Blake Weiman

MLB

Dallas Braden Records the 19th Perfect Game in MLB History

• Al Dannity

• Last Updated: October 4, 2017

Oakland’s Dallas Braden may have lost more games than he’s won but on Sunday he was nothing short of perfect. Comfortably perfect Given the extraordinary rarity of perfect games it is remarkable how few tense moments there were during Dallas Braden’s remarkable performance against the Tampa Bay Rays. Last year Mark Buehrle needed a dramatic...

MLB

Yankees at Red Sox Preview

• Frank Doyle

• Last Updated: October 4, 2017

Frank Doyle wonders if a four game sweep of the Angels will give Boston just the boost it needs before You-Know-Who arrives at Fenway Park tonight. Boston has had an awful start to the season. Paul Testa is getting teased on the excellent Fire Brand blog for hitting the panic button after the Sox lost...

MLB

Mets at Phillies Weekend Preview

• Frank Doyle

• Last Updated: October 4, 2017

Frank Doyle is looking forward to some high class pitching in this season’s first series between the Mets and the Phillies. There has never been a more mixed up Major League franchise than the New York Mets. Founded in 1962 to replace the terrible void left in the city by the Dodgers and Giants’ western...

MLB

Is It Ever Wise to Defy the Baseball Gods?

• Frank Doyle

• Last Updated: October 4, 2017

Frank Doyle wants Roger Goodell to say it ain’t so – surely the NFL Commish wouldn’t be so foolish as to risk the awesome wrath of the baseball gods? The NFL may be the biggest sports organisation in America, but it’s always a mistake to push your luck. So it’s very surprising, therefore, that NFL...

MLB

Giants to Squeeze Home in the NL West

• Al Dannity

• Last Updated: October 4, 2017

The NL West looks to be the most competitive division in all of Baseball and Al Dannity reckons it could go to the final day. Pick your poison The top of the National League’s West division is a bizarre cocktail of hitting, pitching, and balance. After accelerating through a re-building program the Giants are once...

MLB

Angels to Claim Another AL West Title

• Al Dannity

• Last Updated: October 4, 2017

The Angels may be lacking Lackey but Al Dannity still backs Anaheim to rule the AL West in 2010. A tougher test These are not your 2009 Angels. Gone are John Lackey, Chone Figgins, and Vladimir Guerrero. The addition of Hideki Matusi won’t offset the loss defensively but the World Series MVP will assure Anaheim...

MLB

Cardinals to Rule the Roost in the NL Central

• Al Dannity

• Last Updated: October 4, 2017

Everyone’s first choice in Fantasy Baseball will help the Cardinals claim yet another divisional crown in 2010 Horribly lop-sided The NL Central race may seem more competitive than the NL East from afar but upon closer examination it becomes apparent that this is the most top heavy division in all of Baseball. In short the...

MLB

The Octopus Pitcher – can Pat Venditte Make It in the Major Leagues?

• Frank Doyle

• Last Updated: October 4, 2017

Frank Doyle wonders if the Yankees’ switch pitching prospect has what it takes to make it in Major League Baseball. Switch hitter? Yawn. Bats right, throws left? Zzz. Little person with a foot and half strike zone? Eddie Gaedel, St Louis Browns, one at bat against the Tigers in Sportsman’s Park, St Louis, on August...

MLB

Phillies to Power their way to a Fourth Straight NL East Crown

• Al Dannity

• Last Updated: October 4, 2017

The Phillies will win the NL East but they won’t dominate it like they did the past two seasons according to Al Dannity. The case for a four-peat Philadelphia (-286) has built itself up as the dominant power in the NL East since 2007 and it has the tools required to continue that run in...

MLB

Minnesota to Overpower Pitching Strength of Sox in Central

• Al Dannity

• Last Updated: October 4, 2017

Al Dannity says you should trust the new-field advantage Minnesota holds in the AL Central this season. One edge goes another arrives Visiting teams to Minnesota (+125) will be glad to see the back of the Metrodome, at least initially. There isn’t a team in the American League that hasn’t got some bad memory of...

MLB

Yankees to Claim Another AL East Title

• Al Dannity

• Last Updated: October 4, 2017

The AL East may be the toughest division in Baseball but it’s also the most predictable according to Al Dannity. An extra level of certainty Some divisions in MLB have likely contenders, others have red hot favorites, the American League East has two teams who we know will be playing October Baseball. Previewing or predicting...

MLB

No Change in AL but Baseball Writers have Strasburg-mania

• Al Dannity

• Last Updated: October 4, 2017

The Boys of Summer are back and Al Dannity expects familiar faces to dominate the diamond in Major League Baseball this season. A familiar foursome The American League has a slight problem. Not a single game has been played yet we already know two of its playoff teams, are confident about the third, and have...

MLB

Chicago White Sox to Retire Frank Thomas' Number, Sign Johnny Damon?

• Ricky Rothstein

• Last Updated: October 4, 2017

Some big news out of the Windy City today as the Chicago White Sox appear busy on a number of fronts. First, shortly after Frank “The Big Hurt” Thomas announced he’d be retiring from Major League Baseball, the club he starred with for so many years — the White Sox — informed the media that...

MLB

Breaking MLB News: Mark McGwire Admits to Steroid Use

• Ricky Rothstein

• Last Updated: October 4, 2017

In what has to be one of the least-surprising revelations in modern baseball history, former Oakland Athletics and St. Louis Cardinals slugger Mark McGwire admitted today that he used steroids during his playing career. In a statement given to the Associated Press, McGwire admitted to using performance-enhancing drugs for almost 10 years during his career,...

MLB

MLB Trade Deadline – Who’s In Play?

• Charlie Boccanegra

• Last Updated: October 4, 2017

With the 2009 Major League Baseball All-Star Game in the books and the second half of the season underway, it’s time to turn our attention to the next big event on the MLB calendar: The Trade Deadline. It’s that sacred time of the year where bottomfeeders deal away for a slew of young prospects. It’s...

MLB

Baseball’s Best Closers

• Charlie Boccanegra

• Last Updated: October 4, 2017

When looking atop Major League Baseball’s saves leader board, a few of the old standard names pop up: Wait. Who? Yup, San Diego Padres reliever Heath Bell currently sits tied for second amongst all closers with 23 saves. So who is this guy? And who are the guys challenging him for the MLB lead? Let’s...

MLB

The Surprising Seattle Mariners

• Charlie Boccanegra

• Last Updated: October 4, 2017

To say the Seattle Mariners’ 2008 season was forgettable is something of an understatement. Their 61-101 record was the worst in the American League. They finished a whopping 39 games back of first-place Los Angeles and were outscored 671 to 811 on the year, the third-worst run differential in baseball. But my, how quickly things...

MLB

What’s Wrong With the Chicago Cubs?

• Charlie Boccanegra

• Last Updated: October 4, 2017

It wasn’t supposed to be like this. It wasn’t supposed to be like this for a team that won a National League-best 97 games a year ago. A team that had two 17-game winners (Ryan Dempster and Ted Lilly) and a flamethrower like Carlos Zambrano in the rotation. A team with big bats like Aramis...

MLB

Major League Baseball’s Best Thieves

• Charlie Boccanegra

• Last Updated: October 4, 2017

The current formula for scoring runs in Major League Baseball? More manufactured runs and less power jacks (MFR >PJ, or something like that). With a decrease in home runs – which, depending on who you talk to, may be directly related to baseball’s new drug-testing policy – MLB managers have sought out new ways to...

MLB

Biggest First-Half Surprises in Baseball

• Charlie Boccanegra

• Last Updated: October 4, 2017

As we draw closer to the 2009 Major League Baseball All-Star Game (July 14 at St. Louis’ Busch Stadium), now’s as good a time as any to break down baseball’s biggest surprises. Who has surprised bettors? Which teams have been shocks in terms of wagering? San Francisco Giants fans have to be thrilled with the...