Evan Grant on the Ryan Drese Story …
Fraley confused by it all …
Drese was inconsistent for 12 starts. Poof. The organiza- tion changed its opinion.
The Rangers would be thrilled if another team claims Drese on waivers. If Drese were in the plans, the Rangers would have moved him into a mop-up role. That would give Hershiser more time to get Drese back on track.
If Drese remains in the organization, he will go to the minors on an outright assignment. The Rangers have superb pitching coaches in the system, but they cannot fix a pitcher who knows his team does not want him.
The Rangers have been busy this week with the draft and significant roster moves, but general manager John Hart has been invisible. Is Hart attending to personal business, or is another power struggle under way in Arlington? Those questions arise when the organization's leader remains out of view.
Galloway says its all Buck, all the time …
John Hart speaks (although obviously not to Fraley) …
The Rangers stressed that the move had nothing to do with Drese's dugout altercation with catcher Rod Barajas two weeks ago.
"This had nothing to do with anything but performance," Hart said. "I love Ryan Drese. He's a good kid. He helped us last year. But at some point performance has to come into play. This was unacceptable. He's been in a slump most of the season. There was no other way to make a move."
The news caught Drese's teammates by surprise.
"I had no idea this would happen," Barajas said. "I don't think anybody knew. I'm very surprised."
Added shortstop Michael Young, "We're all kind of caught off guard right now. I don't know what to think. It's probably in our best interests to focus on the game tonight, but at the same time, Ryan has been a teammate for two years. He always worked hard and was extremely competitive. In that sense there is some disappointment."
Arod hits 399 and 400 last night as the Yankees defeat the mighty Brew Crew… Jayson Stark ponders 756 for him …
Oh yeah, the NBA Finals are tonight! Mark Stein is ready to roll …
With Cap agreement, now the big market teams must figure out how to make it work …
If, as now appears increasingly likely, the NHL's club owners and players reach a collective labour agreement that includes a salary cap, teams such as the Toronto Maple Leafs, Detroit Red Wings, Philadelphia Flyers and Colorado Avalanche would not be expected to be happy with the damage this would inflict on their lineups.
Several sources told The Globe and Mail yesterday that the owners and the National Hockey League Players' Association have agreed to a formula for a salary cap and salary floor based on a percentage of club-by-club revenue.
The cap is said to be $36-million (all figures U.S.) for the 2005-06 season and the floor $22-million to $24-million.
The Leafs, with big-ticket players such as Mats Sundin, Owen Nolan and Ed Belfour, are on the hook next season for a total of $27.1-million for just eight players.
Unless a transitional period or some other relief is negotiated for large-payroll clubs, the Leafs would be looking at having only $9-million left to fill out their 20-man roster. That might mean signing marginal players or persuading the eight players they have under contract to take hefty pay cuts.
Similarly, the Red Wings, with highly paid Nicklas Lidstrom and Curtis Joseph, are committed to $38.2-million for 16 players. They, too, would have to dump payroll or sign low-paid players. Likewise, the Flyers, with John LeClair, Jeremy Roenick and Tony Amonte, have to pay $33.8-million for 13 players.
All of those numbers include the 24-per-cent pay cut offered by the union last December and which is believed to be part of the agreement reached on the salary cap.
Sea Bass into the Hall of Fame …
USA 3, Panama 0 …Despite being denied live TV….
The latest NFL Jersey Sales numbers are in …
Here is the list of the top player jersey sales on NFLshop.com from April 1, 2005 through May 31, 2005:
1. Randy Moss, Oakland
2. Michael Vick, Atlanta
3. Tom Brady, New England
4. Donovan McNabb, Philadelphia
5. Ben Roethlisberger, Pittsburgh
6. LaDainian Tomlinson, San Diego
7. Byron Leftwich, Jacksonville
8. Carnell Williams, Tampa Bay
9. Jeremy Shockey, NY Giants
10. Tiki Barber, NY Giants
11. Mike Alstott, Tampa Bay
12. Alex Smith, San Francisco
13. Braylon Edwards, Cleveland
14. Daunte Culpepper, Minnesota
15. Ronnie Brown, Miami
16. Brett Favre, Green Bay
17. Jake Plummer, Denver
18. Roy Williams, Dallas
19. Curtis Martin, NY Jets
20. Brian Urlacher, Chicago
21. Peyton Manning, Indianapolis
22. Ray Lewis, Baltimore
23. Cedric Benson, Chicago
24. Kurt Warner, Arizona
25. David Carr, Houston
Do you know these Tivo Cheats? …
As I approach my 10th wedding anniversary, I ponder the 80th Wedding Anniversary of UK couple …
The Force’s Blog …
Hey Bob, if those cap numbers are right, what are your thoughts now on the Stars not dishing out a wad of cash for Hatcher?
ReplyDeletebob, you gotta warn us if there are links to porn sites on your links (the star wars blog - down at the bottom). we can get in trouble at work. your blog is going to become like gordo's site - unreadable at work.
ReplyDeleteHey, Anonymous #2....
ReplyDeleteI don't know if anyone has mentioned this to you or not....but I don't think Bob owes you or me any explanation on any thing he lists as a link to open or not. Bob isn't our grandmother. I would like to think Bob feels like we are all grown adult men with a set of balls that can leave our name on posts to blogs. And if his subject matter is so questionable, why are you looking at it? And by the way, why are you surfing the web at work if you aren't supposed to be doing that. Get out! Leave Bob alone!
Lew
Are shirt names like the UK soccer shirt names, paid for by the letter. If so how come Roethlisberger is so high up. That must cost a bit.
ReplyDeletehey Bob...Happy Anniversary soon. As your gift, I have ranked BaD Radio as the #1 show at the Ticket. Here is the link:
ReplyDeletehttp://generalmusings.blog.com/
Have a great day!
Lew
Hey, Lew. First of all I'm pretty sure my post was directed at Bob, not some spare with a gay name. Second, I can surf at work, but people have gotten fired for even looking at sites with links to porn or what-not. My point is that with gordo's site, I expect it so I look at that at home, but on Bob's I don't....so a little warning might be nice. Thirdly, I love Bob and Dan, too, their my favorite show, but maybe you should get off your knees....Oh and my name is Eric, you brown-noser.
ReplyDeleteeric in keller