The Sports Watercooler

I am going to try and give out Monthly awards as the baseball season goes on. I haven't decided if it will be a "Player of the Month" type award or more of a "If the season ended now, this is who would win stuff". Luckily for April, it doesn't matter.

And since its May 6, all stats and awards are through last night's games.

Without further ado, the American League:

The current division leaders are:
East: Boston
Central: Minnesota
West: Los Angeles

MVP: Manny Ramerez. That crazy dude has started the season on a tear. He is batting .315 with 6 HRs and 23 RBIs. He has cooled a bit recently, but he is still currently tops in the AL.

Cy Young: Amazing race here. With respect to Ervin Santana's 4-hit complete game last night, the award goes to Cliff Lee, who happens to have a 5-0 record and a .96 ERA.

Rookie of the Year: Clay Buchholz. The Sox young pitcher has started off pretty good, amassing a 2-2 record, but supplants that with 33 Ks and a 3.17 ERA.

Come Out of Nowhere Award: Carlos Quentin. He was formerly known as a Diamondbacks prospect last year, but no one expected this for him. An AL leading 8 HRs in the first month of the season in Chicago, including 22 RBIs.

National League

The current division leaders are:
East: Philadelphia
Central: St. Louis
West: Arizona

MVP: Chase Utley. A league leading 13 HRs, is accompanied by 26 HRs and a gaudy .362 average.

Cy Young: No surprise, Brandon Webb has already shown he hasn't lost a step since winning 2 years ago. He has won every game he has started, posting a 7-0 record with a 2.49 ERA.

Rookie of the Year: Giovanni Soto. The Cub's catcher is hitting .352 with 24 RBIs and 6 HRs.

Came Out of Nowhere Award: Nate McLouth. Its no secret I have a man crush on Nate. Luckily, with his stats, I am not alone. .323 average, 25 RBIs, 7 HRs and 3 stolen bases. Swoon with me.

The Sports Watercooler

Just a quick round up of last night's sporting events, since I was in a meeting all morning.

The Tigers beat the Indians 13-2, and have now won 3 in a row and scored 30 runs during that streak (while scoring 33 in their first 12 games). And while people made a big deal about the Tigers opening the season on a skid, the Indians, another popular World Series choice, have the same record, at 5-10.

The Yankees have also put on an offensive show as of late, beating the Red Sox 15-9.

Bandwagon team Pirates lost in an error filled game to the Dodgers, 8-1. I guess by hopping on this bandwagon, we really do get to understand what its like to be a Pirates fan--exciting players on a shitty team.

And the Cubs found their bats and smashed in 12 runs against the Reds.

In the NHL Playoffs, the Penguins completed their sweep against the Ottawa Senators, and were the first team to advance to the second round.

Nashville decided to make things interesting and have tied the Red Wings in their series 2-2. Nashville scored a goal with 9 seconds left in regulation to steal away Game 3, and then opened game 4 by scoring 2 goals within 32 seconds of each other in the 1st period. Momentum much?

Lastly, journeyman sometimes good quarterback Steve McNair has announced he is retiring from the NFL. It will be interesting how history remembers McNair. He was one of the first dual threat quarterbacks, beating teams with both his feet and his arm, but at the same time, his career is marked with injuries and mediocre performances. He lead a team to the Superbowl, but other seasons he seemed to just do enough to get by. He is probably a borderline Hall of Famer, depending on how people start to remember him.

The Sports Watercooler

A quick round-up from this weekend's sporting activities.

Apparently there was an NCAA hockey champion crowned. I don't know, I didn't pay much attention.

Baseball is getting to that point in the season where they have gone through their rotations about 3 times and the season is starting to show its true colors.

For instance, the Tigers are really bad. This should not be happening. In my preseason predictions, I talked about their loaded lineup, the pitching staff should have had 2 Cy Young contendors on it, and they brought over 2 great hitters from the NL in Renteria and Cabrera. Instead, they are getting smoked. Every facet of their game sucked yesterday. The pitching staff gave up two (TWO!) grand slams, and the hitters couldn't get anything across, and were shut out for the second time in 2 days. They have far and away the worst record in baseball right now.

Meanwhile, Baltimore still continues to surprise, as they sit at the top of the AL East. They continue to ride the hot bat of Aubry Huff, but they can't keep this up, can they?

There are some familiar names at the top of the pitching categories (Cole Hamels, Ben Sheets), and a lot of unfamiliar ones. Zach Greinke, Kyle Lohse, Brain Bannister are all off to hot starts.
Mark Reynolds leads the league in RBIs and ESPN.com doesn't even have his picture to post next to his name.

The NHL playoffs are underway. And even though the Stanley Cup playoffs feature a lot of underdog victories, this year its even more so. Only three teams have a 2-0 lead on their opponent (Dallas, Detroit, and Pittsburgh), all the other series are tied or 2-1. 2 of last nights games went to OT and a third was won when a team scored 4 unanswered to overcome a 3-0 deficit.
Trevor Illelmen won the Masters this weekend, in an almost dominating fashion, beating second place Tiger by 3 strokes.

And finally, the NBA playoffs are more or less set. All that remains is the final spot in the West. Its Denver's to lose. And if they do lose, Golden State will make it. Both teams are fun to watch and high energy, so I really have no dog in that race.

And lastly, we say good bye to this week's Bandwagon Team--The Royals. They won a series against the Yankees 2-1 and lost a series to Minnesota 1-2, finishing the week 3-3. This is a great young team, with excellent pitching. I really don't expect them to fade too far as the season progresses.

As for this week's team: lets all cheer for the Pittsburgh Pirates! They have an amazing young player in Nate MacLouth who is currently batting .400 and is in the top ten in fantasy value. Plus Xavier Nady has revitalized his career wearing the yellow and black, and is a hitting machine. Throw in young pitchers like Ian Snell and Tom Gorzallany, and this is an easy team to root for. Currently sitting at .500, this week they will face The Dodgers and The Cubs, two very good NL teams. So they will need our support! Go Pirates!

The Sports Watercooler

Well its finally here, the most anti-climactic championship in the world of sports--the NCAA basketball finals. After the best 4 days in sports, the tournament ends with a whimper on a Monday night.

Sure the matchup should be great. Kansas has arguable the most stacked line up of any team in the tournament, Memphis has the best freshman point guard who could do pretty much anything tonight and no one will be surprised.

Tonight's game should be fun though. Memphis has an exciting style of play, patterned (sort of) after the Phoenix Suns. Its fast, aggressive and fun to watch. Kansas is just straight up good. Both teams are just full of "athletes". Those types of players who can each play 2 or three positions.

On to baseball, with one week underway lets get some immediate reactions:

The Tigers and the Red Sox suck! Sitting at 0-6 and 3-4, these are two teams most picked to win the World Series. Yet they are both in the cellars of their divisions.

The Orioles are amazing! Sitting in first place in a loaded AL East, they just can't lose! All hail the power of Kevin Millar!

Speaking of hot teams right now, I present to you the Bandwagon Team of the Week!

Last week we chose the New York Rangers. The Rangers won dramatically against division leader Pittsburgh in OT on Monday, smoked the Islanders 3-0 on Thursday, but then lost to their rivals on Friday (I didn't know hockey played back to back games). And the ended their reign as the Bandwagon Team by losing a nail biter to the Devils last night.

So the New York Rangers finished 2-2, but locked up a playoff spot in the process, beat the first place team, split with their rival, and lost to a rival. Not too shabby.

This week, I would like to introduce you to the team tied for first place in the AL Central, your Bandwagon Team of the Week: The Kansas City Royals!

There is a lot to like about this team. After being one of the dominant teams of the 80s, hard times came fast. And for the last 20 years, the Royals have been somewhat of a joke. But with a new manager, a new GM and some smart moves, the Royals are closer to competing than ever before.

How are they sitting at 4-2 right now? Well their pitching staff has stepped up. People mocked the huge Gil Meche signing a year ago. Since he got his big paycheck though, the man has been producing. They also have a core of some young pitching (Brian Bannister 3 hit the Tigers last week), and a closer who will be dominant in years to come (he struck out the side against Minnesota yesterday for the save). They even got a win and a sub 2 ERA out of Brett Tomko!

The young hitters are coming into their own. Alex Gordon started the season on an All Star pace. Billy Butler is finally showing signs of his endless talent, and steady vets like Jose Guillan and Mark Grudzielanek are playing well. I believe this is the beginning of a new time for the Royals. Remember when they had an outfield that was Jermaine Dye, Carlos Beltran and Johnny Damon? I think the days of a Royal having a good year and leaving are over. Fans can embrace these players now because they will be wearing the blue and white for a long time.

The Royals have a rough week this week, and my bandwagon cheering may be hampered by the fact that they play my 2 favorite non-bandwagon teams (Yankees Tues through Thursday and Twins Friday to Sunday), but I will for sure be watching every one of their games this week, and I am pretty excited about it.

Let's Go Royals!

MLB Preview: AL East

Can you believe it? Baseball is a week away (or a day, depending on if you are counting those games being played in Japan or not).

In order to keep you more properly informed jumping into the season, Bikes In Trees presents the most superficial baseball preview you can find. We will be doing one division per day. If you would like to write a more thorough post on a team you are a fan of, send it in. Let us know why they are going to win this year. Or at least why they should demand our attention.

Today we are going to start with the AL East, in honor of the defending Champions. They will be listed in my predicted final standings, so bookmark this post to make fun of me in October.

Boston Red Sox

Key Additions: None really. Some dude named David Aardsma. And of course professional sumo wrestler pitcher Bartolo Colon.

Key Subtractions: Eric Gagne, Brendan Donnelly

Player to Watch: Clay Buchholz and Jacoby Ellsbury. These two tore up the bigs after their late season call ups last year. Can they do it for a whole season? Will females in Boston swoon more for Ellsbury than Brady as he becomes a household name? I would bet on yes to both. While their boyfriends swoon over his stolen bases and batting average.

What Can Go Wrong: Injuries. In the lineup, its Manny Ramirez and David Ortiz. Let's face it, these two guys have been on a bit of a decline recently. Injuries and age are catching up. Ortiz is still one of the most feared hitters in the majors, but his knee has been giving him trouble recently. And Manny is a shell of the player he once was. They can both get it done still, but can they get it done all year? Plus there is guys like Youk, Lowell, and Varitek. In the rotation, Schilling's preseason injury is a blessing in disguise. He already let one of the young studs take his place, instead of hitting the DL a month into it when he amassed a 5.36 ERA. Then there is Beckett, who, on top of his history of blisters and back problems, came to camp fresh off his Dunkin Donuts off season training looking like this.

Predictions: Easily wins the Division while still coming off as pretentious, annoying, and not sure how to act as their bandwagon now resembles the Beverly Hillbillies car.


New York Yankees

Key Additions: Morgan Ensberg (who will be a good contributer) and LeTroy Hawkins (who will be a disaster. Just like every other team he has played for, which is about 20 now).

Key Subtractions: None

Player to Watch: Phil Hughes and Ian Kennedy. Are these guys so good that its worth keeping them to pass on the best left hander to play the game?* We will find out. Both have looked fairly good in recent outings. Both are also rookies who will have those random games where they get shelled by Toronto as well.

* May contain minor hyperbole

What Can Go Wrong: They are like 40 years old in every position. They have a rookie manager who ripped through his young pitching staff in Florida so quick that, although they did amazingly well, none were the same again. And in New York he gets to manage 3 extremely young stud pitchers. In fact, the rotation itself is a huge question mark. Except for Wang getting his normal 100 Ks and 17 wins, everyone else is a big question mark. That and the over/under of A-Rod getting booed for hitting .350 yet leaving 3 guys on base is May 14.

Predictions: This team could really go either way. They could catch lightning in a bottle or could just be very ugly. They have a dominant lineup and there is no question they will put runs on the board. But will the weak bullpen and rotation do enough to make sure the Yankees 12 points a game is more than the opponents? Toss up. Come playoff time, the Yankees will have plenty of time to scout players to fill Giambi's ginormous contract for next year.


Tampa Bay Rays

Key Additions: Matt Garza, Jason Bartlett, and Troy Percival (yeah, you read that right)

Key Subtractions: Delmon Young, Elijah Dukes

Player to Watch: BJ Upton. This guy is going to be a stud in the very near future. And this is on a team full of future studs. The Yankees and the Red Sox can't get too complacent, because the Rays will be fierce in a couple of years. And their 20 fans will be thrilled.

What Can Go Wrong: They are young, so there will be those dumb, young mistakes. The pitching staff is full of prospects, which means a year or two of some rough outings as they learn the ropes of the majors.

Predictions: The Rays are really going to surprise people this year with their best record in team history. And although that is still only good for third place in the division, they will finish above .500 and destroy someone's playoff dreams in September.


Toronto Blue Jays

Key Additions: Scott Rolen, David Eckstien

Key Subtractions: Troy Glaus (if you can call that "key" or a "subtraction")

Player to Watch: Alex Rios. I have been in love with this guy for a few years now. I think this is the year he makes the jump from "token All Star on a relatively crappy team" to legitimate MVP candidate. Not like one of the players who will actually win, but one of those dudes who gets a bunch of third place votes and is a feel good story.

What Can Go Wrong: These guys have been hurt for the last 5 years. Their DL has looked like an All Star roster at times. Sure, if they are all healthy, they will make things interesting, but I don't really see that happening. As evident by the fact that Scott Rolen tripped over David Eckstien on the way into their new locker room, dislocating both of their shoulders. Or not.

Predictions: Disappointment. They have good young players as seen last year. Dustin McGowan, Rios, and Acardo will be real good players soon and/or now. Vernon Wells will have to actually play like the player he was before they gave him a fat contract. Frank Thomas will have to play like he was before 2004, AJ Burnett will have to play like he was still in Florida, and BJ Ryan will have to play like he has a healthy arm.

Baltimore Orioles

Key Additions: Adam Jones

Key Subtractions: Eric Bedard, Miguel Tejada

Player to Watch: Adam Jones. He was the key player they traded Bedard away for. He is the kind of guy who can do it all, a true 5 tool hitter. Too bad he can't also pitch.

What Can Go Wrong: It would be easier to say what could go right. Lets just say this: the coaching staff had to chose between Jeremy Guthrie and Steve Treachsel to pick an opening day starter.

Predictions: Pain. This will be an ugly year in Baltimore. Their only bright spots are Brian Roberts, Nick Markakis, and Adam Jones. And they are openly looking to trade Roberts.