Day 23: Crabtree, Edwards, Twins and more

I want to start The Sports Desk today but wishing a congratulations to Ben on his recent engagement (as recent as yesterday). I wish my blogging partner and his future wife many years of happiness!

-- And a belated thank you once again to Boz, and many of our other friends who we are so thankful to have shared in our relationship thus far, and for many more years to come.

HEADLINES

1) Michael Crabtree and the San Francisco 49ers have agreed on a six-year contract agreement. How soon will Crabtree start to make an impact with the 49ers?

Ben: Well as disappointed as I am in Crabtree and his holdout, I would suspect the offense-less 9ers would try to rush this along as soon as possible. I would think this is especially true without Frank Gore for another week or so. I would guess he sees the field in week 7 against Houston, but I wouldn't be surprised if he has a small base amount of plays he could potentially be used for this week against Atlanta. I'm talking screens, slants, run plays, etc. I think he could get on the field briefly, 5-7 plays this week -- if San Fran wanted to really rush it and see what he's been doing.

Boz: First of all I would like to send these words to Crabtree...ITS ABOUT TIME! With that being said, you won't see Crabtree on the field this Sunday when the 49ers square off against another tough NFC team in Atlanta. However, the schedule favors San Fran as they then have a bye week. The 49ers could come out of their bye week with Crabtree and Frank Gore returninng to the field against Houston.

I know Crabtree probably isn't going to be liked by many players in the 49er locker room but this does upgrade their offense. He is by far their best wide receiver even without playing a down in the NFL yet. I just hope he doesn't go into the locker room now with the same attitude that he had during these negotiations. He needs to be humble now and do anything possible to get the respect of his teammates.

2) The Cleveland Browns have shipped wide receiver Braylon Edwards to the New Yorks Jets for two players (one being wideout Chansi Stuckey) and two draft picks. Who got the better of this trade?

Ben: Well I think the Browns did. They didn't get anyone with the name recognition of Braylon Edwards, but I think Chansi Stuckey is a fine receiver, and could mesh with what the Browns are trying to do in the future.

In addition to that, usually my motto is that whoever got more players got the better end of the deal -- the Browns got, essentially, 4 players, the Jets got 1. I think the Browns can do more damage with what they got then what the Jets got.

Boz: We all saw this coming, but I have to say I was actually surprised on how fast this happened. I was thinking after the season but I was WAY off. The winner in this trade is Cleveland and by that I don't mean the Browns. The city of Cleveland is the winner. I wouldn't be surprised if the mayor of Cleveland himself called the Browns organization to tell them to get rid of Edwards. This shows that the city of Cleveland is behind LeBron James with all hopes of signing him to a contract extension during the offseason.

In all seriousness, the Browns win this deal basically with the addition by subtraction principle. Edwards had become more of a distraction than a football player and he actually has proven (besides the Pro Bowl year) that through drop balls, he isn't that good a wide receiver.

3) The Minnesota Twins fought off the Detroit Tigers, 6-5, in the 163rd game of the regular season for both teams. The game was won in the bottom of the 12th and the prize...a trip to New York to play the best team in baseball TODAY! Was this the best one-game playoff game? And is this good scheduling on the part of the MLB?

Ben: Well, I'll first start with the "best one-game playoff game" part of the question. No, it wasn't. It certainly is near the top, but I would say Colorado v. San Diego beats this one out. I mean, that game ended on a play at the plate in the 12th, that is real dramatic. I really liked this game, and it was extremely impressive and deflating at the same time. I felt bad for the Tigers and the city of Detroit. You want to hear about a city that has faced disappointment, look at Detroit. 30% unemployment, Red Wings lose the Stanley Cup, Michigan State gets trounched in the National Title game, Pistons have a down year, Lions went winless in 2008, and the Tigers lost a 7 game lead in September. That is a tough year for any city.

Secondly, this is terrible scheduling by MLB. I know they couldn't have predicted this series and this tiebreaker, but c'mon, there has to be SOME flexibility. There is no way that having the Twins play one extra regular season game, fly 1500 miles to New York, land at the airport at 3 AM day of the game, and play later against one of the best all-around teams in baseball is a fair setup. No way. The Twins got a raw deal on that one.

Boz: This is the best one-game playoff game in the history of one-game playoff games. This one tops the Padres and Rockies from a couple years ago because of the excellent pitching. There were a lot of times where pitchers from both teams got out of some amazing jams. Throw in some plays at the plate and it was a very exciting game.

I also think that this was poor scheduling on the part of the MLB. They give the Red Sox and Angels an extra day off when they've been off since Sunday. Let the Twins have at least a travel day instead of having to ship off right after their celebration. However, I'm sure that the Yankees are alright with it.

4) Shaquille O'Neal and LeBron James made their preseason debut together last night in a 92-87 win over the Charlotte Bobcats. Grade the first experience.

Ben: C. It's preseason basketball for two of the most recognizible faces in the NBA. They were not going full speed, and I don't expect them to for some time. That being said, the opportunties and potenial this team now has is amazing and I look forward to catching a few games this season, if only to watch the Diesel do something silly.

Boz: I'll give it a B. Shaq only had six point, but only took five shots which doesn't surprise me because LeBron is always option number one. They ran a a pick-and-roll two-man game that looked decent and with more work looked like it could be very tough. However, I've seen Shaq in a pick-and-roll offense the last year and a half with the Suns and he just isn't quick enough to do it successfully, unless the ballhandler waits long enough to let him get to the basket. So therefore Shaq is more comfortable with straight posting up, which LeBron will hate because he jams up the middle.

What keeps this away from being an A is that they were playing the Bobcats and it was the preseason.

OVER/UNDER

1) Over or under two touchdown passes for Donovan McNabb in his return from injury?

Ben: OVER. Bucs are terrible. End of story.

Boz: OVER. He's healthy and he is playing the Bucs. That pretty much sums up my argument.

2) Four undefeated teams in the NFL play this Sunday. Over or under two teams remaining undefeated after week 5?

Ben: OVER. The Giants play the Raiders, so they can go ahead to week 6 already, and Indy and Minny both have great QB's that are playing amazing football. I wouldn't be shocked if Farve has a letdown, but AP will go off to save them from a L.

Boz: OVER. Denver is done despite playing at home becaues they host the Patriots and I think the Patriots offense is starting to hit its stride. Other than that, Indianapolis, Minnesota and the Giants all win.

3) Over or under two home runs for Albert Pujols in the NLDS?

Ben: OVER. Pujols hits everyone hard, and even though the Dodgers will try to avoid him, at some point you are going to have to go after him (see Brad Lidge 2006) and he will make you pay (see Brad Lidge 2006).

Boz: UNDER. I know we're talking about the great Albert Pujols. But I also know the opposing manager is Joe Torre and that Joe Torre isn't dumb. He'll walk Pujols any chance he gets. And since this series is only going three games with the awful Dodgers pitching, I only see Pujols hitting one home run.

HAPPY HOUR

Ben: Happy 4th Anniversary Chicago White Sox. On this date in 2005 the South Siders won their first post-season series since 1917 with a sweep of the defending champion Boston Red Sox. Now, I may be a Cubs fan, but I gotta appreciate a team boosting Chicago's rep.

Boz: Happy trails to Michael Jordan's cigars. The basketball hall of famer was reminded by the PGA who was reminded by the city of San Francisco city parks and recreation general manager that smoking is illegal in all parks, including public golf courses. Jordan is an honorary captain for the U.S. Presidents Cup team and was caught smoking a cigar during the team's practice round. He was aware of the rule, but since no one said anything Jordan thought it was alright during a practice round.