US WNT Olympic roster announced

The final cuts have been made for the US WNT’s roster of 18 bound for Beijing! Who made Pia Sundhage’s list? Who got cut? Why? How close was I when I made my original predictions (save for the recent injuries)? Well, check out the roster and my usual commentary:

Goalkeepers:
Nicole Barnhart
Hope Solo

Forwards:
Natasha Kai
Amy Rodriguez
Abby Wambach

Midfielders:
Shannon Boxx
Tobin Heath
Angela Hucles
Carli Lloyd
Heather O’Reilly
Lindsay Tarpley
Aly Wagner

Defenders:
Rachel Buehler
Lori Chalupny
Stephanie Cox
Kate Markgraf
Heather Mitts
Christie Rampone

Alternates:
Goalkeeper: Briana Scurry
Forward: Lauren Cheney
Midfielder: Kacey White
Defender: Ali Krieger

Alright, starting with the keepers, as usual. No surprises there. I don’t know why it’s major news to every media outlet that Solo is the No. 1 keeper for the US. We got it. She made a few choice statements and paid the price. She worked her way back onto the team and is one of the best, if not the best, keeper in the game. If a guy made the same sort of statements, I doubt it would have gotten much attention. Well, unless he was a Yankee. Briana Scurry was the best keeper in the world, but her abilities have proven to be increasingly diminished, which is why she was left off. Nicole Barnhart is a fantastic keeper as well and had a smooth recovery from knee surgery. Great choices.

Now to the forwards. I was wondering if they’d be going with three or four of them, and it looks like it’s going to be three forwards with Heather O’Reilly perfectly capable of playing it as well. Lauren Cheney was the casualty. Cheney is an excellent forward and plays for my UCLA Bruins, so I was a bit sad about the cut, but I can also understand it. The US is putting extra emphasis on their backline and the midfield. Abby Wambach will, of course, be the biggest weapon and one of the most powerful players on the field. Natasha Kai has become increasingly powerful this year; she has seriously kicked up her game since the Algarve Cup. Wambach and Kai will probably be the primary starters, a killer 1-2 punch. Amy Rodriguez will probably get her fair share of playing time and has a nice speed game, so she is a good choice.

I was a bit surprised about how many midfielders were going to fill the roster this time. However, like I said, O’Reilly might put in time at forward. The youngster Tobin Heath made the roster, which was unsurprising. The other no-doubters were Shannon Boxx, Angela Hucles (especially given her recent play), Carli Lloyd, and Lindsay Tarpley. Lloyd, Hucles, and Tarpley have been especially stellar this year, while Shannon Boxx is always a reliable player. The biggest surprise for me was that Aly Wagner made the team. Maybe it’s because she was coming off some major injuries and hadn’t had a whole lot of opportunity to play until…well, the Peace Queen Cup, but I didn’t think she’d make it. She didn’t really have the playing time of the others, so I do applaud the way she came back and made the team.

Stephanie Cox made the Olympic squad and will be a defender. I had originally left her off the roster, though I did waiver between Cox and Krieger when Cat Whitehill went down with the ACL injury. After originally being left off the Peace Queen Cup roster, Cox got called back to the team after Whitehill went down and ended up beating Krieger (the alternate) out for a spot. Krieger hadn’t played much for the US because she was playing for her club team in Germany. Mitts is finally back from her ACL injury and has proven herself capable of playing a full 90, which is the main reason I left her off my original choices. Mitts has been a nice spark when she has played, so if she keeps healthy, it’s an obvious choice to have her on the team. Buehler, Chalupny, Markgraf, and Rampone were no-doubters.

The alternates are all fine players, but the only way that they will be able to play in Beijing is if a player suffers an injury…and I certainly don’t want to see that happen. The US has already lost two prominent players in Cat Whitehill and Leslie Osborne due to ACL injuries (at least 8 months recovery); any additional blows to the squad would be terrible to see.

Okay, enough of my rambling. What do you think of the 18 girls who will represent the US? Like ‘em? Hate ‘em? Not sure? Could care less but want me to shut up about soccer already (ain’t gonna happen)? I want to hear your thoughts!

Covering the bases

Today was not a great day for the Yankees at all. The pitching looked more lost than anything. I’ll have a lot more on them coming your way in the near future, but, for now, enjoy catching up:

Yankees: OF Justin Christian, a right-handed bat (that’s probably why he’s up instead of Gardner), made his MLB debut today and connected for his first big league hit. He took up the spot on the roster previously held by pitcher Steven White, who is going all kinds of backwards in AAA. Billy Traber was optioned to AAA to make room on the 25-man.

Astros: 2B Kazuo Matsui was placed on the 15-day DL with a hamstring injury. IF David Newhan was called up from AAA.

Cubs: Pitcher Sean Marshall got the call from AAA to take the place of OF Reed Johnson, who was placed on the 15-day DL. IF Daryle Ward was activated from the 15-day DL and IF Micah Hoffpauir was optioned to AAA.

Tigers: OF Gary Sheffield was activated from the 15-day DL…no word if his mouth was activated as well. 1B Jeff Larish was sent back to AAA.

A’s: The A’s signed pitchers Anthony Capra, Ben Hornbeck, and Daniel Thomas.

Mets: 1B Ike Davis was signed by the Mets. Pitcher Claudio Vargas was optioned to AAA, so pitcher Carlos Muniz was brought up from AAA to take his place.

Indians: IF Tony Graffanino and pitcher Juan Rincon were inked to minor league deals.

Royals: The Royals claimed pitcher Robinson Tejeda off waivers. If he could harness his control, he might be able to help. That’s a big “if,” though.

Giants: Pitcher Vinne Chulk was DFA’d. Taking his place on the roster is Sergio Romo out of AA.

Meet the newest Yankee outfielder

I’ve found the next person who should be called on to play outfield for the Yankees. My only question: can she hit homers as well as she can rob them?

I know, I know, it’s fake…but it’s totally awesome anyway!

Covering the bases

Got some Yankees news for you and the usual. Have fun:

Yankees: Sir Sidney Ponson is almost a lock to pitch on Friday in one of the games of the twinbill. Hold your breath. How can you tell? The pitcher for Scranton on the day that would be his start is TBA. I think I’d prefer Jeff Karstens.

Phillies: The Phils signed pitcher Jason Knapp.

Reds: IF Jeff Keppinger was activated from the 15-day DL, so the HOF nice guy Andy Phillips was DFA’d. I hope he is able to catch on somewhere else.

O’s: IF Freddie Bynum was DFA’d, allowing the O’s to bring up pitcher Ryan Bukvich from AAA.

Rockies: IF Clint Barmes was activated from the 15-day DL. IF Ian Stewart was optioned back to AAA to accomodate the move.

Royals: Pitcher Horacio Ramirez was recalled from AAA. Pitcher Carlos Rosa was sent to AAA.

Pirates: Pitcher Phil Dumatrait was placed on the 15-day DL. Former Yankee T.J. Beam was called up from AAA…hey, just in time to face his former team. Let’s hope he fairs just as well as he did while he was with the Yankees. Then he can have all the success in the world.

US WNT: The Olympic roster has been announced! I’ll give you a breakdown on that tomorrow. A couple of surprises to me, but, like I said, I’ll get on that tomorrow.

Covering the bases

The defense has been quite unkind to the Yankees of late, helping to lead them to thier past two losses at the hands of the Reds. Wanted posters are scattering the Bronx, as the search is on for offense. The Yankees will look to stop the bleeding tomorrow by sending Andy Pettitte to the mound. A sweep would definitely not be welcome heading into a day off on Monday.

Yankees: Dan Giese pitched a great game for the Yankees, working into the 7th inning and giving up 3 unearned runs. He’ll likely get his next start against the Mets at some point in this coming week.

Nationals: 3B Pete Orr and pitcher Steven Shell were brought up from AAA as OF Ryan Langerhans was outrighted to AAA and pitchers Garrett Mock and Brian Sanches were optioned back to AAA.

A’s: IF Donnie Murphy was activated from the 15-day DL. IF Gregorio Petit was optioned back from AAA to make room.

Pirates: The Buccos called up OF Nyjer Morgan from AAA and optioned pitcher Marino Salas back there.

Cardinals: Pitcher Mike Parisi was recalled from AAA. Pitcher Brad Thompson was sent down to AAA.

Rockies: Good news for the Rockies. SS defensive extraordinaire Troy Tulowitzki was activated from the 15-day DL. IF Doug Bernier was optioned to AAA in his place.

Cubs: Pitcher Carlos Zambrano was placed on the 15-day DL (retroactive to June 19). They just aren’t having any luck, are they? IF Eric Patterson was called up yet again from AAA.

Marlins: Here are their most recent draft signings: pitchers Peter Andrelczyk, Daniel Jennings, Bryan Evans, Johnny Dorn, Andy Loomis, Thomas Koehler, Wade Korpi, Skyler Crawford, Wayman Gooch, Brandon Todd and Drew Clothier, IFs Paul Gran, Michael Turner, Daniel Pertusati, Lonnie Lechelt, Jason Peacock, Richard Orton, Matthew Lokken and Joel Staples, OFs Isaac Galloway, Kenneth Bass, Kevin Mattison, Brian Schultz and Michael Synan and catchers Konrad Thieme, Zachary Moore and Robert Taylor.

Red Sox: Pitcher Mike Timlin was placed on the 15-day DL (retroactive to June 17) and pitcher Dice-K Matsuzaka was activated from the 15-day DL…and got bombed. The Sox also signed some of their picks: pitchers Stephen Fife and Michael Lee and OFs Bryan Peterson and Tyler Yockey.

Rangers: Pitcher Doug Mathis is off to the 15-day DL (retroactive to June 16), so pitcher Luis Mendoza gets a chance to fill his spot, coming up from AAA. Catcher Gerald Laird was placed on the 15-day DL. Needing another catcher, the Rangers summoned Max Ramirez from AA.

Brewers: Pitcher Mitch Stetter was recalled from AAA, while pitcher Tim Dillard was optioned back to AAA. The Brewers signed pitcher Jake Odorizzi.

Braves: IF Brent Lillibridge (try typing that 5 times) was called up from AAA to take the place of pitcher Jeff Ridgeway, who was sent to AAA.

Reds: IF Jolbert Cabrera was placed on the 15-day DL. Pitcher Daryl Thompson was recalled from AAA…and shut out the Yanks. Dang him.

Blue Jays: It just gets better for the Jays. New manager, GM on the hot seat, pitcher Shaun Marcum headed to the 15-day DL, and OF Adam Lind is recalled from AAA…a day in the life.

NBA: Carlos Boozer and Deron Williams are going to be put on the US Men’s Basketball Team that will be headed to Beijing! Awesome!

US WNT: Wow. What a freakin incredible match! The US WNT defeated Canada 1-0 in the championship match of the Peace Queen Cup! Angela Hucles got the goal for the US in stoppage time (so clutch!!!!) while Hope Solo pulled off many spectacular saves to help the US to capture the title and 200k prize money. Fantastic tune-up to the Olympics! Now that the Peace Queen Cup is over, the Olympic roster should be announced shortly.

Sidney Ponson pitching for the Yankees becomes more likely

Steven White, a AAA pitcher for the Yankees, has had his fair share of struggles this year. In fact, he was taken out of their starting rotation and moved to the bullpen because of his sudden difficulty in getting hitters out. This morning, Joel Sherman of the New York Post reported that White has now been removed from the 40-man roster after going unclaimed through waivers.

Now the Yankees have an open spot on the 40-man and they’re looking for someone who might pitch in the Yankees’ day-night, 2-stadium doubleheader against the Mets. Now, let’s see…what pitcher is down in AAA that the Yanks are most likely to use in that tilt that aren’t on the current roster? Answers: Dan McCutchen or Sidney Ponson.

It’s not going to be Alan Horne in all likelihood because he is starting to build up on innings again after missing a good portion of this season with a bicep injury. McCutchen hasn’t pitched much in AAA, though he has done well. His main problem is having a bad inning that hurts his overall outing, though, last time out, he did throw a complete game shut out. Maybe everything clicked for him.

However, given experience, it’s probably going to be Sidney Ponson. That’s not exactly a comforting thought, but that’s who you will probably see on the mound of Yankee Stadium or Shea. Hold your breath. Sir Sid looks like he might be on his way to a roster spot.

Now that begs a question: which pitcher is going down?

It’s “Fire Your Manager Week”

Fire Your Manager week rolled on today as yet another announcement was made to the firing of an MLB manager. Who got it this time? The guy who always got along well with his players, John Gibbons.

Gibbons always had a sweet, even-tempered attitude, especially when it came to players like Shea Hillenbrand (Where is he now, anyway?) and Ted Lilly. With the Blue Jays in the cellar of the AL East (Yes, you read that right…it’s not the O’s), it was announced earlier this morning that John Gibbons has been fired and will be replaced by the man who led them to back-to-back titles in 1992-1993, Cito Gasto.

Sorry Jays fans. You might have the best pitching staff, but since there is no offense to really speak of, it’s going to be awfully hard for even Gasto to right the ship. Then you’ve got to contend with the Yankees, Red Sox, and Rays. I guess you’ll have to use the mantra I always use for my Vikings and Jazz: “Maybe next year.”

Switchies are fun to mess with

There was loads of fun to be had watching the debacle of a switch pitcher going after a switch hitter in his pro debut. Yes, the much-awaited ambidextrous Pat Venditte made his debut for Staten Island last night and had a nice play of ring-around-the-glove, mound, batter’s box…and wherever else you can place yourself in those 60′6″ between the mound and home.

It was in what turned out to be the final AB of the game that Pat Venditte got to face the Brooklyn Cyclone’s DH Ralph Henriquez, a switch hitter. Let’s have a look at the ensuing action:

God, I hope he makes it to the majors. It would certainly provide additional entertainment to the game! Sadly, by that time, they just might establish the Venditte Rules to prevent this from a “delay of game” fine.

Covering the bases

It has been an eventful couple of days for the Yankees, who are in the midst of the final game of their series against the Padres. A couple of new signings and a couple of wins…and the usual stuff happening elsewhere.

Yankees: He’s baaaaack. Sir Sidney Ponson (no, really, he is knighted in Aruba) has signed a minor league deal with the Yankees following his release from the Rangers. He pitched for the Yanks in 2006 to a bad result, but he had been pitching better this year. He is a candidate to start one of the games of the twinbill against the Mets. For now, Dan Giese serves as your #5 starter. The Yankees also signed Oneli Perez and sent him to AA. He had to be put on the roster, so Albie was moved to the 60-day DL. He’s not going to pitch again this year because of a stress fracture in his elbow. Perez is unique in that he has 12 fingers. The Yanks have quite the collectable set, don’t they? Pat Venditte, who is an ambidextrous pitcher, and now Perez, the 12-fingered pitcher.

Mariners: The M’s are in the business of cleaning house. First, GM Bill Bavasi was fired. Now Manager John McLaren is headed off into the sunset. Jim Riggleman will serve as the interim manager.

Dodgers: Pitcher Hiroki Kuroda was placed on the 15-day DL.

A’s: Pitcher Santiago Casilla was activated from the 15-day DL. To make room for him, pitcher Kiko Calero was DFA’d.

Brewers: Pitcher David Riske was reinstated from the 15-day DL. Pitcher Julian Tavarez was DFA’d again…he had been signed after being granted his release from the Red Sox earlier this year.

Reds: Pitcher Homer Bailey was optioned to AAA, but he is scheduled to start against the Yankees in the second game of their upcoming series. It is likely he will be recalled for Saturday’s game and face Dan Giese, who is getting his first start for the Yankees. OF Norris Hopper was activated from the 15-day DL.

White Sox: The White Sox announced some draft pick signings: pitchers Aaron Poreda, Leroy Hunt, Nathan Jones, Johnnie Lowe, Kevin Skogley, Levi Maxwell, Thomas Mabee, Daniel Albritton and Ronald Morales, OF James Gallagher, SSs Sergio Miranda, Gregory Paiml and Dale Mollenhauer and 2B Oney Guillen.

Rockies: The Rockies also signed a couple of draft choices, pitcher Christian Friedrich (their #1) and 2B Maikol Gonzalez.

Mets: Now that Willie Randolph is fired, will he still be a coach in the All Star Game?

Angels: IF Erick Aybar was activated from the 15-day DL.

Cardinals: Pitcher Anthony Reyes was placed on the 15-day DL (retroactive to June 16).

Tigers: OF Clete Thomas was activated from the 15-day DL, making the Tigers option OF Brent Clevlen to AAA.

US Open: Tiger Woods’ win at the US Open became just a bit more incredible yesterday as it was announced that he knew that he had a couple of torn ligaments AND a stress fractured knee. Even if you didn’t want him to win, you have to admit that that is pretty incredible.

US WNT: The ladies took down Italy 2-0 very early this morning to advance to the championship match of the Peace Queen Cup. They will face Canada again. Abby Wambach provided all of the offense, giving her 98 career goals. Carli Lloyd played with a mask on to protect the broken nose that she suffered in their previous match against Brazil. Captain Christie Rampone did not play, so Kate Markgraf was the captain for the day. Some of the regulars got their first breathers of the tournament by either not starting or just not playing. Those would be Hope Solo (Nicole Barnhart started and played well in her first game back from surgery), Christie Rampone, Heather Mitts, Abby Wambach (at the very end), Natasha Kai, Shannon Boxx, and Lindsay Tarpley. This let some of the people who hadn’t gotten a chance to play some needed minutes. I managed to stay awake for the entire match, which was nice.

Covering the bases

After the news of their ace going down has had a couple of days to sink in, the Yanks responded with a resounding 8-0 shutout victory over the Padres. Andy was dandy and the Bombers were bombing away. Alright, enough of my little rhyme fun. Catching up:

Yankees: Billy Traber (remember him?) was called up from AAA to replace Chien-Ming Wang (sniff), who was placed on the 15-day DL and is out until at least September.

Mets: The classless Mets FO fired Willie Randolph early this morning and replaced him with Jerry Manuel. Omar Minaya made a disasterous press conference and the Mets lost their game against the Angels. Good day for them. What could be better? Having them re-hire Steve Phillips. They deserve each other…and it’d get him off of Baseball Tonight. See? Works for everyone.

Mariners: GM Bill Bavasi was fired. No surprises there.

Nationals: Pitcher Tyler Clippard was optioned to AAA again to make room for Paul Lo Duca, who was activated from the 15-day DL.

Tigers: Pitcher Fernando Rodney was put on the 15-day DL.

Rangers: Pitcher Sidney Ponson was waived…maybe the Yanks will take another go at him. He didn’t pitch too badly while with Texas. Pitcher Thomas Diamond was activated from the 60-day DL and was optioned to AAA.

Red Sox: Pitcher Bartolo Colon was placed on the 15-day DL with a back problem. Pitcher Chris Smith was recalled form AAA. The Sox also signed a couple of their draft picks. Catcher Christian Vazquez was signed and sent to Rookie ball, while pitcher Kyle Weiland was signed and assigned to A-ball.

White Sox: 1B Paul Konerko was put on the 15-day DL. OF DeWayne Wise got the call in AAA.

Dodgers: Pitcher Brad Penny was placed on the 15-day DL. Pitcher Eric Stults was recalled from AAA.

Rockies: Catcher Edwin Bellorin was sent to AAA to make room for IF Doug Bernier. Pitcher Micah Bowie was moved to the 60-day DL in a move to make room on the 40-man.

Padres: OF Chase Headley was called up from AAA and OF Justin Huber was outrighted to AAA.

NBA: Dang it. The Celtics blew the Lakers out of the water in epic fashion to claim the NBA title.

US WNT: The US WNT finished off Brazil 1-0 at about the same time Willie Randolph was fired. Hope Solo did indeed start in goal and recorded the shutout. Amy Rodriguez scored the only goal of the match. It was a pretty physical game. Within the first 15 minutes, both teams had lost a player to injury. Carli Lloyd took a shot off the nose and broke it. She was removed from the match and Angela Hucles took her place. In only the 7th minute of the match, Brazilian Aline went down with a knee injury and was removed from the match on a stretcher. US team captain Christie Rampone also had to leave the action early with an apparent ankle injury. She is listed as day-to-day, while Lloyd is listed as likely to play in the next match against Italy. No, I do not know why Solo was wearing the US MNT jersey. Your guess is as good as mine. I suppose if I find the answer, I’ll pass the info along.