http://blak4rest.com Sports Commentary, Media and Vegas Mon, 21 May 2012 20:54:45 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.2 http://blak4rest.com/2012/03/california-dreaming/ http://blak4rest.com/2012/03/california-dreaming/#comments Thu, 29 Mar 2012 02:09:50 +0000 Forrest Lee http://blak4rest.com/?p=26125

At least 1 writer is already picking the Angels to win it all. We’re convinced there will be more. In this case, though, Tom Verducci is picking the Angels to defeat the Giants in the World Series.
SI.com
]]> http://blak4rest.com/2012/03/california-dreaming/feed/ 0 http://blak4rest.com/2012/01/now-thats-a-special-lineup-card/ http://blak4rest.com/2012/01/now-thats-a-special-lineup-card/#comments Wed, 01 Feb 2012 06:50:10 +0000 Forrest Lee http://blak4rest.com/?p=25216
So who’s the blond?
This select group of former Major Leaguers and Hall of Famers gathered for dinner Sunday at N9NE Steakhouse at the Palms Casino Resort in Vegas. How about this lineup: Reggie Jackson; Randy Johnson; Bo Jackson; John Smoltz; Ozzie Smith; Wade Boggs; Gary Sheffield; David Wells; Trevor Hoffman; Joe Carter; Rob Dibble; and Harold Reynolds.
Image courtesy of Palms Casino Resort
]]> http://blak4rest.com/2012/01/now-thats-a-special-lineup-card/feed/ 0 http://blak4rest.com/2012/01/will-rangers-reel-in-this-big-fish/ http://blak4rest.com/2012/01/will-rangers-reel-in-this-big-fish/#comments Thu, 19 Jan 2012 23:33:51 +0000 Forrest Lee http://blak4rest.com/?p=25043
If Texas signs Prince Fielder, the Rangers-Angels rivalry will be as compelling as any rivalry in Major League Baseball, including the frequently overhyped Yankees-Red Sox matchup.
Yahoo Sports
]]> http://blak4rest.com/2012/01/will-rangers-reel-in-this-big-fish/feed/ 0 http://blak4rest.com/2011/12/laughing-all-the-way-to-the-bank/ http://blak4rest.com/2011/12/laughing-all-the-way-to-the-bank/#comments Thu, 08 Dec 2011 23:21:22 +0000 Forrest Lee http://blak4rest.com/?p=24142
Well if this doesn’t buy the Angels a World Series title we’re not sure what will.
L.A. Times
]]> http://blak4rest.com/2011/12/laughing-all-the-way-to-the-bank/feed/ 0 http://blak4rest.com/2011/11/dodgers-a-handsome-sum-for-prince/ http://blak4rest.com/2011/11/dodgers-a-handsome-sum-for-prince/#comments Tue, 15 Nov 2011 20:53:11 +0000 Forrest Lee http://blak4rest.com/?p=23667
With the Dodgers locking up Matt Kemp with a new deal, maybe they’ll consider Prince Fielder with another 1. It’s not like Frank McCourt will be on the hook for all that cash.
Fox Sports
]]> http://blak4rest.com/2011/11/dodgers-a-handsome-sum-for-prince/feed/ 0 http://blak4rest.com/2011/10/just-the-angel-they-need-in-anaheim/ http://blak4rest.com/2011/10/just-the-angel-they-need-in-anaheim/#comments Thu, 27 Oct 2011 07:52:09 +0000 Forrest Lee http://blak4rest.com/?p=23299
Why not? Bet she wouldn’t have traded Mike Napoli.
L.A. Times
]]> http://blak4rest.com/2011/10/just-the-angel-they-need-in-anaheim/feed/ 0 http://blak4rest.com/2011/09/what-are-the-odds-4/ http://blak4rest.com/2011/09/what-are-the-odds-4/#comments Thu, 29 Sep 2011 08:24:30 +0000 Forrest Lee http://blak4rest.com/?p=22770
Would you have bet David Price (a 2-fisted drinker?) getting lit up in 1 of the Rays’ biggest games in franchise history? Didn’t think so.
If you bet the Brewers and D-Backs, who face off in the opening round of the National League playoffs on Saturday, you would have gotten 100-1 odds of them getting into the World Series. Probably a few people with tickets saying such are pissing in their pants now. Even as late as August, the D-Backs were 50-1 to win it all.
BetVega.com
]]> http://blak4rest.com/2011/09/what-are-the-odds-4/feed/ 0 http://blak4rest.com/2011/07/a-story-about-a-man-named-jed/ http://blak4rest.com/2011/07/a-story-about-a-man-named-jed/#comments Mon, 25 Jul 2011 23:07:21 +0000 Forrest Lee http://blak4rest.com/?p=21526
San Diego’s pitching staff might not be happy to learn the Padres top dogs are considering moving the fences in.
One of my day jobs is contributing pieces to San Diego Magazine. In the August edition, I drop a quick-hitter with Padres general manager Jed Hoyer, who despite being only 37, is aging fast with his club’s woes this season.
San Diego Magazine
Bonus material.: Hoyer indulged us on why he traded Adrian Gonzalez, who has been arguably the best hitter in baseball this season. The Padres called up 1 of the prospects in the deal, 1st baseman Anthony Rizzo, in June, but he has struggled. Still, Hoyer believes he made the right move.
Q: How difficult was to trade Adrian and give us some insight to your thinking it was a good deal?
A: “It was difficult. The one thing that was really clear was that in 2012 he was going to play in a different uniform. We had 3 options: Trade him for the most talent we could (this winter); hold him in-season and see how we do and potentially trade him in-season; and if we did well, just lose him at the end of the year to free agency.
If we waited until in-season, we were bringing so many factors in play. The potential for injury and most importantly, if the supply and demand things weren’t in (our) favor, it’s a lot harder to make a deal for a position player in-season. We felt like if the Brewers were in the race and say a Prince Fielder was available and Adrian was available and potentially some other 1st basemen that had signed 1-year deals, like a Derek Lee or a Carlos Pena, if those guys were also available, then the supply and demand dynamic could have been really poor for us and we could have ended up making a sub-part trade with a franchise player. I felt like the right thing to do was to be aggressive and to get players we like for the future and do it during the off-season instead of in-season.
Why not wait until the season and see what happens? That’s a fair argument, but to loose him for only draft picks, that would only get here in 2015 or ’16, we couldn’t do that. Our farm system is not in that kind of position. We made a very difficult decision to trade him and be aggressive instead of waiting. I feel very good about the players we got back from Boston and I know those guys from being there. When we agreed to it, there was a pit in my stomach. Not because of any question about the decision being right, but because I know how talented Adrian is. I know how hard it is to find a player of his caliber. It was the realization that I made a business decision that was the right 1. We did it and I know it was the right thing to do, but it doesn’t make it the easy thing to do.”
]]> http://blak4rest.com/2011/07/a-story-about-a-man-named-jed/feed/ 0 http://blak4rest.com/2011/07/prince-charming/ http://blak4rest.com/2011/07/prince-charming/#comments Wed, 13 Jul 2011 04:36:47 +0000 Forrest Lee http://blak4rest.com/?p=21142
The man rarely gets cheated on a swing, particularly when it’s Home Run Derby.
NL 5, AL 1.
Fielder silenced the classless fans tonight in Phoenix, where the National League won its 2nd straight All-Star Game.
“I didn’t take it personally,” Fielder said of Arizona fans constantly booing him for failing to pick Justin Upton for the Home Run Derby. “I think these guys (his kids) took it more personal than I did.”
Fielder’s 3-run shot in the 4th was the difference, earning him MVP honors. He also became the 1st Brewer to homer in an All-Star game. The D-Backs are now the lone club that hasn’t had a player homer in the contest. Seems appropriate, no?
]]> http://blak4rest.com/2011/07/prince-charming/feed/ 0 http://blak4rest.com/2011/07/your-home-run-derby-champ/ http://blak4rest.com/2011/07/your-home-run-derby-champ/#comments Tue, 12 Jul 2011 04:20:54 +0000 Forrest Lee http://blak4rest.com/?p=21103

Stay classy Arizona.
The D-Back fans booed Prince Fielder and Rickie Weeks, who along with Matt Kemp had an awful outing, but it didn’t matter. David Ortiz picked the right sluggers for the job. Robinson Cano and Adrian Gonzalez were on another planet and they gave a good show in the latest version of Home Run Derby.
Cano outdueled Gonzalez, winning 12-11, in the final. That was more than the entire National League’s total.
ESPN was drooling over Cano and his Dad throwing him pitches, but I’m partial to Gonzalez pulling Manny Acta out of the crowd. Makes his Home Run Derby even more impressive.
AP
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