Doesn’t Look Like A Last Place Team To Me!!

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By: Chris “New York” Mitchell

The New York Mets, coming in to the 2012 season, were projected to finish in last place, have no offense or pitching, and be sellers at the trade deadline. Now I know it is only the middle of May, but this sure doesn’t look like a last place team to me. Yes, the bullpen had two meltdowns in Miami, and blew games that the Mets should have won, but they’re still coming home with a 4-2 road trip record against division opponents. Year to date, they’ve compiled a 14-7 record against teams in their division, which may play a huge role in deciding the NL East at the end of the year.

So, what has contributed to the hot start?  David Wright is off to a MVP start at the plate, and in the field, Ruben Tejada (although on the DL) has been a pleasant surprise, and this team is filled with young talent like Kirk Nieuwenhuis, Josh Thole, and Mike Baxter. The Mets currently have four of the 36 players in the majors hitting over .300, and lead the league in two out RBI. All of this happening without the bat of Ike Davis, who was supposed to be the best bat in there lineup. Offense aside, the fate of the Mets season will rest on their bullpen. If the Mets are going to be a contender in September the bullpen has to be much better than it has shown so far this season.

Frank Francisco is not the answer at closer, and it is not because of the meltdowns he had in Miami. They simply have a better option to close games in Bobby Parnell, who made some changes to his delivery in the offseason, and is ready for the job. Parnell has pitched in 16 games this year, has the best ERA in the Mets bullpen, and has 16 strikeouts with only three walks. If the move is made the Mets could have a nice 7-8-9 setup with Ramon Ramirez, Jon Rauch and Parnell. These three happen to have the three best ERA’s in the bullpen if you subtract Tim Byrdak, who is a Lefty specialist.

The bullpen ranks towards the bottom of the league, but isn’t nearly as bad as the numbers show. If you take out the numbers of Francisco and Manny Acosta (who should be relegated to the minors), this bullpen has a 3.17 ERA in 73 innings which would be ranked 10th in baseball. The move is coming, Parnell is going to get his shot as the closer very shortly, and the Mets offense will continue to come thru, making this team a legitimate contender in the NL East at seasons end.

The Road to Indy: Three Keys to the NFC Championship

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by: Chris “New York” Mitchell

Turnover Battle - Turnovers played a huge role for both the New York Giants and San Francisco 49ers in their wins this weekend. The 49ers had five total turnovers (3 fumbles/2 INT) against the Saints on Saturday afternoon while the Giants had four (3 fumbles/1 INT) against the Packers. During the season both teams defenses were atop the NFL in takeaways ( S.F – 38/ NY – 31) but where the real key lies is the 49ers ability to NOT turnover the ball.  San Francisco leads the NFL with a +28 turnover differential, which is eleven better than any other team in the NFL this year, and only turned the ball over ten times, which is also best in the NFL this year. This could pose a big problem for the Giants who gave the ball away just as much as they took it, finishing the season with a plus seven turnover differential.  Ahmad Bradshaw, Brandon Jacobs and Eli Manning should spend the week practicing holding on to the football since the 49ers lead the league recovering fifteen fumbles this season. In most cases, the team that wins the turnover battle usually wins the game but with these two defense’s one turnover can turn into four really quickly.

Kicking Game  - The way both the Giants and the 49ers defense’s have been playing, points are not gonna come easy. As this game continues to build hype, there’s one thing people haven’t been talking about, that may be the difference between a trip to the Super Bowl or a long vacation in Aruba. That thing is the kicking game, which the San Francisco 49ers have a huge advantage in. David Akers was released by the so called “Dream Team” before the season and the 49ers should send a thank you to the Eagles for doing so. Akers set a NFL record for most made field goals in a season, finishing 44 of 52 and has made all 3 of his attempts in the postseason. The Giants kicker, Lawrence Tynes has made some big kicks in his career but finished the season 19 of 24 and has missed a field goal in each of the 2 playoff games the Giants have played. It wasn’t such a big deal since both games were well in hand, hoever, this game should be a lot closer. One missed field goal could very well cost either the game.

Running Game - It looks like we are going to have our first playoff game that is going to be affected by the weather. The forecast for San Francisco is calling for rain starting on Thursday and will continue all the way through Sunday night. Which means the battle of Alex Smith vs Eli Manning may not be a factor, instead it will be Ahmad Bradshaw and Brandon Jacobs vs. Frank Gore and Kendall Hunter. The Giants running back combo has not been as successful as the year before. Bradshaw has been plagued by injuries which caused his numbers to drop significantly (1235 yard in 2010, 659 yards in 2011), and Jacobs has been inconsistent all year and the playoffs haven’t changed that. In the wildcard game Jacobs had 14 carries for 92 yards but in the divisional game he had 9 carries for only 22 yards, with Bradshaw still feeling the affects of his injured ankle and wet conditions excepted, Jacobs will be heavily relied upon to carry the load for the Giants. The 49ers on the other hand finished the season in the top 10 of the league in rushing, led by Pro-Bowl running Frank Gore who rushed for 1,211 yards and 8 touchdowns, finishing sixth in the League. Gore continued his strong season in the 49ers only playoff game, rushing for 89  yards on 13 carries averaging 6.8 yards per carry. His stellar play aside, the big difference for Gore this season has been the fact that he hasn’t had to carry the load himself. Rookie Kendall Hunter has come in as a nice change of pace back for the 49ers with his quickness to the outside. Hunter finished the season with 473 rushing yards and 2 touchdowns, with an impressive 4.2 yards per carry average. Gore and Hunter will look to pile up the yards if conditions play themselves out the way its planned.

The Road to Indy: Five Keys to the AFC Championship

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by: Chris “Boston” Speziale

Tom Brady and the Pats are 6-1 against Joe Flacco and the Ravens

We’ve got a whole week to breakdown the matchup between the Patriots and the Ravens, but while the rest of the ESPN family of networks breaks down what happened in the divisional, why don’t we jump ahead a bit, shall we? Here are five keys to a Patriot victory on Sunday, when they host Baltimore.

Protect the Ball – I know what you’re thinking.  “Really? He’s gonna start with protecting the ball? Freakin duh!”  I get it, but I don’t think you really grasp how important this will be this weekend.  The Ravens are first in the NFL in forced fumbles this season, and while New England has done a particularly good job of not putting it on the turf, that Ray Lewis led D will be in full ball hawk mode.  The Pats are first in the AFC in turnover differential, and they’ll need to win the turnover battle this weekend if they hope to knock the Ravens out of this thing.  That starts with holding on to the football.

Protect the QB – Noticing a theme here? Clearly what I’m trying to tell you is that the Ravens defense is pretty darn good.  Not only are they 1st in the NFL in forced fumbles, but they’re also first in the AFC in sacks, they hold the QB to the lowest rating in the league, and have allowed only 11 passing touchdowns this season, which, as you may have guessed is also best in the league.  Those rankings are scary if you’re a Patriot fan, but fear not! The Pats offensive line is getting healthy at just the right time, and consists of three pro-bowlers, as well as a rookie who’s played well beyond expectations this season.  They held the Broncos sackless in the massacre on Saturday night, and they’ve only allowed 11 sacks over their last five games.

Contain Ray Rice – You can’t stop him, you can only HOPE to contain him. Ray Rice leads the league in yards from scrimmage, and is fourth in total touchdowns with 15 rushing and receiving scores this season.  I don’t think there’s even a slim chance that the Pats neutralize this guy, but they must hope that the can at least keep him from having a monster game.  In the four Baltimore losses, Rice was able to get up over 100 total yards only once in a 34-14 loss to San Diego in week 14.  Additionally, the fourth year back carried the ball 13 times or less in five contests this year.  Four of those five were in losing efforts, and the fifth was in a 37-7 blowout where he saw his playing time cut down.  New England must get a lead early to force the Ravens into passing situations and keep Rice from getting his carries.

Return that Kick – Neither team will score on every possession in this game, so the kicking game will be important for both sides.  The Ravens special teams unit allows 12 yards per return on punts, and New England will need every one of those yards.  If the Pats offense gets held down, and they will occasionally, they’ll need to at least push the ball up close to midfield in order to get the Ravens pinned close to their own goal line.  The Ravens have really struggled to sustain long touchdown drives this season, managing a measly eight of more than 80 yards, only one of which came after week 9.  Field goals simply will not be enough to take down Brady and the Pats, so if New England pins them deep they’ll have a good shot.  Proof is in the pudding.

Feed the Beast – New England is 14-3 on the season, and they largely got that record using their large body.  Rob Gronkowski has been a match-up nightmare for every team in the league so far, and there’s no reason to think that that will be any different this weekend.  With no running game or deep threat, many in the sports media world discounted New Endgland’s convention defying offense.  But they persist, and it is this sportscasters opinion that they should hold true.  Why mess with a good thing? Gronk has 17 touchdowns and is averaging a ridiculous 14.7 yards per catch.  Get him the ball as often as you can, and you’ve got a great chance of winning.

Defending Offense

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These three guys lead the leagues best offenses. Will the O be enough to get them to Indy for Superbowl XLVI?

I’ve been hearing a lot about the Patriots lack of defensive prowess, and the hindrance that that might become down the line in the NFL playoffs, which start this weekend.  The Pats are ranked 31st in total defense, and have allowed a whopping 293 yards per game through the air to opposing offenses.  But what’s getting lost in all of this is that they’ve got the most potent offensive attack in the AFC, and they lead the conference in both point differential and turnover margin.

When the Saints made that improbable run to win the Superbowl in ’09, guess where they ranked in those two categories: first in differential and third turnover margin.  They had a top three offense, a middle of the road defense, and the number one seed in a highly competitive NFC Playoff that featured four future Hall of Fame QB’s; Favre, Rodgers, Warner and Brees.  The major difference between the ’09 Saints and the ’11 Pats? New England has, arguably, an easier road to the Superbowl!

New England won eight in a row down the stretch to ensure that as long as they were playing, they’d be playing at home, where they’ve lost only three times since 2008.  And while I’m not one to make guarantees, I’m going out on a limb and calling it now: New England will take on either the Steelers or Ravens to get to the Superbowl this year, and neither of those teams scare me. Pittsburgh is banged up at some key positions and may have already gone through two tough road games before getting to Gillette. Baltimore has struggled with offensive identity this season, and while their defense is still one of the best in the game, the team is 1-6 against New England all time.  Granted, that one win came on the road in the playoffs two years ago.

But let’s step away from the AFC for a second.  As the NFL season progressed and the Packers rattled off win after win after win in the NFC, they were pretty much crowned as the most likely repeat champs since the 2004 Pats.  But here’s the wild thing…they’re D is worse than New England’s.  So while all of the acclaim and hype was following the cheeseheads around during the regular season, opposing offenses continued to slowly figure out how to score on these guys which finally led to an abysmal week 17 performance against the Lions where they allowed 575 yards of total offense and 41 points. They rank dead last in yards allowed and passing yards allowed, while hanging around the middle third of the league in rush yards and points against. Their pass rush is suspect, they have some holes in the secondary, and the health of a couple of key defensive starters is in question heading into postseason play.

So if it’s so much of a slam dunk that the Pack will be representing the NFC with all those holes, why aren’t the Pats getting the same kind of love? The two teams almost seem like mirror images in different conferences.  And if it happens the way I think it will, the Pack and the Pats will meet in a rematch of Superbowl XXXI, and we’ll have one of the highest scoring title games in the history of the big game.  The record currently stands at 75 combined points, and we may beat that by the third quarter.

The modern cliché is that defense wins championships, and as it stands, never in the history of the league have the two worst regular season defenses played each other in the Superbowl.  But this is the year of the offense, and with McCarthy and Rodgers in the NFC, and Belichick and Brady in the AFC, how can you not root for it?

By Chris “Boston” Speziale

A Message to Jets Nation: Start Believing

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Who knew that LT replacing TJ would be an upgrade? Ah yes, the amigos knew.

There has been a lot of concern throughout Jets Nation about the off-season moves that Woody Johnson, Mike Tannenbaum and Rex Ryan have made. I’m here to tell you, Jets Nation, to start believing the T-shirts you wear – In Rex We Trust. Since the three amigo’s (Woody, Mike and Rex) have been together, they have made some interesting decisions that rustled the feathers of Jets fans. In the long run, however, they’ve panned out quite well. Look no further than last off-season.

The Jets let go of running back, Thomas Jones, who was a vital piece of the 2009 team and Pro Bowl left guard Alan Faneca, while replacing them with LaDainian Tomlinson and unknown Matt Slauson. Everyone was in an uproar, saying that the Jets had downgraded the offensive line, and weren’t going to have a solid running game.  Well, that proved to be far from the truth. The Jets still had a punishing rushing attack that was ranked 4th in the NFL with a average of 148.4 yards per game, and the offensive line had 130 more passing plays to protect Mark Sanchez than they did in 2009, while giving up two fewer sacks.

Those weren’t the only changes made in 2010. We also saw Kerry Rhodes, Leon Washington and Lito Shepard replaced by Brodney Pool, Eric Smith, Antonio Cromartie and Brad Smith (who was on the team but took over kickoffs), all of which turned out for the better. These moves didn’t raise as many eyebrows as did letting go veteran kicker Jay Feely for Nick Folk, who at the time was in a huge slump. I was just as upset about this move, but trusted in the three amigos. Besides a muddy day in Cleveland, Folk had a great year, finishing 30 of 39 in field goals, which was consistent with Feely’s 2009 numbers (30 of 36).

All the changes made from 2009 to 2010 ended in an 11-5 season (2 more wins than ’09) and another trip to the AFC Championship game. So with the 2011 season closing in fast, and more key veterans like Braylon Edwards, Shawn Ellis, Jericho Cotchery and Brad Smith leaving, have some faith in the decisions being made by the three amigos. They haven’t steered us in the wrong direction yet.

The Helper in the Sky

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by: Chris Mitchell

 

July 9th, 2011 is a day that will be fondly remembered by sports fans around the world. One day after rain and thunder ruined the hopes of thousands of Yankee fans seeing history, the sun came out and set the stage for one of the most memorable afternoon games at Yankee Stadium ever. The Captain–Derek Jeter–came up in the bottom of the first inning to a standing ovation, and you could feel that today was gonna be the day history was made. How it unfolded, however, not even Hollywood could have scripted.

Jeter quickly got hit number 2,999 out of the way with a single to shallow left that had the sellout crowd roaring knowing he was just one hit away. The excitement didn’t last long as Tampa Bay’s Matt Joyce launched a solo shot to right to put the Rays up 1-0. The rest of the game?  Well, think what you will about Angel’s in the Outfield, the Paranormal, or the Supernatural, but no matter how special Derek Jeter is, I believe this magical day had a presence that made it one DJ would never forget. The Boss–George Steinbrenner–made sure that his Captain had the perfect day.

After month’s of criticism about Jeters age, his salary, and his supposed move to the bottom of the order–even the proposed Jose Reyes trade–force’s bigger than Baseball took over as Jeter stepped to the plate with one out in the bottom of the third. After battling off some of the best stuff that David Price had to offer, Jeter took a 3-2 pitch and drilled a line drive solo homerun into the second tier of the left center field bleachers for his 3,000th hit.

Yankee Stadium shook with Derek Jeter chants as The Captain rounded the bases knowing he was the 28th person in baseball history to reach the 3,000 hit mark. Then as he headed around third and towards home, a moment that will be showed for years to come, Jeter was greeted by Jorge Posada and Mariano Rivera, who had been teammates and friends for what seems like a lifetime. This all might have been written by Hollywood, but the rest of the game and how it unfolded could not.

After a Russell Martin RBI single to finish the third with the Yankees up 2-1, BJ Upton came up to the plate in the fourth with one on and sent a shot to right to give Tampa Bay back the lead 3-2. In the the fifth with 3,000 hits off his mind and his team losing, Jeter hit a lead-off double to left that ignited another Yankee rally with Curtis Granderson singling him home and Robinson Cano sacrificing himself to give the Yankees the lead 4-3 lead. The pitching did settle down until Johnny Damon hit a triple to right, in the eighth, followed by a Ben Zobrist RBI single to tie the game at four.

So with Jeter batting third in the bottom of the eighth, The Boss could have his picture perfect ending only five days after his Birthday. Eduardo Nunez lead off the inning by hitting a shot to deep left for a double and Brett Gardner bunted him to third.  The stage was set once again for Jeter, and this is where I feel The Boss’ presence had to be pulling the strings from above.  Jeter smacked a single up the middle that brought Nunez home giving the Yankees a lead 5-4 that they would never relinquish. Rivera came in to pitch a perfect ninth to finish this unbelievably memorable day.

Jeter finished his record breaking day 5 – 5 with 2 runs, 2 RBI’s, a homer and a stolen base. He was only the second person to go 5 – 5 in the game that he got his 3,000th hit. So you may not believe in ghosts, or any of that stuff, but something special happened at Yankee Stadium on that day, and I can’t help but think George “The Boss” Steinbrenner had some part to play.

A Mets fan to Jeter’s defense

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by: Chris Mitchell

What is wrong with some Yankee Fans this year? You should be ashamed of yourselves! Well…at least the Fans that are bashing Derek Jeter. During the Captain’s Hall of Fame career he has brought the Yankees and there fans five World Series Championships, five Gold Gloves, five Silver Slugger awards, twelve All-Star game appearances, was the AL Rookie of the year in 1996, and he can’t have a couple of rough months at the plate? What a JOKE! This is the same guy that at 35 years old was third in the MVP voting in 2009 behind only Joe Mauer, and his own teammate, Mark Teixeira, who won the award. Although some think 2010 was his downfall, I don’t see it that way.

Jeter’s 2010 numbers were not anywhere near MVP status, but he did have more runs scored, doubles, triples and RBI’s than he did in 2009. Yes, he had a .270 average, but is that really that bad for a 36 year old shortstop that, keep in mind, made up for his lower batting numbers with his best fielding year ever? He only committed six errors, his lowest total in any of his full seasons, bringing home his fifth Gold Glove.  Still I keep hearing fans saying to move him down in the order, that he is hurting the team, a few fans have said to bench him some days and want to trade for Jose Reyes to be their shortstop. ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!? When a Mets fan defends a Yankee Legend it’s proof that there is something terribly wrong with this picture.

Jeter is four hits away from a historical 3,000, and I am sure that everyone will be Jeter’s biggest fan when it happens, but the first 0 for 4 he has, most Yankee fans will go back to complaining about him and that is just sad. Derek Jeter is a special player that doesn’t come around often. So instead of complaining about Jeter, why don’t Yankee fans sit back and enjoy watching a legend play the game he loves to play because believe me–you will miss him when he’s gone.  You may not ever see a player like him again. 

Karma for Lebron?

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by: Chris Mitchell

Dirk Nowitzki is finally a Champion in the NBA and a Finals MVP. Is this Karma? The fact that this whole year was based on the “Decision” with Lebron James. The fact that James choose to make a choice to leave Cleveland to go to Miami were he felt it would be easier to get a title with D-Wade and Chris Both rather than Mo Williams and Antawn Jamison and bring Cleveland there first NBA Title. The fact that on the same court the three stars proclaimed NOT 1, NOT 2, NOT 3, NOT 4, NOT 5 (you get the point) Championships would be won, that it was Dirk and the Mavericks that were hoisting The Larry O’Brien Trophy not the Heat. There is no other team (beside Cleveland) that could have won the Title to end this story any better. So as the clock ran down on Sunday night in American Airlines Arena I couldn’t help but think of the word “Karma”. That it was the patience of Owner Mark Cuban never moving from his belief that Dirk would bring Dallas to a title and Dirk staying loyal to a city that has always supported him. It was that combination that one the title and James had a front seat to see what it could have been like to win a championship in Cleveland. So I ask, Is it Karma? I thinkso.

Reyes stays, Wright leaves

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by: Chris Mitchell

Yes I am talking about David Wright of the New York Mets. Say it ain’t so you are thinking, could the Wilpons really trade there franchise player and there close personal family friend? Will they really trade away a player that would put 90% of Mets Nation in a uproar? Well I (as a Mets Fan) not only think it will happen I believe it is a certainty. The proof has been right in front of us all the whole time. It’s a case of we see what we want to see and hear what we want to hear. If you look between the lines you would have seen this coming for 2 years now but lets break it down one piece at a time. As you read down I have broken it down step by step so that you can see Jose Reyes is staying and David Wright is leaving.

Citi Field

I want you to play Owner of the New York Mets that is about to build a new Stadium. If you had a franchise player on your team in his career has hit 175 home-runs and 110 of them have been hit to right or right center field would you build a new park and make right center the deepest part? What if I said that 71 of those were hit in the lower level, would you raise your right field fence 10ft? Well that is what the New York Mets have done. The old Shea Stadium right center wall was 371 the deepest part was 396, Citi Field right center is 378 and the deepest part is 415. That is not it, down the line in Shea was 338 and Citi was 330. So know you think to yourself well that’s closer than Shea which it is but they raised the fence from 8ft to 18ft 6 1/2 inches. The Home-runs are not the only thing that has affected Wright his average has also taken a huge hit. In Shea Stadium in 2007 and 2008 Wright average was .335 and .336, at Citi Field in 2009 and 2010 Wrights average was .298 and .288. Now you maybe thinking he just had a bad year but that’s far from the truth because in 2009 he .314 away from home. So I ask you, Mr. New Owner if you were planning on trading Jose Reyes and keeping David Wright is this how you would have built your ballpark?

Farm System

The farm system is a place that not many Mets fans look to unless you’re a hardcore fan. Let’s face it with the busy live we all have it hard keeping up with your pro team let alone 3 minor league teams. So still acting like the Owner, if your plan was to trade your star shortstop would you move your #1 prospect (who is shortstops) to the outfield? That is what the Mets organization is doing, the #1 prospect is a shortstop named Wilmer Flores and they are transitioning him to the outfield. The other half of this equation is the 4rth prospect that has been moving up the charts and scouts are saying is ready for the big leagues, is 3rd baseman Aderlin Rodriguez. Aderlin has not been moved from his position and is n the fast track to the Majors.

After all that you have just read, is it coming together? Are the signs pointing in Wrights direction of being trade and not Reyes? Well if that is not enough take in the business factors. David Wright has 1 more year on his contract, Jose Reyes is on his last year who will you get more for in a trade? Ask your self this question and be honest with yourself. Who is the more exciting player to watch? Reyes is hands down and is part of the reason i go to games, to see triples not home-runs. That’s why the ballpark was built and the moves are being made. Although I do love David Wright and would hate to see him go if I had to choose one or the other I would pick Reyes and the Mets organization thinks so to.