The Red Sox have no one to blame for this mess other than themselves. I wrote two months ago that egos were preventing the deal between Boston and Texas from going down.

The Yankees will simply hammer the bad pitching staffs even more unmercilessly than they have in the past.

A Rod will have motivation to play all out instead of mailing in his at bats when they really mattered for Texas.

I’ve never been a big A Rod fan ever since Roger Clemens brushed him back in the playoffs between Seattle and New York. Ever since then A Rod has been a loser in my mind.

I don’t doubt any of A Rod’s numbers, but it takes more than that to be a difference maker on a championship team, just take one look at Manny Ramirez and all his numbers and tell me how many rings he has?

Click below and let’s look at the Yankees and their prospects with A Rod in the lineup. [Read more →]

It looks like the trade that willbring A-Rod to the yanks
is a done deal. They will gain a second mvp player
along with jason giambi and will lose a 30 homer, 30 base stealer in Soriano. Soriano’s fielding was less than desired. The big question that has to be answered is
pitching. Will the yanks staff be as good as those the past 8 years? We will find out once the season begins. Is there any thing left in Kevin Brown’s tank? Will
Vasquez win 15 to 20 games? The Red Sox will be potent on offense and their pitching should be better.
Baltimore has improved. Red Sox fans across the country are hoping that this will be their year.
All I can tell you is that my late father-in-law,who passed away 2 years ago at the age of 95 was one of the few people who could actually remember the Red Sox winning the world series. He was 11 years
old at the time. Camps open this week and it should be interesting.

Jerry F [Read more →]

My goodness! And we shouldnt’ forget that the Yanks beefed up their bullpen too. Wow! What of their starting pitching though? It’s a huge question mark and they certainly can’t compete with the A’s starters. The A’s staff should be able to contain the Yanks offense. The A’s offense will have to do a better job at contributing to beat the Yanks and in order to compete for a playoff spot though.
As far as what it means for baseball economics, I don’t feel bad for the “small market” owners at all. Pony up some dough and be clever with your marketing, if you want to compete. A new stadium is not the answer. A’s need to sign Chavez before the season starts to show some good faith in their players and fans and to keep the distraction from the team.
-Mike E. [Read more →]

a-rod to the yanks -yuk

jerry f

Not a long comment by Jerry, but one shared by many Red Sox fans. I thought I’d post it anyway to get the ball rolling.
Marty [Read more →]

Bobby Crosby is the heir apparent to Miguel Tejada. Everyone and their fungo bats know that, but the question is how secure is his job? According to Billy Beane at the question and answer session at Fan Fest, Crosby has all the time he needs to adjust to the big leagues. Beane said that Crosby may suffer the occasional slump, but the shortstop will be given the time and at-bats to fight through it. Expectations are certainly high after Tejada’s constant production of 30 home runs and 100 RBI’s every year, but rookie phenoms (position players, anyway) haven’t faired too well in Oakland in recent history.

Click below for an excellent discussion of “what is a prospect” from one of our fans.
Thanks, Marty
[Read more →]

To answer the question posed in the headline, I’m not sure, but the Dodgers seem more confused now that Frank McCourt, the new owner of the Dodgers, has taken the reins of this once proud organization.

What changes are forthcoming? New GM? This one seems to be a done deal, but the way they are going about it seems very odd.

Dan Evans is out, yet he remains on the watch.

Not only are the two rumored candidates Billy Beane and Pat Gillick the most qualified out there, but it seems that these two are the most unlikely to replace Evans who is unbelivably part of the process selecting his own successor.

The A’s claim they won’t give Beane permission to interview for the job. OK, not withstanding all the specualtion that the A’s will cave in and give Beane the go ahead, it looks like Beane is here in Oakland, for the 2004 season.

Pat Gillick? He’s not a GM anywhere right now, in fact he is a consultant to the new Mariner GM Bill Bavasi (his successor in Seattle), so there is nothing holding the Dodgers from naming this veteran knowledgeable baseball man right now.

But they haven’t, what’s the delay in naming Gillick?

Click below for more! [Read more →]

It didn’t take long for Ken Macha to declare his opening day lineup for 2004 this week during various media briefings in the Bay Area.

Macha intends to lead off with Mark Kotsay, the second position is in Bobby Kielty’s hands, Eric Chavez will hit third, and then it gets interesting.

Jermaine Dye is slated to hit cleanup. By the way Macha cleared up his reasoning once again for pinch hitting for Dye, the teams highest salaried player, in the most critical at bat of the playoffs in game five against Derek Lowe and the BoSox.

Click below and we’ll put that matter to rest. [Read more →]

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 →]