Tuesday, 26. February 2008
The Lightning have been busy here! They have just traded F Jan Hlavic to the Nashville Predators for a 7th round pick. It looks here like the Bolts are trying to stockpile some draft picks. I’ll put something together tonight to review all the trades they made. There may be more coming as they need to go to the League for review before being announced. Stay tuned!
Tuesday, 26. February 2008
Some quick Bucs stuff here. It looks as if the Bucs are going to let C John Wade go elsewhere without even a contract offer. This move at this point puts 28 year old Matt Lehr into the starting role. This move will be questioned depending on whether the Bucs find a top notch center either through free agency or the draft. I’m scratching my head at this one simply because last off-season the Bucs were quite comfortable letting Sean Mahan go, who by the way went on to start and do quite well for the Pittsburgh Steelers. If they want to get younger that’s great but why let a high caliber player in Mahan go to keep the guy you’ve got for one more year? This now leads me to a review of the free agent market. I will go over the free agents to be and post who the Bucs are losing and who the possible replacements could be in the next couple of days. Free agency starts Friday so we’ll have something together by Wednesday or Thursday.
Tuesday, 26. February 2008
Marc Topkin of the St. Pete Times is reporting on his blog, The Heater, that Scott Kazmir is on his way to get an MRI on his pitching elbow after taking himself off the mound right before facing hitters in the first intrasquad game this afternoon. I think we all are hoping this is something minor but anytime a pitcher, especially one who throws as many sliders as Kaz does, starts to have elbow problems it usually doesn’t turn out well (see Twins Francisco Liriano who missed all of last season). I hope its just some sort of freak tweaking or something that can heal by resting it for a while. With the anticipation and excitement that has been building towards the start of this season this would be a HUGE blow to the team if Kaz was to miss any extended period of time. Let’s all keep our fingers crossed here and I’ll try to update as soon as possible.
Tuesday, 26. February 2008
As reported on earlier here, the Lightning have traded star center Brad Richards and Johan Holmqvist to the Dallas Stars for goaltender Mike Smith and forwards Jussi Jokinen and Jeff Halpern. Smith has been excellent of late with a .938 save percentage and 1.67 goals against average in his last three games, all wins by the way, and a .906/2.46 line with a 12-9-0 record for the season. Jokinen, a 24 year old forward, has 28 points to include 14 goals and Halpern, a 31 year old forward, has 24 points to include 10 goals on the season. My initial reaction to this is the Bolts should have gotten more defense, especially when you think we’ve now traded Vinny Prospal, Brad Richards and Johan Holmqvist and have received a backup goalie and a minor league defenseman. That’s not enough to me. We have to wait and see how everyone projects and gels on our team here but we now have a potential number one goaltender taking over for the third straight season. That’s got to be a little unsettling for the team. As I previously mentioned I don’t think the goaltenders we’ve had over the last two seasons have been as big a problem as the defense itself. We’ll have to see how Smith plays in front of this defense before we judge here but I think we could’ve gotten a little better returns for the guys we’ve lost.
Tuesday, 26. February 2008
In some quick Rays news here the St. Pete Times is reporting that reserve IF Juan Guzman has finally gotten his visa issues straightened out and could report to camp today. Willy Aybar who is slated to compete for the third base opening along with rookie Evan Longoria could be reporting today also. The only other player still possibly help up on visa issues is relief pitcher Juan Salas who is still in the Dominican Republic. Not exciting news but news none the less.
Tuesday, 26. February 2008
With today’s 3 p.m. trade deadline approaching in the NHL the rumors are going to be centered around Brad Richards. He is going to be a key piece of today’s activity. Lots of teams out there are looking to improve and what they are able to do may be decided by who ends up obtaining Richie (if anyone does). I will just update this post all day and add to whatever is mentioned. Here are the current possibilities.
As I said we will update this post all day as rumors ar floated so keep checking back.
Monday, 25. February 2008
It looks like DE Greg White wants some real money now. After completing his first full season in the NFL Greg White looked great, he finished with 8.5 sacks and 28 tackles in a rotation that included first round pick Gaines Adams. Not a bad first season. Now he’s an exclusive rights free agent (only the Bucs can negotiate with him) and he’s trying to use what little leverage he has in order to get a raise. I gotta take White’s side here as long as he doesn’t get crazy with the numbers. White earned the league minimum last season taking home $300,000. If I were the Bucs I would think White earned a little more than your typical second year player since he’s actually been around since ‘02 although most of that was on practice squads and in the Arena League. Look for a two to three year deal with some incentives and I think he takes it.
Monday, 25. February 2008
It seems that free agent CB Asante Samuel likes the Bucs. According to Samuel’s agent Alonzo Shavers the former New England star CB has the Bucs listed as one of the teams on his short list. This seems a reach but nice to think about. Brian Kelly bought out that the last year of his contract in order to become a free agent and wouldn’t it be nice to fill his slot with a Pro Bowl caliber two time Super Bowl winner? I would bet against it as the Bucs do not have a history of paying large sums to CB’s and Samuel will command somewhere around $7 to $9 million annually. Should be a fun off season as always.
Monday, 25. February 2008
In a somewhat surprising move here the Lightning have traded C/F Vaclav (Vinny) Prospal to the Philadelphia Flyers for 22 year-old defenseman Alexander Picard and a draft pick. Picard is having a nice season for the AHL Philadelphia Phantoms with 38 points to include 8 goals. The draft pick they receive apparently has some stipulations. If the Flyers qualify for the finals in ‘08 it’s an ‘09 2nd round pick, if they do not it’s Calgary’s 3rd round pick in ‘09. We won’t be able to judge this trade for a couple years as no one knows how Picard will project in the NHL and of course we need to see what we get in the draft. In the mean time I guess we’re rooting for the Flyers to go the finals sooooo, go Flyers! Oh, nevermind I still can’t root for any Philly team.
Monday, 25. February 2008
The Lightning have re-signed defenseman Dan Boyle to a reported six year deal to be worth around $40 million. It was thought that if the Bolts and Boyle couldn’t agree he would be traded by tomorrow’s trade deadline. This would seem to all but guarantee that Brad Richards will be dealt by Tuesday’s deadline. This is the right decision in my eyes as the Lightning need to keep what they have and add to the defense. Hopefully this is a sign that the new ownership is committed to getting back to playoff contention as quickly as possible. I only hope now that Jay Feaster gets as much as he can for Richards even if it means holding on to him and dealing him in the off season. I’m happy so far but let’s see what we get for Richie.
Monday, 25. February 2008
The reports are coming in waves now, Barry Bonds could soon adorn a Rays uniform. This is now a real possibility and according to Buster Olney this could be the perfect match for Bonds. The Rays are always looking for veterans with a little left to help the team, why not the homerun king? Throw the steroids question out the window as we all know he’s not the only one accused, and if you think no one on this team currently is using, you’re delusional. Forget whether he’ll take at bats away from Cliff Floyd, Rocco Baldelli or Gomes as the three of them put together might be as productive as Bonds was last year. This guy can flat out hit and whether he can stay healthy and put up numbers is not the issue. My only concern with Barry coming to Tampa would be his influence on the younger players. I believe it would be a positive thing. Lets review this realistically.
This is a good thing in my opinion that should’ve been considered before the signing of Cliff Floyd. No knock on Floyd but it limits Floyds at bats even more. This signing is a real possibility as Stuart Sternberg is in town and so is Bonds’ agent Jeff Boris. Get it done Rays.
Sunday, 24. February 2008
For those of you out there who have HBO, there is a documentary on Joe Louis that has been running this week and is on HBO on demand I believe. I’ve watched it twice now and It’s a must see for anyone regardless of whether you like boxing or even sports. Joe Louis was a great man who championed for our country and left a large mark on society. I’ve only seen old tapes of his matches but after hearing about the type of man he was he immediately has a place in my heart. HBO did a great job of putting him and all he did into perspective, so when you have time please check that out.
Sunday, 24. February 2008
We now introduce Dave Tyre. Dave is a racing enthusiast who has agreed to come on board and cover some Nascar racing for us. I wanted to cover racing yet that is a sport I know very little about so I recruited Dave in order to help. We’re always looking to improve and are looking for reader feedback so we can help keep you caught up on everything Tampa Bay sports fans are in to. Knowing the area I’m currently looking into getting some posts for the Gators, Seminoles, Hurricanes, Tennis, Golf, Boxing and UFC. If anyone out there thinks they can help please leave comments or email me at scott at tampabaysportsblog.com
Saturday, 23. February 2008
It seems now that the Bucs may take a look at underachieving WR Troy Willaimson. The Bucs do need to add depth and another play maker at the WR position but this I would like to see pass. There are other options out there and I don’t think Williamson is the type of player that can succeed in Gruden’s system. His routes are sloppy and he has yet to prove he could be a number 2 or 3 type receiver and that’s what we need. Keep shopping Bucs.
Saturday, 23. February 2008
In a slow day, the boys over at DRays Bay did a nice profile of Don Zimmer. Zims been a great guy in baseball for over 50 years now and warrants respect from anyone associated with baseball. Check out the piece at http://www.draysbay.com/story/2008/2/23/162952/851.
Saturday, 23. February 2008
The Bucs are getting a jump in the free agent market. Today Rick Stroud over at the St. Pete Times is reporting that Bruce Allen has confirmed interest in RB Deshawn Foster who was recently released by the Carolina Panthers to clear some cap room. Foster, who has had a history of injuries and has yet to fulfill his potential, is the Panthers career leading rusher and has played well in the post-season. This could mark the end for Cadillac Williams who is not due back from his knee injury until somewhere past the midpoint of the ‘08 season. With Graham essentially taking the starting role and Michael Bennett re-signed the Bucs would have some nice depth at running back if Foster were to sign on. It’s also assumed at this point that Michael Pittman will be elsewhere by the start of next season. In other Bucs news free agents Rod Coleman and Alge Crumpler are due in for visits on Tuesday, 3 days before the free agent signing period officially begins.
Friday, 22. February 2008
According to the official site of the Tampa Bay Rays the drama between all-star outfielder Carl Crawford and Delmon Young is over. I think not. Nice try Rays, the drama is not over though. Crawford basically squashed it by saying he would tell Young how it was face to face or whatever way he wanted it but this isn’t over. Young may have had no comment today but this is far from done. Judging by the type of people they are, Young thinks he’s tough, this isn’t going to stop anytime soon. Delmon Young has a soft yet wanna be tough guy persona and Crawford is naturally tough and will react when necessary. Crawford only spoke truth, not trash, when asked about the clubhouse and Young immediately took offense, as would anyone who knows they’re wrong yet afraid to admit it, about the situation. This tells me that Young is still a wanna be thug and Crawford is acting natural. Sorry to Young fans, which I am talent-wise, but this shows why the Rays got rid of him and we all should be glad for it. If Garza never works out and Young becomes a superstar it doesn’t matter because the Rays were right here. As much as that us true the Rays trying to spin this as if it’s over is funny! It’s not over Rays, not matter how much you want it to be. Let’s keep watching this as it’s bound to get ugly.
Friday, 22. February 2008
It’s no secret the Lightning are shopping Brad Richards and according to the Columbus Dispatch it’s no secret the Jackets are looking for a number one center. Match made in heaven right? The Bolts need to unload Richards (or another big contract) in order to re-sign Dan Boyle and the Jackets are in need of a legitimate scoring option. This sounds perfect, but Columbus is only one of a handful of teams interested in the star center. I haven’t researched what the Jackets have to offer but if there is anything there in the way of defense or goaltender lets do it! I like Brad but if it’s Brad or Boyle, see ya Brad. I’ll try to re-post soon after I see what the Jackets have in the way of defense and suggest some options (as if the Lightning will listen) for fun. Keep an eye on this one.
Friday, 22. February 2008
Shortly after the Delmon Young trade Carl Crawford was asked about the effects and Crawford said that the clubhouse would be much calmer this year which would be better for the team (obviously). Young showed up to camp with the Twins yesterday and said “if they’re trying to blame us (Young and Elijah Dukes) for the way they weren’t winning, if it was us two we weren’t there from ‘98 to ‘06 so….”. After Crawford read those comments this morning he was irked. Crawford fired back saying “I think he just got it misconstrued, Nobody said he was the reason for us losing the games. We said it was a more relaxed, more calm environment that could help us in the future. Nobody blamed him or Dukes for losing the games. For him to say we want to wait until he leaves to say something—who is he? Nobody’s afraid of him. You know? We’ll say it to his face. I’ll be more than happy to say it to his face or any kind of other way that’ll make him understand what we mean. For him to say that like that, that really pissed me off, you know what I’m saying? It is what it is. I want to let him know that nobody’s saying nothing because he’s not here—I’ll tell him the exact same thing to his face, and I’m pretty sure he’s going to make the trip over here, too, so he’ll know.” Heck yes!!!! Get em Carl, that’s the kind of thing we all like to see from our superstar players. Young isn’t half the player Crawford is, and as far as being men go, Young is still in high school and Carl is an all-star. C.C. is generally a quiet guy so for him to be so upset over what Young said shows what a problem Young was and now is in Minnesota. Two things here, this is not the last we’ll hear from Young this year. He will cause problems in Minnesota as his skills don’t overcome his mouth. Also, if it were to go down, every dollar I would ever hope to make is on Crawford!
Thursday, 21. February 2008
Rick Stroud over at the St. Pete Times is reporting that Buccaneers GM Bruce Allen confirmed reports that the Bucs are talking to both DT Rod Coleman and TE Alge Crumpler. Both former Falcons would definitely be welcome additions with a priority still being put on the pass rush and, with Anthony Becht and Jeramy Stevens both expected to hit the free agent market, the TE position will need to be addressed. Crumpler would assume the starting TE role and move Alex Smith to the 2 role which would be an immediate upgrade on offense. The Bucs are also rumored to be looking into a potential deal for former Pro Bowl WR Javon Walker. Walker wants out of Denver and Denver wants Walker gone so this theoretically should be easy and not cost too much. Allen gave the old “we can’t confirm or deny” response when asked about Walker but this does seem to be a good fit.