Random Rumblings: Media had an agenda with Limbaugh

I agree with Rush Limbaugh about as often as he agrees with the President, but he was spot-on when he blamed the liberal media for thwarting his bid to own a piece of the St. Louis Rams last week. The controversy was your classic example of a media-created, media-driven story that only started to make headlines when the right players were asked the right questions about the conservative talk show host.

Think about it. The players who told the New York media that they would never play in St. Louis if Limbaugh had anything to do with the team were Bart Scott and Mathias Kiwanuka. These aren’t your average football players who can’t break double digits on the wonderlic test. Scott majored in business at Southern Illinois, one of the best public schools in the Midwest. Kiwanuka went to Boston College and is the grandson of a former Prime Minister.

There aren’t many guys in the league more capable of offering an intelligent, eloquent opinion than those two. In fact, as I wondered earlier this week, there probably aren’t many guys in the league who would have had an opinion on the subject at all. Would Eli Manning actually have anything valuable to say? How about Braylon Edwards? As long as it’s not Cleveland, he doesn’t care where he’s playing.

The guys that asked Scott and Kiwanuka about Limbaugh knew exactly what they were doing and their mission was accomplished. A firestorm ensued. The only real loser here is Limbaugh, which isn’t a bad thing. I’m certainly not going to shed any tears for a man who pollutes millions of minds each year, but the question has to be asked: If the media asked a guy who went to Florida State about Limbaugh, would the rest of us have been in such an uproar?

***Condolences must go out the family and friends of Jasper Howard, the UConn football player who was stabbed to death early Sunday morning. It’s too early to tell exactly what took place on the Storrs campus, but this much is clear: All colleges, particularly the ones with big time athletic programs, need to do a better job of monitoring the outsiders they let on campus.

As someone who has spent plenty of time making a fool out himself during Spring Weekend, I can tell you firsthand that there is almost nothing preventing anyone from heading over to Xlot or Celeron for a night filled with booze, couch fires and yes, plenty of fights. Sounds like something similar happened on Homecoming night. Only much worse.

***After being stripped of play-calling duties by higher-ups, is Jim Zorn the coach of Washington Redskins in name only?

***Anyone who had the New York Giants atop their power rankings heading into week six completely forgot that the team had play four of the worst six teams in the league and should have lost to an average Dallas team.

The best team in the league, New Orleans, set them straight on Sunday.

***Thank you the Philadelphia Eagles for making me the guy who couldn’t make it to week seven in my survivor pool.

***I think the Phillies and Dodgers could go the full seven games, but it’s hard to get excited for a race for second place, which is exactly what the NLCS is this season. No one is beating the Yankees.

***Connecticut star Maya Moore tipping (they called it dunking) a ball in the basket at midnight madness Friday night was the number one play on SportsCenter. Moore may very well end up the winningest college basketball player in history and has the chance to be the greatest women’s player ever, but she only makes SportsCenter when she’s trying play like the guys.

This is one of the biggest problems with women’s basketball. Those who enjoy watching the sport appreciate it for the play calling, the backdoor cuts and the excellent shooting. We don’t care if Moore can dunk or not.

***I’m not sure how far the USA soccer team can go at the World Cup, but I know I’ll be checking football odds at some online sports betting site to figure out if they’re worth betting on. After watching the late goal that helped the team tie with Costa Rica last week, it’s safe to say I’m pumped up for next summer.

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MLB Predictions are in...

Predictions are a lot like fantasy sports teams, bad beat memories, ghost stories and tales of awkward hookups. Everybody has them, but everybody finds the guy talking about his own experiences to be completely obnoxious. Today, I am that guy.

In reality, you should be rooting against any of my predictions, even if you’re a fan of the team I pick to win it all, because if I ever get any of these right (and one day, I will) I’ll be calling myself an expert for years to come.

Without further ado…

American League East
The American League looks a lot like the NBA’s Eastern Conference from a few years ago, which is why we should all be thankful baseball only allows four teams from each league into the playoffs each season. The last thing I’d ever want to see is the Blue Jays, who will likely finish 20 games out of first in the East, reach October as an 8 seed.

As usual, most pundits are calling the AL East the best division in the sport, but that doesn’t mean even the top teams are without their flaws. The Yankees have the best pitching in baseball, but they also have four everyday guys (Jeter, Damon, Matsui and Posada) that are likely to regress this season. Not to mention their center fielder is Brett Gardner, who, to borrow the quote from Major League, might run like Mays, but hits like… Jason Varitek. Speaking of Varitek, if he wants to be catching for the Red Sox after July 31, he better provide more than just encouragement for his loaded pitching staff. There are 20 pitchers in baseball I’d rather have hitting ninth for me than him… Tampa Bay will take a step back this season. Too much went right for the Rays in 2008 and even though they might have the third or fourth best team in the league, it won’t be enough to make the playoffs…. At what point will Roy Halladay ask out of Toronto to pitch for a winner. He’s like baseball’s version of Kevin Garnett. And make no mistake about it; the Blue Jays will struggle to win 75 games… A lot of people like Baltimore to jump out of the cellar this year despite a pitching staff that is capable of losing 110 games. Matt Wieters is supposed to be good, but how many catchers are worth 20 wins by themselves? Especially when the kid isn’t starting the season in the bigs.

Order of finish:
Yankees, Red Sox*, Rays, Blue Jays, Orioles

American League Central
So much went wrong for the Detroit Tigers in 2008 that we forget the team was a favorite to win the World Series. They have one of the best lineups in all of baseball, but a questionable pitching staff at best. That’s kind of the theme in the AL Central this season: one or the other, no balance. There’s not a team in the division I expect to hit and pitch equally well, although Kansas City might be closest. The Royals are the sexy pick to make the jump this year, and I’m on board. I think they’ll be in the running in a division that is anybody’s guess. Can Carl Pavano pitch like he did in Florida for Cleveland? If so, the Indians have a shot. Chicago will be interesting. How long will Ozzie Guillen keep his job if the team continues to underachieve? The one team I don’t really like is the one everyone seems to be picking to win the division: Minnesota. I was wrong when I said they had the worst team in baseball last year, so I might be wrong again. But I just can’t see that pitching staff matching last season’s success and the Twins’ lineup just isn’t scary.

Order of Finish:
Tigers, Indians, Royals, White Sox, Twins

American League West
Count on this: The Angels will not win the AL West this season. You should never trust a team entering the season with loads of injuries, especially to pitchers. I still think the team will hit even without Mark Teixeira and I actually love Bobby Abreu in that lineup… My pick? How about Seattle to surprise everyone? I predicted Felix Hernandez to win the Cy Young last season, but I might have been a year early. I think the Mariners are going to have good-to-great pitching and Ken Griffey Jr. is going to feel as comfortable as he’s felt in a long time in his homecoming… Oakland’s only chance at keeping Matt Holliday is to be up 10-15 games in July and that’s not likely. The A’s will probably have a similar season to last year. People like Texas, but I’m not really sure why. The Rangers have no pitching and even in a hitter’s park, only had one guy (Josh Hamilton) hit more than 20 homeruns.

Order of Finish:
Mariners, Angels, A’s, Rangers

National League East
The New York Mets have a great lineup, a deep bench and are the only team in the majors with five starting pitchers that won at least 10 games last season. Add to the equation the all-time single season saves leader and J.J. Putz and you’ve got the best team in baseball. And it’s not close, even in the majors’ deepest division. Atlanta is my pick to take the Wild Card. If Chipper Jones can stay healthy, he’ll be the key in an otherwise young lineup. Look for Jeff Francoeur to have a huge bounce back year. Plus I just love Javier Vazquez pitching in the National League. Philadelphia has the best lineup in baseball, but pitching will be a question mark. Jamie Moyer can’t possibly do it again, can he? Florida plays no defense, has questionable pitching and the team’s best player (Hanley Ramirez) has been a headache this spring. That’s why this team finishes fourth in the division. As for Washington, let’s put it this way: When you’re already thinking about the draft, the season is going to be a disaster.

Order of finish:
Mets, Braves*, Phillies, Marlins, Nationals

National League Central
The biggest scare for Chicago: If the Cubbies lock the division up by July, they’ll be playing a lot of meaningless baseball leading into the playoffs. Can they turn it on in October? St. Louis will battle Cincinnati for second place in this weak division. Everyone seems to think Chris Carpenter will have a huge year after missing last season. The Reds are similar to the Marlins in my opinion. They hit a ton, but play horrible defense. I think the difference is they have two of the brightest young pitchers in the game, but they still are probably a year away. Milwaukee, Pittsburgh and Houston aren’t even worth talking about.

Order of Finish:
Cubs, Cubs, Cubs, Cardinals, Reds, Brewers, Astros, Pirates

National League West
Say what you want about Manny Ramirez, but if he’s in your lineup, you make the playoffs. By re-signing Manny, the Dodgers went from a team that could be the worst in baseball to a contender in the National League. The loss of Derek Lowe will surely hurt the team, but if Clayton Kershaw turns out to be the pitcher he’s supposed to be, the Dodgers should cruise to the division title. Arizona was my pick to win the World Series last year, but nothing came together. They strike out too much, play poor defense and have a questionable bullpen. I actually think the Giants make the leap into second this season. You have to worry about Tim Lincecum’s workload after last season, but adding Randy Johnson was a great move. They’re lineup is questionable at best, but in a weak division, you just never know. Colorado reached the World Series in 2007. What happened to the Rockies? They’ll struggle to win 75 games. Here’s hoping Jake Peavy gets moved to a contender, because the Padres are destined to lose 100.

Order of Finish:
Dodgers, Giants, Diamondbacks, Rockies, Padres

American League Championship Series
Yankees over Tigers in 5

National League Championship Series
Mets over Cubs in 7

World Series
Mets over Yankees in 6

Awards
MVP
AL: Miguel Cabrera, Detroit NL: Manny Ramirez, Los Angeles

Cy Young
AL: Felix Hernandez, Seattle NL: Johan Santana, New York

Rookie of the Year
AL: Travis Snider, Toronto NL: Jordan Schafer, Atlanta

Manager of the Year
AL: Jim Leyland, Detroit NL: Bobby Cox, Atlanta

Comeback Player of the Year
AL: Ken Griffey Jr., Seattle NL: Jeff Francoeur, Atlanta

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Fair Assessments

Ironic isn’t it?

For all the laughs being had at the expense of Oliver Perez, the real joke turned out to be a lineup that was supposed to make history for the New York Mets in 2006. Instead, they are history.

The Mets became the first team ever to force a Game 7 at home in the NLCS and lose in such an unfathomable fashion.

They got the performance no one expected from Perez in the final game. Over the last two games, the Cards didn’t get a single RBI from Pujols, Edmonds, Rolen, Wilson, Encarnacion… none of em’.

Even down two runs in the ninth, the bottom of the lineup was able to get two men on base with no outs and Floyd, Reyes and Lo Duca coming up. No dice. Adam Wainwright pretty much stuck it to them.

A lot went into how bad the team’s starting rotation was, but in reality only Steve Trachsel pitched horribly. How much better could Pedro and El Duque have possibly been than Maine and Perez in the final two games?

The real blame must be attributed to a shaky bullpen and a lack of clutch hitting.

For a team that so desperately wants to be the face of New York, it has to be said. There is absolutely no way the Yankees, no matter who’s in the bullpen, would gives up two runs in the ninth inning three times in a seven game series. As far as I’m concerned, the trio of Heilman, Mota and Wagner are all at fault here.

At the plate, both Jose Reyes and David Wright were impatient and looked jumpy at times. Even Carlos Beltran, who hit a couple homeruns in the series, couldn’t come up with a ninth inning hit in game seven.

Without question, the Mets have a lot to be proud of. They rolled to 97 wins during the regular season. They dethroned the Atlanta Braves. At times, they were the talk of baseball. Unfortunately, this could have been a special team.

Instead, they were just pretty good.

A few good reads…
Cards 2 runs better than Mets, go to World Series – Blooming Ideas
Requiem – Faith and Fear in Flushing
Cruel Irony - Metstradamus

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