With over half of the 2008 MLB season in the books I thought it was appropriate to figure out which teams have the easiest time of it as they proceed through the next couple of months trying to make the playoffs…
I took the current MLB Power Rankings and then tied that to each team’s remaining schedule of games to come up with a Strength of Schedule (SOS) ranking similar to what is used in football.
Here was the situation through the games played on the Fourth of July…
Power National League Record Remains
Rank East W – L H – A
6 Philadelphia Phillies 48-39 40-35
18 Florida Marlins 44-42 35-41
17 New York Mets 42-44 37-39
21 Atlanta Braves 41-46 32-43
28 Washington Nationals 34-54 37-37
18.0 Division Rank-5 209-225
Rank Central W – L H – A
8 Chicago Cubs 52-35 41.34
9 St. Louis Cardinals 49-39 36-38
11 Milwaukee Brewers 47-39 39-37
24 Pittsburgh Pirates 40-45 37-40
25 Cincinnati Reds 41-47 38-36
23 Houston Astros 40-47 45-30
15.3 Division Rank-4 217-217
Rank West W – L H – A
19 Arizona Diamondbacks 43-44 37-38
15 Los Angeles Dodgers 42-44 39-37
20 San Francisco Giants 38-49 42-33
29 Colorado Rockies 36-51 37-38
30 San Diego Padres 34-53 37-38
22.6 Division Rank-6 193-241
Now for a look at each team’s SOS… These were determined by using the opponent’s Power Rank and multiplying by the number of games played against each opponent, with one variation. One point in the rankings was subtracted from the home team’s Power Rank to weight the results in favor of the home team, just as in reality the home team has a certain advantage. Hopefully this will yield more realistic results to these findings. Finally the results were then tallied and divided by the number of remaining games to be played…
Here is the Strength of Schedule determined by this method: (the easiest schedules are listed first)
Power Current
Rank Team SOS Rank Standing Games Out
29 Colorado Rockies 20.89 1 4th-West 7
20 San Francisco Giants 20.80 2 3rd-West 5
15 Los Angeles Dodgers 20.11 3 2nd-West 1
19 Arizona Diamondbacks 19.88 4 1st-West -
11 Milwaukee Brewers 19.47 5 3rd-Cent. 4
30 San Diego Padres 18.57 6 5th-West 9
23 Houston Astros 18.43 7 6th-Cent. 12
17 New York Mets 18.34 8 3rd-East 5
6 Philadelphia Phillies 18.16 9 1st-East -
24 Pittsburgh Pirates 17.57 10 4th-Cent. 10
25 Cincinnati Reds 17.55 11 5th-Cent. 11
8 Chicago Cubs 17.36 12 1st-Cent. -
28 Washington Nationals 17.14 13 5th-East 15
21 Atlanta Braves 17.05 14 4th-East 7
9 St. Louis Cardinals 17.03 15 2nd-Cent. 3
18 Florida Marlins 16.39 16 2nd-East 4
Here is how it appears, and always with the injury disclaimer,
In the East, the Philadelphia Phillies have withstood the Florida Marlins attempts to retake the lead they once enjoyed. It appears if the Mets can right their ship (get consistent pitching) they might challenge for the East, but this may be too tall an order. The Mets and Phillies’ schedule match up so there’s no advantage there. The Marlins have the toughest schedule of all the National League teams and for this reason I believe they will fade as the season progresses. The second place team in the East will be left out in the October cold... The Phillies are too strong to be overhauled here.
The Central division is the strongest of the in the National League’s divisional Power Rankings, coming in fourth overall. Like the AL Central, this division is adding up to be another shootout. The Cubs have led this division while accumulating what was the best record in baseball most of the way, but the Cardinals and Brewers have hung with them. Now Milwaukee has added a top arm for the stretch run with a couple more weeks to go before the trade deadline. Will the Cubs and Cards act to improve their chances? This will be hotly contested regardless of whether any new additions are made to these teams. The Wild Card team in this league will come from the Central… I’m going to play it conservatively here and pick the Cubs to win the division and follow through with the Brewers sliding into the playoffs as the Wild Card team…
The West division is bar none, the weakest division in Major League Baseball this year. If any one of these teams gets hot and can sustain it for a month or so, they might walk off winning this division title, and that’s what it’s going to take to make the playoffs. Being a Giant fan it really grinds on me to say this, but the way it stands right now, the Dodgers should be the team that “gets ‘er done” here. They’ve hung around while the Diamondbacks slowly have fallen back to the pack after an impressive start out of the gate. The Bums have had what seemed like their whole team on the DL at one time or another, but now they appear to be getting healthy. If these guys can keep away from any future injuries, this division race will be over. I can’t see any trades before the deadline being made as these teams, other than the Dodgers, are becoming more fiscally responsible…
So here is how I see the playoffs developing as the second season begins…
Division Winners –
American National
East – Tampa Bay Rays Philadelphia Phillies
Central – Minnesota Twins Chicago Cubs
West – Los Angeles Angels Los Angeles Dodgers
Wild Card Teams –
Chicago White Sox Milwaukee Brewers
There ya have it! Now we’ll sit back and see if I get picked off base or get a good jump and come in safe!
The Reggie Bush civil suit brought against the Saint’s running back by one Lloyd Lake, a so-called sports marketing agent who claims he gave Bush close to $300,000 in money and gifts while Reggie was attending the University of Southern California, has been assigned a trial date. After the attorneys for both sides upset Superior Court Judge Joan M. Lewis with their quarrelling tactics, deposition dates were finally agreed upon. The Judge then set the trial date for March 19, 2009. It appears USC head football coach Pete Carroll and the Trojans’ running back coach, Todd McNair, will also be testifying as Lake’s attorney, Brian Watkins, states his client had several discussions with McNair and that he overheard a phone conversation between Bush’s stepfather and the head coach. Both Carroll and McNair have already been questioned by NCAA investigators who will be sure to closely follow these court proceedings. If it can be proven that USC was aware of Reggie Bush accepting benefits from Lloyd Lake, or even if the NCAA determines that USC should have known of any wrong doing, then the University’s football program could face sanctions that could include forfeiture of game wins during their 2004 National Championship season as well as during their 2005 season when they lost to Texas in the National Championship game. In a related event that may shed more light on this case prior to it going to court, Judge Lewis ruled the results of the depositions would be made public over the objections of Bush’s lawyers. We can expect this ruling to be revisited prior to the start of depositions scheduled to begin in June…
NCAA Academic Progress Report
NCAA President Myles Brand has made it clear that the nation’s collegiate athlete’s academic scores must improve. If the scores aren’t improving, then the NCAA’s harshest sanctions may come into play, those being the loss of scholarships, reductions in practice time and even postseason play bans. “Academic reform is here to stay, and those penalties resemble what we give for major infractions. So these are serious penalties and there are a number of teams that received those," Brand said after releasing this year's Academic Progress Report. "Yes, there are individual institutions who have seen a steady decline (academically) over the last four years, and for them, the situation is dire." The NCAA began monitoring academic scores back in 2003 and reports that 26 of 29 collegiate sports athlete’s score are up with a marked improvement made by baseball and football players. Scores increased by 12 and 11 points respectively in those sports. This raises graduation rates and whether it appears that way or not, isn’t that what these institutions of higher learning should be striving for without NCAA oversight?
NASCAR Earnings Statistics with Richmond Effect
Owner Total Tms Make Average Change
1 Joe Gibbs Racing $6,254,624 3 Toyota $2,084,875 $150,726 2 Penske Racing $6,068,522 3 Dodge $2,022,841 $105,610 3 Hendrick Motorsports $6,710,909 4 Chevy $1,677,727 $103,643 4 Richard Childress R. $4,873,461 3 Chevy $1,624,487 $157,206 5 Roush Fenway Race $7,688,340 5 Ford $1,537,668 $100,858 6 Chip Ganassi Racing $3,875,191 3 Dodge $1,291,73 0 $66,291 7 Dale Earnhardt Inc. $5,154,026 4 Chevy $1,288,507 $116,492 8 Yates Racing $2,569,907 2 Ford $1,284,954 $83,210 9 Robby Gordon Mtrs $1,263,743 1 Dodge $1,263,743 $92,608 10 Gillett Evernham $3,489,770 3 Dodge $1,163,257 $93,227 11 Petty Enterprises $2,173,820 2 Dodge $1,086,910 $97,435 12 Michael Waltrip Rc. $3,218,147 3 Toyota $1,072,716 $70,716 13 Haas CNC Racing $2,096,039 2 Chevy $1,048,020 $77,742 14 Hall of Fame Racing $989,580 1 Toyota $989,580 $74,250 15 Team Red Bull $1,633,865 2 Toyota $816,933 $67,838 16 Bill Davis Racing $1,112,468 2 Toyota $556,234 $45,192 17 Wood Brothers Racing $536,273 1 Ford $536,273 $0 18 Furniture Row Rac. $1,050,060 2 Chevy $525,030 $33,475 19 BAM Racing $331,454 1 Toyota $331,454 $0 20 Front Row Motorsprt $445,201 2 Chevy $222,601 $0 21 Phoenix Racing $174,095 1 Chevy $174,095 $67,975 22 SKI Motorsports $22,813 1 Chevy $22,813 $0 23 No Fear Racing $22,170 1 Ford $22,170 $0 24 E&M Motorsports $21,920 1 Dodge $21,920 $0 Totals / Averages $61,776,398 53 $1,165,592 $1,604,491
Dodge continues to extend it's lead in the average earnings per team standings through the first ten 2008 Sprint Cup Races!
Where Was Mark Cuban One Day After the Demise of His Dallas Mavericks?
April 30th Mark Cuban was spotted in a dugout box seat immediately behind the Chicago Cubs’ bench. Who was he sitting with? That would be the top executive of Tribune Broadcasting, Ed Wilson, one of Cubs owner Sam Zell’s right hand men. Cuban told a reporter, “I’m here to get a better feel. I’m certainly interested.” It’s about time for Zell to open the Cubs’ books to potential buyers, was Cuban the first to have a look? Wonder how Cuban’s unfettered interest in the Cubs sits with MLB Commissioner Bud Selig who seemingly has chosen a favorite and is going about professing the virtues of his crony, Chicago native John Canning, who owns a small percentage of Selig’s old team, the Milwaukee Brewers. Then there’s the owner of the south side White Sox, Jerry Reinsdorf who doesn’t want to face what would surely be stiff competition for Chicago fan’s allegiance with the very proactive Cuban. So what if, once the bidding begins, Cuban wipes out all the competition with a huge bid? Will Sam Zell stand back and allow Selig and his buddies to cut him out of what could be several millions more in profit from the sale? I can see Zell unleashing a tirade that could be heard across the country. Will the Commissioner bow his back? Remember, we’re talking about a certifiable wimp here… An interesting scenario indeed!
Cuban chillin' with Cubs fans last year in the bleachers...
In Another Baseball Note, A-Rod Goes Down in the Delivery Room!
Alex Rodriguez’ wife Cynthia told a television interviewer that her husband had actually hit the floor in the delivery room as she was in labor with their first daughter, Natasha Alexander Rodriguez, when she was born on November 18, 2004. The interview will air this evening on YES Network’s “YESterdays” program.
Cynthia Rodriguez said in excerpts released yesterday: “As tough and big as he seems, he is real wimpy around doctors or any type of medical situation,” Cynthia Rodriguez said, according to excerpts released Tuesday by YES. “I don’t know why I thought the birth of our child would be different. In the middle of the night, I realized that I needed to go to the hospital. I wake him up. The first thing that comes out of his mouth, ‘Can we call your mother?’
"A few hours later, I said, ‘I think you can call my mom now.’ Uh, and the color came back to his face when
I told him he could call my mom.”
Alex and daughter Natasha
A-Rod traveled from New York last week and arrived at a Miami area hospital about 10 minutes after the birth of his second daughter, Ella Alexander Rodriguez, on April 21. YOU DA MAN A-ROD!
NFL Notes
You NFL fans should be checking your favorite team’s latest signings since the Draft late last month as several good collegiate players passed over in the Draft have been signed as free agents…
Most of the NFL teams are now holding mini-camps where all the new faces from free agency and the draft are getting to eyeball each other. The Seahawks' Pro Bowl quarterback Matt Hasselbeck asked head coach Mike Holmgren if he could issue name tags to all the new guys on offense as he suddenly has three new running backs, a new guard, two new tight ends, a new quarterback coach, a new offensive line coach, a new running backs coach, along with a new assistant line coach and a new quality control coach... I can't say that I blame Hasselbeck.
The Seahawks latest draft picks at mini-camp... (L-R) RB Justin Forsett, California, LS Tyler Schmitt, San Diego State DT Joseph Bryant, Texas A&M DE Lawrence Jackson, USC TE John Carlson, Notre Dame FB Owen Schmitt, West Virginia and K Brandon Coutu, Georgia
Hope you enjoyed this capsule of the sports world in early May, 2008!
A process was begun during the 2007 Major League Baseball (MLB) season when the new owner of the Chicago Tribune announced he would be placing the Chicago Cubs professional baseball team on the market for sale. The financially troubled Tribune had recently been sold to Sam Zell, a billionaire investor. The Tribune had purchased Chicago’s lovable yet frustration riddled MLB icon in 1981 for $20.5 million. Today, a group of potential owners have either submitted applications to MLB or are expected to do so in the very near future. This application is not just to purchase the Cubs; it is an application to join one of the most exclusive clubs in North America.
There are 30 members and they have the privilege of choosing who gets to join their group. Now these people (primarily people, there are four corporate entities listed as principle owners) are some of the richest in the world, and even though baseball seems to continually get its nose bloodied by one scandal after another, they are getting richer as owners of these teams. Of these owners, George Steinbrenner has owned his team the longest, buying the New York Yankees in 1973 for $8.7 million. According to Forbes Magazine, the Yankees current value is estimated at $1.2 billion. Here is the Forbes listing of MLB teams by their estimated value in April 2007, each team’s latest sale price, and the change in value since the latest purchase:
Rank…….Team………………Current…..Original…..Change< /p>
…………………………..…….($mil)……($mil)…….($mil)
1…New York Yankees……….1,200…………8.7…...1,191.3
2…New York Mets…………….736……….391……….345
3…Boston Red Sox……...……..724……….700………..24
4…Los Angeles Dodgers…..…..632……….371………261
5…Chicago Cubs……..………..592………..20.5……..571.5
6…St. Louis Cardinals…..……..460……….150*……..310
7…San Francisco Giants…….... 459……….100………359
8…Atlanta Braves……..……….458……….270**……188
9…Philadelphia Phillies……..…457…………30………427
10..Washington Nationals……...447………..450………..-3
11..Houston Astros……..………442……….102.7…….339.3
12..Seattle Mariners………..…...436……….106………330
13..LA Angels of Anaheim…..…431……….184………247
14..Baltimore Orioles………..….395……….173………222
15..Chicago White Sox……..…..381…………20………361
16..San Diego Padres..………….367…………94………273
17..Texas Rangers…………..…..365………..250………115
18..Cleveland Indians..………….364………..323……….41
19..Detroit Tigers……..…………357…………82……..275
20..Toronto Blue Jays………..….344………..140……..204
21..Arizona Diamondbacks…..…339………..130……..209
22..Colorado Rockies…………...317………….95……..222
23..Cincinnati Reds……..……....307…………270……..37
24..Oakland Athletics………...…292…………180……112
25..Minnesota Twins…..…….….288…………..44…….244
26..Milwaukee Brewers……...….287………….223…….64
27..Kansas City Royals..………...282…………..96…….186
28..Pittsburgh Pirates………...….274…………..92……..182
29..Tampa Bay Rays…..…….…..267………….130…….137
30..Florida Marlins………..….….244………….158……..86
*Included Purchase of Stadium
**Purchase price based upon a $1.27 billion stock transfer and a $1 billion cash return (a deal struck in tax accounting heaven).
Forbes estimates that in 2006, Major League Baseball owners enjoyed a 15% increase in team value (a 6% increase over 2005). This trend is expected to continue as new stadiums come on line, owners continue to sale television rights to cable networks, and fan interest continues to not only remain high, but grow. A large part of this reinvigoration can be attributed to the limited revenue sharing or "luxury tax" the owners imposed on themselves. Suddenly the smaller market teams could turn a profit and the values of their franchises have risen. What would happen if the league raised the level of revenue sharing?
It’s quite a change from just three years ago when MLB owned the Montreal Expos and was struggling to find a buyer for the franchise.
So here we are, exactly 100 years since the Chicago Cubs last won the World Series and they are on the market. A group of potential buyers have formed up. Who are these people?
Without a doubt, the highest profile suitor is the outspoken owner of the NBA’s Dallas Mavericks, Mark Cuban. Cuban, a billionaire who made his money in the high-tech world, is an avid sports fan and very interested.
Another high profile individual and a past NBA franchise owner, Chicago native Jerry Coangelo (Phoenix Suns) is in the running. Coangelo has already been a member of the MLB owners club as the lead partner in a group that was awarded the Arizona Diamondback franchise in 1995 (his interest in the Diamondbacks has since been sold to his original partners in 2004).
The Ricketts family, which founded discount broker TD Ameritrade Holding Corp., has been said to be interested with Thomas Ricketts, heir to a family fortune (around $2.3 billion) assuming the lead role.
John Canning who heads a private equity firm (Madison Dearborn Partners) and who happens to be a part-owner in the Milwaukee Brewers (most likely a close friend of Commissioner Bud Selig).
There is also said to be a partnership between restaurateur Larry Levy and Chicago business owner Craig Duchossois ready to put together an application.
There are several other possible groups partnering up to bid on the Cubs.
Bud Selig Does this man and his cronies like you?
This process is expected to heat up in January, 2008, and may continue deep into the new year. The Forbes estimate of value for the Cubbies in spring, 2007, was $592 million so once bidding is ready to commence, it should probably start at $600 million if the Tribune’s interest in super television station WGN and Comcast SportsNet are not included in the deal or $900 million if those interests are in.
A sidelight of interest: This procedure may spell the demise of the Cubs home, Wrigley Field, but this remains to be seen. Whoever is the new owner will have a lot to say about that.
It should be quite a fray once the top contenders have made it through MLB’s screening process. I have to wonder whether Mark Cuban will even be allowed to bid on the Cubs. The MLB owners are said to have a problem with him joining their ranks. Yes, he is outspoken and unpredictable, and just maybe this is exactly what the good old boys of baseball need in their club.
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Marlins attempts to retake the lead they once enjoyed. It appears if the Mets can right their ship (get consistent pitching) they might challenge for the East, but this may be too tall an order. The Mets and Phillies’ schedule match up so there’s no 
advantage there. The Marlins have the toughest schedule of all the National League teams and for this reason I believe they will fade as the season progresses. The second place team in the East will be left out in the October cold... The Phillies are too strong to be overhauled here.
have led this division while accumulating what was the best record in baseball most of the way, but the Cardinals and Brewers have hung with them. Now 
Milwaukee has added a top arm for the stretch run with a couple more weeks to go before the trade deadline. Will the Cubs and Cards act to improve their chances? This will be hotly contested regardless of whether any new additions are 
made to these teams. The Wild Card team in this league will come from the Central… I’m going to play it conservatively here and pick the Cubs to win the division and follow through with the Brewers sliding into the playoffs as the Wild Card team… 
Dodgers should be the team that “gets ‘er done” here. They’ve hung around while the Diamondbacks slowly have fallen back to the pack after an impressive start out of the gate. The Bums have had what seemed like their 
whole team on the DL at one time or another, but now they appear to be getting healthy. If these guys can keep away from any future injuries, this division race will be over. I can’t see any trades before the deadline being made as these teams, other than the Dodgers, are becoming more fiscally responsible…
he gave Bush close to $300,000 in money and gifts while Reggie was attending the University of Southern California, has been assigned a trial date. After the attorneys for both sides upset Superior Court Judge Joan M. Lewis with their quarrelling tactics, deposition dates were finally agreed upon. The Judge then set the trial date for March 19, 2009. It appears USC head football coach Pete Carroll and the Trojans’ running back coach, Todd McNair, will also be testifying as Lake’s attorney, Brian Watkins, states his client had several discussions with McNair and that he overheard a phone conversation between Bush’s stepfather and the head coach. Both Carroll and McNair have already been questioned by NCAA investigators who will be sure to closely follow these court proceedings. If it can be proven that USC was aware of Reggie Bush accepting benefits from Lloyd Lake, or even if the NCAA determines that USC should have known of any wrong doing, then the University’s football program could face sanctions that could include forfeiture of game wins during their 2004 National Championship season as well as during their 2005 season when they lost to Texas in the National Championship game. In a related event that may shed more light on this case prior to it going to court, Judge Lewis ruled the results of the depositions would be made public over the objections of Bush’s lawyers. We can expect this ruling to be revisited prior to the start of depositions scheduled to begin in June…
those being the loss of scholarships, reductions in practice time and even postseason play bans. “Academic reform is here to stay, and those penalties resemble what we give for major infractions. So these are serious penalties and there are a number of teams that received those," Brand said after releasing this year's Academic Progress Report. "Yes, there are individual institutions who have seen a steady decline (academically) over the last four years, and for them, the situation is dire." The NCAA began monitoring academic scores back in 2003 and reports that 26 of 29 collegiate sports athlete’s score are up with a marked improvement made by baseball and football players. Scores increased by 12 and 11 points respectively in those sports. This raises graduation rates and whether it appears that way or not, isn’t that what these institutions of higher learning should be striving for without NCAA oversight? 
tough and big as he seems, he is real wimpy around doctors or any type of medical situation,” Cynthia Rodriguez said, according to excerpts released Tuesday by YES. “I don’t know why I thought the birth of our child would be different. In the middle of the night, I realized that I needed to go to the hospital. I wake him up. The first thing that comes out of his mouth, ‘Can we call your mother?’ 
Does this man and his cronies like you?
