Happy Thanksgiving

Just wanted to wish all of the readers a Happy Thanksgiving today!

-Until next time...

The Trade

The main thing I am taking from this whole Josh Beckett to the Boston Red Sox trade is that the Sox didn't have to give up very much at all to get him. Oh, that and it appears as though the Marlins can clean house every few years as long as they keep winning World Series Titles.

First, the Red Sox. They give up shortstop prospect Hanley Ramirez, another minor leaguer to be named and they get a World Series MVP and the guy who completely SHUT DOWN the Yankees at Yankee Stadium in the Fall Classic. The main detractor was that they had to also take on Mike Lowell's contract which is something like $18 million for 2 years. Oh no! Remember that the Red Sox have the 2nd largest payroll in baseball and it isn't exactly a killer contract to take on, it's not like the Brewers or Royals are taking on that contract.

As a Red Sox fan, this trade would do nothing but get me thinking about going back to the World Series. They have a number one pitcher now if Curt Schilling doesn't return to his form, or even close to it. Josh Beckett gives the rotation another 12-17 wins per season. Plus, they get a guy who (as I said before) is in no way scared of the Yankees, or intimidated by them, their uniforms, the ghosts, or the stadium in any way.

As the Yankees fan that I am, it upsets me that the big bad George Steinbrenner and Brian Cashman fail to make trades like this. They won the A-Rod sweepstakes, but that trade hasn't exactly worked out for the best for them, they overpay for Carl Pavano, and don't have anything left in their farm system to trade for anyone else. The 1980's were the only decade in which the Yankees didn't win a World Series, but I think the 00's will prove to be the second decade.

The Red Sox have delivered the first blow in this year's feud, but it was a hard left hook followed by a right cross and ending with a an upercut which has the Yankees staggering. Hopefully they can get off the ropes in time for the beginning of the season.

Now to the Marlins. They won the Series in 1997 and were barely competitive again until they won it again in 2003. They get Carlos Delgado this season and were expecting big things, but came up short, so they trade a huge contract and their 1A pitcher for a couple of prospects, so they will be able to give Dontrelle Willis and Miguel Cabrera lucrative long-term deals. If I'm a Marlins fan (of which there are about 248), I am not mad with this trade at all. I would have been upset after the fire-sale of 1997, but the leadership proved they knew what they were doing by winning another World Series 6 seasons later, in one of the most dramatic post-seasons in recent memory. Is there a fan base or team out there that wouldn't take that, even if it meant overhauling the entire team one year, and letting some talented and popular, but expensive, players leave? The only franchise which wouldn't take 2 titles in 6 years is New York, but that's because they want (and expect) one every year.

I garauntee you Cubs fans would take 2 in 6 seasons, so would Brewers fans, even if it meant letting Geoff Jenkins, or Ben Sheets, or Kerry Wood, or Derrick Lee, or Mark Prior, or any of the popular players leave. Granted, it may be more difficult to win the Series without those players, but still, we would take the titles.

Anyway, score one for the Red Sox, and the Marlins, especially if they win another World Series by the end of the decade.


I was going to post earlier in the evening, but the Gonzaga/Michigan State Maui Invitational semi-final game was on the second television, and I couldn't keep from watching the triple overtime 109-106 Gonzaga victory. I really hope all of you watched the performances put in by the teams and Maurice Ager's 36 points and Adam Morrison's tournament record 43 points (Side note to Adam Morrison here, shave the paedophile mustache). It was an incredible game, not quite Gonzage/Arizona from the 2003 NCAA Tournament, but still an unbelievable game for this early in the season. The Arizona/ UCONN game should be just as good.



-Until next time...

This Bush's Approval Rating at all-time High

Yeah, that's right, a horrible, corny, completely ridiculous heading, but after Reggie Bush's (insert adjective here) performance against Fresno State on Saturday night, he deserves praise. I'm not saying he didn't deserve praise before, but WOW! I am glad I have two televisions in my house so that I could keep one of them on the game while others watched SNL. Then, when we went to the bar, the bartender was nice enough to turn on the game for us (and she should have with the tips we were laying down). I don't care if Bush wins the Heisman or not, I probably won't remember if he did, but I will probably never forget watching him shred Fresno State for 513 all-purpose yards, and the 2 touchdown runs he had in the third quarter, of 45 and 50 yards, were awesome displays of his ability and were exactly what USC needed to beat a Fresno State team which matched almost every USC score.

If Bush doesn't declare for the 2006 NFL Draft, it will be more shocking than Barry Sanders' retirement. So that begs the question, will Matt Leinart or Reggie Bush be the first pick in the draft? Well, if the rest of the season holds to form, the top 9 will look something like this:

Houston, San Francisco, Tennessee, NY Jets, New Orleans, Green Bay, Baltimore, Arizona, and Miami. The first pick will likely end up with either Houston, San Francisco, the Jets, or New Orleans.

Houston used its first pick ever to select David Carr and since 2002, he hasn't exactly played as well as they would have liked. His career rating so far is 72.9, and this was supposed to be his breakout year, but a 75.0 rating isn't helping that at all. Domanick Davis was also supposed to have a big year this season, but he is headed for his lowest rushing output of his career. He is only 25 and Carr only 26, so both still have some time to develop.

Has Carr's time run out? How long will the Texans ownership allow Carr to try and run this offense with little progress? Will a new coach change the way the team plays and make them more competitive? Would Carr benefit from having a game-breaking tailback? Would Davis benefit from having a threat at quarterback everytime the ball is snapped? Or do they forgoe Bush and Leinart and select someone else, perhaps AJ Hawk or another defensive playmaker?

I think that if Houston has the number one pick they will select Reggie Bush and hope that having a game-breaking running back and probably a new coach and scheme will help out Carr.

San Francisco is probably a little easier. They selected Alex Smith first overall last season, so I don't think they would go with Leinart, but the last time they had a lefty quarterback, it worked out pretty well for everyone. I also don't think that Frank Gore or Kevan Barlow is the answer in the backfield. Bush would give them a solid option at running back for the first time in years. If it is San Francisco, I think it is Bush again.

New York has quit on this season, that's it. Chad Pennington's arm may never be right again and they can't count on him to be healthy for an entire season. Curtis Martin won the rushing title last season but is 74 years old and won't be able to carry the load for too many more seasons. Bush goes number one here as well.

New Orleans is the other team with a good shot at the number one pick. This is the only team I see taking Leinart over Bush number one (if it is one of these four teams). Aaron Brooks has not been the quarterback they have wanted him to be since he arrived, he is too inconsistent. Deuce McAllister is a very good running back and with a consistent passing game will become even better. I don't see New Orleans passing up a chance to get a quarterback who can come in and play right away and probably do better than Brooks. So, if the Saints get the number 1 pick, one of the above three teams is going to be very lucky, because they are probably still going to get Bush.

Whatever happens with the Heisman, and whoever goes number 1, I am glad I was able to see the "Reggie Bush" game and have been able to watch this impressive team for the past few years.


-Until next time...