NL Central

Two weeks ago, it wasn’t a stretch to assume that the Redskins would lose the balance of their schedule, finish 2-14, and pioneer new ways to draft everything other than offensive linemen. But a funny thing happened on the way to national ridicule and complete fan revolt.

Washington scored more than 17 points for the first time all year. And they won.

Rumors ran wild this past week about the potential of the Cubs trading for Roy Halladay or Curtis Granderson.

What is sad is that the Cubs have the highest payroll in the league, and both of these players are going to be considered too expensive.

What's worse? Both of these players would fulfill enormous needs for the Cubs. In fact, they are the two biggest needs of the current Cub team.

While Scott Rolen is still in the "honeymoon" stage with the Reds, I will be evaluating him on a 40-game season.

His hitting is better than average, which should be expected for a .284 lifetime hitter. He didn't exhibit the power that I was so hopeful he would. Three home runs in a quarter of the season make it elementary enough to do the math; 12 home runs would not cut it for a corner infielder. He had a decent OBP as well at .364.

The Chicago Cubs took the first concrete steps toward crystallizing their team in 2010 today, trading right-handed pitcher Aaron Heilman and re-signing would-be free agent John Grabow. 

Those steps were preliminary, though, and general manager Jim Hendry knows that in order to make more drastic and necessary changes, he must first resolve the single most dauntingly enigmatic question that faces Chicago during this offseason: To whom will Hendry send outfielder Milton Bradley?

Filed: Nov. 18, 2009

Have you ever found yourself reading a well-written piece and feeling like it all sounds logical and sensible, but then you think about it a little more and wonder if the writer is off his meds?

I had a moment like this when I read a recent piece by Fox Sports writer Dayn Perry , who proposes in the column a number of moves that teams need to make this offseason.

Wow. Just as I thought the Reds had given up on any hope they had for Ramon Hernandez, he slides in the back door. Cincinnati just signed him to a one-year contract (with options) worth $3 million.

The Reds had declined his $8.5 million option earlier, and many, including myself, were not sad to see him depart. Ryan Hanigan can play the position for one-eighth of the price or less, and just as well I might add. I had big plans for that money!

The 2009 MLB season is over and the New York Yankees are World Series champs by defeating the Philadelphia Phillies. It was an exciting playoffs with it’s share of highlights and controversy.  Replay in the post season was brought up many times as today’s technology is more advanced and can see more then the umpires. The Schedule was also a concern as there were as many days off as games in the fall classic. This all leads to the MLB off season where ever team can improve for 2010.