Baseball Analysis

At this most recent trade deadline, it appears that Peter Angelos, owner of the Baltimore Orioles, once again overrode the decisions of his front office executives (men he hired, by the way) and squashed deals that would have finally put the wayward Baltimore franchise back on track to being competitive. Peter the Terrible?s most recent transgressions revolved around Miguel Tejada and his steadfast refusal to trade away the player Angelos thought (wrongly) would resurrect the Orioles. Read more »

No sports fan would ever mention Cashman and Knicks? President Isiah Thomas?s success records in the same breath, but we will here. The similarities are more compelling than one would imagine at first thought. Read more »

The Yankees and Red Sox of the East, and the White Sox and Twins of the Central, have let us all know that the last two months of baseball will be a 15-round prizefight. Only two of the four get invited to the October party, and as of now they look to be evenly exchanging heavyweight blows. With a 2-game edge on historic enemy Boston, the Yanks just landed a solid right hook. But there are many more rounds to go. Just don?t expect A.J. Pierzynski to be in the fray this time around, however. Read more »

A championship for a franchise that has never won one before can give a general manager immunity for quite a few years as the city basks in its glow. However, that hasn?t been the case for Bill Stoneman and the Los Angeles Angels, who while building a formidable farm system, have caught the wrath of their sometimes impatient fans. Read more »

With the division race long over, the Braves have turned their full attention to winning the Wild Card, but a lack of timely hitting and consistent pitching ruined a golden opportunity this past weekend, and might very well keep them home for the playoffs for the first time since 1990. Read more »

When you think of the potential Cy Young Award winners in the American League, household names aren?t the only ones that pop into people?s minds anymore. Some candidates this season are Francisco Liriano, Justin Verlander and Jeremy Bonderman. Another surprise candidate this season has been Yankees? sophomore sensation Chieng-Ming Wang, who in a rotation including Randy Johnson and Mike Mussina, has been the Yanks? most reliable starter this season. Read more »

There is no bigger mistake than to underestimate a contender. It only brings out the best in them. That?s what the entire baseball world did with the Detroit Tigers. When they started off the season hot, it was easy for many detractors to blurt out the word fluke, since the Tigers have not been in serious contention for years. However, the boys from Motown are proving the world wrong, as their magical season continues well into the summer. Read more »

In the wake of Monday's trade deadline, it's now officially a race to the wire. It just might come down to one of our Top 25 player's making the difference. The Yankees brought in Bobby Abreu (HM), and the Dodgers adding some class by trading for veteran Greg Maddux. Both Alfonso Soriano (#3) and Miquel Tejada (#11) were rumored to be moving in major deals, but nothing happened. Take a look at this week's RealGM.com Player Rankings. Read more »

Whichever way you look at the past week?s wheelings and dealings,--and judging by all the online articles and blogs, there is no shortage of opinions-- there was apparently some baseball getting played the whole time, with plenty more of it to come this week as well. Read more »

This week, Kevin Casini wanted to do an Arthur Rhodes to one of RealGM's scab writers, but instead decided to direct it towards Jim Bowden, who wants to seem smarter than everyone else more than he wants to improve the Nationals. Read more »

Like much of the trading deadline, there was a lot of talk that never materialized, but still plenty of action. While names like Miguel Tejada, Roy Oswalt, Brad Lidge, Jason Schmidt and Jon Lieber were attached to them on rumor mill, the Rangers quietly picked up two players that could have an impact on their trek towards an AL West division crown. Read more »

As the dust begins to settle and players across the country ready themselves for their first games with their respective new teams, it is now time to look back at the trading season as a whole and see which teams helped themselves and which teams were left out in the cold. Read more »

Theo Epstein's 'marquee' trade ahead of the deadline was the acquisition of right-hander Bryan Corey from the Rangers for minor leaguer Luis Mendoza. This was hardly the big blockbuster move that some were waiting for, and maybe even wanted (kind of like the people that watch NASCAR only for the crashes). There were plenty of rumors, the biggest of which included sending promising young pitchers Craig Hansen and Jon Lester (along with centerfielder Coco Crisp) to Atlanta for Andruw Jones. So in the end, the Red Sox acquired nothing but nervous fans. Read more »

It?s dej? vu all over again. Another trade deadline has passed and once again the Angels failed to add a significant piece to their roster. In fact, they failed to even add an insignificant piece. In the process, Angels? GM Bill Stoneman has virtually guaranteed that his team will be making an abbreviated appearance in the post-season should they even manage to qualify. Read more »

Sean Casey will replace struggling Tigers 1st baseman Chris Shelton and be leaned on to provide a steady stick against left handed pitching. Casey, a career .304 hitter, should fit nicely in the bottom half of the Tigers rotation. Read more »

The deadline has come and gone, but GM Ned Colletti triggered two moves that he hopes to make the Dodgers chances of overtaking the NL West that much better. A young shortstop and a future Hall of Famer may just be the key to a playoff run. Read more »

After a decade of indignities visited upon by them by the always-superior Atlanta Braves, the Mets put the hurt on their tormentors. Sweet revenge came in a barrage of hits, home runs, and ace relief pitching, as the Mets swept a series at Turner Field for the first time in 21 years, and virtually ended any outside prayers Atlanta had of winning the NL East. Read more »

Most Yankee fans were looking for an uneventful July as far as the trade market for their team. With sluggers Gary Sheffield and Hideki Matsui coming back from injuries in a month, and a platoon of youngsters and veterans holding down the fort well in their absence, that might not have been a bad idea. Now, the great experiment for Joe Torre begins, with new additions to the chemistry set that could either provide a winning formula or blow up right in their faces. Read more »

The resurgence of the Mets in the National League has been well-noticed in New York. Their substantial lead in their division has impressed some, but hasn?t convinced all. The Mets will never win the hearts of the other half of the city, but they?re vying at least for the respect of the rival fan base. Read more »

After the 2004 World Series which saw that wretched so-called curse finally broken and the whole New England region go into a state of euphoria, 2005 was more of a hangover year that ended in a first round sweep by the Chicago White Sox. With that, general manager Theo Epstein went about remaking the attitude of the franchise and now in 2006, has the Red Sox on top of the American League East and poised to make a run at their second championship in three years. Read more »