Monday Morning Links

Here are a few links to get you started on a Monday morning, including Stewart Mandel’s weekly college football wrap-up, the pretty bizarre story of Jim Nantz’s divorce, David Wells farting on air, and Terrelle freaking Pryor.

… Continue Reading

At a Glance: Contenders and Race for the NL Central Crown

Taking control of the NL Central this year hasn’t been easy. 4 teams out of the 6 are still in contention for a division title, and things could just be heating up.

1.St. Louis Cardinals – The division leader for most of the season has just recently been tested by the Chicago Cubs. The acquisition of Matt Holliday has paid off. With Ankiel and Ludwick not performing like last year, Holliday was a must pick-up to add offense to the outfield. The return of Carpenter has also helped the Cardinals stay atop of the the division. Pitching hasn’t been the problem for the Cards since their ERA is 3.71, 3rd in the whole league.

With players like Holliday, Pujols, and Carpenter why didn’t the Cards take more firm control of the division?

The problem is their inconsistent hitting. The Cards are ranked 23rd in hitting, batting a team average of .256. The Card’s hitters are not doing as well as last year, and it is hurting them. Ankiel and Ludwick are having a tough time following up on their breakout season that they both had last year, although Ludwick has been hittin much better since the break.

Overall it has been the consistent pitching that has kept St. Louis afloat and in the race for the division title.

2.Chicago Cubs – The team picked to win the division has been the most up and down this season. There have been points in the season were the Cubs looked totally out of it, and now suddenly they are tied for first along with the Cards. The Cubs are behind the Cards in hitting and pitching, but their offense has started to pick up as of late and that is why you see them on top of their division.

The Cubs season hasn’t been without a lot of criticism of the team and the signings of certain players. Randy Wells, however, has been a revelation as the only consistent pitcher for the Cubs. Wells, a really nice catch, has produced many great starts, and has been a huge part in the Cubs staying in the race. The Cubs just might make the playoffs this year, but they need to watch out for Holliday and Pujols. If those guys start hitting on all cylinders, then the Cubs could be in trouble.

3. Milwaukee Brewers - The Brew Crew are playing at the level most people thought they would play. They have begun to dip a little in the recent weeks, but are still only 4 games out of first, which is still a very reasonable distance considering that they are 1 game below .500.

Ryan Braun and Prince Fielder are having great seasons again but it’s not the offense that is lacking. It’s the pitching. After losing CC to the Yankees, the Brewers are having trouble finding a go-to pitcher. Every one of their pitchers are having decent but not great years. Before the season started people knew the pitching was the weak point so it doesn’t come as a surprise. Look for this team to contend in a few years if they get the pitching help they need.

4. Houston Astros – A huge shocker that this team is were they are at. They have sipped the past 10 games going 3-7, but they are still hanging in there after a terrible Spring Training and start to the year. Having only three big names on the team —  Oswalt, Lee, and Berkman — the Astros are really holding their own. Almost a sleeper this year, the Astros have flown under the radar. Now I am not saying they will win the World Series or even make the playoffs, but they are doing a good job of at least keeping a possible playoff appearance within the realm of possibility.

With a few more months left in the regular season, the Central Division race should be an exciting and close race all the way to the finish. We will have to see which teams are still contending after August, and which have fallen off the playoff wagon.

Get ready to watch some great American baseball!

* – Albert Pujols and Matt Holliday photo credit: SkyNews

The Anchor’s Desk: Random Thoughts After Watching the All-Star Game and President Barack Obama’s First Pitch

The Prez delivers (barely),
The Host Does Not,
And a Team To Watch in the Second Half.

—————

After a loooong pre-game show which at times was boring to everyone not from St. Louis, we were all ready to play some ball. However, there were some fun moments I made mental notes of while waiting out the 45-minute pre-game.

– I liked watching the player intros from the reserves that are truly happy to be there and might never be back. Not Jeter or Pujols, who get to do this every year, but guys who are just cracking into the limelight. My old buddy Zack Duke of Pittsburgh didn’t even get to play Tuesday night, so taking off his hat and smiling was his only big moment. Go Waco Midway Panthers! Although I must say Duke and the other reserves gotta feel like second-class citizens after getting introduced completely separate from the starters.

– I’ll always like looking at Sheryl Crow, who still looks hot despite being 47. Oh and she sings too.

– The wide stadium shots showed off the cool Arch and Courthouse design in the outfield grass. And there was some weird new MLB marketing things on banners I didn’t really pay attention to.

– And there’s the First Fan, President Barack Obama, who just gets cooler and cooler, even when he’s dorky. Before the game, he was shown joking around with Pujols and Prince Fielder. “Hey Albert what happened with the derby?” he teased. “In your home park, huh?”

Even though he’s the President, it’s awesome that he has the stones to tease the hulking Pujols and do it in a way that makes Pujols like him even more. In fact, Pujols bailed out Obama once it was time for the first pitch. Obama had said he was trying not to bounce it, and that’s exactly what would have happened if Pujols had not reached way in and scooped it up centimeters before it hit the dirt. (Here’s why you didn’t see the pitch live.)

Obama’s take on how he did: “I did not play organized baseball when I was a kid and so, you know, I think some of these natural moves aren’t so natural to me,” he said.

Here is the video of President Obama throwing out the first pitch at last night’s All Star game in St. Louis:

– Now to Pujols….After checking out in Round Two of the Derby on Monday, the King Cardinal looked to do a bit more in the “real” game. And once Obama left the stage, it was Pujols’ for the taking. I guess he didn’t get the memo.

His fielding error in the first inning allowed the A.L. to score a run. He made some nice plays in the field after that, but he did go 0-3 and his team did lose by that one run. He said he wasn’t affected by all the attention he was receiving

“I won’t use the word ’stress,’” Pujols said to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. “I wish it could be like this for the rest of my career. I enjoy it. I was so happy for (Ryan Franklin) and Yadi (Molina). And having it here, in our city, I knew our fans were going to receive us with open arms.”

Pujols is still the man, don’t get me wrong. He’s the best hitter in baseball and his career All-Star numbers are still great: 6 for 17 (.353) with three RBIs in eight All-Star Games (seven appearances and six starts).

Still, the experience of serving as centerpiece for the two-day festival left a lasting impression on the two-time NL MVP, who received the loudest and longest applause during pre-game introductions.

“It was almost getting to the point where I got a little bit emotional yesterday and today the way the fans received me, Franklin and Yadi,” Pujols said. “It was pretty special.”

It would have been even more special had he done more to help the NL win its first ASG in 13 tries! So home field advantage in the World Series will be with the AL once again. So as we start the second half, which team will represent the Junior Circuit in October? New York? Boston? How about Seattle?

Zuh?

Okay, the M’s won’t win it all, but they may be in the postseason conversation, which is amazing.

The Ms are being called this year’s Rays. After a 100 loss-season, new skipper Don Wakamatsu has them 4 games over .500, just 4 games behind the Angels in a weak AL West division. They have gotten good pitching surprises from closer David Aardsma (22 saves) and starter Jarrod Washburn (2.96 ERA). Eric Bedard has been good and is finally healthy. Russ Branyan (who?) is having a bounce-back year and should have been an All-Star with his 22 HRs, 49 RBI, and .280 BA.

The M’s that were All-Stars are Wakamatsu, who was in St. Louis as a bench coach, pitcher “King” Felix Hernandez, and 9-time All-Star Ichiro in the outfield. Ichiro went 1-3, Hernandez pitched a perfect sixth inning, and Wakamatsu’s team won.

Not a bad night, even if it belonged to a guy on the losing team.

* – Barack Obama / Albert Pujols photo credit: Chris Lee / St. Louis Post-Dispatch

* – Don Wakamatsu photo credit: AP via SeattlePI.com

———-

Scott Reister is a featured contributor to Midwest Sports Fans, as well as Dallas Sports Fans.

He is a Sports Anchor for the NBC affiliate in the Tri-Cities and Spokane, WA. To learn more about Scott, visit the Scott Reister bio page on Midwest Sports Fans or check out the Local Sports page on KNDU.com.

To contact Scott: sreister@hotmail.com

Home Run Derby Preview: 2009 Participants, Odds, and Past Champions

Growing up, the Home Run Derby was always my favorite part of baseball’s All Star weekend. I used to love it.  I remember my dad telling me about the Home Run Derby TV show that he used to watch with the old stars like Hank Aaron, Willie Mays, and Mickey Mantle; and there was just something inherently exciting about seeing baseball’s biggest and best stars step up to the plate with one thing on their mind: swinging for the fences.

And, of course, this was back in the late 80s and early 90s when my love for the long ball was still untainted by steroids.  It was the same innocent awe with which I watched Big Mac and Sammy’s 1994 1998 (thanks Scott) pursuit of Roger Maris.

Times have changed now, and the home run isn’t quite what it used to be.  And neither is the Home Run Derby.  Maybe it’s because of steroids, maybe it’s just because I’m older, or maybe it’s because my childhood heroes like The Big Hurt and The Kid are no longer sweet-swinging for the fences the night before the All Star Game anymore.  For whatever reason, the Home Run Derby is no longer must-watch TV for me now.  I’m still interested in it, but I don’t plan my night around watching it.

With all that being said, I had the opportunity to re-watch last year’s Home Run Derby this past weekend.  They replayed it on either ESPN or the MLB Network, I don’t remember which one, but I sat through the first hour of it just so I could watch Josh Hamilton put on the most amazing 10-out sequence in the history of the Derby.  I didn’t get to watch the entire thing last year, but after seeing highlights and hearing people gush about it non-stop (especially here in Dallas), I had to watch.

And my goodness, it was everything it was cracked up to be and more.  I could not find the actual TV broadcast on YouTube, but there is plenty of amateur video available from people who were in the stands that night.  One of them is below:

 

I have never seen a baseball player in that kind of zone before.  And as the fans realized how hot Hamilton was, they seemed to cheer louder and louder with each successive blast.  As the announcers said repeatedly, Hamilton may have only broken Bobby Abreu’s single-round record by four, but the difference in the sheer power on display was night and day.  

Josh Hamilton wasn’t just hitting home runs, he was murdering baseballs and attacking bleachers.  He appeared to be doing it so effortlessly too.  And even though this comparison has been made millions of times over the past 16 or so months, I could not help thinking about how much Hamilton’s incredible story reminded me of one of my all-time favorite movies: The Natural.

Amazingly, Hamilton was not actually crowned the champion last year.  Justin Morneau of the Twins won it all (as you can see from the chart below).  But Morneau winning was simply a technicality based on the rules.  The lasting memory of the 2008 Home Run Derby was Josh Hamilton’s record first round, for everything it was and everything it represented.  We love baseball because it can provide such magical and majestic moments; last year, Josh Hamilton certainly provided that.

But that was 2008.  

Tonight, eight players will do their best to provide an encore to Hamilton’s marvelous performance from last year.  Here are the 2009 Home Run Derby participants:

2009 Home Run Derby Participants

American League Home Run Derby Participants

• Joe Mauer, Minnesota Twins
• Brandon Inge, Detroit Tigers
• Nelson Cruz, Texas Rangers
• Carlos Pena, Tampa Bay Rays

National League Home Run Derby Participants

• The Greatest Player Alive Today and Maybe Ever, St. Louis Cardinals
• Adrian Gonzalez, San Diego Padres
• Ryan Howard, Philadelphia Phillies
• Prince Fielder, Milwaukee Brewers

At first glance, one thing is pretty clear: this has to be the biggest disparity ever between the stature of the players competing for the AL and NL, respectively.  I have never been so underwhelmed at a Home Run Derby roster as I am looking at the AL.  In fact, there is not one guy in the AL that I’m looking forward to seeing.  All I hope is that Joe Mauer does incredibly well and then suffers a post-HR Derby dropoff like so many others have.  The same goes for Brandon Inge.  The best thing that could happen this weekend for the White Sox (who were screwed out of a couple additional All Star spots, damnit) would be Mauer and Inge screwing up their swings.  Come on guys…you can do it!

The NL, however, has the kind of stars that fans want to see in the Home Run Derby.  Albert Pujols will be competing in front of his home crowd, which is just great.  Ryan Howard and Prince Fielder are the kinds of behemoth mashers that harken us all back to the days and memories of guys like Babe Ruth.  

If the NL guys don’t hit double the amount of HRs that the AL guys hit, I’ll be surprised.

In fact, here are the 2009 Home Run Derby odds and betting lines, at least from one guy.  Most of the odds I’ve surveyed have been very similar:

• Home Run Derby Favorite – Albert Pujols: +200
• Ryan Howard: +250
• Prince Fielder: +350
• Adrian Gonzalez: +500
• Carlos Pena: +600
• Nelson Cruz: +800
• Joe Mauer: +850
• Brandon Inge: +1000

As you can see, not a whole lot of balance.  But no one cares who wins the Home Run Derby between the AL and NL; we all just want to see someone put on a magnificent show or see a couple of guys provide some drama by matching eachother HR for HR until the end.  And if it’s the great Pujols in front of his home fans, even better.  

Here are the particulars for tonight’s festivities:

2009 Home Run Derby Quick Preview

• 2009 Home Run Derby Date: Monday, July 13, 2009
• 2009 Home Run Derby Start Time: 7:00 ET
• 2009 Home Run Derby TV: ESPN
• Home Run Derby History: Home Run Derby

The final link above is the the Wikipedia page for the Home Run Derby, which provides the history of the event as well as a breakdown of every past derby.  Below, I have re-created the table of past Home Run Derby champions.  Tonight beginning at 7:00 ET, we’ll get to see which NL star will add his name to the list…because let’s be honest, if one of the guys from the AL wins it will be a monumental upset.  (Go Mauer and Inge!!! Help swing the balance of the AL Central with your Home Run Derby title and subsequent second half swoon!)

Home Run Derby Past Champions: All-Time List of Winners

Enjoy the derby tonight everyone.  I doubt we’ll see anything like what we saw from Josh Hamilton last year, but the trio of Pujols-Howard-Fielder should at least be good from some compelling long ball drama.

* – Josh Hamilton photo credit: Deadspin

MLB Midseason Awards: AL & NL Central Edition

The calendar has flipped to July, trade rumors have intensified, and teams are preparing to start their final series before the All Star Break after getaway day on Thursday. That can only mean one thing: the Chicago Cubs are only a few months away from tacking another year of futility onto the ever-growing grand total (which you can now track on your iPhone!).

But it also means something else: it’s time to dole out some midseason awards.

Since our primary focus here at Midwest Sports Fans is, well, the Midwest, I am going to focus my award giving to just the Central divisions of the American and National League. Let’s get right to it.

NL Central 1st Half MVP: Albert Pujols, and I really don’t need to say anything else about it. His name itself is becoming hyperbole. I want to see a new version of “The Most Interesting Man in the World” commercials featuring Pujols. They could be called “The Most Dominating Presence in Baseball” and include lines like “he once struck out, just to see what it felt like” and “he’s seen less pitches than the World Cup, yet his goatee alone has hit more home runs than Ryan Ludwick.” Albert Pujols is amazing and is not just the NL Central MVP, but the MLB MVP for the first half of 2009.

AL Central 1st Half MVP: This one is not so clear cut. Let’s take a look at a few of the candidates (stats as of July 9th):

• Joe Mauer, Twins: 60 G, 224 AB, .388 BA, 15 HR, 47 RBI, 48 R, 1.118 OPS
• Justin Morneau, Twins: 84 G, 319 AB, .317 BA, 21 HR, 69 RBI, 56 R, .984 OPS
• Jermaine Dye, White Sox: 77 G, 276 AB, .297 BA, 20 HR, 54 RBI, 51 R, .940 OPS
• Zack Greinke, Kansas City Royals: 10-5, 2.12 ERA, 1.08 WHIP, 129 K, 29 BB

Obviously I really want to say JD, or even Scott Podsednik, and I think there is an argument to be made for them as their value has been highlighted by the injury to Carlos Quentin, but I have a hard time giving it to anyone other than Justin Morneau or Joe Mauer with the impressive stats both have racked up.

It certainly isn’t Zack Greinke, whose team becomes more irrelevant with each passing week. If his ERA was still 1.00, then maybe. But he hasn’t been as lights-out recently, which is to be expected since he isn’t the greatest pitcher in the history of mankind and all beings, as some have suggested.

While everyone is salivating over Mauer, and don’t get me wrong — he has been great since returning from injury, Morneau has been producing at a high level for 24 more games and over the span of almost 100 more ABs than Mauer. Plus, batting average is an overrated stat, so Mauer gets no bonus points from me because he’s making everyone dream about .400. Both are great candidates, and by the end of the year such a difference in games won’t be so magnified, but right now I have to go with Morneau, who has been the most consistent run producer in the division over the course of the entire first half.

NL Central 1st Half Cy Young: I see two primary contenders: Adam Wainwright of St. Louis and Yovani Gallardo of Milwaukee. Here are the stats:

• Yovani Gallardo, Brewers: 8-6, 109.2 innings, 2.95 ERA, 120 K, 51 BB
• Adam Wainwright, Cardinals: 9-5, 122.1 innings, 3.09 ERA, 110 K, 45 BB

Pretty damn close based on the numbers (and you could probably throw Ryan Franklin in the mix here too, who has been great as the Cardinals’ closer). My first instinct when comparing Gallardo and Wainwright is to go with the guy pitching for the team in first place, but it’s hard to use team record as a tie-breaker considering the Cardinals are only one game up on the Brewers in the standings. Or is it? With two pitchers this close, sometimes it comes right down to head-to-head battles.

Thus far in 2009, Wainwright has absolutely dominated Milwaukee. He is 2-0 in two starts against the Brewers, going 15.1 innings and giving up just a single run while striking out 18. Gallardo, on the other hand, has struggled somewhat against his team’s primary competition for the division title. Despite having a better overall ERA and WHIP than Wainwright, Gallardo is 0-1 against St. Louis. Sure, he pitched 8 innings of shutout ball while only giving up 2 hits in the teams’ May 25th battle, so you can’t blame him for the no decision there, but that game was not head-to-head against Wainwright like the July 7th game was. In that battle, Gallardo lasted only five innings and gave up four runs in a 5-0 loss for the Brew Crew.

So maybe that one game difference for the Cardinals is the difference between Wainwright and Gallardo. I’m giving the 1st half Cy Young for the NL Central to Adam Wainwright.

AL Central 1st Half Cy Young: Lots of legit contenders here. Let’s list them out with stats:

• Mark Buehrle, White Sox: 9-2, 3.14 ERA, 1.13 WHIP, 114.2 innings, 65 K, 25 BB
• Joe Nathan, Twins: 0-1, 1.13 ERA, 0.75 WHIP, 33.1 innings, 22 saves, 43 K, 7 BB
• Justin Verlander, Tigers: 9-4, 3.59 ERA, 1.20 WHIP, 115.1 innings, 141 K, 35 BB
• Edwin Jackson, Tigers: 6-4, 2.59 ERA, 1.07 WHIP, 114.2 innings, 93 K, 33 BB
• Zack Greinke, Royals: 10-5, 2.12 ERA, 1.08 WHIP, 127.1 innings, 129 K, 29 BB
• Fausto Carmona, Indians: 2-6, 7.42 ERA, 1.81 WHIP, 60.2 innings, 36 K, 41 BB

If we were giving this out to the pitcher who has been the most generous to opposing hitters and teams, Fausto Carmona would win in a landslide. And yes, this is the same Fausto Carmona that went 19-8 with a 3.06 ERA in 2007. But obviously I only listed Carmona here to throw more salt in the multitude of open wounds Cleveland’s start has given its fans. More on him later.

Back to the subject at hand. Zack Greinke obviously has the best numbers, but I just don’t believe in handing out awards to players whose teams are not in the playoff race. There is a different level of pressure when your team is expected to win and when games are meaningful. If the award were Most Outstanding Pitcher, it’s Greinke by a landslide. It’s not, and it clearly states in the fine print of my own personal Cy Young and MVP criteria that last place teams (Cleveland sucks so bad they don’t count anymore) cannot have Cy Young or MVP winners, so we’ll let Willy Wonka tell Zack Greinke what he’s won:

(By the way, credit goes to Hugging Harold Reynolds for tweeting that video yesterday. I hadn’t seen that in forever, but always loved Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. Charlie Bucket is a golden god.)

Honestly, I can’t find a whole lot to separate Buehrle, Verlander, and Jackson. All three have had excellent seasons. I’d give the edge to Buehrle because he owns the Tigers and Verlander sucks against the White Sox, and both have more wins than Jackson, but it’s really splitting hairs between those three.

My 1st half AL Central Cy Young goes to Joe Nathan, who has just be out-of-this-world awesome. The Twins’ pitchers (other than Nick Blackburn, who is having a very good yet under-the-radar season) have struggled this season. Francisco Liriano, Scott Baker, and Kevin Slowey have all dealt with injuries and bouts of ineffectiveness. The one constant (throughout all the years Ray, has been baseball) has been Joe Nathan at the back end of the bullpen making sure that when the Twins do have a late lead, they do not surrender it.

I’m not a huge proponent of giving Cy Youngs to closers who typically pitch less than a third of the amount of innings a top-line starter does, but Joe Nathan has given up only 18 hits in 33.1 innings and is 22-24 in save opportunities. He has been beyond dominant and there is no way the Twins would be as close to first place as they are without him. It’s a competitive field, but Nathan is the choice.

NL Central Manager of the 1st Half: Tony LaRussa, and I don’t think it’s close. Ken Macha has done a nice job in Milwaukee keeping the Brewers in the race without C.C. Sabathia or Ben Sheets, but LaRussa has the Cardinals in first place with one legit hitter in his lineup. Yes, that hitter is the great Pujols, but look at the rest of the team’s offensive stats. Putrid. And it’s not like their pitching has been lights out. Ryan Franklin has been a revelation in the bullpen, and getting Chris Carpenter back has helped, but this is still a rotation that counts on guys like Kyle Lohse, Joel Piniero, and Todd Wellemeyer. That LaRussa has the Cardinals in first place is a testament to his managerial genius (and to Pujols’ utter dominance, of course).

AL Central Manager of the 1st Half: I really want to say Ozzie Guillen, and I think that he’s done a great job, but my vote goes to Jimmy Leyland of Detroit. It’s not just that the Tigers are in first place, it’s that they’ve been able to rebound from last season’s disappointment with a far less potent offensive attack and without the benefit of an above-average bullpen. Leyland has navigated his way through the struggles of Dontrelle Willis and Armando Gallarraga, plus had to deal with Magglio Ordonez’s sharp decline. Leyland essentially has a lineup with only three hitters who have been consistent producers (Miguel Cabrera, Brandon Inge, Curtis Granderson), yet there the Tigers sit, a couple games up and eight games over .500.

2009 has been an excellent rebound season for Detroit, and Leyland deserves credit as the man steering the ship. He also deserves credit for having one of the most hilarious old school baseball cards ever. The hat, the mustache, the sunburned face…I’m not sure if he’s at Spring Training, a train conductor, or working at a carnival.

And with that, let’s transition into a few “alternative” awards for the first half.

NL Central Least Valuable Player of the 1st Half: Milton Bradley wins this one. Signed in the offseason after putting up terrific numbers in Texas, The Angry One has only gotten 203 ABs so far this season and hasn’t done much with them. He’s hitting .236 and, even worse, is slugging only .374. Ouch. Plus, he is being his usual distracting self and getting into public pissing matches with his manager when he’s not forgetting how many outs there are in an inning. Like most things having to do with the Cubs, you just get the feeling that this is not going to end well.

AL Central Least Valuable Player of the 1st Half: Fausto Carmona of the Indians. We touched on his stats above, and they really say it all. This guy has just gone straight downhill since 2007 and the Indians have to be wondering if he’ll ever be able to recapture the ability that made him appear to be one of the bright young pitching stars in the big leagues. Despite a rough 2008, a lot was expected out of Carmona this year. Well, the Indians have gotten a lot out of him…it’s just all been bad.

AL/NL Central Worst Manager of the 1st Half: Hands down Eric Wedge. You need look no further than this site, where our very own AJ Kaufman calls for Wedge’s head in pretty much every article he writes. The Indians were expected to contend for the AL Central crown, yet they are 13.5 games out and 19 games under .500 already.

AL/NL Central Manager with the most potential to give his kids truly awful awesome names: Eric Wedge. If he had any sense of humor he would name his kids Orange, Potato, and Cheese. No such luck though. As it is, he and his wife named their kids Ava and Dalton Cash. Oh well.

Come to think of it though, Dalton Cash Wedge is a pretty sweet and unique name. The kid is either going be a scrappy middle infielder/#2 hitter in the majors or the lead actor in his generation’s version of Dawson’s Creek. Well done Eric. (See, we don’t always criticize you on Midwest Sports Fans.)

AL/NL Central Quote of the 1st Half: This one is easy and goes to (who else?) Ozzie Guillen. And there were a few of them, all of which were gloriously derogatory towards the team from the North Side.

“But one thing about Wrigley Field, I puke every time I go there. That’s just to be honest. And if Cub fans don’t like the way I talk about Wrigley Field, it’s just Wrigley Field. I don’t say anything about the fans or anything now. But Wrigley Field, they got to respect my opinion. That’s the way I feel…I don’t care if they hate me. They don’t feed my kids. If they hate me, that’s cool.”

That’s just a great quote, although the part about Ozzie not talking about Cubs fans may not be entirely true. Ozzie also had this gem:

“…our fans are not stupid like Cubs fans.”

AL/NL Central Home Run Call of the Year: Hawk Harrelson, two days ago. Hell yeah!

That’s all I’ve got. Sorry for not even mentioning your teams Reds, Astros, and Pirates fans…they’ve all been pretty uninteresting so far this year, at least as far as I’m concerned. But feel free to add your own midseason awards in the comments.

The White Sox bring out the brooms again tonight, and then play the Twins in a pivotal pre-All Star Break series. As Hawk might say, I loooove baseball.

* – Jim Leyland baseball card image credit: Vinewood Sports Cards

* – Albert Pujols photo credit: Urban Shocker

Albert Pujols and the List of Other Players I THINK (Hope) Are Clean

So I just checked traffic to the site so far today. Decent, nothing spectacular, just a normal no-link-from-the-Philadelphia-Inquirer (or, excuse me, tweet from @HHReynolds) day here at MSF.

However, something caught my eye that has become a pretty noticable trend.

My stats show me the keyword searches that have driven search engine referrals to the site. I’ve noticed that every time Albert Pujols has a big game, searches involving his name and “steroids” spike. After another two-homer outburst by El Hombre yesterday, here are the search numbers so far today:

• “albert pujols steroids” – 53
• “pujols steroids” – 41
• “pujols steroid” – 6
• “is albert pujols on steroids” – 4

And to the right is a snapshot from my Google Analytics tracking since I wrote this post about Pujols on May 15th. These are all search terms and the number of individual visits that have come to Midwest Sports Fans as a result.

I guess some people are wondering about Albert Pujols and steroids, huh?

And keep in mind, at last check my post about Pujols was only #7 on the first page of Google results for “albert pujols steroids”…so the posts above mine are driving significantly more traffic from these types of searches than I am.

And lest you think that the aforementioned post was speculative regarding Pujols being on steroids, I assure you it was not. In fact, I went out of my way to state that Pujols is one of the few remaining guys left that I believe to be clean. There is always doubt — a fact that we’ve all been over ad nauseum in recent weeks — but Pujols gets more benefit of the doubt than anyone in my mind.

A quick excerpt from that post, which was written a few weeks before the now infamous Raul Ibanez post:

I’ve given up hope on most current and former baseball players and stopped giving the vast majority of them any benefit of the doubt. And I don’t blame myself for not being able to withstand the force of pessimism…I blame Major League Baseball and the greed and vanity of the players.

However, one of the few guys that I remain steadfast in defending is Albert Pujols.

…

In fact, I’m done referring to PED’s as performance-enhancing drugs. From now, I’m calling them Pujols Emulation Drugs. Albert Pujols is the standard by which all other major league baseball players should be held, both on and off the field. Anyone caught using PEDs, like Manny for instance, is clearly just trying to reach Pujols’ level. But that’s the greatness of Albert Pujols: he didn’t need to use PEDs to get where he is (good Lord I hope…I really do).

I could go into all of the SEO reasons why this post ended up on the first page for an “albert pujols steroids” search, but I don’t want to bore you. Mainly it’s because those terms are in the <title> tag and the content matches up. It wasn’t necessarily my intention (not that I’m complaining, mind you) but I am glad that people searching for this information are finding that post.

Just as in the case of the Ibanez post, my discussion about Pujols was completely speculative, completely honest in terms of my thoughts and feelings, and highlighted a continuing problem in Major League Baseball that still requires addressing. The tone of the Pujols piece was more explicit in giving him the benefit of the doubt than the Ibanez article (something I’ve previously recognized as wishing I could do over) but I don’t really see a huge gulf of difference between them.

At the end of the day, Albert Pujols and Raul Ibanez sit atop my list of players that I believe in more than others. Everyone is playing with a cloud of suspicion right now, testing policy or not, and that’s just the reality. And while stories like ARod and Manny continue to frustrate me and many other baseball fans (though many have professed to just not caring anymore, which is fair…I’m just not there yet), I still try to focus more of my attention and appreciation on the guys who I think have always played the game the right way.

With that said, a list was recently published at the site RotoInfo that is supposedly the complete list of the 103 players who failed drug tests prior to the 2003 season. It is accompanied by the statement “Rumored steroid list (UNCONFIRMED)” and no other information is given but names. I find it absolutely amazing that my piece about Raul Ibanez — which accused no one — caused such a huge stir, while this list — which accuses 103 players specifically — has gone relatively under the radar in comparison. Again, I’m not complaining about the exposure generated by the Ibanez post, and I never have. The whole thing just still seems so random to me.

For the record, I don’t really have an opinion one way or the other about the RotoInfo list. I’ve seen other lists that have attempted to guess the identities of the 103 players and I simply lump this in with those. It’s just a speculative list — which I’m fine with — and there is no reason to consider it something more or less than any other list until we have some sort of confirmation. Tommy Craggs over at Deadspin wrote about the list yesterday and offers a more informed opinion about its potential validity than I can provide, as I am not all that familiar with the past work of RotoInfo.

However, after seeing the RotoInfo list and other lists like it, I figured I would try to flip the steroid speculation on its head and focus on the guys I think are clean, rather than waste time worrying about the guys I think may have cheated over the years. I will state again that I firmly believe every player is legitimately under suspicion; not necessarily that they are currently using, as I think testing has to have had a positive impact, but that they might have used in the past during the height of the PED era. With that said, there are guys that I believe in a lot more than others. So even though I’ve somewhat become an icon for negative steroid speculation (fair or not), allow me to tread for a few moments in the much less volatile and Rosenthalless ground of positive steroid speculation.

Here is my own personal speculative list of guys currently playing that I think have always been clean and still are (but that, granted, I still wouldn’t be totally shocked to learn dabbled in PEDs at some point during their careers).

Note: This list is not meant to be exhaustive. It only takes into account players who have played at a consistently above average level for a number of years and that I feel I could make a legitimate statistical and empirical case for in defending. Feel free to argue or add to the list in the comments:

• Albert Pujols
• Raul Ibanez (as said in the post linked above, after looking at even more statistical evidence that I’d originally neglected, I believe in his numbers much more than when I initially wrote the post.)
• Mark Buehrle
• Derek Jeter
• Roy Halladay
• Justin Morneau
• David Wright
• Grady Sizmore
• Mariano Rivera
• Joe Nathan
• Johan Santana
• Ichiro Suzuki
• Jim Thome
• C.C. Sabathia
• Ken Griffey Jr.

If you want to know how I arrived at this list, here you go: I clicked on each of the rosters in my fantasy league and went down the list, just going with my gut reaction. I tried to stick with more veteran guys who were around during the early parts of this decade. There were plenty of guys that “almost made it” (although I won’t name them so I don’t get accused of implicitly accusing them) but the guys above are the ones that I didn’t hesitate to add.

I suppose there are two ways to look at this list. I was actually surprised to find that many guys that I feel relatively comfortable with, but it still looks pretty paltry in comparison to the total number of MLB players. The list is only about half a roster’s worth of players. Congratulations once again Major League Baseball. The rotten fruits of your greed never cease to find new and exciting ways to manifest themselves.

Bringing things full circle, Albert Pujols does, in my mind, stand out as the “last great hope” of baseball fans who want to see records held by guys we believe in. I still consider Roger Maris to be the single-season home run king and I still consider Hank Aaron (my favorite player as a kid, even though he was retired) to be all-time home run king. Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa, Barry Bonds, Alex Rodriguez, etc., etc.; these guys are not worthy of such lofty status. If Albert Pujols ever achieves one or both of those marks, I believe he will be worthy.

(Good Lord I hope…I really do.)

* – Albert Pujols photo credit: AlbertPujolsFanClub.com

The Amazing Albert Pujols Continues Assault on Record Book with 30th HR of 2009

Last night in Saint Louis, Albert Pujols become the first major league player to hit at least 30 homeruns in each of his first nine seasons. He now has 349 for his incredible 21st century career.

Later this week or early next, he will hit his 352nd homerun, which will allow him to pass Ralph Kiner for the most long balls in the first nine years of one’s career. For reference, Alex Rodriguez hit fewer than 300 his first nine big league seasons.

While A-Rod, steroid issues aside, will now be very hard-pressed to pass Barry Bonds and become the all-time homerun king (Alex, approaching his 34th birthday, hit #565 last night) Pujols, statistically, has a valid shot.

You don’t have to do much math to figure, if the Cards’ first basemen ends 2009 with roughly 380, he is halfway to Barry, and Albert does not turn 30 until January of next year. Averaging just 40 for the next five seasons will give him close to 600 before age 35, when non-drug users generally slow down.

Can he hit another 170 or so from age 35 on? That is the question. (Barry Bonds hit about 350 after age 35, for what it’s worth; while Ken Griffey Jr has only hit 119 due to injuries)

With alleged and confessed steroid use in MLB tainting many HR records in the eyes of fans and media, Pujols, assuming he’s clean (the czars are already doing drug tests on him regularly, which he’s passing), is the Great Hope for baseball fans everywhere.

[Editor's Update: Even more amazing is the fact that Pujols is doing all of this with very little protection in the Cardinals lineup, as discussed earlier today by our good friend Moon Dog in his article Albert Pujols Should Vote His Teammates Off the Island.]

The Curious Case of Journalists Perpetuating “Pathetic” and “Ridiculous” Steroid Speculation

I don’t really know the best way to introduce the source material that I am about to comment on, so I’ll just copy/paste an excerpt and let it speak for itself before adding my own thoughts:

From a recent article by Jerry Crowe of the Los Angeles Times:

Thanks to Ramirez, Alex Rodriguez, Barry Bonds, Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa, etc., fans outside St. Louis must wonder, ‘Do we celebrate Albert Pujols or suspect him?’ . . .

Pujols has batted four times with the bases loaded this season and three times has hit grand slams. . . .

In his only other at-bat with the bases loaded, the St. Louis Cardinals slugger delivered only a two-run single. . . .

Sadly, it makes you wonder. . . .

Now, being from the Midwest and never having lived in LA, I was unfamiliar with Jerry Crowe’s work before seeing this article. However, I have to assume that he has proper journalistic training and some level of understanding for the “professional ethics” and “standards of decency” that were trotted out time and again over the past couple of weeks since I wrote about Raul Ibanez.

Geoff Baker and Ken Rosenthal know what I’m talking about.

I honestly don’t even know what to say. It’s not like this article by Crowe is an isolated example of some mainstream sportswriter going rogue and speculating about specific players using steroids. As was chronicled in the myriad posts written about the Raul Ibanez “controversy”, there are countless examples of media members making claims very similar to what Crowe has written above and similar to the article I wrote that touched off such a fire storm.

And I am not highlighting Crowe’s article because I disagree with him or think he is wrong to speculate. Albert Pujols is in my own personal group of players (along with Raul Ibanez, Derek Jeter, and a few others) that I believe in the most, but no one would truly surprise me anymore. I don’t think that Albert Pujols is on steroids, and his statistical consistency as well as what I’ve read about his high level character are two reasons why; yet, I certainly can understand why people would speculate, and the thought has definitely crossed my mind that it’s a reasonable possibility.

So I have no problem with what Crowe wrote. That’s not the point.

What I just find to be hilariously ironic, especially after another viewing of the Outside the Lines video a couple of nights ago, is how righteous and arrogant Ken Rosenthal was and how many of his peers came across the same way in their responses to what I wrote. Believe me, I’m glad they did because it helped to drive traffic to our site and give us a brief little brush with “fame” and exposure, but their larger points about how the blogosphere is ruining sports writing just seem more and more laughable with each post I read like Crowe’s above.

For some reason, bloggers took a tremendous amount of external criticism in the aftermath of Raul Ibanez’s comments about my post. And, come to think of it, I wonder if Albert Pujols is going to publicly scream at Jerry Crowe for his “pathetic” speculation. Perhaps not, since I assume Crowe wrote it from the LA Times offices and not from the dark nether regions of his mother’s basement.

But the truth of it all is this:

1. Bloggers didn’t create the steroid problem in baseball, baseball did. So getting angry at me or anyone else who writes about it honestly and genuinely is terribly misguided. That’s like having a water pipe burst or break at your house because the plumbers did a shoddy installation job and getting mad at the cable guy for talking about how wet your floor is.
2. Bloggers certainly didn’t create steroid speculation on our own. Journalists have done it for years (it just came far too late, I’m afraid). As I said above, I don’t have a problem with it. I just have a problem with people accusing the honest, hard-working, passionate sports fans who blog of being “unprofessional” and “unethical” and “attention whores” and “lacking standards of decency” and the multitudes of other trite criticisms we hear, when the “journalistic standards” (whatever that term even means) to which we are ostensibly being held (although most of us never claimed to be setting out to uphold them) are not even being upheld by their own peers.

There are fair criticisms and critiques from professional writers that we should listen to because they can make our content better, but I just hope that if Ken Rosenthal or Geoff Baker reads Jerry Crowe’s column that they roll their eyes, think it’s ridiculous, and write 5,000 word articles lambasting Crowe for his lack of integrity. (And I wonder if Crowe reached out to Pujols before “hitting publish.” He has “access.” Sadly, it makes you wonder…)

It just makes the last couple of weeks look like a disingenuous charade from a group of people who feel threatened by bloggers and the uncertain future of their industry. And it makes all of the righteous indignation seem like nothing more than a bunch of verbose and ironic nonsense.

Tom Fornelli, the author of FoulBalls.net and a writer for FanHouse, said it best as you can read in the excerpt below. And since his article is the one that alerted me to this story, and is the reason I am writing about it, I will both mention him by name and link to his article. (You see, journalists, in the blogosphere we have our own code of ethics and integrity and *gasp* actually follow it!).

It does make me wonder. It makes me wonder what exactly the difference is between what Jerod Morris did on a blog and Jerry Crowe did in the Los Angeles Times. Frankly the only difference I see — aside from the fact Morris did actual statistical analysis and Crowe just threw his opinion out there — is that Crowe speculated about a specific player’s steroid use in a major newspaper that I’m sure has a far greater reach than MidwestSportsFans.com, yet for some reason I doubt there will be as much of a reaction to it.

I guess responsibility only applies to those without press passes.

I have nothing else to say about this story.

By the way, for a funny little anecdote about Sammy Sosa and his obsession with the Sammy Sosa Gun Show, here is another great post by Fornelli at FanHouse. Has a player ever fallen from beloved and respected to resented and laughed at more precipitously than Sammy Sosa? It would be sad if every problem Sosa has faced was not brought on by his own selfishness, personal choices, and the ineptitude of the union and league that he was a part of.

And if you still want more MLB content to read, the good folks over at Sparty and Friends put together a nice piece regarding MLB contraction.

**********

My apologies again for the lack of activity this week. Work has been extremely busy and my two best friends from college are in town so my time at night to write has been limited, but it sure has been great catching up. We ate dinner at Fogo de Chao last night. Ridiculously expensive and ridiculously worth it. See if they have one in your city and go right now. It’s amazing.

And on the very bright side, my previously ill dog is almost fully recovered from surgery and will be completely back bouncing around like his old self in about a week. Thanks again to everyone who sent emails and tweets with kind and supportive words. They were all very much appreciated.

Have a great day everyone.

Sports World Roundup: Pujols-Emulating Drugs and Why White Sox Fans Should Not Panic…Yet

And I’m back, with another edition of the Sports World Roundup.

The Amazing Pujols

Albert Pujols is the man, and our friends over at Sharapova’s Thigh wonder if this will be the mighty Pujols’ most mighty season yet.

He is certainly well on his way, and at 29 years old Albert Pujols already has hit 331 HR, surpassed 1K in RBI, and is a .334 lifetime hitter. That’s just ridiculous.

And, of course, in the wake of Manny Ramirez’s suspension for violating the anti-PED policy in baseball, every baseball fan is silently hoping to himself that nothing will ever taint the purity of Pujols’ accomplishments. ARod used to be the shining beacon of hope in the midst of baseball’s steroid thunderstorm, but he was probably miscast in that role anyway…considering he’s a douche bag.

I’ve given up hope on most current and former baseball players and stopped giving the vast majority of them any benefit of the doubt. And I don’t blame myself for not being able to withstand the force of pessimism…I blame Major League Baseball and the greed and vanity of the players.

However, one of the few guys that I remain steadfast in defending is Albert Pujols.

I just don’t see it. I believe the stories about his incredible character, and I believe the consistency of his numbers. I know that he is from the DR and that many Dominican baseball players are linked to steroids, and that there have been whispers that he may be older than he says, and that Tony LaRussa is his manager (and he still thinks Big Mac did not take steroids), and I know that Pujols was reared in the big leagues during perhaps the most rampant steroid era in the history of American sports…but I don’t care. I’m buying in.

In fact, I’m done referring to PED’s as performance-enhancing drugs. From now, I’m calling them Pujols Emulation Drugs. Albert Pujols is the standard by which all other major league baseball players should be held, both on and off the field. Anyone caught using PEDs, like Manny for instance, is clearly just trying to reach Pujols’ level. But that’s the greatness of Albert Pujols: he didn’t need to use PEDs to get where he is (good Lord I hope…I really do). And while everyone else tries to emulate him and reach his level, he remains above the fray with a personal and professional integrity that makes him an anomaly in a game in which the names of miscreants (ARod, Bonds, Clemens, Pete Rose, the Black Sox, Ty Cobb, and many others) are as famous — or infamous — as the good guys (Griffey, Maddux, The Big Hurt, Willie Mays, Hank Aaron, and many others).

So there is my newly formed defense for Albert Pujols. Why would he need to take Pujols-emulating drugs? He is already the mighty Pujols. And his quiet excellence, leadership, and integrity are what players need to emulate, rather than cheating by taking drugs to try to emulate his numbers.

The Amazing Rockets

Who the hell would have thought that Houston would go 2-1 against the Lakers after Yao Ming went out with an injury?

Bill Simmons famously coined the term “Ewing Theory” (after getting it from his friend) to describe a team that ascends to greater heights without a superstar than it did with him, but has there ever been a case of a team flying this much higher after losing two superstars? The NBA is supposed to be a league in which wins, losses, and playoff success hinge on the performance of superstar players. Yet the Rockets are defying the odds and have forced a Game 7 against the mighty Lakers. We should probably wait to see if they actually win Game 7 before coining the “Yaogrady Theory” or the “McMing Theory”, but the Rockets have certainly done enough already to overcome what was expected of them.

The Predictable White Sox

Last year after 33 games the Chicago White Sox were 15-18 and Mark Buehrle was the loser of game 33. The offense sucked, there were questions surrounding the pitching staff, but the bullpen had been solid. Once the weather heated up, so did the White Sox bats, and they ultimately won the AL Central.

This year after 33 games the Chicago White Sox are 15-18 and Mark Buehrle was the loser of game 33. The offense sucks, there are questions surrounding the pitching staff, but the bullpen has been solid. Now, as the weather heats up…?

Stay calm White Sox fans. I’ve been as frustrated as anyone, and we really are playing like absolute hor$e$hit right now, but we are built on the long ball again this year, and our aging bats don’t usually heat up until the weather does. And the AL Central is only one good week away from being ours again.

At least, that’s what I’m going to keep telling myself.

The Hilarious Internet

A couple of really funny links for your viewing pleasure:

• Why the F*** Do You Have a Kid?
• Awkward Family Photos

The Insufferable Brett Favre

Brett Favre went to see Dr. James Andrews. I know this because Ed Werder and Chris Mortensen reported it, but also because it is another sign that Favre might play in 2009 despite all of his statements to the contrary. All things being equal, I wouldn’t mind seeing Brett Favre play again. He’s the only quarterback in the league with the potential to throw 5 TDs or 5 INTs (or both perhaps) on any given Sunday. There is an inherent excitement in that.

But just say one way or the other and stop all of the charades and games. Seriously. The next thing you know, Favre will be posing for pictures like this one.

The Insane Chad Johnson…err, Chad Ochocinco

It’s official: Chad Johnson can officially put Ochocinco on the back of his jersey. The guys who do the morning radio show on 1310 The Ticket here in Dallas always point out examples of how close our society is to becoming like the dumbed-down future society predicted by the movie Idiocracy. This is yet another example.

And finally, some random pics of a gorgeous and sexy woman: here, here, and here. And then a video that is, well, pretty irresistible.

Have a great day everyone. Be back later.

What Players Can Move up the Top 50 of the MLB Career Homeruns List in 2009?

With another baseball season quickly approaching, let’s take a look at what active players have an opportunity to move into prominent positions on the All-Time Career Home Run List. The top 50 career homerun hitters heading into the 2009 season are listed in the table below.

The following players have legitimate shots to move into the top 50 with “normal” seasons. The top 50 cut-off point is currently the 390 career homeruns hit by Graig Nettles.

• Jim Edmonds is at #55 with 382 career homeruns. He needs 9 more homeruns to crack the top 50. Probability: High
• Andruw Jones is at #66 with 371 career homeruns. He needs 20 more homeruns to crack the top 50. Probability: Who the hell knows
• Luis Gonzalez is at #74 with 354 career homeruns. He needs 37 more homeruns to crack the top 50. Probablity: Next to impossible, unless he gets back on the juice
• Albert Pujols is at #98 with 319 career homeruns. He needs 72 more homeruns to crack the top 50. Probablity: Low, but let’s all hope and pray he goes two over that total and becomes the legitimate single-season homerun king.

Now, how about the current players in the Top 20 of the career homeruns list, and where they could end the 2009 season:

• Ken Griffey Jr. sits at #5 on the career home runs list with 611. He needs 49 to tie Willie Mays for #4. I’d love to see it happen, but probably not this season. Maybe if he plays two more.
• Alex Rodriguez sits at #12 on the career home runs list. With 58 homeruns in 2009, he would tie Ken Griffey Jr. for 5th. More likely is that he hits somewhere between 33 and 55 and ends the 2009 season ahead of Frank Robinson for 7th on the career homeruns list.
• Jim Thome sits at #14 on the career home runs list. If he hits 32 or more homeruns in 2009, he will pass Harmon Killebrew, currently at #9.
• Manny Ramirez sits at #17 on the career homer uns list with 527. Harmon Killebrew’s 573 might not be out of the question in Manny plays an entire season like he ended last season with the Dodgers. More than likely, Manny Ramirez will somewhere near or above 36 homeruns in 2009 and challenge Reggie Jackson, who is currently #11 with 563.
• Frank Thomas is currently tied for 18th with 521 career homeruns. The A’s recently declined arbitration with The Big Hurt, and his 2009 season is up in the air, despite his stated desire to play two more years. Mickey Mantle at #15 with 536 homeruns is within reach is Frank is healthy and gets regular at bats.

To figure out where the rest of the Top 50 career homerun hitters could end up after the 2009 season, just use the chart below to see where they currently rank:

Click here to see the rest of the top 500 career homeruns list.

And now, I don’t feel out iota of guilt for putting ^ marks next to players’ names who have been implicated, explicit proof or not, for using steroids. Major League Baseball lost its chance to provide players the benefit of the doubt, in my opinion. As far as I’m concerned, you are guilty until proven innocent when credible allegations arise.

What a bunch of cheating liars…

Five Major League Baseball Players to Root For in 2009

As Spring Training games begin around the country today, and as the 2009 World Baseball Classic kicks off as well, I am taking a quick break from work to do a little afternoon baseball writing. Most of my recent baseball posts have been entirely White Sox-centric, so I am going to branch out a bit and discuss five non-White Sox players from around the Majors that I will be rooting for in 2009.

After my misadventure trying to accurately characterize the level of disappointment I felt after hearing that IU had to self-report a minor recruiting violation in the basketball program, and then writing about the rift between Shuan Rogers and Eric Mangini, I feel the need to write something that is decidedly upbeat and positive.

So here they are, the five baseball players that I am rooting for in 2009 who are not playing their home games on the South Side of Chicago.

Joe Crede, 3B, Minnesota Twins

This one is easy.

Ever since Joe Crede was a White Sox farmhand and the heir apparent to Robin Ventura at third base, he has been one of my favorite White Sox players. He was always inconsistent at the plate, but did produce in the clutch — especially during the 2005 World Series run. And what he lacked in consistency at the plate he more than made up for by being one of the best, and most underrated, defensive third baseman of the 2000s.

Questions about Joe Crede’s back and the presence of young talents like Josh Fields and Dayan Viciedo compelled the White Sox to let Joe go, and he ended up in Minnesota. While I feel a natural rivalry with the Twins, I do not hate them like I hate the Indians, Tigers, and Cubs. Something about the way they play and Ozzie’s affinity for the “piranhas” has rubbed off on me. Joe Crede will fit in perfectly with the Twins, and I hope that he stays healthy and has a good season.

Of course, I wouldn’t mind it if he struggles when the Twins play the White Sox, but I hope that he can begin a solid second act in his very solid career. I think all White Sox fans appreciate the many good years that Joe Crede gave us, and I would assume that the majority are wishing him well in his new digs.

Ken Griffey Jr., OF/DH, Seattle Mariners

The Kid’s White Sox career was brief and unspectacular, and is in no way part of the reason why I am rooting for him in 2009. I have always admired Ken Griffey for the all-around excellence of his skills during his amazing first decade in the Major Leagues. It is unfortunate that he was unable to stay healthy in Cincinnati and that he has become “just another guy” since leaving Seattle.

Yet, with each new allegation of steroids that comes to light about baseball’s superstars from the late 90s and early- to mid-00s, Ken Griffey Jr’s accomplishments become more and more impressive. There are very few guys for whom steroid allegations would surprise me anymore, but Griffey is definitely one of them.

Although his skills have eroded and he is not even 50% of the graceful and elegant defensive player he once was, he still has that same sweet (albeit slower) swing and is one of the true, pure legends of the last twenty years in baseball. Now he gets to go home where it all started and provide some nostalgic joy to Mariner fans who may not have much else to cheer for this season. I would love to see Griffey put together an unexpectedly productive season at the plate and every now and then flash the brilliance that made him one of the most exciting young players baseball has ever seen.

Josh Hamilton, OF, Texas Rangers

The real life Roy Hobbs.

I hear that so much living down here in Dallas that it is almost cliche now — but only because it is so exceedingly true.

Josh Hamilton’s story is truly one of redemption and the triumph of the human spirit. I realize that his problems and addictions were almost exclusively self-inflicted, but every now and again it is good and inspiring to see someone lift themselves up after hitting rock bottom, reminding us of just how powerful human will can be when truly put to the test.

Add the backstory to Hamilton’s ridiculous talent and you have one of most compelling figures in all of sports as far as I’m concerned. It goes without saying (although I’m about to say it) that everyone is hoping beyond hope that the redemption story of Josh Hamilton was written without any illegal performance-enhancers and that he can stay on the straight and narrow. If so, he has the ability to become one of baseball’s brightest stars heading into the new decade.

Dontrelle Wills, SP, Detroit Tigers

While living in Miami in 2004 and 2005 I got to witness Dontrelle Willis’ ascension to stardom during his early years with the Florida Marlins. When he first came up with the Fish, he reminded me of the pitching version of a poor man’s Ken Griffey Jr with his attitude and enthusiasm. Yet, Willis’ numbers have always been somewhat up and down — no doubt a byproduct of his unique delivery — and there was the DUI and then the rumors that he and Miguel Cabrera were not exactly the best clubhouse influences during their last year in Miami.

Still, when I think of Dontrelle Willis I think of a guy who is a ball of entertaining energy, who seemed to be maturing as a pitcher before he got to Detroit, and who is renowned for being involved in the community. He is also someone that young African-American baseball players in America can look up to, during a time when African-American representation in the Major Leagues continues to dwindle.

Most of all, I just love watching Dontrelle Willis pitch. Obviously if he makes the Tigers’ rotation he will be pitching for an AL Central enemy of the White Sox, so I hope his control eludes him when the Tigers and White Sox play; but I would like to see Dontrelle make a triumphant return to the Majors and get his career back on the right track.

Albert Pujols, 1B, St. Louis Cardinals

Simply put, he is the most consistently great hitter I have seen in my lifetime. Even better than The Big Hurt.

Look at his career stats — they are unreal from Day One. And so far Pujols has avoided any significant rumors of ever being on steroids. You certainly can’t point to any particular season or groups of seasons as showing a Bonds- or McGwire-type pop in production.

If anything, he would have to have been on steroids his entire career, that’s how great the numbers are that he puts up on annual basis.

Albert Pujols also appears to be the ultimate team player. He has led the Cardinals to an improbable World Series and I have never heard him complain despite a steady erosion over the last couple of years of the offensive production around him in the Cardinals lineup. He just goes out every day and proves that he is the best all-around hitter in the game.

I can tell you right now that if I get the #1 pick in any fantasy drafts this year I won’t even consider A-Fraud — I’ll go right for Pujols. I prefer to pack my fantasy teams with players I actually like rooting for, and few non-White Sox players fit that bill like Albert Pujols.

——————–

So now that I’ve given you my list, it’s your town. Who are the players that are not on your favorite team that you will be rooting for in 2009? The comment section awaits.