In big news, I am now the co-host of a sports talk radio show – the SportsCorner with Braica and Horner. Listen LIVE, every Sunday night from 9-10 pm on WRBB, Northeastern University
radio. Me and my co-host will discuss everything in sports, from breaking news, to score recaps, to division and playoff races. You can download the feed here, just click on either the 48k or the 128k audio stream link, and play the file using whatever media player you have. If you’re on the Northeastern University campus, you can also catch that on 104.9 fm, WRBB. In addition, we have a facebook group, which we welcome everybody to join (it’s modestly titled “The SportsCorner with Braica and Horner”), and we also have our very own website, where you can go to listen to clips, learn about the hosts, and learn more about the show. Finally, we have an email set up - nusportscorner@gmail.com – where you can email us your thoughts, opinions, or news. We mention almost everything that comes through that account, because this is a radio show for fans, by fans. So don’t by shy, let us know what you think. So don’t forget to listen to the SportsCorner live every Sunday night from 9-10pm. Start your week out right. Listen in.

This entry isn’t just for advertising my new radio show, or even for me venting on how much I dislike TBS sports. It’s also because the playoffs start tonight, with the one gamer happening in about 30 minutes between the Detroit Tigers and the Minnesota Twins for the Central Division win. And nobody saw this coming. In the middle of the season, the Twins were struggling to stay at .500. One month ago, they were seven games behind the Tigers for the division lead. Since then, the Tigers have squandered that lead, and the Twins came from behind and forced the playoff. Scott Baker will go for the Twins, and Rick Porcello for the Tigers. Something worth noting, neither team has a winning record on the road, which made the fact that Minnesota won the season series against the Tigers 11-7 that much more important, as that head to head record won them home field advantage in this one game playoff. The Metrodome is going to be loud, and the Twins are going to have the advantage in this one.

Admittedly, there are a lot of holes in my beginning of the year predictions. But that’s not going to stop me from going through what I think will happen during this postseason. Let’s start in the Division Series.

I’m thinking the Twins are going to win the one game playoff. Which makes for a Twins vs. Yankees division series – Minnesota’s been hot, and that’s a big reason why they will win the one gamer against Detroit. But they really need to ride this momentum going into a series where they will not have home field advantage. They will only play, at most, only two games at the Metrodome, and the Twins have a 37-42 record away. The Yankees still need to be concerned as to which C.C. Sabathia and which A.J. Burnett will show up, but I really can’t see the Twins knocking off the Yankees.

Red Sox vs. Angels – Since 2004, the Red Sox and Angels have met in the Division Series three times. All three times, the Red Sox won that series. The Angels looked like the team to beat in the middle of the season, but have cooled off since. There are some concerns with Red Sox fans, as to how the rotation will fare in the postseason. But it always seems like the Red Sox step up and deliver. I’m going to say they win this series again.

Phillies vs. Rockies -  Colorado is riding a momentous high going into this series. They were in last place and over ten games under .500 at the end of May, only to surge back and almost win the West division. The Phillies are coming off a season in which their pitching absolutely dominated, and their lineup was hot all year. This series is going to be interesting. For Colorado, their pitching needs to step up for them to compete in this series. And if they do, they’ll win it. I’m going to say the Rockies win this series in four games.

Cardinals vs. Dodgers – The Dodgers proved that just because you are the best team in the league at the beginning of the season, doesn’t mean you are the best team at the end. They almost lost their lead to Colorado, and their offense has been flat of late. The Cardinals have Albert Pujols and Matt Holliday, and their pitching is better. The Cardinals take this series in four games.

In the Championship series, it will, of course, be the Red Sox vs. the Yankees in the American League. These are always toss ups. The season series was a tie, 9-9, but the Red Sox won the first eight games. Since August 6^th, the Red Sox are 1-9 against the Yankees. Not reassuring for a Red Sox fan. But I’ll go ahead and call the Yankees flopping, after winning the first two games of the series. It’s going to go to seven games, but the Red Sox will take the AL pennant this year.

The NL side will be interesting to see. But I think the Rockies magic season will end here. They will ride their streak through the Division Series, but the Cardinal’s offense is just too good.

I’m picking the 2009 World Series to be a rematch of the 2004 Series. But this time, the Cardinals will win their second World Series in four year in six games.

Overall, I think it’s going to be a good postseason. We’ll finally get to see if all the money the Yankees spent was a worthwhile investment, we’re going to see if some of the teams who dominated in the regular season are really that good, and we’re going to see a lot of young players step up and be the hero for their respectful teams. I’ll try to keep up with it all during the next couple weeks.

Until next time, don’t forget. Sundays, 9-10pm. SportsCorner with Braica and Horner. We’re really pushing this show.

In addition to
the Red Sox adding Victor Martinez, a lot happened before the trade deadline.
In fact, it was a rather busy week around baseball. And because of that, I’ve
got a lot on my mind.

The Oakland A’s
traded former Red Sox player Orlando Cabrera, who was an integral part of the Sox’ 2004 World Championship run and was the last consistently good shortstop
the team had. The A’s sent Cabrera to the Minnesota Twins for single-A
shortstop Tyler Ladendorf. In addition, the A’s sent $250,000 to the Twins to
cover Cabrera’s salary, and will send another $250,000 later in the season.
While Ladendorf was a stellar offensive player in junior college, he has
struggled in pro ball, betting .204 in 45 games at the rookie level. The A’s
basically were looking to get rid of Cabrera, for salary reasons, and
essentially paid the Twins to take him off their hands. Were the Red Sox aware
of this? Possibly, but they were probably too busy praising Jed Lowrie to
notice. I would have loved to see the Sox even considering making a move to get
Cabrera back. He loved it here, and he would be very solid in the shortstop
hole. If the A’s were willing to part with Cabrera for a mediocre prospect who
probably won’t make it to the majors, they would no doubt have settled for Jed
Lowrie, who is playing like a mediocre prospect who shouldn’t be in the majors.

The Red Sox
organization still believe Lowrie to be a player who can be a solid shortstop. They
obviously haven’t looked up, because Lowrie is proving since he came back from
his injury that he cannot compete at a major league level. I know I’m probably
being overly critical. But he’s batting .140 this year with an on base
percentage of .211, and since last August, he’s batting .181, and strikes out
once every three at bats. Since coming back July 18^th, he’s not
played only four games, and is batting .187. I see a pattern, and it’s not a
good one. Does anyone else see it? Because the Red Sox don’t. Which is
something that needs to change quickly.

Speaking of
players I’ve come to dislike, it seems like every time I hear that Takashi
Saito comes into a game, the Sox lose it. Tonight, Saito once again blew the
game, giving up a walk off home run to Evan Longoria in the bottom of the 13^th.
As much as I hate to see him come into games, as I always now feel like he’s
going to blow it, his stats aren’t bad. He’s 2-3 with an ERA of 3.32 this year.
He has been worse in the last few months compared to the beginning of the
season, as all three losses have come since June 30^th. But he’s only
blown one save this entire year, and he’s only allowed a run once in his last
seven outings. The same thing is true for Jonathan Papelbon. It seems like this
year, he’s been having trouble spotting his pitches and getting his fastball by
guys. But he has 47 strikeouts, which is only seven less than what he had at
this time last year. His ERA at this time was 0.38 lower, but he had four blown
saves by August, while he only has three this year. The bullpen is doing better
than I thought it was, but they’ve still been scaring me lately. Weird how
baseball works.

I’m still wondering what the point of trading Adam LaRoche for
Casy Kotchman is. The Sox had LaRoche for six games, before trading him
straight up for Kotchman. They both play first base, they have similar stats, I
just don’t see the point. The biggest difference is that Kotchman is younger,
and makes less money. So maybe they Sox intend on keeping Kotchman for a while?
That’s the only thing I can guess.

As everyone’s
heard and commented on, the New York
Times released another “confidential” leak of a couple names who tested
positive in 2003. David Ortiz and Manny Ramirez were among those leaked. Now people
are getting riled up, asking if this taints the Red Sox 2004 Championship run.
Does it? No. Absolutely not. First of all, it was a magical year, one that Red
Sox fans will not forget, nor let be tainted. Ever. Second, Ortiz has been
tested over 20 times since 2004, and no test was positive. Third, there is
Bronson Arroyo’s comments to take into consideration. His statement struck me
as bizarre, not only because of how genuine it seemed, but also because it really
showed how the MLB has changed its views on drugs and testing:

“Before 2004, none of us paid any attention to anything we took…Now
they don’t want us to take anything unless it’s approved. But back then, who
knows what was in stuff? The FDA wasn’t regulating stuff, not unless it was
killing people or people were dying from it.”

He went on to
admit to using andro, which was the drug that was found in Mark McGwire’s
locker in 1998. He was being honest, which is refreshing to hear after so many
lies and false denials. Now, I who knows what to believe and what not to
believe? I have no idea if Manny or Ortiz took steroids. But the fact that
there was much more leniency in what was regulated back in 2003 proves that
Ortiz or Ramirez could have easily taken something that would show up positive
in a drug test, and not known about it. After all, it has not been released
what the two players even tested positive for.

I’ve come
across a couple comments and blogs by Yankee fans about how this taints the Red
Sox championship in 2004. Interesting, seeing as in 2003, Jason Giambi was
jacked up on steroids, something he admitted to. In game 7 of the ALCS that
year, the Yankees won it 6-5 in extra innings. Giambi hit two solo home runs
earlier in the game. What would have happened if he didn’t hit those two homers?
The Sox would have won the game and the series, and gone on to the World Series
that year. Think about it.

I’ve got to
say, I’m tired of all these steroid issues. And I don’t mean the fact that
players are taking steroids. I mean the constant lists, accusations, promises
by the commissioner to straighten things out. The truth is, testing will never
be 100% accurate, and therefore never 100% effective. These lists keep getting
leaked to the press, who run the stories, and then for weeks all anyone can
talk about in the sport is “What if he took this, or he took that?” These lists
are doing nothing, except feeding the idea that everyone in the sport is
tainted. I’m tired of hearing about it. Granted, I don’t know much about the
issue, and I certainly don’t have the slightest idea on how to fix it. It’s
just that the issue of steroids has become so prevalent when people talk about
the sport, and nothing has been fixed or solved. And I’m tired of it. I just
want to watch the game.

In a lighter
issue, I’m having an immense amount of trouble coming up with a title for this
blog. “Untitled (for now)” is just not cutting it. If you’ve got a suggestion,
please, let me know.

For those of
you who are keeping up, you will recall that in a post on May 19, I mentioned
trade rumors involving Victor Martinez going to the Red Sox. It took them a
couple months, but the Sox finally made that happen, and Martinez is now in
Boston. He was dealt for Justin Masterson, and two minor prospects Nick
Hagadone and Bryan Price. Masterson pitched very well for the Sox, and he will
be missed. But his role in the pitching staff was getting less and less
defined, and he was expendable. Nick Hagadone is coming off Tommy John surgery,
and Bryan Price has struggled in his two years of pro ball, going 5-11 with an
ERA of 4.42. Neither pitcher will be missed.

A lot of people
are disappointed that the deal with the Padres didn’t go through. It would have
sent Heath Bell and Adrian Gonzalez to Boston, for probably several highly
touted prospects, a deal which certainly would have included some combination
of Justin Masterson, Clay Buchholz, Michael Bowden, Daniel Bard, and possibly even
three of those four. The addition of Adrian Gonzalez would have undoubtedly bolstered
the offense and given the Sox one of the best lineups in the majors, and Heath
Bell would have shored up what has been a struggling bullpen. The deal would
have been huge, but San Diego would have needed big time talent, and a lot of
prospects, something the Red Sox didn’t want to give up. And I’m sure many fans
would agree. The Sox made out much better by only losing Masterson, and got a
very solid offensive player, one that hits for a better average and can play
more positions than Adrian Gonzalez.

The Red Sox
probably won’t do it, and if they do it won’t be very often, because he’s a
gold glove infielder. But Kevin Youkilis can play the outfield in a couple
games to get himself, Mike Lowell, and Victor Martinez in the same lineup.
Especially with the way JD Drew has been struggling, that would provide a very
solid middle of the lineup. Granted, the Sox just brought up Josh Reddick, who
appears to be a solid hitter, and they also have Rocco Baldelli to cover for
Drew. But I still like the idea of having Youk, Martinez, and Lowell in the
same lineup. The addition of Victor Martinez allows the Sox to rest David
Ortiz, Kevin Youkilis, Mike Lowell, JD Drew, Jason Bay, and Jason Varitek, which is very important now as George Kottaras has been placed on the DL with a lower back strain. He gives
Terry Francona a lot of options. Now that’s an impact player.

The Cleveland
Indian’s GM, Mark Shapiro, has been on a roll, making moves and dropping
players left and right. Earlier trade talks between the Indians and the Red Sox
indicated that Shapiro was not willing to deal Martinez unless Clay Buchholz was
included. The Sox obviously wouldn’t part with him, and Shapiro buckled,
settling for Masterson instead. Granted, Buchholz is still unproven as a
consistently solid starter. But there’s no doubt that his stuff is incredible,
and is the better prospect. The point is that Shapiro considered Victor
Martinez as someone he had to send off, for whatever reason, and was willing to
bend to the Red Sox offer, which didn’t include the prospect the Indians
initially wanted. The Sox stole the deal, and Theo Epstein once again made a
great trade at the deadline. Shapiro also traded away the reigning Cy Young
award winner again, Cliff Lee, making this the second straight year that he’s
done so (C.C. Sabathia won the Cy Young in 2007, and was traded to Milwaukee at
the deadline of 2008). The Indians have acquired 11 players in five trades in
the last month, and if the young players they acquired don’t work out,
Shapiro’s going to have to answer to the fans, who are undoubtedly stunned at
the fire sale the team just had.

One more thing
about Victor Martinez. He’s a stand up guy, who plays hard and loves the game.
He was stunned when he heard the news that he was traded from the team that
signed him when he was 17, and brought him up all the way to becoming an
all-star player. He had mentioned in previous years that he would like to
retire as an Indian, and I have no doubt that given the opportunity, he
probably would have. There were tears in his eyes as he left the clubhouse. He left
a game before the Indians were going to hold Victor Martinez Bobblehead Night.
He’s one of the guys that nobody can say nothing bad about, and for Indians
fans, this is a tough loss, for more than just because he was a great player.
Mark Shapiro had this to say:

“Among my 18 years in the game, I have not had
the privilege to be around a finer person, a finer teammate, a finer father,
husband and friend than Vic…It is certainly a challenging personal moment for
me, for our organization.”

To Victor Martinez:
Welcome to the Boston Red Sox. We’re going to love you.

These are the actual
standings.

­AL East

1. Boston Red Sox – 54-34

Despite having some very
critical injuries, the Sox still fins themselves with the second best record in
baseball. The starting pitching has not been as good as most originally
thought, but the bullpen is among the best in the majors, as only two relievers
have an era over 4. The lineup also has struggled, as only one everyday player
(Jacoby Ellsbury) has an average over .300, and they have the lowest team
batting average in the east. But they have been hitting home runs, with six
players with 10 or more. Overall, despite their struggles, the Sox have managed
to stay on top of the East mainly because of their depth, and the way that
they’ve been able to come through in clutch situations. The AL East is going to
be a tight race down to the finish. The Sox, the Yankees, and the Rays will
take this division down to the last couple weeks of the season. And the way the
rest of the league is shaping up, whoever comes in second will take the wild
card spot.

2. New York Yankees – 51-37

The Yankees did struggle this
year, but as soon as they got A-Rod back, they went on a tear, initially
winning 14 of his first 19 games back. On the day Rodriguez returned from the
DL, Mark Teixeira was batting .192. It then took him 27 games to bring his
average up 104 points to .296. Since then, he’s cooled off, but the point
remains that A-Rod impacts a lineup with much more than his own bat. The
pitching, however, has been a different story. Although they have been doing
better as of late, C.C. Sabathia and A.J. Burnett started out slowly, and now,
halfway through the season, their number 4 and 5 starters hardly exist. Joba
Chamberlain is doing as well as anyone thought he would be, specifically, not
so well as a starter (only 4 wins in 17 starts). And Chien-Ming Wang has proven
that last year’s injury might be permanent. And seven of their relievers have
an ERA over 4.80. If the Yankees are going to win the division, they’re going
to need to make a move quickly for a decent reliever.

3. Tampa Bay Rays – 48-41

Tampa Bay struggled early
with their hitting, and even still, some of their big bats (BJ Upton, Carlos
Pena, Pat Burrell) are batting in the low .200′s. But June and early July they
have gained some ground, and batted almost 15 points higher than in April and
May as a team. The top of their rotation ahs been good, as the top three
starters all have ERA’s under 4.00. But the other two starters have 10 combined
wins and a combined ERA of 6.83. Plus, David Price has not been as large a
factor as they would like, with his record of 3-3 and an ERA of 4.70.

4. Toronto Blue Jays – 44-46

Toronto has cooled off after
leading this division for the better part of two months. They’ve hit only .255
in the past two months, but still have the 4^th best team average in
the majors. Roy Halladay has been, as always, outstanding for them, and Adam
Lind and Aaron Hill are having stellar seasons. It seems like they should be
doing better.

5. Baltimore Orioles – 40-48

This isn’t really a surprise,
given the other four teams in the division. Baltimore’s team offense is in the
middle of the pack in most categories, and no team in the American League has
more players with 50 or more RBI’s. Their biggest issue right now is pitching,
as they are 28^th in the Majors in ERA, WHIP, and opponents batting
average.

AL Central

1. Detroit Tigers – 48-39

This team has been led by
Miguel Cabrera, who is having a great year, and their top three starters;
Justin Verlander, Rick Porcello, and Edwin Jackson, who has allowed more than 3
earned runs in an outing only twice this season in 18 appearances. If they
continue to play at this level, they’ll win the division.

2. Chicago White Sox – 45-43

Chicago has the team to win this
division. Five of the guys in their lineup are batting over .280, and their
rotation has been solid. They have been hurt by injuries, but if some guys,
like Carlos Quentin, can come back and have a solid second half, they should
make a very serious run at this division.

3. Minnesota Twins – 45-44

At the beginning of the
season, I said that Joe Mauer had fizzled like no other. I was wrong on that
one. Mauer has put up huge numbers in the first half, and as long as he can
stay healthy, should continue his production. And he’s not the only one on the
Twins who is hitting well. They have five guys who have at least 14 home runs
and 40 RBI’s, three of whom are batting over .310. The problem is their
pitching, as four of their starters have ERA’s over 4.70, and five of their
relievers have an opponents average of over .300 with runners in scoring
position. The Twins starting pitching will need to do better for the Twins to
make this a close race this year.

4. Kansas City Royals – 37-51

After starting out the first
couple months vying for first, Kansas City has slipped back into their usual
spot near the bottom of the Central. They are second to last in the American
League for team average, and not one of their starters is batting over .300.
Coco Crisp, who I thought would be a big addition to the team, is batting .228
with 3 home runs and only 13 steals. The bright spot is Zack Greinke who, in
his first ten starts this year, allowed only seven runs. Since then, he’s
looked a bit more hittable, with an ERA of close to 4.00 in June and July. But
he only pitches once every five days, something Royals fans know all too well.

5. Cleveland Indians – 35-54

I picked Cleveland to come in
second this year, based on the notion that Cliff Lee and Fausto Carmona would both
have good years. Lee, while maintaining a 3.47 ERA, is 4-9, and Carmona is 2-6
with an ERA of 7.42. So much for them having good seasons. To further the
Indian’s woes, they are dead last in the Majors with a 5.40 ERA, .19 points
higher than the next worst team, Washington, who has a winning percentage of
under .300. For Cleveland, it doesn’t matter how decent your hitting is. With
pitching this bad, nobody can win.

AL West

1. Los Angeles Angels – 49-37

The Angels are on top because
they have the best team batting average in the majors, and that is enough to
overcome the fact that they have the 4^th worst team ERA in the
majors. If you look at Anaheim’s lineup (while they are completely healthy), they
have no starter batting under .280. However, injuries to Torii Hunter and
Vladimir Gurrerro could slow them down for the next few weeks. Pitching is a
problem, as their rotation has been bad after Jared Weaver, and their bullpen
ERA is 5.08. Texas and Seattle will make this a close race unless Anaheim can find
some pitching, and fast.

2. Texas Rangers – 48-39

As expected, Texas is 20^th
in pitching in the majors. But they’ve still managed to win and stay a close
second because Kevin Millwood, Vincente Padilla, and Scott Feldman are all
having good years. Feldman, who is 26, especially has been a huge factor, with
his 8-2 record and 3.83 ERA. The offense is a interesting story, as they manage
to score a lot of runs and hit a lot of homers (the most in the majors), but
still have the 3^rd lowest batting average in the American League,
and strike out more times than any other team in the American League. It will
be interesting to see how the rest of their season playes out.

3. Seattle Mariners – 46-42

Seattle has played pretty
much .500 baseball all year, mainly because their pitching, led by Felix
Hernandez, has been excellent. I mentioned at the beginning of the year that
Erik Bedard would need to step up; and he has been when he’s pitching. He’s got
an ERA of 2.63, has allowed more than two runs in a game only twice, and has
six quality starts. But he only pitched twice in June, and who knows how
fragile he is. The lineup has been flat as well, and four of their everyday players
are batting below .220, and they score an average of less than four runs a
game.

4. Oakland Athletics – 37-49

I picked Oakland to come in
first. I clearly gave too much credit to their very young pitching staff, who,
despite having very impressive moments, has been mediocre for the most part.
And their hitting, which I predicted would be able to “hit their way to the top
of the division,” is 29^th in batting average, 26^th in
home runs, 25^th in runs scored, and dead last in extra base hits. So
much for that.  

NL East

1. Philadelphia Phillies -
48-38

Having essentially the same
team as last year, it’s no wonder that the Phillies are first in the division.
Raul Ibanez is proving to be one of the best offseason pickups in recent
memory, which has been making up for the fact that Jimmy Rollins is batting
.229. They have four guys (Ibanez, Ryan Howard, Chase Utley, and Jayson Werth)
with 20 or more home runs, and three of them have 60 rbi’s. The pitching is
solid, but not spectacular, as their rotation’s ERA is close to 5.00, but they
should be able to take the top of this division.

2. Florida Marlins – 46-44

Like I said, Florida is
nothing special, and the fact that they are right in the middle of most team
stats proves it. Only three starters are batting over .260, and, with the
exception of Josh Johnson, their pitching has only been okay, as nobody else on
the rotation has a winning record. Hanley Ramirez is having a spectacular year,
but everyone saw that coming anyway.

3. Atlanta Braves – 43-45

The Braves are in third, like
I said. Their rotation has been better than they’ve shown, as three of their
starters have ERA’s under 3.00. But still, only Derek Lowe (who is not one of
those starters) and Tommy Hanson (who is 22) have winning records. Their
offense has been average, and Garrett Anderson was a welcome addition, but
nobody on this team has 10 home runs, and they have the second fewest stolen
bases in the majors. I still pick the Mets tom come up and beat the Braves by
the end of the year, but I also think that the Braves will end up in third,
beating out the Marlins.

4. New York Mets – 42-45

The Mets really have no
excuse for this. This team loves to disappoint fans, and this year has been a
great example of that. They have been hurt by injuries to Carlos Beltran,
Carlos Delgado, Jose Reyes, and J.J. Putz, but still. David Wright, while
batting .323, only has five home runs. Nobody on this team has more than 44
rbi’s, and Gary Sheffield leads the team with 10 home runs. Not to mention the
fact that other than Johan Santana, not one of their starters is pitching well.
It’s tough to win when only one of your starters can go out and win games.
Their bullpen hasn’t been as big an issue as it was last year, But they’ve
still blown 12 saves.

5. Washington Nationals -
26-61

Not much can be said about
this team. They are last in the National League in almost every single pitching
category. Their bullpen ERA is 5.71, and they only have one pitcher with six
wins. Not to mention the fact that they have only won 26 games, and are on pace
to win 48 games. However, there is some light for the Nationals. Their offense
has been surprisingly good, and are 4^th in the National League in
batting average and 2^nd in OBP. But still, it’s not enough, and my
bet is that they finish with somewhere around 55 wins.

NL Central

1. St. Louis Cardinals -
49-42

As I mentioned at the
beginning of the year, the Cardinals have a very good team. Albert Pujols will
probably win the NL MVP award, and their rotation has four guys with seven
wins. The reason they’re not running away with this division is because guys
who should be doing well are not. Ryan Ludwick is only batting .264 with 15
home runs, and Rick Ankiel is only batting .215 with 5 home runs. He’s also
been on the disabled list this year. In fact, they are 20^th or worst
in the majors in four offensive categories. But in this division, that’ll still
probably win them the division.

2. Milwaukee Brewers – 45-43

I said that pitching would be
the biggest factor for the Brewers. And that’s been true so far. Their offense
has been great, and are close to the top of the league in most offensive
categories. They have three starters who are batting over .310, and have six
legitimate home run threats. As far as the rotation goes: Yovani Gallardo has
stepped in and pitched well, with 8 wins and an ERA of 3.22. And Braden Looper
has proven that he can still be an effective starter, with 8 wins as well. But
after that, only Jeff Suppan, the supposed ace of this staff at the beginning
of the year, has more than 3 wins, and the last two starters have a combined ERA
of 6.19. Chris Capuano, who was offered a minor league deal with the team
before the season, was supposed to come back in the middle of May, following
rehab. He still hasn’t pitched this year. For the Brewers, it will be a matter
of having the back of the rotation step up and win some games down the stretch
that determines whether or not they will play in October.

3. Houston Astros – 44-44

I picked Houston to come in
last place in this division. Instead, they have put together a good first half.
In fact, they are third in the national league in batting average, second in
hits, and sixth in ERA. However, they’ve scored the eighth fewest runs in the
majors. Their rotation has been good, but don’t have a lot of wins, as Wandy
Rodriguez is the only pitcher with  more
than six. I predicted that Miguel Tejada, Kazuo Matsui, and Ivan Rodriguez
would all have, at best average years. Tejada is proving me wrong, with an
average of .328 and an all star selection. The other two, however, I was right
on, as Matsui is batting .257 with 3 homers in only 64 games, and Rodriguez is
batting .245. It still remains that Houston could make a run for the playoffs,
especially in this division, as they’re only 3.5 games out of first.

4. Chicago Cubs – 43-43

Chicago, like the Mets, have
been disappointing to say the least. Not one of the guys I mentioned at the
beginning of the year have come through. Kosuke Fukudome, who I said was
underrated, is just as average a player as most people thought. Aramis Ramirez
has only played in 25 games due to injuries. Geovany Soto is batting .230, and
is currently on the DL. And Milton Bradley, who I thought would be a welcome
addition, is batting .237 with 6 home runs. They are second to last in the
National League in runs, hits, and rbi’s, and they are third to last in batting
average and steals. The pitching has been alright, and they have the 5^th
best ERA in the majors, along with the most quality starts. But their run
support is terrible, and only one pitcher (Ted Lilly) has more than six wins.
They might be able to turn this around and still make a run for the playoffs,
but they need their offense to start hitting.

5. Cincinnati Reds – 42-45

The talent is there, no doubt
about that. And the rotation has been good, even without Edinson Volquez, who
has been hampered by injury. But the offense has been pretty bad, and some
starters have been hurt or have been out. I was right about Joey Votto, though,
as he has established himself as one of the better offensive first baseman in
the league. But other than that, there’s nobody who’s really playing that well.
That being said, they have just as much a shot at this division as the other
four teams above them, and a strong second half could be the difference between
5^th and 1^st.

6. Pittsburgh Pirates – 38-50

I did pick them to come in 5^th,
but only because I thought the Astros would play terribly. That not being the
case, Pittsburgh is stuck in last place, and it almost seems like they’re
trying. Over the course of the last month, they traded away two of their best
players in Nate McLouth and Nyjer Morgan, along with trading away Eric Hinske,
who, though not a great everyday player, was still one of the leading hitters
on the team. Now, that’s not saying much on a team near the bottom in most offensive
categories, but the fact still remains that this is not a fun team to be a fan
of right now.

NL West

1. Los Angeles Dodgers -
56-32

I picked them to come in
first, and it looks like I’m going to be right about that. Even without Manny
Ramirez in the lineup for over a month, they still have managed to play to the
best record in baseball right now. Guys like Andre Ethier, Matt Kemp, and Juan
Pierre have stepped it up and are all having great years. And even though they haven’t
had a consistent rotation, only one of the eight pitchers who have started a
game for them this year has a losing record, and only three have an ERA above 3.80.
They win this division easily.

2. San Francisco Giants -
49-39

The strength is indeed the
pitching for them, and its really the reason they are in second in the
division, and lead the wild card race. Their offense is 24^th in runs
scored, 28^th in home runs, and 28^th in OBP. Their
pitching, on the other hand, is first in ERA and strikeouts, and second in opponents
batting average. Tim Lincecum and Matt Cain are both 10-2, with ERA’s below
2.40, and Randy Johnson is having a good year. Their pitching should be able to
lead this team into a race for the wild card spot.

3. Colorado Rockies – 47-41

I was wrong about the Rockies
too. Everybody’s hitting, and they have scored the second most runs in the
National League. The important thing so far has been that everyone has stayed
healthy. Injury prone Todd Helton has played in 82 of the 88 games, and is
hitting .327 with 10 home runs. That’s been the difference. In addition, Jason
Marquis and Aaron Cook are both having great years, and they’ve managed to keep
a very consistent rotation, as, apart from the regular five, only one other
pitcher has started a game for them. Huston Street is also having a good year, and
has the second most saves in the majors. The Rockies, as long as everyone stays
healthy, will make a run at the wild card.

4. Arizona Diamondbacks -
38-51

Unfortunately, the
Diamondbacks have been hurt seriously by an injury to one of the best pitchers
in the majors. If Brandon Webb stays healthy and plays in all his games, that
could have been a difference of six or seven wins, which would put them in some
contention. I was right about Danny Haren though, as he’s having a great year,
with his 2.01 ERA and 9 wins. However, they are second to last in batting
average in the National League, and after Felipe Lopez and Justin Upton, they
don’t have a starter batting over .267, and have the second most strikeouts as
a team in the majors. They are still hoping Webb can come back, but it might be
too late.

5. San Diego Padres – 36-52

I was correct on this one
too. Although, they could make a serious run for 4^th place if
Arizona continues to play as poorly as they are. They are last in the majors in
run support, hits, and batting average, and the worst part is that it’s not
even close. They are batting 11 points lower than the next worst team, which is
Oakland. Joe Buck said it in the All Star Game: Adrian Gonzalez is a one man
wrecking crew for the Padres. He has no other support. And he is only batting
.248. Two of their starters have 6 wins, two have 4 wins, and the number five
guy, Josh Geer, has 1. Jake Peavy, who is one of the players with 6 wins, is
the only starter with an ERA under 4.50. And he refused a trade to Chicago. I
said this team has little to look forward to, and it looks like the second half
of the season is going to go the same way.  

It’s amazing how someone can come into the
league, throw a no hitter, and then simply stop throwing wins.

The thing is, Buchholz’s stuff is ridiculous.
His curveball and changeup are both 70′s on the 20-80 scouting scale, and his
fastball reaches the mid 90′s with good movement. He’s shown that he can pitch
well, and there have been moments where’s he’s looked like one of the best
pitchers in the majors. But he’s also proven that his composure is shaky at
best. And one bad pitch will spiral into a bad inning for him, all too
regularly.

Still, the Sox know that the kid who threw the
no hitter is still there. And they are trying to find a spot for him in the big
leagues. The problem is the Sox already have a full rotation. Not to mention
that Daisuke Matsuzaka just came off the disabled list and John Smoltz should
be good to go by the second week of June. But maybe that’s a good thing. It
gives the Sox a chance to start Buchholz in a few games here and there, maybe
easing him back into the majors. Because at this point, most of his problems
are mental.

In nine starts for Pawtucket this year, Clay
has allowed more than two earned runs once. And in that outing, he allowed
three runs. He allowed five earned runs on 20 hits in six starts (40.1 innings)
in May, while walking only five batters and striking out 40. His ERA for the
season is 1.47, with an opposing batting average of .149. He is dominating the
minor leagues. Compare that to David Price, Baseball America’s top prospect.
Price is 1-4, with a 3.93 ERA, and a .231 batting average against. His K/BB
ratio is 1.94. Granted, numbers don’t mean everything. But they’re something to
keep in mind.