Sports Blog

N.L. EAST
1. Philadelphia 48 - 38
2. Florida 46 - 44
3. Atlanta 43 - 45
4. NY Mets 42 - 45
5. Washington 26 - 61

Supposedly, one of the strongest divisions going into the season, the N.L. East has been a big disappointment.  Philadelphia coming off a championship season has had a potent offense but have struggled to find consistent pitching.  Look for them to make a big deal at the trade deadline, possibly Roy Holliday, to further separate themselves from the rest of the division.  The Mets have been loaded with injuries and have been forced to play with many people out of position.  Good news could be on the way, however, because Jose Reyes and Carlos Delgado might be back to start the second half of the season.  That will give them a chance to compete for the division in the second half.  Florida has been solid all season but the question is: will management make a move to help them seriously compete for the division?   It doesn’t look like it going to happen.  Atlanta’s close too but I don’t see them staying there in the second half.

Predicted Finish: Philadelphia, NY Mets, Florida, Atlanta, Washington

N.L. CENTRAL
1. St. Louis 49 - 42
2. Milwaukee 45 - 43
3. Chicago 43 - 43
4. Houston 44 - 44
5. Cincinnati 42 - 45
6. Pittsburgh 38 - 50

St. Louis has been the class of the division, with Albert Pujols, for the first half.  Its been sort of a surprise that they have been this good.  They are going to have to keep playing good baseball if they want to stay in first because four other teams are within striking distance to start the second half.  Milwaukee and the disappointing Cubs have the best shot at catching them for the division and could make a big deal to put them ahead in the race.  I think it will be a fun race to watch with the second place team possibly winning the Wild Card.  Houston and Cincinnati are close but a bad start to the second half could make them both sellers at the trade deadline.

Predicted Finish: Chicago, St. Louis, Milwaukee, Cincinnati, Houston, Pittsburgh

N.L. WEST
1. LA Dodgers 56 - 32
2. San Francisco 49 - 39
3. Colorado 47 - 41
4. Arizona 38 - 51
5. San Diego 36 - 52

The Dodgers have been the best team in baseball, with or without Manny Ramirez, for the first half.  Good news is that they will have Manny for the whole second half.  Their pitching has been surprisingly solid so far, as it was looked upon as a weakness to start the season.  If they keep playing the way they are, the second place team in the division can only hope for the Wild Card.  Speaking of the Wild Card, San Francisco and Colorado are first in second in that race at the break.  San Francisco’s pitching has been unbelievable and they are a bat away from becoming a very dangerous team for the playoffs.  Colorado has a solid all around team that is capable of going on long wining streaks.  It will be a fun race till the end.

Predicted Finish: LA Dodgers, San Francisco(Wild Card), Colorado, Arizona, San Diego

Image Source: AP Photo

This week in sports blogs and news:

• Ryan Howard is officially cool: Rolls to a party with Snoop Dogg - Deadspin
• Atlanta will do anything to bring fans into the seats. Even Bribery - Sports by Brooks
• Hideo Nomo retires - Sports Illustrated
• Brady Quinn’s photo end up on an unlikely website - Larry Brown Sports
• Top 7 Fantasy to Real Life Baseball Discrepancies - Joe Sports Fan
  
• Get your New York Yankees update with the Yankees Chick
• The Sports Hernia tries to explain what’s wrong with Ryan Braun - The Sports Hernia

This week on the Smarter Sports Blog we covered:

• “Why is this fun again?!”
• Darth Vader Always Gets His Way. Even in Golf
• Who in the World is Josh Hamilton?
• Rampage Jackson Leads Police on a Chase. Arrested in California
• Clippers Steal Marcus Camby from the Nuggets

This week in sports blogs and news:

• Matt Jones busted with cocaine - SI
• What!? Lebron James and Chris Paul lose a pick up game! Three! - Larry Brown Sports
• Fans vote in Longoria and Hart for All-Star team - Fox Sports
• Ex-Florida basketball star charged with rape - Sports By Brooks
• Corey Maggette signs with the Warriors - Fox Sports
• The Okahoma City Thundercats? - Deuce of Davenport

This week on the Smarter Sports Blog we covered:

• Say hello, to my little friend
  
• Indians Trade C.C. Sabathia to the Milwaukee Brewers
• The Team Formerly Known as the Seattle Supersonics
• A’s Trade Rich Harden to the Chicago Cubs
• Elton Brand Leaves the Clippers for Philadelphia

The Milwaukee Brewers aren’t the only ones pulling off big deals.

The Chicago Cubs responded to the C.C. Sabathia trade by trading for an ace themselves. The Cubs acquired Rich Harden from the Oakland Athletics, hoping to bolster their starting rotation. In exchange for Harden and righty Chad Gaudin, the A’s got pitcher Sean Gallagher, outfielders Matt Murton and Eric Patterson, and minor leaguer John Donaldson.

With such high powered offenses such as the Philadelphia Phillies and the Milwaukee Brewers all vying for a postseason run, the Cubs needed an extra arm to team up with Carlos Zambrano in the rotation.

Despite Harden’s battle with injuries the past six seasons, Harden is a proven winner and can help the Cubs reach their ultimate goal.

But there is no pressure on Harden. He was only brought in to help break a World Series curse that spans 100 years.

Harden is 5-1 this season with a 2.34 ERA.

Source: Fox Sports

Photo Source.

It looks like C.C. Sabathia is headed to the Brewers.

With the trade deadline inching closer, teams in contention have been looking for that extra piece to get to the World Series and it looks like Milwaukee Brewers were the ones willing to give up the most for this major player.

The Cleveland Indians gave up Sabathia in exchange for Class AA outfielder Matt LaPorta, Class AAA left-hander Zach Jackson, Class A right-hander Rob Bryson and a player to be named later.

The Brewers were just one of six teams that were in the Sabathia sweepstakes, which included the Dodgers, who just couldn’t give the Indians what they wanted in return for the CY Young winner.

The Brewers currently are three and a half games behind the Chicago Cubs for first place in the NL Central and would win the Wild Card spot if it had to be determined today. A one-two punch of Sabathia and Ben Sheets could very well be a good combo for the Brewers matching up against other top teams. That is if Sheets can remain healthy.

The Brewers though are going to try to drain every ounce of talent out of Sabathia because next year he will become a free agent where he’ll easily ask for $20 to $25 million per year on a new contract expected to be around six years. That could be too steep for a ball club looking to retain players such as Prince Fielder.

For the Brewers sake and for how much they’re giving up, let’s hope this deal works out for them. If not, then this could be a hard bullet to swallow for many years.

Source: Fox Sports

Photo Source.

All good streaks are bound to end and that’s what happened with Brandon Webb’s last night.

The Arizona Diamondback pitcher’s scoreless inning streak ended Wednesday night at 42 innings when Prince Fielder singled home a run in the first inning.

The night still ended well for Webb as the reigning NL Cy Young winner got his sixth consecutive win after defeating the Milwaukee Brewers 3-2.

Webb, who started his streak July 20, gave up two runs in seven innings worked to improve to 14-8.

Source: Fox Sports
Photo Source.