For Scott Boras to be successful as an agent he needs two things to happen. One he needs a market that will overpay for his players, and two he needs clients who are not afraid to wait until the last minute before securing a job for the next baseball season.

This year Boras has been frustrated because his premier clients are at the tail end of their illustrious careers and the demand for their services, whether intentionally downplayed by the owners or it’s the market correction the billionaires are talking about, has reduced the teams seeking Greg Maddux and Pudge Rodriguez to a mere few.

Rodriguez has the Tigers hot on his trail which should tell you the depth of the interest for his services.

Boras is supposed to make a counter offer to Detroit momentarily and if he isn’t careful the woeful Tigers will accept on the spot, no matter what terms Boras suggests.

Supposedly Boras will propose an out clause to Detroit similar to the one Mike Sweeney had in Kansas City. Meaning if Detroit doesn’t make it to the .500 mark within a specified period, Pudge would be released from the contract.

Fans in the AL West must watch this situation carefully because the Mariners suddenly enriched by the retirement of Kaz Sasaki have about ten million to spend and they want Pudge among others to beef up their offense.

Click below and I’ll explain. [Read more →]

This season promises to be a continuation of the exciting baseball we saw in the playoffs last fall. I thought that last year’s playoffs would be the most competitive in years because just about every team, perhaps other than the Twins, had a legitimate shot to get the world series.

This year not only does baseball have the usual suspects listed as favorites in the spring, but some other teams will be strong contenders from day one.

Improving clubs are the Phillies, Cubs, Marlins, Padres, Blue Jays, Orioles, Devil Rays, Royals, Tigers, Angels, and the Diamondbacks.

Throw these in with the Braves, Expos, Astros, Cards, Giants, Dodgers, Yanks, Red Sox, Twins, White Sox, A’s, and Mariners and you have 23 of 30 teams that can give you trouble in any series.

The also rans aren’t hopeless either see Cleveland, the Rangers, Mets, Reds, Pirates, Brewers, and Rockies.

There is much more balance throughout baseball and you will see it as the winner in the AL East won’t get over 95 wins.

Had an opportunity to see some of the the A’s and Giants players this week in Phoenix and Scottsdale.

Click below and I’ll bring you up to date. [Read more →]

Marty; There is an article in today’s Chronicle which describes “an abiding sense among fans, fueled by the press and talk radio, that the Giants have not done enough this winter to improve the team and place themselves in position to contend for a championship.” Sabean disagrees, while acknowledging that his optimism is in large part dependent on the return to productive, good health of Nen and Schmidt.

Click “Read More” for Ed’s expert analysis. Look forward to a reading your excellent commentary again this season Ed…thanks,
Marty [Read more →]

It was a foregone conclusion that Vladimir Guerrero did not want to sign with the Baltimore Orioles. The powerful rightfielder continuously looked the other way as the O’s waved 65 million dollars under his nose.

Art Moreno the new owner of the Angels has nerve and vision, and more importantly money.

When I wrote last month that Moreno owned about one million acres of real estate in Goodyear Arizona and he was moving the Angels spring training facility to a soon to be developed new complex in Goodyear, I realized that Moreno was a big time money man who would not be intimidated by the salaries paid to the brightest stars in the game.

Goodyear will be the home to the spring Angels as well as a new burgeoning community in the desert, all of which will make Moreno one of the wealthiest owners in the game.

Now with Tom Hicks in Texas, the Nintendo folks in Seattle, and Moreno in Anaheim, the A’s will be hard pressed to keep up with the Jonses of AL West baseball.

So, just what does the Guerrero signing do to the West?

Click below for more! [Read more →]

I’ve seen the Pete Rose issue bandied about by some of our finest baseball minds this week including the inimitable Peter Gammons, former commissioner Fay Vincent, Bob Costas, and many well known columnists.

I’ve read and listened to enough on Pete Rose to tell you this.

For years many knowledgeable writers, broadcasters, or former teammates of Pete’s have urged that, if Pete would just tell the world that, yes, he did bet on baseball all would be understood and he would then be eligible to join the greats of the game in the Hall of Fame.

So, Pete told the world that he did bet on baseball.

Guess what happened?

Peter Gammons hit the ceiling when Pete somehow besmirched the reputation of former commissioner Bart Giamatti who passed away shortly after suspending Rose in 1989, during his statements this week. Gammons has even gone as far as linking Giamatti’s death to the stress caused by the Rose case, ignoring the fact that Giamatti, a wonderful man, was very much over weight and smoked like a chimney, those factors medically contributing to his death more than Rose’s gambling habits.

This faux pas has convinced Gammons that Pete is no longer worthy in his eyes to be voted into Cooperstown, even though Gammons was the one who urged Pete to make his admissions to clear the air, Gammons then saying he would vote for Pete once he did that.

When Rose said he bet on baseball did it matter where he placed the bets, whether he bet on the Reds, where he got his information for the bets, or how many times he did bet while manager of the Reds?

No, it didn’t. The fact is that he bet on baseball games while a manager, the gory details of how it happened should come as no shock.

Everyone is freaked that Rose bet from the clubhouse. Would it be any better if he bet from his hotel room? Would he be less cuplable if he placed his bets on the internet?

John Q. Public asked him to admit that he gambled on baseball, he has now done that, why is everyone so upset and ready to lynch Rose for confirming the facts we all knew were coming?

His timing? His television interview? Is that what pushed the deserters over the line?

Click below for more! [Read more →]

Heard a good rumor today about the A’s, tell me what you think.

A’s will trade Scott Hatteberg and Eric Byrnes to the Brewers for Junior Spivey, then sign Travis Lee to play first base. Spivey would play second with Mark Ellis shifting over to short as the A’s break Bobby Crosby in.

Click below and I’ll give you my take.

[Read more →]

So, Pete Rose has finally admitted that he bet on baseball games while he managed the Cincinnati Reds.

What does this mean to the average baseball fan today?

Rose has been out of the game for a long time, most fans probably cannot remember how his teams finished when he managed the Reds or unbelievably how he stood in the batters box.

How does his admission that he bet on games effect his status in 2004? Is his mea culpa enough to lift the cloud over his transgressions?

The question becomes would any owner bring Pete Rose back into the game in any on field or front office capacity if he was reinstated by the commissioner? What would Tom Hicks do? George Steinbrenner? Peter Magowan? The group that owns the Mariners? Steve Schott? Art Moreno in Anaheim? The AOL folks in Atlanta?

Baseball has had its share of publicity stunts over its long history. Babe Ruth coaching for the Dodgers, Satchell Paige pitching for Kansas City in 1964, Dizzy Dean leaving the broadcast booth to pitch a game for the St. Louis Browns at the end of the 1947 season (he lasted four innings, if I’m not mistaken), Minnie Minoso getting into a game when he was 60 years old and of course Bill Veeck’s stunts (midget in the game) when he owned the Browns and White Sox.

Pete Rose is a novelty in today’s world, a short range publicity stunt if hired, and I don’t see any team giving him the reigns to a multi hundred million dollar franchise just to draw some fans, even if reinstated to the game by the commish. It would be risky business at best.

Because he bet on the game, the biggest no no in baseball, he should never step foot inside a dugout again in an active capacity, even if Selig gives him the green light to be part of baseball again.

That’s my opinion.

Should he be enshrined in Cooperstown?

Click below for the answer! [Read more →]