Archive for July, 2009
haha, I can’t believe this guy,
NASCAR’s Jeremy Mayfield is being sued by his stepmother, Lisa, for “slanderous, false and defamatory statements” she says he made about her. You mean the murdering whore thing? Wait … you were upset about?
You see, just because Lisa Mayfield told NASCAR that her stepson is tweaked out on meth, that doesn’t automatically give him the right to say she kills people. (Unless she does kill people! But that’s why we have judges, right?) She’s seeking compensatory damages and punitive damages, plus other “relief as the court may deem just and proper.”
For his part, Mayfield The Younger is standing by his words, but still hasn’t filed his wrongful death suit accusing her of killing his father, like he said he would. The “basically a whore” thing is more a judgment call, I guess.
Jeremy Mayfield of NASCAR sued for civil damages by stepmother Lisa Mayfield ESPN
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Any tThoughts?
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I like it when I see news about Young,
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This web site right here is where the dorkwads of ballhawking and the geekwads of baseball stats meet and do a Vulcan salute. There’s enough nerdiness here to power 10 Strat-O-Matic leagues and a new season of Battlestar Galactica.
And if we didn’t know all too well that ballhawking attracts a weird breed of rabidly entrepreneurial, developmentally arrested adults who will trample small children and good manners for something Cliff Floyd just chucked into the stands, it’d be kind of awesome. Oh, hell, I’ll say it. It is awesome. There’s something sort of sweet about it, too. The ballhawks have themselves a neat community for their peculiar obsession, just like NAMBLA and Catholics
Have a look at that chart, which I think speaks for itself (though I’ve yet to determine what this “Competition Factor” is). It seems our old friend the Happy Youngster finds himself a distant second, behind one Zack Hample, who is something of a legend in ballhawking quarters. Hample, as you can see, favors a device that I’m guessing is the one described in this New York Times story:
After placing a thick rubber band around his baseball glove, Hample opens the pocket and wedges a Sharpie pen between the webbing and the fingers, creating a makeshift trap. Using a long string, he lowers the glove onto any ball left unattended on the field that is within his reach.
Hample corrals the ball between the webbing and the rubber band, then lifts the glove carefully into his hands.
I’m more impressed with this Erik Jabs fellow, who it says right here has chased down 125 batted balls. Surely that’s harder than lowering some MacGyvery contraption onto the field to scoop up the left fielder’s leavings, right? The metrics clearly need some work — adjustments for home runs caught on the fly in crowded pitcher-friendly ballparks, say. A predictive statistic would be nice, too, a sort of ballhawk PECOTA. Seriously. This needs to happen. Someone get Nate Silver on the communicator.
H/T reader Zain
Counting Baseballs MLBlogs
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Any tThoughts?
Here’s a clip of Young doing his best work:
Baseball Drills For Hitting
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Because no one reads the newspaper, and SportsCenter’s anchors are too perky for this early in the morning, Deadspin combs the best of the broadsheets and the blogosphere to bring you everything you need to know to start your day.
â¢The Coyotes are staying in Phoenix. The NHL turns down $212 million bid for the team, accepts Jerry Reinsdorf’s offer of $64 million less. And yet, Bettman says “this had nothing whatsoever to do with the relocation issue.” That’s actually believable, considering the commish has made his career on terrible financial decisions.
â¢Omar Minaya is “this close to being out of baseball,” says Mets exec. That’s not much of a threat, since what he’s put together can hardly be called “baseball.”
â¢ESPN Radio host quits after being muzzled over Big Ben. The Roethlisberger controversy has claimed its first victim. Besides, you know, the woman claiming to be the victim.
â¢Matt Garza plunked Mark Teixeira last night, and no one would have thought anything of it until he told reporters it was on purpose. Enjoy that 6-game suspension, Matt.
â¢Sam Bradford, signing babies at the Big 12’s Media Days. Yes, he’s big news, but is he good enough to be the first player to win two Heismans before becoming an NFL bust?
â¢Pirates trade away whatever they had left. For posterity, here’s their starting lineup from yesterday’s game: Andrew McCutchen, Andy LaRoche, Delwyn Young, Garrett Jones, Steve Pearce, Brandon Moss, Ramon Vazquez, Jason Jaramillo. I…I don’t even have a joke here.
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I have always been a fan of Young, but I have to say, seeing news like this gives me mixed feelings.How do you think this news about Young will affect the team this season?
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young doesn’t know what he’s into,
Matt Brady was the basketball coach at Marist from 2004 to 2008, when he left for JMU. Four of his prep prospects - one signed, two orally comitted, one had not announced a decision - followed. In the world of college hoops, that’s pretty standard. What’s not standard is the contract Brady had signed with Marist. It included a provision preventing him from continuing to recruit players he had contact with at Marist. So the school is suing Brady, JMU, and the entire Commonwealth of Virginia. From a legal standpoint, the contract’s standing is iffy. Specifically, it affects third parties who were not party to the contract at all: the players. You can’t bar an 18-year-old from attending a specific college because of a contract he had nothing to do with. I don’t know how something like that could hold up. If a coach leaves and a young man says, âCoach, I want to go where you’re going,’ a university doesn’t have that power,” Hofstra coach Tom Pecora said. “If they don’t have anything signed, how in the world could a university dictate their recruitment? As much as we want to say recruits sign with a university, there is a relationship there.” Pretty much everyone agrees this lawsuit will have larger implications, if not an immediate impact. The wording of contract clauses could get a lot more specific and effective in reining in coaches planning to jump ship. Will John Calipari ever agree to a contract again? Marist Clause Unusual? Daily News-Record
Forget the fact that it’s James Madison University vs. Marist. A dispute over a departed coach bringing previously recruited players to his new school has led to one of the oddest lawsuits in college sports..
Any responses to College Recruiting About To Get A Lot More Complicated College Basketball?
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I wonder how Johnson’s fans feel - “
Favre passes? First Jim Johnson, now this? O cruel football gods! Wait, it’s just a terrible headline? And Brett’s alive, but definitely still retired? Thank you, football gods! H/T reader Seth
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what do you think?This might be shocking news for Johnson fans, but there are those of you who will say that you saw it coming. I can’t say I’m all that surprised though. Johnson is awesome, I hope this doesn’t affect the season.
Want to give yourself an edge? Want the same professional equipment that the professional athletes use? Want a great deal? Get $0 shipping on orders over $99 when you shop at BaseballRampage. These guys have practically everything you could need, from bats balls and gloves to cleats, bases, even pitching machines.
Flores is at it again -
I’m in the middle of moving right now, so I can’t promise tomorrow’s wrap will be on time.
Iowa Cubs
The Iowa Cubs submitted to the majesty of the Omaha Royals, 5-4.
Starter Casey Fossum got knocked around tonight for five runs on five hits, including two home runs, over five innings. He walked three and struck out three.
B.J. Ryan pitched the seventh inning and faced three batters. He got a fly out, walked the next batter and got the third batter to ground into a double play.
Left fielder John-Ford Griffin hit his eighth home run tonight in a 1 for 4 effort. It was an eighth inning solo shot.
DH Jason Dubois went 2 for 4 with a double. Center fielder Sam Fuld had a triple in a 2 for 5 game. He scored twice.
Tennessee Smokies
It never rains in California but girl, let me warn ya. It pours in Alabama.
Daytona Cubs
The Daytona Cubs fell to the Sarasota Reds, 3-2.
Starter Craig Muschko threw six shutout innings. He allowed only three hits, didn’t walk anyone and struck out five.
Luke Sommer got the loss when he gave up an unearned run in the bottom of the ninth. Sommer pitched 1.2 innings and gave up three hits. He didn’t walk anyone and struck out three.
Catcher Luis Flores was 2 for 4 with a double.
Peoria Chiefs
The Chiefs scored two runs in the first inning and two runs in the ninth inning to slay the Dayton Dragons, 4-3.
Starter Justin Bristow gave up two runs on six hits over five innings. Bristow walked one and struck out four.
Ryan Buchter struck out all three batters he faced to get the win. Chris Huseby pitched a scoreless ninth for his 13th save. He gave up no hits but walked one. Huseby struck out one.
Shortstop Ryan Flaherty went 2 for 5 and scored a run. First baseman Rebel Ridling tripled in a 2 for 4 effort. Ridling scored once and had one RBI. Right fielder Kyler Burke went 2 for 4 with his tenth stolen base.
Second baseman DJ LeMahieu was 1 for 4 with an RBI in his Peoria debut.
AZL Cubs
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What do you think?
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News about Beimel:
It’s everyone’s favorite time of the year, so gather the kids around the fire and let’s speculate away to our heart’s content.
Cardinals - Like those annoying folks that get their Christmas shopping done early, the Cards are probably done wheeling and dealing picking up Matt Holliday and Mark DeRosa. They missed out on the Christmas sales and paid a steep price in prospects, but they should help a team that has basically been riding a 16-7 April to justify the spending spree.
Brewers - They found an early deal getting Felipe Lopez to play second base for them and you know they’re searching far and wide for a starting pitcher. They seemed to scoff at adding Doug Davis into that Lopez deal, but looks like they have their sites set on Wisconsin native, Jarrod Washburn. Considering they have the third worst ERA in the league, and second worst among starters, I’m not sure adding Washburn and his Safeco-aided ERA is really gonna be much of a boost.
Astros - Quietly the best team in the Central since June, they’ve been pretty quiet in the rumor mill. Despite some reported financial struggles, Drayton McClane has a never quit mentality, soI wouldn’t be surprised if they skip this deadline and look to make an August waiver trade if necessary.
Reds - Rumors abound that they were still looking for hitting, and they are in desperate need of some, but the current 6-game losing streak, has put them a lot closer to last than first. We’ll see if they switch to sellers and start pawning off some of their bullpen or be bold and look to move Aaron Harang or Bronson Arroyo, although that’s doubtful. Arthur Rhodes has received the most buzz so far as a player that could be moved.
Pirates - The Pittsburgh Perpetual Sellers still have a few chips they could move, namely Zach Duke, John Grabow, Freddy Sanchez and Jack Wilson. And Grabow and Sanchez sure wouldn’t be poor additions to the Cubs. Sanchez though has that $8M vesting option based on plate appearances(600 since he made the All-Star team) which it looks like he’ll hit, so that complicates matter significantly. If the Cubs could fit that $8M into the budget, my guess is they’re going to try and keep second base flexible for a run at Chone Figgins this offseason.
Cubs - There’s no doubt that Hendry is working the phone lines and trying to find something. Lou recently pined for that left-handed middle of the order bat again as Bradley isn’t cutting it there with the walks and the singles. Chances are they’ll just have to hope he figures it out in the last two-plus months.
A left-handed reliever seems to be the main focus. With the potential additions of B.J. Ryan and a trade, they could move Sean Marshall back to the rotation and try and weather the starting pitching injuries that have recently hit the team. Some names mentioned are Grabow, Rhodes, Joe Beimel and George Sherrill.
Knowing Hendry, he is looking to go big and I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s at least kicked the tires on Roy Halladay and Cliff Lee and then realized the sticker price is too high. I guess if there’s one pitcher that may justify the load in prospects it could be Dan Haren. He’s having another fantastic season in Arizona, with an obscene 7.42 K/BB ratio to follow up his 5.15 from last year. He’s also signed through 2012 with a 2013 club option. The problem with Haren though is that he seems to tail off in the second half with a 3.08 career ERA before the break and 4.10 after the break, although the win percentage has stayed about the same if you’re into that kind of thing. Plus he’s an ex-Cardinal, so the Cubs can get back at the Cards for acquiring Mark DeRosa.
Bruce Levine also mentioned Mark Teahen and Orlando Cabrera in his article yesterday. I guess you can’t have enough utility players in the NL. Cabrera has warmed up a bit since his awful start and brings solid defensive work with him and could move Ryan Theriot to second base at times.
We get a sideshow to go along with the actual show this week, as those super-hot Astros show up for a four-game set to take on our FIRST PLACE Cubs.
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Tell us your opinion.
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It’s a busy time in our nation’s capital these days, and there are some burning questions that need answering. Like, “Why don’t they have a KissCam at Mystics games?”
That’s the issue that guides Mike Wise’s Monday column, which bravely deals with the don’t show, don’t kiss policy at WNBA games in Washington D.C. And — get this — there’s even some good, old-fashioned, shoe-shine reporting. Fancy that! As so often happens in the reporting process, Wise soon outs the not-so-surprising answer to his query:
Understood is that women’s professional basketball has two major fan bases: dads and daughters, and lesbians. The KissCam issue, frivolous on its surface, puts the effort to cater to both audiences squarely at odds.
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“We got a lot of kids here,” Sheila Johnson, the Mystics’ managing partner, said when asked last week at a game. “We just don’t find it appropriate.”
That’s coming from the woman who goes on to say that she doesn’t have a problem with Exxon, a company that scored 0/100 on the Human Rights Campaign’s corporate quality index, because Exxon brings in money. It’s money that the Mystics need. But that other issue-that-must-not-be-named? It might be too jarring for the children.
Granted, the Mystics are in a difficult position, just like everyone else in Washington. There are, as you might have guessed, politics involved. But it’s easy to think in ideals. If only we lived in a world where love equals love — where fathers could kiss their daughters, women could kiss each other on the KissCam and Exxon could kiss away its employees’ human rights. Can’t we all just smooch and make up?
Mystics Give Big Issue The Kiss-off Washington Post
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I have always been a big fan of Johnson, I have to say, seeing news like this gives me mixed feelings.How do you think this news about Johnson will affect the rest of the team this season?
Want to give yourself an edge? Want the same type of professional equipment that the professional athletes use? Want to buy it for less? Get $0 shipping on orders over $99 when you shop online at BaseballRampage. These guys have everything you could need, from bats balls and gloves to cleats, bases, even pitching machines.
No matter what you say, I can’t stop thinking mock is spectacular -
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Exotic fancypants swimsuits bestow ridiculous Aquaman-like qualities on anyone who wears one, which is why swimming officials have officially banned the suits—right after every record in the books is shattered beyond repair.
Swimming’s governing body actually passed down the ban on Friday, two days before the the World Championships began in Rome. No more full bodysuits that coat you in whale oil or whatever and no fancy materials that bend space time around your thighs. However, the ruling will not take effect until 2010, giving everyone just enough time to set dozens of new, unimaginable records before the ban renders them untouchable forever.
There were eight events on day one of the Championships on Sunday, and six of them ended with new world records being set. One of the records—which had belonged to eel-man hybrid Ian Thorpe for seven years—was beaten by Germany’s Paul Biedermann, who bested his own qualifying time from one month ago by 6.5 seconds. Federica Pellegrini became the first woman ever to break four minutes in the 400 freestyle race. American Ariana Kukors was an alternate in the 200 individual medley, but set the fastest time ever when her teammate scratched from the race. That makes sense right?
The rest of the week should see dozens of more records fall, thanks mostly to the super-slippery, super-buoyant suits that have become standard issue equipment. Everyone is in agreement that many of these records could never have been reached without the aid of these newfangled suits, and once they’re gone, those marks may never be reached again. (At least not for many, many years. Does that mean you should learn how to use the asterisk key on your typewriter machine? Or get on a plane to Italy to catch your last opportunity to witness a world record moment? This all assumes that you care about swimming records, of course, which you probably don’t because Michael Phelps is not the one breaking them.
Oh, did I mention he’s terrible now? He completely changed his stroke and only came in second in his heat. Probably because of the pot.
World Records Fall, and It’s Only Day 1 NY Times
Are these worlds making a mockery of swimming? AP
Michael Phelps: Turning back the page LA Times
Speedo not happy with FINA ruling on suits SF Chronicle
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Post your thoughts below.
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Guzman needs to be traded,
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My friend Mike has always said, when unexpected or unusual things happen in baseball, “Anyone who tells you they have this game figured out, laugh in their face!”
That phrase is certainly true this afternoon. After Rich Harden had thrown poorly in day games — and at Wrigley Field in general this year — who figured he could throw six innings and allow only one hit, only one baserunner? That hit was a home run by Cub-killer Joey Votto, but that’s all Harden gave up — he was outstanding today, striking out eight in six excellent innings, throwing only 90 pitches (61 strikes).
Hypothetical question: let’s say Votto doesn’t hit that home run and Harden throws six perfect innings. Do you let him continue? (I say emphatically, yes.)
In any case, the offense also produced today and the 5-2 win over the Reds, combined with the Phillies’ 9-2 blowout of the Cardinals, put the Cubs alone in first place in the NL Central for the first time this season (they were tied for the top spot five other dates, all in April, the last time April 21, when the team record was 8-4). It also put the Cubs three games ahead of St. Louis in the loss column — and I know we had a long discussion about that earlier this year, but that really is important. Those are three wins that don’t have to be made up later, and the Cubs still have five games in hand — they have played 96 games, the Cardinals 101. Today’s paid crowd of 41,528 was, by 19 people, the largest crowd of the 2009 season to date. And after struggling at home earlier this year, the 30-18 home record is third-best in the NL (behind the Dodgers and Giants).
The offense was also outstanding today — and I’ll give kudos to Milton Bradley, who drew two walks, scoring both times, and singled in four at-bats (and who might have gotten jobbed on a called third strike in the 7th inning). Since Kosuke Fukudome is doing a good job leading off, why not consider batting Bradley second? (Or, maybe not fool around at all with a lineup that’s produced eight wins in ten games since the All-Star break.) Fukudome also made an outstanding throw after catching a fly ball, to nail Edwin Encarnacion trying to score. Dusty Baker came out to argue — that’s probably more animated than we saw him the entire four years he managed the Cubs. That throw saved Angel Guzman from what could have been a bad inning — he walked two, uncharacteristic for him, and Fukudome’s throw kept the inning scoreless. Bradley was waiting for Fukudome at the dugout to congratulate him — Milton seemed really fired up about the play and that’s the kind of thing I do love to see. It does seem as if this team is, at last, after 96 games, finding its identity.
Alfonso Soriano continued his hot streak with two hits and even though he hit into a double play to end the seventh-inning rally, that ball was laced hard right at Edwin Encarnacion. Soriano may be beginning one of those “carry the team” streaks — only right now, there are different heroes every day. Raise your hand if you thought Koyie Hill was going to hit both a double and triple this afternoon.
Here’s the only negative about today’s game — Jeff Samardzija had a shaky ninth inning, forcing Lou to summon Kevin Gregg to close things out. Samardzija has to be a prime candidate to go back to Iowa when Ryan Dempster is activated to start on Tuesday. It seems the tinkering they’ve done with his mechanics simply isn’t working — I think the Shark should go back to what he was doing last year, when he pitched well in relief down the stretch. Gregg threw four pitches — same as Saturday — to notch his 21st save, which is only four off the league lead.
Trade rumors were quiet today — it seems as if the Cubs are going to wait & see what happens over the next few days, particularly with B.J. Ryan due to report to Iowa tomorrow. If Ryan is healthy and throwing the way he did last year, that might be a better acquisition than any other relief pitcher the Cubs could acquire (and would allow Sean Marshall to take over Ted Lilly’s rotation slot), and the cost is only a pro-rated portion of the minimum salary.
Keep the faith, everyone. The Cubs are in first place and playing well. Onward to defeating the Astros this week.
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Tell us your opinion.
Take a peek at a vid of Guzman:
Shanelly Guzman Capsula #5-Dia Del Niño-LA ESQUINA CALIENTE-Campeche
Want to give yourself an edge? Want the same professional equipment that MVPs use? Want a great deal? Get FREE SHIPPING on orders over $99 when you shop online at BaseballRampage. These guys have practically everything you and your team could need, from bats balls and gloves to cleats, bases, even pitching machines.