Because the Yankee Red Sox fan's analysis is just so asinine, I had to rebut him, point by point. This is not comprehensive, nor is it (entirely) based on statistical fact; however, it is grounded in some semblance of reality, unlike that crazy Yanks fan. Read on for it.

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Not much info here, but the title says it all:

Richie Sexson is released by the laughably spiraling out of control Mariners (36-55) while the major offseason pickup of Eric Bedard is placed on the DL.

L I N K  to  S T O R Y.

And sports pundits have further proved how little they know about baseball once again by picking the Mariners to win over the Angels.

Just how bad are these guys going to be?

Sorta...

Over at 1866baseball.com they pride themselves on... well, I'll just let their homepage intro describe it for you:

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Well, unfortunately it looks like the rush to get Figgy back was because of not so optimistic doctor's reports about Aybar's pinkie finger. Aybar wants to be back on the field ASAP, but the ever-cautious Scioscia has other opinions:

"Erick's going to be out for a little while -- somewhere in the four-week range. That's a tough break for the kid. We're going to have to absorb it. Fortunately, he doesn't need surgery. Last night they finally got it in place. You could see when it happened that he was in pain."

So what does this mean for the team? Will we miss Aybar's workhorse, field general attitude as it is replaced by what feels like incompetence from Izturis for up to a month? Will Sean Rodriguez ever produce while Kendrick is on the mend? Is Kotchman in line for the next freak injury? Not that he's prone to it or anything...

- Links (angels.mlb.com and espn.com) - to story.

-Link- to Story.

FTA:
"Trying to add some depth, general manager Ed Wade told MLB.com that the team has agreed with free agent Darin Erstad on a one-year contract.

"He'll be a left-handed bat off the bench," Wade said, according to the site. "He has a lot of versatility. He's a great makeup guy. He's the prototypical professional player -- he brings a lot to the table and we're glad to have him." "

Thoughts and opinions on Ersty signing with the Hou-stros here.

-Link- to story.

So good ol' Lew She-Wolff of the lady A's decides that even fielding offers to stay in Oakland is beneath him:

FTA:
"We don't want to move [from the projected Fremont site]. We don't want to start pitting cities against each other, but it's out of the question we'll stay in Oakland," Lew Wolff said Monday after giving an address and answering questions at the Commonwealth Club in San Francisco.

Adding to the collective disgust of the nation was the organization's embrace of Fremont's connoted Bed'n'Breakfast community:

"The Athletics have envisioned a 32,000-seat ballpark in Fremont on a 200-acre complex that would include a shopping mall, a hotel and 3,000 housing units."

Can you count the ways this projected plan is pathetic? But don't worry, fans, they're still in the AL West and don't have plans to go anywhere!

"We're still here, folks," Wolff said. "We're not moving to Timbuktu. We're just moving down the street."

As one fan in the forums aptly stated:
decarguy:
I don't know, the Timbuktu A's is kinda catchy.

This story wouldn't be replete with hatred for the Fleamont Faithful without a poll. In which city do you, the intelligent Halos Heaven poster, believe these excuses for athletes should end up to burden a new community with a culture of loss and failure?

Possibly until after the All-star break.

Quoth the Torre: " "I don't think it's anything more than it was, but probably a couple of days playing on it exposed it more. I still don't think it's anything that would require more than a few days," manager Joe Torre said. If he were to miss this weekend's series against the Angels, he would have a week off (with the All-Star break) to nurse his hamstring.

"I know we want to win the All-Star Game, but still, the most important thing is getting him ready for the second half," Torre said. "I think he knows that." "

Dear God;
I know we haven't spoken in a while, but... PLEASE, OH PLEASE, OH PLEASE... let A Rod miss the series against us this weekend.
Yours,
Goat

Thanks to ESPN voters, The Angels are number 7 in franchise satisfaction amongst the fans in ALL sports.

http://proxy.espn.go.com/chat/sportsnation/franchiseRanks

It just goes to show you how loyal and dedicated we are to the team that has brought the city of Anaheim and its fans so much pain, heartbreak, and sorrow (read: the 80s), along with the pleasure of seeing a monkey lifted from our back, and placed firmly in the bullpen in the improbable 2002 World Series Run.

Just as an aside, the only ranking in which we didn't crack the top 35 was "OWN (Ownership): Honesty; loyalty to players and city". Thank you, Stoneman, for Garbage Matthews Jr. as our big splash.