The Angels just locked up their spot in the World Series by landing Mark Teixeira. His bat along with the already potent lineup, solid starting pitching and a strong bullpen will make the Angels unstoppable. Not to mention a cake division which will allow them to rest there players heading into the playoffs.

None of the other AL contenders have the lineup or the pitching to match up with the Angels. If anything could be said to be lacking, it would be their starting pitching but a rotation of John Lackey, Jared Weaver, Jon Garland, Joe Saunders and Ervin Santana looks pretty good to me right now. Top to bottom, there’s not a staff in the AL that can compete. They don’t all have solid post season experience, but Lackey, Garland have led their teams to World Series Championships in the not so distant past. AL clubs should be worried. Maybe this will prompt other teams to make some last minute deals.

I’m not sure if you’ve noticed, but the Cubs have been faltering lately. Should Cubs fans be worried? I think not. Every team has some sort of a slump. I think that the trade to get Rich Harden and Chad Gaudin will continue to pay off. The return of Alfonso Soriano and Kerry Wood from the DL and the addition of rookie pitcher Jeff Samardzija will energize the team as well.

Monday the Cubs head up to Miller Park to decide who will be in first place after this series. It’s not a deal breaker if the Cubs continue to falter, but this is a prime opportunity for the Cubs to right the ship and put a little distance between themselves and their division challengers.

To tell the truth, I don’t want to see the Brewers anywhere near the Cubs come September 1st. They are a young team who now has a solid ace (as well as an injury prone ace). The Cubs have the arms and the bats to dominate the rest of the way.

Michigan’s football team will have some new threads this fall (and for many years to come). The new uniforms are courtesy of adidas. Michigan has been in a relationship with Nike for many years, so this is a huge change for the university the traditionally has been a leader in merchandise sales.

Some cool points about the jerseys. They have Bo Schembechler’s historic quote, “Those who stay will be champions” embroidered into the hem of the shirt. There are also silicon inserts in the sleeves commemorating all of Michigan’s 42 Big Ten championships. I think that these 2 things give me a small sense of hope that all tradition is not lost at Michigan. It shows me that Rich Rodriguez is at least aware that tradition is very important at Michigan. Can Michigan retain it’s tradition as a football powerhouse even though the offense that’s on the field will be decidedly un-Michigan? I guess this is an indication that the answer could at least be maybe.

Now comes the question of like. Do I like the new jerseys? I like the plain home blue jerseys but I’m not a huge fan of the maize stripe on the away white unis. There has been a maize stripe on the away uniforms for a while that was fairly unperceptablel, but these are a bit wider. All in all, I like the traditional elements that have been brought in, and at least they don’t look like Cal’s or Rodriguez’s last stop West Virginia. Or even worse, Oregon.

The Bears took a step towards being a real football team Tuesday by signing running back Kevin Jones. Jones is coming off a torn ligament in his knee, but he has NFL experience (something that previously likely starter rookie Matt Forte doesn’t have).

Whether Jones starts, or shares time with Forte it’s a move that at least gives them a bit of depth at one of the most important positions on the field. If they don’t get an offensive line, neither back will have success, but this is a step.

You were my favorite. But you had to go. You were stinking up the joint and pulling down an All Star’s paycheck. I still have a place in my heart for you Richie… but I think it’s better. It’s not me… it’s you.

I know I’m a little late with this one, but I’ve been travelling. My apologies.

I LOVE THIS TRADE. Obviously Rich Harden is an injury risk. But he has Cy Young capabilities. If he stays healthy the rest of the year, he will probably win 8-10 games for the Cubs. You give up a lot to get a guy like Rich Harden, Sean Gallagher and Eric Patterson are obviously good prospects, but you have to give up quality to get quality. I think the hidden gem of this deal is Chad Gaudin. To me Gaudin is insurance for Harden in the rotation, and if Harden stays healthy, he’s a solid bullpen guy.

The Cubs give up Matt Murton, but there was no room for him in their outfield. I’m glad that Hendry gave the kid a shot, albeit in Oakland. I think Murton will be a solid player for the A’s.

In Harden’s first outing for the Cubs he struck out 10. He didn’t get the win because Marmol blew it, but I’ll take outings like that for the rest of the year over having Eric Patterson as a back-up infielder and Sean Gallagher in the rotation. To me, it’s a no-brainer.