I was fortunate to get some tickets to the Bears vs. Cardinals preseason game last friday night. Needless to say we I was really excited. I had never been to the new Soldier Field and was really anxious to see the interior of it. It did not disappoint. I sat in the 400 level and felt like I was right on top of the action. The seats were great. I could see the whole field and even when people were huffing and puffing up the steep stairs, because it was so steep they didn’t impede my view. I also was able to look out onto the lakeshore and see the Shedd Aquarium and Chicago’s skyline. So that part of the evening was spectacular.

Unfortunately there was a game going on as well. That was less spectacular to look at. The Bears looked awful. Their offense couldn’t mount a drive if their jobs depended on it (If only that were the case). Muhsin Muhammad first dropped a ball that hit hims square in the hands and then had the stones to throw up his hands later in the game when he was overthrown. Moose, we get, you want us to know that your QBs suck, we get it. Now if you can just work on you NOT SUCKING. That’d be great. Thanks. Muhsin was not the only Bears receiver with a problem catching the ball, it seemed that they all have been practicing that. The running game wasn’t too much better. Of course it was a preseason game so the backs didn’t really get a chance to get into a groove. But isn’t game 3 supposed to be a dressed rehearsal for the regular season? Yikes. I hope not.

I expected the offense to look terrible. What I didn’t expect was the defense to look very average. It seemed like Urlacher always had an offensive lineman on him. It looked like the guys up front for the Bears defense weren’t getting it done. The secondary looked terrible too. I don’t recall them getting lit up a lot, but they definitely blew a lot of coverages. I bet they’re gonna get waxed in the film room. They need to get better, a lot better.

Now for the quarterback. Please Lovie don’t make us watch Rex Grossman any more. Do the good and decent thing. Play anyone but Grossman. Unfortunately Jeff George has work now or maybe the Bears could have picked him up. I definitely am not in love with Brian Griese, but he can actually run a pro offense. The same can be said for Kyle Orton. I have been a fan of Orton’s since day one. I realize Orton and Griese will never ever ever ever be Montana and Young. I’m ok with that. Can either of them be Trent Dilfer? Definitely. Can Grossman be Trent Dilfer? Hell, I’d like it if Grossman could be Chad Hutchinson.

*** UPDATE ***
The Bears played the Cardinals week 6 of the regular season.
Click here to read about it.

Kyle from Keep Hope Alive brings some serious statistical backing in the debate about the Cubs 2007 centerfielder. Who do you want roaming centerfield at the friendly confines next year?

Well, it looks like Brett Myers (6-4 240) can pitch as well as he can hit. Myers, along with Jimmy Rollins leads the Phillies over the Cubs to pull within one game of the NL Central leading St. Louis Cardinals.

The notorious wife beater put that hobby on the back burner while his day job (or night in this case) called him to Chicago to beat up on a baseball team who can fight back about as much as his wife could have.

I can’t believe that Myers is still playing professional baseball, but I guess when you have a minority owner, Bill Giles, who thinks Myers’ wife is a liar, what can you expect from that team? If the Phillies do make it to the playoffs, I will enjoy rooting against them.

Brett Myers, you’re a monumental turd. I hope Ryan Howard, and Pat Burrell (two guys on the Phillies who are bigger than Myers) take turns beating the living shit out of you. And I hope Bill Giles will turn a blind eye to that as well.

My fantasy team is a wreck. The combination of injuries, ill-advised roster moves, and general idiocy I have dropped 6 games in a row. SIX IN A ROW. Is this a joke? Did I gloat too much at the beginning when I was in first place for 15 of the first 16 weeks? I think it’s probably all of the above.

First off I traded Dontrelle Willis and Matt Holliday for Andruw Jones. I knew it was a risky trade but I figured that Andruw Jones was a. a Brave and they always win and b. he’s a fantasy stud, why would he stop now? Well, turns out being a Brave doesn’t always lead to the post season (or dominant fantasy stats for that matter). While Dontrelle Willis has had more success than I expected, he hasn’t gotten run support so he hasn’t won a ton of games. Here comes the big problem… Matt Holliday is snuggled right under Adam Dunn and Bobby Abreu on the points list for outfielders. Andruw Jones is ahead of him, but not by much. And Holliday has more points than notable names such as Ichiro, and Magglio Ordonez.

But it didn’t end there, I traded Jim Thome and Julio Lugo for Tom Glavine and Miguel Tejada. It was a late season trade, so I had gotten a ton out of Thome, and was scared that he was gonna get hurt. He hasn’t yet, but I wouldn’t be suprised. And the prospect of having Tejada and Michael Young on the same team was too sweet to pass up. But of course, now Glavine is probably done for the season and my late push for the playoffs isn’t looking so hot.

Along the way I’ve also let go of Alex Rios, which turned out to be a big mistake. He would have rounded out my outfield so nicely. As it stands it’s not too bad with Jones, Jason Bay, and I picked up Rocco Baldelli (which has turned out very nicely).

I don’t think the problem with my team is the hitting, although they have hit a cool streak. The pitching has been horrendous. Mark Buerhle has let me down time and time again. He has been a mainstay for the BALCO Hitmen over the years and has produced solid numbers every year. This year it seems like he just can’t get it together. There have been other hot and cold pitchers on the staff including Barry Zito, Chris Capuano, Chris Young, and Kenny Rogers. There has been a revolving door at the relief pitcher position all year (including Chad Cordero, JJ Putz, Bob Wickman and even Kerry Wood). None of them have been consistently effective so I’ve pretty much tried to go with the hot hand.

I think that the 2006 season is pretty much over for me. What can I learn from it? I’m not too sure yet. I don’t know that I would have made too many changes. I would probably have spent more time and energy making sure I had the pitching horses down the stretch. Or maybe trying to get another strong bat? Who knows. What do you think? What should/could I have done differently to remain competitive?

Sunday (8/20) the Chicago Cubs traded Neifi Perez to the first place Detroit Tigers for minor league catching prospect Chris Robinson. There was all of the spin, and happy words about what Neifi has meant to the ball club and how much he’s been a leader and a teacher of the younger guys. All of that is well and good, but Neifi has not added to the team on the field this year. In fact, I’d say that he’s hurt the team by taking away starts and at bats from Ronny Cedeno, and Ryan Theriot. Both of those kids seem to be qulaity players but, because Dusty continues to play his veteran “guys”, we haven’t seen these young kids develop as quickly as they should.

I wish Neifi the best, I know that as long as Dusty Baker is managing he’ll never be out of a job. I also am glad that the Cubs picked up a catcher. I have to say that Michael Barrett is one of my favorite Cubs of alltime. But let’s face it. He’s not going to be around forever and his skill will probably get worse rather than better. I would love to see him remain in the organization (doubt it, the Cubs aren’t very good at that).

I hope that Chris Robinson can be at least quality trade bait. The Cubs need to go young. It seems like they have some really quality young position players as well as pitchers. Go with it Hendry. Let’s see what you’ve done to build this team.

What do you think of this trade? And should the Cubs go for a youth movement?

As I mentioned earlier, vigilante sports has been accepted into the 9rules Network. We’re really excited about this. It should give us a broader audience and also we’ll be able to learn from all of the great bloggers already a part of the network.

Below is a list of some of our more popular posts:

• Fire Dusty Baker
• Chicks Dig the Long Ball
• Cubs Scoring Problems
• 2006 MLB Trading Deadline Analysis

Please take a look around, make yourselves at home, and let me know if you need anything.

There were a couple big trades this year at the trading deadline. Nothing too jaw-dropping but some interesting transactions. I’ll outline some of the biggers deals and would love to hear your thoughts on the trades and how they affect the playoff races or your favorite team.

The Cubs trade Greg Maddux (SP) to the Dodgers for Cesar Izturis (SS)

This one’s a heart-breaker for me. I pretty much saw it coming (along with the rest of the world) but in the back of my head I hoped that it wouldn’t happen. As I’ve stated before, it was a deal that the Cubs had to take. But that doesn’t make it any easier. When your team has already let one of the best pitchers of the last 40 years go once, it really makes you gunshy to trade him away and let him go a second time. That being said, I like that they were able to get a quality player like Izturis in return. I had heard reports that teams were offering a A-level prospect. I’m glad that the Cubs got a major-league tested player who was an All Star just last year. Hopefully his surgically-repaired bionic arm will hold up and he’ll be a great addition to the Cubs.

The Devil Rays trade Julio Lugo (SS) to the Dodgers for Joel Guzman (3B/OF) and Sergio Pedroza (OF)

This trade was clearly a trade to make room for Devil Rays young phenom BJ Upton. It looks like the Devil Rays got some good value for Lugo. From all accounts Guzman is a 4 or 5 tool player who is nearly ready to be called up to the big leagues. The Devil Rays aren’t going to be making any waves in the post season this year or probably any time in the near future so it looks like the Dodgers got the better side of this deal by filling the hole left by Cesar Izturis with a proven major league hitter.

The Pirates trade Craig Wilson (1B/OF) to the Yankees for Shawn Chacon (SP)

I think that this will end up having the biggest impact on the playoff race. Craig Wilson can hit. Period. Sure, he’s had his struggles this year and last but now that he’ll be surrounded by a glut of perennial All Stars, he won’t be asked to shoulder the lion’s share of the hitting. I think this will allow him to be more patient and to see better pitches. I think that the Yankees scored on this trade. I also think that the Pirates did pretty well for themselves. Shawn Chacon is not an ace, even on the Pirates. Well at least he shouldn’t be long term. But, he is a solid starter who will give the Pirates a fairly dependable arm for a little while.

The Cubs trade Todd Walker (2B) to the Padres for Jose Ceda (SP)

One of my favorite Cubs is now a Padre. Jose Ceda is 19 years old. He is ranked very high in the Padres organization. Todd Walker was not going to be a Cub next year, so I think it was a good call to try and get something for him. Hopefully Jose Ceda can contribute to the Cubs organization as he matures.

The Pirates continued their activity and trade Oliver Perez (SP) and Roberto Hernandez (RP) to the Mets for Xavier Nady (OF)

This is one of the more intriguing trades this year. Roberto Hernandez is an experienced arm out of the bullpen. Oliver Perez not too long ago was thought of as one of the top up and coming arms in the National League. Xavier Nady was the odd-man out in the Mets outfield. With Lastings Milledge ready to contribute Nady had become expendable. If Perez can find his previous form, the Mets will not only add a solid arm to their already potent rotation, but also a quality middle reliever/set up man. Nady will solidify the Pirates outfield of Jason Bay and Nate McLouth.

The Phillies trade Bobby Abreu (OF) and Cory Lidle (SP) to the Yankees for Matt Smith (P), C.J. Henry (SS), Jesus Sanchez (C), and Carlos Monasterios (P)

The Yankees land their prized possession in Abreu and they also shore up their pitching staff with Lidle. Apparently Henry was one of the top prospects in the well-picked Yankees farm system and Smith has bounced between AAA and the bigs all year. Does this do enough for the Yankees to make a push? I’m not sure. I think that if Abreu can heat up, the Yankees can put a run together, but he is awfully streaky and if his production doesn’t measure up this could be a long second half for the folks in the Bronx.

Side Notes: The Carlos Lee deal seems peculiar. Texas added to it’s strength (hitting), while depleting it’s weakness (pitching). Is this another example of the Rangers just not being about to figure it all out?

It seemed like the bigger news was how many of the big names stayed put. Soriano is still a National, and Tejada will stick it out in Baltimore.

What do you think are the biggest stories? And how will these trades affect the playoff races?