Opinion

Now that Roy Halladay confirmed last night at the All-Star festivities that he is, indeed, available and willing to be traded to a contender, the New York Yankees surely are a possible destination.

Widely considered the best pitcher in baseball (Derek Jeter said as much last night), Halladay has been seeking a trade to a contender to finally perform in meaningful games in August and September. Because Halladay is signed through 2010, a trade will give him two chances at the playoffs and a possible World Series.

Nelson Cruz burst into the mainstream last night with his performance in the Home Run Derby. After a great first round that saw him belt 11 home runs, Cruz muscled his way into the finals against Prince Fielder before falling short.

In all, Cruz finished with 22 home runs, most of which went deep into the St. Louis night. He's known to have "light tower power," and he certainly lived up to that scouting report last night.

So, the reports say that Pedro Martinez has passed his physical and will sign with the Philadelphia Phillies.  Yet, many Phillies fans appear to be having a heart attack thinking that this will be the "big move" for the Phillies.   Relax, Pedro is your fifth starter.

It's bad for baseball! It interferes with spring training! There's no good time to do it! No one cares!

Valid or not, these are the arguments we've heard during the last two World Baseball Classics, both won by Japan. 

Some players opted out of the March tournament, while others felt the opportunity to represent their country was too great to pass up.

Many MLB fans, however, didn't want their club's players in it. Many worried about injuries or lack of preparation for the 2009 season.  

Last night was Monday July the 13th. We managed to have a night where seven of the

best home run hitters in baseball and Brandon Inge got together in an attempt to put on a power display where batting practice pitchers grooved balls at 70—75 MPH and in turn the likes of Pujols, Fielder, Cruz, and Howard deposited them deep into the St. Louis sky.

The Oakland A’s enter the All-Star break coming off a nightmare first half, one in which nothing has gone as planned. And despite their win-loss record, that’s actually a good thing.

Billy Beane built these A’s with offense in mind, loading up on veteran sluggers who were supposed to take pressure off the team’s young pitchers. However, while Oakland’s hitters have failed to show up so far, their pubescent pitching corps has arrived en masse.

Infielder grades

Outfielder + DH grades

I hate myself.

They just don't make showers hot enough to clean me of my new fragrance, "Hate" by J.P. Ricciardi.

And I've tried. I think I've lost a few layers of skin trying.

What I'm talking about is the negativity that surrounds these Toronto Blue Jays, honorable defenders of fourth place in the AL East. I've found myself criticizing every facet of their play (most of the time deservedly so) but I haven't found happiness doing it.

Entering the year, it seemed that Giants fans were looking for Matt Cain to take a big step forward and join Tim Lincecum as a second ace in the San Francisco rotation.

With a 10-2 record and 2.38 ERA, Cain looks to have blown his 8-14, 3.76 ERA 2008 season out of the water.

But he hasn't.

Now, I have nothing against Matt Cain; I think he may improve somewhere down the line. I'm just telling you what the numbers are telling me.

You know what the best season of Matt Cain's career has been thus far?

2007.

When he went 7-16.

I'm not kidding.