Posts belonging to Category Teams

• Baseball fans loved Tim Lincecum’s suit and bowtie look so much that Sports Illustrated thought that it would make the perfect cover to cap the year.  Lincecum has now graced the cover of SI twice in recent years, both of which are among my favorites.

• Apparently the New York Yankees do not have any interest in signing Manny Ramirez.  As Spring Training rolls around, Ramirez, who really hasn’t been the same player since returning from suspension for PEDs, will surely receive some consideration from American League teams.  However, as someone who is represented by Scott Boras and also accustomed to receiving gigantic contracts, I wonder whether Ramirez will be on a Major League roster to start the 2011 season.  Could Man-Ram be the next Jermaine Dye?

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On Monday the baseball word received the devastating news that veteran pitcher Chan Ho Park had inked a deal with Japan’s Orix Buffaloes, potentially marking the end of his 17-year career.  Park, who perhaps is best known for delivering a roundhouse to Tim Belcher, as well as giving a detailed account of his diarrhea, has a career record of 124-98 and a 4.36 ERA.  While pitching for seven, different organizations, Park’s best season came in 2000 as a member of the Los Angeles Dodgers when he was 18-10 with a 3.27 ERA.  He also recorded 207 strikeouts and issued 124 walks while making 34 starts and logging 226 innings.

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This week the Cleveland Indians signed former first round draft picks Austin Kearns and Travis Buck to one-year contracts. Kearns, who posted a .746 OPS in 461 plate appearances for the Tribe and New York Yankees in 2010, signed to a tune of $1.3 million and figures to be the team’s fourth outfielder in 2011 behind Shin-Soo Choo, Grady Sizemore, and Michael Brantley.  A former first round pick of the Reds in 1998, Kearns, now 30, has never panned out to be the well-rounded hitter that was supposed to complement Adam Dunn in the Cincinnati lineup. In fact, he’s been the exact opposite.

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On Sunday, the baseball world woke up to the news that the Kansas City Royals had traded their 2009 A.L. Cy Young winner, Zack Greinke, to the Milwaukee Brewers.  It wasn’t a secret that the Royals were asking for the farm (literally) in return for the coveted right-hander.  It was simply a matter of which organization had both the minor league depth and corresponding “all-in” mentality to justify parting with a substantial portion of its future.  Well, that team happened to be the Milwaukee Brewers.

Although the Zack Greinke trade is something that is sure to interest any fan of the game, the deal holds a special significance for the fans and followers of Illinois high school baseball. The Brew Crew parted ways with some of their best, young talent, including shortstop Alcides Escobar, outfielder Lorenzo Cain, flame thrower Jeremy Jeffress and, most notably, the 2008 Prep Baseball Report Player of the Year, Jake Odorizzi.  And as more details have been released regarding the negotiations of this blockbuster deal, we have come to learn that Odorizzi seems to have been the player that made this trade happen.

Continue reading ‘Former PBR Player of the Year Jake Odorizzi deal to Royals (Prep Baseball Report)’ >>

It’s been a while since I have posted anything here on The Sombrero.  The last couple of weeks have been really busy and perpetually stressful.  I just finished up an exam period that consisted of 12 total tests.  It’s break now, though, and I am back home where it is dumping on the mountain.  I just got word that 15 fresh fell today, which gets the hill over 2 feet of new in the last 48, and it is supposed to pick up when the sun goes down.  Griff, our homeboys the Meyers, and I are headed up in the morning, and it has the potential to be the best Day 1 of my life.  A lot has happened since the last time I posted, but the holidays are getting underway nicely already.  My dad is home from Australia and Grandma is coming down either Thursday or Friday.

As everyone rolled out of bed today, we checked our phones like we do every morning to make sure that nothing earth-shattering happened in the world of baseball overnight.  This morning was one of those rare ones when something like that actually did (Arlo gave me a little heads up on it last night to tell you the truth).  At least it was earth-shattering for the rest of the N.L. Central, because they discovered that the Milwaukee Brewers will have the best rotation in the division next season.  If you’re from Milwaukee, Christmas came a little early this year in the form of former Cy Young winner, Donald Zackary Greinke.

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