The Brewers should sign Manny to replace Ryan Braun

Well won't this MVP presentation be awkward for Ryan Braun on opening day.
"Here's your trophy. Now sit down for the next 50 games for being caught with PEDs."

They should bring in Manny to replace him while he is sitting out his suspension.

He's rested, won't cost him a draft pick, is usually good when he arrives on a team and hey... you can't play the whole "We don't want a juicer on our team" angle.

Yeah it's sad because Braun seemed like a good guy and easy to root for. But the guy tested positive, and how much of a blockhead do you have to be to come up positive in this day and age.

Yeah yeah yeah, he didn't do it. Just like Andy Pettitte didn't. Just like Rafael Palmeiro didn't do it.

Either way, let me just say I don't feel so dumb thinking Matt Kemp was the MVP of the National League over Ryan Braun!

(Quick, someone test Matt Kemp.)

Pujols's contract demands: 400 Bazillion Dollars for 99 years

Actually Pujols' agent Dan Lozano wants the Cardinals to include a 100th year but the Cardinals want the 100th year to be a club option.

I guess agents have a tendency to make a very high bid and then expect it to come down.

I am thinking maybe the Cardinals will counter offer with "Ownership of the Cardinals".

Either way, the Cardinals shouldn't mess around.
As I wrote before, Pujols owes neither the Cardinals nor the fans of St. Louis anything!

In the free agency era, even New Yorkers, Chicagoans and Bostonians should be satisfied with 10 seasons with a superstar. And yes, Derek Jeter's feeling might be hurt by that notion, but after 10 years, multiple MVPS, a playoff MVP and a World Series title, Pujols has earned the right to see what his worth on the open market is.

And guess what, St. Louis? That would be your worst nightmare.
Do you know why?

Because the Chicago Cubs have a TREMENDOUS amount of money coming off of the books after the 2011 season is over.

The New York Mets have a HUGE amount of money coming off of the books after the 2011 season is over.

And chances are the Los Angeles Dodgers will have new ownership who will want to make a splash and spend some dough.

You might have three big spenders who all, by fate and circumstance, have an opening at first base.

You want to try and outbid New York, Los Angeles and Chicago?
Give him the 100th year.

Carlos Gonzalez could win the Triple Crown!

Am I the only one who didn't know that?

I mean I knew he was having a terrific year... and I knew that with the Rockies doing their typical late season charge that he had inserted himself into the MVP discussion.

But I was about to write a post about Joey Votto and how his walk off homer yesterday may have been the walk off moment for the MVP. And I was going to list how his stats are so dominating and he has led the Reds back to the playoffs.

Then I looked at the Stats and in the name of Yaz, Gonzalez's is having just as good a year.

And his stats will please ANY kind of fan.

You like batting average? His is the best.

More of a W.A.R. guy? He is #9

Hits? He leads the league

Total bases? He leads the league

Slugging? He leads the league

OPS? He's in third.

And down the stretch while the Rockies have gone on this incredible streak?

He's batted .439 with an OPS of 1.245 in September.

And as the leading hitter, he is 2 RBI behind Pujols for the league lead and 5 homers behind Pujols for the home run lead.

(I guess Pujols isn't going away either.)

But is it possible that a player could sneak undetected into a Triple Crown season?

Now yes... I know he is playing in Denver which, while no longer the zero gravity joke it was in the 1990s, is still a hitters paradise.

And yes, his OPS is .359 points higher at home as compared to his road hitting... and yes I think that should be considered in the MVP vote. (Then again, Great American Ballpark in Cincinnati isn't exactly a pitchers park either.)

Either way, one thing is certain... when the Rockies had to deal Matt Holliday for contract reasons, they got Gonzalez and Huston Street from Oakland.

Now THAT is how you get value in a deal.

I refuse to call him CarGo. That nickname is lame... we need to work on another one. A Triple Crown contender deserves a good nickname.

Taking stock as the season winds down

I took stock on the season at the 1/3 mark, and then at the half way point.

I had promised to do so on Labor Day as the season goes into its final lap and here I am.

There's not much suspense for the Yankees, Rays, Rangers and Reds who all seem to have their playoff spots locked up.

But looking at San Diego and their current implosion shows you can never be 100% sure who is going to end up where. (Has anyone else noticed the Rockies aren't dead yet?)

There are injuries that make some of the awards up for grabs as well as some slumps that turned front runners into mere contenders... or in Tim Lincecum's case totally off the board.

So with more or less a month to go, let's take a look at the playoff picture and who should be in line for post season hardware (and compare those to my 1/3 picks and 1/2 way picks.)

If the playoffs started today...

AL East Champion New York Yankees
Would have home field advantage over
AL West Champion Texas Rangers

AL Central Champion Minnesota Twins
Would have home field advantage over
AL Wild Card Tampa Bay Rays

(The Chicago White Sox would be within 3 games in the loss column of a playoff spot.)

NL East Champion Cincinnati Reds
Would have home field advantage over
N. L. Wild Card Philadelphia Phillies

NL East Champion Atlanta Braves
Would have home field advantage over
NL West Champion San Diego Padres

(The Giants are within 1 game of a playoff spot.)

(At the 1/3 Mark, The Rays had home field over Oakland, the Twins had home field over the Yankees. The Cardinals had home field over the Braves while the Padres still had home field over the Reds

At the 1/2 way mark, the Yankees had homefield over the White Sox while the Rangers would host the Rays. Meanwhile the Braves would have homefield over the winner of a Rockies and Dodgers playoff while the Padres would have homefield over the Reds.)

AL MVP:
MIGUEL CABRERA, Tigers
I had Josh Hamilton here, but his ribcage injury might take him out of commission. Cabrera has the OPS, the Average, the power and ranks at the top of W.A.R. It's not his fault the Tigers faded.

In the running:
EVAN LONGORIA, Rays. ROBINSON CANO, Yankees. JOSH HAMILTON, Rangers.

(At the 1/3 mark I had Miguel Cabrera as the MVP.
At the 1/2 way mark, I had Josh Hamilton as the MVP.)

NL MVP:
JOEY VOTTO, Reds
He is pulling away from Pujols in OPS and is near the top in virtually every single offensive category. And oh yeah, his Reds have opened up a big lead with Joey Votto as their main man.

In the running:
ALBERT PUJOLS, Cardinals. CARLOS GONZALEZ, Rockies. ADRIAN GONZALEZ, Padres.

(At the 1/3 mark I had Albert Pujols as the MVP.
At the 1/2 was mark, I had Joey Votto as the MVP.)

AL CY YOUNG:
FELIX HERNANDEZ, Mariners
Yeah, I know his record is only 11-10. He also leads the league in ERA, strikeouts, innings pitched and a lot of other categories that I don't understand. If the Cy Young goes to the best pitcher, then King Felix is the best.

In the running:
CLAY BUCHHOLZ, Red Sox. CC SABATHIA, Yankees. TREVOR CAHILL, A's. DAVID PRICE, Rays.

(At the 1/3 mark I had Jon Lester as the Cy Young.
At the 1/2 way mark I had David Price as the Cy Young.)

NL CY YOUNG:

ROY HALLADAY, Phillies
The fascinating Cy Young chase could come down to the last few weeks. Right now Halladay has been the horse the Phillies need and has the gaudy stats to back up his "Ace" title. He right now is the pitcher to beat.

In the running:

UBALDO JIMENEZ, Rockies. ADAM WAINWRIGHT, Cardinals. CHRIS CARPENTER, Cardinals. TIM HUDSON, Braves. MAT LATOS, Padres.

(At the 1/3 mark AND the 1/2 was mark, I had Ubaldo Jimenez as the Cy Young.)

AL ROOKIE OF THE YEAR:
NEFTALI FELIZ, Rangers
A couple of bad games made his ERA swell, but he has supplied the AL West leading Rangers were a steady hand at the back end of the bullpen.

In the running:

BRIAN MATUSZ, Orioles. AUSTIN JACKSON, Tigers. JEREMY HELLICKSON, Rays. JOHN JASO, Blue Jays.

(At the 1/3 mark I had Mitch Talbot as the AL Rookie of the Year.
At the 1/2 way mark, I had Brennan Boesch as the Rookie of the Year.)

NL ROOKIE OF THE YEAR:
BUSTER POSEY, Giants
Posey has been everything and more that the Giants could have asked for. He hits for average, for power, gets on base and has supplied a team starved for offense a spark and a flair for the dramatic. Seems to be solid behind the plate as well.

In the running:
JAIME GARCIA, Nationals. GABY SANCHEZ, Marlins. JASON HEYWARD, Braves.

(At the 1/3 mark I had Jason Heyward as the Rookie of the Year.
At the 1/2 way mark, I had Jamie Garcia as the Rookie of the Year.)

AL MANAGER OF THE YEAR:
OZZIE GUILLEN, White Sox
I was leaning towards Joe Maddon, but the recent surge by Ozzie's White Sox shows just how dangerous they can be. Could Manny's prescience be a positive thing in Chicago. They just want him for a month (maybe two.)

In the running:
RON WASHINGTON, Rangers. RON GARDENHIRE, Twins. JOE MADDON, Rays. JOE GIRARDI, Yankees.

(At the 1/3 mark I had Joe Maddon as the Manager of the Year.
At the 1/2 way mark, I had Ozzie Guillen as the Manager of the Year.)

NL MANAGER OF THE YEAR:
DUSTY BAKER, Reds
The recent collapse by the Padres took Bud Black out of the running for top spot here. The Reds were supposed to be a fringe contender... not cruising to a Division title with home field advantage throughout the playoffs.

In the running:
BOBBY COX, Braves. JIM TRACY, Rockies. BUD BLACK, Padres.

(At the 1/3 mark AND the 1/2 way mark, I had Dusty Baker as the Manager of the Year.)

AL COMEBACK PLAYER OF THE YEAR

VLADIMIR GUERRERO, Rangers
How often do you pick up a 100 RBI guy from the scrap heap? There will me more responsibility on his shoulders with Josh Hamilton's injury.

In the running:
VERNON WELLS, Blue Jays. ALEX RIOS, White Sox. EDWIN JACKSON, White Sox. FRANCISCO LIRIANO, Twins.

(At the 1/3 mark I had Vernon Wells as the Comeback Player of the Year.
At the 1/2 way mark, I had Vladimir Guerrero as the Comeback Player of the Year.)

NL COMEBACK PLAYER OF THE YEAR
TIM HUDSON, Braves
Forget comeback player... Hudson is making a run at the Cy Young Award. 15 wins and a 2.30 ERA will do that.

In the running:
SCOTT ROLEN, Reds. RICKIE WEEKS, Brewers. AUBREY HUFF, Giants.

BIGGEST BUST IN THE AL:
JAVIER VAZQUEZ, Yankees
He was brought back to the Bronx to be a solid #2 starter as Yankee brass was convinced he no longer had the jitters that he showed in his first Yankee tour. It turns out he still had them. His starting stats have been disastrous for the Yankees who need rotation stability in order to repeat.

In the running:
JOSH BECKETT, Red Sox. JOBA CHAMBERLAIN, Yankees. MILTON BRADLEY, Mariners.

(At the 1/3 mark I had Josh Beckett as the biggest bust in the AL
At the 1/2 way mark I had Milton Bradley as the biggest bust in the AL)

BIGGEST BUST IN THE NL
JASON BAY, Mets
Bay had become a symbol of how the Mets use money poorly while the Yankees (at least in 2009) spent wisely. Everyone and their dog knew Jason Bay would struggle in CitiField, except evidently the Mets front office. His season ended in late July with a concussion, but his stats were ordinary at best with the Mets.)

In the running:
AKI IWAMURA, Pirates. ARAMIS RAMIREZ, Cubs. MARK DeROSA, Giants.

(At the 1/3 point I had Carlos Lee as the biggest bust in the NL
And at the 1/2 way point I had Carlos Zambrano as the biggest bust in the NL)


So here we go... the players in the running can all win some off season hardware with a push in September.

I hope to be back here at the end of the regular season talking about the great Red Sox comeback.