Boyes Traded to Buffalo

My favorite Blues player, forward Brady Boyes has been traded to Buffalo. Granted Boyes production in the past 2 years hasn't been nearly as good as his first two seasons but he was still my favorite. In return, the Blues will receive a 2nd round draft pick in 2011. Not a bad deal at all from the Blues organization standpoint, but it's still going to be sad to not say "yeah Boyes!" at Blues games.

In Manning news, talk are ongoing about signing him to a new contract but no deal seems imminent. I'm sure the Colts will be able to find an agreement with Peyton, but it's not going to be a quick progress.

As a follow up to my last post, Cardinals pitcher Adam Wainwright is out for the season. He needs Tommy John surgery. Major blow to the Cardinals. Now they are going to have to struggle to try and make up for one of their ace pitchers. Don't write them out though. As Bernie Miklaz, pointed out so perfectly in his recent article for the Post, the Cardinals still have a great chance at winning the NL Central.

Let's hope so, because if the Cards hope to keep Pujols come the end of the season, being a winning team will certainly tip the odds in their favor. Pujols wants money, but he also wants to play for a team with a chance to win.

So the Cardinals still have to try and find a way to win. Without Wainwright.

NBA All Star Game and More

I'm a bit late on posting about the NBA All Star Game. I did watch the game, at least, most of it. I have to say that it was a fun game to watch. It's nice to see the players out there having fun and showing off their talent.

Kobe Bryant had a big day. Just mere hours after Kobe became the first non-actor to land a spot in cement at Graumann's Chinese Theatre, Kobe became the MVP of the All Star Game. In the end, the game ended up being somewhat close by Kobe and the West ended up with the win. Congrats to Kobe on both his permanence at Mann's and for his MVP performance in the game. Was very fun to watch.

Have been a bit distracted today as a major issue arose in Cardinal Nation today. Adam Wainwright, one of the team's ace starting pitchers, left spring training with an elbow injury. The team is waiting on a second opinion before making any announcements but it looks like Wainwright may need Tommy John surgery, and if that's the case, bye Waino. Maybe we'll see you next year. Obviously I want what's best for Adam and wish him well but if he's out for the season, wow, what a blow to the Cardinals. First they don't sign Albert, then they lose Waino? Not a good start to the season. And it the regular season hasn't even started yet!

In NFL news, mediated talks continued today between the NFL and the NFLPA. The news? Well, nothing yet. They're still talking. At least there is movement forward to get a resolution. Plan is to reconvene on Friday, so we'll see how that goes.

The Colts organizations says they are making progress towards signing Peyton Manning to a long term deal. Signing Manning has been stated at the team's top offseason priority. Manning will likely end up as the top paid quarterback in the league, and I can't really argue with that. Though I am a bit biased, anyone who knows me knows that Peyton is my favorite NFL player, and has been for a long time.

That's all for today. More updates soon!

Weekend Update

It's NBA All Star Weekend in Los Angeles. When it comes to NBA basketball, I must admit that I am behind the curve when it comes to following the sport. St. Louis didn't have an NBA team, so growing up I watched a lot more college basketball (cannot WAIT for March Madness to begin!) than pro.

Los Angeles is beyond a doubt a pro basketball town. In St. Louis, almost everyone (guys and girls) are Cardinals fans and can at least talk at some length about the sport, the team and their favorite players.

For Los Angeles, that's the Lakers. Though there is this incredible basketball player that everyone is excited about and he's not a Laker. That would be Blake Griffin, of the LA Clippers.

The big talk of the week was the Slam Dunk Contest, which Blake Griffin would be competing in. I was unable to watch much of the contest but this year the contestants did not disappoint. It is amazing the talent that these players have.

Blake Griffin won, with his final dunk involving him leaping over a car and slamming the ball into the net. I'm still baffled and I've watched it over and over again (thanks sportscenter!). See the video here, courtesy of ESPN.com.

The NBA All Star game is tonight. The Lakers have Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol starting for the West, and the Clippers have Blake Griffin. Nice representation for the LA area. Should be an interesting game to watch (at least, WAY more interesting than that joke of a game called the NFL Pro Bowl). Will have some post-game comments after the game tonight.

In other sports news, the Rams released O.J. Atogwe in a somewhat odd move at a first glance. Otogwe was due a 8 million dollar roster bonus on Monday. Ah-ha! In an effort to not have to pay that bonus, the Rams opted to drop him, in the hopes that they will be able to re-sign him before the season (which is highly likely). I hope they do re-sign him. The Rams have enough issues that need to be addressed (mainly on offense - wide receiver needed for Bradford ASAP!), replacing Otogwe does not need to be one of them.

In hockey news, the St. Louis Blues made some bold moves on Friday in order to try and help salvage a lackluster season. They traded defensemen Erik Johnson, Eric Brewer and forward Jay McClement, and in return picked up forward Chris Stewart and defensemen Kevin Shattenkirk (is that his real name, or his Star Trek name?).

As Johnson was the Blues #1 pick in 2006, this move has some scratching their heads. However, Johnson has been a bit of a disappointment. He was not the consistent player the Blues had hoped for.

If there was any worry about how this trade may impact the team, the Blues came out last night and in stunning fashion killed the Ducks in a 9-3 win. New forward Chris Stewart scored 2 Power Play goals, and Shattenkirk looked sharp and earned his first assist on a Power Play.

Erik who? Though it's early, it appears that this move was an excellent choice by the Blues. They need to put themselves in the position to win more games and if Johnson wasn't fitting the bill, time to get some new blood on the team. Hope this means good things for the Blues in the future. They are dead last in their division right now, so it would take a lot of things to happen for them to hope to make the playoffs.

And now, to prepare for the NBA All Star Game. Go West!

Edmonds Retires, Colts Drop Sanders

I have a special place in my heart for Jim "Jimmy Baseball" Edmonds. During his tenure as a Cardinal, he was one of my favorite players on the team. He is perhaps, one of the greatest centerfielders the Cardinals have ever had, and I can still remember going to games and watching his amazing ability on the field.

He also was an excellent power hitter in his prime, and I will always think fondly of the days when the Cardinals had the Power 3: Edmonds, Rolen and Pujols. They were on the team that made it to the World Series in 2004 and should have won. Yes, I'm still bitter about that one.

So, I was very excited to hear that the Cardinals organization had signed Edmonds back to the team in January, even if it was to the minors with odds of him actually playing being slim. Why? Edmonds wanted to stay in St. Louis and be a Cardinal. But the Cards released him and he still wanted to play, so he played for other teams. But I will always think of him as a Cardinal and am happy to hear that he has opted to retire and therefore will retire as a Cardinal. Thanks for the memories Jimmy. Wish you all of the best in retirement. Maybe you can come back to the Cards as a coach someday?

In other big news, Jim Isray, owner of the Indianapolis Colts announced that they have dropped safety Bob Sanders. Sanders is known for his hard hitting on defense (I saw him many times dive head first to get a tackle), but that hard hitting has left him to be injury-prone in recent years. So while some may be surprised by this move, I am not. The Colts have had a lot of new defensive players step up in Sanders absences due to injury, and if you look at the Colts season this year defense wasn't really their biggest problem. Injuries on offense and lack of a solid running game played more of a factor. Freeney and Bullitt were on fire many games this season. Sanders who?

I'm sure Sanders will find another team to sign with. The Colts have a lot to think about right now, and some of that is opening their payroll so that they can sign Peyton Manning into contract. No doubt this will happen. Unlike the Cardinals situation with Albert, Isray will do whatever it takes to keep Manning, and is prepared to pay top dollar.

The NFL Draft will be coming up shortly, and it will be interesting to see how it turns out. The Colts need a running game, that's for sure. The Rams need a wide receiver. I can see them drafting Julio Jones from Alabama, and most of the mock drafts seem to agree. Sam Bradford is the real deal, and the Rams need to focus on building a team around him by giving him strong receivers to throw to. If Donnie Avery is back and healthy, that will help a lot. But I think they will still draft a WR.

Will post more NFL draft thoughts as it gets closer.

Albert Pujols, Part Deux

So a deal won't happen (if he happens) between the Cardinals and Albert Pujols until the end of the season. Not really that surprising. There have been many rumors about what the Cardinals organization offered, but no one really knows what went down.

When you really think about it though, it's sort of smart on both parties to wait until the end of the season. What if the Cardinals offered the $30/10 deal and Pujols has a down season and they could have signed him for less? On Pujols side, he wants to be the highest paid player in baseball. So, why not wait and see if free agency gives him that chance? Even if he wants to stay a Cardinal, it forces the Cardinals to compete with the market.

Pujols is dedicated to the team and has made it clear that he plans to do what he has always done. Work hard, be the best player he can be and hopefully help the Cardinals win a championship.

He arrived in Jupiter today to start spring training. The Post Dispatch quotes him as saying the following: "It's part of negotiations with the Cardinals," Pujols said. "I have so much respect for this organization. They gave me the opportunity to play 11 years ago. No matter what went down yesterday because of the deadline, it doesn't mean I don't want to be a Cardinal."

I say, take the man's word for it. I don't for one minute believe the Cardinals don't have a significant chance of signing Albert beyond 2011. It's just not going to happen right now.

Good news? Baseball is almost here! I hate the time of the year after football ends and baseball begins. It's the worst time for sports. I like hockey and basketball, don't get me wrong. But football and baseball are my primary loves.

Cardinal Nation, you may be upset that "El Hombre" is not a guaranteed Cardinal after this season but the good news? You have him now. And the team has a great shot of having a decent season this year. Bring it boys. Let's Go Cardinals!

Albert Pujols

This week is a big week in the world of Major League Baseball. Spring training officially begins for the 2011 season!

Oh, and this guy named Albert Pujols has a deadline for negotiations with the Cardinals on the possibility of re-signing and ultimately finishing out his career as a Cardinal.

Reports thus far about how contract negotiations are going? No one really knows. Pujols and the Cardinals front office agreed to postpone today's original deadline to noon EST tomorrow in order let Stan "The Man" Musial have his day today. For those of you who don't know, Stan Musial received The Presidential Medal of Freedom today from President Obama. Check out the Post Dispatch's article on the festivities here.

I truly hope that Albert re-signs with the Cardinals and retires as a Cardinal. If this happens, he will be remembered as one of the greatest Cardinal players in history, on a par with Stan Musial.

But I can't blame him for wanting to test the free agency market. There's nothing wrong with seeing what you can get. It doesn't mean he can't still sign with the Cardinals. It just means he can explore his options. But I shudder at the thought of Albert in a Cubs uniform just because they were willing to pay just a bit more than the Cardinals. Hell, I shudder at the thought of Albert in a Cubs uniform PERIOD.

Albert has said repeatedly how much he respects the Cardinals organization, and how much he'd like to stay and retire a Cardinal...I hope that he really means that. The Cardinals need to pay him. Maybe not what he wants, but come close. He's earned it. Do you really want the best player in baseball to walk off and become a Cub? Yankee? Angel?

There are only a few teams that have the pockets to afford Pujols, and some of those teams have already signed first base players to high paying contracts (Yankees, Red Sox). It doesn't make sense for those teams to dish out the money for Albert, it would be only for the sake of having signed the best player in baseball.

I hope that Albert and the Cardinals shock us all by announcing tomorrow that the deal is signed, sealed delivered and Albert is officially a Cardinal long term.

If not, it's going to be a long season with constant whispers and theories on when/if Albert will sign with the Cardinals, or what other teams might approach him. Though Albert has said once spring training starts he doesn't want to think or talk contracts, do you really think he and his agent are not going to look at a significant deal if the Cards pitch one to him? I think they would be incredibly stupid not to.

Either way, if a deal isn't announced tomorrow, it's still far from over and it's going to be a long season of speculation. The Cardinals have to focus on the 2011 season and hopefully getting to the post-season. And Pujols will be there to help lead the way. At least until the end of 2011.

California Sports Diva!

Welcome to the California Sports Diva blog! I have thought about writing a sports blog for some time, and have finally gotten around to taking the time to get one up and running.

This blog is going to be about my thoughts about anything sports related. As any sports fan, I do have my loyalties to certain teams and that will become more and more evident as I post. But, I will try and post about any major sports item of note, regardless of what team is pertains to.

Just to get it out of the way, my favorite teams are: St. Louis Cardinals, St. Louis Rams, Indianapolis Colts, Los Angeles Lakers, St. Louis Blues, Mizzou Tigers and DePauw Tigers (they may be Division III, but it's my alma mater!).

Okay, so you may be wondering...if I'm the California Sports Diva, why so much St. Louis love? I currently am a resident of the beautiful Los Angeles, California, but I was born and raised in St. Louis, MO. While I love living in LA, I still root for my hometown teams. I don't believe in changing allegiances just because you move. I for one, will be a loyal Redbird fan for life, no matter where I live!

I hope to make this a fun, somewhat humorous blog about all of the craziness going on in the world of sports today. Enjoy reading!