Bleacher Report - Articles by Andrew Fletcher

Why the Yankees' World Series Win May Have Saved MLB

Andrew Fletcher — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 01:56:22 -0500

As a citizen of Toronto, Canada, I am thrilled that the New York Yankees have won the World Series.

People around me have asked, "Shouldn't you be booing the New York Yankees because they knock out the Toronto Blue Jays from the playoffs every year?"

To those people I have responded, "It was necessary that the Yanks won their 27th World Series in order to save the league."

The Yankees' win means there will be no need for them to go out and buy the best players in the world in order to further strengthen their team.

Yes, there have been complaints about this for years—that the Yankees have limitless money and can get any player they want or need.

This year, there isn't going to be that need to change the structure of the team, as they have delivered on their promise to the city of New York to win the World Series.

This will open up the player market this offseason and allow for other teams to pick up free agents.

Yes, it may help the other big guns like the Boston Red Sox, but an equal number of better players on two teams is a lot more exciting to watch.

This year, the New York Yankees were one of the most pressured teams in all of professional sports.

Last season, they walked out of old Yankee Stadium on the last day of the regular season having not made the playoffs for the first time since 1993.

Over the offseason, they picked up various big names, including CC Sabathia (P) and Mark Teixeira (1B), who provided extra grunt for the team.

After a poor April, the Yankees strung several wins together and set the major league record for most consecutive games without recording an error.

The fans expected nothing less than the World Series, and that's what the Yankees brought them.

Now, we look to this offseason as we begin to hope that they will not need to buy out the league.

Maybe it would allow other teams like the Toronto Blue Jays the chance to get back into the hunt for the American League East title.

Not likely!

Don't Place Your Bets On The New York Jets

Andrew Fletcher — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 21:22:11 -0400

Wow, wasn't the Brett Favre experiment an interesting one?

His 'pre-retirement' investment in the New York Jets, almost became the feel good story of the year.

Yet, the collapse just weeks before the start of the NFL post-season brought an end to the AFC East title dream.

Now with the departure of Favre, the Jets have been left without a star studded quarterback leading the charge.

During the preseason games, the Jets saw a battle between 2009 first-round draft pick Mark Sanchez and Farve's backup, Kellen Clemens.

Sanchez, who went fifth overall in the 2009 NFL draft will be getting the nod to start the season. Sanchez impressed his coaches with his accurate throwing arm, yet as a rookie, it is even more difficult to be the starter for a struggling team.

The one flaw with Sanchez is that he was not know as a scrambler during his days at USC. He will need to be protected by the defense in order to have any chance at winning games.

That defense will be lead by former Baltimore Ravens defensive coordinator Rex Ryan who helped his team get to the NFC finals against the Pittsburgh Steelers last season.

The man who will be picking the ball out of the air for Sanchez will be wide- receiver Jerricho Cotchery.

Cotchery will be a good team with Sanchez as he is used to playing the short passing game, with an average pickup of 12 yards, he can snake his way through lots of traffic.

The two players that will be trying to run the ball back for the major will be Leon Washington and Thomas Jones who last year combined for a total of 19 touchdowns.

In addition to tight-end Dustin Keller, the offensive line remains close to the same as the 2008 season.

Yet, I do not believe that this team will be good enough to complete with the likes of the Miami Dolphins with former Jets quarterback Chad Pennington and running back Ronnie Brown.

Also, several fantasy experts are predicting the New England Patriots to start of the season as the number one team, which will mean that the Jets will continue to have a tough division.

It all comes down to the leadership from Sanchez, but I do believe that it will take at least one more year, especially with this team before he will come on strong as the number 1 quarterback, that he is bound to be.

- With files from Tsn.ca

Dumb Penalties Don't Make a Sport

Andrew Fletcher — Sat, 01 Aug 2009 15:12:10 -0400

Formula One (F1) Racing is clearly my favorite sport to watch and the excitement has definitely picked up in the last few seasons.

Yet, I have some beef with some of the individuals who are in charge managing the rules during the races.

Yes, the F1 stewards have started to get on my nerves with their odd and sometimes awful decisions.

As the viewers saw during the Hungarian Grand Prix, the Renault F1 team did not attach the right-front wheel properly to Fernando Alonso's car during his first pit stop and in the following lap it subsequently came off.

After the race concluded, the race stewards got together and decided to hand Renault a one race suspension for their actions.

Okay, yes I do understand Renault getting a penalty, especially after the Felipe Massa incident during qualifying. Yet most viewers would understand if Renault received a fine or a grid penalty for the next race.

Not a one-race suspension.

This shows that the currently system of stewards that the FIA is applying is flawed.

Currently, the system is that there are three stewards that designated for each event.

Two of the individuals are from the FIA and the other steward is a local and these three individuals differ from one event to the other.

What the FIA need to do is hire a panel stewards that does not change from race to race in order to get consistent results.

There have been many other times in the last several years, where the stewards have made ridiculous decisions and sometimes it has had championship implications.

Here's a quick list of weird and unusual penalties in the last few years:

1. 2009 German GP = Mark Webber gets a drive through penalty for causing a collision at the start of the race, which saw no cars retire from the race along with the fact that the man he hit (Rubens Barrichello) took the lead after the first corner.

2. 2008 Japanese GP = Sebastian Bourdais gets a 25 second penalty after the race for spinning out Massa, even though it was Massa being too aggressive and impatient on cold tires as he came out of the pit lane.

3. 2007 Hungarian GP = McLaren Mercedes was not allowed to collect constructors championship points after Alonso took his time exciting the pit lane and stopped Lewis Hamilton from having time to set one more flying lap. This should be up to the team to take disciplinary action, not for the race stewards to get involved.

4. 2006 Italian GP = Alonso is given a five place grid penalty for "blocking" Massa in qualifying, even though he was flying around the track in order to have time to run another flying lap before the session ended.

5. 1994 British GP = Michael Schumacher passes Damon Hill on the parade lap. The race stewards decide to DQ him, even though he gave it back and it was like he was going to move into the pole position for the start of the race.

In order to avoid mistakes like this, the FIA needs to implement permanent race stewards in order to have fair race judgement for every Grand Prix in the season.

Renault F1 Team Suspended From European Grand Prix

Andrew Fletcher — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 21:37:40 -0400

The Formula One race stewards are not fooling around anymore.

They have clearly become stricter following the regulations and many people would agree that they should after the Felipe Massa incident during qualifying for the Hungarian Grand Prix.

The Renault Formula Team, has fallen victim to their foolishness as they have been banned from attending the European Grand Prix in Valencia in a month's time.

The ruling came after Fernando Alonso was allowed to leave his pit without his right-front wheel fully attached.

Alonso, who led the race up to that point from pole position came out of the pits and immediately realised that he had a problem. As he struggled back to the pits, the wheel flew off as the wheel tethers were not properly hooked on to the wheel.

The two-time F1 world champion, would have to retire from the race just a lap later.

The stewards claimed that Renault should be suspended for not just neglecting to secure the wheel, but also for failing to radio to their driver that there was a problem.

Renault entered the race on a season-high after Alonso secured the team's first pole position since 2006 and had set Alonso up for a three-stop strategy.

Renault's other driver, Nelson Piquet Jr. finished the race in the 12th.

Renault plans to appeal the decision, but if the stewards decision is upheld, both Alonso and Piquet will be forced to sit on the sidelines for the European Grand Prix, which takes place Aug. 21-23.

This was the second time in four years that a wheel has come off of Alonso's Renault after a pit stop during the Hungarian Grand Prix.

In 2006, Alonso was fighting for the lead, when his wheel came off in turn two, which gave current championship leader, Jenson Button his first career victory.

The Mayfield/NASCAR Battle Continues

Andrew Fletcher — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 15:40:34 -0400

The court battles continue for NASCAR owner/driver Jeremy Mayfield, who has been knocked out of the racing circles again by the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

As practice started for the Sprint Cup regulars at the Indianapolis Speedway, the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has overturned the injunction that would have allowed Mayfield to resume racing in NASCAR's top division.

Mayfield was originally suspended indefinitely on May 9 for failing a random drug test that was sanctioned by NASCAR's testing body.

Mayfield tested positive for methamphetamine; since then, he has been appealing the test results in court.

His injunction was originally overturned on July 1 after a judge ruled that NASCAR testing system was flawed.

During that time, NASCAR alleges that Mayfield failed a subsequent drug test on July 6.

Mayfield's team has not been entered in this weekend's race at the Brickyard, since all of Mayfield Motorsports' employees resigned this week.

Since the beginning of the saga, Mayfield has always denied using the illegal drug, but with both sides unwilling to back down, it seems that this back-and-forth battle will continue into the unforeseeable future.

Formula One's Top 10 Lighter Moments

Andrew Fletcher — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 12:42:11 -0400

As everyone knows, Formula One is one of the most challenging sports in the world. The number one focus for all of the teams and all of the drivers is to win every race. The sports is filled with politics and the tension is always high. Yet it is impossible to keep up that stuffy attitude all the time. At the 2009 Monaco Grand Prix, Jenson Button created a lighter moment, when he parked in the pit lane after winning the race, instead of parking at the podium. He then ran down the pit straight, much to the joy of commentators and fans everywhere as seen in this video. www.youtube.com/watch?v=lhoSh6u56ts&feature=related Now here is some of the lighter moments in Formula One Racing.

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A Day at the Races

Andrew Fletcher — Fri, 22 May 2009 19:11:09 -0400

Back in the day when I went to church, I used to have to read the Bible and I learned that Sunday is the Day of Rest. However, in the past couple years, I have started calling Memorial Day Sunday, the Day of Race. This day is what I call my second birthday as spend countless hours during the day, just watching racing. Its fantastic watching three series in several makes of cars race around different race tracks in the world. Watching Formula One, the IRL and NASCAR all days is magical in the way that two ones the series have their biggest event scheduled on the same day, while NASCAR follows the three with their longest endurance event. The following times are marked in the Eastern Time Zone (EST).

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Jays' Winning Start: A Surprise To All

Andrew Fletcher — Tue, 12 May 2009 22:26:12 -0400

As a resident of Toronto, Canada, it has become the norm to see our teams, such as the Maple Leafs, the Raptors, the Argonauts, and the FC having what can only be called mediocre performance at best.

Yet, people have been shocked with the performance from the Toronto Blue Jays.

The point of having a conversation regarding the Jays was to help change the subject from an awkward silence. However, the Jays impressive start to the season, has many people talking instead about the performance of our city's top team.

Going into their first series against the New York Yankees, the Jays have accumulated a 22-12 record. This is because they have won every series they have participated in, pardon the four game series verses the Kansas City Royals.

Much of the team's success can be attributed to the Jays head coach, Cito Gaston.

Gaston came in with the experience of leading the Blue Jays to two World Series Championships in the early 90s.

After the firing of John Gibbons, Gaston's first decision as manager was to recall Adam Lind to the team. This season, we see Lind in the starting line-up, usually taking the DH role for the team.

Lind has easily been the most impressive Toronto player. For the last several seasons, he used to be a replacement player, being called up now and then to replace outfielders when they were injured.

His 2009 stats include, a .333 batting average, with 44 hits, 31 RBIs along with six home runs.

Lind is not the only player that is having a great start to the season.

Aaron Hill has consistently been the Jays go-to-guy when they need the big hit. He currently leads the team with a .353 batting average along with an on-base-percentage of .394.

Hill has also gone deep the most with eight home run and has carried the team with 29 RBIs. He has also kept all pitchers honest, with 54 hits in the 34 game he's played this season.

This is a great sight to see from Hill, because in 2008 he had a promising start along with Alex Rios and was given a new $12 million, four year deal.

It has not been all that easy for the whole starting lineup, especially for Rios and rookie Travis Snider. If you were looking at the stats for the average team, you would not think that 3 HR a piece and at least 22 hits each is not all the bad.

However, as Toronto advances into a stronger hitting team, their bats will be necessary in order to help the team.

Snider has been receiving help from Gaston and his other teammates as he adjusts to the the big leagues. He is lucky to have Gaston as his coach, because Gaston has the patience to allow his players to work through their struggles.

During the 2008 season, the Jays were known for having one of the best starting rotations in the Major League.

But, during the off-season the Jays lost key players Shawn Marccum and Dustin McGowan to injuries that have put them out of the season.

Also, 20 plus win pitcher A. J. Burnett could not be persuaded to stay with the Jays as he left signing a huge $82.5 million contract over five years.

This left the Jays with Jesse Litch and their star pitcher Roy Halladay.

Halladay has been a great help for the team at the start of the season, including seven wins, while recording just the one loss.

With a limitless pitch count, he has helped the Jays stay out of trouble in every game he pitched.

In the rotation to start the season with him included: Litch, David Purcey, Ricky Romero and Scott Richmond.

Purcey was quickly sent back down to the minors, and after just two and three starts respectfully, Litch and Romero succumbed to injuries.

Richmond was impressive during the month of April, with four wins, giving up just 14 earned runs with an ERA of 3.28.

Otherwise, the only weakness currently in the Jays armour is filling the rest of the rotation with decent starting pitchers.

An honourable mention should go out to the improved performance of Shawn Camp who has had great contributions to the team in extra-inning games. His record is 4-0 with one save during 13 games, along with just one earned run.

However, where these pitchers have struggled in various games, the Jays have come up big with hits and several come-back clutch wins.

If this performance can continue into the summer, the Jays will easily be the team the beat in the American League East Division.

Baltimore Ravens: The Team I Never Saw Coming

Andrew Fletcher — Thu, 15 Jan 2009 13:53:21 -0500

I would not normally associate myself as a bandwagon jumper.

I am not putting down my favourite two teams—the Green Bay Packers and the New York Jets even though sadly they did not make the NFL Playoffs.

But this year’s best National Football League team has to be the Baltimore Ravens. At this point, it does not matter if they win the Super bowl or if they get knocked out by the Pittsburgh Steelers—as long as they are recognized as a contender.

The 2008-09 year started off with me watching my favourite quarterback, Brett Favre, move from my favourite to ironically, my second favourite team. The sad part was watching Chad Pennington get shafted to the 1-15 Miami Dolphins who also rival my second favourite team.

This year was incredible as we saw the toppling of the 2007-08 powerhouses—the New England Patriots in the AFC and the Dallas Cowboys in NFC which was mainly due to a high percentage of injuries on each team.

We also saw the usual contenders struggle and then still make the playoffs—talking about the San Diego Chargers and the Philadelphia Eagles.

But it was not until week eight that I finally saw that Baltimore had a chance at making the playoffs.

During that week, Raven’s quarterback Joe Flacco and back-up quarterback Troy Smith lit up highlight screens with their trick play against the Oakland Raiders.

It was amazing to watch Flacco start the play in the shot-gun, gingerly hand the ball over to Smith, and then run down the field—catching the ball for a 42 yard play.

This was the first time that they had come up on my radar.

But just two weeks later, many pundits were ruling out Baltimore and the rookie quarterback's chances after they were nailed to the wall by the New York Giants— 30-10.

In the same week, the Jets had also toppled the undefeated Tennessee Titans and many of us were starting to think about a Subway Super bowl.

Yet again, we were wrong. Favre threw away several games and the Dolphins and Patriots drifted into the past.

The first game that I officially watched with Baltimore was against the Pittsburgh Steelers on Dec. 14.

While previewing this game, I heard that the two best defenses in the league would be going head-to-head.

The game did not disappoint.

The game was very defensive as both teams had only managed to score on field goals until the Steelers broke the plain late in the fourth quarter.

If it had not been for a controversial call on a Steelers' touchdown, this conference final might have taken place in Baltimore.

However, I am not here to question a very difficult call that gave the Steelers a 13-9 win.

The following game was on a Saturday night against the Dallas Cowboys and both teams were desperate for a playoff position. This position that the Cowboys found themselves in was theirs to lose and lose is what they truly did.

The Ravens on the other hand were actually struggling to hold on to a playoff position as the Indianapolis Colts had bolted pass them for the fifth seed.

Baltimore played this game as if it were life or death.

The play that amazed me most was when they faked the field goal attempt on 4th-and-4 and ran for the first down.

Flacco would help the team gain the lead and it would stay that way—Ravens 33 and Cowboys 24.

But one cannot talk about the Ravens without looking at the defense.

Ed Reed has been one of the most impressive team figures with nine interceptions—including two returned for touchdowns.

Ray Lewis and Terrell Suggs have also been impressive—Lewis with his speed as seen in the Miami game and Suggs with his ability to get past the offensive line and sack the quarterback.

On the offense, you also have Leron McClain and Willis McGahee who have combined for 17 rushing touchdowns. Then, there is Mark Clayton who had just four touchdowns during the year but made several big plays as wide receiver when the Ravens needed him.

It may have been a last minute 43 yard field goal by Matt Stover that gave the Ravens their win over the Titans, but it was drive of a winning team that defeated the best team in the NFL.

Could this rookie quarterback lead his team to the Super bowl?

My answer is yes, but even if they fail, they should be ranked as the best team this year.

Top 10 F1 Driving Moments of the Season

Andrew Fletcher — Mon, 29 Dec 2008 06:45:35 -0500

This was one of the greatest seasons in Formula One that any fan could ask for. This season seen great passes, dramatic finishes, unexpected winners and every race provided some sort of excitement. This season provided many records including youngest grand prix winner, most fastest laps by one driver, first night race and youngest world champion. So lets go back and take a look at the greatest moments that occurred during the 2008 season.

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Great Parting Gift = A Championship

Andrew Fletcher — Tue, 23 Dec 2008 14:25:05 -0500

“Checkered flag is up and Ward Burton is going to win the 44th Daytona 500,” said race commentator Allen Bestwick.

Those were the glory days. The days were wins seemed to be possible and closing up shop was nowhere in sight.

Fast-forward six-and-a-half years and Burton’s 2002 Daytona 500 winning racing team has folded.

Bill Davis Racing (BDR) announced they would be closing shop and selling off their shares on Dec. 22nd.

Sprint Cup driver Dave Blaney has also been released from his contract and is currently looking for other options.

Unable to compete for wins or sponsors with the big three teams of Hendrick Motorsports, Roush Racing and Joe Gibbs Racing, Davis was forced to sell his single car operation.

BDR first came on the Cup Series Scene in 1993 with Bobby Labonte.

Midway through their second season in competition, they hired Burton who won the team’s first career race at the North Carolina Raceway after starting third. Burton would also be the most successful driver to compete for BDR on the Cup level winning all five of their wins.

The highlight for the team’s career had to be the 2002 Daytona 500. After Sterling Marlin was penalized for tugging on a fender during a red flag, it promoted Burton’s No. 22 dodge to the front.

He never looked back, holding off Elliot Sadler in the Wood Brother’s 21 Ford for the victory.

Caterpillar signed on as a sponsor for BDR in 1999 and stayed on with the team until the end of the 2008 season, where they switched to Jeff Burton’s No. 31 Chevy.

Along with the Cup Series, BDR posted wins in the Busch and Craftsman Truck Series.

Success came quickly in the Craftsman Truck Series as 1995 Champion Mike Skinner posted two wins in 2005. This was followed up by six wins between Skinner and Johnny Benson during the 2006 season followed by a championship runner-up finish in by Skinner in 2006.

In total Skinner would amass nine career wins for BDR as 1995 Busch Series Champ, Benson had 14. Also 2008 rookie, Scott Speed would win at Dover leading to a grand total of 24 wins for BDR.

The best parting gift for BDR in 2008 was from Benson.

He drove hard all season, clinching the 2008 drivers’ championship by seven points over three-time champion Ron Hornaday Jr.

The new stockholders of BDR have planned to continue the Sprint Cup program for the number 22 team, but it remains to be seen if they will compete full-time in the 2009 championship.

Vesa Toskala as Dependable as a Coin Flip

Andrew Fletcher — Thu, 18 Dec 2008 08:27:51 -0500

If you've seen the movie The Dark Knight, you've been introduced to the character known as Two-Face.

Being two-faced means a character has two personalities. When it comes to the Toronto Maple Leafs, there is a player that fits that description perfectly: Vesa Toskala.

Toskala has been very streaky during his tenure with the Maple Leafs this season.

All goalies go though streaks throughout the course of their careers, but this is Toskala’s season that we are talking about.

The Leafs' leading goalie has a very unconvincing 12-9 record with only one shutout in 27 games. Yet, he has a 3.01 goals against average and a save percentage of 0.891—not what one would expect from a goaltender with such a mediocre record.

There have been a few who have suggested that Toronto should start veteran Curtis Joseph in place of Toskala, thus reliving the days when Joseph played full-time for the Leafs from 1998-2001.

Sadly, times have changed since those seasons and the Maple Leafs are a very different team now. Plus, after 18 seasons in the NHL, Joseph would likely have to sign with another team if he wanted to be a starting netminder.

Having Joseph as the back-up is a great play for the Leafs because it allows Toskala to have a mentor who has been in his position before.

Toskala has not had a stellar start to the season, but Toronto fans should not blame him for the Leafs' ranking 24th in the NHL. There have been many games this season that were lost in regulation by just one goal. Most of these games have not been Toskala’s fault, as the lack of scoring plays a big part in the losses.

One thing that is on Vesa Toskala’s side is that he is welcomed by the Toronto fans. They are giving him a chance to prove himself.

Toskala has recently started to turn his game around and has really helped the team in tough situations. Luckily for him, he has another two-and-a-half years remaining on his contact to show how much he is truly worth to this young team.

Canadian Motorsport Falling Down the Order

Andrew Fletcher — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 10:31:02 -0500

With the announcement of the cancellation of the Canadian Grand Prix for the 2009 Formula One World Championship season, it’s time to give an update on Canada and Canadians on the motorsport World Map.

The Canadian Grand Prix was a fixture on the F1 circuit for a strong 30 years, but sadly, Bernie Ecclestone said that the Montreal-based Circuit Gilles Villeneuve was years in debt, and the nation was cut.

During those years, we seen great battles at a circuit where perfection is recommended and mistakes are punished.

On the flip side, at least they still have NASCAR, right?

Sadly it’s not the top series, but the racing has been worth watching.

I wonder if Montreal will have the same fate as the Mexico City race. You know, NASCAR races there until they think they have a market and then pulls the race.

Now, folks are saying the Indy Car Series is looking to come to Montreal to place a third Canadian circuit on the schedule.

Currently, the series have Toronto and Edmonton on the schedule, which has been a great way to rope in the Canadian audience.

The Indy Car Series has a special place in my heart because it is still hosting Canadian races, but it’s starting to seem that the series is turning into a stepping stone for NASCAR.

The bright side for Canadians is that Alex Tagliani is racing is the series. The dark side is that it’s Tagliani.

Toronto native Marty Roth ran an Indy Car team on his own until the end of the 2008 season. The Indy Car Series would not renew his super licence for the following year.

And it does not look like his motorsport career is going to continue.

One driver who was left out after the elimination of the Champ Car World Series is Paul Tracy, the 2003 Champion. Many consider him too old to continue racing, but he proved himself in a one-off race in 2008 during the Edmonton Grand Prix, where he finished fourth.

Now he is without a ride again and is looking to branch out into NASCAR again.

Any Indy Car team could use his experience in the car, but no owner seems willing to take the chance.

Speaking about NASCAR drivers, Patrick Carpentier had a go in the Sprint Cup Series this year with limited success. Where his career goes from here is anyone’s guess.

Another driver who looked like he was going to be driving in the Sprint Cup this season was good old Jacques Villeneuve. His departure from the NASCAR scene after his crash in the qualifying duel for the Daytona 500 did not really surprise anyone.

Since then, he's been hopping around the world all year.

From crashing at Daytona to finishing second in the Le Mans 24 hour race to then crashing in the rain-filled NASCAR Nationwide Series race in Montreal to driving in the SPEEDCAR Series, he has had a mixed-up year.

There were a couple of success stories for Canadian drivers this season.

Even though he did not score any wins, for the third year in a row, Canadian DTM driver Bruno Spengler finished in the top five in the point standings.

The only problem that him is that no one in Canada actually knows he exists.

This brings us back to the Nationwide Race in Montreal. This was Canada’s one major win over the course over the course of the 2008 season.

Ron Fellows won his fourth career Nationwide Race at the track and led a Canadian 1-2 finish, with our good friend Carpentier earning his best finish in any car this season.

The 2009 season may be a long one for fans of Canadian motorsports, but at least we have Tagliani.