Message from WAY Back Sports

Dear Readers,

From all of us here at WAY Back Sports we would like to wish you all a very happy Thanksgiving.

Over the past week we have been experiencing some technical problems with the site. We will be addressing these issues over the next few days. We ask that you bare with us as we update the site. Everything should be up and running again soon!

Again, thank you all for visiting WAY Back Sports. We look forward to once again bringing you the latest daily sports news.

Sincerely,

The WAY Back Sports Staff

Crisp Headed to KC

The Boston Red Sox and Kansas City Royals have completed a trade that will send speedy centerfielder Coco Crisp to the Royals in exchange for right handed relief pitcher Ramon Ramirez. The trade fills a need for both teams as Kansas City has been looking for a speedy leadoff hitter while Boston, with the departure of Mike Timlin and probable move of Justin Masterson back to the starting rotation, was in need of a dependable set up man.

The switch hitting Crisp hit .283 with 7 homers and 41 RBIs in 98 games this season with the Red Sox . He also was 20 for 27 is stolen base attempts. Crisp, who is best known for his spectacular defense, split time in center with rookie Jacoby Ellsbury last season. The trade allows both to assume full time starting roles next season.

Ramirez was 3-2 with a 2.64 ERA and 70 strikeouts in 71 2/3 innings last season for KC. He will solidify the set up role for closer Jonathan Papelbon that the Red Sox struggled to fill before moving Masterson there for the playoff run. The twenty-seven year old righty had been the setup man for Joakim Soria the past two seasons and was on of the more reliable ones in the game over that period.

Pedroia Wins AL MVP

Boston Red Sox 2B Dustin Pedroia has been named the American League's Most Valuable Player. He took 16 of 28 first-place votes edging out Minnesota Twin's 1B Dustin Morneau. Pedroia finished 2008 with .376 on-base percentage and .326 batting average, while posting 17 home runs and 83 RBIs in 157 games. Pedroia is the first 2B to win the award since 1959.

Pujols NL MVP

Albert Pujols was named the National League's Most Valuable Player on Monday. This year's award marks the second time Pujols has taken home the honor (2005 was the other). The St. Louis Cardinals power hitting first basemen hit .357 with 37 home runs and 116 RBIs in 148 game this season.

Ryan Howard, Ryan Braun and Manny Rameriez finished 2-4 in voting. Pujols received 18 of 32 first place votes.

Welcome to NY, CC

It has been reported by several sources that today, on the first that that free agents can sign with other teams, that the New York Yankees have offered pitcher CC Sabathia a reported 6 year $140 million dollar contract. The Yankees promised to make a big splash this off season and they seem to be living up to their word. While it has been reported that Sabathia would prefer to stay in the National League, where he can also hit, $140 million will change people's minds pretty quick.

Melrose Out In Tampa

It is just 16 games into the NHL season but already the have the first coaching casualty of the year. Tampa Bay Lightning first year head coach Barry Melrose was fired Friday after seeing his team get out to a 5-7-4 start, good for 4th place in the Southeast Division. The Lightning, who signed several big name veterans over the offseason on top of drafting Steve Stamkos #1 overall in the 2008 draft, had very high expectations coming into the season. Just 14 points in 16 games is not exactly living up to the hype.

Its too bad to see something like this happen to one of the good guys in sports. Melrose was a very well known, well respected analyst for ESPN prior to the Tampa job. With any luck that position will still be his for the taking now that he is unemployed. The bottom line is that while Melrose is well liked and probably did not get a fair chance to turn the team around, something needed to be done to shake things up and unfortunately it was Melrose who fell victim to the chopping block. It will be interesting to see how the Lightning respond to the move. Rick Tocchet will take over as head coach, for the time being.

Yanks Acquire Swisher

The New York Yankees have completed a deal with the Chicago White Sox that will send 1B/OF Nick Swisher to New York in exchange for INF Wilison Betemit and two minor league pitchers: Jeff Marquez and Jhonny Nunez.

Swisher is a candidate to fill the void left at first base left by free agaent Jason Giambi. Should the Yankees sign a player such as Mark Teixeria, Swisher would then add outfield depth.

Cubs-Marlins Make A Deal

The Chicago Cubs have acquired closer Kevin Gregg form the Florida Marlins for minor league pitcher Jose Ceda. Gregg was 7-8 with a 3.41 ERA and 29 saves last season for Florida, but was bothered for a large portion of the season by a knee injury. His nine blown saves were tied for the league lead.

Following the deal the Cubs announced that they will not make an attempt to re-sign now former closer Kerry Wood, meaning that the job is Gregg's to lose. Should he falter the Cubs do have star set-up man Carlos Marmol waiting in the wings.

This trade once again was an example of the Marlins cost cutting. Gregg was Florida's highest-paid player in 2008 at $2.5 million and was eligible for arbitration coming into this season.

Battle for AFC EAST Crown

When the New England Patriots and New York Jets get together you know it is going to be a rock fight. Simply put, the two teams would like nothing better than to beat the pants off their opposition. This time around the rivalry has a little more at stake as both teams stand at 6-3, tied atop a tight AFC East. In a league when every game is tough, being able to get a game in hand on a division opponent is crucial. That is what each team will strive for tonight as they kick off at 8:15 in Foxboro.

The last time these two met was week two in New York. Both were vastly different teams, both with serious question marks at several positions. The most notable question mark was at the quarterback position. It was the first game of the Matt Cassel era for New England. He was efficient in his first game as starter, but certainly far from impressive. Now some eight weeks later Cassel has grown comfterble with the offense and the pressure that goes a long with being a starting quarterback in the NFL. Cassel was not the only quarterback under question in that week two meeting. It was just the second game of the Bret Favre era for New York. Like Cassel, he too was still getting acclimated with a new offense. Unlike Cassel, however, Favre brought with him his track record and winning reputation greater than any other quarterback in the NFL. Favre, however, was less than impressive in that week two match-up, but once again, like Cassel has grown much more comfortable under center in the weeks since and now leads one of the more explosive offenses in the AFC. The Jets are averaging 32.1 points per game since that week two loss, and their 255 points lead the AFC.

While the quarterback position certainly will be an important one in tonight's match-up, perhaps the biggest difference maker for each team could be the running game. For the Jets it will be Thomas Jones and his AFC leading 750 rushing yards. Jones has been unstoppable as of late. He racked up 149 rushing yards including three touchdowns in last week's showdown with the St.Louis Rams. His counterpart this week will be BenJarvus Green-Ellis who has gone from the practice squad (6th) on the New England depth chart all the way to #1 thanks to injuries to pretty much every player to line up in the Patriots backfield this season. Once again the Pats have found a diamond in the ruff in Green-Ellis who last week rushed for 105 yards and a touchdown in New England's victory over the Buffalo Bills.

By the way, did I mention that these two teams hate eachother? Countless numbers of personnel have jumped ship from one side to the other over the years. Whether it be stealing a coach from the other side (Pats with Belichick, Jets with Mangini) or simply other players (the Jets signed former Patriots CB Ty Law this week), no two teams in the NFL want to beat eachother more. And don't forget the SpyGate saga that was created last year, which all began when Jets coach Eric Mangini accused the Patriots of stealing signal calls. It resulted in months of controversy and has to have left a sour taste in the mouths of Patriots coaches and players alike.

Tonight will certainly be a game to watch. After this game one team will have sole possession of first place in the AFC East for the first time in weeks. Who will it be? In just a few hours we will find out...

Lee Wins Cy Young

The American league Cy Young Award winner for 2008 has been announced and to nobody's surprise the winner this year is Cleveland Indians ace Cliff Lee. Lee was a major league best 22-3 with a 2.54 ERA in 31 starts this season for the Indians. Lee received 24 of a possible 28 votes (the other 4 went to Roy Holiday) en route to his first career Cy Young. What a difference a year makes for Lee who in 2007 struggled mightily before being demoted to AAA for much of the season.

An interesting side note: this is the second consecutive year a Cleveland pitcher has won the Cy Young. CC Sabathia edged out Josh Beckett for the award in 2007.

Game Of the Year!

Ok, maybe labeling this the game of the year already is a little extreme, but those of you who missed the Detroit Red Wings vs. Pittsburgh Penguins game last night missed one of the more exciting hockey games you will see all season.

There were plenty of story lines going into last night's match up. It was the first time these two teams faced off since last year's Stanley Cup Final (won by Detroit 4 games to 2). It was also the first time that former Penguin Marian Hossa, who played a vital role in Pittsburgh's playoff run a year ago, would be playing against his former team since leaving via free agency during the off season.

The game started out just as many of last season's finals game had; the Penguins committed several early penalties and the Red Wings capitalized on their mistakes. Detroit took leads of 3-1, 5-2 and 6-4, but Pittsburgh battled back in the third period. Thanks to a hat trick by Jordan Staal the Penguins were able to tie it late in the third and force overtime. After weathering shot after shot from an early Penguins power play, it appeared that the Red Wings were going to regain the momentum in the final frame. That all changed however as an errant Pavel Datsyuk pass was picked off by Staal who thread the the needle to Ruslan Fedotenko for a beautiful goal to end the game.

It was a very gutsy win for a Penguins team that was without their top two defensemen: Sergi Gongar and Ryan Whitney. Both are expected to be out until January due to injuries. Hossa recorded a pair of assist in a losing effort against his former team. The star filled lineups did not disappoint on this night as Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Henrik Zetterberg and Pavel Datsyuk, among others, all scored.

The two teams will meet one more time this season on February 8th, this time in Pittsburgh. Circle that date on your calenders; its bound to be one heck of a game.

Free Tickets!

The New Jersey Nets have devised a new strategy to get people at their games: FREE TICKETS!

The following is from the Newark Star-Ledger:

In a nod to current economic conditions, the basketball team will give unemployed fans who submit their resumes to the Nets Job Bank up to four free tickets, plus access to a Nov. 22 career fair at their home arena, team president and chief executive Brett Yormark said yesterday. The team also will distribute applicants' resumes to its sponsors.

"Hopefully they'll come out and experience the Nets, and then when times get better they'll invest in us, because we invested in them," Yormark said. "No other team is doing that, and I think it's the appropriate thing to do, because times are tough."

To those who register for the program, the team will make 300 tickets available for each of five selected games at Izod Center in East Rutherford.

I like this move by the Nets. The team is struggling, the economy is struggling, why not try to help out both by doing a little something for the fans. Lets face it, a lot of people cannot afford to go to professional sporting events these days. Many times those people who cannot afford a ticket are some of the team's biggest fans. If you are not going to sell out anyway, why not give away a few tickets to people who deserve to and want to go see these games. Who knows, maybe a little extra energy at Izod Center is just what the team needs to win a few close games at home. It will be interesting to see if other teams around the sports world try to adopt this idea.

Managers of the Year Announced

When you take a team from dead last in your division one year all the way to the World Series the following year you are going to get noticed. That is just what the Baseball Writers Association did on Wednesday when they named Tampa Bay Rays manager Joe Maddon AL Manager of the Year. Maddon received 27 of a possible 28 first place votes, the lone other vote went to Minnesota Twins manager Ron Gardenhire.

Over in the National League Chicago Cubs manager Lou Piniella was given the same honor. Piniella edged out Phillies manager Charlie Manuel by 7 first place votes. Pineiella's Cubs were a NL best 97-64 this season before being ousted by the LA Dodgers in the NLDS.

The two great managers do have ties to each other; Maddon replaced Piniella as Rays skipper in 2006. At the time the Tampa coaching job was considered by many to be the worst job in baseball. Things have certainly taken a turn for the better since.

Division Rivals Strike a Deal

The Florida Marlins and Washington Nationals announced a trade on Tuesday that will send outfielder Josh Willingham and lefty starter Scott Olsen to Washington in exchange for three minor leaguers; second baseman Emilio Bonifacio, right-hander P.J. Dean and infielder Jake Smolinski.

The trade marks yet another cost cutting move for the Marlins who recently shipped Mike Jacobs to Kansas City for the very same reason; all are arbitration eligible, making them unfordable. The move very likely will not be the last for Florida. The addition of Bonifacio, a speedy young second basemen, makes all star second basemen Dan Uggla now expendable.

For the Nationals, the addition of Willingham creates a log jam in the outfield where they already have Austin Kearns, Elijah Dukes and Lastings Milledge. It is likely that Washington will move one of those three before the season starts. The addition of Olsen is a nice fit for a rotation that struggled mightily last season. Olsen was 8-11 with a 4.20 ERA in 33 starts in 2008. The most impressive stat is his 201 1/3 innings pitched last season, the first time in his career that he surpassed the 200 inning plateau. No Nationals pitcher recorded more that 182 inning last season.

Future Star Close to Signing with White Sox

Meet Dayan Viciedo—He is a 19-year-old Cuban born 3B who defected from Cuba this past May, and will soon be coming to a ballpark near you. After playing on the Cuban national team since he was 14-years old, Viciedo was cleared to become an MLB free agent.

According to MLB.com, Dayan’s agent Jamie Torres (who also represents fellow Cuban-born players Jose Contreras and Alexi Ramirez) has already received numerous offers for the young 3B’s services. The 6’2’ 230-pound 3B is rumored to be close to signing a deal to join Contreras and Ramirez in Chicago.

With the recent MLB success of Alexi Ramirez, many teams have become interested in the young Cuban, as many say he could be a better MLB player than Ramirez. If the predictions are true, we may have the opportunity to see a rising star on the fast track to success as early as April.

Lincecum Named NL Cy Young

San Francisco Giants starting pitcher Tim Lincecum was named the NL CY Young award winner on Tuesday. Lincecum was 18-5 with a 2.62 ERA with a major league-best 265 strikeouts this season. Those numbers are very impressive considering he played for a forth place team. The 24-year-old righty received 24 of a possible 32 first place votes. Others receiving first place votes were Brandon Webb (4), Johan Santana (4), and CC Sabathia (1).

A's Land Holiday

According to several media sources the Oakland A's have acquired all star outfielder Matt Holiday from the Colorado Rockies. While the deal has not yet been made official, it has been said they they have agreed in principle to send Holiday for a package of players that reportedly includes closer Huston Street, outfielder Carlos Gonzalez, and starting pitcher Greg Smith.

Holiday, a two time all star, is considered by many to be the prize offensive player available this offseason. The lone downside to any deal for Holiday is that he has just one season remaining on his contract. He is scheduled to make $13 million this season baring an extension.

Soto Takes Home NL ROTY

Chicago Cub's catcher Geovany Soto was named National League Rookie of the year on Monday. Soto hit .285 with 23 homers, 35 doubles and 86 RBIs in 141 games this season. The award makes Soto the first catcher to receive the award since 1993, when Mike Piazza won it . Soto's steller rookie season was also highlighted by a start in this year's all star game. He was the first rookie catcher in National League history ever to start an all star game. He was also behind the plate for Carlos Zambrano's no-hitter back in September.

Longoria Win AL ROTY

Tampa Bay Rays third basemen Evan Longoria was named the 2008 American League Rookie of the Year on Monday. The power-hitting third baseman received all 28 first-place votes, making him the the first American League player to do so since 1997 when Boston's Nomar Garciaparra accomplished the feat. Longoria, who began the year at AAA with the Durham Bulls of the International league, made the transition to the the big leagues about as smoothly as anyone could ask compiling a .272 average with 27 homeruns and 85 RBI in 122 games for the Rays this season. Longoria also played a vital role in Tampa's playoff success hitting six homeruns and racking up 18 RBI leading the Rays to their first ever World Series appearance.

This award caps off a season of firsts for the Tampa Bay Rays. First winning record, first division title, first playoff appearance, first trip to the world series, and now first major individual award. With a strong core of young players, highlighted by Longoria, the Rays are likely to add a few more first in the coming years. Perhaps a first World Series Title? Only time will tell.

2008 Gold Glove Winners Announced

The 2008 Gold Glove winners have been announced. They are as follows:

National League:

P	Greg Maddux, Dodgers
C	Yadier Molina, Cardinals
1B	Adrian Gonzalez, Padres
2B	Brandon Phillips, Reds
3B	David Wright, Mets
SS	Jimmy Rollins, Phillies
OF	Nate McLouth, Pirates; Carlos Beltran, Mets; Shane Victorino, Phillies

American League:

P	Mike Mussina, Yankees
C	Joe Mauer, Twins
1B	Carlos Pena, Rays
2B	Dustin Pedroia, Red Sox
3B	Adrian Beltre, Mariners
SS	Michael Young, Rangers
OF	Torii Hunter, Angels Grady Sizemore, Indians Ichiro Suzuki, Mariners

Not too many surprises this year. Rookie of the year winners will be announced Monday.

Devils Lose Brodeur, Season Too?

The New Jersey Devils have taken quite possibly the one blow they cannot afford as star goaltender Martin Brodeur will miss the next three to four months due to an elbow injury. The four-time Vezina Trophy winner will undergo surgery Thursday to repair the distal bicep in his left elbow.

Brodeur, who is considered by many to be the best goalie ever to play the game, was closing in on two records that would have cemented his status as the game's elite; Patrick Roy's career wins record and Terry Sawchuk's career shutout record. It appears that both will now be put on hold until next season.

This is a huge blow to any playoff chances the Devils may have had. New Jersey is a defense first team, but they just lost the backbone of that defense. It could be a short season in New Jersey.

NFL QB Shake-up

The Cleveland Browns today announced that 2007 first round pick Brady Quinn will be the starting quarterback for the Browns week 10 match-up against the Denver Broncos. Quinn will replace two year starter Derek Anderson, who threw a costly interception late in Cleveland's week 9 loss to the Baltimore Ravens.

Elsewhere in the NFL, the Chicago Bears announced that starting quarterback Kyle Orton will be out 2-4 weeks due to a high ankle sprain. Rex Grossman, who led the Bears to a Superbowl appearance in 2007, will get a chance to regain the starting job this week against the undefeated Tennessee Titans.

In a minor move today the Detroit Lions signed previously retired QB Daunte Culpepper to a two year contract. The Lions lost previous starters Jon Kitna and Dan Orlovsky due to injury. Culpepper will battle Drew Stanton in practice this week for the starting job for game 10.

NBA Blockbuster!

A huge trade went down in the NBA today as the Detroit Pistons acquired former MVP guard Alan Iverson from the Denver Nuggets in exchange for Chauncey Billups, Antonio McDyess, and Cheikh Samb.

Iverson, who is in the final year of his contract, set to make $20.8 million this season, could make his debut with the Pistons on Wednesday night in Toronto. The nine time all star will add a nice scoring weapon to a team who has been known more for their defense in years past than offense.

Billups, a three time all star in his own right, will add a new dynamic to the Nuggets offense. While both Iverson and star Carmelo Anthony are great scorers, Billups ability to spread the ball around as well as score makes Denver a strong playoff contender.

This move certainly shakes things up in both conferences. It will be interesting to see how these two stars adapt to their new environments. Both will have opportunities to add a lift to each each.

Lakers Extend Bynum

The Los Angeles Times is reporting that the Los Angeles Lakers has signed center Andrew Bynum to a four year contract extension worth $58 million. The move would keep Bynum in a Laker uniform through the 2012-13 season.

This is a great move for the Lakers as good young bigmen are hard to come by. Bynum missed much of the second half of last season due to injury. With the inside force of Bynum paired up with all world talent Kobe Bryant, the Lakers will be a force in the Western Conference for a long time to come.

MLB Hot Stove Heating Up

Its been less than 24 hours since the Philadelphia Phillies claimed the 2008 World Series Title but already the MLB hot stove is heating up.

The Milwaukee Brewers today announced that former Oakland A's manager Ken Macha will be taking over for interim manager Dale Sveum as their next manager. Macha, who led the A's to two AL West titles was one of three candidates considered for the job; the other two being former Mets manager Willie Randolph and former Dbacks manager Bob Brenly.

Also today the first trade of the offseason was completed between the Kansas City Royals and Florida Marlins. Florida will send slugging first basemen Mike Jacobs to the Royals in exchange for right handed relief pitcher Leo Nunez. The financially strapped Marlins were shopping Jacobs because he was due a big raise this off season in arbitration. Jacobs hit 32 home runs and knocked in 93 runs last season, both career bests. Nunez was 4-1 last year with a 2.98 ERA in 45 relief appearances.

Be sure to check WAY Back Sports for the latest happenings and hot stove news all winter!

Phillies are 2008 World Series Champs

The Philadelphia Phillies claimed the 2008 World Series title on Wednesday night, defeating the Tampa Bay Rays 4-3 in game five of the best of seven series. The win marks the first time in twenty-five years the city of Philadelphia will get to celebrate a Championship.

Game 5 was about as bizzar a game as you would see. Originally scheduled to take place on Monday, they were only able to get 5 1/2 innings in before having to suspend play due to heavy rain with the score tied 2-2. Field conditions prohibited the two teams from playing the final three innings on Tuesday. Finally on Wednesday mother nature cooperated, allowing for the game to be completed.

A Jason Werth RBI single in the bottom of the sixth, the first inning on play Wednesday, gave the Phillies a 3-2 lead. Rocco Baldelli answered in the seventh for the Rays evening the score at 3-3, but that would not last as in the bottom of the same inning a Pat Burrell double followed by a Pedro Feliz single gave the Phillies the final run they would need.

Phillies' closer Brad Lidge picked up the final two outs of the game, including a strikeout of Eric Hinske to end it. Lidge finished the year a perfect 48 for 48 in save situations, unheard of for closers in today's game.

Following the game Phillies' pitcher Cole Hamels was named World Series MVP. He started games 1 and 5 of the series, both games that Philly went on to win. He finished the playoffs 4-0 with a 1.88ERA in five starts. Not too shabby for a guy who is only 24 years old and just getting into the prime of his career.

"I think when we come back, when we’re all old and retired and we come back and they still stand up and give us a standing ovation, just like they did to all the guys of the 1980 World Series," Hamels said. "We’ve got to witness that, and knowing that and seeing the city and the excitement throughout the first game of the season this year, throughout the multiple sellouts and of course the playoff excitement was just really huge. I really think the fans stepped up. They could taste it just as much as we could. And they added to our confidence to go out there and win."

Congratulationsto the Philadelphia Phillies: 2008 World Series Champions.

WAY Back Sports Presents: Your 2008-2009 NBA Preview

This is the beauty of sports. Just when one league is ending its season, another one is just to begin. As we wave good-bye to baseball for the winter, basketball is getting ready to tip off. The Boston Celtics look to defend their 17th championship and the Lakers will try to preserve their Western Conference title. Who has a chance to reach the promise land? Here is the breakdown: The WAY Back Sports NBA Preview.

EASTERN CONFERENCE

1) Boston Celtics. James Poesy may be gone, but does it really matter if the Big Three are still there? Rajon Rondo and Kendrick Perkins both have another year under them, making the C's the team to beat in the east.

2) Detroit Pistons. Yes, they are getting older, but the talent level is still high with Chauncy Billups and Rip Hamilton. Youngsters Jason Maxielle and Rodney Stuckey both grew up a lot in the playoffs too.

3) Philadelphia 76ers. There is reason for Philly fans to get excited over the basketball team again. This is the best they've been since the departure of A.I., bringing in Elton Brand in the off-season. Andre Miller is an underrated PG, and the other A.I., Andre Iguodala is a threat.

4) Orlando Magic. As long as Dwight Howard keeps playing like Superman (and he will), the Magic will be in the mix. Rashard Lewis needs to be more consistent, and Jameer Nelson will need to prove that he can run the point.

5) Cleavland Cavilers. Two Words....LeBron James.

6) Atlanta Hawks. They almost shocked the Celtics. Almost. Though Josh Childress is gone, Josh Smith is an awesome scorer and Joe Johnson provides leadership along side Mike Bibby.

7) Toronto Raptors. The Raptors are revamped after bringing in Jermaine O'Neal this offseason. Jose Calderon will surprise people with his play, and an O'Neal-Chris Bosh frontcourt is scary.

8) Miami Heat. Dwayne Wade+Shawn Marion+Michale Beasley=a solid three-headed monster on South Beach

The Rest

9) Chicago Bulls. Home-town hero Derek Rose will revive basketball in Chicago.

10) Washington Wizards. They could jump up to top 8, depending on when Gilbert Arenas gets back.

11) Milwaukee Bucks. There's talent, but all on offense.

12) Charlotte Bobcats. How much longer will the excuse of "they're young" last? Lets see what Larry Brown can do with them.

13) Indiana Pacers. What did Larry Bird do to this team?

14) New York Knicks. Mike D'Antoni has his work cut out for him cleaning up after Isaiah.

15) New Jersey Nets. How long 'till LeBron comes? They cleared out the cap space for him.


WESTERN CONFERENCE

1) Los Angeles Lakers. Andrew Bynum is healthy again, so it will be fun to see what he can do with Pau. Oh yeah, they have Kobe too.

2) New Orleans Hornets. Chris Paul might be the best PG in the league. Add Posey in off the bench, combined with a very hungry team and you've got yourself a contender.

3) Houston Rockets. Ah, the double edge sword of Ron Artest. If he keeps his cool on the court, he, Tracy McGrady, and Yao will be blasting off.

4) Utah Jazz. Know why Chris Paul MIGHT be the best PG in the league? Deron Williams of the Jazz. Carlos Boozer will bang down low and Andrei Kirilenko will be an inside/outside threat.

5) San Antonio Spurs. The old stand byes are still here, and with Tony Parker and Tim Duncan healthy, they will be. They will need to wait a while to get Manu back after surgery in the offseason.

6) Phoenix Suns. Steve Nash is still Steve Nash, and Shaq is there to teach Amare' Stoudemire how to play in the post. The question will be if they can still run and gun.

7) Dallas Mavericks. Will this just be a team that looks good on paper, or will they produce on the court? But it's hard to count out a team with Dirk and Jason Kidd.

8) Portland Trail Blazers. A LeMarcus Aldridge-Greg Oden frontcourt along with Brandon Roy in the backcourt will get this team a playoff birth.

The Rest

9) Denver Nuggets. The best paper team money can buy. They'll produce on the court, but A.I. and Carmello Anthony will just miss the promise land this year.

10) Los Angeles Clippers. WWBD=What Will Baron Do? This may be one of those 50 win teams that doesn't get in the playoffs.

11) Golden State Warriors. Monta Ellis is the the goat in Golden State after an offseason mo-ped crash. Free agent Corey Maggette will need to provide the scoring for the Warriors this season.

12) Minnesota Timberwolves. Al Jefferson will need to put this team on his back for them not to slip further down in the west. He'll shoulder some of the load, but not much more.

13) Memphis Grizzlies. O.J. Mayo and Rudy Gay are bright spots on a dark team. When Darko is starting, you need bright spots.

14) Sacramento Kings. Name one player on the Kings. It's not that easy.

15) Oklahoma City Thunder. Good luck, Kevin Durant.


Welcome back NBA!

All But Over?

For the first time in twenty-eight seasons the Philadelphia Phillies will become World Champions tonight. After beating the Tampa Bay Rays in game four for the 2008 World Series last night, it seems like an almost certainty that the streets of Philadelphia will be filled with maniac fans who have had nothing to celebrate of this magnitude in 20+ years.

Wait, they have another game to play, right? So why are we handing the Championship over to the Phillies with games left to play? Its not over it its over, right? Wrong. Anyone who saw last night's game will agree, this series is over.

The Philly bats overwhelmed Tampa pitching to the tune of 10-2 in game four. Even starting pitcher Joe Blanton got in on the offense last night chipping in with a solo homer to go along with his 6 solid innings of work on the mound. You know things are going bad then the opposing pitcher it taking you yard. More bad news for the Rays: Phillies' slugger Ryan Howard looks as locked in at the plate as he has all season, as he demonstrated by hitting two homeruns in the game, one to each side of the park. Any baseball "expert" would tell you that when a powerhitter like Howard is locked in they will hit with power to all fields. A locked in Ryan Howard spells doom for the Ray.

Game five brings us a rematch of game one starters as Cole Hamels will try to close out the Phillies' second Series title on Monday night against Scott Kazmir. Hamels (4-0) is trying to become the first pitcher to win five postseason starts in one year. Josh Beckett won four last year with the Boston Red Sox.

Even more good news is that Hamels loves the spot light. He has been known as a big game pitcher in his short time in the big leagues. They certainly get no bigger than game 5 of the World Series at home with a chance to bring a championship to a city that has not seen one is twenty years.

"Cole looks for these moments. I call him Hollywood, because when the lights are on, that's when he's at his best, and tomorrow night the lights will definitely be on," said Phillies short-stop Jimmy Rollins.

The World has been counting out the Rays all season, and all season they have somehow stepped it up to another level and proved us all wrong. 42 times in World Series history a team has held a 3-1 advantage. Of those 42 instances, 6 times a team has come back to win the series, prove that it is not impossible, however is unlikely.

This series is over. The Phillies will not lose at home; Cole Hamels will not let that happen. Tampa has had a story book season, unfortunately for them, this story does not have a happy ending.

Tampa Strikes Back in Game Two

The Tampa Bay Rays did on Thursday what few have been able to do against the Phillies all season: shut down a high powered offense and play a little small ball en route to victory.

James Shields struck out four in six shutout innings giving the Rays the solid pitching outing they were missing in game one as Tampa even the series to one game a piece. Rare for both teams was the lack of the long ball as both teams were held homer-less in this game. Instead it was the small ball, moving runners along and sacrificing to score runs, that got the job done in game two.

One major problem for Philadelphia has been their lack of timely hitting thus far in the World Series. After Thursday's performance the Phillies are batting 1 for 28 with runners in scoring position over the first two games. Proof that they are not struggling to get runners on base, they simply cannot get them home.

"That might be one of our sloppiest games all year," Phillies manager Charlie Manuel said. "I'm concerned about us hitting with guys on base, because it looks like at times we might be trying a little too hard. But we can fix that."

Heading back to Philly it will be interesting to see which teams show up; the high scoring offenses or the the low scoring games that we have seen so far. Either way it is bound to be an exciting finish to the 2008 World Series.

Coaching Legand Calls It Quits

TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) -- Arizona had won one conference title in the 29 seasons before Lute Olson arrived from Iowa in 1983.

It didn't take long for Olson to build a powerhouse in the desert. The 74-year-old Olson, who announced his retirement on Thursday, went 589-187 in 24 seasons at Arizona and led the Wildcats to the 1997 national championship and four Final Fours, most recently in 2001.

His program turned into an assembly line of NBA talent, producing 13 first-round draft picks, including Sean Elliott, Mike Bibby and Richard Jefferson.

"Lute Olson transformed the UA and Tucson into premier basketball country," university president Robert N. Shelton said in a statement. "Arizona now stands in the company of great college basketball programs, and we have Lute to thank for that. We will sorely miss his brilliance as our head coach, but we will benefit from the legacy he leaves for decades to come."

It is rare in sports to see one individual transform an organization from a league doormat to a perennial championship contender. Arizona is one of a handful of schools that can call themselves a NCAA basketball powerhouse; all that credit belongs to Lute Olson. His 589 wins speak for them self. Arizona now has some huge shoes to fill. College basketball will miss a coaching talent like Olson.

Phillies Take Game 1

Philadelphia Phillies vs. Tampa Bay Rays certainly is not a match-up that you would expect to see in a World Series, but the two team have impressed thus far in postseason and met last night in Tampa for game one of the World Series.

The appearance for Tampa is the first in franchise history. A first in a year of first for the organization. This season marked the first with a winning record, the first division title, the first playoff appearance, and first playoff series win in both the ALCS and ALCS.

The Phillies last made a World Series appearance in 1993 losing to the Toronto Blue Jays on Joe Carter's memorable walk off homerun to win the series. The last time Philadelphia won the World Series was back in 1980.

As for the game...

Cole Hamels went seven innings allowing just two runs en route to picking up his fourth win of the playoffs. Hamels playoff line now stands at 4-0 with a 1.55 ERA this postseason. It was not his strongest outing of the playoffs, but he was effective cooling off the hot bats of BJ Upton and Evan Longoria, both of whom have been tearing the cover off the ball as of late. The heart of the Rays' lineup (Upton, Longoria, and Carlos Pena) went a combine 0 for 12 in the game.

Hamels counterpart, Scott Kazmir, who was selected two spots ahead of Hamels in the 2002 draft, struggled with his control for much of the game. Kazmir gave up a Chase Utley homer in the first inning putting Tampa in a 0-2 hole.

The first game of a series is a big one. It sets the tone for things to come and can get momentum swinging in your direction if you come away victorious. The Phillies were able to do that in game one. We will see how it plays out going forward.

''It's huge,'' Phillies closer Brad Lidge said. ''You try and downplay it, but obviously you're coming into a place like this, you want to make sure you get the first game, especially because you got your ace on the mound. It's really important to do that.''

2008 AL Champions: The Tampa Bay Rays

There was a lot of doubt about Tampa Bay going in to the playoffs.

"They're too young".
"They're going to fade".
"They don't have any experience".

Tampa Bay knows how to change minds.

The Rays knocked off the defending World Champion Boston Red Sox Sunday night to capture the title of AL Champions. Matt Garza was lights out for Tampa, going 7 strong, only giving up two hits, one being a home run by Boston's Dustin Pedroia in the first inning. Tampa struck back in the 4th, when rookie 3B Evan Longoria hit a double that scored Carlos Pena. They followed it up in the 5th when Rocco Baldelli singled to left, which scored Willy Aybar. Aybar also put the final nail in the Sox coffin with a solo shot in the 7th.

Rookie David Price, Tampa's first overall pick in the 2008 draft came on with two outs in the 8th and came back in for the 9th, holding the Red Sox hitless.

Congratulations to Tampa Bay, they played a great series. They didn't get scared when Boston took games 5 and 6; rather they were calm in the pressure. They take on the Phillies in game 1 of the World Series on Wednesday night.

Saturday Spotlight

It's very easy to forget about college football while the NFL, MLB, NHL, and NBA preseason are all going on. But with the Red Sox and Rays not playing until 8:37, you need something to watch, and these college football games are there to fill the void. Here are the big matchups on campus this weekend.

#10 Georgia vs #22 Vanderbilt
Georgia has gone through a rough patch lately, but they can't afford to keep their heads down against an extremely surprising Vanderbilt team. As we've seen before, anything can happen in the SEC, but because Georgia is at home, I see them getting the win.

#12 Ohio State at #20 Michigan State
Terrelle Pryor gets a giant road test against a very good Michigan State team this weekend. The match-up to watch will be MSU 1,000 yard running back Javon Ringer against LB James Laurnitis. Whoever wins that battle will win this game, and I'm taking Michigan State at home.

#4 Oklahoma vs #16 Kansas
OU will try to rebound after their first loss of the season against Kansas. Both teams have great passing attacks, lead by Sam Bradford of the Sooners and Todd Reesing of the Jayhawks. This looks to game that will be decided by the defensive backs, so I'll take the Boomer Sooners.

#2 Alabama vs Ole Miss
As said before, anything can happen in the SEC. Ole Miss knocked off Flordia a few weeks ago, and look to do the same thing to the Tide. History is on 'Bama's side, as they've won the past four games against Ole Miss. It will turn in to 5 straight wins this weekend.

#17 Virgina Tech at Boston College
The ACC is still up in the air as BC and VT replay last years conference championship game. BC has been solid at home against ranked teams recently, winning their last 3 in a row. Don't expect many points in this game, it's going to be a defensive battle. I would not be supurised if it came down to the kicking game, and Tech has great special teams. I'll take VT on the road, but not by much.

#1 Texas vs #11 Missouri
This game features two amazing quarterbacks, Colt McCoy of Texas and Chase Daniel of Mizzou. Texas is the new #1 after beating Oklahoma in the red river shootout, and Missouri is looking to rebound after a loss to Oklahoma State last weekend. Both teams can put up a massive amount of points, so it will be up to each defense to try to get the win. I think Texas has a better D, and with home field advantge, they get the victory.

Enjoy the games!

Sox Stun Rays

Game five started just as the previous three had; a Boston starter got roughed up early and the Rays appeared to be cursing to their first World Series birth in franchise history. But just when things looked over the Rad Sox said not so fast...

Down seven runs going to the bottom of the seventh the Sox roared back led by a three run homer by playoff legend David Ortiz and some timely hitting from JD Drew. The Rays bullpen, which had been so strong throughout the playoff thus far, just could not get the job done tonight.

Going to the bottom of the ninth tied an error by probable rookie of the year Evan Longoria allowed Kevin Youkilis to advance to second base. Jason Bay was then intentionally walked setting up a lefty-lefty match up between Rays reliever J.P Howell and Sox batter JD Drew. After falling behind 3-0 Howell was able to battle back but Drew lined a 3-2 pitch down the right field line scoring Youkilis from second for the walk off win.

Once again this just goes to show you that you can ever count out the Boston Red Sox. A year ago they came back from a 3-1 deficit to the Cleveland Indians to win the series. The win tonight gives them a chance to duplicate that feat. It certainly will be no easy task, but Boston does have favorable pitching match ups heading back to Tampa. It is expected that Josh Beckett will get a chance to redeem himself in game six facing off against James Shields. Should it get to a game seven it will be Jon Lester for Boston likely against Matt Garza.

Chiefs Suspend Johnson

The Kansas City Chiefs have suspended starting running back Larry Johnson for this Sunday's game against the Tennessee Titans. Chiefs coach Herm Edwards refused to go into detail, but did say that the suspension is due to a violation of team rules.

The loss of Johnson against the NFL's lone undefeated team does not bode well for Kansas City. Their offense has struggled to put points on the board thus far this season getting off to a 1-4 start.

Philly World Series Bound

The Philadelphia Phillies are the first to punch their tickets to the world series as they defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers Wednesday night 5-1 to take the series four games to one. The win marks the first time since 1993 that the Phillies have advanced to the World Series; they have not won it since 1980.

Led by another dominating performance on the mound from Cole Hamels, the Phillies had the win locked up early. Hamels pitched seven strong innings giving up just a Manny Ramirez homer in the sixth while striking out five. Jimmy Rollins also homered in a winning effort for the Phillies.

Following the game Hamels was named NLCS MVP. He finished the series 2-0 with a 1.93 ERA while striking out 13 batters in 14 innings of work.

Philadelphia awaits the winner of the Tampa Bay-Boston series, a series led by the Rays 3-1 going into tonight's game.

Rays Crush Sox....Again

For the second consecutive day the Tampa Bay Rays busted out the bats in a big way at Fenway Park, knocking Red Sox pitching all over the park en route to a 13-4 victory.

The loss marks the third game in a row that a Boston starter has been roughed up early as Tim Wakefield lasted just 2 1/3 innings giving up fives runs including three homeruns.

Rookie sensation Evan Longoria continues to tear the cover off ball for the Rays as he hit yet another homerun in the first inning of Wakefield. Carlos Pena and Willy Aybar also homered for Tampa. Carl Crawford led all Tampa Bay hitters with five hits. He finished the game a homer shy of the cycle.

The Red Sox have now lost three of four home playoff games this season. That comes a big surprise as they had the second best record in all of baseball at home during the regular season, second only to the Rays, a team they will now have to beat at their place if they hope to advance to the World Series. The good news for Sox fans is that Boston is no stranger to ALCS comebacks. Last season they climbed out of a 3-1 hole against the Cleveland Indians to win the series. And who can forget the 3-0 deficit in 2004 against the New York Yankees that the Sox erased en route to winning the ALCS and ultimately the World Series.

Busy Day in Dallas

Two major announcements came out of Dallas today as the Cowboys first announced a suspension that has been handed down by NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, then announced a major trade.

The first news concerned Adam "Packman" Jones, who has been under the microscope all season following his reinstatement during the preseason, was suspended for "a minimum for four games" by Goodell stemming from a bar fight with Jones' own personal security guard. The guard had been assigned to Jones by the team in hopes of preventing any such problems. It is expected that Jones has played his final game in a Cowboys uniform. Rumors have been circulating for hours now that the Cowboys will likely cut ties with the troubled corner before his suspension is lifted.

After what seems like endless bad news for Dallas this week there was finally a positive as it was announced that they have acquired Pro Bowl wide receiver Roy Williams from the Detroit Lions for three draft picks. The addition of Williams gives the Cowboys one of the most formidable 1-2 punches at receiver in the league as Williams will team up with fellow Pro Bowler Terrell Owens. The biggest question now will be how long until one of these superstars is upset about not getting enough touches? There are only so many balls to go around and both players have a history of making it well known then they are upset with their lack of use in the offense. Brad Johnson will certainly have his hands full in the coming weeks as he looks to fill in for the injured Tony Romo at quarterback.

Cowboys March on Without Romo

The Dallas Cowboys will be without quarterback Tony Romo for the next 3-4 weeks due to a broken finger on his throwing hand. Romo suffered the injury on the first play of overtime during Sunday's 30-24 overtime loss at Arizona.

This is bad news for a Cowboys team that has been struggling as of late losing two of their last three games. 40 year old Brad Johnson will start in Romo's absence. His last NFL start was back in 2006 when he was a member of the Minnesota Vikings. The Cowboys next next three games are at St. Louis, home vs. Tampa Bay, and then at the Giants week 9 before a bye in Week 10.

Rays Win Marathon

When Josh Beckett and Scott Kazmir take the hill you know you are in for a close game. What you would not expect however is a 9-8 final score.

It started as a shootout, but ended as a pitchers duel. Two so called aces looked more like deer in headlight rookies combining to allow an ALCS record tying seven homeruns in five innings of work.

After the fifth inning it was a whole new ball game. Over the remaining six innings the two teams combined to score a mere three runs. But it was the Rays who scored when it counted. With the bases loaded in the 11th BJ Upton hit a sacrifice fly to right to plate pinch runner Fernando Perez evening the series at a game a piece.

The series now shifts to Boston for three game beginning Monday. Jon Lester and Matt Garza will take the hill for the Sox and Rays respectively.

Myers Gets It Done...With a Bat?

Philadelphia Phillies' starting pitcher Brett Myers came into game two of the NLCS batting 4 for 58 on the season at the plate. As a pitcher a stat line like that is not all that surprising. Myers himself would be the first to tell you that he is a bad hitter, but its not his job to hit, right?

That all changed on Friday night as Myers made up for his shaky performance on the mound by nearly doubling his hit total for the season. He finished the night 3 for 3 with three runs batted in en route to a 8-5 Phillies victory in game two of the NLCS.

"I'm not a very good hitter," said Myers in his post game interview. "I just get lucky occasionally. I'm baffled by it. I would've rather pitched better."

At this point in the season it is better to be lucky than good. We will see if the luck for the Phillies can continue Sunday as the series shifts to Los Angeles for three games.

NHL Season Preview

Thursday marks the opening night (on US soil) for the National Hockey League. While we realize hockey may not be the most popular of sports, here at WAY Back Sports we never leave a sport behind...unless its Nascar (you will NEVER see a Nascar post on this site).

Anyway, heres a look at how we think the season will finish:

Eastern Conference:

1. Pittsburgh Penguins - The defending Eastern Conference champions have two of the top five best players in the the NHL (Sidney Crosby & Evgeni Malkin) and enough firepower along side them to make it back to the finals. They will have to weather the storm the first two months without top defensemen Sergi Gongar and Ryan Whitney but they have enough good young talent to hold the fort until they return.
2. Montreal Canadiens - Last season the Canadiens finished with the best record during the regular season before being bounced in the first round by the Flyers. The offseason saw the departure of RW Micheal Ryder and D Mark Streit but a little offensive fire power was brought in to replace them in LW Alex Tanguay and C Robert Lang. This season also marks the first full season for goaltender Carey Price as starter. If he has a strong sophomore season the Canadiens will be contenders in the East.
3. Washington Capitals - Third only by virtue of winning the Southeast, not necessarily the third best record. The Capitals have arguably the most exciting player in hockey in reigning MVP Alexander Ovechkin. They have a good mix of veterans (Sergi Federov, Chris Clark) and rising stars (Nicklas Backstrom, Alexander Semin) to make for a good supporting cast for Ovechkin. The big question mark will be in goal. The Capitals will only go as far as Jose Theodore takes them.
4. Philadelphia Flyers - Having a healthy Simon Gagne back will do wonders for a team that was not that far away from having a big year last season. In the 07/08 playoffs they knocked off the #1 ranked Montreal Canadiens before falling to the Penguins in the Conference finals. The offseason saw the departure of promising young star R.J. Umberger which will sting, but I would think they Flyers would rather have Gagne than Umberger anyday.
5. Boston Bruins - Picking the Bruins to finish 5th may surprise some people but Boston is a gritty team who, with the guidance of coach Claude Julien, will win a lot of close games. The biggest difference this season for Boston will be the return of all star forward Patrice Bergeron who missed all but ten games last season following a career threatening concussion. The addition of Bergeron and the signing of free agent forward Michael Ryder will make the Bruins a team to watch out for in the East.
6. New York Rangers - The Rangers suffered some major losses over the offseason seeing forwards Jaromir Jagr, Brendan Shannahan, and Martin Straka all announce their retirement from the NHL. Perhaps the player they will miss the most is not one listed above but instead agitator Steve Avery who signed with Dallas. They were able to bring in decent replacements in Markus Naslund and Nikolai Zherdev, add that to a group that already includes Scott Gomez and Chris Drury and you have a team who will be a strong playoff contender.
7. New Jersey Devils - The Devils are a playoff team for one reason: Martin Brodeur. In Brodeur's 14 seasons as the Devils' goaltender New Jersey has made the playoffs 13 times. Coincidence? I think not.
8. Ottawa Senators - It seems that the Senators and Penguins meet in the playoffs every year, so why change that this season. Ottawa boasts the best line in hockey in Daniel Alfredsson, Jason Spezza, and Dany Heatley. Aside from that there isn't a whole lot to be dangerous.
9. Tampa Bay Lightning - Most improved team in hockey, but still not quite enough.
10. Carolina Hurricanes - Loss of Eric Cole means loss of playoff contention.
11. Buffalo Sabers - Ryan Miller will keep them in a lot of games, but he is just one man.
12. Florida Panthers - Good defense, not so good offense.
13. Atlanta Thrashers - They have Ilya Kovalchuk and um...who else?
14. Toronto Maple Leafs - Poor Leafs fans. Its gonna be a long season.
15. New York Islanders - They will battle the Leafs for the basement all year.

Western Conference:

1. Detroit Red Wings - The addition of Marian Hossa make the defending Stanley Cup Champions even that much better. There is no reason why the Red Wings will not go back-to-back.
2. Dallas Stars - Like the rest of the Western Conference, the Stars are just playing for second place. The addition of Sean Avery will add an element of grit to Dallas which will go a long way. Any team with that likes of Brenden Morrow, Brad Richards, Mike Ribeiro, and Marty Turco will be a team that contends.
3. Calgary Flames - The Flames made perhaps the most underrated move of the offseason picking up LW Mike Cammalleri from the LA Kings. Cammalleri will likely be paired with super star Jerome Iginla on the top line making for a nice 1-2 punch. If Miikka Kipprusoff can regain his elite status between the pipes the Flames could be dangerous this season.
4. San Jose Sharks - San Jose has become a perennial powerhouse in the Western Conference and that will likely continue this season. Led by center Joe Thornton and the emergence of Evgeni Nabokov the Sharks will be right in the mix in the West. The addition of D Dan Boyle could be another overlooked acquisition.
5. Anaheim Ducks - Like the Sharks, the Ducks are another team you can count on to be in the mix in the West each season. The young stud first line of Ryan Getzlaf, Corey Perry, and Chris Kunitz will power Anaheim to another strong season.
6. Chicago Blackhawks - In the Eastern Conference the Blackhawks might be the second best team. Unfortunately, they play in the stacked Western Conference where they will be in the middle of the pack. Chicago is just loaded with young talent and made some nice offseason acquisitions in D Brain Campbell and G Cristobal Huet. It would not be a surprise to see Chicago make some noise in the West this season.
7. Edmonton Oilers - The additions of Erik Cole and Lubomir Visnosky are big ones for the Oilers. Expect LW Dustin Penner to have a bounce back year this season after a slow first season in Edmonton. The Oilers are a solid team who will fight for one of the final playoff spots.
8. Minnesota Wild - The Wild will be as good as Marian Gaborik is healthy. They added a few nice role players in LW Andrew Brunette, RW Owen Nolan, and D Marek Zidlicky. If Gaborik plays 65 games the Wild are a playoff team.
9. Phoenix Coyotes - Young and improved, but still a year or two away.
10. Colorado Avalanche - Could sneak into the playoffs if Peter Forsberg returns.
11. Nashville Predators - Why is there hockey in Nashville?
12. Columbus Blue Jackets - Could be a sleeper team in the West.
13. Vancouver Canucks - If they got Roberto Luongo some help they could make some noise.
14. St. Louis Blues - Some good young pieces, but not enough.
15. Los Angeles Kings - Very young. Still two or three years from being a contender.

Cup Finals: Detroit Red Wings over Pittsburgh Penguins in six games.