Tag Archives: San Diego Padres

August 3, 2010

What do Baseball Trades, Stephen Curry, and Brett Favre Have in Common?

By chappy81

They don’t really have anything in common, it’s just what I felt like rambling about today. I’ve had a stretch of stuff to do, and that didn’t include much blogging. I guess it’s not a bad thing to have too much to do. If only there were more hours in the day! Anyways, it’s been somewhat slow in the sports world lately, but there were some things I felt like I wanted to get my opinion out there on, so skip to whatever interests you.

MLB Trade Deadline: I liked how much action we saw leading up to, and during the July 31st trade deadline. It seemed more active than normal. Everyone is praising the Yankees for their haul of Berkman, Kerns, and Wood.

Not too many poo poo platters this trade deadline... Mr. Hankey Approves!

Sure it’s nice, but I don’t really see any of them making much of a difference. All three of these guys would’ve been nice acquisitions four or five years ago, but now, not so exciting. After this weekend, I think the Rays did just as good by making a small move to get Chad Qualls. Maybe it’s the NY media trying to make everyone believe the Yankees made some genius moves, but I’m not really buying it. For me it comes down to two teams that were the big winners. The Rangers and the Padres made the moves that made the most sense for their teams to get to the playoffs. I won’t include Houston or Arizona, since we don’t really know how the trades will affect them for a few years. The Rangers addressed their biggest need in getting an ace, Cliff Lee. He hasn’t won a lot since he joined the rotation, but he’s saved the bullpen from having to do anything throwing complete games like it’s a AAA squad. They also added Christian Guzman and Jorge Cantu. They plugged up their hole at first base, and also found a replacement for Ian Kinsler since he went to the DL. I loved the meaning behind all three trades. It was especially surprising for a franchise that is bankrupt. Same goes for the Padres who have their layover until new management is in place, and they were also big winners in my eyes. They’ve been nothing short of amazing with the pitching staff and defense, but didn’t have many hitters that you really feared outside of Adrian Gonzalez. I thought they were done when they got Tejada, which MCeezy or me at this point really understand how he fit in. One thing about Tejada though, is if he’s in a good situation, he is going to fire everyone else up around him. Maybe being in the playoff hunt will spark his bat a little too. They also added Ludwick, which I was shocked to hear. Now they have a legitimate guy to put in front of or behind Gonzalez. I think these moves keep them ahead of the Giants in the NL West.

Stephen Curry’s New Team – I’m already ecstatic on the Warriors upcoming season, and adding David Lee to the roster is welcomed after the original shock of losing Anthony Randolph. Proven guy vs. a guy with a seemingly limitless ceiling. I guess you can’t argue with the proven guy that works hard with everything he does. With the new face of the franchise being Lee and Curry it may have moved the Warriors into a good character type of player instead of the me first attitude we’ve had over recent years, Monta, SJax, Baron (at times), Harrington, etc. The reason I started this ramble was that I am pretty pumped to see Curry made the cut for final 15 on team USA. No, not just because of the mancrush I have on him, but for the experience he’ll gain, and how it will help him down the road. I’m not sure he’ll make the final 12 man roster, but either way it’s a great thing for him to be there around some of the elite younger players in the league over the next month. Too bad his new teammate (David Lee) had to withdraw because of his finger, but here’s what should happen to Curry from this experience. A) He gets to play with guys that aren’t in the D-League (Pretty much the Warriors roster for the 2nd half of 2009-10). B) He might not be able to make a pact like the Miami Trio, since the dubs have him locked up for awhile, and hopefully never let him get away. I mean, he could try to make a pact with a guy like Durant, but that’s unlikely, so maybe he could make a pitch to Iguodala or Granger to move over to the Bay when their contracts are up (4 years). C) He gets to learn from Coach K., and hopefully gets some pointers on defense, and maybe learns a trick or two to stop turning the ball over. D) He gets to learn to play the ultimate team game, since winning is the ONLY thing that matters for Team USA. I don’t think I can say the same for a Nellie led Warriors squad that seems to just want to entertain at times. Hopefully when Nellie starts taking vacations in the season, the new owners dump him.

Brett Favre – Weird, he says he’s retiring for a third time, even though we saw him playing catch a few weeks ago with some High Scool kids. It’s a GREAT thing when a rumor comes out, and nobody believes it. Usually there are people on both sides of the fence, but with this one, nobody seemed to really believe he’s actually made his final decision. I guess it’s the ol’ boy who cried wolf. Love or hate the guy, he’s good for the league. I hate the guy, but do want to see him out there. I was giddy during that NFC Championship game. It was great to root for the Saints to pummel him over and over, and fortunately, they did! If he sucked last year like he did with the Jets, nobody would care half as much, and might be believing the rumor. It’s crazy that he’s the one controlling the NFC North. Is he texting to start a gambling conspiracy? The odds jumped quite a bit as soon as it was announced he is retiring, I’m just sayin… I hope it’s not true, because I like to root against him. It’s like Tiger for me, it’s not fun to root against him when he isn’t dominating. Or like my Raiders. Growing up, I would get crap from people all the time (hater nation), but now friends just feel sorry for me after losing for so long. Brett we need you as a villain, so I, like everybody else, don’t believe that you are retiring. Personally, I think it’s just a cop out, so he doesn’t have to go to training camps, and can make the Vikings bend over backwards buying him an armadillo farm to hunt at. Maybe he just likes the attention, but whatever the reason, I have a feeling he already knows what he wants to do, and that will be to play football.

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July 29, 2010

There Goes More ‘Stros

By mceezy

As a die hard A’s fan, I can empathize with any fan of a losing team. But I definitely don’t envy Astros fans. While the A’s don’t have the financial means to load up their roster with proven talent, there’s always a boatload of talent in the farm system. Remember, they’re only 4 years removed from an LCS appearance, and guys like Andrew Bailey, Trevor Cahill, Brett Anderson, Ryan Sweeney, Daric Barton, Chris Carter, and Michael Taylor give plenty of reason to believe they’ll be back sooner or later. And while I’m waiting for the front office to trade away a guy like Coco Crisp or Michael Wuertz (hopefully Wuertz), the Astros have already gotten started. Frankly, it’s about time. They’re clearly headed nowhere, so it really made no sense for them to hang on to Roy Oswalt. While it’s still to be seen whether or not they move Carlos Lee – I doubt there’s any takers – or Lance Berkman, they’ve at least brought in some young guys who may play a significant role if and when they decide to rebuild, because they need to. In other trade news….

The Padres picked up Miguel Tejada, but I’m not sure what role he’s going to fill. I can’t see them replacing Chase Headley, so Everth Cabrera is going to be the loser in this move, but he’s hitting .199, so Tejada should be an upgrade at the plate. But are they expecting Miggy to play shortstop? Not sure what they’re envisioning there, but maybe it puts pressure on the Giants and Dodgers to make a move as well.

The Rangers acquired Jorge Cantu, which makes more sense in the short term, since Ian Kinsler is headed to the DL. They already swung a deal for Cliff Lee, so making it clear they plan to hold on to the top spot in the AL West.

The Twins picked up Matt Capps, which doesn’t excite me, but may have been the smartest move by any of these teams thus far – except of course the Phillies getting Oswalt. But Capps will move into the closer role, demoting Jon Rauch to setup duties. Your move, White Sox.

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June 30, 2010

Two Teams that Caught Me Off Guard

By chappy81

Who says money buys you championships!?! Oh yeah, the Yankees, well, there’s two teams that I never would’ve thought would be in first at any point this season let alone in there at the end of June. The Padres and Reds are both in the bottom third of payrolls, and have been pleasant surprises. I doubt anyone outside of their own fan bases would’ve thought either team would be in the hunt when the season started. Okay, maybe a couple people picked the Reds, but were they really confident about those picks? I actually didn’t even expect either of them to be above .500 outside of April, which is why I’ve been so intrigued with their rises out of seemingly nowhere. Every year we have at least one team making the playoffs that didn’t make it the previous year. The way we are heading right now we could see five or six teams make it in that weren’t in the playoffs last year. I feel like we are all waiting for them to fade, and just like Tampa Bay in 2008 we will wait and assume that collapse is coming. Can they prove us all wrong? Maybe. Although I’m not an NL guy, I’ve come to appreciate these two teams for showing me that there are multiple ways to get it done without spending like a billionaire. They both have executed their respective game plans to perfection playing within their means, and sticking to what they are good at to get to the top of their divisions. Sadly only one of these teams will be able to improve at the trade deadline, and I’m preying that the other one doesn’t sell off their stock just to lower the amount going to the ex-wife. Continue reading

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May 31, 2010

Doin MLB Power Rankings

By chappy81

We had some very nice weather for Memorial Day weekend in California, which is probably why we didn’t get anything posted on the blog. As the ever so powerful NBA marketing campaign has taught me, we need to get back to the top of our game. So I’m back at the computer to dish out some MLB power rankings. San Diego, Cincy, and Oakland are by far the biggest surprises in the MLB as they all hold their respective divisional leads, and nobody saw that coming. If you did, you’re a liar! It was quite an eventful weekend, and maybe if you were camping you might not have known that Roy Halladay threw a perfect game or that the Lakers and Celtics are squaring off in the NBA Finals for another classic, yippee… Anyways, here’s who I see as the top 16 teams in the league.

#1 Tampa Bay Rays (34-17)

They may have struggled a little lately. Being swept by Boston and going 4-6 over their last ten isn’t encouraging, but they have to be tested sooner or later to see if they are indeed for real. It’s a long season, and that three game lead they have in the division could disappear quickly with everyone in the AL East playing well. I think they need Pena to hit a little better than .177, and the rest of their lineup has been in a little bit of a lull. I’m sure they will start hitting again. I don’t see any Phillies like slumps coming on.

#2 New York Yankees (31-20)

The Yankees are starting to put up some runs and wins in bunches. They’ve only lost one series this whole season, and whenever you see them on your teams schedule, you are worried. I almost put them atop my rankings, but just couldn’t talk myself into it since they are three games back. The Yankees have a cakewalk in June, so don’t be surprised to see them atop the AL East by the end of the month.

#3 Minnesota Twins (31-20)

I dismissed the Twins in our predictions for the season, but when fantasy drafts came around I was all in on guys like Morneau, Mauer, and Span for all my leagues. Seems like they love their new digs. They are 19-9 in their brand new Target Field. Nick Blackburn just finished off an amazing month going 5-0 with a 2.49 era. Twins are finally liking that extension they gave him. I still can’t figure out why I didn’t see them as this good when the year started.

#4 San Diego Padres (31-20)

How do the Padres have the best record in the NL going into June? It’s a loaded question. Are they a $38 million team, built for now!?! I’ll go out on a limb and say no, but the future is as bright as the sunshine in SD. What’s amazing is they could conceivable take on some big names around the trade deadline instead of shopping AGon and Heath Bell around like we all thought they would be doing. Matt Latos went 4-1 in May with a ridiculous 1.49 ERA. Looks like they got a pretty good pitcher from Chicago in the Peavy deal. Continue reading

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May 11, 2010

Doin MLB Power Rankings

By chappy81

It’s been a few weeks since we had our last power rankings up, and the landscape has changed a little now that we are about 1/5th of the way through the season. There were a few teams that fell out of the rankings, and some that moved up from the first power rankings we did. I’m really pumped that I haven’t had to put the Angels on the list. I think as long as Fuentes stays their closer that will help keep them off the list. Anyways, here’s how the top 16 shaking out.

#1 Tampa Bay Rays (22-10) – Getting zero hits and zero runs in one game doesn’t lose you the top spot, especially when it was the first time they lost two straight on the road all season, and it took perfection to do it. The Rays worst starter ERA is Wade Price’s 3.18, and is the reason they are doing so well. We will see if they can hold up when they start playing in their division more. If the Yankees hadn’t mirrored their losses, I may have moved the Rays down a spot.

#2 New York Yankees (21-10) – They’ve only lost one out of ten series they’ve played in this season. Maybe if Brett Gardner played a little better they might be number one, haha, just kidding. I’m pretty shocked how good Gardner is doing, and if he keeps it up I’ll be mad I didn’t pick him up for the fantasy team. Swisher has been great lately too, which makes me somewhat root for them, because I love my former A’s players. They’ve lost a couple in a row, but there are no concerns in NY now that Texiera seems to finally be seeing the ball.

#3 Philadelphia Phillies (20-12) –After taking three of four from the Cards, and playing ten days in a row going 8-2 makes me think they must be the best team in the NL right now. Jason Werth wants that huge contract this winter hitting .329 with 26 RBI’s already! Their starting pitching is doing well as of late too only giving up 8 earned runs over their last six games.

#4 Minnesota Twins (21-11) – No Mauer, no problem. Wilson Ramos seems like he belongs as someone’s backstop in the league. He might be able to take up a few extra games behind the plate sliding Mauer to the DH more often, so he can stay a little fresher.  I don’t see why not with the way Ramos burst onto the scene last week (10 hits in his first three games). The Twins pitching has been better than I expected. They are +48 in run differential, and have allowed the sixth fewest runs, a good recipe for success.

#5 San Diego Padres (19-12) – I along with everyone are wondering when will they fade? Not anytime soon, if their pitching keeps going the way it has. They are tied with the Giants for the fewest runs allowed (97). They don’t hit for average or power, but they do lead the league in stolen bases, and seem to push the right buttons in their small ball approach. When Adrian Gonzalez starts heating up, watch out NL West! Continue reading

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April 26, 2010

Doin MLB Power Rankings

By chappy81

We now we have three solid weeks of baseball action in the books, and it looks like it’s time  to look at how the top 16 teams stack up. MCeezy did a premature power rankings four games into the year, and it looks like that will likely be the last time the Giants and A’s lead the way. I’d love to see Battle of the Bay Part II, but unsurprisingly I don’t see anyway that would happen.

#1 Tampa Bay Rays – Nobody should be surprised to see the Rays playing so well or at the top of the rankings. We knew they could score runs, but we didn’t know that they’d have Garza and Price dominating the way they have! The Rays are 9-1 on the road including a sweep of the ailing Red Sox. They are trying to make a push in what could be the final year they are all together. I hope they do, and that’s why I picked them to win it all!

#2 Minnesota Twins – Who needs Joe Nathan!?!

Is this the Bash Brothers Version 2.0?

Losing him hasn’t hurt them on their way to one of their best starts in recent memory at 13-6. Rauch has been a huge pickup for fantasy teams, and has been great for the Twins closing out games. Justin Morneau looks like he’s finally healthy and back to his old MVP form. Mauer wants to continue off his stellar 2009 campaign, and has kept that MVP form thus far. Maybe Nike should look into getting these two guys some MVPuppet commercials.

#3 New York Yankees – They just lost their first series of the year, but this biggest concern should be Vasquez, who has been terrible donning the pinstripes compared to his solid 2009 season in Atlanta. It’s just reminding us that moving from the NL to the AL East isn’t a good move (see Brad Penny). Tex still isn’t hitting, but he will eventually…

#4 St. Louis Cardinals – Speaking of Penny, going from the Sox to the Cards seems to have helped him regain his form (3-0, 0.95 ERA). They’ve have great offensive players that don’t need to be mentioned, and now a trio of solid pitchers. Even Piniero is pitching well. Dave Duncan know how to mold pitchers to their strengths!

#5a Oakland Athletics – 12-8 doesn’t seem like that noteworthy of a start, but there is noway before the season started you could convince me that they would be atop the west for this much of April or any of it for that matter. Since 1992, they have only started 12-8 once, so there’s some reason for renewed but reserved optimism in Oakland. Their new style of play has them winning sooner than expected. Lots of injuries already though, and hopefully it’s not a sign that 2007-09 injury plagued seasons are going to continue. Gio has the highest ERA of 3.68 out of all their starters, which is amazing! This stat sums up the main reason they lead the league in starters ERA, and are close enough to win any given game.

#5b. San Diego Padres – Bud Black seems to have his guys playing some great baseball. This is the second team in a row that everyone, including myself, had very low expectations for. You may want to call their owner Uncle Scrooge with their $38M payroll, but the guys in there are playing smart, and have been opportunistic on the base paths, and helped them score some runs! It’s surprising how good their offense has been, and just like the A’s they are stealing bases, and have guys hitting for good averages. We will see if that starting pitching can hold up… Continue reading

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January 15, 2010

More A’s Activity

By mceezy

The tinkering continues in Oakland as the Athletics acquired 3B Kevin Kouzmanoff today from the Padres. He’s not exactly a guy I rosterbate to, but he can probably man the corner better than anyone else in house. He comes to Oakland with a minor league PTBNL (rumor is a fellow called Eric Sogard. We’ll hold off on him until we know he’s in the deal) . Going back to San Diego is Scott Hairston, who was just acquired from San Diego last summer. The A’s are also sending fringe player Aaron Cunningham in the deal. Cunningham looked promising in his time in AAA-Sacramento, but never found his stroke in the majors, batting .211 in limited action. I’ve seen a good majority of his progression through the minors since he was acquired from Arizona in the Dan Haren deal. While he was one of my more exciting prospects, I ultimately concluded that he’ll probably project to no better than a 4th outfielder on a big league team. Hairston, meanwhile, was the clear odd man out immediately following the Coco Crisp signing. All in all, the A’s acquired a position of need – and quite frankly their most dire by far – while trading away from a position of strength. …Strength in numbers at least.

While this move addressed some questions, it also raises just as many in my mind. Obviously the team got a veteran third baseman which they needed, but what does this mean for Eric Chavez? Don’t get me wrong, I’m about two full years removed from having stopped counting on Chavez being on the field, but I at least need some closure. Last I heard he was almost healthy. Granted that probably applies to him 95% of the time, but still. Perhaps he’s going to spend the majority of his time at DH, but wait, isn’t that what they brought Jack Cust back for? I really hope this move wasn’t made to clear room in the outfield for Cust. The other thing I still wonder about is the future of the third base position. Surely Kouzmanoff can’t be the long term solution. He’s a career .261 hitter whose average has declined in each of his three full seasons in the bigs. Not one to ever pay attention to fielding statistics, I couldn’t help but noticed that he’s cut his errors drastically each season, from 22 to 11 to just 3 last year. His fielding percentage has gone up each year as well, topping off at .990 last season. At least having a good defensive third baseman will alleviate a lot of roster concerns. I just really wish we had someone promising there in the minors. Brett Wallace was the most hope I’d had in years, and now he’s in Toronto. Don’t get me wrong, I’m equally excited about Michael Taylor. I just can’t come up with anything more exciting than Adrian Cardenas when I think about the A’s prospects at third. Problem is, Cardenas isn’t even a third baseman. It’s okay though, a good player is always just a trade away. At the rate the A’s are going, there should be a few more before the season rolls around.

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July 28, 2009

Doin MLB Power Rankings

By chappy81

mlb team logos

#1 Los Angeles Dodgers – In the 2nd edition of the Doin Work Power Rankings, the Dodgers are still in the #1 spot. We’ll see if Schmidt can do anything for them. manny bobbleheadI almost dropped them to #2 after seeing the new look Cardinals win their second in a row against them, but you can’t argue with the best record in the league!

#2 New York Yankees – The Yankees have won 23 of their past 29, and have seemed like the unstoppable machine that we had expected when they signed all those $100 million contracts this off season. They seem to be rolling full steam ahead and good luck to anyone playing them now. They are closing in on the Dodgers for the #1 spot.

#3 Boston Red Sox – You can’t go against a team with good pitching and depth! They are in the toughest division, and are surviving the worst team wide hitting slump of the season. I’m guessing they will make a run at Cliff Lee to sure up those holes in their starting rotation that injuries left behind.

#4 Los Angeles Angels – Yes, 2 Los Angeles teams in the top 4! And yes, I assure you there are plenty of fair weather fans roaming the streets of Southern California, I see them every day. ervin santanaThe Angels seem to be catching fire winning 3 out of 4 from the Twins, and winning 12 of their last 15. They need to get someone so they don’t have to rely on Santana, because he looks like a black hole in the rotation.

#5 Philadelphia Phillies – Looks like they keep getting denied on the Halladay offers. If that goes through they’ll be impossible to beat when he’s on the mound. They are averaging 5.49 runs per game second to only the Yankees. They look like they could wrap their division up by Labor Day if nobody gets hot.

#6 Texas Rangers – The Rangers look for real this year, keeping the Angels in check. They’ve won 7 of their last 8. Their offense struggled after the All-Star Break, but it looks like they found their swings again putting up 12 runs in their last two games.

#7 Tampa Bay Rays – It might be a good thing for them to be somewhat “under the radar”. Scott KazmirMaybe not to the extent they were last year, but if they can figure out a way to get Kazmir and Price functioning properly they should make a push at the wild card spot.

#8 Chicago Cubs – They are on fire winning their last 5 games and 12 of their last 14. Although it’s been weak competition, they still have overtaken the Cardinals for the top spot in the division. We’ll see if this winning lasts when the competition gets better.

#9 Detroit Tigers – The Tigers have a plethora of pitching and a ballpark that caters to pitchers, which probably explains their 31-16 home record. Rick Porcello has been a nice surprise, but it’s been Fernando Rodney’s 21 saves in 21 opportunities that has stabilized the 9th inning all year.

#10 St. Louis Cardinals – With Holliday and Derosa in the lineup, they looked really good against the top ranked Dodgers. You could even say they have a lineup that’s scary! I think they look poised to battle with the Cubs in the NL Central.Matt Holliday

#11 Colorado Rockies – The Rockies have gone 34-13 since June 4th which has them in the lead for the NL Wild Card at the moment. Surprisingly, their pitching has been the part of the team that has shined over that stretch. We’ll see if that keeps up in the thin air.

#12 San Francisco Giants – If the Giants make a trade for a hitter, they could make the jump into playoff contender. As it stands they may win the Wild Card, but I don’t see them making it very far if they do make it. Their pitching can only get them so far.

#13 Chicago White Sox – Their bright spot was Buehrle’s perfection. Their bad spot, is the middle of their order where they are getting no production in the home run department from Dye, Thome, or Konerko. If they are going to go anywhere, they need these guys to start hitting.

#14 Atlanta Braves – They’ve been playing well, but they aren’t going to even get a whiff of the Phillies in the division race. Say what you want about Ryan Church for Jeff Francoeur, but it seems like there’s a change in the clubhouse attitude.  Their starting pitchers have a combined 3 loses in the month of July.

#15 Seattle Mariners – King Felix finally looked human tonight giving up more than one earned run for the first time in his last 13 starts! Felix HernandezSeattle seems to be fading behind the Rangers and Angels, but look much improved over the past few teams they put out there.

#16 Florida Marlins – Han Ram is hitting a eye-popping .427 with runners in scoring position. He is also the league leader in BA. They are so up and down, I’m not sure what to make of them. I think they’ll finish out the season around the .500 mark.

#17 Houston Astros – Nobody could figure out how they were doing as well as they were, but it looks like they are falling back to earth as the wins aren’t coming as easily as they were. A rough series against the Cubs pushed them backwards in their quest for a division title.

#18 Milwakee Brewers – The Brewers, just like the Astros have hit a rough patch going 3-7 in their last 10 games. prince fielderIf they don’t make a move at the trade deadline, Prince and company may have to slug their way into the playoffs. I don’t like the odds of that happening.

#19 Minnesota Twins – Minnesota looked bad on their westcoast swing losing games to the A’s and the Angels in every way possible. They should have a shot at the division if they can straighten out that rotation, and stop letting other teams put up those crooked numbers on a nightly basis. Their offense has been good, but that means nothing when you can’t stop the other team.

#20 New York Mets – They haven’t looked like a playoff team, and the injuries have piled up over the season. It may have been too much to overcome. Since no New York team is ever a seller, look for them to try to make a move that will give their fans at least a little hope.

#21 Toronto Blue Jays – We’ve all been wondering where Halladay will go or if he’ll even go. It’s starting to remind me of the Favre saga. The Blue Jays have had a nice run lately with all their players trying to showcase their skills in hopes of being traded out of the Canadian black hole to a contender.

#22 Cincinnati Reds – At least they stopped their losing streak against San Diego. Brandon PhillipsThey haven’t shown signs of anything good or consistent. The emergence of Brandon Phillips bat has helped fantasy teams out though. They seem to be stuck in the same situation year after year, and yup, it’s a bad one.

#23 Oakland Athletics – Possibly too high for a bottom dweller, but their pitching continues to mold towards next year as some of the rookie starters have shown promise. The question now is, when will they throw Brett Wallace into the mix!?!

#24 Pittsburgh Pirates – The Pirates have been shut out a league leading 11 times this season. I thought they may add to that total, but Lincecum settled for striking out 15 of them and going the distance.  The Pirates should be sellers at the deadline, but they really don’t have much to sell…

#25 Cleveland Indians – Cliff Lee has regained his Cy Young form after a rocky start. It seems like everyone on their team is on the trading block. We’ll see if any deals get done, as they have some players that could be very valuable to a contender.

#26 Arizona Diamondbacks – Mark Reynolds and Dan Haren have been the only two bright spots to their season so far. Maybe they gave up too much a couple years ago to get Haren, so they have no options behind him. Maybe the fans have something to look forward to other than every Haren start, but I’m not sure what that is.

#27 Baltimore Orioles – The Orioles are letting the young guys take over, and the young guys aren’t winning. They need to move some guys like Mora to shake it up and get some pitching.

#28 Kansas City Royals – The Royals are good at one thing, and they keep doing it well. Being in last place is a staple for this team, and they are making a push to stay there losing 80% of the time over their last two weeks.

#29 San Diego Padres – They have Adrian Gonzalez, so at least it’s worth it to go to the park to watch him bat a few times. He has played in 308 consecutive games, which is a club record and the longest current streak in the MLB.

#30 Washington Nationals – Willingham got them in the news with his 2 grand slams. They might even be able to trade him for something now!

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