Dodgers bolster roster for playoff run

By Jim Ingram

Fan Fanatic Sports Staff

The not-so-triumphant return of Jim Ingram is here! Just kidding. Last night, the LA Dodgers further helped their chances for a deep playoff run by picking up Jim Thome and Jon Garland at the waiver deadline. Neither player is a superstar, but both will fill a need the Dodgers have had for some time.

Jim Thome, who will not be put into service at first base, will provide the power bat off the bench they sorely need for the stretch run and the playoffs. Juan Pierre has been fantastic this season, Mark Loretta has been solid, but neither player offers serious pop off the bench. According to reports, Ned Colletti said he expects Joe Torre to be used like Matt Stairs was, and is, for the Phillies.

Jon Garland, in a rare move between division rivals, comes over from the Arizona Diamondbacks and will be inserted directly into the rotation. While he's not have a good season, 8-11 4.29 ERA, he has pitched pretty well since the All Star break. What he does provide is stability. He's a very durable pitcher who should keep his team in the game. My guess is he has a very good stretch here while pitching in the pitcher friendly Dodger Stadium.

As a diehard Dodgers fan, I love these moves. It doesn't look like Colletti gave up much for either player, and it provides depth and adds two more veteran presences to a team littered with young stars. Garland should take over the 4th slot in the rotation and push Vincente Padilla to 5th. I don't expect much from Kuroda the rest of the season, but if he can return at all that would be gravy to me.

Tedy Bruschi will always be a true Patriot

By Chad Garner

Fan Fanatic Sports Staff

Players in any sport come and go. They burst onto the scene, some play over 10 years while other fizzle out faster than a tiki torch on a blustery day.

But some also leave a lasting impression about what's right in sports. New England Patriots inside linebacker Tedy Bruschi, who announced his retirement today, was that type of player.

While Bruschi, who played in the NFL for 13 seasons, didn't really ever wow you with his overall stats (although that 2004 Super Bowl season when he went to his first and only Pro Bowl after making 128 tackles was as good as it gets), he was that rare player that always made his teammates better, he was classy on and off the field and he was a guy that seemed like all of us -- a regular, hard-working guy.

But Bruschi was so much more.

He had a heart of a champion and was a three-time world champion with the Pats -- the only team he ever played for which is extremely rare in today's sports world.

His story even was played off the football field, as Bruschi had a stroke shortly after the 2005 Super Bowl against the Philadelphia Eagles.

To no one's surprise, Bruschi beat the odds and returned to the game he loved. We, as fans, loved him too, and it was a special time to see good old No. 54 back in the middle cracking heads with the opponent.

Yes, Bruschi's skills as a linebacker had been diminishing for the last few years, but it happens to everyone. He's 36 now, he reached the ultimate level of play individually and as a team, and it's only second nature to start tailing off. 

But I'll always remember the young-at-heart Bruschi playing with passion, desire and a will to win -- all with a team-first mentality. For a player to be involved in such a tough guy's sport, it wasn't out of the norm to see Bruschi smiling on the field and helping someone up after he drove them into the ground. That was Tedy. He had an unquestioned love of the game that rubbed off on his teammates and it found its way into my home. 

He was damn good, don't let anyone else tell you differently.

Tedy, you've done a great job being a role model by how you've conducted yourself on and off the field. You're what's right about sports today. 

Good luck in the next phase of your life with your children and wife, and thanks for all the great memories in that Patriots uniform. You'll never be forgotten.

You're a true Patriot.

Still want Brady playing in the preseason?

By Chad Garner

Fan Fanatic Sports Staff

Are you happy now?

Our fans here at Fan Fanatic Sports, based on the recent poll of "If you were Bill Belichick, would you let Tom Brady play in preseason games?", no doubt wanted Brady to play in preseason games, and I'm willing to bet they've changed their tune now.

Especially after watching Brady jog off the field late in the second quarter of last night's preseason game --a meaningless exhibition game -- against the Washington Redskins.

Tell me you're not a little scared right now? You should be, too. A mammoth defensive lineman, Albert Haynesworth, planted his gigantic frame all over Brady and powered him into the ground. Look at the replays, Brady's right shoulder didn't look very good on that hit. I bet he'll get X-rays and an MRI, and he better be OK.

My point in a previous blog was that the preseason is a joke, it's meaningless and only bad things happen. The preseason jinx struck again -- this time with Brady getting injured.

Initially, it appears like he'll be OK -- the Pats are calling it a sore right shoulder -- but those tests better come back negative or you can kiss this season goodbye Patriots fans.

I've got that knot in my stomach again. It was there last season in the first game against the Chiefs (that's when Brady tore his knee apart and missed the rest of the season).

Maybe I'm just a worry-wart? If so, then oh well.

When you see your prized player get injured in a preseason game, it makes you wonder why these stars are even in the game.

I know the drill -- they need to get game ready for the regular season ... blah, blah, blah. If you're an NFL fan, you've heard the same lip service before.

Bottom line is I'd rather have Brady a little rusty in the regular season, than watch him play a lot in the preseason and get injured.

Well, guess what Pats fan, Brady got injured. We'll never know the severity of the injury because the Patriots will never tell us, but one thing is for sure: Brady got hurt and it could have been avoided.

Blame who you want, but the bottom line is Brady shouldn't have even been in uniform. He gets plenty of reps in practice, albeit no live game action, but that is what the regular season is for.

I'd forgive Brady if he chucked a pick or two early in the regular season because he might have been rusty because he didn't play in the preseason.  But at least I'd have that option, instead of him working off the rust in the preseason, then he gets hurt and there goes our championship hopes.

Players don't like the preseason and think it should be a lot shorter. Boy, I wonder why?

Still want Brady playing in the preaseason? Glad you're on board now!

Sanchez should be worried about facing the Patriots

By Chad Garner

Fan Fanatic Sports Staff

Patriots fans should be smiling everywhere.

Why? Well, the hated New York Jets have decided to go with a rookie as their starting quarterback after naming former University of Southern California star Mark Sanchez the No. 1 guy.

Who's really afraid of a rookie QB? It's going to be fun pounding the Jets twice in the regular season and watching them scuffle on offense.

Rookie QBs and NFL defenses don't mix. NFL defenses can be extremely complex, just like the Patriots under coach Bill Belichick, and they also expose rookies.

And you can bank on it happening again this season.

If you watched the Jets' last preseason game against the Baltimore Ravens -- one of the most confusing defenses in the league -- you saw Sanchez dazed and confused, never really knowing where the next blitzer was going to come from. It's all about confusion and deception with defenses, masking coverages and making the QBs really question what is going on. And it works like a well-oiled machine against inexperienced QBs that are just hoping to not screw up too much.

The Jets know they'll take their lumps offensively with Sanchez, perhaps electing to protect him by pounding away with the running game, but rookie QBs all need to go through growing pains.

Luckily, the Patriots can play a huge part in welcoming Sanchez into the NFL.

Boy, playing the Jets should be a lot of fun. 

How do you think that Fireman Fool in the Jets cheering section, leading that stupid cheer of "J-E-T-S, Jets, Jets, Jets" is going to react after watching Sanchez throw pick after pick for an entire season?

Remember: it's always better to hand out the lumps instead of absorbing them.

We'll be seeing you on the field Sanchez. FYI, expect the unexpected against a Belichick defense.

This is going to be fun!

Sox have pitcher to thank for win, but it aint Buchholz

By Chris Maza
Fan Fanatic Sports Staff

With two outs and his team up by three, it was Jose Contreras that sparked the Red Sox offense with a botched play on a slow roller that should have ended the inning and a bases-full threat.

These are the kind of breaks the Red Sox haven't gotten much lately and when they have gotten them, they haven't taken advantage.

But Monday night, the Red Sox offense looked like the offense they expected to have when they acquired Victor Martinez. Instead of squandering a bases-loaded situation, the Sox blasted Contreras right out of the game with six runs in the third. Then they added two more in the fourth to take a 7-4 lead.

That should have been enough. For most pitchers, it would have been.

Enter Clay Buchholz, the unpredictable.

After three solid - though not stelar - outings prior, Buchholz failed to get out of the fifth inning for the third time in eight starts this season, giving up a big fly to maybe the most underrated first baseman in the league, Paul Konerko to tie the game back up.

But in fine fashion, the Red Sox' offense was relentless, something it hasn't been very often this season, despite the talent level. At best, they have been inconsistent. Is it finally coming together? Boston had 13 hits - seven for extra bases. Yes, it did take an error to prevent yet another squander, but the big thing is the Red Sox were able to capitalize on the blunder for more than just a run or two.

With the pitching staff in such a state of flux, the offense will have to take every opportunity it can get in order to stay in games. Maybe Monday night was a sign of things to come.

Reynolds proving what a snub he was

By Chris Maza
Fan Fanatic Sports Staff

Every year the All-Star Game has one or two snubs, or players who deserved to be in, but were left out, whether it be because of lack of room, idiotic fan voting or a mixture of the two.

One of my favorite snubs this year has been Mark Reynolds, who had made a case for being the starting third baseman with his bat this spring and early summer, but ended up being forced to hope to be the last player voted in as part of the ridiculous final vote system Major League baseball has set up. Reynolds lost out to Shane Victorino - who needed to go door to door campaigning for votes and have radio stations have contests to see who could click his name the most in a 62-hour period to win the "honor" - and also came in behind Pablo Sandoval.

Now Reynolds is showing the baseball world how wrong they were to overlook him. Even with his team falling apart around him, Reynolds has still been one of the best power hitters in the game this season.

The one knock everyone pointed to in terms of Reynolds' game is his strikeouts. He was the first major leaguer in history to strike out 200 times and is on pace to do it again. However, he hits the ball often enough - and when he does, he does bad things to it - that the question has to be raised: Is it really that big of a deal? After all, Ryan Howard twice had 199 strikeouts and was an All Star and was actually considered for MVP both of those years. One of those seasons, he had those 199 in just 144 games. In his MVP season, he had over 180 K's. Bobby Bonds held the major league record for strikeouts for a long time and some, including Willie Mays, make the argument he should be in the Hall of Fame.

But forgetting all that, the bottom line is strikeouts or no strikeouts, Reynolds produces. Let's review. He's batting .281 with a .371 on base pecentage, both very respectable. His slugging percentage of .593 is third in the National League and his OPS is .964, which ranks fifth. He's second in the league in home runs with 48, just two behind the immortal Albert Pujols. His 84 RBI are eighth in the league and he's scored the sixth-most runs in the league, sitting at 81. Oh, he's also stolen 21 bases, which is good for ninth.

When a guy is hitting .281 and is on pace for 50 homers and 110 RBI with Miguel Montero batting behind you, he is raking. And since his All-Star snub, Reynolds seems to be a man on a mission. Since the break, Reynolds is batting at a .339 clip and leads the league in homers with 14 and his slugging percentage leads national league regulars at .732. Yep, that's a better SLG than every national league player that took part in the Midsummer Classic, including Albert Pujols.

You can't even use the excuse that he's getting aided by the warm Arizona air, because he's batting almost 15 points better on the road.

I hate to say I told you so, but Reynolds is shaping up to be the real deal. Hopefully next year fans will pay attention.

Fantasy football dreaming

By Chad Garner

Fan Fanatic Sports Staff

So what's your dream team in fantasy football?

If you could pick an entire starting lineup -- quarterback, 2 running backs, 3 wide receivers, one tight end, one kicker and one team defense -- who would you pick and why?

Well, it's my turn to turn my cast on big-game winners into a fantasy football championship. Do you think this team would compete, more like compete at a very high level week in and week out? We all know how important consistency is in fantasy football.

Here's my championship club:

QUARTERBACK

Tom Brady -- Are you really surprised? I'll spit at the next person who says his knee injury is a concern entering the season. He's fine. He might be a tad rusty early so only expect maybe 280 yards a game and a few scores, but when that rust is completely gone, look out. Brady has the best cast around him -- Randy Moss, Wes Welker, Joey Galloway, Fred Taylor, ect. -- plus we all know how the Patriots like to expose secondaries. Expect -- more like bank -- on an MVP-type season. If you made a case for Drew Brees here, I wouldn't argue.

RUNNING BACKS

Adrian Peterson -- In a new wave of running back by committee approaches, you know in Minnesota who's going to get the ball early and often. AP is a beast, no doubt. He's averaged 12 TDs and 1,551 yards in his two years in the league, so Year 3 should be even better. Image if he only factored into the passing game (40 catches in 2 years)?

Matt Forte -- The second-year back in Chicago is a fantasy superstar since he can run like the wind and he's got glue on his hands in the passing game. Forte had 1,238 yards receiving and 63 catches for 477 yards as a rookie. Can you say stud?

WIDE RECEIVERS

Larry Fitzgerald, Randy Moss, Andre Johnson -- All three star wide receivers have the same thing in common -- they have the ability to score from anywhere on the field, plus they are clearly the No. 1 options on their respective teams. Fitzgerald keeps improving (12 TDs last year and up from 10 in 2007), Moss has a mojo with Brady (23 TDs in 2007, 11 last year with Matt Cassel at the helm) and Johnson (115 receptions, 1,575 yards, 8 TDs) should be a household name. If I had all three of them, no one could touch me at the position.

TIGHT END

Tony Gonzalez -- Please look past the fact that I met Gonzalez years ago at a New England Patriots game and I've got many autographs from him, bottom line is he keeps getting his numbers. Still, at the age of 33, he's the most productive guy on the block (some say Jason Witten, I say Touchdown Tony). Don't be afraid that he's now on the Falcons, he still will post top-of-the-line numbers. Over 1,000 yards the last two years ...that's just sick, considering he's a tight end.

KICKER

Stephen Gostkowski -- Kickers are so hard to predict, but the Patriots kicker has been a nice treat in fantasy circles for two straight years with 135-plus points in each of those years (137 in 2007 and 148 in 2008). He may blast a lot of PATs, but he'll always be scoring points because of how good the Patriots' offense is. But there are plenty of other guys that can do the job, too.

DEFENSE

Steelers -- I guess you have to go with the defending Super Bowl champs? This in another crap-shoot position where plenty of teams deserve to be recognized. But The Steelers attack, attack and attack some more. They had 51 sacks last year, 20 INTs, 22 fumble recoveries, one TD off of a fumble and 2 INT touchdowns. It all equals friendly fantasy points. Ravens, Eagles, Giants and Vikings are also good picks that should be highly productive.