Francoeur Heads To Texas

After a 9-2 Mets loss that featured Braves Catcher David Ross smashing a triple and a grand slam (seriously David Ross???), New York outfielder Jeff Francoeur cleaned out his locker after finding out he was traded to the Texas Rangers.  

Here's what Francoeur had to say post-game about the trade: 

"It's exciting because I get the opportunity to go to a team well on the way to the playoffs...It's kind of bittersweet. Going in to this year, I didn't envision the year going the way it did, for me personally or for the team. But, at the same time, I feel I came out to play hard every day. Sometimes, yeah, I wasn't the best, and you get frustrated. But, you know, this is going to be a good opportunity to go play against some lefties and go to the playoffs." 

The Rangers, who are currently atop the AL West division by 9+ games, are the kind of team Francoeur envisioned himself going to when he asked for a trade weeks ago.  With Carlos Beltran coming back into the fold and Angel Pagan developing into one of the most consistent guys on the roster, Big Jeff (yeah, creative juices flowing right now) knew his days as an everyday player were numbered.  Now, he joins Cliff Lee, Bengie Molina, and Jorge Cantu as newcomers to the Rangers squad who have a legitimate chance of winning the World Series.

On the year, Francoeur hit .237 with 11 home runs and 54 RBI's. In return, the Mets acquired infielder, Joaquin Arias. 

Here's to you Jeff.  The outfield arms just got a little weaker...

-Matt Soldano

The Yankees Have Decisions to Make

The New York Yankees have encountered some tough curveballs lately. The pun was kind of intended but it doesn't take away from the fact that the Yanks have had a lot of guys hit the DL this year. And now with the playoffs approaching and a neck-and-neck race in the AL East with the Tampa Bay Rays, the disabled list has been as packed as a Friday night rave.

Alex Rodriguez, one of the best 3rd basemen offensively and defensively, went on the DL again. Lance Berkman tripped his way onto the shelf after New York just traded for him. Andy Pettitte is still trying to come back from the pulled groin injury. Despite a great game last night, Mark Teixeira has a sore thumb that has kept him out for a little bit. And Jorge Posada's right leg continues to take a beating after he got beaned yesterday.

Couple the injuries with the underachieving players going down the stretch -- Phil Hughes, AJ Burnett, Francisco Cervelli, Brett Gardner -- and you have a hairy situation. And I mean like Richard-Karn-hairy.

Luckily, the Yankees have had an array of bench players fill-in incredibly for various positions. And with the starters set to come back soon, what's a manager to do?

Starting pitcher: Andy Pettitte threw a couple of bullpen sessions recently. In his first one, he struggled; presumably indicating another setback. In the second session, Andy said he felt 90% ready to return to the field. It's a given that when he comes back, he'll have a spot in the rotation. Pettitte has a phenominal track record, he had an All-Star first half and, well... he's a starting pitcher.

So who gets the hook? Is it AJ Burnett who just had an awful month of August? Joe Girardi already hinted at AJ losing his spot. Is it Dustin Moseley who has done what's expected of him as a fill-in 5th starter? The thing with him is he has a lower ceiling than any other starter. He's not going into the 7th or 8th inning too often. Or it could be Phil Hughes, who's approaching his innings limit soon?

Right off the bat, I'm thinking it's Hughes. The Yankees seem very committed to his limit and Hughes was a team MVP candidate as a reliever last season.

Starting Pitcher again: Ivan Nova has been crazy good. The Dominican Bear has shown signs of being a good starter for years. He's got a quick fastball and a wicked breaking ball. When he struck out Mark Teahan in his last start, that pitch blew my mind. So does he displace AJ Burnett or Dustin Moseley? Maybe.

For the playoffs, I know you want to go with veterans who have good reputations in tough spots. But with the Rays not going away, Joe Girardi might want ride the hot hand. Before I make a solid decision, I want to see a few more starts from Nova. I want to see him be allowed to go past 5+ innings. But right now, I'm expecting him to make Girardi's decision extremely hard.

Designated Hitter: Marcus Thames has had his way with opposing pitchers for the past week. The Roaring Lion has hit 6 homers in his last 6 games starting in place of Stinky Lance Berkman. Berkman, when he went down, was hitting under .200 for the Yankees. In addition to being a liability at the plate, he made some bad plays at 1st base as well. And while defensive shortcomings are nothing new to Thames, he's making up for any past follies with his hitting right now.

The verdict on this is simple but very painful to me. Thames gets the nod at DH going forward, but it leaves a lot to be desired from Berkman. He'll hit the bench and probably stay there like Nick Johnson. Which is why his nickname is now "Stinky." But something tells me Girardi will waste some games by sitting Thames and trying to validate the move to get Berkman.

Third Base: Before I write a nice paragraph on third base, I'll just say that the Al-Pal is coming back. He will be the third baseman. There's no argument and the reasons are obvious.

That being said, Eduardo Nunez has played some solid-ass baseball in Alex's absence. Ed is hitting .286 with a homer and 7 RBIs in 11 games. His defense is good and he's got some speed on the bases. He's so good that Ramiro Pena has lost his place as the backup at 2B, 3B and SS. I like Pena a lot, but Nunez's skills have caught a lot of eyes. Mark Feinsand wrote on Twitter than Mr. Nunez would eventually push A-Rod to DH, which I would anticipate being in 2012.

Long story short, expect to see more Eduardo Nunez in Girardi's substitutions. Sorry, Ramiro.

Catcher: Jorge Posada is declining fast. His legs are shot, he can't stay healthy and the bat hasn't been the same. His heir Francisco Cervelli has struggled lately. He's hit two extra base hits in 3 months and he dropped a pop up that cost New York a game. As any playoff team does, the Yanks will bring in a third catcher when the rosters expand. So will it be the veteran Chad Moeller or the phenom Jesus Montero?

Montero has come on of late, after struggling to begin the season. He's batting .284 with 16 homers and an .851OBP. But the Yankees may not want to bring the 20-year old up too fast.

I'm all for bringing up new players, but to have this guy on a playoff roster is scary. It's boom or bust. He can either continue his hot hitting or he can slip back down while trying to adjust to major league pitching. Also, his defense has always been a concern. As tough as it is to say, Chad Moeller is my pick to come up and help out. He's not going to give any more offense, but at least you can be confident in him as a late-game sub at catcher. Next year, Jesus...


--Max Caster

Brandon Jennings Likes Lady Gaga

I take no issue with this. Everybody who knows me is aware that I can get down with some "questionable" music. Lady Gaga, The Cure, The Smiths... For some reason, I'm the only one who can appreciate some Matt & Kim. So I dig what Brandon Jennings is doing here. Regardless, an awesome point guard like him doesn't have to answer to you. I'm more upset about him hanging out with that awful rapper Joe Budden.


--Max Caster

Weak Outburst by Minor League Manager

This was super weak. How are you going to steal first base and autograph it. At that point, the guy is just prolonging the event for no reason. If you want to see a true alpha dog explode, take a look at Wally Backman:



Mets fans, this is your future.


--Max Caster

Knicks Fan Fights Chris Broussard

Don't know if y'alls missed this:



If that Knicks fan was me, I might have tried to do more than yell at him. Maybe whisper in his ear... For the record, I dislike Chris Broussard because he yells even when he isn't upset; which, in turn, makes me upset.


--Max Caster

The New York Knets? or would you prefer Micks

Saw this on ESPN Page 2 and found it hysterical since I'm unsure who should be more offended the Knicks or Mets. It was suppose to be about what the MLB teams really represent.

This was the one for the other New York team and the AL East :

--Matt Saur with a rare post

Strasburg Out for Over a Year

From the Washington Post:

Rookie phenom Stephen Strasburg will "probably" miss at least one year and perhaps the entire 2011 baseball season after undergoing Tommy John surgery to replace the ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow, General Manager Mike Rizzo said. After one of the most electrifying beginnings to a baseball career in memory and after validating the massive hype that trumpeted his arrival, Strasburg ends his season with an uncertain future. The Washington Nationals will hold their breath.

Strasburg will receive a second opinion from Dr. Lewis Yocum, the surgeon who performed Tommy John surgery on Jordan Zimmermann. But the Nationals are operating under the assumption Strasburg will need Tommy John surgery to repair a "significant" tear in his UCL, Mike Rizzo said.

The Nationals discovered the damaged ligament Thursday morning when team doctor Wiemi Douoguih administered an arthrogram, an enhanced MRI exam in which dye is shot into the specified area. The Nationals had been unclear about Strasburg's injury prior to the test and were considering Strasburg's injury a strained flexor tendon in his forearm.


Well... that sucks. Almost as quickly as the Nationals became an interesting story, they will slide back into the shadows after today. I heard this morning that the Nats were going to have a press conference to discuss Stephen Strasburg's injury. At that point, I knew the news couldn't be good.

Aside from what it'll do to Washington, this injury also brings up the great debate. Do young pitchers need to be on an innings limit? Do they need to be heavily monitored until they are 100% ready?

The Nationals did have him on a pitch/innings limit this year, but think of the damage he could have done in college and high school. Those teams pitched him hard because they knew they could win. Washington was careful with Strasburg but the injury still caught up with him.

Another question arises as well. Can a pitcher today survive with a 100mph fastball? I'm beginning to think Strasburg could fit into that mold. The other guy who I think of right away is Joel Zumaya for the Tigers. He blew out his arm again because he's throwing so hard. So Steve McCatty, the Nationals' pitching coach, has some work cut out for him. Fix Srasburg's throwing motion or get him to slow down the fastball. This should be fun to watch.

And finally, to Stephen Strasburg: Good luck, get well soon and enjoy being compared to Mark Prior and Kerry Wood.


--Max Caster

Will the Jets Use Hard Knocks to Break the Revis Contract?

So over the past day or so, a bunch of reports have come out regarding the New York Jets' contract negotiations with 'Big Daddy' Darrelle Revis. Revis has 3 years left on his current deal but wants to be paid like the best defensive player in the NFL -- which he is. We all know the story.



But yesterday, Tim Cowlishaw of the Dallas Morning News and ESPN's 'Around the Horn' announced that the Revis contract will be settled this week. At first it was Wednesday, now it's anywhere from Wednesday to the weekend. That report was contradicted by a mob of NFL insiders, saying they have heard the opposite.

Now today I hear on ESPN that a financial executive (or something) knows a guy who works with the Jets front office. That man said that Darrelle Revis would be back with the Jets on Thursday. And I know this is second-hand info that came across the wire, but it would support the window given by Tim Cowlishaw.

The other thing about this second report is the day of the week. For everyone who's been living on Mars for the last few weeks, HBO Hard Knocks with the Jets comes on Wednesday's at 10pm. And the Jets have been known to do some crazy, in-your-face things. So what I'm getting at is the Jets might announce a new contract with Darrelle Revis on Hard Knocks this week.

Before you leave an angry comment, just hear me out and suspend your disbelief for a minute. I think they will make the announcement on Hard Knocks.

The media blackout with the Jets and Revis has worked very well up until now. Nothing substantiated by anything other than speculation has come out before yesterday. And even what's come out now is from unknown, friends of friends. What if the Jets have been keeping this a secret for a period of time? What if the media blackout was to not just draw attention away from the situation, but also to save the announcement for primetime?



Also, look at the other side of the coin. Darrelle Revis is a budding star. He's widely known and considered the best at his position. He's doing national commercials, which are actually pretty funny. He has a clothing line, which is kind of cool. This Terez Owens report suggested that he dated the [terrible] singer Olivia. And he's a musician & part-time rapper. His rapping isn't nearly as impressive as his cover skills.

If any NFL team would do something like this, it'd be my beloved Jets. A lot of signs point to the Jets announcing this on TV, and circumventing that old-fashioned press release thing.

Maybe the Jets aren't that shallow. Maybe they'll throw a bone to the local reporters. Maybe there is no deal and all these reports are false. But I'll be watching Hard Knocks this week, and I'll be expecting the Jets to wow me again, one way or another.


-- Max Caster

Which Drake Interlude Do YOU Prefer?

I see my good friend Max Caster basically everyday.  And with that comes a lot of lunch runs, cyphers, and pointless arguments. One of those arguments is the poll I have just posted to the right side of the screen: Which Drake Interlude is better?  We don't batter this topic around but whenever, Drizzy comes up, it's a subject we always come back to.  I'm a fan of Bria's Interlude while Max bumps Cece's Interlude.  The vote is up to you now. Take a listen if you aren't familiar...

Bria's Interlude - So Far Gone

Cece's Interlude - Thank Me Later

- Matt Soldano

Free Tickets to the NY-Penn League All Star Game

WCWP has a buttload of tickets for the NY-Penn League All-Star Game on Tuesday, August 17th. E-mail me your name, phone number and preferred e-mail address before Tuesday and the tickets will be at will call.

The game will be at 7:00pm at Richmond County Bank Ballpark in Staten Island. There will be a homerun derby and complimentary limited-edition caps for everyone at the ballpark.

I'll be there so shout my name out really loud and I'll sign your chest.


--Max Caster

Justin Bieber Hit by a Water Bottle

I've stumbled across the best video on the internet.



Ow....


--Max Caster

Amare Stoudemire Interview from Israel

Sweet.


--Max Caster