Just past the first third part of the season,

Top 5 Suprises for the NL

5. Pujols elbow still intact. the media sold it like his ligament is a rubberband pressed against a sharp knife, guess the knife isnt that sharp. Sadly i bought into the hype.

4. Willie Randolph still manager of the mets. after last year's disaster i thought he would be gone at the first sign of lackluster play, appartently not.

3. Chase Utley still getting balls to hit with a 200/200 player behind him, ryan howard. on track for .205 and 221ks

2. The Red's kids

1. Reds having Bruce, Votto, Volquez, Griffey, Dunn, Phillips, Arroyo, Harang, Coco Cordero, and somehow still losing

So the 50 game mark is hit for the majors so I'll pause and take a look at the suprises for the AL, NL will come later this week.

Top 5 Suprises for the AL

5. Seattle Mariners - They just look like they're searching for answers and aren't getting them, shown by Richie Sexson's ridiculous actions. Remember when Escobar and Lackey went on the DL everyone said Seattle would get the division? yeah....

4. Cliff Lee - No explanation here, had a good season two years ago, disappear last year and showed up with the best stuff of his career.

3. Mike Mussina - Call it a homer pick if you want, but Cliff Lee was a 18-game winner two years ago and everyone was writing off Mussina and said he was done so I give Moose the edge. And as of today he has 6 more wins the Verlander, more wins the Beckett and is tied at  #2 in wins in the AL with 7 and has been the Yankees only consistant starter besides Wang.

2. Josh Hamilton - Great player on a horrible team, and with the major sluggers in the AL starting slow (Ortiz, ARod, Vlad) he has a legitament shot at the Triple Crown. Plus he's the only one of my fantasy team that's doing anything, hopefully he plays 160games this year.

1. Detroit Tigers - They've played great the past few games but come on, they've added players and got worse. Don't need to point out their flaws but I love their $30million long reliever, imagine if the Yanks made that move?

First of all, I just want to say how the whole scouting and experts scenario goes. If a kid is a 3 year starter he has too much wear and tear on him and if just started 1 season he's just a one year wonder. There's too much emphasis on playing time, height, weight, wonderlic testing, etc.

This is all I have to say about Matt Ryan, 59.3% completition percentage, 19 INTs, and an average arm. Yet, he's projected in the Top 5.  One the other hand, Colt Brennan had a 70.4% completition percentage and 17 INTs. People say that Brennan gets his numbers from a Run-and-Shoot offense, yet Matt Ryan attempted 654 passes last year while Brennan attempted a grand total of 510. Colt Brennan started for 3 years and put up great numbers, Matt Ryan started 2 years and had a mediocre year and an average year. But everyone is in love with Matt Ryan because....beats me? and dont get me started on Joe Flacco being a possible 1st round pick.

Just wanted my prediction of Matt Ryan not succeeding in the NFL on paper.

Yeah I know it's always fun to jump on the Lions for picking 4 WR four years in a row in the top 10, but I think it's real unfair to them when they get blamed for their "busts." I put busts in quotes because I consider a player a bust when a team picks him before With the draft tomorrow and the "experts" out and about, I wanted to take a look at what they all said for Charles Rogers and Mike Williams.

Charles Rogers - 2nd Overall Pick 2003

From SI.com

ANALYSIS: At the top of his game an unstoppable force effective over the middle, down the field and in the red zone. Makes a lot of big and important plays and was productive last season even as the program around him was crumbling. Has a star's mentality and plays to it. Needs to focus a bit more and concentrate on the finer details of his position but should be very productive right out of the gate.
PROJECTION: Early First Round

From ESPN.com

Summary: Top-five pick who has the ability and athleticism to dominate at the next level. Shows the playmaking ability of Andre Rison and better speed and consistency than Plaxico Burress. Not as fast as Randy Moss, but is more reliable and a better person.

Mike Williams - 10th Overall Pick 2005

From SI.com

ANALYSIS: Tremendously productive his only two years on the field, Williams is a physical specimen who could be used at a variety of pass-catching positions. A prototypical possession receiver, Williams projects nicely as a top third-down target or red-zone threat. The combination of size, growth potential, and the lack of pure speed could ultimately have him moving to a tight end spot.

PROJECTION: Early First Round

From ESPN.com

Reaction to Mike Williams Pick: When a player like Mike Williams falls to you at No. 10, you almost have to go off the board and take him, regardless of your other needs. Speculation had Detroit targeting defense here, possibly with LB Derrick Johnson, but Williams' availability changed that. Williams has star potential, and he joins an already stellar receiving corps with Roy Williams and Charles Rogers.

So both ESPN and SI had Charles Rogers as a Top 5 pick, and thats where he was chosen, and everyone loved the Mike Williams pick. It's not like they were 2nd round talent who Lions picked in the Top 10, but it's always easier to criticize years later. So just a warning to all the fans out there; when a player becomes a bust in 2-5, remember when your team drafted him everyone cheered and said what a great pick it was.

Hope everyone enjoys the new "shorter but start later" NFL draft.

"Oh Mr. Clemens, we need an alibi from you for the last 7 years."

"Alright, let me go get my pocket schedule."

Since when do we need to prove innocence? I always thought it was Innocent until proven guity. Remember what happened last time the media thought people were guilty because of one person's claim? Does the Duke Lacrosse nightmare come to mind?

Does Mitchell have any of Roger's personal checks, used syringes, bottles of steroids from Roger's house? So all he has is a guy who may be facing possible jail time who pointed out Clemens? Yeah, that's rock hard evidence right there.

And just because Pettitte admitted HGH doesn't mean Clemens is guilty; just like when a man is arrested on drug charges, it  doesn't mean his wife is guilty.

Yes, Phil Jackson has 6 rings, but is he serious about starting Kwame Brown over Andrew Bynum once he's healthy? Phil might be a genius, but is his ego so big that he thinks that he can fix Kwame Brown?

Bynum is not Dwight Howard or Al Jefferson, he will not hit 10-11 shots and go 4-4 from the line everynight. But he is averaging 12pts, 10rbs, 60%shooting, and 2 blocks on the season and has played ever been since he's been getting minutes. More importantly he's not fouling out of games, 0 so far this year, and in 36minutes against the 76ers last night he had 0 fouls, impressive

So please Mr. Jackson, when Kwame comes back healthy-stick him on the bench and let the kid play the minutes he deserves.