Baseball

Last night, in section 534 in the upper de...errr...I mean Promenade at Citi Field, I got into an interesting debate about Mets owner Fred Wilpon.  The gentleman sitting in front of me contended that Fred "Coupon" is a cheap owner while I contend that he is not necessarily a cheapskate, just an idiot.

First of all, I just wanted to go on record saying that the whole "Coupon" nickname drives me crazy.  It was cute for a while, but now it just sounds childish and silly when I hear fans say it.  Plus, every fan that uses it acts like they invented it, but I digress.

The Seattle Mariners have just won the World Series.

Ok, they didn’t, but to Mariners fans it feels like they did.

The Mariners finally made the move that fans had been waiting for.

Seattle traded shortstop Yuniesky Betancourt to the Kansas City Royals for two minor league pitchers Friday afternoon.

In the deal, Seattle received Double-A starting pitcher Danny Cortes and Single-A reliever Derrick Saito.

As Major League Baseball readies itself for its Mid-Summer Classic, it is always nice to take a look at how individuals are faring at the midway point.  Many players that are headed to St. Louis for the All-Star Game are having their typical all-star seasons.  Albert Pujols, who hit his 32nd home run as this article was written, is making others numbers pale in comparison.

After becoming an American tradition following its inception in 1933, the Major League Baseball All-Star Game evolved into the “Midsummer Classic” through some memorable moments in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s.

The exhibition eventually moved beyond being just a game to include a home run contest and many other activities that gave fans the opportunity to see their heroes in a completely different atmosphere than ever before.

In baseball there is a saying that every team wins 60 games and every team loses 60 games. What each team does with the other 42 games determines whether they are contenders or basement dwellers.

If Thursday night against Atlanta was one of those 42 games for Colorado, it was a good sign.

Twice the Rockies battled back from two-run deficits and overcame a sluggish start from ace Aaron Cook.

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The Cubs have been very disappointing in the first half of the season. They start today 41-41, when in reality, they should be six or seven games above .500.

Luckily, they are not too far away from that. Any day now, they could go on a six game winning streak and be right back in the thick of things.

There are a numerous things that the Cubs need to do to win consistently over the next 80 games. If the Cubs can achieve at least the majority of them, they should find themselves a top the National League Central for the third straight year.

With the news of the release of the two-time All-Star closer, the question looms about where B.J. Ryan will end up.

Ryan, who has struggled a bit this year, will definitely be a steal for whoever picks him up.

Look to the stats. He has had over 30 saves three times in his career. He has a career 3.37 ERA and 112 saves.

Ryan, who this year has battled a left shoulder injury this year, has definitely struggled for the Jays. He is 1-1 with a 6.53 ERA and only two saves in 20 2/3 innings.

Brooks Conrad is no prospect. Not even close.

He is not a prized piece of the Atlanta Braves' future, such as Tommy Hanson, Jason Heyward, and Freddie Freeman. 
 
Conrad is a nearly 30-year-old, career minor leaguer. His only major league experience came last year with Oakland. He had 16 at-bats and struck out in nine of them. 
 
But Conrad is much different this year.

A quick note before I begin.  I will only be looking at players selected within 10 picks of each Pirate pick.  Keep that in mind when you read this.  At the end of the article I will put together the Pirates 2009 Opening Day roster with the adjusted picks.

It all started in 1997 when the Pirates, with the 8th overall pick, selected J.J. Davis.  Davis was an OF from California who was a 3-sports star.  He also had scholarship offers from USC (Basketball), and Oregon State (Football).