The NFL Labor Situation

As many legal experts predicted, the NFL Players Union has decertified, opening the doors to a lockout, court battles, and more.

Of course this is frustrating to fans, but it's way too soon to fear the worst. Perhaps Buffalo Bills' player rep George Wilson said it best yesterday:

"Fans, players, everybody needs to take a deep breath and take it one day at a time. The season doesn't start until September. If we get to July, August, and September and start losing games, then I can understand people getting emotional. But it's March. Take a deep breath."

I don't know much, but I do know that once both sides start losing checks, a deal will get done. We'll have football in 2011, and not with replacement players.

Riley Sounds Off

I've never been a big Pat Riley fan, but I enjoyed his comments about his team's recent losing streak and the media's collective panic-button reaction:

"Write it off. It's the media being neurotic. It's [the media's] need to make a story, create a story, and make that story come true. And that ain't going to happen. We're just in a tough time right now. We'll get through it...It's like anything else, like I always say, the playoffs will tell."

I'm sure there are still objective sports writers covering the Miami Heat, but many of them seem to fall into the category Riley described. And he's 100 percent correct about the playoffs. Would you want to face LeBron James and company in the postseason? No thanks.

Keep it up, Pat. And keep the Gordon Gekko haircut, too. It still works.

Trouble In Philly?

ESPN is reporting that surgery is now an option for 2B Chase Utley, who continues to battle knee problems.

Not to push the panic button in early March, but this would be a serious blow to the Phillies. You can say what you want about Halladay and Howard, but Utley is clearly their most valuable player. It's almost impossible to replace a middle infielder who gets on base and hits for power.

Is a Michael Young deal in the Phillies future? Perhaps. That rumor has been floating around for weeks. Nothing against Young, who has been a fine major leaguer, but at age 35 he's certainly no substitute for Utley.

Bulking Up

According to MLB Network, Rockies LF Carlos Gonzalez added "19 pounds of muscle" during the off season, and Braves RF Jason Heyward is "up to 250 pounds."

How long until some knucklehead sports writer accuses one of them of using steroids (without any evidence of course)?

Early Predictions

Opening day is right around the corner, so why not come out "swinging?" Get it? Anyway, here are my early predictions for the 2011 season:

NL East--Phillies, Braves, Marlins, Mets, Nationals
NL Central--Brewers, Cardinals, Cubs, Reds, Pirates, Astros
NL West--Rockies, Giants, Dodgers, Padres, D-Backs
Wild Card--Braves
NL MVP--Ryan Braun
NL Cy Young--Tommy Hanson

AL East--Red Sox, Yankees, Rays, Blue Jays, Orioles
AL Central--Twins, Tigers, White Sox, Royals, Indians
AL West--Rangers, Angels, A's, Mariners
Wild Card--Yankees
AL MVP--Joe Mauer
AL Cy Young--Jon Lester

I'll take the Red Sox over the Phillies in an epic seven-game series. Yes, the Phillies "Big Four" will come up a little short.

Upon Further Review

ESPN's Jerry Crasnick wrote a great piece about the so-called "can't-miss prospect." One interesting excerpt is an old quote from Chipper Jones about then teammate Jeff Francoeur:

"He's going to be a superstar, no doubt about it. He'll be the next Dale Murphy. If he continues to hit and play the outfield like he has for the first 20 or so games of his career, we're going to be talking about more than that."
-- Chipper Jones, 2005

Well, a funny thing happened on the way to stardom. NL hurlers figured out that Mr. Francoeur never met a pitch he didn't like. I don't care how great your "tools" are, nothing sandbags a career like poor plate discipline.

It's 2011, and Francoeur is starting over with the Kansas City Royals. He's only 27, so there's still time for him to get back on track. However, with a career onbase percentage of .310, I wouldn't hold my breath.

And In This Corner

From ESPN.com...

Chicago Cubs pitcher Carlos Silva and third baseman Aramis Ramirez scuffled in the dugout Wednesday during a game against the Milwaukee Brewers in Maryvale, Ariz.

My first thought was, "Hopefully Ramirez didn't break has hand on Silva's face." My next thought was, "With my luck, Starlin Castro will somehow get injured." My final take, "I'll be really glad when the Cubs part ways with Carlos Silva."

If that guy does anything at all in April, the Cubs should deal him to the highest bidder. It's the last year of Silva's rotten deal, so he should be a little easier to move.

Don't let the door hit your giant ass on the way out, Carlos.