Baseball

This picture only kind of looks like New York Mess...er...Mets closer Francisco Rodriguez is about to cave in some schmuck's jaw.

Just when I think I've heard it all, this story comes down the pike.

The San Diego Padres are in the middle of a pennant race in the National League's Western Division, leading by six games over the San Francisco Giants with just over a month to go.

You'd think the last thing they'd want to do is affect their home field, or stadium, in any way during said pennant race. Unfortunately, you'd be wrong.

Recently, Major League Baseball has been buzzing about the future of several managers. From Tony LaRussa to Joe Girardi, these men are starting to make more headlines than this year's looming free agent class. 

There could now even be a "Joe Torre Watch" as he is one of the most prized managers in the game and could be relocating this offseason. He has a few destinations to choose from.

The Cincinnati Reds offense has been nothing short of spectacular this season. But it could be even better with one simple tweak.
 
The line-up has been excellent—first in the N.L. with 602 runs to be exact. It’s been a major factor in the Reds' '10 success.
 

In a move that was slightly surprising, Derrek Lee was traded to the Braves on Wednesday.

It wasn't really a surprise that the Cubs wanted to trade him. After all, they did try to make a swap with the Angels involving the veteran first baseman not too long ago.

Unless Cubs GM Jim Hendry makes some significant moves this off season, the Cubs rotation for next year could be really bad.

In fact, the Cubs top starter looks to be Ryan Dempster, who would be a fourth or fifth starter on any other "contending" club.

Of course, that is assuming the Cubs will be contenders next season, an assumption that is not likely to be realized.

Even in an average rotation, one would have to look long and hard to find a worse number one than Dempster.

If you're a real baseball fan, you've seen Major League. If you're a real Indians fan, you own the DVD, quote it excessively, and own a pair of Rick Vaughn-esque glasses.

It's an absolute classic full of whacky characters, great one-liners, and some of the best baseball action sequences Hollywood has ever staged. But one of the coolest things about it (and one of the reasons why it holds up so well more than 20 years later) is that life truly has imitated art.

As the CC Sabathia and the Yankees beat up on Justin Verlander and the Tigers Tuesday night, a very interesting battle occurred within the war. Austin Jackson, an outfielder who was developed in the Yankee system, hit a home run on the first pitch thrown by the Yankees ace, CC Sabathia.

The inning later, Curtis Granderson, who was traded for Jackson, made two sparkling catches. He later followed with a home run.

Wind the clocks back five years

 The White Sox team that went coast-to-coast in first place were truly a complete team that had it all. In June of that season Bobby Jenks stepped up to become the man that Ozzie Guillen went to in the 9th after injuries hampered Dustin Hermanson. Ozzie did have some other options at the time with Cliff Politte and Damaso Marte as options.

In a recent CNNSI.com column, Tom Verducci posits that Josh Hamilton is now the best player in baseball. The premise for this supposition is laid out nicely in the following passage from Verducci's column: