nyy26

What about signing Jon Garland or Ben Sheets? Before the end of last season, you would have thought these guys would have been snatched up pretty recently after C.C. Sabathia signed. Garland was 14-8 with a 4.90 ERA for a playoff team last season and he?s only 29. Seems like a reasonable idea to sign him. But when you look a little more closely, you find that he allowed 237 hits and 59 walks over 196.2 innings along with hitting eight batters. A 1.51 WHIP is not pretty. Garland also a 5.99 ERA in the second half, 7.18 in September. He struck out 4.12 over nine innings, the lowest rate of his career. Opponents had a .355 OBP against him. So while he may have won 14 games, he had a lousy season. It?s hard to picture him coming into the AL East and pitching well. Sheets is a little more simple. Sheets ended last season with a bad elbow. But word is that the MRI taken on his shoulder was a cause for major concern. Many teams believe that Sheets? arm is not worth any sort of risk. He certainly must regret rejecting arbitration from Milwaukee given that no team is known to have made him an offer. If any team is going to spend money at this point, they would want some cost certainty in terms of at least innings. Sheets doesn?t offer that.

There were a couple of post-season rule changes that occurred during the owner's meetings in Arizona. All postseason games will be played to their conclusion. Owners also voted to use head-to-head records to replace coin flips when determining home-field advantage for tiebreaker games in division and wild-card races. Games would be suspended if they are called, regardless of how many innings have been played or the score at the time. A suspended game is resumed and played to completion at the same site. The change also applies to tiebreaker games but not to the All-Star Game. Owners approved the change three months after Game 5 of the World Series was suspended with Philadelphia and Tampa Bay tied 2-2 after 5? innings. That night, commissioner Bud Selig declared that the game would not be cut short, no matter how long it took.Play was resumed two days later, and the Phillies finished off the Rays 4-3 in the final three innings.

The Tampa Bay Bucs have fired head coach Jon Gruden after Jets-like end to the season (9-3 to 9-7). Gruden was 57-55 as head coach of the Bucs, lead them to playoffs 3 times and won a Super Bowl. Does this throw a supposed monkey wrench into the Jets? plans to hire Grimm, Ryan, Schottenheimer or Spags as head coach? Will they now reach out to a big name coach with Super Bowl win on his resume who has history with Favre? Would they try to make up for the Cowher slight by bringing in such an ?engaging? personality? Also, an important question for any head coach candidate: what defense would Gruden bring in? Obviously, in Tampa he inherted Tampa 2 personnel and Monte Kiffin, so he stuck with it, but what would he do with the defensive personnel at hand? I dont want to see the Jets hire him. I also dont want to see Brian Schottenheimer bolt for Tampa.

I agree with you on both points. Although i might be rooting for the Steelers so that the Jets could bring in Ryan sooner.

ARIZONA - PHILIDELPHIA PREVIEW The Cardinals are preparing to face a defense that destroyed them on Thanksgiving night. The Cardinals played the Giants the previous week and then made the cross-country flight to Philly, but the results are still instructive. Johnson brought his usual 15 to 20 blitz packages to the game and was in Warner's head from the start. Warner had three interceptions in that game and a 65.7 passer rating. They dusted off Edgerrin James and he gained 57 yards on 20 carries in the win over the Panthers. I'm glad to see Edge back, but he won't be able to do anything against an Eagles defense that held both Adrian Peterson and Brandon Jacobs to under 100 yards. Johnson's not going to let Larry Fitzgerald beat him. He'll let Asante Samuel follow him around and he'll provide safety help over the top. You'll also see Johnson use some safety blitzes, which will force Warner to work the middle of the field instead of launching jump balls down the sideline to Fitzgerald. Let's just stick with the offensive lines here since I think the defensive lines aren't too far apart. The Eagles are old at tackle with Tra Thomas and Jon Runyan, but that also means they have a lot of experience. Jared Allen had two sacks in the Minnesota game, but one of them doesn't count against Thomas because Donovan McNabb had plenty of time to deliver the ball. Pro Bowl right guard Shawn Andrews has returned to practice, but I'm not sure the Eagles need him right now. Out of nowhere, Nick Cole has stepped in and is doing a solid job. He's been really effective swinging out on screen plays. Center Jamaal Jackson has started every game the past three seasons and doesn't get enough credit. The Eagles aren't bothered by loud, domed stadiums, in part, because they spend a lot of time on silent counts. I have tremendous respect for the work of Cardinals defensive coordinator Clancy Pendergast. He just flat-out confused the Carolina Panthers and his ability to change things up from week to week makes this a formidable unit. That said, Westbrook needs only one breakdown to make you pay. The Giants actually did a nice job of accounting for him the entire game. They lost because Eli Manning folded in the face of a superb defense. Eagles coach Andy Reid and his trusty sidekick, Marty Mornhinweg, will try to create matchup problems for the Cardinals by splitting out Westbrook on some plays. Westbrook needs to have at least 25 touches in this game. As he showed against the Vikings, he can go off at any minute. He's become a very patient back who doesn't become frustrated if he's stopped at the line of scrimmage several times. The Cardinals have some very athletic linebackers, but they don't want to be one-on-one with Westbrook in the open field. The entire unit will have to be rallying to the ball .

Rex Ryan has emerged as the front runner for the Jet's head coaching vacancy. Jets owner Woody Johnson and general manager Mike Tannenbaum met with Baltimore Ravens defensive coordinator Rex Ryan for five hours Sunday in Baltimore and the two sides hit it off in a big way, according to a person with knowledge of the meeting. That person spoke on the condition of anonymity because he's not authorized to speak for Ryan or the Jets. Ryan, whose 3-4 defense has forced eight turnovers in two postseason games and ranked second in the NFL this past season, also interviewed with the Rams Sunday. He's the eighth candidate interviewed by the Jets. "Rex likes the owner," the person said. "He was impressed that the owner flew down to meet with him. The Jets were very serious. I can tell you that Rex is leaning toward the Jets and the Jets are leaning toward Rex. "In fact, the Jets told Rex that they're prepared to wait until after the Super Bowl to hire him if they have to." The Ravens play the Steelers next Sunday in Pittsburgh for the AFC Championship. The Jets, who fired Eric Mangini on Dec. 29, have been eager to speak with Ryan for some time. They requested permission to interview him more than a week and a half ago. If the Jets hire Ryan, it'll be interesting to see what happens to offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer, who was the previous front-runner. The Jets like Schottenheimer and will likely try hard to keep him. Ryan has aready said he would seriously consider keeping Schottenheimer. Going with Ryan instead of Giants defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo makes sense because the Ravens play a 3-4 scheme and the Jets won't have to change their defense. Thus far, the Jets have interviewed in-house Schottenheimer and Bill Callahan, Spagnuolo, Ryan, Stanford head coach Jim Harbaugh, former Boston College head coach Jeff Jagodzinski, Cardinals assistant head coach Russ Grimm and Colts defensive coordinator Ron Meeks. Former Ravens head coach Brian Billick is a longshot candidate and may not even get an interview with the Jets, the person said. I don't want him in new york anyway.

I've heard Wolf's name mentioned. I've always liked Wolf, he's got great stuff and can be good enough for a number five starter in the national league. They've been saying on WFAN about the mets trying to lock up Perez. Would make sense.

The Braves agreed to terms with Derek Lowe on a four-year, $60MM deal. The braves were mentioned many times in the Peavy sweepstakes but that doesn't seem likely because they've allready added three quality starting pitchers. the Braves made their four-year offer to Lowe "on the condition that he accept the deal quickly." The mets lost big on this one because they needed a reliable pitcher like Lowe. Now they will focus on resigning Oliver Perez, a much less reliable pitcher.

How about these losers who busted up a couple of cars in the parking lot after the Giants game. The obviously druken idiots decided to take a bat to an already burned up porsche and then a suv. The filmed it and it can be seen here: http://www.si.com/ the guys filmed it and posted it on youtube. the video was removed but was ripped and posted at the previously mentioned location. Post game tailgating has gotten out of control and teams need to do a better job of regulating it and making sure that it is safe for every one.

Thought I'd share my thoughts on the Jets coaching situation. My guy is Rex Ryan. He's one ofthe best if not the best defensive coordinator of his time, won a super bowl, and might be on his way to another. His dad was Buddy Ryan, defensive coordinator for the jets when they won super bowl three. He spoke with the team for five hours on Sunday. Reports are that both sides are impressed. He can run a 4-3, 3-4 and 46 defense which is good because the Jets have a 3-4 personel in place and have the versitility to mix schemes. This post season his defense has eight turnovers in two games. Football Outsiders ranks his Ravens defenses as coordinator (2005: 5th 2006: 1st, 2007: 9th, 2008: 2nd) among the highest in the league. The wealth of knowledge in the Ryan family?s collective heads is impressive. Ryan?s base defense in Baltimore is a 3-4, but they do play the hybrid style that the Jets also employ. Scheme seems less important to Rex Ryan than utilizing his personnel to their best abilities. With the amount of players in and out of a team over the course of just a few years, it?s impressive to see that the defensive unit of the Ravens has been one of the most consistent in the NFL for the last ten years, ranking in the top ten every year during that time according to Football Outsiders. Rex has only been the Coordinator since 2005, but it?s been just as good as it was under the leadership of other Coordinators. There are some negatives; Rex Ryan has never been a head coach, seemingly at any level according to his Wikipedia entry. Is he able to take on the duties of head coaching, or is he a better Defensive Coordinator? There are also questions about whether his skill with defense was because of Ozzie Newsome?s personnel choices, or whether it was the coordination of that personnel. Ryan would now be the third Head Coach to come from being the Defensive Coordinator prior to that job. Marvin Lewis is languishing in Cincinnati while Mike Nolan was already fired in San Francisco this past year. When you think about the Jets front seven, there?s maybe just one or two players that could easily be upgraded, so it very well could mean that the Jets defense will get better. If Rex Ryan becomes the Head Coach of the Jets, unless he has a pick of his own for Offensive Coordinator it probably means keeping Brian Schottenheimer, Bill Callahan or both. Look for Ryan to pick someone as a Defensive Coordinator from within or maybe he?ll take someone from his Ravens staff to come in and implement what they are already familiar with in Baltimore. I'd like to see Romeo Crennel as the defensive coordinator.

This year was to wet. Lost a lot to mildew and bugs. Tomatoes were bad, cucumbers fared pretty well. Corn not so great this year. Honeydew melons did great, water melons lost to wetness. Pumpkins grew better than ever. Peppers always do well.

starches. They absorb fluid. Stay away from sugary drinks such as apple juice and Gatorade. Try Pedialyte.

don't forget garlic. garlic is one of the most potent herbs. it's great for high blood pressure. will chase your cough away, only negative is the odor. Try buying odorless garlic pills.

Vegetables are cheap. you can make salads, use them as sides and add them to pasta dishes. Soups are good too. Depending on your climate you can grow your own and can or freeze them. Anyone can grow tomatoes. Buy in bulk and on sale. Bargain shop, always compare prices to other stores.

depends. Creatine will not aid in building muscle, it provides you with energy busts and increases water to the muscle. Whey protein will help you to build muscle. Creatine gives you the ability to do that one last rep. There hasn't been much research done on it but it seems to be safe when taken in the CORRECT DOSAGE. I'd stick with Whey.

fast food is toxic. If you are going to go there to eat salads, you might as well buy some vegetables and make your own salads. A lot cheaper and would probably taste better. Him loosing the weight was probably because he was eating a lot of fast food before that, the change in diet helped him loose the weight.

Interval training is the best way to burn calories (fast, slow, fast, slow). Most importantly is diet. I'm not a supporter of the no-carb diet but i definitely don't support white grains. They are basically just sugar, and when eat sugar you are basically taking in empty calories that your body cant use. Cut out the sugar, go with whole grains. If you have an unbalanced diet, take a multi-viatimin. Rat a lot of lean protein. It is important not to loose more than 1-2 pounds a week. This important to keeping the weight off because it gives your fat cells time to shrink. Loosing weight rapidly will most likely lead to putting the weight back on. Never take a diet pill. This goes along the lines of slowly loosing the weight. diet pills can also have bad side-effects. Bottom line, it takes work and time. Diet and exercise.

You should defiantly talk to your doctor. Most likely it wont be anything but you could have a thyroid condition. This is very easily treated. In the morning, go with whole grains. Whole grain carbohydrates will keep you fuller longer. Also try to have some protein, proteins will keep you full. Perhaps try having a whole grain egg sandwich? For during the day, pack nuts. Nuts are very high in protein and calories for a small amount. Nuts will keep you full. Most importantly is drink a lot of water. I mean a lot, i drink almost a gallon a day. Not only does it keep you full, but you will see many other benefits of increased water intake.Hope this helped.

Hall of fame votes came in today, here's the top vote getters.Rickey Henderson, 94.8%Jim Rice, 76.4Andre Dawson, 67.0Bert Blyleven, 62.7Lee Smith, 44.5Jack Morris, 44.0Tommy John, 31.7Tim Raines, 22.6Mrk McGwire, 21.9Alan Trammell, 17.4Dave Parker, 15.0Donnie Baseball, 11.9Dale Murphy, 11.5Harold Baines, 5.9Henderson and Rice got in. Rickey was a no doubter and it's about time rice got in. I cant complain about Dawson finishing that high but I've always been a supporter of Burt Blyleven. He was a great pitcher and a great guy. Some call him a compiler but this guy tops the charts in strikeouts and had the best curveball ever. I think Big Mac will get in eventuayl, it just depends how long they punish him.

Tell me about it, Pittsburgh covering killed me. At least i made out on Phily and Baltimore!

Giants Eagles was a great game. There were a few lead changes before Phily put it away with those two fourth down stands and the pass to Jackson. Steelers blew out the Chargers though. Ill be rooting for Baltimore and Arizona. If you remember, earlier in the season the Ravens lost to the Steelers on a questionable touchdown at the last minute. That will be a great game. A Cardinals Ravens super bowl will be great. Probably not what the NFL and all the networks were hoping for because none of the big-market teams are in but who cares.

Today's games should be great. Phily and New York is going to be great and i really think that Phily could pull it off. I'm even more interested to see how Arizona will play next week. They were the coldest team going into the playoffs and are arguably the hottest team right now next to Baltimore. Chargers versus steelers will be interesting also because how well Rothlisburger plays after the week17 concussion will decided it. I think San Diego can pull it off. Imagine the top four teams (Titans, Panthers, Giants, Steelers) all not making it to the championship round?

How about the Titans loosing to Baltimore and Arizona absolutely stomping on Carolina? The two best teams in the league, in my opinion, just lost. Baltimore's got something special going though. Joe Flacco has an absolute cannon for an arm. Some of the throws he makes are just unbelievable. I think Baltimore could go all the way especially if the Steelers get knocked off by San Diego. How about the 8-8 San Diego Chargers hosting the 11-5 Baltimore Ravens in the AFC championship game? That's a little messed up.

I wouldn't like the sight of oliver in pinstripes either. He's young and hes got great stuff but is only a good pitcher when he wants to be. As a met fan i'm sure you've heard of "the good ollie" and "the bad ollie". I think the mets should resign him though because there not many better options. It looks like the wont give in to Lowe, even though they should, and i haven't heard anything about them and sheets. Would have been cool to have a scheduled two stadium double header? one in each of the new ballparks. i guess we'll just have to pray for rain.

even though i am a Yankee fan and do not like the mets, i would love to see another Yankees mets world series. Being from new york, the whole state was electrified during the first one. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for both.