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      2011 MLB Season Preview

      March 30, 2011 /
      Busch Stadium head painter Billy Martin makes last minute touchups to the Opening Day logo, painted behind homeplate at Busch Stadium in St. Louis on March 28, 2011. The Cardinals will host the San Diego Padres on Opening Day March 31. UPI/Bill Greenblatt

      In the eyes of public opinion, the moment Cliff Lee surprised the Yankees and Rangers by signing with Philadelphia the Phillies locked up the AL East. And when the Red Sox traded for slugger Adrian Gonzalez and signed free agent Carl Crawford to a mega-contract, a Boston-Philly World Series matchup was all the pundits could talk about this spring.

      But what about the defending champs? The Giants are better at this point this year than they were a year ago. They’ll have Buster Posey and Madison Bumgarner for an entire season and the Panda looks like he’s rounding back into 2009 form. It’s been 10-straight years since the last time a team repeated as World Series champions, so the task will be daunting. But given Chase Utley’s knee injury and the uncertainty surrounding Josh Beckett and John Lackey (two starters coming off down years in Boston), why not the Giants?

      Below is a division-by-division breakdown of how I see the 2011 MLB season playing out. You’ll find projections for every team and every division, as well as postseason and World Series predictions as well. If you want to bash my picks, feel free. I just have one condition: Make your own predictions as well. Don’t be that person that criticizes my picks without sticking his or her neck out there, too. Because nobody likes you.

      That said, enjoy another season, baseball fans!

      Continue reading »

      External Sports, MLB

      PFW: Newton “has an enormous ego with a sense of entitlement”

      March 30, 2011 /
      Auburn University quarterback Cam Newton speaks with the media in New York in this December 11, 2010 file photo. Newton declared himself eligible for the 2011 NFL draft on Thursday. The Heisman trophy winner, who led the Tigers to a perfect 14-0 season capped by 22-19 victory over the Oregon Ducks in U.S. college football’s championship game on Monday, said on the Auburn website that he will forgo his senior year and pursue a professional career. REUTERS/Keith Bedford (UNITED STATES – Tags: SPORT FOOTBALL HEADSHOT)

      Pro Football Weekly’s Nolan Nawrocki wrote a rather scathing review of Auburn quarterback Cam Newton for the publication’s annual draft magazine.

      Under “Negatives,” Nawrocki wrote that Newton is “very disingenuous – has a fake smile, comes off as very scripted” and has a “selfish, me-first makeup.” But he didn’t stop there.

      “Always knows where the cameras are and plays to them. Has an enormous ego with a sense of entitlement that continually invites trouble and makes him believe he is above the law — does not command respect from teammates and will always struggle to win a locker room . . . Lacks accountability, focus and trustworthiness — is not punctual, seeks shortcuts and sets a bad example. Immature and has had issues with authority. Not dependable.”

      Wow, tell us how you really feel, Nolan. I guess he didn’t think that “has questionable character” quite summed up how he felt about Newton.

      Pro Football Weekly is a well-respected publication and Nawrocki makes his living from giving his opinion, which is all he did here. Obviously somewhere along the line he thought Newton was being an immature kid with a sense of entitlement and Narworki decided to print what he saw/felt.

      That said, could he have made it any more personal? It sounds like Nawrocki has a vendetta against Newton and that’s only going to shed negative connotations on PWF in some people’s eyes. You don’t talk about a prospect’s “fake smile” without sounding like a scorned lover and I wonder what kind of backlash Nawrocki is experiencing after writing the report.

      College Football, External Sports, NFL, NFL Draft

      Five teams that could come up short in 2011

      March 30, 2011 /
      Philadelphia Phillies starter Roy Halladay pitches against the Boston Red Sox during the fourth inning of a MLB spring training game at Bright House Field in Clearwater, Florida, March 21, 2011. REUTERS/Steve Nesius (UNITED STATES – Tags: SPORT BASEBALL)

      It’s the start of a new year and you know what that means: Expectations are running high for every club not named the Pirates and Royals. (Or Astros, Cubs, Mariners, Diamondbacks, Nationals or Indians for that matter.)

      But what postseason contenders are most likely to fall short of expectations in 2011? I’ve highlighted five below.

      Philadelphia Phillies
      When a team is hyped for an entire offseason, it almost becomes cliché to say that they’ll fall short of expectations. But in the case of the Phillies, there’s some major concern here. It’s impossible to replace Chase Utley’s production in the lineup and this is an aging roster. Yes, the Halladay/Lee/Oswalt/Hamels/Blanton combination will keep most opposing batters up at night and yes, the Phillies will probably win the NL East. But the Braves aren’t too far behind talent-wise and Philadelphia has become a club that starts off slow only to pick it up in the second half. If Atlanta comes out of the gates hot and the Phillies suffer some early-season hiccups without Utley, the Braves might be able to build a decent lead that they can ride throughout the season. Barring injury to Halladay or Lee, I can’t imagine a scenario in which the Phillies don’t make the playoffs this year. But without Utley, the playing field has definitely been leveled in the National League.

      San Francisco Giants
      This is an easy one. It’s been 10-straight years since the last time any team was able to repeat as World Series champions. And while the G-Men aren’t considered the favorites to win this year’s Fall Classic (that would be the Phillies or Red Sox), many pundits believe that, at the very least, they’ll win the NL West again. A World Series hangover is the Giants’ biggest concern, because this club is better now than it was a year ago. They’ll get a full year out of Buster Posey and Madison Bumgarner, the energetic Andres Torres will serve as the leadoff hitter from Day 1 (instead of the highly unproductive Aaron Rowand), Pablo Sandoval looks like he’s ready for a big bounce back campaign, top prospect Brandon Belt might start the year with the big league club after dominating this spring, and Mark DeRosa, Mike Fontenot and Pat Burrell strengthen the bench. But it’s a different game for the Giants now. They’re going to be the hunted instead of the hunters, at least in the NL West. Can this fun-loving team recapture the same magic it had in September and October last year? Or will all of those extra innings that Bumgarner, Tim Lincecum, Matt Cain and Jonathan Sanchez endured in the postseason last year eventually catch up with this team?

      Continue reading »

      External Sports, MLB

      Digging into the Calhoun/Calipari rivalry

      March 30, 2011 /
      Connecticut Huskies head coach Jim Calhoun gestures as his team plays the San Diego Aztecs during their NCAA West Regional college basketball game in Anaheim, California March 24, 2011. REUTERS/Lucy Nicholson (UNITED STATES – Tags: SPORT BASKETBALL)

      ESPN’s Andy Katz outlines what has been something of a heated rivalry between Jim Calhoun and John Calipari.

      The perceived breaking point between the two schools — and coaches — occurred during the recruitment of Hartford-area center Marcus Camby in 1993.

      “I was responsible for recruiting Marcus and I did everything I possibly could,” Dickenman said. “I tried and I tried, and the bottom line is I was talking to a wall. We weren’t going to get him. We did have him on a visit with Kirk King and Ray Allen. We had this feeling that we weren’t in it and we never really were.”

      “At the time John was an up-and-comer, a hot-shot name, and Jim doesn’t like to lose to anyone,” Dickenman said. “John has tremendous charisma and he’s a little brash. Jim had taken some things personal, but I don’t think they were necessarily directed at Jim.

      Calhoun doesn’t like to lose at all, but he really doesn’t like to lose to hot-shot coaches like Calipari, so there will be a little extra juice to the UConn/Kentucky tilt on Saturday night.

      College Basketball, External Sports, March Madness

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