Opinion

Okay, here's a little insight about me.

Sammy Sosa has been out of the game for almost two years now. He hasn't officially retired, as he is waiting for the phone to ring with the hopes that a team somewhere will give him one more shot. Recently, there have been reports surfacing that Mr. Sosa is going to call it quits.

This begs the question of whether or not Sosa will be elected to the Hall of Fame after being out of baseball for five years. Let's take stock of his numbers.

Major League Baseball suspended A.J. Burnett for six games two days after he threw a fastball that rose up and in on Texas' Nelson Cruz. The pitch did not hit Cruz, but the right-handed batter needed to drop to the ground to avoid being plunked in the head.

Texas tosser Vicente Padilla had already hit Mark Teixeira. Twice. On two consecutive pitches. Both instances appeared to be intentional and Tex was furious after Padilla hit him the second time.

Regardless, Padilla will make his next scheduled start and will only need to pay a fine as a consequence.

With the Oakland A's mired in last place in the AL West, I've begun to wonder: Is manager Bob Geren on the hot seat or not?

Only general manager Billy Beane knows for sure, but if Geren is not close to being replaced, he should be.

Here are five pieces of irrefutable evidence I'll offer in support of this conclusion:

1. Geren Has Ruined the Team's Greatest Strength: Its Bullpen

Ruined might be a bit severe, but blatant overuse from the first week of the season has made a mess of the bullpen.

When superstar Manny Ramirez was suspended for 50 games by Major League Baseball for violating the drug policy, pundits and experts stated that the Los Angeles Dodgers would be fine.

As it turned out, they were absolutely right, and then some. 

And it makes this longtime Dodger fan SO glad about the team's performance to date:

Not only have the Dodgers kept the best record in baseball at 37-18 (going into tonight) since Manny's suspension, they have increased their lead in the National League West to 9 1/2 games, and are a threat to run away with that division.

When the Seattle Mariners signed Ken Griffey Jr., I was hoping for at least a 20 HR, 85 RBI season. I felt if the Mariners used him as their everyday DH, he could produce moderate power, something the Mariners have not had since Edgar Martinez left.

It’s time for Major League Baseball to step in and do something to help the pitiful Pittsburgh Pirates. Their claim of being too small a market to compete also spreads to to the front office, where it’s apparent that their baseball minds are too small for the major league arena as well.

On Wednesday, the Pirates traded their best player, Nate McLouth, to the Atlanta Braves for three prospects.

Every team must have them.

The San Francisco Giants cannot be the only goliath that suffers such a frustrating curse.

If your favorite franchise falls victim to one, then you already know where I'm heading.  If not (damn you) I'll explain: A Dr. Journeyman/Mr. All-Star is a phenomenon where an otherwise nondescript athlete sees the object of your affection coming and it changes him/her.

Said individual is transformed into a beast, leaving nothing but destruction and losses in its wake.

Of all the events that took place in the 2007 ALDS, the one that stands out the most was the attack of the midges during the final innings of the game. 

For anyone who watched, it was one of the most unbelievable things ever to happen during a baseball game. 

All of a sudden, it looked like snow was falling from the sky. The game took place in Cleveland during October, but the temperature was unseasonably warm, so needless to say there was no snow in the forecast. 

It’s no secret that the St. Louis Cardinals’ bats have been ice-cold lately.

Stellar pitching has kept them on the heels of the Milwaukee Brewers in the NL Central standings, but with recent injuries to both the pitching staff and lineup, they will most certainly need to find a more balanced attack to win on a consistent basis.

They may be getting the timing right, though, with an eight-game homestand starting tonight. 2008 All-Star outfielder Ryan Ludwick will be taking the night off after testing out his body in the San Francisco series.