Has anyone been wondering why the lowly Washington Nationals would send their can’t miss number-one draft pick pitcher Stephen Strasburg down to the minors this past weekend? Initially it seems like a very dumb move when you consider Strasburg would bring a lot of attention to a team that needs it in the worst way and he would get people to fill the stands every time he pitched. These things are true, but the Nationals have actually put a lot of thought into this move and it makes a lot of sense when you really think about why they sent him down. The Nationals can delay Strasburg’s opportunity for free agency by an entire year if they play their cards right. Strasburg only needs to be in the minors for 20 days or more and it would prevent him from achieving enough service time to qualify for free agency at the end of his sixth season. Most baseball writers believe Strasburg will be up by early June at the latest which would be right about the time the Nationals season will officially be over since they will most assuredly already have 40 losses.
Mauer Leaning Towards Remaining a Twin
Minnesota is waiting with eager anticipation on whether or not a star will remain in his home state. The ridiculously talented 2009 AL MVP catcher Joe Mauer could very well be on his way to becoming the most loved athlete in the history of the state of Minnesota if the rumors are true. Reports indicate Mauer is close to signing a ten-year deal with the Minnesota Twins which in this day and time of MLB is rather amazing. Normally players of Mauer’s talent would head to the Yankees or Red Sox, but the three-time AL batting champion seems content staying home. If the negotiations happen to break down it will be an all out hysteria to see who can acquire the best catcher in all of baseball and outside of Pujols the best overall player in MLB.
The Texas Rangers Have Pop
The Texas Rangers have signed Vladimir Guerrero for $5 million in a wise one-year deal. Vlad will fill the role of designated hitter and will more than likely bat fourth in between Josh Hamilton and Ian Kinsler. When you also factor in Nelson Cruz and Chris Davis you quickly realize the Rangers could have five guys hit 30 or more homers in 2010. There is a little concern on whether or not Vlad’s back will hold up, but if it does he is well worth a measly $5 million. The Rangers have also picked up pitcher Rich Harden and utility infielder Khalil Greene this offseason and are set to contend with Anaheim and Seattle in the AL West this year.
Hit the Road Kate Hudson
There are tons of big stories popping up around Major League Baseball in the last few days, but are there any stories bigger than K-Hud and A-Rod splitting for good? Yes, Roy Halladay is getting traded to the Phillies and I know Cliff Lee is headed to Seattle yet those stories just seem to pale in comparison. A friend of Kate told US Magazine that the couple was kaput and People magazine caught Rodriguez partying at an Armani shindig over the weekend down in Miami. Whispers from people who attended the party said A-Rod was all hugged up with a blonde for most of the night. Is there any chance Elin Nordegren has constructed the almighty master plan to get back at Tiger? Obviously that is a bad joke, but boy would it be pure gold if it happened. A-Rod never takes long to move on and I can assure you Kate Hudson will be swapping spit with some other high profile athlete/musician very soon.
The MLB Playoffs are Finally Here
Does anyone know that the MLB Playoffs are here? Well, if anyone has paid attention the playoffs have in a way been going on since October 1st when you consider the AL Central is going into the 163rd game today to determine a division winner. Ya, I know, who knew?
MLB has been almost as bad as the NHL when it comes to marketing their product. The AL Central and the NL West were up for grabs and what does MLB do? Absolutely nothing. Oh they had a game or two on ESPN, but with sweeps happening on prime time TV since October 1st there was no way to get on national TV other than on ESPN.
My biggest problem is Fox, who has the NLCS, currently has one show in the top 20 and their Saturday Baseball games have one of the worst ratings in years for their Saturday 4PM slot. Heck, even a golf tourney without Tiger does better than their snoozers. TBS which has most of all the playoff games has ZERO shows in the top 20. Why wouldnt these stations add some of the last weeks action to their slots in order to get people pumped up for the playoffs?
It is a crying shame that America’s former pastime has fallen to where a Wednesday night Louisiana Tech versus Hawaii college football game gets more viewers than a primetime MLB game.
In any case here are my NLDS and ALDS predictions:
St. Louis beats the Dodgers in 3
Colorado beats Philly in 4
Angels beat Red Sox in 5
Twins beat Yankees in 4 or Yankees beat Tigers in 3
Yankee Bowl to Start Next Year
Mayor Michael Bloomberg, the commissioners for the Big 12 and Big East along with Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner will hold a press conference tomorrow to announce the creation of the Yankee Bowl. The Yankee Bowl will reportedly begin next season and will obviously be held in the new Yankee Stadium. If the bowl game passes NCAA certification, and you know it will, then supposedly the bowl will put in the opposition the Big 12’s number 7 selection versus the Big East’s fourth place team. The Yankee bowl would be held sometime between December 29th, 2010 and January 2nd, 2011. This would become the 35th bowl game in the Football Bowl Subdivision and based on who would be contending it should be called the “Kaopectate Bowl.”
MLB Bets of the Day – September 9th, 2009
Big night on tap this evenig in Major League Baseball so get your bets in as quickly as possible. Feeling good about our picks!
Rays +135
Rays/Yankees Under 10
Tigers/Royals Under 8
Cardinals/Brewers Under 8
Marlins/Mets Over 9
Overall Record:
College Football
4-5 (this year) 109-96-1 (overall)
MLB 90-69-5
NFL 103-72-5
College Basketball 197-149-6
NHL 1-2
NBA 44-36
MLB Bets of the Day – September 1st, 2009
We have hit 9 of our last 12 and are hopeful the trend will continue. Even though the Red Sox have trouble with the Rays we like them today with Lester on the mound and love the under in the Brewers/Cards game.
Red Sox -155
Brewers/Cardinals Under 8.5
Yankees/O’s Under 9
Pirates/Reds Over 8.5
Blue Jays/Rangers Under 9.5
Overall Record:
MLB 87-67-5
College Football 106-92-1
NFL 103-72-5
College Basketball 197-149-6
NHL 1-2
NBA 44-36
MLB Bets of the Day – August 28th, 2009
We went 5-2 on Wednesday and are looking to keep the mojo rolling this evening. I like the Giants tonight with Lincecum pitching and love the over in the Indians/O’s game.
Giants -135
White Sox/Yankees Under 9
Rays/Tigers Over 8.5
Braves/Phillies Under 9
Indians/O’s Over 9.5
Overall Record:
MLB 83-66-5
College Football 106-92-1
NFL 103-72-5
College Basketball 197-149-6
NHL 1-2
NBA 44-36
MLB Bets of the Day – August 26th, 2009
It hasn’t been the best of days recently, but we are still running at a pretty good clip overall. We are just a little over a week away until college football is back so hang in there and throw some cash on a few more baseball games in the interim.
Yankees -200
Phillies -165
Dodgers -135
Rangers/Yankees Over 10
A’s/Mariners Over 8.5
O’s/Twins Under 10
Padres/Braves Under 8.5
Overall Record:
MLB 78-64-5
College Football 106-92-1
NFL 103-72-5
College Basketball 197-149-6
NHL 1-2
NBA 44-36