I know that I'm a few days late on some of these items but figuring out how to isolate my 3-year-old with Hand, Foot, and Mouth disease from my 3-week-old took up most of my time the last 96 hours.
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LeBron back to Cleveland ended up being a lot more obvious of a move than his Decision to go to Miami in 2010.
His statement with Sports Illustrated's Lee Jenkins hit all the right spots and made very clear his reasons for going back home. His loyalty to Northeast Ohio. His desire to win a title for Cleveland. Wanting to make an impact on the youth of his hometown.
However, while he didn't outright apologize for skipping off to South Beach four years ago, I got the feeling that LeBron wishes things went differently the last time he was a free agent. While he got what he needed from Miami with four trips to the Finals and two championships, the negativity that surrounded his departure was too much for a man who cares about his reputation and going back home was an easy choice this time around.
LeBron is going to win championships in Cleveland. He is the best player alive right now and he is capable of leading the Cavaliers to multiple titles. There are good young players on the roster now that can help him win. Kyrie Irving, Tristan Thompson, Dion Waters, Andrew Wiggins, and Anthony Bennett are not the nucleus of the 2015 champions but they can be for titles in 2016, 2017, and beyond or be used as trade chips to acquire the players necessary to win the City of Cleveland its first major sports championship since Jim Brown led the Browns to the 1964 NFL Championship.
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Germany's win in the World Cup over Argentina was fun to watch, even for a tepid soccer fan like myself. Combined with the solid showing by the American team and a high scoring tournament, I thoroughly enjoyed watching this tournament.
Is that enough to make me an actual soccer fan? No.
I get into soccer every two years, focusing only on the World Cup and the European Championships. That's never going to change unless the United States develops its own world class professional league or becomes a part of a world class professional league. Without legitimate world class soccer in our own backyard, Americans are never going to truly care about this game. I love competitive sports played at the highest level but soccer in this country does not give that to me so I will continue to categorize myself as a tepid fan of the sport.
Major League Soccer was this country's attempt at creating a legitimate professional league in the States (and Canada). Started after the 1994 World Cup was hosted by the U.S., as a way to build momentum in America for soccer, MLS is the equivalent of Double-A baseball when compared to the elite leagues of Europe. The best players in the world go to England, Spain, Italy, or Germany to play. Mexico, Brazil, and Argentina are better destinations than MLS too. They don't play for the New England Revolution or Los Angeles Galaxy. That's a fact.
The MLS is home to young Americans looking to be noticed by the European powers, mediocre Americans who want to play professionally but cannot command top dollar in Europe, or aging stars looking to cash in on their name value in the sport to get one last (relatively) big payday.
The only way to make soccer relevant in America is to either upgrade MLS or find a way to to gain a few franchises in one of the top European leagues.
I don't see MLS ever realistically competing with England's Premier League or Germany's Bundesliga. That leaves finding homes for American franchises in other leagues. I heard Michael Felger say this on his show on Boston's 98.5 The Sports Hub radio station and it makes a lot of sense.
Could New York City, Chicago, and Boston support teams in the English Premier League? Definitely.
What about Dallas and Los Angeles entering teams in Mexico's Liga MX or the Brazilian league Brasileirao? Without a doubt.
For the power brokers in American soccer, this is the only way to build real interest in their sport amongst American fans. Bringing professional soccer of the highest level to the United States is the only way that this sport will ever build a fan base large enough to make it relevant. Without that, it will continue to be a game played by millions of children in this country every year but only watched in significant numbers every four years.
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If Ben Cherington is still reading this post, here is his quick fix to make the Red Sox contenders again in 2015.
The first thing to do is get Jon Lester under contract. Lester is the leader of Boston's rotation and deserves to be paid as such. Dragging their feet on this new contract will cost the Red Sox some money but they should be able to settle on a deal for roughly five years and $120-125 million.
After that, making John Lackey happy (he's not going to want to pitch for $500,000 in 2015) financially and getting Koji Uehara signed to a new deal are next on the agenda.
Once Cherington solidifies the top of his rotation and his closer for 2015, building a lineup is essential.
The first phone call to build his offense is to Miami Marlins general manager Dan Jennings. Yes, it's time for the Giancarlo Stanton trade proposal, a feature that all Boston area bloggers must employ to keep their corner of the internet intact.
This is no joke proposal of six players who have a following by Red Sox fans obsessed with unearthing the next super prospect but wouldn't register a reply from Jennings.
To get Stanton, the Red Sox need to be willing to part with Xander Bogaerts and Henry Owens. They are the top two prospects in Boston's system and would have to be a part of a package to land Stanton in a Red Sox uniform. That's the price of doing business to acquire a player like Stanton. An additional pitcher would also likely be required by the Marlins to deal Stanton so prepare to bid farewell to someone like Allen Webster, Anthony Ranaudo, or Rubby De La Rosa as well. Bogaerts' departure would open up shortstop for Devin Marrero in 2015.
Once Stanton is dealt for, it's time just to fill in around the edges. The rest of 2014 should be used to evaluate the future of Jackie Bradley, Jr. as the every day center fielder. Mookie Betts should also get a long look in right field. If both can handle those positions, and I think they can, they are your Opening Day starters in 2015 with Shane Victorino as the fourth outfielder in the last year of his deal. Keeping David Ross for another year to tandem with Christian Vazquez behind the plate would also be a good choice.
The 2015 Red Sox can certainly contend with a pitching staff anchored by Lester and Lackey with Uehara as closer and this lineup:
1. Holt, 3B
2. Pedroia, 2B
3. Stanton, LF
4. Ortiz, DH
5. Napoli, 1B
6. Bradley, CF
7. Betts/Victorino, RF
8. Marrero, SS
9. Vazquez/Ross, C
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Enjoy King Felix tonight.
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