DODGERS PLAYING TO WIN

THE DODGERS & RED SOX BOTH WINNERS WITH EPIC TRADE 

http://redsoxgirl46.mlblogs.com

The new Dodgers ownership has deep pockets and they aren't afraid to dig in. We all know the Guggenheim Group has changed the outlook of the team drastically in less than a season. Think about it last season we were still  talking about parking lot safety and no one was going to the games. Now the Dodgers are in a playoff race and with these recent acquisitions they are the talk of baseball. When was the last time the Dodgers have led SportsCenter? Stan Kasten has dropped some serious paper on 4 superstar players and a Hawaiian in an attempt to create a major buzz in the crowded competitive LA sports market. 

Hanley Ramirez is set to make $15.5 million dollars, Adrian Gonzalez 22 million, Carl Crawford 20.4 million and Josh Beckett is going to make $17 mill next season. The Dodgers are ALREADY locked in to pay $192.6 million dollars next season. That would be over a $100 mill over that of  Frank McCourt's Opening Day lineup. The 4 new contracts listed above, alone would be more payroll than the entire Diamondback's Opening Day Roster. The time has finally come Dodgers fans, the Dodgers are now Yankees West - the way it should be. Big Market = Big Dollars Spent = Consistent Contenders 

Of course there are people saying the Dodgers got the worse of the deal. That is still to be determined but the last thing the Dodgers are worried about is overpaying a few players. Do you really think having to over pay Crawford and Beckett 5 million dollars a year more than they are going to be worth means anything to them? The new owners needed to do whatever it took to get Adrian Gonzalez and they did. Guys like A-Gon don't exactly become available very often. 
Carl Crawford was never a good fit in Boston and much like Albert Pujols did with the Angels put to much pressure on himself after signing such a big contract. He already shook off last season and was having a solid season before going down with elbow injury. A .282 average this season shows he was regaining his stroke before snapping his elbow, while going 5-5 in steal attempts shows nothing is wrong with his legs. It's clear he can still play and if he can get back to All-Star caliber that would make the Dodgers Out Field the best in all baseball. 

But what about Josh Beckett he has been horrible for 2 seasons now! False. He was pretty damn good last season but the media certainly won't tell you that. The guy was 13-7 with a 2.89 ERA pitching in the AL East. (The great Matt Cain currently has a 2.83 era this season getting to pitch in the NL West) Beckett had a  sub 3 era and you would think the guy was a bum if all you did was listen to sports talk. True he is tanking this season but lets look at it this way, that was with another team certainly not the Dodgers problem he has a clean slate starting tonight. Let's be honest if Josh Beckett pitches .500 ball the rest of the season and the Dodgers get into the Playoffs and he wins a playoff game everyone will love the guy. The guy is one of the best pressure game pitchers the game has ever seen essentially for Beckett his value is going to come down to how he pitches in the postseason... if the Dodgers get in. With Chad Billingsley on DL and Beckett's reputation as a great post season arm he would probably start game 2 of a playoff series behind Clayton Kershaw. 

The Guggenheim group sits on 125 Billion dollars in assets. The Dodgers are already in negotiations for the upcoming TV contract which is about the expire. Stan Kasten is not a stupid guy he realized to get the maximum value out of the tv deal a lineup that had Adam Kennedy hitting cleanup (yes he did hit cleanup some games this season) was not going to cut it. Not in a market that is shared with the Angels and their high powered offense featuring Albert Pujols and Mike Trout. Not when the Lakers went out and added 2 more future Hall of Fame guys to their starting lineup. Stan realized a star powered lineup and a perennial contender will lead to a much bigger Cable deal after all it only makes sense the moves are not only genius but simply good business. How big of a deal are the Dodgers looking to get? Early estimates have the new Dodgers Television deal going down for roughly $4 Billion. Remember the ownership paid 2.6 Bill for the team. That would mean in just television rights alone they will come close to doubling their money. You think the Dodgers Ownership knows what they are doing? I do. 

The Captain

INNOCENT TIL PROVEN GUILTY
"I WONDER ABOUT THE BOUNCEBACK SEASON"

i.e. Melky Cabrera. Bartolo Colon.

"Skip Bayless is such an idiot, the reason Derek Jeter is having a good years is because he's an AMAZING player! Any first ballot hall of famer..." - Some messageboard idiot. 

 Is it that ridiculous to question if Derek Jeter is using a banned performance enhancing drug? Can someone explain why ESPN's Skip Bayless is getting blasted for simply pointing out the obvious? I'm reading comments on blogs everywhere of idiot fans calling for Skip's head.  Are fans really that stupid or is it just Yankees fans?

The problem with almost all fans is they have to much invested in their teams and players that they can't step back and see the obvious red flags. 

Derek Jeter plays for the New York Yankees an organization that seems to encourage Steroid use. Okay maybe that is going a little far but certainly they have a long line of players that have been caught taking banned substances. Of course Roger Clemens and Andy Pettitte, A-Rod, Giambi, David Justice, Mike Stanton, Kevin Brown, Gary Sheffield and even little Chuck Knoblauch. Didn't all those dudes play with Jeter? AND those are just the teammates that got caught! 

"Derek Jeter is a legend and to nice of a guy to take steroids" Sure Jeter has a clean image and is very likable. To say nice guys don't take PED's is crazy. Fans, the media, everyone loved Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa I don't recall at the time people saying they weren't "good guys" 

Why am I bringing up Jorge Posada? Has to do with his 2007 season. Interesting how he happened to have a stellar season when it was a contract season. The guy went from hitting  .272 to .262 to .277 to .338.  How does a Catcher or any player shoot up .60 points higher than his previous best season? If Skip Bayless is pointing the finger at Jeter than I am looking at you Jorge Posada.  What up with that? What would Posada of had to lose by taking something? He was getting up in age especially being a catcher, his numbers weren't exactly trending upwards, he was playing for one more big contract. A little juice would be more than beneficial. Which brings me back to Jeter who could be doing it to finish out his contract or he might possibly be trying to continue at a high level so he could challenge for the all-time hits record. 

Players aren't playing "harder" in contract seasons and suddenly having gigantic jump in stats like the media and fans talk about. 

"Oh he is going to have a good season it's his contract year." 

That is really insulting to players if you ask me. That would imply PROFESSIONAL athletes coast through most of their careers and rarely give a 100% . These athletes you describe aren't very competitive. 

What do the players have to lose if they caught taking PED's? A 50 game suspension? Please financially not getting paid for 50 games is a small sacrifice when you get another long-term extension. It really is a great business decision. 

A lot of fans of Jeter will argue "look at the guys body. He isn't on anything."  I promise I won't call you ignorant if you believe something similar to that statement. You do realize Melky Cabrera and Bartolo Colon don't exactly look like Giancarlo Stanton? Without getting into organic chemistry with you I will point out the flaw in that quote. Do you know how many "steroids" are out on the black market as well as available through your family doctor? The answer is, not a few.  Do you really think they all do the same thing? Just like all drugs, different one's cause different results. If you don't believe me then you can Google "Do all steroids build muscle" and about 50 million sites come up. Prove me wrong. Infact, Most steroids will not get you that much bigger. 

Derek certainly could be taking HGH to help recovery time in my opinion. Am I saying he is using something? Of course not. Could he be? Maybe. According to people in the know, Half the league is on something. Lets face it Derek Jeter is 38 years old and he is playing above his career averages.  Remember when Jeter couldn't hit at all and everyone was saying he is done? Remember? I'm sure you do it was just last season. The 37 year old Captain was embarrassingly bad to start the season almost gringe worthy for awhile. Okay so you remember that right? So He went from being "done" to an MVP candidate at a year older. It is like magic. Wait a second I believe that is what takers describe HGH as. Strange.

One thing I learned from watching sports if you see something going on that has never happened in the history of the sport then it should raise your suspicion. 

Sorry Usain Bolt, I don't believe that some tiny island can be home to the 3 fastest men in the world. 

Derek Jeter is 38 years old and playing shortstop at an incredible level he has remarkably found the fountain of youth and has regained his Hall of Fame swing. 

You do realize it is quit easy to pass a MLB drug test. You can have 4x the normal level of testosterone in your body than the average person and still not fail. Are you kidding me? You have to be an idiot to get caught. Derek Jeter is no idiot evident by him remaining single all these years. Hey ohhhhhhhh. 

BASEBALL STILL DOES NOT TEST FOR HGH. NO BLOOD TESTING. 

Olympian Metta World Peace

WORLD PEACE AND THE OLYMPICS 

MAKE FOR GOLDEN MEMORIES

The man Reggie Miller called the best on ball defender he has ever seen, appeared on Nick Jr.'s hit TV show Yo Gabba Gabba! That of course is Lakers great Ron Artest Metta World Peace. Metta joins fellow teammates Kobe and Pau as 2010 Summer Olympians. In a surprise upset Ron Ron holds on to medal in the race. 
I lost $20 picking the puffy blue thing. 
This proves 2 things. 
1. Metta is keeping in better shape this offseason  
2. I have a gambling problem. 

RANKING TOP HITTING ROOKIES

2012 MLB ROOKIE CLASS 

TOP 5 HITTERS 

5.  BRYCE HARPER. Washington Nationals. 

.257/ 10 HR/ 30 RBI/ .322 OBP

4.  TODD FRAZIER. Cincinnati Reds. 

.268/13 HR/42 RBI/ .325 OBP

3.  WILL MIDDLEBROOKS. Boston Red Sox. 

.289/13 HR/ 48 RBI/.320 OBP

2.  YOENIS CESPEDES. Oakland A's.

.306/14 hr/54 rbi/.366 OBP

1.  MIKE TROUT. Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. 

.348/ 19 HR/ 59 RBI/ .411 OBP