The Market for Pujols

When the news came down that Adam Wainwright's elbow would require Tommy John surgery, aside from feeling relief that he's not on my fantasy team this year, I immediately thought of how this impacts Albert Pujols impending free agency.

The St. Louis Cardinals were

already facing an uphill battle against defending NL Central Champion Cincinnati Reds. The loss of Wainwright for the entire season means the Cards have even more work to do.

I hate speculating about potential off-season moves, especially when we stand a few short weeks away from opening day, but let's face it, everyone's thinking about it. Another failure to make the playoffs will all but seal Albert's departure. The list of those lining up for his services will be long, but most have zero chance, realistically.

All the big dogs have long term options at first base. The Yankees, Red Sox, Tigers, Reds and Phillies have Teixeira, Gonzalez, Cabrera, Votto and Howard, respectively, and won't be in pursuit. That's 5 down, but there's still 25 more. We'll take a second to acknowledge the team's whose entire payroll won't compare to Pujols' salary. You can cross of Florida, Tampa, Cleveland, Kansas City, Pittsburgh, Houston, San Diego, Minnesota, Oakland and Arizona. Atlanta, San Francisco and Seattle all have big time prospects ready to bust out in Freeman, Belt and Smoak.

It's an even dozen now.

We have to assume Pujols won't resign, eliminating the Cardinals. The Mets are a joke, so forget them. The Rangers have a ton of money tied up with their offense and are in desperate

need of pitching. White Sox GM, Kenny Williams is never afraid to get creative, but with Adam Dunn and Paul Konerko signed for the next few years, they won't have the flexibility to land Sir Albert. Toronto is in re-build mode and after unloading the disastrous Vernon Wells' contract, they won't likely put themselves in the same position. Milwaukee will also be losing their big-time first baseman, slugger Prince Fielder, further saturating the market and giving interested parties a Plan B. They've made it clear they're going for broke this year and have little faith in getting either man signed after this season. The Dodgers are still sorting out the McCourt divorce mess and while they've shown they can spend this winter, James Loney is still young and very affordable. Colorado doled out somewhere in the range of $200 million to re-up Tulo and Car-Go, plus will need to find a few shekels for Ubaldo Jimenez.

That leaves four. Each one with a legitimate shot at Pujols.

First off there's the Los Angeles Angels. After missing out on Carl Crawford, they'll be eager to make a splash. Unfortunately, they always seem to be a day late and a dollar short when it comes to the big free agent. I can't see them pulling the trigger with that kind of money at stake.

Next we have the Baltimore Orioles. The O's are intriguing for a lot of reasons. First off,

Baltimore is a great baseball town with a fantastic ballpark. Their history is deep, despite years of agony in the AL East. Staring up at the Yankees and Red Sox for a decade has to get old. Ownership could decide this is the time to make a move and extend a mega-deal for Albert. Ultimately, I don't think Pujols risks having to compete for a playoff spot with two teams that have done whatever it takes to get there.

Everyone expects the Cubs to be a major player here as well. It makes a lot of sense. They've been good, but never great. And how do you go from good to great? Signing the best player in the league definitely helps. They've set themselves up to make a run by signing Carlos Pena to only a one year deal this past offseason, giving them a giant hole to fill at first base. Pujols can justify taking a huge payday by playing the hero role. He can say he wants to be the one to end the Curse of the Billy Goat and finally bring a championship to the Cubbies. Chicago would put him right up there with Michael Jordan if he could resurrect the Cubs.

And then there's the Nationals. Last year, they would have been on the joke list and rightfully so. But these aren't your father's Nationals. Back-to-back years of number one picks have yielded the phenoms, Strasburg and Harper. Strasburg will miss 2011 but should be ready to roll for 2012, about the same time Harper should have ascended to the show. The signing of Jayson Werth may have seemed insane, but it added legitamacy to the Nats and made it known that they were serious about changing the culture in the Nation's capital. A very young line-up could re-energize Pujols without draining him of the ability to play for a winner. Between Ryan Zimmerman, Ian Desmond, Wilson Ramos, Harper and Werth, they could be quite enticing to a basher like Pujols. If another of their pitching prospects develops we could see a very dangerous squad. And you can't tell me other free agents wouldn't line up to play for that team if Pujols signs on.

It may be a long shot, but crazier things have happened. Hell, no one saw the Rangers landing A-Rod or the Phillies Cliff Lee. We've proved the market will be thin and the Nationals could put together the best pitch to land the talent of a lifetime. Much can happen between now and November, but rest assured, one thing that won't change is everyone guessing where Albert Pujols will call home next year.

Now is Not the Time

The relationship between a city and its head football coach is an important one. If your city doesn't like its coach, then nothing on the field really matters. On Monday morning, no matter how the game turned out, the coach iscriticized in some way, shape or form. Philadelphia has never been in love with Andy Reid. With the Eagles most recent first round playoff departure, many are calling for Reid's 12-year tenure as Head Coach to come to an end.

The naysayers will point to Reid's misdiagnosis of the talent he had at quarterback. What little faith he get by shipping Donovan McNabb's sorry behind to Washington, he quickly lost when he had no idea who would be taking snaps each week. He first named Kevin Kolb the starter. Then when Kolb got hurt he plugged in Mike Vick. But while Vick was starting in Kolb's stead, Kolb was still officially the starter. Just an injured starter. Then Vick played out of his mind

and won the job outright. Then his reckless play caught up to him and he injured his ribs, putting Kolb back in - but only temporarily.

As mismanaged as it was, it ultimately worked out pretty well as the Eagles won 10 games and the NFC East. But with an inexcusable loss to the Vikings on Tuesday Night Football, with a chance at a bye-week on the line, the team never recovered. Reid rested the starters against Dallas in week 17 and then waited until the 4th quarter to get it going against Green Bay.

It's easy to blame Reid for his teams lack of preparation and focus. And don't even get me started on his horrible time management. I can't remember the last time the Eagles actually won a challenge or had a timeout remaining under 10 minutes to go in the game. But let's look at what Reid did this year and evaluate it without the bias we all so vehemently hold against Big Red.

The Eagles turned parted ways with two of their most recognizable players of the last decade in the same off season. No more Donovan and no more Brian Westbrook. He couldn't have expected to truly compete this year and balked at spending money on the defensive side of the ball via free agency. Julius Peppers wanted to come to Philadelphia, but Reid wouldn't pony up the cash required to reel him in. Instead, he drafted two promising defenders, D-End Brandon Graham from Michigan and Safety Nate Allen from USF. Both had solid season that unfortunately ended on Injured Reserve. One of the league's best corner backs, Asante Samuel, was also plagued by a bum knee all season and inside linebacker Stewart Bradley played with his head in the clouds after a week one concussion before dislocating his elbow on a gruesome play later in the season.

And with all these injuries, Reid still managed to guide them to the playoffs. If there was a legitimate replacement to Reid out there, I would consider replacing him. But Bill Cowher isn't an option and either is Jon Gruden. I don't want to kick Reid to the curb only to replace him

with an Eric Mangini or some unknown defensive coordinator or college head coach. Now that Reid knows what he has in Michael Vick, give him an off season to put together a plan. Last season lacked consistency because of all the changes he had to make on the fly because of the unknown with his personnel. Now is not the time to make a change.

Nnamdi Asomugha is a free agent and would fit nicely opposite Samuel. Haloti Ngata is also a

free agent and could be a menace anchoring the defensive line. And there's always Albert Haynesworth. The Eagles have a reputation of being penny-pinchers, but when it comes to a need position they are always willing to spend. Unlike some teams just down I-95 who spend for the sake of spending, Philadelphia evaluates the cost of a free agent versus drafting a rookie at the same position and have generally had good success. The opened their wallets for Asante and Jason Peters when they needed them and I think they will do the same this year. If they move Kolb for a first round pick they can start to rebuild the offensive line as well. The skill position players are some of the most dynamic and dangerous in the league. DeSean Jackson, LeSean McCoy and Jeremy Maclin are nice weapons for Vick and another year of working together and developing a rapport will only help.

It sounds crazy to even suggest this to Philadelphia fans, but just be patient. Reid may not be the best coach in the league, but he's gotten to a handful of NFC championship games and one Super Bowl and knows his time is running out. That sense of urgency will work in his favor and his constructs a contender in 2011. He gets more blame when they lose and never enough credit when they win. I've turned a corner on Andy Reid this year. I see the fire and passion in his eyes. Big things are yet to come and Reid will be at the helm for all of it.

Humble Pie

I didn't want to write this post. For years, hockey has provided me with a multitude of jokes. Not just about the sport, but the hyperbole that ensues when comparing it to anything I didn't care about. I grew up not giving hockey the time of day. Then the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins moved to my hometown and I started to kind of like it. I used how great live hockey is as an excuse to go the games, but I never cared about the NHL.

Then I moved to Philadelphia.

I've only gone to a handful of Flyers games, but the ones I have were incredible. The atmosphere beats every other sport hands down. I think its because hockey is such an exclusive club. You have to really be a fan to know the players and all the rules. So if the guy next to you knows what he's talking about then you immediately respect him and have a bond. I started last year just following the Flyers and fell in love with many of the players. Miraculously, the Broad Street Bullies made it all the way to the Stanley Cup Finals. This year, however, I find myself paying attention to more than just the Fly Guys. It culminated about two weeks ago when HBO kicked off its 24/7 series following the Penguins and Capitals as they lead up to their New Year's Day Winter Classic match-up at Heinz Field.

Simply put: It's AWESOME.

You learn all about the protocols that take effect when it comes to fighting and the preparation. It follows players to their home lives and you see them off the ice. I'm sure that's exactly what Gary Bettman wanted when he OK'd the show, but I've got to tell you, it definitely worked. Between Sydney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin, I can't stop watching. The coaches are enthralling and I find myself watching more and more hockey, even when Philly isn't playing. Not only are these guys superb athletes, they are tough as nails. Myself, standing at a mere 5'10'', always find myself rooting for the little guy. While most of these hockey guys could double as NFL linebackers, there are the occasional 'little guy' who gets the snot kicked out of him nightly and keeps coming back for more.

I can't pretend to be a loyal hockey fan. But I'm trying. I regret the years I spent bashing the NHL and now truly appreciate its place in sports culture and everything it provides to a city. My name is KC Jordan and I'm a hockey fan. It's been two days since my last game. And I can't wait to fall off the wagon.

Guess Who's Back?

It may be 20 degrees in Philadelphia today, but you'd never know it. For the second time in 18-months, the Phillies acquired stud left-handed pitcher Cliff Lee. It came out of nowhere. Somewhere around 6 p.m. last night word started to spread that the Phils were the mystery team still involved in the negotiations for Lee's services. But they were up against the Yankees unlimited budget and the fact that they scorned Lee by shipping him to Seattle this time last year to make room for Roy Halladay. Everyone wanted him back but in the eyes' of the fan base it was more that a million-to-one shot. Then the news came down just after midnight, Lee accepted the Phillies offer and would be teaming up to form the greatest rotation in the history of baseball.

After the initial exuberance subsided and more details began to emerge, it became even more unbelievable that the reports were true. He left $50 million on the table from New York and $30 million from Texas. He signed for less guaranteed years (5) then the Yankees and Rangers offered (6). This marks the third time in the last year that a coveted pitcher has asked to go to Philadelphia. First it was Roy Halladay, who went on to win the Cy Young this year and then it was Roy Oswalt at the deadline. Both players were acquired via trade, but both had no-trade clauses and could have easily nixed the deal. Halladay took much less than he would have commanded had he reached free agency because he wanted to go to Philly. This just doesn't happen. It's too good to be true. Based on the trade that brought Halladay in and sent Lee out last year, I fully expected Amaro to trade Hamels to the Rockies by lunch today. But it didn't happen and now the Phils will have Halladay, Lee, Oswalt and Hamels leading the way to October next season.

For all of you loyal Phils fans who kept your Lee #34 jerseys, don't fret. Lee will wear #33 but no one will chastise you for rocking last years uni. Personally, I couldn't be happier. I've followed Lee since his younger days in Cleveland where he quickly became one of my favorite players and the fact that he spurned the Yanks makes me love him even more. My only wish now was that I could fast forward time to Opening Day 2012 because this season will be more fun to watch than any other in the sport's history. Eight weeks til pitchers and catchers. Until then, it's the Mike Vick show in Philly.

The Hot Stove Just Got a Little Hotter

I have tremendous respect for baseball journalists. In fact, when I was little, instead of wanting to play baseball, I wanted to cover it. The offseason has to be difficult when it comes to finding enough content to fill the pages, but I had to laugh at an ESPN.com article that reported the Red Sox were willing to non-tender Jonathan Papelbon had Mariano Rivera accepted their two year/$30 million offer.

I understand where they're coming from but does anyone in the baseball world think the Red Sox had more than a 0.0001% chance of landing Mo? Not only is he the greatest closer who ever picked up a baseball, he's done it for the most historic and legendary team in baseball. Why on Earth would he ever pick-up and leave for the one team he's automatically programmed to hate with the fire of a thousand burning suns? I don't think there's any amount of money that could have taken Rivera out of the Bronx. At some point, you have to just sit back and say, "we might not want to even bother posting this article".

Of course Rivera was going to re-sign. Of course Jeter was going to re-sign. And of course Andy Pettitte is going to re-sign. Tomorrow I'll have a blog post about Christmas coming and it being cold in Alaska. Or I'll do what ESPN should have done and just assume everyone knows that in the first place.

Oh to be a fly on the wall in the Derek Jeter negotiations. Here you have your captain and face of the franchise. He's the most beloved athlete since, actually I can't think of anyone more beloved than Jeter. Even if you hate him, you secretly love him. His skills obviously are declining as is to be expected by any athlete approaching 40 not named Barry Bonds. I wouldn't have budged from my initial offer if I was the Yanks. What's Jeter going to do? Go play for the Minnesota Twins because they might have offered him more. No way! In all seriousness, the Yankees were generous at 3 yrs/$45 mil. If I'm running that team I offer him 2 yrs for $20 million and make him decide not be the short stop of the Yankees anymore.

Some argue that he should get paid for his past accomplishments. Not only is that horrible business sense, last I checked Jeter just finished a 10 year contract that paid him $189 million. Not exactly underpaid, especially for a guy that doesn't steal bases or hit for much power. I'd argue they won that World Series in 2009 in spite of Jeter and not because of him. Robinson Cano is clearly the best player on that team and yet is making money comparable to Juan Uribe. Have we heard a peep out of Cano? I didn't think so.

Unless the Yankees sign Cliff Lee, which I bet dollars to donuts doesn't happen, they're going to struggle this year. Oh they'll win their division and cruise into the second round of the playoffs, but there is no reason to believe their pitching we'll get them another World Series. Lee doesn't strike me as a New York guy and I think if Texas offers anything close to what New York offers, he'll stay with the state you don't mess with. I have the same feeling with Carl Crawford and Jayson Werth. Werth is going to get ridiculously overpaid and the only place where he can put up stats close to what he's going to earn is Boston. With that heavy uppercut swing, I can't think of a park more suited for his services than Fenway. Crawford is most certainly on his way to Anaheim and I think it's because of his hatred for New York after all those years in Tampa.

With Lance Berkman signing in St. Louis, that leaves the Yankees with some definite holes. A-Rod can't catch up to the inside heat anymore, Jeter is losing range at a higher rate than the ozone layer and Mark Teixeira's April slumps are turning into May and June slumps as well. Cano's a beast but Posada is older than any catcher should be. Granderson is erratic and while I love Brett Gardner, he just doesn't fit the make up of the club. Guys who play small ball need to play a role in a team dedicated to manufacturing runs. The Yankees are a wait for three-run homer kind of club. And if I'm right and Crawford and Werth sign elsewhere, that leaves Swisher in right (ouch) and no solid DH.

The rotation is a mess. After Sabathia, who obviously isn't sticking to that Subway diet he endorses in the commercials, you have the head-case AJ Burnett and Phil Hughes who has been pushed past his innings limit in past seasons and will undoubtedly show it in 2011. Vazquez left for Florida and that leaves two spots to fill. There's help on the farm but no matter how good you look in Triple-A, the Major Leagues are a different beast and there's no way to tell how playing in the Big Apple will affect a guy.

Maybe its more wishful thinking than fact, but the Yanks have a lot of work to do if they want to get back to the promise land. The Red Sox just acquired Adrian Gonzalez, Tampa's going to lose Crawford but they've got Desmond Jennings ready to step in. The Blue Jays have a tremendous pitching staff and the Orioles played like a team possessed under Buck Showalter down the stretch. The AL East is once again the best division in baseball and it's going to be a 162-game knock down, drag-out fight. How long 'til pitchers and catchers report?

No Man!

The official attendance was listed at 46,661. Twenty years from now, half a million people will claim they were in attendance. But I was there. In standing room only. In the rain. In the cold. With 46,000 others. Screaming at the top of my lungs.

This game was unlike any other I've been to before. Even before it started, there was a different feeling in the air. We all knew Doc was going to throw zeros, but that was in terms of runs allowed. We figured the Central Division champs, which led the league in hitting, slugging, OPS and virtually every other offensive category, would be able to get one measly hit. We erupted in excitement as he retired lead-off hitter Brandon Phillips to start the game.

"He's perfect so far, 26 to go," I said.

The fans huddled around me laughed. But my friends who attended with me nodded, knowing there was a distinct possibility he could do it. We felt it. The crowd got louder with every out. In the long list of games I've attended, I don't remember the Bank being louder than when the home plate umpire rang up Scott Rolen on a pitch that was a solid 4 inches off the plate. Forty-six thousand people expressed their disdain for Rolen, who argued briefly. Had he been ejected, the ground may have collapsed from everyone jumping up and down.

Not one batter that came to the plate looked comfortable. A first pitch strike to 25 of 28 batters will do that. His fastball had pinpoint precision. His curve ball was a knee-buckler and he threw 10 of the greatest change-ups I've ever seen in the history of baseball. He didn't want to come to the National League because he hated to hit, yet on this historic day, he had more hits than he surrendered.

The ninth inning was unlike anything I've ever experienced in my life. Most professional athletes will preface expressing their joy by saying something to the effect of "Next to the day I married my wife and the day my son was born, this is the greatest day of my life." Well I'm not married. And I don't have any kids. And just being honest, unless that kid comes out tap dancing, last night will be the greatest night of my life. I hugged complete strangers for well beyond what is considered socially acceptable. Nine innings ago we said hello, yet we will remember each other for the rest of our lives.

We climbed onto the railing where those standing place their drinks and food. The woman working as usher immediately instructed us to get down. We ignored her completely. By the time the second out was recorded she had changed her stance to, "just be careful". She understood. When Phillips hit the little tapper in front of the plate, every rally towel plummeted to waist high. The clapping stopped. The cheers fell silent. It was pure torture for all of one and a half seconds. It's like milli-second when you see the squirrel run out in front of the car but you don't have enough time to brake or swerve. Your heart jumps into your throat and it's out of your control at this point.

We had the utmost confidence in Chooch making the play. But it was a difficult one and no one would have blamed him had he been unable to retire Phillips. Instead, Ruiz makes what turns out to be a remarkable play. Dropping to both knees and looping the ball to Howard. Chooch's heart was obviously pounding as well and for him to stay cool and make that throw, when he had to make sure the throw avoided Phillips, who was clearly running inside the baseline, is incredible.

We jumped up and down. We screamed until our voices gave out and then we got hammered. No one left the stadium. It took forty-five minutes for anyone to even move from their seat. The ballpark bar, McFadden's, was electric. Women dancing on the bar, shots being poured everywhere and good times being had by all.

It was the greatest game of the year...and it was only Game 1!

It's Nights Like These We Live For

What is it about the game of baseball that brings out so much emotion in people?

Yesterday was on of the best day's of baseball I can remember watching in a long time. For me, it was the perfect storm of sporting days. It started around noon when the maintenance staff at work came to me to discuss painting my office. I had my laptop and with my office building Wi-Fi enabled I was able to relocate to the lounge where I flipped on the Phillies/Rockies game. I did everything that was asked of me work-wise and was able to kick back and enjoy some day baseball. The Phils looked good, getting timely hits and capitalizing on some Colorado defensive struggles. The ninth inning served as a stress test having to watch the inconsistent Brad Lidge nearly give the game away before finally nailing down the save.

I drove home listening to my favorite local sports radio talk show and knew it was going to be one of those days. I planned on watching my Indians take on the Yankees with Alex Rodriguez sitting on 599 career home runs. Cleveland hung in there against the best team in baseball despite the fact that the Tribe have a team payroll totaling 25% of the mighty Yankees. As Cleveland attempted to tie the game in the 9th against the greatest closer of all time, I felt safe in bouncing around the channels to see what else was going on in the wide world of sports. Much to my delight, I find out Matt Garza of the Rays is 3 outs away from this season's 5th no-no. Stumbling upon history like that is truly remarkable. I don't think I'd be as happy if a found a $100 bill sitting on the sidewalk as I walk to work.

Garza was dealing and managed to get the 27th out without surrendering a hit. My favorite part of any no-hitter is watching the teammates mob the star of the night. The jubilation on the face of Rays' ace David Price nearly brought me to tears. Price could be seen throughout the game sitting on the top step of the dugout hopping around like a little girl. When the bullpen guys come sprinting to the mound to tackle their comrade, I always get choked up. After watching the celebration and obligatory pie-in-the-face, I jumped over to watch the Twins hang 19 runs on the Royals.

I picked the White Sox to win the Central before the season began and they haven't disappointed so far, but the Twins play such a unified game and really do the little things that make teams successful. I'd be surprised if they didn't make a run at the division before all is said and done.

The night ended for me with the Red Sox and Angels. Clay Buchholz took the bump for Boston. I remember watching Buchholz toss a no-hitter against the Orioles in only his second big-league start. Opposite Buchholz was the newly acquired Dan Haren. Haren is anchoring my fantasy team staff this year so I wanted to see how he responded to the trade. Unfortunately for Haren, he was struck by a line-drive in the forearm, prematurely ending his night. The game was still a great one to watch as the rejuvenated Big Papi smacked two balls deep into the night.

As I laid in bed watching SportsCenter, I had this tingling feeling running through my body. I wanted to call everyone I know and tell them about how amazing the baseball played on this night was. LeBron James had a humungous billboard in Cleveland with the text 'We Are All Witnesses' plastered on the side of a building outside the Quicken Loans Arena. Well last night we were all witnesses to the greatest game ever invented and I can't wait for the action to resume today to see what history will take place.