Countdown to Opening Day 2012: #29 Oakland Athletics

By Andrew Marcus

Sportswriter for Montgomery Media

Follow me on Twitter @amarcus515

To help pass the time between now and the start of the 2012 Major League Baseball season I am going to be examining a different team every day. Starting with the Astros, working toward the Phillies. I will give you my projected starters, breakout and bust players, each team's X-Factor and top prospect.

PROJECTED LINEUP

2B Jemile Weeks
LF Coco Crisp
RF Josh Reddick
DH Seth Smith
C Kurt Suzuki
1B Daric Barton
CF Yoenis Cespedes
SS Cliff Pennington
3B Josh Donaldson
**Manny Ramirez (suspended 50 games)

PROJECTED ROTATION
Brandon McCarthy
Bartolo Colon
Brad Peacock
Jarrod Parker
Tom Milone
**Dallas Braden (may miss start of season)
**Brett Anderson (out until July)

PROJECTED BULLPEN
Closer - Brian Fuentes
Set-up - Grant Balfour

Top Prospect - Jarrod Parker (RHP)

Breakout

Jarrod Parker - Slights adjustments have been made to Moneyball since 2002, like Mr. Beane  does not mind base stealers now, as long as they do so at a high percentage (ex: Crisp and Weeks). But one thing that has not changed is his dependency on young pitchers. This year the A's traded Trevor Cahill and Gio Gonzalez and brought in three guys that will most likely round out the rotation. Parker is the best of the new litter and in Oakland he will be thrown right into fire as they try to get the most out of him before they have to pay him or trade him. Parker will benefit from the Oakland Coliseum and could even be in the running for Rookie of the Year.

Bust

Seth Smith - I know - as Jonah Hill says a million times to Brad Pitt, "he gets on base." But Smith's career .348 OBP is not enough to sell me on a part-time player going from Denver to the Bay Area. If he could only hit 15 homers for the Rockies what is he going to do with the A's, in a lineup where he will be the guy expected to drive in runs? He's penciled in to split time with Jonny Gomes, but I can't even see the combo cutting it if they want to contend.

X-FACTOR
Manny Ramirez - ManRam is back with half the hair he had in L.A. and even more baggage. The failed drug test will keep the future hall-of-famer (if you forget about the steriods thing) out until June. And if I know anything from watching Moneyball, Billy Beane is just praying Manny can play well enough from June to the trade deadline so he can move him for more young pieces. Hopefully he can at least be a veteran voice that can help the youngsters and not give Oakland more headaches than the losing will already bring about. And if everything works perfectly, Manny is hitting in the middle of the order for a surprise playoff contender. Who knows, because as of writing, the the decision to add another playoff team this season has yet to be decided.

LAST YEAR'S RECORD: 74-88

Will Manny be Manny after 50 games?  And in a good way?

PROJECTED FINISH: 4th in the American League West

***THANKS FOR READING MY TEAM BY TEAM OUTLOOKS TO HELP PASS THE TIME
 

Check back tomorrow for the New York Mets

Countdown to Opening Day 2012: #30 Houston Astros

By Andrew Marcus

Sportswriter for Montgomery Media

Follow me on Twitter @amarcus515

To help pass the time between now and the start of the 2012 Major League Baseball season I am going to be examining a different team every day. Starting with the Astros, working toward the Phillies. I will give you my projected starters, breakout and bust players, each team's X-Factor and top prospect.

PROJECTED LINEUP

CF Jordan Schafer
2B Jose Altuve
SS Jed Lowrie
1B Carlos Lee
LF J.D. Martinez
RF Brian Bogusevic
3B Jimmy Paredes
C Jason Castro

P Wandy Rodriguez

PROJECTED ROTATION
Wandy Rodriguez

Bud Norris

Livan Hernandez
Jay Happ
Jordan Lyles

PROJECTED BULLPEN
Closer - Brett Myers
Set-up - Brandon Lyon

Top Prospect - Jonathan Singleton (1B)

Breakout

Jed Lowrie - After being pin-balled back-and-forth between positions, the minors and future plans in Boston, this may be the best spot to land for the former top prospect. Lowrie, when healthy, is a switch-hitting stud who can hit .300 and and belt 15-to-20 home runs in Houston. With over 900 plate appearances under his belt, Lowrie is one of the veterans on this rebuilt team. In his age 28 season, he could be one of the few bright spots in this organization.

Bust

Carlos Lee - Lee is a business-like hitter who has just pounded pitching for the last decade. But with no protection in the order and looking closer to 40 years old (age 36 season), Lee is clearly on the back nine of his career. His best hope is to have such a good first half that a contender trades for him, but it's more likely he and the 18.5 million dollars he will make this year will be stuck playing with a bunch of Double-A players trying to stick in the bigs. 

X-FACTOR
Jason Castro - The one true game-changing prospect the Astros have drafted during the forgettable Ed Wade era has not been able to make an impact because of injuries. Castro is healthy this spring, but his injuries have forced Houston to bring back-up plans to camp and now the top-10 pick is fighting for a spot on the 25-man roster. If Castro can live up to the hype of 2008 and he becomes a fixture in the middle of the lineup and behind the plate, he could help take this team from not-watchable to promising. 

LAST YEAR'S RECORD: 56-106

Carlos Lee is auditioning for contenders

PROJECTED FINISH: 6th in the National League Central

***THANKS FOR READING MY TEAM BY TEAM OUTLOOKS TO HELP PASS THE TIME
 

Check back tomorrow for the Oakland Athletics

All-Montgomery Media Basketball Teams

By Andrew Marcus 
Sportswriter for Montgomery Media

Follow me on Twitter @amarcus515

I have narrowed down the best basketball players this winter, both guys and girls. 


This is the unoffical teams, as Montgmery Media has no affiliation with the picks, it just was the criteria to being selected. Players had to play on a team in our coverage area.


I have chosen players from multiple leagues and multiple classifications. While I know some players may have been left off, this is solely based on opinions from I witnessed and read about over the past three months. These are the players that carried their team with timely shots, game winning buckets and hard fought rebounds.


Without further adieu...


BOYS

FIRST TEAM

Player of the Year - Jordan Reed  (Wissahickon): If anything, the loss of back court mate Anthony McKie (transferred to Plymouth-Whitemarsh) put the pressure square between the two threes on the back of Reed. He was the clear-cut guy who the Trojans were going to live and die with. While Reed received some help from his friends this season, the 6-foot-3 senior rose to the challenge. Reed averaged over 24 points per game this season for the Suburban One American Conference co-champs. Lost in his dynamic scoring prowess is ability to guard some of the best guards in the area. Division-One schools such as Iona, Manhattan and Sienna are after the Trojan.

Jordan Reed (Wissahickon)

Tim Abruzzo (Pennridge): Scoring 39 points on the night you need 33 to reach 1,000 points for you career is example of Abruzzo's determination. He had no problem putting his young team on his back this season and taking them to the brink of postseason play. Though the Rams missed out on the second season it is hard to overlook what the senior did. Abruzzo averaged 21 points per game and showed so much growth in his arsenal that Division-One schools are giving him a serious look. 

Dinjyl Walker (Academy New Church): There was not one off-night for the 6-2 senior this year. Walker, who averaged 21 points per game, never scored fewer than 10 points and scored 25 or more points 10 times this season. And on the night he "only" scored 10, he had seven assists, five rebounds and six steals. This all-around play maker also led the Lions in assists and steals. 

Nick Lindner (Germantown Academy): Whatever the gamed called for the junior point guard dished out. Some days is was dimes, others it was 20-plus point games. Lindner averaged close to 17 points per game for the Patriots and earned first team All-InterAc honors. The 5-11 floor general should be in store for a huge senior season.

Anthony Durham (Abington): After a year of being overshadowed at Academy of the New Church the junior guard burst onto the scene this year with the Galloping Ghosts. After scoring 21 points all year for the Lions as a sophomore, Durham dropped nearly 20 points per game this season in his first year at Abington. He took a nine win team to the final four of the Class AAAA District One playoffs and put himself atop the list of the top players in the area for the Class of 2013. 

John Decamara (UD)

SECOND TEAM

Montana Mayfield (Abington Friends)
Tonah Kpassagnon (Wissahickon)
Nafis Walker (Cheltenham)
Marcus Gilbert (Academy New Church)
John Decamara (Upper Dublin)

Luke Moyer (Souderton)

THIRD TEAM

Luke Moyer (Souderton)
Pat Smith (Archbishop Wood)
Anthony McKie (Plymouth-Whitemarsh)
James Mobley (Upper Merion)
Braheime Jackson (Bishop McDevitt)

Mike Hutson (PMCA)

HONORABLE MENTION

Wes Brooks (North Penn)
Mike Hutson (Phil-Mont Christian)
Brendan Casper (Methacton)
Zameer McDowell (Spring-Ford)
Mike Brown (Hatboro-Horsham)

GIRLS

FIRST TEAM

Player of the Year - Ciara "C.C." Andrews (Cheltenham): Time stops for just a second when C.C. Andrews takes her patented jump shot. Good luck trying to stop her from getting a good look at the hoop when she is soaring vertically. It is reason she has scored at ease all season. Andrews, who has committed to play at St. Joseph's next season, averaged 22 points per game this year and led her team to the number one seed in the Class AAA District One playoffs. 

C.C. Andrews (Cheltenham)

Mariah Traywick (Spring-Ford): The one constant over the past four years in Spring-Ford has been their 5-11 center and this year she has been a rock for the Rams. Traywick could score 20 points a night if she needed to, but instead she gets her 12 points per game and makes sure she is dominating the glass and defending the opponent's post players. Shippensburg got a steal when they landed Traywick.

Jaryn Gardner (Germantown Academy): You just feel more comfortable as coach when Gardner is bringing the ball up the floor. The senior, who recently committed to Virginia, was the key to the Patriots success and made their offense flow. The 5-foot-7 point guard did whatever was asked of her for the best interest of the team and it led them to their 14th straight Inter-Ac title.

Cassidy Koenig (Upper Merion): Dangerous is an understatement about this sharpshooting senior. If you give her any breathing room she will make you pay and it does not matter how far away from the basket she is. Koenig is one of the most prolific three-point shooters in Southeastern PA and averaged over 14 points per game this year for the Vikings. Her athleticism is proven by her ability to dominate in the multiple sports. She is a phenomenal volleyball player to go along with 1,000 career points on the basketball floor.

Aiyannah Peal (Abington): Each year Peal pushed herself to get better and each year the the numbers showed off her hard work and dedication to the sport. Peal's aggressiveness on both ends made her one of the toughest assignments for defenders. The senior averaged over 15 points per game, which was good for third best average in Suburban One League and easily helped her surpass the 1,000 point total for her career. Peal is graded at 86 on ESPN and should have a stellar college career wherever she decides to attend.

Alex Louin (MSJ)

SECOND TEAM

Steph Knauer (North Penn)
Alex Louin (Mount Saint Joseph)
Taylor Bryant (Upper Dublin)
Kiernan McCloskey (Germantown Academy)
Sierra Guenst (Calvary Baptist)

Sammy Stipa (Spring-Ford)

THIRD TEAM

Lauren Crisler (North Penn)
Bridget Higgins (Mount Saint Joseph)
Sarah Listenbee (Abington)
Sammy Stipa (Spring-Ford)
Bianca Picard (Souderton)

Olivia Bradford (Dock)

HONORABLE MENTION

Kelly Glatthorn (Methacton)
Emily O'Donnell (William Tennent)
Madison Kimball (Jenkintown)
Ali Morganstein (Lower Moreland)
Olivia Bradford (Christopher Dock)

Boys and Girls District One Quaterfinals Preview

By Andrew Marcus
Sportswriter for Montgomery Media

Follow me on Twitter @amarcus515

BOYS CLASS AAAA RESULTS
(1) Chester 59, (16) Methacton 31 CLICK HERE TO READ THE GAME STORY
(9) Norristown 59, (8) Pennsbury 45 CLICK HERE TO READ THE GAME STORY
(4) C.B. West 62, (13) Cheltenham 47 CLICK HERE TO READ THE GAME STORY
(5) Wissahickon 60, (12) Bensalem 53 CLICK HERE TO READ THE GAME STORY
(2) Lower Merion 64, (18) Plymouth-Whitemarsh 46 CLICK HERE TO READ THE GAME STORY
(10) Souderton 70, (7) C.R. North 53 CLICK HERE TO READ THE GAME STORY
(11) Abington 62, (6) Great Valley 51 CLICK HERE TO READ THE GAME STORY
BOYS CLASS AAA RESULTS
(8) Upper Moreland 72, (9) Phoenixville 56 CLICK HERE TO READ THE GAME STORY
(5) Pope John Paul II 73, (12) Sun Valley 52 CLICK HERE TO READ THE GAME STORY
(7) Harriton 48, (10) Upper Merion 41 CLICK HERE TO READ THE GAME STORY
BOYS CLASS A RESULTS
(8) Christopher Dock 45, (9) Morrisville 33 CLICK HERE TO READ THE GAME STORY

GIRLS CLASS AAAA RESULTS
(1) Cheltenham 49, (17) Downingtown East 41 CLICK HERE TO READ THE GAME STORY
(9) North Penn 39, (8) Methacton 30 CLICK HERE TO READ THE GAME STORY
(4) Downingtown West 51, (13) Abington 30 CLICK HERE TO READ THE GAME STORY
(5) Mount St Joes 36, (12) C.B. East 27 CLICK HERE TO READ THE GAME STORY
(3) Spring-Ford 68, (19) C.B. South 49 CLICK HERE TO READ THE GAME STORY
(11) Haverford 33, (6) Upper Dublin 28 CLICK HERE TO READ THE GAME STORY
GIRLS CLASS AAA RESULTS
(8) Gwynedd Mercy 57, (9) Merion Mercy 38 CLICK HERE TO READ THE GAME STORY
(7) Pope John Paul II 43, (10) Phoenixville 25 CLICK HERE TO READ THE GAME STORY


Breakin' down the Montgomery Media match-ups
BOYS CLASS AAAA

Norristown at Chester - While the guard play for the Eagles has carried them to the quarterfinals, their size down low will be tested against the Clippers, who boast four starters well over 6-feet. CHESTER WINS
Wissahickon at Central Bucks West - The Bucks have been able to drain big basket after big basket all season long. They have had plenty of height to get to this point, but they have yet to face a inside presence of one such as the Trojans' Tonah Kpassagnon. They better hit their jump shots and feed off the home crowd if they want to slow the down the Trojans. WISSAHICKON WINS

Souderton at Lower Merion - With confidence at an all-time high after a second round upset the Indians will need much more of the same in the quarterfinals. The Aces B.J. Johnson will be the Indians toughest assignment as the 6-5 junior can score with some of the best players in the area. LOWER MERION WINS
Abington at Coatesville - Maybe the Ghosts have finally found the formula that can take out some of the top teams in the area. But the Red Raiders rolled cruised past Pennwood, who plays a very similar style to Abington. COATESVILLE WINS 


BOYS CLASS AAA
Upper Moreland at Holy Ghost Prep - While the Golden Bears have a good share of determined athletes on their roster, the Prep is no slouch in speed and skill. Their fast breaks points allow the team to hit quick scoring spurts at anytime. The Bears Matt Kohn may need to have the game of his life for the Bears to prevail here. PREP WINS

Pope John Paul II at Pottstown - Nearly a month ago the Trojans pulled out a two point win to split the series against PJP. Will that win and the play of Elijah Jackson be enough to win again? It should be a another close game. POTTSTOWN WINS
Bishop Shanahan at Lower Moreland - The Lions were playing some of their best basketball down the stretch and if the week off did not slow them down they could be in for big night. Shanahan may have trouble stopping the Lions' multiple scoring options. LOWER MORELAND WINS




BOYS CLASS A

Christopher Dock at Church Farm - Bottom line here is the district was nice to award the Pioneers a postseason spot and should build off a win against Morrisville, but they are not in the class of a Church Farm, who could probably hang with most Class AAAA teams. CHURCH FARM WINS
Phil-Mont Christian at Faith Christian - It seems this game is played every year and this year it should be another game down to the wire. If the Lions can limit turnovers and adjust to the multiple defenses the Falcons show they should be able to move to the next round. However the Falcons Mike Hutson has the ability to get the basket and I'm not sure the Lions have the defender that can stop him. FAITH WINS


GIRLS CLASS AAAA
North Penn at Cheltenham - The Panthers get their chance to revenge their lone loss of the year and the Maidens are well aware they will be coming for them. It should come down to whoever has a better night on the glass. You better believe star seniors, the Maidens Steph Knauer and the Panthers CC Andrews will be ready for this one. CHELTENHAM WINS

Mount St Joes at Downingtown West - If the Whippets rebound like they did against Abington the 4 seed will pick up their 20th straight win. But if the fearless Magic play defense like they know how it could be another low scoring upset for the all-girls school. MOUNT WINS 
Haverford at Spring-Ford - If the Fords shoot like they did in the win against Upper Dublin it is going to be  a long night against the 3rd seeded Rams. If they play with the intensity they did in the fourth quarter they could make a game of it. SPRING-FORD WINS 

GIRLS CLASS AAA
Gwynedd Mercy at Villa Marie - Let's hope the Monarchs are riding high after their opening round win because they will need to execute to near perfection against the top seed. They lost by double digits in both regular season match ups. VILLA MARIE WINS 

Nazareth at Upper Merion - Nazareth will get a chance to show how confident of a bunch they are and see what their difficult schedule has done for them. Cassidy Koenig will look to burst their momentum before they get going with her sharp shooting ability. UPPER MERION WINS
Pope John Paul II at St. Basil - It will be Basil's execution against PJP's grind. If PJP can control the paint they should be able to scare the two seed, if not the send Basil packing. POPE JOHN PAUL WINS 

GIRLS CLASS AA
Bristol at Springfield (M) - Bristol lost in the one game against Springfield this season, but both teams have improved an exponential amount. If the Warriors can keep the Spartans' Mo Leis off the glass they could get revenge from the regular season loss. BRISTOL WINS 

GIRLS CLASS A
Friends Select at Jenkintown - Sporting a 10-1 record at home this season, it should be a big test for Friends Select to leave Center City and take down the Drakes at home. The Drakes really want that 20 win season. JENKINTOWN WINS 

Phil-Mont Christian at Delco Christian - The outside shooting of Stacey MacArthur and inside game of Jocelyn Chavous is a tough task to stop for the Falcons, but if they can limit turnovers they could make a game of it. DELCO CHRISTIAN WINS