Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban and local baseball executive Dennis Gilbert did not advance to the second round of the Dodgers’ ownership bidding, according to two people familiar with the process but not authorized to discuss it publicly. Cuban told The Times in November that he did not believe the Dodgers were worth $1.2 billion. Outgoing owner Frank McCourt believes he can sell the team for at least $1.5 billion. Gilbert, the former agent and current Chicago White Sox executive, had partnered with former talk show host Larry King as well as Jason Reese and Randy Wooster of Imperial Capital. Hello, Los Angeles…you’r off the air.

While MLB and the players’ association still are discussing whether the expanded playoffs will start in 2012 or 2013, they’ve reached a consensus that ties for division titles will be broken on the field under the new playoff format, a person familiar with the talks told The Associated Press. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because a deal hadn’t been finalized. Since 1995, head-to-head record has been used to determine first place if both teams are going to the postseason. But with the start of a one-game, winner-take-all wild-card round, the sides agreed that the difference between first place and a wild-card berth is too important to decide with a formula and a tiebreaker game would be played.

This is really tricky. I'm not "in" the loop here, as I don't have any direct contacts in the D.R. or other Latin American countries but I do have names I've heard or read that have yet to sign. I may have missed the signings as well as many of these don't get a lot of attention. In other words, this is a work in progress and always will be. Nothing with International talent is transparent.

1. Yoennis Cespedes, OF. The Cuban defector has a couple hoops he needs to jump through before being decalred a free agent and able to sign, but he could be within a couple weeks or a couple months. There is a lot of red tape here. When he signs, he shouldn't need more than some time to acclimate to the U.S. before making his MLB debut. He could be treated similar to Leonys Martin last season.

2. Jorge Soler, OF. A younger version of Cespedes is going through a similar situation. I might prefer his potential to Cespedes but he would probably begin in Low-A or maybe High A ball as a 19 year old. A cautious team may even place him in their complex level team in the Gulf Coast or Arizona league before sending him to a full season league next year. Timing will also be a large part of this. Whoever signs him will need some patience.

After that there is a drop off. There is a talented Dominican named Helsin Martinez who I was impressed by but no one has signed him and I haven't heard anything about him lately. Not sure what's happening with him now, but I'd place him 3rd here based on talent. After that, none of the pre-July 2nd guys are big names that you should get very excited about.

I wrote about some of the signings from this season here as well.

After the jump is a list of player I believe to be international free agents as well as some July 2nd names. I haven't done my due diligence on them yet but I will have a report about them prior to J2.

Like I said, some may have signed and I missed them but here they are:

Darfi Ortiz	2B	D.R.
Adaniel Blanco	SS	D.R.
Alberto Garcia	SS
Alexis Parma	OF	Venezuela
Alfrandy Cespedes	P	D.R.
Carlos Pereira	3B	D.R.
Cesar Aybar	P	D.R.
Cesar Gonzalez	C	Venezuela
Daniel Rodriguez	P	D.R.
Deivi Paulino	P	D.R.
Eddy Morabel	3B	D.R.
Elvis Sanchez	3B
Eskarlin Vazquez	OF
Felix Carvallo	P	Venezuela
Fidias Soto	OF	D.R.
Ismael Alcantara	3B
Jonas Corporan	P	D.R.
Jose Julio Ruiz	1B	Cuba
Luis Abad	P
Michale Leso	P	D.R.
Pedro Araujo	P	D.R.
Vladiimir Tejeda	P	D.R.
Yadil Mujica	3B	Cuba
Yoguar Villega	SS	D.R.
Yorman Landa	P	Venezuela
Chih Yu Lin	P	Taiwan
Jih Yuk Ryu	3B	South Korea
Ju Suc Ha	SS	South Korea
Mitchel Martes	3B	Aruba
Robert Michael Garcia Quiroz	P	Mexico
Ronald Ferreras	P	D.R.
Sung Hyuk Han	P	South Korea
Helsin Martinez	OF	Dominican Republic
Gustavo Perinan	SS	Colombia
Carlos Rodriguez	P
Eric Gabo	OF
Erick Hurtado	P	Dominican Republic
Manuel Gonzalez	P	Dominican Republic
Jhoan Urena	3B	Dominican Republic
Jose Leal	OF
Luis Carreno	P
Sanber Pimentel	OF	Dominican Republic
Gialy Arias	P	Dominican Republic
Junior Flores	P	Venezuela
Kevin Sosa	P	Venezuela
Victor Medina	OF
July 2nd guys
Deivei Grullon	C	D.R.
Yancarlos Baez	SS	D.R.
Ronny Carvajal	OF	D.R.
Jose Pujols	OF	D.R.
Luis Barrera	OF	D.R.
Frandi Delarosa	SS	D.R.
Wendell Rijo	SS	D.R.
Natanael Javier	3B	D.R.
Gustavo Cabrera	OF	D.R.
Andres DeAza	OF	D.R.
Hector Morales	P	D.R.
Francis Peguero	SS	D.R.
Lugo Octavis	SS	D.R.
Angel Moreno	SS	D.R.
Grofi Cruz Martinez	SS	D.R.
Alberto Sanchez	3B	D.R.
Luis Castillo	3B	D.R.
Juaquin DelaCruz	3B	D.R.
Kelvin Esteves	3B	D.R.
Francisco Castro	C	Mexico
Branly Crisotomo	P	D.R.
Angel Heredia	P	D.R.
Winder Novas	P	D.R.
Yairo Munoz	SS	D.R.
Nelson Alvarez	OF	D.R.
Natanael Delgado	OF	D.R.
Rafael Santana	OF	D.R.

The problem in ’12 is that the regular season ends on Wednesday, Oct. 3, and the World Series will begin on FOX on Wednesday, Oct. 24. Squeezing in additional wild-card games never was part of the plan. Under the existing schedule, the Thursday after the regular-season finale likely would be left open for tiebreaker or makeup games. The wild-card games would be Friday, and the Division Series would begin on Saturday. Here’s where things gets sticky: Ten of the 15 games on the final day of the regular season will be played at night. Three of those games — Rockies at Diamondbacks, Angels at Mariners, Giants at Dodgers — will begin in the Pacific Time Zone and likely end at around 1 a.m. ET. Potential qualifiers on both coasts might need to travel across two or three time zones and play a makeup game or tiebreaker the next day, then fly back across the country for the wild-card round and all the way back again for the start of the Division Series. The expanded format, designed to create more races, would increase the chances of uncertainty on the final day of the regular season — and the potential for tiebreakers. Teams might not want to move night games to the afternoon and risk losing revenue. And a tiebreaker or wild-card game that began on the west coast at 10 p.m. ET — a possibility depending upon the matchups — also would not be the best way to maximize TV ratings.

Woo-hoo! Gives him a shot at his 8th Caught Stealing title! That’s why they signed veteran outfielder Juan Pierre, a three-time league stolen base champ, to a minor-league contract on Friday. Pierre will compete for a big-league job in spring training. “Juan’s speed element is something we clearly do not have on our bench,” general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. said. “There are no guarantees he’ll be on our club. He’ll have to earn it and be the right fit for our club. But he has a legitimate chance because of that speed element.” Phillies officials have been looking to add some speed to their bench all winter. Even before Pierre, the team had signed veteran Scott Podsednik to a minor-league deal and invited him to big-league spring-training camp. Podsednik was the National League stolen base leader with 70 for Milwaukee in 2004, but he will turn 36 in March and has been plagued by foot problems in recent seasons. Pierre, 34, won two National League stolen base crowns and led the AL with 68 while playing for the White Sox in 2010. He had 27 for the Sox last season. With Domonic Brown likely headed for more development time in Triple A, Pierre and Podsednik will create a little spring drama by competing for the fifth outfielder’s job. “They’ll be battling,” Amaro said.

As they say, all good things come to an end at some point and the same is true of this site. When I began this project, it was to help educate the American public and any other interested parties about Japanese baseball. It’s had its ups and downs to be sure, but I think I’ve been pretty successful at it I stopped doing daily reports because of the time and energy that took interfered with my other interests. Now I will cease updating this site after I aggregate all the stats of the 2012 season and then I will close the site at the termination of the 2013 campaign. The best English-language Japanese baseball site on the web is going to be closing down. Fortunately, it won’t be closing down for a while. The amount of historical information on this site is mind-blowing for anyone who has an interest in the history of Japanese baseball. The Data Warehouse section is the best site of its type on the web - it’s the Baseball Reference of Japanese baseball, with complete stats for anyone who has ever played the game there, complete with player bios in many cases. There are also league standings and team stats for all seasons, Japan Series and All-Star Game results, and sections on managers, and awards. It is truly a treasure, and much of my knowledge about Japanese players of the past is directly attributable to hours of browsing through these files.  

The Phillies and Hunter Pence avoided arbitration by agreeing to a one-year, $10.4 million contract, Jon Heyman reports on Twitter. Pence earned $6.9 million last season while batting .314/.370/.502 with 22 homers, 97 RBI, eight stolen bases and an .871 OPS over 154 games between Houston and Philadelphia. Pence filed at $11.8 million while the Phillies filed at $9 million in December, so the two sides met halfway on the deal, thus avoiding a trip to the table, as the...

Some Intriguing Grade C Prospects to Follow in 2012.

I wrote a piece yesterday about Jorge Posada, pointing out that the retired Yankees star was just a Grade C/C+ prospect in the minor leagues. I want to expand that theme today by looking at some Grade C prospects in the upcoming 2012 Baseball Prospect Book, who in my opinion have a chance to get beyond that and surprise us.

First, here is how I define a Grade C prospect:

Grade C prospects are the most common type. These are guys who have something positive going for them, but who may have a question mark or three, or who are just too far away from the majors to get an accurate feel for. A few Grade C guys, especially at the lower levels, do develop into stars. Many end up as role players or bench guys.Some don't make it at all. . .keep in mind that all grades are shorthand. You have to read the full comment for my full opinion about a player, the letter grade only tells you so much. A Grade C prospect in rookie ball could end up being very impressive, while a Grade C prospect in Triple-A is likely just a future role player.

Here are six Grade C prospects who I think should be watched closely in 2012. Two of them are "limited upside" guys who could end up being surprisingly solid contributors, and four of them are players from the low minors with upside but who are a long distance from the Show.

Andrew Carraway, RHP, Seattle Mariners
HT: 6-2 WT: 200 B:R T:R DOB: September 4, 1986

(Carraway posted a 3.66 ERA with a 106/25 K/BB in 138 innings for Double-A Jackson in 2011, allowing 123 hits and nine homers)

Carraway was a 12th round pick in 2009 from the University of Virginia. He doesn't generate much buzz due to a mediocre fastball in the 86-90 range, but he has a good curveball and will mix in some sliders and changeups. The best thing he does is throw strikes, and he pitched well in Double-A last year after surviving the murderous environment at High Desert in '10 with his sanity intact. You won't see his name on many prospect lists, but Carraway is the type of efficiency expert who could sneak his way into some major league success as a fifth starter or long reliever, especially in a pitcher's park like Seattle. Grade C.

Tyler Greene, SS, Philadelphia Phillies
HT: 6-2 WT: 175 B:R T:R DOB: December 1, 1992

(Greene hit .276/.386/.379 in 17 games for the GCL Phillies, with 11 walks and 23 strikeouts in 58 at-bats. He stole five bases in six attempts).

Greene was drafted in the 11th round by the Phillies last June, out of high school in Boca Raton, Florida. His draft position was deceptive. At one point he was considered a candidate for the second round, but an erratic spring and a University of Georgia commitment hurt his stock. The Phillies signed him for $375,000, and he showed intriguing tools in his pro debut, demonstrating gap power, speed, and a willingness to work counts. Greene is a very good athlete with the arm strength to remain at shortstop, although problems with his footwork may move him to third base. His swing mechanics need refinement and he strikes out a lot, but he will show patience at times and has above-average power potential. Greene is under-the-radar at the moment and will need time to develop, but his ceiling is higher-than-normal for an 11th round pick. Keep an eye on him. Grade C for now

Juan Perez, 2B-SS, Cincinnati Reds
HT: 6-0 WT: 180 B:L T:R DOB: November 1, 1991

(Perez hit .346/.424/.496 in 33 games for the AZL Reds, then .268/.344/.476 in 19 games for Billings in the Pioneer League. He stole 15 bases in 19 attempts with a 25/38 BB/K in 215 combined at-bats).

Juan Perez was a 26th round pick in 2011, from College of the Canyons in California. He was Player of the Year in the Western State South Division Conference, and he continued to play well in pro ball, showing an intriguing line drive bat, good speed, a feel for the strike zone, and some defensive versatility. His best position is second base but he's not horrible at shortstop. We need to see what happens at higher levels, but he's got potential. Grade C.

Kendrick Perkins, OF, Boston Red Sox
HT: 6-2 WT: 225 B:L T:R DOB: September 12, 1991

(Perkins hit .257/.362/.386 with 27 walks and 62 strikeouts in 171 at-bats for the GCL Red Sox)

Perkins was drafted in the sixth round in June 2010, from high school in La Porte, Texas. It took $628,000 to sign him away from baseball and football at Texas A&M. A raw athlete, Perkins has good running speed and excellent raw power, but is very unrefined. His swing is inefficient and he strikes out too much, but he makes an effort to work counts, so he is certainly not a lost cause. He could be a 20+ homer power source if he figures out how to play baseball, but it will take time and slow progress is more likely than a sudden breakout. Grade C with a high ceiling.

Jorge Reyes, RHP, San Diego Padres
HT: 6-3 WT: 195 B:S T:R DOB: December 7, 1987

(Reyes went 10-3 with a 3.12 ERA and a 98/30 K/BB in 113 innings for Double-A San Antonio, allowing 111 hits)

Jorge Reyes was drafted out of Oregon State in 2009, a 17th round pick. He had a rough patch in the California League in 2010, but was much more effective in Double-A in '11, seeing good success as a swingman in the Texas League. He posted a 3.90 ERA with a 74/24 K/BB in 88 innings over 20 starts, fair performance, but he was outstanding after moving to the bullpen in early August, posting a 0.36 ERAwith a 24/6 K/BB and 19 hits in 25 innings. He also vultured five wins in relief. Reyes has a low-90s fastball and a good slider, but his changeup is lacking and he's probably best-suited for a relief role. Although not overpowering, he throws strikes and works very quickly. The Padres have a lot of raw material for a future bullpen, and Reyes is another piece. Grade C.

Neftali Rosario, C, Chicago Cubs
HT: 5-11 WT: 193 B:R T:R DOB: July 22, 1993

(Rosario hit .294/.351/.490 in 102 at-bats for the AZL Cubs, with six walks and 28 strikeouts).

Neftali Rosario was drafted by the Cubs in the sixth round last June, from high school in Gurabo, Puerto Rico. He didn't receive much attention pre-draft, but there are things to build on here. Although he needs more experience to refine his blocking skills, Rosario is mobile and should be an effective deterrent against baserunners due to a strong throwing arm. He has power, but his plate discipline needs work; he strikes out a lot and doesn't draw walks yet, but he was just 17 on draft day and has plenty of time on the clock. He bears watching. Grade C with higher potential.

Clowns to the left of me, Jokers to the right “In a way, I almost relish when one of our competitors goes in the free-agent market because it’s so inefficient and such a bad use of dollars,” he added. “You almost never get the value out of a free-agent market expense. We all have limited dollars to spend, so if someone in wasting those dollars in a competitive situation, it helps us.” ... “That being said, we inherited a deal that was done under [previous owner Turner Broadcasting/Time Warner] a little over four years ago, before the sale, that lasts out through 25 years. So there is no opportunity for a different deal than the one we have.

Update: The Phillies have officially announced the signing of active stolen base leader Juan Pierre to a minor league deal. (From the press release) Pierre, 34, batted .279 with two home runs, 50 RBIs and 27 stolen bases in 158 games for the Chicago White Sox last season. A left-handed batter, he hit .329 against left-handed pitching and .331 with runners in scoring position. Pierre made 152 starts last year, all in left field. He will come to spring training...

If you can’t get along with an organization president who is only there because he is the son of a millionaire owner, then I don’t know who you can get along with. There is a permanence to White’s words that didn’t exist before, setting up an uncomfortable summer in which the Royals will play host to baseball’s All-Star Game while one of two players with a retired number wants nothing to do with them. “I’m just glad I’m not there anymore,” he says. “I’m healthier. My blood pressure is stable. I’m laughing a lot more, I’m having more fun. This is good. This is good for me.” He puts most of the blame for his ugly relationship with the Royals on club president Dan Glass, who did not return messages for this column. According to White, Glass told him last year that he had done “irrevocable damage” to the Royals “that can’t be repaired.” White thinks he was fired from broadcasting because Glass was “(ticked) off I didn’t let them step on my neck anymore,” and also says that he did more work for less money than the Royals paid George Brett. White says he’ll write a book someday, but for now he will coach anonymous players in small stadiums and swear that he has no regrets of how he handled his time with the Royals.

Will the Royals be able to retain Kathy Griffin? The rumblings were there even before the final details of the new labor agreement were finished, and now they are getting louder each time that a team signs a player to an enormous contract. Prince Fielder hasn’t even been introduced by the Detroit Tigers in the wake of his nine-year, $214 million deal, and some rival executives with small-budget and middle-budget teams are privately lamenting what they consider the increasingly untenable position their teams occupy. “I don’t think the new labor agreement helps small-market teams enough,” said one general manager. “I think it’s really going to hurt us, because it doesn’t address what’s happening.” And what is happening, in the eyes of many team executives, is that the massive TV contracts that are either already in place or on the horizon for teams like the Texas Rangers, Los Angeles Angels, Los Angeles Dodgers and Seattle Mariners are helping to create two distinct classes of teams. The A-listers and B-listers, you could call them. Albert Pujols’ deal with the Angels, valued at $246 million, came within weeks after the Angels negotiated their new TV contract, and the Rangers committed more money to Yu Darvish—$112 million—than has ever been spent on a right-handed pitcher. Earlier this offseason, the Dodgers agreed to terms with outfielder Matt Kemp for $160 million over eight years. Fielder’s contract comes out of the pocket of owner Mike Ilitch, but the deal, like the others, has a direct bearing on the market and whether the B-listers can retain their best young players.

The back of a John Smoltz baseball card looks like a database on the fritz. “Nobody really understands,” the former Atlanta Braves pitcher said by phone from his Alpharetta, Ga., home when asked about the unique difficulty of transitioning mid-career from starter to reliever and back again to starter. “It really was very difficult,” Smoltz said. “I had to learn about being a closer on the job.” ...Smoltz says the Hall of Fame is no big deal. “It doesn’t bother me,” said Smoltz, who becomes Hall of Fame-eligible in 2015. “People talk to me about that all the time, but I’m not consumed by it. My answer matches the way that I approach life: If it happens, great, and if it doesn’t, it’s not going to change me.” ...Perhaps the best case for Smoltz is that if he messed with his Hall of Fame chances by switching from starter to reliever to starter, he didn’t think about it at the time. “Nothing I did was based on personal statistics,” Smoltz said. “I wanted to win. I wanted to win probably worse than anybody in the history of the game, and that’s all that mattered to me.” Oh yeah, if he wanted the Braves to win so freakin’ badly…why did he become a closer?!

On Jan. 19, as the Tigers kicked off their winter caravan at Comerica Park, Brandon Inge talked happily about his intentions to earn a full-time job at third base this season. “I’ve played baseball my whole life. I’ve started my whole life,” he told the Free Press. “I’m a baseball player. I don’t want to platoon.” ...Cabrera will be the full-time third baseman, and Leyland said he would not be pulled in the late innings for a defensive replacement. “I’ll make that perfectly clear today,” Leyland said, before acknowledging the drop-off in defense from Inge to Cabrera. “He’s not going to have the agility defensively most likely that Inge has, but you give up a little something, and you get a whole lot in return.” ...“I basically apologized that this got out in the airwaves, and I’m sorry that he had to hear it other than from the horse’s mouth,” Leyland said. “But at that particular time, I was not at any liberty to discuss this whatsoever, so I have talked to Brandon.” a lot.

Council of Papelbon: Death to all witch-hunters! He said on Thursday he was surprised by some of the stories that came out and called it a “witch hunt.” “We’re a team and we lose as a team and we all failed,” Youkilis said. “There wasn’t one player that didn’t fail because we lost. We all failed. We’re going to make a difference this year and that difference is going to be winning. We’re going to go out there and win and hopefully start out winning a lot earlier this year. Last year was a little tough at the beginning.” A major talking point and concern was the notion the clubhouse culture ultimately led to the team’s debacle in September, in which the Sox missed the postseason for the second consecutive season. “I definitely didn’t think we had the best vibe in the clubhouse,” he said. “It was very different. It was noticeable early, but when you win, winning heals all the wounds. We definitely didn’t have the right attitude in a lot of ways, but when you’re winning, and everyone always refers to, and I didn’t live through that era, but with the Oakland A’s and things weren’t always right but they went out there and played the game. “Sometimes it snowballed out of control where we were worrying about things we shouldn’t have been worrying about and not playing the game of baseball.

Toledo News-Bee, January 27, 1912:Charley White, who has been granted the New York city franchise in the proposed new United States league, has the biggest and most unique scheme on hand that baseball has ever produced. A baseball field of immense size, sodded with turf and all the conveniences of an up-to-date ball grounds on a roof, is the gigantic undertaking that White has in view, and claims that he has the necessary backing to carry the plan along. ... The roof of the new Grand Central station…is the possible location of the proposed ball field. That would have been SO COOL.

Mario Sports Mix was developed by Nintendo & Square-Enix, just like Mario Hoops 3 on 3. Today’s episode we play some Hockey against My former college professors! Check it out as our Mii’s go to head in my favorite Sport! Follow us out here too – www.facebook.com twitter.com

Gonna buy a box of Letrozole! The player, Dustin Richardson, is a 26-year-old left-handed relief pitcher who played for the Boston Red Sox in 2009 and 2010 before spending all of 2011 in Class AAA with farm teams of the Florida Marlins and Atlanta Braves. Richardson received a 50-game suspension this week after testing positive. Generally, players who test positive are linked to one banned substance. Richardson tested positive for five. “I’ve never seen a case like this, and we’re talking about 30 years I’ve been doing this kind of work,” said Don Catlin, an antidoping expert and former director of the U.C.L.A. Olympic Analytical Laboratory. “I’ve had doublets and triplets, but to have five, and have it cover three different subclasses of drugs, is unique, as far as I can tell.” To start, Richardson tested positive for three anabolic steroids — Methandienone, Methenelone and Trenbolone — that are fairly common on their own, according to doping experts, but unusual in tandem.

The Mets on Thursday announced plans to induct former closer John Franco into their Hall of Fame this summer, making Franco their fifth new inductee in three years. Wait for it…“I am truly honored and humbled by being elected into the Mets Hall of Fame,” Franco said. Wait for it… “Growing up as a kid in Brooklyn THAR SHE BLOWS!!!

For 11 seasons, Ichiro Suzuki has been the Mariners’ leadoff hitter. In his 1,749 major-league games, there have been just a few dozen in which Ichiro wasn’t the first player in the Seattle lineup. That may change this coming season. In fact, if Manager Eric Wedge can find the right batting combination, there’s a “good possibility” Ichiro will be batting somewhere else in the lineup, he told 710 ESPN Seattle radio on Wednesday evening. “If you had to put a gun to my head right now, I’d probably be leaning in that direction, but I’m not going to just close myself off until Spring Training,” Wedge told the radio station. So, who else might lead off for the Mariners? Maybe Dustin Ackley. Maybe Franklin Gutierrez. Maybe even Chone Figgins — if he can remember what a baseball bat is. ...Whoever gets the leadoff spot, Wedge know what he wants to see. “I want him to get on base, I want him to see pitches, I want him to help the number-two-hole hitter, the number-three-hole hitter, the four-hole hitter,” Wedge told ESPN Seattle radio during Wednesday evening’s Sports Star of the Year awards banquet at Benaroya Hall. “So we’ll see. Ichiro is very unique, but I’ve been very frank with him and very clear in regard to what I’m looking to do, so we’ll see.” Thanks to Tonnage.

No, it’s not the final Jack Palance dancing scene from The Big Knife...it’s about The Jack Morris! Now of course there is not a single BBWAA writer who knows these stats and how they relate to Jack Morris. What they know is that Morris had a late kick in 1991-92 (which is just about the last point in time that remains reasonably within memory for many BBWAA members) and that he was a big winner for two consecutive World Champs in those years. This has obliterated the fact that Jack was seriously subpar from 1988-90. The strange thing, in fact, is that when we break out Jack’s career, it’s clear that he’s really more of a “peak” candidate than anything else. Combining together Jack’s twelve best years in terms of won-loss record (not saying that this is what should be done, mind you, but doing it anyway…), he has a 204-123 record. That works out to a .623 WPCT. The remainder of Jack’s career is exceptionally bad (50-63, 4.59 ERA), but, as Jonathan Bernhardt—doing his damnedest to occupy the rhetorical space of Chris(tina) Kahrl circa 1999—so slitheringly put it: Morris is a winner. The BBWAA voters probably have no idea that Morris parlayed good fortune in mediocrity to such a tidy little WPCT, but they are as subliminal a bunch as their “disloyal opposition” is not: they don’t have to quantify, cauterize, conspire, or even Midasize in order to have a bone twinge about Jack. (Not that some of these folk aren’t simply bandwagoning to get the collective goat of the numbers guys: that’s part of the latest “surge”— word, like “metrics,” etc., that’s been defaced by the special mud that is meant for major league baseballs but is currently ricocheting into the eyes of the disenfranchised.) Please understand that none of the above is meant as an endorsement for Jack’s candidacy. It simply shows the components that are located “underneath the narrative” that so many post-neo folk have given a semiological credence via their arch articulation. It’s our theory that the components took awhile to coalesce beyond the subdural level, and that the scratch’n'claw tactics of the disloyal opposition unleashed a virus, which in this case operates more like the toxic agent found in poison ivy.

Jorge Posada: Another Eternal Yankee (lays grindwork for next book). Why was there so little support for Jorge Posada as a Hall of Fame player in this week’s sports press? The most common phrase was “borderline HOFer,” which, as I recall, I’ve even used in this space over the years. But let’s say it: Posada is a Hall of Famer, though perhaps he won’t make it on the first ballot. But he’ll make it. Because he deserves it. Georgie was the second best catcher in baseball for most of his career, only behind Pudge Rodriguez—if you factor in overall value, probably behind both Pudge and Mike Piazza for several years. But what’s wrong with being the third best player at your position, especially when your position is the hardest to play and the hardest to find a good player for? ...One more note: A lot of Yankees fans are fond of saying that if Thurmon Munson had lived for another three years, he would have been a Hall of Fame catcher. Well, let’s compare. Thurmon played in 1423 games, Jorge in 1829. Munson out hit Posada by a wider margin, .292 to .273. But Posada was a much better all-around hitter with 275 home runs to Munson’s 113 and with a .377 OBP and .477 SLG to Munson’s .350 and .410. Sometimes it isn’t easy to recognize greatness, especially when it isn’t pretty. Jorge Posada played a tough, hard-nosed, and consistent brand of baseball for 17 seasons, and he was one of the 10 best ever at the toughest job in baseball. We may not have known it, but all those years we watched him, we were seeing a Hall of Famer.

System in 20 Words or Less: Some elite position players and a cadre of young high-ceiling pitchers make Toronto the envy of every team in baseball. Five-Star Prospects 1. Travis d’Arnaud, C 2. Jake Marisnick, OF Four-Star Prospects 3. Daniel Norris, LHP 4. Anthony Gose, OF 5. Noah Syndergaard, RHP Three-Star Prospects 6. Drew Hutchison, RHP 7. Justin Nicolino, LHP 8. Deck McGuire, RHP 9. Adonys Cardona, RHP 10. Kevin Comer, RHP 11. Christopher Hawkins, OF Nine More: 12. Aaron Sanchez, RHP: He’s still a high-ceiling arm, but he will need more work than was anticipated. 13. Jacob Anderson, OF: This supplemental first-round pick is a long, lean athlete with power potential. 14. Joe Musgrove, RHP: Musgrove, who was taken just 11 picks after Anderson, is a physical beast with plus velocity and an advanced breaking ball. 15. Dwight Smith, OF: The son of the former Cub inherited his father’s hitting ability, but not his speed. 16. A.J. Jimenez, C: This under-the-radar backstop has a line-drive bat and an outstanding arm. 17. Matt Dean, 3B: This over-slot 13th-round pick has a classic third-base profile with power and defensive skills. 18. Asher Wojciechowski, RHP: This 2010 supplemental pick lost velocity under a pro workload. 19. Carlos Perez, C: Perez’s full-season debut disappointed, and his lack of physicality is a concern. 20. Adeiny Hechavarria, SS: Hechavarria is a plus-plus defender. The Jays hope he will hit ninth in the lineup.

Easily over the Mazeroski Wall of Fame… “I think he’s pretty much a lock to get into the Hall of Fame as a first-ballot guy,” Mazeroski said. “He had a real good career. He was such a great athlete. You look at what he was able to do with his bat, but then you realize the guy happened to play catcher, second base and center field, before going back to second.” ...According to Mazeroski, one of the things that impressed him most about Biggio was he played a large portion of his career in the pitcher-friendly Astrodome, yet evolved into one of the top hitters. “I remember playing in the Astrodome for the very first time,” Mazeroski said. “It was really hard as a hitter to play in that stadium. There was no sky. A good connection off the bat often died in the outfield. I remember it being awful. It never was a hitter’s park. That makes Biggio look even better for what he did.”  ...Biggio was an Astro for all 20 of his major league seasons. “It was really unselfish for him to move to center field for the signing of Jeff Kent,” Mazeroski said. “He’s a team player. He has all the accomplishments and was a great example on how to play the game. I really respect him. It seemed like he could do anything.”

Mystery team revealed! And they would have gotten away with it if it weren’t for you meddling pizza magnates! As it turned out, the Dodgers were merely the first mystery team. The second one, the Tigers, jumped in to win Fielder on a $214-million, nine-year deal several days after star hitter Victor Martinez suffered a knee injury that’s expected to keep him out for the 2012 season. The Dodgers’ attempt at Fielder, with a high annual salary on the four years Fielder was guaranteed to be a Dodger and the always favorable player opt out, is believed to have put them among the final three teams in on Fielder, who agreed to the Tigers deal on Tuesday that was first reported by CBSSports.com and announced today. The Nationals have said they were in on Fielder until the end, but the Dodgers were at least in the final three. The Dodgers only started to lose hope the final weekend when the Tigers’ big bid materialized, people familiar with the negotiations told Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com. The Dodgers’ offer was said to have called for an average salary of about $26 million for the first four years and something in the low $20-million-range in the next three years. The bid was designed not to discourage Fielder from opting out and possibly moving to the American League where he could DH after the first four years. The total Dodgers deal was believed to have been worth in the low $160 millions.

1. Matt Moore, Rays, LHP 2. Bryce Harper, Nationals, OF 3. Mike Trout, Angels, OF 4. Julio Teheran, Braves, RHP 5. Shelby Miller, Cardinals, RHP

Still, both Long and GM Brian Cashman acknowledge that this version of A-Rod, who will turn 37 in July, is very much an unknown quantity. “When he’s healthy, he’s always produced,’’ said Cashman, who when pressed for a prediction on Rodriguez’s final 2012 numbers, admitted, “I have no idea.’‘ (Kevin) Long, too, tempered his enthusiasm for A-Rod’s upcoming season with the caveat, “If he’s healthy ... ‘’ As in, if he’s healthy “I think 30-40 home runs is realistic.’‘ Rodriguez, of course, has not hit more than 30 home runs since 2008, when he hit 35. He followed that with two 30-home run seasons before bottoming out at 16 last year. But his run production has remained strong—his 125 ribbies in 2010 was his 13th consecutive 100+ RBI season—although his slugging percentage has plummeted from a high of .645 in his last MVP season (2007) to .461 in 2011. And according to the projections of Dan Szymborksi of ZiPs Projections, and Bill James, A-Rod won’t make it to 30 this year, either. Szymborski has A-Rod playing just 108 games, with 21 HRs, 82 RBIs and a .264 BA. James is a bit more optimistic: he sees A-Rod finishing .277/29/86 in 134 games. I don’t care how Wallace Matthews sez it…I get a kick out of him now using Dan’s ZiPs.

MLB.com released their version of the Top 100 Prospects list for 2012 today. Here are some of my thoughts about it and it is a great topic for discussion.

First of all, I'm not going to go around bashing someone else's list. Jonathan Mayo does good work and these things are hard to put together. There are all sorts of things you have to balance: long-term potential, short-term impact, the balance of pure upside and skill polish, etc..

I see hitters and pitchers as very different species, which is why I've always done separate lists for hitters and pitchers. However, nobody else seems to agree with my logic about that, and the demand for a combined list is so strong that I will bow to the inevitable in February and do a combined list for Minor League Ball/SB Nation, although for book purposes I still did a 50/50 this year.

Anyway, about Mayo's MLB list, I think it is a solid list overall, but there are some things that I think are worth discussing.

1) The decision to rate Tampa Bay Rays prospect Matt Moore (1) over Washington Nationals outfielder Bryce Harper (2). Moore is clearly the best pitching prospect in baseball, but is he a "better" prospect than Harper?

2) Yankees prospect Manny Banuelos at 13. I like Banuelos a lot, but that strikes me as about 40 notches too high. Just among lefties, I like Danny Hultzen, Tyler Skaggs, James Paxton, and Drew Pomeranz better than Banuelos. What do you guys think?

3) Texas Rangers third base prospect Mike Olt at 43 might strike some readers as aggressive, but I think Mayo has a point here. Olt is often overlooked and that could be a really good call.

4) San Diego Padres prospect Casey Kelly at 50 does seem too aggressive to me.

5) I think outfielder Aaron Hicks at 72 is too high, and I'm a Twins fan. Hicks has top 100 tools but his baseball skills seem stagnant. He's certainly a prospect but there are others I like much better.

6) Addison Reed at 100 could seem too low a year from now if he takes over the White Sox closer job and does as well as I think he will.


What things on the list stand out to you as calls that are too aggressive, too conservative, good sleeper calls, or just intriguing?

Home of Ike Eichrodt...not so rodten any more! Cleveland has a historic landmark in it’s Hough Neigborhood. Many people know its there, but other than a quick drive-by, there isn’t much of a reason to stop. I’m speaking of course of old League Park, the baseball field that was the one-time home of the Cleveland Indians and the Negro League Cleveland Buckeyes. The structure sits vacant on the corner of E. 66th and Lexington. This is the place that saw Babe Ruth’s 500th home run in 1929 and where Bob Feller fired fastball after fastball. Legends of the game played in this hallowed park and then after 1946, it became outdated. Cleveland Municpal Stadium was the spot for the baseball action in Cleveland while League Park just sat there empty, year after year, decade after decade. It was never razed. Cleveland historians for almost 20 years have attempted to come up with plans to restore and renovate this legendary ground. None of the ideas took shape, from the mayoral eras of Mike White and Jane Campbell. Plans ranged from anywhere from $2 million to $18 million. Then yesterday, Mayor Frank Jackson’s Chief of Staff, Ken Silliman announced the city’s intentions to put $5 million into rebuilding League Park and its adjacent land. According to Silliman, a museum and a youth baseball field will be the big keys to the project. At first blush, as a baseball fan and historian myself, my thoughts were “its about time.”  League Park is a historical baseball site that I remember my father driving me past when I was a kid. But all I ever did was drive past it. So much history went on there,  something had to be done to this. But this was also 25 years ago that my father pointed this out to me. The site was old, run down, and dilapidated then. Add 25 years to it and things obviously haven’t improved. Add in the fact that the current generation of baseball fans is dwindling and the game back in the days of League Park might as well have been a completely different sport, and it makes me wonder if restoring League Park is a good idea.

The Nationals agreed to terms with reliever Brad Lidge on a one-year contract Thursday. Lidge will join a bullpen that includes right-handers Drew Storen and Tyler Clippard. Besides providing leadership to a bunch of young relievers, Lidge will probably be one of the team’s setup men. Lidge has spent the past four seasons with the Phillies. Last year, Lidge spent time on the disabled list because of shoulder problems. When he returned to action, Lidge appeared in 25 games and had a 1.40 ERA. Thanks to SD.

Prospect Retrospective: Jorge Posada

As you are no doubt aware, Yankees catcher Jorge Posada announced his retirement a few days ago. This seems like a good idea to take a look at what Posada was like as a prospect, and how his career ranks in context.

Posada was drafted by the New York Yankees in the 24^th round in 1990 from high school in Puerto Rico. He was a draft-and-follow choice, not signing right away and attending Calhoun Community College in Alabama, where he played shortstop.

He signed with the Yankees in the spring of 1991 and was sent to Oneonta in the New York-Penn League. He hit just .235 in 71 games, with a .359 SLG, but he also showed good plate discipline by drawing 51 walks in 280 plate appearances. He played second base primarily. At this point, he would have been something like a "Grade C prospect with higher potential," someone with the tools to succeed but without much polish yet, although the high walk rate was an intriguing marker.

Posada moved up to Low-A Greensboro in 1992, hitting .277/.389/.472 with 12 homers and 58 walks in 406 plate appearances. He split his time between DH and a new position, catcher, where he showed the necessary tools but (not surprisingly) needed experience and polish. The big surge in his power production was a positive sign, and at age 20 he had lots of growth potential left. Nowadays, I would probably give a similar prospect a strong Grade C+ or maybe a Grade B-, depending on the exact scouting reports. It is hard to say in retrospect, of course, given that we know how Posada turned out.

Promoted to High-A Prince William in the Carolina League for 1993, he hit .259/.366/.459, with 17 homers and 67 walks. He also stole 17 bases in 22 attempts. I don't have defensive scouting reports or complete statistics dating back that far, but he coughed up 38 passed balls in 107 games, obviously an unacceptable ratio. The bat looked good though, and he would probably have rated as a strong C+ or a B- once again.

Posada skipped ahead to Triple-A Columbus in 1994, hitting .240/.308/.406 with 11 homers and 32 walks in 92 games. He missed part of the season with a broken leg and fractured ankle suffered in a home plate collision. My friend Eddie Epstein gave Posada a Grade C in the 1995 STATS Minor League Scouting Notebook, noting that Posada had held his own considering the jump in competition and had interesting offensive potential, but that he was hard to grade due to the injury and lack of positive defensive scouting reports.

He returned to Columbus in 1995 and hit .255/.350/.435 with eight homers, 54 walks, and 101 strikeouts in 432 plate appearances. He also got into one major league game with the Yankees. Reports on Posada at this stage indicated fair power potential and a strong throwing arm, but his defense remained rough and he wasn't considered a top prospect by any means. I gave him a Grade C in my first book, the 1996 edition of the Minor League Scouting Notebook, writing that Posada posted a "decent" +8 percent OPS, but that his defense needed work, he "doesn't hit for average" and had a high strikeout rate.

Returning to Triple-A again in 1996, Posada hit .271/.405/.460 with 11 homers and 79 walks in 440 plate appearances. He got into eight games with the Yankees, going 1-for-14 with six strikeouts. He threw out just 25% of runners trying to steal on him, and reports indicated the Yankees were unhappy with his glove. In the 1997 book, I wrote "it is time for the Yankees to play him or trade him. . .switch-hitting catchers with some power and good on-base percentages deserves a chance to play." I also noted that "Posada has never been good at throwing out runners despite a strong arm, so the Yanks are reluctant to give him a shot at a starting job, which is understandable. Still, one would think that a backup catcher with his kind of secondary offensive skills would be attractive."

Posada played 60 games for the Yankees in 1997, hitting .250/.359/.410 (OPS+ 101), throwing out just 20% of runners trying to steal on him, although he was reasonably reliable otherwise. He didn't really blossom until 2000 when he hit .287/.417/.527 (OPS+ 139) at age 28. This was the best season of his career according to WAR, with a 6.2 mark.

Posada was a five-time All-Star and five-time Silver Slugger winner, finishing with a career mark of .273/.374/.474, 121 OPS+, WAR 47.6. Among major league catchers, his WAR ranks 15^th all-time, in the neighborhood of Bill Freehan (52.8), Lance Parrish (48.0), Buck Ewing (47.5), and Gene Tenace (47.4).

According to Sim Scores, his best comps are Carlton Fisk, Lance Parrish, Gabby Hartnett, Javy Lopez, Gary Carter, and Bill Dickey.

Although he showed some intriguing skills in the minors, Posada spent three years in Triple-A, wasn't considered a top prospect, and was seen primarily as a potentially solid role player. Certainly no one anticipated he would become one of the best catchers in baseball history. He is a good example of why even Grade C prospects can't be ignored. Sometimes they surprise you.

And on another significant note, McGuirk disclosed that the Braves are locked into 25-year local TV contracts that will prevent the franchise from cashing in on Major League Baseball’s trend toward dramatically higher telecast rights fees.

Set to make its debut at the 2009 LA Auto Show (December 4-13, 2010) this new model features JDM Spec C suspension and wheels, along with a custom paint job and slimmed amenities. We have the scoop in this episode of Driving Sports TV Extra! (The re-edit!)

Rob Dibble, 1989 Donruss

Name’s Dibs, a.k.a. Nasty Boy, a.k.a. Dibs McNasty. I got a rocket launcher for a right arm and an attitude to match. That means my attitude is also a rocket launcher in that I WILL BLAST OFF ON YOU. You’ve been warned.

You’re not a woman, are you? Good. I don’t care for women around ballparks. They don’t pay attention to what’s going on, and what’s going is that I AM DOMINATING MEN WITH MY BASEBALL PITCHES. They’re in the stands, these women, all like, “Hair and nails, something something, that’s my husband over there, he’s number such and such, I forget, I don’t like math, Barbie dolls and tea parties, I shave my armpits, did you hear what woman said about other woman, menstrual cycles, flowers and children and what not,” and meanwhile I just struck out like 17 guys and NO ONE IS PAYING ATTENTION TO ME.

One time I threw a ball into the stands as hard as I could for no reason and it hit a woman, and I’m all like WHAT IS SHE EVEN DOING HERE? Wikipedia described the incident as “inadvertent,” as if the ball hitting someone was some random happenstance that occurred as a result of a ball being thrown directly into a condensed group of many people. I was making a point, and the point was that: I AM ROB DIBBLE. Point: RECEIVED.

I throw balls at dudes, too. I don’t care. I threw a ball into Doug Dascenzo’s back one time while he was running down the first base line. That is my own personal way of recording outs, because throwing the ball into the first baseman’s glove is for sissies. Also, nice name, Dascenzo! GO BACK TO POLAND. Man, I am so pumped right now. I want to throw a ball at somebody so badly. Do you have a ball? I want to throw it in your face! No, you don’t have a ball? LET’S FIGHT WITH OUR BODIES. One time I threw down with my “manager” Lou Pinella. He was in the locker room all like, “Baseball, blah, blah, blah, look at me yelling at full-grown adults!” and I was like I’VE HAD ENOUGH OF YOUR CRAP. So we fought and I won. That dude is such a hothead.

A lot of people don’t know this, but I broke my arm in that fight. Still pitched the next day. Struck out 12 guys on six pitches, world record. That’s why it really sticks in my craw when pretty boys like Strausburg stop pitching because they have boo-boos on their arm. They’d have to drag me off the mound with a complex pulley system operated by dinosaurs before I voluntarily left the game because my arm had an owie. YOU’LL TAKE THIS BALL FROM MY COLD, DEAD HANDS, PINELLA. The way I figure it, some boy in the stands came to the game with his dad for the first time just to see me pitch, and I’ll be gosh darned if I let that kid down. I want him to say, 20 years from now, “Daddy, remember that time we went that baseball game and that pitcher gave up 38 runs and then his arm exploded and we never heard from that pitcher again and the franchise had to move because they had invested so much in that pitcher? I LOVE YOU, DAD.”

DIBBLE, OUT.

With the organization ranking list done, my next "long term" projects are an integrated Top 100 list and beginning my 2012 draft coverage. The Top 100 list will come out in mid-to-late February, and the draft stuff takes time to research. I haven't focused on the draft yet. Matt will be posting quite a bit about it but I need to do my own research as well.

In the meantime, I am working on ideas for additional features. I have some things in mind suggested by readers. In no particular order, I am planning

*Anthony Gose vs. Starling Marte Smackdown
*Cheslor Cuthbert vs. Miguel Sano Smackdown
*Prospect Retros/Historical Prospects (make some suggestions)
*Front office interviews
*My favorite Grade C prospects

Feel free to suggest more ideas.

As you have probably noticed, we have a lot going on here at Minor League Ball right now. The 2012 Baseball Prospect Book comes out next week. I recently posted organization rankings, ranking the 30 baseball farm systems in order. That got a big response.

The other big news is the addition of Matt Garrioch and his draft expertise to the Minor League Ball roster. Matt had done great work at MLB Bonus Baby covering the draft. I have long wanted to expand draft coverage, and it made perfect sense to merge Bonus Baby into Minor League Ball.

Matt is extremely knowledgeable, his work deserves a wider audience, and he will make Minor League Ball an even cooler place. I will still be writing my own draft material, including the Shadow Draft, but you can expect to see Matt's work more and more frequently as we move into draft season.

There are other changes in the works for 2012. Nothing that you like about Minor League Ball will change, but we plan on adding more features. Our goal is to make Minor League Ball your one-stop shopping center for all your prospect needs.

I have good news and bad news about the 2012 Baseball Prospect Book.

The good news is that thanks to the response last week, we ordered some extra copies and everyone who has ordered the paper copy up to now will definitely get one. That won't be true for long, so if you want to be guaranteed a paper copy, order now!

More good news is that, barring any sort of technical glitch, this weekend we will be sending out the electronic .pdf version to everyone who ordered the electronic copy. Watch your emails!

More good news: we sent out the 50/50 list last night to all orders that gave us a valid email and will be sending that list to all orders within 24 hours of their receipt.

The bad news: we had planned on shipping the paper copies of the book starting Saturday, January 28th. However, there was a problem at the printing company, and they can't deliver the books to us until next Tuesday, January 31st, at the earliest. This means that the book will start shipping to customers on Wednesday, February 1st, at the earliest.

Technically this isn't late, since we had been advertising a February 1st shipping date all along. However, we had told some customers that we would start shipping the book on Saturday. It is disappointing that we can't do this, and please accept our apologizes.

This year's college crop is a little thin. The top has a sure fire SS that can hit, a solid back stop, several power arms and a couple power hitting outfielders but none of them project as sure fire stars. This list is slanted towards the players I have seen more and this list will be fluid up to the draft when I post my final big board prior to the draft.

Rank	Name	POS	College
1	Deven Marrero	SS	Arizona State
2	Kevin Gausman	P	LSU
3	Michael Zunino	C	Florida
4	Mark Appel	P	Stanford
5	Victor Roache	OF	Georgia Southern

Rank	Name	POS	College
6	Adam Brett Walker	OF	Jacksonville
7	Jake Barrett	P	Arizona State
8	Brian Johnson	P	Florida
9	Christian Walker	1B	South Carolina
10	Michael Wacha	P	Texas A&M
11	Chris Beck	P	Georgia Southern
12	Brady Rodgers	P	Arizona State
13	Sam Stafford	P	Texas
14	Stephen Piscotty	3B	Stanford
15	Marcus Stroman	P	Duke
16	Nolan Sanburn	OF	Arkansas
17	Tyler Naquin	OF	Texas A&M
18	Nolan Fontana	SS	Florida
19	Dane Phillips	C	Oklahoma City
20	Preston Tucker	1B	Florida
21	Richie Shaffer	1B	Clemson
22	Lex Rutledge	P	Samford
23	Stefan Sabol	C	Orange Coast
24	Branden Kline	P	Virginia
25	D.J. Baxendale	P	Arkansas
26	Austin Maddox	P	Florida
27	Peter O'Brien	C	Miami
28	Kenny Diekroeger	SS	Stanford
29	Jake Stewart	OF	Stanford
30	Trey Griffin	OF	Santa Fe CC
31	Travis Jankowski	OF	Stony Brook
32	Logan Ehlers	P	Howard
33	Eric Jaffe	P	UCLA
34	Kyle Zimmer	P	San Francisco
35	Andrew Heaney	P	Oklahoma State
36	Sam Selman	P	Vanderbilt
37	Adam Matthews	OF	South Carolina
38	Hoby Milner	P	Texas
39	Clayton Crum	P	Howard
40	Jeremy Baltz	OF	St. Johns
41	Jake Elander	C	TCU
42	James Ramsay	OF	Florida State
43	Brett Mooneyham	P	Stanford
44	Jason Coats	OF	TCU
45	Matt Price	P	South Carolina
46	Hudson Randall	P	Florida
47	Derek Dennis	SS	Michigan
48	Buck Farmer	P	Georgia Tech
49	Brian Adams	OF	Kentucky
50	Andrew Aplin	OF	Arizona State
51	Tyler Gaffney	OF	Stanford
52	Dylan Floro	P	Cal State Fullerton
53	Eduardo Encinosa	P	Miami
54	Stephen Perez	SS	Miami
55	Kevin Brady	P	Clemson
56	Michael Palazzone	P	Georgia
57	Damien Magnifico	P	Oklahoma
58	Justin Gonzalez	SS	Florida State
59	Blake Hauser	P	Virginia Commonwealth
60	J.T. Chargois	P	Rice
61	Kyle Hansen	P	St. John's
62	Mac Williamson	OF	Wake Forest
63	Kevin Koziol	SS	Parkland
64	Taylor Dugas	OF	Alabama
65	Justin Jones	P	California
66	Matt Koch	P	Louisville
67	Max Muncy	1B	Baylor
68	Taylor Ard	1B	Washington State
69	Steve Nyisztor	2B	No Team
70	Ian Gardeck	P	Alabama
71	Brandon Thomas	OF	Georgia Tech
72	Austin Nola	SS	LSU
73	Evan Marzilli	OF	South Carolina
74	Ryan Garvey	OF	Riverside CC
75	Krey Bratsen	OF	Texas A&M
76	Christopher Triplett	2B	Chipola (Fla.) JC
77	Stephen Bruno	SS	Virginia
78	Michael Yastrzemski	OF	Vanderbilt
79	Tony Renda	SS	California
80	Josh Conway	P	Coastal Carolina
81	Mason Melotaikis	P	Northwestern State
82	Jayce Boyd	1B	Florida State
83	L.J. Mazzilli	2B	Connecticut
84	Jabari Henry	OF	Florida International
85	Taylor Sandefur	P	Western Carolina
86	Kyle Wren	OF	Georgia Tech
87	Tom Murphy	C	Buffalo
88	Brando Tessar	P	Oregon
89	Scott Hoffman	P	South Mountain
90	Blake Forslund	P	Liberty
91	Adrian Sampson	P	Bellevue CC
92	Zac Elgie	1B	Kansas
93	Taylor Wall	P	Rice
94	Alex Wood	P	Georgia
95	John Magliozzi	P	Florida
96	Hunter Renfroe	C	Meridian CC
97	Beau Amaral	SS	UCLA
98	Mallex Smith	OF	Santa Fe
99	Hommy Rosado	C/1B	LSU-Eunice
100	Andrew Rash	OF	Virginia Tech

Driving Sports invites a special guest to partake in a very special quest. Features the 2012 Mitsubishi Outlander GT, 2012 Acura RDX and a 1996 Toyota 4Runner. Watch it free (with commercials) on the official site: www.drivingsports.com

www.youtube.com Watch the previous episode of Machinima Replay! Replay 12/23/11 Machinima Sports Awards (ft SeaNanners, Hundar, Kovic, KSI, QJB, DukeThaKilla +more) (S02E51) Constant hosts the second annual ghetto Machinima Sports Award. This episode gives props to all our hard working…

Jess gets behind the wheel of the 237-hp 2011 Mitsubishi Lancer Ralliart. Aaron wonders how much slower it is versus a 2011 Subaru WRX STI in a straight line and Ryan thrashes the Ralliart on the Driving Sports City Circuit.

www.youtube.com Click above to watch the first episode of Machinima Replay! Playmakers Challenge – Submit Your Videos And Be Featured! S01E01 Constant debuts the first episode of Playmakers and issues the first challenge: Favorite Player Highlight Reel Challenge. Send in your best sports highlight videos and be featured on the all new Machinima Sports channel! – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - Follow Machinima on Twitter! Machinima ‪twitter.com Inside Gaming ‪twitter.com Machinima Respawn ‪twitter.com Machinima Entertainment, Technology, Culture ‪twitter.com FOR MORE MACHINIMA, GO TO: www.youtube.com FOR MORE GAMEPLAY, GO TO: www.youtube.com FOR MORE SPORTS GAMEPLAY, GO TO: www.youtube.com TAGS: machinima sports constant walker playmakers yt:quality=high lebron james dunk compilation alley-oop nba cleveland cavaliers kobe bryant basketball athlete player cricket WWE rugby dropbox soccer football baseball

Karyn Bryant of Showtime gives boxing fans the latest update on Vic Darchinyan vs Jorge Arce