Bleacher Report - Articles by Steven Couper

MLB News and Notes: Observations from Around the League

Steven Couper — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 09:07:19 -0400

With the baseball season now two months into the season, one is able to get a feel for how a player will or will not perform, how managers manage, and how teams in general are faring.

Two months is also enough time to see if a team is getting good value out of a free agent, or if the signing will set their franchise back a couple of years.

So I went and perused the box scores, looked at players stats, and took stock of the situation from the 2008 MLB season so far, and found a few interesting things of note.

Mike Hampton: Yes, Mike Hampton is still in MLB. This may surprise many of you, as he hasn't pitched in the majors since 2005, but he has quietly been raking in millions of dollars from multiple teams. Imagine being Brian McCann, who broke into the majors in 2005, and has not caught a game pitched by Hampton in the last three years, even though Hampton makes $15 million a year, and McCann, an All-Star, is making less than $1 million. For all of you Giants fans complaining about Barry Zito and his enormous contract, at least he pitches five or six innings, giving up three to five runs every five days. Speaking of bad contracts involving Braves players....

Andruw Jones: I really don't understand the Dodgers. How do you make someone who just came off of a full year in which they hit .222 the fifth-highest player in the league in average salary. A hitter whose home run production has fallen from 51 to 26 over the last two years, a hitter whose only production that has increased over the past three years has been his strikeouts.

Why did this prompt the Dodgers to pay him $36 million for the next two years? Is there another team who offered him more than $20 million? $10 million?

Jones has made the Braves pay for not re-signing their 10-time gold-glover as he has hit .165 with two HRs and seven RBI before going on the DL recently. Speaking of bad hitters with big contracts....

Richie Sexson: Richie Sexson is the product of a player having one or two really good years, then signing a large contract, only for the team to discover that you really have no place in the majors. Sexson was great in his last year with the Brewers in 2003, hitting 45 HR and 124 RBI to follow up his 2001 campaign of 45 HR and 125 RBI.

Fast-forward to 2008 where he is hitting .206, which is an improvement as he hit only .205 last year. Compare this to Ichiro, who makes only slightly more money than Sexson, but his average of .351 almost doubles Sexson's plate production.

Diamondbacks: Typically, in a leadoff hitter, you look for someone that hits for a high average, will get on base frequently, and if possible, wreak havoc on the basepaths. The Diamondbacks have managed to find a hitter that does none of this things in Chris Burke. Burke came into Monday's game against the Pirates hitting .180, and he has a grand total of three stolen bases in 42 games played.

Apparently, the Diamondbacks, and their anemic offense, fail to realize that the leadoff man is the player who will get the most hits in a given game or series, and as such one would hope to find a player with competence at the plate. Really, Burke should be hitting in the eight-spot as Brandon Webb and Dan Haren both have similar averages, .143.

Dan Giese: With all of the hype surrounding Joba Chamberlain's move to the starting rotation, no one seems to have noticed how well Giese has pitched when Chamberlain has had to come out early.

In six-and-one0third innings of work, Geise has allowed only one run. In other news, if you have a pitcher of the caliber of Carl Pavano, the Yankees have a young arm that they will package with other top-caliber prospects.

NBA Playoffs: The Five Most Disappointing Players

Steven Couper — Sat, 10 May 2008 12:08:08 -0400

Here is a look at the top five most disappointing performers in the first round of this year's NBA playoffs. An Honorable Mention goes out to Yao Ming, whose presence would have made the Jazz-Rockets series more intriguing and could have possibly helped Tracy McGrady escape the first round.

5. Carmelo Anthony, Denver Nuggets

While Carmelo Anthony may be a very talented scorer and looks to put up great numbers for the next 10 years, he has had little success in the playoffs.

In five years, he has now lost in the first round five times and has a combined playoff record of 4-20. This year his Nuggets failed to win a game as Carmelo could not get things going; his scoring fell to 22.5 ppg, and he shot only 36 percent.

This, coupled with lackluster effort, makes one wonder if Carmelo (at the age of 23) has already enjoyed the last championship of his career, when he won in 2003 with Syracuse University.

4. Andrea Bargnani, Toronto Raptors

Chris Bosh could really use some help in the frontcourt, and so far, the talented Bargnani has failed to live up to his No. 1 pick. Across the board, his numbers dipped in this his sophomore year, as he seemed to be mired in a season-long shooting slump, finishing the year at 38 percent from the field.

While his regular season was a disappointment, Bargnani managed to produce even less in the postseason, as he scored only 6.4 ppg on 33 percent shooting.

3. Washington Wizards

For all of their talk, their insults at LeBron, and the hard fouling, they produced little drama. The Wizards could not stop LeBron or the Cavaliers when it mattered.

Even with Gilbert Arenas missing Game Six, the Wizards inexplicably lost in front of a raucous home crowd, allowing LeBron to quiet them down for a second straight first round exit.

2. Leandrinho Barbosa, Phoenix Suns

In Barbosa's five-year career with the Suns, the team has appeared in the playoffs in each of the past four seasons. In each playoff campaign, Barbosa's shooting percentage has been lower than in the corresponding regular season.

This year against the Spurs was no different, as Barbosa shot only 34 percent from the field and 22 percent from behind the arc, failing to provide any light to spark the offense.

While the Suns had many costly blunders, particularly letting Game One get away from them, Barbosa's performance was dismal, particularly at a time when another Suns bench player, Boris Diaw, showed flashes of brilliance particularly in Games Four and Five.

1. Erick Dampier, Dallas Mavericks

While the Mavericks season as a whole was a disappointment, no player was more disappointing during the regular season or the postseason than Dampier.

Dampier, who was expected to produce more with the departure of Desagana Diop, failed to come close to earning his $10 million salary this season. He finished the regular season averaging only 6.1 ppg, and his playoff production dropped to only 3.6 ppg.

In the past few seasons, when Dampier has scored, rebounded and defended the lane, the Mavericks have been very successful.

It's no surprise that now that the Mavs' dominance has vanished, so too has Dampier.

A Who's-Who of the NBA Lottery Teams

Steven Couper — Fri, 09 May 2008 09:45:50 -0400

With the excitement of the NBA playoffs in full motion, here is a look at the top ten players not featured in this year's playoffs.

To make this list, I looked at their performance this year, as well as in previous years. Players who missed most of the season, such as Elton Brand, or those with injuries that can be seen as a large reason for their team not advancing to the playoffs (e.g. Dwayne Wade), were not up for consideration.

10. Corey Maggette, Los Angeles Clippers.

It's easy to forget about Maggette. He puts up good numbers every year, but is only mentioned around the trade deadline. Even though he has been rumoured to be in seemingly every trade, he has now played eight years with the Clippers, and in his nine-year NBA career, he has made the playoffs only once.

However, it is hard to discount his talent, as he put up some of the best numbers of his career with 22.1 PPG and 5.6 RPG.

9. Jason Richardson, Charlotte Bobcats.

While many questioned the draft-day trade of Brandon Wright and $10 million for Richardson, Richardson certainly did not disappoint this season. While playing in all 82 games, he scored 21.8 PPG, while leading the team in three-point shooting at 40.6 percent. He also lead the league in three-pointers made.

While the Bobcats still fell well short of the playoffs, their outlook for the next few seasons is bright if Richardson can continue to play this well.

8. Kevin Martin, Sacramento Kings.

One may be surprised to find that Kevin Martin had the sixth highest points-per-game this season, and lead the league in free-throws made per game. For Kings fans, this news is expected, as Martin has increased his scoring average in all four of his NBA seasons. However, this increase in productivity has not come with playoff success, as Martin has played in only six playoff games so far.

7. Shawn Marion, Miami Heat.

While many players on this list have spent years fighting for the chance to make the playoffs, Marion has taken a different strategy: fighting for years to be traded from the wildly successful Suns.

Marion, a four-time All Star, unlike others on this list, has spent a good deal of time in the playoffs, appearing in the postseason in six of his nine seasons.

However, this total is unlikely to grow in the coming seasons, as Marion managed to join the worst team in the NBA, and promptly become injured. He played his fewest games in a season since his first year in the league.

6. Stephen Jackson, Golden State Warriors.

Jackson, the only member of this list with a championship, enjoyed one of his best seasons. He averaged a career high 20.1 PPG and a near career high of 4.1 APG, as he enjoyed a controversy-free year after missing the first six games of the season due to suspension.

However, given how close the race for the eighth seed was, the fact that the Warriors went 0-6 without Jackson to start the season may have doomed their chances from the beginning

5. Al Jefferson, Minnesota Timberwolves.

No one doubts Jefferson's talents, as he managed to replace Kevin Garnett's statistical production with 21 PPG and 11.2 RPG. However, it is not a promising sign that in his four-year career, his production has increased every year, but his team's wins have decreased every year (45,33,24,22).

Hopefully, the Timberwolves' young core will come together around Jefferson, and improve upon their road record, a Western-Conference worst, 7-34.

4. Brandon Roy, Portland Trail Blazers.

Roy's Blazers took the NBA by storm in the first half of the season, as he lead a young team into the playoff picture averaging 19.1 PPG, 4.7 RPG, 5.8 APG.

While the future in Portland looks promising, Greg Oden is set to debut next season, Roy has not yet appeared in the postseason, and it is difficult to see which of the eight teams will fall in order to make room for the Blazers.

3. Michael Redd, Milwaukee Bucks.

Redd has quietly compiled quite a resume in his eight NBA seasons, with over 10,000 points and a 20.5 PPG average. However, this has not translated into much playoff success, as Redd's Bucks have not advanced past the first round since his rookie season.

2. Vince Carter, New Jersey Nets.

While Carter may have the most potential of any player not in the playoffs, his absence from this postseason is of little surprise, given that he just signed a four-year deal worth more than $60 million this past offseason.

Carter, now the poster boy for unmotivated, overpaid athletes still averaged 21.3 PPG, 6 RPG, and 5.1 APG. To his credit, Carter's career resume, at the age of 31, is quite impressive, as he has amassed more than 16,000 points in his ten NBA seasons

1. Baron Davis, Golden State Warriors.

A healthy, motivated Davis enjoyed his finest NBA season in his his nine-year career. Playing in all 82 games for the first time in six seasons, Davis scored 21.8 PPG and handed out 7.6 APG.

Davis' absence from the postseason is a disappointment, as the talented point guard missed the playoffs for just the third time in his career. The race for the eighth seed could be even tighter, as Davis, Jackson, and Monta Ellis could compete with the likes of the Nuggets and Blazers for the final spot.