VendorBall

WINTER MEETINGS!

2009-12-09T09:49:00.004-05:00

Yes, it's time for the Winter Meetings and I'm moist, nay, DRENCHED! I love this time a year, as free agents, players, and GMs meet to decide the future of their teams going forward. There are trades, big signings, and rumors swirling for an entire week. Now we are already midway through with the week and there have already been some trades and deals done.

Now everybody knows the big names available on the FA market (Jason Bay, Matt Holliday, and John Lackey), but I want to take this opportunity to take a look at some free agents that are a little off the radar. These guys can be had for fairly cheap and offer good value. Now these may not be fits for the Sox, but it's my damn blog and I can write about whatever I want. For this, I am thinking of a Small Market team that can have a shot at making the playoffs but need a couple more pieces to make that happen and need to do it for cheap (if you need a real frame of reference, think the SF Giants). They are generally risks based on age, performance, or health, however to win a World Series, you need to take risks.

Kyle's Intriguing Free Agents

Nick Johnson

Yes, let's start with Nick. There's a lot not to like about Nicky. He's a 1st baseman that doesn't hit for a lot of power. He's only eclipsed 600 Plate Appearances once in his career, making him a durability/injury risk. His career average is under .280.

Then again, there is a ton to like about him. He gives you top-level (though not Gold Glove) defense at the position. His CAREER On Base Percentage is over .400! He walks more than he strikes out. And he's only 31 years old giving him a few more years of prime before the decline.

The beautiful thing about NJ is this - stick him in the #2 spot in your order, and you have a guy on base 40% of the time, leading up to your two big hitters. Naturally, you need a team who has those hitters to make him worthwhile in that slot. That said, he should come pretty cheap to any team who is willing to give him 5 years. I think 4-5 years at $7M/yr should nab him. If you were more frugal you might try a deal laced with incentives based on Plate Appearances.

Mike Cameron

This guy might be the most underrated CF of his generation. The guy has posted an OPS+ (which is OPS/League OPS) over 100 (better than average) EVERY YEAR of his career. At the same time, he has given elite (GG) defense EVERY year. So you're getting an above average hitter who takes runs away.

Now he is 37 years old, but his production has continued and hasn't dropped off. There are plenty of guys who continue to produce into their late 30's, and so far it looks like he is one of them. What is there not to like about a guy like Cameron. In short, he makes almost any team instantly better and can come at a short price. For a guy this old, don't you think 2 years for $6M/yr gets him?

Ben Sheets

Ben sat out all of last year with an elbow injury after throwing 198 innings in 2008. In that season, he was too hurt to throw in the playoffs, taking out the second best pitcher in the Brewers rotation crippling them. The last time he tossed over 200 innings was 2004. He is as injury prone as pitchers come: inner ear infections, bulging discs and the aforementioned arm trouble all appear on the radar.

But man does he have stuff and control. He can locate his fastball and has a back breaking curve. Sheets is also only 31. Really, he wants to nab himself a one year deal with incentives to prove that he is still effective. Once he does that, he should be able to nab a 4-5 year deal for guaranteed money. Also, since he is not throwing beforehand, he needs a one year deal. If you are a team that is close to the playoffs and needs a bump up in the rotation, Sheets could come in and be your #2 guy.

Rich Harden

I could pretty much say "see Ben Sheets" and end it here. But there are differences between the two. First off, Harden is more talented as a pitcher, period. Second, Harden has NEVER pitched over 200 innings. In fact, he's only gone over 150 once (2004) when he was 22. Third, he's younger. He'll be 28 next year, making him three years younger than Sheets, but that's 3 years he'll be in his prime, while Sheets is nearly out of his.

So what with Harden. His skill requires you to pay him a lot of money. His durability is really going to put teams off. So where does he fall? Some team has got to take a chance on him, and I would consider it. The pricetag is so hard to pin down, but how do you not at least kick the tires on this guy? He's got to be the most talented pitcher on the market.

Jim Thome

Should it be a hard sell for a guy who has hit 564 career homeruns? Well Thome is going to be 39 last year and is coming off of his first EVER season with 100+ games an a slugging percentage under .500. Thome is a slugger at heart - a lot of walks, a lot of strikeouts and a lot of homeruns. Also, Thome is strictly a DH at this point. So there's got to be an AL team looking to take him on.

To be honest, I think Thome wants to get to 600 HRs. If he goes one more full season, he's got a fair chance of hitting that. If he gets regular at bats then he should be able to get 30+ HRs this year and that will put him right there. I'm sure he'll play for the highest bidder, but at this point I think he'd play for free.

Well that's it for now. I might revisit this later with Justin Douchebaggererererer, Carlos Delgado, Pedro Martinez, Coco Crisp, Brett Myers, and Mark DeRosa.

Joke of the Day: What's the difference between an SUV and a Nike Golf Ball? Tiger can drive a Nike Golf Ball 300 yards without hitting a tree - BOOM!

Sox Offense for 2010

2009-10-12T20:33:00.003-04:00

A lot of todo is being made and will continue to be made about the Red Sox offense this year. And such will be the subject of my return-to-the-blogosphere post. Now, in a series where the Red Sox offense and bullpen really let them down, you can only expect the "experts" and pundits to clamor for a revamping of the offense. The bullpen really had a great year and I don't see much being made of that. That said, I am also not a believer in the "one closer" thing. But that is a discussion for another time.

The offense looked suspect down the stretch and played awful in the playoffs. So where do we upgrade. I'd like to take a quick look - position by position - by the numbers for this season.

Catcher

The catcher duties were split between Varitek and Martinez. However, going into next season we can probably expect V-Mart to be the (nearly) every day catcher with Varitek and Lowell splitting the extra time. Let's look at V-Mart's numbers:

Martinez: 588 AB; 178 H; 88 R; 23 HR; 108 RBI; .303/.381/.480

Where an OPS of .861 is nothing to write home about, for a catcher you are not going to find better. Also, I would bet that we won't be paying $5M for 'Tek for next year. There's a decent chance that we go with V-Mart and Kottaras, however if we are going to let Tek catch two games out of the rotation and on those days shifting Youk over to third and letting Mart playing 1st, that makes sense. You could do worse than that. That said, we are not going to get an improvement for split time if we believe that Martinez cannot catch every day. Of course, after this year, Mart is done in Boston and we'll be trying to sign Mr. Mauer.

First Base

Youkilis has been manning both infield corners for the Sox over the last couple of years. Let's just take a quick look at his stats:

Youkilis: 491 AB; 150 H; 99 R; 27 HR; 94 RBI; .305/.413/.548

Youkilis is signed through 2012 with an option for 2013 so Youilis is not going anywhere. Besides, his OBP ranked 2nd in the AL (behind Mauer), 5th in slugging, and 2nd in OPS. So let's just move right along.

Second Base

Dustin Pedroia had a bit of a hangover after his MVP year in 2008. However, the scrappy second baseman did not put up shabby numbers. Let us take a quick look.

Pedroia: 626 AB; 185 H; 115 R; 15 HR; 72 RBI; 20 SB; 8 CS; .296/.371/.447

Pedroia's numbers were fine this year, though not quite as good as last year. He is signed for a fair price through 2013 with an option for 2014. So we could end this conversation here. But I can't let this go without a little more analysis. Pedroia was 2nd in OBP among AL second basemen and 4th in OPS. This is in a league that featured studs like Ben Zobrist, Robinson Cano, Ian Kinsler, Brian Roberts, Aaron Hill, and Alberto Callaspo. That said, we are not moving away from Pedey.

Third Base

So we are looking at Mike Lowell here.

Mike Lowell: 445 AB; 129 H;, 54 R; 17 HR; 75 RBI; .290/.337/.474

Where these numbers aren't bad, there are some things working against Lowell here. First, those are not great corner infield numbers. They are not bad, though, and plenty of teams wouldn't mind having him, but probably not for the $12M he is slated to make next year. However, that will be the last year of his contract, and if the right deal comes along, the Sox might find some space to upgrade.

Short Stop

Shortstop for the Sox has been a bit of a revolving door this season. We went with Nick Green for a while, but he is not of Major League Caliber, offensively or defensively. He has no place on the roster next year. Jed Lowrie looked nothing like a major league hitter this year, hitting .147 in 68 at bats, and is average-ish in the field. Alex Gonzalez fared much better, with a respectable line of .284/.316/.453 although those numbers belie his true hitting ability. His career average is .247 and OBP an unsightly .294. Does he earn it with his stellar defense? Probably. However, here is another place we can afford an upgrade however there are few names out there. Orlando Cabrera, and Miguel Tejada head the list. Cabrera might be the most obvious name here, and with a career OPS of .720 (.275 BA) he has the combination of offense and defense that could fit in here.

You'll notice the lack of true stats here. This is the toughest call to make and I am not sure how to call it yet. The Sox getting Cabrera I think would make the most sense, but we will revisit this later in the offseason.

Outfield

The outfield this season was manned by J.D. Drew, Jacoby Ellsbury, and Canadian Jason Bay. Bay is in the last year of his contract and didn't sign an extension. Here are the numbers:

Drew: 452 AB; 126 H; 84 R; 24 HR; 68 RBI; .279/.392/.522
Ellsbury: 624 AB; 188 H; 94 R; 8 HR; 10 3B; 70 SB; 12 CS; .301/.355/.415
Bay: 531 AB; 142 H; 103 R; 36 HR; 119 RBI; 13 SB; 3 CS; .267/.384/.537

I have so much hatred here. Mostly, I hate J.D. Drew and yet his end-of-the season numbers look pretty good. His .392 OBP is good enough for 9th in the AL, and his OPS is 10th. Jason Bay checks in 9th in OPS in the AL, while Ellsbury lead the league in steals while batting over .300. So where do we deviate here? We could let Jay-Bay walk and go after a Matt Holliday. However you'll note that Holliday did not fare well in Oakland. I think we'll end up seeing Bay resign, for lack of better options and get Drew money.

DH

David Ortiz struggled mightily this year from the DH slot and got off to a super-slow start. Let's see where his stats ended up:

Ortiz: 541 AB; 129 H; 77 R; 99 RBI; .238/.332/.462

The OPS under .800 is a big no-no for a DH in a big-market city. Now everyone has been hearing "Papi is done" all year. But let me throw some numbers out there. Here are his numbers from June 1 to the end of the year:

351 AB; 93 H; 27 HR; 78 RBI; .264/.356/.555

Those numbers look pretty good. If he could pull that through the whole year he would have had more than 40 HR, and more than 120 RBI while boasting an OPS over .900. No one would talk about getting rid of THAT guy, who is only on the books for $12.5M. He seems to be fully healed from wrist surgery and I would be surprised if they replaced him. Epstein is clever enough to know this and we won't get rid of Papi. This isn't a loyalty thing, this is a talented hitter who will continue to get the opportunity to hit.

So Where Do We Upgrade?

Well, the only question marks are at SS and at the corner infield. At SS, there is too much to worry about and taking a strong defender would be the best play. In fact, I would like to see them hang on to Alex Gonzalez. At corner infield, we would have to replace Lowell.

Lowell: 445 AB; 129 H; 54 R; 17 HR; 75 RBI; .290/.337/.474

Those numbers really aren't bad. If he played a full season he is probably a 20+ HR, 100+ RBI guy. Furthermore if he could manage to run still, he'd have some more infield hits and ground into fewer DPs. His speed is killing and affecting his defense, too. To upgrade here in the free agent market (http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2008/12/2010-mlb-free-a.html) we would be looking at a guy like Chone Figgins or Adrien Beltre. Neither of those are huge upgrades over Lowell at the plate, though Figgins is intriguing. To upgrade at First Base there is Adam LaRoche - but not a great upgrade.

Through the trade market, it is known that Prince Fielder and Adrien Gonzalez are on the block. But the question of cost to obtain these guys is crazy. We could package a deal with Casey Kotchman, Mike Lowell, Michael Bowden, and cash and that wouldn't be enough. Then who do we add? Lars Anderson is coming off a tough year and not looking great against advanced pitching. Trading off Tazawa in this deal would zap the major-league ready minor league pitching talent (which is replaceable via free agency, given).

I just don't see the Sox making any offensive moves this offseason. Once they sign a LF (Bay, most likely) they will just look to round out the bench and perhaps address the pitching... but more on that later.

VendorBall is Back - New Information

2009-10-12T18:26:00.002-04:00

To all who may read this blog. I am coming back. Dan Z. has been off doing some of the awesome design things he does and has been quite busy, and I have been on and off busy with work, moving, and various other things. However, I am missing digging into sports. My fan-hood demands a vehicle to make sure I am doing my diligence work - checking rosters, running stats, and staying on top of rumors. And so, heavy-hearted at the loss of Dan as co-owner*, I return to write about the Boston Sports Scene. I plan on focusing my attention mostly on the Red Sox, but you can expect some Bruins, C's, and Pats (especially for my love of Mr. Thomas Brady).

WE'RE BACK, BABY!

2009-02-13T08:50:00.003-05:00

VendorBall is announcing its official return today!

Stay tuned as articles will start to flow this afternoon!

FOUR DAYS.

2009-02-09T09:50:00.000-05:00

The truck is on its way to Fort Myers...

The weather is slowly warming up...

VendorBall is almost back. See you Friday.

Checking In on Inauguration Day

2009-01-20T15:24:00.003-05:00

We hope you all have enjoyed today's festivities surrounding the inauguration of our nation's 44th president, Barack Obama. We're also giving you a reminder that VendorBall is returning in under four weeks.

We'll see you in 24 days as the Boston Red Sox report to Spring Training!

VendorBall's Going HD

2009-01-06T20:10:00.015-05:00

Over the next few days/weeks until our relaunch at Spring Training, you'll see VendorBall undergo quite a facelift. We're in the process of streamlining the experience for you, our sexy readers. We're converting everything to a widescreen, high-definition format. You'll start to see the appearance of video and other forms of multimedia that will tingle the senses...and the loins.

Stay tuned, and we hope to see you at the start of Spring Training!

Off Until Baseball Returns

2009-01-02T08:50:00.001-05:00

Baseball has an off-season, so why can't we? Since we're both in the middle of moving soon, we thought it best to hold off VendorBall until our beloved Sox are back in action. That'll give us time to recharge our batteries and make sure we can devote the proper amount of attention to this blog.

We'll see you when Spring Training rolls around!

Lucchino Confirms Uniform, Logo Changes

2008-12-10T10:06:00.002-05:00

From WEEI's Dennis and Callahan Morning Show this morning:

Jon Meterparel: Big announcement tomorrow night. A new uniform? Is that correct?

Larry Lucchino: Well there’s an adjustment to the road uniforms that will touch upon Red Sox tradition. It’s a little back to the future kind of thing and there will be some adjustments to the logo as well so both items are going to be announced tomorrow (Thursday, December 11).

This may bring true the rumors that they'll be going back to navy lettering on the road uniforms, similar to the look the team sported in the 1980s. I, for one, am not happy about it. We'll see what happens tomorrow night at 6:00.

Reports: Bruschi Headed to IR

2008-12-09T09:34:00.003-05:00

Is there anyone left?

Reports are surfacing that the injury Tedy Bruschi suffered during the Patriots' 24-21 win in Seattle is not by any means major, but serious enough to end his season and land the linebacker on the IR list. His reported recovery time would be around four weeks, but with the team's shortage of bodies and necessity for wins, they can't afford to wait this one out.

Bruschi will join other Patriots stars such as Tom Brady, Adalius Thomas, Laurence Maroney and Rodney Harrison on Injured Reserve.

Breaking News: Pedroia Re-Signs with Sox

2008-12-03T13:02:00.004-05:00

The Red Sox and Dustin Pedroia have agreed on a six-year, $40.5 million contract that will keep him in Boston through at least 2014. There is a 2015 club option worth $11 million. Here is a breakdown of the contract, per Boston.com's Tony Massarotti:

Signing bonus - $1.5 million

Base salaries
2009 - $1.5 million
2010 - $3.5 million
2011 - $5.5 million
2012 - $8 million
2013 - $10 million
2014 - $10 million

Club option
2015 - $11 million (or a $500,000 buyout)

This is a great move by the Sox, keeping the MVP in town for the foreseeable future.

Sox Make an Offer to Tek?

2008-11-25T09:57:00.004-05:00

So there have been some conflicting stories as to whether or not the Sox have made an offer to Captain Jason Varitek. Where Rob Bradford of WEEI said that the Sox offered Tek 1year/~$6M deal (not nearly the $13.1M+ for 4 years Boras was expecting). Boras, however, denies vehemently that the Sox made such an offer. But we know Boras, don't we? He's lying. No doubt. The thing is, if the Sox make a lowball offer, then no other team will blow it out of the water. Even if he starts a bidding war here, he's likely not to get more than 2 years at 7.5-8M/yr. Which is about what Tek should make. The Sox are the team that is perceived to need the veteran catcher most, and such an offer does a lot to hurt Tek's value (read: Boras' profits).

Now you might be asking yourself, "Gee, Kyle, we like your speculations, but they are just that. What more evidence do you have, cause I'm not sold that Boras is lying." Well I can do that in one sentence:

Peter Gammons confirmed that the Sox made a one-year offer to Tek.

This is the word of Gammons, Amen.

Sources: Sox Make Offer to Teixeira

2008-11-21T15:11:00.007-05:00

Various sources are reporting that the Red Sox have indeed made a contract offer to free agent 1B Mark Teixeira.

Teixeira is considered the top position-player on the market this off-season, and is garnering attention from several other teams including the Nationals, Orioles and Yankees. He is originally from the Baltimore area and is said to be favoring an east coast club. Most baseball analysts suggest that clubs may need to offer as much as $200 million over eight years to acquire the slugger.

Teixeira split the 2008 season between the Braves and Angels.

Breaking News: Utley Out Until June

2008-11-20T13:58:00.003-05:00

Various sources out of Philadelphia are reporting that Chase Utley, second baseman for the 2008 World Series champion Phillies, is having off-season hip surgery that will keep him out of action until June 2009. We will have more on this breaking story as it becomes available.

Sources: Mussina to Retire

2008-11-20T09:19:00.005-05:00

Various sources around the baseball world are all reporting that Yankees right-hander Mike Mussina has opted to call it quits after 18 seasons in the big leagues.

After a stellar career, the question remains: Is Mike Mussina a Hall-of-Famer?

VendorBall will provide that answer in the coming days as we will present a thorough analysis of the Moose's tenure in Major League Baseball.

Coco Crisp Trade Analysis

2008-11-19T20:27:00.006-05:00

The Meat

So Covelli "Coco" Crisp has been traded for a middle reliever. Now, as some of you may or may not be aware, I am generally of the mindset that middle relief is the bottom of the barrel when it comes to trade returns. Middle relievers are a dime a dozen, and in any given year, your 8th inning guy can go to waivers, and a journeyman can become shut down. That's the problem when you only have a small sample set and so much depends on routine, and confidence.

But I like this trade. Part of me thinks I shouldn't, because of what Crisp brings to the table game in and game out, but I think this is a good move. The logic is a little winding and a little long, but try and follow a long. By bolstering the bullpen, we are giving Justin Masterson the chance to go into the starting rotation. I have said from the beginning that I like him in the rotation better than in the 'pen. Now, by moving him there, our rotation becomes: Beckett, Dice-K, Lester, Masterson, and Wakefield. The Sox are also in the market for starters Derek Lowe and A.J. Burnett. We also have Clay Buchholz in the minors, along with prospect Michael Bowden, knuckleballer Charlie Zink, and a slew of other arms both in the bullpen and the rotation.

Now, we have extra arms, as well as an unneeded shortstop in Julio Lugo, and a package can be thrown together for Texas in order to acquire one of their catchers. Once Varitek's price comes down to reality (2-3 years ~$8 M/yr), we have our captain back as well as an heir apparent to him for when he is hurt, not hitting, or too old to play. I cast my vote for Jarrod "Salty" Saltalamacchia. Now I know Texas doesn't need a shortstop but there are plenty of teams that do, and they'd probably be willing to give the Rangers a pitcher or two for him (though the Sox might have to bite some salary).

A Little Dessert

The Sox are now in need of three players: starting catcher, utility infielder, and fourth outfielder. Well, let me dream about Salty, and 'Tek, and let's focus on the fourth outfielder and backup infielder. I would love to say: bring in the hometown Rocco Baldelli! However, we'll need an everyday guy when J.D. Drew takes his yearly trip to the DL, and with Rocco's well published metochondrial disease, he's not our guy. Jim Edmonds would be a nice fit, but might come with a big price tag given his performance in limited action last year. Bringing back Mark Kotsay makes a lot of sense, especially since he plays a solid first base, too. If not these guys, I (like all the women in Red Sox Nation) would love to see the Sox bring back Mr. Gabe Kapler.

For an infielder, Willie Bloomquist is on the market, but his lifetime OPS+ is 75, OBP .322 and that's not a guy I want (for an explanation of the OPS+ stat, feel free to contact Kyle Baxter). Again, I'd love to bring back an old Red Sox player in Mark Loretta - nice OBP if not a great OPS guy. Bringing back Alex Cora would be great, but I think an upgrade is in order this offseason, and with the economy we might be able to find one at a discount. I think trying to bring back one Nomar Garciaparra would be ok, but we know how he is in the clubhouse, so maybe not. Juan Uribe, Pablo Ozuna, and Nick Punto might be other options in this case, but I won't pretend to know what the hell they're going to do.

The weather is growing cold, and the stove is heating up - stay tuned into VendorBall for all the updates and expert analysis*.

*Yes we are.

Breaking News -- Coco Traded to Royals

2008-11-19T10:38:00.002-05:00

Reports are surfacing that Red Sox OF Coco Crisp has been shipped to the Kansas City Royals for right-handed relief pitcher Ramon Ramirez. More details to come shortly.

Breaking - PEDROIA WINS A.L. MVP!

2008-11-18T14:01:00.009-05:00

CONGRATS, LITTLE PONY!

Here are the full voting results:

Player	Club	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	5th	Points
DUSTIN PEDROIA	BOS	16	6	4	1	—	317
Justin Morneau	MIN	7	7	6	3	3	257
Kevin Youkilis	BOS	2	4	4	9	2	201
Joe Mauer	MIN	2	8	1	3	4	188
Carlos Quentin	CWS	—	1	4	8	4	160
Francisco Rodriguez	LAA	1	2	6	1	6	143
Josh Hamilton	TEX	—	—	2	2	3	112
Alex Rodriguez	NYY	—	—	—	—	1	45
Carlos Pena	TAM	—	—	1	—	2	44
Grady Sizemore	CLE	—	—	—	—	—	42
Evan Longoria	TAM	—	—	—	—	—	38
Cliff Lee	CLE	—	—	—	1	1	24
Miguel Cabrera	DET	—	—	—	—	—	17
Vladimir Guerrero	LAA	—	—	—	—	—	16
Jermaine Dye	CWS	—	—	—	—	1	14
Aubrey Huff	BAL	—	—	—	—	—	12
Milton Bradley	TEX	—	—	—	—	—	9
Jason Bartlett	TAM	—	—	—	—	1	6
Mike Mussina	NYY	—	—	—	—	—	3
Raul Ibanez	SEA	—	—	—	—	—	1
Ian Kinsler	TEX	—	—	—	—	—	1
Ichiro Suzuki	SEA	—	—	—	—	—	1
Mark Teixeira	LAA	—	—	—	—	—	1

KG Suspended Tonight vs. Knicks

2008-11-18T08:59:00.006-05:00

The Big Ticket will have to buy a ticket tonight. Celtics' big man Kevin Garnett has been suspended one game for his altercation with Bucks' center Andrew Bogut this past Saturday.

Garnett will sit out tonight's meeting with the Knicks at the TD Banknorth Garden, and should be back in the lineup Thursday night when the Celtics host the Pistons.

Breaking News -- Pujols Wins N.L. MVP

2008-11-17T14:55:00.002-05:00

In the exact opposite of a "shocker," Albert Pujols has been named your 2008 National League Most Valuable Player. The full voting went as follows:

Albert Pujols, STL (369)
Ryan Howard, PHI (308)
Ryan Braun, MIL (139)
Manny Ramirez, LAD (138)
Lance Berkman, HOU (126)
CC Sabathia, MIL (121)
David Wright, NYM (115)
Brad Lidge, PHI (104)
Carlos Delgado, NYM (96)
Aramis Ramirez, CHC (66)

And coming in last, Nate McLouth of the Pirates with one vote. Nate McLouth, makin' momma proud!

The Green Machine -- C's Improve to 8-1

2008-11-13T13:39:00.031-05:00

It's not June yet -- but don't tell Paul Pierce.

Since we last talked, the Celtics have stretched their Eastern Conference-best record to 8-1 with wins over the Pistons, Raptors and previously-undefeated Hawks. Pierce has emerged as the superstar he appeared to be during last year's championship run, and the defending champions are pumping on all cylinders. Let's rewind and recap the week.

Sunday: Celtics 88, Pistons 76
This was supposed to be Allen Iverson's welcoming party. Following a blockbuster trade with Denver last week, the Pistons received "A.I." after giving up Chauncey Billups and Antonio McDyess. Sunday was Iverson's first home-game in the Motor City, but you couldn't see it on the faces of the men in green. They were all-business, proven by a 30-10 thrashing of the Pistons in the second quarter. The Celtics clamped down on defense, forced turnovers, and were led by an unlikely budding star: Tony Allen.

Allen's the kind of guy that's been on the verge of "amazing" for a few years. Hampered by a knee injury two years ago, T.A. has been struggling to get his confidence back. His natural abilities give him the option of out-skilling his opponents. On Sunday night, he seemed to remember how gifted he is. In 28 minutes on the floor, Allen amassed 23 points, 5 boards and 2 steals. His team led by 20 at the end of three quarters, and easily walked out of Detroit with a win.

Monday: Celtics 94, Raptors 87
As much as I love these comeback wins, they've got to stop doing this to me. I'll skip to the fourth quarter, because that's where the magic happened. (To sum up the first half, the Raptors had more assists, 13, than the Celtics had field goals, 12. That's all you need to know.)

Twice pushing the lead to sixteen, Toronto had all the cushion they seemingly needed. Paul Pierce didn't want to cooperate. The Captain scored 22 of his 36 points in the fourth quarter on 7-of-9 shooting, leading his team to yet another comeback in the Big-Three-Era.

"I love when Superman goes in the booth and transforms," Kevin Garnett said of The Truth's performance. "I love it. I got the best seat in the house."

Wednesday: Celtics 103, Hawks 102
Atlanta is undefeated no longer. Honestly, I don't think I can pick a team I hate anymore than the Hawks. With last year's first-round match-up still obviously fresh in my mind, all I can picture is a raucous Atlanta crowd being egged on by an obnoxious Al Horford. Granted, the young team is very talented...but they're not championship material just yet. The 2008 NBA Champions proved that to them last night.

It what was yet another down-to-the-wire finish, the Celtics and Hawks went back and forth. Tied at the half, neither team was ever able to open up a comfortable lead. The Hawks took a lead very early in the game, but the Celtics closed the gap quickly enough. The game really came down to a sequence of three possessions. With under a minute left, the game was tied at 99, Celtics controlling the ball. Pierce took to the hoop, got fouled and knocked down both of his free throws. Veteran skills. After a brief timeout, Atlanta gave the champs their best right-hook. The ball eventually ended up in the hands of Marvin Williams, poised and waiting at the three-point line in the corner. With Ray Allen in his face, he hit his fourth long-range shot of the night, leaving the Celtics with a one-point deficit and under ten seconds to play. But remember, I said it came down to three possessions, not two.

The Celtics, after their last timeout, had the ball on their side of the court. The inbound pass went to Kevin Garnett, who handed it off to a sprinting Pierce. With Horford on him, Pierce had a mismatch, and he knew it. He faded away with a jumper -- one that I had no faith of reaching the hoop -- and drained it. He's gotten so good that even I've learned to underestimate him.

On the heels of last night's stellar performance, the Celtics have today off. Tomorrow night at the Garden, the C's host the Denver Nuggets, still undefeated since their acquisition of Chauncey Billups. I'm sure the champs will greet them appropriately.

-- Dan Zappulla, Basking in the Glory

Hot Stove Talks

2008-11-13T10:22:00.006-05:00

So things are heating up this baseball offseason, but in rumor only. There have, though, been a few big deals that have hit the majors so far.

In a surprise move, the Oakland Athletics traded for Matt Holliday, sending Huston Street, Greg Smith, and Carlos Gonzalez to the Rockies. Odd that the A's wanted a 1-year rental of a player like Holliday, unless they are planning on making more big moves and trying to make a run at a World Series this year.

Jake Peavy has yet to be traded, and sources are now saying that the Cubs were never really involved in the Peavy talks, and that the Padres likely leaked that story just to drive up the price on the starter. It looks like the Braves are currently the biggest, and perhaps only, bidder.

The Washington Nationals acquired Scott Olsen and Josh Willingham from the Marlins in exchange for Emilio Bonifacio, P.J. Dean and Jake Smolinski. A bit of an odd move, as the Marlins may be delaying their 6-year championship cycle by a few years.

The Yankees resigned Damaso Marte to a 3-year $12 Mil deal with an option for 2012.

The Red Sox might be looking to bring back Derek Lowe. Rumors have it they're looking for strike-throwing ground ball pitchers. Although to be honest, I'm not sure I'd want anyone on the pricetag that Scott Boras would demand, but it'd be nice to have Lowe back, he is the most solid pitcher on the market with no question marks except his age (35).

Those aside, the rest of the Hot Stove seems to be hot rumors and not much getting done. Then again, the winter meetings haven't happened yet and at that point we'll start seeing some high flying dealing and signing. Who's excited? VendorBall is excited!

BenJarvus Jeremy Green-Ellis YOU GET IN THIS HOUSE RIGHT NOW!!!

2008-11-12T09:26:00.004-05:00

Well, the Pats sport blue and win yet again, behind a strong performance by BenJarvus Jeremy "Law Firm" Green-Ellis. Honestly, I want a jersey with that whole name on the back of it (the letters would have to be REALLY small). It amazes the mind and the loins that the Pats seem to have two personalities this year, the first is a confident go forth and crush all comers, and the second is an unsure, timid child. The confident team wins, the timid team loses.

The final score of the game was 20-10, but the game was never even that close. The Pats spent most of the game with a 10 point lead (10-0 and 13-3) and only allowed a junk TD with 1:46 left in the final quarter. The Pats held the Bills to 60 yards rushing and only 180 yards of total offense. They picked Trent Edwards twice this game and sacked him twice more. Edwards is starting to show that he is not a great quarterback. He is a good quarterback, perhaps even very good and certainly good enough to win a Super Bowl, but he's not even in the upper tier of his generation.

On the other side of the ball, my boy BJJG-E rushed for 105 yards and a touchdown, which came at the end of a 9-minute drive that pretty much sapped the entirety of the 4th quarter. He never broke off a big run, and doesn't seem to have that capability, but constantly ripped off 4-6 yard gains every time he touched the ball. Cassel turned into a reliable NFL quarterback, going 23/34 for 234 yards in a well managed game. His favorite target: Wes Welker who is on pace for another 100 reception season. This week: just 105 yards on 10 catches. Perhaps more encouraging, was that Cassel got Randy Moss involved in the offense to the tune of 5 catches for 53 yards, as well as a failed end-around.

Unfortunately, Linebacker Adalius Thomas suffered a forearm injury in the game and had to be removed in the second quarter. Some reports say it is broken and will require season ending surgery, while others state that he is out for Week 11 and may be able to return before the end of the season. Wait and hear on that one.

Oh, and the Pats wore blue and won... again. I should think they'll shelf the lucky blue a couple weeks and save the luck for the playoffs.

They take the field again Thursday night against the Jets and Brett Favre (by the way, shouldn't that be pronounced FAV-ray?) as well as newly acquired cornerback Ty Law.

Player of the Game: Who do you think!? LAWFIRM, baby!

News & Notes - We're Here!

2008-11-11T16:26:00.005-05:00

Oh yeah, don't think we've forgotten.

The Celtics have beaten the Pistons and Raptors, the Patriots trounced the Bills, and Tim Lincecum won the N.L. Cy Young Award. Oh, and the Bruins are in first place. Bet you didn't see that one coming.

We're here, and will have a slew of updates by the end of the week. VendorBall writers get busy too, you know. We'll be back and better than ever in 48 hours, up to our usual antics.

Bucked Up - Boston 101, Milwaukee 89

2008-11-08T15:53:00.004-05:00

Right, so last night was pretty much the same old story we're used to with the Celtics. They started slow against a young, weaker, exuberant-as-hell team, finally gained their bearings, and ended up winning in a blowout. We get it. Seen it before. The Celts improve to 5-1 on the season and will now move on to face the Iverson-led Pistons. Great.

Can we talk about something more thought-provoking for a moment? ... Who the hell designed the Bucks' logo and uniforms? They look like a damn Christmas tree. Being a bit of a sports logo nut, I can understand the reasoning behind the green and red color palette. That's what they wore in the seventies, so it's kind of a throwback and/or homage. How touching.

On your right is a picture of Lew Alcindor (better known as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar) playing for the Bucks in the mid-1970s (click to enlarge for a better look). Not the best jerseys in the world, but hey, who looked good back then? That was a decade filled with shag carpeting, all-in-one end-table-lamp combinations and everything adorned in some sort of plaid pattern. There's a reason why it went out of style, though. It looked awful. Styles evolve for a reason, and sometimes, it's better not to pay tribute to what sucked in the first place, and these Milwaukee uniforms are a prime example.

Here is the latest incarnation of the Milwaukee crew (again, click to enlarge). I'm sorry, but...good lord. You can't expect to be taken seriously when wearing these things. You want your team to be hoisting the Larry O'Brien trophy in June with people humming "Deck the Halls"? I wouldn't. And by the way, the same level of uniform ugliness goes for the Grizzlies, Clippers, Warriors and most of all, Thunder. You all need to head back to the drawing board and come up with a look that people can get behind. Plus, you're not selling merchandise if it's all branded with that level of embarrassment.

But back to my original topic... the Celtics are still sitting atop their division, and now begin a five-games-in-seven-days stretch tomorrow night in Detroit. Should be fun.

Final Score: Boston Celtics 101, Red-Nosed Reindeer 89.
Player of the Game: Paul Pierce, BOS (18 Pts, 10 Reb, 7 Ast)

-- Dan Zappulla, With Two Eyes Made Out of Coal.

Lugo for Willis and Other Notes

2008-11-07T16:08:00.005-05:00

Scott Miller from CBS is reporting that the Red Sox are feeling out a deal with the Tigers that would send lefty Dontrelle Willis to the Red Sox in exchange for Julio Lugo. Bad deal in my opinion. Having never been high on the lefty with the wacky delivery, at $11M, he would be paid more than Josh Beckett and Dice-K through next year. The Red Sox seem to be going with Beckett-Matsuzaka-Lester-Wakefield-Buchholz/Masterson/Free Agent. I think Buchholz should slide back into that rotation spot if you want to keep Masterson as a reliever. Of course, I like Masterson as a starter, but you can always change his role if need be.

With many teams needing a shortstop this off-season, and only two years left on Lugo's deal, it's not a stretch to think he could get traded this off-season for pitching help. As I've said before, their minor league system is lacking a guy who can hit for power, so a power hitting prospect and perhaps a young middle reliever would be a good return for Lugo. The White Sox, Tigers, and Cardinals might be in the bidding if Theo decides to pull this trigger this off-season.

Nick Cafardo of Boston.com is also reporting that the Red Sox are interested in striking a deal for Tampa Bay OF and Rhode Island native Rocco Baldelli. Cafardo reports that the Sox are trying to put in their due diligence regarding Baldelli's mitochondrial disease, which causes premature muscle fatigue. Baldelli would most likely be a replacement for Coco Crisp, should he be dealt.

Fenway Park Notes

2008-11-07T11:58:00.005-05:00

The Red Sox have made a pitch to Major League baseball to host the 2012 All-Star game in order to celebrate the stadium's 100th birthday. Currently, Fenway is both the smallest and oldest park in the Majors, and one of the few stadiums in any sport that has that old-school charm and intensity night in and night out. Fenway hosted the All-Star game back in 1999, and usually the game only comes around every 30 or so years.

Also, the Red Sox are adding another 560 seats in our little Boston ballpark. This is the 8th straight year Fenway has been engrossed in offseason construction - every year since Henry, Warner, and Lucchino took over the team. At least some of the seats will be in the upper deck beyond first base. Other improvements are also planned, including waterproofing the lower deck and fixing the roof down the third baseline.

CONGRATULATIONS DIRTDOG McMUNCHKIN!

2008-11-06T22:22:00.004-05:00

Congratulations to Dustin Pedroia for winning his first Gold Glove for his exemplary work at second base this season. This award improves his chances to with the MVP too, so keep your eyes peeled. The complete list of MLB Gold Glove Winners is below.

American League
P - Mike Mussina
C - Joe Mauer
1B- Carlos Pena
2B- Dustin Pedroia
3B- Adrian Beltre
SS- Michael Young
OF-Ichiro Suzuki
OF-Torii Hunter
OF-Grady Sizemore

National League
P - Greg Maddux
C - Yadier Molina
1B- Adrian Gonzalez
2B- Brandon Phillips
3B- David Wright
SS- Jimmy Rollins
OF- Nate McClouth
OF- Carlos Beltran
OF- Shane Victorino

Warming Up the Stove: Part Deux!

2008-11-06T12:33:00.005-05:00

The most exciting part of the winter for baseball fans are the trade rumors that abound, and piecing together crazy situations that might or might not occur. This offseason proves to be one of particular excitement. When a ton of big free agents need to be signed, more players need to be moved in order to accommodate the rosters. So for now, here are some of the rumors that are dominating the Hot Stove Conversations.

9) Khalil Green, SS, Padres. Greene is a fair fielding, soft hitting shortstop. There seems to be a lot of interest in him for reasons I cannot even begin to explain except for a lack of solid shortstops in the majors. That said, the Orioles, Reds, Tigers and Blue Jays are all reportedly interested in Greene, so stay posted on this one.

8) Mets' Middle Relievers. Rumors have it that the Mets are shopping most of their relievers in search of other relievers, starters, or other upgrades (most likely LF). I am not sure what they think they're going to benefit by this, but it doesn't hurt to shop around.

7) Hideki Matsui, OF, Yankees. There have been some rumors about a three way deal with the Mariners. They'd get back prospects and package them and their own to the Rockies for Matt Holliday. If they do that, then Seattle, just kill your owner, cause that is a terrible move. Matsui is not only an all-around good guy and solid outfielder, but he hits really well and plays the game at full-tilt. Because of that he's often hurt and is getting old. I don't see any deals getting done here, and Matsui should remain in pinstripes next year.

6) Covelli "Coco" Crisp, CF, Red Sox. The Sox once again are searching out a home for the speedy Coco Crisp. Coco ended the year with pretty good numbers, and as always playing Gold Glove caliber CF. The switch hitter could be moved for a prospect who exhibits some power - either 3B or corner outfield. The Cubs are in the market for a CF and a top of the lineup guy. Then again, if they sell their prospects for Peavy they might not have the goods to give back. As always, Crisp could just come back for another season.

5) Mike Cameron, CF, Brewers. The Brewers picked up Mike Cameron's contract option for $10 Mil. However, they might be ready to go with a more traditional speed/contact CF in Tony Gwinn Jr. If that's the case, they could look to move Cameron and try to fill a need in their rotation. Cameron hits for power, and plays a fantastic defensive CF. The Brewers could just as easily decide to keep him, and that his pricetag is fair.

4) Andy Sonnanstine/Edwin Jackson, SP, Rays. With David Price primed to move into the rotation, and James Shields, Matt Garza, and Scott Kazmir locked in, the Rays have an "extra" starting pitcher. Of course, you can never have enough starting pitching, but the Rays need an OF/DH for next season and can sling one of their young pitchers for a young bat. Sonnastine has better control and composure, while Jackson has the overall better stuff. The Cardinals might be a good fit to move one of their OFs if they want to strengthen their staff. It has already been reported that the Mets have been in discussions with the Rays about their pitchers, but no word on any potential deals.

3)Ryan Ludwick/Rick Ankiel, OF, Cardinals. It looks like the Cardinals are ready to go with Duncan, Brian Barton or one of their other young OFs, and are willing to trade one of these guys in order to beef up their infield production, especially up the middle. There are some options out there for these guys. For one, the Braves seem willing to part with 2B Kelly Johnson for one of these two. With the free agents available up the middle (Hudson, Cabrera, Renteria) it'll be interesting to see if they decide to deal instead of sign.

2) Matt Holliday, OF, Rockies. Despite Holliday's mediocre numbers away from Coors field, he will still get the Rockies some solid prospects in return for his services. He has one year left on his contract, and can be hand for an affordable figure ($13.5M). So trading for Holliday might be a one year deal, however most of them would probably come with some sort of contract extension. Holliday is still a solid hitter and will contribute in the middle of any lineup. Not only does he hit for a high average and for power, he takes a TON of walks. That is somewhat a because he has little protection in the Rockies lineup, but it's also because he has good plate discipline. Potential suitors for his services are the Phillies and the Yankees. The Phillies make the most sense if they don't resign Burrell.

1) Jake Peavy, SP, Padres. This Padres ace is arguably the best pitcher in the game. His career ERA is under 3 (2.85) and even though he pitches in the pitcher uber-friendly NLWest, he is still one of the top 5 young (28 or younger and 6 seasons of 100+ innings) pitchers you want to build your staff around (others: Zambrano, Beckett, Santana, Webb). Peavy is an ace and makes ANY team better. Of course, the rest of his contract is somewhat expensive (~$16M/yr.), for what you're getting he's an absolute steal. He'd make over $20M on the free agent market today. He's under contract until 2013, so this is a long term investment for some team. However, it will cost a king's ransom in prospects to lure him away from the Padres - probably 2 young pitchers, one young position player, and an outfielder who's major league ready (or close). Now, Peavy wants to stay in the NL cause he loves hitting and competing. As it stands, the Cubs are pursuing Peavy, as are the Braves. The Cubs would make a huge splash with this trade, and give hope back to a dejected fan base, and they have the prospects to do it.

And for those of you who thought I'd get to 10... well you don't know me real good, do you!?

Written by Kyle Baxter: Champion of Munchkinland!

Warming Up the Stove

2008-11-06T09:50:00.002-05:00

After taking some time away from baseball, I think it's time to dive back in. The stove is warming up quickly, as this could be a big off-season in terms of free agent signings and trades. In the interest of... well interest, we're going list-style! Two lists - one for free agents, one for potential trades, and we'll count down the x most interesting stories in each category, where x is a random integer between 0 and 100 (yes, I'm letting my nerd show a little, big whoop, wanna fight about it!?)

Free Agents
Just the free agent class here - some interesting stories at the top (well the bottom of this list, physically, but the lowest numbers)

Mid Levels

40) Braden Looper, SP. Could find himself at the back end of any number of rotations. He pitches all right, but is never dominant, but he can give you 180 innings. Probably a low pricetag so he could go to a small market team like the Royals, or Pirates, but a team like the Rangers, or Twins might take a chance on him, too.

39)Curt Schilling, SP. Schill has expressed interest in coming back for another year. Honestly, it's pretty obvious to me he wants to make it into the Hall of Fame and needs some more wins in order to get there with certainty (he's currently borderline). I don't see the Sox bringing him back, as they're likely to go with their young guns. He could find a home back in Philadelphia, or in Pittsburgh for a short salary, since it is about beefing up his numbers, not the money. He'd be best served in a pitcher-friendly NL ballpark.

38) Mark Grudzielanek, IF. The aging infielder may have another year or two left in his MLB career. A slightly below average hitter but solid fielder has some backup IF left in him, but he could continue to start at 2B for the Royals. I expect him to go back to KC.

37) Mark Loretta, IF. Solid fielder, and an average bat, with good on-base ability, a small step up from Grudzielanek. One of those guys who can backup or play every day and is just a solid teammate. If the Red Sox don't bring Cora back they could make a run at Mark. Otherwise look at any number of teams to bring in the versatile infielder.

36) Paul Byrd, SP. After a rough season with Cleveland, Byrd upped his offseason value with a strong late-season showing with the Sox. A finesse pitcher who can give you innings, Byrd's optimal location would be a big ballpark, and those places can probably use a pitcher. I like the Pirates, Royals, and Padres to drop a couple million on Byrdie.

35) Frank Thomas, 1B/DH. A Hall-of-Famer deciding whether to hang 'em up or to push forward for another year. He struggled last year with a quadriceps injury so he may decide to retire, but if we've noticed anything in the last few years, is that the spring turns players minds. The A's, or Rays could try and win his services for next year, as he can still spank the ball with the best of them.

34) Jon Garland, SP. Except for his one all-star season in 2005, Jon Garland has been a very predictable pitcher. A back of the rotation, inning eater who will give you around a .500 performance and 200 innings and 32 starts. Some team will be willing to jump on his consistency, and I like the Marlins, Rockies, Giants, and Padres for the cheap arm.

33) Moises Alou, LF. Despite not playing in 100 game for the last few season, Moises Alou continues to prove that he can play "hit ball with stick" at a Major League level. He might have fallen off too much to play the field everyday with any effectiveness, but a DH/platoon role could suit him if the right AL team came calling. I like the Rays for him, since they need the DH and depth help and can likely afford his low price.

32) Jamie Moyer, SP. I know he had a good year last year, but I cannot consider a 46-year-old, soft-tossing lefty a great signing. That said, I think the Phillies take him back for 2009, cause apparently he never wants to retire.

31) Randy Wolf, SP. You can pretty much expect an ERA in the mid-4.00's and around 160-180 innings from Mr. Wolf. A back of the rotation guy he can give you innings, occasionally quality innings, but not much else. He is a lefty which presents matchup problems for some teams, but he's a solid arm to add to a rotation. The Mets, Orioles, Rangers, Mariners, and Astros could make a play.

30) Ivan Rodriguez, C. At 37, he's not the Pudge we remember from the late 90's, but the career .301 hitter can still catch a game and hit. He may not be able to cope with a full season behind the dish, but for a platoon role behind the plate and some time at 1B/DH would be good. An interesting option for the Rays, but could also go back to Detroit, to KC, or even the O's.

29) Casey Blake, 3B/OF. Blake is a solid player, and you know exactly what you're getting with him. Sadly he is the cream of the 3B free-agent crop. So any team looking to add a third-basemen might need to give Blake an offer. Because of this, he might command a fairly high salary compared to what he would otherwise make - demand drives the market. Look for the White Sox and Dodgers to make a play at him.

28) Raul Ibanez, OF. How this guy is a type-A free agent is beyond me. He hits in the .280's with 20 homers and 90 RBI, which is solid but this is not a Type-A guy. Whatever, the OF needs a home and Seattle isn't about to pony up and give him a good contract. In fact, we think here that they should firesale their big contracts (Ichiro, Silva, Washburn, Beltre, and Batista) and build for 2011 or 2012. Anyhow, Ibanez should find a home with the Mets, Braves, Rays or perhaps the DBacks.

Taking a Chance
Guys who have been hurt, or that you can't necessarily count on for some reason. Think of it as High Risk/High Reward.

27) Kenshin Kawakami, SP. One of the best pitchers in Japan, this 34-year-old is looking for work over in America. We have seen mixed results from players coming from Japan over to the States - from the success of Ichiro, to the failure of Hideki Irabu and everywhere inbetween (Dice-K? So Taguchi?). So when getting a player from Japan it's tough to know exactly what you're getting, unless you can see him against major league hitters. That said, I think he goes to either the Red Sox, Cubs or the Dodgers - some place where some Japanese players are already playing, and can afford his pricetag.

26) Mark Prior, SP. Now begins the run of injured pitchers. Prior is the most intriguing hurler of the bunch because of his age (27) and his once dominant stuff. He hasn't pitched since early in 2006 and three years later, some team is going to take a shot on him. Prior could sign an incentive laden deal somewhere where they aren't counting on him to necessarily pitch at the major league level. This is just the kind of signing that the Red Sox like to make (ala Bartolo Colon), and they can afford big incentives. If not them, then I think it'll be a larger market team who needs an emergency starter - Cardinals, White Sox, Angels, and Astros are others.

25) Carl Pavano, SP. A 4 year, $40 Mil. deal, and Pavano pitched a grand total of 145.2 innings of a 9-8 record. I'd be more obnoxious, but Matt Clement was also a bust. Anyhow, someone wants to give this guy a contract, and it might be the Marlins - the last place he pitched effectively. Common sense says he owes the Yankees a cheap year, but he'll probably go with the money. Look for an incentive driven deal with the fish.

24) Brad Penny, SP. From third place in the Cy Young voting in '07 to a 6.27 ERA in 97 innings in '08. That is an epic fall off for a generally solid pitcher. This was the year after Penny's first 200 inning season since 2001. And again, in 2002 he was ineffective. I think we've learned something here. Now where does Penny end up? Back pitching for the Dodgers, makes sense, especially with Lowe leaving for the market.

23) Ken Griffey, Jr., OF. On the downside of what will undoubtedly be a Hall-of-Fame career, Griffey will be looking for a new home, probably to end his career. Seattle would be a sentimental way to go out, and would probably be a draw for some of their fans, despite potentially setting the organization back a year or two. Let's hope the Seattle brass agrees in some way, and bring him back for a goodbye season or two at a discount.

22) Jason Varitek, C. Tek is getting old, and his productivity has gone down. The Red Sox fan favorite is up for a new contract, and Boras wants him to get a Posada deal (4 years, 13.1M/yr). The Sox may bite and give it to him (sadly), but I doubt they will. In fact, I don't think anyone will bite on that. I think the Sox will look to get younger and more productive from the catching position by trading with Texas for one of their young catchers (Saltalamacchia or Laird). Varitek could end up with Detroit under a short term deal.

21) Jason Isringhausen, CP. The injury Izzy suffered last year may end his career. If not, he could look to come back and pitch a little more for some team looking to bolster their bullpen. The Marlins, Tigers, Braves, and Pirates may be a match if he's willing to take a discount. However, he is just as likely to hang up the spikes for good.

20) Kerry Wood, RP. Like Mark Prior, Wood has had a problem staying healthy. Moreover, he's in line to lose his closers job in Chicago to Carlos Marmol, who looks to be primed to take the position. Does Wood find a job outside of Chicago? I doubt it, I think the Cubs bring him back as a middle reliever who can close if need be and can potentially be stretched out and make a few starts.

19) Chad Cordero, RP/CP. A 27 year-old coming off of surgery for his biceps tendon and labrum aren't always high on teams "to get" lists. Cordero, though, is a young, talented reliever, who will find a home on the back end of someone's bullpen. He expects to be ready by spring training this year, but that might be a little optimistic given his condition. I think Oakland, the Giants, or the Rangers roll the dice and try to grab him with a 2-4 year deal.

18) Oliver Perez, SP. Inconsistency thy name is Oliver. Perez is a lefty with a hard fastball and a wicked slider. However, he's plagued by walks and gives up too many gopher balls. At only 27, he's one of the few guys you might want to take a chance on for a long term deal, perhaps laden with incentives. It could be a good fit for a middle of the road team to try this guy as a middle of the rotation starter, but the Mets have the interest to bring him back to NY, and that's probably where he'll go. If not, I like the Giants and White Sox to make a run.

17) Milton Bradley, OF/DH. After setting career highs in Batting Average (.323), RBI (77), HRs (22), OBP (.436) and SLG (.563), Bradley is still not going to get a big, lucrative contract. First, we know he benefit from hitting near Josh Hamilton who had a half season of tearing the cover off the ball. We do not know whether he'll be able to repeat that performance anywhere else. Second, he's also a known mental case, who only played more than 130 games one season. So can anyone put up with his mental capacities long enough to let him produce? Can he produce at all without a strong hitter behind him? Good question. I think we'll see a basement dwelling team take a shot on him.

16) Ryan Dempster, SP. Dempster made his move nack to the starting rotation this year and had a lot of success... in the regular season anyway. He threw over 200 innings, and kept his ERA under three. He wants to explore the free agent market, but I think that he ends up back in a Cubs uniform, and with Carlos Zambrano and Rich Harden, he'll help make up a strong Cubs rotation for 2009. No one else will pay Dempster what the Cubs will, since he just came off his first 200 inning season since 2002.

All-Star-ish Caliber
Not that these guys have all been or will be all-stars, but they're solid MLB players and you pretty much know what you're getting with them

15a) Mike Mussina and Andy Pettitte, SP. Both of these guys will either retire or play for the Yankees. Not much to discuss here, but figured I should slide them in here.

15) Brian Fuentes, CP. Anyone who wanted Francisco Rodriguez will end up trying to settle for Fuentes. The lefty recorded 30 saves last year, strikes out better than a batter an inning for his career, and will be a consistent back end of any bullpen. The Mets will try to pick him up if they can't get at K-Rod, and likewise, the Tigers may show some interest. The Rangers may make a run if they decide they actually want to win this year, too.

14) Edgar Renteria, SS. When will Renteria learn that he is not cut out to play in the American League? Posting some of his lowest numbers since he played in Boston, that 10M/yr. contract is finally up. So now what? Detroit still needs a shortstop, as will the White Sox. But the fit for Rent-A-Wreck is the National League. Reports say that the Cardinals are intrigued by the idea of bringing him back, and I couldn't agree more.

13) Orlando Cabrera, SS. O-Cab put forth yet another season as we've come to expect. Good BA, drew some walks, not a lot of power, but stole some bases, while playing strong defense at shortstop. O-Cab has moved around in sync with Edgar Renteria (their contracts seem to always be up in the same year), so since he's on the move, he could go over to Detroit, or stay with the White Sox (I'm under the impression Ozzie likes him). On the other hand, the Cardinals might want to move for him if they can't get Rentie.

11) Orlando Hudson, 2B. Hudson is above average in batting average and fielding, but doesn't hit for power or take enough walks. That said, he is a second baseman, and there are very few talented second basemen in the league (how lucky are the Sox to have Pedroia?!). Despite not taking enough walks or stealing bases, his OPS has increased with respect to the league every year, which points to him being a smart hitter. I think the Cardinals sign him for something in the high single digits.

10) Bobby Abreu, RF. After another productive year in pinstripes, Abreu will look to get a new contract, and probably the kind of money he got from the Yankees the last few years (~15M/yr). He's still hitting for some power (20 HRs in '08), stealing bases (20 in '08), and drawing a lot of walks (73 in '08) although that number has declined in the power-packed Yankee lineup. There should be a lot of takers for Abreu, but he might get lost in the shuffle with all the free agents. Since he's a lefty, I don't think the Phillies will be interested. The Yankees may try to bring him back for a short term deal, or anyone who couldn't fill their roster with Manny Ramirez, Pat Burrell, or Adam Dunn. If the Marlins try to make their once-every-6-years run, they could try to cut him a deal and then fire-sale him after the run.

9) Pat Burrell, LF. Coming down on his high after winning the World Series, "The Best Hitter Nobody Fears" is now a free agent. He has already turned down a 2 year, $22M offer from the Phils, so he'll be trying his luck elsewhere, probably looking to get up to the $14M he was paid last year for his services. I don't know where the Phillies are going to find a right-handed bat to protect lefties Utley and Howard instead, but Burrell has been consistent enough to be one of those guys who ends up anywhere. I think the AL makes sense for him as a DH, despite being only 32. The Orioles could sign him to a big deal, continuing their trend at signing overrated players at too much money. He'd be a better fit with the Jays, and would be a smart signing by the Yanks, or the Angels if they decline Garrett Anderson's option.

8) Adam Dunn, LF. The quintessential Billy Beane guy: low batting average, lots of walks and lots of power. Could he end up in Oakland? I doubt it, but only because he'll demand a salary a bit too high for the A's. The Mets need an outfielder, as do the Diamondbacks. He has also, reportedly, expressed interest in being reunited with Austin Kearns, which would move him to Washington. Although that's not signing a pitcher, that's a good first move. If the Rays want to shock with a big free agent signing - I think this is the guy.

7) Derek Lowe, SP. Lowe floundered a bit in the playoffs this year, and is 36. Lowe will be looking for a 3-4 year deal and probably for less money than most of the big name pitchers on the market (and boy are there a ton). He makes for a smart signing for a team trying to make a run but not wanting to spend a ton of money on a front-of-the-line guy. Sound like the Mets to you? Yeah, me too. He'll also draw interest from the Brewers, Cardinals, White Sox, Tigers, Rangers, Angels, Braves, Astros and Yankees. Yes, consistency will do that for you.

6) Ben Sheets, SP. Sheets has been injury prone over the year. He hasn't topped 200 innings since 2004, and despite pitching 194 this year, he did not pitch in the playoffs. That said Sheets has dominant stuff including a giant curve. Someone will take him for some big money - maybe 17M + incentives - and take their chances on his arm. The Yankees could make a play if they don't sign CC Sabathia, and the Tigers are looking for an arm, too. The Brewers have already made him an offer, but I think he ends up leaving. Look for the Dodgers or Cardinals to try and pick him up for a short term deal, and have him prove he can stay healthy. If the Nationals or Orioles want to make a splash in the rotation, this might be their chance.

The Big Boys
You'll see the same few teams mentioned over and over here - remember, these guys will command a lot of money, and only a few teams can really make plays at them.

5) A.J. Burnett, SP. After missing time over two seasons with injuries, A.J. Burnett finally pitched a full season with the Blue Jays and helping them to the lowest ERA of any Major League team. Despite pitching a ton of innings (221) and racking up 231 strikeouts (good for first in the AL), his ERA was up at 4.06. Though not stunning, his DIPS ERA (a sabermetric value for expected ERA based on strikeouts & home runs and whatnot) was 3.47. So, as the Baseball Prospectus crowd would say: "He's a victim of bad luck." Agreed. Solid pitcher, and you've got to like a guy who eats up innings with quality stuff. The Jays are making a serious run at him, and the Yankees might put a bid in there, too. The Brewers are losing a lot of their rotation and could make a push. If the Mets want to sure up their rotation they could be a player.

4) Francisco Rodriguez, CP. I am not big fan of paying a lot of money to any kind of reliever. Now, K-Rod (as he's commonly known) is looking for 5 years and probably around $15/yr. Thankfully, teams with a closer won't have to worry about that deal. K-Rod had a ton of saves (62) last year, but did not have great numbers - blowing 7 saves, with an OBP against at .316 which does not help project well for the future. He has also been weak in the playoffs the last two years - getting hammered by the Red Sox. Now, while I'm not high on K-Rod, he does have good stuff and does have a closer's mentality. A good fit for him would be the Tigers who desperately need an anchor in the back of that bullpen but won't pony up the cash, The Angels may try to sign him too, but also won't come up that money. The Mets could also make a play, but I don't see anyone coming with that money.

3) Manny Ramirez, LF/DH. The drama Ramirez has surrounded himself has been forgotten due to his good nature and frantic hitting. Long forgotten was his disgruntled play in Boston, and now he wants to be the highest paid player in baseball. Well, actually, from what I know about Manny he doesn't necessarily care, but Boras sure as hell wants him to be. I think as long as Manny could play ball, make around $15M, and not be bothered outside the baseball park he'd be happy. So he should stay in L.A. to end his career, but Boras will have him going elsewhere, for more years. The Dodgers will pay him for 2 years, but I think the Mets will beef up and give him 4 years at around $27.5M. Also look for the Yankees to get involved for that eff-you-Boston factor.

2) Mark Teixeira, 1B. Tex was a beast for the Angels over the last half of the year, and even performed all right in the playoffs (recall: all singles). Tex brings elite defense and solid switch hitting offense for the middle of any lineup. There haven't been a lot of switch hitters who could fit into the middle of a lineup, so it's a nice luxury to have. The Angels desperately want to bring him back, but he's also being poked at by the Red Sox, and I imagine we'll see the Yankees in the hunt. The Orioles are said to be making a run, and if the Dodgers don't sign Manny they may want to kick the tires. Basically, every team in the majors without a solid first basemen going into the year (and even a few who do) will be looking at Tex. I like the Yankees here since they'll be looking for a first baseman, and they've got the money.

1) CC Sabathia, SP. The big, oft overweight southpaw carried the Brewers on his hefty shoulders and carried them to the playoffs. But as people seem to be forgetting, he did yet another Major League choke job in the playoffs. Was it a function of the number of innings he threw? Perhaps. Or it could be that he sucks in the playoffs. That aside, he will command "Johan Santana money" (~23M/yr) wherever he goes. Some reports say that he wants to pitch in his home state of California and he really likes pitching in the N.L. (Hmm, the N.L. West... interesting "coincidence" that there are a grand total of zero good hitters in that league), so some are thinking that the Dodgers might make a run at him. But as he's managed by the soulless Scott Boras who cares nothing for that malarkey (meaning, client preferences) and wants to get paid, I expect he'll end up in Yankee pinstripes with some preposterous contract.

Written by Kyle Baxter: Baseball Whore

Road Rumblin' - Celtics 96 ,Thunder 83

2008-11-06T08:55:00.013-05:00

Defense wins championships -- we all know that. During the opening quarter of last night's first-ever meeting between the Celtics and Thunder, the NBA Champions seemed to have forgotten that timeless creed.

To be frank, the youngsters from Oklahoma City ran all over the court, putting up a gaudy 29 points in the first frame. The Thunder could do no wrong -- passes were crisp, all five men sprinted the floor, and shots seems inevitably true. For the young franchise, this was their "Game Seven of the NBA Finals." For the Celtics, this may become an all-too-familiar trend. Every single team in the league will be gunning for them, trying to make their mark against the bearers of the crown. That is the difficulty of trying to defend a championship.

But as true champions, the Celtics battled back. They dominated the young Thunder in the second quarter behind a suffocating defensive stand. The champs outscored the home team 30-15 in that frame and would never relinquish the lead. This was, at least in part, due to the Thunder's carelessness with the basketball. They seemed to turn it over on every other possession, allowing the C's to carefully and steadily build upon their lead. Over the second and third frames, the Thunder were held to only 26 points, as Boston finished their three-game road trip with two wins.

Up next, the Celtics finally return home to face Richard Jefferson and the new-look Milwaukee Bucks (3-2). As a side note, the C's exercised their fourth-year option on point guard Rajon Rondo, keeping him in town, which came as a surprise to absolutely no one.

Final Score: Boston Celtics 96, Oklahoma City Thunder 83
Player of the Game: Paul Pierce, BOS (20 Pts, 5 Ast, 9 Reb)

- Dan Zappulla, Waiting for the Weekend.

They Have a Problem - Celtics 103, Rockets 99

2008-11-05T15:01:00.008-05:00

Yeah I'll be honest -- no one, including me, watched much of this game. We were all glued to election coverage, and rightly so. I did catch a small snippet of the action, though, enough to see the Celtics squeak by with a narrow win against the previously unbeaten Rockets (3-1).

The Celtics lost consecutive games on three separate occasions last year, and following a weekend loss in Indiana, they weren't about to have their first losing streak of 2008-09 come so soon. Last night's game play was dominated by the Big Three, who merely outlasted Houston's version of the same moniker -- Tracy McGrady, Yao Ming and the newly acquired Ron Artest. Ray Allen led Boston's star-powered charge, finishing with a game-high 29 points, looking like the sharpshooter of old.

Tonight, the defending NBA Champions make their first-ever trip to Oklahoma City to face the league's newest team, the Thunder (1-2), led by young star Kevin Durant. The franchise moved from Seattle in the off-season.

Final Score: Boston Celtics 103, Houston Rockets 99
Player of the Game: Ray Allen, BOS (29 Pts, 5 Ast, 5 Reb)

-- Dan Zappulla, Rockin' the Vote.

Election 2008: The Morning After

2008-11-05T08:40:00.010-05:00

We know sports. Despite not being reporters with locker room access, and not making a living off of the business, what we know at VendorBall is sports. However, when an election of such epic proportions lands on our doorstep, we feel obligated to express our opinion on the matter. Sports and politics usually do not intersect unless we're talking about the General Manager of a sport, or discussing the steroid trials at Congress. But last night, for the first time ever, I was watching an election that felt like a major sporting event.

We raised our glasses (er... well bottles/cans) at every Obama victory - loud for states like Massachusetts where we knew he'd win, and louder still when he took Ohio and Pennsylvania. High fives, jeering at the opponent, and progressive drunkenness in front of a TV late on a Tuesday - I could have been watching the playoffs. And that's how it felt. Politics had achieved a level of passion I have yet to see in the five elections I have been lucky enough to witness and remember.

We will not call it an "historic election" as everyone else seems so keen on doing. It was an election and we do this every four years. "The first African-American ever to win the presidency!" Well, he's half. So he's half of the first African-American ever to win the presidency. Or the first half... whatever. It was not an historic election - it was a historic outcome. Only 50 years ago, African-Americans had fire hoses turned on them for peaceful displays demanding equality. So in that sense, we've come a long way - even though it was a win that even our resident republican expected, it was truly something we've never seen before.

And speaking of republicans, McCain's eventual concession speech was a marvel. For a heated election, he hushed boos aimed at Obama and even had me believing that he thinks Obama will make a good president. We were all pretty sure that McCain didn't believe in Obama, but he changed the minds of many, and reminded us that we are all Americans. Seeing him stand up there in his awkward way, saying "my friends" in that creepy voice was familiar enough, but what he said was a testament to his character. Through this election I had managed to forget that I like McCain. I think he's a good senator and was rooting for him to come out of the Republican primaries. It's nice that things can fall back to normal.

On the other side, Obama's acceptance speech was the magic we have come to expect every time he takes the podium. I felt having to see Jesse Jackson and Oprah over and over again was annoying (we get it, first black president, we're proud too) and took ever so slightly away from a night that should have been 100% Obama's (not 99.99%). But he was gracious, elegant, and powerful in his speech, and Americans everywhere hope he will be just that way for four years in the oval office.

So as we wind down the last two and a half months of the Bush presidency, we at VendorBall will move back to sports, likely not to adventure into the world of politics again for another four years. But for one night, politics felt like home to us.

VendorBall's 2008 Interactive Electoral Insanity!

2008-11-03T09:57:00.019-05:00

The full title is actually "VendorBall's 2008 Interactive Election Vagina Prying Eyes Self Insemenating Crazy Time Budweiser Clusterfuck - It's Our Damn Blog, Don't Tell Us What To Do, The Man" but it was a tad too big to fit in the blog title.

Anywho, we here at VendorBall are not only sports nuts, but we follow politics too! With the U.S. Presidential Election under 24 hours away, we thought we'd chime in with our predictions for the full electoral college, and give you a shot to participate in the blog as well!

Here's how it works: YOUR job is to leave comments on this post with your WINNER of the general election, and the WINNER'S NUMBER OF ELECTORAL VOTES. Don't be shy about bidding high. This isn't "The Price Is Right" -- you won't lose by going overbid. (Then again, you won't win a new car, either.) Your prize, though, is a very special VendorBall blog dedicated to you! We'll post your picture and write a nice little blurb about how fucking great you are. Sound nice? We thought so.

So without further adieu, here are the OFFICIAL VendorBall projections for tomorrow's general election. Also, I'll add that Kyle and I filled out our maps separately, and ended up with the exact same map. I swear, we were somehow separated at birth. (And then some filthy homeless person dyed Baxter's hair red.)

Remember, leave your WINNER and WINNING NUMBER OF ELECTORAL VOTES as a comment in this very blog, and your name and vote will be posted right here on VendorBall! We'll be updating this thing round-the-clock with your projections! Good luck to all who enter, and the winner will be announced on Thursday!

VendorBall's Staff Picks for the 2008 Election:

(Click for larger image.)

Reader Responses
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Reader Carrie
I find it disheartening that your staff gave almost every important toss up state to Obama. As the poli-sci major (and the Republican) of the group, my predictions go slightly differently. (Hint: I have a feeling that the election will be a lot closer) ;)

Obama-291. Watch for a lot of people in Florida to be unjustly upset about his aunt's immigration status, where this is a key issue.

McCain- 247. Watch for the Palin ticket to get a lot more votes than anticipated. I predict that Republican voters in Ohio, with all the hype that this is supposed to be a landslide for Obama, will come out in droves to support the working class mom.

VendorBall
We disagree with what you say, but we will defend to the death your right to say it. We gave the toss-up states Missouri, and North Carolina to McCain while putting Nevada, Ohio, Florida and Virginia in Obama's - which, by our research, is the way things seem like they could go. Agreed, we are not experts as much as fans, but I do not think our claims are unjustified. But we accept your point and your expertise in the subject. If you win, we shall write your post in scarlet red to honor your polite Republicanism.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Reader Munchkin
Obama 322
McCain 216

VendorBall
And if you win, we shall write your victorious post in extra-small fonts, for your people!

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Reader Sheena
Obama 344
McCain 194

VendorBall
If you are victorious we shall write in BLUE, both for your raging support of the democratic party, and the color of the Hens - the UDelaware mascot.

Indianapolis 18, New England 15

2008-11-03T09:48:00.007-05:00

It was a tough loss for the Patriots, in one of the strangest games I have had the pleasure of watching as of late. The game only had 16 possessions (8 per half), three penalties, and 33 points combined. Remember, these two teams have been the extreme high-powered offense at different times this decade, so watching the defensive, ball-control, mouth smashing game was just befuddling. Not a lot of throwing the ball downfield, no homerun shots. It was one of those games where no one looked great, but almost everyone looked somewhere between "pretty good" and "all right".

People have told me that they turned off the game or fell asleep during the Sunday night game because "it was so damn boring" (don't worry, these people aren't Pats fans). Now where I disagree, as I generally enjoy the Sunday night games, I can see their point. It wasn't quite as exciting as one might like, and watching Anthony Gonzalez tear up the Pats for 2 TDs was especially painful as he is sitting on my Fantasy Football bench again this week. OK OK, I can't let this stupid fantasy thing get in the way of my fanhood, let me try again.

It was painful watching the Pats, in the position to likely bury the Colts for the season and take control in the AFC East, squander the game. It was a game where Bellichick did not quite seem like himself. The game was lost on a stupid personal foul by Tight End David Thomas at the end of the game - moving a 3rd and 1 within field goal range, to a 3rd and 16 well outside of field goal range. That and inexplicably not going for a 4th and 1 inside the red zone. The Pats used their last timeout in order to kick the fieldgoal and tie the game at 15 instead of running it down the Colts throat. Yes, it was a strange, sad loss.

It was also a game that lacked penalties. The first flag of the game was thrown with 12:02 in the third quarter! The penalty call: "There was no penalty on the play." Wow. Bellichick challenged this call and lost (timeout #1), thinking there were too many men on the field. The first real penalty was called with 9:33 left in the third quarter. The call: false start on the Pats. This penalty was the first penalty the Pats committed that was accepted in 7 quarters of football. That's impressive.

On the bright side, announcer Al Michaels was in top form on Monday night.

1) Matt Cassel takes what you give him. Tom Brady takes what he wants.
Yes, yes he does, Al, including my virginity... and it was GLORIOUS!

2) After Matt Cassel took a hit from Raheem Brock. Brock Storms the Cassel!... sorry couldn't help myself.
Yes, Al, you could have. You really really could have.

3) You can never have enough candy corn.
You know, Al, you can have enough candy corn. In fact, if you have two pieces of candy corn, I submit that you have more than enough candy corn. One piece of candy corn is always enough candy corn, Al. ALWAYS.

So now the Pats go to Buffalo next week, to battle the reeling Bills and try to take control of the AFC East once again. The Bills have been down in recent weeks, and Trent Edwards has not been playing well. Hopefully the Pats will be able to pull out a win. The Colts, on the other hand... well fuck the Colts.

Written by Kyle "Thomas Gives Such Good Lovin'" Baxter

2008-2009 Bruins - YES WE CAN!

2008-11-03T08:46:00.009-05:00

The Bruins took a 5-1 decision against the Dallas Stars last Saturday in one of the most entertaining regular season games I've ever half-watched while waiting for food at a bar. However, that was not enough for some Bruins fans, so I invited Mike Walsh, brother of the highly-esteemed Tim Walsh, to tell VendorBall Nation about the game, and why Bostonians ought to spend their time caring about the B's. Without further ado: Mr. Mike Walsh.

If you are a Boston sports fan it's plain and simple: in the summer you watch the Red Sox and in the winter you watch the Patriots. When those two aren’t on you scramble for a replacement. Last year it was the Boston Celtics, and who could blame you? The Celtics hadn’t won a championship since 1986 and looked unbeatable all season long. Celtic fans enjoyed the luxury of seeing their team in the playoffs, and not as an 8 seed. They were the favorites to win the East. The hype was there, and the team was responding. It was finally time for the green to return to glory.

Now here we are in 2008. The Red Sox didn’t win the World Series, and the Patriots are tied with both the Bills and the Jets and only 1 game ahead of the lowly Dolphins. Time to resort to the men in green right? Well, not so fast. Believe it or not there is a fourth major sports team playing in Boston and they happen to play in the same building as the all-of-a-sudden fan favorite Boston Celtics. Yes I am talking about the Boston Bruins. I had the privilege of attending both the Celtics game on Friday night (Boston won 96-80) and the Bruins game Saturday night (Boston won 5-1) and hands down the more enjoyable night was when the garden displayed a sheet of ice and was draped in black and gold. By no means am I trying to hate on the Celtics. In fact I attended 8 of the 14 playoff games last year and paid good money to attend 3 of them. I was at Game 6 when we defeated Los Angeles, stormed the court at the end and had the time of my life. Then, 4 months later, I attended a regular season NBA game in October, and almost fell asleep. Let’s face it, the Celtics are good. They are very good. Basketball will be played at the Garden in May. But what about Hockey?

The Bruins game Saturday night against the Dallas Stars was one of the more enjoyable nights I have ever had at a regular season professional sports event, and I wasn't even drinking, nor did I have a bet on the game. I simply went to watch my team. In 22 years I cannot recall a more alive Boston Garden for a non-playoff hockey game, let alone a game in November. As soon as the puck dropped the chant, “Let’s Go Bruins!” began buzzing around the building. Electric.

The Bruins had a 2-1 lead going into the 3rd period. Tim Thomas stopped 21 Dallas 2nd period shots. Great game right? The excitement had only just begun. After Andrew Ferrence planted a vicious but clean hit on Stars forward Steve Ott, Dallas forward Sean Avery fought the Bruins defenseman at 4:54 of the third. Then at 7:02, following an interference call on Turco, Ott went low again on Lucic, appearing to target the winger's knees. The Bruins took a 3-1 lead and the crowd started chanting “Turco…Turco…Turco” like you only hear in May.

Then the Bruins went up 4-1, and Steve Ott was ejected from the game. Fighting you ask? No. Not Steve Ott. He’s what we call a "coward." You see, Ott just takes cheap shots on players, and then when they drop the gloves, he skates away. Similar to Mr. Ott is teammate and one of the most hated men in all of hockey, Sean Avery. Avery is a doll-loving goon who belongs in the octagon, not an NHL rink. He stepped out of the penalty box at 11:50 of the 3rd period, six seconds later the whistles blew as 4 members of the Bruins were pounding Avery after he delivered a cheap shot to young Milan Lucic head first into the boards. Avery curled up into a ball on the ice until the referees came to his aid. What did he do next? He got up and look like he wanted more. We are talking about a guy who is such a pest to the NHL there is a shielding the goaltender penalty created due to his petty acts. Needless to say Avery was finally ejected, and the Bruins went on to win 5-1.

The Red Sox are Boston’s team. The Celtics will be there at the end. Even without half their starters and the league MVP, the Patriots are still in 1st place in their division. These are 3 teams Boston expects to see win. The most exciting thing in sports is watching the unexpected. The best Super Bowl victory: hands down 2001 against the Rams as 14 point underdogs. The best World Series victory: without a doubt 2004 beating the Yankees 4 straight when no one thought it could be done. The best NBA title: maybe not 2008, but for those in my generation who don’t remember the Celtics of the 60’s... yes, 2008. The Boston Bruins haven’t made it out of the first round of the playoffs in 10 years. If the Bruins were to somehow bring home the Cup, or even just make a run to the finals, it would be the most exciting event in Boston Sports this year. Getting a little ahead of myself? Yes. But the team to pull for right now is the Boston Bruins, period.

Breaking Red Sox News: Sox Pursuing Teixeira

2008-11-02T19:28:00.004-05:00

Ken Davidoff of Newsday reports that the Red Sox are pursuing first baseman Mark Teixeira. Surprising information from an organization with a first basemen who might be the league MVP in Kevin Youkilis. However this move would allow the Sox to move Youkilis over to third while Lowell recovers from off-season hip surgery. The Sox could try to trade Lowell and keep Youkie over at third or use Youkilis to spell the corner outfielders Bay and Drew.

The move to pick up Teixeira could help to solidify the middle of the batting order and add the bit of pop they lost in the middle of that lineup when Manny Walked. Teixeira would also add the elite defense at first base that we've come to expect from Youkilis.

Naturally, the Sox pursuit of Teixeira might be solely to up the price for the Yankees who are obviously going to pursue the All-Star first baseman. The Yankees are cutting an estimated $94 Million in payroll this year and have the money to sign Teixeira, C.C. Sabathia, and Manny Ramirez with some money left over for some middle relievers. So the Sox might just be driving the price up.

Keep your browsers tuned in to VendorBall for Hot Stove news all postseason as we keep you informed on breaking Red Sox news, and news from around the league.

-- Posted by Kyle "I like my stove so hot that it burns the kitchen down" Baxter

Bullied Around - Boston 96, Chicago 80

2008-11-01T12:58:00.006-04:00

The kids aren't all right. Derrick Rose led a youthful Chicago Bulls team into the TD Banknorth Garden last night with their heads held high. Expectations for the Bulls this season are high, with their sights set on a return to the postseason. If they're going to reach that goal, they need to develop a bit of chemistry first.

I'm not going to sit here and call this a "game," because in many respects, it wasn't. This was a tutorial given by the defending World Champions. It looked like young undergraduates attending a senior seminar. Professors Garnett, Allen and Pierce taught them quite a lesson, with the help of T.A. Rondo. This was the type of contest that, as a Boston fan, you love to watch. You knew from the opening tip that the entire night was in the Celtics' hands. They established control by dominating the boards. Kevin Garnett and Kendrick Perkins had ten rebounds apiece, and the Captain added nine of his own. Seem impressive? Take into account that Garnett and Perkins played a combined 54 minutes. Neither man eclipsed the 30-minute mark -- that's how early this game was over.

As a result, the bench got some solid playing time. Though, by the looks of how they played, you'd never know they were reserves. Last night was another coming-out party of sorts for guard Tony Allen and big man Leon Powe. Allen seems to have shed his mental issues following a knee surgery of 2006, and Powe seems to develop a bit more inside presence every time he steps foot on the parquet floor. Know who else made his season debut? The Celtics' resident ginger, Brian Scalabrine, whom the Boston crowd screams for whenever his hands touch the basketball. Everyone in that arena wanted "Scal" to drop 30 points out of nowhere. He didn't end up scoring a point. Good job, Brian.

The Celtics will now hit the road and take on the Pacers in Indianapolis. The young club, led by a newly-re-signed Danny Granger, has started the season 0-1 and will look to pick up their first win.

Final Score: Boston Celtics 96, Chicago Bulls 80
Player of the Game: Kevin Garnett (18 Pts, 10 Reb, 3 Ast)
Tommy Talk Quote of the Game: "Oh, wow! What was THAT? Was that a 'Scal Wrap-Around' Pass?!" -- Regarding a fancy Brian Scalabrine pass in the second half.

-- Dan Zappulla, Relaxing on a Saturday.

NFL Picks Week 9

2008-10-31T13:08:00.010-04:00

Here we go again sports fans! Another full slate of football and the VendorBall staff is all over it again. For those who didn't follow - last week Tim, Dan, and Kyle all lost to a lowly coin flip. Well not looking good for those of us who try and pick 'em, but we're coming back with a vengeance this week. Coin, you're going down! But first, Tim lays his unbeaten record on the line with FIVE picks this week! Sweet Brady!

Tim's Picks of the Week

Tim's Record: 2-0-1

Arizona at St. Louis
1:00 on FOX
Commentators: Thom Brennaman and Brian Billick
Line: Arizona -3

So the Rams win 2 straight, then go into Foxboro and hang tough with the Pats for 55 minutes, and now they’re back home and getting no respect once again. The public is all over Arizona with almost 3 out of every 4 bets coming in on the Cardinals, yet the line is starting to weaken off the key number of 3 indicating heavy sharp plays on St. Louis. Arizona is 1-3 on the road and is giving up, on average, 30 points per game away from the desert. Yikes. Sure, it’s Kurt Warner’s homecoming, but I’ll take the Rams +3 to play the spoiler role.

Miami at Denver
4:05 on CBS
Commentators: Greg Gumbel and Dan Dierdorf
Line: Denver -3.5

Denver, look, it’s like this: Until you prove to me that you can stop a pee wee team, I’m going to keep fading you. Miami could line up with the Icebox running the Wildcat this weekend and she’d run all over you. You made Matt Cassel look like Bart Starr on Monday night. For Miami, Chad Pennington is having a pretty productive season so far. Whether or not anyone decides to notice is another story. Of course Jay Cutler and the Broncos offense are no slouches either, but this game may come down to whoever has the ball last. 2/3 of the action is on Denver here, mainly because the public perception is that Miami is still the worst team in the league. I’ll take the Dolphins +3.5 and make Denver prove to me they can stop them.

Atlanta at Oakland
4:15 on FOX
Commentators: Matt Vasgersian and J.C. Pearson
Line: Atlanta -3

If there’s one team out there that everyone loves to bet against, it’s the Raiders. They might be the most dysfunctional organization in pro sports right now. But hey, if you want to give them up as a home underdog every week, I’ll most likely take you up on the offer. Everyone has seemingly fallen in love with Atlanta with Matt Ryan and Michael Turner (hey, look, a guy named Turner running things in Atlanta) taking charge of the offense, but let’s not forget this team is pretty bad on the road. 1-3 straight up and against the spread and they’re 1-3 when playing on grass. (3-0 on turf). It’s their second road game in a row, coming cross-country after putting up a fight in Philly last week. They also have a huge divisional home game next week vs New Orleans so my guess is they might be looking past lowly Oakland here. I’ll take the Raiders +3.

New England at Indianapolis
8:30 on NBC
Commentators: Al Michaels and John Madden
Line: Indianapolis -6

What looked in August to be the marquee regular season matchup of the year has turned into each team desperately trying to figure out some semblance of an identity. More so for Indy who limps home after a beatdown in Tennessee on Monday night. Can you believe the Colts sit at 3-4? If they lose Sunday night they could be in last place in the AFC South. The Patriots can breathe a little easier as they enter at 5-2 but are still tied atop the division with the upstart Buffalo Bills. It’s been a long time since the Pats have been 6-point underdogs but I think this line is where it should be. I hate to do it again, but I think Peyton is going to have a field day throwing all over the Pats secondary (who are some of these guys the Pats trot out there on defense?!?). Philip Rivers picked them apart on Sunday night two weeks ago and I think we’re going to see a repeat performance from Manning this week. I don’t like to lay chalk but I’ll do it here in what is an absolute must-win game for Indianapolis. Colts –6

Pittsburgh at Washington
8:30 Monday on ESPN
Commentators Mike Tirico, Ron Jaworski, Tony Kornheiser
Line: Washington -2

Monday Night Football in our Nation’s capital on the eve of the Election. Now there’s a pretty significant betting angle in this game that I’m sure most of you are not aware of. The final Redskins home game before an election can be pretty revealing. You see, dating back to 1936, if the Redskins win their final home game before a presidential election, the incumbent party wins the election. If the Redskins lose, the new party takes office. It’s a remarkable trend that’s been accurate 17 out of a possible 18 elections (94.4%). The only time the theory didn’t hold true was in 2004 when the Redskins lost to the Packers on MNF, but George Bush won the election keeping the Republicans in office (Kyle's note: Did Bush really win that election?). With that said, I’ll take Pittsburgh +2. Obama looks like a winner, so keeping with the trend, Pittsburgh should come out of D.C. with the W.

Staff Picks (and that damn coin)

Standings

Coin 6-6-2
Tim 5-7-2
Kyle 5-7-2
Dan 4-8-2

New York Jets +6 @ Buffalo

Tim: Buf -6. Bills regain first place with a win.
Dan: Buf -6. Favre gets torched by Bills' secondary.
Kyle: Buf -6. They won't lose two division games in a row. Welcome back Brett "3 INT" Favre
Coin: Buf -6.

Detroit +13 @ Chicago

Tim: Chi -13. If it’s possible for the Lions to score negative points, today’s the day.
Dan: Chi -13. Like Cincy, points are never enough with the Lions.
Kyle: Chi -13. Detroit has allowed a 118 passer rating this year: Happy Birthday Kyle Orton.
Coin: Det +13.

Jacksonville -7.5 @ Cincinnati

Tim: Cin +7.5. Ohio teams make it back to back covers vs the Jags.
Dan: Jac -7.5.Points are never enough with the Bengals.
Kyle: Jac -7.5. Allowing 150 rush yards per game will not help you beat a good running team.
Coin: Cin +7.5.

Baltimore +1.5 @ Cleveland

Tim: Bal +1.5. McGahee’s topped 100 yards in 3 of 4 vs Cle.
Dan: Bal +1.5. Browns haven't learned to win yet.
Kyle: Bal +1.5. Did you know Cle allows only 17.6 points per game? I'll take the under here too, please.
Coin: Bal +1.5.

Tampa Bay -8.5 @ Kansas City

Tim: TB -8.5. Herm won’t be playing to win the game.
Dan: TB -8.5. Despite loss in Big D, Bucs have looked strong. They take down KC by a wide margin.
Kyle: TB -8.5. Not biting here - Tyler Thigpen goes back to sucking against a tough TB Defense.
Coin: TB -8.5

Houston +4.5 @ Minnesota

Tim: Hou +4.5. Offense is hitting on all cylinders right now.
Dan: Hou +4.5. The Vikes are expected to get past the Texans' D with no QB?
Kyle: Hou +4.5. Minnesota is strong against the run, so Matt Schaub will have to beat them... which he will.
Coin: Min -4.5

Arizona -3 @ St. Louis

Tim: StL +3. (see above)
Dan: StL +3. Showed a lot of heart last week against the Pats. Cards should be no match.
Kyle: Ari -3. If you don't know who Tim Hightower is, then your ass better CALL SOMEBODYYYYYY!!!!
Coin: StL +3.

Green Bay +4.5 @ Tennessee

Tim: GB +4.5 The old “team that covered on MNF doesn’t cover next out” angle
Dan: Ten -4.5. Love the Pack, but the Titans are too hot, playing especially well at home.
Kyle: Ten -4.5. Tennessee is a force, and I don't see GB to be the team to break it up.
Coin: GB +4.5.

Miami +3.5 @ Denver

Tim: Mia +3.5. (see above)
Dan: Den -3.5. Dolphins coming off a big win, but can't handle Mile High just yet.
Kyle: Den -3.5. Denver at home - they better not disappoint me.
Coin: Den -3.5.

Dallas +9 @ New York Giants

Tim: Dal +9. I’ll take 9 points in a rivalry game even if Quincy Carter were taking the snaps.
Dan: NYG -9. Without Romo, this is no contest. G-Men take care of business.
Kyle: Dal +9. Giants D looks good, but it is a rivalry. This should be close.
Coin: Dal +9.

Atlanta -3 @ Oakland

Tim: Oak +3. (see above)
Dan: Atl -3. Ryan marches the troops into the black hole and comes out alive.
Kyle: Atl -3. Yes I'd like to hop on the Falcons bandwagon, please.
Coin: Oak +3.

Philadelphia -6.5 @ Seattle

Tim: Sea +6.5. East Coast teams going West haven’t fared well.
Dan: Phi -6.5. Seahawks have looked miserable this season. McNabb & Co march out of Qwest with a W.
Kyle: Phi -6.5. Seattle's defense isn't even playing well.
Coin: Phi -6.5.

New England +6 @ Indianapolis

Tim: Ind -6. (see above)
Dan: NE +6. Seriously? The Colts are giving points in this one?
Kyle: NE +6. I'm starting to think Indy just isn't that good.
Coin: Ind -6.

Pittsburgh +2 @ Washington

Tim: Pit +2. (see above)
Dan: Pit +2. Redskins are no match for the AFC's second-best club.
Kyle: Pit +2. O-BA-MA! O-BA-MA! O-BA-MA! O Barrack me Obamadeus!
Coin: Was -2.

Random Post-Series Thoughts

2008-10-29T23:22:00.007-04:00

Dear Rays Fans: Welcome

This blog has been pretty hard on the Rays fans throughout the season. Their inability to show up to games, cheer on their team, and to fail to do so throughout the season, even when their team was presenting themselves obviously as a winning team. And now, a semi-heartbreaking World Series loss. Does it hurt, Rays fans? Good, then allow me to officially welcome you to MLB fandom. It's a long and painful relationship, but overall it's worth it, and you have a great team to root for. Glad to welcome you aboard. Now, as apart of your inauguration you need to show up for April games, buy paraphenalia, and have at least half your fan base think one of your star players is a "bum" (I pick Scott Kazmir, but you can choose your favorite)

Scott Van Pelt

On ESPN2 today, Scott Van Pelt made an interesting observation. He made a commercial with Ben Rothturdberger and BOOM - Steelers win a championship. He makes a commercial with the "Boston Three Party" and the Celtics win a championship. He then makes a commercial with Jimmy Rollins and the Phillies win a championship. It's an intersting correlation, but I'm thinking about signing up Petrice Bergeron and Zdeno Chara for a "This Is SportsCenter Commercial"

*I promise to find these videos once I get home

Phillies Celebration

Seemed a little weak to me. Maybe I'm used to the Boston players going nuts a la the Riverdancing Papelbon, but they just seemed to not have the celebration thing down. Did the fans even get champagne sprayed all over them? Just curious. I'm not bashing Phillies fans - I think Philadelphia is one of the great sports towns left in this country (along with Boston and Chicago, with a couple nods to New York, St. Louis, and Seattle [really, fuck the NBA for what they did to the Sonics]), but the celebration wasn't what I expected.

Ratings?

Grasso: "I haven't watched one game of this World Series, I mean, I'm not a hardcore baseball fan, I'm a Sox fan. But this thing is so weird that I'm going to watch it. I mean it's only like two innings right?"

Well it was 3 innings, but I wonder how this snafu effected the ratings. We'll have more on that tomorrow or Friday. But something tells me this wacky situation will have the ratings for this third-of-a-game much higher than any of the other games. But we'll see, and get those numbers to you later.

My last night in Chicago so tomorrow (that would be Thursday) at 9:00 PM:

Written by Kyle "Dropkick" Baxter

Green with Envy - Boston 90, Cleveland 85

2008-10-29T08:45:00.025-04:00

Wondering where LeBron James was during the ring ceremony and banner-hoisting last night? In the visiting locker room of the TD Banknorth Garden. He, along with his Cavalier teammates, chose not to stand on the floor to watch the 2008 NBA Champion Celtics receive their hardware. Take a short trip with me back to April of 2005. The scene was Fenway Park, and our beloved Red Sox were receiving their first championship rings in 86 years. Who was standing at the top step of the visiting dugout? The team they had defeated in the 2004 League Championship Series, the New York Yankees. That's right LeBron, I'm saying that the Yankees have more class than you do. They had respect and humility enough to honor the team that defeated them. As a Red Sox fan, it's hard to say this, but LeBron should learn something from those gentlemen.

But enough with last night's microscopic downside. The rest of the evening was unbelievably fulfilling. It started with the annual monologue from Commissioner David Stern, congratulating the franchise, the city, blah blah blah. I've already heard the same speech four times in San Antonio alone. What followed, though, was one of those "Oh yeah, I remember it well" sequence of events. In what seemed like an endless line of basketball majesty, Celtics heroes from generations past ushered the Larry O'Brien trophy out to center court, where captain Paul Pierce was waiting to greet it one more time. In that very instant, it seemed Pierce was inducted into the "Hall of Celtic Greats," so to speak. Tom Heinsohn, Bob Cousy, Cedric Maxwell and others embraced the captain as if he was now one of their own. Pierce teared up, and proudly displayed the championship trophy above his head.

Next came the presentation of the rings, and you guessed it, more tears were shed. Looking back on it, it was intended to be a celebration of the Celtics' championship season, but it ended up being a coronation and appreciation night for The Truth. Pierce was the last one to receive his new piece of jewelry -- which featured white gold and about 90 diamonds, by the way -- and delicately displayed it to the crowd as if presenting the baby Simba to the pride. It was emotional, touching, and well-deserved. I'm not sure that I've ever been happier for an athlete. As the team gathered together to raise the new banner to the Garden rafters, something dawned on me: there was still a game to be played. I'd totally forgotten about the Cavs.

The Celtics didn't suffer from the same memory loss. After quickly falling behind in the first quarter, the Champs snapped back to their old selves, with the help of some new role-players. With James Posey flying the coop for New Orleans in the off-season, the door was opened for Tony Allen and Leon Powe to show what they can do. Judging from their performances last night, the C's will be just fine. Allen showed quickness that's been missing from his game for years, and Powe proved to be a legitimate scoring and rebound threat inside. Apparently his monster display in Game 2 of last year's NBA Finals was no fluke. Allen and Powe, combined with Pierce, led the Celtics to a 90-85 victory over Cleveland, a game that always seemed securely in the Celtics' hands in the second half. Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen had off shooting nights, and their team still beat one of their most formidable Eastern Conference foes. You have to feel good about that.

Now that the banner is raised, the rings have been handed out, and tears have been shed, it's time to go full-force into the 2008-09 campaign, and I can't wait. I'm anxious to see the evolution of players like Glen "Big Baby" Davis, Bill Walker and Gabe Pruitt. I can already tell that the hunger is still there, too, if you were wondering. There was no lack of emotion from the Big Three last night, and I get the feeling that motivation won't be an issue all year. I picked the Celtics to repeat as champions last week, and Game 1 of the 2008-09 season made me feel very good about that choice. If the Celtics do end up hoisting banner eighteen to the rafters next October, LeBron will hopefully have the humility to stand there and watch.

Final Score: Boston Celtics 90, Cleveland Cavaliers 85
Player of the Game: Paul Pierce, BOS (27 Pts, 4 Ast, 3 Reb)
Tommy Talk Moment: None, Game Aired on TNT

-- Dan Zappulla, Joyfully Weeping.

Picks Results: Week 8

2008-10-28T13:26:00.004-04:00

Good day, faithful readers. So my absence from the blog this week is due to the fact that I'm in Chicago and my laptop died, so Dan has been admirably holding down the fort and getting some comments (which we encourage). Anyhow, I'm spending my lunch to do a quick update on our NFL picks & competition, and if we don't pick it up, we'll be letting the coin write an article.

Standings
Coin: 6-6-2
Tim: 5-7-2
Kyle: 5-7-2
Dan: 4-8-2

Coin sitting at exactly .500 is perfectly expected for a coin and we got our asses kicked. Notably, SanFran's meltdown, Cleveland remembering how to play defense, a bad snap in the Pittsburgh game, and the Saints offensive show of force screwed the three humans over for 4 losses apiece. In hindsight, SanFran's new coach should have been something to look at, the SD game was going to be a shootout, and Fast Willie did not return. Big upset this week. However on the bright side:

Tim's Featured Picks: 2-0-1 and if Washington didn't kick a junk field goal at the end of the game he would have been 3-0. A rock solid first showing for the Timidator.

Next week: we try to make up some ground on the coin - picks and my triumphant return to Boston on Friday.

--Kyle Baxter's Prostate

Oh, the Suspense.

2008-10-28T11:00:00.012-04:00

Remember in my last blog, when I said I'd fall asleep in the sixth inning? Turns out I wouldn't have missed anything. Last night's Game 5 in Philadelphia was suspended in the middle of the sixth due to inclement weather, and they're going to (try to) finish it up tonight with the game knotted at two runs apiece.

So, with not much to write about, I thought I'd comment a bit more on this year's World Series television ratings, since it seemed to be yesterday's hot topic, along with the declining aura surrounding the Fall Classic. 2008 has been, by pretty much every standard possible, the lowest-rated World Series ever. I understand that modern telecasts are handicapped by the fact that there are simply more viewing options. In 1985, there was basic, basic cable, and pretty much nothing else. Now, it's almost a given that each household will have some sort of special paid service, be it HBO, Showtime, Cinemax, etc. On top of that, ESPN *alone* has five channels (ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, ESPNews, ESPN Classic...did I miss one?). Throw in all those random channels that start up in the 200's...Sundance, Oxygen, G4TV, GSN, all that stuff...the World Series doesn't garner nearly the attention it used to. However! With that said, this year's numbers are still pitiful. Let me elaborate. (Also, if you need to read more on what "ratings" and "share" numbers are, please visit Wikipedia's Neilsen Ratings page, located here: (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nielsen_Ratings)

Onto the landmark lows: this year marks the first time EVER that Games 2 and 4 have dipped into single-digit ratings. (Games 1 and 3 traditionally garner the lowest numbers of a series. Why? No idea. Just a trend I've noticed.) Game 2 came in at a 8.1 (13 share) and Game 4 at a 9.3 (15 share). Those are each three whole points below the previous all-time lows. As I said, this can partially be attributed to increased viewing options, but the individual franchise markets have to take some of the blame. Last year's series featured a similar dichotomy of home team disparity. It featured a strong, dedicated fanbase in Boston that will always bring huge ratings regardless of the game's magnitude, pitted against the Denver market, which is new to baseball but brings at least some ratings to the table, since the area had never experienced October baseball before. (See the similarity with Philadelphia and Tampa Bay?) Games 1-4 of last year's series (which turned out to be the entirety of the series, as well) averaged a 10.675 rating with an 18 share. Not amazing, yet solid numbers. Games 1-4 of this year's series? An 8.175 average rating with a 14 share. That's the first time that a World Series has had an average rating of under 10.

The real losers in this whole debacle are not the two cities. The loser, despite the poor ratings, is not the FOX network. The people who suffer are those who comprise the broad fanbase of Major League Baseball. We wait all year for the drama and suspense of the Fall Classic, and we get the Phillies and the Rays? Please. Yes, they're deserving, and yes, this is how is needed to be. But don't sit there, as a baseball fan, and tell me that you didn't want to see a Game 7 between Manny's Dodgers and Papi's Red Sox. There's a reason why Game 7 in 2001 between the Yankees and Diamondbacks got huge viewership. It held the hearts of a beaten and battered New York fanbase against a young, up-and-coming Arizona crowd, and took the attention of the rest of the nation in the balance. The Rays and Phillies are a mockery of what the 2001 series was. They're a mockery of the 2003 series which featured the emergence of the Marlins' young guns (Josh Beckett, A.J. Burnett and Carl Pavano). 2008 can't hold a candle to the weight being lifted off of a city's shoulders in 2004. We miss the moments that evolve into memories. Beckett tagging out Posada, Foulke lobbing the ball to first, Gonzalez's bloop single over Jeter's head.

I miss the series that made me fall in love with baseball, and I haven't seen it in quite awhile. Ratings aside, baseball needs its majestic, historic stage back. We all do.

-- Dan Zappulla, Sadly Nostalgic.

Phils One Win Away from Title

2008-10-27T16:46:00.004-04:00

Yeah, so you may have noticed the lack of an update surrounding last night's World Series Game 4. Why? Who the hell cares, that's why. Outside of Philadelphia, no one watched this thing, including the St. Petersburg market. No one cares.

That said, the Phillies have a chance to wrap the series up this evening after last night's 10-2 blasting of Tampa Bay. (Carlos Pena and Evan Longoria are now a combined 0-25 at the plate in the World Series. That warms my heart.) Cole Hamels is on the mound tonight for Philadelphia, so you can pretty much put this one in the books. We'll have a nice, extensive update and/or coronation piece tomorrow afternoon.

-- Dan Zappulla, Probably Falling Asleep in the Sixth Inning.

Happy Fourth Anniversary!

2008-10-27T14:08:00.002-04:00

In my mind, Foulky's still lobbing the ball to first.

-- Dan Zappulla, Quietly Reminiscing.

NFL Week 8 - Patriots 23, Rams 16

2008-10-27T09:07:00.019-04:00

I haven't missed a Patriots game since the infamous "Bledsoe Injury" game of 2001. I can often tell you the 53rd man on their 53-man roster. I remember what color hoodie Bill Belichick wore during Super Bowl XXXIX. And yet, there were at least three instances in yesterday afternoon's game when I turned to my girlfriend and said, "I have no idea who the hell that is."

Her response was usually, "I bet they dragged him off the street this morning." They could have done exactly that, and it wouldn't have made a difference. Why? They somehow keep on winning. The Patriots are under an injury cloud the likes of which I've never seen before. They've lost perennial MVP -- and the best quarterback in the history of the game -- Tom Brady for at least this entire season, maybe more. Starting running back Laurence Maroney has been placed on Injured Reserve. Backs Sammy Morris and LaMont Jordan were both inactive for yesterday's game. As a result, Matt Cassel -- whose name still makes me shudder a little -- has been your starting quarterback. Yesterday's starting running back? BenJarvis Green-Ellis, who I'm 83% sure played Alfonso Spears on "Silver Spoons."

All of this aside, they had to deal with the red-hot St. Louis Rams yesterday in Foxboro. The Rams have been a team who's apparently remembered how to play fundamentally sound football. Since new head coach Jim Haslett took the helm three weeks ago, the Rams have gone 2-0, handily beating playoff-bound clubs Washington and Dallas. Yet, with Deltha O'Neal and Ellis Hobbs missing the vast majority of the contest, the Patriots defense managed to shut down the Marc Bulger-led Rams offensive attack.

Matt Cassel, somehow, managed to throw for almost 300 yards, and Randy Moss eclipsed the 100-yard mark on his own, while also grabbing his 800th career reception. The Patriots offense overcame a few of its own inconsistencies, as Moss and Wes Welker both dropped simple passes.

As a result of this game, as a Pats fan, you have to feel good. I understand that this season is never going to feel right without Tom Brady. I've come to terms with that. However, considering all the mistakes and injuries they overcame yesterday (and the entire season in general), you can't help but feel a bit more confident today than you did after the Week 1 victory over Kansas City. Matt Cassel is maturing before our eyes as a legitimate NFL quarterback, the defensive unit is functioning well with some forcefully-injected youth, and Randy Moss hasn't quit on the team yet. That's got to be worth something.

Next Sunday night will be a big, big test: a nationally televised game in Indianapolis against the Colts, who haven't looked like themselves for one moment this season. Peyton Manning's offensive line has given him roughly half-a-second to think before throwing the ball, their running game is non-existent, and the defense is a shell of what they were during their Super Bowl run of 2006. The Colts are 3-3 as of this morning, and face 6-0 Tennessee on the road tonight. Indianapolis could very well be a sub-.500 team when the Patriots take the field six days from now. If Cassel can lead the New England boys to victory, we might have a reason to get excited again.

Player of the Game: Wes Welker (WR, New England). Without him, Cassel would've been in deep trouble. He's become the new Troy Brown.

-- Dan Zappulla, Feeling Optimistic.

World Series Game 3: Philadelphia 5 - Tampa Bay 4

2008-10-26T19:35:00.004-04:00

An hour and a half delay with HEAVY rains in Philadelphia was not enough to discourage this fan (Don McCracken), nor was it enough to derail the Phillies as they took a 2-1 series lead against the Devil Rays in the 2008 World Series.

It was a throwback night for Jamie Moyer, as the 45-year old was tough to solve through 6.1 innings, and held the Rays to only 3 runs in an eventual Phillies 6-5 victory. As always, it's tough to understand exactly how he goes about being so effective with an 82 MPH fastball, 75 MPH change up and slider, and a curve that sits at 69. Even with the pinpoint accuracy he sometimes shows, it just doesn't seem like his stuff is enough to keep hitters off balance three times through the lineup. But what I noticed this time, was that even Moyer's fastball (although I think we should call it a not-necessarily-slow ball) has a ton of movement on it. So it becomes harder for hitters to determine exactly where that fastball is going to end up. He also cuts it and tosses a two-seamer which I'm beginning to believe is one of the best 1-2 combinations in the game.

On the other side, Matt Garza took a minute or two to regain his composure after the hour-and-a-half rain delay, and his control was never what it was when he looked like the best pitcher in baseball against the Sox, but he was mostly solid through his 6 innings of work. The obvious exception being back-to-back home runs he surrendered to Chase Utley and Ryan Howard in the 5th. Howard seemed to find his stroke in this game, which is a dangerous prospect to Rays fans (do you think they know there's still more baseball to play?). Actually, it was an odd "coincidence" (I don't believe in such things in baseball) that Maddon told the wonder-bitch announcers that he'd have the flaps of his hat down at "5 past midnight" due to the cold. Well, he didn't and at exactly 12:05, Chase Utley hit a home run. More proof that the Baseball Gods dislike people who don't keep their word - remember that Mr. Maddon.

The end of the game was a bit of an oddity for both clubs, as neither bullpen could keep the other team at bay, the way it had all year long. Granted, each team was helped out by some costly errors and great base-running, but these teams have become accustomed to shut down pitching from their bullpen guys. Ryan Madson allowed a run to score in the top of the eighth, and going into the bottom of the 9th with a tied game, I was gearing up for a long night (and it was almost 2AM by that point). However the Tampa bullpen could not hold down the Phillies, and a lead-off walk by Eric Bruntlett and his glorious beard was turned into a triple by a stolen base, and a throwing error on that steal. In a classic Maddon move, the next two guys were walked and he went with 5 infielders to try and get three outs. The first batter, Carlos Ruiz, hits a dribbler down the third base line, and Longoria could not make the play at home.

The weird thing was, and never mentioned by the Buck-McCarver failure, was that if he had let that ball go, it might have had a chance to roll foul. But at that point in the game, you need to try and make a play. So the Phillies go up 2 games to 1, and the question becomes “how will the Rays respond?” Well, this is been a most resilient team all year long. Every time they have been counted out (by me more often than anyone, I assure you), they have bounced back and kept themselves on track. Can they do it again? Well they have Andy Sonnanstine taking the hill against Joe Blanton tonight, so we'll have to gear up to find out.

Written by Kyle Baxter: Certified Silly Goose

Shameful Makeup Sex

2008-10-25T22:31:00.005-04:00

I know that after you breakup with someone you're not supposed to go back to them for sex. As much as you want it to be meaningless and shallow, it just never is. You remember how much love there used to be, how much they meant to you, and the meaningless, physical satisfaction turns into regret, shame, and depression. And despite knowing full well what would result if I were to go crawling back to them, I had makeup sex with the Bruins.

I didn't mean to, the World Series game was delayed due to rain, and there was nothing on TV. But the Bruins were playing and it was like being horny and drunk and seeing your girlfriend out. Even though I said I was done with them, I was a little desperate and fell right into the trap. And of course, the sex was fantastic.

That is, the B's won 5-4, with Milan Lucic scoring the game winning goal with 1:49 left in the game. That goal was Lucic's third of the game and although the announcer said "It's raining hats" I didn't see more than 40 hats thrown on the ice. Lucic is 20 years old and at 6'4" 220lbs is one of the biggest players on the B's this year. He plays hard, hits hard, and I had decided during his first shift in the third period that I liked this kid. He made my choice look great by scoring two goals during the remainder of the game and banging hard in the corners. You might also remember Lucic as the guy who broke the glass with Van Ryn's head (see Bruins 2008-09 Moment of the Year).

And what I noticed was that the B's do have some young talent up front that are really fun to watch. They don't have goaltending - Manny Fernandez looked pretty awful tonight - and they don't have a great defensive core (Chara aside) so they will be lucky to make it past the first round of the playoffs (although they might be good enough for an 8-seed).

And so I sit around my room alone, remembering what once was. Am I ready to get back in a full fledged relationship with the Bruins? Well, I'm pretty sure Sinden and the Jacobs Brothers will end up trading Lucic and Kessel for a few aging defensemen, a star winger 9 years beyond his prime, and a double quarter pounder with cheese. So I'm not sure I'm ready for that quite yet. But I did enjoy the sex, and I even enjoyed the cuddling and talking afterward. So even if it's not quite time for a full commitment to the Bruins, I think I might try to see her pretty regularly. I mean, can you forget the good times:

Written by Kyle Baxter: Shameless Whore

NFL Picks: Week 8

2008-10-24T14:42:00.002-04:00

Quick, what team is missing!?

So, when the VendorBall creators Dan and Kyle decided to write an NFL Picks column, we had one major problem. See, neither of us gambles, so where we know a fair amount about football and some about gambling, our lack of expertise might come to light. So we needed to hire a consultant. Someone who actually bets the games and spends time with the intricacies of betting with Vegas. Some call these people "degenerate gamblers," but we like to call them NFL Lines experts. So in this post, we are proud to introduce Tim Walsh, who will be providing a weekly segment: Tim's Picks of the Week. Tim will be giving us his top picks for NFL betting each and every week of the NFL season, as well as some advice on games he's staying away from, and anything else that he might be moved to write.

Also, we are starting a little friendly competition this week to run for the rest of the season. Tim will pick every game along with Dan and Kyle as well as a "randomizer." So there will be a random pick, determined by coin flip, as well as the pick by the three contributors. Winner gets 494 pride points to be used at their discretion. Losing to the coin flip results in -103 pride points. If the coin flip wins, we let the coin write an article. Don't test us, we'll do it.

Tim's Picks of Week 8

Buffalo at Miami
1:00, CBS
Commentators: Kevin Harlan, Rich Gannon

Line: Buffalo -1

The Bills take their 5-1 record on the road to (believe it or not) play their first AFC East game against the 2-4 Dolphins. Surprisingly the Bills are only laying 1 in what looks like an easy spot. Miami is coming off a home loss to Baltimore while Buffalo took care of San Diego last week in Orchard Park. So why the low line? This game could have opened with Buffalo laying a field goal and they still would have received the lion’s share of the wagering. 80% of the action is on Buffalo but the line is holding still at 1. It’ll probably get bet up closer to game time as the public will keep hammering Buffalo. Chad Pennington is quietly putting together a nice season in South Florida, ranking 4th in the NFL in completion percentage. You’d probably be surprised to know that Miami also averages more passing and more rushing yards per game than Buffalo. This has trap game written all over it and Vegas is hoping people will take the bait with Buffalo. I’ll take Miami +1.

St. Louis at New England
1:00 FOX
Commentators: Chris Rose, J.C. Pearson

Line: New England -7.5

Sorry to go against the hometown team here, but what’s with all the love for the Pats? Sure, they looked great on Monday night running all over a suspect Denver defense but is this team really back to where they want to be? If I told you before the season started that in week 8, the Patriots would be starting Matt Cassel and BenJarvus Green-Ellis and that they’d be laying more than a touchdown to anyone you would have thought I was crazy. But that’s where they find themselves as the Rams head to Foxboro. Hey, the Rams had a big unexpected home win last week. How come they get no love? They’re also 2-0 since Scott Linehan took over. I’ll take St. Louis +7.5 here. They might even win outright.

Washington at Detroit
1:00 FOX
Commentators: Thom Brennaman, Brian Billick

Line: Washington –8

The Lions are bad. The Lions are very bad. The Lions flat out stink. With that said, is Washington really good enough to be laying 8 on the road? The Redskins love to play to the level of their competition. They got up for a huge road win at Dallas as 10.5 point dogs, then came home to cough one up to the Rams. The almost choked away last week’s game vs Cleveland, who shanked a last second field goal that would have sent the game into overtime. Washington has home matchups with Pittsburgh and Dallas in the coming weeks so they may very well be looking past Detroit. Meanwhile the Lions have covered their last two. Yes, I know they are horrible, but when you bet the NFL, you need bad teams to do good things. Lions +8 is the play.

A few other tidbits from around the league

Is Baltimore really good enough to be laying a touchdown to anyone? I’m not in the right state of mind to bet Oakland on the road but I don’t think Baltimore deserves the respect the linesmakers are giving them here… Surprisingly, TB/Dallas is the least bet game of the week so far. Usually America’s team commands a large amount of action, but with the injury to Tony Romo, I’m sure most bettors are skeptical about what Cowboys team will be showing up…. Nobody should be wagering on the SD/NO game. Too many variables with Bush out and both teams are dealing with the flight overseas and the time change…It’s been 5 years since Peyton Manning has been an underdog of 4 or more points to someone other than New England. That came December 7, 2003 as the Colts were 4 point dogs to, you guessed it, the Tennessee Titans. Indianapolis won that game 29-27.

Week 8 Staff Picks

So we flip a quarter - heads for the home team. We'll be keeping stats, and if Kyle feels like making pretty graphs, we might have those too. Remember, we do not advocate gambling unless of course you need to make money really quick and there's a game that's a... great bet (there is a four letter world to use here, but as Tim says: "NEVER USE THE 'L' WORD!).

Oakland +7 @ Baltimore

Tim: Bal –7. Because somebody has to win.
Dan: Oak +7. Played the Jets very well last week.
Kyle: Bal -7. One week does not a team make. The Raiders are still a crappy team.
Coin: Bal -7

San Diego -3 @ New Orleans (In London)

Tim: SD –3. Loss of Bush hurts.
Dan: SD -3. They just need the win.
Kyle: SD -3. No home field advantage playing in London. "Bloody good game. Smashing. Yes."
Coin: NO +3.

Kansas City +13.5 @ New York Jets

Tim: KC +13.5. The Jets are favored by 2 TD’s? No thanks.
Dan: NYJ -13.5. The Chiefs are on their 3rd QB. Favre wins big.
Kyle: NYJ -13.5. Two words: Tyler Thigpen. That and no LJ because he spit in some chick's face
Coin: NYJ -13.5.

Buffalo -1 @ Miami

Tim: Mia +1. (see above)
Dan: Buf -1. Not a trap game, don't be fooled.
Kyle: Mia +1. Phins are tough in division games.
Coin: Buf -1.

Tampa Bay +2.5 @ Dallas

Tim: Dal – 2.5. TO has been conspicuously absent lately. That’ll change today.
Dan: TB + 2.5. 'Boys are playing awfully bad. Bucs pick up the win outright.
Kyle: Dal -2.5. Johnson is all right, and Marion Barber can still run the football.
Coin: Dal -2.5

Atlanta +9 @ Philadelphia

Tim: Atl +9. Matt Ryan still getting no respect.
Dan: Phi -9. Ryan's not ready for the Philly crowd.
Kyle: Phi -9. Ryan is ready, but the rest of his team might not be. Westbrook & Kevin Curtis back, too.
Coin: Phi -9.

St. Louis +7.5 @ New England

Tim: StL +7.5. (see above)
Dan: StL +7.5. Playing well with Haslett. Pats win, but not big.
Kyle: NE -7.5. Do you think BenJarvus Green-Ellis is the first tetra-namer in Pats history? I mean, 4 names! Damn!
Coin: NE -7.5

Arizona +4 @ Carolina

Tim: Car –4. Delhomme seems to be finding his stride.
Dan: Car -4. West coast team to the east coast? Bad odds this season.
Kyle: Ari +4. Welcome back Anquan Boldin - too many weapons for Cards.
Coin: Car -4.

Washington -8 @ Detroit

Tim: Det +8. (see above)
Dan: Was -8. Lions won't be able to see the 'Skins. That's how lopsided it'll be.
Kyle: Was -8. The Lions still suck, and they still play Orlovski.
Coin: Det +8.

Cleveland +7 @ Jacksonville

Tim: Jac –7. All kinds of problems on and off the field for Cleveland.
Dan: Jac -7. Jags are just too good. Will we see Brady Quinn?
Kyle: Jac -7. Oh Ohio NFL teams... at least your state will be important for the presidential election.
Coin: Jac -7

New York Giants +3 @ Pittsburgh

Tim: Pit –3. Looks like a toss up, I’ll take the home team.
Dan: Pit -3. Big Ben handles the champs at home.
Kyle: Pit -3. Slick Willie Parker coming back helps the Steelers.
Coin: NYG +3.

Seattle +5 @ San Francisco

Tim: SF –5. If a game is played, and no one is there to witness it or watch it on TV, does it actually happen?
Dan: SF -5. Holmgren's old project against his soon-to-be-new one.
Kyle: SF -5. I love Seattle and want to cry for their fans. I can't see them winning outright.
Coin: SF -5.

Cincinnati +9 @ Houston

Tim: Cin +9. Bengals have played the toughest schedule in the league so far.
Dan: Hou -9. Points aren't enough with the Bungles.
Kyle: Hou -9. Tough schedule, true, but I can't bet on a Harvard kid as an MIT alum.
Coin: Cin +9.

Indianapolis +4 @ Tennessee

Tim: Ind +4. Peyton as a dog too good to pass up.
Dan: Ten -4. Defense will swarm Peyton
Kyle: Ind +4. I predict a 23-21 Titans victory.
Coin: Ten -4.

Bruins 2008-09 Moment of the Year

2008-10-24T11:47:00.001-04:00

End the voting. Unless they magically win the Stanley Cup, you're not going to see a better Bruins moment this season.

Tom Brady Update #4

2008-10-24T11:26:00.001-04:00

Annnd here's more. The Boston Globe is reporting that the infection in Tom Brady's knee will set his rehabilitation process back by at least two months. The Boston Herald is reporting that the infection stemmed from an incision made to stabilize his torn MCL (not ACL).

More coming along I'm sure...

-- Dan Zappulla, Riding the Injury Wave.

World Series Game 2: Rays 4 - Phillies 2

2008-10-24T09:05:00.005-04:00

It was a night of "who can do the best Dice-K impression" in Tropicana last night. What I mean by that, is in 17 half-innings played, 9 times the lead-off hitter reached base, Shields threw a lot of pitches and was done before the end of the 6th, while Brett Myers looked awful early on but settled in nicely. Both pitchers pitched themselves into trouble - Shields had to pitch his way out of situations with men on third in less than two outs in two or three consecutive innings. But the Rays were able to pull out the 4-2 victory behind strong situational pitching by Shields and David Price giving them 2.1 acceptable innings (2 Runs).

But let's rewind for a second. For the first game of the World Series, the Tampa Bay Rays invited none other than the Backstreet Boys to sing the national anthem. At the time I thought "Wow, that's the best you can do!? It's the World Series, dammit." Well I underestimated the Tampa Bay boys, and for last night's anthem, they invite Los Lonely Boys (pictured below).

Please, take a moment to let that sink in and familiarize yourself with their music if you'd like. I'll wait. OK, welcome back. Now in their defense they did sing a very good Anthem, but still, can't get a decent, more widely respected performer?

Now the paragraph was written about the anthem because as a game, it wasn't that good. There were plenty of exciting moments, from Rocco Baldelli picking off Jayson Werth at first base on a fly ball to right, to Werth throwing out Baldelli at home plate. But the Rays scored two runs on sacrifice ground balls in the first, and never looked like they were going to lose this game. Their other runs came on a safety squeeze (a bunt with a guy on 3rd, effectively) and a bases loaded single. Shields threw 104 pitches through 5.2 innings, and continually pitched himself in and out of trouble, but the top of the Phillies order (Rollins, Werth, Utley) went 1-for-14, and never looked good swinging the bats. Throw in an 0-for-3 by Burrell and the Phillies just did not look like a team that was going to win this ballgame.

David Price came in to finish off the 7th and stayed to pitch the 8th and 9th. He allowed Eric Bruntlett to hit a solo home run with two outs in the 8th, and a run on an Evan Longoria error in the 9th, but otherwise looked solid once again in the back of that bullpen. This guy will be a force to be reckoned with whether he ends up being the stopper in that bullpen or is moved to the rotation.

At some point, watching the TBS guys made me decide that I'd prefer Buck and McCarver as announcers. Well, by the 3rd inning I realized those two are absolutely f@#king morons. If they mentioned Rocco's mitochondrial disease one more time I was going to vomit. Don't get me wrong, it's a great story, but we don't need to hear it every time the man is put on screen, while they talk as if they have any idea about how the disease is managed or how it affects him. That and their crazy convictions, said with absolute confidence neither of them deserve to be speaking with. I love baseball, but I might not watch the next game on TV if I have to listen to those two morons again for 3 hours.

So we move to Game 3 over in Philly, in an outdoor stadium. Series tied 1-1.

Win: James Shields (1-0, 0.00)
Loss: Brett Myers (0-1, 3.86)
Player of the Game: Fox went with James Shields, I'm going with David Price. Price came in and despite not pitching perfectly, never left any doubt who was going to win this game.

As an aside, the Rays fans were fairly good this game early on. I'd say it was the best Rays fan performance for three innings that I've ever seen. That said, they still don't deserve a World Championship.

Written by Shaolin Monk, Kyle Baxter

Tom Brady Injury Update #3

2008-10-24T08:41:00.003-04:00

The soap opera keeps evolving. This is one hell of a show. Here's the latest on Tom:

The L.A. Times is reporting that Brady's infection is responding very well to the issued antibiotics, and there is now a new-found optimism from the doctors. They are now under the impression that it will not delay Brady's rehab schedule at all.

Now, for the complete other side of the story. ESPN is reporting that people "close to Brady" are saying that Tom is preparing to fight the infection "for months, not weeks."

So...take this for what it's worth. I personally don't believe either side of the argument. It's gotta fall somewhere in the middle, right? More updates later today I'm sure.

-- Dan Zappulla, Growing Increasingly Anxious.

Tom Brady Injury Update

2008-10-23T15:20:00.006-04:00

Various sources including ESPN are now confirming the multiple procedures done on Tom Brady's reconstructed ACL. His doctors are reportedly extremely concerned with the recurring infection developing in and around the wound.

Should the ACL have to be re-broken and the procedure completely redone, Brady would almost be a certainty to miss, at the very least, all of next year's training camp. The Patriots organization is none too happy with these developments, either. They reportedly lobbied strongly for Brady to have the procedure performed in Boston, but Brady elected to have it done in California in order to be closer to his family.

This one isn't over. I'm sure we'll have maaaany more updates over the coming hours and days. Get well, Tom. We miss you.

-- Dan Zappulla, Somehow Missing the Days of 18-1.

World Series Game 1: Phillies 3 - Rays 2

2008-10-23T09:07:00.004-04:00

Excuse me, I need a minute to recover from the Brady News.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
Brady, I think I might actually cry. Thankfully the "Insider" part of www.tombrady.com tells a much more optimistic story. OK, I think I'm composed enough to write a bit about the first game of the world series.

One of the oddest terms we use to describe pitchers is "stud". Especially when you hear a bunch of ex-ball players continually referring to a guy as a "stud" as if he's slept with all of them (not that there's anything wrong with that). Well, in that same fantastic ritual, Cole Hamels is a stud (and not in bed... er... not that I would know).

In 3 playoff games leading up to The Series, Hamels has pitched at least 7 innings each time out, never surrendering more than two runs. That held up, as Hamels went 7 innings again last night, only allowing only two runs and striking out 5. With Ryan Madson and Brad Lidge cleaning up the 8th and 9th, the Phillies were able to capture game 1 in exciting fashion.

The only man in the Rays lineup that Hamels had no answer for was Akinori Iwamura, who went 3-3 with a double and an RBI off of Hamels, often hitting tough pitches. Cole's only mistake came with nobody on and Carl Crawford up (and by the lead up you can probably guess that Crawford went yard). But the Phillies pitchers were just too much for the Rays hitters in the long run. In fact, aside from Crawford's homerun and Iwamura's three hits, the only hit managed by the Rays was Ben Zorbist's single off of Hamels. The Philly bullpen was perfect in two innings.

The Phillies offense came primarily in the form of Chase Utley's 2-run first inning homerun off of Scott Kazmir. Kazmir had a classic Dice-K start - continually pitching himself into and out of trouble and walking far too many batters (4) while striking out just as many (4). Watching Kazmir actually made me miss Dice-K. The Rays bullpen also pitched well, not allowing any runs, but cutting it close on many occasions.

So we go to game 2, with the Phillies taking a 1-0 lead in the series. Admittedly, this is exactly how I expected it, as well as Dan. Dan expects the Rays to rattle of the next 4, I don't expect Cole Hamels to lose another game this postseason. We'll see.

Win: Cole Hamels (1-0, 2.57)
Loss: Scott Kazmir (0-1, 4.50)
Save: Brad Lidge (1)
Player of the Game: Cole Hamels (surprised? Has he lost any this offseason?)
Stat of the Night: Upton, Pena, and Longoria combined in the ALCS to go 23-for-81 with 11 homeruns, 25 RBI, 24 Runs, 5 doubles, and blah blah blah, was held 0-for-12 with only Pena reaching base on a Ryan Howard error but he was then picked off of first by Hamels. As a group they struck out 5 times, grounded into 2 double-plays, and had an error in the field. Wow.

What's on Tap?
The Phillies send out Brett Myers without his hot playoff bat against the Rays' James Shields at 8 PM tonight at Tropicana field. I'm sure all 12 Rays fans will be there again with those obnoxious cowbells. (Yes, I'm still bitter, wanna fight about it!?)

Written By Master of Mojo: Kyle Baxter

THHHOOOMMMAAASSSSSSS!

2008-10-23T09:01:00.005-04:00

Ohh, this isn't good.

Reports are surfacing that Tom Brady has already had three additional surgeries after his initial ACL reconstruction. The three subsequent procedures were in an attempt to clear out a developing infection, which doctors are saying they "still don't have under control."

If they're not able to stabilize and eliminate the infection, the entire reconstruction procedure will have to be redone. Brady's ACL will have to be re-broken, and the clock on his recovery time will be reset.

So basically, get used to Matt Cassel for awhile. Doesn't look like Brady will be starting next season on-time after all. God damn it.

-- Dan Zappulla, Weeping Quietly.

Bitterness Aside, Time To Look at The Series

2008-10-22T09:21:00.007-04:00

Truth be told, this is a quick turnaround for us. Usually the bitterness of such a brutal playoff loss would have us off the baseball shelf for at least a few weeks. You might notice we failed to recap the Sox-Rays series, as our fanhood got in the way of our writing. Yeah, we're not sorry. They got the MVP right, you most likely watched the games, there's nothing to be said for it.

And so we are forced to watch the Obama supported Tampa Bay Rays battle the Obama supported Philadelphia Phillies:

(The fact that this video made national news is hilarious and pathetic)

It should be a fairly interesting matchup, and if nothing else it's our last chance to watch baseball before the long winter. Also, Dan and Kyle are tied at 3-3 going into this last playoff series. This series will decide the victor of the MLB postseason both for the MLB and for VendorBall. Let's see what the boys say.

WORLD SERIES
Tampa Bay Rays (AL Champions) vs. Philadelphia Phillies (NL Champions)

Dan Picks: Tampa Bay Rays in 5
Why: We haven't had a World Series reach six games since 2003. It hasn't gone seven games since 2002. The recent Fall Classics have all been over and done with quite quickly, as Mr. Baxter will make reference to in a few moments. Plus, having just watched the Rays up-close for seven games, I'm completely convinced that their starting pitching (still on their regular rest) will dominate. As always, I will give Philadelphia a win because of their ace, Cole Hamels. Philly might even take Game 1. Tampa Bay's rotation is just too deep, and I can't believe I'm saying this, but the Rays will be the 2008 World Series Champions. (To be clear, I'm firmly rooting for Philadelphia. Matt Garza and Grant Balfour can kiss my ass.)

Kyle Picks: Tampa Bay Rays in 6
Why: The Philadelphia Phillies looked great during the NLCS, but have had a lot of time to sit around. We saw that last year with the Rockies, who came out looking flat and got swept by the Red Sox. The Phillies might have been sitting too long and lost that fire that comes with playing nearly every day. The Rays will still be hungry, just coming off the high of beating the Sox. The Rays pitching looks good, they got a stopper in David Price, who doesn't have a lot of mileage on his arm this year. The middle of the Rays lineup has been as hot as anyone in the league. The Phillies have the best pitcher left in baseball in Cole Hamels, and I do think he'll win his two starts. But sorry Philly, I don't think this is your year. (That said, I, too, am rooting for the Phillies and Joe Maddon can give me a BlowJob Upton while I sit on the john for a Longoria dump).

Of course, with both of us picking Tampa in less than 7, there's a damn good chance Philly will win in 7. You're welcome Phil's fans.

Breaking News -- Harrison Out for Season

2008-10-21T13:58:00.006-04:00

And the hits just keep on coming. Patriots veteran safety Rodney Harrison has reportedly undergone season-ending surgery after suffering a torn quadriceps during last night's win over Denver.

Harrison is the third high-profile Patriot to be knocked out for the season after RB Laurence Maroney and QB Tom Brady.

Source: ESPN.com

2008-09 NBA Season Preview

2008-10-21T11:04:00.018-04:00

This will be a season to remember. One week from today, the 2008-2009 NBA season tips off with rematch of one of last year's most exciting playoff series. The defending World Champion Boston Celtics will play host to LeBron James and the upstart Cleveland Cavaliers. In Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals, James and eventual NBA Finals MVP Paul Pierce put on a one-on-one show that rivaled the famed Bird/Wilkins shootout of the mid-80s.

Eastern Conference Analysis
It's hard not to pick the Celtics to at least reach the NBA Finals again. So, I will. (I'm a bigger homer than Tommy Heinsohn, I know. Bear with me.) The Celtics are destined -- barring a major injury -- to return to the Finals to defend their title. Pierce, Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen have had an entire season to play together and should be more fluid than ever before. The subtraction of James Posey will hurt come playoff time, but the regular season will provide youngsters like Glen "Big Baby" Davis, Gabe Pruitt, Leon Powe and Patrick O'Bryant time to mature.

Homerism aside, I ask you, dear readers, to tell me who would feasibly challenge the Celtics for the Eastern crown. The popular choice would be the Detroit Pistons, whom the Celtics knocked off in the Conference Finals last year. The problem is, Detroit no longer has the depth that they have become known for. Their main stars are falling faster than Matt Cassel. The Pistons will live and die by the play of Tayshaun Prince and Richard Hamilton. Chauncey Billups and Rasheed Wallace have both lost a step from their glory days, and god help them if Rodney Stuckey becomes their first man off the bench.

Other clubs like the Raptors, Bulls, Sixers, Wizards and Hawks will pop up, but there's only one team out there -- besides Detroit -- that can feasibly challenge the Celtics this year, and it's the Orlando Magic. Alright, alright. I know what you're saying. Why the hell would Dan pick the Magic to challenge the almighty Green? Dwight Howard. I hate to say this, considering my aforementioned blatant homerism, but Howard can overpower Kevin Garnett. He doesn't have the shooting range KG shows off, but in the paint, there's no one better. Not only can he out-strength Garnett, but throw in Tim Duncan, Emeka Okafor, Pau Gasol, Dirk Nowitzki, Amare Stoudamire and Al Jefferson for good measure. Platoon Howard with Rashard Lewis, who has the best three-point range of any big-man in the game, and you've got a deadly combination. Jameer Nelson, Hedu Turkoglu and J.J. Redick round out a dangerously offensive-minded club. (Whether they can defend is another story. That might be their Achilles' Heel.)

Teams Contending for the Conference Crown: Boston Celtics, Detroit Pistons, Orlando Magic, Cleveland Cavaliers.

Team that Might Surprise You: Ready for this one? The New York Knicks. God knows they've got the talent, they just can't seem to figure out what to do with it. Under the supervision of Mike D'Antoni, they might be ready to put it together for a nice little run. But hell, as long as Isiah Thomas is away from the bench, they've got to improve a little bit, right? Look for Jamal Crawford to emerge as a marginal superstar (or at least someone Stu Scott can yell "BOOYAH!" at), and Eddy Curry to finally become a serviceable presence in the paint. This team might just grab a playoff spot.

Western Conference Analysis
It's not going to be the Lakers again, so get that out of your head. I still can't figure out how they reached the Finals last year. Yeah, their offense is impressive, but man...they're soft. If you want to succeed in this league, you need to have physical and mental toughness, and Kobe's boys possess neither. I can still see Sasha Vujacic throwing a punch at a water boy during last year's Finals.

Classy guy, that one. Anyway, yes they're getting Andrew Bynum back, but this kid is still a long way away from being a dominant inside presence. Look for the Lakers to make the playoffs, maybe advance one round, and have Kobe make another trade demand in the offseason. (It feels weird that he didn't this summer. Maybe he forgot.)

With the Lake Show out of the title picture, we turn our attention to Old Faithful: the San Antonio Spurs, who have the worst P.A. announcer in all of sports. Look, if I called the Pistons 'old,' I can't call the Spurs anything less. However! The Spurs didn't seem to miss a step last year, and have proven that they can reach the top on multiple occasions. (Tim Duncan has four freaking championship rings. Seriously. FOUR. Kevin Garnett looked like he was going to wet himself when he won his first ring last year. He'll start taking people out with a blowtorch if he ever wins three more.) Back on topic... Duncan, Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker have been the NBA's REAL "Big Three" over the past half-decade. They've been stable, impressively coherent, and mentally concrete. Yes, they will lead a very veteran San Antonio team into battle this year, but a veteran team that has enough youthful reserve to be effective.

Last season was a breakout performance for the New Orleans Hornets. Led by perennial MVP candidate Chris Paul, they drove themselves all the way to the Conference's #1 seed before being ousted by San Antonio. This year, their team is still intact along with the huge addition of 2008 Celtics hero James Posey. If New Orleans can reach the postseason, which they almost certainly will, look for Paul, Posey and David West to open some eyes.

Teams Contending for the Conference Crown: San Antonio Spurs, Los Angeles Lakers, New Orleans Hornets, Dallas Mavericks (Though they might be gettin too Mavericky to win. It's impossible to ever watch them again without thinking of Tina Fey-lin. It's a good thing they have Mark Cuban to take care of the cronies and corruption on Wall Street while Dirk Nowitzki is dangling from a helicopter trying to gun down a moose.)

Team that Might Surprise You: It wouldn't be a huge surprise, but the Portland Trailblazers are locked and ready to wage war on the Western Conference. With a healthy Greg Oden, who does the best ESPN ads I've ever seen:

...the Blazers should be ready to compete with a surge of youth behind them. It's G.O. Time.

Full Standings Predictions
(#) - Denotes Playoff Seed

Eastern Conference
Atlantic Division
1. Boston Celtics (1)
2. Toronto Raptors (5)
3. New York Knicks (8)
4. Philadelphia 76ers
5. New Jersey Nets

Central Division
1. Detroit Pistons (3)
2. Cleveland Cavaliers (4)
3. Chicago Bulls
4. Milwaukee Bucks
5. Indiana Pacers

Southeast Division
1. Orlando Magic (2)
2. Washington Wizards (6)
3. Atlanta Hawks (7)
4. Charlotte Bobcats
5. Miami Heat

Quarter-Final Round
(1) Boston def. (8) New York
(2) Orlando def. (7) Atlanta
(3) Detroit def. (6) Washington
(4) Cleveland def. (5) Toronto

Semi-Final Round
(1) Boston def. (4) Cleveland
(2) Orlando def. (3) Detroit

Final Round
(1) Boston def. (2) Orlando

Western Conference
Northwest Division
1. Portland Trailblazers (4)
2. Denver Nuggets (7)
3. Utah Jazz (8)
4. Minnesota Timberwolves
5. Oklahoma City Thunder

Pacific Division
1. Los Angeles Lakers (2)
2. Phoenix Suns (6)
3. Golden State Warriors
4. Los Angeles Clippers
5. Sacramento Kings

Southwest Division
1. San Antonio Spurs (1)
2. New Orleans Hornets (3)
3. Dallas Mavericks (5)
4. Houston Rockets
5. Memphis Grizzlies

Quarter-Final Round
(1) San Antonio def. (8) Utah
(2) Los Angeles def. (7) Denver
(3) New Orleans def. (6) Phoenix
(5) Dallas def. (4) Portland

Semi-Final Round
(1) San Antonio def. (5) Dallas
(3) New Orleans def. (2) Los Angeles

Final Round
(3) New Orleans def. (1) San Antonio

NBA FINALS
Boston Celtics def. New Orleans Hornets
NBA Finals MVP: Kevin Garnett (BOS)

So there you have it, the Celtics will repeat, and all will remain right in the basketball world. Now if you'll excuse me, after two hours of writing, I need to empty my bladder. Which way to Madison Square Garden?

Posted by Dan Zappulla, VendorBall Columnist.

LCS Prediction Winner

2008-10-21T10:32:00.003-04:00

Well, we're a little over baseball, but we need to keep back up with our score for predicting the baseball playoffs. This round: Dan and I got our asses kicked.

Score: Kyle 2.5 - Dan 1.5
Kyle holding a slight lead in the playoffs so far - let's see how the LCS goes down

ALCS

Dan: Boston in 7
Kyle: Boston in 6
Actual: Tampa in 7
Winner: Dan

Dan and I both believed the Sox would take this one, and really, it looked like they would take the series after Game 5. The Rays, however, remained resilient as they have all year and Matt Garza had his A game. Really, is that Delmon Young for Bartlett/Garza trade looking good for the Rays or what!?

LCS Score: Dan 1 - Kyle 0
Playoff Score: Dan 2.5 - Kyle 2.5

NLCS

Kyle: Los Angeles in 5
Dan: Los Angeles in 5
Actual: Philadelphia in 5
Winner: Tie

Wow. We weren't even close on this one. Both of us thought that LA would ride their dominating performance in the NLDS right through Philadelphia. But we were drastically mistaken. Philadelphia got good performances from their pitching staff with some clutch hitting. Done and done.

LCS Score: Dan 1.5 - Kyle 0.5
Playoffs Score: Dan 3 - Kyle 3

LCS Winner: Dan.

Now we are tied going into the World Series. Lots of pride points are on the line - the loser has to wipe the winners ass, using extra soft toilet paper, small circles, counterclockwise. Hey, that's not gay, that's just how we roll; losers get humiliated.

Patriots Sport Blue, Win 41-7

2008-10-21T08:39:00.004-04:00

Wait, Bill Belichick smiles? Must be the blue!

For the first time this year, the Patriots sported their blue jerseys, and the resulting good karma helped to propel them to a 41-7 romping of the Denver Broncos. This game was a classic Pats victory, complete with stifling defense, key turnovers, commitment to the running game, and a good short passing game. The defense looked phenomenal all game long, resulting in the following results for the Broncos' first half possessions: fumble, fumble, punt, punt, interception, fumble.

Matt Cassel even looked good. He got Randy Moss involved early and often, tossing two touchdown passes to him over the course of the game. This was perhaps the most important result of the game, because if Randy goes without a good game for another couple weeks, you can be sure he's going to stop running routes and blocking downfield. Randy seems to have changed his tune since coming to Boston, but the familiar "I'm quitting on my team" movement is still in the undertones of this new Moss ditty.

But back to Cassel. He is no Brady in ball distribution, with 78% of his passes going to Moss, Wes Welker, and tight end Ben Watson. He only had 185 yards through the air, but had 3 TDs - and if someone has 19 fantasy points that probably means they had a pretty good day. He still holds the ball way too damn much and takes too many sacks because of it, but that might be something we're going to have to get used to.

But the story of the day was Sammy Morris. On a day where Laurence Maroney went on the IR (man, we got the wrong guy from Minnesota in that draft [Marion Barber]), Sammy Morris showed that he is up for shouldering the load as a starter, running for 138 yards and a touchdown in the first half alone. He was injured during the end of the second quarter, and undrafted free agent BenJarvus Green-Ellis (what a fricken name. What is with names today? What ever happened to Eddy and Shawn?) ran 13 times in the second half for 65 yards. He never looked quite as good as Morris, but he got the job done against a weak Denver run defense. So perhaps it wasn't Morris and the running game as much as it was Denver being soft.

In other injury News, Rodney Harrison got his cleat caught in the field when trying to pivot and looked to hurt his knee on the play (AGAIN!? This guy hurts his knee every year, it seems). He had to be carted off the field, and we'll have more info on his injury as it comes.

But overall, it was a solid, dominating wins for the Pats, something we really needed to see from this team. The Pats host the suddenly hot St. Louis Rams next Sunday at 1:00.

A line I forgot to add last Pats article: You stay classy, Whale's Vagina.

INJURY UPDATE: Rodney Harrison tore his quadriceps and will have season ending surgery, the Globe reports. Sammy Morris also hurt his knee in the game but his status is not yet known.

Written by Kyle "THE BAD MAN PUNTED" Baxter

Breaking News - Maroney Placed on IR

2008-10-20T21:06:00.003-04:00

Today, the New England Patriots placed RB Laurence Maroney on Injured Reserve with an undisclosed shoulder injury, ending his season. Maroney is the second starting skill player to be placed on the IR by the Patriots this season, after QB Tom Brady.

Sammy Morris will now assume the starting RB duties for the remainder of the year.

Posted by Dan Zappulla, VendorBall Columnist.

Breaking News - Celtics Waive Darius Miles

2008-10-20T14:30:00.004-04:00

In a move that many analysts saw coming, the Boston Celtics have today waived forward Darius Miles, trimming their roster to the maximum fifteen players.

This move temporarily ends Miles' attempted comeback after missing all of the 2006-07 and 2007-08 NBA seasons.

Posted by Dan Zappulla, VendorBall Columnist.

What Now?

2008-10-20T02:58:00.009-04:00

A conversation between VendorBall staff members Dan Zappulla and Kyle Baxter:

(9:10:07 AM) Kyle Baxter: Well
(9:22:20 AM) Dan Zappulla: well?
(9:30:16 AM) Kyle Baxter: that sucked
(9:30:24 AM) Dan Zappulla: uh yup
(9:30:26 AM) Dan Zappulla: yup it did
(9:30:49 AM) Dan Zappulla: however
(9:30:57 AM) Dan Zappulla: we at VendorBall see this as a new challenge
(9:31:15 AM) Dan Zappulla: to cradle the infancy of Red Sox Nation and cuddle it close to our analytical teet
(9:31:45 AM) Dan Zappulla: we will press on and concern ourselves with The Big Three, and maybe Matt Cassel if we're drunk enough

With that, some things we'll be covering now that the Sox season is over:

1) The World Champion Celtics. Basketball season begins next week, so we'll have those crazy green boys to stay up on. Get it? 'Up'? Like, they're tall? Well screw you, you didn't think of it! (Dan will also be featuring a segment called "Tommy Talk" during every Celtics game review. It'll feature the most inappropriate and/or loud comment from Tommy Heinsohn during the previous night's game.)

2) The World Series. There is still a World Series to be played, and we'll be covering that closely, despite our disappointment over the ALCS outcome. (We'll probably only make a big deal of it if the Phillies win. Cause, you know, fuck Tampa Bay.)

3) The Patriots. Our Pats have gone mostly overlooked, and we'll be getting a little more in touch with them, but perhaps only after a few beers and a scottle of botch.

4) Weekly football picks. That's right, we'll be picking against the spread now that we have time to do it. (Heh. Spread.)

5) Off Season outlook. The baseball off season is a favorite of ours, and there are some big free agents looking for new deals this year, and we'll be previewing that. (And praising Peter Gammons every step of the way.)

6) Feature Pieces. We have been throwing various things we want to write about, but haven't had the chance to because of our daily Sox/playoff pieces, so we'll be posting some of those as the spirit moves us to write.

So don't fret, reader, come close to our teet and suckle the sweet nectar of life we will continue to provide.

Congrats Rays - But Your Fans Don't Deserve It

2008-10-20T01:48:00.008-04:00

I don't want to recap the game, and so I won't. As it stands, the Rays are currently going to the World Series. Good for them, they're an exciting young team that was built from the ground up. The team deserves it, their fans do not, and I have a few things to say to those cowbell-ringing, blue-hair-dying, mohawk-wearing, bandwagon-jumping pseudo-fans.

I have said already that being a baseball fan through this long season is a journey that you take with your team. When times are tough, and good, you stick with your team. The Rays fans, however, could not even recognize their team was talented in September, where it was obvious they were making the playoffs. Seeing the Rays fans "celebrate" over their ALCS victory, I was disgusted at the full sight.

First, the Rays fans were at least 90% gone during the celebration. Has anyone else ever seen that? If you take a full journey with your team, you stick around for the celebration. Look in the background of this photo:

If you look in the background, you will see the stands are empty. REALLY!? No one wanted to stay for the celebration? Game over, time to go home? WHY!?

Second, the cowbell thing is preposterous and obnoxious. Fans who need help being loud and into a game aren't really fans. You need to be into the game for the game, especially when your team is young, talented, and fun to watch.

Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, I have some attendance figures. From 2003-2007, the Tampa Bay [Devil] Rays were last in attendance percentage (percent of their stadium filled per home game) except for 2004, when they performed better than the Montreal Expos. That's right, they continually lost to the city that lost their team. But in 2008 they had a decent team, so their numbers must have gone up - and they did. How much? They ranked 24th in the league (a head of Pittsburgh, Baltimore, Texas, KC, Oakland and Florida). Let's look at all the playoff teams and their numbers. And their ranks.

Boston: 104.0% (1st)
Chicago Cubs: 99.1% (2nd)
Philadelphia: 97.1% (4th)
LA Angels: 91.4% (6th)
Milwaukee: 89.3% (8th)
LA Dodgers: 82.2% (12th)
Chicago Sox: 76.0% (13th)
Tampa Bay Rays: 52.8% (24th)

That's right, the Rays barely averaged filling over half their stadium. Let's throw in... ohh... the worst teams in baseball.

Washington: 68.2% (15th)
Seattle: 60.2% (21st)

The Nationals and the Mariners, the only 100 loss teams in baseball, filled more of their stadium on average than the Rays this year. And the Rays are going to the World Series. So when it comes down to it, do these fans deserve an ALCS Championship?

No, they do not.

Written by Real Baseball Fan, Kyle Baxter

Sox Force Game 7

2008-10-19T13:11:00.002-04:00

The Sox overcame yet another homerun by BlowJ Upton to defeat the Rays 4-2 in last night's contest. Let's break this down by topic.

Josh Beckett
Beckett did not look fantastic in the victory, but he was effective. He did not have the giddy-up on his fastball, so instead he pulled a Schilling-esque performance by mixing his pitches, locating his fastball, and changing location on the Rays hitters. The announcers said Beckett had to "pitch to contact." Well I disagree with that, but he surely wasn't trying to overpower guys, just tried to keep them off balance, and except for the two bombs hit by Bartlett and Upton, Beckett was successful.

It was weird being nervous when Beckett took the mound every inning. Usually staking Beckett out to a one run lead is enough to instill confidence in the Sox Fan Base, but this time it was not. However, as the game went on and Beckett started cruising it started to feel better and better. It was surprising to see him come out after only 5 innings and 78 pitches, but that's an indication that he is still not 100% from that oblique strain.

James Shields
Shields leaned far too heavily on his change-up and could not locate it well enough to be effective. He only allowed 3 earned runs in 5.2 innings (oh Dan, you had the wrong starter's line), but did so by allowing 9 hits and 3 walks. He could have easily allowed 8 runs during his start but snaked his way out of trouble a few times. It would never be enough though, as he allowed two solo homeruns as well, including one to Jason "Rally Killer" Varitek, and he couldn't quell the rush in the 6th.

Boston Bullpen
The occasionally shaky Boston Bullpen held fast. After getting 5 innings from Beckett, the Sox turned to Okie for two innings and Masterson and Papelbon for one each. All three guys looked fantastic, combining to allow only one baserunner (an Okajima walk) in 4 innings of work. Even Masterson, who I have been pretty hard on as a reliever, looked phenomenal in his inning of work.

It was fantastic to watch the Boston bullpen put in a solid, shut down, game over performance. It will be interesting to see how they play out tonight, having thrown 4 innings last night. Then again, it's the playoffs, everyone's available.

Papelbon's playoff scoreless streak was extended to 25 innings. In those 25 scoreless innings he has surrendered only 10 hits, 6 walks, and struck out 22. It cannot be overstated how important it is to have someone so dominant in the bullpen during the playoffs. When we need a shut down inning, we have Pap-smear.

TBS
In a disgusting turn of events, TBS lost power in Atlanta so we missed the entire first inning. It is sad that one company is allowed to have a monopoly on broadcasting games, so when it blacks out everyone is S.O.L. Absolutely unbelievable. And in another turn of events, the Buffalo-San Diego game is also out, completely unrelated issue, but same result. Pathetic.

Rays' Fans
When the camera scanned the crowd during the Rays loss, there was the familiar sight of "I can't believe this is happening" faces. For Rays fans, this is the first time they've had this experience. It took these guys until September to realize their team was actually talented and going to make the playoffs, and now they're feeling their first inevitable disappointment. Not saying the Sox are a lock to win, but the Rays fans have that look. So I have a few works for Rays fans.

Welcome to the MLB. Get used to this feeling, only one team wins their last game. Next year, take the entire 7 month journey - the highs get higher, the lows are lower, but it's a fun ride. In the words of Dan "[The Rays fans] don't deserve to win this year."

What's On Tap?
The Sox turn to young ace Jon Lester who opposes the equally young Matt Garza. Lester will look to bounce back from his first playoff start allowing any runs (he allowed 4). What should we look for from Lester? See if his fastball has that extra pop and is hitting the mid-90's. If he's got the good fastball and can locate it, he'll be able to work in that nasty cutter and mix in his curve. I'll be surprised if he gets handled the same way he was last time out. Big game 7 tonight - buckle up.

Written by Kyle "Spank Me Hard And Call Me" Baxter

Breaking -- Lineup Announced for Game 6

2008-10-18T17:47:00.004-04:00

Per the smokin' Amalie Benjamin of NESN and Extra Bases, here is the Red Sox starting lineup for Game 6 tonight in Tampa Bay:

1. Coco Crisp, CF
2. Dustin Pedroia, 2B
3. David Ortiz, DH
4. Kevin Youkilis, 3B
5. J.D. Drew, RF
6. Jason Bay, LF
7. Mark Kotsay, 1B
8. Jed Lowrie, SS
9. Jason Varitek, C

SP -- Josh Beckett

My personal prediction for tonight's game? Boston comes out on top, 8-4, to force a Game 7. Beckett goes 5.2 innings, giving up three runs. Let's hope I'm right.

-- Dan Zappulla, VendorBall Columnist.

Súper Papi, and J.D. Drew, the Kid Wonder

2008-10-17T08:40:00.028-04:00

By Kyle Baxter and Dan Zappulla

It never felt like it would be a win. Walking to the ballpark, in the balmy, perfect weather of October 16, 2008, it just felt like a loss. Years of Red Sox fandom had clued me into the feeling of a loss, and this day had that feeling. When Daisuke gave up another home run to B.J. Upton, it certainly never felt like a win. When Papelbon allowed those two inherited runners to score, it absolutely did not feel like a win. But I stayed at the game, waiting for the inevitable loss. Why? Because I wanted some thanks at the end. Baseball, like no other sport, takes its fans on a journey. A 6-7 month, grueling, difficult and often fruitless journey. Players leave town without thanks to the millions of fans who purchased his jersey and cheered him on for years. And yet, we root, we pay, and all we want is some thanks, and I was staying to get my piece.

Waiting for the thanks I was due for such a season something happened. The Red Sox fans lost hope. It was in 5th inning, the fans went quiet and resigned themselves to a long winter of trade talks, free agent signings, and filling the void with our other sports. Some fans left, others sulked, most drank their sorrows away in expensive Bud Lights. But a magical thing was happening: our despair made Papi strong.

Looking back on it, we should have seen that it was a good match-up. Balfour, the hard throwing right-hander who only throws fastballs, against our superhero slugger who needed to break out of a slump. But at the time, we were down and sure of defeat. And then Súper Papi, feeding on our rich and plentiful desperation, launched a ball deep into the Boston night, and hope was rekindled. Three runs, two innings -- not only doable, but been done before.

The Tampa bullpen, which had been so strong all series, now looked weak, vulnerable, and the Sox monster was ready to strike at the injured bullpen beast. Being there, it was obvious the Sox were going to win that game. The fans, who had nothing to cheer about all game, let out a polite applause for Pedroia's RBI single and erupted on Papi's bomb, and would never sit again. When Wheeler walked Bay on 4 pitches, the fans smelled blood. When Drew launched a homerun to pull it within one, the stands exploded, and from that point on, the fans would not let Tampa Bay come out victorious. We've come on a journey too long to let it end like that, and it wasn't going to end like that on our watch.

It never felt like a win, not until Papi let our despair turn him into the superhero yet again. Papi does not do clutch, Papi changes entire series. That home run could prove to be the series changing event. But wow, up until that moment it never felt like a win.

And now the Red Sox faithful turn longingly to Josh Beckett. The one time fire-baller has seen his fastball dip down to the low 90's during this playoff run. Two weeks ago, if you were to tell me that we had Beckett going in a must-win game, I'd laugh and call Vegas to bet my life savings on the Sox. Now, we're all a little nervous. Personally, I will be looking at the radar gun for the speed of his first few fastballs, and their location. If he's down in the low 90's and not locating, I'll be running for the Xanax... if he's doing either or, I feel OK... if he's doing both, then I start thinking about whether I can get a last minute bet in Sin City.

Personally, I think Beckett lives for these moments and will be back on form - then again, I thought that last time he went out, too. But I cannot think too much about tomorrow, today. I am tired and am thankful I get today off of sports to recuperate. So rest up Red Sox Nation we have a big day Saturday and the big question remains, can the Red Sox pull off 2 wins in a row? Mr. Garnett, what do you think?

This morning on WEEI, Curt Schilling called the game "three hours of crap and about sixty minutes of 'holy crap.'" Curt would know a thing or two about magical ALCS performances. Everyone remembers the "bloody sock" game back in the 2004 Championship Series. One year before that -- before Schilling joined the Boston club -- an inauspicious home run turned into a karmatic coincidence with last night's ending. Aaron Boone's home run to win the American League Pennant for the Yankees in 2003 happened on October 17 at 12:16 in the morning. JD Drew's game-winning single last night took place on October 17, 2008 at 12:16 in the morning. Five years -- to the minute -- after Boone's famed round-tripper. Call it coincidence, call it karma, call it nothing at all. But that improbable alignment, combined with a burning CITGO sign in Kenmore Square, has led me to believe that this team might just pull off some October magic once again.

Yes, it's a stretch to think that Josh Beckett will snap back to himself in Game 6. It's a stretch to think Jon Lester is a lock to throw a gem in Game 7. But it was also insane to think they could come back from three-games-to-none in 2004, three-games-to-one in 2007, and down seven runs in the seventh inning last night. This is what the Red Sox do. They make impossible dreams, possible.

Final Score: Boston 8, Tampa Bay 7.
Win: Justin Masterson (1-0)
Loss: J.P. Howell (0-1)
Player of the Game: J.D. Drew (BOS). Two clutch hits, including the walk-off game-winner.

Additional Note from Kyle: Out of the three players Dan mentioned who know how to come back from down in a series (Beckett, Papelbon, Papi) the two that played came up huge (Papi, Pappy). I'm not saying Dan predicted it, but if Beckett comes up huge on Saturday then there might be something to this "Dan can see the future" thing... that or he needs to show me where he parks his DeLorean.

Extra Additional Note from Dan: Just parked the DeLorean out front, came back with startling revelation. Everyone in 1955 was on fire -- I never knew that!

CLUTCH.

2008-10-17T08:35:00.001-04:00

The VendorBall staff is at a loss for words.

Update later today when we've composed our thoughts.

The Sox live to play another day.

Phillies Oust Dodgers to Take NLCS Title

2008-10-16T12:27:00.004-04:00

Behind yet another strong performance by ace Cole Hamels, the Philadelphia Phillies beat the LA Dodgers 4-1 in LA to secure a place in the World Series finals. The story of the game was Hamel's dominance of the Dodger hitters, save Manny Ramirez. Ramirez took Hamels deep in the 6th inning, but that proved to be the Dodgers only run of the night. On the other side Chad Billingsley got himself shelled yet again, giving up 3 runs in 2.2 innings while walking 4 and surrendering 4 hits, including a leadoff homerun to Jimmy Rollins.

Perhaps the story of the day from the Dodger side was Rafael Furcal. Furcal, who made 4 errors all year at shortstop managed to make 3 in this game alone, which accounted for the two insurance runs the Phils scored in the 5th. The Dodgers were just outclassed in this series, and in this game.

In what I think is an odd move, Charlie Manuel went to his setup man, Ryan Madson, and his closer, Brad Lidge, to close out game 5, while up by 4. These two guys had already combined for 7.1 innings in the NLCS. In addition, 7 more innings in the NLDS against the Brewers. Personally, I think in this instance you let your pitchers rest if you can and give the ball to some of the other guys and get them in the games. Then again, they have a full week off to recover so why not?

The series was never close, and Dan and myself sure did not give Philly enough credit. They did look like a tough team, but mostly because they could hit the ball and they had a solid bullpen. What we saw in this series is that their hitting, as good as it is, is not the key to their success. Chase Utley and Pat Burrell each had a decent series, but overall their key was timley hitting and solid pitching.

The Phillies starting pitching was mediocre, but their relief pitching was sparkling. In a grand total of 20 innings, the bullpen let up a grand total of 2 (count 'em) TWO runs. So even when starting pitchers Joe Blanton and Brett Myers faltered, the bullpen was able to pick him up and help the Phils pick up the W. Also, when Cole Hamels is in the game, you want your bullpen to be able to slam the door on the leads he brings, which is exactly what they did in Hamel's two starts.

The shining spot on the side of LA was Manny Ramirez who continued his torrid hitting of NL pitching. In 22 plate appearances Manny managed 7 walks (8th all time for an LCS), 8 hits, 2 doubles, 2 homeruns, 7 RBIs (28% of the team's total for the series) which gives him a .533 batting average, .682 On Base Percentage (5th all time for an LCS), and a 1.067 Slugging Percentage (11th all time for an LCS) and a whopping 1.759 OPS(7th all-time for an LCS, 3rd for players with 20+ PAs). This performance was one of the greats in NLCS history, however was squandered due to the Dodgers inability to pitch well or get people on base in front of Manny.

So the Phillies move onto the World Series, and will be glued to their TVs as Boston tries to pull of miracle 3-1 comback #3 against the Rays, and try not to have the same collapse as Colorado a year ago.

Win: Cole Hamels (2-0, 1.93)
Loss: Chad Billingsley (0-2, 18.00)
Player of the Game: Cole Hamels
Series MVP (decided by the VendorBall Staff): Cole Hamels. Manny Ramirez had one of the great performances ever in LCS history, and was easily the best player on the field, as well as the emotional leader of the Dodger club. But despite his dominance at the dish, his team did not move on and Cole Hamel's team did.
Series MVP (as decided by the league): Cole Hamels

What's on Tap?
If you don't know, then your ass better CALLLL SOMEBODYYYYYY!!!!

Sox Keep the Faith.

2008-10-16T10:09:00.008-04:00

We've been here before. Down 3-1 in the ALCS with seemingly no hope. But like last year and four years ago, we have the right tools lined up. Matsuzaka, Beckett, Lester. I wouldn't want any other three men on the mound to accomplish a three-game winning streak.

Big Papi remembers how to do it.

So does Beckett.

So does Papelbon.

Let's get it done one more time.

-- Dan Zappulla, VendorBall Columnist.

ALCS Game 4 - The Sox Can't Wake Up.

2008-10-15T15:01:00.009-04:00

And the Rays might keep them unconscious.

There's no sense in recapping this game, since it was a virtual replay of Game 3. The final last night was a 13-4 Tampa Bay triumph, and the Red Sox find themselves in familiar territory, down 3 games to 1 in the American League Championship Series.

Boston was down 3-0 in the 2004 series, and 3-1 in last year's contest. Both times, they came back to win. This year, I'm not so sure. The 2004 and 2007 clubs had heart, grit and determination, something the 2008 squad seems to be lacking. They look slow, lazy and unwilling to change their approach to the game. The Rays, on the other hand, look invincible.

I'd be more inclined to write analysis on the game and series, but it comes down to one thing, and one thing only: Daisuke Matsuzaka's pitching performance in Game 5. If he can lead the Red Sox to a win -- a convincing win -- they have a shot to pull off their LCS magic. If not, Game 1 of the 2008 World Series will commence one week from today at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg.

On Tap for Tonight:
NLCS, Game 5 - Philadelphia Phillies at Los Angeles Dodgers
PHI Leads Series 3-1
Cole Hamels (PHI) will oppose Chad Billingsley (LAD).

Ken Rosenthal Seems to Think the Sox Are Racist.

2008-10-15T08:30:00.007-04:00

After reading Ken Rosenthal's piece on the Sox, (http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/8670984/Will-non-white-free-agents-shun-the-Sox??CMP=OTC-K9B140813162&ATT=49) I have some reactions.

First of all, I am not racist. When you come from a place as diverse as I did, you just grow up not caring about race. I could cite specifics but everyone's got a black friend, a Latino friend and so on, and I think that's boring to read about. Second, I am familiar with the Red Sox past as a racist organization. This is the point Rosenthal was trying to bring up, but in the process made the Sox current organization sound racist, and this is what I'm speaking to. Third, I am going to try to be democratic and obvious about this issue, but at the same time I'm going off the cuff, so bear with me if I start rambling a bit.

First, a challenge: Give me your best all African-American Team. Now your best Latino Team. Finally, your best Asian Team. You can even have DH in this one, if you want. Try to go off the top of your head, too. (My answers at the bottom of this column). How hard was it to fill your list? The fact of the matter is there aren't a huge number of African Americans playing in the MLB. There are a lot of Hispanics. Hell there are a lot of Hispanics who look black. But the game is still primarily white and Hispanic. And that's OK. Hell no one complains about the lack of whites in the NBA. That's because black people (for lack of better words) OWN OUR SHIT in that game, and everyone would rather see a good game than forced diversity.

But let's put anecdotal evidence aside. Check out the following: http://inquirer.philly.com/pdfs/2007/MLB_by_race.pdf . Let's assume the racial breakdown is similar to the 2006 numbers (which seems a fair first degree approximation) and see how the Sox stack up. There are 25 men on the active roster, and following are the members on the Sox broken down by race (or who are injured and would be otherwise on the active roster).

Hispanic: Lugo, Ortiz, Lowell (yes he is), Cora, Colon, Delcarmen, Lopez.
7/25 = 28%
League Average = 29.4%

African: Coco Crisp.
1/25 = 4%
League Average = 8.4%

Other: Jacoby Ellsbury (Navajo), Daisuke Matsuzaka (Japan), Hideki Okajima (Japan)
3/25 = 12%
League Average = 2.7%

White: remaining
13/25 = 56%
League Average = 59.5%

Guess what - our white percentage is right on line with league average. Oh, and so is our Latino number! In fact, to make this even we should trade two of our "other" players for one white guy and one black guy to aid our diversity. REALLY!? REALLY!? That seems a preposterous course of action.

I am not sure how someone looks at the Sox and sees a lack of diversity. Is it because Javier Lopez, Manny Delcarmen, Mike Lowell, and Jacoby Ellsbury all look white? Does the color of our skin really matter when it comes to our racial background? Is it because Coco Crisp is a fairer shade black than, say, Mike Cameron? I want some answers from Mr. Rosenthal here.

The sad thing is that I usually like Ken Rosenthal. I generally think he's a good sports writer who often has good information and insight, especially when it comes near trade times (the winter meetings and the trading deadline). So what happened here? In a time in this country when we need sports, he wants to sully the experience. The only times in this country when we truly need sports is when we are not doing well. When we have a war, economic crisis, and bad news on every channel, we need sports for entertainment and distraction. So thanks Ken.

The fact of the matter is the Sox front office runs its ship based solely on value. Not on race, shit not even on talent. On VALUE. This ownership wants to win championships and that's that. The piece Ken Rosenthal wrote was a disgusting shot at the Red Sox and their fans. Furthermore, it has become obvious that my 20-30 minutes of research done to write this article that at most a few hundred people will read dwarfs all the research done by Ken Rosenthal on his nationally published column. That'll be Fox News, lowering our expectations yet again.

Written By Vendorball Columnist, Kyle Baxter

For your records, this is what I came up with for teams and benches. This took me 20 minutes to think of (and I only researched the black catchers and some of the Asian infielders).

African-American
3B Chone Figgins
SS Jimmy Rollins
1B Derrek Lee
DH Ryan Howard
RF Jermaine Dye
CF Matt Kemp
RF Ken Griffey Jr.
2B Brandon Phillips
C Charles Johnson (I challenge you to find another catcher)

SP CC Sabathia

IF Prince Fielder
OF Curtis Granderson
OF Mike Cameron
OF Gary Sheffield

Asian
2B Akinori Iwamura
RF Kosuke Fukudome
CF Ichiro Suzuki
LF Hideki Matsui
C Kurt Suzuki
1B Travis Ishikawa
SS Chin-Lung Hu
3B ???????????
C Kenji Johjima

SP Daisuke Matsuzaka

Latino
2B Placido Polonco
SS Hanley Ramirez
1B Albert Pujols
DH David Ortiz
LF Manny Ramirez
3B Miguel Cabrera
RF Vladimir Guerrero
C Geovani Soto
LF Alfonso Soriano

SP Johan Santana

IF Jose Reyes
C Dioner Navarro
OF Magglio Ordonez
OF Carlos Beltran
IF Aramis Ramirez

Sox Lineup for Game 4 Announced

2008-10-14T16:11:00.003-04:00

...And there's a certain center fielder missing from it.

Red Sox
1. J.D. Drew, RF
2. Dustin Pedroia, 2B
3. David Ortiz, DH
4. Kevin Youkilis, 3B
5. Jason Bay, LF
6. Mark Kotsay, 1B
7. Coco Crisp, CF
8. Kevin Cash, C
9. Jed Lowrie, SS

With Jacoby Ellsbury struggling, the lineup takes on a new look. I applaud Francona for making the move.

Posted by Dan Zappulla, Vendorball Columnist.

From the High of Live Blog, to the Low of Tuesday Morning

2008-10-14T08:52:00.023-04:00

ALCS Game 2 - Tampa Bay 9, Boston 8 (F/11).
By Kyle Baxter

One of the worst things about three day weekends, is that hyper Monday that happens on Tuesday. You see, it's like Monday, except 30x worse because you've had an extra day to just sit around and watch sports (or go to a Renaissance Faire and watch sports). So with that, feeling already firmly planted in my bowels (which are better now, thanks for asking), I get to help recap games 2 and 3. I'd say "woohoo" but I think you'd know I was lying.

If you don't know what happened - Terry Francona stuck with a struggling Beckett who surrendered 8 earned runs in 4.1 innings, but the Sox came back to tie the game at 8 only to have Mike Timlin lose it in the 11th. If you want to know more than that then go read redsox.com or ESPN or something, if I recap it again I might vomit. So a lot to be said for this game, and let's start with the man at the front of the rotation.

Josh Beckett has been a playoff beast his whole career. So what happened here? Well, unfortunately a 96-98 MPH fastball is quite different from one at 92-93. His curve was also down from 77-78 to 74-75. These dips in velocity resulted in Beckett going from "dominant" to "hittable". The guy just did not have it on Saturday, and it was painfully obvious. In fact, I was pleading to Terry Francona (err... well my TV) to take out Beckett in the THIRD! Look, I know what Beckett has done in the playoffs, but something is amiss, he's getting shelled, get him out of there. This is the playoffs, not time for delicate egos or going on hope that someone can pull it together. At that point, you bring in Paul Byrd and hope for better.

I'd love to say the offense came along nicely that game, but of the 12 hits, all were gotten by Bay, Pedroia, Crisp, and Youkilis. So 4 guys hit well, 5 guys (Ellsbury, Ortiz, Varitek, Lowrie, and Kotsay) did not manage a hit (though did get 7 walks). The offense knocked out Kazmir early (4.1 innings) and even got runs off of a usually steady bullpen - one each off of Howell, Balfour and Bradford. However it wasn't enough.

Alaskan Governor David Brescia noted "who didnt think it was over when they put Timlin in. sigh." Indeed, Mr. Governor, indeed. It sucks that it's come so far for Timlin, but at 42, despite having the velocity to pitch he no longer seems to have the control. He issued three walks and a sac fly to BlowJ Upton to end the game. Meanwhile, Dan Wheeler threw 3.1 scoreless innings before being removed for rookie David Price who got the final two outs of the 11th.

I this game was a punch in the gut. For some reason I kept a calm demeanor, believing that the Sox were going to pull this one out. That pulling the game tied would catapult them into going home up 2-0 in the series. But it was not to be, as the Rays pulled off another one run victory. Once the game reached extra innings, I did not feel good about this game - in the one run phenomenon this column noted almost a month ago, it seemed a foregone conclusion that if the game reached extra innings that the Rays would pull it out. And pull out they did.

Win: David Price (1-0, 0.00)
Loss: Mike Timlin (0-1, 13.50)
Player of the Game: Dan Wheeler - 3.1 innings of relief out of your closer is unheard of these days, and holding the Sox scoreless despite facing 12 batters is truly a feat. Sad we can't give this one to Dustin Pedroia who hit two homeruns.

ALCS Game 3 - Tampa Bay 9, Boston 1.
By Dan Zappulla

As I made my weekly migration from Providence to Boston yesterday morning, I was in high hopes. WEEI was blasting on my car radio, John Dennis and Gerry Callahan were up to their usual right-wing antics, and the hometown boys had their ace on the hill later in the afternoon. As Callahan noted, "Lester's on the mound, the Sox are gonna be up 2-1, and we'll go from there." Not so fast, Gerry.

The afternoon contest started exactly how most baseball enthusiasts pictured it: Lester tossed four pitches -- FOUR -- and buzzed through the first three hitters in the Rays' lineup. Everything went downhill from there. Lester couldn't spot pitches, had no life on his fastball, and seemingly forgot how to throw a cutter. Tampa Bay hopped all over him. A third inning home run by B.J. Upton sealed the deal. The Rays had a five-run lead, and never looked back. Lester ended up going into the sixth, giving up five runs on eight hits. Not ace-like numbers.

Matt Garza, on the other hand, kept the Boston lineup in check. He was magnificent through six strong innings, and seemed more like Jon Lester than Jon Lester did. He had minute precision on all of his pitches, throwing with Brady-like accuracy. (I love cross-sport analogies, don't you?) He surrendered six scattered hits, and shut down the 3-4-5 spots in the Red Sox order, keeping them to only one total base.

The Red Sox now face a familiar, yet worrisome, situation. They trailed the ALCS in both 2004 and 2007, 3-0 and 2-1, respectively. In both of those seasons, they had offenses firing on all cylinders. They had at least once pitching ace that they could turn to when trouble arised. This year's initial ace, Josh Beckett, has been nothing but dismal this postseason. The same can be said, after last night, about Jon Lester. And so, Red Sox Nation turns its eyes to their new stopper: Daisuke Matsuzaka. After tossing a gem in Game 1 on Friday night, he might be Boston's only hope at pushing this thing to six or seven games.

Have I mentioned that the offense has been stagnant at best? Jacoby Ellsbury, David Ortiz and Jason Varitek are currently hitless in the series. That should tell you all you need to know.

Immense pressure now rests on the shoulders of veteran knuckleballer Tim Wakefield, who takes the ball in tonight's Game 4. If Boston wins, we have a series again. If Tampa pulls it out, the Red Sox might need to channel the magic of postseasons past.

Win: Matt Garza (1-0)
Loss: Jon Lester (0-1)
Player of the Game: Matt Garza, Tampa Bay. Kept the Sox lineup at bay (no pun intended) in a critical game for the Rays. An outstanding performance that he may have to duplicate in a possible Game 7.

On Tap for Tonight:

ALCS Game 4 (8:07 PM ET, TBS) -- TB Leads Series, 2-1.
Tampa Bay Rays vs. Boston Red Sox
Andy Sonnanstine (TBR) opposes Tim Wakefield (BOS).

ALCS Game 1 Live Blog (Better Late Than Never.)

2008-10-14T08:40:00.057-04:00

To make things easier to read, Dan's comments will be featured in blue, and Kyle's comments will be featured in red. Let's get it started.

8:19 - Do they always do the pregame roster introduction in the LCS, or is this just a Tampa Bay "not-sure-if-we'll-ever-get-another-opportunity-to-do-this" thing?

8:23 – Just finished listening to the lineups and I’m glad to hear that Tampa has some fans there. But if noise makers aren’t the most annoying things allowed in baseball parks (next to cell phones) then I don’t know what is. If your fans cannot be loud, they should not be allowed a handicap. All I can think of is: I got a fever and there’s only one cure -- MORE COWBELL! 14 minutes until the game starts – and I’m pretty amped up. I’m full of Pepto Bismol and I have beer in the fridge I probably won’t get to because of the diarrhea I got from Thai food earlier today. But I’ll try to keep this out of the game log.

8:28 – But if I go for some time without a post, you’ll know why. Oh and player of the game, probably the pitcher of the winning team. That’s me, Kyle Baxter, going with the odds.

8:28 - I wonder how many John Sununu commercials we'll see tonight...

8:29 - One. I'll keep a tally.

8:32 – “Well they (the Red Sox) may be infallible but they have a pretty good guy going tonight in Daisuke Matsuzaka.” I don’t know who this announcer is, but someone needs to get him a dictionary.

8:38 - Player of the Game prediction? Jacoby Ellsbury.

8:40 - Ellsbury strikes out.

8:44 - Shields is throwing an awful lot of off-speed stuff early.

8:50 – JD Drew strikes out on a change-up. I feel like I see him strike out because he’s ahead of a pitch more than I see him do anything else (especially smile). I’m coming to the conclusion that he’s a good fastball hitter but assumes everything thrown at him is a fastball, and so doesn’t look that good in these situations. But I don’t know, I haven’t done the leg work. We now wait for Dice-K to get on the mound. Excuse me, I need to go get some Xanax.

8:55 – Dice-K walks the first hitter he faces. *Pops one Xanax*

9:00 – Dice-K walks Carlos Pena. *Pops another Xanax* 9 Balls and 5 Strikes through 14 pitches.

9:07 – Dice-K walks Carl Crawford *Pops a Xanax*

9:08 - Gets out of the inning unharmed...just like always. He's gotta teach me how to do that.

9:15 - Quick 1-2-3 second inning for Shields. He's in a rhythm now. Not a good sign.

9:19 - Dice-K strikes out Dioner Navarro on three pitches. Maybe he's settled in too?

9:24 - The announcers say that “the best trade the Rays have done was the trade for Scott Kazmir.” For those who don’t know, the trade was with the Mets, the Rays sent Victor Zambrano over to get Kazmir. This trade being the best for the Rays is a preposterous statement, as it was the best trade made perhaps in the decade. In the meantime, Dice-K goes 1-2-3 striking out the first two. He’s still throwing a lot of pitches, but I think I’m ok with it. In other news I’m feeling warm and fuzzy either from the pepto or all the Xanax.

9:25 - Very nice 1-2-3 inning for Matsuzaka. Just what he needed.

9:28 - Already seen three commercials for Barack Obama. Maybe he bought more advertising time than Sununu?

9:28 – Wondering what the most annoying commercial of the game will be.

Early candidates:
* What’s my schedule, texting everyone ever all day?
* Recycling energy (car commercial)
* Poltergeist (Direct TV) [with all due respect to Coach]
* Derek with the Mustang and Mustache (T-Mobile)
* Some Frank Caliendo commercial (FrankTV)
* Ashton Kutcher has a camera (Nikon)
* VIVAAAA VIAGRA (Viagra)
* There’s Only One October (MLB)

9:29 – Dan Zappulla: OH GOD LOOK AT THE SPARKLY MOHAWK.

9:29 - DOES THAT KID HAVE A SPARKLY MOHAWK? That's it. I hate baseball outside of Boston. It's too weird. They have sparkles and roofs and fireworks and catwalks...it isn't right, damn it.

9:31 - Another 1-2-3 inning for Shields. He's now retired seven in a row, and the Red Sox seem to be swinging at quite a few first-pitches. Shields is poised to throw for awhile tonight.

9:41 – TBS ANNOUNCERS MAKE KYLE ANGRY! I mean Dice-K tipping his cap to an umpire is such a good move, especially for a guy who doesn’t speak English well and these announcers laugh. Also, Dice-K just walked Carlos Pena again. *Xanax*

9:42 - BIG three-pitch strikeout of Longoria. Got him on a patented Varitekian high fastball. Scoreless through three. Could Dice-K actually have enough in him to go beyond five innings tonight?

9:46 - Does anyone else think Joe Maddon sounds like Randy Newman?

9:48 – JD Drew grounds into a 4-6-3 double play to end the inning. Somehow, this feels familiar. Also, I have something I’ve noticed about Youkilis* at this point in the game, but given the current situation, I think it prudent to keep my mouth shut. But I need to say something eventually.

9:56 – Also best commercials of the night nominees:
* Swagger from Old Spice
* Miller High Life
* Some Frank TV Ad (yes they’re in both best and worst).

9:57 - Does Shields' night remind you of John Lackey in Game 1 of the ALDS? I feel like the Red Sox might squeeze out a run or two in the fifth or sixth.

9:59 - J-Bay works a lead-off walk on five pitches. Good start. Kotsay needs to keep it rolling.

10:00 - Kotsay with a check-swing double down the left-field line! Second and third, nobody out. Take 'em how you can get 'em!

10:02 – Sac Fly! Sox 1 – Rays 0. I’m not saying I predicted it, but I was thinking it before it happened.

10:04 – Tek hits one on the screws right at Iwamura with the infield in. Rough luck Tek.

10:06 - Shields somehow slithers out of that one. Varitek hit a line-drive shot to second, followed by an impossible over-the-shoulder catch by Jason Bartlett to rob Ellsbury of a hit. Middle fifth, 1-0 Boston.

10:07 - FrankTV should really be FrankRadio. Caliendo's voices are spot-on, but my god, he doesn't look like a single guy he impersonates. Half of his costumes look like they were stolen from his high school drama club.

10:14 – The announcers state That-Which-Must-Not-Be-Stated-While-Its-Happeneing as Dice-K goes 1-2-3 once again in the bottom in the 5th

10:16 - Vince Vaughn seems to be in another film which will, no doubt, feature a completely different plot than the last romantic comedy he headlined.

10:17 - NBA on TNT promo that featured the phrase, "World Champion Boston Celtics." I love this city.

10:23 – Fisted is the weirdest word ever for something happening in a baseball game. That said, Youkilis is fisted and Shields goes 1-2-3 himself. This has been one of the slowest low scoring pitching duels in recent memory. We’re nearly 2 hours in and not even through the 6th yet.

10:30 – Evan Longoria swings on a 3-0 count and flies out to right to end the inning. Dice-K gets them in order again. If I didn’t like pitching duels, this game would be boring. Thankfully I love this game.

10:42 - David Archuleta is singing "God Bless America." Forty miles away, I can hear my girlfriend screaming.

10:47 - And there's the first hit surrendered by Matsuzaka. Carl Crawford lined a fastball through the right side. I bet it was that "God Bless America" crap that threw Dice-K off.

10:59 – Pop Out, Strike out, Ground out. Actually, I expected that completely. Dice-K, atta boy. Now please don’t bring in Masterson. Short leashes, short leashes. Everyone on a short leash.

*Also, that Youkilis thing I noticed was that he was the only player up until that point to get a hit. But that is not something you speak of while it's going on.

10:59 - I just screamed and started applauding. Bartlett grounds a weak dribbler to short, inning over. Matsuzaka shows gigantic balls. And as Kyle just IM'ed to me, "that was totally expected."

11:04 – Shields is taken out when Pedroia hits a one out single up the middle. Excellent game for him, but is currently on the hook. Line: 7.1 IP, 6 H, 2R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 6 K and responsible for Pedroia who’s now on second now that Howell walked Papi.

11:15 - THANK YOU, CARL CRAWFORD. Diving and missing balls will earn you points in my book, baby! Youk with a double to left on a hanging breaking ball, Pedroia scores, Papi to third. 2-0 Sox! Howell's night is done, Drew comes to the plate, Grant Balfour in to face him. HUGE.

11:19 – Balfour drills JD Drew in the shoulder, and Pedroia looks like he could bite off the head of a baby seal. Drew seems ok but if he doesn't play tomorrow I won't flinch (he's a girly-man). Bases loaded. But.... Balfour gets out of the inning and the Sox go into the eighth 2-0.

11:27 - Hey! Our second John Sununu commercial! See, I told you we'd come across a few.

11:28 – They send out Dice-K again. WHAT!? 109 pitches and there he goes again.

11:29 - Leadoff base hit for Iwamura. Hopefully that's the night for Dice. Let's not turn this into another Pedro-in-2003 situation, Tito. (Dice stays in the game to face Upton.)

11:30 - Wild pitch. Iwamura to second. Catchable ball ... that might actually go as a passed ball on Varitek. ... Upton smashes a ball down to Youk at third, who knocks it down, but doesn't have a play. Go-ahead run comes to the plate in the form of Carlos Pena. Pretty much the last guy you want up there right now. Can't help but think a healthy Mike Lowell would've made that play. That's the night for Dice-K, as Tito makes the trip to the mound. Can't help but think it's two batters too late. Okajima will come in to face Pena.

11:37 – Okie gives up a dou… oh Drew catches it. Atta boy! Well then, umm YEAH OKIE!!!

11:40 – MASTERSON!? Oh man, come on… Delcarmen, man. Delcarmen. OK OK, now's not the time for second guessing, let’s go kid.

11:42 – DOUBLE PLAY! Atta boy, kid!!! Dan admitted to me that he was eerily calm for that batter, I wasn’t sure. But things seem to have fallen into place and now, I am sure this is ending in a win. On that I spend a lot of time questioning Tito, despite the fact that he's lead this team to two championships plus lead them to the playoffs every year except in 2006. He's got a great record, he handles pitching staffs great, and he gets his guys to play hard for him (Manny excluded). And despite all his success I cannot help but question his decision making. Perhaps it's one of those side-effects of being a baseball fan, you have to question your teams manager over and over and over and over. But in the end, Tito wins.

11:42 - This game is becoming eerily calm for me. Like it's an inevitability that the Red Sox will win. This is the natural order of things, so to speak.

11:53 - 1-2-3 ninth inning tossed by Grant Balfour and David Price. We head to the bottom half, Sox still up 2-0. The medley of "Wild Thing" and "I'm Shippin Up to Boston" is ringing through the heads of Red Sox Nation.

11:58 - Papelbon blows Crawford away in four pitches. He swung through three fastballs. One down.

12:01 - Chip Caray: "The clock strikes midnight on the Cinderella Rays." Floyd pops out to Youkilis in foul territory. Two out.

12:04 – PAPSMEARED! Sox win game 1!!! Yes, that was a 91 MPH splitter. MA-LICOUS!

And that’s why they’re the champs. Winning a close game like that reminds us that a championship attitude and experience help a lot during the playoffs.

Win: Daisuke Matsuzaka (1-0, 0.00)
Loss: James Shields (0-1, 2.45)
Save: Jonathan Papelbon (1)
Player of the Game: Daisuke Matsuzaka 7.0 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 4 BB, 9 K - THAT'S a winning stat line. Innings 2-7 (inclusive): 2 H, 1 BB.

Catching up with the NLCS

2008-10-13T23:21:00.006-04:00

Where We Last Left Off

When we last left you, the Philadelphia Phillies won Game 1 behind a strong showing by Cole Hamels. Since then, three games have been played, and due to the Vendorball Staff's desire to actually watch some sports, we have been a bit behind writing about them. So we are supercharging ourselves for the next few days starting with the NLCS Games 2, 3, and 4 (here). The Pats game (below). And ALL of the ALCS coverage we've missed by spending our nights watching sports. We're giving, here, and we're giving hard even if we have to give all night long.

NLCS Game 2: When Slapping 5 Runs in 5 Innings Isn't Enough
Phillies 8 - Dodgers 5

Well, when your own starting pitcher gives up 8 runs in 2.1 innings, then scoring 5 runs in 5 innings might not cut it. Chad Billingsley, who pitched masterfully in his NLDS game got shellacked by the Phillies starting 9. Yes, I mean 9. As woefully as Brett Myers' line might have been, he did contribute big time with his bat, going 3-for-3 with 2 runs and 3 RBI. I'll leave you a second to read that over again.
.
.
.
Done? Yeah I know it took me a few minutes, too. But for some reason Chad Billingsley had no answer for Brett Myers in the batters box. In fact, Brett Myers is 4-5 with a walk, 3 RBI and 3 Runs so far in the playoffs. Perhaps pitching was not quite the right calling for him.

Notably, in this game, Brett Myers decided to throw behind Manny during his first at-bat. Manny responded in his third at bat, taking an inside fastball off the fists but over the fence. Yes, he is that good and that strong. The homerun was hit in the top of the 4th and was the 5th straight half inning where at least one run was scored. Fans buckled up for a bumpy ride, but then the bullpens buckled down and not another run was scored the rest of the game. Weird how that works, but the bullpens of both ballclubs lived up to their billing. Unfortunately the starting pitching did not.

Lidge, who pitched the 9th for the save, made it interesting by walking two guys, but wiggled his way out of it again (as he's done all year) and managed to strike out Kemp and Garciaparra on 8 straight sliders. Watching Nomar strike out really brought me back. His lack of plate discipline still amazes me. In fact, how do you NOT know the 8th slider is coming when I'm pretty sure that's the only pitch he threw during the inning!? Well, that screwed my "Dodgers in 5" pick. Thanks guys, really.

Win: Brett Myers (1-0, 9.00)
Loss: Chad Billingsly(0-1, 27.00)
Save: Brad Lidge (2)
Player of the Game: Brett Myers - 1 Win plus the nice hitting stats. Amazing.

Game 3: 45 - is that your age or your NLCS ERA, Jamie Moyer?
Dodgers 7 - Phillies 2

Ok, that's Jamie Moyer's age. But his NLCS ERA this year is 40.50, and when your ERA is nearing your age (I don't care how old you are) that's not good. In fact, Moyer's ERA is larger than the age of every other player on the Phillies' playoff roster (Matt Stairs does not celebrate his half-birthday until November). That is not the way you want to go about winning ballgames. And when Blake DeWitt hit a bases clearing triple in the first inning, it was about time for a curtain call for "The Ageless" Jamie Moyer.

The Dodgers looked down and out coming here, being completely outclassed by the Phillies. And really, with a win here you could have put the proverbial nail in the coffin that would have been Dodgers' fans' dreams. But instead, the Dodgers showed some spunk and fought back, and hard. I'm skimming over the third inning scuffle in favor of the baseball part of the game, which, after the first two innings was damn quiet. Again the pitching of these two teams, especially the bullpens, live up to their billing.

One scary thing for Dodger fans, is that Ryan Howard went 2-4 with a double. The Phillies have been able to get through two wins without a lot of contribution from Howard in the middle of that lineup, but if he gets himself going it will mean problems for the Dodgers pitching, and whatever poor hurler will have to face him in the World Series.

Win: Hiroki Kuroda (1-0, 3.00)
Loss: Jamie Moyer (0-1, 40.50)
Player of the Game: Great Question. Let's go with the Dodger fans here. I did this with the Brewers last time and again, I think the fans would not allow the Dodgers to lose this game, and playing at home is why the Dodgers came out on fire.

Game 4: Bullpen Collapse.
Phillies 7 - Dodgers 5

And it finally happened. The Dodgers' bullpen, which had been great all playoffs finally collapsed. And in the meantime, Shayne Victorino has catapulted himself into playoff stud-dom with a game tying two run homerun in the 8th off of the usually steady Cory Wade. Three batters later, Matt Stairs (two mentions in one column - UNBELIEVABLE!) hits a two run shut off of Dodger closer Jonathan Broxton to give the Phillies a 7-5 lead.

The Dodger bullpen went 11.1 innings without letting up a run in the first three games - and something had to give. Lidge got a 4 out save - Wade and Broxton let up three runs combined. Interestingly, both Wade and Broxton pitched in Game 3, despite having a cozy 5 run lead. Interesting choice by Torre, which did not pay dividends today.

I believe that there is some advantage to seeing the same closers over and over again during a 7 game series. Relief pitchers need to pitch like starters, holding back their pitches and not pitching nearly the same way appearance to appearance. It's a different beast, the playoffs. A different beast.

In fact, Torre said before the game that he wanted to stop the Phil's "big inning." Nice job, Torre. He blows out bullpens like it's nobody's business. That's why Rivera was vulnerable in the playoffs. Why the Sox were able to crawl back from 3-0 to win. As good a manager as Torre can be, he does not manage his bullpen well, and never has. And here we are again, three innings in Game 3 from guys he needed in Game 4, where they failed.

So the Phillies take a 3-1 lead into Game 5. Worst case scenario, they have two chances at home to win this series. Now here's the question: does Manny's experience here help his young team? Or does Philly ride this wave and keep on winning? I think I'm coming around to Philly.

Win: Ryan Madson (1-0, 0.00)
Loss: Cory Wade (0-1, 6.00)
Save: Brad Lidge (3)
Player of the Game: Matt Stairs and Shayne Victorino for two CLUTCH homeruns.

Written by Mouse Clicker, Kyle Baxter

New England 10 - A Whale's Vagina 30

2008-10-13T22:52:00.003-04:00

Is this what we are to expect from the Patriots and Matt Cassel? One week, a serviceable quarterback, and the next he's not? Although I admit it's something new to walk into a game and not know what you're going to be getting from your starting QB, but man is it ever stressful. Detroit fans, I don't know how you've done it for so many years. I mean have you had a consistent quarterback since Bobby Lane? (Oh that's not fair, I had to look that up).

But that's besides the point, the Patriots got absolutely annihilated on Sunday night. One of those "wow, what the hell is going on here" games. Belichick was his usual unpredictable self, and started the game in a 4-3 defensive scheme (4 down linemen and three linebackers) instead of the 3-4 (vice-versa). How did the A Whale's Vagina Chargers respond? A 48 yard pass from Rivers to Vincent "Released Me In Your Fantasy League, Eh?" Jackson (and yes, I did) on the first play of the game. Was Bill Belichick out-coached by Norv Turner? Well hold your horses there.

I had a feeling watching this game, that Bill Belichick is not worried about making the playoffs. I think there is something going on there where he knows that this team is making the playoffs, and he's using this time to test some things out. Today, it was the 4-3 defense. Of course, this did not work, but you still need to see it work out in a game. Do you think Belichick has his eye on winning every game, or on winning 9-10 games? And folks, 9 games might be enough to make the playoffs this year. The Bills are surprising everyone at 4-1, leading the East, but do you realize that the Pats at 3-2, are tied with the Colts for the Wild Card. I know it's early to talk about that, but the AFC is underperforming this year. I still think we see the Pats with 9-10+ wins and in the playoffs. Then we see how things happen.

But optimistic asides... well, aside... the Pats did look a little lost without a solid running game. Kevin Faulk was able to rip off a few nice runs, but they only ran 20 running plays compared to 44 passing plays. Granted they played the whole game while behind, but that is not the recipe for success. The return of Laurence Maroney will be a great boost to this team.

But I think the most frustrating thing to watch this game was to see Cassel tuck the ball and try to run. He did this at least 6 times, not counting the 3-4 times he was going to run but threw a lame duck up at the last minute. Where Brady would stick it out and deliver a nicely thrown football, Cassel is getting happy feet and deciding to run. Some say this is good and he's not throwing picks. I say he's not throwing the ball period, and that's what he's supposed to be doing. Although, I can hardly blame him for running after the beating he's been taking due to his propensity to hold on to the ball for too long. I don't know how a quarterback works on his internal clock, but he's got to work on his.

So now we've seen two good performances from Cassel, one crappy one, and this one which was just sub-par. Overall he did only throw one pick (although who was he throwing that one to!?) and did have 203 yard passing, but that is just not good enough.

On the other side of the ball, the Patriots looked really really really really really really REALLY REALLY weak against the long ball. Vincent Jackson had catches of 48 and 59 yards, Malcom Floyd had a 49 yard touchdown catch, and even LDTomlinson had a 28 yard catch and run. The long plays killed the Pats - that bend-don't-break style was absolutely shattered. That was concerning as the Patriots D has not looking much like the defense we've become used to seeing. This game, the telling stat was: 0 Sacks, 0 INTs, 0 Forced Fumbles. The 4-3 experiment was bad, but hopefully it was just keeping the linebackers fresh and the opposition on their toes.

Or perhaps I'm just hoping?

Post Written By Recovering Brady-addict, Kyle "I MISS THOMASSSS" Brady... er Baxter

ALCS Games 1 & 2 Forthcoming.

2008-10-12T12:14:00.000-04:00

We will be posting a live blog from Game 1 of the ALCS, and also a recap of Game 2. We're just a little bit tired following last night's five-and-a-half-hour marathon.

Updates soon.

Hey... umm... Brett

2008-10-10T18:55:00.002-04:00

Ok, Brett, you don't throw behind the all time leader in postseason homeruns and then try to jam him with your sub par fastball. He hits that over the fence every time. You hear me - DON'T THROW BEHIND MANNY AND THEN TRY TO JAM HIM.

Idiot.

Written by Baseball Sage Kyle Baxter.

NLCS Game 1 - Philly Gives the Lowe-Down.

2008-10-10T14:46:00.020-04:00

Derek Lowe was in control. The man who won three series-clinching games for the Red Sox in 2004 had the Philadelphia crowd at his fingertips, and he knew it. Lowe cruised through the first five innings of Game 1 of the NLCS, as opposing hurler Cole Hamels looked slightly less impressive. Hamels had surrendered two runs early, the first the result of a Manny Ramirez double -- which Manny, of course, stood and admired at home plate thinking it was a round-tripper. That's just Manny being smug. (That's the slogan, right?)

The sixth inning was Philadelphia's time to shine. With a man on, Chase Utley slugged one over the outfield wall at Citizen's Bank Ballpark, a fly ball that would have almost certainly been an out anywhere else. That's the beauty of home-field advantage. With that, Lowe unraveled. He gave up a solo shot two batters later to Pat Burrell, and the night was lost for Los Angeles. Hamels, along with strong work from the Phillies' bullpen, shut down the Dodger offense to secure Game 1. Brad Lidge picked up the save with a scoreless ninth.

The mini-meltdown was uncharacteristic for Derek Lowe. The man who's shown such poise in postseasons past -- and as a Red Sox diehard, I've seen every single moment -- wilted just a bit too much. Giving up three runs is unthinkable when opposed by Hamels, arguably the best left-hander in the National League. (I'm pointing the finger at you, Johan Santana. You've been replaced.)

Thankfully for the Dodgers, Game 2 is already upon us. Today at 4:35 PM ET, Chad Billingsley takes the ball against the Phillies' Brett Myers. The Dodgers look to steal the game and go home with a split.

Final Score: Philadelphia 3, Los Angeles 2.
Win: Cole Hamels (1-0)
Loss: Derek Lowe (0-1)
Save: Brad Lidge (1)
Player of the Game: Cole Hamels, SP, Philadelphia (7.0 IP, 2 ER, 6 H, 8 K, 2 BB).

On Tap for Today / Tonight:

4:35 PM ET: The Dodgers and Phillies meet in the city of brotherly love for Game 2 of the National League Championship Series. Chad Billingsley (LAD) opposes Brett Myers (PHI). Philadelphia leads the best-of-seven series 1-0.

8:37 PM ET: The Red Sox and Rays kick off the American League Championship Series in Tampa Bay. Daisuke Matsuzaka (BOS) opposes James Shields (TBR).

Posted by Dan Zappulla, Vendorball Columnist.

Bruins 5 - Avalanche 4: Should we care?

2008-10-10T08:45:00.003-04:00

So, the curtain went up for the 2008-2009 NHL season last night. Did you notice? Oh, playoff baseball, huh? Well I suppose that's a good reason. What about tomorrow night? MORE playoff baseball!? Well the baseball playoffs end at the end of the month and then you'll have some time to catch some hockey, right? No?

Unfortunately after the players strike, the NHL has plummeted in popularity. So much so, that ESPN no longer considers it a major sport (and ranks it behind NASCAR in their minor-sport category). The hockey divorce most fans are feeling pales in comparison to the way we feel about hockey in Boston. Boston is a city primed to love it's hockey team if only the ownership would buck up and spend some damn money on players. This is the city of Bobby Orr, Ray Bourque, Cam Neely, Gary Doak, Gerry Cheevers and Terry O'Reilly (and most people won't even know who a few of those guys are). I've even got a couple of YouTube Videos showing how passionate this town used to be, and can be about hockey (and how awesome it is in general). These videos are in crappy quality so bear with them.

-Bruins players climb over the boards (that plexiglass stuff that keeps fans away from stray pucks) to fight Ranger fans at Madison Square Garden in New York. Notice Mike Milbury rip off a guy's shoe and beat him with it. THIS ACTUALLY HAPPENED! By the way, Terry O'Reilly led the charge into the stands.

-In this one, we can watch a Bruins fan taunt Steve Yzerman (Hall of Famer, eventually) and when Steve goes over to see what happens, the fan punches him in the face!

How awesome is that? REALLY!? Even hockey-haters have to admit that those videos are pretty cool and exemplify the passion surrounding hockey...well the passion that used to surround hockey.

Well hockey has been diluted, so we won't be seeing much of that, probably ever again. So the question is, can we be excited about this Bruins team? Well, they have some young talented players: Bergeron, 23; Kessel, 21; Krejci, 22 (scored the game winner with 2:36 left last night); Lucic, 20; Wheeler, 22. And these guys are all somewhere between pretty good and very good. They also have a few good veterans in Mark Savard, Zdeno Chara (one of the best defensemen in the league), and Marco Strum. However their defense is weak (Chara being the only strong one of the bunch), their goaltending is inconsistent, and they don't quite have enough talent to do anything but making the playoffs and MAYBE make it to the second round (although I don't even expect that). However, with the emergence of the Rays as a power in baseball, I might be willing to risk a little hope. This team is like the old Devil Rays - young and talented but with all the wrong veterans (remember the Rays had Fred McGriff, Wade Boggs, Greg Vaughn, and their staff ace was Tanyon Strutze - this was only 5-6 years ago). This team is much of the same - if they continue to develop young players they could, in time get there.

But I do not risk a lot on this shimmer of hope. The Jacobs brothers and Sinden will find a way to drive this team into the ground, you can bet on that. So I sit, holding my hope and hoping to see the Bruins finally make some good decisions and win back some fans. Last night was encouraging, but there's a long way to go yet.

Written by Mad Scientist: Kyle Baxter

Staff Predictions -- League Championship Series

2008-10-09T16:14:00.008-04:00

With baseball's League Championship Series starting over the next two days, the VendorBall staff will -- of course -- chime in with our picks for each series, starting with the Junior Circuit.

American League Championship Series
Boston Red Sox (Wild Card) vs. Tampa Bay Rays (East Champion)

Dan Picks: Boston in Seven
Why: Experience will outlast exuberance. I originally had Boston in five, but Tampa Bay has shown that they can hang with the powerhouses. The Red Sox have been there before, and while the Rays will put up one hell of a fight, Jon Lester is slated to take the ball in Game Seven. Boston will steal a game in Tampa Bay and come home with a split. Lester will quiet the Tampa / St. Pete crowd in the deciding game as the Red Sox move on to their second consecutive World Series.

Kyle Picks: Boston in Six
Why: Some may be wondering why, after getting the match-up I expected in the ALCS, I changed my mind out the outcome. The teams did not change, and the Rays actually looked better than the Sox in the first round, despite facing a weaker opponent. So why have I done such a John Kerry-esque flip-flop? The Red Sox are the Champs. I was reminding forcibly of that fact last round, when the Sox took a 1-8 record against the Angels into Los Angeles and took both games without so much as flinching. It's easy to forget, over the course of a long baseball season, but the Red Sox are the defending World Champions (I do still love saying it). And despite having a less-than favorable match-up, you got to go with the champs. I'll even do a game breakdown on this one, the Sox go: L, W, W, L, W, W.
Beckett's line for the clincher: 8 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 12 K. Remember you heard it here first.

National League Championship Series
Los Angeles Dodgers (West Champion) vs. Philadelphia Phillies (East Champion)

Dan Picks: Los Angeles in Five
Why: They’re just too hot. Cole Hamels has a win in him, but he’s also matched up against Derek Lowe, who is on quite a streak of his own. Hamels and Lowe will split their two contests, and the Dodgers will take the middle three games. Manny Ramirez will, of course, lead the charge as the Dodgers book their tickets to Fenway Park. Think there might be a storyline or two heading into that World Series?

Kyle Picks: Los Angeles in Five
Why: The LA Dodgers are playing some inspired baseball. Behind our former idiot, Manny, the team has rallied around into Manny's attitude: laid back, carefree, hard-playing. Of course, the Phillies have the best pitcher in this series (Cole Hamels), as well as a stifling bullpen. The Phillies also have a better lineup: Victorino, Utley, Howard, Burrell over Kemp, Manny, Ethier, Martin. But the baseball Gods work in strange ways. This World Series needs to be Sox-Dodgers, I can feel it. Manny carries this team offensively, and the Dodgers have a deep and talented pitching staff - as we saw while they ran over the Cubs. The Dodgers are hot, and this is the right time to be a hot ballclub.

LDS Prediction Winners

2008-10-08T22:57:00.004-04:00

So we here at Vendorball decided to make our playoff predictions a little competition. The format is head-to-head: closest to the right prediction wins. There are 8 states to each series. Team1 can win in 4, 5, 6, 7 and Team2 can win in 7, 6, 5, 4 games. Closest to the right prediction wins the series, first man to win 4 series wins the playoffs.

ALDS: Tampa Bay vs. Chicago

Kyle: Tampa in 4
Dan: Tampa in 4
Actual: Tampa in 4
Winner: Tie

Not an exciting series, which is why we lead off with this one. We both predicted this series exactly - each of us giving Chicago one game because we couldn't envision a sweep. Boring as it is, easy call.

Score: Dan .5 - Kyle .5

ALDS: Boston vs. Los Angeles

Kyle: Boston in 5
Dan: Boston in 4
Actual: Boston in 4
Winner: Dan

Ladies and gentlemen, VendorBall's resident Italian goes 100% for his American League predictions! Not only did he predict both winners, he predicted the exact number of games played for each series. The amazing thing is, that if you predict both series and are only off by one game in one series you expect to be ahead, but D-Z dropped some knowledge on my ass - and he owns the AL.

Score: Dan 1.5 - Kyle 0.5

NLDS Philadelphia vs. Milwaukee

Kyle: Philadelphia in 4
Dan: Milwaukee in 5
Actual: Philadelphia in 4
Winner: Kyle

And here I got to catch up. Dan admitted not feeling too confident about this pick - and we'd have been set up for another tie if it went 5 games. But thank you Joe Blanton, and I get to make up a game here. CC Sabathia continuing his playoff mediocrity threw off Dan. Can't blame him for his pick, but sure can for the result, like so: YOU SUCK, DAN!

Score: Dan 1.5 - Kyle 1.5

NLDS Chicago vs. Los Angeles

Kyle: Chicago in 5
Dan: Chicago in 4
Actual: Los Angeles in 3
Winner: Kyle

WHAT!? This was the one series neither of us predicted. In fact, as a duo we did a damn good job predicting the division series, which makes this result surprising. In fact, one of use predicted each series exactly correctly except this one, and we couldn't be further away. Unfortunately, Chicago's offense became weak and they could not get off the ground against good Dodgers' pitchers. This LA team is playing some inspired baseball.

Score: Dan 1.5 - Kyle 2.5

Division Series Winner: Kyle

Victory Speech: Thank you thank you! I surely couldn't have done it without rocking so hard. The amount of awesomeness I piss out in the morning is more than most people drink in during the course of many years. It is truly a blessing and a curse being this great, but I'm glad to have everyone's love and support.

Coming up: ALCS and NLCS predictions.

Post Written by Vendorball Resident Soul-Sucking Ginger: Kyle Baxter

Breaking News -- ALCS Rotation Announced

2008-10-08T14:07:00.005-04:00

Earlier today, Terry Francona announced the Red Sox pitching rotation for the American League Championship Series against Tampa Bay, and Japanese hurler Daisuke Matsuzaka will get the ball in the opener.

Game 1 (at TB): Daisuke Matsuzaka
Game 2 (at TB): Josh Beckett
Game 3 (at BOS): Jon Lester
Game 4 (at BOS): Tim Wakefield
Game 5 (at BOS - If Nec.): Daisuke Matsuzaka
Game 6 (at BOS - If Nec.): Josh Beckett
Game 7 (at TB - If Nec.): Jon Lester

Francona said that the full rosters would be announced Thursday afternoon.

Posted by Dan Zappulla, VendorBall Columnist.

2008 Playoffs: Day 6

2008-10-07T11:18:00.032-04:00

Monday brought the close to both ALDS series, and what a day of baseball it was. We here at VendorBall caught all the action.

Tampa Bay Rays 6, Chicago White Sox 2
by Kyle Baxter

And that's that. The Tampa Bay Rays finish off the Chicago White Sox in 4 games (as predicted by both Dan and Kyle). B.J. "Porn Star" Upton lead the offensive charge with two home runs off White Sox starter Gavin Floyd, while Andy Sonnanstine did what only his foes in the A.L. East know he can: shut down an offense with less-than-stellar stuff. He allowed only two runs, both on solo home runs - by Konerko (who started hitting too late) and Dye - in 5.2 innings.

Floyd allowed two solo home runs to Upton in the 1st and 3rd innings and could never quite settle in, and was pulled in the 4th inning before recording an out. Carlos Pena also returned to the lineup, and celebrated by going 3-4 with a walk 2 RBI and 2 SB (WHAT!?). For those curious, he's stolen a grand total of 2 bases in the last four years. This game was never close, the Rays jumped out to a lead and never looked back, and once their bullpen took over the door was closed.

Aside from the two solo shots, the Sox were only able to pick up two hits off of Rays pitching, singles by Konerko and Ramirez. It was a poor series for White Sox hitting, and their swing-for-the-fences attitude never quite worked against the team with the second best ERA in the AL. Even though the Sox could touch up the starters a bit, the Rays 'pen was lights out all series.
The Sox did get good contributions from Jermaine Dye, Paul Konerko, and AJ Pierzynski, but it was never enough, and never a lot.

The biggest problem for the Sox was that their pitching was giving up over 5 runs per game. The shoddy starting pitching of the White Sox was never going to be good enough to do damage in the playoffs. They will have to try and reload next year and hope for better performances out of Contreras and Buerhle, while keeping Vazquez off the playoff roster.

Win: Andy Sonnanstine (1-0,)
Loss: Gavin Floyd (0-1)
Player of the Game: B.J. Upton (2-4, 2 HR, BB)

Series MVP: Rays bullpen. No one guy carried the offense - it was spread out amongst the team, with different guys stepping up during different games. However, the Rays bullpen (Wheeler, Balfour, Howell, Bradford and Miller) combined for these numbers:

11.2 IP, 0.77 ERA, ER, 6 H, 13 Ks, 2 BB.

The Rays offense managed to put up 6 runs in each of their wins, but it was the bullpen coming in and shutting down the White Sox offense that proved to be the most important. Conventional wisdom says to chase the starting pitcher and try to work into a team's bullpen... maybe not with these guys.

Boston Red Sox 3, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim 2.
by Dan Zappulla

Fenway magic was in the air Monday night.

By now, I’m sure you know that the Red Sox continued their postseason dominance over the Angels by beating them in walk-off fashion. Jed Lowrie grounded a single through the right side, allowing Jason Bay to slide into home with a series-clinching run. But before we look ahead to the League Championship Series date with the Tampa Bay Rays, last night’s contest deserves a bit more of our attention. I won’t bother with a play-by-play summary of the game and assume that you, our lovely readers, actually watched it. If you didn’t, I’m not sure why you’re reading a sports blog.

Hats off to Jon Lester. A year ago, who would’ve seen this coming? This young southpaw has emerged into the ace of the Boston staff, and perhaps the most dominant left-hander in the American League. After a scintillating performance in Game 1, Lester returned to the hill last night with the weight of a city on his shoulders. It seemed as if he didn’t notice. After seven brilliant innings, Lester cemented himself as the best pitcher remaining in the postseason. The Red Sox have found their latest “big game” hurler.

By the same token, my hat remains on when speaking of Justin Masterson. Last night, he struggled – yet again – in a big spot. He doesn’t seem to have the confidence in his “stuff” that everyone else does, and subsequently ends up issuing walks in critical situations. His free pass to Vladimir Guerrero last night gave Torii Hunter the opportunity to drive in the tying runs. Hunter came through with a sharp line drive to right, and Masterson had coughed up the lead. Lester, for all his stellar work, would earn a no-decision. My advice for Terry Francona? Let the eighth inning belong to Hideki Okajima and Manny Delcarmen. Both have proven worthy of the responsibilities that lie with pitching late postseason innings. Okajima has become more of a left-handed specialist this season anyway, and Delcarmen would prove to be a great complement.

The offense had a bit of trouble with Angels starter John Lackey, just as they did in Game 1. They could only manage two runs off him in seven strong innings that must’ve left the hefty right-hander scratching his head. The Angels couldn’t have asked for anything more from their starting pitcher, and yet, Lackey left the game with a two-run deficit. The Red Sox mustered a fielder’s choice from Jacoby Ellsbury in the fifth to drive in their first run, followed up by Dustin Pedroia’s first hit of the postseason – a double off the Monster – to drive in the second.

I digress. As the game progressed into the ninth inning tied at two, an eerie feeling settled over the Fenway Faithful. It was something that permeated through the television screen, as I could feel it sitting on my bed. I hadn’t felt it in awhile – almost five years. It was a feeling of inevitable doom – that the Red Sox somehow would crumble under the pressure. It brought back mental screen captures of the 2003 American League Championship Series in New York. With Masterson still pitching in the ninth, pinch-hitter Kendry Morales lined a bullet to left-center, and the Angels had the leadoff man on second base. Howie Kendrick moved the runner to third, and then Mike Scioscia decided to inject a bit of his National-League-style managing into the game. In a move that surprised less people than it should’ve, Scioscia called for the suicide squeeze. It didn’t work. I’m usually the first to defend a manager or coach’s decisions during a game, and I’ll live up to that billing right now. Scioscia made the right call. That’s the style of baseball the Angels play. It got them to 100 wins during the regular season, and there was no reason to think it would be any different in the playoffs. It just so happened that it didn’t work this time. I admire the skipper for sticking to his guns.

Now almost twelve hours removed from what will be dubbed as one of the great October games in Fenway history, I can’t help but still be impressed by Jon Lester. As I previously eluded to, Lester has matured exponentially over the last year. Still only 24 years of age, he’s accomplished what most pitchers work a lifetime for. He’s pitched a no-hitter and won the deciding game in the World Series. Lester now has the defending World Series Champions on his shoulders, and he doesn’t seem to mind or notice.

Boston Wins Series, 3-1.

Win: Manny Delcarmen (1-0)
Loss: Scot Shields (0-1)
Player of the Game: Jon Lester (7 IP, 0 ER, 4 H, 4 K, 2 BB.)

Red Sox - Angels Series Analysis
by Kyle Baxter

Jon Lester (BOS): Ace Ace, Baby (Alaskan Governor of Red Sox Nation, David Brescia).
Series Stats: 1-0, 14 IP, 10H, 1 R, 0 ER, 3 BB, 10 K

What more can you say about Lester that all the announcers all over the country haven’t? Even the preposterously biased TBS guys were throwing so much praise at him over his last two starts that I wouldn’t be surprised to see them writing love notes and folding them up into neat little origami hearts to give to him later. But homoerotic announcer love aside, Lester has risen to be the ace of this staff. Beckett struggled massively in game 3 of the series, and the Sox needed Lester to come out and shut down the Halos. In the first inning he reached 98 on the gun. That’s Randy Johnson speed right there, folks. All series he was dominant, working his fastball in the mid-upper 90’s, his cutter and sinker in the mid-low 90’s and that huge high 70’s curve. There was never any doubt when Lester took the hill.

Announcer (and Hall of Fame pitcher) Dennis Eckersley called Jon Lester the ace of this Boston staff. With all due respect to the hall of famer, but Jon Lester has been the best pitcher in the world over the last 6 weeks (and further respect to CC Sabathia and his postseason choke). Over these last 6 weeks Lester is 5-1 with a 1.49 ERA in 54.1 IP, with 46 K’s and 16 BB’s. That is clutch pitching, and that is what we’ve come to expect from Jon Lester. Unfortunately, we will not be able to send him out there in Game 1 against the Rays, but I still expect him to get two starts in this series.

Jason Bay (BOS): 7-17, 3 R, 5 RBI, 2 2B, 2 HR, .412/.474/.882 (Avg/OBP/SLG)

Jason Bay is in his first playoffs, but you think a little thing like the fire of the playoffs is going to stop him? Bay is from Canada, he has ice (literally) running through his veins, nothing’s going to bother him. Jason Bay did what the Anaheim order had a hard time doing: he got extra base hits. 4 of them, actually, while the entire Angels’ team only had 6 (the Sox had 13). Although we keep hearing that Bay is not here “to replace Manny” most of us realize the position he’s in is exactly Manny’s replacement. And you know what, he’s not doing so bad. Although Manny has been ablaze since arriving in LA, Bay has been quietly effective. I wouldn’t call him Manny quite yet, he’s not Manny, but he’s under contract next year.

In a series where Pedroia was smoking the ball right at everyone, Lowell’s injury rendered him ineffective (and now out for the ALCS, too), and everyone else was lukewarm, Bay picked up the slack. Even though he started off looking poor – indeed, looking foolish on two back to back strikeouts on curveballs by Lackey in Game 1 – he came back to launch a homerun in his third AB and never looked back. In fact, there was a cool confidence coming from Bay, and as a fan, I could feel it. When a player comes up to bat, as a fan you need to feel something. When it’s Papi in extra innings, you feel “game over.” Last year, when it was Drew you felt “5-6-3 double play.” This year, when it was Pedroia you felt “line drive.” During the playoffs, when it was Bay, I felt “something good.”

We needed an offensively dominating performance from someone in our order, at the beginning of the series it looked like it could have been Ellsbury. However, Ellesbury ended up falling into the category of “all right” as the series went on, but Bay continued to rope hits and have tough ABs. I will not pin him as “Playoff Stud” quite yet, but it does look promising.

8th Inning

At some point this year, Okajima went from solid setup man, to 7th inning + 8th inning with a short leash. And yes, he has not been nearly as effective this year as he was last year. I agree that perhaps better scouting and more looks at his funky delivery are working against him. But for now, it means we need an arm in the 8th inning. Francona has decided to go with Justin Masterson. However, these playoffs have shown us that Masterson has one fatal flaw: no wipeout pitch. (note: a wipeout pitch is the new lingo for a strikeout pitch that when hit gets you an out anyway. Think Schilling’s splitter.) He has no problem getting up 0-2 but as we saw last night, he cannot finish batters particularly well. He throws a 4-seam fastball, sinker, and slider, but despite the velocity on his fastball and sinker, he does not have the secondary pitch to get outs with. That, my friends, makes him a poor 8th inning option.

My vote goes for Manny Delcarmen. Amongst Sox relievers currently on the roster (and not named Jonathan Papelbon), Delcarmen has the best numbers in many categories important to relievers: WHIP (1.12), Slugging Against (.321), AVG Against(.205), K/9 (8.72), H/9 (6.66), plus he’s second to Okajima in BB/9 and K/BB (a difference of .05 for each). Moreover, Delcarmen is the power arm – a fastball in the mid-high 90’s with good movement complemented by a low 80’s change and a strong curve. His repertoire is more advanced than Masterson’s, and he has playoff experience. Although his results have been spotty throughout the season he has come on strong in September and October and his performance in Game 3 solidified his position as the bullpen guy I have the most confidence in (again, not named Papelbon).

And I had to wonder why Francona balked on putting in Papelbon in the 8th. True he threw a lot of pitches last night, but Francona once put Foulke in during the 7th inning during the playoffs. He was the pioneer who decided that a closer should be used when the need is most dire. And in the 8th with one man on and the heart of that lineup coming to bat – the need was dire. I honestly believe that Papelbon should have come in to face Teixeira, Guerrero, and Hunter at the end of the game. Although it did work out, so I suppose I cannot complain.

Angels at the Bat

Listening to the games on TV, I couldn’t help but hear the praise for the middle of the Angels order. Let’s look at some stats for the series (AVG/OBP/SLG).

Teixeira: .389/.421/.389
Guerrero: .467/.579/.533
Hunter: .467/.550/.467

Despite the high batting averages and on base percentages, we see slugging percentages that are quite low for the three guys in the middle of the lineup. True, these are high OPSs, but from your 3-4-5 hitters, you don’t want that statistic dominated by on base percentage. So yes, these three guys were hitting, but they were hitting singles. In fact, between the three of them, the only extra base hit they had was Vlad’s lead-off double against Beckett in the 3rd inning of Game 3. Torii Hunter tried to stretch a single into a double but was thrown out by Jason Bay. The Angel’s picked up Hunter and Teixeira in order to get by the Sox this year, but it did not work. No power, no clutch hitting, no luck.

Josh Beckett

Josh Beckett got knocked around in Game 3 (see 2008 Playoffs: Day 4), and did not look like himself in the playoffs. Some think that Beckett looked “obviously in pain” while throwing. With Dice-K giving Sox fans nightmares of walks and runners on third with no outs, Beckett is going to need to come back to form in the ALCS. Lester has solidified his number 1 spot in the rotation for the playoffs, but Beckett needs to be the number two guy. What that means is that he needs to give strong, quality start (6+ IP, 3 ER or less) performances from here on out. Now Beckett throwing 7 innings and allowing three earned runs is an under-performance for him in the playoffs, but as it stands, he can under-perform and get the job done. That is why he will march out there, hurt, sick, with a 2x4 sticking out of his liver, and pitch.

If Beckett can get back to his playoff form of old, which I think is a possibility, then you can lock in the Sox for another world series. A strong 1-2 punch with starting pitchers has been an unbeatable force in the playoffs before, especially in longer series. You need only look to 2001 (Randy Johnson and Schilling), 2003 (Beckett and Brad Penny), and 2004 (Schilling and Pedro), to see my point. With Beckett back at full tilt, the rest of the league needs to buckle up. Safe to say Red Sox Nation will be watching Beckett’s last start closely.

Commercials

Anyone else getting sick of seeing the same playoff commercials over and over? Even those Frank Caliendo ads, which I usually enjoy, have become painful to watch. Honestly, I hope the Red Sox sweep this series so I don’t have to watch that stupid Captain Morgan’s ad with the costumes (which I liked at first) or that Poltergeist ad for Direct TV.

Announcers

Last point – the announcers during these games were so bad that I almost found myself longing for Joe Buck…. (violently vomits).

ALDS Series MVP: Jon Lester
Runner Up: Jason Bay

What's on Tap?

Thankfully we have a couple days off of playoff baseball to recover before reloading for the Championship Series. Predictions? Of course we will! Rate our previous predictions? Sure! Take a day off of posting to this blog... NEVER!

Feel free to take a few days to catch up on sleep, preseason hockey, fantasy football, and time spent with your significant other. We get back to it in serious on Thursday.

BRING ON THE RAYS!

2008-10-06T23:40:00.002-04:00

Full analysis by tomorrow

Breaking News -- Lowell Out for Game 4

2008-10-06T16:54:00.003-04:00

Per Adam Kilgore of Extra Bases, the following is the Red Sox lineup for tonight's Game 4 against the Angels:

1. Jacoby Ellsbury, CF
2. Dustin Pedroia, 2B
3. David Ortiz, DH
4. Kevin Youkilis, 3B
5. J.D. Drew, RF
6. Jason Bay, LF
7. Mark Kotsay, 1B
8. Jed Lowrie, SS
9. Jason Varitek, C
-- Jon Lester, SP

Posted by Dan Zappulla, VendorBall Columnist.

NFL Week 5 -- New England 30, San Francisco 21

2008-10-06T09:42:00.003-04:00

This season for the New England Patriots has never felt quite right. Whether it be the hangover from Super Bowl XLII, Tom Brady’s preseason injury woes, or the actual season-ending hit that put him down during the first quarter of Week 1, something has been a little off.

As I sat in the living room waiting for the weekly football crowd to arrive, my dear mother asked me a question that appeared naïve at first. After a few minutes, I realized it wasn’t so obscure.

“You and the guys are watching the Patriots today, right?”
“Yeah?”
“Does Randy Moss still play for them?”
“Of course…why wouldn’t he?”
“I haven’t heard anyone mention his name in awhile.”

Thus is a summary of New England’s 2008 campaign. Without Brady, the ship isn’t sailing as smoothly. Yet somehow they’ve managed to scrape together a 3-1 record after yesterday’s victory in San Francisco over a hungry 49ers team.

It started out how most expected it to – badly. This is a new feeling for Patriot fans. We’re used to our club getting out to a three or four touchdown lead…in the first quarter alone. But with the reigning NFL MVP riding the sideline for the season, it seems as if our franchise has been set back ten years. San Francisco hopped all over now-starting-quarterback Matt Cassel and bullied their way to a 14-7 lead. The Patriots’ seven points, by the way, came on a stellar – yet desperate – 66-yard chuck from Cassel to Moss. It was the longest completion of Cassel’s professional career.

After trailing by seven, the tide – somehow – seemed to turn. The Patriots seemed like the champions of old, and they got back to doing what made them famous (or infamous, depending on whom you ask). From that point on, they outscored the Niners 23-7. The Pats even revived a play from many years ago. On a 3rd-and-Goal, they ran a direct snap to RB Kevin Faulk that led them into the end zone. If you’ll open up your NFL history books to “Super Bowl XXXVIII,” you’ll see that they also ran the direct snap to Faulk for a successful fourth-quarter two-point conversion against Carolina. Yes, I remembered that off the top of my head.

This week’s win leaves me feeling both optimistic and cautious. While I want so badly to believe that Cassel could “manage the game” like he did yesterday, there sits an underlying tone of anxiety that leads me to expect his eventual downfall. In other words, the success isn’t fooling me. I’m waiting for him to implode. Next week will be his greatest test to date as the Patriots travel down the Pacific coast to San Diego to meet the Chargers. Cassel will hope to catch lightning in a bottle.

Posted by Dan Zappulla, VendorBall Columnist.