By Chris Maza
Fan Fanatic Sports Staff
The top shelf
Tampa Bay Rays
The Rays still remain the team with the best record in the majors and therefore remain at the top of the list. Probably most impressive is the fact that Tampa Bay has four starters with an ERA of 3.00 or lower. No other team in the majors can say that.
New York Yankees
It wasn't a very good start to the week for the Yankees last week as they lost three of four to the Tigers, including two shutouts. They rebounded, however, taking two of three from Minnesota. Andy Pettitte remains terrific with a 5-0 record and 1.79 ERA. In fact, the Yankees are 7-0 in his starts this year.
Philadelphia Phillies
The Phillies hold the best record in the National League and have gone 11-3 in the month of May thus far. What will be interesting to watch is how they respond to losing both of their top options in the bullpen in Brad Lidge and Ryan Madson. Jose Contreras is now the closer by default.
Minnesota Twins
The Twins have been a pretty ho-hum team over the past week, but Justin Morneau has been doing his best to keep things interesting for Minnesota. Morneau leads the league in hitting at .362 and his 1.142 OPS is also tops in the league.
Toronto Blue Jays
They are in third place in the AL East and if the season ended today would not be a playoff team, but I can think of two or three divisions that this team could be dominating. The Jays lead the league in homers and headed into Monday with a four-game winning streak. Ricky Romero is having a terrific second season after a solid rookie campaign. Opponents are batting a paltry .210 against him.
The bottom of the barrel
Milwaukee Brewers
As if a six-game losing streak isn't bad enough, the Brew Crew just lost one of its starters in a very startling manner. Doug Davis was placed on the DL on the 16th after being diagnosed with Pericarditis, which is an inflamation of the heart's tissue lining. On the plus side, Casey McGee, who has an awesome baseball name, by the way, has built upon his rookie year with an even better sophomore season.
Seattle Mariners
No team in the American League scores fewer runs, gets on base less frequently and hits fewer home runs than the Mariners. Their pitching staff has been able to keep them in some games, but last time I checked, the team that scores more runs wins most games.
Arizona Diamondbacks
You'd be hard-pressed to find a bullpen quite this bad. There are a lot of ERA's with sixes, sevens and even eights and nines in front of the decimal point. A win over Atlanta snapped a seven-game losing streak, but a 13-1 loss the following night got things back on the wrong track for the D-backs.
Kansas City Royals
Zach Greinke finally won a game and then manager Trey Hillman promptly lost his job. In the 15 games the Royals have played this month, they have scored no more than two runs in seven of them - all of those games were losses.
Houston Astros
The Astros are in dead last in the weakest division in baseball. Things seemed to be turning around, especially after the Stros swept the Cardinals, knocking them out of the top spot in the division and out of the top shelf. But it all went back to business as usual against San Francisco as they lost three straight. Roy Oswalt took one of those losses and dropped to 2-5 on the season, despite a 2.52 ERA and 52 strikeouts in 55 innings.
Monday, May 17, 2010
Saturday, May 15, 2010
I really, really, really, REALLY hate to say I told you so
By Chris Maza
Fan Fanatic Sports Staff
This is one of those times when I really hate being right.
Game 7 was a microcosm of the entire series, right down to the too many men on the ice penalty that ultimately cost them the game.
Boston played outstanding hockey through most of the first period, executing on power plays and throwing pucks on net while controlling the majority of the play. Then, just like in the series, everything fell apart.
They stopped forechecking. They stopped pressuring Michael Leighton. Tuukka Rask allowed a soft goal and the momentum swung. Then, with the game in the balance, a penalty that can only come from lack of concentration. At a time when a team should be most focused, 3-3 in the third period of a game 7, the Bruins lost theirs and ultimately it cost them.
I wish I could say I was surprised the Bruins lost in such a fashion, but given the character of this team all season, I'm really not. It was a team that at the end of the day could never figure out how to win. Injuries played a role, sure, but the Bruins were not the only team dealing with them.
Now Bruins fans must look to the future, which looks bright with the No. 2 pick in the upcoming draft, but also has some question marks, such as the futures of Mark Recchi, Miro Satan and Tim Thomas.
Does Recchi retire? Did the Bruins see enough from Satan when he shared a line with David Krejci to bring him back in that capacity next season? Will Thomas waive his no-trade clause and free up some cap space to go after a quality scorer?
These are just a few things the Bruins fans will get to mull through their now extended offseason as they try to shake of the sting of forever being associated with the New York Yankees.
Friday, May 14, 2010
Bruins better not choke
By Chad Garner
Fan Fanatic Sports Staff
Those darn Boston Bruins better not choke.
Is there really any excuse in the world to justify why they squandered a 3-0 series lead to the Philadelphia Flyers, if they lose Game 7 tonight?
No way.
You don't lose four straight games and get a free pass. Especially not in Boston.
Boston fans are already drawing comparisions to this potential choke job to the Yankees vs. the Red Sox in the playoffs years ago.
I'm not going there, however.
But it's rather mind-boggling to me why they haven't closed out the series yet.
Well, when you have your foot on someone's throat, you better step on it even more to deliver the TKO. If not, well, you see what happens.
I know the injuries have piled up on the Bruins, in particular David Krejci's season-ender is a complete killer.
But this is a T-E-A-M, and no one man should hold the key to winning and losing.
So, it's time for the Bruins to man up, play as one, put on a show for the Boston fans, and finally put the Flyers out to pasture.
If not, there's going to be some major problems in Boston tonight.
Fan Fanatic Sports Staff
Those darn Boston Bruins better not choke.
Is there really any excuse in the world to justify why they squandered a 3-0 series lead to the Philadelphia Flyers, if they lose Game 7 tonight?
No way.
You don't lose four straight games and get a free pass. Especially not in Boston.
Boston fans are already drawing comparisions to this potential choke job to the Yankees vs. the Red Sox in the playoffs years ago.
I'm not going there, however.
But it's rather mind-boggling to me why they haven't closed out the series yet.
Well, when you have your foot on someone's throat, you better step on it even more to deliver the TKO. If not, well, you see what happens.
I know the injuries have piled up on the Bruins, in particular David Krejci's season-ender is a complete killer.
But this is a T-E-A-M, and no one man should hold the key to winning and losing.
So, it's time for the Bruins to man up, play as one, put on a show for the Boston fans, and finally put the Flyers out to pasture.
If not, there's going to be some major problems in Boston tonight.
Tuesday, May 11, 2010
Are the Bruins skating into a perfect storm?
By Chris Maza
Fan Fanatic Sports Staff
Hey, I'm not saying it's definitely going to happen, but I think we all need to start bracing for the possibility that the Bruins could become part of history.
Only three teams in the three major sports that have seven-game playoff series have ever come back from a three-game deficit. The Flyers could very well become the fourth. I made the statement that Game 5 was a must-win for the Bruins. Some scoffed. Some said that it wasn't possible because the teams that had completed the comeback were "special" teams and the Flyers were not.
I will agree that the Maple Leafs in 1942 were special. They were the second-best team in the league in the regular season and had already beaten the top team in the first round of the playoffs. But what made those other teams special? It wasn't that they were the most talented teams. What made them special was the fact that they were written off as done for and then came back to win. It was the fact that they refused to say die.
Nobody thought the Red Sox - a wild card team - would beat the Yankees - a team that won 101 games in 2004. And certainly no one thought the Islanders - a team that was just a few seasons old - would beat a Pittsburgh Penguins from the powerful Norris division.
Throw on top of that the fact that the Flyers have already proven that they are a plucky team that can come back. Remember that this was a team that was on the outside looking in at the playoff picture after a huge swoon and took win-or-go-home game against the New York Rangers to beat them out by one point for a playoff berth.
Add to that the fact the Flyers got Simon Gagne back and therefore now have the most talented player on the ice. Meanwhile, the Bruins have lost two guys from their top two lines, including their overall most talented forward and their top scorer from the regular season.
The Bruins are back in a familiar situation. People spent all season saying how good this team could be if all its difference makers were healthy. They were, for all of a few moments and yes, the Bruins looked good. But now the injury bug has bitten again and the Bruins are back where they were all season - looking inept in the offensive zone and scrambling to figure out how to keep the puck out of their own.
Sometimes it's not just about being a talented team. Sometimes it's about the circumstances and this could become a perfect storm for the Flyers.
I'm not saying it's a lock, but watch out, Bruins fans. It's not as far-fetched as you might think.
Fan Fanatic Sports Staff
Hey, I'm not saying it's definitely going to happen, but I think we all need to start bracing for the possibility that the Bruins could become part of history.
Only three teams in the three major sports that have seven-game playoff series have ever come back from a three-game deficit. The Flyers could very well become the fourth. I made the statement that Game 5 was a must-win for the Bruins. Some scoffed. Some said that it wasn't possible because the teams that had completed the comeback were "special" teams and the Flyers were not.
I will agree that the Maple Leafs in 1942 were special. They were the second-best team in the league in the regular season and had already beaten the top team in the first round of the playoffs. But what made those other teams special? It wasn't that they were the most talented teams. What made them special was the fact that they were written off as done for and then came back to win. It was the fact that they refused to say die.
Nobody thought the Red Sox - a wild card team - would beat the Yankees - a team that won 101 games in 2004. And certainly no one thought the Islanders - a team that was just a few seasons old - would beat a Pittsburgh Penguins from the powerful Norris division.
Throw on top of that the fact that the Flyers have already proven that they are a plucky team that can come back. Remember that this was a team that was on the outside looking in at the playoff picture after a huge swoon and took win-or-go-home game against the New York Rangers to beat them out by one point for a playoff berth.
Add to that the fact the Flyers got Simon Gagne back and therefore now have the most talented player on the ice. Meanwhile, the Bruins have lost two guys from their top two lines, including their overall most talented forward and their top scorer from the regular season.
The Bruins are back in a familiar situation. People spent all season saying how good this team could be if all its difference makers were healthy. They were, for all of a few moments and yes, the Bruins looked good. But now the injury bug has bitten again and the Bruins are back where they were all season - looking inept in the offensive zone and scrambling to figure out how to keep the puck out of their own.
Sometimes it's not just about being a talented team. Sometimes it's about the circumstances and this could become a perfect storm for the Flyers.
I'm not saying it's a lock, but watch out, Bruins fans. It's not as far-fetched as you might think.
Monday, May 10, 2010
The top shelf and the bottom of the barrel
By Chris Maza
Fan Fanatic Sports Staff
This will hopefully be the first in a weekly series where I break down the best and worst five teams in the MLB. Hopefully we'll stir up some conversation because my picks won't always be the popular ones. So let's get down to it.
Top shelf
Tampa Bay Rays
Sure, Dallas Braden just made history against them, but that's exactly what makes Braden's accomplishment that much more impressive. No one has even thrown a no-hitter against a team with a better winning percentage than the Rays have, let alone a perfect game. Only one team in baseball is in the top 3 in both pitching and runs and that's Tampa Bay.
New York Yankees
Much like Tampa Bay, the Yankees have been dominant against the toughest division in baseball at 11-2. They won five in a row, including two games in which they blasted the Red Sox at Fenway Park before losing the last game of the three-game series last night. Robinson Cano is having the kind of season people have been waiting for since he came up to the bigs and that could result in an MVP award at season's end.
Philadelphia Phillies
The Phillies had a rough end of April, losing five of its last seven games against teams that frankly they shouldn't have lost to, but have righted the ship early in May. Roy Halladay has been an absolute animal, winning six of his seven starts. He's gone the distance in three of those starts and twice he finished those complete games with a shutout.
Minnesota Twins
I seriously thought about putting St. Louis ahead of Minnesota because of the fact that 14 of the Twins' 21 wins have come against a weak AL Central. But the fact that Minnesota has played as well outside their new friendly confines as they have at Target Field made me reconsider. The Twins have been getting consistent efforts from their starting pitchers, from one to five with Francisco Liriano regaining the ace-like form he lost a year ago. And while Ron Gardenhire blew smoke at the beginning of the season about a bullpen by committee, Jon Rauch has filled the void Joe Nathan left behind.
St. Louis Cardinals
St. Louis was cruising until it ran into a buzz saw called the Philadelphia Phillies last week. After winning the first game, 6-3, St. Louis was held to three runs over the next three games, all of which were losses. Granted, two of those losses came against Cole Hammels and Roy Halladay. Still, the Cardinals need to find more consistent offense to back what has to be considered one of the strongest rotations in baseball. Jaime Garcia has proved to be a nice addition to a rotation that already includes Adam Wainwright and Chris Carpenter. With a 1.18 ERA and .195 batting average against, Garcia has been far better than his 3-2 record would indicate. In his two losses, he has given up one run and struck out 12 in 13 innings, but only received one run's worth of support from his offense.
Bottom of the Barrel (The absolute worst is, of course, at the bottom)
Pittsburgh Pirates
They're dead last in the league in pitching and haven't done enough with the bat to make up for their shortcomings. Garrett Jones is the only Pirate on pace to drive in more than 100 RBI this season and that's not likely to keep with him sporting a .230 average and .396 slugging percentage.
Seattle Mariners
Seattle finally won its first game of the month of May on Sunday, snapping an eight-game losing streak. Seattle is batting a paltry .229 as a team on the season and is tied for second to last in all of baseball in runs scored.
Cleveland Indians
Only one team has scored fewer runs than the Indians this season. As mentioned above, they are second to last in that category, but fall below Seattle in the rankings because the Indians' pitching has an ERA nearly a run worse.
Kansas City Royals
You need look no further than Greinke to find an example of how bad the Royals are. Greinke is ninth in the league in ERA at 2.51 after six starts, but currently sits at 0-4 on the season.
Baltimore Orioles
While they have the worst record in baseball, there are enough reasons not to put the O's dead last. Baltimore won just five games in the month of April, but have already won four this month and have won two of their last three series against some decent teams in Boston (whom the O's swept) and Minnesota.
Houston Astros
Houston lost 11 of its last 13 games and hasn't won consecutive games since it swept a three-game series against Pittsburgh on April 23-25. Lance Berkman has offered to waive his no-trade clause in an attempt to get out of dodge. There is not one thing going right for this team. The guys the Astros were hoping to lean on, namely Carlos Lee, Hunter Pence and Berkman, have hit for a combined .213 with seven homers and 26 RBI in 286 at-bats. If things don't perk up soon, some people may be finding their way towards the door.
Fan Fanatic Sports Staff
This will hopefully be the first in a weekly series where I break down the best and worst five teams in the MLB. Hopefully we'll stir up some conversation because my picks won't always be the popular ones. So let's get down to it.
Top shelf
Tampa Bay Rays
Sure, Dallas Braden just made history against them, but that's exactly what makes Braden's accomplishment that much more impressive. No one has even thrown a no-hitter against a team with a better winning percentage than the Rays have, let alone a perfect game. Only one team in baseball is in the top 3 in both pitching and runs and that's Tampa Bay.
New York Yankees
Much like Tampa Bay, the Yankees have been dominant against the toughest division in baseball at 11-2. They won five in a row, including two games in which they blasted the Red Sox at Fenway Park before losing the last game of the three-game series last night. Robinson Cano is having the kind of season people have been waiting for since he came up to the bigs and that could result in an MVP award at season's end.
Philadelphia Phillies
The Phillies had a rough end of April, losing five of its last seven games against teams that frankly they shouldn't have lost to, but have righted the ship early in May. Roy Halladay has been an absolute animal, winning six of his seven starts. He's gone the distance in three of those starts and twice he finished those complete games with a shutout.
Minnesota Twins
I seriously thought about putting St. Louis ahead of Minnesota because of the fact that 14 of the Twins' 21 wins have come against a weak AL Central. But the fact that Minnesota has played as well outside their new friendly confines as they have at Target Field made me reconsider. The Twins have been getting consistent efforts from their starting pitchers, from one to five with Francisco Liriano regaining the ace-like form he lost a year ago. And while Ron Gardenhire blew smoke at the beginning of the season about a bullpen by committee, Jon Rauch has filled the void Joe Nathan left behind.
St. Louis Cardinals
St. Louis was cruising until it ran into a buzz saw called the Philadelphia Phillies last week. After winning the first game, 6-3, St. Louis was held to three runs over the next three games, all of which were losses. Granted, two of those losses came against Cole Hammels and Roy Halladay. Still, the Cardinals need to find more consistent offense to back what has to be considered one of the strongest rotations in baseball. Jaime Garcia has proved to be a nice addition to a rotation that already includes Adam Wainwright and Chris Carpenter. With a 1.18 ERA and .195 batting average against, Garcia has been far better than his 3-2 record would indicate. In his two losses, he has given up one run and struck out 12 in 13 innings, but only received one run's worth of support from his offense.
Bottom of the Barrel (The absolute worst is, of course, at the bottom)
Pittsburgh Pirates
They're dead last in the league in pitching and haven't done enough with the bat to make up for their shortcomings. Garrett Jones is the only Pirate on pace to drive in more than 100 RBI this season and that's not likely to keep with him sporting a .230 average and .396 slugging percentage.
Seattle Mariners
Seattle finally won its first game of the month of May on Sunday, snapping an eight-game losing streak. Seattle is batting a paltry .229 as a team on the season and is tied for second to last in all of baseball in runs scored.
Cleveland Indians
Only one team has scored fewer runs than the Indians this season. As mentioned above, they are second to last in that category, but fall below Seattle in the rankings because the Indians' pitching has an ERA nearly a run worse.
Kansas City Royals
You need look no further than Greinke to find an example of how bad the Royals are. Greinke is ninth in the league in ERA at 2.51 after six starts, but currently sits at 0-4 on the season.
Baltimore Orioles
While they have the worst record in baseball, there are enough reasons not to put the O's dead last. Baltimore won just five games in the month of April, but have already won four this month and have won two of their last three series against some decent teams in Boston (whom the O's swept) and Minnesota.
Houston Astros
Houston lost 11 of its last 13 games and hasn't won consecutive games since it swept a three-game series against Pittsburgh on April 23-25. Lance Berkman has offered to waive his no-trade clause in an attempt to get out of dodge. There is not one thing going right for this team. The guys the Astros were hoping to lean on, namely Carlos Lee, Hunter Pence and Berkman, have hit for a combined .213 with seven homers and 26 RBI in 286 at-bats. If things don't perk up soon, some people may be finding their way towards the door.
Sunday, May 9, 2010
Game 5 is a must win for the B's
By Chris Maza
Fan Fanatic Sports Staff
Sure, technically they still need to lose three more before they're eliminated, but if the Bruins don't win Game 5, they could be done like dinner.
Consider everything the Flyers have going for them at this point. They just got one of their best offensive players back in Simon Gagne. They just won a dramatic overtime game with that player leading the team in shots and scoring the game-winning goal. Sound familiar?
Yes, it's true that while the Bruins are still up 3-1 in the series, the momentum has shifted. Now at least Boston has home ice on its side and now must capitalize on that fact. If not, it could be bad news for the B's.
Given the momentum and confidence that surely would build from beating the Bruins on their ice and the fact that the Flyers have one of the loudest arenas in hockey (behind Montreal and Calgary and right on par with Chicago), Boston cannot want to play another game in Philadelphia.
Imagine the scenario: Facing elimination on their opponents' ice the Flyers capture another win and travel back to Philly for Game 6. They beat Boston at home to send it to a game seven. In that scenario, even with home ice, how confident can the Bruins be in their ability to knock off the Flyers?
Not very, that's for sure, especially without one of its best offensive players in David Krejci. While Krejci hasn't been the most effective players in the season overall, he is still one of the most talented players on the Bruins and has started to prove it in the playoffs with eight points in nine games. In fact, he proved at the Olympics he's one of the most talented players in the world.
The Bruins did return Mark Stuart, which will help, but they lost a huge impact player whom they won't have anyone to replace with. The bench is getting short for the Bruins and they need to end this series on Monday and give themselves some rest. If not, the momentum, confidence and fresh legs could carry Philly right past them.
Fan Fanatic Sports Staff
Sure, technically they still need to lose three more before they're eliminated, but if the Bruins don't win Game 5, they could be done like dinner.
Consider everything the Flyers have going for them at this point. They just got one of their best offensive players back in Simon Gagne. They just won a dramatic overtime game with that player leading the team in shots and scoring the game-winning goal. Sound familiar?
Yes, it's true that while the Bruins are still up 3-1 in the series, the momentum has shifted. Now at least Boston has home ice on its side and now must capitalize on that fact. If not, it could be bad news for the B's.
Given the momentum and confidence that surely would build from beating the Bruins on their ice and the fact that the Flyers have one of the loudest arenas in hockey (behind Montreal and Calgary and right on par with Chicago), Boston cannot want to play another game in Philadelphia.
Imagine the scenario: Facing elimination on their opponents' ice the Flyers capture another win and travel back to Philly for Game 6. They beat Boston at home to send it to a game seven. In that scenario, even with home ice, how confident can the Bruins be in their ability to knock off the Flyers?
Not very, that's for sure, especially without one of its best offensive players in David Krejci. While Krejci hasn't been the most effective players in the season overall, he is still one of the most talented players on the Bruins and has started to prove it in the playoffs with eight points in nine games. In fact, he proved at the Olympics he's one of the most talented players in the world.
The Bruins did return Mark Stuart, which will help, but they lost a huge impact player whom they won't have anyone to replace with. The bench is getting short for the Bruins and they need to end this series on Monday and give themselves some rest. If not, the momentum, confidence and fresh legs could carry Philly right past them.
Friday, May 7, 2010
Fantasy Baseball Friday: May 7th
By Jim Ingram
Fan Fanatic Sports Staff
Welcome back for another week of fantasy baseball review. Beginning next week we'll finally start looking toward the week ahead.
Weekly Top 10: Hitters
1. Andre Ethier (Dodgers) - He has a line of .480, 5, 13 this week. Wow! It's nice to see the ankle healthy.I really never thought he was going to be that good, but it looks like I was wrong. It doesn't hurt he's also one of the most clutch hitters in baseball.
2. Alfonso Soriano (Cubs) - Is he back from the dead? He might be, but he still doesn't steal bases anymore. My suggestion is to trade him while he's hot and get the most you can. He will get hurt sometime soon.
3. Brett Gardner (Yankees) - In case you haven't noticed, the young lefty is having a stellar season so far. He has a .430 OBP and 13 stolen bases. Looks like he'll stick in the Yankees outfield
4. J.D. Drew (Red Sox) - Ho hum. He has one good week, he has one bad week. He might even get you two good weeks and then hit the DL. Stay away
5. Hanley Ramirez (Marlins) - Hanley has been his usual self with the bat, but only has 2 steals so far. Really? H-Ram has got to start using his legs.
6. James Loney (Dodgers) - He's off to a very good start this season, and even has some people using him as a starter in deep leagues at first. I am a huge fan of his, but do not expect power numbers.
7. Evan Longoria (Rays) - As you may know, he's one of my favorite players and a fantasy baseball star. Why else would one of my sons be named Evan.
8. Jason Heyward (Braves) - I am very impressed with the rookie. He's been able to adjust after seeing opponents a second time. He's shown patience, and is driving the ball to all fields. There is no doubt he'll be a fantasy super start for the next 12 years.
9. Jayson Werth (Phillies) - Talk about getting ready for a big payday. It looks like he won't get it from the Phillies, but he'll get it from someone. He keeps getting better and better.
10. Denard Span (Twins) - Is turning around after an awful start. He's getting on base more, scoring more runs recently, but needs to start snagging more bags.
Weekly Top 10: Pitchers
1. Roy Hallady (Phillies) - What can you say about the man. In his first 3 starts at Citizens Bank Ballpark he's only allowed 1 homer. That will surely keep him in the Cy Young race all year
2. Neftali Perez (Rangers) - The young phenom has solidified the closer situation in Texas. He should have no trouble doing that the rest of the year.
3. Matt Cain (Giants) - While I certainly hate the Giants, I've always been a fan of Cain. After a breakout season last year, he's keeping it up so far this season.
4. Scott Olsen (Nationals) - While he may be a DB, apparently he can actually pitch. He's allowed only 2 runs (1 earned) over his past 20.1 innings pitched amassing two wins in those three games. Keep an eye on him.
5. Rich Harden (Rangers) - Don't look now, but Harden is pitching pretty well so far. I still would be scared of his history of injuries.
6. Brett Cecil (Blue Jays) - 2.61 ERA, 21 K, 4 BB, .77 WHIP & a .167 OBA? Damn, I might just have to pick him up myself.
7. Andrew Bailey (A's) - I have to admit when I'm wrong. After he was injured in Spring Training I declared he'd be somewhat of a bust this season. Boy was I wrong as he hasn't allowed a single run so far along with a perfect 5 for 5 in saves
8. Robinson Tejeda (Royals) - Tejeda has been one of the best middle relievers in the game in 2010. If you need one, he's a pretty good one to pick up as he already has 15 appearances.
9. Jeff Neimann (Rays) - I'm pretty sure every member of the Rays has a horseshoe stuck up you know where. This kid has been stellar, especially in his last two starts where he's allowed just one run in 14 innings.
10. Justin Verlander (Tigers) - He seems to be turning things around after a rough start. He's a true ace, so don't panic too soon.
The David Ortiz Disappointments of the Season (so far):
Gil Meche (Royals) - Wait, how much does this guy make? Ouch. His WHIP 2.28 would be a might nice ERA. In his 5 starts he's allowed 26 earned runs.
Edwin Jackson (Diamondbacks) - In his last two starts he's allowed 18 runs in just 6.2 innings. Not really worth the trade if you ask me.
Javier Vasquez (Yankees) - Speaking of bad trades. It didn't work the first time round in the Bronx, and it looks like it wont work this time either.
Chris Coghlan (Marlins) - The 2009 Rookie of the Year is having a serious sophomore slump. Is he Jerome Walton? I doubt it.
Aramis Ramirez (Cubs) - Is he the NL version of David Ortiz? In half of a season in 2009, he did put up very good numbers, so I don't think so. I hope you have a backup 3rd basemen until he returns to form.
Gordon Beckham (White Sox) - Beckham is a very good ball player. He will turn around the season, and I specifically look at Dustin Pedroia's rookie season as a parallel.
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