Chasing Saves

It is one of the cardinal rules in fantasy baseball - Thou Shalt Not Chase Saves. It is just as easy to find a pitcher who will get 30 saves in the later rounds of most drafts as it is to take a closer early. In fact, more often than not, several closers will lose their jobs during the season, and their replacements will be found on the waiver wire. Everyone seems to recognize this.

And yet, such logic is lost in Major League Baseball. Teams are constantly overwhelmed by a high total in the saves category, while ignoring the horrific peripheral statistics. Case in point - the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. Fernando Rodney, who just lost his spot as closer, was signed to a two year, $11 million dollar contract after the 2009 season. As the closer for Detroit that year, he had 37 saves, good for sixth in the American League that year. That was enough for the Angels to overlook other statistics that would indicate that Rodney really did not have that good of a season, specifically his 1.467 WHiP, his 1.49 K/BB ratio, his 4.40 ERA (which was good for an ERA+ of 104), and his WAR of 0.5 (barely above replacement level). But he got 37 saves!!!!

This is not the first time the Angels have done this. After the 2008 season, they signed Brian Fuentes to a two year, $17.5 million dollar contract. While Fuentes had a much better year than Rodney in his free agent season, the big number that stands out is his 30 saves. He did provide a solid 2009 for the Angels, leading the American League in saves, but lost his job in 2010 and was traded to the Minnesota Twins for a 26 year old minor league pitcher who has never been above AA. Not exactly a great return on investment.

Meanwhile, teams such as the Atlanta Braes and Oakland A's handle the closer position differently. They cycle different pitchers in, and do not spend a lot of money to fill that role. Since 1991, the following pitchers have led Atlanta in saves: Juan Berenguer (1991), Alejandro Pena (1992), Mike Stanton (1993), Greg McMichael (1994), Mark Wohlers (1995-1997), Kerry Ligtenberg (1998), John Rocker (1999-2001), John Smoltz (2002-2004), Chris Reitsma (2005), Bob Wickman (2006, 2007), Mike Gonzalez (2008), Rafael Soriano (2009), and Billy Wagner (2010). All were quite effective for the Braves, and were not nearly the financial investment of the 'top' closers in baseball.

Oakland, since Eckersley left, have had the following pitchers lead their team in saves: Billy Taylor (1996-1999), Jason Isringhausen (2000, 2001), Billy Koch (2002), Keith Foulke (2003), Octovio Dotel (2004), Huston Street (2005, 2006, 2008), Alan Embree (2007), and Andrew Bailey (2009, 2010). While the A's do not have the same level of turnover as the Braves, they still share the same philosophy - do not spend money on closers.

Closers can be found if teams know what to look at when it comes to a pitcher's statistics. Saves is the last thing the front office should be looking at.

Grand Theft Vrabel

This lockout must really be hitting the players hard.

At 5:30 am yesterday morning, Mike Vrabel of the Kansas City Chiefs was arrested for the theft of eight bottles of beer from a deli in the Beltarra Casino Resort and Spa. Vrabel was released later that morning after posting a $600 bond. In a statement released through his agent, he claimed that "It was an unfortunate misunderstanding, and I take full responsibility for the miscommunication." He also stated that "I feel comfortable that after talking with the appropriate parties, we will resolve this matter."

Now, things at casinos are expensive. We all get that. But the players must really be on some hard times if they have to resort to swiping booze from a deli instead of paying for it. Perhaps this is why the owners locked out the players in the first place - they knew that even the most vocal of them would not be able to go a month without turning to criminal activities to survive.

Of course, there may be a second explanation for all of this - that Vrabel was framed. Keep in mind that he did play for the New England Patriots. Also, this casino is in Indiana, home of the Colts. Who's to say that some unscrupulous casino employee, who also happens to be a Colts fan, didn't slip those beers into Vrabel's room and then call casino security? I guess getting Vrabel arrested makes up for 2001 through 2007 to them. Although, if the Colts had been playing that late into January, would the universe have had the joy of Peyton Manning chanting 'Cut that meat'?

In all seriousness, Vrabel is by all accounts a class act and a stand-up person. Chances are, this truly is just a misunderstanding, and it will be resolved soon.

Holy Aesop, John Madden's Still Alive!!!

After watching John Madden painfully attempt to be a sports broadcaster over the past few years before he drove his bus off into the sunset, it seemed that the universe had left him behind. Madden had become a caricature of himself, almost like the doddering old uncle that still thinks he is as sharp as he had been twenty years ago. While everyone else saw the decline, Madden never seemed cognisant of his depreciated skills.

Yet, Madden has just displayed a sign that he may be more on top of things than everyone had thought. While he appeared as though he was completely unaware that Eisenhower was no longer in the White House, let alone that football was not being played with leather helmets and quarterbacks may as well be wearing skirts for how often flags fly if someone sneezes near them, maybe his brain was in hibernation mode.

Showing a grasp on the reality of football, Madden has demanded, and gotten, a couple of significant changes in the Madden 2012 game. First, concussions are going to be treated as serious injuries. "Concussions are such a big thing, it has to be a big thing in the video game," Madden told The New York Times in a telephone interview. "It starts with young kids -- they start in video games. I think the osmosis is if you get a concussion, that's a serious thing and you shouldn't play. Or leading with the head that you want to eliminate. We want that message to be strong." To further this message, the announcers, Cris Collinsworth and Gus Johnson, will explain the severity and danger of a concussion when it is announced that the player will not return to the game.

Next, Madden 2012 will feature a greater emphasis on proper tackling. Helmet to helmet hits and head first tackling are going to be excluded, in an effort to make the game more of a tool to learn the proper way to play football for younger kids. The executive producer for Madden 2012, Phil Frazier, said that while it is not intended as a public service announcement, it is a means to educate younger kids to the dangers of concussions.

Good for Madden. More often than not, sports video games to not treat injuries with enough seriousness. Knowing that he still has enough left on the stick to realize that such things need to be paid attention to is a good thing for the video game industry, and for sports in general. Now if only the NFL meant it when they say they are trying to promote player safety, instead of just paying it lip service.

It's Still Early

In this culture of instant analysis and overreaction, society has a tendency to have kneejerk reactions to daily events. With a sport that is almost daily, such as baseball, these reactions can be fairly entertaining at times, and at other times pathetic. As of the time that this is being written, teams have played only one of two games, yet people will still react as though it is game 160.

For instance, a quick look at the standings shows that the Royals, Orioles, Mariners, and Pirates all have better records than the Red Sox. Does this mean that the Sox are destined to have a terrible year while those four teams contend for a pennant? No. It means that the Sox lost their opener, while the Orioles, Mariners, and Pirates won theirs. The Royals have split their first two games against the Angels. Yet, after that defeat, Sox fans are, in a fashion typical to our society, reacting as if it is the end of the world. So, as a public service, the following message is being broadcast here on this blog: IT'S ONE GAME!!!! It's not the end of the world. If the Sox are under .500 after July, then feel free to panic.

To further prove this point, look at some performances thus far. Albert Pujols has grounded into three double plays and does not have a hit. Jon Lester gave up three home runs in a game for the first time in his career. He also did not strike out a batter for the first time since 2008. Brett Myers, who has a career mark of 7.46 K's/9, also did not strike out a batter in his start. On the other side of the coin, J.P. Arencibia is leading the American League in batting average (.750), home runs (2), and RBI (5). John Buck and Neil Walker lead the National League in RBI with four. Ramon Hernandez leads baseball in batting average, hitting .800 presently.

Does any of this mean that Pujols and Lester are going to have terrible seasons? Do these statistics mean that Arencibia is going to win the Triple Crown? Is Neil Walker going to keep up his 648 RBI pace? The answer is a resounding NO.

Early season baseball is great for seeing unlikely people at the top of leaderboards and for seeing surprising starts. But remember, everything evens out. There is a reason why Billy Beane, general manager of the Oakland A's, maintains that the first two months are for evaluation - because nothing is proven yet. Baseball is about patience. Stay patient with your team and favorite players, and enjoy the season. If they are performing terribly around June/July, then it's time to panic.

Major League Baseball - Model Sports Organization???

For years, Major League Baseball has been criticized, and rightly so, for it's inability to get out of it's own way. They have had a multitude of labor stoppages over the past 40 years (8, to be exact) - the most infamous being the one in 1994 that cancelled the World Series. Baseball took the brunt of the wrath spewed forth by opportunistic congressmen when the steroids scandal erupted thanks to Jose Canseco's book. There is the enduring image highlighting the general ineptitude of baseball, with Bud Selig looking confused as the All-Star Game ended in a tie.

And yet, suddenly baseball appears to be ahead of the other sports in terms of handling their issues. Since 2002, there has been labor peace. Even though their collective bargaining agreement is up after this year, there are no threats of a lockout, unlike the NFL and the NBA. In fact, both Selig and the player's union are optimistic that a new CBA will be agreed upon in the near future.

Despite the bad rap that the MLB gets for steroids and performance enhancing drugs, the truth is that baseball not only has the strictest penalties for using such substances, but they appear to have fewer players using them. It is not uncommon to hear that a football player got suspended for PEDs, yet no one really seems to care. Meanwhile, if a baseball player gets caught, it's a travesty and an affront to everything that society holds sacred. Little bit of a double standard there, and a completely undeserved one.

And now, the MLB finds itself on the forefront of the concussion issue. Although concussions are a much bigger problem in the NFL and NHL, baseball has created a new seven day disabled list strictly for players who have gotten a concussion. This way, rather than lose a player for 15 days when they could be ready to play in a week, the team can get that player back when he is healthy. With all the talk of the NFL trying to force an 18 game schedule down the player's throats, why has this concept not been brought up in their meetings? Why has the NHL not adopted something like this, so that players that will be gone for a game or two do not take up a roster spot?

Bud Selig and Major League Baseball make for easy targets when one looks to rip a sports organization for mismanagement. However, baseball actually has it's act together. Shocking, is it not?

Dez Bryant - What Is Wrong With You?

It seems that, over the past month or so, there is a new legal issue surrounding Dez Bryant every week. He has been banned from a mall for not picking up his pants. He has debts of over $850,000 from unpaid loans, jewelry and sports tickets paid on credit, and unpaid rent. That does not even include the legal fees that he is incurring through all this.

To be fair, it is not just Bryant. It seems as though whenever a football player, more than any other sport, has free time, he finds a way to get himself into trouble. Is this because, even in the offseason, they are under a regimented schedule, so the concept of free time is beyond rational thought? Is it the people they spend their time around? This case could be made for Michael Vick and his dogfighting ring, or with Aqib Talib and the charges that he and his mother are up for.

Bryant needs help. He needs someone to grab him and make him understand that he needs to grow up. His previous mentor, Deion Sanders, has given up on him, calling his actions 'ignorant' and stating that 'he needs help'. Interestingly enough, Sanders claims that he has been telling the Cowboys for months that Bryant needs help, based off of issues stemming from his childhood. Then why have the Cowboys not done anything in regards to Bryant's behavior? Why hasn't the NFL, and their stick 'conduct policy', not done anything to reprimand Bryant? Yes, there is the lockout where teams cannot have contact with their players, but one would expect a statement in regards to the situations or something akin to that.

Overall, Bryant's actions are not nearly as bad as those of Leonard Little or Donte Stallworth. No one has died due to anything he has done. He has not harmed anyone directly. However, there is still a pattern of childish and irresponsible behavior that gives a reason to pause. Continued actions like these may cause Bryant to never reach his potential, and may cause long term ramifications for both himself and the Cowboys.

Hopefully, this is a wake up call for Bryant. Yet, it seems more likely that he will ignore the warnings, and continue to exist as the privileged individual he believes himself to be.

Make The Visor Mandatory In The NHL

On March 16th, Manny Malhotra of the Vancouver Canucks was struck in the left eye when a pass deflected off the stick of Colorado Avalanche defenseman Erik Johnson. Malhotra, who wears a helmet without a safety visor, underwent surgery later that night. However, he may still lose his eye and his vision, and is scheduled to undergo a second surgery tomorrow in an attempt to save both.

Had Malhotra's helmet had the visor, he would not be undergoing these surgeries, and would still be on the ice. The NHL has thought about mandating visors before, grandfathering in players that did not wish to wear them who happen to already be in the NHL. Players in the minor leagues would be made to go with the visor immediately. Incidents such as this prove that they should step up their efforts to mandate the visor.

There was a time when goalies did not wear masks in net, considering such an idea as cowardly. In fact, Jacques Plante, the inventor and first player to wear a goalie mask back in 1959, was considered by his peers to be a wimp. Despite this, the mask caught on, and the last goalie to play without a mask retired in 1974. However, there is not an actual rule in the NHL rulebook requiring a goalie to wear a mask.

Helmets, on the other hand, were made mandatory starting with the draft class in 1979, over fifty years after they were originally introduced. In 1927, Barney Stanley, a former hockey player, presented the NHL with a prototype of a protective helmet. The first player to actually wear the helmet was George Owen in 1928-29. Although a few players would wear helmets, most notably Eddie Shore, most players refused, regarding such devices as cowardly.

This changed in 1968, when Bill Masterson died after striking his head on the ice. Masterson was hit by two players, striking his head hard enough on the ice to cause blood to pour out of his nose and ears. He was rushed to the hospital, where four doctors tried for thirty hours to save him before he died from a 'massive brain injury'. By the time the NHL made the helmet mandatory for all new players, roughly 70% of the league was already wearing them.

Hopefully, it does not take Malhotra to lose his vision for the NHL to make the visor mandatory. This needs to be done immediately so that such an incident does not occur again.

Doc Rivers' Curious Crunch Time Rotation

Prior to the trade deadline, the crunch time rotation for the Boston Celtics had been Rajon Rondo, Ray Allen, Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, and Glen 'Big Baby' Davis. Davis was on the court at that time mainly because the starting center, Kendrick Perkins, is an offensive liability. While a solid defender, Perkins is painful to watch on the offensive end.

Then came the trade of Kendrick Perkins and Nate Robinson to the Oklahoma City Thunder for Nenad Krstic and Jeff Green. Green was thought to be the centerpiece of this trade, as he is capable of playing small forward and power forward, thus providing a legitimate scorer off the bench that could help to keep Pierce and Garnett fresh for the playoffs. Also, Green's offensive capabilities (he was averaging approximately 15 points per game at the time of the trade), would theoretically provide them with another scorer in games where they were down by two or three points late.

However, this has not proven to be the case. Doc Rivers has continued to use the same rotation as he has in close and late situations as he had previously. Wednesday night, down by three to the Memphis Grizzlies, Glen Davis is on the court while Green is on the bench. To make matters worse, Davis launched a three pointer that, predictably, missed. While Green may not have made that shot, he would have been a better option. Yes, Green did finally get on the floor at the end of that game - albeit with four seconds left. Sort of pointless at that juncture.

Last night, against the Charlotte Bobcats, the same situation appears to be coming. The game is close, there is under three minutes remaining, and the typical grouping is on the floor. Then, with roughly 2:30 left in the game, Davis fouled out. This would seemingly provide Rivers with the perfect opportunity to put in Jeff Green for his scoring ability. Yet, Nenad Krstic enters the game instead. Green did finally get into the game, with thirty seconds left to go. While not a great time to bring him in, it was a marked improvement over the four second mark from the previous game.

While Krstic is not a bad player, his entering the game at that point, and the continual usage of Davis in these situations, makes the trade that much more curious. The Celtics, as they had been constructed, were the clear cut favorites in the Eastern Conference. They were playing with swagger. They were confident, to the point of being thoroughly bored with the regular season. Yes, there were injury concerns at the center position with Kendrick's knee, Shaq being old, and Jermaine O'Neil being fat and useless, so getting Krstic was not a bad move. The part that makes it look worse was the secondary trade of Luke Harangody and Semih Erden to the Cavaliers for a 2013 second round draft choice. Both of those players, while very raw and not great defensively, provided viable backups at center. Their roster spots were then filled by Carlos Arroyo, a decent point guard, and Troy Murphy, who has done the best impersonation of a corpse this side of Weekend at Bernie's.

So what was the point of acquiring Jeff Green? Is he that far behind in the playbook and knowing the defensive rotations where he is chained to the bench while Glen Davis plays late in games? In the limited time Green has played, he has managed 10.8 points for the Celtics in roughly 20 minutes per game, so he hasn't been terrible. Is Doc Rivers just playing around, knowing that the regular season just doesn't matter in the NBA, especially for his team?

Jeff Green is a much better option on the court than Glen Davis is when the Celtics are down by a basket in a late game situation. Now they just need Doc Rivers to realize that.

5729 People Actually Went To That????

In other Clydesdale news today, Geno Auriemma, head coach of the U-Conn Women's college basketball program, stated that he was disappointed by the half-empty arena in which his team played in yesterday. He claims that the fans are spoiled by the recent dominance of the program, roughly akin to how Atlanta Braves fans would skip out on watching their first round playoff games.

What truly is shocking is not that, of the 10,027 people that Gampel Pavilion could hold, 4298 did not go to the game. Rather, it is shocking that 5729 people actually went out of their way to witness a foregone conclusion play itself out. There is not one person that expects the U-Conn women's team to be challenged before the Final Four of their tournament. Let's face it, there has not been a run of such dominance in women's sports since Iolanda Balas won 150 consecutive high jump competitions from 1957 to 1966.

Frankly, it should be surprising that anyone went to this game. I suppose that there was a large sleep study going on, or someone was testing the effects of watching something more boring than paint drying. On it's own, the fact that so many people paid to watch this proves P.T. Barnum correct when he said that there is a sucker born every minute. At the very least, U-Conn should have provided free beer to any men in attendance. Not only would that prove incentive to go to the games, but the beer goggles might make those women look attractive. Ok, maybe there isn't enough beer in the universe for that.....

In reality, 5729 is a good crowd for such a spectacle. After all, how many people will willingly pay to watch some horses play around with a ball?

The Barry Bonds Witch Hunt

Finally, after nine years of investigation, the trial against Barry Bonds for lying to a grand jury in regards to his usage of steroids has begun. This witch hunt, perpetuated in part due to his standing on the all time home run list, has been going on for far too long.

Bud Selig, in sanctioning the Mitchell Report and subsequent steroid investigations, did so with the possibility of keeping Bonds from surpassing Hank Aaron as the all time home run leader. Aaron is an ambassador for the game of baseball, likable and affable. Bonds, meanwhile, is rather unlikeable, surly, and arrogant. Yet, for all of the effort put into the report, nothing specifically stated that Bonds knowingly took steroids. In fact, Harvey Shields, Bonds personal trainer from 2000 to 2004, stated that "Greg Anderson provided Bonds with a cream to use on his elbow, which Shields said he believed was an over-the-counter 'arthritis cream.'" In addition, in regards to a clear liquid that Bonds was ingesting which he believed was flaxseed oil, Shields said "(I) believed the clear liquid was flaxseed oil. (Shields) claimed to have taken the clear liquid himself, and he said that it tasted like flaxseed oil he had obtained from health food stores in the past."

The crux of the indictment is that Bonds intentionally lied to the grand jury when he said that he never knowingly took steroids. Greg Anderson, the man who the government is claiming provided him with the steroids, refuses to testify against Bonds, to the point of being imprisoned four times for his refusal to co-operate. Yes, Anderson has been friends with Bonds since childhood, but keep in mind that this works both ways. If your trainer that you have known since childhood provided you with substances that he stated were flaxseed oil and arthritis cream, would you have any cause to doubt him? People can claim that Bonds should know everything that he ingested or took, but where is the rationale for this?

The main witnesses for the prosecution have major character flaws as well. Kimberly Bell, Bonds' ex-mistress, used her fifteen minutes of fame to pose naked for Playboy. Steve Hoskins, a former partner of Bonds in the autographed memorabilia business, was fired by Bonds after Hoskins stole money from the business and forged his signature to several items. In fact, Bonds assisted the government in 2003 in their prosecution of Hoskins for forgery. The third witness is Kathy Hoskins, Bonds former personal shopper, who just so happens to be the sister of Steve Hoskins. Not exactly the most credible of witnesses.

In the end, Bonds will end up being vindicated, despite all of the circumstantial evidence supporting steroid use. Yes, his dome may have increased in size to be of Sputnik proportions, but that is not evidence enough to convict him. Bonds may just become the first athlete officially found to be not guilty of steroid use.