by Jonathan Leshanski on 19 May 2012 (In Regular Articles)

The US government hasn’t been in a good place public perception-wise recently. Between the crackdowns on the Occupy Wall Street protesters, the passage of Citizens United bill allowing unlimited secret corporate donations to candidates’ election funds and the almost seeming abandonment of sanity (and reality) between the major political parties, the country has lost a lot of credibility internationally and even with our own populace. There is a perception that justice in the US is bought and sold. The rich and famous in this country seem to skate away from all but the most egregious of crimes.And maybe that’s why...
Read moreby Jim Mancari on 17 May 2012 (In Regular Articles)

The ninth inning of a baseball game can be a stressful time, especially if the score is close. Many teams have the luxury of handing the ball to a shutdown closer who they expect will close the door in the ninth inning for the win.However, many teams are still in search of consistent performances from their closers this season. As a result, we’ve seen many examples of “closers by committee” in which a manager turns to whoever has the hot hand coming out of the bullpen.Recently, Miami Marlins closer Heath Bell lost his ninth-inning job. He had blown four of...
Read moreby Jim Mancari on 15 May 2012 (In Regular Articles)

Each time Josh Beckett heads out for an athletic contest, he hopes to hit his spots.While Red Sox Nation expects those spots to be the catcher’s glove on the corners of the plate, Beckett had something else in mind earlier last week. Those “spots” were the greens on a golf course with a 9-iron -- not a fastball -- as the weapon of choice.Though MLB players are entitled to spend their off days any way they want, Beckett went golfing the day after he missed a start recovering from a sore lat muscle. Naturally, the Boston media haven’t been shy...
Read moreby Joshua Kay on 13 May 2012 (In Fantasy Articles)

Regardless of what your league format is, trading is one of the most exciting parts of fantasy baseball. Trading is a great way to improve your team if you do it right. The best trades are done by the best negotiators and negotiating skill can be the difference between a good trade and a bad trade. So few articles these days, however, focus on actual in-season strategy because it’s very difficult to provide advice on strategy that is pertinent to the masses; this is due in part to the numerous different league formats. I will explain a few...
Read moreby Jim Mancari on 12 May 2012 (In Regular Articles)

Something is wrong with Francisco Liriano.The Minnesota Twins ace lefty has gotten off to the worst start of his career at 0-4 in five starts with a 9.97 ERA. He was even skipped in the rotation in an effort to clear his head.The rest didn’t exactly work, as Liriano was burned for two home runs in a 4-0 loss Tuesday to the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. But at least Liriano ended his streak of surrendering at least five earned runs per start. He gave up only four in 5 1/3 innings this time around. Photo by Alan Turkus, used under...
Read moreby Jonathan Leshanski on 11 May 2012 (In Regular Articles)

I have no knowledge of how tough Cole Hamels actually is. Odds are he could kick my butt without breaking a sweat. What I do know for sure is that Hamels is one of the best pitchers currently in the Majors. That’s why his throwing at Bryce Harper and then admitting it came as a bit of a surprise. Photo by Dirk Hansen, used under creative commons license. Sure there is some bad blood in terms of rivalry between the teams, and certainly those who’ve actually met Bryce Harper won’t defend him as being a “nice guy.” In fact the word...
Read moreby Jonathan Leshanski on 08 May 2012 (In Reviews)

Title: The Might have Been: A NovelAuthor: Joseph M. SchusterPages: 330Baseball doesn’t always love you back. It’s a tough game, one which in many aspects is totally unforgiving, especially if you are one of the thousands who don’t make the cut. That’s something that comes through on every single page of Joseph Schuster’s debut novel. It’s a novel without glamour, without glitz. It’s about the hardness that the game, and the curves that life can throw at you. The only question is can you learn to hit them.For Edward Everett Yates, the protagonist of this baseball novel that spans roughly...
Read moreby Jim Mancari on 06 May 2012 (In Regular Articles)

This offseason, the Los Angeles Dodgers were picked to finish third in NL West at best. Financial issues surrounding the team's ownership clouded a decent season last year, but the outlook heading into 2012 was still bleak. Then Magic Johnson stepped in as one of the team's new owners, and the attitude of the club and fanbase completely changed. Now, the Don Mattingly-led Dodgers are the surprise team in the league. The team is tied for the best record in the NL at 17-9 and doesn't appear to be slowing down. Los Angeles just completed a three-game sweep of the Washington Nationals,...
Read moreby Jonathan Leshanski on 05 May 2012 (In Regular Articles)

We may never see save 609. The great Mariano Rivera isn't dead but sidelined. At the age of 42, asking him to bounce back from an ACL tear might be asking too much. That's not to say that Rivera wouldn't be game. After all he is one of the fiercest competitors of all time, especially when the pressure is high. In fact, that's the spot where he's unparalleled. No one, especially Mariano, wanted this happen. Mo was a blaze of glory. That calm, cool, collected demeanor that entered each game to the theme of "Enter Sandman" was taken from...
Read moreby Joshua Kay on 04 May 2012 (In Regular Articles)

I hadn't really been thinking about the Twins much until asked to do a column on them. I just accepted that this is who they are now. But I looked at the Twins farm system and wondered where this organization went. After winning seven division titles in the last 10 years, the Minnesota Twins have been obviously one of the best organizations in baseball during that time period. They have also been a team that even before that has always been extremely competitive. Photo by Eric Kilby, used under creative commons license. But in 2011, everything for the Twins changed. They only...
Read more
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
<< Start < Prev 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 Next > End >> |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Page 16 of 37 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Do you want to be a sports journalist? We have room for paid writers, editors, fact checkers and photographers to help us improve the site.
Come and chase your dream with us. For more information, click here.
If you like At Home Plate, you could show your appreciation by donating a small amount to our team. Thank you very much!