The Golden Sombrero presents MLB Look-alikes: J.J. Hardy and Rob McElhenney from “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia”

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• In a stunning eight-player deal, the Tampa Bay Rays traded Matt Garza, Fernando Martinez, and Zach Rosscup to the Chicago Cubs, and received a slew of prospects in return- Chris Archer, Brandon Guyer, Robinson Chirinos, Sam Fuld, and Hak-Ju Lee.  Although the players that the Cubs parted with are just prospects – all but Fuld are yet to reach the Major Leagues – I sincerely believe that they surrendered too much for Garza.  And after reading Dave Cameron’s analysis of Garza over at FanGraphs, I’ve only become more convinced this was the case.

• Although they are not nearly as despicable as the staff of the Chicago Tribune – don’t get me started on Phil Rogers – the Chicago Sun Times sports writers are still pretty inept.  On the morning following the announcement of the Garza trade, the Sun Times published a photo of Joaquin Benoit on the cover of the sports section instead of the newly acquired Garza.  A slip up of this magnitude speaks volumes about the crack-squad of writers and editors that they willingly employ.

• This week we learned that the St. Louis Cardinals and their prized slugger, Albert Pujols, resumed talks regarding an extension before the 2011 season.  But even when the Cardinals lock up the all-mighty Pujols, will it be enough? I-70 Baseball explores the trades made by the Milwaukee Brewers and Chicago Cubs, and offers some insight as to how the 2011 Cardinals team will compare.

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• Harmon Killebrew has been diagnosed with esophageal cancer and is currently being treated at the Mayo Clinic in Arizona.  Killebrew, 74, won the Most Valuable Player award in 1969 and his 573 career home runs ranks 11^th all-time.  He is also credited as being one of the first sluggers to incorporate a dismount into his swing following a presumed no-doubter.

• The great Joe Posnanski of Sports Illustrated has dedicated his week to scrutinizing the careers of the players on the 2011 Hall of Fame ballot; each day has had a corresponding post and he has finally narrowed down his list and acknowledged the players that he voted for.  He calls them “The Eight Definites,” and they are as follows- Roberto Alomar, Jeff Bagwell, Bert Blyleven, Barry Larkin, Edgar Martinez, Mark McGwire, Tim Raines, and Allan Trammell.  For those who wish to read his entire series, which will be concluded today, here are the articles in order- [First Round] [The Second Round] [The Eight Definites] [The Borderline Five]

• The Baseball Bloggers Alliance has recommended both Roberto Alomar and Bert Blyleven for the Hall of Fame after both players received 75.97% of the votes.  Other notable players who just missed the cut include: Barry Larkin (70.78%), Jeff Bagwell (62.34%), Edgar Martinez (59.09%), and Tim Raines (54.55%).

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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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