MLB Preview: AL Central

Perennial contender, the Minnesota Twins have made the most noise this off-season with the opening of Target Field (a design and idea ripped off from one of my grad school projects!!) I digress, the Twins got down to business, signing hometown hero Joe Mauer to a long-term deal that essentially guarantees Mauer hitting 3rd and playing C for the next 9 years. The spending spree continued as the "low budget" Twins locked in speedy, Denard Span to a multi-year deal.

Minnesota - The Twins have done a good job of maintaining and cultivating talent over the years. The trend continues with the most recent influx of hitters and more importantly, pitchers. There are three main question marks surrounding last year's Central Champs.

1. Justin Morneau - will he stay healthy and return to form out of the 4 hole? Cuddyer and Kubel put up great power numbers last year but if the Twins plan on competing, a healthy Morneau is a necessity.
2. Can Jon Rauch be 1/2 the closer Joe Nathan was? With Nathan out for this year, and likely part of next, Jon Rauch has been handed the reins as closer. Time will tell how effective he'll be and how long he'll stay in that role.
3. Francisco Liriano - ready to re-assume his slot in the starting rotation, Liriano must return to the Liriano that lit up the league in his rookie season. He has the stuff to pitch at this level. His health is a minor concern but his control is the bigger question.

Detroit - Losing Granderson hurt but gaining Johnny Damon is never a bad thing. A recent SI article pointed out that Damon can hit a number of milestones (3000 hits, 500 doubles, 100 triples, 200 homers, 1000 RBIs, 1500 runs) if he hangs around a few more years. Worth noting, Damon is not hanging around just yet. His arm was never good but he brings WAY more to the table and that more than makes up for it. This team is loaded with hitters, a lineup that boasts Magglio Ordonez (who will be allowed to play this year because there are no funky contractual rules mandating he does not get too many ABs), Miguel Cabrera, Carlos Guillen, Johnny Damon, and Brandon Inge will surely put up a good amount of runs. Young stars like Scott Sizemore and Austin Jackson (acquired for Granderson) are being given the chance to show their stuff for Jim Leyland's club. Highlighting the hitting is not meant to slight the starting rotation that is headlined by Justin Verlander and his clone, Rick Porcello. Give that duo 2-3 years and the Tigers will be the most talked about staff in baseball. Did I mention the rest of the starters are Max Scherzer, Jeremy Bonderman, and Dontrelle Willis (who by all accounts has re-discovered his stuff)?

Chicago - The White Sox are here to fill up the middle of the division, though let's not forget the late season addition of Jake Peavy and Alex Rios. The off-season saw the team bring in Juan Pierre (why not resign Scott Podsednik is beyond me since they are the same player), Mark Teahan (a deal that shifts Gordon Beckham from 3B to 2B), and Andruw Jones (to play the part of the overweight, washed up, DH). Which Carlos Quentin will show up in 2010? Which Bobby Jenks can we expect - he is effective and closes a bunch of games, but pitches to a very high ERA and gives up his fair share of hits, runs, and base runners.

Cleveland - highlighted earlier and I do not expect much here.

Kansas City - great stadium, great BBQ at Jack's Stack, not much to write home about with this team.

1. Detroit - 98 wins
2. Minnesota - 95 wins
3. Chicago - 87 wins
4. Cleveland
5. KC

The Old 96er

Rumors have been swirling regarding the NCAA expanding the current format for the men's basketball tournament from 64 to 96 teams. It's seeming more and more evident that this is going to happen and I have a couple of questions.

1. Why?

2. What about the NIT?

The answer to why is easy, it means more money. But really, at what cost? There are a handful of bubble schools each year that do not make the big dance but are they really missed? Sure, it's heartbreak for the school's that do not make the cut but is the answer to expand by 32 more teams? Would that not mean that nearly every D1 school in the country makes it? Why? As a graduate of a very small, private school that has made the NCAAs once in the last twenty years, they are surely not worthy of that call. They barely make it out of the NEC and I do not get the point of this school, or similar schools, making it to the tourney. Does it not cheapen the value of a tournament berth? 

As for the NIT, the answer is that it becomes instantly irrelevant. The tournament went from being a big deal to being a quasi-big deal for the bubble teams, to now being virtually eliminated from the face of college basketball.

I'm a purist in the sense that I think the current format works fine and has for years. Heck, even the play-in game adds some excitement for two schools that even some of the bigger college basketball fans have never dreamed of, but enough is enough. 65 teams more than saturates the field and we're ultimately left watching a good number of inferior teams that ultimately get weeded out early and often (read this year's overrated Big East crop.)

Lastly, from an academic perspective, isn't the goal of the student-athlete to pursue the student part as well as the athletic part? For a number of teams, this tourney currently drags on longer than it needs to and that ultimately pulls the student out of the ever-important classroom. Sure, if this question is raised we'll be spoon fed a line of BS about study hall, tutoring, etc. whilst on the road but why buy that? At the end of the day, the NBA forced a mandatory one year sentence in the NCAA for no apparent reason other than some pressure. But to then turnaround and pull that student out of class for a handful of weeks at a clip (not taking into account the already light schedule and cushy atmosphere for a college athlete at a large program) diminishes any reason for said player to be in college in the first place.

So why not just open the tournament to every D1 school that has a team right now? And in a decade or so, decide that the D2 schools should get a crack at it too because they're out there and those guys feel left out. The whole thing's a joke to begin with and only garners the interest level it is at because of the rampant gambling in tournament pools. Remove the gambling and the interest wanes to the level of watching Wendy Williams without the assistance of acid. How you doin'?

Respect!? Who are we kidding?

It seems as if during every hockey season there is some hot-button issue that seems to find its way into the late-season general managers’ meeting. Whether it be fighting, mandatory visors or movement/contraction, a new topic always seems to crop up in the springtime to get everyone’s juices flowing and to prompt an instant or soon-to-be implemented rule change.

This year’s issue du jour happens to be hits to the head. Recently, the league implemented and instant ban on any blindside hit where the receiver is in a defenseless position or is unable to see and/or brace himself for the oncoming hit. Vicious hits to the head have been around hockey almost as long as toothless smiles, but this is one of the game’s more violent aspects that has, fittingly, come to an end. These open ice car accidents are often times exciting and dangerous, but the collateral damage associated with the aftermath is going to result in someone’s on ice death. That’s a fact. It’s a sad reality that unless something was done, we were, pardon the pun, on a collision course with on-ice fatality.

The early-season hit to Florida’s David Booth by Flyer Captain Mike Richards posed an interesting question. How can this be suspendable or even classified as “wrong” if it’s legal and allowed by the NHL rule book? For all intents and purposes, Mike Richards delivered the dirtiest hit in the last five years while somehow staying within the rule book. There was no penalty, no suspension, no nothing. Just a stretcher, a brawl and an uneasy feeling of “something’s not right here” rippling through the collective stomach of the hockey world. If that hit opened the discussion and started the inevitable move towards the ban, than Matt Cooke’s 456th head shot offense in one season sealed the deal. Cooke is a repeat offender who nearly murdered Marc Savard a few weeks ago with a devastating cheapie a good two seconds after Savard ceased being the puck-carrier. It was an almost exact replica of a hit he layed on Ranger Artem Anisimov earlier in the season.

A lot of people in the hockey world are worried about the physical essence of the game being eroded due to rule changes such as this. Amazingly, these people feel that banning things such as head shots is part of a gradual movement towards total hockey non-violence. Yeah, sure it is. It’s a ridiculous argument. I am all for the new regulation banning these hits because these regulations could not only be saving careers, but lives as well. In all seriousness, who knows if Marc Savard or David Booth (who was recently concussed AGAIN) will ever be the same again? I am not even talking about being the same player. I am talking about being the same person. We all remember what happened to Eric Lindros as his career became a series of “what if’s?” because of concussions. He still says that the effects of multiple concussions rear their ugly head in everyday life to this very day.

The one thing I do have a problem with, however, is the way current and retired players are harkening back to the good ol’ days. You know, when there was a mutual respect between teams and players. We keep hearing about how players back in the day respected each other. How they played hard and fierce, but ultimately respected their opponent at the end of the day. We are being told that the old timers didn’t have any intent to injure their opposition or play with the recklessness that results in mind-numbing violence. My response to this is, ummmm what? Bill Masterson was crushed by a double body check from two Oakland Seals and fell head first onto the ice. He died two days later. A lot of respect was present in the blood spouting from his mouth and nose when he hit the ice on that night. How about the sword-I’m sorry, stick fighting incident between Ted Green and Wayne Maki? Was Maki respecting Green when he connected on the final blow to the head, fracturing Green’s skull and giving him brain damage? Were the Broad Street Bullies respecting their opponents when they committed four to five actual felonies per night on the ice in Philadelphia? Was Ulf Samuelsson respecting Cam Neely when he would consistently and predictably go after Neely’s knees and hips with vicious hip checks hoping to end his career early (in which he was successful)? Were Mike Milbury and the Boston Bruins respecting the New York Rangers by beating them to a pulp, and when bored with just beating up the Rangers, climbing into the stands at Madison Square Garden to give some to the fans as well? Some beaten with their own shoes! Want some more recent stuff? You got it. Marty McSorely and everyone’s favorite, Todd Bertuzzi. C’mon, folks.

Hockey has always been violent and jaw-dropping with instances of unspeakable mayhem. This, “It was the best of times” BS is almost laughable. The bottom line is hockey has always had a respect problem among opponents, but today the players have gone from bogged-down coasters, to missiles on skates. Today the athletes are bigger, stronger, and infinitely faster than before and they treat their bodies and everything they put in them like the investments they are. Add that these specimens are playing in an era without any clutching, grabbing, hooking or holding and the result is that the game and the athletes have absolutely no speed bumps. The game is now faster than ever due to the athletes and the rule changes. That’s why you are seeing these hits with more frequency. From a pure bloodlust and dirtiness standpoint, I think the players today are calmer than that of any other era. There aren’t anymore brawls, stick swinging incidents or occurrences looking like clips from “Slap-Shot” happening on NHL rinks anymore.

The bottom line is that respect has nothing to do with any of this. Hockey is the ultimate blood sport and you aren’t going to win the Cup by respecting thy fellow man or caring about his safety. Like it or not, that’s the way it is and it will never change. That’s why putting the necessary regulation in place to stop or deter open-ice headshots is a good and necessary step. And anyone who thinks players from the previous eras operated under a different level of respect and understanding must be a concussed, memory-sapped victim of an open-ice headshot themselves.

Photo courtesy of the Associated Press

Eating Out: Utah

Before visions of me and some hot Mormons go flashing through your mind, consider this: I went to Salt Lake City for a work conference and while there I sought out some of the finest dining they had to offer. No Morton’s or Smith & Wolly’s for me. Why go to a great steakhouse that I can hit up in my own backyard? I wanted unique. I wanted the pulse of Utah to tantalize my tastebuds.

My first stop was Ruth’s Diner. This is Utah. Nestled in Emigration Canyon and built in an old trolley car, Ruth’s is serving up some of the finest food at prices your wallet will especially enjoy. The best advice I can give is go for breakfast! Nothing compares to the Mile High Biscuits and it’s a taste that you will savor throughout your stay – unless you run into those aforementioned Mormons...

Next on the menu was Naked Fish. When I did my research, part of which involved looking out my hotel window, the Naked Fish was staring at me, inviting me in to hang out and enjoy. The Naked Fish is new to the booming sushi scene in Salt Lake and it’s a great new edition. The fish was fresh, the presentation was on point, and the value was amazing. I would highly recommend the tempura rolls and if they have a special bearing my name, go for it! It’s got a nice mix of heat and provides excellent flavor.

Lastly, and certainly not least was Moochie’s Meatballs. Already heralded by Guy Fieri (Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives for the cave dwellers) as a must visit, this place is legit. My meal began with a macaroni salad and meatball and simply put, the macaroni salad does enough to shine on its own. Rich, creamy, multiple ronis to add a nice texture as well. Who’d think a meatball should go on top? I am now a believer and you will be too. From there, I moved on to the cheesesteaks and I will say this now – if they stayed in Philly, this would be the SPOT, hands down. There’s no comparison anywhere and I have had all the best that Philly has to offer. This revelation served to simultaneously anger me about the posers in New York City that claim to have the best cheesesteaks outside of Philly…those places wouldn’t even last a few weeks in the City of Brotherly Love.

Around the League in 30 Days: The AL East Preview Edition

In lieu of a team by team comparison for the remained of clubs that went untouched, here's an overall examination with predictions for divisions, awards, etc.

New York - The champs is here! The hated Yankees, coming off a 2009 season that saw the opening of the new Yankee Stadium (btw, when do we officially stop calling it the "New Yankee Stadium?") and their 27th championship have shuffled the deck a bit (Damon and Matsui are gone while Granderson, Javy Vazquez, Chan-Ho Park and Nick Johnson are in) The net result is that the Yankees are a better team. Vazquez goes from being a 1-2 starter in Atlanta to the 4th starter in NY behind the potent trio of Sabathia, Burnett, and Pettitte. That deal also allowed the Yanks to send Joba to the bullpen (where he is best suited for reasons cited here).

Boston - The Sox did not lay dormant this season, complimenting their explosive lineup with the additions of Mike Cameron (yes, he is still playing and still hitting 250 with 25HR and 120K's), Adrian Beltre, and John Lackey - who brings competitive fire and 200+ innings to a solid rotation. Slot Lackey in behind Beckett and Lester and his value is enhanced even further.

Blue Jays - Mediocrity at its finest. The Jays border on being competitive enough to make some noise but they lack the overall lineup depth and pitching needed to win in any division, let alone a division that has Boston, NY, Tampa and a much improved Orioles team. Losing Roy Halladay is going to surely hurt in the short term and the long term impact is TBD even though they've received a glut of young stars.

Baltimore - already previewed individually, this is the year the O's creep out of the basement. The lineup is too good to ignore and the pitching is coming into form with the additions of Millwood to lead the rotation and Mike Gonzalez to put the stamp on games in the 9th.

Tampa Bay - will the Rays of 2008 or 2009 show up in 2010? The pitching staff is stacked with quality starters. JP Howell's injury time frame will dictate the effectiveness of their bullpen. BJ Upton must rebound to form as he is certainly a 5 tool threat.

1. Yankees - 100 wins
2. Red Sox - 96 wins
3. Rays - 89 wins
4. Orioles - 78 wins
5. Blue Jays - 75 wins

Around the League in 30 Days: The Lone Star Express

Since Nolan Ryan became the head honcho with the Texas Rangers, the emphasis clearly shifted to pitching. The offense was always in place for the team to pour on the runs but the pitchers they had readily just gave the runs right back. Slugfests have been the norm in Arlington but things started to turn around over the last few years as a healthy crop of young pitching was grown to take some of the pressure off of the already potent offense. With that in mind, don't sleep on the offense since it is chock full o' young stars that will give you more than a few reasons to watch a game. The brightest rising star belong to SS Elvis Andrus who was acquired from the Braves for Mark Teixeira. Andrus did almost everything right last year and he is a legit top-of-the-order guy that will steal bases, score a ton of runs, hit with power, and flag down many balls on the IF. Neftali Feliz throws harder than hard and is a lot of fun to watch out of the 'pen.


Inbound - Vlad. Sure he's getting up there in age but he is a dangerous bat in the middle of the lineup and a good veteran presence in the clubhouse. He sports a lifetime .321 avg (yes you read correctly) and 407 homers at the start of the season. Production should also increase, if healthy, playing 81 games in Tejas. Rich Harden was acquired and should fill the void by the vacated Kevin Millwood. Darren Oliver is doing another stint w/the Rangers and brings quality innings in front of closer Frank Francisco. The last big name brought in is Chris Ray. The hard-throwing former O's closer will take on a lesser role in the relief corps (read core, not corpse).


Outbound - Kevin Millwood, a legit #1 type starter that eats innings is now an Oriole. That's a lot of innings, quality starts, wins, and pitching knowledge to jettison for a maybe RP. Vets like Hank Blalock (no production and no position to play), Ivan Rodriguez (no position, too much $, only calls for fastballs with men on base that can run), Andruw Jones (no production and just a name at this point), Omar Vizquel (no position and no room in a utlity role for the best SS of the last 40 years), and Marlon Byrd (useless w/Julio Borbon ready to shine and Hamilton and Cruz locking up the corner spots).


Bottom Line - This team is ready to compete and they are in just the division to do so. The pitching depth is there, the lineup is there with the caveat that the young hitters (Andrus, Borbon, Cruz, Hamilton) continue to develop. If they continue getting nothing out of the Catcher position from an offensive standpoint, it's not the end of the world as long as the trio of Saltalamacchia, Teagarden, and Ramirez do the job they must to with the young pitching staff. There are some ifs in the starting rotation which may prove to do them in. 80 wins on the low end, 85 is a real big year for them.

Eating Out: BK

And I don't mean Burger King. BK, the home of Biggie and Jay, aka where I'm from. Brooklyn is the epi-center of many things and there's a degree of pride that comes with saying I'm from Brooklyn. That said, Brooklyn's finest is Peter Luger's and the last thing they may need is me giving them even more props. They are the pre-eminent steakhouse in the area, for the past 24 years!!And they have the best steak sauce going.


There is, however, a tale of two Lugers and both are a must to experience. First, you must experience a Luger Burger. A hearty half-pound plus of beef served on a freshly made roll (reminiscent of the Fuddruckers' roll and that is not blasphemy since both make great bread!)  The burger, served naked is only $8 and that is a good deal in the NYC burger scene. The accouterments will add to the price as cheese adds $1.95, bacon adds $2.95. Served w/raw onion on the side, this burger, is fit for a King and it's a meal in and of itself. My advice is as follows - skip the bacon on the burger and order a slice/slab or two as an appetizer. You heard correctly. This bacon is epic, so large that it is worthy of being called an appetizer and delicious enough to order a couple of pieces. How big is it? Let's just say I've been to some over-priced, fancy restaurants that serve steaks that are a similar size. More advice? Skip the fries. The only knock on the burger is that it is typically cooked inconsistently so if you want it rare, be sure to stress that you want it mooing.

Second, there's the Luger steakhouse. The steak experience is one worthy of bringing a couple of friends and taming with some creamed spinach, German Fried Potatoes and don't forget to start w/an order of shrimp cocktail. Do it right, do it Brooklyn style.