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Phil Rogers has a look at the Yanks maybe throwing in the towel on RJ, good news to probably anyone that's not a Yanks fan and the other oft-changing rumored deals that may or may not be in the works before Saturday's deadline.

Baseball Prospectus takes a look at the guys the Yankees have traded away at the deadline over the years.

Plans for the new Yankee stadium are leaking out.

Anytime I start bitching about the Red Sox's incompetence against the Orioles (that three game homestand to end the season looms like a Guillotine), my Philadelphia relatives just have to mutter, "Marlins, the f*^% Marlins." Florida is almost singlehandedly sinking Philly's playoff hopes and probably Bowa's job (though most fans might not be too broken up about that).

Play acting done, Brock Lesnar signs with the Vikings. This should be an interesting experiment.

I think I used that headline before, but oh well. With the Red Sox mired in a would could care less funk and trying to temper my enthusiasm for Al Jefferson, I can finally open up my bag of excitement regarding the Pats. NFL training camp opens today and while the Sox are still a hot commodity in New England, the Pats are now biting at their heels for the most attention. Quite a turnaround for a team in shambles just ten years ago. You can take your pick of training camp previews around the net.

Last week's Yanks/Sox "brawl" wasn't quite A-list, but it was better than most pushing, milling, greet and meets that these things normally become, but it can't hold candle to BatGirl's recreation of what should have happened when Koskie was plunked for the third time.

Hard to believe FO is only a year old, but it snagged TMQ and picked up steam from there to become one of the best analytical football sites on the web. If you're new to the site, they've posted a best of to celebrate their one year birthday.

SportsPickle.com is one of the sites I always enjoy, but invariably forget to check often enough, perhaps DJ Gallo's recent hiring will bring the often hilarious site more notice. Gallo's got a training camp preview as his third Page 2 entry.

John Donovan thinks all this parity is bogging down the trade market. I mean c'mon, the Brewers have been a good story, but does anyone think they will make their first playoff appearance since ET came out? John's just bitter because no trades means he actually might have to expend some energy and think up an actual semi-original column idea.

CNN is telling me I'm sad an average of three days a month. I guess that depends on how the Sox are doing. I know I was sad today when I walked into the pantry and found the Poland Springs thing empty for the FOURTH STRAIGHT DAY. No man is that unlucky. I'm just unlucky enough to have lazy ass co-workers. But everytime I'm feeling low, I remember I'm not Ryan Leaf (though I wouldn't mind half his signing bonus).

• If you like golf, like to read, or simply enjoy a tall glass of merlot whilst naked mermaids shave your back, I recommend Rick Reilly's book, "Who's Your Caddy". Rick takes you along with him as he caddies for some of the worlds biggest golfers and personalities. Jon Daly, Donald Trump, David Duval, et. It's fricken great. Highly entertaining, and only a bit more difficult to read than the back of a baseball card. Even communists like this book. That's how good it is.

• With football season around the corner, all eyes will be on the Eagles, again. With Jevon Kearse and T.O., they might have a legitimate shot at actually making it past the NFC title game. Of course, this is the Eagles we're talking about. But here's what I don't understand. Since when has T.O. been a "huge risk"? Sure he's a bit volatile, and he's a little selfish, but damn is this guy good. I hear sports "experts" on tv and radio talking about this pickup, saying things like, "Eagles taking a chance on Owens this season, could be a huge bust." What? Have these people actually brainwashed themselves? He had a falling out with the 49ers. And quite frankly, who hasn't? He fills a huge void in Philly, and will help spread the offense for McNabb and open up the field for Westbrook. Yeah, huge risk. It's not like they signed 87 year old Steve Largent. That's a risk. This move, well this one was just a no-brainer. And don't get me wrong, I can't stand the Eagles. But what I can't stand even more is the manufactured drama these talk show hosts create to have something to ramble on about.

• This could quite possibly be the most boring Trade Deadline week in the history of MLB. The Randy Johnson nonsense has gotten old. I'm sorry, I can't sympathize with the "I'm so unhappy making $17 M a year on a last place team" attitude. Either way, nothing is going to happen. Here in Boston, there's a new Nomar rumor everyday. But they get more and more ridiculous by the second. And of course, there's the forgotten one, Kris Benson. Gammons picked this guy to win the CY Young in in 1999. Now people are talking about giving him up for Doug Mientkievekikeikiktetz? Boring deadline indeed.

I have a confession to make. As a sports-loving kid growing up in New England in the eighties, Larry Bird was not my favorite player on the Celtics. Not Larry's fault, nor mine, I was just a little late to appreciate the true greatness of Larry Legend. When I was in my yard shooting baskets I wanted to be Reggie Lewis. He was young, fast, could jump out of the building and did it all with a smile. Larry was for my Dad. Reggie was for me. Larry had history. Reggie was going to make history. Reggie was going to be the bridge. The big three were breaking down or retiring. Len Bias had been put to rest. But Reggie Lewis was finding his stride, hitting his prime. With this smiling local kid from Roxbury, the Celtics would be alright. Give him a supporting cast and he could make them competitive. Life would go on after Larry.

I still remember coming inside (from shooting baskets) and seeing the newsflash scroll across the bottom of the screen. Reggie had collapsed during a pickup game. I sat in front of the TV for the next two hours, basketball in my lap, hoping, not really believing until they came back on at six to tell us Reggie Lewis, new Celtics captain, was dead from heart failure. Your favorite player is not supposed to die at 27. And fifteen year olds probably aren't supposed to cry about it. I went back outside and shot baskets till it was too dark to see.

My favorite player died eleven years ago today.

(Warning: Another rant coming about the continuing decline of SportsCenter) So ESPN gives Baseball Tonight short shrift last night after the interminable Reds-Cards game runs long and pulls them after twenty harried mintues. For what? Sportscenter. Okay, I can handle that. Sometimes the BBTN crew can go long on games I don't really care about. SC rolls through a couple highlights of the Twins-ChiSox and Yanks, then cuts to a story on Iverson and Brown re-uniting for the Olympic team. Okay, perhaps a little early in the show for a relatively non-story, and you subjected me to Stephen A. Smith, but maybe it keeps the non-baseball people. What next? More Ricky reaction maybe (could Dikta sound more clueless, by the way, especially in comparison to Robert Smith and Jim Brown) or Sox-O's? Nope. I get Kid Rock, not really my bag on any given day, but really, really, really not my bag at 11:15 on a SPORTS HIGHLIGHT SHOW!! AHHHHH! For the next five days (or more, judging by how many times they ran that atheltes and video games series) I'll now be subjected to pointless, painful and obvious connections about the intertwining worlds of music and athletes. Okay, I know a tenous connection exists, I don't deny that and maybe (maybe!) it bears exploring further, but keep it to the back of the show after the relevant sports news and actual highlights have aired. And please God keep the musical performances off the air. What's next? A budding romance between Linda Cohn and Mike Hall? Little monkey sidekicks for the anchors?

I'm not the only one ranting. Bill Simmons vents on the MLB blackout policy. Something that Gregg Easterbrook/TMQ has been railing against (more effectively than Simmons, in this case) during the NFL season.

I like Ken Rosenthal's stuff and he'd probably have a much higher profile if he was over at ESPN rather than stuck at Fox and the Sporting News. His latest Inside Dish is the usual good grab bag or ear to the ground tidbits and news. That being said, I have a small bone to pick. Could he please use a longer story as a lead to ground the reader a la Gammons or Peter King, who write similar columns. Halfway through the column, I was dizzy and had the feeling I was reading jotted notes from his to-do list. A minor quibble.

Tom Verducci thinks McGriff's Hall chances are neither hurt nor hindered by being stranded on 493. Not sure I completely agree. I mean, rationally I agree, but I think that 500 number still holds a lot of sway and voters will try, but some won't be able to pull the trigger lacking those 7 jacks however fair or unfair. Personally, I think he falls just a hair short, but might be one that gets in on the veterans ticket down the road.

Personally, I think Frank Deford's been mailing it in for awhile, but he comes up with a pretty good article on announcers in the recent SI. Announcers are a tough thing to judge, with one man's gold being another's annoying blowhard (I'm looking at you McCarver), but they are inextricably tied to sports with the sound byte (many times to the detriment) rising to catch phrase in today's 15-second-gotta-have-it-now world. In the individual sports, the only choices I really quibble with are McCarver, though at least they didn't include Joe Morgan, Madden (though they did caveat his early years) and the absence of Sean McDonough. I love the McDonough/Remy games on Friday night. These two are the rare combination of solid analysis, good play calling, impartiality and humor. It's a crime they don't pick up some national games in the East.

Just when you think the Sox/Yanks couldn't get more intense or odd, they up the ante. Of course, the Sox still only have one hand on that AL East ledge. The weekend that was in Fenway from a Bronx perspective.

I brought this up earlier in the year when McGriff was trying to get to that 'magic' 500 number, the ceiling is going to have to be raised for modern sluggers, just like the door for 300 wins is going to be locked behind Maddux.

Let's face it, not many of us really know the rigors of playing in the NFL, nor would we really care to either. It certainly looks like Williams is giving up a plum assignment to us nine-to-fivers, but the grass is always greener, yadda yadda. The only thing that irks me is his selfishness. Couldn't he have let them know a little sooner? Even a couple days would have helped. But I digress, Ricky was the big story on Sunday. Dan Le Batard broke the story (he actually seems to be closer to Ricky than the Fin's brass). Here are some choice quotes:

"Williams said his failed marijuana tests had a minor influence on his decision to retire, but only one of many factors. It didn't cause him to retire, he said, as much as reinforce his reasons for wanting to do so."

This is actually mentioned in most of the stories I read, but only in passing. Has an athlete ever (willingly) given up sports for pot?

"Most people encouraged Williams to continue playing for the money so he can support his three young children. But Williams, who has talked in the past about returning to college to get a postgraduate degree in psychology, dismissed the need for money, even for his children. ''I've had no money before,'' he said. ``People are worried about the future of my children, but a child doesn't need much to be happy -- needs food, a change of clothes and for you to pay attention to him. A bottle of baby food costs 79 cents. I have that much.''

Psychology? He can be his own test subject. Let's see, he may have enough for his kids, but apparently not enough for deodorant. Peter King explains with his first post-vacation MMQB. Also tucked in there is an interesting factoid about the Redskins and Jeremiah Trotter, especially in light of last week's post around the modern NFL salary cap.

And finally, FO says maybe Ricky is retiring at the right time. If you aren't going to perform at an elite level, why compete at all.

More football, the NY Daily News polls its panel to find out the top NFL coaches. I can only guess Gibbs is making the top ten on reputation.

We think we're so special, but controversy, war, security threats and terrorism is nothing new at the Olympics. The BBC has the Olympic controversy timeline (via SportsFilter).

He said, she said. Does anyone really care? And I'm still not entirely clear on why the I.R.S., of all people, is handling this BALCO investigation. I do know that Jones barely made the Olympic team, Sosa has been mired in injuries, Giambi is a shell of his former self and Bonds has a huge noggin. I'm not pointing fingers, I'm just saying.

Schwarz checks in on his Put Up or Shut Up team.

The Washington ___? One of the poorer kept secrets in sports seems to be nearing a conclusion despite Angelos's best efforts. Now the only speculation will be how they will butcher the new name and color scheme. Though I suppose red, white and blue would be appropriate for a team near the nation's capital. The Senators and Expos are out as names. Neyer is pulling for the Grays, which is doubtful. I have no real feelings on this, I'd just like something un-generic, if that's a word, and no purple, black or orange in the uniform.

Eric Neel has a good column on some of the more unique batting stances in baseball. I have distinct memories of mimicking Dwight Evans in my backyard playing Wiffle.

Seems David Aldridge has escaped the loud mouthed clutches of Stephen A. Smith and his broom closet, to pen a nice recap of each team's off-season moves.

Bob Ryan is over in France and took in yesterday's Tour stop (an excellent finish, by the way, I loved when the commentator awarded the stage to Kloden and Armstrong, as if he heard this slight, busted his ass over the line to catch an amazed Kloden) and tries to describe the spectacle.

MSN tries to debunk ten sports myths and fails rather miserably in a pointless and rambling article. Enjoy.

If things weren't bleak enough for Red Sox fans: "Last night was the first of 19 meetings between the teams; the oddities of the unbalanced schedule have the Yankees playing 27 percent of their final 70 regular-season games against the Blue Jays."

And you know your team is listless when it falls to a bench player to try to motivate the troops. Pats camp in a week!

Chauncey Billups checks in from his summer vacation as only he can.

Is Ernie Els to golf, what Peyton Manning is to the NFL. A great player except when the screws are on? Granted Els has a couple majors under his belt, but Alan Shipnuck thinks he should or would have a couple more if he could avoid the Sunday yips.

"Every time I see Els at the majors I'm struck by how he is endlessly shadowed by Jos Vanstiphout, the failed Belgian pop singer who has become a self-styled "mental coach." Jos falls somewhere between snake charmer and shaman, and for Els to be leaning ever more heavily on this crutch really makes me wonder. The two men playing the best golf in the majors right now are Phil Mickelson and Retief Goosen, and neither uses a sports psychologist. Nor does Woods. Grand Slam Sundays are played largely between the ears. Having lost three straight majors, Els needs to seriously sort out what's going on in his head."

And just for a counterpoint, Kornheiser's latest tables Tiger in favor of Els and Mickelson.

Here's the second part of the Michael Lewis interview from Athletics Nation. Not a lot about Underdogs, just that he goes to a lot of minor league baseball games.

There's wasn't a whole lot going on in the sports blog o'sphere this morning, so I was clicking on some of the sidelinks in search of something interesting and found that the link to Marty Burns's archive only goes till August of last year (he's still writing, but it appears there redesign around that time orphaned this page). Anyway, the last article in that archive was a reaction to last year's NBA free agents signings. Makes for interesting reading a year later. And another reminder around the useless of predictions.

Gleeman's news and notes gets fires a shot over Gammons's bow (never cross the Oracle!!) about his recent polling on who plays the game "the right way". Probably more the fault of the question than the questioner, but interesting nonetheless.

If the NFL does enforce its version of the high strike (aka, the chuck rule) for more than three games who will benefit the most and will it really matter?

Anyone else a little bit nervous about the Olympics?

One of our loyal Blah-stonians decided to send me her views on the recent Kobe and Shaq interviews on SportsCenter. I thought this summed it up better than I ever could. Without further ado, here's Miss M.

Please tell me you watched the segment on SC last night about Kobe and Shaq. Apparently, Shaq has a higher thought process than most humans...it surpasses the apex of human thought? Even though I am not a knowledgable basketball fan, I considered e-mailing the Sports Guy. I can't wait to see what he has to say about this!!!

And who knew Shaq was going for his MASTER'S? Maybe i'll call him on his cellie and we can compare notes about our grad school experiences....oh wait, he doesn't own a cellie....WHAT? I am impressed with the grad school thing though...go for the books, big guy.

Wonderful. Now don't we all feel better? I love it when people respond. It makes it a lot easier for me to do my job!

Why do I keep lying to you people and telling you that I am going to write and then leaving you hanging out to dry? You know what the answer is? I am not a good person. There, I said it. Let’s get down to it.
 
I want to touch on baseball tonight because the guys over ESPN.com have been talking trash about my Braves. I agree that Philly should be playing a lot better than they are right now, but did anyone really think that this pitching staff was going to set the world on fire? There is a reason that the Braves traded Kevin Millwood for Johnny Estrada, and it isn’t because they knew just how good Ponch was going to be. Millwood is an overrated 3 starter and I was happy that we finally got rid of him. Vicente Padilla isn’t a bad pitcher but he can’t anchor a rotation. I never trusted Milton. Randy Wolf isn’t bad, but he isn’t an anchor either. And Brett Myers is full of potential but so was Todd Van Poppel. The bottom line is that this team is full of guys that could be a #3 or possibly a #2 if they were lucky, but there is no front of the rotation starter.
 
That being said, the Braves don’t exactly have a front of the rotation guy either. I like Russ Ortiz and love Horacio Ramirez, but not this year. Ortiz is best suited as a 2 and Ramirez has been hurt for a good portion of the season. Thompson was a great pick up as middle guy, but he isn’t exactly lightning in a bottle. I really thought that Hampton was going to have a break out season thanks to Leo Mazzone, however, Coors Field did more damage than anyone could have thought. I love what Jaret Wright has done. He’s another solid middle of the road guy.
 
Both teams have great closers and decent set up men. I wouldn’t give either bench a significant advantage over the other. I would like to think that the Braves have a better offense, but I would be kidding myself and you would all call me on it. The only way that I could justify saying that is if you really believe that Phils have nothing after Thome, Abreu, and Burrell. Problem is, that isn’t entirely true, although close.
 
The bottom line is that the Braves are winning thanks to superior management and heart. These Braves aren’t the most talented, but they don’t want to see that Division Champion streak ended. They are fighting every time out and I think that they are going to fight all the way into the playoffs.

I had to double check I wasn't reading another vanilla USA Today profile, but nope, the Guardian managed to push out an article that didn't look down its nose at the MLS. Its actually very balanced and positive about the current state of the league and its potential future. Leave it to a writer across the pond to recognize that yes, there are actually people in the US that enjoy and understand soccer.

The always prolific Andy Katz gets the college bball preseason rolling with his top 50. The Big East and ACC well represented.

Usually I don't find myself agreeing with Marriotti, but I happened to catch the Cubs/Cardinals game on ESPN while twiddling my thumbs in my hotel room. This quote about sums it up:

"Big Z, as the Cubs call him, is a gifted but immature firecracker who can't control his emotions. For reasons only he can explain, he tried to engage the Cardinals in head-game battle. But Pedro, he is not, as he showed in an nationally televised unraveling that makes us wonder why Dusty Baker left him in the game so long."

Of course that last part is a rhetorical question by this point. We all know Dusty leaves everyone in too long, but that's besides the point.

Well, at least we won't be subject to the same NBC human interest stories we saw four years ago on the US Track and Field team. Lots of fresh new faces in the sprints. Do we even have any distance runners? I can see NBC pitching this is as the young guns go to Athens. We do we have three weeks off from the doping talk?

Life looks back at 100 years of Olympic photos.

Lance keeps following his plan and shows no sign of believing that he's lost any of his desire at age 32.

Each season in sports ends with a championship, a crowning moment for one team out of many, so its hard to fault fans that want to win now and not later, but like that retirement fund, sometimes its best to take the long view. Hardball Times has some interesting graphs on the original sixteen AL and NL teams. As bad as its been to be a Sox or Cubs fan, its been much worse to be a Phillies fan over the last century.

Your team thinking about wagering its future to catch that team that's tantalizingly close? Think again.

"Forgotten in the fables, however, is how rare those comebacks truly are. With baseball's July 31 trading deadline approaching, and teams all over the majors assessing whether they should swing a win-now deal for the playoff run, many will drastically overestimate their chances of coming back."

Rich's BEAT takes a fascinating look back at Bill James's 1979 Abstract.

Athletics Nation lands an interview with Michael Lewis. Not a lot that hasn't been elsewhere, at least in part one, maybe part two will have more on Moneyball's sequel.

Gammons being Gammons while taking on RJ and whether he'll jump off AZ's sinking ship.

Admit, when Els birdied seventeen, you thought it was only a matter of time before he was sipping from the Claret Jug. Bob Ryan has a look at the latest who that? champion to take a major. A good final day of golf, but is Hamilton winning good for golf? Would it have been better for Els to win? I don't know, the casual fan might not have watched, lacking Woods near the top, but those who did saw some great golf in typical BO conditions. Tiger will once again be called to the mat for failing to win, never mind he finished in the top 10. If you're going to be the greatest or ever great, you're going to be judged by different standards. Though I do agree it's ridiculous that he's still the number one player in the world. You'd have to put Els and Mickelson above him in the last year.

Interesting article on the NFL salary cap using the Washington Redskins as an intriguing case study.

"While the idea behind the cap was relatively straightforward, its execution has become exceedingly complex as teams experiment with ways to manipulate it. In recent years, for example, the league has been forced to add specific restrictions on teams providing perks such as free trips or transportation to circumvent the limit. The salary cap has spawned a new breed of NFL executive, the cap expert, a position that requires the cunning of a lawyer, the wiles of an accountant and the football instincts of a general manager. Careful management of the cap has become a prerequisite for success on the field."

Unlike the Yankees, whose increased spending has seen a correlation in wins, the Skins seem to be on the opposite end of the spectrum in the Synder era. A lot of people think with the hiring of Gibbs, the Skins are back on the right track, but they show little signs of slowing the spending.

"Just how the Redskins can have a payroll well in excess of $110 million yet still fit under an $80.6 million salary cap illustrates how the cap system works, and how it ultimately could come back to haunt the team."

You know what’s frustrating? Major League Baseball’s marketing plan. Yes, I’m sure you’re all saying, “Finally, someone is writing about this.” Ok, maybe not. But forgive me, this is something I need to address for two reasons. One, I work in advertising, as a copywriter, so I notice this kind of stuff. But more importantly, these things make themselves apparent at the times when I want to purchase merchandise, let’s just say oh-I-don’t-know a freakin’ Eric Gagne t-shirt, and can’t find one anywhere. Yes, I’m a Yankee fan, but I tend to have various degrees of heterosexual “man-love” for certain players like Jim Thome, Phil Nevin and, you guessed it, Eric Gagne (I’m planning on a feature on the phenomenon of heterosexual “man-love” for players, usually stemming from Fantasy success, stay tuned). So, when I saw those cool “Game Over” shirts during a Dodgers broadcast, I had to have one. Logic would say, “Go to mlb.com. Their ‘shop’ will have them”. So I did. Logic was wrong. In fact, they have no Eric Gagne merchandise, save a bobble head, modeled after Corky of Life Goes On, with a goatee, and some random Fleer rookie card. I mean he’s only the reigning NL CY Young winner, and the most popular player in one of the biggest markets in the country. Clearly there’s no need to sell t-shirts. Who’s going to buy those? Major League Baseball, sitting comfortably the climate controlled vacuum in which they operate, failed to realize that they’re really missing out on a great financial opportunity here . . . and that they really need a new art director for those bobbleheads.

But what really burns my balls is the fact that I saw people at Fenway Park wearing Pokey freakin’ Reese replica jerseys. Pokey Reese. Of course, when the Yankees are in town, chants of “Pokey’s better” fill the stadium, which is amusing in that ironic sort of way, but I digress. So, these knuckleheads can wear Pokey shirts to a game, but I can’t wear a Game Over shirt in my living room? That's just embarrassing for baseball. Even the NHL is chuckling silently. If the NFL battled MLB in a game of marketing arm wrestling, it would be over faster than you can say Roy Jones Jr. But relentless in my search, I continued looking on what the kids call “the Internet” and thankfully found a random message board with a random post stating that you could get these elusive Gagne shirts from the Dodgers Top of the Park Gift Store. Just call for a catalog and you can order directly from them. Nice job MLB. I wanted to give you my money. But you screwed it up. If you guys want a shirt, call the people at Top of the Park Gift store at 1-800-762-1770. I don’t normally do this, but what the heck, I’ll do you a favor, since Selig and Co. won’t.

Bob Feller just plain does not like Ali and you can print that. Yes, they can print that because we live in America, Bob, the same reason Ali can be a concientous objector.

And don't think you have to be old and ornery to have a beef with today's generation of athletes. Robert Smith, always a square peg in the round NFL, is ready to air his thoughts and he's not afraid to name names.

Aaron Gleeman finishes up his first half review over at the HBT with a look at the National League.

In case you hadn't figured it out, I really, really like Football Outsiders. FO has their first scramble of the year while debating the over/unders for the AFC.

Duval is done before he starts, Ernie is buying drinks and the calm conditions across the pond have plenty of players in red figures on the first day of the Open.

You're either with them or against them. Everyone is pretty much with the Heat (suddenly O'Neal's not a chubby 32 year old with bad feet), while LA tries to justify trading one of the fifty greatest for a mercurial (more on this particular adjective later) sometimes star and pocket change. Of course, in all of the interviews and stories I have yet to see someone offer an opinion of what Kupchak should have done differenlty. It was pretty clear the two egos, discounting Phil, were not going to co-exist and in a couple years who would you rather have Kobe or O'Neal? Kupchak took the Branch Rickey route and traded a superstar a year or two early rather than a year or two late (see Celtics circa '88). Of course Branch probably wasn't talking about losing your two best players and if Bryant has an even bigger ego than we thought and jumps to the Clippers, well, Kupchak is going to have a long year and lots of Pepto ahead of him.

Le Batard can barely contain his enthusiasm as Shaq suddenly fills South FLA with plenty of material. He gives us a Mitch Albom special with Shaq as a gentle and loving giant ready to smile his way to a title.

Dave Hyde is a bit more tempered, but includes this quote that probably sums up how most people in Miami are feeling right about now, especially after a decade of losing.

"The National Basketball Association is about now," Riley said. "We're about now. We had a chance to take the `now factor' now. We chased that opportunity."

Hard to argue with Riley, cap room and flexibility are great, but they don't win basketball games in and of themselves. Use it or lose it.

Tim Brown rehashes the the aftermath from LA's perspective and includes the Kupchak soundbyte on the trade, "A bold move to get younger," adding, "It was our best opportunity, given the set of circumstances we were faced with, to make a trade and bring talented young players to Los Angeles." Brown also tags Odom as mercurial in his column, not the only place I read the adjective this morning and not the way Kupchak probably wants the cornerstone of the deal from his end to be described.

Peter May gives a good balanced look at the deal and the questions it raises from both ends. Marty Burns rides the fence for SI, while the Sports Guy hates the move, but is clamoring for the ensuing drama. Sam Smith is feeling cranky and thinks everyone involved is making a mistake, "It's hard to even come up with anything like this, when pettiness and vainglory transcend success." But again offers nothing more than, they should have got along.

The worst thing about Stephen A. Smith's pushing himself into the spotlight on ESPN (besides having to put that A. in there)? Less Aldridge and Dr. Jack, the two NBA guys with a little gravitas and trust and something more interesting to say than shouting from the Budweiser Hotseat. What do they have to say about this trade? I don't know because Stephen A. Smith locked Aldridge in the supply closet and stole Dr. Jack's med-alert button.

I'm pretty sure I'll never be able to convince my wife to traipse around the country visiting every major and minor league park, I wouldn't push my luck by mentioning Canada, but this couple just polished off the last park on the list (and a good portion of their pension too, but damn the memories of the those wacky single A mascots will get them through the tough times). And like any enterprising retired couple, they chronicled it all on their website.

A nice feature length article on Big Papi, his name change and rough ride to the majors. Even if the Sox do manage to fumble away Pedro in the off-season, Theo and Co. have to be congratulated on nailing down Ortiz way below market value. It will be interesting to see how the Sox take shape over the next three to four years when Theo is finally free of the shackles of the previous administration's disastrous contracts. (via BSMW)

The Jimy watch has come to an end and the Batter's Box is asking for thoughts on the man that has had the talent with three teams, but could never finish in first. Some good comments following the post and I agree with most of them having living through Jimy's World in Boston. He leaves the impression of mediocrity. Playing hunches and hot streaks to a fault and devastating bullpens. If he fails to get another head gig (doubtful, though inexplicable), he could ride his aw shucks attitude and non-sequiters to political office somewhere.

Ah, the Hardball Times has the transcript of an IM chat during the All-star game (and wouldn't you know the Yankee fan is the most annoying). Fond memories of the first incarnation of Sportsblah.

As one of the commenters noted, an unrealistic, but interesting exercise. Football Outsiders puts Pete Prisco's top 50 NFL players list under the microscope and has some additions and subtractions. Good read.

British Open starts tomorrow. Gary Van Sickle adds his voice to the growing chorus for underdog choice Tiger Woods. You might have heard of him. Oh and in case you were wondering, Duval has decided to head out to Troon for more torture.

After searching in vain last year for a decent golf blog and coming up rather empty, it seems this year golfers have gotten into the act. After the US Open, I still like Blogger Vance, but perusing the Net for BO coverage today, I've found a couple more promising ones, though someone has to tell the golf Blogger users there are other templates besides the Blue/Khaki rounded corners one.

I’ve been bad and I know it. I have to apologize for not being a more studious writer for those of you that count on your daily dose of the Blah (Kristin, are you paying attention?). Not that I really think any of you are waiting with bated breath for my next piece, but it’s nice that it’s a possibility.

Until the end of the NBA’s moratorium on player movement at midnight, nothing that you’ve read and heard about over the last two weeks is official. That means the Miami Heat are not yet the favorites to win the East (although even that is debatable and I will get into it in coming days). Boozer isn’t quite yet the biggest scumbag on the Olympic squad (note to USA Basketball: THROW HIM OFF THE TEAM). None of this has happened. In the next 24 hours though, everything is going to change. The clock starts ticking for teams that have restricted free agents that sign offer sheets and other have to start thinking about what they are going to do now that most of the big names are already committed. So why don’t we look at what we think we know and who has done what so far.

You knew that I was going to start with the Atlanta Hawks. My boys seem to have a sign and trade in place with the Pacers that is going to immensely help both teams when it comes down to it. The Pacers get their sharp shooter to supplement and eventually replace the aging Reggie Miller. The Hawks actually wound up on the better end of a deal though. Bringing in a budding super star like Al Harrington is the best thing to happen to me in…well, in a couple of days anyway. I will go ahead and predict that Harrington is an All Star this season. This team still has a long way to go and I am perfectly happy to start the rebuilding process with JT, Al, and some complimentary guys like Jason Collier and Boris Diaw. These guys still have some cap room but I hope they save that for next year when there is a better free agent class and the other teams have wasted their cash on the Adonal Foyle’s of the world.

One super star leaves Florida and another is on his way. Shaq looks to be heading to Miami but there isn’t a whole lot left there. Dwayne Wade could be great but Eddie Jones isn’t very good anymore. This team was really good last year because they had so many players that could contribute. I’m not sure what they are going to do with Shaq and Wade and whole bunch of nothing else, but it will be fun watching a pissed off Shaq dominate the East.

The Suns could be the most improved team in the league when all is said and done. Steve Nash is coming to town to direct a dynamic offense that is young and in need of some veteran leadership. Quentin Richardson could move into the backcourt if the Clips decide to be cheap and lead to the trade of Marion or Johnson to get them a legitimate center. This team is suddenly looking really solid and should be in the playoffs for the next few years at least.

The Utah Jazz are either extremely shrewd or a little dirty. I would like to think that they can’t be blamed because Carlos Boozer has no morals but they did decide to make the offer. Regardless, they have added Mehmut Okur and Boozer to a team that already looked to be deep and scary this year. Their draft picks, Humphries and Snyder, could start to contribute right away and make this another team that is going to be right in the thick of it for a long time. Wouldn’t surprise me to see them make a trade before the season starts though.

Tim Duncan is a lucky man. San Antonio keeps making sure that he has plenty of players around him. Bringing Ginobili and Bowen back is a big step toward getting another ring on the Fundamental’s hand. I happen to think that Brent Barry has found himself a perfect fit. He may wind up being the most important pick up of the off season in the non-superstar category. He guarantees that Tony Parker gets a few more breathers and he can create with the best of them. Wait and see, this is a big time pick up.

I’m going to do some more in depth analysis as we head toward the season and these things become official, but don’t be surprised to get the same in depth coverage as we head towards baseball’s trading deadline. Don’t you worry, I’ll be around.

Dear Roger Clemens, I hate you. I tell you I really can't disagree all that much with Mr. Stevenson. I hate the hagiography of the sunset years of athletes and politicians. "Little" indiscretions are glossed over or swept under the rug and rose tinted glasses rule the world. If Ty Cobb called it quits in this day and age, he'd be on the cusp of sainthood.

I almost wrote about this last week after being subjected to watching the ESPN25 shows while at the gym, but felt I'd done enough ESPN bashing for one week, but now that the WP has jumped on the bandwagon, I couldn't agree more. Especially with numbers seven and number one. The list show is the definition of filler and has more filler than anything else. The actual clips, the whole reason for the show, barely get a blip of air time instead the bizarre lead-ins to the number of the list and Al Trautwig seem to garner the most attention. When Stuart Scott is the least of your worries, you know you treading on thin ice. One interesting note, it appears ESPN is planning to go retro in August. Now this might be worth watching, although ratings would go through the roof if they kissed and made up with Olbermann. "ESPN is said to be planning a SportsCenter throwback week in early August, returning Craig Kilborn, Charley Steiner, original anchor George Grande and perhaps Robin Roberts and Greg Gumbel for guest spots." (via BSMW)

Aaron Gleeman has a nice roundup of the first half in the AL at the break. And just to balance out all that fun steroids talk from the HR Derby last night, here's an article that actually likes baseball and the direction the sport is going. You know, just for a change of pace.

Depending on where you stand on the WNBA being a sport, today and Wednesday are the answers to that trivia question about the only two days on the calendar where pro sports are not played. So, on the eve of the All-Star game, baseball links would appear to be in order.

Another lazy column. Gerry Fraley of the Dallas Morning News sets a new standard of willful misunderstanding of Moneyball and just about everything contained in it. This quote being among my favorite, "Scouts remain the most under-appreciated resource of any team. One good scout is worth more than 100 numbers-crunchers." Is that the one good scout that bagged them Chan Ho Park?

Its just not a Moneyball friendly day now is it?

Tired of the Yanks, Sox and Cardinals getting all the ink? Here's a good article on the Devil Rays.

Everytime I see these surveys, I always imagine the manager handing out number two pencils and punch cards and the players standing around their locker furiously filling out complete circles. Who knew Curt Leskanic was such a great teammate?

Perhaps if I didn't spend all my time reading other people's articles then maybe I'd have time to find these things out. Mike's Baseball Rants has a good post on some of those interesting all-star selections.

Are you kidding me? I was going to take a few minute and write about all of the players that have agreed to sign with teams or signed offer sheets, but I can’t. I am consumed by Carlos Boozer. He was one of the great stories in the NBA this past season and looks to be a burgeoning star (or at least an important cog to a winning team). The Cavs had the young nucleus of Lebron, Boozer, and a series of talented players in the backcourt. Here’s where it gets interesting.

Boozer, his agent, and Jim Paxson apparently agreed to not pick up the third year option at an incredibly low price so they could resign Boozer to the mid-level exception – 6 years about $35 million. Remember, this was a verbal agreement between the team and Boozer (and his agent). I have been following the NBA for a long time but my favorite part of any sport is the off season so I watch free agent dealings very closely. This already kind of smelled of the T-Wolves agreeing to resign Joe Smith, but there was nothing to gain for the team. So now that Boozer is an unrestricted free agent, I’m sure you’re thinking that nothing really bad can happen because the Cavs can just match any offer sheet. This is only partially true. Because Carlos was a second round pick and only played for two seasons with the Cavs, they only own his EARLY Bird Rights. They can only match up to the mid-level exception unless they are under the cap (this is what happened to Golden State with Arenas). So when the Jazz came in with an extra $20 million, you would think that an upstanding guy (remember that Coach K supposedly made him a man at Duke) would just turn it down and sign with the team that he hasn’t stopped raving about.

I’m in total shock. This has dumbfounded me and Mike D. We just don’t know what to think. We were both really starting to like Boozer but now we can’t. I want to know what Coach K has to say about this. I also want to know what Jerry Sloan has to say about this. How is this not the biggest story of the NBA off season? I don’t care that Nash and Q Rich are going to the Suns. I don’t care that Ginobli is staying in San Antonio. I don’t care that no one wants Kobe or K-Mart. I want to talk about Carlos Boozer. Is he even fit to remain on the US Olympic team at this point? Do we want this guy representing us?

Of course, I probably don’t know the whole story…

'Tis the season for the baseball rumors to really kick in to overdrive. Now that Beltran has been dealt, at least for the first time, the rumor mongers new favorite target seems to be Randy Johnson. McAdam has the short attention span wrap up on buyers and sellers, while Tony Masserotti's piece on the Sox interest, or Internet BS if Theo is to be believed, is sure to incite WEEI for the next couple days. But, man, a rotation of Pedro, Schilling and RJ, even older clones of all of them is a bit heady to think about. Best not to.

A few days removed from the Crazy Canadians streak being snapped, Tim Kurkjian attempts to weigh in on the historical significance of it in a sport that loves streaks while the HBT takes the opportunity to fill a story with all sorts of interesting streak minutae that litters the national past time's landscape.

And finally, a fun timewaster from the Batters Box that wonders, in the wake of all the former and current Rangers named to the All-star team, which team could sport the best lineup from its former players.

I'll throw this out there too, since after ESPN the network aggravated me all week, now ESPN the website is at it. I don't mind one splash type ad when I go to the page, you gotta pay the bills, but one every time I click a story and go back? No thanks.

I'm not much of a links guy. I just like to ramble on about whatever suits my fancy on any given day (or as my blogging history has shown, once every few months.) Generally, I like to leave the articles to Mike, who is a Link Master . . . a title he should be proud of. A title I just made up. Anyway, I happened upon a few sites I felt warranted mentioning.

What's gotten into the Devil Rays? Oh, just Sweet Lou up to his old tricks again.

Ever wonder what happened to those Sportscenter Dream Job cast offs? Well, Casey Stern claims to be doing ok. Although, by the looks of the photo, I have a sneaking suspicion he's parlayed his 15 minutes into a porno career.

And finally, as I'm sure none of you have heard, my beloved Portuguese national soccer team lost to Greece in the finals of the Euro Cup '04. Seeing as I'm 100% Portuguese, and first generation American, one could say that my family and I were none too pleased this past Sunday (ironic, as we were so concerned with Portugal on July 4th). And while I think Coach Scolari has done a wonderful job with that Portuguese team, I have one comment about his strategy in the aforementioned game. Greece, the Detroit Pistons of Europe, play a much maligned, old-school, defense-wins-oh-we'll-eventually-score type of game. So why, if you're Portugal, do you play with a 1-forward formation? Granted, Pauleta is incredible, but he was blanketed by a double team the entire game, rendering him worthless. In the second half, Scolari opted to remove Pauleta for Nuno Gomes. Um, why? It was obvious that the dribble, pass, pass, lob, giveaway, dribble, pass, poor shot offensive "barrage" was not working. The defense was too strong, and those freakin' defenders were so tall (the Portuguese don't tend to be tall folk. I'm 6'0" and considered a giant by natives. That's a joke.) So, why not change up your formation and have both Pauletta AND Gomes, two potent scorers, up in the front, spreading the defense a little more? It would have taken a little pressure off of Figo, opening up the field for he, Ronaldo and Rui Costa. Of course, that's easy for me to say eating a chourico sandwich from my recliner, but it just seems like common sense. Either way, it was a great game, albeit, with heartbreaking results. Ah well, there's always the World Cup.

ESPN loves streaks. If its marketable and repeatable, great. If they can break into programming to follow it, even better. If there was any good that came out of Gagne's streak ending, it was the five seconds a day I didn't have to watch that scrolling graphic. All of this is the long way around to saying with their love of streaks I really should not have been surprised that they squeezed another story out of the Coach K decision this morning. Love those soft focus human interest stories. I almost managed to hold the vomit at bay.

It might also speak to my stupidity that when my usual sources of links came up rather dry this morning, I choose to peruse the national columnists for interesting stories. I realized my mistake three seconds in. Every bi-weekly columnist in the country was weighing in on Coach K. (sigh). For the record, Michael Wilbon probably had the best straight take on the situation, drawing an interesting comparison while Jason Whitlock spewed some venon worthy of the Boston media.

Some columnists did manage to steer clear of the obvious. King Kaufman has a column and interview with Jeff Benedict, author of the new book "Out of Bounds: Inside the NBA's Culture of Rape, Violence, and Crime."

The real subject of the book, Benedict writes, is not the misbehavior of any individual player, but the culture and mind-set of the NBA, one in which women are "nothing more than sexual prey" for the players, who are accustomed from the time they begin showing unusual athletic ability to getting whatever they want, in any situation.

"Set aside the question of guilt or innocence for a minute and think about this," Benedict writes. "Bryant checked into a resort hotel shortly after 10 p.m. on June 30, 2003, and a sexual incident was under way with a complete stranger by shortly after 11 p.m. How many people can relate to going to a hotel in a strange city, seeing a complete stranger upon check-in, and having sexual intercourse with that stranger within an hour?"

This isn't news to anyone that follows professional sports or visits this site, but the heftiness of the numbers is a bit disturbing.

Plaschke takes aim at this summer's Apolo Anton Ono and attempt to take him down a few pegs and teach him some history lessons in the process. Not sure what the point of this screed was. Are we supposed to be surprised that kids groomed to be superstars have a single minded fixation and rarely seek out their historical place in their chosen sport till after their career is over.

Mark Kiszla has the annual, fawning column on Lance Armstrong, not that I am complaining.

"The question of what makes Armstrong unique is as audacious as the man himself: Has any athlete in U.S. history ever become so rich, so famous and so beloved in a sport that incites so little passion in the nation's general population?

In fact, I'm a little annoyed my hotel in NYC doesn't have the OLN. The Tour de France blog will have to serve as my daily fix till I can watch the recaps on the weekend.

Never has a job interview played out so publicly in sports. ESPN's coverage alone might have convinced Coach K to make the sensible move and stay in Durham. I admit I was intrigued by the prospect and wouldn't have been all that sad if he'd taken it and flopped on his face, but my god, at least fifteen minutes of every SportsCenter since Friday had a segment about it. Sometimes they tried to trick us and put a little up front and then sprinkle a little more at the end (more fodder for my call to bring back the half hour SC). Just report it. I don't need Greg Anthony's opinion.

As a Celtics fan, I sometimes wonder if Ainge's 'vision' would be enough to sustain a blog, let alone an NBA franchise. Mark Cuban has a good entry on why he eventually had to let Steve Nash go.

Someone in Fort Wayne thinks Roger Clemens is the best pitcher ever. He's not all that convincing.

Tom Verducci hands out his mid-season awards (a bit of a lazy column here by Verducci, more list than op-ed). And dammit, I really thought Jimy Williams would win the award this year.

If you're looking for a football fix (and I'll admit the way my real and fantasy baseball teams are performing training camp can't get here soon enough), FO has a good thread going on the players that didn't live up to the hype.

If I were to choose a continent to golf across I'm not sure Mongolia would be in my top five.

First of all, let me welcome Greg back into the fold. It’s been a while and we’re glad to see that the novel has been sent to your publisher…or something like that. Secondly, nice piece on the trades but I don’t completely agree with you. I understand your point after having discussed this for a while but I believe our loyal Blah readers (don’t worry Donny, I’m getting to the NBA soon) deserve to see the other side of this.

Dotel is not a top 5 closer and he is not considered elite. His ERA is over 3.5 and he has four blown saves this year. I know that he strikes out a lot of people, but that alone doesn’t make him a stud. Look it up, Joe Nathan has better numbers this year everywhere except he has a few less Ks. And if you’re argument is that Nathan is a first year closer, well let’s not forget that Dotel has been a set up man since being moved to the pen. He has some saves because Wagner has been hurt some. Listen, I still think this is a great deal for the A’s, but this isn’t going to be as important as the Chi Sox getting Garcia.

The other side of this is that we have a Yankee fan tooting the small market blues horn. He belittles the fact that the Royals got some top notch talent at their positions of need for next season because they traded a guy that they wouldn’t have next spring. This does NOT set the team back a couple of years because they weren’t going to have him anyway. Now Greg did explain to me that he means this team won’t be as good as it would be with Beltran even though he knows that he is going to be signed by the Yankees so they aren’t really getting set back but they are at the same time. Did you all get that? Took me a while too. He has the right idea here, but I don’t think it was very clear because Yankee fans don’t understand the economics of the sport (for those of you that don’t know, I enjoy making things up about Greg). Trading Beltran was the best thing for this team because they aren’t going anywhere now and they can get some starters for the future. Teahen has been compared to Jason Giambi at this point in his career and the numbers seem to show this is true. His power should develop from doubles to homers in the next year or so. Wood is a deceptively good pitcher who doesn’t blow anyone away in the same mold as Greg Maddux or Tom Glavine. Buck is a basically major league ready, but they aren’t going to force him to learn the job in a high pressure situation. In addition, you can’t put a price on being tutored by Benito Santiago…wait, actually it’s $2.15 million.

The Red Sox are the winners because they didn’t have to trade the only two decent young players they have just to see their big acquisition sign with the Evil Empire. I can’t see this trade being a good thing and I’m glad that it didn’t happen.

The Yankees are the losers in all of this because they didn’t get the one player that could really make a difference for them. Lofton and Bernie just aren’t cutting it this year and Beltran would have slotted in very nicely for them. Improved defense and an additional big bat would have made George smile. Of course, they really need a pitcher and they missed out on the top target there too. Anyone else wonder why George was talking about Randy Johnson today? I hope he gets fined for tampering but it will seem like pocket change compared to his team’s salary.

Turning our attention back to the Association, let me be just another writer and pontiff to say that Shaq will not be in Sacramento next season. And what would the Kings have to give up? Webber and Miller most likely and that would also preclude them from resigning Vlade. This wouldn’t be the same Kings team. With Shaq clogging up the middle, they won’t be running and they don’t have great passing big men to get that free flowing offense going anymore. This doesn’t make sense to me. Doesn’t anyone remember that team concept anymore?

The Suns do! They have apparently reached a verbal agreement with Steve Nash on a six year deal. I was asked a couple of times today why I hadn’t written in a couple of days and I was going to write about just this. I know, I know, it’s easy for me to say that now, but I swear it’s true. The Suns already have three strong players in Johnson, Marion, and Stoutmire and they need to build around these guys. I like the bench players they have as well. I think this is a team that can really do something great in the next few years. I love this signing. It’s late and I don’t feel like looking it up to be certain, but I am pretty sure that they are still going to have some room to make a few more pick ups. I’ll talk more about the other free agents out there on another day.

Coach K to the Lakers? Kobe asking for him? What the hell is going on in LaLa Land? This is just a bad idea. I don’t expect him to take the job because he is going to realize that he doesn’t have the same kind of control over these players as he does at Duke and won’t be able to translate his game plan to the pros. There’s a reason that he hasn’t made the jump before. And if any of you can think of the last college coach to make the jump and really succeed, let us know because Mike and I couldn’t think of any.

Lastly, since you’ve spent all this time with me and I’ve bashed my fellow Blah columnists latest feature, I want to tell you all that I actually think Greg knows his stuff and is brilliant. There are times that we disagree and that’s what this was. I hope there is some more of it and that more of you will comment on these posts. Without discussion and opposing view points, what fun would this be? And Greg, tag you're it.

Slow link day this morning, so I guess I must turn my attention to the beatdown in the Bronx. Though with the Sox's porous defense on display, its more a self-flagellation than a complete defeat by the Yanks. Tony Maz of the Herald is venting his frustrations on Moneyball and all it entails. If you can get by the personal agenda and almost willful misunderstanding of Moneyball, then its hard to argue with Maz. I'm too lazy to search the archives and find out what he wrote after the Sox sweep in April. I'm sure it would drive him even more insane if he knew the stathead's adjusted standings have the Sox in first. Which goes to show you just how much bad luck and bad defense have plagued the Sox this year, but still its only July 1 and despite how poorly they played in May and June, they are still tied in the wild card. Who knows, six and half games is a lot, but as the summer wears on more parasites might creep into the geriatric Yanks. Of course if Pedro loses tonight (a distinct possibility anytime a stud pitcher goes up against a no name opponent), it's over.

The Sports Retort has a middling review of the Phillies new park and while I haven't been inside the new one, I did see more than one game at the Vet and would probably side with the natives in my exuberance for anything after living through the symmetrical cement hell of the Vet.

For all our posturing of baseball as America's game, David Gross looks at a new book that argues soccer is a far better patriotic model for this country than baseball.