MLB

You've probably never heard of Matt Daley, unless you're a fan of an NL West team.

Heck, I'd never heard of him until the Rockies called the right-handed relief pitcher up early last season. Given that I know about 2000 active players, Daley's failure to merit a blip on my radar reflected his anonymity. He didn't get a big league look until he was nearly 27.

Whether you agree with me or not, and no matter if you like my writing or you do not, I want to send a message to everyone in the Chicago Cubs community on Bleacher Report:

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

And, if you happen to be Jewish, Happy Hanukkah and Rosh Hashanah.

After all, we're all Cubs fans, right? We may not see eye to eye, but we do have the Cubs best interest at heart.

I happen to think that, so far, this has been another horrible offseason for Cubs GM Jim Hendry. I also happen to think that the Cubs glass for 2010 is half-empty.

Hey bleacher report, its been a long time since my last post.

I've been busy with many different things the last three of four months,so I haven't really had a chance to post anything on b/r. But now I'm back, at least for the next week or so to talk about whatever is going on in sports (except for Tiger Woods). So here's a little piece about yet another Yankee mistake.

Austin Jackson. A name that confuses most Yankee fans.

Minute Moves Amplify Club's Dim Future

Merry Christmas, Met fans!  You have absolutely nothing to be merry about this holiday season.

Your team has actually gotten worse in the offseason, which is an almost impossible notion considering they just experienced three of the most frustrating seasons in the club's not-so-illustrious history.

The ownership and the front office are sitting around waiting for the market on the remaining free agents to come to them. Tick-tock...

Just a few weeks or so ago, Jose Valverde rejected the Houston Astros' offer of salary arbitration and decided to become a free agent. The prospect of re-signing with Houston for one year and around $10 million just didn't appeal to Hay-Val.

And as we've seen, that move seems to have backfired.

By now, I figured he'd wind up in another uniform. Perhaps the Milwaukee Brewers, Los Angeles Dodgers, Boston Red Sox or even something as crazy as the Yomiuri Giants or Chunichi Dragons.

Okay, I'm no stranger to criticism. Despite the fact that most of my articles are pretty vanilla and fact-based, on occasion, I like to chase a walnut out onto a limb.

This is one of those times.

Baseball is facing an upcoming constitutional crisis. In the words of Mr. T, "you can't deny, fool!" There's no way around it; when Bud Selig goes, we've got to have our, er, stuff together.

So who steps into the void?

When the Seattle Mariners drafted Phillippe Aumont 11th overall in the 2007 MLB draft, many believed he could develop into an ace starter.

However, in 2009, he was transitioned to the bullpen. With his trade to the Philadelphia Phillies eariler month, he has the potential to be a future closer.

Prior to last season, Mariners Director of Minor League Operations, Pedro Grifol, said, “He’s a potential workhorse with well above-average stuff. He has the ability to develop into a top-of-the-rotation type pitcher.”

As the first decade of the 2000s comes to a close, it seems like a fine time for a little reflection.

The Twins have arguably been one of baseball’s best franchises during the past decade.

Largely under the watch of underrated skipper, Ron Gardenhire, the Twins have won the American League Central five times.

Even more impressively, the club has maintained a high level of competitiveness all decade long, as Minnesota only finished lower than third one time, way back in 2000.

The success of the club as a whole has come as a result of numerous players over the last ten years.

First off, it is officially Christmas now, at least where I live. So, Merry Christmas to all you readers!

Okay, happy junk out of the way and onto business. This one will be short, as getting up early for Christmas Mass puts a damper on the college lifestyle of sleeping in.

All I hear about is how signing free agent Matt Holliday to a long-term deal will be detrimental to the signing team.

Let's look at that, shall we?

Ever since the Washington Nationals settled in the nation's capitol in 2005, the franchise has consistently been the laughing stock of the National League East, and at times even the entire Major Leagues.

After a quick start in 2005 that placed the Nationals first in the NL East at the halfway mark, their downward spiral began, and so did their constant struggles.

The team has never finished higher than fourth in the division and has only won more than 80 games once.