Trey Griffey makes a name for himself as a football recruit

It's funny how life works. In the late 1980s, Ken Griffey Jr. was the prodigiously talented baseball prospect with the famous father that was always mentioned in the next breath.

Some 20 or so years later, The Kid is the one greasing the wheels for a fame that his offspring might have achieved on his own accord anyway. High school senior Trey Griffey was named to the Under Armour All-American Game on Wednesday, moving one step closer to making it big as a wide receiver. Though his father and grandfather made their names in baseball, the family legacy is drawing Trey plenty of attention as he sets to graduate from Dr. Phillips High in Orlando and move on to the college ranks.

What's interesting is that Ken Griffey Jr. has tried to stay in the background as much as possible during his son's career, which has attracted scholarship offers from Michigan State, Iowa State and Washington State and interest from Oregon, Tennessee and UCLA. Is it because Junior experienced this same sort of thing being Ken Griffey Sr.'s son in Cincinnati and knows the type of shadow that Trey is currently living in? That would be a good guess and perhaps it was the reason why dear old dad was hesitant to be interviewed after Wednesday's announcement.

From the Orlando Sentinel:

"I tried to sit back there with y'all, they told me to go up front," said Junior. "I didn't catch one pass, I didn't� run one route, I didn't do anything. As a dad I'm very proud of him. He's the one who put in all the hard work."

If you're a regular reader of Cam Smith's excellent Prep Rally blog here on Rivals/Yahoo! Sports, you know that Trey has made plenty of headlines. In early November, the 6-foot-2, 190-pound receiver set a school record with 13 catches for 188 yards in a win that clinched a district title for his school. He finished the year with 72 catches for 970 yards and 11 touchdowns.

The Orlando Sentinel reports that Trey prefers to stay as quiet as his dad did in his early playing days. He's yet to make a college choice and as a mid-level recruit ? Rivals has him pegged as a three-star (out of five) prospect ? his performance in the Jan. 5 Under Armour game at Tropicana Field could certainly help expand his choices. We'll have to wait and see where he ends up.

A few people have noted that Trey's success has made them feel old and I certainly agree for a couple of reasons. The first is that "The Kid" of my baseball generation has a kid who's about to become a successful adult. The second is that it seems like Trey has always been around. Junior was always very proud of his children ? he has a younger daughter and son, too ? and they were never far away in the clubhouse or stands. (A search of the Associated Press photo archive produces a full page of Ken and Trey photos.) Heck, even Trey's birth in 1994 was big news as then-Seattle Mariners GM Woody Woodward reportedly�sent the newborn a contract that was dated for 2012.

For the first time, I know what it must have felt like to see one of the tykes who tagged along with the Big Red Machine team become a star in his own right.

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Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/blog/big_league_stew/post/Trey-Griffey-makes-a-name-for-himself-as-a-footb?urn=mlb-wp27897

Ian Stewart Drew Sutton Mike Sweeney Fernando Tatís

Five teams with an interest in signing Aramis Ramirez

For teams looking to upgrade at third base this offseason, there's really only one free agent who would move the needle.

Aramis Ramirez hit .306/.361/.510 with 26 home runs and 93 RBIs for the Chicago Cubs this past season and none of the other available third baseman even come close to those numbers.�That makes Ramirez one of the top targets at this week's Winter Meetings in Dallas.

Several teams would surely love to add Ramirez's bat to their lineup, but after turning down a $16 million option with the Cubs, it's clear he's looking for a far bigger payday. A reported desire for a three-year contract might also scare off potential suitors wary of giving a big contract to a 33-year-old probably on the downside of his career.

But a handful of clubs could meet Ramirez's demands or find the right numbers to sign him. Here are five teams, in order from most likely to least, that might have Ramirez by the end of the week.

Philadelphia Phillies: As the meetings began on Monday, the scuttlebutt centered on the Phillies making a run at Ramirez. Joe Capozzi of the Palm Beach Post tweeted late Monday morning that the NL East champs were "strong players" for the third baseman.

But wait. Don't they already have Placido Polanco? Well, yes, they do. For now. Ken Rosenthal reports that the Phillies are "actively trying" to move Polanco, having become dismayed with his frequent injuries and lack of power at third base. Power is surely an important consideration for the Phillies with Ryan Howard out until at least May recovering from a ruptured left Achilles tendon.

Los Angeles Angels: The Halos are another team looking for a power boost at third, having juggled Alberto Callaspo and Maicer Izturis (combined 11 home runs) in 2011.�Giving Mark Trumbo a try at third base has been discussed, as he'll move off first base if and when Kendry Morales returns. But a stress fracture in his right foot has prevented Trumbo from practicing at the hot corner this offseason. Signing Ramirez would keep Trumbo where he's comfortable and provide insurance if Morales can't return.

Detroit Tigers: The Tigers are currently looking at a platoon of Brandon Inge (.197 average in 2011) and Don Kelly (.245) at third base. Is it any wonder why they're looking at other options? Detroit wants more speed and contact for the top of its lineup. But if that's not available, Ramirez is someone who could get on base in front of Miguel Cabrera or give the Tigers a much deeper batting order.

Milwaukee Brewers: Milwaukee apparently would prefer that Casey McGehee or Mat Gamel play at first base to replace Prince Fielder, rather than play at third base next season. As it is, Jerry Hairston Jr. was the choice there during the Brewers' stretch run and postseason. But Milwaukee has been rumored to be Ramirez's preferred destination, which puts Doug Melvin in the position of trying to make this work.

Boston Red Sox: Every free-agent chase needs a darkhorse candidate, right? It's a long shot, but could the Red Sox be that team? If David Ortiz ends up leaving, the team would have a considerable hole in its lineup. Kevin Youkilis is the incumbent third baseman, but might not be ready to play the position full-time after undergoing sports hernia surgery in early October. He could take Ortiz's DH role, opening up a spot on the infield for Ramirez.

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Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/blog/big_league_stew/post/Five-teams-with-an-interest-in-signing-Aramis-Ra?urn=mlb-wp27997

Nick Punto Alexei Ramírez Hanley Ramírez Édgar Rentería

Chelsea show belief of old on night of relief for Andr� Villas-Boas | Dominic Fifield

Andr� Villas-Boas has been charged with revitalising an anxious side, but this was a flashback to a Chelsea of the recent past

Normal service has been resumed. In the end Chelsea surveyed this group from its pinnacle, pointing to a perfect home record without a goal shipped en route as evidence that this had all been a breeze after all. The tension that had built up over a fortnight, since Bayer Leverkusen dispatched Andr� Villas-Boas's side in stoppage time at the BayArena, merely melted away, the anxiety that gripped prior to kick-off a deception. There was even a prickly reaction from the manager in his post-match assessment of which Jos� Mourinho would have been proud. This all felt like old times.

This team has been undergoing a metamorphosis since Villas-Boas was appointed in the summer, and that transformation can now be maintained within rather than without the Champions League. Valencia had represented a considerable challenge but while they pinged possession around neatly enough, they were blunted and buried. Villas-Boas has been charged with revitalising his side, and shaping a bright future, but this was a flashback to a Chelsea of the recent past; resilient at the back with Petr Cech outstanding; dynamic through the centre where Ramires was irrepressible; ruthless in attack with Didier Drogba a battering ram to shatter the opposition's resistance.

There was reassurance to be had in it all. Villas-Boas spoke in the aftermath of tweaking his "strategy", if not his "philosophy" which continues to revolve around "human values", by sitting deeper and springing through the Spanish on the break. That is what Chelsea used to do best, all strength and pace, even if the willingness to surrender the ball to their visitors was at odds with the Portuguese's mantra of being "proactive" and imposing themselves on opponents. One Spanish journalist asked whether that was a "treason" to his underlying beliefs, a question Villas-Boas greeted with incredulity.

Regardless, his ability to remind stalwarts of their qualities when it really mattered was worthy of praise. Drogba was a man possessed, back to the barnstorming best that had propelled this team to the Double under Carlo Ancelotti, with his the performance of a man seeking new terms as his contract runs down towards expiry. Cech, denying David Albelda early on and whatever Valencia flung at him thereafter, had forgotten the uncharacteristically shaky displays in defeat to Arsenal and Liverpool. Chelsea needed his assuredness. They had never previously failed to qualify from the group stage of this competition and the fears that this might be the year they would suffer that ignominy had been very real. The pre-match anxiety had proved as much though, by the end, the locals were chorusing "Carefree" as if mocking their earlier apprehension. This team can move on with confidence pepped.

The repercussions of progress into the knockout stage are more than merely financial. The television monies that will flood, as usual, into the coffers as the Londoners venture further into the latter stages are significant but not critical at a club overseen by a billionaire oligarch. This was about prestige ? it would have damaged reputations to have slipped meekly into the Europa League ? but, more significantly, it offers the management proper breathing space. Reaching the last 16 despite the stuttering form of late, which had seen three of the previous four home games lost, has contrived to offer Villas-Boas's regime legitimacy.

His approach had been bold but undeniably risky over recent weeks. Fernando Torres, a British record �50m signing, has been relegated to squad-player status where most assumed the manager's brief was to encourage the Spaniard to improve. The decision to accept transfer requests from Nicolas Anelka and Alex, ageing but experienced players, ahead of a cluttered December fixture list and then cast them to the fringes at Cobham ? they are training at the academy ? ahead of anticipated moves next month could be interpreted as the manager delivering a message. The pair's professionalism may have been publicly praised, but dissenting voices will not be tolerated.

The willingness to gamble was maintained here with Frank Lampard, a player with 20 Champions League goals in 81 appearances and the kind of talisman upon which this club has so often relied, omitted from the start. Had that strategy not come off then the backlash might have been vicious, offering those who doubt the manager's credentials evidence of his folly. In victory, the selection felt more like a stroke of genius. Ramires's energy granted Chelsea ferocious bite on the break, with Oriol Romeu so comfortable in possession and Raul Meireles tidy and efficient in a side seeking to sit deep. Lampard, at 33, was still described as "one of the best midfielders in the world" by Villas-Boas, but might have to get used to sitting out future significant games.

There can be no protesting while results are positive, and this was a third 3-0 success in four matches. Villas-Boas had already received the private backing of Roman Abramovich during the recent traumatic spell, but now he can contemplate the work to come from a true position of power. Elimination would have been humiliating. As it is, Manchester City visit here on Monday in a fixture which had appeared daunting at kick-off but, now, feels more like an opportunity to eat into the leaders' advantage at the top. Crisis allayed.

• Chelsea
• Champions League 2011-12
• Champions League
• Andr� Villas-Boas

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Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/blog/2011/dec/06/chelsea-valencia-champions-league-villas-boas

Nick Punto Robb Quinlan Ryan Raburn Alexei Ramírez

What a haul: Justin Verlander adds AL MVP to Cy Young

On next week's edition of Hoarders .... Justin Verlander?

Hey, why not? The big Detroit Tigers right-hander may not make for the type of wacky television favored by A&E, but he's laying down his own monopoly on the AL's award hardware. Verlander made another big addition to his personal trophy case on Monday afternoon, nailing down the 2011 AL MVP award to display alongside the Cy Young prize he won last week and the AL Rookie of the Year award he won in 2006. He's the first pitcher to win both the Cy Young and MVP since Dennis Eckersley in 1992 and the first MVP from the Tigers since fellow pitcher Willie Hernandez won both awards in 1984.

A few items on Verlander's victory and the vote totals below:

? With a number of good candidates but no clear-cut winner, there will definitely be some deserved appeals for the men who finished behind Verlander's final total of 13 first-place votes and 280 total points. Boston's Jacoby Ellsbury finished second with 242 total points (four first-place votes) while Toronto's Jose Bautista was third with 231 and five first-place votes. Curtis Granderson and Miguel Cabrera rounded out the top five. (BBWAA has the full voting breakdown.)

? I'm actually surprised that such a large number of writers were open to placing a pitcher atop their ballot ? those 13 votes are more than I expected ? but it definitely destroyed the theory that Bautista was going to ride a wave of second-place votes to a win in a year with multiple candidates.

? The vote I don't own would have gone to Ellsbury, a center fielder who posted a .321/.376/.552 line and led baseball with 364 total bases in an unbelievable comeback season. Not that I'm against pitchers being named MVP if they're clearly the most deserving candidate. Rather, it's because I believe an everyday player should hold the tiebreaker in a crowded and competitive field like the one we had this year. I suspect that Ellsbury would have received more first-place votes had the Red Sox not collapsed in September (a month in which he posted a .358/.400/.667 line with eight homers and 21 RBIs) and that's a shame. Bautista had a great case as well while playing for a team that didn't make the playoffs, but I see Ellsbury's season as rating a tick or two better when you consider positional value and Ellsbury's 39 stolen bases.

? Your headscratching tally from the BBWAA breakdown: Michael Young getting a first-place homer vote from Dallas Morning News writer Evan Grant, Yankees reliever David Robertson getting a token 10th-place vote and Verlander being left off one ballot entirely (guessing that one was from the true hardliners among the "no MVPs to pitchers" faction).

Other popular stories on Yahoo! Sports:
? David Beckham, Galaxy win MLS Cup behind star trio
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Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/blog/big_league_stew/post/What-a-haul-Justin-Verlander-adds-AL-MVP-to-Cy-?urn=mlb-wp27384

Mike Lamb Matt LaPorta Jeff Larish Adam LaRoche

The Secret Footballer: players with depression do get help

Football is not turning a blind eye to players with mental health problems

There are some things that happen in football that, for a moment at least, do not seem as if they're really happening at all. The sudden and tragic death of Gary Speed last Sunday was one of those moments. Here was a man whom everybody respected, a top professional in his playing days and manager of a revitalised Wales squad. It didn't seem to make any sense.

In the week leading up to Speed's death I had been reading A Life Too Short, the book about Robert Enke, the former Germany goalkeeper who killed himself, written by his friend, Ronald Reng. It was to be research for a column I was writing on depression that weekend. Twenty-four hours later Speed was found hanged at his house. On Monday Reng's biography won the William Hill Sports Book of the Year award. It is, of course, all a horrible coincidence and Reng, quite wisely, refused to be drawn on any comparisons between Speed and Enke.

Since last Sunday, frustratingly for me, a fair amount has been made of the lack of help available to footballers and managers should the stresses of the game ever become too much. Susannah Strong, the author of a booklet that the Professional Footballers' Association has sent out to ex-players, containing advice, helpline numbers and case studies on depression, said: "It's an extraordinary sport where you get people to the absolute physical perfection ? and yet there's no attention paid whatsoever to the mental health of footballers." Strong also said she found it "really, really difficult to get any footballer to talk about mental health" and added: "There's a huge amount of stigma and taboo around [the subject]."

What did Strong expect? I would have been amazed if any players had been willing to bare their soul on a very private condition so that their testimony could be sent out to 50,000 retired footballers and end up in national newspapers. Just because mental illness in football remains a tough concept for some, it should not mean that it is bereft of the doctor/patient privilege afforded to any other illnesses.

Strong may well have been right when she uses words such as "stigma" and "taboo" but she was wide of the mark when she came close to suggesting clubs are negligent when it comes to players with mental health problems. It made me angry to read those remarks, when I have first-hand evidence that is not the case, and I was even more frustrated when I came across Alan Hansen's thoughts on the subject in another national newspaper.

Hansen wrote: "Football is a tough sport and there really is no support network for those who are troubled or in need of help." He went on: "Players know that any admission of a problem or a call for help would see them annihilated by their team-mates once they started to feel good again, so as a result there would be a real air of silence when it came to telling people that you needed help."

Hansen was a great footballer and has far more medals in his cabinet than I'll ever have but he is, to put it bluntly, completely out of touch. I wonder what Tony Adams, who set up the excellent Sporting Chance Clinic that is run by Peter Kay and his team, thinks when he reads Hansen talk about "no support network". Kay, for those who are not aware, confirmed that within 72 hours of Speed's death 10 players had been in touch with him. Hundreds of others have benefited since the charity was formed 11 years ago.

Furthermore, while changing rooms can certainly be tough places, much of what goes on is bravado and nobody is going to "annihilate" you for revealing you suffer from depression. In my experience there is a team-mate in every dressing room whom you can confide in if you have problems and we're also talking about a time when clubs employ sports psychologists who sit down for the sort of one?to?one chats that would have been unthinkable years ago. I'm not saying we're doing everything we possibly can to help those in need but I do think it's important to make the point that football's not turning a blind eye to those with problems.

Whether those who experience difficulties can make the leap of faith to use what is on offer is another matter. In my case I knew that something wasn't quite right mentally but I didn't want anything to change and risk upsetting what I was doing on the pitch, because at the time I was playing well. Today I see how dangerous that thought process is because, had my football begun to suffer, there is every chance the illness could have tightened its grip.

My situation was not helped by two misdiagnoses of manic depression (now bipolar) that came about from my tendency to do strange things at breakneck speed that might be considered by others as, well, crazy. Highlights include booking out the top floor of a hotel in Paris because I had heard that somebody I didn't like was thinking of staying there. This sort of episode was never followed by a sustained lull and therefore could not be construed as anything other than a quirk of my character that was there in one form or another even as a child.

At the end of last year I was eventually diagnosed with depression after my club doctor called me to his surgery and asked after my mental wellbeing. I am lucky that he is well versed in the manifestations of mental health; he had been monitoring me day to day through what I thought was nothing more than passing conversation. Others may not be so fortunate.

It has been a tough week for football and, as it draws to a close and the weekend's matches approach, I already know that we will see the tributes to Speed observed impeccably for, if there is one thing that football knows how to do, it is the mourning of one of its own. I only hope that the respect shown to a special player is afforded in some way to the players on the pitch later that day, because we never know what could be going through a fragile mind.

Follow the Secret Footballer on Twitter @TSFGuardian

• Mental health
• Health

The Secret Footballer

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Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/blog/2011/dec/02/the-secret-footballer-players-depression

Jeff Baker Brian Barden Clint Barmes Darwin Barney

FanHouse 15: No. 3 Cliff Lee

by FanHouse TV

Filed under: Phillies, MLB Video

It may seem like just weeks ago that the baseball season ended, but, believe it or not, Spring Training is here.

If you're like the rest of us at FanHouse, you can't wait for the season to begin -- but we've got you covered until opening day arrives.

It's the FanHouse 15, a countdown of the 15 most talked about, blogged about, tweeted about, sensational stars of America's pastime.

Who will be number one?

The list continues with No. 3, the Phillies Cliff Lee.

 

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Source: http://mlb.fanhouse.com/2011/02/27/fhtv-fanhouse-15-no-3-cliff-lee/

Jonathan Herrera Mike Hessman Brandon Hicks Aaron Hill

Why Bobby Valentine is the right man for the Boston Red Sox | David Lengel

Former New York Mets manager Bobby Valentine succeeds Terry Francona at the Boston Red Sox and will bring a unique style to Fenway
Bobby Valentine 'honored, humbled and pretty damn excited' to be Red Sox manager

Bobby Valentine is the new manager of the Boston Red Sox, something you could have gotten some pretty healthy odds on back in early September. That was before the earth moved under Fenway Park, before the spectacular month-long collapse of the Old Towne Team led to their esteemed manager and General Manager moving on, and of course, before the barrage of sensational stories pertaining to the Sox player personnel flooded Beantown's relentless press. When you are coasting towards a playoff berth and a realistic shot of a third World Series title in seven seasons, and then, less than a 30 days later you are playing golf, there are repercussions, especially in baseball-obsessed Boston.

Now the Red Sox are trying to clean up the mess and have invested heavily in Valentine, a controversial, polarizing manager with 20 years experience leading the Texas Rangers, New York Mets and Japan's Chiba Lotte Marines. Was it the right move? That is the easiest question I will ever answer, even if it's rigged because I wrote it myself. Let's just say this?I love Bobby Valentine, I love everything about him, and I am insanely jealous that he is back in baseball up in Boston rather than in Queens.

Most fans grow up with a favorite player, and I had that as well. The Mets phenom pitcher Dwight Gooden was my guy, that is until "Dr. K" got hooked on drugs, became a Yankee, threw a no-hitter and won a World Series in the Bronx. That was too much to take, and so I don't have a favorite player anymore. However, I do have an all-time favorite, and somewhat bizarrely, it's a manager, not a player?Bobby Valentine. He joined the Mets in 1996 during a time when the team hadn't had a winning season in five years. In 1997 they won 88 games. In 1999 and 2000 they went to the playoffs with so-so teams Valentine squeezed the very last ounce of talent out of. They lost to the Yankees in the 2000 World Series four games to one, but played them tougher than any of their previous opponents during their run of championships.

But forget the winning, the fact that he's probably one of the most intelligent and prepared baseball people around, and all that, blah, blah, blah. What makes Bobby great is that in a baseball world that is extremely traditional, that is full of conformists falling in line, Valentine is an extremely bright, entertaining renaissance man, who is part of a minuscule counter-culture inside a game that does not particularly take to individualism. We're talking about a baseball manager who can ballroom dance, decided against playing college football at USC and replacing OJ Simpson at running back, took a job overseeing his hometown's police, fire, and health departments, invented the sandwich wrap, and famously came back into the dugout wearing a disguise after being ejected from a game in 1999. Most impressive were his two stints managing in Japan, where he built much more than a cult following with his comprehensive embracing of the culture and language, not to mention bringing a title to Chiba in 2005, while helping to create his own "Bobby Magic" burger.

These are not the kind of activities that your average baseball manager gets into, and that may be one reason why there are a lot of baseball people out there who don't like Bobby V, never-mind the shit-eating half-grin he wears in the dugout. You hear a lot of "He thinks he's the smartest guy in the room" kind of talk, that Valentine is regularly plotting, forming agendas, carrying out schemes with those he considers "his guys" in the clubhouse, the board room and in the press, burning bridges in the process. Some of that is true, and there is definitely a part of Bobby Valentine that is a huge pain in the ass, and yes, it can get ugly. �Like the time he had to deny trying to get fired during a 12-game losing streak in 2002, and his amusing, but questionable way of dealing with the rumors of rampant marijuana use around the team later that season, his final one with the Mets. All of this was fine with me of course, and as a friend pointed out, "He thrills you and on the other hand has actually punched you, and likely thinks you're a idiot.� He is a paradox."�That's true, Valentine did punch me, playfully, but very hard after I asked him for an interview in Japan back in 2000. "Come back tomorrow" Pow! Yes, it was a unique show during a golden era for Mets fans.

What does all of that mean for Boston? Well, they are getting a manager capable of changing a culture immediately, someone who is extremely positive during a time the franchise is recovering from one of its most negative seasons. They are also getting a manager who will take the attention away from their skeptical players, who is always ready to present his version of events to a populace thirsty for interaction with their team. Can Valentine handle the Boston fans and the local press? Well, considering his performance in Japan, a sink or swim environment for gaijin, I don't have any doubts on that front. Come April, Boston's fans will learn first hand that Valentine is a fearless, can-do manager who will entertain without stepping into the batters box while restoring the Red Sox to prominence. �

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• Boston Red Sox
• MLB
• US sport

David Lengel

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Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/blog/2011/dec/01/bobby-valentine-boston-red-sox-mets

Mike Sweeney Fernando Tatís Mark Teahen Mark Teixeira