Category: BASEBALL

By Dalton Del Don – Senior Writer Hanley Ramirez versus Jose Reyes is the biggest debate entering the 2008 season. Ramirez should hit for a higher average and much more power, but he’s coming off shoulder surgery and bats in a far inferior lineup, especially with Miguel Cabrera gone. Reyes was brutal during September, but…

Here are this week’s Risers & Fallers.

After going a perfect 5-for-5, the voters swung and missed with the Jimmy Rollins MVP pick. While there wasn’t a particularly great choice – or even good choice for that matter – Rollins was clearly a misguided vote. Rollins had a fine season, but he was picked for all of the wrong (and archaic) reasons.…

A little tardy here, but I figured I’ve got to keep my momentum going. And by momentum I mean I got the Boston/Cleveland series right. The Rockies have won 21 of 22 and might have some homefield advantage considering the weather. Still, the big layover can’t help, and the Red Sox come out of the…

Colorado Rockies vs. Arizona Diamondbacks Comments: At this point, this has become pretty much an exercise in futility. At least I got one division series right. Anyway, the NLCS features two NL West teams who could not be more surprising still playing baseball in mid-October. The Rockies have won 17 of their last 18 games,…

By Dalton Del Don – Senior Writer Colorado Rockies vs. Philadelphia Phillies Comments: A squad with a 4.73 team ERA faces one with a 4.32 mark. Regular season offensive production has shown no correlation to postseason success, but that really doesn’t help in predicting this series much, since both teams will be relying on their…

By Robby Wellington – Staff Writer I thought that it would be worth letting the less scrupulous fantasy baseball players out there know that Yahoo’s innings cap only comes into effect at the end of the day, so if you’re still under your league’s cap, even by a couple of innings, feel free to start…

By Dalton Del Don – Senior Writer While the transition into football mode is in full effect, we can’t completely ignore baseball. After all, my team is making a mad dash toward first place… Do you realize Dan Uggla has scored 89 runs with a paltry .322 OBP? I guess that’s what happens when batting…

By Dalton Del Don – Senior Writer At 8:51 pm Tuesday August 7, 2007, Barry Bonds became the all-time home run leader with 756. The most polarizing figure in the history of sports and also the best baseball player to ever put on a uniform, Bonds will in all likelihood be remembered only negatively. If…

By Dalton Del Don – Senior Writer Bobby Jenks has retired 32 straight batters, which is pretty impressive. And to think, the Angels just gave him away. Then again, they did the same with Derrick Turnbow, and it’s not like that pen is hurting for arms. Jake Peavy has been one of baseball’s best pitchers…

By Dalton Del Don – Senior Writer During his first 30 pitches of every outing this season, Jeremy Bonderman has allowed 34 runs over 33 innings, good for a 9.27 ERA. After he’s reached 30 pitches, he’s allowed just 28 runs over 97 innings, good for a 2.59 ERA. Jose Contreras has had one of…

By Dalton Del Don – Senior Writer The details may yet to be finalized, but it looks like two blockbusters have taken place in the sports world Monday. With the baseball trade deadline fast approaching, let’s critique the deals that have been all but completed thus far: Mark Teixeira for Jarrod Saltalamacchia, Elvis Andrus, Neftali…

By Dalton Del Don – Senior Writer The Washington Nationals don’t have a single starting pitcher on pace to win 10 games this season. However, middle reliever Jon Rauch has seven victories, giving his team the best chance to have one hurler reach double-digits. Francisco Cordero is seemingly having a fine season in 2007. However,…

By Dalton Del Don – Senior Writer The following are my composite rankings of all thirty major league baseball teams as they stand right now. Both past performance as well as future outlook were taken into consideration. 1. Boston Red Sox 2. Detroit Tigers 3. Los Angeles Angels 4. New York Yankees 5. Cleveland Indians…

By Dalton Del Don – Senior Writer Can you name the pitcher who’s given up the second most home runs in baseball this season? If you guessed Johan Santana, you’d be correct. He’s served up 22 long balls so far. If you have a fringe base stealer on your bench, be sure to play him…

By Dalton Del Don – Senior Writer The next time Joe Maddon pencils Greg Norton into the lineup over Jonny Gomes will be the last time I consider him a competent manager. Norton is batting .190 with a .601 OPS, while Gomes has a .834 OPS. The worst part of it all is that Norton…

By Robby Wellington – Staff Writer I have always advocated trading for talent and not worrying about your team’s perceived deficiencies when dealing during the regular season.  In fact, pointing out that an owner needs help in steals or is really struggling in home runs will often prompt them to overpay you for the services…

By Dalton Del Don – Senior Writer I’ve come to a realization recently – no one gets caught up in the hype of young baseball players more than I do. Take a look at this list of disappointing youngsters: Carlos Quentin – Maybe the shoulder injury is to blame, but a .210/.299/.350 line is about…