The Hotseat: November 2012

Thursday, November 29, 2012

2013 MLB Hall of Fame Class

The 2013 MLB Hall of Fame ballot was released on Wednesday. The ballot features 24 first timers such as Sandy Alomar Jr., Craig Biggio, Julio Franco, David Wells, Mike Piazza, Curt Schilling, and others. This year's ballot, however, is highlighted by numerous high profile players caught in the middle of the steroid era in baseball.

The steroid era goes back to the Mitchell Report that was published in December of 2007 by Senator George Mitchell. The report exposed 89 athletes to the use of performance-enhancing drugs. When the report was released, people were surprised to learn of the many high profile players involved in the scandal. The 2013 ballot features 3 of those high profile names, 2 of which were involved in the Mitchell Report; Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens. Sammy Sosa is the third big-name candidate and he somehow escaped the Mitchell Report in 2007. Later reports claimed that he had indeed tested positive for steroids. 4 total players that were listed on the report are eligible for the Hall of Fame this year. This is only the first wave of the era to appear on the ballot.

The Mitchell Report exposed and damaged the reputations of 89 players and it will cost many, such as Roger Clemens and Andy Pettitte, a spot in the MLB Hall of Fame.

http://skew.dailyskew.com/uploaded_images/gal_front_12_14-745624.jpg

We all know that Bonds, Clemens, and Sosa were some of the greatest players of all time, not to mention greatest to watch. We all remember the broken records. But we also remember that these guys' have tainted records and that alone will keep them out of the Hall.

The odds are against them. Rafael Palmeiro and Mark McGwire were once going to be Hall of Famers on the first ballot with no questions asked. Because of their links with PED's, McGwire is on his 7th ballot while Palmeiro is on his 3rd. Voters have not been very kind to steroid users in the past. Don't expect them to ease up.

The sad thing is that this mess won't going away for a long time. There are still a lot of current players out there that have been linked to steroids. PED's won't be going away either. There are reports of PED usage every year and they are linked to any sport. It would be a nice thought to have everyone in a Hall of Fame Class associated with clean and productive careers, but, unfortunately, that seems to be wishful thinking.

For more info refer to the links below...

http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20071213&content_id=2324860&vkey=news_mlb&c_id=mlb&fext=.jsp

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2007/12/13/sports/20071213_MITCHELL_FEATURE.html#

http://aol.sportingnews.com/mlb/story/2012-11-28/baseball-hall-of-fame-ballot-2013-barry-bonds-roger-clemens-sammy-sosa-ped-eligi

Saturday, November 24, 2012

Doug Martin

Hard to believe we are talking about the Tampa Bay Buccaneers being a playoff contender. For a long time, this team was one of the most forgotten teams in the league. They have lacked flashy players and playmakers on both sides of the ball over the years. Quarterback, Josh Freeman, has had moments during his professional career that gave fans hope that he could be the guy to lead this team for the next decade. However, inconsistent play has haunted him. The Bucs obviously needed something more than Freeman.

As a result, last offseason became a spending spree for Tampa Bay as they attempted to build talent among the organization through free agency and the NFL draft. They made some bold signings during the free agency period by acquiring All-Pro offensive guard Carl Nicks, two-time Pro Bowl receiver, Vincent Jackson, and cornerback, Eric Wright. They entered the draft with two first round picks. The 7th overall pick was spent on safety, Mark Barron, out of Alabama. It has turned out to be a fine pick, but the 31st overall pick was spent on a running back that has turned out to be the perfect compliment to Freeman; Boise State running back, Doug Martin.

Martin isn't always flashy, but he is an effective runner. He is small at 5 foot 9, but is stalky (215 lbs) and has recently drawn comparisons to players such as Ray Rice. For the first 6 games of the season, Martin had his up and down moments. His play went unnoticed until week 8 against the Oakland Raiders. His performance consisted of 25 carries for 251 yards and 4 TD's. He also added 4 catches for 21 yards. He gained much leaguewide notoriety from this game and is already emerging as the focal point of the defensive coordinators that are gameplaning against Bucs. On the season the running back has 197 carries and 1,000 yards on the ground. He is also a decent receiver, highlighted by his 27 catches for 319 yards through 10 games this season.

Rookie RB Doug Martin is bringing optimism for Buccaneers fans

http://www.gannett-cdn.com/media/USATODAY/gameon/2012/11/04/gty-155478176-4_3_r560.jpg?f061b7ce9937c38b702e6f308816ac2a14e2a4ec

The Buccaneers take on the Falcons on Sunday and should give Atlanta a run for their money by pounding the football with their exciting, young, running back. Regardless, Martin is giving a reason for Tampa Bay fans to be excited about their future. Look for him to continue to develop into one of the better backs in the NFL.

For more Doug Martin stats refer to the links below...
http://espn.go.com/nfl/player/gamelog/_/id/14885/doug-martin
http://www.fbschedules.com/nfl-12/2012-tampa-bay-buccaneers-football-schedule.php
http://www.bucsnation.com/2012/4/28/2985108/2012-nfl-draft-results-tampa-bay-buccaneers-draft-picks
http://espn.go.com/nfl/story/_/id/7684603/tampa-bay-buccaneers-add-carl-nicks-eric-wright-signing-vincent-jackson

Saturday, November 17, 2012

Jet Troubles

Whenever I hear the media talking about the New York Jets I have to laugh. People just never seem to learn when it comes to them. Every year is the same thing. The media (and Rex Ryan) portrays New York as the superior team in the NFL before the season even begins. But they seem to enjoy the attention with Ryan's continuous super bowl promises, the Hard Knocks appearances, and acquisition of Tim Tebow. Even former Jets quarterback, Joe Namath, called the Tebow trade a "publicity stunt." Since then we had an anonymous Jet's player criticize Tebow, calling him 'terrible.' Ironic, isn't it, how the Jet's team as a whole is terrible too?

The season has begun with a 3-6 start. Mark Sanchez continues to prove to us that he is one of the worst starting quarterbacks in the league and the running game continues to be nonexistent. They are 30th in the league in total offense. The defense of this team can not carry it anymore. Ryan and defensive coordinator, Mike Pettine, have not been able to establish a stellar defense as of late. The defense is average with a lot of average players and are not deep enough to overcome injuries to Darrelle Revis and others.

Recently, Jet's owner, Woody Johnson has expressed his displeasure over the 3-6 start to the season. On Thursday, he declined to give Rex a vote of confidence. Despite saying that he does not give in-season evaluations, we all know that doubts may be starting to set in about Ryan leading this team. It is safe to say that a coaching change may be in order soon. In his defense, the Jets struggles are not all about the coaching but is the result of an overall lack of talent.

Rex Ryan is on the hot seat after his team's poor start to the season.
http://turnonthejets.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/Rex+Ryan+Buffalo+Bills+v+New+York+Jets+LknpqjEQ5r8l.jpeg

At some point the players and coaches need to look at themselves in the mirror and realize that they are the ones that are terrible, not just Tim Tebow.

For Jets articles and stats refer to the links below...

http://www.nfl.com/stats/categorystats?tabSeq=2&offensiveStatisticCategory=GAME_STATS&conference=ALL&role=TM&season=2012&seasonType=REG&d-447263-s=TOTAL_YARDS_GAME_AVG&d-447263-o=2&d-447263-n=1
http://espn.go.com/new-york/nfl/story/_/id/7765808/owner-says-new-york-jets-consider-hard-knocks-again-asked

http://espn.go.com/new-york/nfl/story/_/id/8636376/woody-johnson-new-york-jets-owner-sign-3-6-season

Thursday, November 15, 2012

James Harden

We used to know James Harden for his beard. That changed when the Oklahoma City Thunder sent him to the Houston Rockets to become the new face of the franchise. Cole Aldrich, Lazar Hayward, and DaeQuan Cook were sent to Houston as well and the Thunder received Jeremy Lamb, Kevin Martin, and draft picks.

This move surprised me because the Thunder were still legitimate championship contenders. At first glance, this looked like a bad trade for them and it seemed to be one that could cost them a deep playoff run this season. They lost a great scorer off the bench. Not only that but Harden was a fan favorite in Oklahoma City. But, in the big picture, this move had to be made by the Thunder. When Serge Ibaka got his big 4 year contract extension it was beginning to look awfully hard to keep Harden under contract beyond this season. Ultimately, they decided to trade him, but they had to get a great scorer in return so they would retain some bench production. They got a scorer in Kevin Martin. Because of this, OKC is still a contender this season and they have opportunities to improve their team for future with Lamb and more draft picks.

James Harden is the new face of the Houston Rockets organization.

http://sinbapointforward.files.wordpress.com/2012/10/james-harden-houston-rockets.jpg?w=300&h=353

As for Harden, their were a lot of questions as to whether or not he would be able to handle the spotlight in Houston. He showed us that he could from opening night when he scored 37 points while dishing out 12 assists and grabbing 6 rebounds against the Pistons. The following game against Atlanta he scored a career high 45 points to go along with 7 rebounds. So far he seems extremely capable of taking on the lead role for the Rockets. He is carrying a ridiculous statline right now with 26.4 ppg, 4.6 rpg, and 4.5 apg. To put this is perspective his career averages are 13.2 ppg, 3.5 rpg, and 2.5 apg.

One last point that needs to be brought up about James Harden is that he should have the respect of every basketball fan after he signed a max 5 year contract with his new team. I find this to be extremely commendable with so many players around the league attempting to force trades to the big-market teams to create "superteams." Many guys in this era would have said no to the contract extension. Harden said yes to a team that would not be an enticing environment to some athletes. I feel that this shouldn't go without notice. I hope that Harden will one day be rewarded with a championship ring for his dedication to the Rockets.

For more stats on James Harden click the link below...
http://espn.go.com/nba/player/gamelog/_/id/3992/james-harden

Friday, November 9, 2012

Mike Brown Fired

Dwight Howard is starting to wish he stayed in Orlando. Maybe not, but the Lakers are already a mess 5 games into the season after firing head coach Mike Brown. The team's 1-4 start put a lot of unnecessary heat on Brown. Let's face it; this would not be a big deal if it was the Raptors or Wizards we are talking about. We are talking about the Los Angeles Lakers. We are talking about the 16 time champion Los Angeles Lakers. They have started a little slow, but this isn't the first time a team built a star-studded starting lineup and struggled to start the year. We last saw it with the Miami Heat after they signed LeBron James and Chris Bosh. We all remember when questions rose about Eric Spoelstra. The Media and others felt like he wasn't the right person to coach. A year later they won the championship and those questions were put to rest. The point is that "super" teams take time to gel. Firing the head coach could backfire quickly and will not fix the team chemistry.

In an 82 game season there is no reason a team can not bounce back from a 1-4 start, especially L.A. This is a foolish move. Who's going to be the coach now? Phil Jackson? Good luck. Mike D'Antoni? He'd only teach Howard not to play defense. The team wasted training camp and the preseason to get adjusted to Brown's scheme and now they are going to need to adjust the scheme under a new coach, whoever it will be. I will say that Brown was not the right hire for a team of this caliber. The Lakers realized that and seem to think that there is someone more qualified for this job out there other than Brown. The timing is way off. Brown should've never had the job in the first place. You have to feel bad for him though. I'm sure that this was a head coaching job that he was really excited about. It just didn't work out. L.A. has a lot to iron out right now or reaching the playoffs may not work out for them either. Again, this is an 82 game season. They have time to fix their problems but they will need a new head coach first.

Mike Brown was unfairly targeted for the Lakers early season struggles.

http://www.voxxi.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/Mike-Brown.jpg

Reflecting on the 2012 MLB Season

The MLB season is finally over and it ended with the San Fransisco Giants demolition of the Detriot Tigers. Many counted the Giants out during the NLCS, as they were down 3-1 to the St. Louis Cardinals. The Cardinals seemed well on their way to another World Series appearance, even after losing Albert Pujols to free agency in the offseason. The Giants finally woke up and went on a 7 game winning streak including the World Series sweep. I don't think anyone expected a sweep. The series appeared to be evenly matched. In the end, the Tigers choked and the Giants kept firing to earn their second World Series victory in the last 3 years. This season marked a lot of noteworthy moves, both in the standings and acquisitions. Let's take a look back and reflect on the season;

World Series Thoughts - Wow. The Giants came ready to play. As a team, the Giants didn't hit particularly well (.242), but then again neither did the Tigers (.159). The one offensive player that stood out during the entire 4-game series was World Series MVP, Pablo Sandoval. First of all, anyone who slugs 3 home runs in one game deserves some attention. It didn't stop there for Sandoval. He was consistent all series long going 8-16 with 4 extra base hits. Miguel Cabrera, Prince Fielder, and Austin Jackson went a combined 7-40 and accounted for 1 home run and 3 RBI's. The Tigers big 3 could not find any answers for the Giants pitching and it became evident that if the three could be kept in check the Giants would breeze through the series.

Giants third baseman Pablo Sandoval earned MVP honors of the 2012 World Series highlighted by his 3 home run performance in Game 1. He went 8-16 in the 4 game series.

http://www.gannett-cdn.com/media/USATODAY/gameon/2012/10/30/10-30-2012-pablo-sandoval-mvp-trophy-4_3_r560.jpg?f061b7ce9937c38b702e6f308816ac2a14e2a4ec

The real difference-maker of the series was the pitching of the Giants. In Game 1, Barry Zito shocked everyone by outpitching Justin Verlander. Bruce Bochy's move to pitch Zito against Verlander paid off and Zito gave up 1 run in 5.2 innings as opposed to Verlander's 5 runs in 4 innings. Verlander's ineffectiveness foreshadowed a long series for Detriot. Zito and the rest of the Giants starting pitchers combined for a 1.36 ERA. As a team it was a ridiculous 1.46. Tough to beat that ERA.

Around the League- The regular season featured many surprises. One of them came from the AL East where the Baltimore Orioles finished in second place as a wild card team and the Red Sox nightmare season had them behind the Toronto Blue Jays in the standings. Boston has a lot of challenges facing them for the future after trading away many of the core players of their team. Right now they are not in a position to contend in that division even after resigning David Ortiz. The ALCS winning Detroit Tigers struggled early on in the season but their only competition for the division came from the Chicago White Sox. The Nationals were a surprise team in the National League and with so much pitching strength they should continue to be a great team down the road. Along with Boston,the Philadelphia Phillies failed to reach the playoffs and, after a hopeful start to the season, the Pittsburgh Pirates finished with another losing season.

Offseason acquisition of the year - Moving away from the Albert Pujols' and Prince Fielders' of the the world the acquisition of the year came at the expense of the Oakland Athletics. In an attempt to acquire youth and top prospects the Athletics agreed to send pitcher Gio Gonzalez to the Washington Nationals for prospects AJ Cole, Brad Peacock, Tommy Milone, and Derek Norris. Let me start by saying I think that this will end up being a fairly even trade for both teams. Tommy Milone is already showing tons of potential to be a frontline starting pitcher for the A's and the others are nothing to sneeze at as well. Gio Gonzalez was a great find by the Nationals. He was a great fit with the youth and potential of the Nationals starters, such as Stephen Strasburg and Jordan Zimmerman. The young lefty finished the year with 21 wins and a 2.89 ERA. Those are ace numbers. He should be highly considered for the Cy Young.

Nationals pitcher Gio Gonzalez proved to be a staple in the starting rotation with Cy Young deserving numbers.

http://www.masnsports.com/byron_kerr/images/Gio-Gonzalez-set-blue-sidebar.jpg

Best Trade Deadline Acquisition - You could argue that the Dodgers made the best moves at the trade deadline by acquiring guys like Hanley Ramirez, Carl Crawford, Adrian Gonzalez, Shane Victorino, and Brandon League. I will admit, their trades were impressive on paper, but the moves did not result in a World Series appearance. The trades they accomplished were an absolute failure for that reason. It was the World Series winning San Fransisco Giants that made the biggest moves. I know, you want me to say Hunter Pence. No, it was middle infielder Marco Scutaro. Formally with the Colorado Rockies, Scutaro was traded to the Giants for infielder Charlie Culberson in late July. With Colorado not being in the hunt for the playoffs, Scutaro's expiring contract was expendable. All he did was hit .362 overall with the Giants and played a huge role as not only a productive everyday player, but a leader. After going 14-28 in the NLCS, Scutaro struggled a bit in the World Series, but all was forgiven in game 4 when he had the clutch hit in the 10th inning that brought in Ryan Theriot. The hit proved to be the winning run. Scutaro's second half of the season will certainly make him a highly sought after free agent.

The Trade No One Is Talking About - The Chicago Cubs did not have much to be proud of this season but they have to be excited about their young first baseman, Anthony Rizzo. Rizzo was acquired from the Padres in an offseason 4-player deal that sent Andrew Cashner to the San Diego Padres. The Cubs could have something to build around here. Rizzo has bounced around in the league after being drafted by the Boston Red Sox in the 6th round of the 2007 amateur draft. He was traded in 2010 to the Padres that sent Adrian Gonzalez to Boston. Now in 2012, Rizzo is on his third organization after being given up on by these two teams. This guy is no scrub. Last year, the first baseman hit .331 with 26 home runs and 101 RBI's in 93 games for the Padres Triple-A team. He made his first big-league appearance last year but only batted .143. He returned to the big leagues this season and left a good impression on Cubs fans as he hit .285 with with 15 home runs and 48 RBI's in 87 games. In a full season he would've been on pace for 28 home runs and 89 RBI's. Look for this guy to become a really good player, if not a star, in the next couple of years.