ARLINGTON-The Adam, SportsNight and XSBL trades seem to go well together.

It starts with trades, something Texas seems to be involved in more regularly than most. As the trade deadline approached, the Rangers acquired two top pitching prospects and an outfielder. The first deal brought what league scouts rate as the fourth best prospect overall, and the second best pitching prospect in XSBL, Matt Riley, to the Rangers. Also in the deal Texas got Baltimore's first round pick which was sent to the New York Yankees in the second deal which brought Ricardo Rodriguez to Texas.

Texas had to give up prized prospects Rocco Baldelli and Chad Qualls in the deals, as well as players to be named later, which are expected to be 2005 draft picks that teams cannot trade yet.

A third deal sent pitching prospect Jake Peavy to Milwakee in exchange for outfielder Will Weber.

Sources at CSC learned that the Rangers owner again went over the head other team officials, consulting neither Manager Turd Furgeson nor scouting director John Hart before swinging the three trades as the deadline approached.

Dan Rydell, a known acquaintance of The Adam was able to break the story and score yet another big XSBL interview, keeping the fledging network one step ahead of ESPN on XSBL coverage. Never one to mince words The Adam spoke candidly.

"What we have done has all be a means of improving our club. Yes, in the short term it tore our team up and we are in last place. But I really think that fans of the Rangers will be rewarded and certainly very happy in the next year or two and on through out a decade or more," the owner commented, "when you have any kind of opportunity to add starters of this caliber, you do it.

Pinero, (Mario) Ramos, Riley, Rodriguez, (Jovanny) Cedeno, (John) Vanbenschotten, and everyone else we have in the system gives us the best Pitching Talent top to bottom in the league."

Rydell and Douglas discussed a topics other than the trades, some excerpts:

On "King's Things:" Larry King can suck me off. He comments on what my fans should do? This schmuck includes me in an article where he talks about sweat socks? He should go crawl in a hole. That is if he even wrote that. My research says its a combination of two jerkoff owners from the XSBL using a pen-name who are obviously jealous of my team's future, my general knowledge and my looks. Here's a 'King's Thing' for you jackasses...I don't know about you, but I have no intentions of going to Blockbuster and renting the Seattle and Los Angeles owners homemade porn movie when it comes out."

On Oakland: "I'll tell you, I am not happy with all the moves I've made since entering this league. But when I heard about (Randy) Winn's injury, I couldn't contain myself. There goes what? $18 million he didn't have to throw away. (Oakland owner, Marc) Hallada has a better chance of getting laid this decade than Winn does of ever being a decent player again. Chavez and Tejada make more money than our entire lineup combined, and WOW, what an investment. My rookie shortstop has better stats for 1/50th of the price. Put our lineups next to each other, stats wise.. anyone who would take his is an idiot.

On Toronto: He better hope that he wins this year, cause he is building his team wrong. He can't continue to spend like that. He will be in trouble in the very near future. On top of losing free agents, trading his farm system away, and everything else... whoever is left will suffer a career ending injury.

On Oakland (again): His schtick about winning the World Series is getting old. He's like France, puffs his chest out only to have someone smack him around and make him submit. He probably is French. I know at the owner meetings no one wants to sit by him cause of the B.O..

On lawsuits: I don't care who sue's me. I could care less. Even if they some how are able to get money from me, I'll just go sleep with their wives and daughters. Or if they have son's I'll pay Hallada to sleep with them.

On Iraq: What do Saddam Hussein and Hallada have in common? Other than homosexaualty, I mean. They both are afraid of things called "Bush."

ARLINGTON-Rangers owner "The" Adam Douglas is recovering today at Arlington Memorial Hospital after having to be tranquilized by federal agents outside the CSC studios after an interview Tuesday evening. Apparently after the discussion with Sportsnight's Dan Rydell, witnesses say Douglas emerged from the studio "drooling and disoriented" and muttering about Northern California. Conditions got a little more serious when Douglas started screaming obsentities and asking strangers for pitching aces. Later, he appeared at the top of Arlington city hall, brandishing a Louisville Slugger and swearing he was gonna "take care of shit himself". Whether he was alluding to assaulting fellow owner Marc Hallada or well known television commentator Larry King, goin to Iraq to take care of Sadaam Hussein, or getting his team out of the basement in the American League, is unknown, as he was picked off by an FBI tranquilizer dart before he could elaborate.

Douglas was unavailable for comment Wednesday morning, but it is coming increasingly clear that he is the most colorful owner of the Texas Rangers since President George W. Bush. More on this story as it develops...

MINNESOTA- There are games. There are exciting games. And then there are games like the exhibition last night at the Metrodome in Minneapolis.

No Tigers starter had less than two hits, and the team pounded Minnesota pitchers for 34 hits on the night, as the Detroit Tigers beat the Minnesota Twins last night 28-8, in front of a crowd of 38,559 amazed Twins fans.

"I'm still in a state of shock," says Tigers shortstop Omar Infante, who went five for seven with four runs and three runs batted in. "I've never been part of or have seen an offensive explosion like the one tonight."

Twins starter Mike Mussina, who gave up eight earned runs on 11 hits in 3 1/3 innings, agrees. "I just feel so terrible right now. One player who really impressed me today was their third baseman, Craig Paquette. I heard they're trying to trade him. Man, if I were on a competitor, I'd give the world for him."

Paquette who had five hits (two homers) in six at-bats, also drove in five runs and scored six himself. "I'm flattered," he said, "but the important thing is that we won, and that we're gonna come back tomorrow and try to win again."

The win ended the Tigers seven-game losing streak, and made a winner out of pitcher Jose Lima. The score was actually tied 3-3 through the first three innings until the Tigers scored nine runs in the 4th. They went on to score five in the 5th, two in the 6th, four in the 7th and 8th innings, and one in the 9th.

Paquette, Bobby Higginson, and Dmitri Young each drove in five runs for the Tigers. Infante drove in three, and Rob Fick, Shane Halter, Brandon Inge, and Oscar Salazar each drove in two. Mike Mordecai also drove in a run. Every Tiger saw his average increase except for Fick, whose two for seven night saw his average fall to .332.

A bright future is in store for the Tigers, according to owner Mike Clark. Top closing prospect Franklyn German will be called up in time for Monday's game against Charlotte, the team has finished its season series' against New York, Seattle, and Oakland, and the trade of Arthur Rhodes on Sunday introduced Tony Caldera and Matt Belisle into an already packed crowd of hopeful Tiger pitching prospects.

CHICAGO-Hee Seop Choi finally made his Cub debut, but were fans shocked when it was announced that he would take his first at bat in the cleanup spot of the Cub's potent batting order. Fans were shocked by the decision by GM Mark Oster, who's ballclub is making a run to make it's second consecutive playoff appearance since he took over the ballclub last year.

Outside Wrigley, John Warrington expressed his dismay: "I don't know what that [expletive] Oster is doing. This team has a genuine chance to bring home their first world championship in almost a century and he's playing games with his rookies! Sometimes I think this ballclub tries to lose." Hearing about this, Oster just laughed, as always and defended himself: "The lineup was do for a major overhaul anyway, with the heavy dropoff in McGriff's production, we don't really have a cleanup guy, I wanted to see if Choi was ready. He wasn't...so Alou and Sosa, with a little bit of Ortiz, will fill the slot for the rest of the season."

To say Choi wasn't ready is to put it lightly, he managed only 5 singles and 7 strikeouts in 37 at bats...certainly not the power output that the fans were hoping for.

"It's not a big deal," reassured Oster, "We're gonna move him down in the order, give Crime Dog a start once or twice a week, and just ease him onto major league pitching. He should be swinging great come September."

Cubs fans sure hope so.

The wily Cubs GM seemed to have nothing but surprises prepared for the fanbase, sending down highly touted rookie Carlos Zambrano, and sticking Jason Bere into the #5 spot in the rotation. "Zam Zam is our guy for the future, make no mistake about it." said Oster. "But Jason was throwing great out of the pen, and if he can throw that way in the five spot, catching (1st place) St. Louis is not at all out of the question. A few more minor league starts won't hurt Carlos."

"I have to admit, I was nervous, and I couldn't feel my knees." Alfredo Amezaga, Anaheim's blue-chip rookie, was about to face his biggest challenge: The Unit.

June 28 had been circled on Amezaga's calendar for two weeks. He will routinely look at upcoming opponents and circle the games against the big pitchers. It's his way of testing himself. Up until the 28th, he had earned an A.

"I said to myself: 'Swing at the first pitch--be aggressive.'" Randy Johnson, long known for embarassing young stars, looked intensely at the plate, his glove in his face covering everything but his eyes, and fired a 96mph fastball.

Amezaga, batting righthanded (he is a switch-hitter) swung a bit late, but got good wood on the ball. 5.2 seconds later, the ball landed 394 ft. away in the right field stands. "I ran the bases so fast--I did not want to show Randy up and make him mad!"

It was Amezaga's 3rd homerun of the season, and the longest of his short career. A homer off Randy Johnson would make any rookie's day, but then there was the second inning. Two on, two out, and Amezaga up again.

"I was waiting for the brush-back pitch or one in my ear. I thought back to John Kruk in the All-Star game. I watched that game as a young kid in Mexico. I thought about backing off the plate, but I didn't. I had two guys on base and they needed me to do something."

And do something he did. Amezaga got around on a 2-2 Johnson delivery and crushed the ball 10 feet beyond the 406 ft. marking in center field. Amezaga finished the game 3 for 5 with 3 runs scored, 4 RBI, and a stolen base. At day's end he was hitting .390.

Although Amezaga's performance has exceeded expectations, his great play has come as no surprise to GM Tito L. "Alfredo is our #2 prospect behind Drew Henson. Many scouts had him as high as 17th on the top 100 prospects list. He's been labeled as 'Edgardo Alfonzo with speed.' After hitting .317 in 43 games in Salt Lake (AAA), we felt he was ready to make a difference on our ballclub."

Already the owner of two hitting streaks of 14+ games in only 38 games played, Amezaga has been wowing fans with his superb play. After getting off to a horrible start (.171 in 41 AB's in May), Amezaga rebounded in June. He hit .451 in 28 games with 55 hits, 4 HR's, 11 RBI, 24 runs scored, and 9 stolen bases.

"I don't expect him to average 2 hits a game like he did in June," said skipper Mike Sciocia. "But if he hits anywhere close to that, we're gonna be a much better ballclub."

With his late arrival, Amezaga may not contend for the Rookie of the Year Award, but he has something to look forward to: Anaheim has already announced "Alfredo Amezaga Bobble Head Doll Night" for some time in September

As the baseball season hurtles toward the All Star break, Devil Ray fans in Charlotte, (there weren't any left in Tampa), are getting treated to a roller coast ride as this young team struggles to find an identity. Last Sunday, 27,971 fans witnessed the first no hitter in Ericsson Stadium history. Unfortunately for them, it was the Devil Rays who were bedeviled by San Diego's Dennis Tankersly, during a 7-K, 2 walk masterpiece. Then earlier today, the Braves scored two touchdowns while surrendering only a safety, in a 14-2 pasting in Atlanta.

But between these two 'typical' Devil Ray debacles, Charlotte went 3-2, including an extra inning victory over Atlanta on Saturday that included a 4-run 9th inning rally against ace closer John Smoltz. Since their not surprising 2-11 start, these Devil Rays have rallied to become a respectible, if erratic, team, compiling a 23-31 record since mid April.

Since dumping almost 9 million in salary before the season began, the D-Rays have actually increased salary lately with the addition of Steve Parris from Colorado and Billy Traber from Cleveland. At the time, these trades seemed questionable, as Charlotte gave up a draft pick and a prospect. But when starter Wilson Alvarez and reliever Kevin Mcglinchy went down with injuries, these trades seemed prescient.

After finishing 19 games behind Baltimore, with a miserable 49-113 record, and swimming in 15 million dollars worth of red ink, no one expected the Devil Rays to improve, much less escape the cellar in the AL East. Instead, these Rays have clawed their way over five (5) teams in the majors, and are on a pace to win 60.

With 3B Corey Koskie having an all star season, (.298/17/53 in 67 games), and a solid bullpen led by unheralded youngster Travis Harper (2-1, 2.11 13 saves), Charlotte could find itself giving .500 a real run next year, if they can hold onto their young stars and acquire a starter or two.

But the bad times aren't completely behind the D-Rays just yet. They are still saddled with a 4.2 million dollar salary for DH David Justice, who has been transfered to the A club in order to assist coach Charlie Montoyo develop some of the club's youngest talent. Chuck Knoblauch is rooming with him, as he teaches these raw talents about base stealing.

Still, for the first time, there is room for hope that the Devil Rays are a franchise heading in the right direction.

Baltimore, MD - After the team's loss at Philadelphia on Sunday to drop the team to 20-48, the worst record in all of baseball, team owner/GM Kevin Golden reportedly had an hour-long meeting with the players and coaches after the game. In particular, it is said by team sources that Golden focused on the problems with the pitching staff, which has the worst ERA in the American League (5.87), and only better than Colorado and Milwaukee in all of baseball. Besides star first baseman David Segui, the offense has also been abysmal.

The first year in Baltimore for Golden has been disastrous, as he is still looking to make the team competitive while also trying to get rid of bad salaries. Criticism has also risen over one of his first moves, a trade that sent Buddy Groom and Rodrigo Lopez to Oakland for Aaron Harang. So far this season, Lopez is 10-3 with a 2.55 ERA. When asked about this trade, Golden replied "Hindsight is 20/20. Aaron still is maturing, and Buddy's salary was simply not acceptable. However, it does hurt to see Rodrigo doing so well."

Oakland- Minutes after Barry Zito had arguably his best pitching performance of the year, he had some things he had to get off his chest with Larry King, of all people.

Zito went 8 and 2/3rds innings against his former team, the A's, giving up 9 hits, 1 earned run, 1 walk, with 6 strikeouts. The victory was especially sweet knowing he beat his old friend, Mark Mulder. The win improved Zito's record to 4-7, and slowly but surely is lowering his ERA, now at 5.04.

After the win, which was the second win of three against the current Wild Card leader, Zito entertained questions for the first time this year from reporters. With a grin from ear to ear, Zito cheerfully responded to questions about the game and how it was to pitch back in Oakland. "It's great out here. It was really good for me to be pitching infront of a crowd for once. Out (in Milwaukee), it's like you can hear a pin drop from the stands. How do you get hyped with a crowd like that? I know I can't." Thankfully, Brewers owner Dom Rello has plans on moving to a new city after the 2003 season, if MLB officials accept the plan.

However, when asked about the comments Larry King made about the squad in his recent "King's Things" section, Zito went on a tirade. "Larry King? Who the (explative) watches his show anyway? He's got some (explative)s to come out and diss my team like that. Nobody judges what his old monotone ass does, so he should just keep his (explative)ing opinions to himself, because nobody gives an (explative) what he has to say, and he's not funny."

Zito then went stomping off the stage, leaving his hat. Which was then picked up by an unknown man and is currently on EBay with a high bid of $134.69.

CHARLOTTE - Dennis Tankersley had a historical performance against Charlotte on Sunday, pitching a no-hitter for his 1st shutout of the season. "I really like to play baseball, and I love the way I was able to play it today. I still cannot believe I did it." Tankersley (4-6) struck out 7 and walked 2, throwing 65 of 115 pitches for strikes. Mark Kotsay provided San Diego with the offense Tankersley needed as he stroked 2 hits in 5 AB, hitting a homerun, doubling once, scoring twice. San Diego improved it's record to 32-31, scoring 8 runs on 10 hits.

Chicago- Seattle fans and the baseball world have been eagerly anticipating the debut of Seattle phenom Ryan Anderson for 4 years now. On Tuesday they finally get their wish. Anderson will face the White Sox in Chicago.

The Mariners drafted Anderson with the second overall pick in the 1999 amateur draft. He zoomed through the minors until a torn rotator cuff caused him to miss the entire 2001 season. He struggled in AAA in 2002 but he has rebounded in 2003, striking out 47 batters in only 40 innings.

Standing 6 foot 10, comparisons to Randy Johnson are inevitable. The 23 year-old Anderson throws a devastating slider and a fastball that has been clocked as high as 101 mph. While most scouts believe Anderson will be a top-flight pitcher, others are not so convinced. One NL GM was quoted as saying, "He throws hard and will strike people out, but there's more to pitching than that. He gets easily rattled and will walk people. He also has trouble throwing his slider for strikes." The Ryan Anderson Era begins tomorrow.

Toronto, ON - After being embarassed by a combined score of 27-8 in two debacles against the Blue Jays, the Devil Rays pulled off a minor miracle, managing to squeeze 5 runs out of only 3 hits in defeating the division leaders Sunday afternoon. The game time temperature of 47 seemed to put Charlotte's offense on ice, as pitcher Jason Marquis shut out the last place Devil Rays on one hit through six innings.

But journeyman pitcher, John Burkett was nearly as good, shutting down the Jays for four before giving up a solo shot to Josh Phelps in the 5th. The game appeared well in hand when Orlando Hudson and Eric Hinske added two solo homers in the 6th, for a 3-0 lead.

In the top of the 7th after getting Sean Casey to fly out to left, Marquis gave up his fourth walk of the day to Chuck Knoblauch. Pinch-hitter Wes Helms, mired in a season long slump, stepped to the plate oh for fourteen on the season. Marquis then made his only mistake of the day, which Helms sent 428 feet into the left field bleachers, cutting the lead to 3-2.

After Travis Harper shut down the Jays in the 7th, Charlotte breathed a collective sigh of relief when Marquis hit the showers and set-up man Octavio Dotel took the mound. Things started badly for Dotel, when Charlotte CF Juan Pierre drew a walk to lead off. After Eli Marrero moved him to second with a sacrifice, Jays Manager, Carlos Tosca choose to intentionally walk Corey Koskie, before bringing in closer Mike Williams to face Aaron Boone.

Williams threw a two-strike curve in the dirt that allowed the runners to move up, but managed to strike out Boone with his next pitch. Again, Tosca elected to put Casey on, loading the bases. D-rays manager Hal McRae pinch hit for Knoblauch with utility man, Marcus Giles. The little used Giles came through in a big way, smacking a 3-run double into the right field gap, clearing the bases, and giving Charlotte an unlikely 5-3 lead heading into the bottom of the 8th.

The Jays weren't through, however, stringing three 2-out hits together, cutting the lead to 5-4 heading into the 9th. Williams shut down Charlotte in the top half of the inning, before Justin Kaye took the mound to try and close out the affair.

With two outs, Toronto's Rob Mackowiak came through with a double, bringing Orlando Hudson, (who had homered earlier), to the plate. When McRae brought in lefty closer Joe Beimel, Tosca opted to pinch-hit with reserve Dave Berg, signed earlier in the week, who lined out softly to Koskie, preserving the Devil Ray victory.

Many analysts openly questioned pinch-hitting for Hudson, who leads the Jays with a .383 average, Tosca refused to comment on the move

Arlington, TX- Early this morning, a $90,000,000 defamation suit was filed in Federal Court against the Texas Rangers and owner "The Adam", in response to quotes made on CSC's Sportsnight. The suit, filed by Special Olympics Texas is in response to the quote:

"I was very disappointed when the retard (previous GM John Hart, who is now a scout for the club) traded him for spare parts. Getting Carlos back makes me a very happy man."

When asked to elaborate, a statement was issued by Special Olympics Texas that, "It is unconscionable that The Adam would use the derogatory phrase "re-tard" on a public forum, such as Sportsnight. And while we might have simply accepted a public apology for a casual slip of the tongue, associating John Hart with the term denegrates mentally challenged individuals around the world. Such an insult cannot go unpunished.

Special Olympics Texas is a privately funded non-profit organization providing year-round sports training and competition to more than 27,000 children and adults with mental retardation in the Lone Star State. Through Special Olympics, greatness can be achieved far beyond the field of competition as participation enhances self-esteem, promotes independence, strengthens families and facilitates social competence, while encouraging fitness. And this greatness touches not only the athletes, but also the volunteers, who through their participation have the opportunity to touch lives and "Inspire Greatness(tm)."

"The Adam" was unavailable for comment.

ARLINGTON- The Rangers pulled off the latest in a series of big trades since the dissappointing end to the 2002 season, acquiring Carlos Pena from Detroit in exchange for Joaquin Benoit and 2 minor league relievers.

"With the overall depth of our minor leauge pitching, we felt that Joaquin was expendable. We hated to see him go, but when you have a chance to acquire a star in the making for an injury-prone pitcher, you have to make that move. Long term we projected Benoit to be a top relief pitcher for our club," Ranger General Manager The Adam said during an interview with Dan Rydell on CSC's SportsNight.

The minor league pitching is reguarded as one of, if not the, top minor league pitching systems. It features Jovanny Cedeno, John VanBenschotten, Phil Dumatrait, and Adam Wainwright along with enough other quality pitching prospects to fill out the rotations for the entire AL West within 3 years.

Pena was batting .318 in 44 AB so far this season, while playing half his games in spacious Comerica Park. He was hitting just .211 at home and .400 on the road, and will most certainly be helped by the move to The Ballpark. Scouting reports say Pena is a .310 hitter, who will generate 30 homers batting 3rd and patroling first in Texas, this season. Long range he will likely develop his batting stroke more with increased power.

"Sure we would like it if he walks more, but when you bat .325 you dont have to walk that much to get your on base percentage to a high level. From afar I was very disappointed when the retard (previous GM John Hart, who is now a scout for the club) traded him for spare parts. Geting Carlos back makes me a very happy man."

Texas has taken 2 out of the first 3 games against Oakland, and will play the 4th tommorow. Pena is expected to make his Texas re-debut in the game. "Coming off of the thrashing we delivered to Barry Zito (2 IP, 8 ER), and injuring Hudson, and adding players the caliber of (Ben) Petrik and Carlos I think we can beat Oakland again Monday. Then we get them at our house. We won't be very hospitable, that is a prommise.

And if the youngsters continue to progress I don't think this rebuilding is going to take much longer, Mario Ramos should be back up by June, and it wont be long before (Jake) Peavy and Ben (Kozlowski) are ready for our rotation."

In a discussion with another GM, Oaklands Marc Hallada shot back to criticism of his teams performance against the Rangers, "he'll (The Adam) improve and you know it."

After Rydell played the comment for The Adam, " I think everyone knows as a ball club we will improve, that's our goal every game. Of course he knows we'll improve more than he would like and he's scared of it, scared of being a perennial second."

The addition of Petrik was in another deal swung yesterday by the busy GM. After acquiring Pena, he got right back on the horse, acquiring Petrick to take over at catcher, sending displaced firstbaseman Mo Vaughn to the Reds.

The Rangers every lineup has only 2 starters over the age of 30. Freddy Sanchez and Jason Lane are both still considered rookies and are off to better starts than expected. Kevin Mench platooned with Rusty Greer for the second half of last season and can hardly be considered a grizzled vet. Greer and (3b) Herbert Perry are the senior members of the lineup, and Texas has 2 of the top prospects in the game coming up to take over those spots in the near future in Mark Teixeria and Rocco Baldelli.

"It was a tough decision to make when we decided to overhaul this team. But we felt just being good in baseball's toughest division wasn't good enough. Pulling the trigger on the A-Rod (2002 MVP Snub Alex Rodriguez) deal was almost impossible, but looking back now.... Carlos Pena, Jake Peavy, Jake Gatreau and Donaldo Mendez looks like we got the better end of the deal," The Adam added when Casey McCall asked about the rebuilding on the show.

When asked where the Rangers could be in 2 years developmentally, a one word reply came from the GM, "Dominating."

The Rangers certainly look like they can be, with more top flight talent on the way than anyone else, they go 2 or 3 or in somecases 4 deep in prospects at every position. "If you look at our farm system, I have nothing but flexibility. Up and down the lineup. Catcher has Buck and Petrik, first Pena and Tex (Teixeria) and Chris Duncan. Second we can go with Cat (Frank Catalanotto), Mike Young, Jake Gatreau, or Donaldo Mendez. Short you can see Freddy Sanchez, Frankie Bynum, or Donnie. Third is almost embarassing we have so much on the way. We have so many young guys with a future, I'm having to pay other teams so we can find somewhere to play them in the minors.

Now if I could just get Hank Blalock back," he concluded as a sly grin crept to his face.

Certainly the young GM hasn't sat by while other teams make trades. Last year when he thought they had a chance at the title, he acquired Kevin Brown, and when that wasn't enough he tore down the team, bit by bit and prommised a world championship to the people of texas by 2006 and an above .500 record by 2004.

"Of course I don't feel bound by those timetables, enough games against Oakland this year and we will be over .500 in 2003. "

Cleveland, OH ?Kansas City leftfielder Jolbert Cabrera was certainly not at a loss for words after the Indians scored four runs in the final two innings to beat the Royals 8-7 yesterday. When Jolbert (an Indian from '98 to '02) was asked by a reporter what it felt like to play against his former team, he responded through a translator:

"There is no doubt that we have the better team. The Indians, they are going nowhere. They have no direction and no leadership. The management there has no thought for the future. I am much happier here, where we have a chance to compete."

When informed of the remarks, Cleveland shortstop Omar Vizquel shrugged it off. "Jo will be Jo. He is a very emotional person."

Cleveland GM Alex Ault was not as reserved. "[It] does not surprise me at all," he said. "Cabrera has a very bad attitude, I can’t tell you how many clubhouse fights that guy was in the middle of. We were all releived to see him leave. Our chemistry is much better now and we can focus 100% on baseball."

The Indians and Royals split the four game series at two apiece. Cabrera went 4 for 14, scoring three runs.

CHICAGO-After shocking the world and coming to within one game of their first World Series in 57 years, the Cubs prepare to open their season in Milwaukee on Monday. Second year owner Mark Oster responded to criticism that he had not done enough to put the Chicago National League team over the top.

"It's simply not true. I didn't really want to mess with the team chemistry that brought us that amazing run last year, but at the same time, managed to patch a few holes. Denny (Neagle) should provide a left handed arm that has been sorely missing from our starting rotation for years. We got rid of that [explitive]wad (Todd) Hundley, and added two solid catchers in (Mark) Johnson and (Brad) Ausmus. We bolstered our bench and our bullpen, and did this all without compromising any major parts of our current team or any of our top prospects."

When asked about the Cub's chances this year, Oster couldn't help but smile.

"I've been a fan of this ballclub most of my life, and I can honestly say that I've never been more hopeful of our chances as I am now. I'll take our starting rotation against anyone, and our lineup is solid top to bottom. Desi (Relaford) will be helping out (Alex Gonzalez) at short and with gold glover Chris Stynes at second, and Corey (Patterson) in center, I love our defense up the middle. I see no reason why we can't be there this year."

He added that while he does not expect big prospects Hee Seop Choi, Bobby Hill, or Dave Kelton to break camp with the team, any of them joining the big club by the All Star break is "not out of the question."

Baltimore, MD - As the season opener draws nearer, Orioles fans have mixed feelings about the direction the team is taking under new general manager Kevin Golden. "I think that he's doing the right thing: dumping salary and getting young players for the future," remarked Steve Smith, an avid O's supporter for over 20 years. Others aren't so optimistic. "I don't know what the (*#@ he's thinking," says Roberto Sanchez, a loyal Baltimore fan for 13 years. "I thought his job was to improve the team, not to tear it down."

Golden certainly has had to endure a lot of criticism since taking the Baltimore general manager job. The team is coming off of a disastrous 68-94 season, and he has been forced to cut payroll and improve the team's youth. Over the course of the offseason, there have been several significant trades that have helped to improve the team's payroll and youth. Golden's first moves revolved around revamping the pitching staff. He acquired Aaron Harang from Oakland in exchange for Rodrigo Lopez and Buddy Groom, and also getting Damian Moss and Nate Cornejo from Colorado for Jason Johnson, Josh Towers, and Rick Stahl. Big-salary outfielders Marty Cordova and Chris Singleton were also dealt away.

Golden was quiet in the free agent market, but he feels that his team's promising young talent will pull through at a much cheaper price. "We feel that our starting pitching prospects are some of the best in baseball," Golden remarked, "and we have some nice young players such as Jay Gibbons and Ed Rogers that we want to have a long look at this season." However, he does not deny pursuing some of the bigger names in this year's free agent market, such as Vicente Padilla and Jarrod Washburn. "We felt that for the right price, a big-time free agent would have helped us," Golden commented. "But we didn't want to overpay and deliver another bust to the Baltimore faithful." Baltimore only signed 3 players: catcher Ben Molina, who is expected to get a lot of playing time behind Charles Johnson; outfielder Alex Ochoa, an excellent defensive outfielder who will likely end up platooning in left field with Marcus Thames and Larry Bigbie; and minor league first baseman D.T. Cromer.

So, what does the future hold for the Orioles? Only time will tell, says new scouting director Ken Williams. "Obviously we can't turn around this franchise in just a few months," he said. "But I think that we have a very bright future here once we can pinpoint our franchise cornerstones. I am just happy to work in such an excellent city, with some of the best fans in all of baseball."

The Orioles open up their season against Tampa Bay at Camden Yards on Monday.

TAMPA, FL -- D-Rays, D-part! The XSBL was shocked late last night when a convoy of trucks descended on Tropicana Field, then left hours later carrying all the team equipment, documents, and office supplies. The Tampa Devil Rays have left town despite earlier assurances by team owner Sandy Hemenway that they would stay put.

When word leaked of the secret getaway, the following statement was released by the Devil Ray organization:

"We regret that financial considerations force us to take this action. However, previous ownership left us with no other viable options. We were presented with a financial package elsewhere that was simply too good to pass up."

Pensacola, FL. - The Expos organization is excited about its new spring training complex in Pensacola. "This is a state of the art facility and we are really glad to be here." said expos GM Mike Browne. Today was the first day for pitchers and catchers to report to camp.

The was also a surprise today. highly touted prospect Hank Blalock showed up. Blalock is excited about being here, "I'm glad to go somewhere that really wants me, when a team gives up players the calibre Vlad and Scott you know they want you on their team" said Blalock. Expos made a blockbuster deal to acquiring Blalock, Odalis Perez and Carl Crawford for Vladimir Guerrero, Scott Rolen and Tino Martinez.

Blalock is expected to be the expos starting third baseman come opening day. He has tremendous offensive talent and should be a force for years to come. Blalock will be looked upon as the answer to baseball's troubles in Montreal.

Carl Crawford may not be ready yet, but once ready will be an all-star. Crawford has blazing speed as well as some pop. His defensive is also impressive.

The future looks bright for the Expos trimming payroll in the off-season, and loading up on star prospects. 2003 is going to be a learning season, but the fans will have something to come to the ballpark for, to be witness's to some of the greatest young talent in the game.

Anaheim, CA. ?Coming off an 87-win season and a third-place finish in the A.L. West, the Angels have made a flurry of off-season moves to remain competitive in 2003 after losing Phil Nevin and Jarrod Washburn to free agency.

Rookie GM Tito Luna is satisfied with the changes Anaheim has made. “Because of the deals we’ve made, we now have some great arms in our farm system and some young hitters that may see some significant time on the big club this year.?

Luna may have been alluding to Drew Henson, the much-hyped third baseman acquired from the Yankees in a blockbuster deal that sent all-world third baseman Troy Glaus to the Bombers. In addition to Henson, the Angels received top 100 prospect SP Alex Graman and SS Erick Almonte from the Yankees.

Luna characterized the trading of Glaus as a purely financial decision. “We’re certainly going to miss Troy, and I know the fans aren’t going to be too happy about this. But what I think we’ve done is put ourselves in a position where 2004, 2005, and 2006 are as important as 2003. We’ve got Erstad, Levine, and Adam (Kennedy) in their walk years, and 2004 will be even more challenging with Percy (Percival), Garrett, Timmy (Salmon), Ortiz, and Posada (acquired from the Yankees) eligible after next year. We now have the financial flexibility to be able to re-sign these players should we choose to.?

In addition to Posada, other new faces include middle reliever John Rocker and center fielder Carl Everett. How Sciocia handles this controversial pair will be critical to the season. “These guys are Angels now,?said Sciocia. “I don’t care what they did in the past; these guys are here to help the club and they will be integral pieces of the puzzle.?

With Rocker and Everett joining Anaheim, it will be a fun ride in Disneyland in 2003.

Cincinnati, OH - After a turbulent four years in Cincinnati, Ken Griffey Jr. is heading back to the west coast. The veteran centerfielder agreed to waive his no-trade clause, allowing the San Francisco Giants to acquire him in exchange for reliever Felix Rodriguez and minor league outfielder Arturo McDowell.

Growing up in Cincinnati, Griffey’s lifelong dream was to play for the Reds. That dream was realized when he was acquired from Seattle in ?9. However, a string of injury plagued seasons followed, during which Griffey was frequently booed off the field by the same fans who once adored him. The harsh treatment from the local fans and media lead Griffey to request a trade at the end of the 2003 season.

“I just felt like everything had gone wrong here,?Griffey said, “No matter what I did, I was never going to live up to anyone’s expectations. I just needed to get out of that situation.?

The Reds cleared over $7 million in payroll with the deal and are now 27th in the league in total payroll. "This move gives us a good deal of leeway in pursuing free agents," commented Reds owner Adam Hunt.

Tampa, FL -- Only hours after the Tampa Bay Buccaneers were crowned World Champions of professional football, the Florida fan base received more good news when Sandy Hemenway, owner of the Tampa Bay baseball franchise announced the Devil Rays will not be moving in the immediate future. "We at the Devil Ray organization want to congratulate the Bucs on a fantastic season. We also want to let the fans know that we've elected to remain in Tampa. We are committed to making the Devil Rays a world class organization, and believe that we can accomlish that goal here," Mr. Hemenway declared.

Tampa, FL -- According to a report that will appear in tomorrow's Miami Herald, the Tampa Bay Devil Rays have withdrawn Washington, DC as a potential market for a potential relocation. Inside sources have confirmed that an internal memo within the Devil Ray organization was circulating with potential name changes should the team move to D.C.

It appears that city officials in Washington received a copy of this memo, which included a number of less than politically correct choices, including:

D.C. Snipers
Washington Fillibusters
Capital Punishment
Washington Native Americans

It appears that Charlotte and New Orleans remain under consideration.

Tampa, FL -- The XSBL was shocked late last night when word leaked that Devil Ray management had expressed interest in relocating its franchise. Informed sources confirmed that the D-Rays are having discussions with city officials in D.C. and Charlotte.

Early this morning, owner Sandy Hemenway issued this statement: "Yes, the Devil Ray organization is exploring all options open that will allow us to make this a world class franchise. Those options do include relocating the team, if we believe such a deal can put us on firm financial and competitive ground. Unfortunately, previous management of the team has managed to alienate the fan base here in Tampa. I cannot blame the fans for having little faith after the previous two owners ran the franchise into the ground. With all the other entertainment options available in Florida, a team that isn't competitive is going to have severe difficulty in attracting a fan base. Sadly, it is likely to be several years before the team can reasonably hope to compete with teams like the Yankees and Red Sox."

"A new market, hungry for baseball, and not quite so rich in alternative entertainment could be just the shot in the arm the franchise needs to turn things around. I have opened discussions with officials in D.C., Charlotte and New Orleans to determine if this is financially doable in the immediate future. I have also contacted league management to inform them that these talks are preliminary. Obviously, league ownership will have to approve any move."

Mr. Hemenway, author, recording artist and software engineer acquired the franchise only weeks ago after previous management began legal proceedings to declare bankruptcy.

The D.C. TV Market is the 8th largest in the US with just under 2 million households. Charlotte ranks 28th with 860,000 households, while New Orleans ranks 41st with 630,000.