Albert Pujols: Arguably the best hitter in baseball over the last ten years. The 31-year-old has consistently been at the top of the league leaders in nearly every offensive category, has won gold gloves for his defensive skills, and has won two World Series Championships. However, whatever team gets him is also buying the eventual decline of his career. He is either at, or nearing, the end of the prime of his career. Also, as an ESPN commentator brought up, there have been issues regarding Dominican players lying about their age in order to appear younger and called into question Pujols’ actual age.

C.J. Wilson: Over the last two seasons, Wilson has been one of the most consistent starting pitchers in baseball. He was a major reason that the Texas Rangers were able to reach the World Series the last two years. Wilson has struggled in the post-season, but with starting pitchers being one of the most desired positions in all of baseball and a rarity in the free agent market, he should be getting a big contract wherever he goes.

Jose Reyes: There is no doubt that Reyes is a talented ballplayer and could probably provide help to a team in need. He has been with the Mets since 2003, which is a situation that nobody wants to be in. It’s like realizing your dream of becoming a musician and being asked to cover Nickelback songs. Reyes’ biggest issue as of late has been injury, but he is still young and has a great deal of talent still left to offer.

Carlos Beltran: It shocks me that people actually still talk about Carlos Beltran. I’d rather have one of my roster spots filled by a magnet; at least magnets have a positive side. I can only imagine that the reason Beltran still gets attention is because he had some great years with the Kansas City Royals nearly ten years ago, helped lead the Houston Astros to their first ever World Series appearance, and then sucked Los Mets dry for $119 Million. The guy has been a disappointment every single year since 2004. At this point, any time Beltran does something impressive it’s like a blind rabbit finding a carrot. It will happen eventually.

Heath Bell: Bell is not a household name, but if he played in a large market he would be. Bell has been the most consistent closer in baseball over the last three years. However, playing in San Diego can skew numbers a little bit. The Padres ballpark is a pitchers park, and Bell could underperform were he to play in an American League hitter’s park. Bell has said he would take less money to stay with his home team, and that seems like the most likely scenario.

Jonathan Papelbon: If Heath Bell is the Cadillac of closers, Papelbon is the station wagon. Closers are always hard to come by, and the fact that Papelbon is seen as such a commodity further proves what a dearth of talent there really is at the position. Granted, Papelbon has performed on much grander stages than most other MLB closers, including Bell, but he lacks strategy. He is that annoying kid you knew in elementary school who would throw anything as hard as he could and not even think about it. If it works, he’s an incredible power pitcher. If it doesn’t work, he’s still an intimidating presence due to his willingness to be nasty and mean, but an intimidating presence that’s easy to hit.

There are a lot of big names that will be on the move and signing big contracts. It’s going to be a fun off-season, and I hope you all enjoy it.

They are the kings of sport, the heroes of our childhoods, and perennial back page superstars.  As kids, we would emulate their every move – their swings, their jump shots, their Hail Mary passes – aspiring to one day be the athletes we loved.

But once the spotlight fades, we see that all that glitters isn’t gold.  Before we can come to grips with the feats they have accomplished, our on-field idols become off-field fools.  Like clockwork, the most immaculate sportsmen deflate our expectations, destroy our trust and disenchant our dreams.  Call it the byproduct of money, naivety, and self-indulgence.

As our national pastime, baseball deserves first licks.  During the 1998 Home-Run Race between St. Louis Cardinals Mark McGwire and Chicago Cubs’ Sammy Sosa, fans nationwide forged a renewed interest in the game.  Throughout that summer, both sluggers slammed dinger after dinger until McGwire broke New York Yankee Roger Maris’ single-season record of 61 in early September.

With every swing, the duo drew us always closer to believing they were the real deal.  But it was a trap.  Both used steroids knowingly, but what did they care?  They were rich, they were on top of their games and they were the beating pulse of an American love affair.

When rumors surfaced that both men used performance-enhancing drugs (PEDs) to shatter Maris’ mark, however, love turned to lamentation, and lamentation turned to lost hope.  Suddenly, Big Mac wasn’t so big and Slammin’ Sammy was far from slammin’.  And this was only the beginning.

In 2001, San Francisco Giants slugger Barry Bonds crushed McGwire’s three-year-old homer record of 70 with a season total of 73.  As if our icons’ images weren’t tarnished already, Bonds’ alleged steroid use would have had Maris rolling in his grave.

With the world watching six years later, Bonds shattered Hank Aaron’s all-time home run record of 754, his milestone accomplishment scarred by PED speculation and strong public distaste.  The disgraced left fielder was accused of perjuring himself after he told a grand jury that he never knowingly took steroids.

Perhaps the game’s darkest day came on December 13, 2007.  In former Senator George Mitchell’s report on steroids and other illegal substances in Major League Baseball, nearly 100 current and former players were implicated as having had some level of involvement in banned drug transactions.  Several names were expected, others came as a shock.  Even so, role models betrayed the fan base and giants became goats.

Moving onto the gridiron, the NFL has had its fair share of legends gone bust. As for Mr. Notorious, look no further than OJ Simpson.  A Heisman winner, No. 1 draft pick, five-time Pro Bowler, and four-time rushing champion, Simpson racked up over 14,000 career yards.  A stalwart with the Buffalo Bills and San Francisco 49ers, he was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1985.  Then  his most famous dash was done behind the wheel of a white Bronco.

In June 1994, police accused Simpson of killing his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and her friend, Ron Goldman.  A low-speed car chase in Los Angeles followed before he surrendered to the police.  Over a year later, on October 3, 1995, despite substantial evidence denouncing Simpson’s innocence, the once-beloved star was found “not guilty” of double murder.

Here lies the bombshell of all bombshells.  That a man so envied and established could fall from football’s highest peaks is a testament to Simpson’s blunt idiocy.  With little regard for the opportunities provided by his career, he acted thoughtlessly and in line with the psyche of a madman.  If fans weren’t disillusioned by the charges against him, they were most certainly baffled by his acquittal.

Of similar disappointment is expelled New York Giant Plaxico Burress.  After making the game-winning catch in Super Bowl XLII last year, the wide receiver accidentally shot himself in the leg this past December.  Authorities hit Burress with criminal gun possession charges, and later seized ammunition and other weaponry from his New Jersey home.  Big Blue? Try Big Blew.

For whatever reason, violence is an all too common way for athletes to botch their legacies.  Take former Yankee Jim Leyritz, famous for his two series-defining home runs during the 1996 and 1999 Fall Classics.  The slugger now faces DUI manslaughter charges for striking a woman in December 2007.  If convicted, he could face up to 15 years behind bars.

As if this circus of clowns couldn’t be more disappointing, leading the pack is none other than merman Michael Phelps.  After shocking the world in Beijing this past summer, Phelps won a record eight gold medals, and surpassed Mark Spitz as the most decorated Olympic champion in a single games.  He hypnotized audiences around the globe with his last-second finishes and unparalleled endurance.  But when that fateful photo surfaced of Phelps, bong in hand, a god was made mortal and a swimmer drowned in his own ignorance.

Athletes are people, and as people, they make mistakes.  Perfection is nearly impossible to attain, even if trophy rooms prove otherwise.  But with great power comes great responsibility.  Celebrities are superheroes in the eyes of many, and their follies send a sour message to their fans.  A message, perhaps, that the champions on our Wheaties boxes are nothing more than a bunch of flakes.

“Next stop, Shea Stadium.”  Any lifelong Mets fan and experienced subway rider knows that those four words crackling over the 7 train’s speakers can only mean one thing:  home is near.  For 45 years, our beloved ballpark in Queens has provided us with memories to last a lifetime and summer afternoons to savor forever. Even if they meant emptying our wallets just to get there. But as another season draws to a close, this sky-high monument to the Boys of Summer (and many others) takes its final bow as it closes its doors and gives way to Citi Field next April.  So in honor of Shea’s last hoorah, let us take a trip down Roosevelt Avenue (to the corner of 126th Street, of course) and reflect on nearly a half-century of unforgettable moments, rockin’ concerts, and way too expensive hot dogs.

Bye-bye apple.

Built in 1964 in conjunction with the World’s Fair, Shea’s early years were marked by baseball…absolutely terrible baseball! In the Mets’ first year there, they won a dismal 53 games and lost 109.  Would you expect any better with no-names like Hawk Taylor, Bobby Klaus, and Roy McMillan in the starting lineup? Not exactly Murderer’s Row, huh!  Shea did host the All-Star Game that year, though it was the only time the Midsummer Classic ever came to Flushing.   Nonetheless, throughout most of the 60’s, the Mets never placed better than ninth in the National League.  Then came 1969.

Up until the summer of that year, the Mets continued to play one mediocre game after another and it seemed as if ‘69 was bound to turn out like the club’s previous seven seasons.  However, by the All-Star break in July, the Amazins’ had moved into second place in the National League East, trailing the Cubs by only 4.5 games in the standings.  Remarkably winning 37 of their last 48 games, the team took over first place on September 10, and clinched the division crown on September 24 in a 6-0 win over the Cardinals.  They went on to defeat the Braves in the League Championship Series and slaughtered the Orioles in five games to win the World Series at Shea on October 16. The lovable losers were losers no more and ruled as the Kings of Queens.

Following their first championship in franchise history, the Mets returned to the Fall Classic in 1973 – with the help of Tug McGraw’s “Ya Gotta Believe” mantra – only to lose to the Athletics in seven games.  For the next decade, the team hit its doldrums and it wasn’t until the mid-1980’s that the Shea faithful began to feel the winds of October start to blow.  In 1986, the Mets dominated the National League.  Finishing the regular season in first place with a 108-54 record and a 21.5 game lead over the Phillies in the division (oh, how nice that would be today!); these Bad Boys were a team of destiny.  They were unruly, they were obnoxious, but they were good, really good!  After defeating the Astros in a six-game National League Championship Series, the Mets found themselves back in the World Series.

After losing the first two games at home and winning the next two out of three up in Boston, the team returned to Shea facing elimination.  But this trip home would be different.  The reason? Game Six.  On October 25, in front of a paid crowd of more than 55,000, Boston was one out away from winning their first title in 68 years.  Yet these Mets would not back down, and, perhaps with a little help from the baseball gods Mookie Wilson’s slow roller up the first base line somehow found its way under Bill Buckner’s legs and…, well, the rest is history.  Two days later, the team won its second Series.  Shea shook.  Queens quaked.  The Mets were once again champions of the world!

In 1988, Shea had playoff fever yet again.  This time, though, the magic of ‘86 had worn off and the dream was not to be.  After losing a seven-game NLCS to the Dodgers, that ass-haulin’ squad from just two seasons earlier was slowly dismantled and a new era of Mets would enter the scene.  Nothing spectacular came from the 1989 to 1998 teams, the next two years finally gave Mets fans reason to believe.  Having clinched the NL wild card in 1999, Bobby Valentine’s bunch found themselves in a spot to win the Division Series at home.  Up three games to one versus the Diamondbacks, back-up catcher Todd Pratt came to the plate in the bottom of the tenth with the score locked at three.  One swing of the bat was all it took as Pratt launched a series-clinching homer over the wall that just eluded centerfielder Steve Finley’s glove.  Radio announcer Gary Cohen called it best: “It’s outta here! It’s outta! Pratt hit it over the fence! Mets win the ballgame!”

Goodbye giant scoreboard.

The Mets proceeded to face the Braves in the second round of the ‘99 playoffs, and despite Robin Ventura’s famous “grand slam single” in the bottom of the fifteenth to force a game six; Atlanta squashed the hopes of so many eager fans as they won the series (but lost to the Yankees in the Fall Classic – nice!).  Speaking of those damn Yankees, 2000 was a year for the ages.  In the first Subway Series World Series since 1956 (when the Yanks played the Dodgers), the Mets battled their cross-town rivals in a fan-crazy media frenzy.  The city was ablaze in blue, orange, and pinstripes, and what better place to host the middle games of the series than at rickety Shea.  The Mets salvaged the first game at home, but that was all.  The Bombers went on to win the Series two nights later.

After a six-year layoff, Willie Randolph’s boys roared through the rest of the National League in 2006.  Dubbed a relentless pursuit for the postseason, the team’s journey from Game 1 through Game 162 was marked by one stellar win after another.  Clinching the franchise’s first division title since 1988, the dynamic duo of Reyes & Wright propelled the team past the Dodgers in the NLDS and into a classic second-round showdown with the Cardinals.  Forced to a defining Game 7, Shea was the scene for two of the most exhilarating and heart-breaking events in club history.  Following Endy Chavez’s superman catch to rob Scott Rolen of a home run in the sixth, Carlos Beltran took a called third strike to end the game, the series, and the dreams of Mets fans from Manhattan to Montauk. It still hurts.

Playoff appearances aside, the stadium has had no shortage of “Amazin’” moments.  In April 1997 on the 50th anniversary of Jackie Robinson’s first game in the Major Leagues, Commissioner Bud Selig officially retired number 42 throughout all of baseball, as President Bill Clinton and Jackie Robinson’s widow, Rachel Robinson, looked on.  And who could forget that stirring Mike Piazza home run in New York’s first sporting event since 9/11?  With tens of thousands of uneasy fans packed into Shea, the place served as a house of community, a house of togetherness. As Piazza’s shot soared majestically over the centerfield fence, New Yorkers, at least for a night, had something to cheer about.

Although they are the ballpark’s primary tenants, the Mets aren’t the only team to have ever called Shea home.  The Jets played their home games there from 1964 to 1983 and the Giants, in 1975.  Shea actually hosted both New York football teams, the Mets and the Yankees, in 1975 as Yankee Stadium underwent renovations.  Pity the schedule makers that year!
More than just an all around sporting venue, however, over the years Shea has served as quite the musical scene.  From The Beatles’ landmark concerts in 1965 and 1966, Shea has hosted the likes of Jimi Hendrix, Jethro Tull, The Who, The Police, Simon and Garfunkel, The Rolling Stones, Eric Clapton, and Bruce Springsteen.  This past summer, Billy Joel played two concerts to commemorate the stadium’s ultimate season.

So as autumn arrives and leaves the traces of summer behind, we salute Shea one final time.  We will miss its deplorable parking, $20 foam fingers, stray cats, and ear-shattering sound system; and we’ll never forget the constantly flooded bathrooms (which resemble Temples of Doom, if anything else).  Granted, it has its quirks, but they’re our quirks.  What else would you expect from an outdated heap of steel and concrete nestled between Queens’ best junkyards and the Whitestone Expressway?  As Citi Field looms ominously over the centerfield fence, it’s clear that Shea’s days are through.  The last beer will be sold, the last out will be made, and the last fans will leave the turnstiles.  But regardless of when our beloved park falls to the wrecking ball, that big ol’ blue, cookie-cutter of a stadium will always remind us of what it means to be a kid again.  As tough as this is to say…..Farewell, dear friend.  Thanks for the memories.

Pictures are often worth a thousand words. This would be like a million.

It’s the last week of the 2008 Major League Baseball season and much like every season since 1996, the Tampa Bay Rays are in first place of the American League (AL) East…WHAT?! The sports section of the newspaper has many typos these days. Either that or the absence of the word “devil” from the name of the team from Tampa actually boosted their performance. The Devil Rays were last place with 96 losses last season and this season, the Rays are at the top and currently have 96 wins, with three games left to play. With this impressive turnaround, they are clearly the biggest story of the AL East. When people talk about baseball, they talk about either the rise of the Rays or the fall of the New York Yankees. The Yankees have 87 wins and 72 losses as of today, only a few games back from last year’s  94-68 record. This may not seem like a big difference but they currently sit in third place in the division, with no chance of the playoffs for the first time since 1995. This may not seem like a big idea to some, but this is New York and they are the Yankees, they have no choice but to make it to the playoffs!

I want Bud Selig, the Commissioner of Major League Baseball to take back those words he said in 2003, where he complained about the “competitive imbalance” in baseball. The Yankees are in third place and the Rays, a team that has never made the play-offs, are in first. What did the Yankees do wrong? What change dragged them down the standings for the whole duration of the season? Was it the players? This is clearly not the case because the Yankees did not make as many changes over the offseason as usual. Almost all of the starting players from 2007 were back on the team last April, destroying any thoughts of the team not “meshing.” Was it Joe Torre’s stoic face in the dugout that made the difference? He had a managerial record of 1,173 – 767 during his 12-year term with the Yankees. He left at the end of last year and Joe Girardi edged out Don Mattingly for the manager job during the offseason. While Girardi was the 2006 NL Manager of Year with the Marlins, his job this year with the Yankees has to be looked at with scrutiny. While it is difficult to find out what happens behind the scenes, Girardi was the biggest change from last season and the decisions of a manager can greatly affect a ballclub.

Another scapegoat of the Yankees’ plummet is the Yankees General Manager, Brian Cashman. While he has been with the Yankees since 1998, he has been at the helm for 3 World Series titles. While he has signed great players like Alex Rodriguez and Hideki Matsui, he has also signed huge busts like Jaret Wright, Jose Contreras, Kei Igawa, Kevin Brown, and Carl Pavano. Is it possible that these bad moves have compounded over time and finally greatly affected the Yankees? The same thing happened to the Braves, who are in 4th place, 18 games out of first place. While looking at management, the owners of the Yankees, Hank and Hal Steinbrenner. Last year, the never subtle George Steinbrenner was the owner of the team. He has always given players and managers a short leash and while he has been criticized for his moves, he always puts winning before everything else. While this may not have been healthy, especially since he stepped down after being too sick to continue as the owner, it may have given motivation to the team that simply not exist with George’s sons.  Okay, enough about management, let’s look at the players, since they are the ones who actually play out the games.

The Yankees pitching has been seen as inferior to previous years, especially due to early season injuries. They were already gambling during spring training with a starting rotation consisting of Phil Hughes and Ian Kennedy, two unproven rookies. The third notable rookie, Joba Chamberlin, was going to be a starter but began the season as the setup reliever, his proven position. Hughes and Kennedy did not perform to expectations and they both ended up getting injured, as well as the Yankees ace, Chien Ming Wang. However, the holes were filled and the rotation did much better than expected. Mike Mussina had arguably the best season of his career, with a 19-9 record and a 3.47 ERA. In addition, Andy Pettitte went 14-14 with a 4.54 ERA which wasn’t his best but he still had many impressive outings. Rookie reliever, Dan Giese had a 3.53 ERA and while he only started three games, he still came through when it counted. Chamberlin also came through once he became a starter but was bitten by the injury bug. However, hese few positives could not outweigh the negatives and the injuries. Sidney Ponson had one or two good starts but he was inconsistent, Carl Pavano is providing too little, too late, and a 5.34 ERA and a 5-10 record was not what the Yankees expected when they called up Darrell Rasner. Without the injuries, these weaknesses in the farm system may not have been revealed and the Yankees may have had a stronger starting rotation, but hindsight is twenty-twenty and hitting is also important in baseball.

Wow, A-Rod sucks at everything!

The Yankees are .259 with runners in scoring position. This is the worst that they have done in these clutch situations in a long time. When watching a Yankee game this season, it is hard to get excited when players are in scoring position because the Yankees have flat-out not come through in these situations. However, the Rays also have a very low batting average with runners in scoring position so the importance of this statistic may be overstated. Many of the Yankee starters have not had the seasons that were expected of them. Derek Jeter has finally made it just over .300 with only 69 runs batted in (RBIs). Abreu is batting .296 with only 20 homeruns and Alex Rodriguez is at .300 with only 101 RBIs , impressive statistics but not what A-Rod is used to. Cano is batting only .264 with 66 RBIs, Melky Cabrera was batting .243 with 46 RBIs before he was sent down to the minor leagues, and Giambi is sitting at .251, a far cry from the .342 that he posted in 2002. It seems as if almost all of the Yankees most important hitters just fell into a malaise. Injuries are also a key element to the collapse of the Yankee offense. Jeter and A-Rod were injured early in the season, with Matsui and Posada following soon after. Damon had a good season until his shoulder bothered him, sitting him out for an important segment of the season. While Molina did a satisfactory job behind the plate and the Xavier Nady was a great addition from the Pirates, it just wasn’t enough. Cody Ransom, Brett Gardner, and Justin Christian tried their best to fill in the numerous holes but they could not compensate from the great loss. This combination of injuries and bad years for many players definitely contributed to their collapse.

After examining these factors, it is apparent that it was not one factor, but a combination of different ones which led to the fall of the Yankees- much like the fall of the Holy Roman Empire. The debate will continue all offseason but it is very hard to blame only one aspect of the Yankees’ failure.  The only thing left to say, is that maybe the new Yankee Stadium will revitalize the team next season. Let’s Go Mets?