This week on 15 Minutes of Fame, we give a passing grade to the NHL’s All-Star Weekend, touch on Tim Thomas’ decision to skip his team’s White House visit and discuss the biggest surprises in the league at the All-Star break. As well: we give out our Super Bowl predictions and comment on a couple of massive MLB contracts!
In the GABBYs: The Canadian women’s soccer team, US Senator John Kerry, Jay Cutler, Kevin-Prince Boateng, Kyle Williams and Scott Gomez. The Punchline this week is Minnesota Vikings kicker Chris Kluwe!
The New York Yankees have significantly improved their pitching staff. In two separate moves, the Yankees acquired Hiroki Kuroda from the Los Angeles Dodgers and Michael Pineda from the Seattle Mariners.
Kuroda, signed a one year deal worth $10 million. In 2011, he was only 13-16, but had a 3.07 earned run average, 161 strikeouts and 49 walks. He also had a solid WHIP at 1.21. Kuroda has also shown strong consistency with the Dodgers over the last four seasons as he had an earned run average under four each season.
Pineda comes to the Yankees via a trade. Pineda went to New York with pitching prospect Jose Campos for catcher Jesus Montero and reliever Hector Noesi.
Pineda was 9-10 for the Mariners last season with 173 strikeouts, 55 walks, an earned run average of 3.74 and a WHIP of 1.1. After a great start to the season, where he went 6-2, he only went 3-8 after May 21.
Montero batted .328 in 61 at bats behind Russell Martin at catcher.
The Baseball Writers’ Association of America has made their choice on who will be inducted into Cooperstown at the National Baseball Hall of Fame.
A month after the Veterans Committee elected Chicago Cubs third baseman Ron Santo posthumously, the Committee elected Cincinnati Reds shortstop Barry Larkin today.
Larkin, played from 1986-2004 with the Reds, winning a World Series in 1990 over the Oakland Athletics.
His best year was in 1995, when he was named the National League MVP. He batted .319 that season and helped the Reds get to the National League Championship Series. He was also a 12-time all-star.
Santo played with the Chicago Cubs from 1960-1973 and with the Chicago White Sox in 1974. His finest season came in 1964 when he led the National League with 13 triples and a .398 on base percentage.
Another person that is going to be recognized at Cooperstown this year is the brilliant Toronto Sun sportswriter Bob Elliott, who is a recipient of the J.G. Taylor Spink Award, presented as the highest honour for any member of the Baseball Writers Association of America. No writer has written more interesting stories about Canadian baseball in my lifetime than Elliott, and it is great to see the recognition he deserves.
One of the best catchers of all-time has decided it is time to retire.
On the weekend, New York Yankees’ catcher Jorge Posada decided it was time to hang up the cleats at the age of 40.
Posada won four World Series with the Yankees in 1998, 1999, 2000 and 2009. In 2003, he had his finest season, hitting .281 with 30 home runs and 101 runs batted in. He became only the second Yankees catcher (Yogi Berra is the other) to hit 30 home runs in a season. That year he was an all-star, silver slugger and was third in the American League Most Valuable Player voting, where he lost out to his future teammate Alex Rodriguez, who at the time was playing for the Texas Rangers.
Posada was a very productive bat throughout his career for the Yankees at a position where emphasis is placed more on solid defense than offense. He was an asset in the Yankees lineup because he was a switch hitter, a rarity for a catcher. In his career, he had a solid .273 batting average, .374 on base percentage and .474 slugging percentage.
The Miami Marlins have acquired another big name player. On Thursday the Marlins acquired starting pitcher Carlos Zambrano from the Chicago Cubs for right handed pitcher Chris Volstad.
Zambrano has been a major part of the Cubs starting rotation for the last decade. From 2003-2008, he won over 13 games baseball games every season, highlighted by an 18-win season in 2007.
Another major attribute over Zambrano’s career has been his endurance within games he pitches. He has thrown nine complete games in his 1826 innings of work.
Still, last season he struggled by only going 9-7 with a 4.82 earned run average and a 1.44 WHIP.
Volstad was 5-13 last season for the Marlins with a 4.89 earned run average.
Zambrano is just the latest addition to a Marlins team that has changed their name, their ballpark, their manager and their on field product. Since the end of the World Series, the Marlins have also brought in shortstop Jose Reyes from the New York Mets, starting pitcher Mark Buehrle from the Chicago White Sox and closer Heath Bell from the San Diego Padres.
It was 2011 the last time we spoke and much has happened since then! This week on the show we recap the best and worst moments of the year from the world of sports, we talk about Sean Avery getting waived ahead of the Winter Classic, plus we recap the big game. Also: we’ve got a theory about the success of Daniel Alfredsson and the Ottawa Senators and we look at the main event at UFC 141 and tell you which fighter retired after losing.
In the GABBYs: The Green Bay Packers, The NLL’s Philadelphia Wings, Petr Mrazek, Tim Tebow, Yorvit Torrealba and the NHL All-Star voting process. The Punchline this week is basketball player Manny Harris and his strange injury!
The San Diego Padres have acquired Carlos Quentin from the Chicago White Sox for two minor league pitchers.
Quentin, who will play left field, will try to improve a Padres’ offense that scored a National League low 593 runs in 2011. Just don’t expect the Padres to improve that much.
The reason is that Quentin’s offensive numbers have gone south since 2008 when he .288 with 36 home runs and 100 runs batted in. Since then his only best average was last year at .254. His power numbers have remained respectable in the 20-25 home run range, but expect those to drop in the pitching-friendly ball park in San Diego.
In other baseball news, the Toronto Blue Jays have signed pitchers Darren Oliver from the Texas Rangers and Aaron Laffey from the New York Yankees. Even though Oliver had an earned run average of 2.29, he is 41 years old. Laffey, meanwhile was signed to a minor-league contract and may not make the opening day roster unless he has an outstanding spring training.
In other moves the last couple of weeks, the Colorado Rockies have signed outfielder Michael Cuddyer to a three year deal worth $30 million. Cuddyer hit .284 with 20 home runs and 70 runs batted in during 2011 in Minnesota.
Also, the Oakland Athletics traded starting pitcher Gio Gonzalez (16-12, 197 K, 3.12 ERA) to the Washington Nationals and closer Andrew Bailey (24 SV, 3.24 ERA) to the Boston Red Sox.
On this holiday edition of 15MOF, we take a look at HBO’s 24/7 series featuring the Rangers & Flyers, hidden concussions, the status of the Edmonton Oilers, the struggle of NHL goalies and language controversy in Montreal. As well, we take a look at the early stages of the World Junior Hockey Championships!
In the GABBYs: Logan Morrison, the Indianapolis Colts, Luke Babbitt, Kim Jong Il, the NY Knicks & the Vancouver riots. The Punchline this week is San Jose Sharks forward Marty Havlat!
We now know that Yu Darvish is off to the Texas Rangers and is not going to Toronto.
One could argue that Christmas just did not come for Toronto Blue Jay fans, but if you take a look at the grand scheme of things, is Darvish going to Texas instead of Toronto really that bad?
I say it’s not. Thumbs up for the Blue Jays for finally willing to spend a lot of money in an effort to acquire a key free agent. But, as I wrote last week, Darvish is simply not the biggest fish in the pond.
That my friends continues to be Cecil Fielder. So my question for Blue Jays General Manager Alex Anthopoulos is why would you be willing to spend upwards of $50 million on just Darvish’s negotiating rights, when you could spend half of that on one of the best power hitters in the game? Fielder wants to come to Toronto. His pops played there. Anthopoulos needs to show some compassion now and go after Fielder. Then take a look at a starting pitcher.
The one I like the most that is still a free agent, is ironically also from Japan. Hiroki Kuroda, who has played the last three years with the Dodgers, and had a solid 3.07 earned run average in 2011, is still available. He should be in the $6-$7 million price range. The other two I am very high on are Paul Maholm, who is a solid pitcher despite his poor won-loss record in Pittsburgh and Chris Young, who can be very strong on the mound and could be a solid no.2 or no.3 guy in the rotation, if healthy.
It is nice to see the Toronto Blue Jays and Rogers Communications are heavily pursuing a free agent. Unfortunately though it is the wrong player on the market.
A week ago it seemed the Blue Jays were going all out in their attempt to sign Prince Fielder from the Milwaukee Brewers. Prince would have been solid and don’t forget, his daddy Cecil played for the Blue Jays. Prince Fielder would have been a great fit at first base, where he batted .299 and was second in the National League in home runs (38), and runs batted in (120) in 2011.
So why are the Blue Jays going after a 25 year-old unproven commodity from Japan? Yu Darvish might be stellar. He did go 18-6 with 276 strikeouts and an earned run average of 1.44 last year, but there are a few key things to consider. 1) Darvish is 34 years of age, so much of a window of an opportunity is there for him where he could be a dominant pitcher? 2) Unlike Fielder, Darvish would only be playing once every five days. Should a huge amount of money (neighborhood of $50 million) be spent on Darvish? 3) How good could Darvish really be? The last time a Japanese pitcher made this kind of hype by coming to the Major Leagues was Daisuke Matsuzaka, and he simply hasn’t developed into what Boston hoped. His career earned run average is 4.25, and is WHIP is a poor 1.40, despite having an overall record of 49-30.
Blue Jays General Manager Alex Anthopoulos says there is some risk here, and he’s probably right. Fielder at this time may just be the better option if the team is willing to spend millions on an offseason free agent commodity.
In other free agent signings, the Minnesota Twins have signed left fielder Josh Willingham to a three year contract worth $21 million. Last year, Willingham batted .246, with 29 home runs and 98 runs batted in for the Oakland Athletics.
Also, the Colorado Rockies have signed right fielder Michael Cuddyer to a three year deal worth $30 million from the Twins. Last year, Cuddyer hit .284 with 20 home runs and 70 runs barred in.
The Pittsburgh Pirates are taking their chances on Canadian left-hander Erik Bedard.
The Pirates confirmed the signing of the southpaw from Navan, Ontario to a one year deal worth $4.5 million on the weekend. Last year, Bedard went 5-9 with 125 strikeouts and a 3.62 earned run average with Seattle and Boston. The Pirates are hoping Bedard can rekindle his magic with the Baltimore Orioles, where he won a combined total of 28 games in 2006 and 2007. Unfortunately, he has ran into an abundance of arm issues since, but can be a productive pitcher if healthy.
In other moves, the Toronto Blue Jays acquired outfielder Ben Francisco (.244, 6 HR, 34 RBIs) from the Philadelphia Phillies for a minor leaguer. Don’t expect Francisco to be in the Blue Jays’ lineup everyday.
The Milwaukee Brewers, who lost Ryan Braun for fifty games to steroid use and are expected to lose Prince Fielder to free agency, signed Aramis Ramirez to a 3 year deal worth $37 million. Ramirez, a third baseman, batted .306 with 26 home runs and 93 runs batted in with the Chicago Cubs in 2011.
Also on the weekend, the Oakland Athletics traded starting pitcher Trevor Cahill (12-14, 147 K, 4.16 ERA) and reliever Craig Breslow (67 G, 0-2, 3.79 ERA) to the Arizona Diamondbacks for three minor leaguers who are expected to play a key role in Oakland in 2012.
This week on 15 Minutes of Fame we’re talking NHL realignment and how the Coyotes might mess it all up, another big week of “Shanabans,” and lots of controversy in the NBA as the new CBA comes into effect.
In the GABBYs: Tiger Woods, the Marlins and Angels, MLSE, dress codes, Tyler Seguin and Bob Vander Weide. The Punchline this week is Patrick Chan!
The National League Most Valuable Player has tested positive for an elevated level of testosterone.
According to the Associated Press, Ryan Braun of the Milwaukee Brewers is facing a suspension of 50 games at the beginning of the 2012 Major League Baseball season. The World Anti-Doping Agency in Montreal was able to confirm the positive test.
Braun, who is claiming his innocence, plans to appeal the ruling. He will not be eligible to play for the Brewers until May 31 and will lose $1.87 million of his $6 million salary.
Last season Braun had 33 home runs and 111 runs batted in, with 109 runs, 38 doubles, 33 stolen bases and a batting average of .332. He increased his batting average to .405 for the postseason.
I think with Braun testing positive for an illegal substance, Major League Baseball should strip him of his NL MVP award if he loses his appeal and award it to Matt Kemp of the Los Angeles Dodgers, who actually put up better regular season numbers than Braun (39 home runs, 126 runs batted in, 40 stolen bases), but failed to take his team to the postseason. What do you think?
The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim have won the Albert Pujols sweepstakes. On Thursday, Pujols signed a 10 year contract worth $254 million.
Believe it or not but I think the Angels got him on a bargain price. Many baseball experts thought he would sign in the $30 million range.
Pujols, considered by many to be the best player in the game, had one of the best single game performances in baseball history in Game 3 of the World Series. He had three hone runs, five hits and six runs batted in.
Pujols, a first baseman, is a three-time National League Most Valuable Player and two-time World Series Champion. Last season he had 37 home runs, 99 runs batted in and a .299 batting average.
The Angels also signed C.J. Wilson from the Texas Rangers to a five year deal worth $78 million. Wilson, the ace of the Rangers staff, was 16-7, 206 strikeouts and an earned run average of 2.94.
The Miami Marlins, who were very interested in Pujols and Wilson, signed Mark Buehrle to a four year deal worth $58 million. Buehrle, will join his former manager Ozzie Guillen in south Florida. Last season Buehrle went 13-9, with 109 strikeouts ans an earned run average of 3.59.
Loading ...
