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Condemning Them to Be Free
Growing up can be an awkward phase of physical and social development. Many parents find that enrolling their children in a sport early in life can lead to a balanced improvement in a child’s physical coordination, emotional health and mental focus. The National Alliance of Sports estimates 20 million kids in America, between the ages of 5-12 years old, register to play a competitive sport every year; most in sports such as, football, baseball, basketball and soccer. And by age of 13, the N.A.S. also estimates that 70 percent of these children will end up quitting league sports all-together, and never return to league sports again.
Most adolescents cite a loss of fun as the main reason they end up quitting their sport. The sports they enrolled in earlier in their life having evolved into a more competitive atmosphere - the focus centering more on winning than general understanding and competence. And only kids showing the competitive edge, or a sense will and passion, will usually continue to pursue their sports well their mid-teens.
Occasionally, out of these ranks a young athlete will transcend the competition around him, in every sense of ability and physical development. Options narrow, and it seems the only option for the young athlete to continue to develop would be to advance to a more competitive level. In rarest of cases that means turning pro for the growing adolescents. These young athletes that turn pro are usually buffed with choice words; such as, gifted or prodigy. The societal pressure to live up to expectation becomes immense, and many of the prodigies never live up to the lofty expectations handed down on them. Read More >>
The Visible Spectrum
… Another year, another championship featuring a team from New York or Boston. Some years, if we’re lucky though, us spectators get the special benefit of watching two of America’s largest sport markets duke it out in the same championship game. When the right side of this coin flips, this media Supernova can leave us sport’s fans outside the market left behind in the massive glare of the oncoming media onslaught. Outside of the happenings of Upper East Side of the United States, time begins to crawl, in a unobservable manner where our attention slowly, but forcibly, approaches the day of the game. Minor news regarding team’s organizations, player’s injuries, fan reaction and strategic speculation may seem to stretch on for days. From their perspective, everything outside of their market’s big game comes to a stand-still, no passing news surrounding buzzer beaters, college upsets and player trades and signings can penetrate through the realms of their metropolitan pride. When these media Supernovas happen, we’re all subject to a cosmic censorship of the sport. Read More >>
2012 Seattle Mariners Outlook: Get ready for the season and customize your gear at Onthefield.com
Coming out of the Fourth of July weekend, it looked like the Mariners would be one of the MLB‘s surprise teams in 2011. Boasting a .500 record less than a week before the MLB All-Star break, the overachieving M’s proceeded to embark on a 17-game losing binge that instantly turned 2011 into another lost season.
The Mariners made some moves last season to expedite the rebuilding process, such as trading Doug Fister and Erik Bedard in deals that brought back several prospects and replacing Chone Figgins at third base with Kyle Seager.
However, the biggest change came this MLB offseason, when Seattle dealt emerging star SP Michael Pineda and pitching prospect Jose Campos to the Yankees for C/DH Jesus Montero and SP Hector Noesi. The move signaled that the Mariners are getting serious about upgrading their offense, and it also acknowledged that some of their prized pitching prospects are close to major-league ready, which made Pineda expendable. For now, Montero is the sole addition to a Mariners lineup that scored the fewest runs in the majors last season. However, Dustin Ackley, Justin Smoak, Kyle Seager and Mike Carp are all pre-peak players who could take a step forward.
Not only will the Mariners count on their younger players to improve the team’s offensive output, but they will also look for a bounce-back season from Ichiro Suzuki, who is coming off the worst year of his MLB career. Two straight years of decreases in his ground ball batting average suggest that a comeback may be no minor feat for the 38-year-old Suzuki. 
Felix Hernandez, Jason Vargas and offseason signee Hisashi Iwakuma will anchor the rotation, but the final two spots will be up for grabs. Danny Hultzen, the second overall pick in the 2011 MLB amateur draft, will have a chance to start his career at the major league level, but he will have to contend with a large slate of competitors, including Noesi, Blake Beavan, Charlie Furbush, Kevin Millwood and fellow prospects James Paxton and Erasmo Ramirez. Brandon League will return to pitch the ninth inning, though the bullpen lacks depth in the set-up and middle relief roles. Read More >>
Last of a Kind
Jorge Posada might or might not be a MLB Hall of Famer but with five years before he appears on the ballot, there will be plenty of time to ponder his case. No time is necessary, however, to conclude that a unique unit to which Posada belonged deserves a spot in Cooperstown.
That would be the Core Four, a great and fitting name for what was the longest-running quartet in American sports.
Derek Jeter, Mariano Rivera, Andy Pettitte and Posada all were signed and developed by the New York Yankees. All four debuted in the MLB in 1995. All four would be teammates for the next 16 years, except for a three-year stint Pettitte served with his hometown Houston Astros.
Theirs was an unprecedented alliance that included five World Series championships, seven AL pennants, 12 division titles and even more individual accolades.
Theirs was a run that might never be matched. Think about it. First, you’d need four players exceptional enough to play 16 years in the big leagues. They would need to come up at around the same age. They would need to play for a big-money club that would be able to afford them when they reached the free-agent market. And their team would need to win consistently in order to reduce the chances of annual makeovers.
The Comebackers
One reason the Cardinals believe they will overcome the departure of Albert Pujols is the return of Adam Wainwright.
“It’s like getting back a 20-game winner,” Matt Holliday says of the right-hander who missed all last MLB season because of Tommy John surgery.
That is assuming Wainwright picks up in 2012 where he left off in 2010 when he won 20 MLB games and finished second in N.L. Cy Young voting.
Of course, the only certainty about injuries is that you know they’re going to happen. And often. You could put together a fine lineup of players coming back from injuries that cost them most, if not all, of 2011.
Assessing the comeback chances of a notable player at each position:
1B Adam LaRoche, Nationals. After signing a two-year, $16 million deal last January, his left shoulder started bothering him in spring training and never improved. He was hitting .172 when his season ended May 21, and he underwent labrum surgery in June. The Nats didn’t miss him last year because of Michael Morse’s breakout season. They could end up trading him this year if, as many expect, they land Prince Fielder.
2B Brian Roberts, Orioles. He suffered a concussion in September 2010, when he took his bat and smacked himself on the helmet after striking out. Not wise. Roberts was struggling in his comeback last year and then suffered more concussion symptoms May 16 after a headfirst slide into first. Roberts did not play again and is a long shot to be ready for spring training. He was ruled out of attending this weekend’s club fan fest because of concussion symptoms.
American League Contenders
Plenty of MLB teams have made major upgrades during this offseason to vault them from contender to favorite or from the cusp of success to legitimate threat.
However, even with those improvements, there are cracks in the façade, small and large, and weak spots in the foundation exist. Those will either have to be fixed or masked by strengths for those clubs to earn MLB playoff spots.
The Rangers’ rotation is a concern, even if they do sign Yu Darvish. (AP Photo)American League
New York Yankees
The Yanks are a strong team after acquiring Hiroki Kuroda and Michael Pineda to address their starting rotation problems. They now have rotation depth, a reliable bullpen, and, of course, they can score gobs of runs.
As it stands now, their main problem could be defense, although that is like finding a small zit on your dream girl. The left side of the infield is the biggest flaw, with Alex Rodriguez and Derek Jeter holding down those positions. Jeter’s defensive slide has been well documented, and even though Rodriguez was really good at third base last season, history still tells us he is below average.
Texas Rangers
They are expected to sign Yu Darvish for their rotation, but that part of the team could still be a problem since it lost C.J. Wilson. Despite scouts, executives and analysts not being sold on Wilson as an ace, he put up ace-like numbers for the Rangers last season and headed the rotation.
Darvish is no sure bet to replace Wilson’s production, and no one left over from last season’s pennant-winning team looks to have that ability, either. Good pitching might not be the problem, but lacking a shutdown ace will be.
Pineda Leaves Seattle For The Big-City Lights of New York
And you thought the Yankees were spending the MLB offseason in hibernation.
With two sudden moves made Friday night, the Yankees served notice on all of baseball. By trading for young Michael Pineda and signing veteran Hiroki Kuroda, they turned what had been a thin rotation into one that can rival any in the MLB American League.
Instead of CC Sabathia and a cast of concerns, the Yankees now boast Sabathia and a whole lot more. How about this rotation: CC Sabathia, Pineda, Ivan Nova, Kuroda and a choice of A.J. Burnett, Phil Hughes and Freddy Garcia. Burnett looks a lot better as the potential No. 5 than slotted behind Sabathia, doesn’t he?
The Rays still have what is considered the AL’s deepest five-man rotation with James Shields, David Price, Jeremy Hellickson, Matt Moore and Wade Davis or Jeff Niemann. But is it really any better than the Yankees who, by the way, have just a little more offense (the Yankees outscored the Rays by 170 runs in 2011)?
A rundown:
Sabathia or Price? The Rays’ young lefty throws harder but—for the next year or two, anyway—give me Sabathia’s experience, consistency and durability.
Kuroda or Shields? Shields gives the Rays two legitimate No. 1 starters and he deserves the edge here but Kuroda, 36, is no slouch. He posted a 3.07 ERA while working 202 innings for the Dodgers last season.
Pineda or Moore? If you had assessed these two at last year’s All-Star break, Pineda would have been an easy call. He dominated in the first half, going 8-5 with a 2.58 ERA and .193 batting average against. He faded after the break (5.12 ERA) and Moore broke out late but still you would have to call this a draw, for now.
Life After Albert
With Albert Pujols gone, the Cardinals need a new face of the MLB franchise.
They have no shortage of candidates. Native son David Freese has been the club’s most visible player since his postseason for the ages but he’s never even played 100 games in a season. Lance Berkman has the career credentials and leadership skills but he turns 36 next month and is on a one-year contract. Age also works against starter Chris Carpenter, who is 36. Adam Wainwright has the personality and the pedigree but he is returning from Tommy John surgery and has a comeback to deal with. Yadier Molina has been with the club longer than any position player and is coming off his best season but the club can’t even get him to show up to its winter fanfest.
Matt Holliday is a five-time MLB All-Star. (AP Photo)
There are, however, no such excuses for Matt Holliday’s candidacy. He has the game: His .315 career batting average since arriving in the majors in 2004 is second only to Pujols among active N.L. players. He has the experience, having established himself as a superstar with the Rockies. And he has the salary: Entering year three of a seven-year, $120 million contract, he remains the Cardinals’ highest-paid player.
No less a Cardinals great than batting coach Mark McGwire believes Holliday is the man. At the St. Louis baseball writers dinner honoring the club Sunday night, McGwire put “Big Matt Holliday” on the spot when, lamenting Pujols’ loss, predicted a big year from his 32-year-old left fielder.
There’s only hitch with Holliday: He’d rather not, thank you very much.
On the field is no problem. Despite a run of unusual (A moth flying into an ear, for example) injuries last year, Holliday typically is good for All-Star production for 155 games.
In the clubhouse isn’t, either, though Holliday is not known as a big-time leader. “A lot of that is perception,” he says. “I interact with my teammates a little differently than some of you might think. I’m not a yeller but I’m not afraid to talk to young guys about certain things.”
It’s Time, National League!!!
Major League Baseball’s MLB new collective bargaining agreement included several groundbreaking changes, including expanded playoffs, HGH testing and the relocation of the Houston Astros from the National League to the American League in 2013. One item the players and owners overlooked but immediately should address: the use of the designated hitter in both leagues at all times beginning in MLB 2013.
Consider it a celebration of the 40-year anniversary of the DH.
Lance Berkman may not like the idea, but it’s time for the NL to adopt the designated hitter. (AP Photo)
This might be the move that pushes purists from the brink over the edge. But it is time to come to grips with the fact that this isn’t 1930. The game already has had several rounds of expansion and realignment, and radical changes such as interleague play and the wild card(s) have been huge successes. They even play at night now!
Since 1973, the two leagues have operated with one glaring disparity: NL pitchers have to bat, and AL pitchers don’t. The fact that such a drastic difference existed for even one season is ridiculous; that it somehow managed to survive nearly four decades is downright miraculous.
RELATED: Fielder, Nationals talking deal
Logistically, implementing the DH full-time in both leagues by the 2013 season will be tough. But perhaps this can move to the top of commissioner Bud Selig’s agenda once he agrees to his new contract extension. The players (with the exception of the few pitchers who think it is cool to hit) would be in favor of it, and a strong enough case can be made to sway the owners.
Three reasons this proposal should become reality in 2013:
1. Continuous interleague play
Hall of Fame Voters Should Not Be Responsible To Clean Up The MLB’s Steroid Mess
I’m still three years away from being eligible, as a 10-year member of the Baseball Writers’ Association of America, to vote for the MLB Hall of Fame. Which isn’t too bad, since the way things sound right now—after Barry Larkin was voted in Monday—the biggest names on next year’s ballot still will be around.
Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, Sammy Sosa? The odds are good that none will get the required 75 percent in the next two votes. Mark McGwire and Rafael Palmeiro? Even less of a chance.
Major League Baseball MLB embraced the 1998 home run chase of Sammy Sosa and Mark McGwire. (AP Photo)
That’s a shame. Because I’d vote for all of them.
It might not make a dent in what’s already a pattern of denial for the public faces of the Needle-Ball Era. McGwire got 112 votes this year, Palmeiro 72. Those who voted for them likely didn’t do so for the same reasons. Neither did all the voters who left them off, nor did the nine voters who submitted blank ballots.
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