» Mike Gonzalez

Despite the loss and the fact that Mike Gonzalez got hurt (and hopefully that’s not major- even though I’m sure Gonzo could use some rest), the game today was fun. Barry Zito was really good, and so was Kenshin Kawakami.

What else can I say? Oh yeah, my boys have been on a roll! They’re currently in second place in the NL East and hopefully that’ll stay the same! I’m gonna go into individual people and their awesomeness, then assess the team as a whole! Fun, right?

Peter Moylan

Yes, that’s right, my favorite goes first! Although he’s been shaky and inconsistent, I’m very thankful he’s on the team. I still find it impeccable that he tried so hard to be ready for the season- even though he wasn’t even twelve months into his Tommy John rehab. I think he’s a little over-used, and with some more rest he could be the reliever he was in ‘07! Maybe I’m just saying that because he’s my favorite, but either way, I still believe it!

Tommy Hanson

He’s been amazing up here! He’s 5-0 and still going! I can only imagine how much better he’s going to be with more Major League experience! GO TOMMY!

Jair Jurrjens:

All I have to say about JJ is that the other team needs to look out! I mean seriously, he out-pitched Tim Lincecum! I still don’t get why he wasn’t an All-Star, but I guess I’ll never know! Jair is definitely my favorite starter, I’ve had the pleasure of meeing him and he was as sweet as can be, and beyond that, he’s got some skills! I look forward to see what he’s like in the next three or four years, because I have no doubt he’ll be lights out!

Yunel Escobar

Oh Yunel! He has a bit of an attitude problem, but aside from that, he’s been amazing! Esco is fantastic! My goodness, as of right now he’s the defending National League Player of the week and I’m sure he’ll be in considerations if he doesn’t get the title again! Go Yunie!

Rafael Soriano

He definatley has impressed me this year, I honestly didn’t expect him to throw a pitch at all! I’m very glad he’s proved me wrong, though.

Martin Prado

Oh, Martin has always been one of my favorites! I’m glad he’s doing so well, even if that puts Kelly Johnson on the bench! He’s proved he can be a producing starter and I don’t see that changing anytime soon! I wish Martin all the best!

Matt Diaz

You all know of my fondness of MattE D, so I’ll keep this short. He’s been pretty hot lately and I’m never upset to see him in the line-up or at the plate (not that I ever have been, I always love seeing Matt play)! Matt is definitely amazing, and right now he’s playing as well as his brother can sing (which is pretty good! I met Jonny Diaz the other day, he’s awesome, actually)

The 2009 Atlanta Braves

The other night on Braves Live! Fred Hickman called the Braves “consistently inconsistent”, which pretty sums it all up. This year is for sure an improvement than last year, but Fred totally nailed this season with that comment. They’d win two, then lose three, when three, and lose four. I really hope that they’re consistently winning this half of the season, because I’d love to see the Braves in the play-offs. So far, they’re doing a good job, but it’s only July. There’s two months left to go, so let’s all hope the starters can pitch deep, the bullpen can be awesome, and that offense can stay hot, because let’s face it, I love the Red Sox, but I really don’t wannna be watching only them in mid-October (plus, who really wants to see the Phillies in the post-season?)

Till next time,

GO BRAVES!

EDIT 7/24/09: I was wrong! Yunel was National League Player of the week until the 19th. I need to do my research next time

I got an email from a friend of mine that is a D-Backs fan last night, with the subject of “Hey! These Braves are Actually Good!” it cracked me up, seeing as he was teasing me about how they stunk last month. It turns out, the email was about our paper in Literature on To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee (which would be the main reason that I’ve been missing, in case you’re concerned! I have two weeks of school left! Woooo!), but still, I’m saving the email to tease him with later!

So onto the Braves, after that horrific slide that left many fans wondering if 2009 was just a cruel continuation of 2008, the Bravos are really good! They’re 18-17 and tied with Philly for second in the NL East! If you had told me that in July of last year, I would have laughed in your face. As much as I love my boys, last year was just… atrocious. I know its still early on, but second place is still second place! I wish it was first, but New York won’t stay up there for long, there no doubt in my mind!

There is one thing worrying me, though.

Mike Gonzalez. He was an awesome closer last year after coming back from Tommy John Surgery. Now, he’s blown two of his last three save opportunities. I know he’s been overworked a bit, but Gonzo has always been one of my favorites and I’m still allowed to be worried, right? I know the Braves have Soriano, who has been pretty good so far this year but I’m still holding my breath over the terms of his health. The same with Peter Moylan. Pete has had his shaky moments this year, but all in all he’s been fantastic in terms of returning from Tommy John Surgery a month before he was due back. He has six holds so far this year, and I believe he leads the team with them. I could be wrong though, correct me if I am.

That’s it for now, I’m going to the game tonight if the weather permits it and I want to get ready and stuff. Till next time (and it won’t be as much of a wait as last time!)

PS. Did you see Atlanta Braves: Straight Up 3? It was hilarious, I swear!

Last night’s game was weird. It was fun to watch but really weird too. Jon “Boog” Sciambi and Joe Simpson cracked me up the whole time (as Boog taught us he could do math) but it was impossible to tear away.

I mean, I can’t remember when we accepted two staight bases loaded walks! Yunel Escobar’s little  bench and bullpen clearing “show” in the third inning was… kinda awesome in a weird way. There are times when I just love Yunel’s fire. It made the game ten times more interesting. Jeff Francoeur continues to remind us why we loved him so much before his slump last year (and why some of us continued to love him even during the slump) with his solo homer in the fifth plus Matt Diaz with his RBI. The Braves are starting to look better, so we’ll watch this work out.

Pitching Notes:

• Mike Gonzalez got the save! Now he has two! Go Gonzo!
• Rafael Soriano gave up his first run of the season.
• Peter Moylan got charged with an error but managed to not give up a run, and now has in ERA in the single digits! Go Moylan!
• Javier Vazquez is now 2 and 1. Go Javy!

Team Notes:

• Garrett Anderson is on the DL. Get well!
• The AJC’s David O’Brien expects Brian McCann to go on the DL and he’ll have a surgery to fix the left eye that has been giving him problems. Get well soon Mac!
• Chipper turned 37 years old yesterday! Poor guy didn’t have a hit though! Happy belated birthday!
• On the McCann note, Clint Sammons is expected to be called up! As much as I hate to lose Mac, I love Clint! Wooo!

So that’s it! The game starts at 1:10 EST, be sure to check out those Bravos! Wooo! Go D. Lowe! Woo!

This is going to be rather abbreviated, I have to study as the EOCTs start Tuesday,

With that being said… 

I wish I could be in Cincinnati tonight. I’m missing those boys and I’m ready for them to be back in Atlanta. Turner Field is one of my favorite places in the world and I can’t wait till Tuesday so I can be there again.

So let’s take care of the Reds quickly and let the boys come home as soon as possible. I mean, seriously, let Javy Vazquez and the line up do his job quickly and usher in Peter Moylan, Rafael Soriano, and Mike Gonzalez. Good deal, right?

As nice as that sounds, I don’t know if that’s going to happen. I have faith in the pitching and all, but the starting line-ups will need to do their thing and drive in some runs quickly and not let the only run of the whole game come from a bases loaded walk. They need to keep their defense up and do all the things they have the POTENTIAL to do, but they don’t always LIVE UP to. They do that, they have a winner and a lot of happy fans back home and all over the country!

So Now,

GO BRAVES!

Man-oh-man-oh-man! I can’t help but think that Kelly Johnson is the awesomest person in the world- ever. (Now I know you might think my Peter Moylan love is dying. Well, if you’re that concerned, it’s not. Pete’s accent gives him a major advantage over KJ)! Okay, so, Kelly. I swear I felt so happy when he walked and “drove in” that run last night, the only run of the game in the Braves-Nationals finale. I must say, if we had been swept by the Washington Nationals I would have been extremly worried. Last night’s game was has so much suspense in it, I would have thought I was watching a murder mystery.

Jair Jurrjens was great as always and his performance last night makes me wonder what he’ll be like in his late twenties or early thirties and its hard to think of him as 23, a year younger than my brother. This is two starts for him in a row where he could probably get the win if there had been some run support. Well, at least we won last night. That gives most of us some peace of mind on this long and boring off-day.  It seems like every two days we have an off day and that just stinks. So let’s look at some key points for this series with the Reds.

Brian McCann

That specialized contact lense he has will has… helped. He was one for four last night and one for two the night before, his first two hits in five games. Mac is essential to the line up and without him, lose a powerful, powerful element.

Chipper Jones

He needs to stay healthy. The Braves tend to play better with him in there. There is no doubt about it, so we need to keep Chipper as healthy as possible- that’s vital.

The Bullpen

We have three surgerically repaired relievers in Rafael Soriano, Peter Moylan, and Mike Gonzalez as the top relievers, they need to stay on top. Moylan has had a shaky beggining, but he’ coming back. His ERA went from 135.00 to 10.80 in six games, so I have no worries for him. As long as he keeps the ball in the strike zone, most of his earned runs have been walked in, so he needs to work on some control, but he looks pretty good considering he came back a month early from Tommy John Surgery. Gonzo needs to be his usual FANTASTIC self and be the closer he was last year after comming back from TJ. Sori, well, Sori’s fine. He needs to stay healthy. That’s all. The rest of the bullpen is pretty awesome. Eric O’Flaherty is really starting to impress me and (I’m hoping) other fans. Of course, Blaine Boyer is gone so these other guys will have to deal with the two guys who had the most appearances last year being gone (the other being Will Ohman, of course. I miss him and his hilarious self)!

Major Offense

We need to be able to protect our leads with good defense, yes, but adding isurance will definatley help that too. We need to be able to score runners that are in scoring positon and get guys on base. So far, Matt Diaz, Jeff Francoeur, Kelly Johnson, Chipper, and Yunel Escobar aren’t concerning me so much. MattE isn’t a regular like the rest, but he’s played more than Garrett Anderson this year (or it seems like it at least)!

With all this mind, I hope the Braves can start winnning. We have potential, but can we live up that potential…? That is the question.

(PS. I really wanna think of some nick names for the boys, espacially Moylan, Diaz, O’Flaherty, Schafer, KJ, and Kenshin- my favorites. Any suggestions?)

First off, sorry for not posting yesterday. I intended to so after I got home but when I did I was so tired I couldn’t think straight. So I’ll do yesterday’s and today’s right now.

The game last night will be pretty hard to forget. It was the second home-opener I’ve ever been too, and the rain delay for about two hours was pretty fun at times and miserable at others. I think the highlight of the whole delay was when they showed “Prime Nine” that show on MLB Network, one of my favorite shows. Okay, game time now.

Before the delay, Derek Lowe gave up one run in the top of the third (I’m not to entirely sure what happened as my nephew and I were running the bases in Sky Field). So the Nats got an early lead, not for long though, in the bottom of that inning, Yunel Escobar hit his first home-run of the year, a three run. So going into the delay called at the top of the fourth, the score was 3-1 with Atlanta on top!

After the delay, Buddy Carlyle came in with two outs and a full count for Lowe. Carlyle struck the batter out to end the inning. Buddy did pretty well last night, a good portion of the pitches he threw were strikes. The bottom of the fourth, the Braves added to their lead by one. After Carlyle, Pete Moylan made his home debut in a year. He gave up a hit, but I swear he made my night just being out there (because I’m sure by now I’ve made it clear that he is my favorite and last year was unbearable without him). After Moylan gave up that hit, Bobby brought in Eric O’Flaherty, who suffered a blown save, but the inning ended. After the Irish came Jeff Bennett in the top of the seventh. Bennett got into a jam but managed to get out of the via a double play. The bottom of that inning, the Braves broke that tie. Then in the eighth the Braves sent former closer Rafeal Soriano. Soriano went through quickly, leading into the bottom where the Bravos remained silent for one of the few times that night. Finally, came the ninth. Mike Gonzalez came in… and blew the save. So the ’pen continues in struggles, but that might just be short term. In the bottom of the ninth, despite Chipper Jones getting to second after a single and a sac-fly by Brian McCann, Atlanta couldn’t get the point.  So onto the tenth. The Nats didn’t make it, so we go to the bottom of the tenth. Jordan Schafer managed to get on base, then to second. Then came the best part of the night: Kelly Johnson hit a basehit to score Schafer. THE BRAVES WIN. Jorge Campillo got the win while Joe Beimel suffered the loss! I don’t think there was anyone there who wasn’t happy that long game was over! I like to compare to that 17-inning game last year against Houston, it was early enough into Saturday, that no one really cared who won at that point.

So onto tonight. Kenshin Kawakami will make his Braves debut against John Lanan. We could probably expect to see Chipper in the line-up tonight, and it wouldn’t suprise me if Garrett Anderson will be starting tonight too. We’ll find out more about that later on in the day!

(And finally, I’ve noticed I forgot to mention that I’m Crista. I live in the Merto-Atlanta area and the Bravos are probably the best part of the summer.)

NL East Preview/Projection

*The NL East is the only division that can attempt to match the AL East with a lineup of…

Jose Reyes (ss-NYM)-With the epitome of range at SS and speed & OBP now at the top of the lineup

(120-17-68-60-295)

Chase Utley (2b-PHL)-The patience to be the perfect #2 hitter but the greatness to bat anywhere

(115-30-110-13-296)

Hanley Ramirez (lf-FLA)-Talent to bat leadoff or third & now he has Bonaficio and Maybin to drive in

(116-33-106-29-303)

Ryan Howard (1b-PHL)-HR & RBI leader of the MLB last year and again this year with a better AVG

(96-45-135-1-275)

David Wright (3b-NYM)-Has Reyes & Murphy in front and Beltran & Delgado behind; Got to love his line

(112-31-122-20-305)

Carlos Beltran (cf-NYM)-Batting 5^th will hurt his runs but gold glove CF with power & speed combo

(92-26-115-22-279)

Brian McCann (c-ATL)-Great line at Catcher; Another year under his belt and less weight above his belt

(68-24-94-3-298)

Jimmy Rollins (dh-PHL)-Rather Reyes at SS & Hanley in LF, but I’ll take Rollins at DH against the AL East

(119-19-75-39-278)

Jeff Francoeur (rf-ATL)-Gun for an arm and a rebound year for our last OF spot

(77-22-90-3-269)

….and a rotation of:

Johan Santana (NYM)-18 straight starts without a loss and A NEW BULLPEN – 20+ wins?

(20-2.85-1.15-209)

Cole Hamels (PHL)-Same fastball/changeup repertoire that BAFFLES hitters; Health issues?

(16-3.19-1.09-194)

Derek Lowe (ATL)-Durable. That’s all I have to say, but with all his groundouts, he would probably be effective even with Colorado, or Texas.

(14-3.75-1.25-140)

Ricky Nolasco (FLA)-Still underrated? Doubt it, but he’ll be almost as good this year.

(14-3.84-1.21-171)

Josh Johnson (FLA)-Better k-rate than Nolasco with Worse WHIP, but stud if healthy.

(14-3.65-1.33-175)

…and a solid bullpen of Brad Lidge(38sv), Francisco Rodriguez(42sv), JJ Putz(6sv), Mike Gonzalez(30sv), Matt Lindstrom(23sv), Joel Hanrahan(25sv) and let us not forget about ambidextrous Billy Wagner pitching with determination and for another contract later in the year.

*Breaking down the NL East by position and using a sample rank system, I came up with the following (as objectively as possible):

c: McCann(atl-5) – Really no other C in the NL East can compare

1b: Ryan Howard(phl-5pts); Carlos Delgado(nym-4pts); Jorge Cantu(fla-3pts); Adam Dunn(was-3pts); Casey Kotchman(atl-2pts) - Howard is the clear favorite; A somewhat offensive bounce-back from Kotchman is in place; Delgado, Cantu, and Dunn should all be solid again; Cantu is definitely still underrated with Bonifacio, Maybin sometimes, and Hanley Ramirez in front of him.

2b: Chase Utley(phl-5pts);Dan Uggla(fla-3pts);Kelly Johnson(atl-2pts); Luis Castillo(nym-1pt) – Castillo can be an effective 2b still at the 8-spot in the Mets lineup; Kelly Johnson can go 85-17-75-9-287 with maturity and confidence. Obviously, the Nationals have a 2^nd baseman in Anderson Hernandez/Ronnie Belliard – I just don’t think they’re worth writing about.

3b: David Wright(nym-5pts); Chipper Jones(atl-4pts); Ryan Zimmerman(was-3pts) Emilio Bonifacio (fla-3pts) – Chipper does deserve 5 points along with Wright if he could just stay healthy enough; If Bonifacio sticks to leadoff he can be a runs and sb stud; and Zimmerman should have a 85-20-85-5-285 line. His defense is fantastic and he has potential for 85-25-95-5-290. Pedro Feliz isn’t worth ranking albeit solid defense.

ss: Hanley Ramirez(fla-5pts); Jose Reyes(nym-4pts); Jimmy Rollins (phl-4pts); Yunel Escobar(atl-2pts) – I wanted to give 5 points to both Rollins and Reyes as well, but It’s true that Hanley is in an offensive class all by himself since he’ll have lots of rbi opportunities this year; I personally think Reyes can belt 19 home runs this year, but 16hr + 60sb is beautiful with a stellar .293-.297 avg.

lf: Raul Ibanez(tilde over the n)(phl-5pts); Daniel Murphy(nym-4pts); Matt Diaz(atl-3pts); Josh Willingham (was-2pts) – I love Daniel Murphy batting 2^nd in the Mets lineup. I think a very healthy 90-17-75-7-286 is very possible; Ibanez will be stellar there in the Phillies Lineup; Matt Diaz with playing time can be very good. Along with Brian McCann, he slimmed down a bit.

cf: Carlos Beltran(nym-5pts); Shane Victorino(phl-4pts); Cameron Maybin(fla-3pts); Lastings Milledge(was-2 pts); Jordan Schaeffer (atl-2pts) – Jordan Schaeffer is young and good. He’s already got 2 hr this year. He could switch with Kelly Johnson/Yunel Escobar for the top of the lineup if slow starts occur for either of the 2 or when Chipper sits (which will be enough) and Omar Infante is in the lineup. I think he can be good for 17hr-15sb. Maybin should bat 2^nd but may find himself at the bottom of the lineup enough to hurt. His lineup spot should have the following breakdown: 50% batting 8^th, 35% batting 2^nd; and 15% batting lead-off. A line of 85-15-65-25-269 seems great for where he went in drafts; Like I said prior, Beltran will lose out on runs and protection batting 5^th, but he should bat 4^th enough against lefties when Delgado bats 5^th.

rf: Jeff Francoeur(atl-5pts); Jayson Werth(phl-4pts); Jeremy Hermida(fla-2pts); Elijah Dukes-Austin Kearns(was-2pts); Church-Sheffield(nym-2pts) – Hermida was regarded very highly just a few years ago, and the rbi opportunities are there. He could get time batting 2^nd as well. I actually like him for a line of 75-18-75-6-260; Werth should be very good when healthy since right field is his. I see 24hr-15sb due to injury concern; Platoons and split-time between the Mets and Nationals right field situations should yield above average numbers. The difference between them and Francoeur however is obviously not nearly as great between say Chase Utley at 2b and Ronnie Belliard at 2b so I think they deserve 2 pts to Francoeur’s 5 pts.

sp1: Johan Santana(nym-5pts); Cole Hamels(phl-5pts); Derek Lowe(atl-4pts); Ricky Nolasco(fla-4pts)

sp2: Josh Johnson(fla-5pts); Javier Vazquez(atl-3pts); Brett Myers(phl-3pts); Maine/Pelfrey/Perez (nym-3pts) – To me, Josh Johnson is clearly the best #2 starter here with the other 3 teams having fairly similar numbers at the #2 rotation spot. The thing with the Mets is I’m not sure who the #2 will be by year’s end – same for their number 3 and 4 starters, and I’m a Mets Fan; Brett Myers Could be good at times and a mess at others. I think he’s better than Moyer this year (even though Moyer may be ageless the way he pitches) so I’ll put him here and Moyer in the 3-whole.

sp3: Jair Jurjjens(atl-4pts); Jamie Moyer(phl-3pts); Maine/Pelfrey/Perez(nym-3pts); Volstad(fla-3pts)

sp4: Joe Blanton(phl-4pts); Kenshin Kawakami(atl-3pts); Maine/Pelfrey/Perez(nym-3pts) – I think Kawakami can be as effective as the teams’ other #4’s since no one has seen him.

sp5/Minor League P call-ups: Tommy Hanson(atl-4pts); Jordan Zimmerman(was-3pts); Carlos Carrasco(phl-3pts); Jon Niese(nym-1pts) – the Phillies, Nat’s, and especially the Braves have a future Ace or #2 in the whole, while the Mets, to me have a future #4. I think the Phillies will need Carrasco quicker than the Mets need Niese or Braves need Hanson, but Hanson is the best among the new wave of NL East Starters. Jordan Zimmerman could and should put up better than league average numbers in his first season.

P.S. Livan Hernandez will be horrendous for the Mets. Hopefully they sign Pedro Martinez or Jon Niese and Tim Redding can be effective enough. However, I do see a deadline SP deal for the Mets, which comes later in the post.

closer: Brad Lidge(phl-5pts); Krod(nym-5pts); Mike Gonzalez(atl-3pts); Matt Lindstrom(fla-2pts); Joel Hanrahan(was-2pts)-Krod and Lidge will be great again. Gonzalez is underrated and can save 35 games without Rafael Soriano getting a chance. Tommy Hanson could get some opportunities if both Gonzalez and Soriano are unhealthy, but I think they’ll keep him as a SP as he sores to the Majors. Lindstrom can be very good with his 100mph fast ball and slider so long as he stays healthy. Per pitch, he was the hardest thrower in the majors last year, and let’s not forget about Jon Broxton/LAD or Joel Zumaya/DET.

setup: JJ Putz(nym-5pts); Rafael Soriano(atl-2pts) – If Krod goes down, the Mets should still be OK because of JJ Putz - just OK. JC Romero of PHL could have been here if he didn’t get suspended for substance abuse, but hey thanks for helping the Phillies win the World Series and thanks for playing in the World Baseball Classic. Horrendousness.

Figure 1.0: Results

Point-Breakdown:

*Obviously, this is a very basic statistical way (almost a weight system) of ranking the NL East, but still feasible. Those not ranked, still received 1 pt for the contingent positions. The above system ranks each team as follows: Phillies (53pts) Mets (51pts) Braves (48pts) Marlins (38pts) and of course lastly, the Nationals (25pts). So here, the Phillies rank 1^st. However, there are definitely contingencies this year, such as how the Braves play against the Phillies. They were 4-14 against the Phillies last year. The Braves rotation with Lowe, Vazquez, Kawakami, and Hanson later on in the season, will be much much better, and their offense should pick up quite a bit as well. Most Importantly – The Mets. They had the 3^rd most blown saves last season with 29 (Both the Cardinals and Mariners had 31). The additions by subtractions and additions by great additions/call-ups (Krod, Putz, Sean Green, Brian Stokes, Bobby Parnell) should subtract at least 15 of those 29 blown saves – and probably many more!!! All three referenced NL East teams need to watch out for the Marlins, but I don’t think they have the bullpen and rotation depth to compete for 162 games in the 2^nd best division in the Major Leagues for 2009.

Mets Trade Rumors:

*Lastly, there will always be trade rumors throughout the season, and at the deadline. It may be more intense this year than last due to the economy, and some non-competing teams may be very willing to rid of their expensive talent. I think the Mets will be big players in a sundry of discussions – mainly with the Blue Jays, Mariners, and potentially the Padres. I think Erik Bedard (sp) along with Jose Lopez (2b), Roy Halladay (sp), as well as Jake Peavy(sp) would be fantastic additions after Johan Santana in the Mets Rotation. Another interesting difference this year, can be the Mets POTENTIAL willingness to trade Fernando Martinez, the Mets top OF prospect since they found a stud in Daniel Murphy. I think an offer like Fernando Martinez(of), Jon Niese(sp), and either a Reese Haven(ss) or Brad Holt(p) + Nick Evans (of) could potentially help us land a Roy Halladay or Erik Bedard. If we can land Jose Lopez for 2b along with Erik Bedard, I don’t see how the Mets wouldn’t easily win the NL East.

Mets Roster Additions:

*I think Sheffield was actually a good right-handed bat of the bench for the New York Mets, and

can be a great platoon with Ryan Church (left-handed). Livan Hernandez/sp just won’t be effective anymore, and the Mets should attempt to woo Pedro Martinez for 1 year at 2.5 million.

*2009 NL East Projections: (Honestly I think the Phillies and Braves are Interchangeable)

1- New York Mets (91-71)

2- Philadelphia Phillies (88-74) – WC

3- Atlanta Braves (87-75)

4- Florida Marlins (85-77)

5- Washington Nationals (63-99)

*Very Early 2009 MLB Playoffs Projections:

Mets vs. Dodgers

Phillies vs. Cubs

NL Championship: Mets vs. Cubs

WS Championship: Mets vs. Red Sox

WS Champions: Red Sox

AL Championship: Boston vs. Yankees

Red Sox vs. Angels

Yankees (WC) vs. Twins

Did You Know:

Did you know in college, Mike Lieberthal had a Homerun Cycle – He hit a grand slam, a 3-run homerun, a 2-run homerun, and a solo shot.  I read this on the back on his 1991 Topps Rookie Card! Amazing!!!

Did you know – The founder of this Site, Jeff Gross’, Favorite player was [LAD/TEX/ANA/TOT/CHC/SEA/SAN/FLA Pitcher] Ismael Valdez. Fantastic.

Also Fantasy-eers – Don’t forget Brandon Inge/c-3b on the Tigers is eligible at CATCHER! But make sure you have Pujol’s avg on the team, b/c Inge will hurt that badly!

RIP Nick Adenhart. Best wishes to the Angels (no corny joke), his friends, and most importantly, his family.