Fan News

The Disciples of Doom have much less to talk about these days when it comes to the Pittsburgh Pirates. While the vultures have already begun their descent on the Houston Astros, fun in the sun seems to be the rule in Pirates camp. 

The long-maligned franchise may have finally begun to see that glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel.

Pittsburgh is, by no means, looking ready to thrash the New York Yankees in the World Series, but they might be ready to push a few teams behind them in the NL Central race. 

From Mike Puma:

Dave Bush must be a fan of roller-coasters. I say that because that has pretty much been the path his career has taken with the Milwaukee Brewers.

He has experienced some incredible highs, as well as some very crushing lows. Through it all, Bush has persevered, and has turned into a solid Major League pitcher.

Last season was a microcosm for Bush's three years with the Brewers. He started the season 0-3, and was sent down to Triple A for a cup of coffee before injuries forced the Brewers to recall him.

The Chicago Cubs acquired right-handed relief pitcher Luis Vizcaino in exchange for fifth starter Jason Marquis earlier this winter. The trade was sold to fans as the Cubs moving a high-paid veteran for bullpen depth.

Time to call bull.

The Chicago Tribune is reporting that Vizcaino is in danger of not coming north with the Cubs this Spring, likely making him a free agent. Is anyone really surprised?

The second part of the Two-for-One MLB Previews covers the two teams that made the most even trade of the past offseason, Texas and Cincinnati.

Past Previews: TB/SD

Current Standings

ALE: 1, Tampa Bay*, 3, 4, 5

ALC: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

ALW: 1, 2, 3, 4

I saw something this on TigerTales, so though I would try it out. The projections are shown in the table below of the projected starting rotation.

With the Phillies getting a day off today today will serve as an opportunity to get a little caught up around here. I didn't post anything yesterday as I was getting caught up on some real life errands around the home, but today will be a chance to do some work on the site.

The Phillies dropped their game yesterday against the Cincinatti Reds by a score of 8-4 but the game had some good things happen for the Phillies. For starters, pun intended, Cole Hamels had his second start of the spring.

No game to talk about from yesterday, so just a few random topics for discussion.

First off, Rick Ankiel notched a 83.7 percent approval rating from 56 voters, sliding him right in between Mike Shannon and Tony La Russa. I gave him a 90 percent, because I've been a big fan of Rick's since his original time in the minors. 

I now realize how spoiled we've been.

A-Rod helped sportsblogs coast through February.

Yesterday, A-Rod let me down.

With a pseudo-Mets team missing 16 players, there's not much to say. Sure, I could make some crap up along the lines of:

"'Kielty Should Platoon"
Or the ever-popular "Santana Elbow OK!" posts that you see everywhere.

Maybe some random Mike Pelfrey speculation would float your boat?

Nope, I'm hoping the real Mets come back soon, and that brings me back to A-Rod.

With all the drama this spring over who will be starting and who is healthy, and all the other mumbo-jumbo going on with the starting rotation, it seems I had forgotten all about the real question: Who's gonna close?

"The process now," said Tony La Russa, "is to give guys appearances, make evaluations, and then sort it out at some point at the end." TLR has told the media he has narrowed his options down to five. That sounds like a lot, but a few months ago there were about a million. I'll break down his options one by one.