Your 2009 MLB All Star Game Rosters

Here Are Your rosters for the 2009 MLB All Star Game, being played on July 12th.
AMERICAN LEAGUE
Starters
Pos Player B/T

C Joe Mauer, MIN L/R

1B Mark Teixeira, NYY S/R

2B Dustin Pedroia, BOS R/R

SS Derek Jeter, NYY R/R

3B Evan Longoria, TB R/R

OF Jason Bay, BOS R/R

OF Ichiro Suzuki, SEA L/R

OF Josh Hamilton, TEX L/L

Pitchers
Pos Player B/T

P Andrew Bailey, OAK R/R

P Josh Beckett, BOS R/R

P Mark Buehrle, CWS L/L

P Brian Fuentes, LAA L/L

P Zack Greinke, KC R/R

P Roy Halladay, TOR R/R

P Felix Hernandez, SEA R/R

P Edwin Jackson, DET R/R

P Joe Nathan, MIN R/R

P Jonathan Papelbon, BOS R/R

P Mariano Rivera, NYY R/R

P Justin Verlander, DET R/R

P Tim Wakefield, BOS R/R

Reserves
Pos Player B/T

C Victor Martinez, CLE S/R

1B Justin Morneau, MIN L/R

1B Kevin Youkilis, BOS R/R

2B Aaron Hill, TOR R/R

SS Jason Bartlett, TB R/R

3B Michael Young, TEX R/R

OF Carl Crawford, TB L/L

OF Curtis Granderson, DET L/R

OF Torii Hunter, LAA R/R

OF Adam Jones, BAL R/R

OF Ben Zobrist, TB S/R
NATIONAL LEAGUE
Starters
Pos Player B/T

C Yadier Molina, STL R/R

1B Albert Pujols, STL R/R

2B Chase Utley, PHI L/R

SS Hanley Ramirez, FLA R/R

3B David Wright, NYM R/R

OF Carlos Beltran, NYM S/R

OF Ryan Braun, MIL R/R

OF Raul Ibanez, PHI L/R

Pitchers
Pos Player B/T

P Heath Bell, SD R/R

P Chad Billingsley, LAD R/R

P Jonathan Broxton, LAD R/R

P Matt Cain, SF R/R

P Francisco Cordero, CIN R/R

P Ryan Franklin, STL R/R

P Dan Haren, ARI R/R

P Josh Johnson, FLA L/R

P Ted Lilly, CHC L/L

P Tim Lincecum, SF L/R

P Jason Marquis, COL L/R

P Francisco Rodriguez, NYM R/R

P Johan Santana, NYM L/L

Reserves
Pos Player B/T

C Brian McCann, ATL L/R

1B Prince Fielder, MIL L/R

1B Adrian Gonzalez, SD L/L

1B Ryan Howard, PHI L/L

2B Orlando Hudson, LAD S/R

2B Freddy Sanchez, PIT R/R

SS Miguel Tejada, HOU R/R

3B Ryan Zimmerman, WSH R/R

OF Brad Hawpe, COL L/L

OF Hunter Pence, HOU R/R

OF Justin Upton, ARI R/R

Two Weeks Into Baseball Season...

Randy Johnson will replace Doug Davis in the rotation. Davis is coming off Thyroid Cancer surgery.
Here's What I've Observed...
RANDY JOHNSON TO MAKE FIRST START OF 2008 TONIGHT AGAINST GIANTS
Diamondbacks Pitcher Randy Johnson will make his first Major League appearance since June 28 on Monday night in San Francisco.
The Big Unit suffered a reherniation of a disk in his back and underwent surgery in early August to repair it.
Johnson is being opposed by Giants Left Hander Johnathan Sanchez.

This Brings Me To...

FREE BASEBALL!!!
The D-backs are making the game available on MLB.TV free of charge without a local blackout in the Phoenix area.
Gametime is 7:15 MST/10:15 ET.

I Can't wait to see this game tonight. I hope we see the Randy Johnson of old. The Randy Johnson that threw a Perfect Game May 18, 2004 against the Braves, the Randy Johnson that beaned a bird with his 95 MPH fastball!

I don't believe we'll see anything like that ever again!

JOE GIRARDI NATIONAL LEAGUE STYLE OF MANAGING SUPRISING, BUT WON'T WORK IN AMERICAN LEAGUE
Joe Girardi had a suprising approach to the Red Sox-Yankees Game. He was managing like he was back in Miami managing the 2006 Florida Marlins. He was calling for sacrafice bunts and for hit and runs, and Red Sox Manager Terry Francona probably hasn't seen this approach since he managed against Clint Hurdle in the 2007 World Series.

The style was suprising, but in the Home Run Power World of the American League, it won't work.

The Yankees only hope to make the postseason this year is if they win the American League Wild Card.

JOE TORRE HAS MANAGED TO KEEP DODGERS AFLOAT DESPITE INJURIES TO THIRD BASEMAN NOMAR GARCIAPARRA AND ANDY LA ROCHE.
How? Three Words. Pitching and defense. Hiroki Kuroda has appeared to be another great Japanese pitcher through one start, and the Dodgers Double Play Combo of Rafael Furcal and James Loney have kept the Dodgers in ballgames so far this season. I didn't expect Joe Torre to be able to stay afloat in the NL West with Colorado and Arizona breathing down his neck. I may be wrong. It's still too early to tell.



CUBS LEFT HANDERS TED LILLY AND RICH HILL HAVING COMMAND ISSUES
Both Lilly and Hill have had two mediocre starts in the young Baseball Season. What are the Cubs doing about It? With Lilly, they are saying he will work himself out. For Hill, he has been temporarily assigned to the Bullpen. The Cubs believe Hill will fix whatever is wrong in the bullpen.

JIM LEYLAND HAD EVERY RIGHT TO LET HIS FRUSTERATIONS OUT ON HID TEAM AFTER 11-0 DESTROYING BOUGHT THEM TO 2-9 ON THE SEASON
Kenny Rogers tied Nolan Ryan for the Career Lead In Grand Slams given up, with 10. Both Paul Konerko and Joe Crede hit Grand Slams as the White Sox Bamboozled the Tigers 11-0.
Leyland was not happy after this game, letting the team know how badly they have stunk. Detroit had better right the ship soon, or they will be watching the World Series on FOX instead of Playing in it.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY GREG MADDUX!
Greg Maddux, "Mad Dog" turns 42 today. Maddux is still going strong. He has never been a Strikeout pitcher, yet he has 3,000 atrikeouts. Maddux has always pitched to weak contact. Maddux will be going into the Hall Of Fame as the Greatest Non-Power Pitcher in the history of Baseball.

My Baseball Thoughts...

Sorry Folks. I have not been able to update this blog in a while. My internet's down and this library won't let me go to youtube for Nba videos, but here are my thoughts on Baseball and the start of the season.

BOSTON RED SOX HAVE TOUGH ROAD TO REPEAT
If the Red Sox want to repeat as World Series Champions, they are going to have to rely on the old veterans (Manny Ramirez, David Ortiz) while riding on some new former rookies (Jacoby Ellsbury, Clay Bucholz.) OManny Ramirez won the MVP Award for the first game played in Japan (Boston won 6-5), Manny won A Million Yen, which equates to about $10,000 on this side of the pond. Ramirez considered using the money for gas or giving the money to his mother!

Manny Being Manny...You've Gotta Love It!

Oakland Beat Boston 5-1 in Game Number Two as a Manny Ramirez homerun in the sixth stopped Boston from being shutout.

TEXAS RANGERS DECIDE JARROD SALTALAMACCHIA NEEDS TRIPLE-A SEASONING
Gerald Laird won the job as Rangers starting Catcher today after the Rangers decided to send Jarrod Saltalamacchia to their Minor League Camp. Jarrod will start the season catching every day in Triple-A Oklahoma.

Good move for both teams, as Laird keeps his catching job (for now) and Texas hopes that Jarrod works on improving his hitting and defense in Oklahoma. The Rangers realized that Jarrod is the Rangers catcher of the future, and the future doesn't need to happen right away.

KERRY WOOD TO CLOSE FOR CUBS, DEMPSTER IN ROTATION, LIEBER IN BULLPEN
The Chicago Cubs have finally sorted out their rotation. Carlos Zambrano, Ted Lilly, Rich Hill, and Jason Marquis all keep their starting spots from last year. Starting in the rotation this year is former closer Ryan Dempster. Dempster was a starter until 2005 when he was converted to a reliever. Pinella last year said Dempster would start, but later changed his mind. Lou won't be changing his mind this year.

Good move by the Cubs to give the Fireballer Wood the job in the ninth, as Carlos Marmol and Bob Howry will back him up in the eighth inning. If Wood can handle the load and stay healthy, the Cubs could be dangerous in the late innings.


CENTER FIELD BATTLE TAKES UNEXPECTED TURN
The battle for the backup center field job in Chicago just got very interesting. Felix Pie will start the year in Center Field. Backup Sam Fuld got sent to the minor leagues. To take his place, the Cubs signed former Toronto Blue Jay Left Fielder Reed Johnson. Johnson doesn't have a whole lot of experience in Center Field, but he can hit right handed pitching, something Felix Pie is trying to figure out.

There will growing pains for Pie, but Reed Johnson will be there to help Felix along the way.

JOE CREDE NAMED WHITE SOX STARTING THIRD BASEMAN
Joe Crede was named White Sox starting Third Baseman, as the Sox sent young slugger Josh Fields to Triple-A Charlotte. Crede will no longer be mentioned in trade rumors with the Dodgers (who need a third baseman after both Nomar Garciaparra and Andy La Roche are injured) Manager Ozzie Guillen likes to reward players for their hard work so, despite the face that he described Crede's hitting in Spring as a word I can't mention, Crede was an ungrade defensively. Chicago needs the best defense to win ballgames, and Crede is their best option.

MY PREDICTIONS FOR THE PLAYERS IN 2008
Ryan Howard and Prince Fielder will be battling for the National League Lead in Homeruns. it will not get into "Mark McGwire-Sammy Sosa 1998" territory (nothing will. That will never happen again.) but it will be fun to watch.

Joe Girardi will have an easier time managing the Yankees than Joe Torre will have manging the Dodgers. I really feel like this one will come true. The Yankees may be old, but they are experienced. They have a shot to win the American League East this season, but only if they stay healthy and play to their full potential.

For Joe Torre, he's walking into a Hornet's Nest in Los Angeles. The Dodgers have Andruw Jones but not much else. They had better hope Nomar, Kent, Jason Schmidt, and Juan Pierre stay healthy. Matt Kemp and Andre Eithier can play any of the outfield positions, i'm not worried there.

I'm worried about the Dodgers because they are playing in the National League West, the Toughest division in the National League. Two of the four teams (Colorado and Arizona) made the playoffs last season and may make it again, leaving San Francisco and Los Angeles as odd men out.

Hopefully my internet starts working so I can update this soon.

EVERYBODY ELSE's OPENING DAY STARTS MONDAY!
Don't Miss It!

Divisional Series Action On TBS

TBS Baseball.

There is a lot of great baseball on TBS today. Check out this Dane Cook TBS Preview. Click on the video to have it begin.


For those of you who missed the one game playoff game between the San Diego Padres and the Colorado Rockies, here is all the good parts from this long, exciting game. The video itself is about 10 minutes. Click on the video to have it begin.


Enjoy Phiilies at Rockies, Yankees at Indians, and Cubs at Diamondbacks on TBS tonight.

Cubs Defeat Pirates 7-1 in Pittsburgh

Cubs Starter Ted Lilly struck out six batters, and was one of seven different players to collect an RBI, as the Cubs posted a 7-1 win Saturday night over the Pittsburgh Pirates.

With the win, the Cubs are guaranteed an above .500 record at the All-Star break. A year ago, they were 34-54 at the midway point. The Cubs have gone 22-11 since June 3, the best record in baseball in that stretch.

Cubs defeat Nationals 7-2 in Washington D.C

The Chicago Cubs defeated the Washington Nationals 7-2 at RFK Stadium. The Cubs scored all seven runs in the first four innings. Ted Lilly had plenty of cushion as
Mark DeRosa knocked in three runs, while Aramis Ramirez had two RBIs. Lilly allowed one run in seven solid innings. Alfonso Soriano added two hits and one RBI in his return to RFK Stadium, where he played last saeson. With the win, the Cubs have won nine of their last 10 games and are above .500 at the season's 81-game halfway point for the first time since 2004. The Cubs are 6.5 games back of the divison leading Milwaukee Brewers.