MOFOBALLERS, MONEYBALLERS

Big contract players do not necessarily mean that they’ll produce monstrous numbers that reflect their salaries.

In the landmark baseball film Moneyball, Billy Beane (Brad Pitt) described his team as the kind that is situated well beneath tons of crap. Of course, he’s talking about the dire financial situation of the Oakland A’s. So what did they do? They got players who aren’t expensive home run hitters but rather cheap players who effectively get on base. Cheap as it may be, it worked well for Oakland.

What it also shows is that money does not always constitute success. You know, like how
Carl Crawford fared after the Boston Red Sox gifted him a contract big enough to fund his own space program.

Conversely, there are also bargain guys whose salaries can easily be mistaken as A-Rod’s tip to the bartender but deliver the goods in a true bang-for-the-buck manner.

MOFOBALLERS

Carl Crawford
2012 Season Numbers
Salary: $19M | Home Runs: 3 | Cost per Home Run: $6.5M

Back in 2010, many were surprised when the Boston Red Sox signed free agent Carl Crawford in a seven-year, $142 million contract. The former Ray wasted no time in frustrating Red Sox Nation by batting .137 in his first 12 games. Fast forward to the 2012regular season, Crawford continued to be a white elephant for the Red Sox by playing only a total of 31 games due to a wrist injury. Moreover, Crawford only managed to hit three home runs that season. Surely not the way Boston’s front office would like to spend $19M that year – an amount of money close enough to pay the entire roster of the Houston Astros this year ($21.6 million).

Vernon Wells
2012 Season Numbers
Salary: $21M | Home Runs: 11 | Cost per Home Run: $1.9M

Vernon Wells owns one of the most talked about, if not infamous, baseball contracts in recent history. That’s after he inked a seven-year agreement to play for the Toronto Blue Jays at a cost of $126 million in 2006. What everyone knows now is that it was a monumental mistake for Toronto and a great heist maneuver by Wells’ agent. In 2011, he was traded to the Los Angeles Angels who then committed into two-years of burdening themselves with Wells’ loaded contract which costs more than $47 million in 2011 and 2012, the year when Wells registered an eyesore line of .230/ .279/ .403 and just 11 homers to complete yet another frustrating season. And did we mention that he made a cool $21 million out of it?

Alex Rodriguez
2012 Season Numbers
Salary: $29M | Home Runs: 18 | Cost per Home Run: $1.6M

The evil empire, the team who have a bottomless bank account, and a General Manager’s name (Brian Cashman) to match it once signed Alex Rodriguez to a hefty and lengthy $275 million, 10-year contract sometime in 2007. To put that into perspective, that is almost equal to the combined payroll of the Pirates, A’s, Rays, Marlins, and Astros this season. After signing that contract, Rodriguez hit 54 home runs with a 1.067 OPS. Sweet! But that was then, nowadays the only things you’ll hear about A-Rod are not the crisp sounds of his bat hitting balls bound for the bleachers but rumors of the Yankees finding possible ways to dump him. Amazingly, he is still yet to play this season and his last two years produced lowly numbers of 16 and 18 home runs for 2011 and 2012, respectively.

HONORABLE MENTIONS:

Jayson Werth
2012 Season Numbers
Salary: $13M | Home Runs: 5 | Cost per Home Run: $2.6M

Ryan Howard
2012 Season Numbers
Salary: $20M | Home Runs: 14 | Cost per Home Run: $1.4M

 MONEYBALLERS

Edwin Encarnacion
2012 Season Numbers
Salary: $3.5M | Home Runs: 42 | Cost per Home Run: $83,333

While the Blue Jays had that big blunder of signing Vernon Wells in 2006, they also have Edwin Encarnacion on the other end of the spectrum. Before Toronto signed Encarnacion to a three-year, $29 million extension last year — which meant paying the slugger $8 million this season – Encarnacion only got $3.5 million in 2012. We say ONLY because the Dominican hit a mind-boggling 42 homers that season. A big surprise since he had not hit more than 30 homers in any season of his then seven-year career. Is it starting to sound a lot like Joey Bautista’s story? Encarnacion’s 42 bombs last season was fourth best in the American League – just behind Miguel Cabrera’s 44 and Josh Hamilton’s and Curtis Granderson’s 43.

Mike Trout
2012 Season Numbers
Salary: $500,000 | Home Runs: 30 | Cost per Home Run: $16,666

Mike Trout’s performance last year was so good that baseball pundits from all over the nation were actually choosing him as the American League MVP instead of Miguel Cabrera, who won MLB’s first Triple Crown since 1967. Under a rookie contract that only paid him $500,000 last season, the rookie sensation topped the AL in WAR (10.7) which was the primary go-to-stat of people arguing his MVP candidacy. Also, he was in the top five of the following statistical categories: Runs (129 -- 1st), Batting Average (.326 – 2nd), and OPS (.963 – 2nd). Don’t forget his 30 homers which tied him for second in the Los Angeles Angels’ home run rankings behind Albert Pujols (32).

Chris Davis
2012 Season Numbers
Salary: $488,000 | Home Runs: 33| Cost per Home Run: $14,787

It’s safe to say that Chris Davis’ performance last year was a preview of what he can do this season. From 2009 to 2011, Davis hit a total of 32 home runs before hulking out 33 homers in 2012. Not bad for a player who got paid a paltry $488,000. For comparison’s sake, Robinson Cano also hit 33 dingers in 2012 but was paid roughly $13.5 million more than Davis!

HONORABLE MENTIONS:

Mark Trumbo
2012 Season Numbers
Salary: $500,000 | Home Runs: 32 | Cost per Home Run: $15,625

Josh Reddick
2012 Season Numbers
Salary: $485,000 | Home Runs: 32 | Cost per Home Run: $15,156

Giancarlo Stanton
2012 Season Numbers
Salary: $480,000 | Home Runs: 37 | Cost per Home Run: $12,972

The Royal Tenenbaums

I haven’t really had the opportunity to watch a Wes Anderson film until this one. The Royal Tenenbaums has the texture of a film that is unusually neat for a comedy. Needless to say, this comedy comes with class. Vivid and pastel colors were backdropped in a tanned atmosphere of wood varnish while the characters blurt out witty lines makes the Royal Tenenbaums a comedy flick worthy of a tuxedo.

There is a palpable sense of perfection in how Anderson could have directed this film. With a cast lead by Gene Hackman and with the likes of Danny Glover and Bill Murray, Anderson and Owen Wilson’s screenplay may have restricted some leg space from each character’s potentials but never their presence.

The film thrives in the story’s rich source of conflicts arising from a troubled American family and how each one of them presents themselves with unusual style and deadpan flair. There’s Ben Stiller who has nothing to wear but bright Adidas track suits or Luke Wilson who seems to treat all spaces of the earth as if it’s a tennis lawn.

And just as we’re taking things here a little bit seriously, there goes the choice of soundtrack that jabs us audience as if to remind that there is something immature residing in the picture. Just great pacing and mixture of sincerity without letting the novelty slip off.

Forget Pacquiao's Lackluster Performance; This Trilogy Will Last Forever

Yes, Juan Manuel Marquez may had gotten robbed once again. Yes, Manny Pacquiao had won because the judges might had smurfs under the table ready to hack off their crotches if Marquez won. Yes, a total of 36 mind-bending rounds of pummeling still were not enough to widen the razor-thin ambiguity of who is the clear cut victor.

Barring another fight, this trilogy will remain a cause of lasting debates for generations to come. More than anything perhaps, the closeness of the results from first fight to the ultimate is what defines their intertwined legends.

I sincerely think that we may have Pacquiao-Marquez 4, 5, 6,7 up to 100 and the results will always be a semblance of the previous. All of which will be close. Majority decision is the closest winning decision there is in boxing. Had there been a decision type like say "Conjoined-Siamese Decision" the winning boxer will surely get it. This was how each of these two proud boxers' fight unfold in front of our very eyes.

Imagine the generations of Filipinos to come who will remember Pacquiao's exploits and run over the fact that despite our national pride's murderous conquest of other fighters, was given a serious run for his money by a boxer named Juan Manuel Marquez. They too will have debates. They too will talk over the facts that millions others before them (including our era) had brought up over every time. Despite the passing of time, the zeitgeist of our present era when Pacquiao was at his prime is continuing to rivet an entirely different generation.

Had Pacquiao just steam-rolled over Marquez like he did with his other opponents, this fight will only be "one of those Pacquiao victories". There will be a monotonous stream of description of how Pacquiao won fights: through sheer dominance and absolute rule above the ring.

But Marquez happened.

Marquez was Pacquiao's sole tormentor-never mind the judges' decisions. We don't need numbers this time. Put the 115-115, 115-113, 116-112 to the nearest trash bin. The true result of Pacquiao's ring dalliances with Marquez is the fact and the lesson that as great as you are, you still have someone who can match you. Lahat ng tao may katapat.

Pacquiao won. Pacquiao will remain as one of the greatest fighters to ever set foot on the ring. He deserves all the accolades and ticker tapes that will shower his future legacy but let us also be thankful instead of fretting about his controversial wins over Marquez because the two fighters gave us a good debate for the rest of our lives

The 2011 PBA Rookie Draft List

FIRST ROUND

1. Jayvee Casio, Powerade:It comes without much of a surprise that Jayvee Casio emerged as the first overall pick from the 2011 PBA Draft. Whatever the next season turns out to be for Powerade, their previous horrible conference performances were very well paid off by acquiring this prized rookie.

2. Paul Lee, Rain or Shine: The frequently mentioned amateur who could possibly edge out Casio as the top pick gets his own Rain or Shine jersey. With this pick, Rain or Shine is starting to shed of their one-trick ponies stereotype. Under Yeng Guiao's fiery coaching style, Paul Lee is set to be the anchor that would make the team an every -conference contender. The future of Rain or Shine just got one bald-head clearer.

3. Chris Lutz, Petron Blaze: First the gears that gave this pick to Petron. Petron dealt both Mick Pennisi and Sunday Salvacion back to Barako Bull in exchange for a returning Dondon Hontiveros and this pick which they used to nab Chris Lutz. A solid addition to Petron given his two-way style of play.

4. Marcio Lassiter, Powerade: There is no mistake in this pick. Only what-ifs.

5. Mark Barroca, Shopinas: Mark Barroca and his girlfriend can run onto the fields and seasides to celebrate his first dayas a professional (of course he'll sign a contract).

6. Mac Baracael, Alaska: A solid pick for Alaska. A perimeter sureshot with a penchant for growing patches of facial hair. Mac Baracael can only sigh in relief that he'd no longer have to be a power forward banging bodies with players a head taller than he is. Welcome to the PBA. You're 6'3 frame is passable as a power forward. But will he play the position?

7. Jason Ballesteros, Meralco: I can hear Marlou Aquino falling off at the end of the bench.

8. Allein Maliksi, Barako Bull: The "what-is-this-guy-doing-in-the-first-round". Should be the "the-guy-who's-nail-biting-while-at-the-middle-of-the-second-round".

9. Reil Cervantes, Barangay Ginebra: Mobile inside banger. Could be Ginebra's next Banjo Calpito only with a more charming hair-do.

10. Dylan Ababou, Barako Bull: Probably the steal of the draft. Just because the former UAAP MVP isn't given much of a playing time by Smart-Gilas doesn't mean his stock has plummeted. Other teams can just say "we wuz robbed!"

SECOND ROUND

This is the start the purgatory rounds.

1. Magi Sison, Shopinas: 6'7 big slotman who can hoist the ball inside the basket with exceptional accuracy whenever his free.

2. Pamboy Raymundo, Talk ‘N Text: Might be the next rookie point guard with a proud collegiate career but was reduced to a towel-pounding bench cheerer for TnT after Pong Escobal. With Jimmy Alapag and Jason Castro at the helm, this is a safe bet.

3. Eric Salamat, Alaska: I was quite expecting that he could be drafted higher. Same feeling that I had when Sunday Salvacion and Cyrus Baguio were drafted back then at the 2nd round.

4. Julius Pasculado, Alaska

5. Ariel Mepana, Alaska

6. Brian Ilad, B-MEG

7. Gilbert Bulawan, Meralco

8. James Martinez, Barangay Ginebra: Another guard known for his torrid shooting and rat-tail. Let's see what Ginebra does to this former UE sharpshooter.

9. Ken Acibar, Barako Bull: The youngest of the batch. Acibar is an interesting case. Who knows if he could pull-off a Hans Thiele with Barako?

10. Paul John Sorongon, Barako: Bull If you break down his initials, you'd discover that he can be in the same sentence with Peter June Simon.

11. John Marc Agustin, Powerade: Ato Agustin's son. He carries the genes of the Atom Bomb. His father is older than him.

THIRD ROUND

Congratulations! You have free jacket/Jersey and cap!

1. Mark Cagoco, Shopinas

2.Filemon Fernandez, Petron Blaze

FOURTH ROUND

This was how Apollo Creed discovered Rocky.

1. Gerald Lapuz, Petron Blaze

A Basic Look at the San Fransisco Giants' August Offense

There are only plus 30 games remaining on the San Francisco Giants schedule and they're still lagging 3 games behind the National League West Division leader Arizona Diamondbacks. In the only real pennant race happening in the Majors, the Giants could not afford to lose some more games. If they plan to recapture the division, they should worry more about their offense than their pitching.

Their losses comes from the glaring and salient reason that they can't get enough from their bats. Well, they got Carlos Beltran from the Mets just before the trade deadline but a quick glance of their current August offensive performance made me think if they've replaced their bats with screw drivers:

• With only 67 Runs, the Giants are scraping the bottom of this statistic rankings. The only thing missing to define their offensive futility is to snag Adam Dunn from the White Sox.

• The Giants are third from last place in the National League in Batting Average with a moribund average of .240. But lookie here. The Diamondbacks are in last place with an even lower number of .230.

• Posting an OPS of .653 is enough of an effort to again bag another National League statistic bottom place. And again, the Diamondbacks are in a close contention with a .655 OPS. Welcome to the National League West.

Fim Review: Snatch

What looks like London’s answer to Tarantino’s Pulp Fiction turned out to be a shallower version that comes with two separated plots which both appear to be begging for everything to end.

“Snatch” operates on two storylines: The search for a knuckle-sized diamond that was acquired through a robbery; and a boxer promoter (Jason Statham as ‘Turkish’) who has to manage his fighter (Brad Pitt) into deliberately throwing a fight as ordered by a notorious gangster (‘Brick Top’).

The film heavily relies on riff-music and editing to control a convoluted picture that is heavily populated by a myriad of characters and several self-serving micro plots. Guy Ritchie played with slow-to fast motion, jump-cuts, and one Goodfella-like pause scene while the narration continues. Sometime it feels like Ritchie just put the camera on a Lazy Susan and spun it while the scene goes.

The characters soon find themselves entangled with each other albeit of varying degrees. Popping up like relief benchwarmers, several characters are inserted into the story just to fulfil a task deemed necessary so as to conveniently bridge the film up to its end. Jump-cut is the weapon of choice to transition several scenes from one to another-highlighted during the comically fast journey from America to London by the New York jeweller “Cousin Avi”.

Ritchie subjected the picture on a London environment that seeps with urban decay coupled with police-free violence. This effect further improved the visual texture apt for Snatch.

And with the left-and-right exchange of civil disobedience, you’d wonder why only on the last part of the film that a policeman has appeared. A good decision perhaps as an intrusion of policeman in the middle of the plot would only congest the scenes more.

It is easy to get lost following the story alone but when you account the accents (given that we’re not used to it), then there’s no reason left why you’re not down on your knees asking for a subtitle. Brad Pitt’s accent is a speech defect. I don’t care if it’s born out of culture. His accent is spoken like he had just tripped over a rake and impaled portions of his tongue with it.

Snatch is a ride. It is a visual ride with a story that shouldn’t be taken seriously. There is nothing beneath it. It has nothing to prove except that it has great editing and a roster of actors with serious chops.

The Georgetown-Chinese Team Brawl Reminds Us of The 1998 Centennial Team's Infamous Fight

By now, a lot of you had picked up already the news of the bench-clearing melee between the US NCAA's team Georgetown Hoyas and a Chinese basketball team. The game were reportedly tense from the start and a brewing fight is simmering, only waiting for one errant swing of an elbow before it finally explodes. And explode it did. In this video, you can see how the athletic confines of the basketball court suddenly became a host of a fighting mess.

This led me to remember the 1998 Philippine Centennial team's game in the States against an NCAA Division I team-the Minnesota Gophers. The game became infamous after the heated and physical game erupted into a tangled mess of men punching, kicking, and grabbing the shit out of each other. Thankfully, that scene was made convenient to us by a YouTube upload which you can see below.

The fast shift of camera shots require the viewers to be sharp-eyed so as not to miss the highlights (to which you'll reply with "what the heck, you can rewind it as many times as you want"). Anyway, speaking of highlights, here's a few bullets to watch out for:

• Andy Seigle desperately aching to have a face touch his erratic elbow (kudos to the incompetent referee)
• "The Captain", Alvin Patrimonio, perhaps in his angriest self, going apeshit by pounding at least 4 solid punches to a hapless Gopher
• Jun Limpot, after getting whacked at the back of his head by No. 10, searching for a vacant chair he could use to send someone to afterlife.
• The referee crawling out as if he's just been rescued from a rubble.
• Kenneth Duremdes testing the sole of his shoe if it would produce a squeaking sound if planted on a human head..

A Tale of Two SMART-Gilas 'Withdrawals'.

Here's pair of disappointing developments concerning the preparation of SMART-Gilas National Team. One, Dondon Hontiveros will no longer be part of the team. The recent Jones Cup tourney turned out to be the last time he'll be in a SMART-Gilas jersey.Reasons for his leaving are inconclusive but some are pointing it to a bad "tongue-lashing" from Coach Rajko Toroman at one time during the Jones Cup although I would rather believe the other reason: that he's been a victim of wear and tear; the 9-day straight schedule of the Jones Cup took a toll on his 34 year old body.

I don't think Hontiveros would quit and ditch another opportunity to represent the country just because a coach had nearly blown his head off with some words. Being a professional that he is, I'm sure he's had those kind of experiences before and fully knows it's part of the job. The "scolding" were perhaps a result of several ill-taken shots that Hontiveros put up during the Jones Cup games.

The other development is the pull-out of SMART-Gilas from the Qatar Invitationals Tourney. The lack of players due to injuries and the small lead time for the loaned Talk and Text players to rest before the tourney were cited as reasons to the non-participation.

These news are troubling given that it happened just a few weeks before the Wuhan Olympic qualifiers. Those PBA reinforcement should have jelled well already with the team by now. We can only hope that these news would not cause disorientation once players are all on the floor playing crucial games during the tournament.

Where Would Casio Land?

The submission of application for the 2011 PBA Draft is now past the deadline and a roster of the top cagers from the amateur ranks had their names on the list already. Some of the most coveted amateur players in the pool are from the SMART-Gilas National team whom all , except Chris Tiu (he doesn't need the pro salary I guess) , had decided to leave the program after the Wuhan, China Olympic Qualifiers in September and start their career professionally.

The player that a lot of fans and insiders alike are nosing to be the first draft pick overall is former DLSU spitfire and current SMART-Gilas point guard, JV Casio. With the pitiful Powerade Tigers drafting first overall, it is not far from being logical that they will draft Casio. However, surprises from the previous annual drafts can suggest that a shoo-in bet can sometimes turn out to be not the way how many had predicted.

So who will draft JV Casio on the night of August 28, 2011? Barring any legislative bills that would prevent Casio from being drafted, let's look at each team in their respective draft orders and analyse Casio's impact and chances of being drafted by that team based on respective current rosters.

Because it is near impossible that JV Casio misses the first 5, never mind get in within the two picks, this blogger opted to include only the first 5 teams in the drafting order.

1. Powerade Tigers: Powerade had a woeful season. So horrendous that my brother almost thought a crack squad made up of cigarette-wielding bystanders could beat this team minus Gary David. Kidding aside, Powerade has the unenviable situation where both their front line and back court need a thorough rebuilding (the whole team in short). Celino Cruz isn't the Red Bull guard of old anymore. Jai Reyes, as prolific his shooting is, can only showcase his toughness on defense when challenged by ball-boys during practice. The Powerade Tigers badly need a point guard that is not only deadly offensively but a tough defending point guard also. Those international stints surely has toughened Casio. Even with his top of the line credentials, he can't still be a shoo-in for the Tigers because of the aforementioned need of the team for an inside presence. Dennis Espino isn't 26 years old strong anymore and drafting a big man at number one is a possibility. Which could make JV Casio available for the....

2. Air 21 Express: Known as the "Grocery Queens" of annual drafts, the Express has made it a habit year after year to have some of the best rookies get on stage to model their cap and jacket for photo-ops before settling down in their round table seats and feel satisfied that they have another set of players to give-up in a lopsided trade. A peek at the roster of Air 21 Express would dislodge any thought that they need a point guard. Willie Miller, Paul Artadi, Marcy Arellano, and former SMART-Gilas head hunter Wynne Arboleda compose the backcourt rotation for the Express so getting Casio in the mix would only clog up the lineup more. Or, Air 21 Express will still get Casio and use him as a trade bait to get a solid big man like, say, Gilbert Lao. Not an ideal place for Casio.

3. Meralco Bolts: The Meralco Bolts team needs more to draft a coach than a player. Solomon Mercado remains to be the lead point guard for Meralco but having JV Casio would give the Bolts one of the best point guard rotation in the PBA. Mercado is averaging almost 42 minutes per game (41.88) during their frustrating Governors Cup campaign. Clearly, Casio can take a lot of load from Mercado if they miraculously snag him in the draft. Add to that the return of Mac Cardona and the thought of Casio on the same floor with the latter is a nightmare for the opposite team's defense.

4. Rain or Shine Elasto Painters: From Rajko Toroman's disciplined system to Yeng Guiao's "if-you're-free-shoot-it" philosophy, JV Casio could not be in a more polarizing offensive scheme. Although that is also to say that JV Casio would surely create a lot of scoring opportunities for his teammates once, and even before, he's hot.

5. B-Meg Llamados: The point-guard position in the B-Meg Llamados lineup isn't as promising as the other teams. Soon, Roger Yap will have to bid goodbye to his guard-bullying ways. Jonas Villanueva is constantly plagued with injuries. Drafting JV Casio at the number 5 pick is a steal of "bibilical proportions" (thanks Mico Halili). All there is to say is that a JV Casio-James Yap backcourt tandem is brutal and sadistic.

Laid Back Tim Lincecum

I can only wish that I can watch premieres of Showtime's season-long documentary of the San Francisco Giants ball club. For the meantime, short previews of "The Franchise" are pretty much welcome.

Tim Lincecum is laid back type of guy compared to other athletes with the same fame. He differs in how he deals with his stature as a public figure. As seen on this video, aside from his pitching prowess, one can scale his demeanor down to the likes of regular guys. His attitude can be read easily: "I just happen to be a two-time Cy Young awardee but like you, I don't also like grooming that much."

For most of the time since my baseball fandom, I haven't really had a steady team to root for. Having no geographical affiliation with any of the teams, it has always been being a fan not of a whole team but the team of a specific player that I like. Now, I came to the point that it is the San Francisco Giants that I would root for. A bunch of characters and a star pitcher that is part Filipino-Tim Lincecum.