Baseball

The Red Sox were faced with a difficult choice this winter: Sign LF Jason Bay for four years and BIG bucks or bring in someone new to fill one of the outfield slots until Josh Reddick and/or Ryan Kalish might be ready for a full-time gig in 2011 or 2012.

The front office had clearly made a decision to move towards a team built on pitching and defense, and while Bay had become popular in Boston, his defense (a -11 UZR/150) just didn’t fit with the new course the team had charted. And then there was the issue of his knees...

No player in recent memory for the Brewers has come under more fire and criticism than Jeff Suppan.

After he signed a four-year, $42 million deal in December 2006, expectations from most fans were for Suppan to become a very good No. 2 starter behind Ben Sheets.

He was the hot name in free agency, winning the NLCS MVP award for the Cardinals.

In 2007, John Lannan came out of nowhere.

An 11th-round afterthought in 2005, Lannan climbed the minor league ladder quickly, going a combined 12-3, 2.87 in 2007 before finishing the season with the Nationals where the 22-year-old went 2-2, 4.15.

As an African-American, I know that racism is still alive.

I know this.

But while I could go on and on about the injustices of this world from my point of view as an African-American, I will say this: Regardless of what color you are, if you play like horse manure, you deserve to get booed.

Period.

On Wednesday morning at my office, I watched the ESPN interview with Milton Bradley, which was more like watching college softball with the really gorgeous-looking players.

As news of Jose Reyes thyroid issue hit the press this morning, the prognosis was the Mets shortstop would miss 2-8 weeks.  Fans who lived and died with this team over the past year knew it was going to be at least two months before Reyes played again.

Next time Torii Hunter not only should have a better choice of words, but also get his facts right.

The Angel outfielder should know that the latest sensation to come from Latin America, Cuban left-hander Aroldis Chapman, was signed to a six-year, $30 million deal by the Cincinnati Reds.

If you watch TV or follow anything gaming-related, you already know about 2KSports and their new MLB 2K10 game. Released last week, a large selling point for most people is a contest they’re holding associated with the game: The first player to throw a perfect game will win $1 million.

You heard that right. 2KSports is going to pay seven figures to the first person to throw a perfect game. Is it that simple? Not even remotely.

While the signings of guys such as Alfonso Soriano and Milton Bradley are in the forefront of Cubs fan's minds, there have still been a number of great moves made by the front office throughout the years. This article will look at the ten best free agent signings in team history.

First, a few ground rules. I have only included signings made from the beginning of free agency in 1975 on, since prior to that the only free agent signings were ametuer free agents, as the draft did not exist yet.

Mets shortstop Jose Reyes could be sidelined until May or June, according to new reports coming out of spring training today.

He has not played since March 4, when he was sent back to New York for medical tests, and while it was initially thought his overactive thyroid wouldn't prove too much of a distraction, it has now emerged that he may not even resume playing baseball for eight weeks.

With Carlos Beltran out for the start of the year, it's a big loss to be without the speedy infielder for an extended period of time.

Joba Chamberlain first flashed on the major league scene in August 2007. He had been called up to the New York Yankees because they were floundering and needed bullpen help.

Chamberlain came in from the pen in 19 games in August and September 2007. He pitched in 24 innings. He gave up ONE earned run and had an ERA of 0.38. His ERA-plus was a stupid 1204. (There is no decimal point there.)