Time Waster: The trade deadline approaches

But after watching this clip I think the Lakers already landed themselves someone who can be a great addition to this years team eat up minutes. Plus this is just about the most beautiful foul I have ever seen.




via Ball Don't Lie

Lakers trade Vlad-Rad

With Lamar Odom and Trevor Ariza potentially signing new contracts this offseason and not to mention Andrew Bynum's new contract, the Lakers had to find a way to create cap space. They found their way today, swapping the $13 million due to Vladimir Radmanovic over the next two seasons for Adam Morrison and Shannon Brown. Morrison who is is due the remainder of $4,159,200 this year and then $5,257,228 for next season is overpaid, but cheaper and younger than the impaler. This trade also ends up saving the Lakers about $13 million, since they are in the luxury tax.

While this trade saves the Lakers a ton of money, I cannot say I am stoked (more of a ..meh... feeling) about what they got in return. The Lakers finally shed the soft label from being bullied in last year's finals, so they turn around and get Adam Morrison. A former prime-time performer in college basketball turned into first-round bust, known better for crying after a game than anything else.

Apart from the crying and his lame attempts at growing a mustache, we think the trade could work out for both teams. Vladimir's recent inability to hit a three had lowered his minutes drastically and the move to Charlotte should boost his playing time immediately. The boost in pt should help him get back to the guy the Lakers paid all that money too, two years ago. While the Lakers get two young players, who have yet to (and may not ever) reach their full potential. Morrison's game seems to be well suited for the triangle. He struggled to create his own shot in Charlotte but in LA that will never be asked of him. Instead they will look to him to pass the ball well and hit spot up jumpers. Shannon Brown helps add depth to the guard rotation, in case of a injury to Fish or Jordan. But I recommend that he do his best to introduce himself to DJ Mbenga and Sun Yue, as I see a lot of DNP's- coaches decision in his future with the team.

Link Scrap

Matt Holliday has been traded to the Oakland Athletics, the players the Colorado Rockies will receive are not yet known.

NFL cannot continue to ignore one of its biggest markets and Los Angeles needs a professional football team, but who would be willing to let their team leave? hmmm?!?

What do you have in common with freshman football players from Harvard-Westlake? You both think their assistant coach Ashton Kutcher is the duke of douchebaggery

Gilbert Arenas got two tattoos to celebrate Barack Obama's win in the election... Etan Thomas does not approve

Jevon Kearse wants to show you what 9-0 looks like

In a surprising turn of events, a chair-throwing brawl breaks out after Australian boxing match

Iverson-Billups

When I first heard about this trade, I legitimately could not believe it for a couple of hours. I can't remember this much of a blockbuster this early in a season not only in the NBA, but in major pro sports in general. In terms of who got the better end of the deal, I can't definitively offer up an answer. I can see positives on both ends. Iverson gives the Pistons another scorer with championship experience, while Billups gives the Nuggets more of a glue guy who can defend the perimeter and distribute the rock.

If forced to give an answer at gunpoint however, I would have to say that the Pistons are going to be better off in the short-term, mainly because the Nuggets will have a harder time contending in general. Detroit loses their point guard, but they have another answer in addition to the original "answer" in Rodney Stuckey. Stuckey got plenty of quality experience during Motown's playoff run last year, making Billups slightly expendable. Now, they add someone who like teach said, averaged more assists than Billups last year, yet adds a legitimate threat to go off and get 30 every night. This team has always lacked a true go-to guy who can be unstoppable. They went with almost the basketball version of a "closer by committee," where any number of guys, whether it was Rip, Billups, Sheed, or Tayshaun went off and carried the load offensively. Now, they have a true number one option, allowing the others to do Detroit Piston things like rebound, defend, and score when their number is called. They do lose McDyess, their starting 4 last year, but its not even certain if he's going to even end up playing for Denver. They can give more minutes to Amir Johnson, and Jason Maxiell anyway, softening this blow.

Denver barely made the playoffs last year, and by getting rid of Camby, lost their only true post presence. They weren't going anywhere with the way the team was currently constructed anyway. Bringing in Billups brings a much better perimeter defender, as the team has put an emphasis on this all preseason. He seems to be more of a leader than Iverson, who was more worried about trying to get more shots than Iverson anyway. Now, Carmelo can piggyback off his successful run in the olympics this summer and be the true Numero Uno scoring option. I look for him to average 28-30 points now. If they can bring in McDyess as well, they get another proven low-post defender who takes away minutes from Nene, and the Birdman, which can only be a good thing. Now JR Smith should step in and take up some of Iverson's scoring. If they land McDyess, I'd expect them to be in the hunt for a 7 or 8 seed.

So if your a Piston fan reading this, I would be encouraged by the fact that you traded for a legit top-notch scoring threat, who albeit is an aging one, can still put the ball in the hoop. Dumars said he would shake things up, and I don't think chemistry will be an issue in the long-run. I'm guessing that's why the deal got done this early. Now they have 79 games to get used to each other. They'll be more of a threat in the East now, and with Stuckey ready for bigger minutes, they'll be in the mix as one of the favorites getting out of the East. This trade benefits both teams, and it will make an already competitive NBA season even better.

Link Scrap

Denver Nuggets trade Allen Iverson to the Detroit Pistons for Chauncey Billups, Antonio McDyess and Cheikh Samb.

From Marroons, "Lester Hayes" to the Red Hot Chili Peppers' "Magic Johnson," First Cuts gives you the Top 10 Songs About Athletes.

Stock Lemon confirms our thoughts about tonights game between the Skins and Steelers. It will decide the election. Well it has a 94% chance of deciding it, but that's close enough for me.

Lebron James and Pussycat Doll Nicole Scherzinger get soft-core pornish in the new nike "after six" commercial

The Sporting Blog gives us the college football run-down in alphabetical order

John Daly speaks about his bizarre overnight jail stay from last weekend, after he was allegedly picked up drunk at a North Carolina Hooters restaurant. Saying that the whole situation could have been avoided had the friends he was traveling with only known that he was just sleeping with his eyes open and in no need of dire medical assistance.

Time Wasters: Maddux traded to the Dodgers

The Dodgers are reportedly close to a trade that would land them Greg Maddux. The four-time Cy Young winner, seventeen-time gold glove recipient, and winner of 353 games told the Padres the only club for which he would waive his no-trade clause would be the Dodgers, because he wanted to remain close to his Orange County home. This move would help solidify the Dodgers starting rotation, and with Brad Penny possibly out for the year this trade could not happen at a better time. The Dodgers would send two Minor League players to be named later, although a club spokesman quoted Colletti as saying the deal was not complete. Maddux is 6-9 with 11 no-decisions and a 3.99 ERA for San Diego. If the trade is complete Maddux would join a rotation that includes Derek Lowe, Chad Billingsley, Japanese rookie Hiroki Kuroda and 20-year-old rookie Clayton Kershaw. In honor of mad dog becoming a Dodger, the greatest commercial Nike has ever done involving major leaguers.

Dunn traded to Diamondbacks

The Arizona Diamondbacks finally got the boost they have been looking for in acquiring outfielder Adam Dunn from the Cincinnati Reds for a minor-league pitcher and two players to be named later on Monday. Dunn batted .233 this season for the Reds with 32 homers, tied for tops in the majors. Dunn will be a rental situation as he is eligible for free agency at the end of the season and should give a boost to their sputtering offense. The Diamonbacks currently have a 1 1/2 -game lead over the Dodgers in the NL West. The Diamondbacks sent right-hander Dallas Buck to the Reds.

In the last couple weeks the Reds have traded two of their best hitters in Ken Griffey Jr. and now Dunn, showing that they are ready to rebuild. The Reds are last in the NL Central and on a six-game slide.

Check out Blue Collar Baseball for a good run-down of what is happening in Cincy

In other MLB news:

• Shannon Stewart released by the Blue Jays
  
• Texas Rangers reliever C.J. Wilson will miss the rest of the season.

• The O-dog is out for the year, Arizona Diamondbacks second baseman Orlando Hudson underwent surgery late Saturday night to repair a dislocated bone in his left wrist and will miss the remainder of the season.

Last but not least is video from Sundays matchup of the Phillies and the Pirates, where Jamie Moyer uses the truck stick on umpire Randy Marsh. Clip provided by the fightins'

Ramirez to the Dodgers and Bay to Boston

Manny Ramirez has been traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Red Sox will pay remaining $7 million of Ramirez's contract. The Dodgers also canceled Ramirez's options for the next two year. Jason Bay is going to Boston as part of the deal, and the Pittsburgh Pirates get four minor leaguers as part of the three-way deal.

Third baseman Andy LaRoche and right-handed pitcher Bryan Morris will go to the Pirates from the Dodgers. Outfielder Brandon Moss and right-handed pitcher Craig Hansen will leave the Red Sox for Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh officially has cornered the market on LaRoches.

Alright I am trying to digest this trade, and the more I think about it the less I know. What are the Dodgers going to do with 5 outfielders? This trade only works for the Dodgers if Ethier, Kemp, and Manny start while Pierre and Andru take a permanent seat on the bench. Manny, Ethier, and Kemp will supply the power, Martin and Kemp will supply the speed on the bases. Only time will tell what Torre will do.

Griffey headed to the Windy City

The trade deadline is upon us and the first big deal has been made.The Reds have traded Griffey to the White Sox, pending his approval. Griffey will decide sometime today whether he will approve the deal or not. The return on Griffey for the Reds is unknown at this point.

Griffey, as a player with 10 years of major-league service, five with the same club, has the right to block any deal. The White Sox attempted to acquire him from the Reds in 2005, but the trade reportedly was vetoed by Reds ownership for financial reasons.

The future hall-of-famer, is batting .245 this season with a .355 on-base percentage, 15 home runs and 53 RBIs in 359 at-bats. Earlier this season, he hit his 600th home run.

Update:

Griffey accepts trade. If the commissioner’s office approves the deal, the Reds would get right-handed reliever Nick Masset, who was 1-0 with a 4.63 ERA in 32 games for Chicago, and second baseman Danny Richar, who hit .262 with nine homers for Triple-A Charlotte.

Other deadline deals:

The Florida Marlins acquired left-hander Arthur Rhodes from the Seattle Mariners for minor league right-hander Gaby Hernandez.

The Houston Astros acquired righthander LaTroy Hawkins from the New York Yankees for Class A Lexington second baseman Matt Cusick.

Pudge traded to New York

The Yankees acquired 14-time All-Star and catcher Ivan Rodriguez from the Tigers on Wednesday in exchange for right-handed reliever Kyle Farnsworth. The Yankees were in need of a catcher due to Jorge Posadas' decision to have season-ending surgery on his throwing-shoulder. Rodriguez is having a rough year offensively, by batting .295 with five home runs and 32 RBIs in 82 games this season. A career .302 hitter, the 37-year-old catcher is in his 18th Major League season. Nonetheless Pudge is a huge upgrade from the catching tandem of Jose Molina and Chad Moeller. Farnsworth, 32,is having a decent season posting a 3.65 ERA in 45 appearances.

The Yankees will remove Chad Moeller from their roster before Wednesday's game to address their bullpen needs, probably by promoting a reliever from the minors. Rodriguez is expected to be in uniform on Thursday as the Yankees meet the Angels to open a four-game series at Yankee Stadium.

Adios to Atlanta for Big Tex

Mark Teixiera is on the move again, this time to the runners-up of last years deadline deal that landed him in Atlanta, the Los Angeles Angels. The Angels are swinging for the fences and taking their aim at the World Series as they pulled off a blockbuster deal to acquire Mark Teixeira from the Atlanta Braves. Los Angeles sent first baseman Casey Kotchman and minor league pitcher Steve Marek to the Braves. The Angels currently have the best record in the bigs and have a 11 1/2 game lead in the AL West.

Both of the teams involved should leave this trade ecstatic as they both got what they were looking for; the Braves got a young affordable first basemen and a pitching prospect while the Angels solidified their offense as one of the best in baseball.

Teixiera trade coming soon

Espn reported Monday night that the braves are making it aware that Texiera is available for a trade. They also said that if any deal was to happen the braves would want a top first baseman in return. With the current injuries to Chipper and Hudson, the Braves front office finally came to their senses. It took half the team going down with serious injuries, but they finally stuck the proverbial fork in this season. With these guys out they simply can't compete with anyone other than the Nationals, and they will not resign Big Tex next year, so they might as well stock their farm system, and get a first basemen in return.

The Diamondbacks seemed most likely to get Teixeira but they refuse to part with Conor Jackson and GM Jerry Wren is not taking Chad Tracy in his place. The two sides simply cannot match up. The teams most likely to get Teixeira according to a National League source; are the Rays, Yankees, and Angels. The Yankees would probably give the Braves the best offer as they have the money to resign Tex and it would not be a rental situation. Wren also seems willing to be patient until receiving the best available offer for Teixeira, whose career splits indicate he could make a difference for a legitimate playoff contender. In the 54 games he played after being acquired by the Braves at last year's trade deadline, Teixeira hit .317 with 17 homers and 56 RBIs. His career statistics during the second half of the season include a .295 batting average and a .947 OPS.

Dodgers close to deal with Tribe

The Dodgers are said to be close to reaching a deal with the Cleveland Indians to acquire Cleveland third baseman Casey Blake for a pair of Minor Leaguers, Triple-A pitcher Jon Meloan and Class A catcher Carlos Santana. Blake, a free agent after this year, has a salary of $6.1 million, and the Indians would pay all or most of it, according to a Jayson Stark.

Blake became one of the most coveted outfielders after the Yankees traded for Xavier Nady. Other teams that were rumored to be in the mix to land Blake were the Mets, Rays and Phillies.

Casey Blake is batting .289 with 11 home runs and 58 RBIs. He has a career batting average of .265 and in five Major League seasons has never hit fewer than 17 homers or driven in fewer than 58 runs in a season, with career highs of 28 homers and 88 RBIs.

Meloan is a right-hander who pitched briefly for the Dodgers last year in a September call up. He is 5-10 with a 4.97 ERA at Triple-A Las Vegas. Santana is a slugging catching prospect who currently has 14 home runs, 96 RBIs and a .323 average at Inland Empire.

The Dodgers have had issues with third base all season. Nomar Garciaparra and Andy Laroche were injured in spring training. Blake Dewitt was called up from AA ball and played well but has cooled off at the plate. Nomar is currently playing shortstop for the injured Rafael Furcal(out for year, lower back surgery), and Laroche has had offensive struggles throughout his time in the bigs. Casey Blake solves the problem of what to do at third base as he is consistent at the hot corner and at the dish. This also offers the Dodgers more options as he can play at third, first, and in the outfield.


Update: The trade is complete and Casey Blake is expected to become the Dodgers everyday third basemen replacing slumping rookies Blake Dewitt and Andy Laroche.

Phillies at the Trade Deadline

Dear Pat Gillick,

The wheels are starting to fall off. Dropping 2 of 3 to New York and getting blown out by the Braves while in the midst of a team wide hitting slump does not bode well for the future. The Mets are HOT right now. The Marlins aren't going anywhere. The atmosphere in the clubhouse seems stagnant and the pressure is mounting. This team needs a shot in the arm to boost morale and lighten things up a bit.

So Pat, I implore you to give the Rockies whatever they want for Matt Holliday and Brian Fuentes. Sell the farm, hold a garage sale, maybe even a car wash. Just find a way to bring this deal back to life. We all like Shane Victorino and we'd hate to see him go but trading the Flyin' Hawaiian and a few prospects for these two guys seems like a deal to me. Adding Holliday's bat to this lineup could create the type of spark and excitement in the clubhouse that this team needs right now. Did I mention he's hitting .345? That's a pretty big improvement over Utley's team leading .286. Think of this lineup 1. Rollins 2. Werth 3. Utley 4. Holliday 5. Howard 6. Burrell 7. Feliz 8. Ruiz That's enough to make visiting pitchers very nervous as they step onto the mound at Citizen's Bank Park. Plus, if Pat Burrell doesn't resign after this season we'd at least have Holliday's bat through next year.

So what that Brian Fuentes is a free agent after this season? Rent him. He could only serve to bolster an already solid bullpen as a setup guy for Brad Lidge. This team has a legitimate chance to win now, they just need that little something extra. Give Colorado all the prospects they want and take the proven talent that will win games now.

Pat, make it happen.

MLB Update: Yankees win the Nady sweepstakes

There were three teams that were frontrunners in the Xavier Nady sweepstakes, Tampa Bay Devil Rays, New York Mets, and the New York Yankees. Well Tampa Bay and the Mets will have to find a bat somewhere else. The trade has Xavier Nady and Damaso Marte going to the Yankees and the Pirates will receive four minor leaguers including right-handed pitcher Ross Ohlendorf, right-handed pitcher George Kontos, left-handed pitcher Phil Coke and right fielder Jose Tabata in return. The trade is tentative pending physicals. This gives the Yankees the bat they have needed all season. Xavier Nady will most likely platoon with Johnny Damon in left field and at DH.

In other news, the Cubs called up Notre Dame alum and former wide receiver Jeff Samardzija to replace injured pitcher Kerry Wood

Also the minor leaguer who threw the ball into the stands is being held on $50k bail

Atlanta Braves pitcher Mike Hampton will make his first start since 2005 tomorrow

Update: The deal between the Yankees and Pirates has been reconfigured.
The Yankees are sending RHP Dan McCutchen, RHP Jeff Karstens, OF Jose Tabata and RHP Ross Ohlendorf to Pittsburgh for Xavier Nady and Damaso Marte.

LHP Phil Coke and RHP George Kontos are not in the deal

Link Scrap

The value of the dollar had a lot to do to with Josh Childress' recent signing with the Greek club Olympiakos, his deal is valued at $20 million after taxes

Times-Picayune reporter Nakia Hogan, writes that several "prominent" quarterbacks are unemployed due to their race. These "prominent" quarterbacks include Aaron Brooks, Byron Leftwich, and Quinn Gray. Sorry but didn't Aaron Brooks lead the Raiders to an 0-7 record in 2006? Whenever someone uses prominent and the names of Aaron Brooks and Quinn Gray in the same sentence, their entire argument is valueless. He also fails to mention that the teams that last released Quinn Gray(Jaguars) and Aaron Brooks(Raiders) both have African-American quarterbacks.

More scrap after the jump

Adding fuel to the fire, Favre reportedly contacted Minnesota Vikings coaches. Favre tried to pull this off on the DL, but used a Packers phone to make the calls and the Packers learned of the calls when they checked the records. Meanwhile, the NFL Network reported that Green Bay is sending out feelers to assess Favre’s value on the trade market. The most likely destination for Favre is supposedly Tampa Bay and he could be there by the end of the week.

Sportsbuy.com offers Berndons arch-nemesis Steve Bartman, $25k for an autograph

Marshall Yanda of the Baltimore Ravens is bonkers, teammates bet Yanda last season that he couldn't handle getting hit by a taser gun. Not only did Yanda handle it once for three seconds, but two more times afterwards before finally collecting $1,500 from some of his teammates.

Marcus Williams traded from the Nets to the Warriors, to help fill the void left by Baron Davis' departure to the Clippers.

Jon Rauch traded to the Diamondbacks

The tallest pitcher in baseball, 6'11 Jon Rauch and his massive mitts are headed to Arizona, he goes from one of the worst teams in baseball to one of the most promising. Here are the details of the trade from Yahoo!:

The Arizona Diamondbacks made a major move to shore up their ailing bullpen on Tuesday by acquiring reliever Jon Rauch from the Washington Nationals for infield prospect Emilio Bonifacio.

More on the trade after the jump

Rauch was 4-2 with 17 saves in 22 chances and a 2.98 ERA for the Nationals. He has struck out 44 and walked seven. Rauch, 29, has been filling in at closer for most of the season for injured Chad Cordero.

Bonifacio entered the season as Arizona’s No. 6 prospect, according to Baseball America. The speedy 23-year-old second baseman from the Dominican Republic was recalled by the Diamondbacks on July 4, and was 2-for-12 in eight games. He hit .302 in 85 games for Triple-A Tucson, with 18 doubles, five triples, a home run, 29 RBIs and 17 stolen bases.

Bonifacio, the fastest base runner in the Diamondbacks’ system and one of the fastest in all of baseball, played for the World team in the Futures game during the All-Star break.

The Diamondbacks are tied right now with the Dodgers for the division lead and this trade does a lot to try and keep up with one of the best bullpens in baseball. The Dodgers’ bullpen has a 2.93 ERA which is second best in the majors. Subtract Scott Proctors numbers and Dodgers relievers would sport a 2.50 ERA, nearly a quarter run better than the big leagues’ best, Philadelphia.

In other MLB news

The Nationals signed Christian Guzman to a 2 year extension, keeping him in Washington until 2010.

The Houston Astros, believing their season can still be saved, acquired pitcher Randy Wolf from San Diego on Tuesday in exchange for minor leaguer Chad Reineke.

Shockey traded to the Saints

The much maligned tight end of the Giants was traded today to the Saints, for a pair of draft picks. The Saints wanted to add another down field option to their offense, and Shockey is definitely an upgrade receiving wise from Eric Johnson and the Giants wanted to get rid of the offensive equivalent of Brian Bosworth. In my estimation both teams won in this deal, and now Shockey can act like a righteous redneck in New Orleans. He immediately becomes the starter in New Orleans and much like last seasons playoffs, the quieter and more humble Kevin Boss will step in to the starting role for the Giants.

Yahoo! Saints acquire Shockey for draft picks

more NFL news after the jump

Tampa Bay Buccaneers safety Donte Nicholson was tasered then arrested early Sunday morning

Sam Alipour of page 2 on ESPN.com was hit by a car (welcome to the club Sam, the" I have been hit by a car club")and had a cooler hero than I, his was T.O.

Urlacher begrudgingly agrees to pay raise, new contract worth up 43.5 million for five years.

A full breakdown of all the ramifications of the Taylor trade for the Redskins and the Dolphins