We Won’t Mortgage Our Future on some whacky idea
by tophatal ….
More baseball pieces within this site
With the non-waiver trade deadline due to hit , the teams within Major League Baseball (MLB) and a number of these ball-clubs beyond the postseason aspirations will seek to play themselves into contention for a postseason berth . And with that there will be a slew of player movements by way of the trades being conducted the general managers under the orders of the team owners . With a glut of free agents now coming unto the market the interest has undoubtedly risen with their being renewed interest Chicago Cubs’ pitcher Ryan Dempster (5-5, 2.25 ERA) . With the NL Central team essentially out of playoff contention , the front office will be looking to dump payroll , GM Theo Epstein will seek to purge the roster of players he believes superfluous to their needs .
Washington Nationals starting pitcher Stephen Strasburg sits in the dugout after being lifted in the sixth inning of a baseball game against the Atlanta Braves, Friday, July 20, 2012, in Washington. The Braves won 11-10 in 11 innings. AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster …..
With the Los Angeles Angels being very aggressive in the marketplace by snapping up Zack Greinke (9-3 , 3.44 ERA) , by trading for the player, in acquiring him from the Milwaukee Brewers , this sends a clear message to their opponents and divisional rivals within the AL West . Angels’ owner Arte Moreno has no desire to see his team fail once again to mount a serious challenge to a dominant Texas Rangers’ team and a resurgent Oakland Athletics’ organization . Mike Sciocsia and his managerial staff will look utilize Greinke as best they can , with his addition now bolstering this pitching roster and their overall potency within the AL. From my own perspective, the addition of Zack Greinke now gives the Los Angeles Angels the best pitching staff in all of baseball !
Not to be outdone, the Los Angeles Dodgers have also been active in the marketplace acquiring Hanley Ramirez from the under-achieving Miami Marlins . The South Florida franchise’s tailspin into mediocrity , has purists , fans and MLB analysts alike , asking whether or not we are once again seeing history repeat itself . In the offseason the ball-club sought to bolster payroll by acquiring many of the top free agents on the market , with a view to mounting a serious challenge not just within the NL but also across the landscape of baseball . Instead, the Marlins’ season has been one of sheer incompetency, with no one within the organization wishing to be held accountable for this miserable display .
Marlins’ manager Ozzie Guillen never one to be lost for words, has provided the press with no explanation as to the reasons for the team’s poor showing . Instead, it has been left to the local media market to seek the answers for what they believe to be wrong . Miami Marlins’ owner Jeffrey Loria , not a newcomer to controversy , is now seen as a pariah and succubus within the South Florida marketplace . This multi-billionaire art dealer and recluse , has been enabled in his efforts to finagle a $575 million ballpark that is now rarely filled to capacity . MLB Commissioner , Bud Selig was a major proponent in assisting the Marlins obtaining their ballpark , as he sought to be a necessary component in the dealings that took place between the Marlins’ executives and the council members of city of Miami government . Now with the US Justice Department investigating the municipal agency and subpoenaing records from the offices of the city council , it begs the question . Will anyone , within either the Miami city council , Marlins’ hierarchy or baseball’s operations answer any questions concerning this whole sorry episode ?
Just when you thought things could not get any better for the New York Yankees’ , baseball’s most relevant franchise once again pulls no punches . GM Brian Cashman made an audacious acquisition , with the executive acquiring MLB All Star outfielder Ichiro Suzuki from the Seattle Mariners for mere morsels from within the Yankees’ farm system .
Although his productivity has declined , Ichiro is still a player capable of bringing excitement to the ballpark , any ballpark in baseball . And it has been a testament to this remarkable player and his career , that he is held in such high esteem by his peers , fans and managers alike . Make no bones about it but the New York Yankees are on a tear as their offense has become so dominant and amongst the most potent within the AL as MLB , itself . The New York Yankees have remained the omnipresent “1000 gorilla “ in the room , as each season with their vast financial resources at their disposal and with the YES Network there also to provide that added buffer , there can be no denying that the baseball world is at their very feet. Cashman as the team’s general manager can continue to throw money at a problem merely in the hope that instantaneously it will be solved . In each of the last eight years the team’s payroll has bordered on approaching , if not passing $200 million annually . And this year , once again the Yankees top the payrolls’ list among all the teams in baseball. The team’s third baseman …….. Alex Rodriguez remains baseball’s highest paid player in the game , and it would appear having signed a second $250 million deal during his professional career , the player will not be found wanting from a financial standpoint.
Undeniably, the New York Yankees have been able to use non-waiver trade deadline to its advantage each season , and you simply have to go peruse the trades associated with the franchise throughout its history and the players to have donned the team’s uniform . Working clearly with a view to making the postseason once again, Joe Girardi and his managerial staff are looking for the team to play with the resolve that has often been associated with this organization over the years .
Things were perceived to have taken a turn for the worse when the Yankees’ closer Mariano Rivera was lost to the team for the season but it appears they have found a ready-made replacement in Rafael Soriano who has willingly assumed the role with a great deal of zeal . Saturday night hosting the Boston Red Sox , their arch-rivals for what has now appeared to be an eternity , this heated rivalry is amongst the most passionate within the game. The events of Saturday night would end in a victory for the Red Sox , a much-needed win for a very desperate and beleaguered team . Sunday’s game will pit Felix Doubront (10-5 , 4.54 ERA) of the Boston Red Sox against Hiroki Kuroda (10-7, 3.34 ERA) . A matchup of two evenly matched players looking to establish themselves within the lineups for their respective teams .
At 60-40 the New York Yankees have an eight game lead over their nearest rivals within the division (AL East) the Baltimore Orioles (52-49) . This divisional race is all but over and I seriously doubt that any of the division’s occupants can mount a serious challenge to dislodge the division’s leaders as the New York Yankees seek to win their seventeenth AL East divisional title. The organization’s last divisional win came in 2011 but their postseason foray was short-lived with their ALDS 3-2 series’ loss to the Detroit Tigers . The ambition of this organization has always been the goal of going into each season with the World Series as the “ ultimate prize “ . Anything short of that this year would have to be viewed as a distinct failure for the baseball club.
With this continued absurdity of Mike Rizzo , general manager of the Washington Nationals , insisting that the team’s starting pitcher Stephen Strasburg will pulled be pulled at some point before the end of the player’s full season schedule , has me wondering if this organization is truly that ambitious ! The Nationals do not have a postseason pedigree and truth be told, this is an organization that is simply over-achieving . This time last year , the Washington Nationals > struggled to make their presence felt , in any way whatsoever. And having finished third (78-83) within the NL East , simply gave us glimpse into what this ball-club has been all about . Granted , this season been an eye opener with the exceptional play of Gio Gonzalez , Strasburg , Bryce Harper , Jordan Zimmerman , Ian Desmond and Ryan Zimmerman . Mike Rizzo is simply acting like a child , who having been given an early Christmas present has been allowed to unwrap that gift but suddenly realizes he does not want that gift to be damaged . The caveat however , has been that Stephen Strasburg was shuttered down in 2011 , with the player having to undergo “Tommy John “ surgery to his pitching arm . Nationals’ manager Davey Johnson is fully aware of the vested interest that the front office has in the player and his worth economically to this baseball franchise . The team’s profile has visibly risen with the team’s glowing performances and the fact that for the greater part of this season they have pretty much has the NL East all to themselves . . Now because of the perceived success of this year Rizzo is trying to create the perception that the only thing standing their way and the inevitable will be whether or not the team’s best pitcher will be available for a postseason assault . If only that were true because it will take a great deal more than the exploits of Strasburg, if the Nationals are to win the game’s biggest prize .
The Nationals will play the final game of a three-set series that pits them against the Milwaukee Brewers at Miller Park , in Milwaukee , Wisconsin . Taking the mound for the Washington Nationals will be Gio Gonzalez, as he faces Mark Rogers (6-6, 4.60 ERA) of the Brewers . Although the National are 7-3 in their last ten games and an astonishing 28-19 at home and 32-21 on the road . Mike Rizzo has chosen not to make any major moves other than the release of outfielder Rick Ankiel . Standing pat for now but I get the distinct feeling this whole scenario could come back to explode in the face of the Washington Nationals’ organization . Theodore “Ted “ Lerner , principal managing partner and the largest shareholder in the Nationals would like nothing better than to see this team succeed . As to whether or not the players can fulfill the owner’s wishes remains to be seen . Your thoughts , on the matter ?
=================================================================================================================================================
================================================================================================================================================
Picture gallery .
As the final two-and-a-half months of the teams’ schedules now winds down to what we may well deem something of an inevitable end . It should prove to be very interesting to see how things play out in the public arena and their thoughts on this all . How do you see this all panning out ? Do you believe that there will anymore major moves made before the end of the trade deadline ? Chime in with your thoughts on this and anything else you believe pertinent to the subject matter .
😉
Picture gallery details .
=================================================================================================================================================
(1) Rumored to the most sought after free agent pitcher on the market . Ryan Dempster (46) of the Chicago Cubs, rumored to be on the trading block , watches from the dugout as the Cubs take on the St. Louis Cardinals at Wrigley Field on July 27, 2012 in Chicago, Illinois. The Cardinals defeated the Cubs 9-6 . Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images ….
(2) CHICAGO, IL – JULY 18: Will Ferrell (R) and Ryan Dempster (46) of the Chicago Cubs eat pizza on the pitcher’s mound before Ferrell threw out a ceremonial first pitch before the game against the Miami Marlins at Wrigley Field on July 18, 2012 in Chicago, Illinois. Photo by Brian Kersey/Getty Images …
(3) In this May 4, 2012, photo, Milwaukee Brewers pitcher Zack Greinke throws to a San Francisco Giants batter in a baseball game in San Francisco. Greinke has been traded by the Brewers to the Los Angeles Angels for rookie shortstop Jean Segura and two minor league pitchers, in a deal announced Friday, July 27, 2012. AP Photo/Jeff Chiu ……
(4) SAN FRANCISCO, CA – JULY 28: Hanley Ramirez (13) of the Los Angeles Dodgers drives a ball for an RBI double in the top of the seventh inning scoring Matt Kemp (27) of the Los Angeles Dodgers (not pictured) to give the Los Angeles Dodgers a 7-0 lead over the San Francisco Giants at AT&T Park on July 28, 2012 in San Francisco, California. Photo by Tony Medina/Getty Images ….
(5) New York Yankees’ Ichiro Suzuki , right, celebrates after scoring on a home run hit by Russell Martin during the fourth inning of a baseball game against the Boston Red Sox at Yankee Stadium in New York, Friday, July 27, 2012. AP Photo/Seth Wenig ….
(6) Washington Nationals’ Michael Morse left, is tagged out at home by Milwaukee Brewers’ Martin Maldonado after trying to score on a single by Adam LaRoche during the fourth inning of a baseball game Saturday, July 28, 2012, in Milwaukee. AP Photo/Jim Prisching ….
(7) Washington Nationals starting pitcher Stephen Strasburg sits in the dugout after being lifted in the sixth inning of a baseball game against the Atlanta Braves, Friday, July 20, 2012, in Washington. The Braves won 11-10 in 11 innings. AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster …..
================================================================================================================================================
😉
=======================================================================================================================
MLB probable pitchers 29th July
MLB team payrolls
Highest paid players in MLB (baseball)
=====================================================================================================================
Hot chic ” pic of the day Wendy Fiore . For more images of Fiore simply click unto the link provided . Enjoy at your pleasure .
What is on Wendy’s mind at present ?
Tophatal's Blog 