Year of the Pitcher 2.0

Five no- hitters, one perfect game, that’s the total amount in 1968, which is referred to as the Year of the Pitcher. Five no- hitters, 2 perfect games, and if it were not for a horrible call by an ump, the respective numbers would be six and three. Those are the numbers for this season, and its only July 26th, just imagine what could happen in the next few months as the season draws to a close. Are we going to see ten no-no’s this year? If this keeps pace the Major League record of seven no hit games set in 1991 is sure to be shattered.

Its not just the no- hitters and perfect games that is turning this season into year of the pitcher 2.0, at this point there are seventeen hurlers that have ERAs under 3.00, heck there are even two with ERAs under 2.00 and up until June 11 Rockies Ace Ubaldo Jimenez who has hit a little rough patch this month held his below 1.00.


In short Matt Garza of the Rays followed up multiple pitchers this year by throwing the fifth no- no continuing pitching dominance over hitters.

-A

Where Will T.O. play next season

Free Agent Wide Reciever Terell Owens, known more commonly as T.O. is looking for a new team after not reupping with the Buffallo Bills after having his worse season in years.  Most people would think that Owens, a pretty much a surefire Hall of Famer would have every team in the league ringing his phone off the hook.  Unfortunately for him his ego is well known throughout the NFL and country so even though he is still a very good reciever he would be a locker room cancer, a turn off for a lot of fans, and he wouldn't be a very good influence on the young players on the team.  Luckily For him though there are still two teams that are reportedly interested in him, the St. Louis Rams who are desperate for talent at all positions, and the Cincinnati Bengals, who seem to sign every troubled player in the NFL. 

Yesterday the Bengals seemed like they had all but locked up Owens from the Rams when TMZ reported that they were "very close to a deal," but after two sources "very close" to the situation falsified the reports the negotiations, if there are any are  back up in the air.  After the reports were denied, the Rams showed that they were extremely interested by intesifying talks and a  high ranking official with the Rams said a contract could be offered to Owens as early as Monday.  This huge push from the Rams comes from the fact that although Owens could end up as a bad influence, there is a lot he could teach to the Rams young recieving corps.  Also adding T.O.'s presence will take pressure of te running game and will give rookie Sam Bradford a clear cut number one reciever to throw to.

The Bengals are still very interested in Terrell tough and Starting Quarterback Carson Palmer who when healthy is one of the best in the NFL is pushing hard for the Bengals to bring Mr. Owens in.  The Bengals though, before they bring in anyone want to see how their young recievers cando and how Antonio Bryant's knee holds up.  If they do add T.O. though they will have a very dangerous vertical game, adding Terrell's speed to home run threat Chad Ochocinco.

Right now though, I believe Owens will be in St. Louis next season teaching and preaching to the young guns while helping Sam Bradford's adjustment to the NFL be a smooth one.

-A

A Pitcher's Market

After, Cliff Lee, the top pitcher on the trade market was swapped from the Seattle Mariners to the Texas Rangers for a load of prospects including the highly touted Justin Smoak, teams in the hunt for a pitcher to add a little something to their rotation had to look elsewhere. Luckily for those teams another top of the line starter is out there for the picking. That starter is Roy Oswalt of the Huston Astros. This season has been a down year Astros (39-56) and Roy Oswalt, although is 6-11 record doesn't show it, is having a very good season. So far to go with the pretty pathetic record Oswalt has an earned run average of 3.12 and only allows an average of just over a baserunner an inning. He also strikes out just under a batter per inning for good measure.


Although the teams are thrilled that a pitcher of his caliber is on the market they are less than happy over his demands and the demands of the Astros. What has delayed any deals from happening so far is Oswalt's demands that the team that picks him up exercises his $16 million option for 2012. This has had a big impact on team's abilities to trade for him to the two teams that have the most interest in him, the St. Louis Cardinals and the Philadelphia Phillies, don't know if they can pick up the option because of how much money they have had to and will continue to invest in players that are already there. The teams are also wary to invest three good prospects, the price the Astros are asking for a pitcher that is nearing the end of his prime (he is about to turn 33).

If a deal cannot be made for Oswalt teams have plenty of other decent options that can make a significant impact to a borderline playoff team in a tight race. These pitchers include Dan Haren (Diamondbacks), Ben Sheets (A's), and Ted Lilly (Cubs). Haren could be a #1 starter for pretty much any team in the league and although he is not having even close to his Cy Young Caliber performance last year (he is 7-8, 4.60 ERA) that is a lot in part to bad luck. This batting average against on balls in play has jumped 70 points to .350 from just .280 last season. Ben Sheets, like Haren is off his form this year too. Usually a stellar pitcher, Sheets just hasn't had his stuff this year since returning from surgery. He is 4-9 with an ERA above 4.5 but if he has a new chance with a contender, I would not be surprised to see his season turn on its heels. It is also very likely that he is traded because Oakland picked him up pretty much only so they could get prospects in return for him. Unlike the other three pitchers listed above, Ted Lilly of the Chicago Cubs has never been, and never will be a great starter. What he can promise you though is very good production from the middle of the rotation (he has an ERA well under 4.00 and a WHIP of 1.12) and he can pitch over 200 innings a year providing some much needed relief for your bullpen in a tight pennant race.


Even though they didn't have a chance to land Cliff Lee if your team lands one of these solid players you can be sure that they will have much better production than your #5 starter (except for in St. Louis with Jamie Garcia), but only time will tell who made the move that helps propel their team to a postseason berth, through the playoffs, and to a World Series Championship.


-A

NCAA needs to change the way they handle violations

About a month ago powerhouse college football program and perennial BCS contender USC was smashed with sanctions that included a two year postseason ban and  loss of 30 scholarships.  Now there are incestigations against another BCS contender, Florida, and an ACC team that is ready for a breakout year, in University of North Carolina.  This is all because of interactions players had with agents and other people not even involved with the schools.  Right now Florida is is looking at a loss of this past year's Sugar Bowl win all because one player, Maurkice Pouncey, allegedly accepted $100,000 from an agent.  The whole school is facing embarassment because a student that ditched them as soon as he could for the NFL decided he wanted to make some extra money.  In USC's case players that had absolutly nothing to do with Reggie Bush, who moved on to the NFL years ago, or his former coach Pete Carroll, who bolted for the NFL's Seahawks after this season ended, are getting punished.  Even worse for them new coach Lane Kiffen has to try to recruit new kids with the fact they will play in no bowls for two years.  Also most violations are found after the player leaves the school so whats the incentive for them not to take the money?


Coaches like Carroll if he returns to the college game he will be hit with nothing while Tebow might lose his last college victory and Matt Barkley can't play in the post-season for the next two years.  Instead of having to hit every other team with violations the NCAA should allow players to be paid.  Not a  lot, but something like $150-$250 per week just so they can go out and have some fun.  I know it isn't a solve all solution but it would help cut down on the number of violations and actually give some of the multi billion dollar industry of college sports back to the athletes.


-A

The winding road of Daniel Nava

Daniel Nava, the 27 year old from Redwood City, California and rookie Left Fielder for the Boston Red Sox has had a long and winding path on his way to the bigs. Daniel was always a small kid, especially during high school. He was only 4'8 70 lbs during his freshman year and by the time he was a senior he had only grown to 5'5 but had gained 80 pounds, increasing to 150 lbs, a little bit over the average weight for his size.


When he got out of high school he decided to attend Santa Clara University where he tried to walk on and was denied a spot on their baseball squad. He proceeded to be the manager of the team during his freshman and sophomore years before the cost of tuition caused him to transfer to the College of San Mateo, a junior college in San Mateo, California. During his first year there he saw an old friend that encouraged him to try out for the team. He did, made it, and by the end of the season he had performed so well that he was named a Junior College All- American. Santa Clara University, the same school that rejected his services just three years before, was so impressed with Nava's performance that they offered him a full scholarship to attend their school for a second time. In the one season he played at Santa Clara he performed well enough to show that he lived up to the scholarship he received batting around a .400 clip and with an On Base Percentage just a smidgen below .500 while earning First Team All- West Coast Conference honors. He also stole 15 bases without getting caught once and showed patience at the plate as he drew walks more often than he was put down on strikes.


After Nava graduated from Santa Clara he was undrafted and decided to sign with the Chico Outlaws of the Golden Baseball League, and Independent League. (A league with teams that have no affiliation to Major League Clubs) Like with Santa Clara, the Outlaws rejected Daniel on his try with the team but brought him in a year later when a spot opened up. The move paid its dividends for the Outlaws because in 2007 Nava smashed 12 round trippers while having an outstanding batting average of .371 and a Ruth like OPS (on base percentage plus slugging percentage) of 1.100. Following this amazing campaign Baseball America named him the number one prospect in the Independent Leagues.


The Red Sox, with the urging of their assistant director of pro scouting, Jared Porter, bought out the contract of Nava for only $1. Of course the total of the deal would add up to $1,500 if the Red Sox didn't release Nava right after spring training. As it turned out, that move was a huge bargain for the BoSox who sent him to Low A Lancaster after spring was over. At Lancaster, Nava continued his surprising run to the top batting .341, slugging 10 homers, and driving in 59 in only 85 games. His performance earned him a call up to High A Salem where he continued to dominate batting .339 before another call. This time he was sent to AA Portland where he played 32 games, batted .364 with 4 homers and an amazing 25-12 BB/K ratio earning the Red Sox Minor League Player of the Month for August/September.


Nava began 2010 with AAA Pawtucket and was there for about 2 months before an array of injuries left the Sox outfield depleted. The man who said he could hardly lift a 32 ounce bat just 10 years ago was now on his way to play in the same uniform and in the same position as Red Sox Legends Ted Williams, Carl Yastrzemski and Jim Rice. He finally got his chance on June 12, 2010 where he debuted as a starter in Left Field against the Philadelphia Phillies. The first pitch he ever saw in the Majors was while the bases were loaded and he abruptly cleared them. The man that couldn't even make his college team had just hit a grand slam on the first pitch he ever saw in the bigs becoming the second player to ever do so. He also became the only player to hit a grand slam on the first pitch he ever saw in the majors while in interleague play. He continued to after his hot start reaching base safely in each of his first 13 games. Currently through 26 games Nava is hitting .294 with 10 doubles.


In Hollywood this story would end with Nava going on to make the MLB Hall of Fame but this is reality, not Hollywood and when the regulars return from their injuries unless one of them has a major drop off this is probably the last we hear of Daniel Nava in a Sox uniform. In this past month he has taken us on a wild ride and hopefully he will have another chance to play regularly because as he enters the prime of his career he has shown potential to be a breakout player in the Majors for years to come.


In short, this amazing young man persevered after he was cut from his college team, went undrafted, and had his independent league contract bought out for a mere $1 is playing solid ball on the game's highest stage for one of the most prolific teams in all of baseball.


-A

2010 MLB Predictions: What to expect in the 2nd half of the season.

We here at MVP Sports Talk would like to introduce guest writer Charlie McDougall for what to expect during the second half of the baseball season.

The 2010 MLB Picks all star game really showed how the 1st half of the season was. The first half of the season was dominated by strong pitching, will this trend continue in the 2nd half of the season? This sports handicappers believes so. Now the divisional races are as good as they have been in a long time an no race is better than the one in the AL Central with the Chicago White Sox holding a 1/2 game lead over the Detroit Tigers and a 3' game lead over the 3rd place Minnesota Twins. The White sox open up an important weekend series a Minnesota on Thursday July 15th. The American league east is probably the best division in baseball, the New York Yankees have had an emotional week, will it take it's toll on the team or will it prepare them to make another world series run? This sports handicapper believes that the Tampa Bay Rays who are two games behind the division leading Yankees will bring in a hitter to improve their scoring offense and the Boston Red Sox just have too many injuries to key players and will fade away. The AL West has been dominated by the Texas Rangers but the team struggled the last week of the season, getting swept at home by the Baltimore Orioles. Texas will still win the division with the recent acquisition of Cliff Lee. The Rangers currently have a 4' game lead over the second place Los Angeles Angels and will easily hold on with the addition of Lee and the hitting of Josh Hamilton and Vladimir Guerrero. Hold on tight for a great finish to the Major League Baseball season.


The National League also has all three divisional races up in the air with the most interesting one going on in the NL East with the Atlanta Braves on top with a 4 game lead over the 2nd place New York Mets, the Mets have had a recent history of fading in the late month of the season. The 2 time National League champions Philadelphia Phillies have to overcome a lot of injuries but can still contend. The NL Central is led by the surprising Cincinnati Reds, 1 game in front of the 2nd place St. Louis Cardinals, this should be a great divisional race between these two teams with great history, the rest of the division will have to wait until next year. The NL West is probably the most competitive with the San Diego Padres 2 games in front of the 2nd place Los Angeles Dodgers and Colorado Rockies, the Rockies are a team that scares a lot of teams and will make a run. The San Francisco Giants have the pitching staff to make a run also.

You can visit his site at http://www.charliessports.com/ Which is the authority on MLB picks and predictions.