XM MLB Chat: November 2005

CF notes & Yanks look to another Braves pitcher

Today's New York Times reports "Yanks Keep Crosby in Center of their Plans," as the available prospects for center field find homes. No one has faulted Crosby's ability to catch or even throw the ball. The Times' writer mentions the probable signing of Farnsworth to the Yankees, bringing to 4 the recent experiment of signing former Braves pitchers. Steve Karsay lead the league in relief appearances down the stretch his first year with the Yankees, but his arm eventually gave out. Chris Hammond and Jaret Wright followed, and possibly now Farnsworth. In a separate issue, there's a rumor about the Yanks and Cardinals talking about Jim Edmonds. No story that says, "but they want Cano and Wang" is much of a story, since everybody wants young, inexpensive, promising players.

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MLB/AP Brian Giles re-signs with Padres

Good news for all concerned... Giles wanted to be there, and the Padres wanted him back. Deal is $30 million for 3 years with an option for a 4th.

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NY Met David Wright on XM

The tremendous Mets 3B mentions his upcoming charity event for Multiple Sclerosis. The event will be held Dec. 16, deadline to participate is Dec. 2, but get details on his website: davidwrightfoundation. com. David is happy Billy Wagner is now a Met, & was part of his recruiting process. Dibs adds this gem about Billy Wagner: Wagner started life as a right-handed person. Broke his right arm, started using his left. Broke his right arm again. And, he's a lefty pitcher today. That says something about what's inside this guy.

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Josh Beckett now on XM radio

New Red Sox pitcher Josh Beckett on with Rob Dibble and Orestes. He feels the lease arrangement is sadly what hurt the Marlins. Prior to Josh, The Show hosted Gene Orza, COO of the MLB Players Assn. He sounded very much like a talkative lawyer, blew a lot of smoke, & caused me to lose patience. Josh also has a ranch & is an avid hunter. He's done a lot & is still only 25 years old.

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Dibs says Farnsworth signed

Dibs read a report that Kyle Farnsworth has signed with the Yankees for $17 million for 3 years to set up for Mariano Rivera. Details soon.

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Andrew Baggerly, Oakland Tribune & World Baseball Classic

Andrew broke the news today that Bonds will play in the World Baseball Classic, & MLB must be happy about this. Andrew says it gives lots of publicity to the event. Then, he steps in it. He said, Charley, "YOU saw the way ESPN covered him last year (2005) ..." they put him on for the slightest little thing he did! Exactly the point. No one cares about this lout. They care about him even less for using his young son to create pity for him. He is a media creation of ESPN. Their editorial judgement is questionable to begin with. Baggarley has it backwards-- Bonds isn't on ESPN because he's so great--- they just elect to clog the airways with this faux news. Most who care about the creep are either Bay area fans or those who have money tied up in his memorabilia.

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Paul Hoynes on the Cleveland Indians

Tribe officials have headed west to see Trevor Hoffman. Whether or not Wickman returns is still on the back burner. The team didn't want to extend themselves on Howry, were concerned about his past health issues. Also still thinking about Paul Byrd, Scott Elarton, and Kevin Millwood. Charley mentioned the item that the Indians might be working on joining a regional sports network to bring in more $.

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Paul Konerko re-signs with the White Sox

Buster Olney joins Charley to discuss this & other moves. Konerko makes $60 million over 5 years with a limited no trade clause. Some felt the White Sox were just waiting to see what Paul's market value would be. The Angels also offered 5 years and $60 million, and the Sox came in and matched it (not sure about the no trade issue with the Angels).

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Eddie Andleman, Boston radio icon, now on XM

Eddie Andleman joins Charley Steiner on The Beat. After winning the World Series and not being handed a big raise, Eddie predicted Theo would leave. Though others called him nuts at the time, he said Theo would leave in just the way he did---by getting the owners to incrementally raise their offers to him so he could leave with the highest number in mind, to boost his value.

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Mel Antonen on Blue Jays, Orioles, Angels, Mariners

Mel Antonen of USA Today reports some teams like the Blue Jays and Orioles reduced payroll in the past few years in order to go ahead in the upcoming year. Explains the Jays' big signings so far, and the Orioles offering Konerko $65 million. Mel says the Blue Jays had 21 blown saves in 2005, 7 of which were in the 9th inning, 2nd lowest in saves in AL ahead of the Royals. Feels the Orioles have a perception problem, management problems, which is a reason someone like Konerko turned down their offer. (Even though it's a great hitters' park). It's harder for them to get pitchers there, & they just lost their closer. On the Angels' side, spring training in Arizona is another plus for Konerko. BUT, if Konerko goes to the Angels, where would Manny go? Mel cites the Seattle Mariners, but only if the Sox paid a lot. Manny & Mike Hargrove are friends from their Cleveland Indians days.

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Billy Wagner press conference airing on XM

Billy dons #13 in his Mets debut, and says that the 4 years with no trade was probably the biggest factor in his choosing the Mets. The Phillies only offered him a no trade for 2 years. Billy mentioned his wife appreciated spending time with Tom Glavine's wife, who showed her around town.

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Results of Phillies closer poll- Claire Smith

Editor of the Philadelphia Inquirer reports the results of a fan poll the paper took. Question: Who's your choice for Phillies closer? Answer totals: 1. Tom Gordon 2. Trevor Hoffman 3. Bob Wickman 4. Ugie Urbina. Claire says she "cringes every time Gordon comes into a game. And there are always excuses." She says most people feel he doesn't have it anymore, may've lost some cold-bloodedness. Trevor & Wickman may be a bit old, and Wickman couldn't take the media vipers in Phillie. She says Billy Wagner was able to deal with the vipers, which adds to the shame of his moving on. On Urbina, sadly, he may not be available.

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The Flap about Joe Torre saying Jeter or Arod would move

Tim Kurkjian on with Charley says, first, "It's out of character for Joe Torre to mention something like that" as he did. Tim thinks he did it to tweak the front office into getting a real center fielder. Kurkjian: "The thought of moving 2 gold glove winners is astonishing." He doesn't think Jeter would be so great in CF. And, that they wouldn't find a better 3B than Arod. On the Rangers attracting free agent pitchers--very little chance a pitcher would choose to go to such a big hitters' park.

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Susan Slusser--A's actually won a bidding war against the Giants

Not often you find the A's in a bidding war, the San Francisco Chronicle A's beat writer points out. The team felt they had to move in a limited market. She feels the A's would trade Zito only if a good, young right handed hitter such as Lastings Milledge became available.

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Marty Noble--thinks Mets won't go after Manny

Marty Noble of MLB.com says the Mets acquisition of Tike Redman for the outfield increases the case that Manny won't be a Met. Omar may want to pursue him, but the Mets are lined up to go forward as they are. They're also against giving up Heilman & Milledge. Noble also said he was told last night that the Mets won't increase their offers to Benjie Molina or Ramon Hernandez. They're prepared to go forward with Ramon Castro as their main catcher, & will hire a back-up.

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Bob Nightengale, Sports Weekly, on Manny, Frank Thomas

With Charley Steiner, Bob predicts that Manny will end up at the Mets. In discussing personnel that would go back to Boston, he says Cliff Floyd has a firm no-trade clause to the Red Sox, which he has said he won't change. So, if Floyd were to go, he'd have to be shipped elsewhere by the Red Sox. Re: the White Sox, Bob says officials there privately say Frank Thomas' playing days may be over. They have no confidence that his foot injury will allow him to play well again. Also, he thinks Konerko's most logical stop is the Angels.

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Bill Lajoie now on XM

Currently assisting Larry Lucchino in managing the Red Sox moves, longtime baseball manager and evaluator Bill Lajoie discusses current events. He notes that Red Sox farm director and scouting director are meeting every day, facilitating the enormous flow of information. He says if you want to be a GM, expect to be on the phone all the time. 11/25/05, on the Red Sox Beckett, Mike Lowell, Mota trade: "This trade was a collaboration of front office executives Bill Lajoie, Jeremy Kapstein, Jed Hoyer, Peter Woodfork, Ben Cherington and Craig Shipley."...(MLB.com)

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Is Barry Zito on the auction block?

A Deal that should satisfy all of Beane's constituencies. Is such a deal possible to the faithful? Gwen Knapp says it makes sense. It was good to hear XM say it will be broadcasting live from the Winter meetings in Dallas starting this Friday.

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Around the bases with Wagner, & Happy Birthday to Mo

Maybe the Braves heard Billy Wagner mention them in a radio interview he did last week, but anyhow, some executives say the Braves have asked to see Wagner again. Bill Madden discusses Yankee, Red Sox, & Marlins moves. He sticks up for Loria a bit in his piece, and in mentioning the thin market, says he thinks Kyle Farnsworth is a "certified eccentric." Madden also mentions that Mariano Rivera turns 36 today (although Baseball Reference lists it as Nov. 29).Happy Birthday, Mo!

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Nationals make $10 million profit first year

The Nationals did a tremendous job, especially considering their mere existence was fought until the last minute. It would be nice if the $10 million profit was put back into the team (I know, no chance). Yes, there are other financial considerations, but this team is a great story & is still being held at bay.

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Angels took Yankees to school in the playoffs

Boras informs us this won't happen to the Yankees next year if they buy his client, Johnny Damon. He figures the Angels educated the Yankees by walking Arod 11 times. And, he adds seriously, "I'm not asking the Yankees to take any risks with Johnny." This loony conversation is relayed in today's New Jersey Record by Bob Klapisch. I guess he figures no one else will do any math or find their own "data." For one thing, Damon showed he was breaking down physically last season. Not a big deal. But, if a player's gone a long time without a stint on the DL, it's more likely that he's due for some time there. Not less likely.

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BJ Ryan signs with Blue Jays

Bill Madden of the NY Daily News reports lefty reliever BJ Ryan has signed with the Toronto Blue Jays. The deal is $47 million for 5 years. Bill reports that the Blue Jays' current closer, Miguel Batista, may be traded. Word is they've been talking to the Texas Rangers about swapping Batista for outfielder Kevin Mench. I think Mench is the one they say likes to have fun, & fun doesn't always go over well with Buck.

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2005 NLCS Game 6 now on xm

Astros at St. Louis, game 6 of this year's NLCS now on XM MLB channel 175. This was the final game ever played at Busch Stadium. Also, read that XM radio is now available in Canada for all baseball fans (not to mention hockey fans).

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Learning about loopholes

If your team didn't have to pay luxury tax in 2005, it won't have to pay it in 2006. Which should be an incentive to most teams. We'll see. Brian Borawski also mentions Marlins' relocation, transfer of some ownership shares of the Cardinals, delays ongoing with the Nationals, and improvements to the Blue Jay's stadium.

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More info about the Mota move

The late announcement of the addition of Mota and Harvey Garcia to the Marlins/Red Sox deal was at the expiration of a 72 hour window. The Red Sox had concerns about Beckett's late season shoulder problems, & asked for Mota for insurance.

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Guillermo Mota to Red Sox--Much more than gravy

Marlins reliever Guillermo Mota has been added to the trade of Josh Beckett to the Red Sox. The other addition to this deal is right-handed minor league relief pitcher Harvey Garcia going from the Red Sox to the Marlins. It brings to 4 the number of prospects going to the Marlins. Mota is not just gravy in this deal---he's an extra drumstick, some stuffing, and 2 pieces of pie. Story is being reported by AP and foxsports.com.

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2005 World Series Game 4 on XM

Now playing on xm, White Sox at Astros, Freddy Garcia v. Brandon Backe. The roof is open. John Rooney is making the call. How great is this.

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2005 World Series now on XM

Game 1 of the 2005 World Series, Astros @ White Sox, now playing on xm 175.

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2005 ALCS game 3, White Sox @ Angels

Instant classic game now playing on xm mlb radio channel 175. It's fantastic to have baseball.

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Jim Thome to White Sox---Aaron Rowand to Phillies

The Phillies send Jim Thome and cash to the White Sox for CF Aaron Rowand. Rowand is a terrific defensive player, and Thome moves back to the AL where he can play as well as DH. It's a good move for both, but especially for the Phillies, who solve 2 problems.

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"Wagner: I'm No Mo," by John Delcos, Westchester Journal News

I'm mainly posting this article to show another example of SHODDY PERFORMANCE BY BASEBALL AWARDS VOTERS. John Delcos, an awards voter who voted this year for the AL MVP, reports comparisons between Billy Wagner and Mariano Rivera. In the article, Delcos, who's covered the Yankees since 1998, says Rivera "has had 32 playoff saves." False. Rivera has 34 playoff saves. Any so-called baseball writer should get it right, but this is even a local guy who gets it wrong. Maybe Delcos doesn't care. Other than that, whoever picks up Wagner will be getting a good closer, all things being equal.

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Andy Pettitte vs. Chris Carpenter on XM--Baseball Lives

Catch this! 2005 NLDS, Game 5, St. Louis @ Houston. The dome is closed....The announcers are saying this is Andy Pettitte's 33rd career post-season start, which is a record for any pitcher (according to the espn anncrs.), and the 9th time he's started a post season game that could clinch a series.

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MARLINS TRADE CARLOS DELGADO TO THE METS

Reports say that 1b slugger Carlos Delgado has been traded from the Marlins to the Mets for 1B Mike Jacobs, minor league p Yusmeiro Petit, and $7 million from Florida.

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2005 NLCS Game 2

2005 NLCS Game 2, Houston @ St. Louis, now on XM mlb 175.

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JERRY SEINFELD WOULD HELP RECRUIT BILLY WAGNER

I happened on Jerry Seinfeld talking to Steve Somers on WFAN tonight; he's a great baseball fan & a Mets fan. He says all the other sports are "fill-in." Seinfeld is still troubled by the questionable call in the ALDS, Angels-Yankees, when Robinson Cano was called out, & presses Somers on this. Somers asks Seinfeld if he's helping to recruit Billy Wagner for the Mets!!! Jerry says, "I WOULD HELP GET BILLY WAGNER. HE'S GREAT." Seinfeld then says his favorite player in baseball is ICHIRO. Seinfeld also likes Benjie Molina and Mike Jacobs.

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MARLINS TO LEAVE FLORIDA--Howard David, WQAM

Howard David of WQAM is on XM radio now regarding today's press conference to announce the Marlins' leaving Florida. David says JEFFREY LORIA WAS NOT AT THE PRESS CONFERENCE, supposedly traveling in Europe. David asks, why wasn't the owner at this press conference? There is no excuse for sending an assistant to an occasion this serious. David Samson attended in Loria's place, and read Loria's statement, saying that MLB has agreed to allow the Marlins to move. Howard David says the city of Portland, Oregon placed a call to the Marlins expressing interest. The whole thing stinks, is close to criminal, yet these guys keep skating. There should be a law that Miami, Florida must have a domed baseball stadium. The loss to fans and potential fans is enormous.

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Wagner--"Doesn't care what Bowa says."

Billy Wagner being interviewed by Chris Russo on WFAN radio and the YES network; he tells Wagner that Bowa doesn't think he can pitch 2 days in a row. Wagner said, yes he can, & he "doesn't care what Larry Bowa says." (I'll check this out on the game logs). Wagner mentioned the Braves are on his list to consider. He'd probably be happier in Atlanta than New York, but it seems Billy may do what others do ...go for the money. Next up, Pittsburgh Pirates talk.

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Kevin Baxter-Loria says Marlins will move

Kevin Baxter from the Miami Herald says that Jeffrey Loria is currently holding a press conference, saying that he will look into moving the team. (It turns out that Loria was not at the press conference. He had an aide read his statement).

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More on Wagner from Larry Bowa

Chris Russo on WFAN just said Larry Bowa told him about Wagner: you can't use him 2 days in a row, loses 3-4 miles off his fastball; you can't use him in the 8th inning either. Factors like these are routinely ignored by people who diminish Mariano Rivera, including people on this station. In addition to winning, Rivera does 2 jobs--he's more than just a closer. Sorry to confuse you guys with the facts.

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Dave Lennon on Billy Wagner & the Mets

Dave Lennon of NY Newsday discusses the ridiculous wining and dining that goes on for free agents, and presently for Billy Wagner by the Mets. WFAN radio mentions that the Mets held a press conference at Shea Stadium this morning, just to give an update for reporters. Too many people had been following Wagner around, stalking him at his hotel, etc., & they wanted to cool people down. Wagner spoke to reporters separately, answering questions generally. Nothing new.

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Tony Massarotti on XM radio re: Red Sox moves

Tony Massarotti from the Boston Herald joins the Beat, talking about the great deal the Red Sox made for pitcher Josh Beckett & 3B Mike Lowell. These moves were more important than getting a GM.

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Ian Browne of RedSox.com on XM MLB

Ian Browne of RedSox.com joins Holden Kushner on XM MLB to discuss the reported trade of Josh Beckett from the Marlins to the Red Sox. Ian addresses the issue of pitchers moving from the National league to the American league. His opinion is that any downside exists more for "finesse" pitchers than power pitchers. He only cites 1 example for this. I think getting Beckett is a great move for the Red Sox, and he'll probably do a great job. I disagree with Ian that it's so easy for pitchers to move from the NL to the AL. Ian says he thinks Papelbon could end up being the closer for the Red Sox. Yet another XM/Red Sox guy, Steve Lenox will be joining in.

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Beckett & Lowell to the Red Sox

Sources are reporting that the Marlins and Red Sox have reached an agreement in principle to send Josh Beckett to Boston along with Mike Lowell. The Marlins will receive SS Hanley Ramirez, P Anibal Sanchez, and another minor league player to be named. If Mike Lowell is the Red Sox 3B, what happens to free agent, Bill Mueller?

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BREAKING NEWS****DEREK JETER SIGNS WITH XM MLB RADIO 175

Great news...Derek Jeter signs with XM MLB Radio Home Plate, and will appear on various XM MLB shows. The deal includes partnership with his non-profit organization, the Turn 2 Foundation, which works with young people on achieving productive, drug free lives. Sounds like a win for everyone involved.

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Seattle Mariners sign Johjima

AP reports the Mariners have signed catcher Kenji Johjima to a 3 year deal worth 16.5 million. We await word on details about this addition. The Show with Dibble & Kennedy has some interesting re-plays today, including Dale Murphy, Tommy Lasorda, Tony Gwynn, and George Genovese. Genovese, once in the Brooklyn Dodger minor league system, played in the majors for the Washington Senators. He eventually became successful as a long-time scout, worked for the San Francisco Giants, & is currently with the Dodgers. Genovese tells about fighting his boss to get teen-ager Bobby Bonds signed. At the time, Bobby's wife was pregnant with Barry Bonds.

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Marlins & Rangers deals, Dallas Morning News

Gerry Fraley of the Dallas Morning News says the clock is ticking on a 48 hour deal between Jeffrey Loria and Tom Hicks, & that the 2 owners are the ones most involved in the idea. Hicks enamored of Beckett in part because he's a Texan. And, Buck Showalter's influence is very much in view, functioning both as manager & GM. Buck likes Mike Lowell from back in the Yankee system days. Gerry says many factors at Rangers' stadium would keep "any pitcher in his right mind from coming here." Excess heat, likelihood of homeruns, jumpy infield. Re: Alphonso Soriano, they'd like to trade--same old story---he's bad at 2nd base, won't move to the outfield, and strikes out too much. The Mets might be a spot for him if they don't get Manny.

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John Manuel of Baseball America

John discusses the Arizona Fall League, and great programs at colleges. Brandon Wood was their #1 prospect of the year. Great hitter & shortstop, is in the Angels' system.

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Roch Kubatko on the Baltimore Orioles

Now, Roch Kubatko from the Baltimore Sun discusses the Orioles' future. Says Sosa and Palmeiro won't be back. Leo Mazzone and Sam Perlazzo were best men at each other's wedding. Re: Carlos Delgado: he doesn't think it's likely... too much left on Delgado's contract, and would have to give up too much. Management is not high on AJ Burnett. More likely to look at Paul Byrd or Kevin Millwood. And, will wait until after Dec. 7 to avoid giving up draft picks. Says they're undecided about Eric Byrnes & his problems with right-handed pitching, though thinks Byrnes has been moved to too many teams, & might improve if allowed to stay with the Birds for a full year.

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Phillies Moves with Jim Salisbury

Jim Salisbury from the Philadelphia Inquirer discusses Phillies Phuture. Mentioned that Ryan Howard might've been trade bait til he won the Rookie of the Year award... decision still to be made about Jim Thome, & waiting to see how the closer situation turns out. Personally, I think they should look at Trevor Hoffman as a back-up to Wagner.

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Astros @ Cardinals!!! 2005 NLCS Game 2 rewind

Instant classic now playing on the baseball channel, XM radio MLB 175. Astros @ Cardinals, 2005 NLCS Game 2, 52,358 in attendance. Astros lead 2-0 in the 6th. Mulder pitching. (Announcer just said if the catcher drops the ball, a pitcher has less of a chance of getting a strike call).

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Chicago White Sox 2005 Rewind

Wonderful highlights of the entire White Sox season are replaying now on XM. Tonight's classic game on XM starting at 9pm will be Game 1 of 2001 NLDS, St. Louis at Arizona.

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Baseball juice & brawls

They've been talking on XM about the seizure of more than 100 players' urine tests from 2003. The samples were thought to have been destroyed, but now there's a chance they might be used for evidence of steroid abuse. But, on tv I found a classic--- 2003 ALCS Yankees @ Red Sox, Game 3, where the big brawl happened. As the espn announcers described it, Pedro had thrown at Karim Garcia's head, & they said he would've been ejected from the game were it not a playoff game, & were the homeplate umpire not a novice. Next inning, Clemens threw behind Manny's head, just as a reminder, nothing dangerous. But, Manny got mad, Don Zimmer ran towards Pedro, Pedro took Zimmer by the head & threw him to the ground. More brawling ensued. The announcers said that Zimmer is sensitive about pitchers' head hunting. He has metal plates in his own head, following being hit by a stray ball.

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2005 Astros Team Rewind

Now on XM, 2005 Astros team rewind. Classic games coming up later.

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Ichiro, Beckett, Flash, Hernandez

Ichiro has expressed his unhappiness with card-players as well as manager Hargrove & GM Bill Bavasi. The Yankees have inquired about him, but so far the Mariners aren't dealing. Everyone wants Wang and Cano, who wouldn't? As of now, the days of the Yankees giving away their best young prospects are past. The Mariners' ownership is on record saying their investors' profits are "extremely important." As long as you have owners who aren't willing to take a risk, you might as well have a failing corner deli. It becomes like any other business.

Reports that the Red Sox are in on the Beckett bids
Yanks tell Tom Gordon they'd like 2 years
Mets' 1st choice is catcher Ramon Hernandez, then Molina

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Where is Lou Piniella?

According to the LA Daily News, Lou doesn't see himself becoming manager of the Dodgers. However, it's also been reported that he paid a visit to the new Reds' CEO in Cincinnati.

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Detroit calls Yanks about Pavano

The Detroit Tigers have called the Yankees about trading for rhp, Carl Pavano.. The Yanks aren't interested in the swap of of's Nook Logan or Craig Monroe.

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2000 San Francisco vs New York NLDS

Now on XM radio---another classic--the 2000 nlds game between the San Francisco Giants and the New York Mets. Pump up the volume.!!

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First game ever of Washington Nationals NOW on XM

Catch this now! Instant Classic, first game of Washington Nationals @ RFK Stadium, April 14, 2005, against the Diamondbacks. Livan Hernandez v Javier Vazquez. Fantastic.

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Hot Stove rumors

Late word is that BJ Ryan is closing in on either Toronto or Detroit to continue his role as closer for at least the next 4 years. Cooperstown Confidential scribe Bruce Markusen muses that all Ryan's talk about setting up for Mariano Rivera was just a device to jack up his price.

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2005 NLCS now on XM MLB 175

2005 NLCS Game 6, Houston @ St. Louis, now playing on XM MLB Channel 175. Life is good.

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Classic games instead of Mark Gray

Sorry, but I can't listen to Mark Gray. It's painfully obvious he's not meant for radio. He can't talk, period. His speech is halting and hesitant, with frequent deep breaths, no personality anyway. Why not put on any of thousands of great classic baseball games? Maybe ESPN made XM hire him. I don't know. Maybe ESPN's in charge of everything, in which case, I'll throw in the towel here. Their so-called views of sports broadcasting are the worst.

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Globe: Red Sox offer Damon 3 years

The Boston Globe reported Thursday that the Red Sox offered Johnny Damon a 3-year deal worth $27-$30 million. The story was later posted on mlb.com. It relates a phone call on Tuesday night in which Damon wished the Red Sox would make him an offer "sooner rather than later." No other offers have been reported, but Boras is said to have asked the Yankees for 7 years and $84 million. Boras' pitches have often landed his clients in a swamp. And getting booed.(Anyone who thinks money is the only thing has never had a job).

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Marlins, Rangers & Rockies talking

The Palm Beach Post reports the Marlins are close to dealing 2003 World Series winning pitcher Josh Beckett to the Texas Rangers along with 3B Mike Lowell. Texas would return, of all things, star 3B Hank Blalock and a top pitching prospect. The Marlins are also looking to trade CF Juan Pierre,& the Rockies have expressed interest in their catcher Paul LoDuca.Loria wants to get things moving.

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Best Host on XM: Grant Paulsen

Weekends are great, because we have young phenom Grant Paulsen talking Majors and Minors on his show. He's chatted with Alvaro Martin about the upcoming World Baseball Classic--scheduled to start March 2-- and now with Sports Weekly's Lisa Winston.

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Mariano Rivera likes Flash of Tom Gordon

At Joe Torre's Safe at Home Foundation benefit last night in New York, among Yankee stars present were Mariano Rivera and Derek Jeter. Mariano said that he'd love to have his set-up man Tom Gordon come back next year. Derek Jeter was asked if he'd like to play in the World Baseball Classic, & said the idea intrigued him.But, he says George has the final say (even if people say he doesn't).

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Classic 1991 NLCS Atlanta v Pittsburgh Now

On XM, bottom of the first, Glavine pitching. The score 1-0 Pittsburgh. Bonds at 1st, Bonilla at 3rd. More classics this weekend. How great.

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Baseball playoffs to replay on XM starting Nov. 23rd

Rob said that XM MLB will replay ALL THE 2005 PLAYOFFS STARTING WEDNESDAY, THE DAY BEFORE THANKSGIVING!!! Can't wait.

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Ryne Sandberg & Andre Dawson on today

Rob & Kevin will host 1984 MVP & HOF Ryne Sandberg and 1987 MVP Aundre Dawson, and discuss mvp's who play on non-winning teams.

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Tim Sullivan, San Diego news

On The Beat, Chuck talks with Tim Sullivan of the San Diego Union Tribune about Padres moves. Tim says the Hoffman situation is looking political, but says Sandy Alderson recognizes the "entertainment" value he brings. Tim believes Brian Giles very much wants to stay with San Diego, but is holding out for more $.

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Brewers owner on XM

Mark Attanasio, owner of the Brewers, is interviewed by Joe Castellano. Attanasio speaks in an extremely quiet tone of voice, not engaged at all. He may be a fantastic person, & I hope he continues to improve the team-- that's #1. But, I've heard this tone before with owners. I'd describe it as passive- aggressive-"you're not getting to me."

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Manny in Mets' picture

Interesting story about the Mets' new tv channel and how it affects baseball decisions. Manny being even more than Manny. Later, Marty Noble of MLB.com will be on to discuss Mets' goings-on.

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Relief for the Cubs

The Cubs have signed lefty relief pitcher, Scott Eyre, to a 3 year deal. This removes another in the short list of available bullpen pitchers. Maybe the Cubs have been motivated by the success of the White Sox. Scott says the discovery and treatment of his attention deficit disorder in 2002 has helped him greatly (as reported in NY Newsday).

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BJ Ryan wants no "stress"

BJ Ryan had a big meeting and tour of the NY Mets yesterday. He wants to be a closer, a position the Mets can offer him. He's also looking at the Tigers and the Blue Jays. NY Newsday reports today that Ryan has told friends he doesn't want "the stress" of pitching for the Yankees.

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Toronto Blue Jays bid for Mr. Burnett

Ken Rosenthal at Foxsports.com is reporting the Blue Jays offered 5 years and $50 million for the free agent starter. Other teams have said they're willing to go 5 years for Burnett. We'll see how this goes.

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Jason Bay on XM radio 175

Jason Bay, just signed to a 4 year extension with the Pirates, sounds like a great guy. Says this is the first long-term deal done by the Pirates in awhile. He plans to play for the Canadian team in the baseball world cup, along with other Canadian stars Rich Hardin, Justin Morneau, Eric Bedard, and Eric Gagne. Bay was 2004 NL Rookie of the Year.

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The Braves & Trevor Hoffman?

Rob and Kevin just mentioned the possibility of Trevor Hoffman going to the Braves. At the end, it sounds like Hoffman's agent is ASKING for 3 years, 25.5 million, not like the Braves have offered. They mentioned the name of Trevor's agent & his background, but I was trying to get the actual news straight. Both Kevin & Rob put together stats to favor Hoffman, which is fine, but Rob says he's sure Hoffman will do well even though he's at the end of his career. I don't know how he knows that.

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XM MLB on Direct TV Channel 878

Dibs mentions the news that XM MLB is now on Direct TV channel 878--great news! Coming up, Joe Castellano from the owners' meetings in Milwaukee.

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Good idea for Trevor Hoffman

Dibs, Mike Francesa on WFAN has a good idea for the Mets and your pal Hoffman. The Mets should stop chasing Billy Wagner---get a better closer for less money by hiring Hoffman! For Mets fans, this would be a great idea.

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Geoff Blum back with Padres

Utility infielder, Geoff Blum, is back home with his beloved Padres in a 1 year deal announced by Kevin Towers. He returns a World Series hero, having hit a winning home run in game 3 against the Astros.

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Pirates treasure Jason Bay

The Pittsburgh Pirates will announce a multi-year contract with left fielder Jason Bay at a press conference this afternoon. The 2004 NL Rookie of the Year receives a multi-year deal covering his arbitration-eligible years.

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Green day or not

The new drug testing proposal deals with the alleged use of "uppers" by players. At deadspin Mike Stanton gives his perspective.

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Somebody help

Steve Lenox is probably a very nice guy. But, he speaks so haltingly, that I have to turn him off. I thought once maybe he was going to cry. They've got to get guys who can talk. I'm sure it's not easy, but they have to. Chuck Wilson's constant high pitch sing song intonations would work great at Gitmo. They'd spill their guts to get this guy to stop talking.

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Rumors that sound likely

Major sources are reporting that Mike Cameron has been traded to the Padres for OF/1B Xavier Nady, pending results of Cameron's physical. On its own, might be a logical trade for both. Or, either team could be planning for future moves.

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Billy Wagner's agent on XM MLB

Bean Stringfellow, agent for Billy Wagner, is on XM MLB with Steve Lenox. Bean says that money isn't the only thing. (Bean, there's no such word as "irregardless"). Steve mentions that Pat Gillick, Charlie Manuel & at least one other Phillie staffer have gone to visit Billy Wagner. Wherever Wagner goes, we'll all remember this time. If he thinks he can get the last dime from teams/fans, then pop off, or not pitch well, fine. But, he'll be BOOED.

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World Series Replay

XM is re-playing Charley's pre-game World Series interviews in Chicago with people like Tom Verducci, Gordon Edes, Tyler Kepner, et al. Great to be back there again.

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Ned Colletti, Dodger Mgr. press conference on XM

Ned Colletti's press conference now on XM 175. Ned says "it's the proudest day of his life."

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Steiner & Kennedy & the Dodgers

First up, XM's Charley Steiner and Kevin Kennedy, both based on LA, talk about the state of the Dodgers and their new GM, Ned Colletti. Press conference is upcoming.

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Jeff Schultz, Atlanta JC-Would've voted for Andruw

The "Baseball Writers" vote for the MVP awards? Right? No. Many papers don't allow their writers to vote for baseball awards. This year, NO ONE FROM ATLANTA HAD A VOTE IN THE NL MVP! The "2 votes" from that city were farmed out to an espn.com writer from Philadelphia, and another writer from Minnesota. JUST FOR THE RECORD, Atlanta Braves beat writer from the Atlanta Journal Constit., Jeff Schultz, was on XM with Chuck Wilson, & SAID HE THOUGHT ANDRUW JONES SHOULD'VE WON. Jeff cited his defensive as well as offensive contributions. Not saying every local writer always votes for his local player. But, we know Andruw got cheated out of at least 1 first place vote by BBWAA's scandalous, back-room deals.

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Dashed! Arod invokes Mariano Rivera

Kevin and Rob interview AL MVP, Alex Rodriguez. Rob asks him who is the most impressive person he's met in the game. Answer: Edgar Martinez and Mariano Rivera. Response from Kevin or Rob:

Dead Silence.

What a nightmare for Dibs. They then give Arod credit for the big adjustment he made switching from shortstop to third base.

----------------------------------------------

Added, 9/16/13: Mariano Rivera has received a lot of recognition in the media recently. For many years, this wasn't the case. It wasn't the case in 2005. Mostly Rivera was ignored, minimized, misrepresented, or if he was mentioned, it was: "closers like Hoffman and Rivera." The two aren't similar pitchers of course. For many years the media was focused on Trevor Hoffman with interludes devoted to Eric Gagne, Papelbon, Krod, and others. In Dibble's case, he spoke many times of his close friendship with Hoffman and Hoffman's regular season save stat achievement. As of Sept. 2013 it's fair to say Rivera has had the full media spotlight but this wasn't the case for many years. I think Rivera's 2009 post season (parags. 14-16) changed Dibble's mind for the better about Rivera. Dibble overall is great on radio and I wish he were still on XM.

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Derrick Goold on Albert Pujols, NL MVP

Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post Dispatch joins Chuck Wilson to discuss possible moves and acquisitions for the Cardinals. Derrick notes that Pujols is on an "historic run." He feels they'll let Matt Morris go, & will keep payroll at current level, around $90 million.

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Baseball Writers' scandal now mainstream

USA Today ran a story yesterday detailing the fact that baseball award voting has fallen apart. I've been posting examples of this on baseball blogs for the past week. One of many issues is that there are now no voters from Atlanta, as the local writers' newspaper doesn't allow voting on baseball awards. Comment was made that this might hurt chances for Andruw Jones to win NL MVP. Ronnie Ramos, sports editor of the Atlanta Journal Constitution says this is exactly why reporters shouldn't vote. People are admitting that the local reporter would be more likely to vote for the local player.

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Devil Rays Manager Joe Maddon on XM MLB

New Tampa Bay Devil Rays coach Joe Maddon now on XM MLB. Before that, Chuck Wilson was saying he thought that Arod beat out Ortiz by quite a wide margin, & that had surprised him. Go around the corner, & you'll hear another media guy saying it was an "extremely tight race." This is why someone has to comment on the sports media. It's all over the place.

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Bob Klapisch of espn.com & The Record of NJ

Rob & Kevin host Bob Klapisch of The Record of New Jersey and espn.com regarding the MVP award. Bob agreed that Arod should've won it, & contributed more to his team. But, he says that Alex definitely has an issue in some clutch situations, unrelated to his physical ability. Whatever mental issue that might be is open for question. Klapisch said there is much more pressure playing in New York than anywhere else, & that Carl Pavano was uncomfortable with the press attention even in spring training.

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Yankee radio voice John Sterling on XM

Rob & Kevin host long-time Yankee radio voice, John Sterling for MVP talk. John adds that Arod also stole a number of bases at times when the team needed it. Also said it's tough to give individual awards in a team sport, and that many were worthy.

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Is anyone in XM management listening?

I guess not. Dibble keeps up his rants against Mariano Rivera, when the subject is Arod vs Ortiz for AL MVP. Maybe this is a joke. If it's not, Dibble needs counseling or needs a different job. In responding to a caller about Arod, Dibble goes into a rant about how many days off Joe Torre gave Mo to rest him in the last month. Not even true(which I'll detail in an upcoming post), but no where near the subject. THEN, Dibble blurts out, "GARY SHEFFIELD ACTUALLY FINISHED AHEAD OF MARIANO RIVERA!!!" Wow. Who mentioned Sheffield or Rivera? No one, none of the callers. Dibble goes to break saying, "We'll have Mo Rivera coming up after the break...I mean Mo Vaughn." Rob, your closer friend on the west coast will get a job, but your rants against Rivera won't help him.

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Dibble opens by dumping on Mariano

Dibble opens The Show listing the AL MVP results. We all know Arod was 1st, Ortiz was 2nd, but Dibble chooses to read the whole list JUST SO HE CAN SAY "MO RIVERA FALLS ALL THE WAY TO 9th!" In very dramatic tones. "Falls" "all the way to 9th?" He is obsessed with dumping on Mo, & turns this vote into another opportunity. Most people felt it was between Arod and Ortiz, and we've seen that the loose organization of so-called "sports writers" is either deeply prejudiced against or deeply ignorant about Mo.

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Did you know this about the AL MVP?

Arod is the first Yankee to win the MVP in 20 years! The last AL MVP who happened to be a Yankee was Don Mattingly in 1985.

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Line-up on The Beat

Now on the beat:

Alyson Footer, MLB.com covering the Astros, &

discussions of Brad Ausmus (will he go to the Padres?), and Roger Clemens & his health. and coming up :

Tony Massarotti, Boston Herald

And we've just heard from:

Tyler Kepner, NY Times, re: AL MVP
Mark Hale, NY Post, re: Mets activity

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Alex Rodriguez is AL MVP

Major League Baseball has announced that Alex Rodriguez is AL MVP. Details on voting to come.

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Tampa Bay Devil Rays' Moves

Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times and Charley Steiner both think the hiring of new manager Joe Maddon is a great move. Topkin also points to other Rays' moves to build fan excitement: long-term signing of Rocco Baldelli, hiring of Gerry Hunsicker, allowing fans to bring food into the stadium, and some parking and stadium upgrades (though a new stadium, or at least one with a retractable dome is needed). They won't be adding much payroll, but might be able to improve with trades of existing players like Aubrey Huff.

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Ken Rosenthal favors Alex Rodriguez

On The Beat, Charley Steiner hosts Ken Rosenthal from FoxSports.com talking about the impending AL MVP vote. Rosenthal says it's close between Ortiz and Arod, but has to give it to an everyday infielder. Arod's heroics didn't always come in late innings, but they should still count. Charley agrees, but seems more impressed with David Ortiz.

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Brewers at Nationals Instant Classic

Another great classic game---instant variety---now on XM MLB Channel 175. It's from this year, May 18, 2005.

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Hear John Sterling now--2000 World Series

Now on XM MLB Channel 175, a great classic, Mets at Yankees, Game 1 of the 2000 World Series. If you're a fan of the duo of John Sterling and Michael Kay, this will be heaven for you.

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Joe Maddon to Tampa Bay

MLB is reporting that the new Tampa Bay Devil Rays manager will be Joe Maddon, to be announced Tuesday. Maddon was bench coach with the Angels from 1996-2005. A former minor league catcher, Joe has been with the Angels organization for 28 years.

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Great Red Sox Farm System

The Red Sox farm system is showing excellent results for the major league club, reports Bill Madden in today's NY Daily News. They have a great young closer Craig Hansen, plus starting pitcher Jonathan Papelbon, & even good prospects for 2nd base and center field. Bill says the Yankees haven't brought up a draftee since Derek Jeter in 1992.

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Why not let the Pirates win?

Just wondering why Mark Cuban wouldn't be allowed to buy the Pittsburgh Pirates? He wants to win. McClatchy doesn't seem to care, even though they have a beautiful new stadium...oh, yes, isn't the All Star game going to be there in '06? They'll try to get every dime out of that before they sell or let the team win. One rumor has the Oakland A's pitching Barry Zito to Texas for Alphonso Soriano.

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MVP talk--& more bias on XM MLB

On-air host, Holden Kushner, a former reporter for the Boston Red Sox, is yet another media guy sloshing around to muddy the waters for the Yankees. Holden mentions that the AL MVP will be announced Monday, & the NL MVP on Tuesday. Holden "thinks" Ortiz should win in the AL-- I've no problem with that, but listen to his reasons--showing that these awards are frauds. Kushner says the award allows voters to make up their own reasons (why is this allowed)? Says Arod shouldn't get it, because:

Intangibles--he says Ortiz was more clutch
Says Arod didn't do well the last month of the season
Arod didn't have such great range @ 3rd base

(Holden cites Arod's fielding as a reason Ortiz should get the award. Forget that Ortiz doesn't field at all. He doesn't offer stats to back up his other 2 claims).

Says both teams got to the playoffs, so they're even

in that measurement. Then, Holden dreams up this phony one, which doubles as a slam to who else? Mariano Rivera.

He says Arod shouldn't get it, because he really

wasn't the Yankee team MVP, and Ortiz was really the Red Sox MVP, & that should be a factor. He adds that the real Yankee MVP was Mariano Rivera, but he shouldn't win the award either because, even though relievers have won before, they don't like to give it to relievers. Is that a reason? It's just another example of damning Mariano with faint praise, protecting the backs of the entrenched media & their pals in baseball. Their main purpose in life continues on: Keep Mariano Rivera from receiving his awards, even though we know he deserves them. In discussing the NL MVP, Holden votes for Albert Pujols. Why?

Holden says he's talked to a few writers who want

to give Pujols the award over Andruw Jones because of Pujols' 4 GREAT YEARS. Holden says even though that may not be right, that's the thinking. Really?

Exactly why do the so-called "writers" feel it's OK

to give Pujol's the award for "career achievement," but under no circumstances would this criterion be allowed for Rivera?

Obviously, whoever is in charge of the on-air hosts

at XM isn't concerned about bias and inaccuracy amongst its hosts. Too bad, especially in baseball, and especially at awards time.

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Padres at St. Louis, 2005 NLDS

Game 1 of the 2005 NLDS now playing on XM MLB Channel 175. Jason Marquis is throwing in the bullpen. Now, there's a double switch. Eldred comes in to pitch in the 8th inning, John Mabry taking over in left field, will be batting 9th. Giles at first. Cardinals leading 8-2.

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Note to ESPN: The Truth About You

I wouldn't keep mentioning this subject, but they just won't quit. The constant bias against Mariano Rivera. I get the point--you guys just don't like the Yankees. So, you rip their biggest star, their most immortal, because you feel so small yourself. Most of us know by now that the AL Cy Young voting is a fraud--they weren't going to vote for Mo because he was so successful. One of them actually came out and said that in a NY Times article. I WROTE HERE OF JAYSON STARK'S APPEARANCE ON CHARLEY STEINER'S SHOW ON XM EARLIER THIS WEEK, IN WHICH STARK TOOK DOWN MARIANO AS BEST HE COULD. HE ALSO TRIED TO SPOTLIGHT AN ENTIRELY DIFFERENT CLOSER, WHOM HE SAID WAS OVERLOOKED--you know, the one on the west coast these ESPN guys hype all the time, who's nothing like Mariano. Now, I read another 2 puff pieces today by ESPN's Jayson Stark, and he DOES THE SAME THING AGAIN. THE AWARD IS OVER WITH. MARIANO LOST. NOW, STARK WANTS TO PUT ON PAPER JUST ENOUGH SO HE LOOKS LIKE HE KNOWS ABOUT MO. Says maybe there should be a new award called the Rollie Fingers Relief Award, and Mariano would be ONE OF those considered for it. Really? Gosh, that sounds really great. Then, Stark writes a whole new article for the purpose of putting forth ESPN's darling west coast closer, AND diminishing Mariano. He starts by referring to his west coast closer as "a future Hall of Famer." Why? (The guy isn't a future Hall of Famer). Maybe he heard Dibble & Kennedy's interview with Rollie Fingers this week, where a fuming Dibble asked Rollie if HE THOUGHT MARIANO RIVERA SHOULD GO TO THE HALL OF FAME. Rollie said YES, he thought so. No one brought up this west coast guy even though Rollie played for the same team...(oh, yes, I forgot, Dibble DID bring him up at the top of the show, about his "total saves" --do they ever include Mariano's post season saves in their "total saves" pr rant?---& Rollie dismissed Dibble's point---Rollie said that "total saves" wasn't an accurate barometer--easily a third of them didn't really count. And, as he said, Mariano got the games that counted). These ESPN guys are narcissistic, petty and biased. The same goes for whomever employs them. In case you guys haven't heard, the truth always gets out nowadays. Even about you.

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Grant Paulsen's Minors & Majors

On Grant's show, Minors and Majors, he hosts USA Today Sportsweekly's Seth Livingstone, & they discuss the future of the Washington Nationals. Seth sees MLB continuing to drag its feet, as it did all last season on this great franchise. Seth's impression of Jim Bowden is that he's more of an instant results guy, rather than waiting for guys to come up through the farm system. He also says Jim is talkative and accessible to the media, which the media all like. Now, Grant is focusing on youth baseball, talking about getting more ballfields built for kids. A very good topic, Grant!

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Grant Paulsen, Phenom on XM MLB 175

A delightful surprise to turn on XM and hear a very well informed, confident, and personable host named Grant Paulsen, doing a show, "Minors and Majors." Then, I find out he's only 17 years old, and has been an accredited sports writer in the Washington area for 2 or 3 years already! He congratulates all this week's award winners, wishes them the best, but adds that with his 43 saves, 7 wins, and consistent dominance, his vote would go to:

Mariano Rivera for AL Cy Young

Nice to hear a knowledgeable sportwriter's view.

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RICO BROGNA discusses steroids issues

Longtime Phillies 1st baseman, Rico Brogna, on The Show talks about current steroid stories in the media. Rico says he used andro when he was playing, but at the time it was legal, & you could buy it in a grocery store. What he did was mild by any standard, but he knew his playing time was limited, and had to optimize his abilities. (He has degenerative arthritis). Rico sounds like a fantastic person, and is involved with teaching college kids today. He's unhappy about how the issue has tarnished the game.

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Baseball free agents & cheap owners

On The Show, Rob & Kevin talk about upcoming trades & free agents. Tragic situation in South Florida...too much politics with new stadium, owner won't take RISK. Many baseball owners have more money than George Steinbrenner. I've checked Forbes Magazine's list of richest Americans. You'd never believe how much money these guys have, & all they do is complain. FANS SHOULD COMPLAIN TO THESE UNETHICAL, CHEAP OWNERS. THE MONEY THEY'RE GETTING FROM REVENUE SHARING & LUXURY TAX IS GOING IN THEIR POCKET. WHAT A FARCE.

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Gerry Fraley, Dallas Morning News

Very interesting chunks from Dallas's Gerry Fraley... First, he loves Pat Gillick, thinks he commands respect & will do a great job in Philly. Says Buck Showalter is the real boss of the Texas Rangers (he's signed through 2010), and that Jon Daniels may be looking to him for decisions. Fraley says the team will try to trade Kevin Mensch, BECAUSE MENSCH LIKES TO HAVE FUN, and Buck is not big on that. Gerry says that John Hart has a huge ego, and has a floor to ceiling mirror in his office. Hart has focused on signing hitters in Texas as opposed to pitchers. At a previous job, he had hired a number of pitchers who flopped.

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Mike Downey, Chicago Tribune baseball writer

Charley hosts Mike Downey, whose company is also parent of the Chicago Cubs. They discuss the team's interest in Rafael Furcal, especially as lead-off hitter. And, that the Cubs are glad they didn't go for Carlos Beltran. Both guys are very high on Kim Ng. Before that, Charley spoke with Bill Shaikin of the LA Times, mainly about the Baseball World Cup, and the Angels' stadium being one of its venues.

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Murray Chass checks in on XM

Murray discusses the goings-on with agent Arn Tellem, about whom George Steinbrenner said his uncharacteristic but instantly famous 6 words: "(Bleep) the agent. He's no good." Of course, Tellem had been involved in the now- famous language of the Jason Giambi contract, and has been an on-going presence with Hideki Matsui.

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The Baseball Beat on Veterans Day

Charley Steiner opens by hosting:

John Donovan, Sports Illustrated
Murray Chass, N.Y. Times

With John, they just go over the latest rumors, as another group of players is eligible to file for free agency today. Rafael Furcal's name is coming up a lot. Also want to mention that many players are involved in doing charitable work for military wounded and veterans. There are lots of groups involved, including Wounded WarriorProject.org, and Barry Zito's group, Strikeouts forTroops.org. (That "strikeouts" is plural).

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We honor our Baseball Veterans

I'm happy to see that XM MLB 175 was honoring baseball's veterans on their morning show. They mentioned numerous players who served in World War II, including Warren Spahn who won a Purple Heart for bravery. Orestes mentioned his family escaped Cuba in 1968 by sneaking into the US through Mexico (having paid smugglers). His parents came to the US with nothing, and Orestes is grateful to them for their sacrifice.

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Javier Vazquez requests trade

Word now is that Javier Vazquez has requested a trade. He is saying that he likes Arizona, but wishes to be closer to his home in Puerto Rico.

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Rollie Fingers would have voted for Mariano Rivera for 2005 AL Cy Young if he had a vote

Rollie Fingers was a guest of Kevin and Rob today. Rollie won the AL Cy Young and AL MVP in 1981. Kevin & Rob asked him if he thought Mo should go to the Hall of Fame, & Rollie said yes, & gave all the reasons why. Then, they really stepped in it. They asked him if he thought Mariano should've won the Cy Young, and Rollie said yes again! He then said he doesn't get a vote, and he's not a sportswriter. But, he said Mo was the best pitcher in the American League. He said he had command of all his pitches, won the right games in the right situations, and got his team there. Response from Kevin & Rob:

Dead silence.

Labels: Rollie Fingers comment on Mariano Rivera on XM with Dibs and Kevin

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Dibble on XM disses Mariano

Dibble, always desperate to find a way to diminish Mariano Rivera, finds another way today. In an out of context reference, he brings up that he "had come down hard on Rivera at the beginning of the season," and Mariano had decided not to pitch all winter, and had some tough outings at the start of the season. Then, Dibble, not knowing how to make this comment relevant, says that "teams take risks." This was all before he got into the World Cup discussion. His intention was to criticize Mo in some way, and blame what shortcoming he could dig up on Mo (& saying the Yankees allowed Mo to take the winter off). Dibs means, hey, you took a risk, you totally flopped. Who was asking, Dibs?

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Dibble changes his rules for NL Cy Young

In his criteria for AL Cy Young award, Rob never allowed anything except stats, and only stats from this season. BUT, for NL Cy Young, he just said something different. He thinks Chris Carpenter deserves it especially after what he's been through the past few years...having a tough time, having Tommy John surgery, having been let go by the Blue Jays. I wonder what caused Rob to change his mind?

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John Eisenberg, Baltimore Sun

Charley hosts John Eisenberg of the Baltimore Sun, discussing Palmiero as well as the brighter future of the Orioles with Sam Perlazzo as manager. Eisenberg cites that aside from everything else, they let Perlazzo choose his coaches, which they hadn't done with Lee Mazzilli. John sounds terrific. Wouldn't you know that HIS PAPER, THE BALTIMORE SUN, DOESN'T ALLOW ITS WRITERS TO VOTE FOR BASEBALL AWARDS.

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Lifetime achievement -Cy Young

For the record, Scott Miller of CBS Sportsline.com, said that Chris Carpenter deserved the NL Cy Young award in part as recognition of "lifetime achievement." Is this a qualification that was allowed in awarding the AL Cy Young award? Next up on The Beat, Charley hosts Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer.

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NL Cy Young is Chris Carpenter

MLB has announced this year's NL Cy Young award goes to St. Louis Cardinal pitcher, Chris Carpenter.

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Next up on The Beat

After Tom Verducci, Charley hosts:

Selena Roberts, New York Times
David O'Brien, Atlanta Journal Constitution
Scott Miller, CBS Sportsline.com

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Tom Verducci on The Beat

Tom Verducci from SI is first up with Charley Steiner. Nothing very new from him, but he thinks Jim Beattie would be a good fit for the Red Sox GM job. Also, says no one believes Raffie Palmiero. And, of course, the baseball World Cup cannot help but diminish the output of players for their regular season.

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Mariano Rivera created this issue

The issue of fraudulent voting on this year's AL Cy Young award is now being discussed on XM MLB. I thank them for that. (Though they're not actually saying the voting was fraudulent). No one has mentioned Mariano Rivera's name in these 2 interviews, but since the NY Times published some of the voting results, it should be obvious that the AL Cy Young voting has lost all credibility. The fact that no one will mention Mariano's name is a clue to why this mess happened. He is a Yankee, and many small people harbor deep resentment about that. As one voter said, Rivera's success was part of the problem with voting for him. As most ESPN employees will continue to say, Mariano's had so many more opportunities. The prejudice is out in the open. Who's going to do something about it?

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Pres. of AP Sports Writers

Wilson now talks to Glen Krevier, president of AP Sportswriters about the ethics of reporters voting on awards like the baseball awards. Krevier is also an editor of the Minneapolis Star Tribune. This guy loves the glory--doesn't even see a distinction between voting for current players and HOF.

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Ethics of sportswriters?

Chuck Wilson talks with editor of the New York Times sports section, Tom Jolly, regarding ethics conflicts now raised by voting for baseball awards.

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Fay Vincent on XM MLB

Hearing a replay of Fay Vincent on Late Edition, earlier interview with Chuck Wilson. Mr. Vincent said he can't believe the umpires who worked on the post season games this year ended up there based on merit! Someone listen to this man, please! We need a new commissioner.

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The rest of the story

Just to finish off the group that Charley Steiner had on The Beat on Wednesday:

Dan Shaughnessy, Boston Globe
Phil Rogers, Chicago Tribune
Sam Borden, NY Daily News
Jayson Stark, ESPN.com
Bernie Miklasz, St. Louis Post Dispatch
Kevin Baxter, Miami Herald

Charley does this type of show extremely well. I give credit where it's due, & it is. Topics covered included Theo, Kim Ng, Jorge Posada, usual anti- Yankee slurs by an ESPN employee (Stark), and the situation with no stadium in South Florida, Jeffrey Loria's questionable commitment, and the status of Delgado.

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EMBARRASSMENT-Cy Young Voters

Why isn't the Baseball Channel discussing the biggest scandal in baseball, one that needs someone to step up and put an end to? Because they're thrilled that it happened. They're small, jealous people, who certainly shouldn't be passing themselves off as objective. (The one exception to this is Charley Steiner). Why aren't they talking about the AL Cy Young voters? Some of their comments were reported in the New York Times today. On another outlet, I heard SI's Tom Verducci call the voters' comments, "embarrassing." All this is about the fact that there is next to no accountability or professionalism in sports media. To the point that Mariano Rivera didn't receive the Cy Young award, & was even NOT LISTED AT ALL ON 6 BALLOTS. One who excluded Mo: Sheldon Ocker, of the Akron Beacon Journal. Another was Corey Brock, of the Tacoma News Tribune. In Tyler Kepner's article, he observes that Rivera's "dominance seems to have had a numbing effect on voters." SHELDON OCKER: "THAT'S PROBABLY ANOTHER THING THAT HURTS HIM: HE'S HAD SO MANY GOOD SEASONS, THAT, WELL, IT'S JUST ANOTHER GOOD SEASON FOR RIVERA. FOR HIM TO GET ANYBODY'S ATTENTION OUTSIDE OF NEW YORK NOW, HE'D PROBABLY HAVE TO SAVE 65 GAMES." This is blatant incompetence. This person should immediately lose any voting privileges forever. If he needs ANYTHING more than a tv set or radio, he shouldn't be a so-called reporter anyway. I hope others will complain about this. It is an obvious fraud.

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National scandal re: Mariano Rivera

I'm only signing in now, as I've been researching a national scandal. It includes the hosts on XM with 1 exception--Charley Steiner. Even though Charley has an ESPN background, he praises Mariano on his program. Why? Because he saw every pitch thrown by Rivera in at least 3 regular and post seasons. Even when Jayson Stark came on Charley's show today, he tried to turn the focus to one game in which Mo failed (he gave up a bloop hit). Stark would not be stopped---here is a man who's thrown for 11 consecutive regular and post seasons, and even though Stark will give Mo some credit, he then takes over the agenda on this broadcast outlet, in dramatic tones, tries to put him down. Steiner tried to get Stark to focus on the specific circumstance of his example, which would've shown it to be not so dramatic, but Stark wouldn't be stopped. He then blurts out the standard ESPN dis, "Oh, but Rivera's had more opportunities." Steiner wonders why this fact should penalize Mo instead of letting people recognize his feat. They never answer. Charley seemed frustrated, but politely moved on.

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Kevin is determined to ignore Mo

Wow, Kevin Kennedy continues to impress with his absolute refusal to do anything but BARELY acknowledge the existence of Mariano Rivera. Kevin is a great passive-aggressive type-- he's furious inside, and his way of dealing with it is to ignore someone's existence. A poor guy called in from the west coast, said he was not a Yankee fan, but felt sorry for Mariano that he hadn't won the Cy Young, & how did Kevin feel. Silence. Then, uh...I don't know, COMPLETELY avoided saying anything about Mariano, talked about how the awards had changed over the years, how there only used to be 1 Cy Young, and now maybe there are too many awards, and that's really for the writers to think about. THEN, he further diminishes Mo by saying that people "like Trevor Hoffman, Mariano Rivera, and John Franco" should also get consideration. Here's another example of what I've written here before. How small, how jealous, how dishonest this response from Kennedy is.

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Kennedy & Dibble, Sly Young

They offer nothing new in analysis of the AL Cy Young going to Colon. They just come up with extremely general reasons why Mariano Rivera was gosh, golly pretty good, but look at these wins from Colon. I realize covering all of baseball is difficult--these guys shouldn't be put in the position of knowing all about it. I've stated here before their negative feelings about Mariano Rivera. Beyond that, they're also very uninformed about him. Why don't they discuss how many newspapers no longer allow their writers to vote in awards like this? What did papers find out about conflicts of interest that caused them to stop this practice? If total wins is most important, why not decide this award by computer?

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Also on The Beat

After Jack O'Connell, Charley hosts:

Michael Silverman, Boston Herald
Buster Olney, ESPN.com
Bill Madden, NY Daily News

Bill discusses in his column today a topic forwarded by Doug Melvin--another issue of leveling the playing field. Not all teams call up the same number of players in September. Those teams with fewer players are at a disadvantage. Bill references Ed Wade's firing for failing by 1 game to make the playoffs, while using fewer players in the process.

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CY Young by adding machine

The AL Cy Young went to Bartolo Colon, who had the most wins. Kevin Kennedy and others say this award is about total wins. Then, why are people voting on it? And who exactly is voting? As Jack O'Connell was just discussing, more and more papers are not allowing their writers to vote on awards due to conflict of interest issues. Included in that list are: The LA Times, The New York Times, The The Baltimore Sun, The Washington Post, & The Atlanta Journal Constitution (although the latter allows certain writers just to vote for the HOF). I've personally heard many writers express their views on this subject, and their emotions clearly negate reality in many cases. The Cy Young voting procedure should clearly be scrapped. As it is, some writers are clinging to a crumbling empire. The rest of us have more access to information these days, and your own newspapers are continually dropping out of your questionable game. It's over. In the meantime, Kennedy and Dibble are ecstatic.

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Calls the Winners

Jack O'Connell is on with Charley Steiner. Jack is secretary- treasurer of the Baseball Writers Assn., and places calls to winners of awards. Yesterday, he placed the phone calls to Huston Street and Ryan Howard. They discuss that several newspapers have recently decided not to allow their writers to vote for baseball awards, concerned that the procedure is too open to conflicts of interest. One is the LA Times. Before that, Charley spoke to Hal Bodley of USA Today.

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Bill James now on XM 175

Respected guru Bill James is now on XM 175 with Chuck Wilson.

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New day for Dibble & Kennedy

Today the American League Cy Young Award is to be announced. If Mariano Rivera does not win it, you'll hear new life and joy in the sound of Dibble & Kennedy. They'll be dancing around the studio with happiness. They desperately do not want Mariano to get this recognition. And, they know this year is his best and probably only chance for it. If they get out of it, it'll be over for good, & they can continue minimizing or ignoring him. Certain pals of theirs will be relieved as well. In the meantime, the classic game on XM MLB right now (3AM ET) is the 1985 NLCS. Very good!

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Orestes opines

Orestes was disappointed in the NL Rookie of the Year choice- -Willie Tavares would've been his choice. He feels Ryan Howard was good, too, but the concentration of media involved with the vote went against Tavares. He agrees with the AL choice, Huston Street, and agrees that Robinson Cano should've been second (which he was). But, as David Pinto says, who ever remembers who comes in 2nd?

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GM Meetings update

Joe Castellano is calling in from the GM meetings in Palm Springs, California. Orestes will be contributing during the last hour. I hear there are only 2 people per team allowed in each formal meeting. A Reds fan called in a few minutes ago asking about prospects; Rob reminds us that there is new ownership with the Reds, and they need to step up. Joe reports there is a lot of hanging out in the hotel lobby & lots of agents. There are new faces like Josh Byrnes taking in the scenes. Joe offers his opinion that Kim Ng would be a great GM for the Dodgers. Kevin and Rob are not as enthusiastic.

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Ryan Howard, NL Rookie of the Year

Rob and Kevin talk with Philadelphia Phillie 1st baseman, Ryan Howard, just named NL Rookie of the Year. Did they mention that Supreme Court nominee Alito has been seen at a Phillies Phantasy Camp in uniform? Right now, Busch Stadium is being blasted off the earth. RIP.

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Huston Street, AL Rookie of the Year

Rob and Kevin open The Show with the great Oakland A's closer, Huston Street, as he's just been named American League Rookie of the Year. Very well deserved, and great that it's not only a pitcher, but a closer--such an important role. Huston comes from a great family--he has brothers working to be pitchers, and his father was a pitcher when he was young. Like many other players, Huston's father was his coach. And...Huston excelled in physics in high school. Robinson Cano came in 2nd, and Jonny Gomes came in 3rd. Indians have re-signed reliever Scott Sauerbeck.

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More Hot Stove

Now on The Beat is John Rawlings of The Sporting News, and next is Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News. John shares the view of the Dodgers' situation that T. Lasorda is implicated in the demise of Depodesta.

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Risk Taker

Ray Ratto is on now talking about how the White Sox took risks to get where they are. On paper, hiring Ozzie Guillen wouldn't have worked for many baseball owners and managers, but Reinsdorf and Ken Williams thought out of the box in hiring him. Before that, Charley spoke with Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune and Paul White of USA Today Sports Weekly.

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Tony Massarotti on The Beat

Charley Steiner discusses the Red Sox situation with Boston Herald reporter, Tony Massarotti. Tony wonders why Red Sox management, after plenty of time to see that Theo should be kept around, waited til the last minute to sign him. He also repeats an apocryphal note that Theo's father was "very proud" of him for leaving the job.

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1981 NLCS Game 4 on XM MLB

Catch this! Now on XM MLB Channel 175---a classic game*** The Dodgers vs the Expos, 1981, NLCS, Game 4. One of the absolute best things about this channel, but they won't let you know about it! At least, I can't find out about it. I've emailed them numerous times asking for a schedule of the classic games they broadcast, but so far, no reply.

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Holden-You're wrong about Mariano

Holden discusses the AL Cy Young Award to be announced Tuesday. Like most in baseball media, he's not informed about Mariano Rivera. In addition, he is making his judgment very narrowly, to exclude Mariano. Why doesn't a computer decide this award? Anyone who doesn't vote for Mariano is either: someone who's uninformed about Mariano's unique achievements, someone who's unprofessional and just doesn't want a Yankee to get the award, influenced by their personal friendships with existing "closers" who are jealous of Rivera and the attention it will take from them, or lazy. It's takes a little extra work to find out that Rivera is much more deserving than other closers who've won the award. You need to look at what he's done for the position, and you won't find that readily in MLB stats. That only gives you regular season. You need to add all the post seasons. People often say that such and such pitcher fell apart in the post season because he was used so much in the regular season. Have you ever heard 1 person say that about Mo, although it's often been true over his staggering 11 consecutive years of excellence? No. Mo has more appearances of more than 1 inning than all the closers with whom he's compared. Why did Cleveland only keep Wickman in for 1 inning or not use him at all in some of their late-season crucial games? Because they were afraid. Mo has never had that luxury. He has been used when and as often as the Yankees desperately needed to win. Among many other examples, he pitched 3 (three) consecutive scoreless innings in a tie game in the deciding game that took his team to the World Series in 2003. This year, in September, he pitched one stretch of 6 out of 8 days, often tied or 1 run games, in a heated pennant race in which his team started from behind. I could go on, but as long as the guys on this station and elsewhere take their cues from the ESPN way of thinking, the truth will never come out. Holden gives Mo the damning and phony faint praise that gosh, golly, he should really win the best closer award. Really? Gee, what insight. Soon, I'll hear again from Kevin Kennedy and assorted other jealous types, that "anyone could come in in the 9th inning with a 3 run lead." Well, if you believe Kevin's general statement, you might dismiss Mo, as he wants you to. That has not been Rivera's job. He happens to have more Wins than other "closers." He's in his own category of late inning relief pitcher. He is the best at what he does that ever was. There will never be another like him. And Rob Dibble will now go silently to a break.

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Holden Says Let's Talk Media

Holden Kushner saying in the 2pm hour he wants to take calls talking about all media & their portrayal of baseball--radio, tv, internet. Is the job being done well or not? Will be interesting to hear. Brewers fans can rest a little easier, now that the team has signed Melvin through 2009. He says he wants to get Ned Yost re-signed ASAP. Busch Stadium starts its implosion tomorrow. One report says Theo might be considered for the GM of the Nats. I think he'd be a good MLB commissioner.

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MLB Late Edition

Tuned in and heard host Steve Lenox, "in for Joe," having general discussion and taking calls, which I like. If this is the same Steve Lenox on google, then he is also with a Red Sox affiliate, the Wilmington Blue Rocks, as Director of Broadcasting and Media. As a host, he sounds a little hesitant, but I can listen to him (as opposed to some of the others), which is good. He mentions that the GM meetings start Monday...hard to believe.

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Held hostage

Rob Dibble gives an example of the sick individuals running baseball today. He sites Peter Angelos, who blackmailed MLB in the process of the Washington Nationals creation. Angelos wanted to grind as much money as he could, scared of a little competition--or just a bully--so he threatened to tell certain information about MLB personnel or activities if his demands weren't met. The Nationals were WITHOUT A TV OR RADIO DEAL UNTIL THE DAY BEFORE THE SEASON STARTED THANKS TO ANGELOS. Here is this idiot, screwing around with Comcast and whatever tv deal the Orioles own fans might hope to have. Dibble was being considered for the color announcer job for the Nationals. But, it got to be the day before the start of the season, and thanks to Angelos, there was still no radio or tv deal. Dibble and his agent couldn't wait any longer, so he took another broadcasting job.

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What a character

Robin Yount is on The Show now, talking about the Brewers and his other adventures. He's quite a character. Other news includes Bucky Dent joining the Reds coaching staff. Jacques Jones coming up---they say he's a little miffed.

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Baseball lives

Now, Rob and Kevin are chatting with Red Sox reliever, Mike Timlin. Interesting re: publicity in Boston, eg. restaurant owner calling in Red Sox dining choices to gossip sheet. What a nightmare. Mike is another baseball player who enjoys hunting in the off-season. He mentions that in Florida, hog-shooting is permitted, which he enjoys. Learn something new every day.

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Dodgers Re-sign Jose Cruz Jr.

Rob and Kevin report that the Dodgers have re-signed outfielder Jose Cruz, Jr., and agree that it's a good signing for the Dodgers. Now, they're talking with Silver Slugger Texas first baseman, Mark Teixeira. Dibs steps in it: He asks Teixeira who the toughest pitchers are. Texeira names 1 pitcher: Mariano Rivera (sorry Rob & Kevin). He says Mo is the toughest, his cutter moves about a foot, & you can't see that on tv.

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Robin Yount Returns

The Beat welcomes Tom Haudricourt, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, discussing Hall of Famer Robin Yount returning to the Brewers as a coach, and other things brewing in Milwaukee.

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Next on The Beat

We're hearing:

Tom Krasovic, San Diego Union

Gary Shelton, St. Petersburg Times

Tom discusses trades involving the Padres, and Gary talks about management changes at the Devil Rays. But will they really help the fact that the Rays need a new stadium that will draw available fans?

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AJ ASAP?

Jeff Blair from The Globe and Mail says the Blue Jays have made AJ Burnett their top priority. Says that pitching coach, Brad Arnsberg is well liked among pitchers, and that would be a plus in signing Burnett. Positive considerations for a player going to Canada include the retractable roof, a competitive east coast team with playing exposure against the Red Sox and Yankees, a city that some families would enjoy, although JP Ricciardi's family is based in Worcester. The team has built up their farm system and has more money to spend. Says Orlando Hudson might be their most easily tradeable player for a pitching upgrade.

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What about Orlando Hudson?

Next up on The Beat:

Jeff Blair, The Globe and Mail

will discuss the Toronto Blue Jays, and what to do about Orlando Hudson.

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First on The Beat

Barry Svrluga of the Washington Post discusses new ownership questions for the Washington Nationals.

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Baseball Hot Stove on XM MLB

XM MLB Channel 175 invited Steve Hirdt from Elias Sports Bureau to discuss the All Star Game dilemma. Chuck and Steve agree that it's not fair to have the World Series home field advantage decided by the All Star Game. Chuck reports that the Newark N.J. Star Ledger says the Yankees are considering keeping Bubba Crosby as their center fielder. Chuck says he REALLY thinks the Yankees should get Torii Hunter. He does not address that the Twins have a history of exacting heavy tolls if the Yankees have chosen to trade with them. It's nice that the Twins would want Cano and Wang. But the Yankees have often given up young talent for veterans who are injured, and are trying not to do that anymore.

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Tomorrow's Guests

Rob said that Friday's Show will feature: newly re-signed Red Sox relief pitcher, Mike Timlin; Mark Teixeira, and Jacques Jones. I survived the interview today with John Wetteland, with whom they discussed his new job as a pitching coach in the minor leagues. I didn't understand whose organization he's joined-- they mentioned both Texas and San Francisco. I think the AL Cy Young is announced November 8th. I'm considering not consuming any media that day, so if I tune in the next day and Mo has not won, it will be old news and easier to take.

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Mike Metheny, SFG Catcher

Coming up on The Show today: Giants' catcher Mike Metheny, and former pitcher, John Wetteland. I'm now ready to be very upset. We just heard Kevin Kennedy casting slight aspersions on perceived Moneyball types, and by extension stats types. But, don't be fooled. First, reasons for young people separating from jobs often have more to do with politics & how to deal with them than anything else. Second, I've heard Kevin a lot, and he will use and manipulate stats when it suits him. Which brings us to the upcoming John Wetteland appearance. I've sent email and other correspondence to Kevin about his past statements regarding Wetteland and Mariano Rivera. Wetteland deserves all the credit for being the closer of the 1996 Yankees and winning the World Series for them in that role. But, that was the only year in which Mariano Rivera set up for Wetteland. Mariano's appearances in the post season in 1995 came AFTER Wetteland, not as set up. I'm preparing myself that Kennedy will try to minimize Mariano as he usually does. First, in total saves, he won't give the stat that includes regular AND post season-- post season is harder, Mariano has a lot of games there, but pundits never mention that. There are several pundits who are friends of another popular closer on the west coast, who, I'm sure is a terrific person. Anyhow, I'll stop for now and listen.

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San Diego Padres News

On The Beat, Lyle Spencer of Padres.MLB.com, discusses events with the team. He mentions that Sandy Alderson is more straight-talking than some, including agents looking to re-sign their players, are used to. Says there seems to be respect among Alderson and others in front office.

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Cincinnati Post

Now on, Lonnie Wheeler from the Cincinnati Post. Talking about Carl Lindner's legacy. Saying that Lindner's reputation in the community wasn't helped by his leadership of the Reds. Lonnie says that Lindner was often in the background, but came in for occasional big moments. Some worked out, but some didn't. Says new owner, even if not a big spender, is more of a baseball person than Lindner.

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Joe Henderson

Next on The Beat, discussing Gerry Hunsicker's new situation:

Joe Henderson, Tampa Tribune

They discuss an article from a Houston newspaper saying that Hunsicker may've been seen as wanting too much credit for Astros' success. Henderson disagrees, saying it was many people who wanted to give Hunsicker credit, but not Hunsicker himself. His popularity may have ruffled the owner a bit.

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Steroids next--Selena Roberts

Next up on The Beat, in case you haven' t heard everything you ever wanted to hear about steroids:

Selena Roberts, New York Times

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Mike Vaccaro on The Beat

Next up on The Beat:

Mike Vaccaro, New York Post

One of Mike's views: A sign of how much influence Brian Cashman really has will be the issue of Johnny Damon. Mike says that Cashman would prefer not to go with someone like Damon, perhaps a departure from past perceived Yankee style.

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Sean McAdam on The Beat

First up on The Beat today is

Sean McAdam, Providence Journal & ESPN.com

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Gerry Hunsicker Press Conference

XM MLB will be airing the press conference with the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. They'll be naming Gerry Hunsicker to their new front office operation. Not sure yet if he'll be GM.

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XM MLB Late Edition

I tuned in at 1:20AM to see what was happening. The host was Holden Kushner ("in for Joe"). He has the same sing-song high-pitched delivery that Chuck Wilson has. Impossible to listen to. This is obviously the type that XM management likes, unfortunately for radio listeners and baseball fans. We're listening to a "foreground" or talk format. These no-talents (probably very nice guys) are using irritating inflections in their voices as substitutes for personality, confidence, and knowledge. Holden just said the Angels probably are sorry they let Jose Guillen go. Holden, probably not. I think they've moved on.

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Tax the ump

Rep. Jeff Roorda, D-Barnhart, Missouri, wants a new law to get back at the umps. The state lawmaker and Cardinal fan admits it was born of frustration at what he deems bad calls during the recent baseball playoffs. He wants to expand the existing state tax on athletes and entertainers who come from out of state to include persons such as umpires and referees. (AP report).

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Lindner lets go of Reds

The AP is reporting that the Carl Lindner group with 51% controlling interest in the Reds has agreed to sell. The buyers are a group of local businessmen and relatives of former owners. The value of the team is estimated to be $270 million. Hope this will give some stability and bright future for the team and its fans.

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NL Gold Gloves Awarded

Rob and Kevin announce NL Gold Glove winners. A Phillies phan is calling in about the award to Bobby Abreu. They discuss that Chase Utley contributed to Abreu's success, and that Abreu only had 4 errors. Also mentioned was that candidates usually need a certain level of offense to be considered for these defensive awards.

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Will Carroll discusses steroids

Will Carroll from Baseball Prospectus will be on in the 5 pm hour to discuss the steroid issue.

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Steroids may not help at all

Rob and Kevin confirm the reports that Matt Lawton has tested positive for steroids. Lawton was a late season addition to the Yankees, but was not included on their post-season roster. Sad news.

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Pat Gillick on with Rob & Kevin

Pat Gillick on with Rob and Kevin now on The Show. Rob and Kevin are the best 3 hours a day on XM.

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Next on The Beat

Next up on The Beat:

Todd Zelecki, Philadelphia Daily News

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Lineup on The Beat

So far, after the Theo Epstein press conference:

Steve Phillips, ESPN announcer
John Lopez, Houston Chronicle
Gordon Edes, Boston Globe

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Steve Phillips on XM MLB Ch. 175

Steve Phillips is now on The Beat to discuss the Theo Epstein resignation.

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Theo Epstein press conference live on XM MLB

Theo Epstein's press conference now airing live on XM MLB Channel 175. Unfortunately, Chuck Wilson cannot even intro this piece without saying um, uh, uh about 10 times.

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Pat Gillick press conference live on XM MLB 175

Pat Gillick's press conference is now airing live on XM MLB Channel 175.

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Announcement of AL Gold Gloves

Rob and Kevin made the announcement at 5:15. They did not disagree with Derek Jeter's award. I checked the story at MLB .com, and, of course, the Yankee shortstop's status was dimin- ished by an uninformed writer. He said that Jeter's performance ranked "in the middle of the pack." A lie. He ranked #2 behind Orlando Cabrera in defensive rating for AL short stops. That's one reason I started this blog--to reveal the daily lies of so- called baseball writers and pundits.

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Derek Jeter Wins Gold Glove

Haven't heard it mentioned yet on The Show with Dibble and Kennedy, so thought I would. The NY Post is reporting that Derek Jeter has been awarded his 2nd consecutive AL Gold Glove for his work at shortstop. Congratulations, Derek, you deserve it. Jeter's defensive rating was 2nd in the AL behind Orlando Cabrera, and was voted in by AL coaches. I trust the XM guys will mention this, but you never know. Right now, they're interviewing Mike Port, former Red Sox General Manager.

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Full slate on The Beat

So, the rundown today on The Beat was:

Dan Shaughnessy, Boston Globe
Steve Buckley, Boston Herald
Jim Salisbury, Philadelphia Inquirer
Mark Gonzales, Chicago Tribune
Mark Topkin, St. Petersburg Times
Tim Brown, L.A. Times
David O'Brien, Atlanta Journal-Constitution

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More Interviews on The Beat

In Charley Steiner's unfortunate absence, Wilson continues with the slate on The Beat. Next up is Jim Salisbury from The Philadelphia Inquirer discussing the Phillies and their GM situation. Jim feels that a combination of current staffers

Reuben Amaro and
Mike Arbuckle

would do a great job as GM.

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The Day After

Tuned in to XM 175 at 1pm to hear Charley Steiner, but was slapped with Chuck Wilson instead. I will not listen to this shrill, no-talent insult.I made an exception today, as the channel put on Dan Shaughnessy from the Boston Globe for a few minutes. Dan says he just reports the same things he always has, and bears no

responsibility for Theo Epstein's departure. He made the interesting comment about Glenn Ordway that, "sorry, it's not his deal anymore." I believe Ordway is on the sportstalk station WEEI, so controversy must be playing out there. Dan also said regarding Lucchino and Epstein, "one of them is lying to make the other look bad." Next, XM had on Steve Buckley from the Boston Herald, who praised the work of Herald's reporters in getting the story right. Next up, Chuck Wilson will address the Philadelphia Phillies GM situation.

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XM MLB Chat

Wednesday, November 30, 2005

CF notes & Yanks look to another Braves pitcher

MLB/AP Brian Giles re-signs with Padres

NY Met David Wright on XM

Josh Beckett now on XM radio

Dibs says Farnsworth signed

Andrew Baggerly, Oakland Tribune & World Baseball Classic

Paul Hoynes on the Cleveland Indians

Paul Konerko re-signs with the White Sox

Eddie Andleman, Boston radio icon, now on XM

Mel Antonen on Blue Jays, Orioles, Angels, Mariners

Tuesday, November 29, 2005

Billy Wagner press conference airing on XM

Results of Phillies closer poll- Claire Smith

The Flap about Joe Torre saying Jeter or Arod would move

Susan Slusser--A's actually won a bidding war against the Giants

Marty Noble--thinks Mets won't go after Manny

Bob Nightengale, Sports Weekly, on Manny, Frank Thomas

Bill Lajoie now on XM

Is Barry Zito on the auction block?

Sunday, November 27, 2005

Around the bases with Wagner, & Happy Birthday to Mo

Saturday, November 26, 2005

Nationals make $10 million profit first year

Angels took Yankees to school in the playoffs

Friday, November 25, 2005

BJ Ryan signs with Blue Jays

2005 NLCS Game 6 now on xm

Learning about loopholes

More info about the Mota move

Guillermo Mota to Red Sox--Much more than gravy

Thursday, November 24, 2005

2005 World Series Game 4 on XM

2005 World Series now on XM

2005 ALCS game 3, White Sox @ Angels

Wednesday, November 23, 2005

Jim Thome to White Sox---Aaron Rowand to Phillies

"Wagner: I'm No Mo," by John Delcos, Westchester Journal News

Andy Pettitte vs. Chris Carpenter on XM--Baseball Lives

MARLINS TRADE CARLOS DELGADO TO THE METS

2005 NLCS Game 2

Tuesday, November 22, 2005

JERRY SEINFELD WOULD HELP RECRUIT BILLY WAGNER

MARLINS TO LEAVE FLORIDA--Howard David, WQAM

Wagner--"Doesn't care what Bowa says."

Kevin Baxter-Loria says Marlins will move

More on Wagner from Larry Bowa

Dave Lennon on Billy Wagner & the Mets

Tony Massarotti on XM radio re: Red Sox moves

Monday, November 21, 2005

Ian Browne of RedSox.com on XM MLB

Beckett & Lowell to the Red Sox

BREAKING NEWS****DEREK JETER SIGNS WITH XM MLB RADIO 175

Seattle Mariners sign Johjima

Marlins & Rangers deals, Dallas Morning News

John Manuel of Baseball America

Roch Kubatko on the Baltimore Orioles

Phillies Moves with Jim Salisbury

Astros @ Cardinals!!! 2005 NLCS Game 2 rewind

Sunday, November 20, 2005

Chicago White Sox 2005 Rewind

Baseball juice & brawls

2005 Astros Team Rewind

Ichiro, Beckett, Flash, Hernandez

Where is Lou Piniella?

Detroit calls Yanks about Pavano

2000 San Francisco vs New York NLDS

First game ever of Washington Nationals NOW on XM

Saturday, November 19, 2005

Hot Stove rumors

2005 NLCS now on XM MLB 175

Classic games instead of Mark Gray

Globe: Red Sox offer Damon 3 years

Marlins, Rangers & Rockies talking

Best Host on XM: Grant Paulsen

Mariano Rivera likes Flash of Tom Gordon

Classic 1991 NLCS Atlanta v Pittsburgh Now

Friday, November 18, 2005

Baseball playoffs to replay on XM starting Nov. 23rd