He is Still the King

Well, the NL's record of futility continues, and I, being an NL guy, am disappointed this morning. I thought the top 4 in the NL lineup would be revved up to prove themselves, and there are no four other guys that you want revved up besides Hanley, Utley, the King, and the Hebrew Hammer. Alas, there is one other guy you want apparently, Carl Crawford. That catch was ridiculous.

Still props need to be extended for the first half turned in by last night's man of the hour (and the only bright spot on my dismal fantasy team). For some perspective, let's note that Vernon Wells signed a 7 year, $126 million contract in 2006 after coming off a season where he went .303/32/106. Albert Pujols, AFTER 90 GAMES!!!, has this line: .332/32/87. That is inhuman (and frankly, inhumane to NL pitchers). What's more, the guy has absolutely no protection in his lineup, which makes his performance even more remarkable.

Still, as we at SLAE like to look at the big picture (and, as Longhorns fans, have a decidedly what-have-you-done-for-me-lately attitude), I have to ask where El Hombre ranks in the Pantheon of greatest baseball players ever. Is he one of the top 5 players ever, as his stats would suggest? He has made the playoffs 5 of his 9 years. He has won 7 out of 11 postseason series, and hit a collective .323/13/35 in those series. However, he has only 1 World Series title (compared to a guy like Jeter who has 4). His performance at such an early age puts him alongside guys like Foxx, Aaron, DiMaggio, Mantle, and Gehrig....and yet I feel like there is just something separating those guys from Albert. Am I wrong? Am I swayed by the "romance" of old-time baseball?

For that matter, is it fair to judge baseball players along the same lines (championships) as we would, say, quarterbacks or basketball stars? Baseball is the ultimate individual game (pitcher versus hitter), but at the same time it is the ultimate team game (a hitter generally has four chances total to really change a game). So how will Albert be remembered?

Say it Ain't So, J.P.

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=4311661

Although, the prospect of trading Kershaw is certainly intriguing....

HAPPY RETURN OF MANNY DAY!

Attaboy Rook!

In both a celebration of a loss by the Hated Ones (on a day when the Boys in Blue grind out a 1-0 nailbiter), and as a shout out to our St. Louis readership, I present to you walk-off boy Colby Rasmus. Way to get those Giants in extra innings, Colby!

On a side note, I though the DeRosa trade was a great move for the Cardinals. That guy is unbelievably underrated. A solid producer who can play multiple positions, he is going to be a perfect fit for the perennial lineup changer Tinkering Tony LaRussa.

Ouch

I watched every pitch of the 2 hour, 16 minute dismantling of my favorite team last night, by none other than Jason Marquis. It was a sobering, infuriating experience, strangely combined with awe over the sheer artistry displayed by Marquis. The experience left me thoroughly frustrated and angry that the Dodgers didn't make any attempts to break up Marquis' rhythm; no stepping out of the box, not near enough bunt attempts, no 10 pitch at-bats. It was one of the more lackadasical offensive efforts from the Boys in Blue I have seen this year, and it makes me think they are already looking forward to the end of the Manny-less stint.

Marquis' gem also got me thinking about how different baseball is than other sports. Is there any other game where a great performance is so much like art as opposed to athletics? Notwithstanding the adjectives thrown around about Kobe's 81 point game, or an 18 of 20 passing performance, or a hat trick on the ice, I really think only baseball has the combination of athletic skill with artistic panache. (And yes, I did just use the word "panache" in a sports blog).

But back to the practicalities of the games. Don't look now, but thanks to the Cardinals inability to win at home (what the hell Chris Carpenter, you pick NOW to finally have a bad start?!), the Hated Ones are just 6 games back, and the red-hot Rockies (led by ex-Dodger manager Jim Tracy) are only 7 1/2. If I am right and some of these guys are looking ahead to Manny's return, then Manny sure has hell better hit like he is still on the juice because our offense is going south fast.

Some random thoughts...

We are officially in the sports dead period from now until some pre-season football games and two-a-day practice reports begin. Until then, we are left with some MLB games and some spare time to ponder the meaning of life. Along those lines, I had some random thoughts over the weekend:

1. Admittedly, I am no soccer fan. But I do follow the USMNT and find myself getting caught up in World Cup qualifying and the major international events. The 2-0 victory of Spain was tremendous on its own. However, the two goals scored by the US vs. Spain could hardly be classified as beautiful or technical. They count just the same, but they were more hustle plays than anything else. Still, a tremendous victory over the world's #1 team.

However, that first half yesterday vs. Brazil was something entirely different. Dempsey's first goal was something a Brazilian or Italian would be proud of. And the entire counter attack leading to Donovan's goal was gorgeous. I'm hardly a United States soccer historian, but that was the best goal I've ever seen scored by the USMNT.

It's unfortunate that Brazil scored so quickly to start the 2nd half and things just snowballed from there (i.e., reality set in). Regardless, it was a fun couple of matches. It only enhances my interest in the rest of World Cup qualifying and 2010 in South Africa.

2. Welcome back, Mr. Halladay. Doc toes the rubber tonight vs. Tampa Bay. Please say a quick prayer for Doc's groin to hold up. (You may want to say a silent prayer because it's generally frowned upon to say verbal prayers about another man's groin.)

3. Just about two months until football season. I've been going through some of my 2008 game recordings (for about the millionth time since the Fiesta Bowl). I've come to the following general conclusions heading into 2009:

We are going to miss Quan's consistency on 3rd down and his ability to pick up 5-7 yards every time.
But Malcolm Williams will provide some welcomed big play ability.
Our DT depth really scares me. Roy Miller was such a complete stud last year.
But overall, I am very excited about this defense. I expect Muschamp and Co. to take it to the next level in 2009.
Our RB's will be fine. Fairly surprisingly, I am taking Vondrell as my sleeper to shine in 2009.
Blaine Irby's injury sucks. That kid was on the way to being a star for us last year. Ugh.
I really like Kirkendoll and Collins. Guys who will never play in the NFL, but will end up putting together a heck of a career for us.
I still think we go undefeated through the regular season.

4. You hear the bad news about Yao? Apparently, his foot injury has gotten worse and it looks like he might miss the entire 2009-2010 season (if not the rest of his career). What a horrible blow to the Rockets. It's not going to ruin my day, but I hate to see things like that happen to a good guy/good organization.

5. Mannywood returns on Friday after the 50 game suspension. Take a look back at the May 9 blog entry. My prediction for the Dodgers' record during the Manny-less stretch was 27-23. As of today, the Dodgers are 27-20 with 3 games to play vs. Colorado. If the Rockies go into L.A. and sweep the Dodgers, I look like a f'ing genius. If the Dodgers win a game or two, then they have exceeded even my optimistic expectations. And to think there were SOME Dodger fans who thought anything better than a 20-30 record would be a gift from heaven. Ha!

Game 3