Blast Back to the Past: A Look At My March Baseball Predictions

Congratulations to the San Francisco Giants. They were merely one of many, many teams, players and managers to make me look incredibly dumb with my March predictions. But, hey, I can't be right all the time. Now that all wthe awards have been handed out, and the 2010 season is now 100% behind us, we'll look back and grade the predictions based on a scale of -3 to 3, then go and give myself a numerical score that will judge just how truly stupid I was eight months ago.

1) The New York Yankees will repeat as World Series champions. Made it to the ALCS and were the World Series favorites, but lost because their starters couldn't pitch. Score: -1

2) The Phillies will make it to their 3rd straight World Series. Again, made it to the NLCS, but their bats went silent against the outstanding San Francisco pitching rotation. Score: -1

3) Curtis Granderson will become a superstar. In his first series against the hated Red Sox he hit a game-winning home run to get off to a fairly good start. However, he missed nearly all of May and could never get going. Hit only .247 with 24 home runs and 67 runs batted in. Score: -2

4) In a related note, the Tigers will realize that replacing Granderson with Damon will be an issue. Granderson had three times as many home runs (24 to Damon's eight), a higher slugging percentage (.455 to .401), one more stolen base, a far better WAR (3.6 to 1.9) and his UZR (ultimate zone rating) was 5.3 to Damon's 0.6. In a related note, the Tigers decreased in wins due to an offense that couldn't do anything without Miguel Cabrera and went from a second place finish in 2009 to a third place finish in 2010. Score: 2

5) Steven Strasburg will be average at best this season. Alright, if this kid's arm heals and returns to full strength, he'll be a star. A 5-3 record (with zero run support), 92 strikeouts in 68 innings (including 14 in his major league debut... though that was against the Pirates) and a sub-3 earned run average. It's too bad he had Tommy John Surgery and will miss most of next year, too. Even though his ERA in August was above 5, i'll still say he far exceeded my expectations. Score: -1

6) Roy Halladay will be fine in the regular season, but come the playoffs, he'll be in for a rude awakening. He was a unanimous choice for the NL Cy Young Award, with a 22-10 record and 2.44 ERA. And he threw the second no-hitter in postseason history. Still, in the NLCS he wasn't anything special, splitting two games with Tim Lincecum. However, I think Charlie Manuel messed up here. Halladay should have pitched on short rest and started Game 5, not Game 6. Instead Joe Blanton couldn't make it out of the fifth inning and the Phillies went down 3-1 in the series. So that isn't Halladay's fault (though he should have demanded the ball... an ace should when his team is facing a 3-1 hole). Score: 0

7) Albert Pujols will win another MVP. He finished second, so I wasn't too far off. All it took for someone to take the award away from the Machine was for Joey Votto to go after the Triple Crown. I'll give myself a point. Score: 1

8) Ivan Rodriguez, Adam Kennedy, and Willy Taveras may be names, but it won't stop the Nationals from finishing last in the NL East. 68-93, 28 games out of first place, 10 games behind the fourth place Mets. I-Rod played 111 games, Kennedy 135 and Taveras only 27. Still, something tells me Taveras' .274 average, eight homers and 128 RBIs (in seven seasons) wouldn't have made a difference. Score: 3

9) 3 of these 5 managers will be fired by August 1st: Manny Acta, Dave Trembley, Dusty Baker, Lou Piniella, Cito Gaston. Alright, so Dusty Baker didn't lose his job, considering the Reds won the division. Dave Trembley was canned by Baltimore on June 4th. Piniella and Gaston either announced their retirement (Gaston) or actually retired before the season ended (Piniella), but I don't think either was pressured to do it, but both organizations probably saw it coming before August 1st. Score: 1

10) Texas will have one of the best offenses in baseball, but will be a .500 team.

The team led the majors in batting average and hits, was fifth in RBIs and on-base percentage and struck out the third-fewest times. Nothing new. However the team finished with 90 wins, in large part because of the efforts of CJ Wilson and Colby Lewis on the mound (then Cliff Lee until the World Series). The offense was just as good as past years. I just didn't see the pitching coming around like it did. Score: -2

11) With the addition of Chone Figgins, Ichiro will score 120 runs. Wanna know how terrible the Mariners offense was this year? Only four players played more than 95 games. Figgins hit a dreadful .258 -- and it was third highest on the team. The fact that Ichiro scored 74 runs is a freakin' miracle. Score: -4 (yes, the scale is -3 to 3. That's how bad a prediction it was)

12) ESPN won't be the same without Peter Gammons. Tim Kurkjian is nice, and so is Buster Olney. But Gammons was irreplaceable. Baseball Tonight was considerably less interesting without him there. Score: 3

13) The only teams capable of beating the Yankees in a playoff series are the Red Sox and Mariners. I said this because of their pitching. And that is exactly how the Yankees lost -- they ran into a team with strong pitching. Too bad it wasn't the fairly disappointing Red Sox rotation (that means you, John Lackey), or the Mariners (who did finish in the top 12 of the league in ERA, opponent batting average, earned runs and allowed the third fewest walks). So I knew what it would take to beat the Yankees. Again, I just never thought it would be the Rangers who had the staff. Score: 0

14) Josh Johnson, Tim Lincecum, and Jair Jurrjens will be the NL Cy Young candidates. Josh Johnson had a streak of 13 starts without allowing more than two earned runs. Had he not been hurt in the second half, he would have ran away with it. Ubaldo Jimenez won 15 (not a misprint) games before the All-Star break. He should have easily won. However, he only won four games the rest of the year and disappeared down the stretch, even as the Rockies challenged once again for a playoff berth. Lincecum had a good season by most standards (16-10, 231 strikeouts) and will probably finish fourth or fifth in voting. Jurrjens was hurt for much of the season, could only make 20 starts and had a terrible WHIP (1.39).  Roy Halladay was the unanimous choice. Score: 2

15) The NL West rides on the arm of Brandon Webb. Webb didn't make a start, Arizona had all sorts of pitching problems (towards the bottom of the league in ERA, batting average against and strikeouts). And the D'Backs never really contended. Score: -1

16) These will be this year's playoff teams: AL - New York, Minnesota, Seattle, Boston (wild card) NL - Philadelphia, St. Louis, San Francisco, Atlanta (wild card) Got five out of eight teams right, and give me a break on the Sox (if they didn't have so many injuries they would have made it fairly easily). However, that more than gets cancelled out by the Mariners.... oh, the Mariners... Score: 1

17) The Royals will be 2nd in the AL Central on May 1st. By June 30th they will be last. Hey! For once the Royals started the way they finished: a terrible team! They were five games out and third on May 1st, and were already out of it by June 30th. Score: 1

18) Joe Mauer, Lance Berkman, and Derek Jeter, all in their last year of their contracts, will stay. Mauer signed an enormous deal right away, and it looks as though Jeter is going to stay a Yankee (it has to happen). Berkman, though, was traded to the Bronx. Two out of three ain't bad. Score: 2

19) Ozzie Guillen will feud with Jake Peavy at least twice. Peavy only started 17 games and went 7-6. Not worth $15 million by any stretch of the imagination. Unfortunately, no feuds, though. Score: -2

20) The NL East will be the best race. The Yankees and Rays had the tightest race, but it was a well-known fact that whoever finished second would get the wild-card. That goes out the window. You could make a claim for the NL West, but for the entire second half people were wondering if the Phillies were stumbling and if the Braves were for real. Then the roles flipped and led to the best long-term race. Score: 2

21) The AL West will be the 2nd best race. The Rangers had a stranglehold on the division. After July 25th their lead was never fewer than seven and a half games. Score: -2

22) The Pirates will trade Zach Duke and/or Andrew McCutchen. Duke went 8-15 and had an ERA of 5.71. McCutchen was the lone bright spot. Both were on the team all year. However, literally a minute before I was about to hit "Publish", I saw that Duke was traded to Arizona. So technically it wasn't during the season, but he was traded. Originally I was going to give myself a score of -3. New Score: 1

23) With José Reyes back, David Wright will once again hit 25 home runs. Wright hit 29 home runs. Reyes played in 133 games. Score: 3

24) This is the penultimate year for Mariano Rivera. Rivera had 33 saves this year, but have no one in line to replace him, as Joba Chamberlain proved nothing. Looks like Mo will have to go past 2011. Score: -1

25) Evan Longoria will win AL MVP. Longoria was very quiet. He had a solid year (.294, 22 homers, 104 RBIs), but was never amazing. Josh Hamilton ran away with MVP honors in convincing fashion. Score: -2

26) JA Happ and Jayson Werth will launch into superstardom. Happ only appeared in 13 games due to injury, and Werth struggled early but finished very strong, hitting a shade under .300 with 27 HRs and 85 RBIs. He finished eighth in MVP voting, and one of the most sought-after free agents this summer. Score: 1

27) Daisuke Matsuzaka will milk another injury in Boston. Matsuzaka made two trips to the disabled list for a right forearm strain. It was probably legitimate. Probably. But still, he has not been a "bust" but by no means has he been worth the billion and a half dollars or whatever it was that the Sox spent to get him. Score: 1

28) Managers of the Year: Don Wakamatsu, Bobby Cox. Wakamatsu was fired, Cox probably would have had it not been for the surprising Padres and Reds. The Twins' Ron Gardenhire and the Padres' Bud Black won the award. Score: -2

29) Brandon Webb and Garrett Atkins will be Comeback POY: Webb made one short-lived start. Atkins played in 44 games. Maybe I was a year too soon with these picks. Francisco Liriano and Tim Hudson won the award. Score: -3

30) The Marlins and Braves will be 2 of the NL's 5 best teams. Well, the Braves were. The Marlins finished two games under .500. Score: 1

31) Alfonso Soriano is no longer in his prime. By a long shot. Hit a nice and pathetic .258. Yeah, he had 24 homers and 79 RBIs, but he also had nearly as many strikeouts (123) as hits (128). Score: 3

32) Adam Lind will be the Blue Jays offense. Jose Bautista hit 54 home runs in leading of the most powerful offenses ever (in terms of home run hitting at least). Lind hit a dreadful .237 and hit only 23 home runs. Score: -3

33) Matt Holliday will redeem himself for last year's error. My boy hit .312, 28 homers and 103 RBIs, winning a Silver Slugger Award and going to the All-Star game. Although St. Louis didn't make the playoffs, Holliday had his fifth consecutive solid season. Score: 3

34) Brad Lidge makes a triumphant comeback this year. Well he wasn't 48-for-48 like he was in 2008, but his ERA also wasn't 7.21 like it was in 2009. He had a respectable 27 saves in 32 chances, striking out 52 in 45 2/3 innings of work and lowering the earned run average to below three. Not a triumphant comeback, but a good rebound nonetheless. Score: 1

35) Chan Ho Park will be the next Chien Ming Wang for the Yankees. Park went 2-1 with an ERA over five before being relegated to the minors traded to Pittsburgh. He was about as effective as Wang was in 2009. Score: 2

36) Griffey, Edmonds, and Vlad go out quietly. Griffey retired with a day of sadness around baseball, but nothing extraordinary. Edmonds played in only 86 games and drove in 23 runs. Vlad, though, had a huge resurgence, hitting .300 and surpassing 100 runs batted in. Score: 2

37) In his 1st at-bat of interleague play, Joba Chamberlain gets hit by a 95 mph fastball. Seeing as he wasn't a starter, he didn't get an at-bat this year. But I still dislike him. A lot. Score: 0

38) Tim McCarver says approximately 1.5 idiotic things per inning. Just how dumb is Tim McCarver? Before the World Series, partner Joe Buck was on Pardon the Interruption on ESPN doing an interview live. McCarver walked by and, oblivious of the camera or the fact that Buck was talking to it, smacked Buck on the shoulder and started talking to him. Then, when the games were actually played, here were some of my favorites: "The Rangers aren't hitting because the Giants are pitching."

"He's been throwing up some bad dreams to the Texas Rangers." Score: 3

 

39) Manny will say it's his last season in LA, then it's not, then it is again at least 10 times. Well seeing as he was a pain in Joe Torre's ass and ended the year an unproductive member of the White Sox (what's that? unproductive and White Sox are redundancies? Good to know). Score: 2

40) Minka Kelly is shown on camera at least five times per game. So I must say that I barely saw the Yankees play at all this year, but I'm going to assume that she was on at least occasionally. Plus, I need a few points. Score: 1

41) On a related note, Kelly will put the same curse on Jeter that Kate Hudson put on A-Rod. Jeter had his worst year since he was a rookie (though he still won a Gold Glove that was totally unjustified), and I am 100% attributing it to the lovely Minka Kelly. Score: 3

42) After breaking the single-season passing, rushing, and receiving records by Week 6 of the NFL season, Tim Tebow signs with a contender, wins MVP in the LCS and World Series, and in doing so makes his case for the Baseball Hall of Fame. This will be followed by Tebow returning to the NFL and winning the Super Bowl on a last second 76-yard touchdown run. It was a pipe-dream, but I shouldn't be surprised that Tebow didn't do all this. After all, he's humble. He simply didn't want to take the spotlight away from the already-unpopular baseball players (and by unpopular, I mean far less popular than NFL players, unless your name is Alex Rodriguez, Albert Pujols or Derek Jeter). Score: -3

Although it didn't seem like it, my score was a 16. I don't really know how good that is, because I couldn't figure out an accurate scoring system that would figure out how well I really did. So take from that score what you will. And in reality I probably -- okay, I knowingly -- gave myself an extra point here or there to boost my score that otherwise would have been shockingly terrible.

America's Pastime: 1869-2010

America's Pastime, 141, beloved game run by William "Bud" Selig, passed away Monday night at Yankee Stadium. Although fighting to the very end, more people ended up watching the Jaguars and Titans on Monday Night Football than Game 3 of the ALCS. Six and a half million viewers saw Cliff Lee throw eight innings of shutout baseball, striking out 13. Over seven million people watched a 27-point blowout between two low market franchises (one of which can't even sell out their home games), both of whom had backup quarterbacks in by halftime. It was a long time coming. Pastime faced recent struggles with performance-enhancing drugs, threats of strikes and this. With homes in 28 cities, including two each in New York and Chicago, America's Pastime brought joy to millions of people for decades. It produced some of the country's most celebrated icons, including Babe Ruth, Ted Williams, Willie Mays and Drew Henson. It also helped the country go through some of it's most difficult times -- the Great Depression, World War II, 9/11 and that year and a half when everyone was really into the Baha Men. Pastime leaves behind it's 30 organizations (well, actually it's 29 real organizations, plus the Pirates). Funeral services will be held on Sunday, October 24, at 1 p.m. at the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, NY. An evening service will be held Monday night. Now I don't know about everyone else, but I can't make it. That's during my football time, and no one interrupts me during my NFL time. Besides, the Steelers are actually on TV for once. And then it's Monday Night Football. Giants-Cowboys, in fact. And won't it be really fun to watch the Giants look completely disorganized, yet somehow look really good at the same time? And then there are the Cowboys! 1-4 baby! I'm not sure what's funnier: Jerry Jones giving Wade Phillips a vote of confidence, Tony Romo's "Grr.... does anyone really believe I'm mad?" face, or the prospect of bringing the excessive-celebration-penalty-to-wins ratio up to 3:1. What's that? I'm digressing? From what? Oh, right America's Pastime... Eh, no one cares anyways.

The game of baseball will go on as normal. However, "America's Pastime" has officially died. America's new pastime will now be exclusively on Sundays (and Monday nights. And starting in November, Thursday nights. And near Christmas, Saturday nights).

Time For Replays

Enough people ignore Major League Baseball when the NFL season starts. I am included in this group, especially this season seeing as my Red Sox have been out of the race for me since the injuries to Dustin Pedroia and Kevin Youkilis. It seems that everything gets moved to the back burner once Week 1 gets underway.

By Friday baseball was again at the front of the news -- not for good reasons though. Roy Halladay's no-hitter, only the second in playoff history, should have been the story, even two days after the fact. But the top story was about how truly terrible a job umpires have done only two days into the postseason. Thursday alone all three games (Rangers vs. Rays, Braves vs. Giants and Yankees vs. Twins) were impacted by missed or non-calls. As a fan, why should I bother to watch games knowing the umpires can't do their jobs correctly, thus affecting the game? Instant replay clearly needs to be added, and the way to do it is by having a challenge rule similar to the NFL.

To recap, here's how all three games were affected by bad or missed calls yesterday. In the Rangers-Rays game, Texas was up 2-0 in the top of the fifth. They had two runners on and Michael Young at the plate. With the count at 2-2 Young checked his swing on the next pitch to make it a full count. The only problem is that it looked like he went around, and he should have been called out on strikes. Much to the chagrin of the Tampa Bay bench, though, first base umpire Jim Wolf said Young held up. Next pitch, he hits a three-run blast, and all of a sudden the Rays are down 5-0 instead of 2-0, and without manager Joe Maddon, who was ejected after Young hit the home run. Texas tacked on another run and won 6-0, going up 2-0 in the series.

In the Braves-Giants game, a 1-0 decision mind you, San Francisco catcher Buster Posey went to steal second base. Replays showed Posey was tagged at least six inches before he reached the base. Umpire Paul Emmel called him safe. Instead of two outs and no one on, it was one out with a runner on second. Two at-bats later, Cody Ross singled to drive home Posey, who would be the winning run.

(Little side note: You know why it's time for Bobby Cox to retire? Because after the missed call, he didn't come out to argue. Didn't even budge. After the game when questioned about it, he said "I haven't seen [the play].... From the dugout, you can't see anything and I didn't see a reaction from our infielders." Since when has the poor view from the dugout ever stopped Cox from going out, kicking dirt, swearing and getting tossed? The Bobby Cox we all know and love would have been out there before Emmel was finished making his "safe" signal. To make an excuse like that, you know it's time for the man to retire.)

And in the Yankees-Twins game, the game was tied 2-2 in the top of the seventh when Lance Berkman stepped to the plate. With Jorge Posada at first, Berkman took what appeared to be strike three on the inside corner. It was called a ball. Similarly to Young, Berkman sent the next pitch to the wall for a double, scoring Posada. Minnesota manager Ron Gardenhire argued and was ejected. The Yanks added insurance and won 5-2 to take a 2-0 series lead going to the Bronx.

Of course, one could argue that all three teams that benefited from the poor calls would have won anyways. The Rays didn't score a run, so they would have lost anyways. Tim Lincecum pitched a gem, striking out 14 Atlanta batters and getting a shutout. The Yankees added runs after the Berkman double. Essentially it is the team's own faults for losing. If the Tampa Bay and Atlanta offenses got going the calls would not have mattered. If Chad Qualls and Carl Pavano made better pitches there would not have been an issue at all.

But that's not how sports fans think, especially when it involves their favorite teams. If I were to go out and tell a Rays fan (oh, right... bad example...). So like I was saying, if I were to go out and tell a Braves fan that Lincecum was untouchable and that the team would have probably lost anyways, I would be told quite the opposite. "No way, man! That call changed the momentum of the game! It sucked all the life out of the team!" That's just the way sports fans are. It is never the team's fault in cases like this. The loss is entirely on the umpire for that one bad call, among the hundreds of pitches in a major league game. And the case for instant replay will be made.

Which brings me to my point. Give the fans what they want. Face it, sports today are for entertainment. As one colleague told me last week, "They don't blast fireworks after every White Sox home run for the sake of it. They do it because it entertains the fans." That is what ultimately matters. Teams relocate if fans don't support them. Leagues shut down entirely. Obviously baseball is in no danger of folding, but it is certainly not the number one sport in America anymore. If the fans want instant replay, which is the best thing for the sport, expand it and give it to them.

Critics against the use of replay say that it adds too much time to the game. If I'm going to sit and watch a three to three-and-a-half hour game, what's an extra five minutes to make sure that a key call was made correct? Or better yet, to annul the added time, restrict either the number of times a manager can go to the mound, or how long the meetings can last. For a devoted fan, an extra five minutes (if that) per game is nothing. For the two biggest fan bases (Red Sox Nation and whatever the hell the Yankees call it now), their games are always four hours. At least. That little time added to make sure the umpires correct a call is well worth it, and wouldn't add to the ridiculousness of the game's length.

The only way the critics would be correct would be if replay were expanded for everything except balls and strikes, but there were no restrictions. There would be a good chance every play that was even remotely close would be reviewed. That would add to the time. Here's my proposal:

Give the managers two "challenges" per game, just like the NFL, that can be used for anything except balls and strikes. There would be no penalty if the play were overturned, but there would also be no reward for getting both challenges correct. If the game goes into extra innings, the managers would get one reward every four innings, with no rollover. That way the game is not in the hands of the umpires as much. Yeah, there would be flaws. On some plays, it will be hard to determine where runners on base should go. The best possible solution? If the play is very questionable and the call could go either way, make it so the ball is in play (i.e. the ball was trapped, not caught). Let the game run its course and see what happens. That way, if a manager chooses to challenge the play and the ball was foul, caught, etc, the runners merely return to the bases they held before the pitch. And if the call was correct to begin with, the umps aren't left pondering where runners should go, if they should be allowed to score, etc. It's not 100% foolproof, but it's better than what the system has now.

Some baseball "purists" will complain that expanding replay will ruin the game. Well, right now the purity of the game is being ruined by the umpires.

Tulo On a High

I guess 2007 was no fluke.

If the entire baseball season was played in September, the Colorado Rockies would have won each of the last three World Series and would be cruising to a fourth straight this year. Of course that isn't the case, but once again the boys from Denver are making a late push in the last month of the season. It may not be as historic as in 2007, when the team won 13 of its final 14 games, then won an epic one-game tiebreaker against San Diego to get into the playoffs, and won seven straight to get into the World Series. But still, on September 2nd the team was 69-64 and virtually out of the playoff race. Now 16 days and and a 10 game win streak later, the team is a mere game and a half out of first place. And the play of shortstop Troy Tulowitzki has almost singlehandedly steered the team towards another playoff berth.

Tulowitzki has always been solid ever since he became a full-time player in 2007 (including last year when he hit 32 home runs and drove home 92 runs). But I don't think anyone saw this coming, especially from a shortstop, which traditionally is not a power-hitter's position. Going into September Tulowitzki had 12 home runs and 55 runs batted in, for him an off season hampered by injuries (he's missed 39 games this year). What he has done this month is historic. He has 14 home runs (that's right, in 17 September games he has more than doubled his home run total) and has driven home 33 runs. It is very likely that he will shatter Ralph Kiner's National League record of 16 home runs in September. But looking further into history, he is only six home runs away from tying Sammy Sosa's major league record 20 home runs in a month, which came in June 1998. To break it he would need seven home runs in 11 games. Very possible. The record for most RBIs in a month is a lot less likely to be broken. Currently Joe DiMaggio holds that record with 53 back in August 1939. It is certainly doable with the way Tulo has played, but I think the Yankee Clipper's mark will stay. But could you imagine if he broke both records? It could very well be the greatest month any single player ever had in one month in history. Right now it is as good as Alex Rodriguez's April 2007, but that was in the opening month of the season. Big whoop. Tulowitzki's is in the middle of a playoff race, where once again the Rockies came out of nowhere and are threatening to shock the NL West and go to the playoffs. When Kiner hit 16 homers in September 1949, the Pirates began the month 21.5 games out of first and ended it 26 games back. Babe Ruth hit 17 home runs and drove in 43 runs in September 1927, but that was on the greatest team in baseball history. By the time August rolled around the team already had an 18-game lead. He could have struck out every at-bat the entire month and it would not have made any difference. Tulowitzki's performance is making a huge difference for the team, and he and Carlos Gonzalez are leading this team into the playoffs. There is still a lot of work to be done, but the Padres are struggling and the Giants can't put a winning streak together. All the signs point to a Rockies playoff berth.

Colorado has a game left against Los Angeles, then travels to Arizona, hosts a three-game set with the Giants that will probably knock one team out of playoff contention, another series with the Dodgers and a four-game set in St. Louis. Of those, the series with San Francisco and St. Louis could mean a playoff spot is at stake for both teams. If I'm Bruce Bochy or Tony LaRussa, I would absolutely, under no circumstances, pitch to Tulowitzki right now. Make Todd Helton, who bats behind Tulo, do something at the plate. I love Helton and think he is one of the most underrated players of the 2000s, but now is not the time to get nostalgic. Helton is 37, has hit .260, hit six home runs and driven in 32 this year. He is not the same player who hit .372, 43 HRs, 147 RBIs, and compiling 216 hits back in 2000. He is a guy with a bad back who has hit .182 this month. It doesn't seem logical to risk throwing to someone on a historic streak like Tulowitzki when there is an aging star whom the team should have replaced a year ago.

In terms of production and meaning, what Tulowitzki could potentially do is something we have never seen before. The question is can the Rockies continue their hot streak, and will teams keep pitching to him?

(NOTE: Stats provided by ESPN.com, baseball-reference.com, baseball-almanac.com and Fanhouse.tv.com)

The "What-If?" Game

Tiger Woods. Training camp no-shows/fat lards/issues. Tiger Woods again. Oh yeah, plus some baseball here and there (the Red Sox and Yankees played last weekend. It was the first time all year I actually cared about whether or not the Sox won for more than a microsecond.). Basically, it's a fairly quiet time. Thankfully pre-season football will be over in a few short weeks and the real thing will begin once again. But until then what is there to talk about for someone like me? Each of the last three weeks I'd written about the going-ons in the NFL, so I didn't want to do four consecutive weeks of that. If you want weekly football articles with the occasional sarcastic comment, may I recommend DJ Gallo's Offseason Pigskinpalooza on ESPN's Page 2. However, this week I've decided to play a game that never gets old, has no definitive answers, and never will. It's the "What-If" Game!! I picked a few of my own to discuss and asked my very loyal readers on FaceBook what they would like to hear (I expected at most 4 comments, so I was surprised when I ended up receiving twelve legitimate scenarios and an idiotic one). These have no rhyme or reason to them. They are merely what people wanted to see and whatever else happened to pop into my head.

Reader Questions:

"What if Phil Mickelson wasn't such a choke artist whenever he had a chance to become the world number one in golf?"

Well let's recap first in case you're one of the millions of people who don't follow golf. At the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational last week, world #1 Tiger Woods sucked. Not like a for-Tiger-he-struggled-but-for-everyone-else-it-was-okay performance. It was horrid for 4 days at a tournament he had won 7 times before, topped by a 77 on Sunday to finish +18. Phil Mickelson needed to finish in the Top 4 to overtake Woods' #1 world ranking. He started the day tied for 10th. A 78 later (as in one stroke worse than the abomination that was Tiger's final round), he finished tied for 46th. This marked yet another missed opportunity for fan favorite Mickelson to call himself the best golfer in the world. However, the reasoning behind this is legit. On Tuesday Mickelson admitted he has been battling with a form of arthritis in which the body's immune system attacks the joints and tendons. There were times before and after the US Open where he couldn't move because of the pain. I'm no doctor, but I have a sneaking suspicion this could attribute to the fact that he hasn't played consistently well.

"What if the [Red] Sox didn't have so many injuries?"

The Red Sox this year might have topped last year's Mets in terms of injuries, which is pretty bad. Basically every key member of the Sox has missed significant time. Jacoby Ellsbury just returned in the Yankee series after playing only ten games all year. Dustin Pedroia broke his foot two months ago and hasn't returned. Victor Martinez missed a few weeks with a broken thumb, and during that time Jason Varitek broke his foot. Mike Cameron has appeared in only 48 games, and his season is probably over. Josh Beckett, Clay Buchholz, Dai-suck-e Matsuzaka, Manny Delcarmen and Hideki Okajima have all spent time on the disabled list. And in the biggest blow yet, Kevin Youkilis is out for the year with a freak thumb injury. For die-hard Boston fans the names Daniel Nava, Darnell McDonald, and Eric Patterson are becoming everyday names. That shouldn't be happening. There was a point where I'm pretty sure the team was made up of more PawSox than Red Sox, which considering Pawtucket is 16 games under .500 and 19 games out of first place is bad. Somehow with all this the Sox are only 4.5 games out of first place in both the division and the wild card. That being said, one has got to think if all the pieces were together for 140-150 games, Boston would be first or second in the division. Using the impossible-to-calculate Wins Above Replacement (WAR stat) from baseball-reference.com -- which is pretty accurate here, considering half the Sox lineups are made up of mostly replacement players -- Pedroia, Youk, Ellsbury, Cameron and Martinez combined for a WAR of 3.7 last year. Getting more technical, Youkilis' was 6.4 and Pedroia's was 4.9. Basically the absence of those players alone cost the team 3-6 wins. Add in Beckett and Matsuzaka, who have missed about 18 starts total, and that's another 5 wins. Right there is more than enough to give the Sox the divison title. So, in short, if the Sox didn't have so many injuries, with the way they have played in spite of everything, they probably would have won the division title. I think it is too steep a hill to climb out of now, though.

"What if Ben Roethlisberger didn't sexually assault that girl and get himself suspended?"

Well firstly, I would like to acknowledge that he allegedly assaulted her (wink-wink) and that no charges were filed due to the fact that the security tapes were mysteriously "taped over". Don't go implying he's a rapist, because while he probably is, according to the laws of our amazing justice system, he isn't. Anyways, had he not been an idiot, the Steelers would be a heck of a lot better off after missing the playoffs last year. It looks as though Big Ben will miss only four games, as opposed to five or six, so that's helpful for Pittsburgh. Weeks 1-4 are at home versus Atlanta, at Tennessee, at Tampa, and home against Baltimore. Without Roethlisberger, the Steelers are going to have to rely heavily on the running game (as seen in last year's game against Baltimore, where Dennis Dixon barely threw the ball), which struggled mightily at times last year. And considering the Falcons, Titans, and Ravens were all top-10 in rushing defense last year, it suddenly puts a helluva lot of pressure on Rashard Mendenhall's shoulders. With him, Pittsburgh would be able to have a balanced running and passing attack, but instead the defenses will most certainly load the box with seven or eight men and make Byron Leftwich, Dennis Dixon, or (shudder) Charlie Batch beat them. Basically, Mendenhall and the defense need to play out of their minds. If Roethlisberger wasn't such an idiot, the Steelers would have started off 3-1 at worst. Now I'd say 2-2 is much more likely.

"What if LeBron James never wins a championship in his career?"

This is probably the question that is most up for debate. There very little doubt that there has ever been a player with the athleticism, strength, size, and speed that James has. He is unstoppable, but could never get over the hump and win a ring by himself in Cleveland. Now he's teamed up with Chris Bosh, Dwyane Wade, and an increasing list of very solid veterans in Miami to form a very scary team on paper. One would guess within five years the team will have won two or three titles. But then there is always the question of whether the egos of James and Wade clash in crunch time, can the team hold it together? However, that isn't the question. If James does not win a title, I would probably cry of joy the day he retires, for there is no one -- absolutely no one -- I hate more in sports. This summer he even managed to surpass A-Rod and Tom Brady. In terms of his legacy, that's an interesting debate. Dan Marino never won a Super Bowl, yet people put him in the discussion of greatest quarterbacks ever. But basketball is different. Bill Russell is a top-5 all-time player because he won so many rings. Michael Jordan is undoubtedly the greatest player ever, and he won six titles. Would we revere his competitive drive as much if he only won once or twice? Magic and Bird won multiple titles, as did Kareem. John Stockton, Karl Malone, Charles Barkley, Elgin Baylor, and Patrick Ewing never won a title, and while they are all Hall of Famers without question, none are in the running for greatest of all-time. In the NBA, championships and legacies go hand in hand. Without at least a few rings, James can be the greatest skilled player of all-time, but it won't matter. He will not surpass the Magics, the Birds, heck, even the Kobes of NBA greatness.

"What if the Mets didn't suck male human reproductive genitalia?" (So I might have edited that one slightly)

Well, quite simply, if the Mets were good, they would probably be third in the NL East, behind Atlanta or Philadelphia, because while they have the parts, they don't seem to have the results to show for them. Theoretically a team with David Wright, Jose Reyes, Carlos Beltran, Ike Davis, Johan Santana, Mike Pelfrey, and Francisco Rodriguez would be very good, yet the Metropolitans had two epic September collapses in '07 and '08, were riddled with injuries last year, and simply aren't very good this year, being 56-56 through Monday and 7.5 out of first place.

"What if the [Red] Sox never traded Jeff Bagwell or Hanley Ramirez?"

This is probably my favorite question. In 1990 the Red Sox traded top prospect Bagwell to Houston for 36-year-old relief pitcher Larry Andersen (whose Phillies' jersey, might I add, I am a proud owner of) in what is considered one of the worst trades in baseball history. Had he stayed a Red Sox player, he wouldn't have even had a chance to play until 1993, when Wade Boggs bolted for the Evil Empire. Then if he transitioned from third base to first, like he did in Houston, he would have had to compete with Mo Vaughn, who from 1993-98 was the most productive first baseman in the American League. He would probably not have hit 449 homers and driven in 1500+ runs. Then there would have been the dark cloud on the Boston organization with Bagwell's association with steroids. Now, there is no proof that Bagpipes ever took steroids, but merely being mentioned can taint everything a player ever did. I don't think he did take them, but perception is everything, and the perception of a few ill-advised souls can change everything.

As for Ramirez, if he isn't traded, the Red Sox do not win the World Series in 2007. He and Anibal Sanchez were traded to Florida in 2006 in return for Josh Beckett, Mike Lowell, and Guillermo Mota. In '07 Beckett went 20-7 with an earned run average of 3.27, and in the postseason he went 4-0 with an ERA around 1.50. Lowell, meanwhile, hit .324 while amassing almost 200 hits and driving in 120 runs. He was also the World Series MVP. As much as I loved Bill Mueller, getting rid of him before the '06 season was best, because Lowell was exponentially more productive than Mueller and his bad knees. As good a player as Ramirez is, Boston would not have been spoiled with another World Series title.

Among other ridiculous questions.... "What if Randy Jackson played in the MLB?" and "What if OJ got back into the NFL? :o"

Randy Jackson would suck as a pitcher or a fielder. Probably not as bad as him or him, but not much better. OJ, on the other hand, would sign with the Redskins and compete with Larry Johnson, Clinton Portis, and Willie Parker for the spot of "least sucky old running back." However, since Mike Shanahan hasn't used a one-back system basically since Terrell Davis retired, all four will get playing time. Simpson will be the 20th-22nd running back taken in ESPN Fantasy Leagues because of this, but he'll be on Matthew Berry's "Hate List" for Weeks 1, 2, and 4 because his opponents were top-10 rushing defenses last year. But look on the bright side -- he'd probably be more effective than LaDainian Tomlinson.

"What if sports never existed?"

Lots of things would change. I would spend all my time on my laptop and watching re-runs of Seinfeld. Brett Favre would spend his summer days mowing his ridiculously huge lawns on his John Deere riding mower in his worn-out Wrangler jeans and dirty cap. Michael Jordan would spend all his time at casinos to feed his competitive drive. Tiger Woods would be a bachelor having sex with every possible woman. Kurt Warner would have spent the '90s bagging at his local grocery store. No one would know who Elmer Flick and George Stone were. And no one would care about the WNBA. See, life as we know it would be drastically different.

"What if [Mark] McGwire gets in the Hall of Fame?"

It would be astronomical if McGwire, or any admitted steroid user, got into Cooperstown, seeing as it's not happening anytime soon. The writers, who vote on who gets into the Hall, have made it quite clear they will not vote for anyone who has juiced, which is why McGwire only received 23.7% of votes (75% is required for election) in 2010. That would mean that Sammy Sosa, Rafael Palmeiro, Roger Clemens, Alex Rodriguez and Barry Bonds, among scattered others, would have no shot at getting into the Hall. While I understand the idea that they cheated and should be left out, a huge piece of baseball history is being ignored -- the home run king, two other 600-home run hitters, a 3000-hit member, and a 300-game winner. As long as Pete Rose is left out, no steroid user should ever be allowed in. But if someone like Bonds or McGwire gets in, then it opens up the floodgates for a whole group of juicers that could taint the honor of being in the hallowed grounds of Cooperstown.

My Questions:

"What if David Tyree didn't put a bottle of super glue on his helmet make the ridiculous helmet catch in Super Bowl XLII?"

It is perhaps behind only the Immaculate Reception and "The Catch" in terms of fame (and for New England fans, infamy). David Tyree, the 4th string receiver, making the unbelievable catch against his helmet as Rodney Harrison is taking him down, completing a play where the refs missed about 35 holding calls Eli Manning slithered away from a group of Pats defenders and heaved the ball into the air. A few plays later it was Manning-to-Burress and the mighty Patriots were undefeated no more. If he doesn't catch the ball, it is 4th-and-5 with :59 to go. Manning to that point was 14-for-22 on throws of 10 yards or less, averaging 8.2 yards per reception according to my research. In the 4th quarter he was 5-for-7 and averaged 10 yards a catch. So I believe New York would have gotten the first down and gone into Patriots' territory. From there, however, I think the drive would have stalled, seeing as how Eli was only 1-of-8 on deep throws to that point. The Patriots' defense holds, they go undefeated, Tom Brady is the golden boy (it's disgusting isn't it?), David Tyree ends his career in anonymity, and Mercury Morris finally goes away for good.

(On the note of Tyree retiring, I think it is stupid how he signed a one-day contract to retire a Giant. His career stats (54 receptions, 650 yards) amassed over a five-year season are crappy for a good receiver in one year, let alone half a decade. One-day contracts are meant for Emmitt Smith, Jerry Rice, sure-fire Hall of Famers who are among the greatest at their positions. Robert Horry did not get a one-day contract from the Lakers, Spurs, or Rockets for his numerous clutch playoff shots. Dexter Jackson was the MVP of Super Bowl XXXVII for Tampa Bay, yet he's out of the NFL without a one-day contract. I understand the significance of the Helmet Catch, but I don't think it's grounds for something like a one-day contract, because if he hadn't been so lucky, no one would have known his name. One-day contracts are for established skill players. Sorry)

"What if the Braves or Pirates had scouted Willie Mays?"

That's right. Willie Mays could have been in the same outfield as either Hank Aaron or Roberto Clemente. Scary thought, eh? From James Hirsch's biography Willie Mays: The Life, The Legend:

Some scouts blew their chance for immortality simply because they couldn't judge talent. In 1949, a Pittsburgh Pirate scout... Piper Davis approached [Birmingham Black Barons' owner Tom Hayes] in a hotel lobby in New Orleans.

"Give us $2000 and you can have that kid," [Hayes] said.

"Nah," the scout said. "Even if he got him, we'd make a pitcher out of him"

Could you imagine that outfield? If I were the Pirates manager I would have put Mays in left center, Clemente in right center, and had the third outfielder stand behind second. That would easily be the best outfield in baseball, even with only two out there, and it would be as good or better than Aaron and Eddie Mathews batting-wise. Yikes.

The Boston Braves had an even better shot at The Say Hey Kid. One scout, Bill Maughn, absolutely loved Mays, but could not sign him until he graduated from school. He wrote to the Braves' front office "here is the best standout prospect available in the nation." After waiting a year for Willie to graduate school another scout was sent out, Mays went just 1-for-8 in a doubleheader, and no offer was ever made. As good as Mays and Clemente would have been, Mays and Aaron would have been better. That's 1415 home runs, 7054 hits, and 4200 runs batted in. That's 49 All-Star Game selections and 15 Gold Gloves. Along with Mathews in the lineup and Warren Spahn on the mound, that team would have been damn near unbeatable. The dogfights the Yankees and Braves would have had throughout the '50s would have been ridiculous. And Mays would have more than one World Series ring, while Aaron would have had his. Betcha that scout felt pretty damn stupid, eh?

What if Barry Bonds threw out Sid Bream?

It is one of the more famous baseball plays of the last twenty years. Bottom 9, 1992 NLCS Game 7. The Braves' Francisco Cabrera gets a basehit to left. The tying run scored, and charging around third was Sid Bream, who would score to win the game, and for the third consecutive year the division-winning Pirates were denied a trip to the World Series. But if Bream is out, then what happens? If the Pirates go to the World Series, Bonds and other starters might stay in Pittsburgh (between 1992 and '93 seven starters left). Bonds might not get into steroids, and as Bill Simmons' wrote a few years back, "retire with a respectable 550 home runs and go quietly into Cooperstown". The Pirates might have remained relevant for a few more years instead of being a laughingstock since that fateful night in Atlanta. (Random trivia question: What 25-year-old went 8-1 in 13 starts with a 2.15 ERA for the '92 Pirates? Tim Wakefield)

What if Roberto Clemente's plane was looked at closely?

In one of the most tragic sports stories ever, Roberto Clemente died on New Year's Eve 1972 when his plane crashed going to Nicaragua, with the intention of helping victims of an earthquake. Reading David Maraniss's Clemente, the DC-7 that Clemente boarded that day was in desperate need of engine replacement. A few weeks prior the pilot of the plane, Arthur Rivera, was told by an FAA officer that one was necessary, however the officer "did not issue a condition notice requiring that engine repairs be made before the next flight, instead marking 'satisfactory' and 'no further action required' on the FAA inspection forms." When recommended that he take a test run, there was one problem: Rivera did not know how to fly the plane. It was no wonder the plane went down. But what if that plane does not take off? From a baseball standpoint, Clemente already had 3000 hits (exactly), and at 37 he probably could have added a good 200-300 more. Today he is in the discussion for best ever all-around player. With the extra few years, there would be no doubt -- the best ever players would be Henry Aaron, William Mays, and Roberto Clemente.

Now I Find Them (Bum-bum, bum-bum, bum-bum, bum-bum) Simply Irreplaceable

The injury bug is beginning to make its presence felt in Major League Baseball. In May the game's best clutch hitter in Los Angeles' Andre Ethier broke his pinkie. Before the injury he was hitting .392, and since he's hit a lowly .235. For awhile the bug went away, but this weekend it came back with a vengeance, and it took all of its pent-up anger out on the Boston Red Sox. Clay Buchholz will miss his next scheduled start with a strained left hamstring. Victor Martinez broke his thumb Sunday and was placed on the 15-day disabled list (hey, at least his bone wasn't sticking out of the thumb, unlike yours truly). But the biggest blow came Friday, when Dustin Pedroia hit a foul ball off his foot, breaking it. He'll miss six weeks. He is the one player the Sox cannot afford to lose right now, what with Boston being in a heated three-way battle for first place in the AL East. The Red Sox lost their most valuable player, so who can the other 29 teams ill afford to lose? I went team-by-team and picked one player from each whom I deem worthy of being given the title of "Simply Irreplaceable", my crappy spin of Robert Palmer's awesome '80s song. They may not be the most talented player, but they are most certainly the heart-and-soul. That being said, I was cautious to choose a pitcher, because they can only make an impact once every five games, and relievers typically are average at best. On to the results!

Arizona: Brandon Webb -- He became a star two years ago, winning the NL Cy Young and leading the D'Backs to an 82-80 record. Then he got hurt Opening Day last year and hasn't pitched since. The Diamondbacks are at the bottom of the NL West without their ace, and all of their players are strikingly similar stats-wise, to the point that none are bad, but none stand out as irreplaceable. No one, however, has stepped up and taken the place of Webb as team ace, and the results have been poor.

Atlanta: Martin Prado -- Second basemen are not supposed to hit for power. Chase Utley and Dan Uggla were seemingly the exceptions to this, but now Prado has joined his NL East compadres. He is the complete package. He is on his way to a 20-HR season, leads the Braves with a .331 average and 54 runs scored, and is among the league leaders in fielding. With Chipper Jones on the decline, Nate McLouth being an incredible disappointment, and only two teammates hitting above .300, Prado has been a key contributor in the fact that Atlanta is in first place.

Baltimore: Nick Markakis -- No one on this team is valuable or irreplaceable. Every year I jokingly pick one team to be relegated to the minor leagues. It was the Royals from 2004-07, the Nationals in 2008, and the Pirates last year. This year it is the Orioles' turn. They are well on their way to 100 losses, and could hit 110 if they tried hard enough. I chose Markakis because he is the only one that would start no matter what team he played for. His is hitting .306, but he is incredibly patient at the plate, with 44 walks drawn. This ability to get on base, so the Orioles can actually score runs and give themselves a lead before the bullpen blows it, gives Markakis this prestigious honor.

Boston: Dustin Pedroia -- He isn't the most talented player. But the 2008 AL MVP is the epitome of hard work. Saying he's "Tough as nails" doesn't do him justice. He's listed as 5'9", is more like 5'7, but plays like a giant. Before his injury he was starting to heat up, with a .374 average in June. His hustle and passion is impossible to ignore, and his teammates feed off it. Defensively, there are few better in the game at second base. There will be a huge hole missing for the next six weeks. ESPN's Buster Olney considered him one of the 15 most valuable players in all of baseball.

(NOTE: If you have ESPN Insider you can see all of his most valuable players here, or you can see 30 of them here for free. Unless you really want to send me money, which I would not at all be opposed to.)

Chicago (NL): Ryan Theriot -- For a shortstop, his .283 average is pretty good. He is above average defensively, doesn't have the lethargy of Alfonso Soriano, and can steal bases. According to fangraphs.com, he was worth over $10 million between 2008 and 2009. He made $5.2 million. He may not hit for power, but power is never expected out of a shortstop. He's not the most well-known Cub, but he's a huge part of the team.

Chicago (AL): Carlos Quentin -- In 2008 the ChiSox were in contention in the AL Central, and Quentin was among the AL MVP candidates with 36 homers and 100 RBI. Then he got hurt and missed all of September, as the White Sox quietly went down in the ALDS. He missed most of last year and the team finished with a losing record. This year he started incredibly slowly. On June 13 he was hitting .201 with 7 HRs. The team was 28-34. Then they went on to win 11 in a row before losing twice, and it is no coincidence that Quentin raised his average to .233 and hit 6 more homers. His presence in the lineup means more runs for Ozzie Guillen's crew.

Cincinnati: Brandon Phillips -- This is a very balanced group. Five of eight starters (minus pitcher) hit at least .279, and seven players have at least 59 hits. Ultimately I had to choose one, though, and I chose Brandon Phillips. I figured no one expected Scott Rolen to have the season he's having (.301, 17 HR, 53 RBI), and Joey Votto is not as valuable as Phillips. A Gold Glove second baseman, Phillips can do it offensively and defensively. He has hit 30 home runs in a season, is walking more and striking out less, and can steal bases. The Reds are competing for the division title this year, and it starts at the top with their newfound leadoff man, Phillips.

Cleveland: Shin-Soo Choo -- Leads an awful Indians squad in average, hits, home runs, runs batted in, on-base percentage, slugging percentage, and runs scored. I don't want to know how horrific the team would be without him.

Colorado: Ubaldo Jimenez -- The 26-year-old is 14-1 and has a 1.83 earned run average. The season isn't even halfway done, and he is already at 14 wins. Are you kidding me? He threw a no-hitter, and in his last start had another one going for six innings. He is easily the favorite to win the NL Cy Young right now. And all of this for just $1.25 million. I think I see a raise in his future.

Detroit: Miguel Cabrera -- He leads the team (by a wide margin, mind you) in average (.335), homers (20), RBI (66), on-base percentage (.412), hits (93), and runs scored (56). He's my AL MVP for the first half of the year. He brings the offense from a mediocre one to a somewhat above-average one. Justin Verlander was a close second, but again, the whole pitcher thing.

Florida: Josh Johnson -- He is 8-3 with an ERA of 1.83 and a walks and hits per inning pitched (WHIP) of 0.93. His streak of eight starts without allowing more than one earned run was snapped in his last start, a streak that has been seen eight times since 1900. Folks, that is more rare than a perfect game. It hasn't been seen since Bob Gibson had a streak of 11 straight starts in 1968, when his ERA was 1.12. How this kid isn't getting more attention is beyond me. I think he's a better pitcher than Ubaldo Jimenez, but Jimenez has 14 wins to Johnson's 8, so he's the Cy Young winner as of right now.

Houston: Roy Oswalt -- Again, this team has no players that are superstars. Lance Berkman is way past his prime, Carlos Lee is having a bad year (.238 average), and the only position player I considered, Michael Bourn, has a strikeout-to-walk ratio of 58:30. Not good for a leadoff hitter. And I can state with absolute certainty that Oswalt is the best 5-10 pitcher in baseball. He record is not representative of how he has pitched. He has an ERA of 3.55, which is up from what it was a month ago. His WHIP is 1.13, and he's struck out 97 batters while walking only 29. The Astros have the worst offense in baseball, which makes their pitching staff look a lot worse than it actually is.

Kansas City: Billy Butler -- Zack Greinke is the most talented and most recognizable Royal. However, when he won the Cy Young last year, the Royals finished in last place at 65-97. This year he is 3-8, and KC is on pace for about 88 losses, so him being electric is fairly insignificant. Butler, however, is the fuel that gets this offense going. He is the only 30 HR, 100 RBI threat. If he doesn't hit, then the Royals have a ton more trouble scoring runs.

Los Angeles of Anaheim: Torii Hunter -- Complete player. Great fielder. Good power and average. Leads the team in average, RBIs, and extra base hits. Will occasionally steal a base here and there. He mans the outfield, he has the experience and the leadership to get the Angels yet another division title.

Los Angeles: Andre Ethier -- Before his injury he was hitting .380 with 11 homers and 38 runs batted in, all among the league leaders. His ability to hit in the clutch is something we haven't seen since David Ortiz in 2004. In his five seasons he has eleven walk-off hits, including six homers. In 2009 alone he had six walk-off hits, and he hit a walk-off grand slam this May against Milwaukee. This talent combined with the ability to come up big in the clutch is something the Dodgers need if they plan on winning the division and going far in the postseason.

Milwaukee: Corey Hart -- Prince Fielder and Ryan Braun are the meat and potatoes of the Brewers offense. Hart is the cook. He is the first Brewer to have two consecutive 20 home run, 20 steal seasons. He is a more complete player than Fielder and Braun, because of his ability to steal, hit for power (he currently leads the team in homers and runs batted in, and slugging percentage), contact (he is a lifetime .275 hitter), and be an above average fielder (8th among right fielders in range). Fielder and Braun have established themselves as good hitters. However, both are huge liabilities defensively, with a combined 79 errors in 9 seasons of work. That was ultimately the deciding factor.

Minnesota: Joe Mauer -- He is one of the best catchers baseball has seen in a long time. He can hit for contact ridiculously well, and puts up decent power numbers. The leadership he and Justin Morneau bring to the team is invaluable. For the front office, he is a Minnesota guy who just signed a long-term deal with the Twins, so he'll be around for a while.

New York (NL): The bullpen -- Remember the epic collapses that happened in Queens in '07 and '08? A large reason for those choke jobs were because the bullpen blew leads. Over those two years the pen allowed 4.52 runs per game and only converted 64% of save opportunities. This year Mets relievers are allowing only 3.95 runs per game and converting 70% of save chances. In a stunning correlation, the team is ten games over .500 and are nipping at the heels of Atlanta for first place. The bullpen cannot blow leads again.

New York (AL): Derek Jeter -- Alex Rodriguez is the most naturally gifted, but up until last year has been less than amazing in the postseason. Mark Teixeira is struggling mightily this season for a player of his caliber (.229 average, 13 homers, 48 runs batted in), yet the Yankees still have the best record in baseball. No one expected 10 wins from Phil Hughes, a .359 average from Robinson Cano and a career year from 38-year-old Andy Pettitte. The most irreplaceable, for now, is their captain. Jeter is second on the team in hits and total bases, and his leadership is undeniable. You have to have respect for Derek Jeter. The man knows how to win and come up big at the perfect moment. Even now, at 36, he is still one helluva ballplayer that Joe Girardi cannot afford to lose. Also, anyone who can bag Minka Kelly is okay in my book.

Oakland: Ryan Sweeney -- Is tied for the team lead in runs scored with 34, and is a very average hitter. But then again so is everyone on the Athletics. This is a team that is 25th in runs batted in, so they have to have good defense. Enter Sweeney, who has not made an error this season, and has committed only four in his five seasons. His defensive presence alone is key for this struggling team.

Philadelphia: Chase Utley -- Through 15 games Utley hit .339 and the Phils started 10-5. Then his average dipped to .275, and Philly went to 12-10. By May 15, he raised it back up to .315 and the team was at 22-13. Then his huge slump began, and on June 13 it was at .256. The Phillies were back around .500 and quickly falling in the NL East as their usually explosive offense went Arctic cold. The team goes as Utley goes. Howard strikes out too much to be that irreplaceable, plus Utley, Jayson Werth, and Raul Ibanez are all capable of having great power.

Pittsburgh: Andrew McCutchen -- Here's the Pirates' situation. Pitching: 29th in ERA, 27th in strikeouts, 22nd in saves, and 30th (dead last) in WHIP. Hitting: 29th in hits and batting average, 28th in home runs hit, and dead last in runs batted in. In short, the Pirates suck. But not their young, electric centerfielder, who is batting a respectable .299 with 48 runs scored. If he didn't play in Pittsburgh, he would be more well-known. He is one of few bright spots in what is quite possibly the worst run organization in all of sports.

San Diego: Adrian Gonzalez -- Following in the footsteps of Choo and Cabrera, Gonzalez leads the Padres in every major offensive category. He is the heart and soul of the offense that without him is nothing (He has 16 homers, no one else has more than 8. He has 50 RBI, 18 more than the next closest Padre). He's a top-10 fielder at first base. No close second here.

San Francisco: Tim Lincecum -- In a tight NL West, a great Linecum means the Giants are in first place. However, that hasn't been the case this year, and because of it the Giants are in third. He may have an 8-3 record, but his 1.25 WHIP is nothing to brag about. The 2-time Cy Young winner has been very solid, but San Fran needs more than that from him in order to win the division. When he's at his best, there are few who can compete with The Freak.

Seattle: Ichiro Suzuki -- The man had made the All-Star team and won a Gold Glove every year since he entered the majors in 2001. I thought the Mariners would be good. They are not. Ichiro, however, is his usual self, manning right field masterfully and hitting .333. For a team that has a worse offense than the Pirates, he is the only good hitter. And for a team that is pretty terrible in general, he is the only good player.

St. Louis: Albert Pujols -- This was the most obvious choice. In terms of being a five-tool player, perhaps only Willie Mays and Roberto Clemente will be better than The Machine when his career is over. Any bad pitch will be hit to the moon. Any mental mistake will turn into an extra base. Any ball hit to first will be gobbled up. He's a lifetime .333 hitter, and is well on his way to 600+, 700+, and maybe, just maybe, 763 home runs.

Tampa Bay: Evan Longoria -- Leads the team in hits, total bases, doubles, and RBIs, and is second in average. Has a Gold Glove at third base. He'll be an MVP candidate every year for the next decade. Why him over someone else? Carlos Pena has been dreadful this year, with a .201 average, yet the Rays got off to a fast start and are battling for first in the AL East. Ben Zobrist seemed like a surprise pick, considering his WAR (a confusing stat that stands for "Wins Above Replacement" and measures how many wins per season a player is worth compared to an average player) is one of the best in baseball. However, looking at how Longoria called out BJ Upton for not hustling after a fly ball put him over the top. That leadership is what the Rays need, and it's good that someone with Longoria's talent stepped up.

Texas: Colby Lewis -- Easily my most controversial pick, but hear me out. Everyone knows Texas can hit the crap out of the ball. They have every year for the past decade. But their downfall has always been their inability to have an ace pitcher. Lewis could step into that role. At 7-5, he is having a solid season, but his 1.05 WHIP is 4th in the American League. If he can keep this up and become the ace Texas has been looking for, it might be enough to push the Rangers into the playoffs for the first time since 1999.

Toronto: Vernon Wells -- This one was tough, because the Blue Jays get a fairly balanced effort. However, it has to be noted when Wells hits above .280 and has more than 20 homers (it happened in '02, '03, '06, '08, and now this year) the Jays have always finished with a winning record. When he has an off year (67 RBIs in '04, .269 average in '05, .245 in '07, .260 with 15 HRs last year), Toronto is not very good.

Washington: Stephen Strasburg -- Yes, he's only made five starts in his career. Yes, his offense has let him down, which is why he's 2-2 and not 3-1. But in terms of talent, managers and analysts are already calling the rookie phenom one of the best pitchers in the National League. In five starts he's struck out 48 batters, compared to only 7 walks, with an earned run average of 2.27. He's the real deal, and the only pitcher that I considered a no-brainer for this list. And in terms of PR, he's gold to the lowly Nationals. No one cares about the team, so no one goes to the games. But Strasburg is a different story. He is a revenue machine, as people scramble to get tickets and merchandise when #37 is involved. He will be the face of the franchise until his contract expires at the end of 2013, when he goes to the Red Sox or Yankees for a 6-year, $200 million deal.

The Nationals Should Roy-Up

For the last decade, the Astros Roy Oswalt has quietly been one of the most dominant pitchers in the National League, compiling 140 wins and an earned run average of 3.21 since 2001. In what has been an up and down decade for Houston, Oswalt has been the constant. But the times they are a-changin', and at 16-32, good for last place in the NL Central, Oswalt has gotten fed up and is asking for a trade. You can't blame him, really. After all, his 3-6 record is not nearly indicative of how he has pitched this year. His 2.36 ERA is 7th in the NL, and his walks and hits per inning (WHIP) is 5th. Unfortunately, though, his offense is giving him 2.07 runs of support per game. This shouldn't be so surprising, considered the 'Stros are dead last in batting average, runs scored, home runs, and slugging percentage. Do the math: 2.36 runs allowed is more than 2.07 runs scored, which equates to losses. There are many teams rumored to be interested in his services, including Texas and possibly Los Angeles. The only problem is that he's due $15 million this year and $16 million next. At 32, a team will likely only want him for an October pennant race.

But there is one team out there that has expressed interest in the righty, and I think it would be an absolutely perfect fit: the Washington Nationals.

At 25-24 the Nationals are in 4th place in the competitive NL East, but are only 3 games behind division-leader Philadelphia. In short, no one would have predicted that 50 games into the season Washington would be any good. Adding Oswalt would have monumental effects that could keep the Nationals around in the wild-card race for awhile, and I'm not only talking about 2010.

The Nationals biggest weakness has always been pitching. This year is no different, as they are in the bottom half of the league in ERA, WHIP, strikeouts, and home runs allowed. Their bullpen is, in a word, atrocious. This is where Oswalt comes in. He can't help the bullpen woes, but by giving 7+ strong innings in 75-80% of his starts, it's a load off for the pen knowing they might not have to clean up a mess when he starts. Add his already stellar statistics and give him an offense can actually hit a baseball (the Nats are 5th in the NL in batting average), and the results might show off right away.

(Random trivia: As of May 29th, who has the highest team batting average in baseball? The Kansas City Royals.)

Then there's the leadership quality that he'll bring to the team. He's been around for a decade, been to the postseason 3 times, including the 2005 World Series. For one of the youngest teams in baseball, he and the surprising 35-year-old Livan Hernandez (4-3, 2.08 ERA) the experience they bring to the rotation can be key in what is appearing to be a tight race for that last playoff spot come September and October. Not to mention, allegedly there is this rookie in the Nationals organization who is creating quite a stir with his dominance in AAA Syracuse. You might have heard of him? Stephen Strasburg is the most talked about rookie we've seen in a looooong time, and having a mentor like Oswalt when he finally gets the call up to the Big Show would be invaluable. Both throw very hard (Strasburg can hit 98 on average, even as his pitch count increases, while Oswalt can somehow get 97 mph out of that 6-foot, 192 lb frame) with good off-speed stuff. Few pitchers in baseball are as good at getting every possible ounce of energy go into a pitch as Oswalt, and to think he might be able to add 1 or 2 miles per hour and/or movement to Strasburg's already incredible fastball should seem scary to opponents who will have to see the phenom soon. And since it seems that he will be the face of the franchise for the next 15 years (He might be already. After all, can you name the Nationals starting line-up? How about just the infield?), the amount of pressure will be enormous right away. A veteran who has been around the block and is still pretty darn good could help the youngster deal with and possibly even take off that pressure.

Roy Oswalt wants out of Houston because he wants to play for a contender. He clearly still has the stuff to improve a good team. And it appears as though the Washington Nationals might be in the race to stay. The two seem like a perfect fit. There are short-term and long-term effects to the deal that work in favor of the Nats' organization. They should be willing to go out and spend the money before it's too late and Oswalt lands somewhere else.

Thanks For the Memories, But...

With each generation comes a new wave of phenoms and potential superstars. In Major League Baseball, Stephen Strasburg and Jason Heyward are leading the pack. But with the arrival of new stars means the departure of old ones, and this year in baseball there appears to be numerous ex-superstars to whom teams need to say good-bye. It's one of the most difficult things a manager or GM can do, but it has to be done eventually. The only question is when exactly it should be done. Does a front office let it fester to the point where it becomes sad to watch, hoping for a sign of life when it matters (think the 2010 Boston Celtics)? Or is it a "Thanks for everything, but..." kind of ordeal right away? For two teams in particular, this issue is becoming more and more prevalent each and every day.

Right now there is no better place to look than in Boston, where David Ortiz, Jason Varitek, Tim Wakefield, and Mike Lowell are all at the we-get-playing-time-because-of-our-past stage of their careers. It has got to eat Terry Francona and Theo Epstein up knowing that, at 19-20 and 9 games out of first place in the AL East, now is not the time to get nostalgic. Big Papi is surely the greatest clutch performer in team history, and his heroics in the 2004 playoffs will live in Sox lore forever, but that was six years ago. Now he is a 34-year-old designated hitter with a mega salary who strikes out 40% of the time (literally... 38 K's in 102 at-bats), can only hit the ball to the right side, and has a ridiculously long and slow swing. He has begun to find his power as of late, but with an unstable wrist, I can't see the power being sustained for five months. Jason Varitek is the team captain and has been the mainstay behind the plate for over a decade. But he is 38, which for a catcher might as well be 100. Victor Martinez is (finally) beginning to hit, which means 'Tek is a great fill-in, but unfortunately that is it. The same thing goes for Wakefield. His arm may be that of a 25-year-old, but with the rotation of Beckett-Lester-Lackey-Buchholz-Matsuzaka, there's simply no room left for one of my personal favorite Red Sox. And Mike Lowell, whom I despised at first because he replaced Bill Mueller, turned into another favorite of mine, but a nagging hip injury and the signing of Adrian Beltre means the end of a somewhat short, yet sweet time.

So what can be done with all of these past-their-prime performers? Unfortunately, the bench seems like the most logical place. I can't see Papi's leash being too long anymore, and Beltre, Martinez, and the rotation appears to be pretty set. All except Papi can be used as trade bait for a contender that needs a short-term, experienced answer at a position (perhaps a San Diego, Cincinnati, Texas, or -- dare I say it -- the 20-19 Washington Nationals?). If anything were to actually happen (which I doubt it would), Lowell would be the most likely to go simply because he is the most dispensable, especially if Boston agrees to pay his salary.

But this issue extends well beyond the borders of Fenway Park. The Red Sox are certainly not the only team struggling to let go of its aging veterans. In Seattle, one of the greatest players ever in Ken Griffey, Jr. is hitting .182 with 0 home runs, 6 runs batted in, and an on-base percentage of .247. To put it kindly, "The Kid" is no longer that by any stretch of the imagination. He is the most compelling "What if?" story in the history of baseball (as in, "What if injuries hadn't derailed his career?", the answer to which is: "He would be one of the Top 3 greatest players ever alongside Willie Mays and Babe Ruth, and the home run king would not need an asterisk next to his name.") He is now a pudgy 40-year-old who can only DH and, apparently, enjoys a nice in-game nap every once in a while. Right now the Mariners might be giving Junior his grand farewell tour in the city where it all began, but right now Seattle is 10 games under .500 and in last place in the AL West, making those who picked them to win the division look pretty damn stupid. The team can't score runs, and it may be time to get a DH who can produce runs, at the cost of its all-time greatest player.

It's something that no team ever wants to think about or do, yet living in the past doesn't work. There will come a time when, one day, the decision has to be made to bench or trade -- just in general go on without -- the players who were once the face of the franchise. Right now Boston and Seattle are the ones who have to struggle with this. In the coming years it will continue to happen, and for some it will hit home really, really hard (I'm talking to you, New York. Jeter, Posada, Rivera, and Pettitte can't play forever. Life might begin to suck at that point in time). But we move on to the next great generation, and create new memories not with the intention of replacing the old ones, but instead adding to the collection that we as sports fans cherish so much.