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06/29/2010 -
Ryan Franklin spent more than 15 seasons trying to become an All-Star, wending through Bellingham and Appleton and Port City, working as a starter, middleman and setup guy, waiting for that special night to hear the PA announcer call his name, jog to the foul line and tip his cap.
The St. Louis closer got summoned last summer and proudly took his place during pregame introductions, a first-timer at age 36. So it's easy to understand how he feels about the big question lingering over next month's game.
Should Stephen Strasburg make it this year as a rookie? A rookie with only a few weeks in the majors, at that.
``No chance. No chance. You can't be an All-Star if you've pitched six games. It just ain't right. He's got a tremendous future, but he's not an All-Star,'' Franklin said. ``I just don't think it's fair.''
Fair enough.
Forget, too, this is billed as the fans' game. Never mind the Washington ace is now the brightest light in the baseball universe, a phenom so electric President Barack Obama recently came over to Nationals Park for a look.
No, skip all that. There's a better reason why Strasburg should absolutely be Stars-burg when rosters are announced Sunday: He can help the National League finally win one of these games.
It's been awhile. The last time the NL won, the game was played in a ballpark that no longer exists (Veterans Stadium), on a surface the NL no longer uses (artificial turf).
That was in 1996, back when the Milwaukee Brewers were still in the American League. Four players on the original rosters for that game in Philadelphia - Cal Ripken, Wade Boggs, Tony Gwynn and Ozzie Smith - are already in the Hall of Fame.
The AL has not lost since then, a span of 12 wins interrupted only by the 11-inning tie in 2002.
If the NL is serious about winning on July 13 in a game that's often played more like an exhibition - especially with home-field advantage in the World Series going to the victor - Strasburg is an automatic choice.
Imagine the likes of Joe Mauer, Ichiro Suzuki and Derek Jeter, as good as they are, trying to hit someone they've never seen before. At twilight time in Anaheim, when batters often are swinging at shadows.
No one's had much luck so far, at least not the first time they've faced the imposing 21-year-old righty. Through Strasburg's five starts, batters are 9 for 44 with 18 strikeouts and one walk against him the first trip through the lineup.
Strasburg is 2-2 with a 2.27 ERA, giving up 25 hits and striking out 48 in 31 2-3 innings overall. The Nationals haven't helped him much with run support or timely defense.
Chicago White Sox pitcher Mark Buehrle is against Strasburg making the All-Star team. On the other hand, he can understand why he might.
``He's got the stuff, but he hasn't done enough yet,'' he said. ``With the AL and NL trying to win the game, I can see maybe they'll put him on the team. I can see that aspect.''
There certainly are plenty of top arms for the NL staff. Ubaldo Jimenez, Josh Johnson, Roy Halladay, Chris Carpenter, Adam Wainwright and Mike Pelfrey have dominated as starters, plus there are the relievers.
``This is the year of the pitcher, and I don't think we're hurting,'' Cardinals manager Tony La Russa said. ``We had to make some tough choices to pick five starters and he hasn't been out there very long. I don't know how much consideration he's going to get.''
Rosters were increased to 34 this year, though that won't quell the never-ending debate of who should be an All-Star - players having the best season, popular stars, maybe someone in his final year?
Or someone such as Strasburg, who's drawing the kind of crazy attention that surrounded the likes of Ichiro, Dwight Gooden and Mark Fidrych. There was such a swarm around newcomer Hideo Nomo in 1995 that in a break from tradition, he lined up with his NL teammates for pregame introductions rather than stay in the bullpen to warm up to start the game.
Arizona manager A.J. Hinch can see both sides with Strasburg.
``Certainly the buzz around him is unlike anything we've seen in recent years,'' he said. ``If Billy Wagner is in his last season and he was the guy scratched for Strasburg, that's a difficult situation. Who would he replace?''
Adds Kansas City manager Ned Yost: ``I've got conflicting opinions, OK.''
``One, the All-Star game is for the fans. Would the fans love to see Strasburg? Yes. So in that respect, I say yes. Does he have All-Star stuff? Is his stuff worthy of being an All-Star? Yes. Are his numbers worthy of being All-Star? No. Because he hasn't had enough time to develop those numbers,'' he said. ``If he's on the team, it's not going to bother me. If he's not, it's not going to bother me.''
Dodgers manager Joe Torre says no.
``I don't know the kid, but if you asked him he'd probably tell you the same thing, just because of the time he's been here. It's not that he's not All-Star material. If you're looking to interest people, you put him on.''
About the only one who's not getting involved in the debate is Strasburg himself.
``I think Stephen's embarrassed by it a little bit,'' Nationals manager Jim Riggleman said. ``He has such great respect for not only his teammates but the whole league that he realizes there's a lot of worthy candidates to be on the All-Star team.''
NL manager Charlie Manuel of Philadelphia, NL players and Major League Baseball get some say in who makes the team.
``People ... start saying, 'it would be a shame if he's not in.' I say there's a lot of shame every day somewhere. A lot of things happen,'' Manuel said this week.
``I've got a very open mind about him,'' he said.
Here's a guess on how it actually will be decided. After the rosters are announced Sunday, fans get to vote online for the final player on each side. There will be five AL candidates, five in the NL.
Strasburg is going to be on that list, chances are. And if he is, he's going to the game.
---
AP Baseball Writers Janie McCauley and Joe Kay, AP Sports Writers R.B. Fallstrom and Charles Odum and AP freelance writers Amy Jinkner-Lloyd and Alan Eskew contributed to this report.Copyright © 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.
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The San Francisco 49ers (5-11 SU, 5-10-1 ATS in 2007; 1-1 SU & ATS in pre-season) found some offensive life last week, and they will try to build some momentum on Thursday night as they travel to the Windy City to take on the Chicago Bears (7-9 SU & ATS in 2007; 0-2 SU, 0-1-1 ATS in pre-season) in an NFL matchup that is set to get underway at 8 PM ET at Soldier Field (natural turf) in Chicago.
Thursday, August 21
NFL betting odds: CHICAGO -3 (-120), Total 37
NOTABLE STAT: San Francisco was last in points, last in total offense in 2007
KEY NFL BETTING TREND: SF has lost its last seven SU on pre-season road
In the BetUS NFL pre-season football betting odds, the Bears are listed as a three-point favorite (laying -120), with the total posted at 37 points.
Here are some NFL football betting trends as they relate to this matchup (reflecting numbers going into the 2008 season):
* SF has lost 11 of its last 14 games SU
* SF has covered three of its last 11 games
* SF has lost six of its last seven road games SU
* SF has covered one of its last seven road games
* CHI has covered five of its last eight games
* CHI has played five of its last seven games OVER the total
* CHI has covered four of its last 13 home games
* SF has lost its last seven pre-season road games SU
* CHI has covered two of its last seven home pre-season games
Well, I guess we should congratulate the Bears on making their quarterback choice for the season's opening game, as they have designated Kyle Orton the starter against Indianapolis. The Bears obviously have lost patience with Rex Grossman, and what they do with him at this point is anybody's guess. But suffice it to say that there isn't a quarterback competition anymore, at least in training camp.
Meanwhile, the quarterback competition may also be settled in San Francisco, where the Niners bounced back from a lackluster 18-6 loss to the Raiders, in which they turned the ball over four times, to execute a 34-6 rout of the Packers last Saturday. However, coach Mike Nolan has stopped short of saying that, insisting that the job is still open. But J.T. O'Sullivan, the longshot of the trio of Niner signal-callers who opened camp, will start his third straight pre-season game here. Against Green Bay, O'Sullivan was only 8-for-17, and was intercepted, but he also threw for 9.1 yards an attempt, which included a 59-yard TD pass to Josh Morgan. The others struggled.
Some offensive cohesion is badly needed, in light of the Niners' dismal 2007 campaign, in which they were dead last in the NFL in scoring, with just 13.7 points a game. And O'Sullivan is the guy who is most familiar with offensive coordinator Mike Martz's exacting system, because he learned it last year in Detroit. O'Sullivan will go at least the entire first half and may even last longer. He'll be relieved by Alex Smith, with Shawn Hill doing the mop-up work. Three receivers who were out last week - Bryant Johnson, Ashley Lelie and Arnaz Battle - will miss this game too.
That may hurt a little here, especially since the Bears will be using a lot of their defensive starters. And it's the defense that has been keeping the Bears in games thus far. In fact, the defense and special teams were responsible for the first 19 points Chicago scored against Seattle last time out, as the offense really struggled with Grossman at the controls. But maybe the first-team offense has a chance to settle a little bit as it works more with Orton at the helm.
Certainly we have concerns about the Bears' offensive line, but we like the scenario for them here, especially if O'Sullivan doesn't make some bis plays. The Niners may have nowhere else to turn right now, and they have lost seven straight road games in the pre-season. Let's take Chicago, the three-point favorite in the NFL football betting odds.
CHICAGO -3 (-120) **
(Graded on a scale of 1-4 stars)
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