Hey, the new blog is up! Go check it out:

pointofattack.wordpress.com

It’s Coming. New name, new look, new style, new words( dunk-fibulator maybe?). Check it out on Jan 30th

Dodger fans silently weep
The Dodgers appear to have inked Andruw Jones to a 2 year 36.2 Million dollar deal today. Here are 3 quick thought I have on this signing:

1. The Dodgers will like Andruw Jones in Center Field

Jones has always been a terrific fielder, and he has 10 Gold Gloves to prove it. He has great range and gets spectacular jumps on balls.

2. The Dodgers will hate Andruw Jones at the plate

I don’t think I’ve ever seen a season like the one Andruw Jones had at the plate last year. I could throw all types of numbers up at you but I won’t. The bottom line is this: He was in contract years and tried to increase his stock by pulling EVERY BALL out of the ball park. He tried to pull pitches that were inside, outside, up, down, pitch outs and throw overs to first base. That won’t cut it in that ball park. You’re going to see a decline in HRs and RBIs this year because he has slowly ruined his swing over the course of last season. He was the most pull happy guy I’ve seen since Sammy Sosa came back from getting plunked in the head years ago. And it is obvious that the Dodgers have a short memory, because ADRIAN BELTRE from 2001-2003 was exactly like Andruw Jones is at the plate (look it up), and the Dodgers brass couldn’t stand it. Be warned Dodgers: Jones’s .222 BA is not a fluke! It is a warning sign. It will be a miracle if Jones hits over .240 this season.

3. Scott Boras is having the worst free agent period EVER

First it was A-Rod caving in to Hank Jr. to negotiate his contract without Boras. Then it was Kenny Rodgers doing the same with the Tigers. And now it looks like Boras has been hit with this own stick (more on that later), as Jones had to settle for a 2 year deal instead of the long term deal. Remember when JD Drew was a Dodger and no one expected him to opt out of his contract cause he was already making a ton of money? Well, Boras advised him to get out of LA, and I don’t think the Dodgers forgot. And don’t believe that BS that Boras fed to SI.com when he said “Very, very long-term or very, very short term”. Boras prides himself on getting the deals done that no other agent can. Boras is too savvy of a P.R guy to come out and say he was looking long term but settled for short term. Dodgers GM Ned Colletti always goes for shorter years and he got his way. Boras didn’t.

Well that was fast..

Again, I have learned that all these “rumor” sections on SI.com and ESPN.com are total junk, because it seems like deals like this happen more and more often with no sign to the outside world until the deal is done. Well, lets break down this deal.

Tigers:

You really can’t look at this trade in a negative light no matter how hard you try. Look at the facts: They traded away 6 minor league players (Miller and Maybin have little to no big league experience), and in return they receive 2 big league PROVEN players. Cabrera is almost a guaranteed .315/30/100 + guy, and Dontrelle Willis can eat up innings and doesn’t have to be the Number 1 guy anymore. Both of these players will have little to no added stress because they are falling into an established offense and pitching staff. But be careful not to crown them as World Series Champs just yet. While they will have an AMAZING starting pitching staff and a potent offense, you don’t play the game on paper. Baseball is a long season with injuries and inconsistencies that you wouldn’t think about in the offseason. The health in the bullpen will be key to the success of the Tigers next year. I can’t wait to see the AL Central battle between the Indians and Tigers for years to come.

Marlins:

Hmmm, this sure seems familiar. Sooner or later, the Marlins are going to have to keep SOMEBODY around on their team, and I though Miguel Cabrera would be it. He took a home town discount to stay in Florida in the first place, and there was no reason to think that he wouldn’t do it again. The Marlins have been remarkable because of their strategy when it comes player management. Every time they have won the World Series, the major parts of those teams were traded away or not re-signed over the next year or so. In return, they received a crop of new players that made them contenders within the next few years. So, I guess it is really no surprise that this move occurred, but you’ve got to wonder when it’s going to stop. In return for Willis and Cabrera, they received former UNC star pitcher Andrew Miller (who happens to share my name) and young OF Cameron Maybin, plus 4 other minor league prospects. Since the Marlins received mainly prospects, we won’t know if they benefited from this deal for a few years. Now, the Marlins made a move for Hanley Ramirez in the Josh Beckett deal, and he has turned out to be spectacular. Only time will tell how the Marlins actually fared.

All the BCS dust has finally settled and….oh dear god!

A whole season has now passed, and we have our National Title game. Two teams that lost in the closing weeks of the season are now playing in the Title game, a scenario that isn’t supposed to happen. But in Ohio State and LSU’s case, this scenario is now reality. WVU laid an egg against a 3-7 Pitt team*, and Missouri proved that Oklahoma deserved to be favored in the Big 12 Title game. So now we have OSU and LSU going head to head in a BCS battle that no one predicted and even less people actually want to see. The funny thing about the BCS this year, is that when I ask, “Well, who SHOULD play in the BCS game instead of OSU?,” no one really has an answer. Why? Because I honestly think that nobody knows! And you can include me in that boat, because I can make a case for just about every team 3 through 10 right now. Hawaii has the most compelling case, since they and LSU (Les Miles made me say it) are the only teams not to lose in regulation this season.

I will say this for the last time, then completely drop this argument until after the National Title game. There needs to be a College Football Playoff NOW. There are no more excuses. DO IT!

*The Pitt upset against WVU is the second biggest upset this year, right behind Stanford over USC. That’s right, the App State over Michigan upset isn’t even in the top 2.

After the loss to Illinois, everyone saw the end of Ohio State’s National Title run for this college football season. But then, like a zombie bursting through the ground, Ohio State has re-emerged as a serious fraudulent contender for the National Title.

If Oklahoma beats Missouri this Saturday, something that already happened once this season, the Ohio State Buckeyes will be guaranteed a shot at the National Title. And again, like a broken record, critics have come out with the same statements like “Do they deserve it?” or “Look at their schedule!”.Expect this time, Ohio State doesn’t deserve any of it. Why? Well, Ohio State did what everyone expected them to do, and that was to lose a regular season game. The 4 of the 6 teams that were ranked in front of them however, haven’t lived up to their end of the bargain. LSU lost in 3 OT’s (again), Oregon lost Dennis Dixon (aka the season), Oklahoma lost to a team that they should have beat, and Kansas lost a tough game to Missouri. This sets OSU up at Number 3, with a game between #1 Missouri and #9 Oklahoma to go.

If this scenario doesn’t scream PLAYOFFS to you, nothing will. But that argument is for another time (like, maybe later in this blog). The real screw of this whole deal is that the only undefeated team left (Hawaii) isn’t even in the BCS top 10. Plus, if West Virginia losses to Pitt, that means a 2 loss Georgia team will play for the National Title. And the thing about Georgia is that THEY AREN’T EVEN PLAYING FOR THEIR CONFERENCE TITLE! What has it really all come down to when all these scenarios are wrapped up into one college football season? What is it going to take to realize that a computer and a poll sheet isn’t the best way to see who the best team is? If Ohio State makes the National Title game, College Football should be canceled forever, because it isn’t even real anymore. It a popularity contest that is ran through a computer to produce false results. Ohio State was pre-ranked (11) before the season on REPUTATION alone, and if Hawaii (23) would have been pre-ranked as high as OSU, then Hawaii would be #1 through the process of elimination.

So it doesn’t do any good to get mad at Ohio State or Georgia if Missouri and or West Virginia lose this weekend. If nothing else, we should be rooting for Missouri and West Virginia to lose. If they lose, only then will it expose the truly fraudulent and corrupt system that is the BCS. Maybe then we can finally have some type of tournament where teams actually PLAY to see who is the best (I think the word I’m looking for it “playoff”?).

Well, I’ve been gone for a little while, so why not catch up on the things I missed?

MLB

Cubs resign Kerry Wood
- Great resign for the Cubs. Now, TRADE FOR CARL CRAWFORD!

Mike Hampton hurt again
- Really sucks. I liked Hampton as a pitcher AND a hitter.

Bonds indited
- Really? What changed from 2 years ago to now?

Reds signed Francisco Cordero
- A good signing for the Reds front office? Bwwwwhaaaaat?

Torii Hunter signs with Angels
- Angels have a thing for big contracts and Center Fielders (Gary Mathews anyone?)

Jason Kendall signs with Brewers
- Good pickup

Johnny Estrada traded to the Mets
- The fastest Estrada has moved in years

NFL

Browns are 7-4
- Lets see if they can keep the blinders on and finish the season strong

Steelers beat Dolphins 3-0
- I don’t think the Steelers are as good as everyone thinks

Simeon Rice released by Colts
- Too bad I couldn’t BOLDLY predict that

Eli Manning throws 4 INTS, 3 of them for 6
- Someone needs a priceless peptalk

Pats squeak by Eagles 31-28
- Again, they are not the “best team” ever. They will get beat

Packers (10-1) vs Cowboys (10-1)
- Can the NFL Networks be destroyed by Thursday? Please??

Well, that surely isn’t everything, but it’s most of it.

For the Yankees sake, let’s hope the answer is no…

Lets make this clear: There are only 5 or so teams that can possibly pull off a trade for Santana. The Yankees are, of course, one of those teams. But just because you CAN do something doesn’t mean you SHOULD. Ever since Brian Cashman has been around, the Yankees have worked long and hard to rebuild their farm system, and it seems to be paying off. Robinson Cano, Melky Cabrera, Phil Hughes, Ian Kennedy,  and Joba Chamberlin all seem to be pretty good baseball players with long careers ahead of them. Yet, all that work is now in jeopardy because the best pitcher in the Majors, Johan Santana, is now on the market.  And without a doubt, the Twins will have a high asking price. An asking price that may require at least two of the players that I just mentioned. But why the change in philosophy for the Yankees all of the sudden? Why build up your farm system just to mortgage it for one really good pitcher? It all seems to stem from the “emergence” of Hank Steinbrenner from out of his father’s shadow. Ever since Hank has become to vocal leader of the Yankees, Cashman and George have all but disappeared from the public spot light. The more disturbing trend seems to be that Cashman is getting pushed out of important decisions, such as whether to trade for Santana or not. Cashman was really the only voice of reason in the Yankees front office for the last 4 years (who was that guy that didn’t want to let Andy Pettitte go? Oh yeah, Cashman) and emphasized a revamped farm team. While this all may come down to the final power struggle to see who is really at the reins of the Yankees, it also may decide the fate of this team for years. If Hank gains control, it would seem the Yankees would revert to the days of signing washed up stars and then keeping the around for 3 years too long with large contracts. Girardi would more than likely be blamed for a poor front office and be fired 2 years into his managerial tenure. But if Cashman’s opinion is still respected, this franchise could continue to evolve into a successful MODERN day baseball club. One that has a fruitful farm team, good young pitching, and the right mix of young and veteran players. As of right now, things seem to be tipping the way of Hank. Hopefully for Yankees’ fans, they don’t stay that way.

And so is my Vacation. I know it took a little longer than I said, but tooooo bad.

Sadly, that means I’m taking a week off of this Blog! But, I’ll be back with the goods next week!