Archive for October, 2009

Milwaukee Brewers: Evaluating Jarrod Washburn

Posted: 29th October 2009 by Jim Breen in MLB
Jon Heyman áandáTom Haudricourt áboth see the Milwaukee Brewers as serious suitors foráJarrod Washburnáthis offseason. Doug Melvin and the Brewers seriously pursued Washburn this past summer as a trade candidate. So the organization obviously believes he can augment the starting rotation (as if that would be overly difficult). The lefty also is a Wisconsin native. The argument is that Washburn may wish to pitch close to home to end his career, as ...

Nene Is the Key To The Denver Nuggets Success

Posted: 29th October 2009 by Courtzide Seatz in NBA
The buzz around Nene has always been about his unlimited potential. That is why the Nuggets acquired the seventh pick of the draft from the New York Knicks in 2002 and used it on him, ahead of such players as Amare Stoudemire and Caron Butler. The 6'11" Brazilian Center is blessed with an incredible combination of size, speed, and strength, and has the softest set of hands of any big man ...
Five-and-a-half months ago, I put together this AFC North preview. In case you're too lazy to click on it, I had the teams finishing like this:Pittsburgh 12-4Cincinnati 10-6Baltimore 8-8Cleveland 6-10, 4-12 (I predicted six wins, but then I couldn't find six wins on Cleveland's schedule, so a day later, I lowered the prediction to four.)Now that the Bengals are headed into the bye week, it's time to do two things: ...

Is It Time For Joe Girardi To Bench Nick Swisher?

Posted: 29th October 2009 by Adam Bernacchio in MLB
On November 13, 2008, Brian Cashman made one of his rare very shrewd moves. He acquired 1B/OF Nick Swisher from the Chicago White Sox for two minor leaguers and utility man Wilson Betemit. Swisher, a classic ôMoneyballö type player (low average, high OBP, bad fielder), was coming off a down year with the White Sox in 2008. He hit .219 and White Sox GM Kenny Williams was quick to get ...

Can Vince Carter Bring Back His Amazing Other Half for the Orlando Magic?

Posted: 29th October 2009 by Chad Waylon Pouncy in NBA
Vince Carter is one of the most puzzling figures in the NBA.á In so many ways, the nickname "Half-Man/Half-Amazing" suits him. After three years at UNC, Carter burst onto the scene with the Toronto Raptors in 1998. VC was named Rookie of the Year for the 1998-99 season. Carter was chosen to help Team USA to gold in the 2000 Summer Olympics. Vince is an eight time all-star and was twice named ...

Can the Pittsburgh Penguins Keep Flying Without Evgeni Malkin?

Posted: 29th October 2009 by Sergey Zikov in NHL
On Jan. 18, 2008, Penguins captain Sidney Crosby slammed feet-first into the boards after a collision with Paul Ranger of the Tampa Bay Lightning. The injury kept Crosby out for two months, but all was not lost. Evgeni Malkin was ready to carry the load, and he proceeded to record 54 points in the time that Crosby was out of the lineup. His performance not only kept the Penguins ...

Week Eight Rankings: Updated Top 35 RB

Posted: 29th October 2009 by Eric Stashin in NFL
ThereÆs some pretty big movement this week in the RB rankings, with the injuries to Brian Westbrook & Donald Brown wreaking some havoc.á LetÆs take a look at how things currently stand: á Adrian Peterson - Minnesota Vikings - at Green Bay Maurice Jones-Drew - Jacksonville Jaguars - at Tennessee LaDanian Tomlinson - San Diego Chargers - vs. Oakland Kevin ...

Dolphins-Jets Preview: “Wiener” Takes All

Posted: 29th October 2009 by Jeffrey Boswell in NFL
Note: The quotes in this article are fictional. The Jets are 4-3 after blasting the Raiders 38-0 in Oakland while forcing the benching of JaMarcus Russell. After Mark Sanchez threw five interceptions in the Jets' loss to the Bills, New York kept the offense simple, calling a whopping 54 rushes while passing only 15 times. "I think that's a gentle way of the offensive coordinator saying, 'We don't have faith in you,'" says ...

Where Is Oakland’s Javon Walker?

Posted: 29th October 2009 by Paul MacDonald in NFL
Javon Walker, from all reports, is healthy.á Javon Walker, even if he's lost a step, has not lost his ability to catch the ball.á Javon Walker should be starting.á Even if he isn't the number one WR, he can still contribute. So, let's see what Tom Cable has to say about Javon Walker From the outside looking in, it seems that Javon isnÆt good enough to play on your team. Accurate? "No not ...

Who Will Win in NFL’s Week 8

Posted: 29th October 2009 by Phil Shore in NFL
A good week of picks in Week 7, going 10-3. This weekÆs biggest games and toughest to decide were New Orleans against Atlanta, New York Giants at Philadelphia, and Denver at Baltimore.Three undefeated teams left. Will any of them lose this week? Two winless teams in action this week. Will either of them get on the board, or will they continue their Detroit Lions-esque slide (coincidentally, one of those teams, ...