-The Twins finally signed Joe Crede last Saturday to a one-year $2.5 million deal with incentives. I cannot begin to express how happy I am with this deal. First of all, the deal presents virtually no risk to the Twins. If Crede can't stay on the field, they are only out $2.5 million and have a decent backup plan in the platoon of Brian Buscher and Brendan Harris. However, if Crede does stay on the field, the Twins just signed an all-star caliber third baseman who can fill the power void they've been seeking for the past few years. Crede is a perfect fit not only for what the Twins need, but in the organization as a whole. He plays an outstanding gold glove caliber third base and can put up anywhere from 20-30 home runs. He also plays the Twins style -- running out every ball, giving maximum effort, being stellar with the glove, being fundamentally sound, and being a good presence in the clubhouse. Hearing the quotes from players who have played with him, Crede sounds like just the right guy for the Twins third base job. He can definitely be the right handed power bat that the Twins were searching for all of last season to hit behind Justin Morneau. Now, if Michael Cuddyer and Delmon Young can take steps forward, the Twins could have a lethal combination of speed, average, and power in their lineup. Crede will play his first game on Friday. As you can tell, I am psyched about this acquisition. You have to give some praise to GM Bill Smith for getting it done, especially after an off-season of inaction. The best sight will be when Crede sends some blasts out of U.S. Cellular Field against the hated White Sox and we can say...You can put it on the board....YEEEEeeeeeSSSSS!!! Let's play.
-The USC Trojans basketball team scored an absolutely huge recruit when they landed 6'9'' 250 lb. forward Renardo Sidney last Sunday. He is rated 98 out of 100 by the scouts (same as O.J. Mayo was) and some consider him the top recruit in the country. He is an absolute force inside on both ends, is a terrific passing big man, and can extend his shooting range all the way out to the three point line. The Trojans now have a recruiting class of Sidney (98), Noel Johnson (93), Solomon Hill (91), and Derrick Williams (89), making it likely the best in USC history. If the Trojans can keep everyone next year, they will be scary good and a team with Final Four potential. Imagine this starting lineup to begin the season: Daniel Hackett, Dwight Lewis, DeMar DeRozan, Taj Gibson, and Alex Stepheson. Sidney may have to come off the bench if everyone stays -- that is ridiculous! The bench would be: Sidney, Noel Johnson, Solomon Hill, Derrick Williams, Marcus Johnson, Leonard Washington, and Nikola Vucevic, in addition to others. USC will be big, deep, and very athletic. Even if Taj Gibson and DeMar DeRozan leave (more likely that one, not both will) the Trojans will probably be the favorites to win the Pac-10 Conference and go very far in the NCAA Tournament. Big time recruit by Tim Floyd, his third in three years.
-I am very excited to go up to the Bay Area this weekend to call the games against Cal and Stanford. The Cal game is a do or die game for the Trojans. They absolutely must win it if they home to have any chance at an at-large bid. I believe if the Trojans win their last four (both in the Bay and at home against the Oregon schools), they will secure their spot in the NCAA Tournament. That would get them to 20 wins, which is generally the magic number for tourney at-large qualification. They would also match their 11-7 conference record from a year ago, which was good enough for a 6 seed in the NCAA. It all starts with the Cal game. The Bears are 15-1 at home, but the Trojans handled them pretty easily at the Galen Center. They have to break through on the road (where they are only 2-6) and get that resume win. I believe if they win against Cal, they will win out because the three teams they play after that are very mediocre. The Trojans actually played decently in Arizona and against Washington at home, but seemed to hit a wall after taking a lead in the second half in all three games, probably because they got tired and have zero depth without Marcus Johnson. That excuse doesn't fly now, however. The Trojans need to find that extra bit of energy to put away teams and finish games. If you get up on Cal in the second half, bury them and show the committee why you're tourney worthy. I believe talent wise, the Trojans are better than their four remaining opponents, but they need to prove it. Let's see if this Trojans team can come together at the right time.
-The news that the Vikings are close to a deal with the Houston Texans for Sage Rosenfels is terrible news, in my opinion. People will point to the fact that it's not Tarvaris Jackson and be happy, but in reality I believe this is a round about way for the Vikes to make it seem like there's competition for Jackson, but eventually give him the starting job anyway. Brad Childress is way to loyal to T-Jack, and needs to let his ego go and just admit that his guy is not the right guy to lead a Super Bowl caliber team. I will admit that the options out there for quarterbacks aren't great right now, but there is one clear option out there: Jeff Garcia. If the Vikes can't get there hands on Donovan McNabb or Matt Cassell, Jeff Garcia is without a doubt the next best option and certainly better than Rosenfels. Garcia is a veteran who knows the west coast offense and is a winner. I'd much rather sign him to a one or two year deal to be a quick fix than try to get a long term solution when none seems available. Cassell would be that long term solution if you're right on him, but his price is extremely steep and the Vikings look like they're not going there. I know they've identified Rosenfels as a guy they've wanted for a couple years now, but he has been in the league for 8 years and never won any meaningful games or been a full time starter. He is not the answer. The first call you should make when free agency hits is Jeff Garcia. If he could stay healthy, he definitely has the ability to lead this talented team to the promised land, albeit for one year. If Tarvaris Jackson is the quarterback of this team this year, however, there will be blackouts galore and hardly any fans will be behind the team. Just from a PR standpoint alone, T-Jack cannot be the starter. He lost us the playoff game against the Eagles singlehandedly and is worse the bigger the game gets. Get him out. Get Jeff Garcia in. Don't mess around with Sage Rosenfels.
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