versatility he will likely need once he reaches the big leagues. The fact that he has also played 3B in HS and both 3B and 1B occasionally in college could mean that he might morph into a super-sub IF-OF at some point, especially if he can learn to play 2B.

Although I have no specific reason to believe this will happen, it’s possible that the Cubs will add Brandon Guyer to the “taxi squad” of the Mesa Solar Sox next week, once Instructs is over and the AFL season commences. They did this two years ago with Steve Clevenger, after he completed Instructs. (Players on an AFL team’s “taxi squad” are permitted to play in games on Wednesdays and Saturdays only, although taxi squad players often will end up being elevated to “full time” status to replace an injured player).

Besides Guyer’s big day, 2009 6th round pick Brooks Raley got the start in this afternoon’s game, and threw three shutout innings. The 21-year old lanky 6′3 lefty struggled with his command (throwing 56 pitches, but only 29 strikes), although he did get lots of ground ball outs, especially when he really needed them.

Raley is not overpowering (89-91 MPH sinker, with a decent breaking ball and an OK change), and while he is not as polished as fellow LHP Chris Rusin (Cubs 2009 4th round pick out of the U. of Kentucky), he does seem to understand the concept of mixing his pitches and working hitters. As things stand right now, I would expect Raley to begin the 2010 season in the Peoria Chiefs starting rotation, with Rusin probaly getting jumped to Daytona .

What’s interesting about Raley is that he was probably the best “two-way” player in college baseball in 2009, a “draft-eligible” sophomore who played OF on days he wasn’t pitching (Raley is a good hitter with plus-speed and an outstanding OF arm). Of the scouts out here who saw Raley play at Texas A & M, about half liked him better as an outfielder (CF), although (obviously) the Cubs see him as a pitcher (at least for now).

Raley’s $750K signing bonus was more than what most 2nd round picks got this year, so his bonus was WAY above the slot where was selected (6th round, #200 overall selection in the draft). In fact, among the Cubs 50 draft picks in 2009, only 1st round pick Brett Jackson received a larger bonus than Raley,.But the Cubs had to pay over-slot to persuade Raley to turn pro (and he didn’t sign until July), since he had two years of eligibility remaining at A & M. Now it’s up to Raley to prove the Cubs weren’t fools.

Here is today’s abridged box score (Cubs players only):

LINEUP:
1. Kyung-Min Na, CF: 1-4 (K, K, 4-3, 1B), R
2a. D. J. LeMahieu, 2B: 1-3 (L-4, 1B, 6-3), CS
2b. Logan Watkins, 2B: 0-0 (BB), R
3. Ryan Flaherty, 3B: 1-4 (F-7, 1B, F-8, 1-3), R
4. Rebel Ridling, 1B: 1-4 (F-9, P-6, 1B, 5-3), RBI
5. Brandon Guyer, RF: 2-4 (4-3, HR, 5-3, 1B), R, 3 RBI
6a. Michael Brenly, DH #1: 0-2 (K, 5-3)
6b. Runey Davis, PH-DH: 2-2 (1B, 1B), SB, PO
7a. Brandon May, C: 0-2 (K, K)
7b. Jae-Hoon Ha, C: 0-1 (K)
8. Blair Springfield, LF: 0-2 (K, L-9, BB)
9a. Wes Darvill, SS: 0-2 (K, 4-3)
9b. Hak-Ju Lee, SS: 1-1 (1B)
10. Ping-Chieh Chen, DH #2: 1-3 (K, 2B, F-7)

PITCHERS:
1. Brooks Raley - 3 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 K, 6/1 GO/FO, 56 pitches (29 strikes)
2. John Mincone - 1.2 IP, 4 H, 3 R (3 ER), 1 BB, 2 K, 1 GIDP, 2/1 GO/FO, 33 pitches (18 strikes)
3. Yao-Lin Wang - 1.1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K, 2/1 GO/FO, 28 pitches (16 strikes)
4. Julio Pena - 1.0 IP, 2 H, 1 R (1 ER), 0 BB, 1 K, 1/1 GO/FO, 16 pitches (13 strikes)
5. Corey Martin - 1.1 IP, 2 H, 1 R (0 ER), 0 BB, 2 K, 1 WP, 1 BALK, 1/1 GO/FO, 27 pitches (19 strikes)

ERRORS (1): Ryan Flaherty (E-5) - juggled ground ball allowing batter leading off the bottom of the 9th inning to reach base, and the runner moved up to 2nd base on a WP and to 3rd on a balk, before scoring the (unearned) winning run on a one-out line single to CF.

CATCHERS DEFENSE:
1. Brandon May: 1 PB
2. Jae-Hoon Ha: 0-2 CS

WEATHER: upper 80’s & sunny (it’s getting hot again!)

ATTENDANCE: 36 (SRO)

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I have always been a fan of Davis, but I have to say, seeing stuff like this gives me mixed feelings.This will be shocking news for Davis fans, but there are those of you who will say that you saw it coming. I’m pretty surprised though. Davis is sweet, I hope this doesn’t affect the rest of the team.

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I wonder how young’s real fans feel -

What kind of a world do we live in where two attractive young women can’t go to a baseball game without getting heckled by opposing fans? Sure, one of their ugly boyfriends was tasered….but what about their feelings?

The Boston Herald has the harrowing tale of two female Red Sox fans—who are also sisters (wink, wink!)—who took a terrifying journey to Angel Stadium, where they were set upon by a swarthy mob of L.A. fans who hurled “sexually explicit” insults at them, like “Hey, sit your fat (derriere) down!” And she’s not even a plus-size model!

The night took a more upsetting turn for the ladies when one of their boyfriends lunged at one of the boorish “hooligans” (who is probably an illegal immigrant, btw) and security took him down with a taser. Fortunately, the completely irrelevant suitor was “hit with a weapon that only delivers a fraction of the shock of a full stun-gun blast,” which made the incident slightly less traumatic for the girls, Christina Rivas, 24, and her sister, Kerrianne, 20.

Not that they will ever feel safe enough to attend a baseball game again. What if the boyfriend challenges another cop to a fight? Why must their adorable shoulders bear the weight of all mankind?

Hellish game for Sox sisters Boston Herald

UPDATE: Now with (possible) video of the fight!

what do you think?This will be shocking news for young fans, but there are those of you who will say that you saw it coming from a mile away. I can’t say I’m all that surprised though. young is great, I hope this doesn’t affect the season.

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I wonder how Jones’s real fans feel -

Richard Jones slammed a pinch-hit tie-breaking home run over the RF fence with one out in the top of the 9th, and the Cubs held-on to defeat the Angels 2-1 in AZ Instructional League action at Diablo Park Field #3 in Tempe this morning.

Jones, the Cubs 2009 9th round selection out of The Citadel, was drafted as a catcher, but his #1 attribute is raw power. In fact, after signing with the Cubs in June, Jones hit seven HR in just twelve games for the AZL Cubs (Mesa), before moving up to Boise. (Jones ended up tied for 3rd in the AZL in HR, while playing there only two weeks!). And remember, he did all that while playing in the AZL’s huge minor league complex ball parks with 25-ft high fences, where it’s almost easier to hit a triple than it is to hit a HR.

While Jones was a catcher in college, he appears more comfortable at 1B (or DH) But if he can remain a catcher, his value will be greatly increased, since power-hitting catchers who bat left-handed are always in demand.

Besides working on his defense behind the plate, Jones is also at Instructs to try and learn to make better contact at bat (56 K in 174 PA at Mesa and Boise combined in 2009).

Today’s game was scoreless through five innings, before the Angels broke-through with a run off RHP Nick Struck (Cubs 2009 39th round pick out of Mt. Hood CC) in the 6th, on a walk, a sac-bunt, and an RBI double. (Struck dropped to the 39th round only because he was considered a virtual “lock” to transfer to the University of Hawaii, but the Cubs came up with some additional money and were able to sign him just before the August deadline).

The Cubs came back to tie the score in the top of the 7th with two outs, when Brandon Guyer (yesterday’s hero) lined a single to left (his second hit of the game), and scored on a near-HR RBI triple smashed high off the RF fence by Ryan Flaherty.

23-year old polished college LHP Chris Rusin (2009 4th round pick out of U. of Kentucky) got the start for the Cubs today, and he hardly broke a sweat, allowing just a lead-off bunt single in the 1st (and then he immediately picked the runner off), throwing just 15 pitches (12 strikes) combined over two innings of work. He was on the field maybe seven minutes.

RHP Chris Archer followed Rusin with three shutout innings, allowing two hits and a walk on 43 pitches (26 strikes). while retiring the last five men he faced.

One of three pitchers the Cubs acquired from Cleveland for Mark DeRosa last off- season, Archer throws a 92-94 MPH fastball, a curve, and a change-up, and was 4th among Cubs minor leaguers in strikeouts in 2009 (trailing only Jay Jackson, Mitch Atkins, and Chris Carpenter). But he is at Instructs to work on his command & control (he led the Cubs minor leagues in walks in ‘09), and he has indeed shown some progress with his strike-throwing in his last two outings, allowing just one walk over six innings. Of course he also has only one strikeout in those six innings, but he’s not down here to rack up the punch-outs. The Cubs already know he can do that. He’s down here to improve his control and cut-down the number of pitches he throws per inning.

Today’s game also featured three really nice defensive players by the Cubs, including a sliding catch of a pop up in short CF by 2009 #1 draft pick Brett Jackson in the 4th, a full-speed running shoestring catch by 17-year old Korean LF Kyung-Min Na on a pop up in short left-center in the 8th, and a probable game-saving running catch in RF foul territory (and then a flawless a spin & throw to 3rd to keep the base-runner at 2nd base) by 2009 2nd round pick D. J. LeMahieu with no outs in the bottom of the 9th.

LeMahieu played SS at LSU, but I think it’s fairly obvious that the Cubs think that the athletic LeMahieu’s future is at 2B. He has spent many hours at Instructs working with minor league infield instructor Franklin Font on his DP footwork from the second-baseman’s side of the bag (which requires different footwork and an altered rhythm than is the case when turning the DP from shortstop), and hopefully he will take what he has learned at Instructs into the 2010 season, where he will probably begin the year at Daytona.

Here is today’s abridged box score (Cubs players only):

LINEUP:
1a. Logan Watkins, DH #1: 1-3 (1B, L-9, L-1 DP)
1b. Richard Jones, PH: 1-1 (HR), R, RBI
2. D. J. LeMahieu, 2B: 1-4 (4-6-3 DP, 1B, F-9, L-8)
3. Brett Jackson, CF: 0-4 (F-8, F-8, F-8, F-7)
4. Brandon Guyer, RF: 2-3 (1B, F-8, 1B), R, CS
5. Ryan Flaherty, SS: 1-3 (F-7, 4-3, 3B), RBI
6. Michael Brenly, C-DH: 0-3 (P-3, P-6, P-8)
7. Jovan Rosa, DH-C: 0-3 (K, 6-3, K)
8. Matt Cerda, 3B: 1-3 (P-2, 1B, 4-3)
9. Justin Bour, 1B: 2-3 (1B, 1B, 4-3)
10. Kyung-Min Na, LF: 0-3 (F-9, K, L-6)

PITCHERS:
1. Chris Rusin - 2.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K, 1 PO, 2/1 GO/FO, 15 pitches (12 strikes)
2. Chris Archer - 3.0 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 0 K, 4/5 GO/FO, 43 pitches (26 strikes)
3. Nick Struck - 2.0 IP, 1 H, 1 R (1 ER), 1 BB, 2 K, 1 HBP, 1 BALK, 2/2 GO/FO, 30 pitches (19 strikes)
4. Jose Rosario - 1.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K, 1/1 GO/FO, 15 pitches (7 strikes)
5. Steve Grife - 1.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K, 1 HBP, 2/1 GO/FO, 18 pitches (9 strikes)

ERRORS: NONE

CATCHERS DEFENSE:
Michael Brenly - 0-1 CS
Jovan Rosa - 1 PB

WEATHER: 70’s & overcast first-pitch, then mostly sunny by noon

ATTENDANCE: 21

 

what do you think?This will be shocking news for Jones fans, but some of you who will say that you saw it coming. I can’t say I’m all that surprised though. Jones is awesome, I really hope this doesn’t affect the season.

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If you’ve been reading Da Box over the past four or five years, you know one of the sidelight features in Baseball’s Hall of Names deals with players who share(d) certain initials. We’ve assembled teams for every possible double-initial, as well as many other obvious ones like MD, PR, BS and others.

Recently I got to thinking about baseball initials … you know, the kind you scratch on your scorecard during a game, abbreviations like HR, RBI and HBP. Forget building a roster of these guys — it’ll be hard enough to find representatives for all the obvious baseball abbreviations we can think of. So go ahead, play along … what initials are missing? And who would be better to fill a role in the existing All-Baseball-Initials roll-call that follows? …

Let’s kick things off on the mound …
There’s only one “natural ERA” in baseball history, that is, a player whose first-middle-last initials were ERA. That’d be 1975 World Series controversy epicenter Ed Armbrister (a Cincinnati OF who hit .245, 1973-77) whose full name is Edison Rosanda Armbrister.

Apologies to some guy in the current Yankee infield, Alexander Emmanuel Rodriguez, but AER doesn’t work, and to Edward John “Rube” Albosta, as the nickname makes the abbreviation E”R”A … and ooh, you just missed out, Elden Le Roy Auker! So Eddie Armbrister is it, apparently.

If our pitcher wants to plunk (not “Eric Plunk,” jut hit ‘em straight up) someone, there has never been a major league player with the natural initials HBP. Although those initials became well-associated with the aforementioned ‘75 Armbrister controversy, the closest we get is Harold William “Buddy” Pritchard, an .091-hitting middle infielder with the 1957 Pirates, who has that whole nickname thing going again. But as a bonus, the “B” could stand for two different things, his nickname of “Buddy” or a shortened form of his given middle name, “Bill.”

Woo, we’re off to a rip-roaring start, huh?

Of course, a pitcher’s primary concern is probably his W-L mark. Believe it or not, there has apparently never been a big league player who was both given and went by a W.L.-initialed name. Oh, you can make arguments for three All-Star pitchers in lefty William “Spaceman Bill” Lee or righties William “Big Bill” Lee  and William “Billy” Loes but all three went by B.L. names, as did Negro League Hall of Fame 1B Walter “Buck” Lee.

That win/loss mark matters more if the innings pitched number runs up higher, of course, so what about IP players? (And no, that has nothing to do with intellectual property, legal beagles.) In fact, there are only two candidates — and one, John Lloyd “Ike” Powers, a RHRP for the 1927-27 Athletics — only gets there via the nickname route. That leaves us with Irv Porter, an outfielder who singled in four at-bats in his only game with the 1914 White Sox.

If our pitcher wants to intentionally pass a batter to first base and is tired of the H”B”P route, there’s only two options, that is, players with the initials IBB … Isaac B. Benners, an outfielder who hit .185 for two teams in 1884 (and, most intriguingly, has a career line showing one homer and zero RBI … is that possible?) and Isaac Burr Butler, a RHSP who was 1-10 with a 5.34 ERA for the 1902 Baltimore Orioles. Makes sense to go with the pitcher …

Now, from the offensive side, using the newfangled metrics of the Jamesian age, there has NEVER been a big league player with either the initials OPS or OBP. But the old tried-and-true pre-sabremetric measure of greatness, the home run, still provides us with numerous options, including an All-Star middle infield in 2B Harold Reynolds and the still-active shortstop Hanley Ramirez.

Lost in the didn’t-go-by-it haze are a couple of former Dodger greats in another shortstop, Harold “Pee Wee” Reese, and OF Harold “Pete” Reiser. A more recent All-Star OF, Henry Rodriguez, does qualify, but Hall of Fame SP Charles “Old Hoss” Radbourn, not so much. With all those HRs on the board, shockingly there is only one natural RBI in big league history, 1990s Tigers/Twins OF Riccardo Benay Ingram. Still, even with the lack of RBI, there is only one man “left on base” (LOB) in big league history, in Luther Owens Barnes, a .243-hitting middle infielder for the 1972-73 Mets.

We should note that we are ignoring even the most common one-letter abbreviations (like H and K and E) — there would simply be too many possibilities and we’ve gone down that road previously anyway, building Hall of Names rosters back in 2004-05 for teams of players whose last/family names began with each letter of the alphabet. (Well, except “X” — there has never been a big league player with a last name starting with “X” … Oh, 1985-90 minor league catcher Joe Xavier, why couldn’t your talent vault you to the big leagues?)

Still, there are plenty of other abbreviations out there that do call to mind some significant All-Star, even Hall-of-Fame-level players. For instance …

• GB (Games Behind) … HOF 3B George Brett
• SO (Strikeouts) … All-Star RHP Steve Ontivero
• BB (Walks/Bases on Balls) … All-Stars like Bert Blyleven? Bobby Bonds? Barry Bonds? Bob Boone? Bill Buckner? Many others … again, we have done an entire roster just of the double-initial BB players …
• SB (Stolen Bases) … All-Stars like Steve Busby? Steve Blass? Sal Bando?
• AB (At-Bats) … With an eye on 2009 rookie All-Star Andrew Bailey and a nod to Hall of Fame umpire Al Barlick, let’s go with Albert Belle …
• SS (Shortstop) … More double-initials! Sammy Sosa? Scott Sanderson? Steve Sax? Steve Stone?
• LF (Left Field) … A number of All-Stars you’ve never heard of (Lou Fette, Lou Finney, Larry French), so let’s go with Lonny Frey, a fine three-time All-Star 2B who hit .269 over 14 seasons between 1933-48.
• CF (Center Field) … A huge number of All-Stars you HAVE heard of, including Cecil Fielder, Chuck Finley, Chone Figgins, Cliff Floyd, Curt Flood (arguably the most influential player in the history of the game OFF the field) and Carl Furillo. Oh, and one Hall of Famer,  Carlton Fisk.
• RF (Right Field) Jammed with HOFers including non-qualifying pitchers like Robert “Bob” Feller, Rube Foster and Red Faber, which leaves us with a battery of Rick Ferrell and Rollie Fingers along with guys who were “just” All-Stars like Ryan Franklin, Rafael Furcal, Ron Fairly, Robert Fick and Ray Fosse. All that said, we’ll go with Fingers … hands down (Har!).
• DH (Designated Hitter) … Sorry, “Doc” Halladay, we’re left with All-Stars like Danny Haren, Dave Henderson, Don Hoak, Dave Hollins and Dick Howser. You’ll remember that last guy more as a manager than a shortstop, which he was, but his combined success in those two areas — he started at shortstop in the All-Star Game as a 1961 rookie AND managed a World Series champ in the 1985 Royals — earns Howser this spot.
• SP (Starting Pitcher) Apologies to many fine candidates, but can this be anyone other than the greatest Starting Pitcher who ever lived, Satchel Paige? (I know, I know, that’s a nickname. So sue me.)
• RP (Relief Pitcher) Rafael Palmeiro? Roger Pavlik? Let’s go with Rico Petrocelli.
• CL (Closer) Clem Labine or Cliff Lee? It will probably be Lee in the long run, but it’s a tossup now and given what the abbreviation stands for, we’ll go with the 96 saves (and two NL save titles) racked up by Labine.
• PH (Pinch-Hitter) Pete Harnisch or Pat Hentgen? This is a Blue Jays site, I’m not dumb. It’s Hentgen, and pretty easily.
• LCS (League Championship Series) There have only been two, and with all due respect to the 19th century utilityman Leonard Clark Stockwell, we’ll look sideways past the nickname rule and Louis Francis “Chief” Sockalexis, the fine young OF from whom, legend has it, the Cleveland Indians took their name. 
• NL (National League) This one’s pretty easy — Hall of Famer Napoleon Lajoie.
• AL (American League) Options are surprisingly limited, so here’s to another former Jay in Al Leiter.
• MLB (Major leage Baseball) A number of players had these most generalizable of all baseball initials, but the best, such as they were, ended up being 1990s RHRP Melvin Lynn Bunch Jr., 1980s-’90s RHSP Michael Lawrence Birkbeck and our leader in the clubhouse, SFG OF Marvin Larry Benard, who hit .271 with 54 homers from 1995-2003.

Woo. That’s enough of that! But what other baseball initials or abbreviations can we use on this list, and who are the best players to bear those initials? Is there anyone missing from the above list? Over to you, Bauxites …

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I have always been a big fan of young, I have to say, seeing news like this gives me mixed feelings.This will be shocking news for young fans, but some of you who will say that you saw it coming from a long way away. I can’t say I’m all that surprised though. young is cool, I really hope this doesn’t affect the rest of the team.

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I wonder how Benson’s serious fans feel -

“

I know it’s cruel to keep featuring the Raiders today, but it was cruel of CBS to put them on my television. And really, holy crap, JaMarcus.

•Bengals 17, Ravens 14. Cincinnati officially confirmed for the most confusing team in the league. They barely beat Cleveland, then they barely beat Baltimore? I don’t know what to think. Andre Caldwell hauled in a touchdown with 22 seconds left, and that vaunted run defense couldn’t stop Cedric Benson.

•Steelers 28, Lions 20. This one wasn’t as close as the score, but you know Pittsburgh really misses Troy Polamalu when Daunte Culpepper throws for 282 yards. Big Ben spread it around, hitting six receivers at least twice.

•Cowboys 26, Chiefs 20. Dallas might have found themselves a number one receiver. Miles Austin caught ten passes for 250 yards, including a 60-yarder in overtime to steal the game.

•Giants 44, Raiders 7. When you lose 44-7, and your seven points come right after the refs blew a call that should have a fumble return for a TD, you are historically, hysterically bad. David Carr took over in the first half. The first goddamn half.

•Vikings 38, Rams 10. Minnesota also ran their record to 5-0, but let’s not give anyone too much credit for beating the Rams. Peterson was Peterson, and Favre was old Favre, and no one can tell me the Rams won’t go 0-16 this year.

•Eagles 33, Buccaneers 14. Mike Vick completed his first pass, for all of 3 yards. Luckily for the Eagles, Donovan McNabb threw for 264 more. A couple of bombs to Jeremy Maclin made sure this one was never close.

•Panthers 20, Redskins 17. In a game won by the Panthers only because somebody had to win, the teams combined for only 446 yards of total offense.

•Browns 6, Bills 3. Cleveland had nine first down all game. They completed two passes (that’s a 15.1 passer rating for Derek Anderson). And they won. This was the worst Sunday of football ever.

“

what do you think?This might be shocking news for Benson fans, but there are those of you who will say that you saw it coming from a long way away. I’m pretty surprised though. Benson is awesome, I hope this doesn’t affect the rest of the team.

Take a peek at a video of Benson:

UD series 2 baseball pack break MOJO!

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News about young,

“To complement our top 30 prospects list Dick Scott answered questions for Batters Box, as he does each year at this time.  Here is a link to last year’s interview.

BB: Let’s start with one of the newest players in the organization, Zach Stewart.  Can you give me a scouting report on him?

DS: We picked up a good arm, his fastball is 93-94 mph with some nice sink and run on it, kind of a boring fastball, he’s got a good frame, I like his stuff.  His slider is a little inconsistent right now, he has the makings of a good change-up, he’s possibly going to be a starter for us next year.

BB: I see he walks too many hitters, is that back to the inconsistent off-speed pitches?

DS: Yes, he needs the innings, he needs time on the mound because it is hard to come in at the end of the game and work on your change-up or slider.  So we will see how he is in spring training.  He has thrown about 110 innings this year so we are thinking we could bump him to 130 or 140 next year.

BB: Henderson Alvarez finished his season early was he shut down?

DS: Yes he was, he reached all the innings he needed this year.  We try and keep an eye on the guys innings and limit the increase to around 20% roughly.

BB: What was the biggest improvement you saw in him this season?

DS: His command.  He has good stuff, his fastball has a lot of life to it, it moves, and he has a plus change-up and his breaking stuff got better this year as well but it was really command of those pitches.  He started thinking about how to become a pitcher as opposed to standing out there and throwing hard.  He had a really good year.

BB: Another guy who had a good year is Moises Sierra, what did you see in him this year?

DS: He just got off to a good start and hit all year long.  He got his batting average to .336 but I think he got tired at the end of the year, you know the Florida State League just wears guys out, it’s so hot and humid all day long and they have day games.  It’s a tough league, it’s a pitchers league and he did well in the last two weeks when we sent him up to AA to get a taste of that level.  He did OK, I saw some of his at-bats and they got better, he wasn’t overmatched.  I saw him hit a game winning grand slam while I was there, and he’s just 20 years old.

BB: Andrew Liebel has been looked at as a back of the rotation starter but he improved as the year went on, what did you see in him?

DS: A couple of those guys in Dunedin got off to slow starts number wise, for him it was a lack of command early, he was walking a lot of guys, he wasn’t efficient with his pitches. His stuff is not over-powering, he has to command his stuff, he has to spot his fastball, he has to pitch behind a little bit.  But he really got his confidence going later, you look at his stuff and it’s OK, it doesn’t wow you, he just has a really good knack for pitching and know what pitch to throw when.  We will see, he might have to repeat at Dunedin but he is a guy we have interest in.

BB: Halfway though the year you said to me that Bobby Bell was a starter for the near future, is it still for the near future?

DS: It might be longer now.  He had to have one of the best change-ups in the Florida State League this year and surprisingly his curveball was very good.  We rarely saw it when he came in at the end of the game (as a reliever) it was fastball, change-up, fastball, change-up and all of a sudden he dropped a couple of curveballs in and we were like wow that’s pretty good.  So we will continue that next year with him, get him in the starting rotation, see how that works, because as we said it doesn’t hurt those guys to get those innings now and if we put them back in the bullpen later there is no harm, they will be better for it one way or the other.

BB: Does he have a shot at starting next year in AA?

DS: I think he does at some point, maybe not right away but at some point he will get there.

BB: Chuck Huggins improved a lot this year, he hides the ball well although he is not overpowering.

DS: He has deception, early in the year he had trouble throwing strikes, he didn’t have efficient outings, he would throw 4 innings and 95 pitches.  He would have 8 strikeouts and 4 walks.  We impressed upon him the need to be more efficient, he would get ahead of guys 0-2 and then the next thing you know the count is 3-2.  You can only talk so much to those guys but they have to go through it themselves and then they know what we are talking about and why.  And then the light went on and he said wow I am getting these guys out with three pitches and now I am working into the seventh inning.  He is a left handed guy with a good curveball and a good change-up, his fastball is average but it’s all going to be about his command.

BB: He is a bit of a Jesse Carlson type.

DS: Yes, he does have deception and he’s about the same size too.

BB: Tyler Pastornicky made great progress this year.  I know when he was drafted some people weren’t sure if he would stick at shortstop but he seems to have proven them wrong.

DS: He has done a good job there, all we are going to do is keep running him out there at short to find out.  He is so much better this season than last, he is all of 19 and we threw him into the fire in the Midwest League this year and he hit well and stole 55 bases.  He made plays at shortstop that we didn’t think he was going to make, he had a great year.  We sent him to the FSL for a few weeks and he hit there.  He is going to be a good offensive player, he is not a big physical guy, he puts the bat on the ball when it is in the strike zone.

BB: One of the biggest surprises this year was Darin Mastroianni, what happened with him?

DS: He is the hardest worker we have, or at least top three.  The big thing he had when he came into the organization was his speed.  We have guys who can run but we don’t have anyone who gets up running as quickly as he does.  He is explosive, he came in as a second baseman and he wasn’t very good over there at second.  We were looking at him saying he fights everything on the ground, he has trouble turning double plays.  He is the type of guy that goes 100 mph everything he does and that doesn’t always work well when you’re in the infield so we decided to move him to the outfield, let him use his legs.  He plays centre field and has done a good job there, he has an adequate throwing arm.  When he steals bases he puts a lot of pressure on the defense.  I don’t know what he is going to be down the road but I will tell you this he will work as hard as anyone to get there and I wouldn’t bet against him.

BB: He could be a Reed Johnson type

DS: He is probably not as physically talented as Reed but he is a good player.

BB: Eric Thames, is he going to be a chronic injury guy?

DS: I don’t know.  I wish I could tell you but I hope not because when he is playing he can hit.  But he had setbacks this year and last year.  But when he was healthy he made the all-star team, he hit, I mean he really got that team (Dunedin) going when he was playing with them.  We missed his bat when he was out of there.

BB: Brad Mills, was it a rib problem, is he better now?

DS: It was his inter-costal muscle, he was throwing the last three weeks of the season in Vegas but we never got him in a game.  He is going to go home and rest and be ready for spring training.

BB: Carlos Perez had a very good first season in North America.

DS: Yes he did a good job.  He was our MVP down there.  When latin kids come over for their first year you don’t really know what to expect.  Like our high school kids when they come in they are wide-eyed, they are anxious and nervous.  But he did a very good job catching, pitchers like to throw to him, he throws well and he hit nearly .300 the whole year.

BB: Do you think he could handle Lansing next year?

DS: We might find out.  We have a lot of young catchers down there, we have some guys we need to make decisions on.

BB: Gustavo Pierre, how was his first North American season?

DS: Good, you know he had Tommy John surgery last year and he hasn’t shown any ill effects from that.  He is going to be a big physical guy, he is 6′3″, very lean, got the long arms and long legs, but I think he is going to develop some strength hitting.  He made some adjustments at the plate this year but it is one of those too early to tell, tool wise you like him.

BB: Will he stick at shortstop?

DS: Oh yeah.

BB: Could he go to Lansing next season?

DS: He will probably go to extended spring training

BB: Was there anyone else in the GCL that caught your eye this year?

DS: Garis Pena, shortstop, did a nice job.  We have a pitcher, Pina, who got hurt a little at the end of the year.  He is a lefthander with a good live fastball.

BB: You have a bit of a logjam at shortstop next season, Jackson will need to repeat Dunedin, Pastornicky has earned a spot in Dunedin, Ryan Goins is behind them in Lansing, what do you do?

DS: Sometimes the best guy is going to play and I think competition is a beautiful thing so we will see how guys respond to that.  No promises or anything, let’s go play and see who wins the position.

BB: The Jays picked a lot of high school hitters in 2007 and 2008 and while the farm system has been strong in developing pitchers and college hitters, other than Pastornicky the high school hitters have not progressed, do you need to re-evaluate what you do?

DS: No, Travis Snider is here although he is an exception.  We took him as a high school hitter and he is here in the big leagues and I think that worked out OK for us.  There are some guys who are going to take a little longer and we are OK with that.  We don’t have to have them here right now and in fairness to them it is probably a four of five year process.  They will go through their peaks and valleys, all those guys we put in the FSL this year we pushed them, a lot of them were 19/20 playing there and we will put most of them there again next year probably.

BB: If they don’t hit for a couple of years then you worry about them

DS: Eventually you will but they will be fine.  We could have sent them back to the Midwest League and they probably would all have hit .270.

BB: You made some changes in hitting coaches after the season.  Was that a philosophical thing or was it three individual decisions?

DS: A little bit of both and time to move on with some of those positions, get some new people in, and that’s all I really have to say on that.

Batters Box thanks Dick Scott for answering our questions.

.:”

Thoughts?

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I wonder how young’s real fans feel:

Ian O’Connor provides a tangible reason for Captain Intangibles’ rediscovered greatness: a fitness trainer who loosened up Jeter’s stiff left hip, which previously had turned him into statuary any time a ball was hit toward second. So clutch! Bergen Record

what do you think?How do you think this news about young will affect the rest of the team this season?

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young needs to be traded:

In the AZ Instructional League, Chicago’s ”Crosstown Classic” is West-Side versus East-Side rather than North-Side versus South-Side, but it’s still Sox versus Cubs, and such was the case today, as about 20 White Sox youngsters boarded a couple of maxi-vans at Camelback Ranch in Glendale and traveled 30 miles east down the Papago and Red Mountain freeways to meet the Cubs at Fitch Park Field #3 in Mesa.

And the Cubs probably wish the West Side Hit Men had just stayed home at the ranch, too, because the Cubs surrendered 12 runs on 15 hits, five walks, two HBP, a balk, four stolen bases, two errors, a passed ball, and 11 wild pitches.

Meanwhile, the Cubs offense could muster just four runs on only five hits (albeit three of the hits were for extra bases), four walks, and two stolen bases (plus the aid of two Sox errors). And the White Sox pitchers didn’t throw anywhere near 11 wild pitches, either. In fact, they didn’t throw any.

2009 1st round draft pick Brett Jackson (Cal) got the start in CF for the Cubs, and went hitless, although he did draw a walk in his 4th and final AB. Jackson has been nursing a sore right wrist for the past six weeks, and he played today with a pressure sleeve on his right forearm and a tightly wrapped right wrist (he bats left-handed, but throws right-handed). He looked rusty at the plate.

Lanky 6′6 Taiwanese RHP Tzu-An Wang made his Cubs debut today, and the 18-year old really struggled, allowing three runs on four hits, while also throwing three wild pitches and committing a balk, in 1.2 IP. He was unable to finsh his second inning of work. Wang received a reported $350K signing bonus earlier this year. T. A. Wang has a similar frame as fellow lanky Cub minor league right-handers Chris Huseby and Toby Matchulat.

2009 3rd round pick LHP Austin Kirk (Owasso HS - Owasso, OK) worked 2.1 IP and struck out three, but he also allowed two runs on three hits (two triples and a double), as he had trouble keeping his pitches down. But when the stocky left-hander puts the ball where he wants to put it, he can be filthy.

3B-turned-catcher Jovan Rosa had another tough day behind the plate, allowing a PB and four SB, while gunning down only one runner (and that was on a pitch-out). Rosa was also absolutely helpless to block the many wild pitches uncorked by the Cubs pitchers. Rosa needs to work on both his throwing AND his receiving (and ball blocking) skills, and he has a long way to go to that end.

Plus, now Rosa appears totally lost as a hitter, too, probably because his mind is jammed with all of the things he needs to learn and remember as a catcher. Hopefully Rosa will turn the corner in time for the 2010 season.

IF-OF Brandon May (2009 36th round pick out of U. of Alabama) also has had lots of problems (so far) learning the art of catching, and Jae-Hoon Ha has had some difficulty re-learning the position (the Cubs signed Ha as a catcher, but then immediately moved him to the OF). And youngster Sergio Burruel (2009 19th round draft pick out of Trevor Browne HS in Phoenix) is a promising power-hitting lefty swinger, but he is raw behind the plate. Same goes for “HR or Bust” lefty swinging Richard Jones (2009 9th round pick out of The Citadel), who looks more comfortable at 1B (or DH).

Among the six Cubs catchers at Instructs (not counting Welington Castillo, who is at Fitch Park to prepare for the start of the AFL season next week, and Matt Cerda, who has been moved back to the infield), only Michael Brenly looks like a real, legitimate catcher. (And Brenly will almost certainly be the #1 catcher at Daytona next season).

Logan Watkins (triple, walk, and a stolen base) and D. J. LeMahieu (a single and a stolen base, two runs scored, plus one RBI) provided most of the Cubs offense today. Ryan Flaherty also had an RBI on a double that just missed going over the RF fence for a HR.

LeMahieu is the best pure hitter at Instructs, ripping line drives all over the yrard (although he has yet to demonstrate a HR swing), and if he can master the DP turn at 2B (the position the Cubs would prefer he play), he could move VERY quickly through the system.

2B Logan Watkins and SS Hak-Ju Lee (the likely 2010 Opening Day 2B-SS combo at Peoria) have also had impressive showings, Rebel Ridling has provided a reliable RBI bat and OK defense at 1B, and Ryan Flaherty displays lefty plus-power (probably annual 20+), with the versatility to play almost anywhere on the diamond except pitcher and catcher.

Here is today’s abridged box score (Cubs players only):

LINEUP:
1a. Logan Watkins, 3B: 1-2 (BB, K, 3B), 2 R, SB 
1b. Brandon May, 3B: 0-0 (BB) 
2a. D. J. LeMahieu, 2B: 1-3 (FC+E4, 3-U, 1B), R, 2 RBI, SB 
2b. Ping-Chieh Chen, 2B: 0-1 (4-6 FC) 
3. Brett Jackson, CF:0-3 (3-U, F-8, F-9, BB), RBI 
4a. Rebel Ridling, 1B: 0-3 (L-6, F-8, 5-3) 
4b. Richard Jones, 1B: 0-1 (K) 
5. Ryan Flaherty, SS: 1-4 (2B, 1-3, 6-3, 5-3), RBI 
6a. Jovan Rosa, C: 0-2 (P-4, K) 
6b. Michael Brenly, C: 0-2 (F-9, 6-3) 
7. Bobby Wagner, LF: 1-3 (P-5, 2B, K, BB) 
8a. Wes Darvill, DH #1: 0-3 (6-3, 4-3, E-3), R 
8b. Runey Davis, PH: 0-1 (K) 
9. Sergio Burruel, DH #2: 1-3 (6-3, 4-3, 1B) 
10. Kyung-Min Na, RF: 0-3 (1-U, 4-3, K)

PITCHERS: 
1. Alberto Cabrera – 2.0 IP, 2 H, 3 R (2 ER), 3 BB, 1 K, 2 WP, 4/0 GO/FO, 43 pitches (22 strikes) 
2. Tarlandus Mitchell – 1.0 IP, 3 H, 2 R (2 ER), 1 BB, 0 K, 1 HBP, 2 WP, 2/1 GO/FO, 22 pitches (12 strikes) 
3. Tzu-An Wang – 1.2 IP, 4 H, 3 R (3 ER), 0 BB, 1 K, 3 WP, 1 BALK, 1 GIDP, 4/0 GO/FO, 24 pitches (16 strikes)
4. Austin Kirk – 2.1 IP, 3 H, 2 R (2 ER), 0 BB, 3 K, 1 WP, 2/2 GO/FO, 36 pitches (22 strikes) 
5. Jose Rosario – 1.0 IP, 1 H, 1 R (1 ER), 1 BB, 2 K, 3 WP, 1/0 GO/FO, 23 pitches (10 strikes) 
6. Corey Martin – 1.0 IP, 2 H, 1 R (1 ER), 0 BB, 2 K, 1 HBP, 1/0 GO/FO, 24 pitches (18 strikes)

ERRORS: (2): 
1. Rebel Ridling (E-3) – batted ball caromed off glove into RF with runner on 2nd base and two outs in the top of the 2nd inning, allowing the runner at 2nd base to score an unearned run. 
2. Ryan Flaherty (E-6) – overthrow at 1st base on infield single (H+E) leading off top of the 4th inning, allowing batter to advance to 2nd base.

CATCHERS DEFENSE: 
Jovan Rosa: 1-5 CS, 1 PB

WEATHER: 80, partly cloudy, some scattered showers

ATTENDANCE: 14 (mostly scouts)

.

Post your replies!

Take a peek at a clip of young:

A-Rod Admits to Steroid Use

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Look who is in this news: Francisco! Time To Clear The Air Jordan Pga. To make things easier -

MJ will be a special assistant to the Americans at this weekend’s Presidents Cup, but he won’t have his signature cigar in hand. Why not? Liberals!

See, the Presidents Cup is being held in Harding Park, which is a public park. And there’s no smoking in public parks in San Francisco. The city was sure to let the PGA know:

You mean about Spare the Air Jordan?” said Recreation and Park General Manager Phil Ginsburg.

“I’ve already sent off an e-mail to the PGA Tour director,” Ginsburg said. “It was sort of a gentle nudge reminding them that smoking is illegal and that we would appreciate their support.”

Apparently the message has gotten through to Jordan.

PGATOUR.COM: What’s the over and under on cigars per round this week?

MJ: Well, that depends because I heard this is a public place so they limit what you can smoke. I’m not even supposed to be smoking but this was a practice round and no one said anything. So I’ve been very cognizant of that to some degree. But I would say, if they allow me to, I would say a three-cigar round. I would try to keep it at a minimum of three.

Luckily for Jordan, San Francisco doesn’t have a ban on being a selfish, egotistical jackass.

Michael Jordan Caught Smoking SF Chronicle
Q&A: Jordan on golf and The Presidents Cup PGATOUR.com

.

How do you think this news will affect the rest of the team this season?

Take a look at a clip of Francisco:

Felix Hernandez and Francisco Liriano bullpen June 6 06

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