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"Pitchers and Catchers report." Some of my favorite words spoken toward the end of winter's long cold days.  From the time the last pitch is thrown in the Fall Classic until the day battery mates start arriving at their respective Spring Training grounds; I eagerly await this phrase. It, of course, means the beginning of yet another baseball season.  With it comes the hope of fans for all 30 Major League teams; the promise of a new year and improved teams. For the front office, management, and the coaching staff of the…

After contending most of the 2016 season, the New York Yankees found themselves on the outside looking in, finishing five games behind the Toronto Blue Jays and Baltimore Orioles for the two Wild Card spots in the American League. Instead of loading up on free agents in the off-season, the Yankee brass has decided to let the young guns take the wheel. Gone are high profile players such as Carlos Beltran (traded to Texas at the deadline), Alex Rodriguez (released), Mark Teixeira (retired), Nathan Eovaldi (released) and…

NHL Award Winner Predictions As the NHL season nears its conclusion, speculation begins among enthusiasts as to who may win what major awards. Some years most awards have near-guarantees, but this year sees the race for the Art Ross, Rocket Richard, Vezina and Calder trophies have multiple deserving candidates. Art Ross Trophy The Art Ross Trophy is awarded annually to the NHL's overall points leader at season's end. If things wrapped up today, Chicago Blackhawks forward Patrick Kane would be taking home the hardware.…

Vegas Golden Knights Expansion Mock Draft When the 2017-18 NHL season kicks off in October, they will do so with a new addition. As of March 1, the Vegas Golden Knights are officially an NHL team, and when this season's playoffs end, all eyes will be on them and the June 21 expansion draft. NHL Fans have all been reading the rules over and over, but as a refresher, each team can protect either: Seven forwards, three defensemen and one goaltender (or) Eight total skaters (forwards or defensemen) and one goaltender…

Fantasy Baseball: 2017 Sleeper Closers Every Fantasy Baseball year we’re faced with the difficult task of having to fill that relief pitcher spot on our fantasy rosters. Dominant, guaranteed closers are a rarity in today’s game, and outside of Aroldis Chapman, Kenley Jansen, and Zach Britton, no one’s a sure thing. Of course, some closers have more room for error than others, but there’s no doubt that we’ll be seeing a ton of new guys getting save chances this season. Whether you’re in a categories league, points, or…

March Madness Preview Our favorite college basketball month is upon us, and everyone is racking their brains at who they should pick when filling out their bracket. Whether you like to analyze the stats behind the teams, pick based off of team’s mascots or simply throw darts at a wall to make your decisions, coming out strong in the first few days is very important. I can't predict the future, but I tell you why I like the following seven teams in the upcoming tournament. #12 Princeton: 23-6 (14-0 conference) First…

Good pitching stops good hitting. The breaks tend to even out. Ninety percent of baseball is half mental. Those three sentences represent three baseball-related category quotes; the first is generally true, since the very best major league hitters fail to get a base hit seven out of every ten times they go to the plate or do not reach base six out of ten, giving any random major league pitcher an advantage over any random major league hitter. Even the great Ted Williams had a lifetime OBP (.482) of under 500. The second…

Money Ball 2.0 Thursday's NFL free agency frenzy marked the beginning of another calendar year for pro football. As cash-laden teams clamored for what's essential, another team's unwanted trash. Two teams were finalizing a deal, that would change free agency forever. Going into the day the Cleveland Browns were expected to be at the forefront of activity, due to the $102m cap space at their disposal. Meanwhile, the Houston Texans found themselves with an ailing quarterback (who they'd signed to a 4-year $72m contact)…

MLB Fantasy Buyer Beware Every year there are those veterans that show a significant decline, prospects that don’t demonstrate the level of sustained improvement to make the cut, or over hyped players based on one year of success. At any time a player can break out or produce one of those “outlier” years. Fantasy players love to identify those draft day values or breakout stars, but in building a successful team, there must also be an attempt to determine those players that may not perform to the level their rankings or…