Big Mo Is Back!

If you had talked to any Jets fans over the last couple of weeks, they would have all said the same thing. They were worried a little about the possibility of losing Muhammad Wilkerson off that defensive line. Well folks, worry no more, because Big Mo is locked up to a long term deal. His contract is for five years worth $86 million, of which $36.75 million is guaranteed at signing, including a $15 million signing bonus. The contract, which averages $17.2 million per season, also includes an injury guarantee of $53.5 million.

I love this deal for both the team and for Mo. Look, Muhammad has been one of the Jets best defensive linemen. His entire five year career, to this point, in the NFL has been with the Jets. He's put up some pretty fantastic numbers. Last year alone, he had a career year with 12 sacks and the 2nd most tackles of his career at 69 (tied his career high of 69 in a year back in 2012). This past year he was a pro bowler and a 2nd team all pro, for the 2nd time in his career.

As his career has gone along, he has gotten better and better at playing in the NFL. He's gotten more comfortable with his game, and getting better as time marches on. The big thing with this deal was that he was franchise tagged and the Jets had till 4PM last Friday to get a long term deal done. Mo wasn't happy with the tag and felt that he should be given a long term deal. He wasn't even thinking about showing up to camp if he didn't have a new deal in place.

Now he's got a new deal and will be here for another five years, providing the anchor for this Jets defensive line.

Now that the Jets have one deal out of the way, its time to get working on the other one. Memo to the Jets, get your heads out of your rear ends and get Ryan Fitzpatrick a new deal. Think about it here. The three QB's the Jets have on the roster, Christian Hackenberg, Bryce Petty, and Geno Smith. Two rookies who aren't really ready to start in the NFL and a guy who has proven that he can't really hack it in this game at this level. Fitzpatrick had success with this team last year, and if it ain't broke, don't fix it. So bring Fitz back and let him do his thing under center until one of the other two rookie QB's are ready to go.

All in all though, it is fantastic to have Muhammad Wilkerson back in the mix where he belongs!

MLB Fantasy Roster

So this is something I've wanted to do for a long time now. Every time I have a baseball debate about how great a player is/was, it makes me wonder a little. Who is the greatest of all time? That's a little hard to figure out considering how baseball has evolved over the decades. So what I wanted to do was come up with a fantasy roster, one that was slightly different. What you are about to read is a fantasy roster of the last 27 years of Major League Baseball. This is a roster of the best players I've seen in my lifetime. Its going to consist of a starting eight position players, plus a bench, a starting rotation, a bullpen and a closer. Without further ado, here is my dream roster. The team name is the era of that players career I'm really looking at as to when they were the very best in the business, at least to me. (HM is guys I had to mention but couldn't find roster space for)

MLB 25 Man Roster
Catcher: Mike Piazza (Mets)

1st Base: Albert Pujols (Cardinals)

2nd Base: Roberto Alomar (Indians)

3rd Base: Chipper Jones (Braves)

Shortstop: Derek Jeter (Yankees)

Left Field: Barry Bonds (Pirates)

Center Field: Ken Griffey Jr. (Mariners)

Right Field: Tony Gwynn (Padres)

Designated Hitter: David Ortiz (Red Sox) (HM Edgar Martinez Mariners)

Bench:
Catcher: Pudge Rodriguez (Rangers)

Infielders: Miguel Cabrera (Tigers), Omar Visquel (Indians) (HM Jeff Kent Giants)

Outfielders: Ichiro Suzuki (Mariners), Carlos Beltran (Mets) (HM Manny Ramirez Red Sox, Vladimir Guerrero Expos)

Pitchers:
Starting Rotation:
1. Randy Johnson (Diamondbacks)
2. Pedro Martinez (Red Sox)
3. Greg Maddux (Braves)
4. Clayton Kershaw (Dodgers)
5. Tom Glavine (Braves)

Bullpen:
Eric Gagne (Dodgers)
John Franco (Mets)
Jeff Nelson (Mariners)
Rob Nen (Giants)
Roberto Hernandez (White Sox)
Armando Benitez (Mets)

Closer: Mariano Rivera (Yankees)

Manager: Joe Torre

Bench Coach: Bobby Cox

So that's my fantasy roster. What do you think? Anybody you'd change out? Let me know!

American League Dominates

The Mid Summer Classic is usually an interesting game to watch. Every July, the best players in the game get together and show off their talents. Over the past three seasons, the American League has pulled off the victory, thus gaining home field advantage during the Fall Classic in October. This year was no different. Thanks to the efforts of the defending World Champions, the American League has won their 4th straight All-Star game, by a 4-2 score, thus gaining home field advantage in the World Series.

Things got off on the right foot for the National League. Chris Sale got smacked early by Kris Bryant, who homered in the top of the first to give the NL the lead. In the top of the second inning, Johnny Cueto gave up that lead thanks to an Eric Hosmer home run to left. Two batters later, Salvador Perez hit a two run moon shot to give the AL a 3-1 lead. The funny thing is, never once, in the six seasons they have together as big league teammates, had Hosmer and Perez homered in the same inning of any game. That's including regular season and the postseason (ESPN). It just so happen to come on this stage.

Two innings later, we had our emotional on field moment of the night. In the bottom of the third, after a walk, David Ortiz was replaced by Edwin Encarnacion and left the field to a standing ovation in his final all-star game. Every player, on both teams, came out to the top of the dugout and gave him a standing ovation. The AL roster was giving Big Papi hugs and hi-fives as he came off the diamond. That showed how much respect that the players and fans had for David Ortiz, who has had a very impressive career in this game of baseball.

OK now back to the game. The AL would tack on another run in this inning when Hosmer hit an RBI single off Jose Fernandez, driving in Encarnacion to give the AL a 4-1 lead. The NL shrunk the lead with an RBI single by Marcell Ozuna in the top of the fourth off Aaron Sanchez. However, this would be all the runs scored in the game, as the National League stranded 11 baserunners throughout the game, the most notable coming in the top of the eighth. The NL had the bases loaded, but could not capitalize when Aledmys Diaz struck out looking against Will Harris to end the frame. In the ninth, Zach Britton got Nolan Arenado to ground into a double play to secure the 4-2 victory for the American League.

Because of his outstanding performance, going two for three with a home run and three runs driven in, Royals 1st baseman Eric Hosmer walked away with the All Star Game MVP. He became the 1st first baseman to win MVP since Prince Fielder won it in 2011. The only other Royals player to win MVP of the game was Bo Jackson in 1989. With this win, the American League is 16-3-1, including four straight wins, over the last twenty all star games. Also the win gives the American League home field advantage come the World Series in October!

Stanton Smash

This hasn't exactly been much of a secret around Major League Baseball the last few years. Giancarlo Stanton is really good at hitting a baseball. Not only that but he's really good at hitting them a long way. This year's Home Run Derby couldn't have been any better a place to help prove that. Stanton went at it with last years winner Todd Frazer. Stanton had the raw power edge and beat Frazer, walking away with the Home Run Derby crown for 2016.

Stanton went off in the Derby this year, smashing 61 total homers in the entire tournament, obliterating the old record of 41, which Bobby Abreu set in 2005 (Frazer too passed that mark by hitting 42 dingers in the derby this year). Giancarlo came into the Derby a little bit hot, hitting five home runs over the final week heading into the all-star break, giving him twenty on the year. In his entire big league career, he's never hit fewer than twenty in a year. So he's on pace to clip 40 this year for the first time ever should he stay healthy. More on that in a moment. Back to the Derby.

Here's a look at some of the raw numbers from Stanton's performance in the Derby this year. He clubbed 61 total homeruns in three rounds of the derby. Stanton's home runs traveled a total projected distance of 27,187 feet, which is 5.15 miles and 9,918 feet more than any other competitor (MLB). Eleven of his home runs in the final round (he hit twenty in the finals) and 39 of his total home runs on the day (out of 61 total hit) went over 440 feet. He averaged, AVERAGED, 446 feet on his home runs over the evening. Frazer averaged 430 feet. The rest of the hitters combined for a 412 foot average on their homers.

Those are inhumane numbers. Now here comes the big question. What does this mean for Stanton in the power department in the 2nd half of the year? Sometimes we've seen it happen where guys who have won the Home Run Derby. Guys power numbers will drop off after either winning, or even participating in, the derby. We shall see what happens with Stanton, because he got off to a slow start in the power department and just got to twenty at the break. So we shall see what this does for him the rest of the year.

Congratulations to Giancarlo Stanton, the 2016 Home Run Derby Champion!

MLB First Half Recap

We've made it. The All Star Break has arrived, marking the first half of the Major League Baseball season. Eighty Eight games have already been played and we've seen a lot go down over the first three and a half months of the season. Some teams are playing above and beyond expectation, like the Cubs and Indians. Then you have the defending World Champions the Kansas City Royals, who are playing a little below par. San Francisco is living up to the even year hype that had followed them into the start of the year. David Ortiz is knocking the cover off the ball in his final year in the show. Clayton Kershaw is off to a record setting pace this year with walks to strikeout ratio. All that and a whole lot more have gone down to start the year. So lets take a look back at some of the highlights of the first half of the baseball season

First things first, here's where the teams sit at the all star break:
American League:
East
Baltimore 51 36 .586
Boston 49 38 .563
Toronto 51 40 .560
NY Yankees 44 44 .500
Tampa Bay 34 54 .386

Central
Cleveland 52 36 .591
Detroit 46 43 .517
Chi White Sox 45 43 .511
Kansas City 45 43 .511
Minnesota 32 56 .364

West
Texas 54 36 .600
Houston 48 41 .539
Seattle 45 44 .506
Oakland 38 51 .427
LA Angels 37 52 .416

National League:
East
Washington 54 36 .600
Miami 47 41 .534
NY Mets 47 41 .534
Philadelphia 42 48 .467
Atlanta 31 58 .348

Central
Chi Cubs 53 35 .602
St. Louis 46 42 .523
Pittsburgh 46 43 .517
Milwaukee 38 49 .437
Cincinnati 32 57 .360

West
San Francisco 57 33 .633
LA Dodgers 51 40 .560
Colorado 40 48 .455
San Diego 38 51 .427
Arizona 38 52 .422

Here's some of the league leaders by the all-star break.

National League
Batting Average: Daniel Murphy (WAS) .348
Home Runs: Kris Bryant (CHC) 25
Runs Batted In: Nolan Arenado (COL) 70
Runs Scored: Kris Bryant (CHC) 73
Hits: Daniel Murphy (WAS) 117
Stolen Bases: Jonathan Villar (MIL) 31
Wins: Johnny Cueto (SF) 13
Loses: Chase Anderson (MIL) Jerad Eickhoff (PHI) Matt Harvey (NYM) 10
Earned Run Average: Clayton Kershaw (LAD) 1.79
Strikeouts: Max Scherzer (WAS) 164
Innings Pitched: Johnny Cueto (SF) 131.1
Saves: Jeurys Familia (NYM) 31

American League
Batting Average: Jose Altuve (HOU) .341
Home Runs: Mark Trumbo (BAL) 28
Runs Batted In: Edwin Encarnacion (TOR) 80
Runs Scored: Josh Donaldson (TOR) 80
Hits: Jose Altuve (HOU) 119
Stolen Bases: Rajai Davis (CLE) 24
Wins: Chris Sale (CWS) 14
Loses: Chris Archer (TB) 12
Earned Run Average: Steven Wright (BOS) 2.68
Strikeouts: David Price (BOS) 140
Innings Pitched: Chris Sale (CWS) 125.0
Saves: Zach Britton (BAL) 27

So far in the regular season a few major milestones have been passed. Jake Arrieta of the Cubs has thrown the only no-hitter in the league, so far, this year. He no-hit the Reds on April 21st in a 16-0 Cubs victory. Max Scherzer joined some pretty elite company, becoming only the 3rd player in baseball history to strike out 20 hitters in one game. He joined Roger Clemens, Kerry Wood and Randy Johnson when he struck out 20 against the Detroit Tigers on May 11th.

Meanwhile, some guys at the plate have also passed some major hitting milestones. Carlos Beltrán (May 15th vs. White Sox) and Mark Teixeira (July 3rd vs. Padres) both joined the 400 home run club. Beltran also colleceted his 2,500th career big league hit. David Ortiz became the third player in Major League history to record at least 500 home runs and 600 doubles joining Hank Aaron and Barry Bonds. Ortiz hit his 600th Double May 14th against Houston. Bartolo Colon also made history by hitting his first Major League home run against the Padres on May 7th, becoming the oldest player in big league history to hit his first career homerun at 42 years old.

Ichiro too keeps making history at his age. Recorded his 500th career stolen base against Milwaukee on April 29. He became the 38th player to reach this mark. Then on June 15th against the Padres, he recordedhis 4,256th professional career hit. That total includes 1,278 hits from his time in Japan's major leagues that are not included in his official MLB total. That number, unofficially, tied Pete Rose for the all-time record for most professional hits. He still short of 2,000 hits in the Major Leagues.

MLB's first half had a few interesting moments. There was Trevor Story hitting the cover off the baseball, hitting home runs in his first four big league games. Then we also had the Rays and Jays slugging it out in Texas. Oh and lets not forget about Jackie Bradley Jr. (29 games) and Xander Bogaerts (26 games) both having 20+ game hitting streaks. And July 4th weekend was a special one for Baseball, as the first ever Major League game took place on an active military base as the Braves and Marlins met at Fort Bragg.

All in all baseball has had some pretty memorable moments in the first half of the year. The best is still yet to come!

NBA Legend Calls It A Career

Tim Duncan. When you hear that name, as a sports fan, you turn your head and pay attention. Why? Because he was that good of a basketball player. As a Power Forward, Duncan helped redefine what it meant to play that position. The man was a fantastic basketball player, somebody who is going to go down in the history books as not only one of the greatest power forwards of this generation, but one of the greatest power forwards to ever step foot on an NBA court. After spending 19 years playing in the league, Duncan has decided to call it a career.

San Antonio took Duncan as the first overall pick in the 1997 NBA Draft, a year in which he kicked off his NBA career with the Sours. By the time all was said and done, here 19 years later, Duncan has left a career and a legacy that few players in this league can match. Since drafting Duncan, the Spurs won five championships and posted a 1,072-438 regular season record, which oh by the way equates to a .710 winning percentage. No other team in sports, whether it be the NBA, NFL, NHL or MLB over the last 19 years, has had that kind of winning luck. With Duncan in the lineup, the Spurs made the playoffs in every single year he played, and as a team, San Antonio won 50 or more games in a year for the last 17 years, a stretch of excellence that I don't think anybody will be able to touch again. That goes to show how good an organization the Spurs have been.

Duncan is coming off a year in which he hit the 1,000 win makr as a player, becoming just the third player in league history to reach 1,000 career wins, as well as the only player to reach 1,000 wins with one team. This past year, Duncan became one of two players in NBA history to record at least 26,000 points, 15,000 rebounds and 3,000 blocks in his career (Kareem Abdul-Jabbar). I mean just look at what Duncan did throughout his what is sure to be hall of fame career. He finished finishes his career with averages of 19.0 points, 10.8 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 2.2 blocks per game. Duncan sits 14th all time in points (26,496), sixth in rebounds (15,091) and fifth in blocks (3,020). Duncan was great, as his career totals indicate. The 1998 Rookie of the Year was named NBA MVP twice (2002, 2003) and NBA Finals MVP three times (1999, 2003 and 2005). His point, rebound, blocked shots, minutes played and games played totals are the best in Spurs history. Oh yeah and he also had 841 double-doubles, which is good for the 5th most in league history.

We could go on and on and on about the numbers that Duncan put up in his brilliant career, but if we do that, we'll be here forever. Duncan will go down in history as one of the league's best interior defenders, Duncan also ranks consistently as one of the top scorers, rebounders and shot-blockers in the league. Not only that, but many regard, and rightfully so, Duncan as one of the better clutch players in league history. His three finals MVP awards in his career should help as evidence of that. Duncan is also regarded as one of the more sublime passers of this generation. He could do it all. He wasn't the flashiest player in league history, he was just good and consistent all around, which is what made him so hard to defend against.

He was also a leader. Almost everybody on the Spurs looked up to him and followed his quite lead. He didn't have to yell and scream to get his point across. He would just tell you what you needed to do and you did it. He lead by example, while other players fed off that and followed his lead and example. His playing style can be described as simple but effective. And boy was it ever. With the retirements of Duncan and Bryant, Minnesota Timberwolves forward Kevin Garnett is the final player in the NBA who played in 1997-98. Garnett, 40, joined the league in 1995 and is signed through next season (ESPN).

So hats off to Tim Duncan, congratulations on a fantastic career!

NHL Free Agency Winners And Losers

It's the most wonderful time of the year. Christmas in July has happened. A week after free agency kicked off in the National Hockey League, and what a week its been. Actually lets be a little more accurate, what a first couple of days it was. Once free agency hits in the NHL, look out. As is usually the case with the NHL, a flurry of moves was made once free agency opened up and after a day or two of crazy moves, things went quite, as they usually do. With that being said, we've had a week to think about what's gone down and we have come to the following conclusions. Here are some of the winners and losers from free agency so far in the NHL.

Winners:
Tampa Bay Lightning
Sure once free agency started, the Lightning didn't really bring anybody new on board. But the reason the Bolts get the positive nod here is for who they locked up. He brought back Steven Stamkos with an eight year contract extension worth $68 million. So the Lightning bring back their captain and best offensive player. Wait there's more. They locked up their best defender in Victor Hedman for eight years and $63 million. He wasn't supposed to hit the market till next year, but that saved Tampa a big headache trying to bring him back. Same thing too with Andrei Vasilevskiy, who signed an extension for three years and $10.5 million. All three guys have bought in to what is being done by Steve Yzerman and upper management in Tampa. The Bolts are keeping their core group in tact and they will still be contenders for a long time

Losers:
Vancouver Canucks
This was a team that five years ago was one of the heavy hitters in the Western Conference. Now, not so much. Vancouver did sign Loui Eriksson to a six year deal worth $36 million. Yes, he in all likelyhood will be playing on the top line with the Sedin Twins. Sure Eriksson had 30 goals and 63 points last year in Boston and can produce that again and then some playing with Daniel and Henrik. But that's all Vancouver really has going for it right now. They haven't done another move yet to even make them appear to be relevant in the Western Conference. Sorry Canucks fans but Vancouver won't do much this year and haven't made any moves so far that will make that viewpoint and opinion change.

Winners:
Buffalo Sabres
A little surprising to see Buffalo at this point on the list but they have something to work with in Western New York. I know the goalie tandom of Robin Lehner and Andres Nilsson isn't going to scare anybody. But the defense has gotten better by adding a power play quarterback like Justin Faulk. He helps build further upon a solid defense in Buffalo. Now there's the scoring. They added a huge piece by signing Kyle Okposo away from the Islanders. He's a big guy who can hit, make plays and score goals. It now gives Buffalo a solid top six forwards with Ryan O'Reilly, Kyle Okposo, Evander Kane, Jack Eichel, Tyler Ennis and Sam Reinhart. I'm not saying that the Sabres are going to set the Eastern Conference on Fire, but they aren't going to be as much of a pushover anymore and can be more competitive.

Losers:
New York Islanders
This one pains me to say, but its kinda true. They lost Kyle Okposo to Buffalo, Frans Nielsen to Detroit and Matt Martin to Toronto. They also lost Brain Strait to the Jets but I'm not so upset about that he wasn't all that big a loss. The Islanders did sign players in a six year deal to Andrew Ladd, who is almost an exact fit to be able to replace Okposo, which I'm not too upset about. But in signing Jason Chimera, its a step down from Frans. Chimera is 37 and had a major down year last year. I'm hoping he doesn't turn into what happened with Marty Reasoner, a former 20 goal scorer who just doesn't have it anymore. Sure he's here to fill time and space till the guys in the system are ready to contribute bigtime to the team. The team also brought back Shane Prince and PA Parenteau. OK moves but not enough to help take this team to the next level. Oh and they missed the boat on Taylor Hall when they could have gotten him for Travis Hamonic but said no, and Hall went to the Devils.

Winners:
Florida Panthers
Florida already has a good team. They did just win the division for only the 2nd time in franchise history GM Tim Rowe locked up his bright future by signing Aaron Ekblad to a long term deal. Also he brought in James Reimer on a five year a deal, a move which I do like. Roberto Luongo, the number one down in Florida isn't getting any younger. They need something stable behind him for a while so that way he has an understudy ready to take over the team when Lungon decides its time for him to leave. Rowe also made three solid depth additions, bringing in analytics darling Jonathan Marchessault and center Colton Sceviour to bolster his bottom-six before adding defenseman Jason Demers last Saturday. This team is going to be good for quite some time.

Losers:
Edmonton Oilers
Things aren't quite looking so hot in Edmonton. Yes they are opening up a new arena this season. Yes they have Conor McDavid for a full year of hockey, and healthy too. Yes they did add Milan Lucic, on a seven year contract. But they did lose Taylor Hall, who oh by the way is one of the bright up and coming stars in the NHL. They haven't added much depth on defense outside of Adam Larsson (who they got from the Devils in exchange for Hall) and goaltending is still an issue. Sorry Oilers fans but its not enough to get it done out West.

Winners:
Dallas Stars
The Stars get Dan Hamhuis for two seasons at an incredibly reasonable $3.75 million per year. He is still an effective two-way defenseman that plays top-four minutes and will lessen Dallas' need to rely on young defensemen. On top of that, the two-year term doesn't saddle them to a player on the wrong side of 30 when they have a stable of young blueliners just waiting for their chance to break through. This is a good short-term fix to a trouble spot. Additionally, the Stars managed to hang onto valued two-way forward Patrick Eaves. Its a good retooling move for the Stars going forward, even more so if they want to capitalize off last season's success.

Losers:
Toronto Maple Leafs
As expected, the Leafs were relatively quiet so far in free agency, but the one deal they did sign was a puzzler. Matt Martin is sure to bring energy to a building that was a mausoleum most nights last season, but that doesn't justify rewarding the fourth-liner with a four-year deal worth $10 million.

NBA Free Agency Winners And Losers

Free Agency. That glorious time of year of year where teams get the pick of the lot of the players that are on the market. You can change the fate forever of a franchise, either good or bad, by signing a guy to a contract. It could change the future of a franchise for the better and could really set back another who loses a player. Anything can happen during free agency, like being a kid in a candy store with a pick of the lot from players. So while there are still some players are sitting out there on the market, the period has slowed down enough for us to catch our breath and take a look at some of what was from free agency. So with that being said, here are some of the winners and losers so far in free agency.

Winners:
Golden State Warriors
The defending Western Conference Champions pulled off the biggest coo in free agency, signing Kevin Durant to a two year deal, with a player option after the first year. This is so huge for Golden State, because it makes a more potent lineup even that much better. You now have Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green, Kevin Durant and Andre Iguodala. Sure I know they lost Harrison Barnes and Andrew Bougat to the Dallas Mavericks, but still they Warriors are loaded and it may also be a sign of things for Golden State for the future. It may mean they can get talent to join in on the mix in the future.

Losers:
Oklahoma City Thunder
As the Warriors won this signing, the Thunder (as well as some other teams around the league who had an interest in him) are big losers. This is a sign of things to come because Russell Westbrook has said that he may not even sign an extension and could hit the free agent market next season. The Thunder’ roster as its currently formed stands no real chance in the Western Conference. Not only did Durant leave, he left for a conference rival that just defeated the Thunder in the playoffs. Oh and with the loss of Durant, it means that the Thunder now fall behind the Warriors, Spurs, Clippers and Trail Blazers as the top talent in the West.

Winners:
New York Knicks
Phil Jackson and Steve Mills are making moves with this Knicks team. It started with trading for Derrick Rose right before free agency started. Sure, Rose isn't the same kind of player he was when he won NBA MVP in 2011, but he can still be very productive. Same thing can be said about Jokim Noah, who's 31 years old and can be a productive center. Adding to the plethora of free-agent signings, New York also picked up guards Brandon Jennings and Courtney Lee. They’ll pack a scoring punch with Rose in the backcourt. Throw those guys on the floor with Carmelo Anthony and Kristaps Porzingis already in the mix, New York now has a roster capable of competing for a top-six spot back east. It’s now all about these new additions remaining healthy. If that happens, the team’s summer will have proven to be a success.

Losers:
Dallas Mavericks
Seems like we go through this each and every summer. Dallas tries to clear some space in the cap to build around Dirk but they can't find any takers. It really seems like Dallas doesn't really seem to be an attractive place to be playing basketball. I mean both Hassan Whiteside and Mike Conley decided to take their talents elsewhere, as too did Chandler Parsons heading to Memphis. They did manage to acquiring Warriors’ castoffs such as Andrew Bogut and Harrison Barnes, but they aren't really going to be enough to help get the Mavs off the bottom rung of playoff contenders in the West.

Winners:
Boston Celtics
The biggest name on the free agent market, not named Kevin Durant and LeBron James (Who's going to re-sign in Cleveland), was Al Horford. He's a big man who can pretty much do it all on the hardwood. You kind of knew going in that he was going to get a max contract from somebody, and it turned out to be the Boston Celtics. The Celtics signed Horford to a four-year, $113 million deal, adding an All-Star in his prime without having to trade away assets. All of this is going on while still maintaining enough financial flexibility that Celtics fans were able to temporarily delude themselves into thinking they had a shot at landing Durant. Adding a guy like him will make Boston a lot better and maybe push them up into contender status against the Cavilers in the Eastern Conference.

Losers:
Atlanta Hawks
Still a good basketball team that may have just added a major headache. Sure the Hawks payed a somewhat cheap price for getting Dwight Howard, as they gave him a contract worth three years and $70.5 million. Its cheapish because he's a major talent who didn't get paid the high price like some of the other free agent players. Plus the move could be a good fit for Howard, who kind of had a personality clash with James Harden in Houston. But by signing him, they let Al Horford walk to Boston (signing Howard was trying to make up for losing Horford) and they traded away Jeff Teague. All of these moves are defensible on their own terms, but when put together they paint a picture of a team that has taken a decisive step backwards. It's been well documented how much of a locker room cancer Dwight Howard has been over his career so Atlanta now has to take him on as their headache.

Winners:
Free Agents Making Money
OK this is one of the years where we see players making big money over the course of a spending spree. Five guys got contracts over $100 million, with Mike Conley getting a massive deal from Memphis, a five year deal worth $153 million. Yeah that's a lot of cash being doled out. Sure the rise in the salary cap to $94 million had a lot to do with it. Still with the massive size of the contracts, we're starting to see the good teams keep them in tact for a long time.

Losers:
Kevin Durant's Likeability
A lot of people hated on LeBron James for the way he went about announcing his free agency a few years ago when he left Cleveland for Miami. Well now I think Kevin Durant may have just passed him on that scale. He ducked out for a good team to go to a super team. It made him look really bad.

All Star Rosters Announced

Every July, the best players in the game of baseball gather in one city. Its a showcase of the best of the best in the game today. This year, the best in the game converge on Petco Park in San Diego California. Its the midsummer classic, with the winning team getting home field advantage in the World Series. After all the votes have been calculated and tabulated, we have our rosters for the game. The starters were voted on by the fans, as always, while the reserves and pitchers were selected by the Managers from around the league. So here now are your 2016 Major League Baseball All Stars!

National League
Starters:
C Buster Posey (Giants)
1B Anthony Rizzo (Cubs)
2B Ben Zobrist (Cubs)
3B Kris Bryant (Cubs)
SS Addison Russell (Cubs)
OF Yoenis Céspedes (Mets)
OF Dexter Fowler (Cubs)
OF Bryce Harper (Nationals)

Reserves:
C Jonathan Lucroy (Brewers)
C Wilson Ramos (Nationals)
1B Paul Goldschmidt (Diamondbacks)
1B Wil Myers (Padres)
2B Daniel Murphy (Nationals)
3B Nolan Arenado (Rockies)
3B Matt Carpenter (Cardinals)
SS Corey Seager (Dodgers)
OF Adam Duvall (Reds)
OF Carlos González (Rockies)
OF Odubel Herrera (Phillies)
OF Marcell Ozuna (Marlins)

Pitchers:
Jake Arrieta (Cubs)
Madison Bumgarner (Giants)
Johnny Cueto (Giants)
Jeurys Familia (Mets)
José Fernández (Marlins)
Kenley Jansen (Dodgers)
Clayton Kershaw (Hurt, won't play) (Dodgers)
Jon Lester (Cubs)
Mark Melancon (Pirates)
A. J. Ramos (Marlins)
Fernando Rodney (Marlins)
Stephen Strasburg (Nationals)
Noah Syndergaard (Mets)
Julio Teherán (Braves)

American League
Starters:
C Salvador Pérez (Royals)
1B Eric Hosmer (Royals)
2B José Altuve (Astros)
3B Manny Machado (Orioles)
SS Xander Bogaerts (Red Sox)
OF Mike Trout (Angels)
OF Jackie Bradley Jr. (Red Sox)
OF Mookie Betts (Red Sox)
DH David Ortiz (Red Sox)

Reserves:
C Stephen Vogt (Athletics)
C Matt Wieters (Orioles)
1B Miguel Cabrera (Tigers)
2B Robinson Canó (Mariners)
3B Josh Donaldson (Blue Jays)
SS Eduardo Núñez (Twins)
SS Francisco Lindor (Indians)
OF Carlos Beltrán (Yankees)
OF Ian Desmond (Rangers)
OF Mark Trumbo (Orioles)
DH Edwin Encarnación (Blue Jays)

Pitchers:
Dellin Betances (Yankees)
Brad Brach (Orioles)
Zach Britton (Orioles)
Álex Colomé (Rays)
Wade Davis (Hurt, won't play) (Royals)
Marco Estrada (Blue Jays)
Cole Hamels (Rangers)
Will Harris (Astros)
Kelvin Herrera (Royals)
Craig Kimbrel (Red Sox)
Andrew Miller (Yankees)
Danny Salazar (Indians)
Chris Sale (White Sox)
Steven Wright (Red Sox)

There are a few things worth noting about these All Star Rosters. As far as position players run, the Cubs are one of only two teams in history to have their entire infield start the midsummer classic. The other club was the 1963 St. Louis Cardinals. The Cubs and Red Sox lead the charge with the most players selected to play in the game, seven Cubs were selected for the game, while the Red Sox are sending six guys to the game. Starting lineup for the American League of Eric Hosmer, Jose Altuve, Manny Machado, Xander Bogaerts, and Salvador Perez marks the first time an All-Star team has ever selected a starting infield and catcher who are all 26 years old or younger.

It's also worth noting the difference in pitching. What I mean is that the National League is sending more starting pitchers to the game then the American League is. Terry Collins' National League roster features nine starting pitchers among its 14 total hurlers, while Ned Yosts' American League squad has just five starters among its complement of pitchers. Part of the reason I think that could be is that the starting pitching in the National League is just that much better than the starting pitching in the American League.

Now there were a couple of surprises that are left off the roster. One is Trevor Story, the rookie shortstop for the Colorado Rockies. Yes his strikeout totals are high, and yes he has cooled off considerably, but he has still been a very productive baseball player. Story does have more home runs and runs batted in than any other rookie in baseball. Sure his batting average is middle of the pack among the rookies (he's hitting .259 on the season), but still I think his numbers are a little better than Cory Seager of the Dodgers. Otherwise, the selections were made correctly for the midsummer classic