And we're back!
1. Over the past few years, my love of baseball has dwindled tremendously. The combination of constant PED nonsense, a terrible Mets team (I have found myself watching the Oakland A's more than any other MLB team over the past 3-4 years), and 24/7/365 access to football and hockey has taken away much of the joy I possess (and viewing time) for baseball. However, the off-season Hot Stove and the mid-season Trade Deadline always stoke my interest. The trade deadline is tricky day in any professional sport. The NFL trade deadline is not a big deal since the schemes and demands that surround the game of football make it nearly impossible to execute a mid-season trade that would be beneficial to anyone. The NBA and NHL trade deadlines have been subdued in recent years thanks to hard salary cap situations in those leagues. But the MLB deadline always has tremendous possibilities surrounding it. I remember when the deadline used to be at midnight Eastern time and you would stay up late to watch ESPN's Baseball Tonight and try to keep up with the madness, hoping there was a megadeal to be had. Recently, MLB has moved its deadline to 4pm ET on July 31st. I'm sure this shift makes the MLB offices that are processing and cross-checking all the deals a bit happier but it takes away a bit of the allure for the casual fan. My expectations have been moderate at best for a while now but this year's deadline was flat-out awesome, renewing some of my interest in the game.
Watching the Detroit Tigers and Oakland Athletics basically stare each other in the face and try to outdo each other at the trading table was a sight to behold. The A's have been a perennial playoff for the better part of the last ten years under the watchful eye of GM Billy Beane and his "Moneyball" philosophy. The A's have been playoff regulars of sorts but haven't reached the World Series since 1990, where they were swept by the Cincinnati Reds. In the span of about three weeks, the A's have shown they're all-in. Oakland picked up Jason Hammel and Jeff Samardzija from the Cubs and then swung a huge deal for Boston ace Jon Lester. The thing that makes the Lester deal so stunning is that it wasn't a megastar-for-prospects deal. The A's sent their cleanup hitter (outfielder Yoenis Cespedes) to the Sox to complete the deal. Not to be outdone, the Tigers pulled center fielder Austin Jackson in the middle of their deadline day game against the Chicago White Sox to complete a deal for Tampa Bay Rays ace left-hander David Price.
I don't know what was crazier: The A's trading away their cleanup hitter in the middle of a pennant race or the Tigers pulling their center fielder mid-inning. Kudos to both of these clubs. The A's, Tigers, and Angels are clearly the class of the American League (and perhaps all of baseball) and are so close to one another and are the clear AL favorites to reach the World Series. With that in mind, moves needed to made. It was so refreshing to see teams make some "go after it" trades. We've all become accustomed to teams trading away stars and getting nothing tangible in return. To watch what essentially breaks down to a Lester-for-Cespedes swap was awesome, like fantasy baseball come to life. We just don't see many of those trades anymore. And then for the Tigers to go all-in on David Price in response was even crazier. The Tigers and the A's are firmly planted in the win-now window. The Tigers made World Series appearances in 2006 and 2012 but couldn't finish the job. They're also the owners of three consecutive AL Central titles. Their window to win is now. Likewise, the A's have been arguably the most successful regular season team of the past decade but have failed to reach the World Series. With Hammel, Samardzija, and Lester joining Scott Kazmir and Sonny Gray, the A's have a phenomenal rotation that can match up with anyone...especially the Tigers trio of Justin Verlander, Max Scherzer, and Price.
A few more pieces from the AL: The A's have to be thrilled with their new rotation after throwing the likes of Gil Heredia, Cory Lidle, Ted Lilly, Jarrod Parker, and Dan Straily (courtesy of ESPN.com's David Schoenfield) in recent postseason elimination games. The last time the Red Sox unloaded contract headaches (Adrian Gonzalez, Josh Beckett, Carl Crawford) was 2012. The next season they were World Series Champions. The biggest loser here...the Angels. When the two biggest postseason threats to you get that much better, a simple move for closer Huston Street isn't nearly enough to move the needle.
2. The Cincinnati Bengals re-signed quarterback Andy Dalton to a 6-year, $115 million deal. The deal is for $96 million with bonuses and incentives that can drive it to $115 million. Only $17 million is guaranteed and apparently the Bengals can walk away (with a small financial penalty) after any year of the deal (All contract terms courtesy of SI's Peter King). There are many critics of this contract and practically all of them point to Dalton's 0-3 postseason record. I have read several columns (including a good read by Grantland.com's Bill Barnwell) citing Dalton's inability to maintain poise and mechanics in the face of pressure. Many columnists have done a great job disproving the theory that the "postseason lights" are too bright for Dalton. They point to plenty of advanced metrics that show massive drops in Dalton's QBR under pressure. My verdict on this deal has nothing to do with numbers or metrics of any kind.
The Bengals were a franchise in a state of disarray, making just two playoff appearances from 1991 to 2010 and only finishing above .500 in those two seasons (They went 8-8 on four other occasions). There was a clear lack of direction and with Carson Palmer recovering from a major knee injury, unhappy with the direction of the team, and looking for a way out, the time for change had arrived. The Bengals spent the next several years drafting well, making smart free agent pickups, and then hit the jackpot in drafting wide receiver A.J. Green. In the second round of the 2011 NFL Draft, Cincy hitched its wagon to Dalton, the former TCU quarterback. Dalton has won 30 regular season contests in three seasons at the helm and has brought the Bengals to the playoffs in each of his three seasons. While I agree that his playoff performance (one touchdown, six interceptions) is not flattering, I believe that he is not the sole reason Cincy has failed to advance in its three recent playoff appearances. Football is the ultimate team game and as important as the quarterback position is, even he can't win it alone. Just ask Peyton Manning and the Denver Broncos about last year's Super Bowl. Dalton has brought much-needed stability to the QB position in Cincy and he actually wants to be there. He's a very grounded individual that the organization has a tremendous amount of faith in. I agree with this decision. QBs are highly-paid and better to pay him now then be forced into a franchise tag situation this off-season. Take the evil you know over the evil you don't know. Cincy has a great amount of weapons surrounding him: one of the best offensive lines in the league, Gio Bernard, Tyler Eifert, and Green (just to name a few). Dalton's has tremendous poise and mechanics and is a strong decision-maker against teams that are not blitz-happy. I believe that new offensive coordinator Hue Jackson (Both of last year's coordinators, OC Jay Gruden & DC Mike Zimmer, are now head coaches.) can work with Dalton on his response to pressure. I also understand, though, that there is no coachable cure for "happy feet" in the pocket. Cincy will have to scheme around this as they have done a good job of in the regular season. Hopefully, Dalton can get the Bengals back to the postseason and they won't have to match up with a blitz-happy team like the Houston Texans of 2011 & 2012. I know I'm in the minority but, bottom line, I think this is a good deal for both Dalton and the Bengals. Dalton gets paid and gets some job security. The Bengals aren't paying much more than the going rate for quarterbacks, have a proven commodity, and know exactly what they need to do to make him better and get over the hump. I like this deal a lot and hope to see Dalton pick up a postseason win and quiet some of his critics.
3. I also want to give kudos to the Arizona Cardinals for locking up cornerback Patrick Petersen to a long-time deal. The Cards may have overpaid a bit ($70 million, including $48 million guaranteed) but it was a necessary move. Arizona could not afford to allow Petersen to test free agency. He is in the process of usurping Larry Fitzgerald as the face of the franchise. This is also a team that needs every weapon it can get in the rough and tumble NFC West with Seattle and San Francisco. Petersen is a proven hard-worker and although there are times where he relies too much on athleticism and not enough on fundamental technique, his track record that he will continue to work hard and get better...good news for the Cards.
4. I, for one, really hope the Cleveland Cavaliers and Minnesota Timberwolves make this Kevin Love deal on August 23rd, the first day Andrew Wiggins can be traded after signing his rookie deal with Cleveland. The NBA has done a tremendous job of making its free agency period an all summer long matter of intrigue. From Lebron James returning to Cleveland to Carmelo returning to New York to Eric Bledsoe still sitting in limbo, it's been an entertaining NBA free agency period. It's clear that Cleveland is pushing to win-now mode to appease Lebron, even though he says he understands that it will take time to make the Cavs competitive. To add Love to a core that includes James, Kyrie Irving, Tristian Thompson, Dion Waiters, and Anderson Varejao would instantly make the Cavs favorites in the East. More than that, I just don't want to hear about "a possible Kevin Love trade" anymore. Let's just trade him and get the rebuilding in full swing in Minnesota.
5. I'm absolutely thrilled the Devils have re-signed Cory Schneider. It's still a bit strange to admit that the Martin Brodeur era is over but I truly believe it's time to move forward. Having the 28-year-old Schneider under contract for the next seven years (at a manageable $6 million cap hit) is great stability for Jersey's Team. Schneider has had some of the best numbers in the league over the last few years but has to yet to prove himself as a number one goalie. He gets his chance now as the Devils have firmly hitched their wagon to him. It will be nice to go into next season without any questions about Marty's future and/or playing time hanging over the Devils. Overall, I'm pretty happy with their moves this offseason. Offense was a priority and (as we already know) you've got to overpay to get goals in Jersey so I can live with the 5-year deal inked by Mike Cammalleri. The Martin Havlat deal is low-risk/high-reward, similar to the deal Jaromir Jagr signed with the team last summer. Losing Mark Fayne and Anton Volchenkov doesn't bother me much. There is a wealth of strong defencemen in the system and it's time for them to get playing time to prove themselves, particularly Adam Larsson, the number four overall pick in the 2011 NHL Draft.
6. The WWE has become practically unwatchable these days. Daniel Bryan finally made it to the top of the mountain, only to get hurt shortly thereafter. CM Punk walked away from the company. The Undertaker saw his streak end at WrestleMania 30. John Cena is constantly holding or around the WWE Championship. The Shield was broken up. On top of all that, they keep giving huge pushes to Brock Lesnar, a part-timer who magically gets a WWE Title shot at Summerslam. I love Chris Jericho, but the latest Y2J return angle isn't doing much for me at all. Triple H has always been my favorite wrestler, but I'm getting tired of his act as well. Either be an authority figure or get back into the ring and be a wrestler. I understand it's hard to give up the in-ring competition and make that transition but this is tough to watch. Triple H was arguably the best heel of the last 15 years. His run as "The Game" in 2000 was legendary and made for tremendous television. But his cunning heel personality was born of intensity and it's hard to manufacture that when you're on TV in a suit 90% of the time. Perhaps Trips will become a great on-screen villain as an authority figure but no one did it quite like Mr. McMahon himself. There are also no new starts on the horizon. Guys that were tabbed as breakthrough stars such as The Miz, Dolph Ziggler, and Sheamus have fizzled out and faded into the mid-card picture. Will Roman Reigns and Dean Ambrose lead the next wave of stars or am I going to be stuck watching John Cena reign as WWE Champion for the next five years. In the meantime, pay attention to Ring of Honor. There is some absolutely tremendous wrestling going on in that company right now.
7. That'll cover it for now.
-Meech
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