Brewers Going For Broke

It appears that the Milwaukee Brewers are going all in for a championship this season. After acquiring CC Sabathia just before the all star game, mlbtraderumors.com is now reporting that the Brewers are on the verge of acquiring A's closer Huston Street. The price for Street appears to be prospect Darren Ford, a speedy outfielder who spent this season playing for the Brevard County Manatees (high A). Ford is batting just .232 on the season but the number that does stand out are his 44 steals in 87 games.

The Brewers have made two very loud statements over the last couple of weeks. It is becoming clear that they are in "WIN NOW" mode. Good for the Brewers. It is nice to see a team other than the Yankees, Mets, Cubs , or Red Sox make a big push for the title. The question to ask now is what do the Cubs do in response? When the Brewers got Sabathia the Cubs went out and got Rich Harden. Now the Brewers appear to have Huston Street. So what's next for the Cubs? Can anyone say Brian Fuentes?

NHL Odds and Ends

While many of the NHL’s big offseason questions have been answered, the past few weeks have brought significant news for the league next season. For the second straight year the NHL will open its season in Europe with a total of four games scheduled on October 4th and 5th. The Pittsburgh Penguins will face off against the Ottawa Senators for two games in Stockholm, while the Tampa Bay Lightning face the New York Rangers in Prague.

The NHL also announced an outdoor New Year’s Day game between the Detroit Red Wings and the Chicago Blackhawks at Wrigley Field.

Other News of Note:

Penguins and Head Coach Michel Therrien agree to a new 3-year contract

Sabers signed Goaltender Ryan Miller to a 5-year extension

Blackhawks 20-year-old center, Jonathan Toews was names captain of the team

Thrashers signed young prospect Angelo Esposito to a multi-year contract

Joffrey Lupul signs 4-year extension with the Flyers

Mats Sundin is still a Free Agent; however, a deal with some NHL team seems eminent.

Thoughts:

Mat Sundin, despite his age can add immense value to a team that is willing to take the risk. It seems that the real holdup in negotiations is Sundin’s desire for a multi-year contract, something not even Edmonton’s GM Kevin Lowe would agree to.

Esposito, Miller, and Lupul were all great decisions as they represent the core players of the ‘new’ NHL.

Jonathan Toews appointment to Captain is a great thing for the Chicago Blackhawks’ organization and the NHL. He joins Sidney Crosby as the two youngest Captains in the NHL and sets the table for a bright future

Thats 10 for the M-E-T-S

Don't look now, but the New York Mets seem to have finally woken up. After starting the year off to a dreadful start and seeing both the Phillies and Marlins leapfrog them in the standings, the Mets regained a tie for the lead in the National League East last night with a 10-8 victory over the Reds. It marks the first time since April that the Mets have had a portion of the NL East lead.

Even without a strong performance from Johan Santana last night, the bats were still able to get the job done. Santana struggled early, as he has done much of the year so far. Aside from Santana however, the Mets pitching has been quite strong as of late. Mike Pelfery in particular (6-0 in his last 6 starts).

It is good to see the NL East turn into a race again. A couple of weeks ago if you had asked me I would have guessed that the Phillies would run away with the division with that high powered offense of theirs. But with the Phillies lack of pitching and the pesky Marlins and Braves, who do not seem to want to go away, the division is really up for grabs.

New Favorites in the West?

After backstopping the Celtics to their 17th NBA championship, James Posey has left Boston for the New Orleans Hornets signing a four year 25million dollar deal. Posey declined the Celtics offer of the full mid-level exception to go to a team who know surely is one of the favorites in a very competitive Western Conference.

Posey was a huge piece to that Celtics championship defense last year and was a terrific spark off the bench, particularly in the playoffs. This past season was the second in the past three years that a Posey led team won the NBA championship (he was with the Miami Heat for the other).

The signing makes the New Orleans Hornets one of the favorites now in the Western Conference. Posey has already shown that he can slow down the likes of Lebron James and Kobe Bryant. Adding Posey to a team that already has Chris Paul and David West makes for a team that will be very tough to compete against night in and night out. They are now on the same level as the LA Lakers and San Antonio Spurs.

2008 or 1988?

I realize golf is not the most popular of sports, particularly with Tiger Wood on the extended DL with a bum knee. With that said, how can you not love a story of a guy who has all but quit golf and now is leading through two rounds at the British Open.

If it was 1988 it would be no be deal to look at the leaderboard of a major and see Greg Norman's name up there. Here we are some 20 years later and I wake up this morning to see who on top of the leaderborad? No not the fan favorite Rocco Mediate who was leading after the first round. Not a big name like Phil Mickelson or Ernie Ells who should be taking advantage of a Tiger-less field. Not even an over due European such as Sergio Garcia or Colin Montgomerie.

Instead, I see Greg Norman. The Shark, as he is know. A guy who in his post round interview yesterday said he plays and practices more tennis than he does golf these days.

Norman has always been one of those guys that you can't help but root for. He has gotten his fair share of bad breaks over the years, and has had a few Mickelson like collapses to boot. Heres to hoping the shark can keep it together and take this one. For old times sake.

HOLY PAPI!

http://cgi.ebay.com/4-Sea-Dogs-tickets-Ortiz-playing_W0QQitemZ270255198309QQihZ017QQcategoryZ16122QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

That is the link to one of the most unbelievable things I have ever seen in my life. Tickets to a Portland Sea Dogs game, double A affiliate of the Boston Red Sox. Why, you may ask, would tickets to a AA baseball game be selling for over $300? Well, David Ortiz is coming to town. It was Announced over the weekend that Big Papi would be making three rehab starts with the Sea Dogs July 21st-23rd.

Am I the only one that thinks this is absurd? Its not like Babe Ruth is coming back for one last game or anything. Its DAVID ORTIZ. Yes, this may be the biggest thing to happen to Portland, Maine in, well, the history of Portland, Maine but Boston is only a two hour journey down I95. Good tickets to the Sox don't even go for that most games. Jeezzz ... crazy Mainahs.

The Real Winner

For anyone who had not heard of Josh Hamilton before last night, that has now certainly changed. The Texas Rangers all star slugger belted a record 28 home runs in the first round of last night's home run derby. He completely stole the show from eventual winner Justin Morneau. He had the 55,000+ fans in attendance at Yankee Stadium on their feet for every swing. To see the Yankee fans on their feet cheering a non-Yankee American League player was something that I never thought I would ever see, but it was well deserved. And on top of it all, pitching to him was his former little league coach, a 71 year old North Carolina native who had only been to Yankee Stadium once in his entire life prior to that night.

How can you not root for a guy like Josh Hamilton? A former first round draft pick turned heroin addict who has resurrected his career from one of the worst stories in sports to one of the best. Now sober, he has completely changed his life, for the better, and is once again one of the more promising young players in the game today. His .310/21/95 line going into the all star break says it all. Josh Hamilton is an all star and will continue to be for many years to come.

Time to Call It Quits

As I am sure you all have heard, Brett Farve is trying to make a comeback to the NFL. Farve retired back in March but since has had a "change of heart" and want another shot at the Limbardi Trophy. For his sake I hope the Packers do not allow it. As great as Brett Farve has been to the NFL and game of football for so many years, the game does not need him anymore. No body wants the last image of a legendary quarterback to be one of him being carried off in a stretcher.

The Packers had a great year last year, far better than anyone would have expected. Yes, they have a lot of talent, but I for one do not foresee a repeat performance of last year’s miracle run in the cards again for this season. They are not a Superbowl team; not in the same league as the New York Giants and definitely not in the same league as the Dallas Cowboys. It would be foolish for Brett to come back to a team that will struggle to make the playoffs.

On top of all of this we have Aaron Rodgers, a first round draft pick in 2004 and deemed successor to the great Farve. The plan from the beginning was for Rodgers to back up Farve for a year or two and get a feel of what it takes to be a successful quarterback in the NFL. That was four years ago. He has learned from the best, but you can only learn so much from watching game. He has franchise quarterback potential, but that potential will never he reached if he continues to rot on the bench. It would be a wasted investment to watch Rodgers walk at the end of the year without knowing what might have been.

I can only imagine how hard it must be for star athletes to walk away from a sport that has been their life for the past 20+ years. With that said, there comes a time when everyone must step away. Brett had a great run. He is one of the top five greatest quarterbacks to ever play the game, but the time for him to sail off into the sunset has come; time to walk away now when everyone thinks of him as a winner; not a year down the road when everyone may say “great player, but he never knew when to hang 'em up.”

Red Sox First Half Report Card

With the All-Star Break now here, let's take a look at the report card for the Sox starters

Jacoby Ellsbury-B. His 35 steals are impressive, but we've seen better last fall from the soon to be star. Splitting time with Coco Crisp hasn't helped his numbers though.

Dustin Pedroia-A-. Last year's AL rookie of the year hasn't hit a sophomore slump with a .314 average and a recent hitting streak which is over 15 games. He also sports a .989 fielding percentage.

Manny Ramirez-B. He started his contract year off with a bang, but cooled down a bit. He recently has been heating up and leads the team with 18 home runs. What will we expect in the second half of the season with 20 million dollars on the line?

David Ortiz- INC. A May 31st injury has held the DH to the DL.

J.D. Drew-A. He's come through huge with Ortiz on the disabled list. A .413 OBP is worth noting as well. He could very well be the first half MVP of the team. This is making his 13 million dollar a year contract look a little better.

Kevin Youkilis-A-. Nothing new from Youk, with his stellar defense leading the way (.997 fielding %) and 15 long balls to go along with a .314 average. We've seen a second half slowdown from Youkilis in the past, will it happen again?

Julio Lugo-C. He recently headed to the DL which gives prospect Jed Lowire to prove his worth. Lugo's errors were to be expected when he came to Boston, but his offensive numbers (.268 with 22 RBI and 1 Homer) don't cover up for his defensive woes (16 errors in 82 games).

Jason Varitek-C-. It's hard to see 'Tek like this. Somehow an All-Star with .218 average, he's helped the younger pitchers along, but has been a black hole in the hitting department. Hears to 'Tek turning it around in the second half

Mike Lowell-B+. He had an early season injury, but has bounced back well. He's living up to the new contract for now.

Agree? Disagree? Waybackemail@gmail.com

-Mac

A Happy Holiday Awaits

Ken Rosenthal is reporting that the Rockies are willing to listen to offers for all-star outfielder Matt Holiday. Holiday .338/14/51 is having another solid season for a very mediocre Colorado team. This would make Holiday the top offensive prize at this years deadline. Rosenthal says teams who have expressed interest so far include the Red Sox, Dodgers, and Nationals. The most intriguing thing about a potential deal for Holiday is that he is still under contract for the 2009 season making this more than just a few month rental. With that said, the asking price for Holiday is expected to be significant. Likely at least two or three top tier prospects.