2nd Time a Charm..?

Javier Vazquez has been traded for the 5th time in 7 years, and that's probably for a good reason. The 33 year old right hander clearly has great stuff, but inconsistency has led him to find himself wearing a new uniform quite frequently. This will be the second go-around in pinstripes for Mr. Vazquez. The first time ended bitterly after he tapered off in the second half of the season after an all-star appearance and a strong first half. Last year was an impressive year for Vazquez going 15-10 with a 2.87 ERA for a on-and-off Atlanta Braves ballclub. He was second in the National League (behind Tim Lincecum) in strikeouts, getting 238 of them. If Vazquez can contribute this in a rotation that already features CC Sabathia, A.J. Burnett, and Andy Pettitte, the Yanks' rotation is just a strong as the Boston rotation.

The other side of the coin, Melky Cabrera. There are a lot of Yankee fans just happy he is gone, which is not something that is easy to understand. The Melk-man delivered down the stretch more periodically than every Yankee outside of Jeter and Rodriguez. He made every play in the field, he made every throw, and hit for the cycle. He hit from both sides of the plate, and he was a flat out sparkplug. Melky Cabrera will be missed in New York although most disagree. If Vazquez can deliver as he did last year, that will make it easier to let Melky go, however the Yankees now must address their left field needs, and the Yanks' might be in that Holliday spirit, and not just because it's Christmas time.

Giants Walk Over Washington

It was a must-win game for the New York football Giants on a Monday night in Landover, Maryland. The media had been hyping up the Washington Redskins because of their recent offensive successes, and their "playing for pride" mindset. The majority of the media had also decided to declare the Giants out of everything prior to the game. Although the Giants have to rely on Green Bay or Dallas to lose a football game, they can still put themselves in a good spot if they were to win out. However, it starts with putting one foot down in front of the other, and the first step was beating the Washington Redskins on Monday Night Football.

The Giants came out firing putting 7 on the board on the first drive of the game and taking 9 minutes and 13 seconds to do so. They did not have a gain larger than 14 yards on that first drive, and not one reception was made by a wide receiver. The Giant defense would then take the field and show Washington what they would be facing the rest of the way. They showed blitz packages and actually came up with a sack and forced fumble during that 3 and out. The Giant offense would then throw to wide receivers the next drive, and they were able to get 7. Kevin Gillbride waited all season long to call a brilliant game, but what a brilliant game it was. Although it was the now 4-10 Redskins, the Giants scored emphatically, each and every time. 45-12 would be the final score in this one. It looks like this could be the end of the Jim Zorn era in Washington, and then end of the Jason Campbell at quarterback as well, who turned it over twice throwing 2 interceptions, and just really never got anything going. The minute Todd Collins was brought in after Jason Campbell was injured, the Skins got right down the field with a chance for their first points of the game and that's when the Redskins gave up. The Skins tried to get creative shifting 7 men to the left side of the field during a field goal try, the Giants would then call time out. The Skins would come back out, and do the same exact thing, and the Giants were not fooled, eventually getting an interception that was a fade-away throw from the right hand of the punter/holder Hunter Smith. The Giants go home to face a Carolina team who is fresh off of an impressive performance, beating the Minnesota Vikings 26-7. The Giants will then face the Vikings themselves on the road in week 17, however the focus is on Carolina. If the Giants get hot at the right time, it could be scary, and real unfortunate for the rest of the NFC.

This isn't written in my words, but it sure is interesting..

How many zeros in a billion? This is too true to be funny. The next time you hear a politician use the word 'billion' in a casual manner, think about whether you want the 'politicians' spending YOUR tax money. A billion is a difficult number to comprehend,but one advertising agency did a good job of putting that figure into some perspective in one of it's releases.
A.A billion seconds ago it was 1959.
B..A billion minutes ago Jesus was alive.
C..A billion hours ago our ancestors were living in the Stone Age..
D.A billion days ago no-one walked on the earth on two feet.
E. A billion dollars ago was only 8 hours and 20 minutes, at the rate our governmentis spending it.

While this thought is still fresh in our brain...let's take a look at New Orleans ..It's amazing what you can learn with some simple division. Louisiana Senator,Mary Landrieu (D) is presently asking Congress for 250 BILLION DOLLARS to rebuild New Orleans . Interesting number...what does it mean? A.Well... if you are one of the 484,674 residents of New Orleans (every man, woman, and child) you each get $516,528.
B..Or... if you have one of the 188,251 homes in New Orleans , your home gets $1,329,787.
C..Or... if you are a family of four...your family gets $2,066,012.
Washington, D. C HELLO! Are all your calculators broken??
Building Permit Tax CDL License Tax Cigarette Tax Corporate Income Tax Dog License Tax Federal Income Tax (Fed)Federal Unemployment Tax (FU TA) Fishing License Tax Food License Tax Fuel Permit Tax Gasoline Tax Hunting License Tax Inheritance Tax Inventory Tax IRS Interest Charges (tax on top of tax) IRS Penalties (tax on top of tax) Liquor Tax Luxury Tax Marriage License Tax Medicare Tax Property Tax Real Estate Tax Service charge taxes Social Security Tax Road Usage Tax (Truckers) Sales Taxes Recreational Vehicle TaxSchool Tax State Income Tax State Unemployment Tax (SUTA) Telephone Federal Excise Tax Telephone Federal Universal Service Fee Tax Telephone Federal, State and Local Surcharge Tax Telephone Minimum Usage Surcharge TaxTelephone Recurring and Non-recurring Charges Tax Telephone State and Local Tax Telephone Usage Charge Tax Utility Tax Vehicle License Registration T ax Vehicle Sales Tax Watercraft Registration Tax Well Permit Tax Workers Compensation Tax(And to think, we left British Rule to avoid so many taxes)
STILL THINK THIS IS FUNNY? Not one of these taxes existed 100 years ago...and our nation was the most prosperous in the world. We had absolutely no national debt... We had the largest middle class in the world... and Mom stayed home to raise the kids. What happened?Can you spell 'politicians!' And I still have to press '1' for English. I hope this goes around the U S A at least 100 times
What the heck happened?????

MLB Hot Stove Ignites

Today was a very busy day in the Major League Baseball offseason. The headline of today which ran through the wires this evening was the moving of Roy Halladay, and maybe even more importantly, Cliff Lee. The Philadelphia Phillies have moved very, very close, pending physicals, and contract extensions, to landing 6-time AL All-Star, and the 2003 Cy Young winner Roy Halladay. The 3-team blockbuster swap would send star pitcher Cliff Lee to the Seattle Mariners, outfielder Michael Taylor, catching prospect Travis d'Arnaud, and either prospect pitcher Kyle Drabek or lefthander J.A. Happ to Toronto. Depending on whether it's Happ or Drabek, trading Draben would get them Seattle's top pitching prospect Phillipe Aumont, who was originally destined for Toronto. The moving of Cliff Lee is a bit questionable even though he already had said he will probably test the waters of free agency at some point. He already proved he can pitch in the biggest spotlight in baseball, the World Series in New York against the Yankees. Lee was dominant ever since he was brought over by the Phills, however the Phillies did manage to lose out in the World Series, and they figure bringing over a more established pitcher like Doc Halladay should do justice. However, Halladay is used to pitching in Toronto, Philadelphia is a whole new scene for the 32 year old. Only time will tell if this deal will pan out for the Phillies. Otherwise, General Manager Ruben Amaro may be under some scrutiny...

This deal completely stole Boston's thunder. However, the Red Sox were able to throw some serious bills in acquiring former Angel's ace John Lackey. The Sox signed the bulldog of a 31 year old hurler for a ballpark figure of 85 million dollars over 5 years. The deal is somewhat similar to the Yankees' signing of A.J. Burnett during last year's offseason. Lackey should be a solid fixture in a rotation that already includes the likings of Josh Beckett, Jon Lester, and Daisuke Matzusaka. The problem with Lackey is the injuries he has dealt with the past couple years, which is also similar to A.J. Burnett in year's past, however Mr. Burnett missed not one start due to injury this past season. If John Lackey can stay on the mound, Boston's rotation should be pretty tough.

The New York Yankees have been under the radar this offseason and for good reason. The Yanks are coming of an impressive championship season. What they have done thus far is re-signed Andy Pettitte and let go of pitcher Chien-Ming-Wang and World Series MVP Hideki Matsui, who signed with the Anaheim Angels for about 6 million for 1 year. This is the second year in a row the Angels have taken a former Yankee off of the market after picking up right fielder Bobby Abreu last year. The Yanks still are in negotiations with Johnny Damon, but things may not bid well money-wise for Damon after the splash deal made for Cutis Granderson. The Yanks are said to be looking at former Milwaukee Brewer ace Ben Sheets, and former Oakland Athletics pitcher, 2-time All-Star Justin Duchscherer. Ben Sheets has been known for his filthy-electric stuff and has been elected to 4 All-Star games. Sheets has had an 18 strikeout game in his career, and has established himself as one of the game's more premier power pitchers. However, he is also known for injuries that have plagued him during several seasons in the bigs, and all of last year being one of them. He would be a project, however if he can deliver, he could be a serious catalyst in an already world champion rotation.

Eagles Evade Hungry Giants, Grab Sole Possession of First Place

The Giants took some kind of loss to the Philadelphia Eagles Sunday night. It was a run-and-gun type ballgame, considerably one of the more exciting games all year. If you happen to enjoy smashmouth defense, sorry. 45-38 was the final in this one, and the score is absolutely symbolic of the outcome. The Eagles opened the game with a quick 14-0 cushion. They marched right down Big Blue's throats scoring 7 in 3 minutes and 27 seconds. They would then steal a Brandon Jacobs' fumble which hit off of tight end Kevin Boss's foot, went right to Sheldon Brown who took it 60 yards for the score. The Giants were resilient at times, coming back from that deficit, and then a 30-17 deficit and actually taking a 31-30 lead. It looked good for the Giants until Desean Jackson caught a 60 touchdown, which then he would taunt the Giants by walking backwards "shimmying" into the endzone. No flag was thrown, and that would end up being the knock-out punch for the G-Men. The officiating in the game was incredibly poor. No sides were taken, the referee crew just happened to miss many obvious pass interferences, holds, and numerous clipping penalties, however Philadelphia embraced the adversity, and took it to the Giants in their own stadium.

Although it hurt the Giants' divisional hopes, they still have life in the wildcard picture. While some may not think they are deserving of a playoff spot, think back to 2007 when the Giants were this close to losing out in the playoff race after losing to the Washington Redskins in difficult windy, rainy conditions at Giants Stadium. Some have said that it was the worst they had ever seen the Giants look in franchise history, however we all know how Giants fans can be. They would then come back with a statement win in the snow in Buffalo. The game was Ahmad Bradshaw's coming out party, and this led them to the pride they displayed in the loss to the undefeated (at the time) New England Patriots. I'm not saying that the Giants have as many playmakers as they did that year, however they went from under the radar, to Superbowl contenders. The Giants will in fact need some kind of turnaround in the final 3 games of the season in which they will face the Skins, the Carolina Panthers, and to finish out the season with the Minnesota Vikings as they did last year. Dallas will face New Orleans next week, so the Giants aren't in too bad of shape if the Saints take care of business like they have literally done week in, and week out. The Giants luckily have the tie-breaker on Dallas, however if they get to the postseason, they must make sure their Bill Sheridan's defense improves during these next 3 games, or they might as well lose the next 3 and snag a mediocre draft pick.

Curtis Call; Grand Opening at Winter Mettings for Yanks

The New York Yankees took part in a 3-team trade which teams swapped the likings of Curtis Granderson, for young phenom outfielder Austin Jackson, right-handed pitcher Phil Coke. The Detroit Tigers would then go ahead and send, now journeyman, Edwin Jackson to the Arizona Dimondbacks for starter Max Scherzer. The D-Backs would also acquire right-handed pitcher Ian Kennedy from the Yanks. This is the first big move of the offseason for Major League Baseball.

When breaking down the trade, it looks like the Yankees made a bad deal on the surface, but once one looks into it, it is a very sensible trade. Austin Jackson has great potential to be a very good, exciting outfielder for years to come. However, even if Jackson is successful, he might be able to reach the level that Curtis Granderson is already playing at. Granderson is known for his uncanny ability to cover serious ground with his legs in the field and on base, not to mention the guy hit 30 homeruns last year. Granderson, who turns 29 in March, is coming off an all-star season. Mr. Granderson struggles against lefties quite a great deal, however he absolutely tears up right handed pitching. He only hit .249 overall last year, but with words of wisdom from hitting coach Kevin Long, and the short porch in right field, Granderson should not have a problem being a major contributor to the defending world champions. He will join the outfield cast that includes Nick Swisher, and for now Melky Cabrera. As for Phil Coke and Ian Kennedy, it was nice knowing you and seeing what both of ya'll brought to the table, not much, outside of Coke's dominant September in 2008.

The New York Yankees are now focusing on the hunt for Halladay. It will be interesting to see what the Yanks do considering Toronto is looking at Phil Hughes and/or Joba Chamberlain among others. Halladay, 32, is arguably one of the best pitchers in the game, and would make the Yankee rotation murderers row. However, Halladay has never pitched in another uniform outside of the Blue Jays, and has never necessarily pitched in a "big game." It would be hard to imagine him not performing up to par, however he is on the other side of 30, and the Yanks already had a good enough rotation to get them rings. Don't forget New York has former 2-time 19 game winner Chien-Ming Wang on the mend who could add some serious flavor to the rotation. That is still a huge question mark when a pitcher is coming off of the injuries he has dealt with. Plus the Bombers must decide if they will renew his contract. The Yanks must decide whether Hughes and Chamberlain are rotation guys, relief men, or trade bait. The smart idea would be to not trade either of those young guns.

Giants Sweep Stars, Dallas' December woes continue

The New York Giants did what they needed to do against the Dallas Cowboys in week 13. The men had no choice but to win to keep up with the pace of the NFC playoff push. After a 31-24 win against their division rival, New York has a pulse. Not only do the Giants get to breathe, but they are only within a game of those same Cowboys and the Philadelphia Eagles as well who are tied for the lead in the NFC East with 8-4 records. The Giants have won the season series against Dallas, winning both games, so this means they hold the tiebreaker. As for the football game itself, the Giants played classic "New York football Giants" football. The running game flourished, with Jacobs and Bradshaw both playing a necessary role in getting the ball down the field. The defense gave up 24 points, however they made the stops when they needed them, and they played with a little more of a swagger, more attitude, and at times they were able to get pressure on Romo. The Giants also had a special teams play help win them a game. The special teams unit for the G-Men have failed to do big things for the last several games. Domenik Hixon returned a punt for a touchdown using a series of jukes to break free.

The Dallas Cowboys still have their work cut out for them here in December. Romo put up numbers, but at the end of the day, Romo is once again on the wrong side of the column in December. The media will keep poking fun at the Cowboys for their lackluster December play until they show they can get off the snide. Dallas, Philadelphia, and the New York Giants are all very tight with one game being the difference between them, however one of these teams may not make the playoffs, so everyone is going to be gunning for one another here down the stretch. The Giants and Eagles get down next Sunday night at Giants Stadium, while Dallas will meet the San Diego Chargers at Cowboy Stadium. The Giants will have the chance to make up some serious ground. With a win against Philly, and a Cowboys loss, the Giants will be once again sitting on top of the NFC East. This is much easier said than done, and the Giants should not be worrying about what other teams are doing. The Giants must follow up on the stellar performance they gave against Dallas, and come out firing on all cylinders and play good, solid football. If the Giants play legitimate football, they will have nothing to worry about. Everything should fall into place for the G-Men if all goes well.