Who’s number one? Who cares?

Tyler Hansbrough and the Tarheels are headed for another number one seed in March Madness, but does it really give them an advantage?

It’s the eve of Selection Sunday. The conference tournaments are winding down and after tomorrow’s finals, only 65 teams in the entire nation will extend their seasons. But of those 65 teams, only four will earn the coveted number one seeds in their brackets.

Teams like North Carolina and Pittsburgh are virtual locks for the spot, but for teams like Memphis, UConn, Louisville or maybe the out-of-nowhere pick by the committee, number one is less of a guarantee. And so the inevitable question arises: “Who’s number one?”

Who cares?

What benefits come with being the number one seed? An easier path to the Final Four? Well, I would hope a number one team would find it easy to play a number 16 team. But by the same token, I would hope they find it easy to play a number seven team.

I actually tend to believe that the team with the best path to the Final Four would be the teams just below the number one spot (note the use of the word “best” rather than “easiest”). I’ll give up the contention that number one has the easiest path, but easiest is not always best. Pittsburgh slamming past pushover opponents won’t do them much good once they run into UCLA. And although the opponents faced by the teams right underneath aren’t exactly dynamos themselves, tuning up against better competition makes a team’s game better.

Regardless of the seeding, though, the good teams will find a way to win no matter who the opponent is. If Memphis is truly the best team, they can beat CSUN or North Carolina. If Louisville deserves the title, they can take out Akron or Pittsburgh. Maybe none of them deserve the title. Maybe it belongs to Syracuse. They won’t be a number one seed, but that’s why you play the tournament.

That’s why we’re here. That’s why it’s March Madness. There’s a certain unpredicatbility about this month and nothing is guaranteed.

If the shoe fits

Dwight Lewis (21) and DeMar DeRozan (10) celebrate a thromping.

By guest blogger, Rachie McRoth

Mark my words, the USC Trojans are the most dangerous team going into The Tournament. It all comes down to one factor, really. The reason USC is so dangerous is simple. They believe they can win.

When I mentioned this to my friend, PG, he, an unabashed ‘SC fan btw, said that they were the least deserving team to get in. He cited their February melt-down and mediocre PAC-10 record as reasons his team wouldn’t be wearing the glass slipper.

But the truth is, none of those things matter. It doesn’t matter that they went 2-5 against ranked teams, or that they lost to Stanford and Oregon State. They won the Pac-10 title. And they did it as a sixth seed, something no team has ever done.

They had to fend off CAL, #14/15 (depending on who you ask) UCLA and #23 Arizona State.

They beat these teams soundly, too. The final score of the ASU game was 66-63, but the Sun Devils led by as many as 15 in the second half, and were up by five with two minutes left in the game. Furthermore, USC thromped — when I get excited I invent new words — UCLA and never trailed against CAL.

Another reason the Trojans are so dangerous? DeMar DeRozan, newly anointed Most Outstanding Player of the tourney. You know he’s dying to do what O.J. couldn’t. He led all-scorers in the games vs. Arizona State and UCLA, annnnd led the Trojans in assists against Arizona State, rebounds against UCLA and blocks vs. CAL.

Plus, he looked pretty doing it.

Everything for the Trojans seems to be working in their favor. In addition to DeRozan,  Taj Gibson is absolutely filthy. Their depth and the seniority of guys like Daniel Hackett, Keith Wilkinson, Marcus Johnson and Dwight Lewis only make the prospect of paying them more unnatractive.

USC also has that intangible element — one all Cinderella teams share — momentum. Momentum is a dangerous thing — those who have it thrive off of it, while those who don’t, fear it.

The way USC handled the PAC-10 Tournament proved to the world that they plan to be dancing long past midnight this year.

You’ve been warned.

All aboard the Terrell-go-Round!

Terrell Owens is gone and so might the Cowboys' chances.

Disappointed that Manny-watch is over (or that T.J. Houshmanzadeh signed with Seattle)? Fear not! There’s a new superstar with attitude on the free agent market and his name is Terrell Owens!

The Cowboys cut their star wide reciever Wednesday night, ending his three-year tenure in Dallas, during which time he publicly feuded with quarterback Tony Romo and tight end Jason Witten as well as criticized the coaching staff’s play-calling ability.

Owens’ release falls under the category of “addition by subtraction,” or so Dallas would hope, you know, just like when he was released by the Eagles and Donovan McNabb proceeded to have an MVP-caliber season before getting injured.

Or could the move turn out to be like Randy Moss leaving Minnesota? Moss was a headcase as well, but ask Daunte Culpepper how that deal worked out. Without his star reciever, Culpepper fell into oblivion while Moss came up big as a key component of the New England Patriots team that reached the Super Bowl a year ago.

Let’s not forget that during his time with Dallas, Owens averaged 12.7 touchdowns per season. Roy Williams, Witten and the rest of the gang will have a rough time trying to make up for that glaring hole on the field. Despite all his antics, he was a catalyst on that team.

Earlier in the offseason, the Cowboys released Pacman Jones. That move is far more tolerable than this one. Jones brought nothing to the team and contributed only baggage. He was a criminal. Owens was simply a headcase. This wasn’t just some extra player that Dallas could just take or leave. This wasn’t some second-string punter who had a few DUIs and was considered a bad example. The Cowboys just released the NFL’s second all-time touchdown reception leader and they are about to regret it.

…And all is right with the world

"Tell everyone Mannywood is coming," said Manny Ramirez shortly before officially returning to the Dodgers.

 Ladies and gentlemen, it’s over.

The four-month long soap opera that was the Manny Ramirez/Dodgers negotiations has finally come to a close as the two sides have agreed to a two-year $45 million pact.

Two years and $45 million — that’s been quite a familiar figure the past winter. It was four months ago today that the Dodgers extended a two-year $45 million offer with a third year option to Ramirez (at the time seeking six years at $25 million per), whose agent, Scott Boras failed to respond to claiming he wished to explore “serious offers.”

A week ago, the Dodgers extended another two-year $45 million offer to the slugging outfielder, this time with deferred compensation ($10 million in 2009-12 plus $5 million in 2013). Boras shot that offer down as well, prompting negotiations to seemingly head south as Frank McCourt revealed his anger with the Ramirez camp and promised another offer at a significantly lower value.

And yet, the deal that Ramirez signed was the exact same deal he was presented with last week and declined.

Why the sudden turnaround? That seems to be the universal question. Here’s the answer:

Manny and Boras were in panic mode. Plain and simple. The Dodgers were fed up with being rejected after four times offering to make Manny Ramirez the second-highest paid player in baseball. If McCourt had followed through with what he had promised, Ramirez most likely would have recieved a one-year deal for under $20 million. Deferred compensation or not, that is a far cry from even the deals they had turned down.

Look at the other side of the equation. If the Dodgers had dropped their offer, that would then give other teams a chance to crawl back into the fold. Take San Francisco for example. If the bar is set at a year at under $20 million, why not take a chance? In the National League West, that may have been all the Giants needed to put them over the top. Or the Yankees — they never really needed Ramirez, but for that short a duration and that “low” a value, it’s not unrealistic to think Brian Cashman could have swooped in for the kill. McCourt was not about to lose the heart and soul of his franchise just for spite.

Now that all is said and done, who won and lost their battles in this free agent pursuit like no other?

Winners: Ned Colletti, Manny Ramirez and Scott Boras

Ned Colletti is really the only one in these negotiations who came away smelling like a rose. He handled things perfectly. When the Ramirez camp came out of the gate demanding six years, he could have given in. He didn’t. When the Angels, Yankees and Giants entered the fray, he could have offered through the roof to get it over with. He didn’t. When his offers were rejected time after time, he could have gotten angry. He didn’t. Unlike Frank McCourt, Colletti did a tremendous job keeping things mellow and professional and it paid off for him.

Ramirez and Boras did not get their six-year deal, or even four for that matter, but they entered the offseaon with a goal: get Manny Ramirez a raise. Despite a long, overblown spectacle, they did accomplish that goal (Remember, the two $20 million options Ramirez had on his contract were negotiated through another agent meaning Boras wouldn’t have made a penny on them). Manny also did a good job saving face in the pursuit’s final days. When the world was against him, calling him greedy and selfish, Ramirez personally stepped in and offered a compromise. It was made clear that he wanted to remain a Dodger and was ready to make some sacrifices.

Loser: Frank McCourt

When it was rumored that the Dodgers’ owner was going to step in, many believed it to be a positive thing. Oh, contaire! After Boras rejected the Dodgers’ fourth offer, McCourt issued a press release taking shots at the agent and his client. Too bad the press release failed to mention the deferred compensation that the media had to dig up instead. That spawned the media war between McCourt and Boras, the ugliest battle of the winter. Insults were exchanged, sarcasm, threats. McCourt may have gotten his man, but he tarnished his reputation by almost blowing it.

Fantasy Baseball Primer

CC Sabathia saved the Brewers' season as well as your fantasy season. Is he worth it this time around?

It’s that time of year again.

With Spring Training in full swing, draft day is approaching fast — you know – when all the fans (we are NOT nerds!) take their charts and their highlighters and their pens and leave their mock drafts to gear up for the real deal. So being the winner of the previous league (a ten-man, head-to-head, competitive Yahoo league), allow me to offer a few suggestions:

General drafting strategy:

Average is good. Power is good. Speed is good. One-dimensional players are NOT good. This is why Adam Dunn and Dave Roberts are not high draft picks. They are purely one-dimensional. To avoid such players, I have developed my own system which I like to call the APS system (Average – Power – Speed).

Example: Ichiro Suzuki would be an AS player. Manny Ramirez would be an AP player (if he ever signs). David Wright, however, would be an APS player, the ideal player.

Get as many APS players as humanly possible. Why? If you are banking on Adam Dunn as your source of power and he breaks his right tibia in a freak roller-coaster mishap, you just lost your trophy. If you are relying on a balanced lineup to bring you equal numbers throughout, you can afford to lose one of them.

First pick candidates:

For those of you fortunate (or unfortunate, depending on how adept you are at decision-making) to have your league’s first pick, consider the following names:

David Wright – My first pick last year. Good for .300 average, 30 homers, 100 RBI and 15-20 steals (had 34 in 2007 but don’t expect that again).

Hanley Ramirez – Dubbed by many as the best player in the National League and only going to get better. Good for .300 average, 30 homers, 70-80 RBI, 40 steals.

Albert Pujols – What can I possibly say about him? Good for .300 average, 35-40 homers, 120 RBI, going to guess around eight steals this season.

Grady Sizemore – If he can get the average up to about .275-.280, he could be fantasy dynamite. Otherwise good for 30/80.

Ryan Braun – If Prince Fielder can rake the entire year, Braun will be that much more fearsome. I would honestly not rule out a .290/40/120 season from him with 15 steals. He could be the best one on the board.

Alex Rodriguez – You know the deal. Are the distractions worth it to you? Take a gamble.

Pitching:

DO NOT, I repeat, DO NOT EVER take a pitcher with your first overall pick. The pitching market is deep enough that you can afford to wait four or five rounds before drafting your first pitcher. Of course if you have the tenth or worse pick in your league, you may want to bump that up a couple rounds (third). But if you have Ryan Braun and Mark Teixeira anchoring your lineup after two rounds, it’s pretty clear you’re building an offensive surplus. Go for John Lackey in the fifth or sixth round. If you have a bottom of the barrell pick and have Jose Reyes and Magglio Ordonez, Roy Halladay in the third.

Steal players out of later rounds:

I was in a mock draft the other day. It was the 11th round and I stumbled upon a name that shocked the hell out of me — Daisuke Matsuzaka. I grabbed him immediately. Round later I saw Jon Lester (my prediction to win the AL Cy Young). Snapped him up too. Then I saw Scott Kazmir. Point is, you can afford to wait a while before building your pitching staff. This year, offense will dominate the early rounds. When people start to panic and pick up Johan Santana and CC Sabathia in the second round, they get into trouble. Get your pitchers late.

Some key offensive players can also be found on the back-burner. Corey Hart, for example, is a favorite of mine this year. For those of you Dodger fans, Matt Kemp with a little less speed, a little more power and a lot less strikeouts. For everyone else, 30/30 potential. Save a spot in your outfield for him.

Mike Aviles is another player I’ve had my eye on as well. Yahoo lists him as a 2B/SS, ESPN as only a 2B. Check out the listings before you pick him, but with a weak middle infield market (I’ll get to that later), he could be very valuable. 30/30 potential as well, but realistically, look for 20/20 this season.

Chris Davis (1B/3B) can also provide you with 30-homerun power.

Weak markets:

No Wall Street references here. Sorry. Third base and middle infield. They’re weak. You have a few options here:

1. Shore them up early – Hanley Ramirez, Aramis Ramirez, Dustin Pedroia, Jose Reyes, Ian Kinsler, Evan Longoria, Alex Rodriguez, Chipper Jones. They’re all justifiable picks within the first few rounds. The rest of the market is deep enough that you can afford to take one early.

2. Take a gamble – Rafael Furcal, Orlando Hudson, Ryan Zimmerman. All coming off injury but all have big-game potential.

3. Know your sleepers – Mike Aviles, Chris Davis, etc. Pablo Sandoval of the Giants is another one. Expect him to contend for Rookie of the Year honors.

4. Slop it – Edgar Renteria and Casey Blake won’t do much, but they will put up SOMETHING at the least.

Catchers and relievers:

Never draft either before round ten. Even then it may be too early. I realize that if someone makes the brilliant move of taking Brad Lidge or Brian McCann in the fifth, it may mess with your strategy, but stay true to your plan and hold off. The Matt Lindstroms, Jonathan Broxtons, Dioner Navarros and Mike Napolis of the league will still be there by the time you’re ready.

You also might want to find out who actually has the starting job in Texas before you draft anybody named Saltalamacchia, Teagarden or Ramirez.

STAY AWAY FROM:

Yes, I’m talking to you who took Andruw Jones last year and Barry Zito the year before. Here’s the new list of busts:

Matt Holliday – Home/road splits away from Coors Field were poor to begin with. Oakland and its spacious capacity will eat him alive. Plus, he has no protection in Oakland. He at least had Brad Hawpe, Garrett Atkins and Todd Helton in Denver.

CC Sabathia – Yeah, I said it. The golden boy. The iron man. The savior. Yankee Stadium is a band box, the AL East has exponentially tougher offensive opponents and he worked harder last year than any previous year. Does not bode well for a repeat season.

Johan Santana – Something seems up with him and it’s nothing I like. I don’t fully trust his health just yet.

Manny Ramirez – He might not even sign by Opening Day and even when he does, can’t guarantee he will be a happy Manny. You know how that went over in Boston.