Kuzul

What will it take to force Major League Baseball to finally outlaw maple bats? A player losing an eye…a brain injury…or even worse?

In Sunday’s Cubs game against the Marlins, Cubs rookie outfielder Tyler Colvin was punctured in the chest by a piece of a broken maple bat that just narrowly missed puncturing his lung.

He did, however, have to be hospitalized, where they treated Colvin with a chest tube to prevent a collapsed lung and the incident will end his season.

It has long been obvious that the harder maple bats are a lot more dangerous than softer ash wood bats as ash tends to splinter into small pieces while maple breaks into larger chunks of flying mayhem.

Look, it’s time that the players’ union does more to address this issue. They need to be willing to work with MLB owners to come up with an answer to the question of whether maple bats are worth the risk.

Pretty much everything we do in life carries with it some potential risk. But your risk tolerance is the issue here. You weigh the costs and benefits of an action to determine whether you are willing to accept that risk.

Meanwhile, perhaps Colvin’s incident will finally raise awareness to something that has been on many people’s minds ever since bats in general started breaking with alarming regularity.

Hitters favoring thinner bat handles in order to create a whipping affect when swinging the bats has resulted in more breakage than ever.

But ever since players started favoring the maple bats, the issue has gotten much more dangerous. And that danger isn’t just limited to on-field personnel.

Imagine if a piece of shattered bat punctured a fan? Now you could be talking about lawsuits and baseball doesn’t need the drama, horror, financial impact and negative publicity this would generate.

Now imagine someone actually being killed from a bat shard. Talk about a tragedy – and yet the real tragedy would be that it could have been prevented.

To be fair, the union has taken some steps to address the issue.

According to FOXNews.com, “the union resisted a ban on maple bats in the 2006 collective-bargaining talks, but has since worked with baseball to impose more stringent regulations on manufacturers.”

Apparently, those efforts have been successful, as the article goes on to say that “the rate of maple bats breaking dropped 35 percent from 2008 to ’09 and another 15 percent from ’09 to ’10.”

It is also true that one can never legislate all of the risk from the sport.

For example, though the risk is small, we all recognize that a thrown baseball can kill a man, especially a 95 mph fastball to the head.

In fact, Ray Chapman was beaned by a pitch from Carl Mays in 1920 and died from the injury twelve hours later.

The only other death resulting from an on-field injury occurred in 1909, when Mike “Doc” Powers died from complication resulting from crashing into a wall while chasing a foul pop-up.

So there will always be risks. Yet some risks can be mitigated easier than others.

Eliminating maple bats would be a change that could easily be made without impacting the game very much, so why not do it?

For even one tragedy would be one tragedy too many.

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Look, when ranking the top players in any sport it is primarily a subjective process. I mean, you can use statistics, but those numbers do not factor in the importance of the position they play, nor the heart and desire of an athlete.

But let me tell you this: From a purely objective analysis, at least to me, Troy Tulowitzki meets all those criteria and may just be qualified to be considered the best player in baseball.

Let’s look at the facts here. First of all, does he play a critical position? Check. Along with catcher and center field, the shortstop is often considered to be the most critical player on the field.

Next, does he perform at a very high level? Um, duh. Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you know that Tulowitzki is one of the best offensive and defensive shortstops in baseball.

Is he a winner? Well, considering that he’s doing his best work as the Rockies try desperately to make the playoffs, one would have to think so.

Now, granted, he is having a phenomenal September, so it would be easy for one to say that this article is a knee-jerk reaction to the incredible work he has done this year. Admittedly, this article would have been more effective—and, in fact, somewhat controversial—if it had been written before these accomplishments.

But I can offer you this much: I am a Cubs fan who has absolutely no ties to Tulowitzki from an emotional perspective and I can assure you that I am not related to the man. I wish I was, but that’s a topic for another day.

Yes, he tied a record by homering 14 times in a 15-game stretch, and has four multi-homer games this year (all this month), and is hitting .394 with 35 RBI his last 16 games.

But this is about much more than that.

While fans of Evan Longoria, Albert Pujols, Chase Utley, and the rest may have valid arguments against Tulowitzki being named the major’s best player, it is difficult to argue that he at least should be in the conversation.

Sure, Carlos Gonzalez has also been awesome and Huston Street and Ubaldo Jimenez have been solid, but Tulowitzki was injured for much of June and July and yet has a .328/.391/.596/.987 slash with 24 homers and 88 RBI despite missing significant time this year.

Tulo also has 100 fewer plate appearances than CarGo, yet still has a higher WAR.

Tulowitzki will not turn 26 until October. Not that this should matter, but he is signed to a very team-friendly contract, so who would you rather start your team with right now?

Meanwhile, his BABIP is only .250 while doing all this damage this month.

Hey, this isn’t about whether or not he should be considered for the NL MVP. Those awards are even more subjective than the debate over who the best player is.

Instead, this is an acknowledgement that this young man from Santa Clara, CA is among the best in baseball, if not THE best.

This isn’t the first time that Tulo has been good, by the way. He hit 32 homers with a .377 OBP in 2009, with a 5.7 WAR.

Let’s not forget how good he is defensively. His UZR/150, while not a perfect measure, is 6.1 this season and 4.8 for his career.

His w/OBA is .417 in 2010, while his career is .368.

But enough about the stats. Let’s find out what his manager thinks.

As Coloradosportsdesk.com reports: “I am not heaping anything on him that he doesn’t expect of himself,” Tracy said. “He’s very much like a Jeter, or our guy Helton. He’s a winning player, a guy who sets the tone, a guy capable of being an institution here.”

Compared to Jeter? That’s pretty impressive.

I don’t know what the future will bring, as my crystal ball is currently in the shop, but I am as confident as I can be that this young man will continue to be a great player for a long, long time, assuming good health.

In fact, he just might be the best.

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Los Angeles Dodgers manager Joe Torre surprised the baseball world with the announcement on Friday that he will step down from his position following the season, named Don Mattingly his successor.

Meanwhile, we don’t yet know what Torre’s future plans include. Will he manage again or is this the end of his career?

If this is the last stop for Torre the manager, it has certainly been an interesting one. Torre, of course, is best known for the four titles he won with the New York Yankees. But is he a great manager? Is he a Hall of Famer?

Torre was once dubbed “clueless Joe” as he had a .471 winning percentage prior to 1996, with only one division title.

However, since then Torre has compiled a snazzy .590 winning percentage, 12 division titles, six pennants and those four World Series titles.

So, is he a good manager who simply had lousy teams? Or is a lucky guy who came to the Yanks at the right time, with an organization that spends money like a drunken sailor?

Similar to Phil Jackson in the NBA, the answer is probably a little bit of both. It’s not easy to manage a team of stars, yet even a good manager can’t win without talent.

As we go through the list, we compare Torre with the greats of all-time so you can form your own opinion.

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One minute, Cubs third baseman Aramis Ramirez is quoted as considering the possibility of not picking up his option for 2011. The next thing you know he’s telling the Sun-Times, ”I’m staying here, put it that way.”

This sounds to me like a guy who is working with the Cubs front office to restructure his contract.

Instead of paying Ramirez $14.6 million next year and then buying out his 2010 season for $2 million, perhaps the Cubs are going to extend the deal with more team-friendly, year-to-year salaries while giving Ramirez the longer-term extension he desires.

It had been suggested before that Ramirez was tired of playing on a losing ball club, and that his experience with Lou Piniella was less than helpful.

Meanwhile, Lou is no longer here, and money often speaks louder than any so-called desire to win, so Cubs fans can expect him to be in a Cubs uniform for awhile.

For some, this is good news. After all, when healthy, the man can hit.

But for the others who see a player who can’t stay healthy and will be turning 33 next season, this is unfortunate news.

The real kicker here is not just the injuries this season. Ramirez simply hasn’t performed well offensively. His .296 OBP is just awful, and is his lowest since 2002 with the Pirates.

Yet there is some glimmer of hope.

Post All-Star game, Ramirez has been much better. He is slugging at a .552 clip and his OBP is a weak, yet more career-like .333, thanks mainly to a higher average on balls in play.

When news that Ramirez might be considering rejecting his 2011 option became public, FanGraphs trumpeted a headline asking “Is Aramis Ramirez Insane?”

Well, apparently he found his medicine quickly, for he told Gordon Wittenmyer that he isn’t going anywhere.

And that is sound business logic since the man isn’t going to find an average annual salary of anywhere close to $14 million on the open market.

But he could get a longer-term deal, something he has to weigh the benefits of against the short-term payoff.

Unlike Adrian Beltre, who signed a one-year, “make good” contract with Boston and is now in line for a huge payday in free agency, maybe Ramirez isn’t that confident in his abilities or his health.

FanGraphs puts his projected WAR at a 3.5-4.5 range going forward, which probably makes him worth keeping around despite below average defense.

But this is based on past performance and with this injuries and miserable offensive season in 2010, can he get maintain those levels?

Well, his BABIP is only .244 this season, well below his career average of .288, which suggests some bad luck has plagued Ramirez in 2010.

For Ramirez, it’s a fairly easy decision, or at least it should be. He’s hitting much better at home than on the road and he’s comfortable here. Plus, he would be leaving almost $17 million on the table, counting the buy-out for 2012.

It’s not as easy a decision for the Cubs to swallow, however. Sure, they don’t really have anyone in place to play third base next season if Ramirez leaves. Josh Vitters seems to be regressing down on the farm.

But the Cubs could use the payroll flexibility. They need to add at least one veteran starting pitcher and improve the bullpen, all while not raising the payroll.  

The team also needs to replace Derrek Lee at first base. While some may be hoping for Adam Dunn, it is far more likely that they will go for a cheaper alternative.

According to Cots Baseball Contracts, the Cubs have more than $103 million committed to payroll for 2011. They also will be facing big arbitration raises to players like Carlos Marmol, Geo Soto, and Sean Marshall.

In other words, desperate times call for desperate measures. But those desperate measures apparently do not include saying goodbye to their third baseman.

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The 2010 Cubs season certainly will go down as one of the most disappointing and, in fact, utterly disgusting seasons in recent memory. That’s saying a lot, too, since this is a franchise that has had more than its fair share of bad seasons.

This season has featured sloppy play and poor fundamentals, and a captain who was asleep at the wheel before he resigned, twice, from the team last month.

To rub salt in the wound, next season does not look promising either, with bloated, unmovable contracts and an owner possibly looking to pare some payroll. 

Yet, despite the negatives, there were some good things for Cubs fans to celebrate and that yes, even give us faint hope for the near future.

Let’s face it, we’ve all seen and read enough about the bad stuff so why not grab the Kool-Aid and the rose colored glasses and try and discover some of the good that has happened to the Cubs this season.

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Will “MannyWood” be moving to a new address soon? Well, it seems so, and there’s a very good chance that new address will be 333 West 35th Street by next Tuesday, if all goes as planned.

That’s because the Dodgers officially placed Ramirez on waivers today, and assuming all 15 National League clubs pass on claiming Ramirez, the White Sox will have the first shot at him among American League teams, since they have the worst record of the contenders.

Odds are very favorable that will happen, since Ramirez is a liability defensively, and he would be much better suited as a DH in the AL.

Plus, why would a non-contending team claim him? They would not. So, the only reason another AL team besides the White Sox would claim Manny Ramirez would be as a favor to the Twins and that would be looked at very skeptically by MLB, I am certain.

Look, it’s certainly no secret that Sox GM Kenny Williams wants Manny. And, a claim by the Sox makes all the sense in the world for them.

From a financial standpoint, Manny is a relative bargain.

MLBTradeRumors.com, in their announcement of the Ramirez waiver, states that “As ESPN.com’s Buster Olney reported earlier in the week, about three quarters of Ramirez’s salary is deferred. That means he makes just $1.1MM between now and the end of the season despite his hefty $20MM salary. Ramirez earns the remaining $3.4MM in deferred payments, which would presumably make his salary easier to absorb.”

Meanwhile, the Pale Hose have no regular DH, and they could use a lefty slugger more than a right-handed one. They struck out on Adam Dunn, and Ramirez would be useful for his hitting prowess and playoff resume.

Plus, they would have no contractual obligations to Ramirez beyond this season, which makes this just the kind of bold and cost-effective move that Williams is known for.

If the Sox, or another team does decide to claim him, they must do so by Friday, and then they would have until Tuesday to work out a trade for the slugger.

Alternatively, LA could pull him off of waivers, which is unlikely, or they could even offer him to the claiming team for free, like the Jays did last year when the White Sox acquired Alex Rios.

What’s not to like about Manny? Well, his numbers this year are down slightly from his career averages, and there is always the specter of steroids and bizarre behavior surrounding him.

But his OBP is near .400 and he is hitting right-handers much better than lefties.

Claiming him would be a solid move for the Sox, and a trade that makes sense for the Dodgers, who are going nowhere this season.

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First of all, no one is anointing Mike Quade the next manager of your Chicago Cubs. He is an interim manager and there will be plenty of available candidates and many interviews for Cubs GM Jim Hendry to sort through this offseason.

Still, it is reasonable to assume that Quade’s assignment is an indication that he is, indeed, one of the candidates for the permanent job going forward.

As Quade himself stated, “It’s absolutely an audition.”

And, as the Associated Press announced, “Being a fixture on Piniella’s staff since 2007 and the manager of the Cubs’ triple-A affiliate for the four previous seasons gives Quade an inside track with the Cubs’ young players as they begin to remake their roster.”

Recognizing that, just what kind of manager is Quade going to be in his 37-game audition? 

Sure, it’s nice that his team has won the first two games of his managerial career, but in the grand scheme of things, that matters little.

And yes, we got a glimpse of what he prefers in his batting order as Quade decided to insert Blake DeWitt in the leadoff spot, move Alfonso Soriano down to seventh, and rest Kosuke Fukudome against right-hander Livan Hernandez in order to get Tyler Colvin back in the lineup.

But Geovany Soto was back to eighth in the lineup, and that is bad. And Tyler Colvin was back in right field. Why not play him at first base the rest of the season to see if he can play the position?

Quade has indicated that he isn’t going to put Colvin at first in the near future, which is disappointing to hear.

Now, if the Cubs were planning on signing Adam Dunn, then this might make sense. But if not, and the payroll concerns probably preclude that from happening, then you might as well move him now since you will be paying Kosuke Fukudome $13.5 million next season.

So this raises the concern that might face any so-called “interim” manager: his desire to win as many games as possible versus what is best for the club for next season.

As a minor league manager, Quade guided the West Michigan Whitecaps to the franchise’s first Midwest League championship in 1996.

The 53-year-old Quade has 17 years and 2,378 games of experience as a manager at the minor league level and seven years of coaching experience at the major league level.

He is said to be a fiery, aggressive manager, but it is difficult to find any tangible statistics to support any conclusions as to how he will manage the team.

Meanwhile, I do not think he will be given the opportunity long-term anyway. If Hendry was going to hire an unproven manager, he would be under too much pressure to hire Ryne Sandberg.

If owner Tom Ricketts has the final say, it will be Ryno.

But Hendry prefers experience at the major league level, so Fredi Gonzalez or Joe Girardi would be his choice.

Look, Chicago sports fans have already seen what a “Coach Q” can do for their hockey team, so maybe they will turn to their own version of “Coach Q” for their baseball team!

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Assuming that everything that owner Tom Ricketts has told us is true, and Jim Hendry really will be leading the search for the next Cubs manager to replace the retiring (retired?) Lou Piniella, do not believe that former Cubs legend Ryne Sandberg is a lock to be the man.

In fact, if you read into the tea leaves, Hendry doesn’t feel that Ryne is ready to be a major league manager and instead would prefer one with previous major league experience.

Many feel that Sandberg is a great bet to be named the next Cubs skipper, given his legacy and the fact that he has not only spent the past few years riding the buses in the minors, but has publicly campaigned for the job.

However, unless Ricketts fires Hendry, which isn’t likely to happen, or influences the decision in some way, Hendry is much more likely to select a guy like his personal friend and former Marlins manager, Fredi Gonzalez.

The only caveat is that Gonzalez is the consensus top choice to replace Bobby Cox as manager of the Atlanta Braves, according to multiple baseball sources.

Meanwhile, Sandberg will certainly get an interview, but who else?

Sources say former Tribe manager Eric Wedge is high on Hendry’s list and you can also expect current Cubs TV analyst and former Diamondbacks skipper Bob Brenly to get at least a courtesy interview.

The wild card here is if the Yankees allow Joe Girardi to become a free agent. A lot depends on the results of this season, of course, but it seems highly unlikely that Brian Cashman will let Girardi go.

Sure, Girardi is a former Cub and has a home in town, but he also won a World Series in New York and has strong ties to that city, so he is only going to be a candidate for the job if the Yanks don’t want him.

Other potential candidates include Washington third base coach Pat Listach and San Diego Padres bench coach Ted Simmons.

But Hendry’s preference for a manager who has experience seems to be based on his perception of just how difficult a job it is managing the Cubs, given their history of losing and the expectations of Cubs fans who are sick of waiting for a title.

According to “Talkin’ Baseball” on ESPN 1000, Hendry said: “There’s a heavier price to pay because of that long drought without a championship, and the scrutiny that you’re under on a daily basis in that position.

“But obviously, the weight of the world is on you as far as eventually having to win a world championship.”

Regardless of what happens, Sandberg may be on the Cubs bench next season as a coach, even if he is not named the next Cubs manager.

Can anyone end this drought? That’s both the lure as well as the curse facing the next Cubs manager.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

Unless Cubs GM Jim Hendry makes some significant moves this off season, the Cubs rotation for next year could be really bad.

In fact, the Cubs top starter looks to be Ryan Dempster, who would be a fourth or fifth starter on any other “contending” club.

Of course, that is assuming the Cubs will be contenders next season, an assumption that is not likely to be realized.

Even in an average rotation, one would have to look long and hard to find a worse number one than Dempster.

Dempster isn’t bad, mind you, but he just isn’t an ace despite being paid like one.

Meanwhile, how does a rotation of Dempster, Randy Wells, Carlos Zambrano, Carlos Silva and Tom Gorzelanny grab you?

Yeah, I thought so.

None of us know what to expect out of Zambrano. But if his current starts are any indication, he is not only a bad character, his velocity is down and he looks to be washed up at such a young age.

Plus, who is to say that Big Z will even be with the club next year? You know they would love to move him, only his outrageous contract and no-trade clause will prevent that from happening.

Wells is an enigma who is not blessed with enormous talent, so he has to have perfect control to be effective. I doubt he will ever be more than a fifth starter candidate.

Silva, meanwhile, is returning to the awful ways of his career. He is a bad pitcher who got off to an incredible start. Only his huge contract prevents the club from releasing his fat ass.

And Gorzelanny? Um, does he really do it for you? He shows flashes of being an acceptable fifth starter but there is no guarantee.

Since the Cubs have only one position available in which to upgrade their miserable offense (first base), don’t expect the team to be able to deal with a lack of quality pitching.

Look, the bullpen, aside from Sean Marshall and Carlos Marmol, is basically nonexistent.

All this combines to create a gloomy forecast for 2011.

I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but things don’t look good, fellow Cubs fans. And the rotation leads the way.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

Former pitching great Roger Clemens has been indicted by a grand jury for lying under oath and not admitting that he used performance-enhancing drugs.

But Clemens, if guilty, would certainly not be the only baseball player to present false truths to the public. The fact that it was done while under oath during grand jury testimony is what makes it so reprehensible and a potential crime, but still, that doesn’t make the other nine of these lies any less damaging.

Some of these are funny, some are ridiculous, and others just damning, but all are worth taking a look at. Which are your personal favorites? Do you have more to add that I may have missed?

So, strap it down, relax, and prepare to enter the land where truth is nowhere to be found. Really, that’s the truth, I am not lying.

Oh, but these guys are!

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