Kuzul

Andy Pettitte is one of the most popular players of the Joe Torre era that netted the Yankee franchise four World Series rings and six trips to the October classic. His return was met with far more excitement than skepticism; after all, Pettitte won't be 40 until June and even though he hasn't pitched since 2010, he managed to amass an 11-3 record and a 3.28 ERA in what was assumed to be his final season as a major league pitcher. Of course, all that changed yesterday when it was announced that Pettitte was returning to New York to don pinstripes and give it another go. It's safe to assume that nearly every Yankee fan will be rooting for Pettitte's success. One has to wonder if when Pettitte's people contacted the Yankees, someone in the Yankee front office said to themselves, "Thanks a lot, Andy; you couldn't have let us know about this ...

Watching spring training baseball is not the most intense experience when it comes to viewing live sporting events.The fans in the stands look relaxed, the weather is warm and sunny, the players seem laid back. It's enough to make one forget about what exactly is taking place. There are, after all, only so many spots available on the opening day roster of any baseball team and as the month of March ticks down toward the start of April, players are going to become aware of their presence on or off of that roster. For some players making the team is a given. Dustin Pedroia doesn't go home at night in Fort Meyers thinking, "I sure do hope I make the club this year." That wasn't always the case though. Five years ago Dustin Pedroia was in that unenviable position. Entering the 2007 season Pedroia had started only 24 games in the majors, and while ...

Here's something odd to ponder. Will fans, media and even perhaps members of the actual team (the ones who have remained at least) look back on the end of the 2011 season, along with all of its traumatic aftermath, and think to themselves, "we're all better off that things went down the way they did?"It's not a normal way to view things that one finds to be so agitating. Make no mistake about it, unless you were one of the people for whom their actual job changed or was at least altered as a result of last season's Red Sox implosion, then it really wasn't that bad. Don't get me wrong, it was bad. It was the worst way to end a baseball regular season that I can remember. Even worse, was the fallout. Red Sox fans had to endure the departures of long-standing favorites. Symbols of success had become ones of ...

The funny thing about the end of the 2011 Red Sox season is that there's never really been any sort of settled story about what exactly transpired as the Red Sox stumbled to a third place American League East finish. Beer? Chicken? A lack of conditioning? Discord in the clubhouse? Anger at the owner? All have been discussed in various formats and forums.We know there was a mix of all of these aspects that probably contributed in some way to the team's poor performance. We don't know what that mix was though. We don't know if things would have turned out differently had one, two or all of these things not transpired. When Josh Beckett, a player whose name seemed to surface when any and all of these transgressions were brought up in the press, took to the airwaves earlier in the week to finally voice his own opinion on the accusations. There ...

It's not that there aren't some legitimate questions about the Red Sox and their rotation heading into the 2012 season. It's not that the two pitchers who eventually end up getting the bulk of the starts out of the number four and number five slots in the rotation won't have a dramatic impact on how the upcoming season pans out. It's just that it's also important to remember that the first three slots in the starting pitching rotation otherwise known as "the heart of the rotation" for the bulk of major league teams is or could be pretty darned good.Yes, John Lackey and Daisuke Matsuzaka are hurt, and no, the Sox never did land any of the high profile starting pitchers that dotted the free-agent landscape for just over three months.John Maine, Vicente Padilla and Aaron Cook are on the list of potential back-of-the-rotation starters. It's the type of list that might ...

By late January of last season most Red Sox fans were already counting the days until Spring Training. The Bruins and Celtics were both smack dab in the midst of the long NBA and NHL regular seasons. The New England Patriots had just absorbed a nightmarish ending to a promising season at the hands of their hated rival—the New York Jets. The Red Sox were front and center. They had traded for Adrian Gonzalez and signed outfielder Carl Crawford. John Lackey had looked decent at the end of the 2010 season and Jacoby Ellsbury was healthy as well. Winning the American League East had already become an almost foregone conclusion in the minds of many fans and baseball writers. The Red Sox were picked to make the World Series by numerous publications and predictors. Things are a little different this January. The Patriots, in case anyone was not aware, are preparing to play in one ...

Every year there's a new Hall of Fame Ballot for the members of the Baseball Writers Association of America to choose players from to induct into the hall. The ballot is generally made up of some pretty good former major league players. Then again there are always some odd names on it ballot as well. This year is no different. Sure, you've got guys like Lee Smith, Barry Larkin, Jack Morris, Alan Trammel, Jeff Bagwell and Bernie Williams. All of them were very good players who are deserving of being in the discussion for induction into the Hall. There are also some puzzling names as well. Any player with more than 10 years of experience in Major League Baseball has the opportunity to pass through a screening committee and end up on the ballot. That's fine, those are the rules. In general, the Hall of Fame gets it right more often than they get ...

Baseball is a sport that inspires its fans, at least its most passionate and ardent ones to follow it year round. For those fans the 2011 season started on Jan. 1, 2011 and will end at midnight on Dec. 31, 2011. In that one-year span, there are numerous stories. Each franchise has a storyline for the whole year. Some teams had more memorable years than others, but the most passionate fans of every team will leave 2011 with memories. For some fans 2011 won't be that memorable. Maybe if you're an Astros or Twins fan the 2011 season, or the whole year actually may be worth forgetting. For other fans, 2011 will be unforgettable for the wrong reasons. Braves and Red Sox fans own this title. For fans of the Tigers, Rangers, Rays, Diamondbacks and  of course the St. Louis Cardinals, 2011 was not just unforgettable but also memorable. Lots of good stories were written ...

There are times when Major League Baseball's propensity for showcasing all things Red Sox, Yankees, Cubs, Phillies and Cardinals make sense. There are also times when it becomes painfully clear that some teams just don't get the same recognition they deserve.If the New York Yankees had traded a top hitting prospect as part of a package for a very talented potential No. 1 or 2 starter this afternoon, there would be news bulletins everywhere. Instead there was just moderate attention given to a fairly significant five-player deal completed between the Cincinnati Reds and San Diego Padres Saturday.The Reds acquired one of the better pitchers in the National League, Mat Latos, in exchange for a very nice set of young players who will likely play major roles in San Diego both this season and the future. The Reds had to part with Edinson Volquez, Yonder Alonso, Yasmani Grandal and Brad Boxberger.The trade signals that ...

With baseball's winter meetings poised to begin in Dallas on Monday, the rumor mill is already heating up. Michael Silverman of The Boston Herald is reporting that the Boston Red Sox have scheduled a meeting with agent Bob Garber. Garber is the agent who represents both C.J. Wilson and Roy Oswalt. Oswalt and Wilson are two of the highest profile free agent pitchers on the market this winter.The Red Sox promise to be among the most active of teams in the coming weeks. The recent hiring of Bobby Valentine as manager brings a final completion of the restructuring of the general manager and managerial position.With those positions filled, the Red Sox can begin the process of trying to find answers for the numerous questions raised both by the poor play last September and the spate of rumors involving clubhouse discord and apathy that emerged in the aftermath of the team's collapse. ...