Why No Johnny Cueto?

Dave Leopardi — Fri, 28 Mar 2008 02:38:14 -0400

This is the most expected surprise I've gotten from sports. Johnny Cueto of the Cinncinatti Reds is the next Pedro Martinez, but better. Quote me. If you look at him on paper, he is Pedro...at this point in his career. At 5'10'' and 183 pounds he has the same physical build as Peety and in his start on March 6th he was clocked at 97 miles per hour. This kid is 22, throwing 97...AND he looks like Pedro. Why isn't anybody talking about this kid.

Side Note 1: Johnny Cueto is only owned in 9.1% of ESPN Fantasy leagues.

Side Note 2: I have him in all 6 of my leagues, that's 100%.

Cueto is going to be the Reds #3 starter behind Aaron Harang and Bronson Arroyo in 2008. There isn't too much competition in the Cinci rotation so his job won't be in jeopardy if he can be consistant all year; which he should be able to barring an injury. I believe that if he can get 35 starts this year he can win 17 of those with a very underrated Reds offense who will be led by 3 returning 90+ RBI guys in Adam Dunn(also on my fantasy team), Brandon Phillips and Ken Griffey Junior (cough).

In Cueto's last 4 starts there has only been one outing where he allowed more than 2 runs, and he only did that once. Cueto has only let up a combined 7ER in 11.2 IP in that same time frame. Now, i admit the numbers don't look mind-blowing, but he let up 5 of the 7 runs in his only bad outing of the spring. He threw shut-outs of 3 and 4 innings on March 6 and 12th, respectivly. This guy has dominated everyone he's faced this year.

The only thing that can hurt Cueto is his coach. Dusty Baker has a reputation for blowing out young arms. He did it with Mark Prior and Kerry Wood, who were pretty well sized young pitchers. Cueto weighs 185 pounds, he's not that big, the Reds need to have someone spot start here and there to give Cueto a few breaks throughout the year, if they do, they won't run the risk of burning out a potenial Rookie of the Year contender by the time September comes around...

Side Note 3: Since I've started writing this, Cueto's % owned went up .3%, maybe people are catching on.

Let's Go Cueto

France, What are you Hoping to Accomplish?

Dave Leopardi — Fri, 28 Mar 2008 00:59:38 -0400

Earlier this week French President Nicolas Sarkozy stated that France may boycott the 2008 Olympic Opening Ceremonies because of China's actions in Tibet.

Now the details of why the French are considering this isn't what bothers me. The thing is, nobody is going to care if they don't show up to the pre-game show of all pre-game shows.

Why can't they just go all in on something for the first time in the history of the country? Now, I can see if they were thinking about not going entirely, having a major UN country not showing up to the Olympics could cause some political controversy.

Oh, wait, the Olympics aren't about politics, that's right. They're strictly just sports, no political statements are to be made at the games. Again, this isn't what annoys me. Okay, go ahead, make a statement, France, but if you're going to, France, then at least make sure it won't piss off Tommie Smith and John Carlos from the '68 games in Mexico. The message it sends better have the magnitude of what they were trying to get across during the Civil Rights Movement of the sixties.

France, don't do this to yourself. Yes, you made it on SportsCenter, PTI, and Around the Horn, but no one is really going to lose sleep over this. Lives aren't going to be saved, Communism will still exist, and worst of all for every Pierre and Jean-Paul in the world; the French jokes will have another punchline.

"Remember when the French ALMOST didn't go to the '08 Olympics?" "Yeah, they couldn't even go through with this, what can they finish?". Now, i have no problem with the French, but there are people out there, and I don't want to give them fuel for the metaphorical fire.

This is just going to be an issue the media can beat down on off days in the sports world. This really should go as a non-issue to most people. Plus, I'm wondering, do the athletes get a say in this? What about the younger athletes who haven't been to the Olympics yet and want to experience what it really is all about.

The glory, the majesty and the tradition just won't look as good from a 20 inch TV set in a hotel room a mile from the stadium.

France, I like the idea you have, there's just not enough logic to put forth the plan. Just go, let the kids play their games and bring home stories to tell their grand kids.

Let the games begin.

Bleacher Report - Articles by Dave Leopardi

Why No Johnny Cueto?

France, What are you Hoping to Accomplish?