Double Standard

Shawne Merriman is having a noteworthy season. Despite missing 4 games this season, he has compiled (as of December 23) 49 tackles and 12.5 sacks, and is apparently in the running for Defensive MVP, as are Jason Taylor and Brian Urlacher, among others. Normally, I wouldn't have a problem with Merriman, the reigning Defensive Rookie of the Year, being in the MVP discussion, but the nature of his 4-game absence should just disqualify him from any postseason awards. Let's look back to October 22nd, when the reason for Merriman's absence was given. He didn't miss 4 games with an injury or for a death in the family, or any other reasonable excuse. Merriman was instead suspended for 4 games for a violation of the NFL's substance abuse policy. Not for alcohol or marijuana use that, while condemnable, would not help him as a player. Merriman was given a 4-game timeout because of steroid use.
Many "experts" on ESPN, including Sean Salisbury and Cold Pizza's Skip Bayless, have chosen to act as though Merriman was merely on vacation for a couple of weeks, rather than serving his punishment for using performance-enhancing drugs. Including Merriman in the Defensive MVP talk is reprehensible and an affront to Taylor and Urlacher, who (we presume) have been playing within the rules of the game, and not cheating. That's not all of what is bothering me, though. This entire steroids issue smacks of hypocrisy. The baseball world has been rocked recently with turmoil over whether or not Mark McGwire, a suspected steroid user, should be allowed into the Hall of Fame. Now in the NFL, we have a player that we know used steroids, but nobody talks about it. That's just retarded. Anybody remember a guy by the name of Bill Romanowski? He was so jacked up on steroids he smashed his own teammate's eye socket. I'm not exactly comparing Romanowski to Merriman, but the point is that steroids in football is, for whatever reason, no big deal, and I don't understand why.
If you're going to damn a baseball player because he probably took steroids, then you need to do the same for a football player that you know was on the juice. Merriman will be a cheater until he gives me 3 years of clean drug tests and a plateau of excellent play. And he sure as hell had better not win any major award this year.

Power Rankings (Sort of)

Power Rankings are dumb. I am dumb, but I'm only going to give you the teams that are in the playoff hunt, both because it's more relevant, and also because I'm extremely lazy. As always, the teams are accompanied by moronic comments by me, because just making a list is boring.

1) San Diego Chargers: Why isn't anyone making a bigger deal about Shawn Merriman's steroid suspension? Everybody made it sound like he was on vacation or he strained his quad or something. Barry Bonds (allegedly) takes steroids, and everybody flips out, but because it's football, the Defensive Rookie of the Year is above such criticism.

2) Indianapolis Colts: WHOA! Peyton Manning was on a TV commercial just now. I've never seen him outside of a football game. It's so out of character for him to do something like that. Maybe he's getting too big for his britches.

3) Baltimore Ravens: Wait, hold on a minute. Stifling defense + capable QB + very good special teams - Jim Fassel? Doesn't that equation equal a Super Bowl? I think I've seen that equation before. I was never any good at math anyway.

4) New England Patriots: Until they lose to Peyton Manning in the playoffs at Gillette Stadium in a blizzard on a 99-yard Colts drive with under :30 remaining, I will always take the Patriots over the Colts. Oh yeah, and Manning has to play barefoot, blindfolded, and with a broken throwing arm. I'm not asking for much.

5) Dallas Cowboys: I hate to do it, but the Cowboys need to be in the top 5 after the past couple weeks. They remind me a lot of the Yankees; that is, nobody really likes them and they arrogantly think they are everyone's favorite team. Man I hate the Cowboys.

Side note here: Notice how there is only one NFC team in the top 5? Me too. This season is playing out eerily like the 2006 MLB season. We spent all year talking about how terrible the National League was, and then an NL team, and not even the favorites (stupid Mets) end up winning the World Series. My pick for Super Bowl champs, based on this trend? Atlanta Falcons. Ewww, that's an awful thought to have. Anywho, back to the rankings.

6) New Orleans Saints: Oh man, Reggie Bush tore up the 49ers on Sunday for 4 touchdowns. The only problem is that he still can't run the ball, and he's a running back. Other than that, he's great. Just call him Slash 2. And also don't give him a hand-off...ever.

7) Cincinnati Bengals: The Bengals are making a run, aiming for the playoffs. I know the secret to their resurgence: All their players got released on parole about 5 weeks ago. Don't expect it to last, I hear that most of them violated their probation by viciously assaulting the Cleveland Browns a couple weeks back.

8) Seattle Seahawks: If the Seahawks don't win the Super Bowl, they can blame it on those stupid officials that broke Shaun Alexander's foot and messed up Matt Hasselback's knee. Dumb referees, they got the 'Hawks again. That being said, if they don't at least make the playoffs, there really should be an investigation into why. They live in the weakest division in all of football (tied with the NFC North, obviously).

9) New York Jets: Huh? I don't even know what they're doing here. Honestly, I have no clue.

10) Kansas City Chiefs: The Chiefs should have Robert Geathers take another cheap shot at Trent Green, it worked for them the last time they tried it. Or he could take his knee out with a metal pip...wait, that's already been done. They'll think of something.

11) Carolina Panthers: They really ought to try and dislodge Jake Delhomme's head from his ass. It's been stuck there the whole season and it's really starting to cost them. Here's a thought: GET THE BALL TO STEVE SMITH. Let's try that, shall we?

12) Denver Broncos: Ut-oh, somebody better tell the architects to hold off on that John Elway-Jay Cutler All-Time Great QB Library. Turns out he's human. Who knew? Anyway, Broncos aren't making the playoffs.

13) Philadelphia Eagles: Jeff Garcia is a 3-time Pro Bowler. Jeff Garcia is a 3-time Pro Bowler. Jeff Garcia is a 3-time Pro Bowler. If Eagles fans keep telling themselves that, then they won't have to accept that Jeff Garcia was a 3-time Pro Bowler and now is a subpar replacement for Donovan McNabb. They're in, though.

14) Chicago Bears: Yeah, they're 10-2. Yeah, they are probably going to win home-field in the NFC playoffs. But when your QB has a game where his QB rating is 1.3, then you're going to go get dropped this far, and you're also going to lose in their first playoff game.

15) Atlanta Falcons: I think Michael Vick is not a coach killer, but his receivers might be, if they can't hold onto the damn ball. If they don't make the playoffs, I'm sure Jim Mora Jr. is going to wish that Vick would actually kill him, so he wouldn't have to look at the awful wide receivers anymore. After that Algie Crumpler can eat him.

Didn't See That One Coming

Well, that's a little strange. Everybody, including me, was worried about the pitching staff of the New York Mets. Here's a little recap: no Pedro, no El Duque, and no Duaner Sanchez (an excellent reliever that injured his shoulder at the trade deadline). The Mets pitching staff was so decimated that their choices for Game 7 were:

• Darren Oliver (hasn't started a game since 2004)
• Steve Traschel (I don't need a reason other than "He's Steve Traschel")
• Aaron Heilman (the set-up man who wished he was a starter)
• Oliver Perez (the man who would have the fewest wins and worst ERA of any Game 7 starter ever)

Of course, Willie Randolph went with Perez, which turned out to be the correct move. (Little side note: Perez only came over as a throw-in with Roberto Hernandez when the Mets traded Xavier Nady after Sanchez's injury.) Obviously, Willie made the right move and Perez pitched 6 innings, giving up 1 run, which really should have been 3 runs except for Endy Chavez's ridiculous, outstanding, perfect double-play catch over the left-field wall. In the game prior to that, John Maine pitched 5 1/3 shutout innings, propelling the Mets to a 4-2 victory in game 6.

If only the Mets lineup had been as clutch as their young starters.

For time purposes (and because I'm lazy), I'll limit discussing the Mets woeful offense to Game 7 only. Two things right off the bat: Jeff Suppan is not a shutdown, dominant pitcher, and Yadier Molina is a .216 hitter who had no business having the series he did. The thing that bothers me the most is not that the Mets went without a hit for 6 straight innings, it's not that they only scored one run, it's that they did not have a hit that wasn't a bloop or a little cue shot the entire night. The other things bother me too, but that was the most difficult to stomach. Also, if I'm Carlos Beltran, and I just watched Cliff Floyd strike out on a nasty curveball, I'd be looking for that when I was down 0-2. That's just me, I'm not a professional hitter or anything.

Dammit, I'm still pissed. I'm going to have to finish this some other time.

Good News, Football's back

Today, watching the first NFL Sunday of the season, I was struck by several thoughts, some longer than others:

• If this football thing doesn't work out for Peyton Manning, he's always got his acting career to fall back on.
• I was watching the Bills-Pats game with my mom, a die-hard Bills fan, and the fumble recovery for the touchdown didn't even faze her. She just said, "That'll probably be the highlight of the season for us." Sure enough, she was right. I'd like to nominate Bills fans as the most downtrodden franchise in the NFL. Sure, they made it to 4 Super Bowls in a row in the 90s, but they lost all 4. Losing in the biggest game of the year 4 consecutive times has got to be more rough than not making the playoffs for a decade or so. After all, perenially losing teams don't expect to win. And now they're stuck with a QB from Tulane. Has there ever been a successful alumnus of Tulane? I think I'd better stop before any Bills fans reading this that haven't already killed themselves do so.
• The Bengals are going to argue that DE Robert Geathers shouldn't be fined for a helmet-to-helmet hit on QB Trent Green during the Bengals-Chiefs game, claiming that Geathers was pushed into Green. Upon further review, I think Geathers could have avoided hitting Green with his helmet. Geathers should be suspended for a game and fined $20,000. Last year, Bengals' coach Marvin Lewis was highly praised for turning around the downtrodden franchise. After the rash of arrests in the offseason, and now this dirty hit, it's obvious that the Bengals are a bunch of punks, in short, they've become the new Oakland Raiders.
• When Terrell Owens is behaving, he's the best receiver in the NFL. However, Drew Bledsoe is still Drew Bledsoe, so the Cowboys are going to have some problems this year. And also, alot of people are going to be calling for Tony Romo to replace Bledsoe, and I wouldn't be shocked if Owens was vocal in that party.
• Same thing with the Broncos. Jake Plummer has always been one bad performance from having the fans turn on him, and I think he might have had that performance today in a season-opening loss to the Rams. Although I don't like Plummer much, I think he'd still be better at this point than Jay Cutler, who just isn't ready yet. Next year is the ideal time to dump Plummer, who will promptly be picked up by the Raiders.
• The Cardinals' new stadium is ridiculously nice.
• Since the 49ers beat the Giants in the 2002 NFC Wildcard game, and Terrell Owens effectively destroyed the nucleus of the team, there hasn't been any reason to be excited about 49er football. The Dennis Erikson era was something that remains painful to think about. After watching the end of the 49ers-Cardinals game (I live on the wrong coast to catch the whole thing) I'm strangely excited about the state of the team. They're heading for a 5-11, 6-10 season, for sure, but I like the direction they're heading. I've turned around on Alex Smith. He's going to be a Pro Bowl-caliber player soon. Frank Gore is a poor man's Tiki Barber, and Vernon Davis is just a freak of nature. The defense needs to be shored up, but in a year or two this team will be good, I think.
• Actually, let me rephrase that last sentence: I'm calling a Wild Card berth for the 49ers next season.

I'm Being Fair

1) New York Mets: With the Tigers being swept by the White Sox (again), it's obvious the Mets are the most consistent team in the major leagues.
2) Detroit Tigers: Even after the serious beatdown by Chicago, the Tigers are still the class of the AL Central (for now).
3) Chicago White Sox: Ozzie Guillen is going to say something wildly inappropriate any day now. He's due.
4) New York Yankees: You just knew that Chien Ming-Wong was going to be rocked at some point. He never strikes anyone out.
5) Boston Red Sox: Wily Mo Pena is the poor man's Adam Dunn. Oh yeah, and his first name needs another L in it. Who spells Willy with one L?
6) Oakland A's: Even if Rich Harden comes back soon, he might not be in good enough shape physically to have a big impact.
7) Los Angeles Dodgers: Greg Maddux looks like Greg Maddux. I think everyone should leave the Cubs, it'll make them all feel better.
8) Minnesota Twins: I wouldn't count on Liriano coming back this year, and I also wouldn't count on the Twins making the playoffs. Actually, I think there's almost no chance of that happening now.
9) Los Angeles, um, Anaheim, uh, Angels of An...oh, hell, the Angels: I was thinking of dropping the Angels to 53534th, because they have the dumbest name EVER. Not like I'm harping on it or anything.
10) Cincinnati Reds: The Reds have gone from shooting for the Wild Card to hoping for the NL Central crown.
11) St. Louis Cardinals: HAHAHAHA...you got swept by the Pirates! The Cardinals should forfeit the rest of the season for that.
12) San Diego Padres: Skip Bayless says Mike Piazza is not a Hall of Famer. It's not like he has the most HRs of any catcher ever or anything. Why does Skip Bayless have a job? (P.S. Still a Piazza fan).
13) Texas Rangers: Michael Young is coming pretty close to going from underrated to overrated. Can't we just say he's a perennial All-Star and call it even?
14) Toronto Blue Jays: So much for taking the AL East from the Yankees and Red Sox. The Blue Jays traded a .300 hitter for basically nothing and are out of both the divison and wild card races. Good to see their off-season moves have paid off for them.
15) Houston Astros: Last year in the NLCS, I think we saw the absolute destruction of a man's psyche. Ever since Pujols hit his titanic home run off of Brad Lidge in Game 5 last October, Lidge just can't seem to get his head right.
16) Philadelphia Phillies: Wow, the Phillies kicked the crap out of the best team in baseball. I bet they lose the next three games in the series. The Mets are probably very angry right about now.
17) Arizona Diamondbacks: Is it sad that Jorge Julio was assigned to mop-up duty in the Mets bullpen, but he's the closer in Arizona? Or is it more sad that he has converted 15 of 18 save opportunities since joining the D-Backs?
18) Seattle Mariners: Adrian Beltre is paid alot of money, and I think he's earned very little of it. I think Terry Tate needs to "talk" to him.
19) Florida Marlins: Apparently Jeffery Loria almost fired Joe Girardi over the weekend. Good call, let's start the fire sale before the World Series win this time. Saves time.
20) Colorado Rockies: The Rockies are 15th in the NL in HRs. That's surprising, considering they play in that baseball field in orbit.
21) Milwaukee Brewers: I miss the little Mexican Hot Dog (Chorizo). Well, I don't really miss it, but I couldn't think of anything good to say about the Brewers. Oh, here's something: They have a big slide over the center field fence.
22) Atlanta Braves: They don't have a slide anywhere near the outfield. Also, Chipper Jones' real first name is Larry. So, to sum up, the Braves suck.
23) San Francisco Giants: Barry Bonds' knee is holding up pretty well so far. Pretty well = warning track power. He's boring when he doesn't hit home runs.
24) Washington Nationals: Alfonso Soriano is ridiculously good. I hope he stays with the Nationals, or they get Youppi! back. I'm wishing for Youppi!. (Can you do a !. if the ! is part of the name? Oh well, I just did.)
25) Cleveland Indians: Travis Hafner is another of those underrated/overrated guys (see Michael Young). He's really good, but on a losing team you have to have a record-setting season to even have a chance. He's no A-Rod. (I'd throw in the stat about the 6 Grand Slams and the clutch play of A-Rod, but that's just too easy.)
26) Baltimore Orioles: Miguel Tejada gets traded in the offseason. He's too enjoyable of a player to be in such a depressing situation.
27) Tampa Bay Devil Rays: It's kind of sad to think about, but there is about a .000001% chance of the Devil Rays ever beating either the Red Sox or Yankees. They're pretty much doomed.
28) Chicago Cubs: Carlos Zambrano is leading the NL in Ks. That's really good. He's also leading the league in walks. That's not so good. Neither are the Cubs in general.
29) Pittsburgh Pirates: I had the Pirates and the Royals basically the same, and decided that when you sweep the division leader, you get the edge. That's the highlight of the Pirates season.
30) Kansas City Royals: I like how Dayton Moore is doing things in Kansas City. Give it 20 years or so and they'll be mediocre. Yippee.

What If?

If you're a diehard 49ers fan, like me (not many of us here in upstate New York), you'll remember the 1998 NFC Wildcard game between the Green Bay Packers and the San Francisco 49ers. What most people remember is the ending, which has been dubbed "The Catch 2." What most people don't remember is that it was the 49ers, as well as Steve Young's, last serious chance to win a Superbowl. If Garrison Hearst doesn't break his ankle in the first drive of the next game against Atlanta, the 49ers most likely go to the Super Bowl and provide a better matchup for the eventual champion Broncos. However, the most important thing to come out of that was the birth of T.O., the ego of Terrell Owens that would leave (at this point) two teams in ruin.

Before that game, Terrell Owens was known as erratic receiver with shaky hands and great potential. Through the first 59 minutes and 52 seconds of the game, he had done nothing to dispell that notion. He dropped three passes, and had only 2 catches for 48 yards at that point. But when he caught that 25-yard game-winning touchdown in between 3 defenders, something clicked for him. He realized that he could be the very best in the game. But at the same time, he also thought that being the best meant he gets preferential treatment, the ability to do things his way, putting himself above the team. On the field, Owens' work ethic and tenacity has never been questioned. The man is a physical specimen, in ridiculously great shape. However, it's his ego that has caused him to leave two cities thus far. In San Francisco, he managed to get his longtime coach, Steve Mariucci, replaced by yes-man Dennis Erickson, a decided downgrade from Mariucci. Also, and this would become a pattern, he insulted his quarterback. On several occasions, he intimated that he wanted the ball more, and that he needed a better quarterback than Jeff Garcia. In addition, Owens questioned Garcia's masculinity, openly wondering if Garcia was gay.

In the off-season of 2004, Owens and his agent at the time bungled their chance to void their 2004 option with the 49ers, and ended up being traded to the Ravens for a 2nd-round draft pick. However, T.O., as he often does, blamed someone else (the 49ers and his agent, primarily) for his own failure. He managed to strong-arm a three-way trade of sorts, with the Ravens getting their pick back, the Eagles acquiring Owens, and the 49ers recieving a 5th-round pick and DE Brandon Whiting from the Eagles. The 49ers were happy to be rid of Owens, even though in the 2 years since removing him, their record is only 6-26.

A question that I have to ask concerning the T.O. "era" in San Francisco: what if Owens had never caught that pass from Steve Young? What if, when Young had stumbled, he had fallen to the ground and the clock had run out? What if the officials had correctly called Jerry Rice's catch earlier in that drive a fumble? Would Owens have turned out the same? Would he have destroyed the 49ers, and later the Eagles, and possibly the Cowboys? I don't think he would have. If Owens had to go into the offseason after having that miserable of a game, I believe his fragile psyche would have been shattered, causing him to become a bust, and become another tale of unrealized potential.

They say hindsight is 20/20. At the time of Owens' catch, I was delirious with joy, I was just estatic that my 49ers had won against the rival Packers. Looking back, however, was it worth it? No, the path of destruction laid by the unscrupulous T.O. outweighs the fleeting feeling from a single playoff game. I wish that Owens had dropped that pass. Football would be much better for it.

Top 30

These are the top 30 teams in MLB, judging on how they're currently playing, updated once a week. These are, of course, just my opinions, but I like to think I'm always right.

1. Detroit Tigers: Justin Verlander (10-4, 3.13 ERA) is my pick for ROY right now. With the kind of year Papelbon's having (0.45 ERA, 24 saves), that's saying something.
2. Chicago White Sox: Note to Ozzie Guillen: when John Rocker is on your side, you're in trouble.
3. Boston Red Sox: The Red Sox just set a Major League record for consecutive games without an error (17). That was...um...unexpected.
4. New York Mets: Pedro's been, well, un-Pedro-like this month (2-3, 6.23 ERA). Mets fans can only hope it's nothing to worry about.
5. New York Yankees: Alex Rodriguez hits a walk-off homerun against the Braves. Maybe he's turning into a timely hi...oh, he just went 0-4 against the Mets. Turns out one hit doesn't change a guy.
6. Toronto Blue Jays: When healthy, Roy Halladay is the nastiest pitcher in the majors, and he has the numbers (10-2, 3.22 ERA) to be the AL starting pitcher. Too bad Ozzie's picking his own ace, Jose Contreras.
7. Minnesota Twins: Joe Mauer is hitting everything right now, but he won't get to the end of the season with a .400 batting average. It's like the 56-game hit streak, a next-to-impossible task.
8. St. Louis Cardinals: The Cardinals need to get Mark Mulder back on track. Same with Jason Isringhausen, Jason Marquis, Jeff Suppan, etc.
9. Oakland Athletics: Can anyone explain why the A's always catch fire at the start of the summer? If the season started in mid-June every year, they would always have the best regular season record...and then still lose in the first round.
10. Cincinnati Reds: Seriously, Adam Dunn needs to learn the value of a ground ball hit up the middle. Although, a grand slam when you're down 3 runs in the bottom of the 9th is pretty useful too.
11. Texas Rangers: The Rangers are doing very well without Kenny Rogers this year. Even more surprising is that they've gotten by with Kevin Mench's noggin blocking out the sun and all.
12. Los Angeles Dodgers: Nomar's had a resurgence in LA. He would deserve to start the All-Star Game, but there's some guy named Pujols that plays his position.
13. Florida Marlins: The Marlins are exceeding everyone's expectations, winning despite playing with all younger players obtained in their offseason fire sale. Look for another fire sale after this season, with Dontrelle Willis being traded for a bunch of left-handed 6-year-olds.
14. San Diego Padres: Mike Piazza is a professional baseball player, he married a Playboy Playmate, and he's the best offensive catcher in Major League history. He's got alot going for him, too bad my 6-month-old neice could steal second with him behind the plate.
15. Seattle Mariners: The Mariners have Ichiro. He's fast.
16. San Francisco Giants: Barry Bonds has never failed a drug test. No matter how suspicious it looks, until he test positive, leave the guy (and his records) alone.
17. Arizona Diamondbacks: The D-backs are still reeling from the Jason Grimsley scandal. They should re-sign him, they need his 4.88 ERA back.
18. Colorado Rockies: Even though the Rockies play in a stadium that is technically outside of Earth's atmosphere, they have the 4th-best ERA (4.23) in the NL.
19. Houston Astros: Wow, that money's really paying off so far. 2 starts, 0 wins for Roger Clemens. If you're paying him that much, you better either score some runs or make sure he doesn't give up any runs...ever.
20. Milwaukee Brewers: Prince Fielder is taking after his dad, Cecil. That is, he's large and he's not exactly Jose Reyes on the basepaths.
21. Philadelphia Phillies: The Phillies had Brett Myers make his next start shortly after he slapped up his wife on a Boston street. It's obvious the Phillies organization is very classy.
22. Anaheim Angels (I refuse to call them the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim on the grouds that it's a ridiculous name): Ummm....the Angels don't need a Rally Monkey at this point. They need a Rally King Kong.
23. Washington Nationals: Oh, look, Alfonso Soriano is playing left field. Good, it looks like he finally decided that he wasn't greater than the te...oh, he realized he wasn't going to get paid.
24. Baltimore Orioles: Don't blame Leo Mazzone for the Orioles' pitching woes (5.15 team ERA). Not even Jesus could pull off a miracle to make this pitching staff any good.
25. Cleveland Indians: The Indians, after their finish last year, were expected to compete this year. Well, they are competing. With the Royals. For last place in the AL Central.
26. Tampa Bay Devil Rays: The Devil Rays have tons of young talent. They have 6 really good outfielders, and 1 really good pitcher. Hey, that almost makes a good team! Almost.
27. Chicago Cubs: Maybe sacrificing a billy goat to the heathen gods would help. They've got to do something.
28. Atlanta Braves: Bobby Cox still believes his team can win the division and make the playoffs. But he knows he just loses alot right after that, so he said to hell with it and gave up.
29. Kansas City Royals: Judging by this season's record, if the Royals played the Pirates 162 times, they'd be an unprecedented 162-0.
30. Pittsburgh Pirates: Oh well, at least they host the All-Star Game this year. That's something.

Establish Dominance

It's a well-established opinion among baseball experts (as well as casual fans) that the National League is inferior to the American League. The NL is being absolutely obliterated this year by the AL in interleague contests, as evidenced by the overall win-loss record between the two (through Wednesday, the AL was 52 games over .500 against the NL). A perfect example of this disparity are the lowly Tampa Bay Devil Rays. The Devil Rays, one of the worst teams in either league, have a perplexing 11-5 record in interleague play. Against members of its own league, however, the Devil Rays are 24-40.

Another illustration of the American League's dominance is the balance of power. Among the best teams of both leagues, there are 4 or 5 AL teams (Detroit, Chicago, Boston, NY Yankees, Toronto, and possibly Minnesota) that are good enough to make it to the World Series. In the NL, there are really only two teams that can realistically match up with American League juggernauts. The Mets and the Cardinals (when healthy) are the class of the National League, and unless St. Louis can get its pitching to come around, it leaves the Mets as the only team with hope to win a World Series for the NL in 2006.

Why, though? Why this huge disparity between the two leagues? The answer can be found in just two letters: DH. The designated hitter is the main cause of talent disparity. More hitters, when they become free agents, are attracted to having an extra hitter in the lineup in lieu of the pitcher. With 9 hitters in a batting order, team batting average, on-base percentage, and almost every other major statistic is increased. More men on base means more opportunities for RBIs, a higher likelihood of inflated numbers. Playing in the American League is like having every game at a hitters park, even when you're at Safeco. Also, for many players, the lure of not having to play the field is very enticing. Frank Thomas, David Ortiz, and Jim Thome are all excellent hitters, but they are also defensive liabilities. By becoming a DH, they no longer have to play a position, these players can become true "professional hitters." Does anyone else remember the Mo Vaughn Experience in Shea Stadium? Needless to say, watching Mo try to lumber around first base was painful to watch. If Barry Bonds decides to leave the Giants after this year, does anyone believe that he'll sign with an NL team? Not when he can sit in the dugout every day, go to the plate 4 times a game, and then return to the dugout without having to field another baseball the rest of his life.

There is some hope for the NL, however. There have been several borderline great prospects to come out of National League clubs in recent years. Albert Pujols, although very young, has already established himself as the best hitter in baseball today. The left side of the Mets infield, with the electric Jose Reyes and the exciting David Wright (at 23, already an MVP candidate), should provide Mets fans with entertainment and talent for quite some time. In addition to Reyes and Wright, Mets fans got another glimpse of the future when Lasting Milledge was briefly called up from Triple-A this month. Although raw, he showed much promise and should be a star in short order.


Little Tidbits:

• Best wishes to Peter Gammons. Hopefully Mr. Gammons recovers quickly and completely.
• The Mets suffered a 1-hit shutout tonight at the hands of 5 Yankee pitchers as they lost their 4th game in a row. They're killing me right now.
• Gerry McNamara wasn't drafted, most likely because his lingering groin injury prevented him from participating in most predraft workouts. I'm still surprised Isiah Thomas didn't trade his next 4 1st-round draft picks to move up to number one and select G-Mac. Thomas was concerned Portland was going to snatch him up at No. 2.
• I'm convinced Adam Dunn should be working less on hitting the ball out of the ballpark and more about hitting it somewhere inside the ballpark, maybe on the ground or something. It's literally home run or strikeout for this guy.
• Ivan Basso and Jan Ulrich were both kicked out of the Tour de France for their involvement in a doping scandal. For the 10 or 15 American fans of the Tour that were planning on watching it without Lance Armstrong being involved, this is disappointing. I had Basso winning and Ulrich coming in 3rd.