AGRI Biz

The Oakland A's are currently in a battle between two other teams for the American League West title. The A's have some things that they need to work out to even consider being in contention for the division. So, here are the seven things the A's must do in order to win the American League West division. Begin Slideshow

The first round of the 2010 MLB Draft has just ended and Toronto GM Alex Anthopoulos decided that his minor leagues weren't playing with a full Deck. Last name pun, I swear. The Blue Jays had four picks in the first round and selected four pitchers.  Two were big upside high school hurlers who will take time but project very high.  While the other two were top ranked college pitchers who could play on the big club as early as ...

The first round (including supplementals) of the 2010 MLB Draft is in the books. There were a few surprises (at least based on the mock drafts I saw), with Cal State Fullerton SS Christian Colon (4th Royals) and Texas RHP Barrett Loux (6th Diamonbacks), going higher than projected. Middle Tennessee State outfielder Bryce Brentz, The Citadel’s RHP Ascher Wojciechowski and LSU’s RHP Anthony Ranaudo going lower than expected. I’m not sure ...

The Chicago Cubs have a history of reaching for draft picks in the first round.  They did so again this season when they took Hayden Simpson, expected to be a second to fifth round pick, with the 16th pick of the first round. Hayden went 13-1 in 15 starts for the South Arkansas Muleriders during his junior season.  He also had a 1.81 ERA and struck out 131 batters compared to ...

I'm hoping that Ollie Perez decides to walk (pun intended) away from baseball to open a hair salon so he can carve fancy lightening bolts in my sideburns, like he does with his. He could charge $36 million dollars for a haircut.  And the same way he struggles repeating his delivery, he'd also forget how to cut hair in the middle of each cut, upon which a back-up barber would come ...

As the Giants prepared to finish their three-game series in Pittsburgh yesterday, 54 games were in the book. Their record was 29-25, and at the one-third point of the season, it's easy to do the math. If they continue to play at this pace, they can expect to be 12 games over .500, or 87-75. Much like last year. Which is to say good ... but not good enough. In an NL West ...

So, we're officially one-third of the way through the minor league season. It's time to review who's tearing it up among Orioles minor leaguers (non-prospects too!), and get to know the guys who are raking. On the mound, Jake Arrieta is making himself a runaway candidate for O's pitcher of the year. He already has six wins, and leads the IL in batting average against. He's top five in strikeouts, innings pitched, ...

When looking at the Mets this year, fans can see there is one thing they truly lack: charisma. Jerry Manuel is known for his laid back attitude and approach to the game. So far this has been terribly unsuccessful. He has a 152-157 record since taking over as Mets manager midway through the 2008 season. Mediocrity is not acceptable in New York. The Mets need a charismatic manager who brings fire and ...

The day we thought would never come has arrived. Ken Griffey Jr. retired from Major League Baseball. We have watched Ken Griffey Jr. do things unlike any ballplayer in history. Twenty-one years and 630 home runs later, one of the greatest centerfielders of all-time is finally hanging them up. Ken Griffey Jr. has given us a lifetime's worth of baseball memories. Some of the best highlights in ...

I recently wrote an article comparing the Cubs' two leadoff hitters, Ryan Theriot and Kosuke Fukudome, in which I ultimately came to the conclusion that Theriot was the better option to hit atop the batting order in large part because Fukudome might find himself on the bench before too long. Shortly thereafter, Lou Piniella decided to replace Theriot at second base with Mike Fontenot and said the move might "be more ...