Baseball

Whenever performance-enhancing drugs rear their head, you often see the phrase "innocent until proven guilty" thrown around the discussion. It's a fine idea and one that deserves respect, but there's a significant snag to borrowing legal phrases for generic debate—it sounds very authoritative and conclusive, but the reality is much messier.

There are very few universals in law. Like many legal rules, the aforementioned presumption of innocence is defined by its context.

When compared to Lou Gehrig, Jimmy Foxx, George Sisler, Hank Greenberg, and Bill Terry, Fred McGriff is not a Hall of Famer. But when compared to Tony Perez, Orlando Cepeda, Eddie Murray, and Harmon Killebrew, Fred McGriff is a first ballot Hall of Famer.

Fred McGriff Compared to the Greatest First Basemen

Fred McGriff's offensive production pales in comparison to the first group's offensive production, but it holds its own against that of the second group.

Also featured on Rotoprofessor.com !

What does a player do after he finishes his first full season in the major leagues with the fifth highest batting average, finish sixth in the NL in slugging, and seventh in the NL in OPS? Oh yeah, and you constitute your team’s offense and only fantasy-worthy hitter in the lineup.

The Chicago White Sox have signed 32-year-old outfielder Andruw Jones.

If this was 2006, one could consider this a blockbuster signing.  But three years is a long time in Major League Baseball and in those three years, the 10-time Gold-Glover has seen his stock plummet.

A five-tool player once destined for the hallowed halls is no longer.  Currently, Jones is relegated to sharing outfield duty on an aging White Sox team.

In 2006, Jones led the Atlanta Braves with 41 home runs and 129 RBI.  In the four years since, he has combined to hit 46 homers to go with 147 RBI.

Tim Raines
Left Fielder
First Year of Eligibility: 2008
Career Highlights: Seven-time All-Star; three-time World Series champion; one Silver Slugger award.

Our #2 contender for the 2010 class, Andre Dawson, owes no small debt of gratitude to Rock for the strength of his candidacy.

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I recently took a written beating for saying that I thought Joe Mauer was helped greatly by being a catcher, in his recent naming as the American League's Most Valuable Player for 2009.

With that being said, is Mauer not only the best catcher in the game, is he also the best player in MLB? Let's not throw pitchers in this mix, I would like to be able to compare "apples with apples."

Roy Halladay, the six time All Star, has been linked with the Red Sox. The real question is whether the Red Sox need another ace or should the payroll be better used elsewhere.

There are a number of reasons why Boston would look to trade for Halladay. The first of which is his obvious talent. The Toronto Blue Jay's star is one of the dominant pitchers in the American League. Last year he went 17-10 with a 2.79 ERA in a losing team. He was third in the AL in ERA and 4th in wins. His abilities as a pitcher are unquestionable.

The ballot for the 2010 Major League Baseball Hall of Fame was announced on Friday, and 26 players will be waiting on the phone call to join the most elite group in baseball.

Success follows John McDonough wherever he goes.

McDonough, the current president of the NHL's Chicago Blackhawks, previously spent a quarter of a century as a rising executive with the Cubs. During that space of time, McDonough's revolutionary ideas changed the entire face of the Cubs' franchise.

From 1983 to 2007, the North Siders had nine winning seasons, as many as they had previously compiled since 1940. They attained the post-season five times, as many as they had made since 1919. 

For those of you who have actually looked over my profile, you know that Carl Crawford listed first on my Short List under "Favorite Athletes."

To expand on that positioning, Carl Crawford is my favorite baseball player/athlete/celebrity/everything.

Speed, defense, average, a little pop, and hustle.

What's not to love?