Author: Anthony Stalter (Page 777 of 1503)

      Bay, Red Sox break off contract talks again

      July 20, 2009 /

      For the second time this year, the Red Sox have broken off contract talks with outfielder Jason Bay, who becomes a free agent after the season.

      “It’s now clear that this round of talks won’t result in a deal, either,’’ Epstein said. “As a result, we’re going to table discussions again, which once again is a mutual decision, and pick them up most likely after the season.’’

      That does not necessarily mean that Bay is eager to test the free agent market. While that would likely garner him bigger offers, especially with the Yankees in need of a left fielder for 2010 and beyond, Bay said he could resume talks with the Red Sox before filing for free agency. The sides, Bay said, have made progress since they first broke off talks in spring training.

      “I’m not trying to set a precedent,’’ Bay said. “Just looking for something that’s fair. Whether that’s changed over the last three months, you guys can determine that.

      Ultimately I think a deal between Bay and the BoSox will eventually get done. It might drag on into the winter, but if Epstein wants him bad enough, Bay will be back patrolling left field at Fenway again next season.

      But if Bay flies the coup (either to the Bronx or otherwise), I wouldn’t discount the Sox taking a look at Matt Holliday, who becomes a free agent after this season. He hasn’t hit well this season, but he would be the next best available after Bay and he’ll still be relatively young.

      Again though, I think Bay will wind up back in Boston. He has dramatically upgraded his defense at Fenway and while he probably isn’t as good as he was at the start of this season, he’s a quality bat and someone the Sox can plug in the middle of their lineup for the next couple seasons and not have to worry about filling that void.

      MLB

      Should White Sox give up farm for Halladay?

      July 20, 2009 /

      Rick Morrissey of the Chicago Tribune writes that the White Sox should be willing to give up a significant amount of talent in order to acquire Blue Jays’ ace Roy Halladay.

      Let’s put on our GM cap and start with shortstop Alexei Ramirez and pitcher John Danks. I know: a steep price. But worth it. Halladay is the overpowering pitcher the Sox haven’t had since Jack McDowell. Last season, he struck out 206 batters and walked 39. So far this year, it’s 106-17.

      He would be a difference-maker for a club like the White Sox, who are within 1 1/2 games of first place in the American League Central. How does a rotation of Halladay, Mark Buehrle, Jose Contreras and Gavin Floyd sound? It makes all the heated conversations about a fifth starter seem almost meaningless.

      The White Sox played well enough before the All-Star break to end any discussion about whether they’ll be sellers before the July 31 trade deadline. Now they need to be buyers. It very well could be that they would have to give up a prospect or two in addition to two major-leaguers. Do it.

      Not that I disagree with what Morrissey wrote, but allow me to play devils advocate here.

      Halladay is a free agent after the 2010 season and will mostly likely test the free agent waters searching for his last opportunity to win a championship (assuming of course he doesn’t win one this season or next). That means the White Sox will probably only get him for a year and a half. Is a year and a half of Halladay worth giving up Ramirez, Danks and two decent prospects for X amount of years?

      It might be, but that’s a steep price. Kenny Williams would absolutely have to feel that Halladay makes the Sox legitimate World Series contenders to give up multiple pieces. If he doesn’t fully believe that Halladay gets them to the WS, then Williams needs to continue his rebuilding plan with the core he has.

      MLB

      Aikman, Holtz, Cooper inducted into College Football Hall of Fame

      July 19, 2009 /

      Along with 21 other ex-coaches and players, former UCLA and Dallas Cowboys’ quarterback Troy Aikman was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame on Saturday. Former head coaches Lou Holtz and John Cooper were also inducted, as well as ex-players Thurman Thomas and Sam Mills.

      Among the others honored Saturday were former UCLA quarterback Troy Aikman, former Oklahoma State tailback Thurman Thomas, former Army quarterback Arnold Tucker and John Cooper, who coached at Ohio State, Arizona State and Tulsa.

      Jim Donnan, who coached at Marshall and Georgia, poked at Holtz for choosing an overseas opponent.
      “One thing about Lou, he knows how to schedule,” Donnan said. “Playing the Japanese he has a good chance of winning.”

      Holtz and Cooper agreed that the key to their successful careers were great players.

      “The difference between a good coach and a Hall of Fame coach is players,” Cooper said. “You win with people. Show me a winning coach and I’ll show you a coach that has good players.”

      Check out the entire list of inductees by clicking here.

      NFL

      Carson Palmer completely healthy?

      July 19, 2009 /

      After missing virtually the entire 2008 season with an elbow injury, Bengals’ quarterback Carson Palmer says that he is 100% again.

      “I’m great. I feel great. I’m 100 percent healthy, throwing, lifting, running all that stuff,” said Palmer, who played in just four games in 2008 after opting to forgo reconstructive surgery to repair a partially torn ligament and tendon in his right elbow. Instead, Palmer chose to let the tissue damage heal with rest and rehabilitation.

      And while he admitted his arm strength wasn’t where he wanted it to be during a late June minicamp, Palmer told FanHouse this week he’s now 100 percent physically, and confident in his belief that the elbow shouldn’t hamper him in 2009.

      “It’s just a big weight off of my shoulders. I didn’t know if I was going to have the ‘Tommy John’ surgery – I still wouldn’t be able to throw, to this day, if I had had that,” Palmer said. “I’m just thankful I didn’t have to go through that. The doctors who said that it would heal were right and it did heal. So I’ve been throwing, just doing everything to get geared up for the season.”

      The Bengals aren’t as bad as they appear to be – they’re just incredibly dysfunctional. The defense has a couple of young, talented pieces to build around (i.e. Keith Rivers, Leon Hall, Rey Maualuga, etc.) and if Palmer can stay healthy, he gives this team a chance to stay in ballgames.

      Of course the offensive line is a bit of a mystery and if this team is relying on Cedric Benson to be a consistent (key word: consistent) every down back, then it might be in for a rude awakening. Throw in Chad Ochocinco’s daily antics and it’s hard to get a good read on if Cincy is a potential dark horse or heading for a 4-12 season.

      Either way, the Bungles will certainly be an interesting team to follow in ’09.

      NFL

      Watson leads by one stroke at British Open

      July 19, 2009 /

      Heading into the final round of play at Turnberry golf course in Scotland, unexpected contender Tom Watson leads by a stroke at the 2009 British Open.

      Watson is turning this British Open into a fairy tale.

      Even as he slipped out of the lead Saturday in the testing breeze off the Firth of Clyde, Watson didn’t blink except to hold back the occasional tears. He is close enough to the claret jug to believe he can win again.

      A 30-foot birdie putt on the 16th gave him a share of the lead.

      Then came a hybrid 2-iron that took a bounce to the left and onto the green, setting up another birdie.

      When he walked up the 18th fairway, his name atop the massive yellow leaderboard, Watson had a 1-over 71 for a one-shot lead, leaving him 18 holes away from becoming the oldest major champion in history.

      Can this really happen?

      Even Watson wasn’t sure early in the week. Now, those doubts have morphed into determination.

      “The first day here, ‘Yeah, let the old geezer have his day in the sun,’ ” Watson said. “The second day you said, ‘Well, that’s OK.’ And now today, you kind of perk up your ears and say, ‘This old geezer might have a chance to win the tournament.’ I don’t know what’s going to happen, but I do know one thing. I feel good about what I did today. I feel good about my game plan.”

      I wonder how many media members in Scotland hit the pavement after Tiger Woods missed the cut on Friday. I couldn’t blame them seeing as how Tiger is usually the headline in any PGA event, but Watson is one hell of a walking story himself.

      It’ll be interesting to see if Watson can hang on today and win a major at 59.

      Golf

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