Blog Posts For Tag: Phillies

The first week of MLB baseball has come and gone, and if the season ended today there would be one clear MVP candidate in the AL, the Texas Rangers’ Nelson Cruz. Cruz has been on a tear, crushing the ball over the fence, making plenty of contact, and driving in the runners when he has the chance.

To dissolve or not to dissolve, that is the question. Commission Bud Selig has been presented with a few ideas to improve the game as MLB tries to offer something new to divert our attention from the steroid saga that simply will not die. The latest ideas include realigning the leagues to do away with the divisions.

This could definitely be a World Series the country could get behind. On one side there are the New York Yankees, the most hated team in baseball trying to win its first title since the 20th Century. On the other side are the Philadelphia Phillies, the defending champions trying to start a dynasty of their own. On both sides there are insanely passionate sports fans that could leave 108 miles worth of blood and guts between New Yankee Stadium in the Bronx and Citizens Bank Park in Philly.

I do not know if anyone noticed between news of Randy Johnson reaching 300 wins and the Braves dishonoring Tom Glavine, but this weekend the only two teams with winning percentages above .600 are playing. The Los Angeles Dodgers, who have continued to play incredible baseball in the absence of Manny Ramirez, host the Philadelphia Phillies in a rematch of last season’s NLCS.

One of the most exciting things about the beginning of the baseball season is the first few weeks. I think they are kind of like he first few rounds of the NCAA Tournament. You get some real surprises at first before reality sets in and brings those hopeful teams and players crashing down to Earth. Here are some of my favorite trends that will come burning through the stratosphere over the next couple of weeks.

Normally I would be appalled by the rampant East Coast bias that has an undeniable imprint on ESPN and many other major publications and media outlets. However, with three number teams in March Madness, the return of the NFC East to the forefront of competitive football ball this last fall, and after a  quick look at the divisions throughout Major League Baseball I simply cannot blame the networks. Even though the MLB season has yet to begin I can already rank the divisions pretty confidently and found that the East is king this year.

The American League East just got a little more interesting. The Tampa Bay Rays are well on their way to completing a deal that will bring Pat Burrell to Florida for just $16 million over two seasons.

So I actually thought that New York baseball was dead. Ok, maybe not dead, but definitely in decline. The New York Yankees were letting go of most of their high priced free agents walk. They were loading up on younger talent like Xavier Nady and veterans like Nick Swisher. These players were going to help with a few wins, but the big spending days with star-studded lineups were over.