A sports blog by and for Midwest Sports Fans
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Update: The St. Paul Pioneer Press has pointed out a rumor that Brett Favre will not opt for surgery on his ankle.
Fantasy Impact: The speculation will begin around whether or not this means Favre will or will not retire. It should be another sit and wait game.
This content was written and contributed by Nova Fantasy Sports and is syndicated on Midwest Sports Fans.
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Update: Free agent running back Brian Westbrook will visit with the Broncos on Thursday, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter.
Fantasy Impact: Westbrook visited the Redskins, but left without a contract offer, and the Broncos would clearly be a better landing spot as the Redskins already have stockpiled running backs.
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Update: According to Mike Reiss of ESPNBoston.com, Tom Brady told reporters Wednesday that he thought last year's team had a "lack of trust" and a "lack of confidence." Of the Patriots six losses in 2009, they were leading at halftime in four of them and tied in the others. Their season ended with a 33-14 loss at home to the Ravens in the wildcard round of the playoffs.
Fantasy Impact: The Patriots also dealt with a lot of roster turmoil. Tedy Bruschi, Mike Vrabel, Richard Seymour and Rodney Harrison were all gone before the start of the season. Randy Moss, Adalius Thomas, Derrick Burgess and Gary Guyton were also sent home after arriving late to a team meeting in the middle of a snowstorm in December.
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Update: The Associated Press is reporting that Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Limas Sweed has been placed in injured reserve with a torn left Achilles tendon. His season is over. Sweed was hurt during a May 2 minicamp practice. He was placed on the reserve/injury list after clearing waivers.
Fantasy Impact: Sweed, a second-round pick in 2008 out of Texas, has largely been a disappointment. He had one catch last season.
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Much has been made of Bobby Jenks’ steadily declining stats over the past few years. During Spring Training many wondered whether the Jenks could hold onto the closer’s role all season for a team that was expected to contend for the AL Central crown.
Despite only blowing one save all season, Jenks has a ghastly ERA of 6.23 and a WHIP that is somehow larger than Jenks’ own rotund self: 2.08.
Still, Jenks would like you and Ozzie Guillen to know that he is the closer of the Chicago White Sox and that he doesn’t plan on that changing any time soon.
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If you only read one article about LeBron James and the epic collapse he has guided his Cavaliers to the verge of, make it this one by Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports. (And if you have time for two, then please read this one. But not before Wojnarowski’s.)
I’d like to excerpt the whole thing, but I won’t. Here’s a small piece of whet your appetite:
Email the author of this post: jerod@midwestsportsfans.comMost of all, James is forever selling something of himself – an ideal, an image, a possibility. Something nebulous, something promised. He’s chasing a global platform, the bright, blinking billion-dollar fortune, and he’s largely gotten the natural order of things backward.
Stop strutting, stop preening, stop stomping away as an ungracious winner, a sore loser, and win something, LeBron.
Win something now.
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There is only one way to accurately describe what happened last night in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland:
Perhaps not so coincidentally, the three letters above represent the same WTF number of shots LeBron James made last night.
Really, WTF doesn’t even describe last night’s game. Cleveland and LeBron pretty much rolled over, on their home floor, in a must win game, in a performance that even the Atlanta Hawks would have considered soft.
Every sports news outlet from Bristol to Bangkok will be dissecting LeBron’s poor play last night and assessing what it may or may not mean for his future in Cleveland. I thought I’d throw my two cents in as well, although with a little bit of a difference perspective.
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During the last 1+ years while I have listened to Hawk Harrelson and Steve Stone team up as an announcing duo, I’ve felt like I’ve gained baseball knowledge with each viewing.
Hawk Harrelson has his experience (inventing batting glove on his resume, for instance), his exciting play-by-play calls, and biased views during games that only a fan of the Good Guys would endure game after game.
Steve Stone has solid pitching knowledge (1980 Cy Young winner), a Chicago background, and a consistent tone that makes me happy the Cubs let him go to now join the South side, or the real side of baseball in Chicago, as I call it.
Together they have more knowledge than any team’s announcers in the MLB and are just as entertaining. (You’re what hurts, Hawk?)
All of that said? I am extremely excited to hear “Stone Pony” leave the booth for the weekend (a planned leave) and give the color analyst duties to retired White Sox great Frank Thomas.
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Championship Game rematch in Las Vegas highlights September 17 opening day; Hartford kicks off at home to Sacramento; Newcomer Omaha waits in the wings….
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Update: Tampa Bay Buccaneers offensive tackle Jeremy Trueblood has signed his one-year tender to remain with the team, the Associated Press is reporting. The mammoth tackle out of Boston College was a second-round pick of the team in 2006.
Fantasy Impact: Trueblood has started 61 of the team's 63 games he's appeared in over the last four seasons.
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Update: According to ESPN’s Chris Mortensen the Redskins have invited (RB) Brian Westbrook for a team visit on Wednesday. Since McNabb joined the Redskins he has been asking them to bring his former teammate in for a visit.
Fantasy impact: With the Redskins already having Clinton Portis, Larry Johnson, and Willie Parker I think signing Westbrook would make him a non fantasy impact. Also with all the injuries Westbrook has had in the past, he’s always a risky fantasy player as it is.
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I’ve finally come to the realization that I am a so-called baseball apologist. I am absolutely willing to ignore the bad in baseball (Joe Morgan’s annoying crusades, honoring anti-Americans at “Civil Rights Weekend,” the overplayed yet somewhat true “big market dominance” in October, alleged steroid usage from a decade ago that bores fans and has no effect on this season, etc) and instead find the good that far outweighs the bad — especially when there is just so much bad in the other major sports, particularly the NFL.
I do have some recommendations for the Major League Baseball, however (move the Astros to the AL West or simply abolish divisional play, lengthen round one of the postseason to best of seven, return to a balanced schedule…), but overall, I think the game is as good as ever. Attendance and pure human interest back that up, as 2010 itself has seen an unprecedented amount of excitement and history in just five short weeks:
We had a no hitter, a perfect game, a 20 inning classic, and last Friday, a 47 year old threw a two hit shutout the same night a 20 year-old had six RBI in his big league debut. Not bad.
Let’s look at the top “storylines” of the first one-fifth of the season:
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Update: ESPN is reporting that St. Louis Rams fourth-round pick Mardy Gilyard will miss a significant chunk of OTAs because Cincinnati doesn't hold graduation until June 12. Per NFL policy, rookies can't participate in Organized Team Activities until their schools graduate. Gilyard will sit out workouts set for May 18, 20, 24-25 and 27, in addition to OTAs scheduled for June 1-3 and 7-8. He's also ineligible for June 10-12 minicamp.
Fantasy Impact: Gilyard was making some solid progress with rookie quarterback Sam Bradford so this should set him back. Given the lack of depth at the WR position in St. Louis he still might find a way to grab some significant playing time.
This content was written and contributed by Nova Fantasy Sports and is syndicated on Midwest Sports Fans.
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Update: Neworleans.com is reporting that Saints wideout Robert Meachem is out until training camp after undergoing surgery to repair torn cartilage on the second toe of his left foot. Meachem called the injury "just a nick," but he suffered it late last season and experienced recurring pain in the toe early in the offseason program. "It…became aggravated the more he started running on it," coach Sean Payton revealed. "It’s going to set him back. Our goal is to get him back in time for the start of training camp (July 29), the first week or so."
Fantasy Impact: Meachem had 9 TDs last year while hauling in 45 balls. He won't have that many TDs again this year.
This content was written and contributed by Nova Fantasy Sports and is syndicated on Midwest Sports Fans.
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Update: The NFL Network is reporting that restricted free agent FS O.J. Atogwe will not sign his tender with the Rams, meaning he'll become an unrestricted free agent on June 1. The Rams will still hold exclusive negotiating rights with Atogwe until that point.
Fantasy Impact: Atogwe is taking a risk as he is coming off shoulder surgery. The Rams have made it known they want to keep him, but perhaps Atogwe is looking to jump teams given the Rams are in rebuilding mode and virtually no chance of winning anytime soon. There will be a number of teams lined up for his services.
This content was written and contributed by Nova Fantasy Sports and is syndicated on Midwest Sports Fans.
