To paraphrase Jon Stewart’s intro for Daily Show correspondent Lewis Black, “Sometimes a news story falls through the cracks, here to catch them is Chris Vining, with his column, Delusions of Randomness.” So I will touch upon stories that didn’t get big headlines, but are still important.

The Red Sox finally decided to give Terry Francona (the most successful Sox manager in decades) a three-year contract extension. Francona is now signed through 2011, and as long as nothing drastic changes (Manny Ramirez goes insane and tries to mentor upcoming prospects)he has a great chance to lead the Red Sox to another World Series Championship in the next four years. Francona is a class act and does a great job of handling the Boston media.

Kudos to the Red Sox for signing Bartolo Colon to a minor league contract this week. Curt Schilling will be lucky if he can pitch with any effectiveness again, and Colon is a low risk (and cost) investment to make sure the Sox have depth in the rotation. Colon is not the Cy Young pitcher he was, and despite being an injury risk, he provides Clay Buchholz a chance to be brought along slowly. If the Sox can get anything above twenty starts they would be in a great position, as Colon can still pitch when he is on his game. For those people complaining about the rich getting richer, Colon was still unsigned when Spring Training opened, and was signed for chump change. He was more than fair game.

The Tampa Bay Rays dropped the “Devil” from their name but they might sign the Devil to their roster. Barry Bonds has arisen as a target for Tampa, which might not be as bad of an idea as it sounds. The Rays are young and talented, and Bonds would take a rapidly improving offense to dangerous levels. Bonds would also provide insurance for Cliff Floyd and Roco Baldelli. If Evan Longoria can be effective in the Majors this year, than the Rays have one of the top 10 offenses in baseball, and that is without Bonds. Adding the *All-Time Home Run King* would make the Rays a Wild Card threat, but the health of Scott Kazmir and Troy Percival will be key factors toward the Rays’ quest to get out of the AL East cellar.

Koby Clemens has been caught in a very tough spot for the Astros. While he is in Major League Spring Training he is subject to the substance advise of Miguel Tejada. If/when Koby is sent to Minor League Camp he will have his father to talk with. The younger Clemens should say he has visa problems and skip camp, or show up for another teams’ Spring Training.

Not only is Jonathan Papelbon the best young closer in baseball he showed that he could bust a move during the playoffs, and people took notice. Paps was offered a spot as a contestant on Dancing With the Stars, however he turned it down when he realized he had to dance to music that wasn’t played by the Dropkick Murphys.

Zach Thomas and Jason Taylor are family, and were teammates on the Dolphins up until Bill Parcells rolled into town. Taylor is now working on his footwork as a member of the Dancing With the Stars cast. Thomas was pushed into the unemployment line until Jerry Jones offered Thomas a chance to play in his home state of Texas. Thomas will make the Cowboys better on defense, even if his skills are diminishing. His knowledge and leadership will be key to the Cowboys defense, and his locker room presence cannot be underestimated. He also hates vacationing during bye weeks.

The Atlanta Falcons won the coin flip to give them the third pick in the upcoming NFL Draft. The downside is that the Falcons have so many holes that they could have used a lower pick. The benefit is that more players would be off the board so they would have an easier time picking which player will be blamed for a string of losing seasons.

Peter King of Sports Illustrated predicted that the Giants would win the Super Bowl against the Patriots if they could apply consistent pressure on Brady. He also suggested the Giants might win if they could outscore the Patriots. I am a Peter King fan but my three year old knew the game was in trouble when the Pat’s line had trouble blocking the rush.

Rex Grossman was resigned to a one year, three million-dollar contract by the Chicago Bears. No seriously, the Bears resigned him and Kyle Orton in the same week. That is a punch line, but I can’t even come up with a joke.

Former players Keith Van Horn and Aaron McKie were included in trades despite not being active players. In an attempt to bolster their roster the Celtics had a trade in place to send Bob Cousy to Memphis for Mike Conley. Memphis was looking to add veteran leadership and cut payroll (Cousy was making 5 figures in his last contract) and the deal was perfect for both sides. The trade fell through at the last minute when Memphis was unable to find a pair of shorts short enough for Cousy to wear. 

Yao Ming suffered a stress fracture in his foot and now will be out for the season. While this is a shot to the Rockets playoff chances, the worse news is that Yao’s backup is Dikembe Mutombo, who has scored a whopping seven points this season. The Rockets do not have any players 6’10’’ or taller besides Steve Novak, who weighs in at a massive 220 pounds and has played less than fifty career games.

Sam Cassell has asked to be bought out of his contract with the Los Angeles Clippers so he can sign with (most likely) Boston or Denver. What makes Sam I Am even more attractive is that he has already missed 15 games due to injuries this year. When questioned about his health Cassell had this to say, “The Celtics are getting damaged goods if I do go over there," Cassell said. "But I'll be all right." Nothing says sign me like that quote.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. has a new team but the same winning ways. Junior hasn’t been allowed in the winner’s circle in over five-dozen races. Maybe he should spend less time doing commercials and spend more time on figuring out why his engines keep blowing up. Just a thought, I’m no car expert.

The trade deadline just passed and players were moving all over North America (except to Mexico, there is no ice there). The Penguins acquired Marian Hossa, the top forward available, and the player that can put the Penguins in position for a Stanley Cup run. Wait, Penguins adding payroll? Weren’t they going to be sold and moved to Canada earlier this year?

In what has become an all too familiar scenario, the Boston Bruins promised to be active at the trade deadline but failed to bring in anyone at all, even a fourth line bench warmer. The Bruins are clinging to a playoff spot but are falling fast. Why are season ticket sales down again?

Now that spring has finally started to emerge it means that the real baseball season is about to start. The slate will be wiped clean for those players struggling so far this season, but are hot starts a signal of success of what may lay ahead? Each year players come out of nowhere to surprise fans and journalists alike. On the flip side, talented players see their careers go down the drain due to injuries, age, or ineffectiveness. So which players will take home baseball’s hardware this year, and which players will land on hard times? Only time will tell, but here are my fool(proof or ish) picks.

AMERICAN LEAGUE

Cy Young – Johan Santana might be the best pitcher in baseball, but his contract demands might have put a wedge into the team first Twins. While Santana will have a good season his contract issues will be a story all year, and he won’t repeat as Cy Young. Roy Halladay is a workhorse that is always in the running, and he has recovered from injuries late last year. Mike Mussina is a stellar pitcher on a great team, and uncertainties with the Yankees rotation make him the go to guy. Ervin Santana is a future star that looks like he will become an ace for the Angels. C.C. Sabathia has all the tools to become one of the best lefties in baseball; he only needs to grow up. Curt Schilling talks a good game and may have one last magical run left in his arm. Winner – Scott Kazmir Tampa Bay. Here me out on this one. Kaz is the best young lefty in baseball, he has already been a major league ace for almost two seasons despite just turning 23. The Devil Rays have one of the best outfields in baseball, and a wealth of young talent. Kaz missed part of the second half of last year with a sore shoulder but his stats would have projected to 15-12 with an ERA of just over 3, and 240 strikeouts in just over 200 innings. Don’t be shocked to see him duplicate the one-man rotation performance that Randy Johnson posted with the Diamondbacks a half dozen years ago.

MVP – Carl Crawford, Vernon Wells, and Grady Sizemore are all MVP quality players stuck in small market hell (see Beltran, Carlos Kansas City Royals). Travis Hafner is a great hitter than is now stuck with the “DH only” label that will prevent him from winning an MVP. Arod has the stats and skills to win another MVP but has too large and frail of an ego to win another MVP. Derek Jeter deserves a lifetime MVP award but his importance isn’t measured just by stats, but also by leadership and intangibles. Justin Morneau should hide his MVP because his win last year seemed like an episode of Punk’d without Ashton Kutcher taking back the award. Manny Ramirez’s defensive shortcomings and mental tomfoolery will prevent him from winning an MVP. Ichiro lacks the power to win over the voters despite being on a level with Jeter in terms of value to his team. Winner – David Ortiz Red Sox. This is the year for Big Papi. He will play enough in the field to squash the “DH only “debate, he has a better lineup with JD Drew and Julio Lugo, as well as the best protection in baseball in Manny Ramirez. There is no player in baseball that can deliver like Ortiz and this is the year that he will be rewarded for his efforts.  

ROY – Is there really even a need to discuss this? Alex Gordon and Delmon Young might have great careers ahead of them but they picked the wrong year to be a rookie. Daisuke Matsuzaka is not only the best rookie in baseball this year, he could also challenge for the Cy Young. DiceK reminds me of Pedro Martinez when he was pitching in Montreal. He has a ton of talent, great natural ability, but just needs a bit of polishing around the edges. By the time his first contract expires after the 2011 season, DiceK will have more hardware on his mantle than U2.

Comeback Player – Mike Maroth is a quality starter that could be crucial for the Tigers to make a repeat trip to the World Series. Sammy Sosa looks like his year off was for the best, as he has gone from outcast to a key member of a team with playoff goals. Sosa could easily hit 25 home runs in a hitter’s park. If Eric Gagne can make it through the season without his arm flying off than that will be a miracle.  Winner - Gary Sheffield Detroit. One of the best offseason moves was the Tigers trading for Sheffield, a power hitter that suddenly became expendable for the Yankees. Expect the trade of Doc’s nephew to burn the Yankees come playoff time.

Biggest Disappointment – Gil Meche is in an impossible situation. He is an average pitcher (a number 3 starter at best) who was given eight figures a year to be the ace of the worst team in baseball. Meche would have been a good signing at half the price, but there is no way Meche can even come close to pitching well enough to justify his contract.

NATIONAL LEGAUE

Cy Young – The National League lacks a true dominant pitcher; even the Cy Young winner would have trouble cracking the top five in the American League. You have the fading veterans like John Smoltz, Jason Schmidt, and Tom Glavine that are on their last legs. There are always the injury risks such as John Patterson, Chris Carpenter, and Jake Peavy. What is left over are the pitchers that have talent but haven’t been able to completely refine their game over a complete season, defacto aces like Dontrelle Willis and Carlos Zambrano. So who is left? A great pitcher on a poor team in Brandon Webb, an All-Star pitcher attempting to switch leagues in Barry Zito, and a good pitcher on a solid team. That pitcher will win the Cy Young because, well, someone has to…Congratulations to Roy Oswalt the 2007 NL Cy Young.

MVP – Baseball just isn’t fair and the MVP race proves that very fact. Talented small market players are often overlooked despite immense talent. Jason Bay and Miguel Cabrera have the misfortune of playing for the wrong team at the wrong time. Lance Berkman and Andruw Jones have skills but fail to grab headlines. David Wright and Chase Utley are up and coming stars that play second fiddle to teammates that can put up gaudy stats. Alfonso Soriano is a five-tool player but moving from team to team and position to position (in the field and in the batting order) doesn’t do him any favors. Albert Pujols and Ryan Howard are the best power hitters in the National League and will both be multiple time MVPs before their careers are done. None of these deserving players will take home the hardware this year, that distinction goes to a player with the least amount of power amongst the MVP candidates. Winner - Jose Reyes New York Mets. Reyes could lead the league in hits, runs, batting average, stolen bases, triples, and on base percentage. Reyes is the fuel that makes the Mets run and is the catalyst to one of the best teams in baseball. Reyes is entering his fifth season and will only turn 24 this year. His best is yet to come.

ROY – Kevin Kouzmanoff looks like the real deal for the Padres, and the recent release of Todd Walker gives him a spot as a starter at third base. Chris Young looks to have the Diamondback’s center field job nailed down and could impress on a young team. Homer Bailey will start the season in the minors but with the Red’s rotation (or lack there of) Bailey could be in the rotation by May. Chris Iannetta looks to be the Rockies catcher of the future, with the future possibly coming this year. Andy LaRoche stands a good chance to get a lot of playing time for the Dodgers, but putting a young player’s future in Grady Little’s hands isn’t a smart idea. Troy Tulowitzki won the Rockies starting shortstop job but will have Clint Barnes breathing down his neck. Winner - Mike Pelfrey New York Mets. A good pitcher on a great team that will have a lot of run support. The National League ROY race looks weak as several key candidates have been send down to the minors.

Comeback Player – Derrek Lee and Todd Helton will not only battle for the rights to be the third best first basemen in the National League behind Albert Pujols and Ryan Howard, they will also battle for Comeback Player of the Year. Both men are Triple Crown threats if they can stay healthy, but Lee has a much more experienced lineup around him to take off some of the pressure. Helton also has to deal with the speculation of constant trade rumors and inexperienced players around him. Both men have all the talent to win an MVP award, but other talented players at their position overshadow both.

Biggest Disappointment – Carlos Lee is a great player in a hitter’s park but was greatly overpaid this offseason by Houston. I wouldn’t be surprised to see him easily pass thirty home runs this year, but I also wouldn’t be surprised to see him balloon to 350 pounds eating Texas barbeque and end up needing gastric bypass surgery by the trade deadline. Grady Little also getting a contract extension through 2009 (club option) might be the worst off the field move since Pete Rose was named manager of the Reds.