Detroit Tigers utility man Brandon Inge has been placed on the 15-day DL after straining his oblique adjusting his pillow. Not as bad as Joel Zumaya jamming on Guitar Hero, but pretty close. Here’s a few other dumb sports injuries for you.
Tony Allen of the Boston Celtics proving he can dunk after the whistle and trashes his knee.
Rockies IF Clint Barmes broke his collarbone lugging meat up the stairs. Todd Helton’s fault since it was a gift from him.
Arena Football League’s Elton Patterson tears his quadriceps jumping up and down in celebration.
In more baseball news, umpire Brian Runge got a one-game suspension for being an asshole the other night. Runge went out of his way to egg Mets Carlos Beltran on after a disputed strike call and ejected him. Manager Jerry Manuel then came out to defend his player and was chest bumped by Runge and then ejected. This was some of the most overzealous umpiring I have ever seen. Another case of an ump thinking people paid to see him in action. A longer suspension would serve Runge right and he should pay Beltran and Manuel’s fines of $400 and $500, respectively. Well, maybe just Manuel’s. Beltran will make $18 million this season.
Pitcher Shawn Chacon probably ended his major league career when he threw Astros GM Ed Wade to the ground by his neck. The Astros cut him today after suspending him indefinitely. There are two sides to every story and Wade may have been at fault too, but you’re an adult and a major leaguer; handle things differently. Chacon should have done this in 2005 when he had a 3.44 ERA over 151.2 IP with the Rockies and Yankees. His 2008 ERA of 5.04 and his violent tendencies however, should earn him a spot on every teams’ blacklist. I wouldn’t recommend showng your boss your best Latrell Sprewell impression under any circumstances.
In my expertise, the cheaper you are, the uglier you are and the worse it’s going to be. Of course, that’s in my second job, prostution (I am pretty high priced myself). In baseball however, there is not really a correlation. There are some great players making peanuts for cash, and these players are mostly pre-arbitration players.
Jorge Cantu
C Russell Martin – LA Dodgers
This was a tossup between two very good catchers in Brian McCann of the Braves and Russell Martin, in everything. There’s also Geovany Soto, who is very good. But I would go with Martin just because he’s dating Alyssa Milano now, I think, in a trade with Brad Penny. Both are great catchers.
1B Conor Jackson – Arizona Diamondbacks
There are some great, cheap first basemen, like the unhappy Prince Fielder, Joey Votto and James Loney but I’m going with Conor Jackson, as he’s getting on base at a .401 clip, and has always provided consistent play, even though his fielding is somewhat suspect, but the other guys I considered, their fielding is suspect too, and in the case of Loney, his fielding has not developed yet, although I have to admit, I’m not good at analyzing defense. I think CoJack would be my choice though.
Looking at Baseball America’s list of top 100 prospects they compiled in February. They are still pretty right on, but they definitely threw us no-brainers.
1. OF Jay Bruce-Cincinnati Reds
Jay Bruce made his big league debut on May 27 and he looked great. The 21 year old outfielder went 3-3 with a double, 2 RBI, 2 runs, 2 BB, and a stolen base. He absolutely smoked a double inches from the right field fence and also showed he can go to opposite field. Overall, an excellent debut for Jay Bruce. 1B Joey Votto is ranked at 44th and is having a good season with .273 with 10 home runs. Still waiting on RHP Homer Bailey who is ranked 9th. His ERA at AAA Louisville is over 4.00, but he was the top prospect listed by BBA for three years before he was surpassed by jay Bruce. (I listed a few Reds in here because there are too many promising young Reds.)
Baseball is considering joining the four other major sports in adopting instant replay for controversial calls. If baseball decides to give instant replay a try, it will be first used in the Arizona Fall League following this MLB season. Then, if it works, it will be used in the World Baseball Classic and Spring Training, and ultimately, in MLB games.
Initially, instant replay would only be used to determine if home run balls leave the park. This is as far as I want to see any instant replay in baseball go. I never thought I would support instant replay for MLB, but the recent string of botched home run calls is getting old. The umpires are not in good position to determine whether a homer is fair or foul, and the increasingly confusing boundaries in stadiums are hindering umpires’ judgment, so tasking replay with this responsibility is understandable. But this is where the line should be drawn. Every other call can be made by an umpire on the field. Balls and strikes and safe or out need to remain in the hands of the umpire crew.
Source: Baseball may try replay in Arizona Fall League (ESPN.com)
Mike Piazza has retired after 16 seasons in the majors. Piazza was an elite player for a majority of his career, most notably with the Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Mets. A lock for the Hall of Fame (definitely first ballot), Piazza batted .308 with 427 home runs over his career. He is definitely the best player ever picked in the 62nd round of the draft.
The Houston Astros fixed their outfield home run lines that tricked their outfield into thinking the Cubs’ Geovany Soto hit it out. Soto ended up with an inside-the-park homer instead of a real one. While they’re at it, maybe they can flatten that hill in center that is bound to end a career sooner or later. Stadium quirks are only cool when they aren’t intentional. Houston, you’re trying too hard.
I was in Ohio last weekend to visit Dayton and catch a Reds game (Brandon Phillips 30/30 Bobblehead Day) with Phil and some friends. I like Great American Ball Park. It was a good place to watch a game because though we were in the 500s and our noses were bleeding profusely, we were behind home plate where you get a visually pleasing view of the Ohio River and Kentucky. Enough talk of aesthetics though. The Reds beat the Indians in interleague play with a walkoff homer by Adam Dunn that almost left the park. Dunn is still striking out a lot, but he is keeping those homers (11) and BB totals high. He is combating a weak .231 BA with a productive .373 OBP.
And on an irrelevant note, I ate Skyline and Sonic for the first time and it was delicious.
Here’s a little gem that Baseball Think Factory brought to the forefront. MSN.com (*cough* boycott) featured a piece in their “Men’s” Lifestyle section that tried to knock baseball in eight different aspects. As baseball fans and as people nerdy enough to have a baseball blog…this article was lame.
1. J-Mo says the schedule is too long. 162 games is a ton of games, but the season takes about as long as any other sport. It beats the NFL playing 16 games in 16 weeks. More games=good.
2. J-Mo tells us that he is less than impressed with the physical fitness of baseball players. Ok, John Kruk may have told us he was a ballplayer, not an athlete, but these guys are still in shape. Also, J-Mo says that these guys do not have to work out, they just have to juice. The two biggest names in the PED scandal are well known for their grueling workouts (Roger Clemens and Barry Bonds). Maybe if J-Mo would put a syringe in his head, he would have better opinions. And speaking of physical fitness, how about these 300+ pound lineman who cannot touch their toes? (more…)
Mariners Richie Sexson charged the mound after Texas Rangers pitcher Kason Gabbard threw a pitch at his eye level. Sexson is 6’8, so if you put a pitch that high, it is obviously on purpose. Sexson charged the mound, chucked his helmet at Gabbard, and tackled him but didn’t land any good punches. And the benches cleared and MIlton Bradley actually played peacemaker, pulling C Gerald Laird from the action. Sexson was initially suspended for six games. However, he appealed and had the suspension reduced to five games.
Sexson said he would have been a lot less angry if Gabbard threw at his body, which is taller than most people. A baseball to the buns or back is a lot safer than one to the noggin. But Gabbard went up top and headhunters get what they deserve.
I do not mind watching athletes get angry and I do not believe in suspensions for anyone who leaves the bench (ie. NBA David Stern crackdown on fun). Checks and balances apply to baseball as well as government, so batters must keep the opposing pitcher in check if he is throwing at guys. I do believe however, that people fighting need to observe proper etiquette, if you will, when it comes to baseball violence.
No kicking or other martial arts moves.
Don’t throw the helmet. Or for that matter, no weapons (we’re looking at you Juan Marichal).
Pitchers: don’t headhunt unless you’re Kyle Farnsworth and can defend yourself.
Finally.Julio Franco retired from baseball on Saturday at the age of 49.Franco spent parts of 23 years in the major leagues, and last appeared in MLB with the New York Mets in 2007.Franco also played for the Philadelphia Phillies, Cleveland Indians, Texas Rangers, Chicago White Sox, Milwaukee Brewers, Tampa Bay Devil Rays, and Atlanta Braves.Franco had long said he wanted to play until 50, but realized that being a 49 year old playing baseball in Mexico wasn’t what he wanted to be doing.Can you blame him?Franco offered the following in an interview by Mexican sports daily Record:
“I understand that my time has passed and the great men and athletes know when to say enough.”
That’s classy, Julio.Franco had a nice career, and will mainly be known for his longevity.It’s pretty incredible for a guy to maintain the physical condition, let alone the skills the way Franco did for so long.Sure, he was never a perennial all-star player or team MVP.But Franco embodied what every ballplayer had as a little kid:he loved the game.I mean, the guywas playing in Mexico at the age of 49. He also spent time playing ball in Japan and South Korea.It’s quite admirable of Franco to step aside and let the Hiram Bocachica’s of the world take his place on the Angelopolis Tigers in the Mexican leagues.
Ok, to be fair to Hiram Bocachica and Hiram Bocachica fans everywhere, I haven’t the slightest clue where he’s playing now.Probably the minor leagues somewhere.Sorry, Hiram.Franco has yet to announce his plans to start up a nursing home league after his retirement.Stay tuned for details to come in the future.
You know what was most memorable about Opening Day 2008 memorable for me? A’s Mark Ellis’ first inning homer off Daisuke Matsuzaka. Why, you ask? Because it was the only thing I was awake for this morning, or Japanese evening. I set my alarm clock the night before for 6 AM. So I woke up at 6 AM, scratched myself, watched the first pitch, dozed off again briefly, and was awoken by the crack of Mark Ellis’ bat with a line drive home run to left field. Then I was out for the count until 9 AM chemistry lab. There is something very wrong with this (besides going to class). Opening Day games should not begin before Saved by the Bell reruns start on TBS.
Ugueth Urbina is Burning 