MLB Talk

Can anybody say wow? The MLB just got a little bit more interesting. This week a few players with big names were traded and/or signed. Let's start with Roy Halladay and Cliff Lee. Let's see how they got here; Halladay was on a damaged Blue Jays team where he could have won at least twenty games last year, but sadly, no offense to support him. There were trade talks surrounding him last season, but nothing came of it.
   Cliff Lee on the other hand, was traded mid-season to the National League Champion Phillies, where he made and immeditae impact throwing two shut-outs. Then on to the postseason where he went 4-0 including two wins in the World Series. You could ask yourself...." Why in the world would the Phillies or any team want to trade a guy like that away?" Simple... Halladay has the same and maybe better game and potential. A career record of 148-76. Last year he threw 9 complete games and 4 shutouts and not to mention a 2.79 ERA. And even though his team wasn't the best with the best, he still got 17 wins and kept himself in the Cy Young conversation.Now the Seattle Mariners get a lot better in their rotation with the 1-2 punch of Felix Hernandez and Cliff Lee. This can be very dangerous for any team if the Mariners manage to make it to the playoffs. Which I think can only be acheived by the Wild Card division. They're still not that good to compete for the division crown.


Now it's John Lackey's turn. Traded to a team he has always wanted to be with, the Red Sox. An 11-8 record is what he got last season; not the best stats you could get, but with the Red Sox all you have to do is throw solid innings and let the offense go to work. Last year, Boston didn't have the best pitchinglast year, yet they still managed to make it to the playoffs, but were eliminated by John Lackey and the Anaheim Angels. Lackey gives the rotation solid innings, relief potential (if needed), playoff pitching and veteran presence (not that they needed more).


World Series MVP Hideki Matsui was signed this week by the same Angels team who were stripped of John Lackey. Another bat added to a dangerous offense with Bobby Abreu, Gary Matthews, Torii Hunter, and surprise of the year Kendry Morales. The Angels can on;y get better from here on out with their batting. If Matsui can remain healthy and be as consistent as he has been throught his career, the team should have little problems on offense. Now pitching....that's another thing.

Penn Vs. Sanchez

The Ultimate Fighting Championship is bigger than it's ever been. Most of it's growth has been credited to the famous Chuck Liddell for being so mainstream. But credit has to go to fighters like the hawiian BJ Penn, who has been a force in UFC and has somehow done it "under the radar". His record at 14-5-1 is one of the best in the UFC and wins against fighters like Matt Hughes, Matt Serra, Sean Sherk, Din Thomas and Kenny Florian put him with the elites in the UFC. Yet "The Prodigy" has never really won against big names like George St. Pierre (who he lost to twice). This time he faces an up and coming superstar in the form of  former Ultimate Fighter winner Diego "The Nightmare" Sanchez who has definetly made his mark in the UFC with his awesome duel against Clay Guida. But, he too has never had a big name fight...until now. Both fighters make this an anticipated fight for the history and for the lightweight championship. Let's see how they stack up...

Sanchez 

• Age : 27 
• Height: 5'10 
• Weight: 155 
• Record: 23-2-0  (7-2 after Ultimate Fighter)
  
• Strength: Grappling
  

Penn

• Age: 30 
• Height: 5'10 
• Weight: 155 
• Record: 14-5-1 
• Strength: Submission & Standup 

I see BJ Penn coming out on top simply because of the fact that if Sanchez does use his grappling skills to get Penn on the floor, Penn's jujitsu and submission game will kick in and in the end give him an edge. Also if they fight standup, The Prodigy has an advantage also, but that does not mean that Sanchez will not give him a great run for the title. Also, a lot of people have put BJ Penn's cardio in question because of his other fights where he got winded pretty easily and Sanchez is known for his cardio and resistance but in Penn's own words: “I think people will always bring up my cardio”. “Everybody wants an idea of ‘how can we beat him?’ And they’re not thinking, ‘oh, I‘m gonna submit him’ or ‘I’m gonna knock him out.’ They’re looking for anything they can, so they bring up the cardio issue. These guys got to remember that I fought Sean Sherk and he’s supposed to be a cardio machine. I fought Kenny Florian and he doesn’t get tired. I fought Caol Uno and he doesn’t get tired. I fought so many people over the years, but they just pick that one thing. Nobody wants anybody to be perfect and they want to look for something to talk about. I’m in great shape, but even after this fight, I’m sure the next guy who fights me, that will be his way to beat me too.”

But there is no added pressure for Sanchez as in all his fights he has been put up against elite fighters and his fights have had major hype through the years. Sanchez is stronger and faster. Simply better after hiring coach Steve Maxwell. "Nightmare" has his own gameplan and plans to execute it to perfection tonight.

If Penn does win, he will break the record for Lightweight title defenses (Jens Pulver's record). If Sanchez wins, not only does he get the Lightweight Championship, he gets the reputation and becomes on of the elite and the target for all lightweights. This will make a classic bout.