Interesting Pieces...

Rumors are flying for Doug Melvin as he looks for pitching. You know about Lackey, you're fired up for the Halamalocalypse. But amidst that are two things that interest me. People. Two people that interest me?

The first? Justin Duchsherer, or as I would call him, the Arch-Duke. 2009 was a lost year for him. He had a second hip surgery, an elbow surgery, and a bout with depression. I'm not going to speculate on the whys and wherefores of a mans head when my head can go off on its own tangent, but if he's healthy?

His approach is off the charts. Not many righthanders are deemable as crafty? But the Arch-Duke is in spades. He led the AL in ERA for most of 2008. I know staying healthy is a skill. But if he is? The Brewers would be a great for him.

I mean, the National League is the supremely inferior league right?

(You don't want to know my reaction to that opinion.)

Anyway. Kevin Correia? He's probably not going to be as good as he was in San Diego last year. But so long as he doesn't let his solid command go down the drain? He's a fine fit for the end of the rotation. He's got around a 2 to 1 K/BB ratio. Nothing wrong with that.

Not at all. And then again? When Correia has been healthy? He's been quite good in the past three years as a starter. Yeah, I'll say it. He may be able to rock out a stronger year than last year.

If you bring these home Dougie? I'll start to trust you again. I know I've been hurt by recent events. But this would be a nice way to fill out the end of the rotation and in a worst case scenario? Add kickass middle relief.

The Bucks decided to let Villanueva go free...

What the fuck was that? Huh? You go off and you start to a plan. You try to change the future of the team. Get flexible. Become leaner and meaner.

And I was there for every step of the way. I got blocked off of Bill Simmons' Twitter account because of it. Yi and Bobby Simmons becoming Amir Johnson and two old Spurs? I understood.

Because there was one thing the Bucks needed to do this offseason. They could have reached on Jrue Holiday. They could have traded Michael Redd for two bad contracts. I would have understood. Because there was one goal.

Keep CV31 and Sessions.

Well that's not going to happen. Odds are we're going to see Alopecia Pete have the same sort of success as Mo Williams did on the same team. So that's awesome. They made the wrong decision if it came down between him and Skiles. But I am going to leave it be for right now.

Just, on the infinitesimal chance Amir Johnson is listening? Get your shine on. If the Bucks are goin gto be good, you need to fill the shoes.

The 19 Interesting NBA Free Agents...

I know better know. Basketball rankings in terms of NBA Hoop is just something I cannot do. So you know what? There's going to be 19 players I'm going to list. No particular order. Why? Because I'm starting with Mike Bibby. He's not #1 at anything.

Mike Bibby: (Bibby is the sort of guy who can fall through the tracks. His last contract was back when he was a stellar lead guard. Now? He's a better than average starter. Who may not have a team in August.)
Zaza Pachulia: (You want a stealth energy guy to get you 8 boards a game on the low post who will be cheaper than Marcin Gortat? You go get Magilla Gorilla here.)
Ben Gordon: (He's going to have to go to a team that doesn't know what it's doing. Why? Because he's Vinnie Johnson skilled, with a starters mentality.)
Jason Kidd: (Because he is at once a great teammate and a horrible person.)
Allen Iverson: (It's decision time. Do you want to be the man or do you want to win the title? Because you're going to have to be a 6th man to do it.)
Rasheed Wallace: (His presence reenforces the culture of a team. A team with good intangibles gets better with Sheed. But if the culutre breaks bad? So will he.)
Ron Artest: (Come on. We know why.)
Lamar Odom: The jack of all trades with the most childlike of all vices. If he ever gets off Vitamin S? He's gonna be more than a rich man's Tim Thomas.)
Ramon Sessions: (How often do you get a 23 year old starter with excellent distributorial skills who will likely hit the market?)
Charlie Villanueva: (He's 24 and already threatening 17-8. You get the next contract, and you have a shot at a nice run of 20-10.)
Hedo Turkugolu: (He was always a very nice point forward. But with his performance in this playoffs? He's going to make bank. Some team's gonna love him. Unless he keeps with the Turkish Nick Anderson.)
Andre Miller: (Sure, he's past 30. But he's an excellent distributor and he's an iron man. He saved Philly last season.)
Drew Gooden: (Frontcourt Bibby.)
Shawn Marion: (The most underrated 15 million dollar man in hoops. Still gets many boards. Still defends like an ace. Sill can score 15-20 in a game.)
Mehmet Okur: (He's a great shooter. In fact? Let's call him low post Turkogulu.)
Carlos Boozer: (Because he's injury prone. And kind of lazy. He's going to Elton Brand the team that signs him.)
Paul Millsap: (He is the brawny Paper towel guy. He's what DeJuan Blair wishes he would be.)
Anderson Varejao: (Not to belabor the point? But 6 million dollars was left on the table. He's not even going to come close. He's losing millions.)
Kobe Bryant: (With Andrew Bynum becoming an albatross, and 52 million being spent on 3 guys, plus either Ariza or Odom going if he stays? There is a better than you think chance he may opt out. He's still a dick, we've just kind of accepted it.)

Yes. More on Game 4. Which I hate the NBA for making me miss part of Norm McDonald and Jim Gaffigan.

Here's the thing...

The draft compensation issue is something that absolutely needs to be fixed in Major League Baseball. I mean, if you would do a cursory list of a Best Free Agent Available list? You would notice one thing.

They are all Type A Free Agents.

Now that's not to say their unemployment careening up against the time where pitchers and catchers start to report is something that is completely belonging to the greedhead owners. Manny could be had. Boras is just playing the game with him so poorly.

I mean, this isn't wrestling, we don't forget what happened 6 months ago. But that being said? At the rate things were going? Juan Cruz should have been in line to be the highest paid middle reliever in the history of baseball. Now sure, the economy might have something to do with it. But when Paul Bako gets a contract before Orlando Hudson? There's all sorts of strange in the neighborhood.

Are we coming to a world where two draft choices is worth more value than an above average ballplayer? Perhaps.

But suffice it to say, we may see more than one Free Agent of the Type A variety with an unhappy choice. Go back from whence you came or wait out the draft.

Just saying. Adam Dunn may learn an even worse approach at the plate.