#1

ack next year with Jake Gardiner the likeliest of a bunch –

in Here is your first Forum Tue Nov 26, 2019 6:45 am
by sakura698 • 285 Posts

Philadelphia, PA (SportsNetwork. Balenciaga Shoes Sale .com) - There is no worse month on the baseball calendar than January. Yes, the Hall of Fame announcement comes and that is always good for some debate, but other than that ... nothing. And thats probably a good thing because with the newly formed College Football Playoff and the NFL postseason in full swing, baseball is really on the back burner in the sports pantheon. More so than usual, anyway. Regardless, it certainly makes for a boring time of the year if you are covering the sport. And while we still may be less than a month away from pitchers and catchers reporting to spring training, there are still some big questions that need to be answered. For instance ... WHERE IS MAX SCHERZER GOING TO WIND UP? This may have been the biggest question heading into the offseason and here we are on Jan. 14 and still have no idea how this is going to play out. The process was likely slowed by the notion floated from Scherzers agent, Scott Boras, that it could take up to $200 million to land the former AL Cy Young Award winner. Still and all, its probably the same teams you initially thought would be in the mix for Scherzer that are still in the running, despite statements from both the New York Yankees and Detroit Tigers that they were no longer interested. Given Boras past relationship with the Washington Nationals, youd have to think they could be a factor. I thought all along he would wind up in the Bronx, but now I am not so sure. However, it is starting to sound like the Tigers could once again be a factor, which could then lead them to move David Price. And if that happens, it could be a wild few weeks. One team that may be laying in the weeds, though, is the St. Louis Cardinals. They normally dont delve into this type of contract, but it does make some sense. Scherzer is from St. Louis and the Cards have a ton of injury concerns in that rotation. Plus Jon Lester going to Chicago may have upped the ante for the Cardinals. WILL THE RED SOX ADD ANOTHER STARTER? Speaking of Lester, the Red Sox failed to re-sign him and have never really addressed the top of their rotation. And if they werent willing to go over $130 million or so for Lester, it makes zero sense to think theyd do it for Scherzer. Now the Red Sox added some depth to their rotation this winter, bringing in the likes of Rick Porcello, Wade Miley and Justin Masterson. Its a nice group of No. 3 pitchers, but theres no real ace in the mix. Should Scherzer find his way back to Detroit, dont be surprised to see the Red Sox get involved in a potential Price blockbuster. Righty James Shields is still out there, too, and likely biding his time to offer his services to the losers of the Scherzer sweepstakes. WHO IS GOING TO PLAY SHORTSTOP FOR THE METS? Since the final game of the 2014 season, the New York Mets have been linked to almost every shortstop in the league. Yet here we are almost a month away from spring training and the odds-on favorite to be the teams Opening Day shortstop is once again either Wilmer Flores or Ruben Tejada. A Troy Tulowitzki deal was probably always a pipe dream, but the Mets failed to land a Jed Lowrie or Asdrubal Cabrera. The fact they were in on Ben Zobrist last week tells you, though, that they are looking to fill that spot. There are some options left for them. Rafael Furcal is still available, but at age 37, is he any better an option than what the Mets have in-house? If the Mets do truly want a shortstop, why not just give the Toronto Blue Jays a call and ask about Jose Reyes? The wear and tear from that turf is robbing him of the thing that once made him so electric. The Mets have the pieces to get a deal done. Isnt it something to explore at least? Or maybe they do actually believe in Flores? ARE THE PHILLIES DONE WHEELING AND DEALING? One of the busier teams this offseason has been the Philadelphia Phillies. They finally cut ties with longtime shortstop Jimmy Rollins and may be ready to do the same with both Cole Hamels and Ryan Howard, especially the latter. Finding a taker for Hamels shouldnt be that hard, even with the $90 million- plus still owed to him. Hamels is an ace. Any team would want him. For the Phils, its a matter of what you are getting back. Like we mentioned earlier, the Red Sox are a team that could make a move, as well as a team like San Diego. Hamels is from San Diego and despite all the other moves they have made this offseason, the Padres probably still arent a playoff team in the NL. Getting Hamels would change that. Now the Phillies unloading Howard and his $50 million is a different story. The former NL MVP may not be as feared as he once was, but he still slugged 23 home runs and drove in 95 runs last year. However, he only hit .223 and struck out 190 times. Still, there could be a market for him, provided the Phils eat a ton of that salary. IS THE GAME GOING TO SPEED UP? The owners meetings are taking place this week in Arizona, the final ones presided over by outgoing commissioner Bud Selig, and the biggest topic on the agenda is the effort to speed up these games. Its probably unlikely that a pitch clock is going to be implemented anytime soon, but there could be some tweaks to speed up the game, particularly in regards to the replay process. Far too often last season, managers would take a nice little stroll out to an umpire and stay there until he got word from his dugout if he should challenge a play. One of the changes that could be made is that once a manager leaves the dugout, that automatically triggers his challenge. Another pace of play discussion will center around the experiment MLB used in the Arizona Fall League. A hitter was required to keep one foot in the batter?s box at all times with exceptions for foul balls, wild pitches and timeouts. With no current major league rule to deter hitters from stepping out of the box, they are free to stroll away after every pitch. With this rule, if a player leaves the box completely, he can be penalized with a strike. Ugh. Spring training cant come soon enough. Fake Balenciaga 2020 . - Dominika Cibulkova erased three match points in the second set Wednesday and beat Agnieszka Radwanska 3-6, 7-6 (5), 6-3 in the quarterfinals of the Sony Open. Cheap Balenciaga . Hes the same player he always was, only now his efforts are being rewarded. The rookie manager has made a habit of heaping praise on others when things are going well, and accepting criticism when they arent. But in the case of Hurtado, its what the coach is NOT saying that may be the secret to a superb run of form. https://www.fakebalenciaga.com/ . If Vettel wins at Suzuka on Sunday, and his nearest rival Fernando Alonso finishes worse than eighth, the German driver will join his compatriot Michael Schumacher and Argentine Juan-Manuel Fangio as the only men to win four consecutive titles.TORONTO – Randy Carlyle entered the dressing room of the Maple Leafs practice facility Monday morning to an unusual and almost eerie silence. There was no music pumping from the stereo system, nothing but the uncomfortable quiet of a team in midst of another memorable late season collapse. "Thats a sure tell-tale sign," he said of a group in shock, down in the dumps from a losing streak numbering eight games, one that has the clubs playoff hopes dangling from the thinnest of threads. Carlyle took the day to inject a little life into what remains of those hopes. He also did a fair bit of teaching, directing, and informing, tweaks to "things that we think that are very easily correctable". He implored his forwards to "turn your [butt]" to protect the puck and adjusted the positioning of Jay McClement and Tim Gleason during one particular defensive zone drill. Carlyle may be coaching for his job in these final six games of the regular season, but beyond the uncertain question of the head coach and his status for next season is the roster retooling that seems likely to take place under the direction of GM Dave Nonis and his management team this summer. With 10 players up for free agency – including half the forward group and two top-four defenders – and the core deserving of some scrutiny after another collapse, plenty of change could and probably will be coming to the Leafs. Forwards James van Riemsdyk Tyler Bozak Phil Kessel Joffrey Lupul Nazem Kadri Nikolai Kulemin** Mason Raymond** Dave Bolland** David Clarkson Troy Bodie** Jay McClement** Jerry DAmigo* Colton Orr Defencemen Carl Gunnarsson Dion Phaneuf Jake Gardiner* Cody Franson* Tim Gleason Morgan Rielly Paul Ranger** Goaltenders Jonathan Bernier James Reimer* Note: *Restricted Free Agent | **Unrestricted Free Agent Phil Kessel, James van Riemsdyk, Dion Phaneuf, David Clarkson, Joffrey Lupul, and Tyler Bozak are all locked up until the summer of 2017 and in some cases beyond. They constitute the Toronto core along with Morgan Rielly and Jonathan Berrnier and the far less secure but high upside duo of Nazem Kadri and Jake Gardiner. Fake Balenciaga From China. Considering their place in three straight collapses – all of varying degree – and ongoing struggles to defend, adjustment to the group has to be considered with only Kessel, van Riemsdyk, Bernier and Rielly seemingly off the table this offseason. Luke Schenn, once a cornerstone of that group, was jettisoned after the meltdown in 2012. Mikhail Grabovski faced the same fate via compliance buyout after Game 7 last spring. Will the summer ahead bring with it more change to the building blocks of the organization? Is a 1-2 centre punch of Bozak and Kadri strong enough to be a force in the East or are upgrades needed down the middle? Is there enough two-way stability to the current top-six (all signed long-term, save for Kadri) with little in the way of youth on the way? Can Clarkson be redeemed in year two of a whopping seven-year contract? Might the organization buy him out? Is a trade even possible? Can Lupul be a part of the solution at age 30 and beyond that? Is the core, generally speaking, good enough to win as constructed or is a major or perhaps minor tinkering required? Beyond that core is the looming free agent bunch, of which Bolland figures to be the most intriguing. The 27-year-old began his Leaf career with a bang, posting six goals and 10 points in October. But a serious ankle injury kept him out nearly five months and muddled his status in the process. Theres value there, but at what price and what term? Can he stabilize the club at centre ice or is there a better fit elsewhere, perhaps 28-year-old Paul Statsny, also entering unrestricted free agency for the first time? Then there are the likes of Mason Raymond, Nik Kulemin, Jay McClement, Troy Bodie and Paul Ranger, all also unrestricted. McClement is useful if employed in a fourth line role, and Bodie has certainly earned himself another contract with an energetic presence. The others all have question marks with price point and fit among the concerns. Thats the entire group of bottom-six forwards, all in question to return next season. None of the three restricted free agents are certain or maybe even likely to come back next year with Jake Gardiner the likeliest of a bunch – by a good margin – that includes Cody Franson and the all-but-gone James Reimer. Torontos defence should be the top priority for upgrade followed by a forward complement that has plenty of holes in the bottom ranks (size, strength, defensive commitment among the issues) with question marks up top and down the middle as well. Nonis would be hard-pressed to bring back Carlyle if the Leafs do definitively fumble away their once certain playoff chances, but hell also have to give a long, hard look to a roster thats proven (in conjunction with that coaching staff) to be flawed and in need of improvement. ' ' '

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