Sports NY NJ

Can the Yanks keep this heet rolling?

2009-05-16T16:58:00.003-04:00

The Yankees have a 4 game winning streak and they are pretty hot right now. With Brett Gardner's inside the park home run, Jeter's solo home run, Mark Teixeira's 3 run home run, and A-Rod's walk off home run the Yankees have a lot to work with and it would be nice to see them lengthen their winning streak from 4 to maybe the double digits. With Brian Bruney Returning and Jorge Posada not long after that the Yankees have a pretty solid team.

Hakeem Nicks

2009-05-12T10:28:00.004-04:00

This is the first post in my player by player draft analyses

With the 29th pick in the first round the Giants selected the 6'1" Wide Receiver out of UNC, Hakeem Nicks who is coming out of his junior season where he caught 68 passes for 1222 yards and 12 TD's.

Great pick, in my opinion, it fills a huge hole in the Wide out position left by Plax and Amani. The only knock on the pick is that Jerry Reese didn't trade for a big time receiver like Braylon Edwards, or Anquain Boldin.

Hakeem Nicks is a great route running receiver who has huge great hands that can have a big impact in his rookie season especially since there is no star receiver on this team right now. He could be the number one receiver for the Giants this season and for years to come, with Steve Smith as the number 2.
The knock on him is that he doesn't have the speed to blow you away, but overall great pick.

What A Way To Come Back for Arod as the Yankees win 4-0

2009-05-08T19:10:00.004-04:00

Derek Jeter started off the game with a ground out to the pitcher, Guthrie, that was followed by a pair of walks to Damon and Teixeira, then the first pitch of the season for Arod and Bam, a three run home run by Arod off the first pitch and swing in his first at bat of his first game of the season after beeing sidelined after leg surgery.

What a way to come back, and take the talk away from steroids, which was already quiter because of Manny Ramirez, and his failed drug tests that lead to steroids.

Arod stole the headlines from C.C. Sabathia who threw a complete game 4 hit shutout, C.C. showed everyone why he got the big contract over the off-season, while throwing 8 strikeouts and only 1 walk. The lossing streak is over at 5. Lets see if the Yanks can now start a winning one.

New Series means a New Life for the Yankees

2009-05-08T10:42:00.002-04:00

Finally the terrible home stand is over, and the Yankees are going away. Normally it goes the other way around but it is a wierd season so far for the Yankees, who have lost 5 straight games all at the new ballpark.

Game 29

7:05 May 8 @ Baltimore

Probable Pitchers

Jeremy Guthrie, RHP (2-2, 5.05)

CC Sabathia, LHP (1-3, 4.85)

A Look at Next Season For the New Jersey Devils

2009-05-07T19:35:00.013-04:00

The devils are coming off of a harsh defeat in the playoffs at the hands of the Huricanes but they should put it behind them and look forward towards the 2009-2010 season. They have a lot of good pieces and I wouldn't be surprised if I saw them in the Stanley Cup finals next year.

Lets take a look at some of the important players

Martan Brodeur: He is one of the best goalies in the NHL, he currently holds the record for most wins by a goalie and he is coming close to the record for most shut outs. His season was stalled due to a leg injury injury. He only played 28 regular season games this year, but in those 28 games he won 19 and lost 9 he had 870 saves in those games regular season and 239 in the playoffs. He is without a doubt a core asset to the Devils and will help a great deal next season.

Patric Elias: He the left wing and the alternate captain for New Jersey. He currently holds the franchise record for the devils all time goals scored with295 goals. He scored 31 goals this season and made 47 assists.

Zach Parise: He plays left wing for New Jersey scoring 45 goals and passing for 49 assists in the regular season. It is only his third season in the NHL and he is already really good, it will be interesting to see how good he can get.

Jamie LangenBrunner: He plays at right wing and is the captain of the Devils. He scored 29 goals and had 40 assists in the regular season, his sixth year on this NJ squad. He will be a major asset to the devils next season.

Brian Gionta: He also plays at right wing, and he scored 25 goals and has 40 assists in the regular season his sixth in the NHL.

Breaking News Arod is Coming Back Tomorrow

2009-05-07T18:18:00.006-04:00

Arod is finally coming back from hip surgery, he will play in tomorrow night's game against the Orioles. He is coming back at a time where the Yanks need him most. They are coming off a 4 game losing streak, where they failed to score more than 4 runs in a single game.
Cody Ransom did a bad job filling in for him, although Ransom's replacement Ramiro Pena did played very well for a few games.
Anyway it's about time, hopefully his bat will do wonders for the lineup, and for the team.

Two hits won't cut it for Mark Teixeira

2009-05-07T18:00:00.004-04:00

Mark Teixeira is known for his sub par Aprils, and this year's was as bad as any. This streak of unacceptable hitting has lingered over into the beginning of May, but we are seeing some good signs.
Of late he has been swinging the bat better, putting the ball all over the park and placing it just where it needs to be instead of just airing it out to the center fielder.
Yesterday we saw Tex get two hits, only his fifth multi hit game, including two in the last three games. He displayed his clutch ability with his eighth inning bases clearing 3 RBI double tying the game.
Although Mark Teixeira was able to save the game in the eighth he was not able to continue his clutch hitting to continue the game. He flied out short right field destroying a sac fly opportunity to tie the game by hitting the 2nd out. The score then remained the same the Yankees lost 3-4 to the TB Rays. All Yankee fans will continue to watch attentively as we wait for Tex's bat to wake up.

Whats wrong with the bullpen

2009-05-07T13:52:00.010-04:00

It's 27 games into the season and the Yankees are 13-14, what is going on?

Well, a number of things have gone wrong, like Chien- Ming Wang and his 34.5 ERA or Mark Teixeira, and his .209 batting average, or all the injuries that happened this year.

But right now lets look at the problems in the bullpen

The bullpen has already netted 5 losses and has blown 4 saves, allowing a total of 84 runs over 89 innings this multiplies out to an ERA of 7.93, that is dismal no matter what stadium you play in, even if there is a "wind tunnel going to right field".

The first problem in the bullpen is the injury to the eight inning set up guy Brian Bruney, this leaving a huge hole in the bullpen, in the eight inning spot. Before being put on the DL, Bruney pitched 8 innings allowing only 3 runs on 3 hits and 2walks, while throwing 12 strikeouts.

Secondly, three of the pitchers who were supposed to carry most of the bullpen responsibilities, Damaso Marte, Jose Veras, have a combined 8.35 ERA. The lefty Damaso Marte who was brought in via trade last year has a 15.19 ERA. Jose Veras who pitched very well last year has a 7.62 ERA. And Jonathon Albaladejo who is also struggling has a 6.43 ERA.

Thirdly there have been a lot of errors, and unearned runs so far. There have been 16 errors and 14 unearned runs thus far. This means that when someone committed an error, the pitchers have not stepped up their games, and picked up their teammates.

Solutions

There are a few ways to fix the bullpen, firstly Brian Bruney will come back, hopefully sooner rather than later.
Another Solution is to put Joba in the bullpen, this will weaken their rotation, but it could be a necessary measure if the bullpen doesn't improve.
Joe Girardi could give young players like Alfredo Aceves a chance.
Or the Yankees could make a trade, but that would happen as the trade deadline nears.

How to fill the holes of the Nets

2009-05-05T21:37:00.010-04:00

As outlined in my previous 2 posts the Nets have 2 major holes in the starting line up, one in each of the starting forward positions. This is the same problem they had last year, when they played the entire season without starting caliber forwards.

The first way to change the forward situation is to move Vince Carter from Shooting Guard to Small Forward, leaving the starting SG job to CDR. This no matter what position changes happens to the current roster they still need a starting caliber power forward.

There are a lot of players that the Nets could get this summer, but they would have to sacrifice their dreams about the summer of 2010. It could be worth it, because if Lebron, Bosh and D-Wade all resign or go somewhere else and sign , then the Nets will have to settle for a similar player to what is out there this year and they will probably overpay them. If we pick up a good player this year, we wont have to risk trying to get a star next year, and they could be had at a better price. Not to mention a few good players could put the Nets back into the playoffs.

Here my take on the restricted Forwards available this summer

David Lee: The Knicks put David Lee into the starting offense replacing Zach Randolph, and he delivered 65 double doubles the most in the NBA this year. He averaged 16 points and 11.7 rebounds a game and would be a big help to the Nets on the boards. he is a restricted free agent but the Knicks will not match any offer as they are playing the Lebron sweepstakes in 2010. He is not a good defender or shooter, having never hit a three in a game. He could be had at 40-50 million over 5 years, and he is only 26.

Marvin Williams: He averaged 13.9 points and 6.3 rebounds last year for the Hawks he would command a similar contract to David Lee but the Hawks would probably match it, so the Nets will have to make a sign and trade deal to get him. He would be a good fit with the Nets were he could play both forward positions, and he is only 22 years old.

Paul Milsap: The power forward for the Jazz is only 24, and he played very well this season averaging 13.5 points and 8.6 rebounds coming off the bench on a playoff team. He could come in and start at the 4 position but he will get a big contract and need to be obtained in a sign and trade deal because Utah will match any offer.

Linas Kleiza: He killed the Nets in Denver hitting a number of corner three's that made want to cry. So he earned his way onto this post. he averaged 10 points per game and 4 rebounds, he is 6-8 and he can play either the 2 or the 3. He is another sign and trade guy.

Look out for my post about unrestricted free agents and then the draft!

Nets Bigs Analysis

2009-05-04T16:57:00.013-04:00

Here's my take on the Pf's and C's on the Nets Roster.

Brook Lopez: averaged 13 points, 8.1 rebounds, and 1.8 blocks per game He was third in the ROY voting and looks to be the future of the Nets as well as the best pick in the 08 draft.

Eduardo Najera: barely played at all in his first year as a Net. He was brought here as a backup 4 who could bring some energy but we couldn't see any of it this year.

Josh Boone: started the first 7 games of the season, but then got injured and his job was permanently taken by Lopez. He averaged 4.2 points per 4.2 rebounds and a block per game. He is a decent backup center, and plays good D, but i wanted to cry every time he went to the free throw line, where it seemed like he barely ever hit the rim.

Sean Williams: appropriately nicknamed swat for his blocking ability, Sean Williams took a huge step down after a mediocre rookie campaign due to a combination of on the court and off the court problems. He is a backup 4 or 5 at best if unless he gets his act together. he averaged 2.4 points and 2.4 rebounds as well as a block per game. He worked his way into the rotation, because of his defense after being sent down and later kicked out of the D-League for his bad behavior.

Ryan Anderson: averaged 7.4 points and 4.7 rebounds in an up and down rookie season, which was mostly dependant on the amount of playing time he got, he shot the ball well from beyond the arc but is mostly a shooter just like Yi.

Yi Jianlian: was brought to New Jersey on a strictly marketing level, bringing in a huge fan base. He averaged almost 9 points and 5 rebounds per game as a streaky shooting power forward, but plays a lot like Ryan Anderson. He will probably get one more year to figure things out. But as of this point he is not really a good option for a starter.

Whats Missing

The Nets have a starting center set, and enough backup bigs for now, but what's really missing is a starting power forward which the Nets could fill either in the draft or in the free agent market. If the Nets fill this position look for them to become competitive again in the East.

Look out for my post about how to fill the holes later in the week!

Good game for Pettitte and the Yanks

2009-04-21T22:36:00.005-04:00

Andy Pettitte pitched 7 innings allowing 2 runs on 9 hits getting no K's but allowing no BB's, as the yankees went on to win 5-3.

The yankees scored 4 runs in the second inning starting off with a leadoff walk by Nick Swisher, and a double by Matsui, followed by a Ransom fly out to the Right fielder, Gardner then hits a 2 rbi single and then Jeter matches minus the rbi's. Damon hits a line drive to the left field and got caught going for 2, netting a rbi single. Tex finished off the scoring with a rbi single.

A 2 run 4th by the A's brought them to withn 2 but they would not come closer than that, because Johny Damon hit a solo Homer in the 6th.

Brian Bruney allowed 1 run in the 8th but Mo got the job done in the 9th and got his 4th save of the season.

Notes

Andy Pettitte and Mariano Rivera tied for the MLB record of win save combinations with 57

1+5= A reason to be optimistic bout the Nets future

2009-04-21T17:38:00.026-04:00

Point Guard, and Center are by far the hardest positions to fill in the NBA, and the Nets are set at those positions with two great young players one an already an All Star in Devin Harris, and the other one, is a rookie averaging 13 and 8 who most likely is the runner up in the rookie of the year award this year. This a huge reason to be optimistic on the future of the Nets.

If the Nets have a good offseason they will have an opportunity to make the playoffs after a two year drought. But first they have to evaluate the roster, to be able to see were the help is needed.

Here's my take on the PG's SG's and SF's on the Nets Roster.

Devin Harris: leading candidate for the Most Improved Player, and he only Net to make the All Star team. He average 21.3 ppg and 6.9 assists and 3.3 rebs a game, but he sat out 13 games for injuries.

Keyon Dooling: played great for the Nets this year, he came off the bench about 60 times, and started 18 games, mostly filling in for an injury prone Devin Harris. He averaged almost 10 ppg with 3.5 assists and 2 rebounds per game. He is a great backup combo guard, and spot starter.

CDR: was drafted early in the second round, and didn't play much until DH was injured for the second time, where he was inserted into the lineup and earned his spot playing very good. He started a few games, and was loved by the fans. He could be a future starter, judging by what he showed at the end of the season.

Vince Carter: The former All Star and the only remaining memeber of the big 3 is the captain of he Nets squad, but he is almost 32 years old and showed a small dropp off in stats this year. He showed great leadership and team skills this year, but he is the center of the trade talks in the Nets off season, it would be nice to have him back next year.

Jarvis Hayes: The Backup Small Forward was a fan favorite who was notorious for his hustle plays. He averaged 9 ppg and is a great backup SF, the only problem is that through most of the season the starters were not playing as well as him.

Bobby Simmons: started 40 games averaging 8 points and shot 45% from three point land but is not a starter bottom line.

Treton Hassel:started 30 games and played good d, but he is not a starter either.

Whats missing is a backup PG because DH gets hurt to much, and a starting SF unless VC is switched to SF and CDR starts at the 2. In which case another wingman is needed.

Look out for Part 2 later in the week!

Giants TE's

2008-07-03T18:10:00.008-04:00

Lets take a look, at the Giants tight ends, another group with a lot of skill, as well as younger players with potential.

Kevin Boss- The rookie last year, had a memorable performance in the absense of Shockey, he stepped in and contributed to the SuperBowl win, and had an ok year this year.

Michael Mathews- The third year player contributed as a TE, and as a FB, he will probably make the roster next year.

Darcy Johnson: a good backup tight end who stepped up at times receiving the ball, he has good hands, he is also a good blocker.

overall, there is a lack of star power, but a good groop of players

Nets Off-season

2008-07-02T13:56:00.007-04:00

The Nets traded away RJ, and got five players on draft night, 3 rookies, and 2 non rookies.
Nets New Players
YI Jianlian, Brook Lopez, Ryan Anderson, Chris Douglas Roberts, an Bobby Simmons.
They got rid of 1 player so far in RJ, but it looks like more will follow.
so here's who wont be here next year
RJ Diop(agreed on a contract with Dallas), Darrel Arrmstrong,
possibly Krstic, Boki, Ager, and Marcus Williams.
And no one on the roster is safe, besides Yi, Lopez, an Harris.
So lets take a look at who the Nets are looking at, remember though no one expensive because the Nets want to get Lebron for Brooklyn in 2 years.
Mikael Peitrus- The 26 year old Frenchman who played for Golden State last year, is a wing man who averaged 7.2 points 3.7 rebounds, and .7 assists last year. These numbers are the second lowest in his 5 year career, because of less playing time which went down 7 minuets from the year before, where he averaged 11.1 points. He would be a good addition, to the Nets who are in desperate need for a wing man.
Roger Mason- A 28 year old guard with 5 years experience in the league. He played for the Wizards last year averaging 9.1 points 1.6 rebounds, an 1.7 assists, all career highs. He is another player who plays in a position the Nets need.
Euardo Najera, and Kwame Brown- 2 Forwards who the Nets don't really have room on their roster for, unless Krstic, an Boki leave.
JR Smith- The guard who played in Denver last year is only 22, he would be a huge addition to the Nets, but he is a restricted free agent, and Denver said that they would match any offer, so they would have to make a sign and trade to get him.

Yankees bats are asleep

2008-07-01T09:53:00.002-04:00

The Yankees have a combined 5 runs in the past 3 games which is fairly dismal. Totalling just 13 hits over 3 those three games. And in the last 2 games Yankees scored just 2 runs on solo shots from Arod and Betemit.
This cannot continue, but i think it had something to do with the messed up lineup by Girardi, who even had Posada starting at first. I think there was no reason to take all of the lefties out of the line up as well.
Well look for the Yankees bars to wake up against Kevin Milwood of the Rangers.

A gapping whole in the SFposition for the Nets

2008-06-30T17:04:00.003-04:00

With the departure of a star, like RJ, who has done nothing but good for the Nets, there are always going to be some negatives. One of them is that there is a huge whole where he used to be. A whole that one man can't fill, unless he is a star.
Who will play the 3 in the starting lineup?
Boki Nachabar- He came to New Jersey and stepped up his game but not exactly enough to be propelled into the starting lineup. He averaged 9.8 points 3.5 rebounds, and 1.2points of the bench last year. He is probably going to be considered most here, and will win the starting job, at the beginning of the season, assuming he will be re-signed.
Chris Douglas Roberts- CDR will have to impress to get a spot in the starting lineup. And if he does reach the starting line up he will most likely do it in the middle of the season, buy he will get playing time, because there really is no one else.
Mo Ager- He really doesn't have a chance to get the starting spot, he will have to worry about making the roster first.
Yi Jianlian- Yi will be in the starting line up for sure, it depends were though. He could play either the 3 4 or 5 positions. He probably wont start at the 3, but he will see game time there if the Nets go big, which the Nets might be able to do for the first time, in along time.
A Free agent could also come in and start, it could be someone like JR Smith, or Mikael Peitrus.
Everyone else is going to have to step in when their name is called, because they will get thir chance.

Trading RJ was to make more money and not to win a championship

2008-06-30T07:47:00.011-04:00

Unless the Nets can make some big moves, the Nets roster has a bunch of inexperienced players, 3 rookies Lopez, Anderson, and CDR , 2 second year players, Sean Williams, and Yi, and 3 third year players Marcus Williams, Ager, and Boone. Of those players, the ones with the most game experience are Boone Williams Williams and Yi, and a total of 8 players have no more than 2 years of experience.
The Nets are also very thin at the guard and small forward position. With Ager, Marcus Williams, Carter, Nachbar, CDR, and Harris, they also have players that are big but could play the 3, but that is only Yi, and Anderson, but Nachbar is not under contract for next year yet.
But the Money that the Nets can get from this deal is tremendous. Yi Jianlian brings in a whole new international fan base from the most populated country in the World. This means that the Nets could get TV with China, because they want to see their player, as well as sell Nets merchandise to them, and alot of Chinese will become Nets fans, because their country's star plays for the nets. Even look at the picture at the top, the Nets have started selling him already. This is like when the Nets got Krstic and Serbia started showing the nets games on TV.
The other part of the deal brought in cap space, for Lebron James. This will get people to come to Brooklyn to watch him, and he will sell tickets, because he is one of the great basketball players.
Now I have no problem with the Nets trying to make money, especially because the Nets have been losing money each of the past few years, but they should sacrifice the team, but on the upside though, the Nets have a lot of youth, and a lot of potential, and Yi could be a star.

If the Nets scouted good enough we might be seeing some good performances on the court by some young players, and maybe turn out like the Trail Blazers, who broke their streak of losing seasons last year.

Giants wr's for next year

2008-06-29T18:32:00.010-04:00

The Giants are very deep at the wr position for next year. For many years the giants have struggled with the position, and when they got Burress it helped them out tremendously. But up until last year the giants never haven't had a semi competent, 3rd widereciever for a long time. This is because Tim Carter, the preseason standout every summer, never stepped up in the regular season let alone the postseason. He was traded and the giants moved on and drafted Steve Smith, who stepped up big time last season. So starting with Smith here is my projected wide receivers on the Giants roster next year.

Steve Smith- he played great towards the end of last year, and will most likely be the 3rd WR.

Amani Toomer- The veteran receiver is the giants all time receptions and receiving yards leader, and played fairly well last year, he is getting up there in terms of age but still was productive. He will likely be the 2 Wide Receiver.

Plaxico Burress- He came in 3 years ago, and immediately upgraded the wr group. He has made some huge catches, including the Superbowl winning catch, and has had huge games, especially against the division rival eagles, and he is known as the eagles killer.

Sinorice Moss- He will be going into his third year, and it will be his last chance with the Giants. If gets injured again, or doesn't take advantage of his time on the field he will be gone because there are many people who can play the position.

David Tyree- The special teams ace had a game to remember in the Superbowl, including arguably the greatest catch in the history of the game, he will be there next year.

Mario Manningham- He was considered to be a big steal in the draft, taken in the third round. We will see how good he really is next year, although he will have to prove himself to get playing time on this team, at the receiver position.

DJ Hall- The undrafted free agent came in and impressed during rookie camps, and mini camp, it will be hard for him to make the team, but i think he will.

Notables left out

Michael Jennings- the UFA finally made the team last year, but he got injured really badly. It will be a longshot for him to make the team, and he needs to come back as good as he was, if he is healthy he might make the team.

This group of wide receivers seems great for next year, and it could include a pro bowler in Plaxico Burress, an up and coming star in Steve Smith, and a veteran to set the example in Amani Toomer. With Superbowl MVP Eli Manning giving them the ball, this group can achieve great things.

Up next tight ends

Diop likely gone

2008-06-29T13:56:00.007-04:00

Desagana Diop aqcuired in the trade from dallas, most likely will be gone. The nets really don't have room for thtte defensive big man. They already have; Sean Williams, Ryan Anderson, Brook Lopez, Stromile Swift, Yi Jianlian, Nenad Krstic and, Josh Boone.
Dallas who Diop was originally on said they will offer him the Mid Level Exeption which is about 5 million dollars, and the heat seem like they will do the same.

Nenad Krstic a Net next year?

2008-06-29T13:23:00.007-04:00

The Nets extended a quaifying offer to Nenad Krstic who is an unrestricted free agent. Krstic had a huge injury and was sidelined for a year but it also bothered him for the ensuing season. The Nets started the procces of the offseason by extending a qualifying offer. This means that they can match any offer made by any team.
This also puts the Nets in position to make a sign and trade deal. A sign and trade deal would happen, if different team did not have the cap room to sign Krstic, or they believed that the offer that they give to Kstic would be matched by the Nets.
This is what happened with Kenyon Martin, when the Nuggets thought the Nets wanted to sign Martin, so they made a sign and trade deal.
So if the Nets want to keep Krstic they can, it is up for them to deside if he is fully recovered, and can help the team. Or they can let him get away by not matching an offer, or trading him.

Pettitte the ace?

2008-06-29T10:55:00.004-04:00

After seeing Pettitte have a great game against the Mets, and have much success in the past few weeks, many are saying that Pettitte is the ace of the staff. I for one think that Pettitte is not the ace of the Staff. The staff is a fairly good squad, with potential to be great, with Wang. But if Ponson plays well like he did in the Mets game on Friday, he can fill in the whole that Wang, the real ace of the staff left when he got hurt.
So who is the ace of the staff if it is not Pettitte? It is not Mussina either, or Chamberlain yet. It is not Rasner either, or Ponson. Then who is it? The answer is it could be anyone. One any particular night the pitcher could look like the ace.
We have seen Pettitte do what he did yesterday but he also got lit up for 10 runs in Kansas City.
We have seen Rasner pitch some fantastic games, and then he messes up and lets up six or seven runs, in less than five innings.
We have seen Mussina go eight innings of one or 2 run baseball, but we all know what happened last year, when he was not even in the rotation.
We have seen Ponson do what he did on friday, but we also saw what happened in 3 years ago.
And Joba just doesn't have the experience to be called the ace yet.
Everyone can step up and pitch a great game, but it is the constistency that makes players great, if a pitcher throws great great games consistently then he will be considrered the ace.

Giants Running Backs for next season

2008-06-28T14:03:00.005-04:00

I think next years running backs will look like this
Rb 1 Brandon Jacobs- obvious choice, he averaged 5 yards a carry and had a 1000 yard season despite missing time with injuries, which is something everyone worries about with him.
Rb 2 Derrick Ward- Ward stepped in and played beautifully, after the retirement of Tiki Barber and the injury to Jacobs, he got injured himself though which is probably why he is still with the giants, and he didn't get big money in free agency.
3rd Down Back Ahmad Bradshaw- Bradshaw who is still in jail right now in Virginia from breaking probation from one of his other offences, played great last year in the post season, and at the end of the year, playing running back, and even returning a few kick-offs until Domenik Hixon earned the returner job. Hopefully he will get out of jail, and back on to the field before preseason.
Full Back Madison Hedgecock- Madison played great after an injury to Jim Finn left a whole in the roster that he filled beautifully, arguably playing better than Finn did.
Notables left out- Rueben Droughns- I don't think there is any room on the roster for him, and i don't think he did good enough last year to stay on the roster.
That is it for the Running Backs, it seams like a great group of 3, and any one could be a starter on another team, and a good FB to block for them. The only problem is who to give the ball to. And also it will be almost impossible for any to make the Pro Bowl, because they will have to share the ball.
Up Next Wide Receivers, that will be interesting because of all the talent and depth the giants have at the position.

The new look of the Nets

2008-06-27T11:42:00.005-04:00

On draft day the Nets traded away one of their franchise players and got much younger bringing in 5 players, 3 are rookies, one sophmore, and a 28 year old simmons, whose big contract expires, the summer that Lebron becomes a free agent.
So what will the starting line up look like?
As long as Bokie and Nenad re-sign it could look like this
PG-Devon Harris
SG-Vince Carter
SF-Bokie Nachbar
PF- Nenad Krstic
C- Whoever wins the position battle
Most likely Lopez, but it could be Yi, Boone or even Williams
Frank will expirement with line up, because the roster is very young, and this will be interesting because, frank never really gave young players playing time, and he will have to, because there is no one else.
In 2 years it could be Lebron, but who will fill RJ's spot now?
It looks like the starter will be Bokie, as long as he re-signs, and the Nets have money to give so he should be re-signed.
The backups will be the 2 rookies Anderson, and Douglass-Roberts, and veteran Trenton Hassel, and Bobby Simmons, who could bounce back from an injury plagued season, and win the the starting job.
Other notes
It looks like Diop is gone now because thte Nets really don't have space for him with the 3 new bigs they got.
It looks like the Nets will have to sign another backup SG-SF, during free agency.

Huge night for Nets 5 netting new players as RJ leaves

2008-06-27T09:43:00.004-04:00

Brook Lopez the skilled 7 footer from stanford falls to the Nets at the 10 pick. Which is a great thing for the Nets, because he is one of the top playeres in the draft and he has offensive skills down low.

The Nets reach for Ryan Anderson with the 21st pick. He is a great shooter and can play either the 3 or the 4, and averaged 21 and 12 at Cal.

With the 40th pick the Nets had no choice but to take chris douglass roberts, the 6-7 small forward, who was projected as a late first rounder.

They also got Yi, and Simmons in the trade from the Bucks.

Teams agree RJ to Bucks for Yi and Simmons

2008-06-26T16:14:00.007-04:00

The Nets who were shopping RJ the whole time period up to the draft finally got what they wanted if the deal is complete. A young big man Yi Jianlian, and Bobby Simmons whose big contract expires the year that Lebron James becomes a free agent. The Nets where shopping RJ because his contract went one year past the off season which includes the expiring contracts of Lebron, Wade, and Bosh.
With no RJ it looks like the Nets will have to draft a wing in the draft, and Yi strengthens the front court some what. It looks like the nets will take Joe Alexander if he is there at 10.
The Nets did not trade any draft picks in the deal with Milwaukee.
Yi averaged 8.6 points 5.2 rebounds last year, his rookie season, and Simmons averaged 7.6 points and 3.2 rebounds.

Yanks win 10-0 as joba gets his first win as a starter

2008-06-26T11:09:00.005-04:00

The yanks come back and win after a dismal performance by the whole team tuesday. Joba threw 114 pitches, and went 6 2/3 of shutout baseball, with a lively offense to help him. With 10 runs off 16 hits, including homers by abreu, and cano, and a 2 doubles by jeter in a 3 for 3 night. Cano also went 3-5 yesterday raising his average to .241 after a terrible start to the season.
The scorring started with the bases loaded and 1 out with giambi at the plate, a groundball that seemed to be a double play but on the throw by wilson the pitcher duke who was covering first missed the ball 2 runs scorred, leading to the yankees win.

Giants Qb's next season

2008-06-26T10:49:00.004-04:00

Aside from Eli, there is a competion to make the roster. So here are the project Qb's for th 2008 season.
Qb1 Eli Manning- this is obviuos. Super Bowl MVP, and New York hero, next year he will probably get his first trip to hawaii with a good season.
Qb2 Jared Lorenzon- The hefty lefty, has been here for a few years and has done a few qb sneaks and has seen game action one time other than that for 1 drive. He will be a an ok backup.
Qb for developement- Andre Woodsen- the qb fell to the Giants in the sixth round, he will have atleast 2 seasons to develope, unless he pplays horribly.
Left Out
David Carr- he was brought in for one million dollars in the offseason, but he is not having a good mini-camp.
Anthony Wright- the veteran qb was brought here last year, but his spot will be taken by woodsen, unless the giants carry 4 qb's which I don't think they will.

13 and 33 for 10?

2008-06-26T07:48:00.007-04:00

There have been many trade talks for tonights draft, but most are just rumors. There seems to be a serious offer on the table from the Blazers to the Nets, but it is a bit complicated. The blazers are offering there 13 and 33 to the Nets, only if the player they want is available, it might be DJ Augustin.But there are also players involved. Either Marcus Williams, Mo Ager or Trenton Hassel, for Steve Blake or Jarret Jack.
The thing is though, the Nets would have 4 picks in the draft, but not enough rooom on their roster, unless 2 of them don't make the team or Diop is not resigned, and Armstrong retires. We'll see what happens.

Who is Justin Christian

2008-06-25T18:39:00.006-04:00

As some of you who were watching yesterdays game may have seen, there was a new face in the outfield. It was Justin Christian, the 28 year old who was called up before yesterdays game, while Traber was sent down.
Christian was imidiately propelled into the left field spot due to some minor injuries to Damon and Matsui. He had a ruff first few inning with an error and an out in his first at bat, but he recovered nicely with a single and then a 2 rbi double.
Christian was in AAA Scranton batting .309 with 18 steals, along with 4 homers, and 39 rbi's in 55 games.
Christian was playing independant league ball, until 2004 after going undrafted. Then he played in the Yankees minor league gulf coast team, and worked his way up the system untill he reached his goal of the majors.

Knicks 6

2008-06-25T18:29:00.004-04:00

Here's some of the player on the Knicks draft board for the six pick.

Kevin Love-The 6-10 PF from UCLA might be there after being talked about in the 3-4 picks.

OJ Mayo-The USC guard can play either the 1-2 and it looks like he will be picked in the 3-4 range, but also has some baggage with him, and might be there at the 6.

Russel Westbrook-The point guard from UCLA has seen his stock rise and he is projected around pick 5.

Eric Gordon-The Indiana guard will be there but it doesn't seem like he will be taken at the 6.

Jeryd Bayless-The Arizona point guard seems like he'll be there at the 6.

Joe Alexander-the 6-8 Small Forward from West Virginia has been great in workouts, and has seen his stock jump tremendously, but might be a reach at the 6.

Brook Lopez-He once was projected around the 3-4 area but he has seen his stock fall

Danilo Gallinari-The Italian 6-9 SF who has said he wants to play for the Knicks or Nets and will be available at the 6 spot.

Nets 10 pick

2008-06-25T18:11:00.005-04:00

There are many players that could be available when the Nets pick at 10 here are some players and the chances that they will be there.

High Chance
Kostas Koufos- A big Man from Ohio State, although he might be a little bit of a reach here, for the sharp shooting big man, who has had excellent workouts and has seen his draft stock rise tremendously.
Anthony Randolph-An LSU power forward who stock is falling and hasnt done great in workouts so far.
Joe Alexander-the 6-8 Small Forward from West Virginia has been great in workouts, and has seen his stock jump tremendously.
DJ Augustin-the 6-0 point guard from Texas is projected around 10-15 he will be there but it doesnt look like the nets are interested.

Medium Chance
Brook Lopez-He once was projected around the 3-4 area but he has seen his stock fall. He did not have a workout with the Nets, because he thought he would be picked already. If he falls to the Nets at 10 he will most likely be picked.
Russel Westbrook-The point guard from UCLA has seen his stock rise and he is projected around pick 5.
Danilo Gallinari-The Italian 6-9 SF who has said he wants to play for the Knicks or Nets could be available at the 10 spot.

Low Chance
Kevin Love-The 6-10 PF from UCLA might drop to the 10 after being talked about in the 3-4 picks.
OJ Mayo-The USC guard can play either the 1-2 and it looks like he will be picked in the 3-4 range, but also has some baggage with him.
Eric Gordon-The Indiana guard might fall to the Nets, and will be picked dif he does forcing the Nets to go big with the 21.
Jeryd Bayless The Arizona point guard seems like he wont fall to the nets being picked higher in the Lottery.
No Chance
Derrick Rose, and Michael Beasley, will most likely go 1-2 in the draft.

Aside from Rose and Beasley anything is possible in this draft. One thing is certain; at least 4 of the players listed above will be there, leaving loads of possibilities. And probably someone from the low chance categorie will fall to the Nets at 10.

Yankees visit to Pittsburg; starts off with a crash and burn, but rookie leaves his mark

2008-06-24T22:10:00.007-04:00

The Bronx bombers weren't bombing . . . as Ras fell apart letting up 7 runs in five innings followed by Latroy Hawkens letting up five runs in the seventh and eighth but Edwar got charged for one of them. the week and a half streak of sure fire pitching has come to an abrupt stop, letting up 19 hits and 12 runs. On the other end of the ball Rasner was a walk machine. he had his two first major league at bats and drew two walks, without even swinging the bat. As far as the bats were concerned, Cano hit an RBI single trying to raise his average that has been stuck in the disappointing .220 range which he has been stuck at for the better part of this season, leaving him a boat load of work to do if he is going to return to his usual season average of .300, and ROOKIE JUSTIN CHRISTIAN went 2-4 in his major league debut with an RBI single and a 2RBI double, giving him a not too shabby average of 500 and a collection of 2 RBIs in his first MLB game. The Yanks entered the ninth with a score of 3-12 in the pirates favor, and Yankee fans everywhere were teased by Bobby abreu' s 2 out 2 run homer to decrease the defacet to seven, but A-rod ended the game and his ten game hitting streak by grounding out a few times.

Snee Re-Signs

2008-06-24T20:29:00.004-04:00

According to Mike Garafolo of the Newark Star Ledgar the Giants have agreed to a deal for 6 years that would include him in the top 5 paid guards in the league. This is great news for giants fans, because snee is one of the young stars in the position, he is also as most of you have heard the son in law of Tom Coughlin.
We will see what happens with Burress and Shockey who are both looking for new contracts, however not in the same way, asd they are both holding out in some way.

Giants Starting Day Roster

2008-06-24T19:58:00.006-04:00

As most of you know the NFL has a roster limit of 53 to reach that means that many players will have to get cut. And eventually we will see the roster for the Giants 2008-09 team. I am going to project the roster by position groups starting with just special teams players, then offensive groups, then defensive groups, then i will show a list of the entire projected roster.
special teams
Punter Jeff Feagles- As long as he wants to stay there is a spot for him on the roster.
Kicker Lawrence Tynes- He was pretty bad last year, but he hiit the field goal against the packers, and everyone will remember that.
Returner Domenik Hixon- He had the touchdown against thte patriots in the last game of the season, and he played pretty good in all the games he was here for.

Yankees vs Pirates 6/24/08

2008-06-24T15:20:00.008-04:00

Yanks 41-35 vs. Pirates 36-40
7:05 Ch9
Pitching
Yanks Rasner 4-4 3.64
Pirates Gorzelanny 5-6 6.59

Preview
As Interleague continues the Yanks will play the Pirates and will look to get a win to improve to 7 over .500 their high for the season so far.The Yanks won seven in in a row then went 1-2 against the Reds. This is an important game against Gorzelanny who has been fairly bad for the Pirates so far.
Rasner although only 4-4 has pitched magnificently so for the Yanks, being let down by the offense a few times. He ERA is a good 3.64, only allowing 20 runs in the 8 games that he has pitched after being called up.
The offense needs to wake up once again after netting only 8 runs in their last four games, and give Rasner some run support which he has rarely gotten so far.

NBA Draft

2008-06-24T14:14:00.008-04:00

So It is the NBA draf Thursday. There is a lot of trade talk, and rumors, of who the Knicks and Nets will get. It is obvious that rose and Beasley and Rose are going 1-2 with rose seemingly going to the bulls, and Beasley to the heat barring any trades. So lets take a at a dream scenario that could might happen with a lot of luck.

Nets
The Nets have 2 first round picks, and their have been numerous trade rumors that include RJ, but assuming they keep both picks here's what their first round would look like in a dream draft.

10 OJ Mayo
21 Kostas Koufos

OJ Mayo out of USC will most likely not be there, but you never know. He is projected around the 3-4 area but Marcus Williams fell to the nets in the 20's after being projected as a lottery pick. Just like Williams, Mayo also has some character issues. He is involved in a scandal in college saying that he accepted gifts.

Koufos from Ohio state is projected around the 14 pick but he could fall to the Nets at 21, He seems like he will be a good player with a great jumper and good height 7-1, but he is a little bit of a reach at 10.

Knicks
The knicks have only the sixth pick in the first and they will talk about many players to take with the pick, and anyone but Beasley or Rose could be available.

6 Kevin Love

This isn't so much of a dream situation, as no one will be that surprised if he is there at the pick but any one could be available in this draft.