November 14th update

MLB player Ramos endures kidnapping ordeal

• Towards the end of last week, a shocking development hit the world of sports as Washington Nationals Catcher Wilson Ramos was abducted from outside his home in Venezuela. Ramos, 24, had a promising rookie season and had just returned to Venezuela to play in a winter league.
• He was whisked away to a secluded area in the mountains that Ramos admitted he thought was too remote for him to be found and rescued. The kidnappers, apparently Colombian, only told him that he was going to be ransomed for a lot of money. Kidnapping of high profile targets is a growing business in parts of Central and South America and in Venezuela, many such potential targets employ full time bodyguards (according to FOXnews).
• Gladly, this story has a happy ending as Venezuelan police conducted an airborne raid and exchanged gunfire with his abductors, only 48 hours after he Ramos was taken. The raid ended with four of the kidnappers being arrested and four more apparently being searched for by police. As for the shellshocked but incredibly grateful Ramos, he's now safely back in the arms of his loved ones.
• While he didn't endure any physical injuries, Ramos readily admitted that he's sustained plenty of emotional damage. We can only hope that he recovers fully and that local and federal police can get a better handle on the kidnapping trade to keep not only athletes, but the general populations of these areas safer in the future.


College Football standings endure major shake up

• The BCS title picture is beginning to clear up some thanks to a few games on Saturday. The Oklahoma State Cowboys absolutely obliterated a pretty decent Texas Tech team 66-6. It was the biggest defeat in school history for Texas Tech, the team who only a few weeks earlier, gave Oklahoma their only loss. Cowboys QB Brandon Weeden threw for 423 yards and 5 touchdowns and helped his school to their first ever 10-0 start.
• #4 Stanford was not so "Luck-y," losing 53-30 to last year's national runner up Oregon. Heisman hopeful Andrew Luck who was considered a massive favorite going into the game, might now face some competition in the form of Weeden, Alabama RB Trent Richardson and Oregon RB LaMichael James who blistered the Cardinal for 146 yards and 3 TDs on only 20 carries.
• Oregon will almost certainly play in the inaugural Pac-12 championship game in early December and has only lost twice since their opening game in 2009 against Boise State (when current NFL player LaGarrette Blount was so frustrated that he punched a Boise player in the face after the game).
• Those same Boise State Broncos saw their BCS title chances vanish on a missed field goal for the second straight season. Last year it was a missed FG at Nevada with 1 second left and Boise went on to lose in OT. This season, they trailed TCU (probably the best rivalry the casual fan hasn't heard of this past decade) 36-35 but had a chance to win with a 39 yard field goal. But it was pushed right and Boise was once again left to wonder if they had given away a chance at a title game or if finishing yet another season undefeated would even matter with richer teams from bigger conference generally getting preferential treatment in the Title Game.
• Now it comes down to whether or not LSU and Oklahoma State can win out as both look to be firmly in control and #3 Alabama's proponents are getting quieter and quieter after the team struggled to beat lowly Mississippi State. Many feel that Alabama deserves another shot at LSU but Oregon's only loss was also to LSU and they have arguably been more impressive in their other games. It will be very interesting to see how things shake out if one of the top 2 lose.
Check in Wednesday as we do a full overview of the college basketball season (which has already seen a couple entertaining and historic games this past week).

September 7th update

Wednesday Spotlight: Stephen Strasburg

• Tuesday night Washington Nationals phenom pitcher Stephen Strasburg took the mound for the first time in a little over a year. Strasburg, the first overall draft pick in the 2009 and one of the most hyped minor leaguers in many years quickly made his way through the Nationals minor league system. He made his debut to much fanfare last June but blew out a tendon in his right elbow (his pitching arm) after only a handful of starts.
• Strasburg underwent Tommy John’s Surgery (a once revolutionary procedure that is now commonplace, named for the first pitcher it was performed on) which takes a tendon from another part of the body to replace a damaged tendon. This surgery usually requires about 18 months for a full recovery but Strasburg made his return to the Major Leagues a year and 3-days after the procedure.
• Strasburg pitched well, throwing 56 pitches (he was limited to 60 for cautionary reasons) and striking out four. The decision to pitch him this season was questioned by many as the Nationals are out of playoff contention and are relying on Strasburg to be a long term player for them. Many wanted the Nationals to wait a little bit longer to ensure he was fully healthy. The results of the decision to bring him back this soon remain to be seen.


Big names fail to survive NFL Cuts

• NFL Teams had a deadline of Monday to cut their rosters (which are usually inflated throughout the offseason) down to 53-players before the start of the season. There were many surprise cuts and a few surprise non-cuts as well.
• Probably the biggest surprise cut was the Jacksonville Jaguars decision to part ways with starting quarterback David Garrard. Garrard was drafted in the 4th round of the 2002 NFL draft and had been the starter for the Jaguars for much of the past 6 seasons. Signs pointed that he would soon be out of a job as the Jaguars spent a high draft pick this season on quarterback Blaine Gabbert, but he's inexperienced, never having played a regular season NFL game. To see Garrard released while he was still the best QB on the roster is a bit surprising.
• Probably the happiest surprise was that the New York Giants decided not to cut Mark Herzlich. Herzlich, a rookie linebacker from Boston College made his return to football last year after taking a year off to fight a rare bone cancer. Herzlich, who was previously projected to be a high draft pick (top 2 rounds) slipped all the way out of the draft due to the effects of the cancer. He was a long shot to make the team but head coach Tom Coughlin said that he was impressed by Herzlich’s determination to improve and not make excuses for himself. Here's hoping he continues to impress and can channel his inner Zach Thomas and have a productive career.


Phillies closing in on historic season but Braves thriving as well

*Note: This is part 5 of a 6 part series that will break down the division races in each of baseball's 6 divisions.

• The National League East hasnt been the most competitive division in baseball in 2011 but it might be the most interesting as storylines abound. The Washington Nationals won't be relevant for a few more season when Strasburg, Bryce Harper, Drew Storen and others are ready, but those youngsters already have fans in the nation's capital excited for the future.
• The Marlins have had a couple terrible losing streaks, and on one day in particular, drew less fans to a game (Here's a teaser, it was less than 400) than a decent sized block party. But at least they have an awesome manager.
• Then you have the New York Mets, who are doing all they can to show that they should be America's team by nearly going bankrupt (bailout, anyone?)
• But it's not just woeful teams waiting for a chance to win, as the Phillies and Braves have both enjoyed fantastic seasons. The Phillies, behind Roy Halladay and Cliff Lee and a lot more high priced talent only need to win 10 of their remaining 14 games to finish the season with 100 wins, which no NL team has done since the 2005 Cardinals.
• The Braves on the other hand, have achieved their success largely due to the contributions of young players like Craig Kimbrel, Freddy Freeman and a resurgent Jair Jurrjens. While Atlanta won't win the division, they will likely win the NL Wildcard and look to give the Phillies a run for their money to represent the NL in this year's World Series.