The Cincinnati Reds' off- season has been interesting on a number of fronts...

1.  Outside of the Yankees, owners have decided to cut back in payroll in anticipation of an economic downturn at their turnstiles.  Either that, or they are using the state of the economy as an excuse to cut back in payroll.  As a result, the Reds may not reach that $80 payroll figure that they had last year.

2.  As a result of the lack of spending on the free agent market (outside of the top- tier free agents), the price tags for many free agents should go down in late January.  Pat Burrell, Adam Dunn, Ben Sheets and others will not be able to get the four-year, $60 million contracts they were hoping for and this should help the Reds land Burrell.  In my Realistic Off- Season Plan for the Reds, I advocated the move to sign Burrell to a two- year, $30 million contract.  This lets him try the market when economic times will be better and it lets the Reds move Joey Votto to left field in two years to make room for Yonder Alonso.  Burrell is not Adam Dunn.  He has all of Dunn's positives and not as many of his negatives; he is right- handed, strikes out less, gets on base slightly more, plays slightly better defense, and is in better shape.  Check out the numbers:

Dunn's on base percentage the last four years:  .386, .386, .365, .387

Burrell's OBP the last four years:  .367, .400, .388, .389

Dunn's slugging:  .513, .554, .490, .540

Burrell's slugging:  .507, .502, .502, .504

Dunn's strikeouts:  164, 165, 194, 168

Burrell's strikeouts:  136, 120, 131, 160

Burrell could be had for about $10 million a year come late January if he is still available.  He would bat fourth (between Joey Votto and Jay Bruce).  He would help Bruce and Edwin Encarnacion (batting sixth) reach 100 RBIs because he is on base so much and he would make the awful pickup of Willy Taveras a lot easier to stomach.  Speaking of Taveras...

3.  A leadoff hitter's most important attribute is NOT speed.  That is a common misperception.  The most important thing a leadoff hitter can do is get on base for the big bats behind him to knock him in.  Taveras' on base numbers the last four years:  .308, .367, .333, .325.  If .345 to .355 is league average, Taveras' numbers are awful.  Since he does not get on base much, the Reds' #2 and #3 hitters, Brandon Phillips (who has his own on- base issues) and Votto, will not be driving in many runs.  It would not suprise me to see Votto hit .315/ .375/ .490 with 28 home runs and 85 RBIs.  The Reds won so much last year with Jerry Hairston Jr. in the lineup because he got on base for Phillips, Votto and Bruce.  Hopefully, the Reds can still sign Hairston and subsequently, bench Taveras.  If not, Reds fans will be comparing Taveras to Corey Patterson by June and though its a bit of a stretch, it is not too far off.

4.  Which brings us to Patterson.  The Washington Nationals signed him to a contract last week that confirmed three theories:  A.)  Nationals General Manager Jim Bowden is the worst GM of all time.  B.)  Nationals G.M. Jim Bowden has more incriminating photos of his bosses than any other employee in our country.  C.)  The Nationals have have been the worst baseball franchise of the last five years and with moves like signing Patterson coupled with poor drafts and the inability to lure quality free agents, they are assured of being the worst baseball franchise for the next five years.  To further emphasize this point... Mark Teixeira turned down $20 million more money (same length of contract) to go to his hometown Nationals in order to compete for a pennant with the Yankees.  They cannot even overpay for free agents to go there.

5.  Getting back to my Realistic Off- Season Plan for the Reds... RP Juan Cruz is still out there and Jonathan Sanchez is available through trade from the Giants.  There is still some hope to overcome an awful Taveras decision!

MLB reds, pat burrell, adam dunn, ben sheets, yonder alonso, joey votto, willy taveras, jerry hairston jr, brandon phillips, jay bruce, corey patterson, jim bowden, mark teixeira, juan cruz, johnathan sanchez

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I plan on working on my own 2009 Cheat Sheet and Top 50 Overall list this weekend, but I wanted to share the one from Rotoworld.com's Gregg Rosenthaul.  Of all the big media fantasy gurus, he's the one I most frequently agree with. However, I will promise you one thing, my list will be drastically different than his initial top 10:

1. Adrian Peterson
2. Maurice Jones-Drew
3. Matt Forte
4. Marion Barber
5. Steven Jackson
6. Chris Johnson
7. Brian Westbrook
8. Frank Gore
9. Andre Johnson
10. Calvin Johnson
11. Larry Fitzgerald
12. Brandon Jacobs

Just Missed, in no particular order: Michael Turner, DeAngelo Williams, Clinton Portis, Steve Smith, LaDainian Tomlinson, Drew Brees, Marshawn Lynch, Jay Cutler

 
OTHER TAKES HE HAD AS THE SEASON ENDED...
--Fred Jackson ran for 136 yards against the Patriots in one of the most impressive displays I saw all season. New England stacked the box with eight and nine guys every play, and Jackson's vision and leg drive were remarkable. He carried defenders on his back. Jackson finishes with 888 efficient yards from scrimmage and 37 catches on the season. He averaged more yards-per-carry than Marshawn Lynch and is a better receiver. That's bad news for Lynch owners because Jackson has earned a spot as the lesser half of a committee long-term.

--I still need to watch the tape, but Cedric Benson's 462 yards in his last three games will get him some job offers this off-season. His best chance to start, by far, should be staying in Cincinnati.

--Tony Romo's poor finish to the season, against very difficult competition, should keep his price tag enticingly low in next year's drafts.

--LaDainian Tomlinson has undeniably looked fresher the last two weeks. He ran much harder against a collapsing Bucs defense and a terrible Broncos defense, but don't forget the first 14 mediocre weeks and how easy his schedule was. Two good weeks doesn't return him to top-five prominence next year.

COMPLETE ARTICLE

Fantasy Football 2009 cheat sheet, adrian peterson, maurice jones-drew, matt forte, marion barber, steven jackson, chris johnson, brian westbrook, frank gore, andre johnson, calvin johnson, larry fitzgerald, brandon jacobs, fred jackson, marshawn lynch, cedric benson, tony romo

There is no such thing as forever in sports and Wednesday's firing of Mike Shanahan is all the proof you need. Long gone are the back-to-back Super Bowl trophies and all that is left in the dust is three years of not making the playoffs while posting a 24-24 record.

Shanahan led the Broncos to their only Super Bowl championships, in the 1997 and 1998 seasons, and leaves tied for 15th all-time among NFL coaches, with 154 career wins.

But there were no Super Bowl appearances since 1998, no postseason appearances since 2005 and only one postseason victory since the last Super Bowl.

And, in 2008, the Broncos became the first NFL team since at least 1967 with the start of divisional play to have a three-game lead with three to play and not make the playoffs. The fact that the Broncos played 13 rookies and lost 16 players — including seven tailbacks — to injured reserve did not protect Shanahan in finishing out his contract, which runs through 2011 and was to pay him between $6.5 million and $7 million a season. 

The window of opportunity doesn't stay open too long in this league and over the past decade Shanahan hasn't been able to refind the glory. 

It makes you wonder how good of a coach Shanahan really is. Especially when you look at his numbers with Elway and the numbers without:

WHO'S NEXT (from Denver Post)

NFL broncos, mike shanahan

from NextRound.net:

    * Stop Banging Fatties

    * Don’t Get So Drunk You Crap Yourself

    * Only Gamble with Discretionary Income

    * Don’t Do Any Drugs That Involve a Dealer

    * Only Masturbate When Aroused, Not Just Bored

    * Don’t Use Profanity Around Children or Old People

    * Always Wear a Condom with Strange

    * Don’t Eat Fast Food Sober

    * Pay Down Credit Cards

    * Spend More Time with Family

COMPLETE LIST

Just For Fun new year's resolutions

From Andy Katz, ESPN.com:

The Big East could be setting itself up to grab a record 10, maybe even 11, NCAA tournament bids, including a pair of No. 1 seeds.

That's the best-case scenario after what coaches are calling the most anticipated conference season since the league expanded to 16 teams four years ago. But to make sure this occurs, there must be clear separation. The Big East needs to have an elite ruling class of at least 10 teams, and a six-team lower class that is fodder for the ruling 10. Unfortunately, there may not be room for a middle class. Beating that bottom six won't be enough. The NCAA tournament selection committee will slice apart each member's résumé, like they will for every other at-large candidate.

Beating up on the bottom six -- projected as Seton Hall, Providence, St. John's, DePaul, Rutgers and South Florida -- is a must as a first step, but if there aren't quality wins among the other 10 teams, the worthiness of a bid will be questioned. Going 8-10 in conference play won't mean as much if seven of the eight wins are against the bottom six. A team that goes 9-9 will have to beat a few of the top 10 teams to reach that record. 

College Hoops big east, ncaa tournament, seton hall, providence, st. john's, depaul, rutgers, florida

"I'm sorry, my wrist is broken, I can't write." - Dave Parker, to my mom when she asked him for an autograph for her sons, 1988.  His left wrist was broken.  He wrote right-handed.

THE NUMBERS
2466 G, 2712 H, 339 HR, 1493 RBI, .290 AVG, 154 SB

The Cobra is one of those cautionary tales that needs to be told to any young potential superstar.  Dave Parker went from being one of baseball's elite to just another player for several years, before finally getting things back together later in his career.  Ultimately, it's that down period that brings into question his Hall of Fame candidacy.

Parker was placed in what most would consider an unenviable position: replacing the late Roberto Clemente, one of Pittsburgh's most beloved sport figures ever.  He spent 1973-74 shuttling between the big club and the minors, finally staying up for good in August of '74.  Then in 1975 he broke out as a bona fide superstar, hitting .308 with 25 HR and 101 RBI's, leading the Bucs to the NL East division title and finishing 3rd in the NL MVP voting.  Parker also brought with him an outfield arm that was second to none.

He slipped a little in 1976, but for the next three years he established himself as arguably the best player in baseball.  His average season over those three years was about a .324 average, 25 HR, 100 RBI, and 19 steals, and won the 1978 NL MVP.  During those years, the Pirates stayed at the top of their division, finally breaking out in 1979 when the "We Are Familee" squad won the World Series.

And then...everything just fell apart.  Somewhere in the late 70's-early 80's, he developed a serious cocaine habit.  Eventually it caught up with him, through lack of production, weight gain, and near constant injuries.  He became an enemy of the Pittsburgh fan base, eventually leading him to sign with the Reds in 1984.  The Cobra enjoyed a career resurgence during his Cincinnati years, highlighted by his 1985 campaign, where he hit .312 with 34 HR and 125 RBI, led the Reds to the brink of the playoffs, and should have won the MVP award over Willie McGee.

By 1987, however, he had become more of a one-dimensional slugger, hitting over .280 just once after that point.  He bounced around to several teams before calling it a career in 1991.

So, what to make of Parker's career?  Well, his .290 career average, among Hall of Fame right fielders, is better than only Dave Winfield, Reggie Jackson, and Harry Hooper (who I profess to know nothing about so I'll leave that alone).  But, both Winfield and Jackson were far better sluggers than he, and his 339 home runs is not spectacular, more middle of the pack.  Because he didn't walk much, his .339 OBP would be the worst among Hall-worthy RF's.  Additionally, baseballreference.com lists Luis Gonzalez as the player most similar to Parker in history.  That's not really a ringing endorsement for the Hall.

Parker suffers from the same issues as several other players in this class.  He can claim a period of time where he was among the best in the game, but that period wasn't long enough, and wasn't surrounded by enough quality to warrant induction.  Had the drugs not taken their toll, and had he been able to stretch his dominant streak another 2-3 years, we could have been looking at a 3,000 hit, 400 HR, 200 SB, .300 AVG hitter with multiple MVP's.  But he didn't, and the voters are certainly not going to give him credit for a self-inflicted condition.  I would not give him a vote for the Hall of Fame.

MLB hall of fame, dave parker

from HolyTaco.com:

For some reason, every sports commentator in the world feels the need to use a really lame sports pun for the title of his column or TV segment. Here are the 9 worst.

Just For Fun lists, lame sports puns

I couldn't do it. I couldn't let my fantasy season end.  Join me for some PLAYOFF FANTASY FOOTBALL. I have set up a league with the help of my friends at FAN STAR and now am recruiting some fantasy players to fun.

HERE'S HOW IT WORKS...

--$10 to get in (check/PayPal). I am hoping to get at least 20-30 people if not more to participate. Winner gets 70% of the pot, 2nd place gets 30%. The more people the bigger the pot!

--Each week you can choose whatever players you want to fill out your line-up, but once you use a player you can't use them again. That could lead to problems come Super Bowl time if you don't have anyone left, so there is startegy involved. YOU MUST SET LINE-UP WEEKLY.

--You choose 1 QB, 2 RB, 2 WR, 1 TE, 1 PK, 1 DL, 1 LB, and 1 DB weekly.

--Pretty standard scoring. We will reward 1 point per reception. For complete scoring see the game website.

SIGN-UP NOW

Once you create a team I will e-mail you to arrange payment. If you have questions email me at dan@getsportsinfo.com.

Fantasy Football playoff fantasy football

There have been a lot of great catches in college football this year. The catch by North Carolina wide receiver, Hakeem Nicks, against West Virginia in the Meineke Car Care Bowl on Saturday may be the best of them all. There's no doubt this guy will be a first day draft pick come April and will be a factor on Sundays for whatever team selects him. In case you missed it, here's the amazing catch below.

College Football hakeem nicks, north carolina, west virginia, meineke car care bowl

Here are the latest men's college basketball polls...

LATEST BRACKETOLOGY - (CollegeHoops.net) 

College Hoops ap poll, coaches poll, bracketology