While everyone here is focusing on the upcoming football season, and rightfully so, I decided that it would be fun to take a close look at the reigning NIT Champion Basketball team.  After picking up one stud recruit in Tim Frazier and a few solid recruits in Bill Edwards, Sasha Boronjvak, and Jermaine Marshall, the Nittany Lions will look to take the next step in becoming a serious contender in the Big Ten.  The loss of Cornley and Pringle hurts, but Talor Battle appears ready to take HIS team to a new level after a successful run with the USA basketball team this summer.  Now for a closer look at the roster with my projected starting lineup.

PG Talor Battle:  Battle is primed for another tremendous season as he was able to work on his game this summer internationally.  With a slightly better shot selection, Battle is a serious contender for Big Ten player of the year and several other national honors.

SG Chris Babb:  Babb showed flashes of breaking out last season as he became a dangerous scoring threat off the bench.  Going into this season, Babb will be relied upon to become a consistent scorer and ball-handler.

SF David Jackson:  DJ is one of two starters who needs to show a large improvement in his game this season.  After an awful start last year, DJ began to show some positive signs at the end of last season.

PF Jeff Brooks:  Brooks is the other starter who really needs to step up his game this season if PSU wants to have a chance in the Big Ten.  He clearly has the ability, but needs to become more consistent at both ends of the court.

C Andrew Jones:  Jones turned into a beast near the end of last season and that will need to continue to push PSU over the top.  If Jones can become a consistent double-double threat, Penn State will feature one of the best inside-outside duos in the Big Ten.

Bench:

Tim Frazier:  Penn State needs their top recruit in years to help instantly.  If Babb struggles early, Frazier could be pushed into the starting lineup to create a Battle/Pringle type backcourt.

Andrew Ott:  If Ott can improve his conditioning going into the season, he can provide the Nittany Lions with a big-bodied back-up in the low post.

Cammeron Woodyard:  Woodyard must improve his shot selection and overall basketball IQ to be a factor on this season's team.

Billy Oliver:  Oliver is another big body who could force his way into the regular rotation with some early season success.

Sasha Boronjvak:  I must say that Sasha is a very intriguing prospect in my eyes.  He has the potential to be solid low-post scoring threat similar to Goran Suton of Michigan State.

Bill Edwards:  Freshman who could see a similar role to that of Woodyard last year.

Jermaine Marshall:  Coming off a knee injury that cost him of his senior season in high school, Jermaine will most likely be red-shirted this season.

For me, there are two keys to a successful season this year.  First, Penn State must get consistent efforts from Jeff Brooks and David Jackson.  The team is too young for these two experienced juniors not to excel this season.  If they struggle, the team is going nowhere.  Second, Tim Frazier needs to make an instant impact.  I know that it is asking a lot for a freshman, but Penn State needs at least one reliable playermaker off the bench, and Frazier is the only option.

Let me know what you think of my lineup and predictions.

Since Forman announced the "set" roster for the coming season, I decided to break down this year's players.

PG Rose:  Should see improvements in this young star's game as he enters his second season.  A slight increase in point and assist averages would place him among the best in the game.

SG Salmons:  A great addition at last season's trade deadline, John should establish himself as the go to scorer this season.  If his stats continue to rise (as seen in the past few seasons), John could make up for the loss of Ben Gordan.

SF Deng:  Although he is paid like the face of the franchise, Loul has gotten off to a terrible start in his new contract.  With full health this season and a better shot selection, he will hopefully get back on track this season.

PF Thomas:  This streaky player is most likely entering a make or break season with the Bulls.  If he can lengthen his hot streaks and limit his mental mistakes, he could establish himself as solid forward in this league.

C Noah:  Noah's energy is the motivating factor for this Bulls team.  Joakim does a wonderful job of rebounding and bothering opposing centers.  If he could continue to improve his shooting, he could become one of the better centers in the league.

Bench:

Hinrich:  This veteran moves back into the regular lineup with a renewed focus on defense.  As a point guard, Kirk should be able to set up Rose for some easy baskets.

Miller:  This veteran should provide scoring from the center position.  His poor defense is a cause for concern.

Johnson:  Another high energy player will try to steal minutes from a similar Tyrus Thomas.

Pargo:  Jannero is a poor man's Ben Gordan.  He has the ability to warm up, but can not be counted on for consistent minutes.

Hunter:  Resigned for one reason:  to mentor Rose.

Gray:  Limited value with Miller on board.

Gibson:  Not much playing time for this power forward.

James:  Better save two seats on the bench for this guy.

Following a long series of trade talks with the Toronto Blue Jays, the Phillies changed course today and made a seemingly fabulous trade with the Cleveland Indians.  Although the Phillies gave up four of their top ten prospects to obtain Cliff Lee and Ben Francisco, they were able to hold on to arguably their top three prospects.  After reading about this trade, I began to think about the Phillies remaining prospects and thought that it would be fun to put together a Phillies "Minor League All-Star Team".  To be eligible for this "prospects" team, the players must be age 25 or younger.  Using a mixture of scouting reports and this season's stats, I have put together the following team to represent the future of the Phillies franchise:

C        Travis d'Arnaud (low A)                        .245, 12 HR, 56 RBI

1B      Michael Durant (high A)                       .226, 10 HR, 31 RBI

2B      Harold Garcia (low A)                           .293, 7 HR, 47 RBI, 32 SB

SS      Freddy Galvis (high A)                         .229, 1 HR, 8 RBI, defensive wizard

3B      Anthony Hewitt (short season A)       .222, 3 HR, 17 RBI, 7 SB

LF      Michael Taylor (AAA)                            .324, 17 HR, 70 RBI, 20 SB

CF     Anthony Gose (low A)                           .273, 2 HR, 41 RBI, 57 SB

RF     Dominic Brown (high A)                      .309, 11 HR, 44 RBI, 15 SB

SP (RH)  Kyle Drabek (AA)                            11-2, 2.78 ERA

SP (LH)  Antonio Bastardo (AAA)                 3-2, 1.89 ERA

RP (RH)  Michael Schwimer (high A)          2-1, 3.38 ERA, 13 saves

RP (LH)  Sergio Escalona (AAA)                 0-2, 3.96 ERA, 12 saves

Looking at this lineup, it is pretty obvious that we are extremely lacking in quality infield prospects, but have a future starting outfield mixed throughout our farm system.  Pitching-wise, even after today's trade, I believe that we are in great shape for the near and distant future.  We have many quality minor league starters in Drabek, Bastardo, Worley, Savery, Stutes, Flande, Carpentar, and Kendrick.  Several of these guys will most likely be moved to the bullpen at some point which will help our future relief corps.

Well, that is my list.  Feel free to make your own changes in the comments section below.

Over the past two or three weeks, we have all been bombarded with news on a prospect named Kyle Drabek.  He has been called a future Phillies' ace by scouts around the league, an untouchable prospect by Phillies' management, and a trade target of both the Blue Jays and Indians.  Before throwing a pitch above AA and only a few years removed from high school and Tommy John surgery, Drabek appears to be on the fasttrack to superstardom.  Today, Drabek was even given the honor of being placed on the hompage at http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/.  The questions remain, however, what do the Phillies currently own in Kyle Drabek and how can they most accurately evaluate his worth to the future of the franchise?

Although no one can be sure of Drabek's future, there are comparisons that can be made that will help us to see his potential.  The two most relevant comparisons that can be made are with the Phillies' current homegrown ace, Cole Hamels, and Kyle Drabek's father, Doug Drabek.

First, lets take a look at Kyle Drabek's minor league statistics:

2006  Rookie      1-3, 7.72 ERA, 23.1 IP, 14 K, 11 BB, 1.89 WHIP

2007  A                 5-1, 4.33 ERA, 54 IP, 46 K, 23 BB, 1.35 WHIP

2008  Rookie/A   1-3, 2.23 ERA, 32.1 IP, 16 K, 12 BB, 0.897 WHIP

2009  A / AA          11-2, 2.78 ERA, 129.1 IP, 123 K, 38 BB, 1.152 WHIP

Total                      18-9, 3.54 ERA, 239 IP, 199 K, 84 BB, 1.234 WHIP

Next, we will look at Cole Hamels' minor league statistics:

2003  A                  6-3, 1.34 ERA, 101 IP, 147 K, 39 BB, 0.990 WHIP

2004  A                 1-0, 1.12 ERA, 16 IP, 24 K, 4 BB, 0.875 WHIP

2005  A / AA          4-0, 2.31 ERA, 35 IP, 37 K, 19 BB, 1.029 WHIP

2006  A / AAA       3-1, 1.10 ERA, 49 IP, 68 K, 12 BB, 0.837 WHIP

Total                     14-4, 1.43 ERA, 201 IP, 276 K, 74 BB, 0.950 WHIP

Lastly, we will look at Doug Drabek's minor league statistics:

1983  A                  6-7, 3.65 ERA, 103.2 IP, 103 K, 48 BB, 1.418 WHIP

1984  A / AA          14-7, 2.24 ERA, 160.2 IP, 103 K, 57 BB, 1.120 WHIP

1985  AA                13-7, 2.99 ERA, 192.2 IP, 153 K, 55 BB, 1.080 WHIP

1986  AAA             1-4, 7.29 ERA, 42 IP, 23 K, 25 BB, 1.786 WHIP

Total                       34-25, 3.21 ERA, 499 IP, 382 K, 185 BB, 1.210 WHIP

So, what can we gather from this data?  At first glance, the difference between Hamels' gaudy stats and those of the two Drabeks is somewhat surprising.  Although Hamels had several injury plagued seasons in the minors, he was able to put up an amazing stat line every time he stepped on the mound.  His stats are far and away better than either of the Drabeks and seem to validate his "sure-thing" future ace status coming into the big leagues.

All is not lost, however, in terms of the younger Drabek.  After comparing his stats to those of his father's, one can see that the similarities are enormous.  While Kyle has a slightly better winning percentage than his father, Doug makes up for this with a slightly lower ERA.  Kyle does hold the advantage in the strikeouts per nine innings (0.83 to 0.77) and in strikeout to walk ratio (2.36 to 2.06) categories.  The Drabek's also share almost identical WHIPs.

Solely based on the stat comparisons above, it appears that Kyle Drabek is following the career path of his father very closely.  Compared to Cole Hamels, Kyle may be considered more of a late bloomer, but is still considered to be a future ace for some major league team.

If the Phillies trade Kyle Drabek for Roy Halladay or Cliff Lee, they will receive an ace for the next two years.  If the Phillies decide to hold on to this "untouchable" prospect, they MAY have an ace for many years to come.  It all comes down to philosophy; do we try to win now , or try to win for the next decade or more?

Assuming that the Phillies sign Pedro, which seems extremely likely at this point, and that they are able to add another front-line starter, such as fan-favorite Doc Halladay, what happens to old, reliable Jaime Moyer?  If we are able to add both starters, or someone similar, our starting rotation would look like this:

Cole Hamels

Halladay/some other #1b

Joe Blanton

JA Happ

Pedro Martinez

With the way that Blanton and Happ are pitching, I can not imagine that they would be removed from the rotation unless one of them are traded in the Halladay deal.  Assuming that neither are traded, however, that leaves no room for Moyer in our rotation, and I hardly see him as a realistic bullpen option.  Below, I have outlined what I believe to be the possible scenarios.

Option 1:  Include Blanton or Happ in the Halladay deal to create room for Moyer in the rotation.

Option 2:  Move Happ back to the bullpen where he was successful earlier in the year.

Option 3:  Trade or Release Moyer

Option 4 (not gonna happen, but I could only wish):  Fire Rich Dubee and insert Moyer as pitching coach.

From what I have heard, the Blue Jays are high on Happ and would like to include him in a potential deal.  Although I am an avid Moyer supporter and look forward to the day where he will hopefully become a Phillies pitching coach to mentor young pitchers on a full-time basis, I see option 3 as the most likely scenario.  The way Happ is pitching, there is no way they could justify moving him back to the bullpen.  Unfortunately Moyer would be the odd man out if our Halladay dreams are realized.

What do you all think, is there an option that I am missing?