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SUNDAY ANGELS ROUNDUP: Guerrero Powers Angels, Kendrick Back In Lineup

WiHaloFan, Halos Heaven — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 15:48:00 -0000

Up next for Angels: Sunday vs. Baltimore - Los Angeles Times
Joe Saunders vs. Rich Hill

Angels rally to defeat Orioles | angels, four, guerrero, runs, orioles - Sports - OCRegister.com
The Baltimore Orioles had a four-run lead in the fifth inning Saturday night, but by the time the Angels and Vladimir Guerrero were finished, that lead was a distant memory.

Howie Kendrick is back in the infield mix - Los Angeles Times
The Angels recalled second baseman Howie Kendrick just as his replacement, Maicer Izturis, was getting hot at the plate.

Really slow news day. If anyone has a favorite link that they'd like to share, please leave a comment. More information is always better.

Poll

Would you like to see stories about other teams added to this daily roundup?

Braves Looking to Trade Yunel Escobar and Javier Vasquez?

Matt Buggenhagen, MLB Daily Dish — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 15:32:05 -0000

More photos » by Al Behrman - AP

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According to ESPN.com Buster Olney, the Atlanta Braves may consider trading infielder Yunel Escobar, and pitcher Javier Vasquez, in order to acquire a big bat in return.

The Braves currently rank 22^nd in the majors in runs scored and 20^th in OPS could certainly use a big offensive addition. However, parting ways with Vasquez (who would immediately become the best pitcher on the market) might be tough to do given the fact that the team is only three games behind the NL East leading Phillies.

The emergence of Tommy Hanson has certainly given the Braves some flexibility within their rotation, which makes the idea of moving Vasquez somewhat possible.

The Braves by all indications don't have much payroll wiggle room, so it's believed that any sort of trade would have to be a dollar-for-dollar type deal. That alone greatly reduces the chances of anything realistically happening.

Starting pitching has steadily become a premium item in this current market, and given the lack of available depth, a player of Vasquez quality could be an extremely valuable commodity. In Escobar's case there are several teams that are looking for added help in the middle infield, which could give the Braves multiple suitors for his services. Here are six teams Olney believes could be potential options.

Boston Red Sox:

On the surface it looks like the Red Sox could be the perfect trade partner for the Braves. Only problem is it would most likely require them involving a third team. The Braves are looking for a big bat, and the Red Sox have no obvious trade choices in that department, however, they have what every other team wants and that's pitching. Here are some scenarios.

They could engage the Brewers about Corey Hart, or the Indians about someone like Shin-Soo Choo or Matt LaPorta. The Red Sox could flip a pitcher to another team, and that team could flip a hitter to the Braves. Boston also could eat a lot of money on Julio Lugo's contract and hand him over to Atlanta, as a short-term stopgap at shortstop.

Kansas City Royals:

This could be a real easy swap. Braves send over Escobar, who would fill a much needed void for the Royals, and the Royals send over Mark Teahan, whose solid offensive production and versatility would be a perfect match for the Braves. In addition if the Royals eat some of the contract of Jeff Francouer the Braves could include him in the deal. Apparently Royals GM Dayton Moore has liked Francouer for some time.

Milwaukee Brewers:

The Brewers definitely would have no interest in Escobar, but acquiring Vasquez would be intriguing for them. They have plenty of big bats on their team, but don't expect them to part with Ryan Braun or Prince Fielder. An obvious choice would be moving Corey Hart for Javier Vasquez.

Minnesota Twins:

Have a few expendable pieces that they could move for Escobar Michael Cuddyer, Denard Span or Delmon Young. Look for Span to be the likely choice if the Braves elected to deal with the Twins, however, it doesn't seem to be a great match for either team. I'm not sure Span fits the mold of "big bat", but he does have big upside, so who knows.

Los Angeles Dodgers:

They would love to add someone like Vasquez to their rotation especially after loosing Derek Lowe in the offseason. They have some real quality young bats, but I can't imagine them trading any of them. Juan Pierre could be a name that interests the Braves, he bat .318 during Manny Ramirez absence, but in all likelihood the Braves would be looking for more of a power hitter.

Oakland Athletics

Matt Holliday alert! Matt Holliday alert! The A's would certainly be interested in acquiring Escobar, who could be a long-term solution for them at shortstop. In exchange the A's could give up Matt Holliday and Orland Cabrera (could fill shortstop position for the Braves short-term), and the A's probably would be willing to eat a bit of their salary as well.

In the end if I had to pick one team who is the best fit it has to be the Boston Red Sox. While understandably deals can become more complicated when trying to involve a third team, everybody wants the Red Sox's pitching. I'm not sure what they have in Jed Lowerie, and I'm not sure it matters because he's not as good as Escobar. However, all word out of Boston is they are not going to be making any deals until they have a better understanding of Mike Lowell's injury. I guess we'll just have to wait and see, at that point it might be too late.

If you want more MLB DAILY DISH. Follow us on twitter at twitter.com/mlbdailydish.

Poll

Which player would you expect to have a greater impact on a contending team?

Daily Links 7/5

FLCeltsFan, CelticsBlog — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 15:33:42 -0000

Herald Danny Ainge keeps eye on Baby
Rajon Rondo deals with all trade rumors
Globe Summer jobs for bench riders
Patriot Ledger Wallace would be a great addition for the Celtics

CelticsBlog   Your Daily Sheed Update
LOY's Place    Summer League Roster and Updates
New England Sports 24/7   Next Season Will Be Beautiful
Red's Army    Report: Doc Meeting with Grant Hill
Big Baby the Big Consolation Prize?
Green Street   Report: Teams interested in Marbury
Celtics Circuit   Rondo to Get a Taste of the Coaching Lifestyle
Now the Celtics Need Rasheed
Celtics Hub   Hedo Backs Out–Marion Available at Mid-Level?
NESN     Hedo heading north: Turkoglu reportedly to sign with Raptors
Celtics Town   Steph On Way Out, 'Sheed On Way In, Big Baby Situation
Morning Journal   Cavs having trouble finding a dance partner
Cavs don't want to dwell on season of missed opportunity
Basketball Oracle     Offseason Report: The Remaining Free Agents
Keep Me Current   Jon Jennings Q & A: Bringing pro hoops to Maine
Dime   The NBA’s summer of $10M backups, plus T-Mac going to Utah?
FanHouse    Grant Hill Could Reunite With Doc Rivers
Fox Sports   NBA's worst cap-killing contracts
Cavs 24/7   Even with LeBron and Shaq, Cavaliers still having trouble getting NBA free agents to come to Cleveland
NY Daily News    Celtics great Tom 'Satch' Sanders goes home again to East Harlem
Welcome to Cloud City   Loud Links: Oklahoma City Thunder News
NBA.com    Dumars trying to lure Avery Johnson back to sidelines
Hoopsworld    NBA Saturday: What's next for Marion?
Yahoo   Artest: Lakers need to be 'hoodalized'?
Sports of Boston   2009 Celtics Summer League Team Preview
Piston Powered   Odds on the next coach get a lot more even

ANGELS: In First On The Fourth

WiHaloFan, Halos Heaven — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 15:10:00 -0000

Le Tour Stage 2: Post-Stage Thread

Chris..., Podium Cafe — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 15:18:50 -0000

Pretty predictable stage today, being a lumpy sprint stage on the race's opening weekend. Some years in the run-in or in the earlier phase of the stage when chasing down a break becomes more urgent, the sprint teams can get a little disorganized, particularly when nobody is sure who the favorite for the sprint is. Teams with lesser chances start looking around at someone who they think should be responsible for pulling. But with Columbia and Cavendish having established such a dominant reputation, when it came time to chase the inevitable break, Saxo Bank just pulled over and Columbia shot right to the front. Crazy finish with riders missing a turn, but the final-final was as predictable as ever. The results:

Mark Cavendish, Columbia
Tyler Farrar, Garmin, s.t.
Romain Feillu, Agritubel, s.t.
Thor Hushovd, Cervelo, s.t.
Yukiya Arashiro, Bbox Bouygues, s.t.

Is this the best-ever result for a Japanese rider at the Tour? This is a story to watch: if Arashiro wins a stage, it will be BIG BIG news in Japan. Anyway, the Tour does not feature time bonuses this year. Thus, no change on GC:

Fabian Cancellara, Saxo Bank
Alberto Contador, Astana, at 0.18
Bradley Wiggins, Garmin, at 0.19

Sunday a.m. Rangers stuff

Adam J. Morris, Lone Star Ball — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 15:18:09 -0000

More photos » by Matt Slocum - AP

about 12 hours ago: Texas Rangers' Elvis Andrus (1) steals second under the throw to Tampa Bay Rays second baseman Ben Zobrist in the fifth inning of a baseball game, Saturday, July 4, 2009, in Arlington, Texas. Texas won 12-4. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

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Jeff Wilson writes that Derek Holland did a better job mixing in his offspeed pitches last night, rather than just relying on his fastball has he has in past starts.

Ron Washington thinks Kevin Millwood, Michael Young, and Ian Kinsler deserved to be named to the All Star team.

Evan Grant thinks Chris Davis should be benched so the Rangers can play Hank Blalock every day. At this point, I can't really argue for Davis to stay in the lineup...however, I do think that it is worth noting that Blalock is already playing every day against righthanders, and playing him every day means he also faces lefties, who he has a 623 OPS against this season and a 654 OPS against over the course of his career. So I don't think having Blalock play against lefties instead of Davis is going to do anything positive for the offense...realistically, the main impact of benching Davis is getting Andruw Jones more playing time against righthanders.

Jim Reeves has a very positive column up about the Rangers' chances this year and going forward, and suggests that the team could land Josh Willingham for a couple of lesser prospects to help bolster the lineup.

Richard Durrett has a story up about Twitter and social networking and how teams and athletes are embracing it.

Brett Perryman looks at the various options the Rangers have for their bullpen down the stretch.

Steve McNair found dead

JasonB, Bleeding Green Nation — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 15:00:19 -0000

More photos » by STEVE RUARK - AP

about 18 hours ago: FILE - In this Jan. 2, 2004 file photo, Tennessee Titans quarterback Steve McNair smiles while speaking in Baltimore about the NFL Most Valuable Player award which he shared with Indianapolis Colts quarterback Peyton Manning. McNair, who led the Tennessee Titans within a yard of forcing overtime in the 2000 Superbowl and led the Baltimore Ravens to the playoffs, has been shot and killed on Saturday, July 4, 2009. Nashville police spokesman Don Aaron confirmed that police were called to a residence and found McNair and a woman shot to death inside. Aaron said authorities don't yet know the circumstances of the shooting. (AP Photo/Steve Ruark)

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I know I'm a bit late on this but I figured it was worthy of a front page mention. Former Tennessee Titans QB Steve McNair was found dead in his Nashville apartment yesterday.

Former NFL quarterback Steve McNair, who led the famous Tennessee Titans' drive that came a yard short of forcing overtime in the 2000 Super Bowl, was found dead Saturday with multiple gunshot wounds, including one to the head. Police said a pistol was discovered near the body of a woman also shot dead in a downtown condominium

The reasons behind the killing are unknown at this point. What authorities do know is that the woman he was found with was a "friend" and a waitress at a local restaurant that McNair frequented. She was arrested for DUI 2 days prior while driving with McNair in his car.

I always liked Steve McNair and I'm sure I share most Eagles fan's sentiments in sending our condolences to his loved ones.

Titans blog Music City Miracles has a great tribute to McNair up.

Evaluating Stays in Motown: Mikael Samuelsson

MrNorrisTrophy, Winging It In Motown — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 14:57:53 -0000

Mikael Samuelsson, RW

Year	Games	Goals	Assists	Points	+/-	PIM
05-06	71	23	22	45	+27	42
06-07	53	14	20	34	+1	28
07-08	73	11	29	40	+21	26
08-09	81	19	21	40	0	50
Total	278	67	92	159	+49	146

How he came to Detroit: Samuelsson was one of the pickups made following the 2004-2005 lockout and found his game immediately after getting to Detroit. Up until he joined the Red Wings, he had previously spent very mediocre seasons in San Jose, New York (Rangers), Pittsburgh, and Florida. Initially, Samuelsson signed a one year contract but was then rewarded with a three year extension following his first season in red and white.

Impact of his stay: Samuelsson is the classic story of a player finding his game and blossoming in a system. That's not to say that he won't be productive in Vancouver, but rather that the Red Wings were a perfect fit. He went from 3 goals in 37 games played for Florida (.08 g/game) to 23 goals in 71 games in his first year in Detroit (.32 g/game). One of the best assets of Samuelsson is that he was very good at responding and working with new linemates when he was switched around through the lineup.

Highs in Motown: Scoring the first two goals of Game 1 of 2008 Stanley Cup Finals has to be up there as well as winning the Cup that year. As far as a high point from this season, you could point to the overtime game winning goal against the Blackhawks for sure. No doubt about it, Sammy had a thing for clutch goals.

Lows in Motown: Most of these are on the defensive end for Samuelsson. He played great offensive zone hockey but was very lost at times in the defensive end. The most notable as many fans will agree on is the very slack defense he played on Tyler Kennedy in Game 6 of the 2009 Stanley Cup Finals.

Replaceable? Yes, very replaceable. As I hinted at before, Sammy was a guy that truly blossomed and reached his potential in Detroit. Yes he will be missed at times but the player development by the Wings organization is the best in the league and a replacement can be found.

Overall "Grade" for his stay: I give a B, close to a B+ but the defensive lapses are hard to overlook at times.

In the end, Sammy was a great third liner for the Red Wings. He wanted a lot of money and he deserves it. It's hard to develop talent like Samuelsson and keep him for a reasonably low price because let's face it: even though he was a 3rd liner in Detroit, he's a 2nd maybe 1st liner else where at this point in his career.

I know I wish him the best in the rest of his career, as long as he's not playing the Wings.

Poll

How would you grade Mikael Samuelsson's career in Detroit?

Game 80: M's have Sox number again

Randy Booth, Over the Monster — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 14:47:25 -0000

More photos » by Winslow Townson - AP

about 15 hours ago: Seattle Mariners' Ichiro Suzuki, right, of Japan, slides in safely into home as Boston Red Sox catcher Jason Varitek, left, throws back to third base during the third inning of Seattle's 3-2 win in a baseball game at Fenway Park in Boston, Saturday, July 4, 2009. (AP Photo/Winslow Townson)

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Final - 7.4.2009	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Seattle Mariners	0	0	1	0	1	0	0	0	1	3	7	1
Boston Red Sox	0	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	2	4	0
WP: Roy Corcoran (2 - 0) SV: David Aardsma (17) LP: Takashi Saito (2 - 2)

Complete Coverage >

Mariners vs Red Sox recap
Mariners vs Red Sox boxscore

Those pesky M's just have the Red Sox number's. That's all, I guess.

The M's beat the Sox again on Saturday, 3-2. It was another late victory, as Chris Woodward singled to right to bring in the game-winning run in the 9th.

Brad Penny pitched well, too. He went six innings, gave up two runs, six hits, one walk and struck out six for the no decision. Here's some Penny stats for you:

Penny in the last 28 days: 28.2 IP, 2.20 ERA, 22/9 K/BB
Penny in June: 28.1 IP, 3.18 ERA, 21/10 KBB
Penny's quality start percentage: 0.56, just behind Josh Beckett and Tim Wakefield on the staff.

The offense is in a rut. The Sox had just four hits yesterday, two being from Jason Varitek, who homered. Kevin Youkilis and Jacoby Ellsbury had the other two.

The relief pitching was great until Takashi Saito came into the game. Saito walked three out of the first four batters he faced and then gave up the single to Woodward. Old friend David Aardsma shut the door on the Sox in the 9th to win the game.

Sox and M's finish the series today at 1:35 p.m.

Whither Ludwick

chuckb, Viva El Birdos — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 14:35:47 -0000

More photos » by Jeff Roberson - AP

Wouldn't it be nice to be able to find some photos of someone congratulating Ludwick?(AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)

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Would you believe that the Cards’ player w/ the 2nd most RBI has exactly half as many as our RBI leader? Pujols has 82 RBI and Ryan Ludwick has 41. RBI are probably the most overrated offensive statistic but still it says a little bit about how dependent this Cards offense is on Albert. This Cards team right now has only 4 players who are above average offensively and one of them is Jarrett Hoffpauir who has a walk and a single in 4 PA. The other 3 are Rasmus who is 2.9 wRAA, Schumaker – 0.7 wRAA, and Pujols – 44.9 wRAA. Take Pujols away and replace him w/ someone like Aubrey Huff or James Loney – the 2 first basemen closest to average major league hitters – and we’re in 3rd or 4th place rather than tied for 1st.

Of course, you don’t need me to tell you Pujols is good. The whole idea is pretty silly, really. I just fell across that stuff as I was trying to figure out what the hell is wrong w/ Ryan Ludwick. The first thing that stands out is the noticeable drop in Ludwick’s LD rate. Last year it was 26.3% which I think most of us knew was unsustainably high but it’s gone from one of baseball’s highest to one of baseball’s lowest. This year it’s nearly 10% lower (16.8%). Not coincidently, I’m sure, his FB rate is about 8.5% higher – from 46.5% to 54.9%. Needless to say, unless all those extra fly balls are leaving the ballpark, fewer line drives and more fly balls means a lower batting average. As a result, his BABIP has fallen 100 points – from .349 to .250. As it turns out, his fly balls are leaving the ballpark at a much lower rate as well as his HR/FB has fallen from 19.9% to 11.6%, which is much closer to league average. Still, Ludwick has very good power so his HR/FB shouldn’t be nearly league average. Between 18-20% or so is where it probably belongs. One of the reasons fewer fly balls are leaving the park is b/c he’s popping more balls up – many more. His IFFB% has gone up from 8.6% to 12.6% but when you consider that his FB rate has risen as well – last year he popped up about 4% of the time; this year he’s popping up about 7% of the time. Fewer line drives, more popups – he’s simply not squaring up the ball the way he did last year.

Is he overanxious at the plate? Last year he averaged 3.84 P/PA and he’s at 3.79 this year – hardly a huge difference. However, he’s seeing fewer strikes this year – down from 52.3% to 49.8%. This is somewhat surprising considering how prolific he was last year. You’d expect that pitchers would have pitched around him more last year and, since he’s not hitting the ball well, they’d be more likely to go after him this year. This tells me that he probably is somewhat anxious at the plate. His walk rate is down from 10.3% to 8.5%. He’s swinging at more pitches this year – 4.5% more pitches outside the zone and 4.5% more inside the zone. It stands to reason that he’s pressing somewhat. The offense is struggling and he’s struggling and so it’s unsurprising that he’s become anxious. Still, it seems to be working against him and he needs to relax and see more pitches and look for his pitch, rather than just swinging at what the pitcher tosses up there. If he’s seeing fewer strikes, he should be seeing more P/PA – not fewer – even if it’s just .05 P/PA fewer.

He’s actually making contact more frequently than he did last year, to which the reduction in his K rate (from 27.1% to 20.1%) will attest. Maybe we need him to be more picky and then, when he gets his pitch, more aggressive. Maybe we’re better off w/ more swing-and-misses b/c it allows him another pitch (often) rather than a popup to 2nd. Last year Ludwick crushed fastballs, to the tune of 34.9 wRAA but this year he’s just at 3.2 wRAA against the fastball. He’s seeing a bit fewer fastballs this year (down to 51.6% from 55.4%) and a few more sliders this year – with which he’s really struggling. He was about average w/ the slider last year and he’s more than 4 runs below average in half a season so far this year.

You’d have to say that some of his struggles this season are attributable to bad luck. His BABIP has fallen by 100 points and is about 40-45 points below league average. Still, he appears to be more anxious and, as a result, isn’t hitting the ball nearly as solidly as he did last year. It would behoove him – and the team – to be more patient at the plate and then, when he gets his pitch, explode into it. If he’s worrying about swinging and missing, he should stop. I’ll take a few more Ks to get his slugging % back over .500. It’s down more than 160 points from last season.

I still have faith in Ludwick. I think his upside is higher than either Duncan’s or Ankiel’s – last year’s success supports that – so I’d rather see him playing every day than either of the other 2 lefties. Honestly, what does Duncan have to offer? A few more walks, I suppose, but at least Ludwick has the possibility of hitting the ball out of the yard. He is still 2nd on the team in dingers, though Rasmus is right on his heels.

Padres explode against the Duo of Doom, leaving Dodgers looking back at the Giants

Phil Gurnee, True Blue LA — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 15:09:59 -0000

More photos » by Denis Poroy - AP

Manny gets congratulated after hitting his first home run since coming back but those smiling faces would be glum by end of the game.. (AP Photo/Denis Poroy)

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It was the same script that the Dodgers have used to win game after game this season. Somehow score a few runs, give that lead to the Trio of Terror ( Belisario, Troncoso, and Broxton} and watch them shut down the opposition as they meekly make the last nine outs.

WIth a 2 - 1 lead headed in the bottom of the 7th it figured that Belisario might give up one run since it was a Randy Wolf lead and so a no - decision could have been expected but no Dodger fan expected what happened next. By the end of the seventh inning the anemic Padre offense had scored three runs against Belisario with Troncoso saving him from further damage. However in the 8th it was Troncoso's turn to get worked over as he gave up three runs unearned runs of his own when the defense let him down.

For Belisario it was the first time in 42 games and 48 innings he's given up three runs. Troncoso and Belisario have combined for 80 games and 101 innings so far this year as we hit the 1/2 way mark. Jon Weisman maintains the Dodger Duo is not overworked and based on numbers for this years he's right. But are they being overworked compared to their past workloads? That is another question for another day.

Manny Ramirez slugged a home run in the 1st inning but was taken out early, and when the Dodgers were only down 4 - 2 in the eighth instead of Manny coming up with a chance to do some damage, Juan Pierre was there. Juan did his job bunting two runners into scoring position but when Dodgers only managed to score one of those base runners, it turned out to be a moot point after the defense let Troncoso down in the bottom of the eighth.

Everth Cabrera was the main star for the Padres, not only chipping in with several key hits but looking like Ozzie Smith at SS. The cheap combination of Cabrera and Davis Eckstein made the prime rib Dodger keystone combo look overcooked on Saturday. Everyone loves to make fun of Eckstein but he continues to do a job and be a pest. I'd say if you are considered a pest you are doing your job, otherwise who'd care.

Randy Wolf deserved another victory and has to be hoping he's not going to get paid based on his win totals in 2010. Leading the league in no - decisions he continues to do the job most of the time. If this is our fourth starter I'd say we are way a head of the game compared to most of baseball.

The Giants may still be far enough back not to be a worry but for a team with no offense they sure seem to be scoring a plethora of runs led by Pablo Sandoval (hitting .388 over the last 30 days) . They have outscored Houston 22 - 0 over the last two games and now sit 6 1/2 games back of the Dodgers. As we hit the 1/2 way mark the Dodgers and Giants are one and two in the National League and I doubt anyone predicted that when the season started.

Orlando Hudson got the day off today and is expected to get the day off tomorrow. It was in the game thread early this week when several of us commented that he looked or tired or hurt. We were told it was perception but in this case our I'd say our perception was dead on. In early May a chorus was heard to sign Hudson to a multi-year deal, now that we've hit the 1/2 way point, with Orlando doing exactly he's done his whole career, I'm glad Ned didn't jump to sign him based on a hot start.

Dodgers vs Padres coverage

Dodgers vs Padres recap

Dodgers vs Padres boxscore

Gaslamp Ball

Final - 7.4.2009	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Los Angeles Dodgers	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	1	1	4	9	3
San Diego Padres	0	0	1	0	0	0	3	3	X	7	10	0
WP: Greg Burke (1 - 0) SV: Heath Bell (23) LP: Ronald Belisario (1 - 3)

Complete Coverage >

Thrashers Sign 2 More Goalies, Ready to Make a Trade?

The Falconer, Bird Watchers Anonymous — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 15:04:06 -0000

In the last 24 hours the Atlanta Thrashers have added two minor league veterans to their organizational depth chart. By my count that puts them at FIVE GOALIES under contract for next season. The fact that they signed two AHL veterans tells me that they do not plan on Ondrej Pavelec being in Chicago next year.

Now whether Pavelec is in Atlanta or another city remains to be seen. It looks to me like Kari Lehtonen, Johan Hedberg and Pavelec will either fight it out for the two NHL jobs. Or one the team could trade one of them before the season starts.

Drew Macintyre (age 26) has posted excellant numbers in 179 AHL games (.918 SV%), but has seen only 2 NHL starts. He strikes me as a fine choice as a #3 depth chart goalie.

The other addition is Peter Mannino (age 25). He was a 4 year player for the University of Denver and has received 3 NHL starts with below average performance (.885 SV%) in that tiny sample size. He had 34 AHL starts and 3 NHL ones with the Islanders. Peter was also a teammate of Thrashers prospect Grant Lewis with the Pittsburgh Forge of NAHL junior hockey league before both guys headed off to play college hockey.

Kudos to the Thrashers for being pro-active on the UFA minor league goalie market before their options are reduced by other teams signing the best available guys. On paper Drew MacIntyre has an impressive AHL track record.

Jonas Gustavsson News: There Still Isn't Any

Brandon Bibb, Defending Big D — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 14:27:04 -0000

But according to Steve Buffery's story in the Toronto Sun, he hopes to make a decision in the next few days after vacationing in the south of Sweden. Which I hear is lovely this time of year with really long days.

Which creates the perfect atmosphere for bikini wearing by Swedish women.

As to what the deciding factor will be...

"It's hard to explain," said Gustavsson, when asked what his final decision will rest upon. "I'm going to make a decision on what feels right inside. Right now, I'm going to rest for a couple of days and relax and see what is right for me."

Gustavsson said money will not be a deciding factor. Under the terms of the CBA, the most any NHL team can pay Gustavsson this season is $900,000 US, although that could increase substantially with bonuses.

What Gustavsson would say about Toronto and the Leafs in particular, is that he likes the city (he also visited Toronto a few years ago while attending the Steve Davies goaltender school) and is impressed with the organization and Burke.

"He's a nice guy," said Gustavsson, who obviously has yet to experience Burke when the GM's temper is up

[...]

Still, as he reiterated a number of times, Gustavsson said his final decision will be based as much on a gut feeling -- what he feels in his heart -- as anything else.

[UPDATE by Brandon Worley, 07/05/09 11:18 AM EDT ] Mark Stepneski at Andrew's Dallas Stars Page points us to an Andy Strickland article at HockeyBuzz.com. Strickland makes this note about the Stars recruiting tactics and some interesting notes about Brian Burke's time in Europe:

Stars forward Fabian Brunnstrom and Jonas Gustavsson had dinner together Saturday night in Sweden as Brunnstrom tries to convince his buddy to sign with Dallas. Gustavsson, who is expected to soon make a decision as to where he'll take his game this season, also had dinner with Toronto D-man Jonas Frogren earlier in the week.

[snip]

Les Jackson from the Dallas Stars recently traveled to Sweden to meet with Gustavvson as well.

It was reported that Leafs GM Brian Burke traveled to Sweden on July first to meet with Gustavsson but we recently learned Burke was actually there hoping to meet with the Sedin twins. It wasn't until after Burke landed in Sweden that he learned the Sedins re-signed with Vancouver. Burke and Gustavsson never got together this week in Sweden.

I think that last part is very interesting. When Stars fans heard that Burke was in Sweden there was worry that he was going further in his recruitment attempts than the Stars were, especially with Joe Nieuwendyk still stateside. I've been fairly confident that the Stars have a contigent in Sweden ever since the draft, and that Les Jackson has spent time there as well. Remember, the Stars have a strong group of scouts in Sweden and keep a presence there nearly year-round.

Granted, this is Strickland and HockeyBuzz I'm linking to. So take this news with a grain of salt, if you must.

Talking Chiefs Helmets

primetime 07, Arrowhead Pride — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 15:23:31 -0000

via CBS

On this boring Sunday I've been looking at NFL helmets throughout history. The photo above, via CBS Sports, is the current logo for all 32 NFL teams. Obviously, logos have been tweaked here and there but for the most part the Kansas City Chiefs helmet hasn't changed a bit.

And I love that.

The mothership has a nice rundown of the Chiefs uniform history dating all the way back to the 1960s. I found a very cool website called Helmet Hut that has photos of Chiefs helmets throughout history. I snagged a few of those including Bobby Bell and Len Dawson among others and posted them after the jump.

Bobby Bell 1968

Otis Taylor

Len Dawson 1970

Fred Williamson

Johnny Robinson

And to top it off, we have a NSFW link -the Broncos helmets throughout the years. It's a vomit-y mixture of orange, blue and brown. This is not a link to click if you're about to eat.

Marlins sign Brendan Donnelly

craig, FishStripes — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 14:29:55 -0000

The Marlins have signed free agent RHP Brendan Donnelly and placed Chris Leroux on the 15-day DL with right shoulder inflammation.

The last time Donnelly pitch in the majors was in 2008 for Cleveland.

What is it about holiday weekends and the Marlins making deals? It is getting on my nerves.