MLB Game Notes: A Few Things Worth Mentioning

BY MELISSA ZIELINSKI

A couple weeks ago I predicted that the Red Sox would take the AL East division and the whole American League, but a lot has changed since then…

Tampa Bay who was a handful of games out when I wrote my last blog has come back to be just three behind the Sox and the Yanks are sitting pretty in first place (four and a half games ahead). Also New York seemingly doesn’t have much to worry about this week matching up against the nothing-to-lose Jays, while the Sox have an all important duel between a team they must beat in Tampa.

According to ESPN, Boston’s “panic meter” is only 3-4, but this may change if their pitching doesn’t improve and with the injured Youkilis on the bench.

There are some other battles that are worth taking a look at too…

Texas Rangers vs. LA Angels vs. Boston Red Sox vs. Tampa Bay Rays

Even though I said I was moving on I had to throw the Sox and Rays into the mix on this next discussion because the Angels, who are three and a half games behind the Rangers for first are also only one game behind the Rays and four games behind the Sox for the Wild Card spot. 

LA has a good chance to make up some ground in this next series as they throw out the first pitch tonight in a weekend series against the Orioles (and since I’m working for the Washington Capitals I should mention Alex Ovechkin is throwing out the first pitch tonight). The Angels are 5-1 this season against the O’s and are on a two-game winning streak, while also winning seven of their last ten.

Still, the Rangers will be facing a three-game set against the Mariners and have went 6-1 against Seattle this season. Their starter CJ Wilson has also won six of his last seven on the mound.

The Angels should be able to sweep the series and help give them self a chance at the wildcard (given that Texas stays hot and sweeps their series against Seattle). Offensively the team has connected and it should make for an exciting AL West race in the final days of the regular season.

Over in the NL, it’s pretty clear that the Phillies will walk away with the best record in the league, leaving Atlanta, St. Louis and San Fran to duke it out for the wild card spot. The best contender out of these three looks to be Atlanta who’s heading into a weekend series against the New York Mets. After this weekend they will have some time to make up ground as they face the Marlins once more (where they took two of three during the week) and Washington before seeing Philadelphia again for the last three games of the regular season.

Atlanta should be able to inch into the postseason, but I have one concern. The Nats want to head into their offseason with some momentum. After getting Strasburg back on the mound, completing a four-game sweep of the Mets (which hasn’t been done since relocating from Montreal) and being on a five-game win streak this young team has something to prove and could give the Braves a hard time.

Both the Cardinals and Giants are at least seven games behind the first-place contender in their division, which will make them extra hungry for a “W.”

Still, with Matt Holliday possibly missing some time with finger inflammation and the inconsistency seen in the Giants, neither will have enough to muster up against Atlanta. In my opinion, the Braves have the hardest schedule nearing the end of September, but should be the WC victor.

It may have seemed like things weren’t going to be interesting, with the Sox on top as usual and the Yankees right behind them, but the dark horse has stopped that from being the case. Of course now the certain isn’t so certain and as always when it comes down to it no baseball, but September baseball matters now.

The Not So Surprising American League East: A Year in Retrospect

The Best Month for Sports

It’s the time of year that any sport enthusiast can appreciate, football is almost ready to kick-off, hockey will drop the puck very soon and baseball is in full-swing. Now that I’ve got that very cliché sentence out of the way it’s time to talk baseball.

First on my list of to-do’s is the rivalry that never gets old, Yankees nation vs. Red Sox nation. Being a fan of neither, I think I have a pretty non-bias approach to the argument of who’ll take the top spot in the AL East and most likely the whole conference.

Now let’s really play ball.

For a Month that Means Consistency for Some…

In April I previewed the American League East and my predictions have proven true as we head into the final month of the regular season. Boston is atop the standings in the AL and Adrian Gonzalez has done the team good, leading the team with a .345 batting average.

There’s even talks about  Gonzalez earning MVP status by the end of the season and as much as I’m not a “fan” of the Red Sox, you can‘t deny it when you see a good baseball player. In his last ten games alone he’s averaged more than .340 and is already nearing his projected hitting totals for the year. Gonzalez also leads the AL in bating average (.345), is second in RBI’s (103) and fourth and fifth in slugging percentage (.559) and runs (90), respectively.

Don’t forget that Boston is also a huge threat when Jacoby Ellsbury and Carl Crawford are both healthy and ready to go. Ellsbury, who’s finally at that defining stage of his career has been outstanding defensively and has also been of great importance when up to bat. He leads the team in runs with 95 and is also second in the league overall. He and CC’s wheels and a .251 batting average to boot leave the Sox in good shape for the playoffs.

Also, with four of their big names hitting above .300 Boston has the confidence it needs to guide itself through the first few rounds of the playoffs in what I believe should be effortless fashion. For a team that was anything but consistent in the first month and a half of baseball, since they’ve been just that.

…September Means Higher Expectations for Others

As I try to completely erase the memory of New York setting a record against my beloved A‘s (I won‘t say what was done, but baseball fans know), the Yankees are right behind the Sox and I predict will take the wildcard spot in October, but for now that question is still up in the air being only two games back. What the Yankees don’t have that the Sox do is a solid core that can develop output all at the same time.
 
Alex Rodriguez and Derek Jeter, two of the biggest threats on the roster have been in-and-out with different injuries and while Eric Chavez and Ramiro Pena have served as back-ups, the amount of playing time they receive and other variables (age, experience) are not enough to make the team able to keep up with the competition that surrounds them.

Robi Cano has served as the rock of this team for the past two seasons and has a solid .303 average (team leader) and is second on the team in RBI’s (95) just behind Curtis Granderson who has 107. If A-Rod and Jeter can get healthy and stay solid for the rest of the regular season along with Granderson and Cano then watch out. These top four players will be eyeing to edge the Red Sox’s top four in what makes for some great end of the season baseball (they will be playing each other this week and the second to last series in September hint hint).

Other keys to the Yankees success could be Brett Gardner and Nick Swisher. Gardner has wheels and makes a statement in the outfield and while Swisher has been a bit of a wash this year, a breakout September could help him regain his confidence and spirit that makes him so well liked by teammates and fans alike.

Last Call

With out a doubt these two teams will be the most talked about teams this month given their rich history, but at the same time who wouldn’t be excited? Do we remember the AL all star roster? Many complained that it consisted of too many players from these two teams (including me…hey look at my last blog), but now that they are in a truly competitive atmosphere watching these two teams won’t be all that bad to say the least.

Next up I will look at the rest of the AL and what my predictions for the playoffs will be and then I’ll share what I think about the National League.

The All-Star Critique

Player Picking or True All-Star?

By Missy Zielinski

It’s been a long week in the MLB, some historic (Jeter’s 3000th) and some rather tragic (in Texas), but with all the buzz around baseball this week, I thought it only timely and appropriate to continue to hype up the yearly controversy surrounding the All Star game that always happens at this time in July by adding my two sense about the display of what’s supposed to be today’s “best.”

If you noticed the quotations hugging the word best it was for good reason. Are the players set to match-up in tonight’s game really the best the MLB has to offer? And, does the MLB even care?

A Chance to Make Some Money

In my opinion, the MLB is one big marketing scheme. While I love the fact that baseball is attempting to advertise and promote to get back into terms of America’s pass time, they’ve forgotten one very crucial thing…the All Star game is there to honor the best. Call me a real fan, but I love to watch a game that can truly celebrate the number of players who actually have talent, but will not see it go past the regular season…think Andrew McCutchen? I mean the Pirates are above .500, but playoffs? That’s a stretch.

What the MLB does is promote a game around the most popular players in the league for a very meaningless match up. This is all for the sake of grabbing a huge national fan base. Yet, it’s not even working- according to ESPN viewership is down and the fact that players are pulling out due to injury and vacation doesn’t help.

Let’s get to the numbers though….

American League Mistakes

Starting with Derek Jeter- yes, I’m going to point him out because come on now, he is Mr. 3,000th- and wouldn’t it seem that he’d be the perfect person to be the starting shortstop for the American League? Sure it all seems correct in theory, but it’s not.

Just because someone will forever be known as an all star over their career doesn’t necessarily make them a 2011 All Star. Jeter’s season has had a slow start and was plagued with a calf injury thus far. His average is also only .270 and he’s ranked 5th among the AL in his position. Yet, what about Jhonny Peralta (DET) who ranks second in the AL and has a .312 average. That looks like a better pick to me.

Asdrubal Cabrera from Cleveland was listed as the reserve (sixth-best SS in the AL), but Peralta was only added after Jeter withdrew from the game. If it were up to me I would have had Peralta as the starter, saving room for J.J. Hardy (BAL) and Erick Aybar (LAA) as my reserves. They rank first and third among there position, respectively, and both have averages higher than Jeter. Still neither is in the game.

Well it is also well known that I am certainly not a fans of the Bronx Bombers, I don’t want to see them pushed out entirely. Alex Rodriguez definitely deserves his spot at third. He’s ranked 1st at his position and is always consistent at the plate. Also, what about C.C.? Guess you Yankee’s fans got it wrong there. He is currently the winningest pitcher in the AL, but wasn’t even listed as a reserve…only added again due to other players who dropped out. 

Sabathia had this to say about the situation…it shouldn’t be about how many come from a team, but how good each player really is....if this were the case, we’d see more C.C.’s and less Jeter’s.

National League Was Worse

There was even more disappointment from the National League. When it came to Joey Votto (CIN), who ranks second at his position (1B) and is ranked fourth among the whole MLB in hitting. Yet his spot went to Prince Fielder, who not only had a poor showing at the Home Run Derby, but also ranks 13th at his position and 17th in the NL among hitters.

Another huge snub was Andrew McCutchen. If you aren’t mesmerized when you look at this 24-year-old, then you haven’t seen a ball player like him. This CF doesn’t only have wheels, he can use them in the field and at the plate. While his average is just hovering below .300, he also owns the 10th spot in rankings for CF. Luckily, someone saw that he was left absent from the roster and added him to the reserve list after others opted out.

My last player argument (yet it could go on) is Shane Victorino, who ranks second in his position and has an average of .303. While all the outfielders have averages above .300 it makes it a little harder to get in all the talent that’s loaded in this position for the NL, but still they shouldn’t be forgotten.

The Problems Will Continue…

So, as the MLB continues to “market” its league, we’ll continue to see the choices being made and sports journalists will continue the same arguments year after year, but if this is what we do to get players noticed than so be it.

Coaches of their respective league's team in the All Star game (who are in charge of the reserve roster) will continue to make the hard choices they must when it comes to players who will be recognized and players who won’t. In a league where talent is so often left unnoticed, could we at least let those players who often don’t see a playoff berth for seasons to come, get recognized just a little…midway through the season?

Enough With the Negatives Already

Why the Losers and Under Achievers Catch the Media's Interest


by Missy Zielinski

After talking with some of my friends about recent championship games something very similar came up in each conversation...why are we-the fans, media and even sports analysts constantly focusing on a team's miscues or how a player under performed from the losing side rather than what went right on the winning side? It's not only frustrating from a fans perspective, but as a sports journalist who's job is to find the real story I have to beg the question, are we focusing on the right story?

The Unexpected Heroes 

My most recent example of this theory can be drawn on from the NBA Finals in which according to the media, the under dog crept in and stole the trophy in what was an incredible finish to their season. They were far from perfect, but had the perfect ending.

Yet, Were they really the "under dogs" or were they just the better team?

A constant cloud seemed to loom over the very idea that Dallas had made it as far as they had in each and every series, but in the end they proved to be the better team. This culminated in Game 5 and Game 6 when the Mavericks relied heavily on their team's depth. When a team has only one "big name" in Dirk compared with three in the Heat (need I repeat?), a team must rely heavily on their bench and that Dallas did, something Nowitzki must have preached after the first four games against Miami.

By the Numbers

In the final two games of the series his supporting cast combined for an average of 75 points and a field-goal percentage of 52.1. This was up from 54.5 and 35.7, respectively. Also, Jason Terry entered Game 5 shooting less than 40 percent from 15 or more feet in the finals, but managed to shoot more baskets from 15+ in that game than in the previous four combined. As for the rest of the bench, they scored 43 points in Game 6 as the Mavs were also 36-9 when the bench scored 40 or more points.

On the other hand, as far as the "Big Three's" concerned, LeBron James averaged 26.7 points per game during the regular season, but only 17.8 during the 2011 NBA Finals. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, the discrepancy between regular season scoring average and finals scoring average is the largest in NBA history. Also during the finals LeBron James and Dwanye Wade combined for 62 points in the fourth quarter, while Nowitzki was more than capable of accomplishing the feat alone. Lastly, when we talk about Bosh everyone thought when he was traded to Miami that he'd be on the same caliber as LeBron and Wade, but during the regular season he was very up and down. During the whole playoff run I feel the only memorable performance was in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals when he had a 30-point, nine rebound night, but even that was overshadowed by Miami's loss.

So does it really matter if your team has one headliner, three headliners or a bunch of no-names on their roster that are so common that they are referred to as table talk at your next family's dinner? In my opinion no, but the media seemed to eat up the Big Three this season.

What Another Coach Had to Say

Now this may seem a little off topic, but the message is there...I've also just taken on a position with the Washingtion Capitals this summer and as I was scrummaging through some articles I found one about the Caps coach Bruce Boudreau that really caught my attention. For his team the history has been very up and down. Washington started at the bottom of the bucket and I mean the bottom, having the worst season on record during their first season in franchise history in the NHL (no need to dish out the laughable record), but then steadily progressing year after year and even making it to the Stanley Cup Finals in the 1997-98 season. Still with all the talent they have (Ovy, Backstrom, Green, etc.) they have yet to make it past the second round in the playoffs.

Boudreau said that everyone needs patience and that the media's expectations are too high of a team who's core has not had one person to reach the age of 26 yet. Hockey is all about development there are far less super stars that come at the age of 18 and 19 like the NBA because in hockey it's all about progression.

He drew this into the current series in the Stanley Cup Finals where everyone was expecting Vancouver to win even though their netminder Robert Luongo had a few faulty performances. A few? He let the Bruins score on seven of 21 shots in the final two games of the series...I'm not going to even find out the percentages on that one, but the fact still remains and Boudreau called it- maybe instead of focusing on what went wrong they should be focusing on what went right.

The Bruins' goaltender Tim Thomas, who more than deserved the MVP trophy, had a stellar performance during the finals and the rest of the team didn't do too bad themselves. But as Luongo dropped goal after goal during his games in Boston, the media, the fans and everyone I could think of had the same thing on their minds...it was just a bad performance by Luongo and he'd bounce back at home. Still Boudreau stood strong, saying no maybe Boston is just that good.

This seems like another case of the negatives.

So Stop Already

So the next time you're watching a championship, a playoff series or even a meaningless game (when in my opinion no game is meaningless) remember in some cases the unexpected hero may not always be the under dog. While there are obvious examples of such, sometimes it's just the better team winning and it is hard for anyone and everyone to say it.

It seems that the media will always look toward Hollywood when making their headlines and as I told my friend before, they're trying to attract the most people possible and the way to do it is by making the headline something everybody knows. Instead why don't we teach those out there something they don't know...like in the Mavericks case, that they were the better team.

MLB American League East Preview: Stacked Sox Ahead of the Bunch

The snow is starting to melt and as we wait for the "official" start to spring, the first talk of Albert Pujols and his failed contract extension agreement means..."play ball."

A lot of teams have already got their pitchers, catchers and position players stretched and warmed up, so I'm ready to move on to the postseason.

Wait....playoffs? Seriously though, it's obvious that there are already some standout teams that will be frontrunners in the playoff hunt come next October.

So, let's start with the American League East:

The Boston Red Sox and The New York Yankees again will be the teams to beat in the American League East. I promise you, I am not even giving a bias account, since the team I like is on the opposite coast of these two. (I won't reveal who they are until I break down their division at a later time...) But anyways, these two teams are again stacked.

I have to pick the Bo-Sox as the ultimate king of this division from the huge pick-ups they've made over the off-season. While David Ortiz will be celebrating his 36th birthday come November, he will ultimately be asked the question time and time again, "will this be your last season in a Red Sox uniform?" I can say this with confidence because after the team was thinking about exercising a $12.5 million option on his contract, his so-so numbers last season eventually ended the discussion with the team flexing their muscles in a different direction....no extension at all.

So as the Big Papi era is coming to a close, the Red Sox still reign supreme.

Boston played smart by thinking about who could possibly replace their go-to hitter. Ortiz ended the season with .270 batting average, 32 homers, and 109 RBIs, so he will still be a key factor this year and a nice complinent to their newly aquired Adrian Gonzalez from the San Diego Padres. While he's recovering from shoulder surgery in the off-season, it may just mean a slow start to a first baseman who ended the season with a batting average just below .300 and nearly the same numbers as Papi in homers and RBIs. He has also reported he's ahead of schedule in his recovery...even better news for the Sox.

Still with a mediocre Ortiz and a recovering Gonzalez a few other men should be able to contribute for the Sox. Including righties Dustin Pedrioa and Kevin Youkillis who's last season averages are nearly .300 as well. This bunch will compliment eachother nicely.

But, there's still more to come....

The pick-up of Carl Crawford from the Rays was excellent. He posted career bests last season in homers, runs and RBIs. He was also a 2010 American League Gold Glove winner and American League Silver Slugger recipient.

The best offseason pick-ups goes to the Boston Red Sox and that's why they will be the team to beat come April 2011.

The "pinstripes" aren't far behind though. Not only because of their salary (always a factor), but because they enter the game with a lot of familiar faces that have become a staple in New York. Of course, Jeter and A-Rod will be there, but don't forget Robinson Cano, who was the standout and most improved player in the 2009-2010 season. He put up some of the most incredible numbers of his career. As a player who I believe was always overlooked, he won't be forgotten this year. The second baseman won the 2010 American League Gold Glove at second base and the American Silver slugger award and was one of the most reliable players in the game. His season average...a commanding .319 with 29 homers and 109 RBIs. Now that's what I call impressive.

And while Curtis Granderson and Nick Swisher are staples in the outfield, watch out for left fielder, Brett Gardner. He's not only passionate about the game, but his quick steps around the bases got him 47 stolen bases last season, 26 infield hits and 7 bunts. He didn't finish the season too well last year, but there's room for improvement, especially with the mentors he's surrounded by.

I do wonder how the pitching rotation will go this year though, as they post over 20 men on their pitching roster as of now. Rafael Soriano was added to the roster and C.C. Sabathia and Phil Hughes will be there, but how about Joba Chamberlain and A.J. Burnett...will they make the cut?

As for the Tampa Bay Rays, will they again be able to cope with a owner who wanted to downsize their current payroll? We knew Carlos Pena and Carl Crawford wouldn't return, but they also said goodbye to Matt Garza and Jason Bartlett. Will Johnny Damon and Manny Ramirez get it done?

I have little to say about the Baltimore Orioles and the Toronto Blue Jays except who will end up on the bottom? The poor Jays lost their staple and beloved pitcher Roy Halladay to the Phillies. That and the fact that the O's did aquire a few new players, veterans Vladamir Guererro and Derrek Lee. I seem to think the Toronto will have the worst time in this division.

So here is how I call the division come October...

1. Boston Red Sox
2. New York Yankees
3. Tampa Bay Rays
4. Baltimore Orioles
5. Toronto Blue Jays

I have to agree with the Canadians on this one.

After recently getting in touch with one of my biggest all-time passions...hockey, I couldn't help but ask the question, why don't more people have as big a love as I do for the sport?


It could have been my recent trip to a skating rink (I haven't been since before my knee surgery)...


Or even watching the outdoor three-on-three hockey tournament along the Erie Canal,


but it could have actually been just because I love the sport so much and the fact that there's so much to love about it.


First off, you get in touch with your roots again....going out into nature and skating on that frozen pond behind your house or in the park. Or even going to an indoor skating rink. You see people at all skill levels, toddlers scrambling past you, even adults who don't seem to get the whole idea of the blades gliding along ice. With the few things you can actually do in the cold, this is one of them and quite possibly the best.


Second...you have the American Hockey League (AHL) where you get to see the young guys skating hard and progressing with hopes of making it to the big leagues. This is a true show to watch since they're not getting paid much and it's a brutal schedule, going town after town in a Coach bus...not quite the amenities you think would be given to a professional team....


and don't forget, the AHL is small town USA, with teams coming from Rochester, Syracuse, Hershey, and all over the rest of the country...you don't only get "family fun time," or time with your buddies, but gimmicky songs and video clips pumping you up when your team is on the brink of a win, or a loss.


Last, but not least comes....the National Hockey League.


It's sad to say most restaurants don't even buy the NHL Ticket on Demand, but splurge on the NFL and NBA almost always.


The NHL is full of MEN, who hit, fight and somehow still manage to skate along the ice, while juggling a puck with a stick.


TV doesn't do hockey any justice, I know this because any time I eagerly sit watching the tube, everyone around me seems to disperse. On that I can agree, it takes a really TRUE fan to sit and watch a game on TV sometimes, but it's not hard to be a true fan...


It seems hockey players are among a different class of gentlemen. They aren't often on TV-unless it's ESPN (or married to Carrie Underwood). And when it comes to their all-star competitions they are not afraid of injuries and always play hard and who doesn't love a player who can shoot a puck over 105 miles an hour? That's pure talent.


You can even appreciate it more after watching the NHL All-Star Game, where all rules were broken this year...Nicklas Lindstrom of the Detroit Redwings and Marc Staal of the New York Rangers took it to the playground and became honorary team captains, picking their own teams.


So, next time you see a hockey game on...take a second to truly appreciate it, maybe even WATCH it. Because I guranntee, you'll remember one of the things I've just wrote and develop a tiny bit of appreciation for the stick and the puck.