Category: External Sports (Page 553 of 821)

      Hiring Kevin Towers as GM a great move by Diamondbacks

      September 10, 2010 /
      The Arizona Diamondbacks practice at Chase Field in Phoenix, Arizona, in this October 2, 2007 file photo. Major League Baseball commissioner Bud Selig has to deal with a small but growing movement that wants to either boycott or move next year's All-Star game, in Phoenix. At issue is Arizona's pending immigration law, allowing police to check the immigration status of people they stop for other reasons, if they are reasonably suspected of being in the country illegally. REUTERS/Jeff Topping/Files (UNITED STATES - Tags: SOCIETY LAW SPORT BASEBALL)

      The deal isn’t completed yet, but once it is the Diamondbacks should reap the rewards of hiring a man that should still be employed by the Padres.

      Kevin Towers led the Padres to four division championships and an appearance in the 1998 World Series when he was their general manager from 1995 until he was fired in October of last year. He was let go after two losing seasons in 2008 and 2009, yet before he was canned he built the team that has shocked everyone in 2010. (As of this writing, the Padres are clinging to a one-game lead in the NL West.)

      Towers was the person that traded for Adrian Gonzalez following the 2004 season – the same deal that also brought starter Chris Young to San Diego. He also drafted Jake Peavy in the 15th round (472nd overall) of the 1999 MLB Draft and then traded him to the White Sox for, among others, starter Clayton Richard, who is now a valuable piece of the Padres’ future.

      San Diego is in first place right now largely because of the success of Richard and Mat Latos (another one of Towers’ draft picks), an outstanding bullpen, Gonzalez and Jon Garland.

      Outside of Garland, Towers had a hand in all of the above factors that have attributed to the Padres’ success in 2010. When he left, the San Diego front office did next to nothing to improve the team in the offseason and even thought about trading Gonzalez on several occasions last winter.

      Granted, Towers is just one man and it takes a team of scouts and personnel directors to run a baseball team. But given his track record, two losing seasons shouldn’t have cost him his job in San Diego.

      No matter – he’s going to be Arizona’s GM soon enough and considering the Diamondbacks are a team that has underachieved over the last couple of seasons, he’s the right man for the job. The club needs an experienced leader – someone that know how to build through the draft and with youth – and that’s what they’ll get out of Towers.

      It might take a year or two, but Arizona should be competing again soon.

      External Sports, MLB

      Family involved in Tom Brady car crash lashes out at media

      September 10, 2010 /
      August 19, 2010: New England's Tom Brady ( ) delivers a pass during the New England Patriots' pre-season game with the Atlanta Falcons at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, Georgia. The Patriots defeated Atlanta, 28-10.

      The family that was directly or indirectly involved in Thursday’s car crash that also concerned Tom Brady is upset with the attention that the superstar quarterback is getting while one of their loved ones remains hospitalized.

      From the Boston Globe:

      “Why? Because we’re poor, we don’t have money, because Tom Brady is famous,” said the sister of Rogerio Rodrigues, the 49-year-old man who was injured in the accident. The sister asked that she not be identified to avoid publicizing the case any further.

      Rodrigues suffered critical injuries, including a broken back, she said, and is undergoing surgery today after a series of surgeries Thursday.

      Rodrigues’s 21-year-old son, Ludgero, was cited in the accident with running a red light and causing the crash. Ludgero Rodrigues has a lengthy driving record, according to the Registry of Motor Vehicles.

      “His son was driving because he had a very bad back problem,” the sister said.

      She said Ludgero swears he did not run the red light. He told police he had a green light. The sister argued that the media and authorities sympathized with Brady.

      “Nobody talks about Tom Brady because he’s a rich guy, and we’re poor,” she said. “My brother is in very bad condition. We are upset. Leave the family alone because we are in pain.”

      I love how the sister mentions not once, but twice how their family is poor. In the grand scheme of things, what does that have to do with the situation? I would argue that it’s Brady’s fame that is garnering him more attention than the other victim in this situation – not his fortune. (Although one can make the argument that fame and fortunate run parallel to each other.)

      Either way, if the brother who was driving the vehicle a) was cited for running a red light and causing the accident and b) has a “lengthy driving record,” then I’m not quite sure what the sister is looking for here. Had Brady caused the accident and was getting sympathy from the media, then she would have a leg to stand on.

      But to play the we’re-getting-the-short-end-of-the-stick-because-we’re-poor card in this situation is weak. I feel bad that anyone suffered injuries, but get real. Don’t be mad at Brady because he’s a celebrity and receiving attention when it was your family member that was cited and that has the record.

      Besides, this was all about timing anyway after Brady signed his new $72 million deal (which included $48.5 million guaranteed). Of course he’s going to get attention – he’s Tom Brady and he’s now the highest-paid player in the NFL.

      External Sports, NFL

      Five fantasy takeaways from Saints/Vikings

      September 10, 2010 /
      NEW ORLEANS - AUGUST 21: Pierre Thomas of the New Orleans Saints scores a touchdown against the Houston Texans at the Louisiana Superdome on August 21, 2010 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images)

      Well, it wasn’t a particularly well-played first game of the NFL season, but it was a tight game nonetheless. Here are five things that fantasy owners can take away from last night’s opener:

      1. Pierre Thomas is a stud, and Sean Payton forgets that sometimes. (Adrian Peterson is a stud, and Brad Childress forgets that sometimes.)
      In the first half, Payton gave Thomas three touches for -1 yards. He did have a 10-yard catch that was called back due to penalty. In the second half, the Saints tried to establish the running game in earnest and Thomas 72 yards on his next 16 carries — an impressive 4.5 ypc average during that span against the league’s #1-rated rush defense of 2009. He also found the endzone and caught three passes for 15 yards.

      Meanwhile, “Chilly” abandoned the run when the Vikings were behind by just five points in the second half. Anthony Stalter has the details:

      Down 14-9 with just over nine minutes remaining, Childress called seven straight pass plays. There was plenty of time for him to remain balanced with his playcalling, but he went pass-heavy and the result was a stalled drive at the New Orleans’ 44. He essentially made Gregg Williams’ job a hell of a lot easier once the Saints’ DC new he didn’t have to respect the running game.

      The bottom line is that Childress appears to trust Favre more than AP, and that should be worrisome to Peterson owners. AP did finish with 101 yards on 22 touches, but failed to find the endzone.

      2. Brett Favre loves him some Visanthe Shiancoe. Not so much the Percy Harvin.
      Almost as important as actual production (catches, yards, TDs) is the number of targets each receiver gets throughout the course of the game. I’ve been high on Shiancoe all preseason — mostly due to Favre’s long-established affection for his tight ends — and he didn’t disappoint against the Saints, turning eight targets into 4-76-1. Conversely, Harvin only got five targets and looked out of sync with Favre all night. This is probably due to the time that both players missed in training camp due to migraines (Harvin) and being a total drama queen (Favre). I wouldn’t panic on Harvin just yet — it will probably just take a week or two for the chemistry to return, but I would consider sitting Harvin down next week if there’s a better option on the bench.

      3. Don’t expect another 2009 from #4.
      In all of his years in Green Bay, Favre never played with a receiver as physically gifted as Sidney Rice, and that was a big reason for his outstanding numbers last season. With Rice on the shelf for at least the first half of the season, Favre can’t just chuck the football downfield and expect Rice to go up and win virtually every jump ball. Without that deep threat, the Vikings are going to have to manufacture more first downs and longer drives, and as we saw last night, it’s not always going to be pretty.

      4. Garrett Hartley is on the hot seat.
      Good grief, Garrett. Make a field goal, will you? Hartley was often one of the first two or three kickers off the board and he was miserable last night, shanking two make-able field goal attempts. He’s lucky that it didn’t cost the Saints the game because there are a few capable kickers out there in free agency.

      5. Robert Meachem/Devery Henderson are both startable in deep formats, though they’re not dependable.
      On the heels of his breakout campaign last season, Meachem was going in the middle rounds (8th-10th) of fantasy drafts this summer, even though he’s coming off of a toe injury. Meanwhile, Henderson was available in the later rounds due to his inconsistency and history of burning fantasy owners. Both players saw four targets from Drew Brees. Henderson posted 2-38-1 while Meachem generated 3-33 and just missed a 14-yard TD early in the fourth quarter. I think Meachem is the better wideout and if he can stay healthy, he should finish the season as the Saints WR2, but Henderson looked pretty good in his own right. There’s enough offense for both of these players to finish in the Top 40, but don’t expect consistency week-to-week until one guy grabs the WR2 job (and WR2-type targets).

      External Sports, Fantasy Football, NFL

      Favre, Childress sink the Vikings in 14-9 loss to Saints

      September 9, 2010 /
      MINNEAPOLIS - JANUARY 17: Quarterback Brett Favre #4 of the Minnesota Vikings points while playing against the Dallas Cowboys during the NFC Divisional Playoff Game at Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome on January 17, 2010 in Minneapolis, Minnesota.The Vikings defeated the Cowboys 34-3. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)

      I can count on one hand how many throws Brett Favre made tonight that were even remotely impressive. Now, I understand he was on the road, playing in a tough environment and he didn’t have his best receiver.

      But the guy just didn’t get it done tonight.

      The Vikings started their season the same way they ended it last year – with a loss in New Orleans. Favre was 15-of-27 for 171 yards, with one touchdown and one interception, but the stat line doesn’t tell the whole story.

      Outside of their only touchdown drive of the game (which took place midway through the second quarter), Favre was highly erratic passing, looked uncomfortable in the pocket and rarely appeared to be in sync with his receivers – especially Percy Harvin.

      At the risk of sounding like the know-it-all sports blogger that makes statements after the fact, I’ll point out that this game is a prime example that training camp is vital – even to a quarterback like Favre who knows the system and doesn’t need the extra work. Instead of two-stepping training camp for the second straight year, he could have been in Minnesota building chemistry with his receivers. Instead, he used four quarters tonight to do that, and the result wound up being a loss for the Vikings to start the season.

      Now, he also skipped training camp last year and the Vikings started off hot. But that’s also because he got to warm up against the Browns and Lions in the first two weeks. He wasn’t afforded the same luxury this year and you saw the effects.

      Of course, all the blame doesn’t fall at Favre’s feet. Brad Childress played things too conservative early in the game by going run-heavy with Adrian Peterson, only to abandon the ground game when he saw the clock ticking away in the fourth quarter.

      Down 14-9 with just over nine minutes remaining, Childress called seven straight pass plays. There was plenty of time for him to remain balanced with his playcalling, but he went pass-heavy and the result was a stalled drive at the New Orleans’ 44. He essentially made Gregg Williams’ job a hell of a lot easier once the Saints’ DC new he didn’t have to respect the running game.

      Apparently all of the draw and screen plays fell out of Childress’ playbook on that drive.

      That said, give credit to a motivated Saints’ defense, one that held the Vikings to 253 yards of total offense and forced a turnover in Minnesota territory. Of course, had Favre just taken the sack instead of trying to force the action like he’s so accustomed to doing, the Vikings wouldn’t have turned the ball over.

      But enough on Favre – he’s had enough for one night.

      All in all, this game certainly didn’t live up to the hype. The Saints were impressive on their opening drive, but couldn’t take advantage of Minnesota miscues the rest of the way. Still, it was a good opening night for a New Orleans team that is going to have a target on its back all season.

      External Sports, NFL

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