30Nov/060
Sports Notes
- The Old Man and I had a long discussion last night about the Giants' offseason. He would like them to make a more concerted effort in signing impact players, while I am more wary of committing too much money to overrated guys, like Carlos Lee. Of course, the situation is almost moot as most of the key bashers have signed: Lee, Alfonso Soriano, Aramis Ramirez, and soon J.D. Drew. Since the Giants have so many holes to fill, and since next year's free agent class is much better, I'd like to see them make incremental signings such as the reported one of Padres outfielder Dave Roberts. Yes, he's old, and no, he isn't a great player- but at 3 years and $15m he's a much better bargain than Juan Pierre (Dodgers) or Gary Matthews Jr. (Angels).
- Although young pitching is such a valuable commodity to have, I'd still like the Giants to dangle LHP Noah Lowry a little bit to pitching-starved teams. Lowry has shown promise in each of the past two seasons but it appeared late this year that the league had begun to figure out his bread-and-butter pitch, the changeup. Since Lowry doesn't have much of a fastball it would make sense to get rid of him now before he endures a horrendous year. If the Devil Rays were to be so kind as to offer Carl Crawford straight up for Noah, Brian Sabean should take that deal faster than it takes him to knock back a bottle of wine.
- The Warriors look good but caveat: they haven't played too many games on the road yet and the ones they have played have exposed their weaknesses. I am encouraged by a few factors, though. First, the rise of Monta Ellis and Andris Biedrins. The first gives the Warriors great depth at guard (should they trade Jason Richardson?) and the second gives them a low-post presence who can actually score (unlike the rarely-used Adonal Foyle). Second, Don Nelson has inspired much improved play from the much-maligned Mike Dunleavy. Third, Ike Diogu's eventual return should give the W a second wide-body in the paint who can help keep Biedrins out of foul trouble. Unfortunately, the West remains awfully strong and the Warriors could suffer the misfortune of missing the playoffs once again even if they win 44 games or so. December- with its road-heavy schedule- will be the acid test for this bunch.
- A conversation with a football-fanatic friend (over in China, no less) has convinced me that the officials rule of an illegal forward pass rather than a fumble in last Sunday's Raiders/Chargers game was correct. Is the rule stupid? Of course. It always seems like the Raiders get burned by obscure and obsolete rules.
- The 49ers are a much-improved team, but what pieces remain missing? Should they continue building the offensive line? Should they get a game-breaking wide receiver? A big-time pass rusher? A top-notch safety or corner? How about all four? The Niners have a lot of picks in next April's draft and should have sufficient cap space to make a key free agent signing or two. I believe they are three or four good players away from being a contending team, though I suppose that could be said about every mediocre team in the NFL.
