Worlds Collide!

According to the Toledo Blade, Michigan is now the leader for Rivals' No. 218 overall prospect Dennis Thames, who plays safety and running back in Louisville, Mississippi. Normally, this would not be worthy of a post, but the four star recruit happens to be the nephew of one Marcus Thames, Destroyer of Worlds and Slayer of Hanging Curves. Dennis (pictured at left) spent the week with his uncle and took the time to visit Michigan's campus with defensive coordinator Scott Shafer.

"They sounded like nice coaches, good coaches to be around," Dennis was quoted as saying in the Blade. "Michigan would be my No. 1 right now. They've come at me the most and recruited me."

If Dennis is anywhere near as "country strong" (to steal a Rod Allen catchphrase) as his uncle Marcus, he would be a welcome addition to Michigan's already impressive recruiting class. Thames the Younger also boasts offers from Alabama, Arkansas, Auburn, Mississippi State and Ole Miss, among others, and Michigan has never had great success at pulling recruits out of Mississippi. However, with Marcus playing a role in his recruitment, Michigan appears to have a good chance of adding a top-flight safety prospect with tremendous bloodlines.

A Few Michigan Tidbits

A few Michigan-related news items came up in the last day. A recap:

• Rich Rodriguez and the University agreed to pay his $4 million buyout to West Virginia. Michigan will pay $2.5 million, with Rodriguez picking up the remaining $1.5 million of the buyout. Both sides seem to be happy that this is over, and everybody can now go on with their lives (except embittered WVU fans, who seem to be a lost cause).
• Running back Kevin Grady pleaded not guilty to charges of Driving While Impaired in a court date yesterday morning. Grady was pulled over at 2 am on July 2nd in Wyoming, Michigan, and a breathalyzer revealed a blood alcohol content of .281, more than three times the legal limit. As a first-time offender, Grady is not expected to serve any jail time. Michigan has not released any information on his status with the team, and will wait to see how the legal process plays out before giving out any punishment.
  
• The Tractor is back! Former Michigan basketball star Robert "Tractor" Traylor will play for the Cleveland Cavaliers' summer league team. Traylor last played in the NBA for Cleveland in 2005, before weight issues forced him out of the league. He then played in Europe and Puerto Rico before serving jail time for money laundering, a result of dealings with a drug-pushing cousin. Here's hoping the Tractor has his life back on track, and can stick on the Cavs roster.
  

The Puma Strikes Again

One day removed from a two-homer effort in which we found out his nickname was "The Puma", Miguel Cabrera ended a dramatic 6-run comeback for the Tigers with a walk-off home run to beat the Indians, 8-6.

Detroit spotted Cleveland a six run lead in the sixth before Edgar Renteria singled home Matt Joyce in the bottom of the inning. Detroit then rattled off five runs in the bottom of the seventh, highlighted by Joyce's two-run game-tying home run off of reliever Rafael Betancourt.

Despite Todd Jones' best efforts to relinquish the lead back to the Indians, a couple of stellar defensive plays by Carlos Guillen allowed Detroit to enter the bottom of the ninth with the game still tied. Marcus Thames led off the inning with a single, followed by Guillen popping out to Indians C Kelly Shoppach.

Enter The Puma. Cabrera took a 1-0 fastball from reliever Jensen Lewis and ripped a screaming line drive that landed in the Tiger bullpen. What followed was the standard helmet tossing, home plate mobbing, elaborate high-fiving celebration that is par for the course for any professional baseball team.

The Tigers remain seven games back of the White Sox with 72 games remaining. Although Chicago has yet to show signs of slowing down, Detroit has kept pace despite the absence of Magglio Ordonez (oblique injury) and the loss of Jeremy Bonderman for the season (blood clot). Ordonez should be back sometime next week, putting Detroit in position to make a run for the AL Central after the All-Star break.

(Photo: AP Images)

Can the Pistons Land Josh Smith?

The Elton Brand signing by the Philadelphia 76ers has opened up an interesting, albeit unlikely, possibility for the Pistons. Philadelphia was rumored to be Atlanta F Josh Smith's most likely destination if he left the Hawks, but the Brand signing makes that impossible. According to MLive's A. Sherrod Blakely, the Pistons could be a possible sign-and-trade partner with the Hawks if they decide they want to move Smith.

Smith would be a tremendous addition to the Pistons if they could pull off the deal. He will be only 23 years old next season, and last year averaged 17.2 points, 8.2 rebounds and 2.8 blocks per game. He is one of the league's premier athletes, winning the NBA Dunk Contest in 2005. Detroit would have to give up Tayshaun Prince in the deal, and the salary they would give Smith would be lower than what he was looking to sign for with the Sixers. Blakely readily admits that this deal is unlikely to occur, but stranger things have happened.

If Detroit can somehow pull off a trade, they would be getting one of the most exciting players in the league. Smith can get to the basket on offense, is a excellent defender and one of the league's best shot blockers (he was second in the NBA last season). He would also provide the Pistons with plenty of highlight-worthy material:



Count me in as someone who wants to see this happen.

Red Wings Slated to Play in Outdoor Game

Although an official announcement has not yet been made by the NHL, it appears that the Red Wings and the Chicago Blackhawks will face off January 1st, 2009 at Wrigley Field. This will be the NHL's third "Winter Classic" outdoor game. On New Year's Day of this year the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Buffalo Sabres played in front of an NHL-record crowd of 71,217 (pictured above). The Montreal Canadiens and the Edmonton Oilers played in the first NHL outdoor game in 2003, which was also notable for having a -22°F wind chill.

Red Wings fans will have to hope that the game, which will take place in the afternoon, doesn't conflict with either the Michigan or Michigan State bowl games next season. Luckily for State fans, the Motor City Bowl is scheduled for December 26th this year, so that should not be an issue.

Regardless of college football affiliation, Detroit sports fans should be excited for the prospect of the Wings taking part in such an historical event. If any team deserves to be showcased in what will almost certainly be the most-watched regular season hockey game of the year, it's the reigning Stanley Cup Champions.

Outdoor game looks to be set (Detroit News)

NBA Free Agency Update

Yesterday was not a good day for fans hoping the Pistons would make a big splash in free agency. Philadelphia's surprise signing of Elton Brand allowed Golden State (who had been pursuing Brand) to land Corey Maggette for 5 years, $50 million. Consider that pipe dream over.

Another of Detroit's more attractive free agent options, Mickael Pietrus, signed a 4-year deal with Orlando worth around $24 million. This one stings a little bit considering Detroit probably could have inked Pietrus for the same price, and he instead will come off the bench for a conference foe.

It also appears that James Jones will soon be off the market. The Miami Heat offered him a 5-year contract starting at $4 million per season. Although Jones has not agreed to the offer yet, he grew up in Miami and played his college ball at the University of Miami, so all signs point to him agreeing to play for the Heat.

The Pistons' only hope for landing an impact free agent at this point is if Atlanta has to offer F Josh Smith a max deal, which would potentially keep them from matching an offer to Josh Childress. It has been stated from the beginning of this offseason that Detroit would make its biggest moves through trades, but it would still be nice to see them land a free agent who could contribute off the bench.

Update: Jones officially signed with Miami, for 5 years and $23 million.

A Look at the Pistons' Free Agent Options

Photo from Getty Images

Detroit Pistons beat writer A. Sherrod Blakely recently posted an article examining some of the potential free agent signees for the Pistons. Detroit is essentially going into the free agent market armed only with the $5.36 million mid-level exception, which they can use either on one player or split it among multiple players. In my opinion, this would be the year for Joe Dumars to try to sign an impact player with the MLE. Going into the free agency period, only three teams (Memphis, Philadelphia, and the Los Angeles Clippers) had enough cap space to sign an elite free agent, and the Clippers have already used their cap space to sign PG Baron Davis. This leaves several free agents who are essentially forced to sign for the mid-level or re-sign with their current team, so the quality of players available at a cheap price is greater this year than most years. Here is my take on the players Blakely brought up in his article, plus a couple others that have been mentioned as possible Piston targets:

G/F James Posey - The versatile swingman is one of the hottest names on the market this year after playing an important role in the Boston Celtics' championship run. He is a great perimeter defender who can spread the defense with his ability to knock down the open three. However, he will be 32 next season, and his solid postseason for the Celtics has ensured that he will demand a multi-year deal starting around the MLE. At his age, he may not be worth committing that much money for that long, and it is unlikely that the Pistons would attempt to outbid the Celtics for his services anyway. Unless Detroit can somehow lock him into a short-term deal, I'd prefer they stay away from him.

G/F Michael Finley - Detroit made a run at Finley before he ultimately signed with San Antonio in 2006. He is very much in the mold of Posey, a good shooter who can defend both guards and forwards. He is also going to be 35 next season, and his skills have been on the decline ever since he signed with the Spurs. Dumars probably won't pursue him unless he strikes out on younger, more productive free agents first.

F James Jones - Jones is somewhat of an enigma, a 6'8", 225 pound forward who spends all his time on the perimeter. He is a career .399 three point shooter, and shot an impressive .444 last season for Portland. However, more than half of his career shots have come from outside the arc, and he actually made a higher percentage of his threes than his two-point attempts last season. He would be a serviceable replacement for the departed Jarvis Hayes, but I think Detroit could do better.

G Ricky Davis - I have no idea where Blakely got this name from, or whether he was just speculating, but I really hope Detroit has no interest in Davis. This is a guy who once took a shot at his own basket so he could get a rebound for a triple-double. Davis is one of the most talented guys on the market, but the ultimate me-first player doesn't fit in with the Pistons team philosophy. Pass.

G/F Josh Childress - Getting the 26 year-old Childress could prove difficult, since he is a restricted free agent and Atlanta has the right to match any offer he receives. If the Pistons can pry him away from the Hawks, however, it would be a major coup for Joe Dumars. Childress is a very efficient offensive player, finishing sixth in the NBA last year with a .571 field goal percentage. He is also a very good offensive rebounder and a solid perimeter defender. I would be very happy to have Childress backing up Rip Hamilton and Tayshaun Prince, and Detroit should make every effort to sign him.

G/F Mickael Pietrus - Once billed as the "French Jordan", Pietrus has had a hard time cracking Don Nelson's lineup with Golden State. At 26, he is still young, but he is running out of time to develop a refined skill game. He is incredibly athletic, and can knock down threes, but he cannot create for himself off the dribble. If Pietrus can play within himself, I wouldn't mind seeing him in a Piston uniform, as his athleticism and ability to finish in transition would both be huge assets to Detroit off the bench.

F Corey Maggette - By far the most intriguing player on this list, Maggette appears to be the odd man out on the Clippers after they signed Davis. He averaged 22.1 points and 5.6 rebounds per game last year, and is great at creating his own shot on the drive. Detroit has sorely lacked a player who can create for himself with any consistency, and Maggette is one of the league's best at getting to the basket, where he can either finish or get to the line. Maggette has expressed interest in getting to a team with a legitimate shot at a title, and the Celtics, Spurs, Cavaliers and Magic have all been rumored to have interest in signing him. There will be no bidding war, since all these teams can offer is the MLE, so it appears Maggette will choose whichever team can offer him the best combination of playing time and championship potential. If Detroit can sign Maggette, they will, and it would immediately vault them to the forefront of the championship picture.

Update: Two other names that have popped up on the Pistons' rader (you may recognize one of them):

G C.J. Miles - Miles is the youngest player the Pistons are considering, a 20 year-old shooting guard who jumped to the NBA straight out of high school. He is a good three point shooter (.390 in limited action last year), and at his age he has the potential to grow into a solid rotation player. However, it is hard to imagine him contributing too much next year, and I would like to see the Pistons grab a players who can help win a title right away.

G Carlos Delfino - According to Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press, the Pistons have shown interest in potentially bringing back the Argentinian swingman who backed up Prince for three seasons before spending last year in Toronto. He is a restricted free agent, but Toronto has a surplus of guards and would probably not match an offer. The question, then, is whether or not the Pistons should take him back. Although he set career highs in pretty much every offensive category last season, Delfino is still limited by his poor shooting. Although he shot .382 from three, he only had a .397 field goal percentage. He is a solid defender and a decent deep shooter, but I would be wary of bringing him back over Jones, Pietrus, Childress, or obviously Maggette.

Pistons' Dumars plans to be careful in free agency (MLive)
Pistons, Cavs Latest Teams Rumored to Have Interest in Corey Maggette (AOL Fanhouse)
Pistons consider a Carlos Delfino return (Detroit Free Press)

Another Look at Michigan's New Uniforms (Home and Road)

This image has been making the rounds recently on Michigan blogs and recruiting websites (click for larger image):

Assuming that those are the real jerseys, and not a prototype, I'm pretty pleased with the overall look. I know some people will take issue with the road jerseys, especially the yellow stripe at the bottom, but Michigan fans never seem to be very happy with the road whites anyway.

Leave your thoughts in the comments, and feel free to post any links to better pictures of the jerseys if you can find them. I still haven't come across a full picture of the authentic road jerseys.

Source: Rivals ($)

Debating Baseball at the Witching Hour

Just before midnight last night, I received a phone call from my buddy Jeff, a guy with whom I've watched more sports than any other person I've ever known. While I am about ready to settle down with Jim Bouton's Ball Four before nodding off, Jeff's end of the line is abuzz with the unmistakable cacophony of a party. I fully expect to get talked into making a series of poor decisions, ending with me bringing a bottle of Gatorade and a handful of Advil to work today. Luckily for me, Jeff has other ideas.

"Ace, I have a quick baseball question," Jeff yells over the party noise. "This girl insists that an offensive lineup of nine Placido Polanco's would be better than nine Marcus Thames'. Please tell her that she's wrong."

He then handed the phone to some girl who I've never met, who said she saw that Polanco has one of the AL's highest on-base percentages with runners in scoring position. On top of that, he hits over .300, and is widely considered a clutch situational hitter. I pulled up ESPN's stat page, read off that Thames had a higher OPS (On-base Plus Slugging), and used that as the basis for my argument. It was a somewhat weak one, since I wasn't exactly prepared for a full-out baseball purist vs. stat geek smackdown at midnight on a Sunday, especially since it sounded as if my foe had put down a few.

Before I break down my argument for Thames in greater detail, let me just say that I am not making any of this up. As absurd as this situation sounds, I can't truthfully say I was surprised that I was fielding a baseball question from my intoxicated best friend at midnight on a Sunday. This is one of those moments that I will either look back on fondly, as a memory of how routinely absurd college was, or with embarrassment that I ever cared about whether nine Thames' could beat nine Polanco's. I swear I am not fabricating this situation for the sake of a blog post. If that was the case, I would live quite a sad life.

Anyways, here is my argument for fielding a team of nine Marcus Thames', in much greater detail than the one I gave Jeff's anonymous baseball-watching friend last night:

Placido Polanco is a tremendous hitter, a guy who seemingly always finds a gap in the defense to drive in a run with a single in the clutch. This year he is hitting an astonishing .342 with runners in scoring position, with a .402 On-Base Percentage, which was the basis for mystery girl's argument that Polanco is the more valuable hitter. However, I find a couple things wrong with this point of view.

Firstly, looking at Placido's average with RISP narrows down the context of his hitting to a very small sample size. Only 76 of Polanco's 313 At Bats this year have come with RISP, which allows for a wider variation in his statistics than if we looked at his entire body of work. Looking at all of his At Bats this year, Polanco is still putting up solid numbers (.313 batting average with a .360 OBP), but they aren't as extraordinary as his stats with RISP.

My second issue with using average and OBP with RISP as the basis for wanting nine Polanco's is that those statistics do not take power into account. Of Polanco's 26 hits with runners in scoring position this year, 23 are singles, with two doubles and a triple. Yes, Polanco is driving in runs by hitting in those clutch situations, but he isn't exactly a threat to drive himself in with a 3-run blast. Polanco is a singles hitter, albeit a very good one, which limits his ability to make a huge contribution to the team offensively.

Here is where I attempt to pull out the big statistical guns. Although, as a history major, I have issues fully comprehending the math behind the more complicated baseball statistics, I find the theories behind the Sabermetric stats to make a lot more sense than simply looking at batting average and RBI's to try to understand a player's true worth. For the argument of who, if theoretically cloned into nine identical players, would make a better offensive baseball team, one statistic comes to mind for me. Runs created per game is a statistic that was created by the legendary Bill James. It gives a positive value for a player's hits, walks, home runs, steals, etc., and a negative value for a player's outs, caught stealing, and number of times grounding into a double play, and then equates these values into the number of runs this player would create if he theoretically was the only player on a team. In other words, this statistic is exactly what our argument is, except instead of just yelling about power and slugging percentage versus average and clutch, there is an actual number that the entire argument boils down to.

This season, Placido Polanco has a runs created per game of 5.4, which falls in line with his career RC/G of 5.1. This is, without a doubt, an impressive number. Nine Placido Polanco's, if put on the same team, would average 5.1 runs a game, which would be good for second in the American League right now, behind only the Texas Rangers (5.48 runs per game).

Marcus Thames, however, has an RC/G of 6.5, which would make him the best offensive team in the American League, despite batting only .259 and not stealing a single base this year. In 2006, the only other year where Thames consistently started for the Tigers, he put up a RC/G of 6.8, so I don't consider this to be an anomaly. Thames' incredible power (he averages a home run every 10.4 at bats, good for 5th in the AL) more than overcomes his below average batting average and OBP.

It has always driven me crazy that Thames has not received more playing time as a Detroit Tiger, especially when such luminaries as Craig Monroe and Jacque Jones have been the players starting in left field over him. Hopefully, Thames' recent streak of power, combined with the lack of viable alternatives in left, will keep him in the lineup for the rest of the season and beyond. The man has 40 home run potential, but so far in his career that potential has remained untapped.

Placido Polanco Statistics (Baseball Reference)
Marcus Thames Statistics (Baseball Reference)
Placido Polanco Situational Statistics (Yahoo!)
2008 American League (AL) Statistics (Baseball Reference)

New Michigan Home Jerseys Revealed

If you, like me, are somewhat delusional in your Michigan fandom, one of the biggest offseason issues for you is how the switch from Nike to adidas will affect Michigan's jerseys. Via Varsity Blue and Rivals ($), this appears to be Michigan's new home jersey:



Obviously, adidas wasn't going to make any major overhauls to the home jersey, but it is still a relief to see that the jerseys really stick to tradition. I don't even mind the tiny block M's on the inside and outside of the back collar. Apparently there is some confusion over whether the graphic on the sleeve is a block M or a jersey number, but if you look closely enough you can make out that those are in fact ones, which is fine by me.

The only issue I have right now with the jerseys is their price tag: right now you can pre-order one for the low, low price of $199. Considering my Steve Breaston circa-2003 replica jersey (and yes, I do get furious when people refer to it as a Ryan Mallett jersey) is quickly falling apart, I should probably start saving now for when these hit the shelves in September.

A Quick Note

I recently joined the Michigan Daily as a writer for their sports section. My body of work there is relatively small (four articles, the summer is slow), but it has been quite an interesting experience writing for an actual paper and covering sports I would not normally follow. If you would like to keep up with my work for the Daily, follow the link below:

Michigan Daily

Ken Holland Jolts Me Awake From a Year-Long Slumber

I will not even begin to try to cover everything that has happened in Detroit and U of M sports since I last posted on this site. I have no legitimate reason for the year-long layoff, except general laziness and the nearly unstoppable force that is inertia. Instead of trying to recap a bunch of stuff you, in all likelihood, are already fully aware of, I'll jump right back in to blogging as if nothing ever happened. Good? Good.

One of my first posts on this site praised Red Wings GM Ken Holland for his ability to adjust to the NHL's post-lockout cap rules while maintaining an elite hockey team. In the 25 hours since the free agency period began, Holland has showcased his ability to sell a winning atmosphere to potential signees and manage to stockpile an arsenal of talented players without breaking the bank.

Yesterday Detroit managed to re-sign defenseman Brad Stuart (4 years at $3.75 million per season) and land free agent goaltender Ty Conklin (1 year, $750,000), filling two important spots on the team going into next season. Stuart had a tremendous playoff run with Detroit last season, forming an imposing duo with Niklas Kronwall and finishing +15 over 21 games. Retaining Stuart gives Detroit arguably the best defensive corps in the league, highlighted by the top pairing of Nicklas Lidstrom and Brian Rafalski. Conklin, who went 18-8 with a 2.51 GAA and a .935 save percentage as Pittsburgh's backup goalie last year, fills the void left by Dominik Hasek's retirement. He should be a solid backup to Chris Osgood next season, and could be called on to be the number one goaltender should Osgood struggle or go down with an injury. Keeping Stuart and picking up Conklin at such a low rate were exactly what the Stanley Cup champions needed out of the gate.

The solid signings of yesterday, however, pale in comparison to what Ken Holland managed to do this afternoon. Despite supposedly boasting multi-year offers of up to $9 million per year, RW Marian Hossa agreed to a one-year, $7.4 million contract to play for the Red Wings next season. Clearly, Holland could offer something no other team could guarantee: a very legitimate shot at a Cup next season. The four-time got a first-hand look at just how good Detroit is last season as a member of the Pittsburgh Penguins, who the Wings dispatched in six games in the Stanley Cup finals. His desire to win a championship apparently outweighed his desire for a lucrative multi-year deal, which is exactly the type a player Detroit should want on their team.

Hossa gives Detroit a lethal lineup next season, especially if Holland is able to secure restricted free agent F Valtteri Filppula. With approximately $4 million in cap room left, that should be no issue for Detroit. Wings fans are already dreaming about a power play unit of Hossa, Lidstrom, Rafalski, Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterburg. The best team in the NHL last season just got a whole lot better, and a second consecutive Stanley Cup will be the expectation for Detroit next year.

ESPN: Red Wings Sign Hossa
Lets Go Wings: Salary Cap & Contracts

Tigers Sweep Red Sox; Granderson Makes Catch of the Year

Detroit finished off its home sweep of the Red Sox in spectacular fashion last night, winning 6-5 after tagging Daisuke Matsuzaka for six earned runs in the first four innings. Gary Sheffield, Carlos Guillen and Marcus Thames all hit home runs for the Tigers, with Thames' mammoth 440-foot shot hitting the camera enclave in dead center. Detroit also overcame five errors and a couple late home runs by the Red Sox to hold on to what was a four-run lead in the fourth.

The highlight of the night, however, came with Detroit on defense. In the top of the fourth inning, Boston's Wily Mo Pena turned on a Nate Robertson fastball and sending the ball deep to left-center. Curtis Granderson gave chase from center field, but the ball looked destined to land in the visitor's bullpen. Not so fast, my friend...



Wow.

Also of note in this game: Thames now has 10 homers in 131 at-bats this season. His 13.1 at bats/home run would be good for third in the American League if he qualified, just ahead of Minnesota All-Star Justin Morneau and the Tigers own Gary Sheffield. Does anybody not think that he deserves the left-field spot over Craig Monroe right now?

Detroit also won this game without starting any of their three All-Star starters: Magglio Ordonez, Placido Polanco and Pudge Rodriguez. Only Pudge made an appearance, grounding out after pinch-hitting for Mike Rabelo in the eighth.

Chauncey Agrees to Contract with Pistons

Chauncey Billups has agreed to a contract with the Pistons, according to MLive.com's A. Sherrod Blakely. And yes, this time the source is his agent, Andy Miller, who had this to say:

Re-signing with Detroit was what Chauncey has said he wanted to do all along. We're happy that we were able to reach an agreement today.

Players cannot actually sign contracts until July 11, so the deal is not official until then. Terms of the deal were not released, although I would assume they are somewhere close to the 5 year, $60 deal that was reported (and refuted) on Tuesday.

Update: Terms of the deal are reportedly 5 years, $60.5 million, according to the Detroit Free Press. The fifth year of the deal is a team option.

Speaking of Players Who Absolutely Crush the Ball...

Magglio Ordonez has joined the field for Monday night's Home Run Derby. Ordonez joins Prince Fielder, Ryan Howard, Justin Morneau, Miguel Cabrera and Vladimir Guerrero in the Derby field, and two more players before Monday. Ordonez has 13 home runs so far this season, and is second in the majors with a .613 slugging percentage.

This should be a great All-Star weekend for the Tigers, who will send five players to the All-Star Game and now have a player to root for in the Derby as well.

Neifi Perez Suspended

According to the official site of Major League Baseball, Neifi Perez has been suspended 25 games for testing positive for a banned substance. This comes as a shock to Tigers fans, who have watched Neifi bat .172 with a paltry .266 slugging percentage this season as a utility infielder.

The Tigers were expected to call up outfielder Ryan Raburn, who is batting .292 with 17 home runs in 85 games with the Toledo Mud Hens in AAA ball. I'm not sure if he's tabbed to replace Perez, or if the Tigers will move Vance Wilson to the 60-day disabled list to make room for Raburn on the 40-man roster.

Update: Folks, we have a history-maker on our hands. Neifi Perez is officially the first Major League player to be suspended for the use of amphetamines. According to MLB policy, a player is suspended after he tests positive twice for amphetamines, meaning Neifi is not only a terrible hitter, but an idiot as well. Hooray Neifi.

It looks like Raburn is the man to replace Perez, meaning Omar Infante will be seeing more time in the infield and less time platooning with Curtis Granderson in center. Raburn can also play in the infield, which means he could even see time there (possibly at second?). Overall, this is probably a blessing in disguise (or maybe not even in disguise) for the Tigers, who now get to see what a AAA All-Star can do at the big league level while not playing a guy who might as well be swinging a whiffle bat.

Hasek Agrees to 1-year Deal with Wings

Dominik Hasek has agreed to a 1-year contract with Detroit that will pay the 42-year old netminder around $2 million in base salary and up to $2 million in playoff-based incentives. Hasek was a welcome surprise for the Red Wings last season, posting a 38-11-6 record and 2.05 goals-against average in the regular season and a 10-8 record and 1.79 GAA in the playoffs after being injured for much of the 2005-06 season with the Ottawa Senators. As long as Dom can stay healthy, he was certainly the best option for Detroit in net next season.

In other Red Wings news, Detroit also signed restricted free agent Jiri Hudler to a 2-year, $2.03 million contract. The talented 23-year old forward tallied 15 goals and 10 assists in limited ice time last season.

Chauncey Re-Signed?

Chris McCosky of the Detroit News is reporting that Chauncey Billups has agreed to a 5 year, $60 million contract with the Pistons. However, MLive.com's A. Sherrod Blakely reportedly talked with Billups' agent, Andy Miller, and was told that the deal is still "far from done." I'm going to stay cautious on this one and believe the agent, although I guess this is a good sign considering the lack of reported interest from other teams for Billups and the fact that there is a contract figure out there now. Hopefully more (good) news will come soon.

Air Georgia, Harlem Globetrotter?

According to the Detroit News, former Michigan basketball player Brent Petway was drafted Monday by the Harlem Globetrotters. While this may seem like a match made in heaven, Petway's agent Geoffrey Craig stated that Petway is an "NBA-level talent" and that he would pursue his dream of playing in the NBA or some other form of competitive basketball. Petway will play for the Atlanta Hawks' summer league team in hopes of earning a roster spot on an NBA team.

While I certainly won't hold it against Petway that he wants to pursue a career as a competitive basketball player, I would love to see him play for the Globetrotters. Anyone who saw his performance in the college dunk contest last season knows he is quite the showman (and dunker). Anyone who saw him play at Michigan also knows his NBA-level athleticism is not matched with an NBA-level skill set. Unless NBA GM's are looking to sign a player for the sole purpose of entering them in the dunk contest (not that I would complain if the Pistons do this, I'm pretty sure that would be better than having Ronald Dupree), it may be tough for Petway to latch on to an NBA squad. If Air Georgia decides he doesn't want to become Air Slovakia or Air Fargo, it looks like he'll still have a place to play and showcase his unique set of skills. Namely, the skills to do this:

Weekend Roundup

There's been a decent amount of activity on all Detroit sporting fronts recently. Here's a quick rundown on the weekend's biggest news:

• The Tigers had five players selected for next week's All-Star Game in San Francisco. Pudge Rodriguez, Placido Polanco and Magglio Ordonez were voted in as starters, while Justin Verlander and Carlos Guillen were also selected. Jeremy Bonderman also has a chance to participate if he is voted in from the American League "Final Vote".
• Speaking of Bonderman, he threw eight shutout innings last night to lead the Tigers to a 1-0 victory over the Minnesota Twins. Marcus Thames hit a solo home run in the bottom of the eighth to break a scoreless tie and gain the victory for Bonderman, who is now 9-1 on the season.
• The Tigers also traded for some bullpen help over the weekend, acquiring Brewers righty Jose Capellan in exchange for single-A pitcher Chris Cody. Capellan boasts a 4.50 ERA in only 12 IP so far this season.
  
• The Red Wings signed New Jersey defenseman (and Dearborn native) Brian Rafalski to a five-year, $30 million contract the same day they lost veteran defenseman Mathieu Schneider to the Anaheim Ducks. Rafalski is a three-time All-Star who is known for his skating ability and skill with the puck, and should fit in well on Detroit's back line and first power play unit.
• Yesterday was a huge day for Michigan football recruiting. Tuscola (Ill.) quarterback John Wienke, a three-star prospect who will compete in the Elite 11 quarterback camp, committed Sunday afternoon after a strong showing at Michigan's summer camp two weeks ago. Wienke, a 6'5", 215 pound lefty, is rated the #17 pro-style quarterback in the nation by Rivals.
• The big recruiting news came late last night, however, when Fort Bend (Texas) Dulles wide receiver Darryl Stonum announced his commitment to Michigan. Stonum is a highly regarded four-star prospect and ranked as the #54 overall player in the country by Rivals. It was also announced that Stonum will be the first Michigan player to wear the #1 jersey since Braylon Edwards moved on to the NFL in 2005.
• While the Pistons are still trying to sign Grant Hill to back up Tayshaun Prince, new rumors also have Detroit going after former Michigan State star and current Toronto Raptor Morris Peterson. Peterson averaged 8.9 points and 3.3 rebounds in 21.4 minutes per game last season.
• It also appears that, with the selections of Rodney Stuckey and Arron Afflalo in the first round of last Thusday's NBA Draft, Lindsey Hunter and Flip Murray are unlikely to be suiting up for the Pistons next season. Hunter will probably retire and take a position in Detroit's front office, while Murray will most likely be dealt to another team.

Certainly a newsworthy and exciting weekend for the Detroit sports scene. The commitment of Stonum is certainly great news, and has me excited for the prospects of this year's recruiting class. Hopefully, the rumblings that Cy-Fair (Texas) RB Sam McGuffie (he of the linebacker hurdle) may commit in the near future hold true. Also, don't forget to vote for Jeremy Bonderman for the last spot on the AL All-Star team!