Sportsfrog.com

…stop reading this and go pick him up right now if you need saves:

“Its been a battle, doing all this different treatment just to feel moderately OK,” Devine said. “I felt like I was pitching at 80 percent and something was grabbing in there.” Exploratory surgery is a possible option. Should Devine have a ligament problem that requires surgery, he would be out at least a year.

Also, apparently BJ Ryan is only hitting the mid-80s on the radar gun, so Scott Downs may be in line for some saves in Toronto. Just don’t blame me when Ziegler and Downs give up five run ninth innings on opening day. I’ll be there grieving with you; I’ve already picked them up.

For the two of you out there who actually care about racing, please check out Racin’ Today.

It was started by five great motorsports writers who got the axe when their newspapers had layoffs and decided to go strictly to the wires for their racing coverage. I know personally that they’ve got some great things planned, and you may find my ugly mug over there from time to time. (that’s not a great thing, I know)

So yeah, head on over there. Even if you don’t like racing, give them a page view so they can get some advertisers.

Maybe the Broncos are going to have to call that guy above.

(thanks to Swamp KU fan Hoo–boy that hurts to type–for the original link)

Memphis Bengal: Good lord, they’re really going to jump off that cliff? Really? Really? Josh McDaniel better be really effin’ good at his job…

Sadly, I’m being serious.

Sam and I see eye-to-eye on a lot of baseball things, but I’m going to have to disagree with him here.

And sadly, another stupid decision plays a part in this as well.

The Royals signed Horacio Ramirez to a $1.8 million deal in the offseason, and handed him a rotation spot. Simply put, Ramirez has been beyond horrible this spring. But the Royals seem afraid to admit that it was a giant mistake, and will open with Ramirez as the swingman for the first month of the season because of the way the schedule falls.

That leaves Ponson to start the home opener (!) instead of Hochevar. Why? It’s service time. And the inexplicable fact that the Royals think that Ponson’s tubby butt is going to break out at age 32, because if he doesn’t appear on the Royals roster by May 1, he’s a free agent.

All while the Royals pay Hochevar $2.2 million to pitch in Omaha. I understand wanting to get Hochevar on a regular starting schedule, but you have to show faith in the #1 overall pick at some point, don’t you? What message do you send to the now 25 year old Hochevar when you demote him in favor of Sidney freaking Ponson and Horacio Sanz may pitch better Ramirez?

Maybe this doesn’t impact the Royals’ season all that much; who knows? But if the Royals want to contend this season, it’s going to need to come based on improvements from the 20somethings, and Hochevar is a major component. Instead, the Royals are thinking that they can do something that Baltimore, San Francisco, Minnesota, St. Louis, Texas and New York haven’t done.

Good luck Trey Hillman. You’ve at least got God on your side.

Just over two weeks ago:

The way Gary Sheffield has gotten back his bat speed and leverage through the hitting zone after a year and a half of shoulder problems makes him look like a serious comeback of the year candidate.

A 40 year old with a chronically bad shoulder that got cut in spring training despite his $14 million salary? Yeah, that’d be a hell of a comeback.

Seven years @ $1.6 million per according to Gabe DeArmond of PowerMizzou.com.

Memphis Bengal: Hey, I am jumping in on Bronto’s breaking news blurb to note that this was a must move by Missouri, and it is great news for that program that they were able to get this done. Even better for Missouri? Anderson gave them something of a discount to stay put, as reports had Georgia offering $2 million per, and, locally, the word around Memphis was that the Tigers (Memphis version) might go as high as $3 million per in an effort to lure Anderson back to the mid-South. There is no good reason that Anderson, given that style of ball, should not be able to recruit competitively and successfully in St. Louis, Chicago, Memphis, Little Rock, Kansas City and other points in and around the heartland. With that contract in hand, and the success they saw this year, that should be a damn easy sale going forward.

A. Blanket is to couch
B. Leg is to arm
C. Hair is to shoe
D. Timepiece is to watch

Judging from Tom Browning’s unfortunate mug shot, I am going with choice (D). Browning, the former Cincinnati Reds pitcher (perfect game, World Series win in 1990, 123 career wins) and current Reds AA pitching coach, was jailed last Friday in Sarasota for failure to pay child support. And, well, Tom didn’t have a happy mugshot moment. Then again, who does?

Browning’s mugshot:

The Nolte standard for the genre:

Browning in happier times:

No question John Calipari is heading to Kentucky. That’s reported everywhere, and all the local news and usual outlets have been sourcing it for hours. Gotta say, in addition to the challenge and the high-profile gig, an alleged six years and forty million dollars is pretty damn persuasive. Well played, Kentucky. Well played.

Best of luck to him, and Kentucky is getting a great coach (as I said earlier today). If he brings all his recruits with him, as is presumed, that’s gonna be a hellaciously good team. The talent drain from Memphis is going to be legendary, as an all-time recruiting class said to rival the Fab 5 is about to re-locate to Lexington. And maybe a few bonuses, like transfers from current players on the team.

But here’s the thing. Apparently Calipari is also trying to also control his replacement in Memphis. And that is less than cool. It is also being reported that the meeting with a big-time money Memphis booster this afternoon (right now) is NOT a last ditch attempt to keep him, rather, it is Calipari trying to talk Memphis into hiring his former assistant and current UTEP coach Tony Barbee. Best of luck to Cal in Kentucky, but Memphis would be rock fuckin’ stupid to give any kind of shit about what Calipari recommends or wants for his replacement. If Calipari has enough pull with the big money donors that he makes this happen, then the big money donors can reap the crap whirlwind if they run to a thirtieth tier candidate like Barbee instead of going hard after someone like Mike Anderson. Insane.

Today’s entrant from the always entertaining and informative 2009 Basball Prospectus Annual are their notes on Milwaukee’s Corey Hart:

“Hart went from being a kep player in 2007 to a total mess in 2008; despite getting off to a solid start (.300/.348/.473 through May), he hit just .252/.275/.452 the rest of the way. His hacktastic approach at the plate caught up with him; he saw one of the heaviest diets of sliders of any player, and swung at far more pitches outside the zone than he had in the past. By September, he was a wreck, hitting just .173/.192/.245. He’ll need to rebound to remain an asset as he becomes more expensive.”

Mark Cuban.

$25,000 lighter in the wallet per the NBA for a tweet he sent criticizing a ref following Friday’s Mavericks game. Oh twitter, can your evil be contained?