The 2009 All-Star game has come and gone and with that said it seems like an appopriate time to take a look back at the first half of the season at who has been a stud, who has been a dud and who has been just plain whack.
1."Which teams are Studs?"
The Red Sox and Dodgers are without question, unanimously the two best teams in baseball and in my opinion the only studs in the league. Each club shares in common, strong pitching, balanced lineups and a great defense. Neither organization has any glaring holes and both organizations have a superb bench and minor league system that can fill a hole if an injury does occur in the second half. Boston has a stellar staff led by Josh Beckett and Jon Lester and a first-rate supporting cast of veterans who have each won a ring (Brad Penny, John Smoltz, and Tim Wakefield). Beckett and Lester have been dealing recently, particularly Jon Lester who started the year slow due to some issues with the long ball, but hasn’t given up more than 3 earned runs in his last 8 games, lowering his era to 3.87 and improving on an already impressive K/BB ratio which now sits at 131/35. Boston is currently holding a 3 game lead over the Yankees and a 6.5 game lead in front the Devil Rays. What makes this year even more impressive is that their reign atop the AL East has transpired even though two of the franchises best players going into the season have had little success. “Big Papi”, David Ortiz has struggled in a season long slump and star Japanese import “Dice K” has battled lingering injuries and control issues. “Papi” has recently showed signs of his power returning entering the all-star game on a high note with 12 hrs, but Dice K has continued to have zero impact in Boston so far this season. The Dodgers also have a very potent 1-2 in their staff. Billingsley and Kershaw are young, hard throwers with wicked stuff and unlimited potential. Wolf, Kuroda and whoever happens to be the 5th flavor of the month (Eric Milton, James McDonald, Jeff Weaver, and maybe even Jason Schmidt in the second half) have surprisingly done a great job holding down the fort. Juan Pierre has offered a solid and unexpected contribution, filling the void left when Manny was suspended for women’s fertility drugs. The Dodgers will continue to run away with the West in the second half.
2." Which teams are duds?"
There are a bunch of well qualified candidates but the biggest duds in my opinion have to be the Cubbies, and Mets. Both of these teams were pre-season favorites to at the very least contend for the playoffs, but now they are fighting to stay out of the cellar. The Cubbies and Mets have been decimated by injuries, inconsistent pitching and hitting. The Mets have seen Carlos Delgado, Carlos Beltran and Jose Reyes all land on the DL for extended periods of time and they are sure feeling the losses. Their lineup without the big guns is just plain bad, featuring very little punch. Schneider, Murphy, Castillo, Cora, and Reed are journeyman, and while Sheffield has played far better than expected, one cannot overlook the fact that he is 40 yrs old and cannot adequately play the field.That leaves the team filling out the lineup card with one good player, David Wright. Not to mention that Citi Field has turned out to be a pitchers park and Wright can’t seem to find his power stroke at home. The Cubbies on the other hand were without Aramis Ramirez for most of the first half. Saw their two biggest off-season acquisitions Milton Bradley and Rich Harden completely implode, Geovany Soto test positive for marijuana, and now will have to enter the second half without Ryan Dempster who fractured his big toe. Only a season removed from racking up the best records in the big leagues, this team is a complete mess and will not be making the playoffs this year.
3. "Which teams are just straight whack?"
Obviously the Nationals immediately come to mind. They are still the only team stuck in the win column in the 20’s. They currently sit 22.5 out of the east! But hey, if they keep it up they are going to end up with Stephen Strasburg and Bryce Harper, so I say keep up the tanking. With that said I’m also going to have to crown the D-backs and the Indians the kings of whack. In the D-backs defense they were essentially out of the race the first week, when their staff ace Brandon Webb went down with a serious case of shoulder bursitis. An injury that may end up sidelining him all year. Dan Haren, Mark Reynolds, Justin Upton and Max Scherzer have been absolute beasts this year but without that elite sinker from Webb they are scrambling to stay ahead of the torn down and rebuilding Chernobyl Padres. The Indians went into the season with question marks at almost every position but no one expected them to be this bad. It has been a terrible year for the tribe who seemed to be on the verge of becoming a contender only a few seasons ago. Grady Sizemore has struggled with injuries, Fausto Carmona was demoted to low A ball, Matt Laporta was rushed to the big leagues. The Indians have somehow managed to fall behind the Royals in the standings and have the worst record in the AL. which is downright shameful. However, on the bright side, Travis Hafner seems to have overcome his shoulder injury, Cliff Lee has continued to pitch well and Victor Martinez did make his third straight all-star game!
4."Who is on a hotter seat, "J.P. Ricciardi, or Mark Shapiro"?
Hate to take the easy way out, but I am going to have to say that neither guy is on the hot seat. They are both highly respected baseball guys who have a superb body of work and either guy would be a hot commodity if their services were not retained. Both Ricciardi and Shapiro may have losing products this year but their lack of success is not entirely their fault. In my opinion the losing can be attributed to both franchises request to maintain a low payroll and of course costly injuries.
5. "Who is your Stud MVP, and Dud Player of the year?
Stud MVP- Albert Pujols
No brainer, forget the triple crown! We are going to need to start thinking up new awards for King Albert. He is the only guy in the league with more than 30 hrs.
He is currently leading the league in almost every category, including runs, home runs, total bases, RBI’s, walks, OBP, slugging, and OPS.
DPOY-Dice k
Reports are out there that while he’s listed on the DL with shoulder fatigue, he really isn’t injured, and that the Red Sox’s were forced to place him on the DL, because he refused to be sent down to the minors and takes too long to warm up to be an effective reliever. The 100 million dollar prodigy has been a complete bust this year and what is even more shocking is that among all American League pitchers with at least 30 innings, Matsuzaka ranks 13th in average run support, which means that the Red Sox have put him in an opportunity to win and he is still faltering. Only time will tell if Dice K has a hurt shoulder, has lost his confidence or has merely been figured out by the rest of the league.
6. "Who are the division/wildcard winners For the AL/NL?
American League-It is going to be a tough race all year between the Yankees, Rangers and D-rays, with the Yankees coming out on top. National league- I am going to make a surprise move and take the Braves. Full second half with McClouth. I love the staff and think Lowe, Jurrjens, Vasquez, Kawakami and Hanson will start to push their way to the top after the All-Star break.
1."Which teams are Studs?"
The Red Sox and Dodgers are without question, unanimously the two best teams in baseball and in my opinion the only studs in the league. Each club shares in common, strong pitching, balanced lineups and a great defense. Neither organization has any glaring holes and both organizations have a superb bench and minor league system that can fill a hole if an injury does occur in the second half. Boston has a stellar staff led by Josh Beckett and Jon Lester and a first-rate supporting cast of veterans who have each won a ring (Brad Penny, John Smoltz, and Tim Wakefield). Beckett and Lester have been dealing recently, particularly Jon Lester who started the year slow due to some issues with the long ball, but hasn’t given up more than 3 earned runs in his last 8 games, lowering his era to 3.87 and improving on an already impressive K/BB ratio which now sits at 131/35. Boston is currently holding a 3 game lead over the Yankees and a 6.5 game lead in front the Devil Rays. What makes this year even more impressive is that their reign atop the AL East has transpired even though two of the franchises best players going into the season have had little success. “Big Papi”, David Ortiz has struggled in a season long slump and star Japanese import “Dice K” has battled lingering injuries and control issues. “Papi” has recently showed signs of his power returning entering the all-star game on a high note with 12 hrs, but Dice K has continued to have zero impact in Boston so far this season. The Dodgers also have a very potent 1-2 in their staff. Billingsley and Kershaw are young, hard throwers with wicked stuff and unlimited potential. Wolf, Kuroda and whoever happens to be the 5th flavor of the month (Eric Milton, James McDonald, Jeff Weaver, and maybe even Jason Schmidt in the second half) have surprisingly done a great job holding down the fort. Juan Pierre has offered a solid and unexpected contribution, filling the void left when Manny was suspended for women’s fertility drugs. The Dodgers will continue to run away with the West in the second half.
2." Which teams are duds?"
There are a bunch of well qualified candidates but the biggest duds in my opinion have to be the Cubbies, and Mets. Both of these teams were pre-season favorites to at the very least contend for the playoffs, but now they are fighting to stay out of the cellar. The Cubbies and Mets have been decimated by injuries, inconsistent pitching and hitting. The Mets have seen Carlos Delgado, Carlos Beltran and Jose Reyes all land on the DL for extended periods of time and they are sure feeling the losses. Their lineup without the big guns is just plain bad, featuring very little punch. Schneider, Murphy, Castillo, Cora, and Reed are journeyman, and while Sheffield has played far better than expected, one cannot overlook the fact that he is 40 yrs old and cannot adequately play the field.That leaves the team filling out the lineup card with one good player, David Wright. Not to mention that Citi Field has turned out to be a pitchers park and Wright can’t seem to find his power stroke at home. The Cubbies on the other hand were without Aramis Ramirez for most of the first half. Saw their two biggest off-season acquisitions Milton Bradley and Rich Harden completely implode, Geovany Soto test positive for marijuana, and now will have to enter the second half without Ryan Dempster who fractured his big toe. Only a season removed from racking up the best records in the big leagues, this team is a complete mess and will not be making the playoffs this year.
3. "Which teams are just straight whack?"
Obviously the Nationals immediately come to mind. They are still the only team stuck in the win column in the 20’s. They currently sit 22.5 out of the east! But hey, if they keep it up they are going to end up with Stephen Strasburg and Bryce Harper, so I say keep up the tanking. With that said I’m also going to have to crown the D-backs and the Indians the kings of whack. In the D-backs defense they were essentially out of the race the first week, when their staff ace Brandon Webb went down with a serious case of shoulder bursitis. An injury that may end up sidelining him all year. Dan Haren, Mark Reynolds, Justin Upton and Max Scherzer have been absolute beasts this year but without that elite sinker from Webb they are scrambling to stay ahead of the torn down and rebuilding Chernobyl Padres. The Indians went into the season with question marks at almost every position but no one expected them to be this bad. It has been a terrible year for the tribe who seemed to be on the verge of becoming a contender only a few seasons ago. Grady Sizemore has struggled with injuries, Fausto Carmona was demoted to low A ball, Matt Laporta was rushed to the big leagues. The Indians have somehow managed to fall behind the Royals in the standings and have the worst record in the AL. which is downright shameful. However, on the bright side, Travis Hafner seems to have overcome his shoulder injury, Cliff Lee has continued to pitch well and Victor Martinez did make his third straight all-star game!
4."Who is on a hotter seat, "J.P. Ricciardi, or Mark Shapiro"?
Hate to take the easy way out, but I am going to have to say that neither guy is on the hot seat. They are both highly respected baseball guys who have a superb body of work and either guy would be a hot commodity if their services were not retained. Both Ricciardi and Shapiro may have losing products this year but their lack of success is not entirely their fault. In my opinion the losing can be attributed to both franchises request to maintain a low payroll and of course costly injuries.
5. "Who is your Stud MVP, and Dud Player of the year?
Stud MVP- Albert Pujols
No brainer, forget the triple crown! We are going to need to start thinking up new awards for King Albert. He is the only guy in the league with more than 30 hrs.
He is currently leading the league in almost every category, including runs, home runs, total bases, RBI’s, walks, OBP, slugging, and OPS.
DPOY-Dice k
Reports are out there that while he’s listed on the DL with shoulder fatigue, he really isn’t injured, and that the Red Sox’s were forced to place him on the DL, because he refused to be sent down to the minors and takes too long to warm up to be an effective reliever. The 100 million dollar prodigy has been a complete bust this year and what is even more shocking is that among all American League pitchers with at least 30 innings, Matsuzaka ranks 13th in average run support, which means that the Red Sox have put him in an opportunity to win and he is still faltering. Only time will tell if Dice K has a hurt shoulder, has lost his confidence or has merely been figured out by the rest of the league.
6. "Who are the division/wildcard winners For the AL/NL?
American League-It is going to be a tough race all year between the Yankees, Rangers and D-rays, with the Yankees coming out on top. National league- I am going to make a surprise move and take the Braves. Full second half with McClouth. I love the staff and think Lowe, Jurrjens, Vasquez, Kawakami and Hanson will start to push their way to the top after the All-Star break.
By:Morgan Spokny
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