Can the Mets finally start playing to their potential with a change of management?

Another week in the books, and Willie Randolph has finally been removed as the Mets manager. After last season's collapse, and this season's lackluster start, this move really was inevitable. Of course, the big controversy is over the way in which Randolph was fired, that is, after one game of a West Coast road trip, and at 3:00 am, so that it did not make the morning papers. Part of me thinks the reaction is bizarre – I mean is there a good way to fire someone? The man is being fired from his job, there are no good way to break that news to someone. On the other hand, it truly was for lack of a better word, a chicken**** way to conduct business. If you want to fire him (and you were more than justified in that belief), then stand up and support your decision, and don't hide from the New York Post.

Moving away from baseball for a moment, one of my favorite stories from the previous week was a lawsuit between the University of Louisville and Duke University. Louisville had sued Duke for $450,000, after Duke backed out of a four-game football contract with Louisville after only one date had been played. The contract penalized Duke if no suitable replacement could be found. The Court found that Duke football was so bad that they were replaceable by virtually any team. Accordingly, there were no damages sustained by Louisville. The story is HERE. To sum up, Duke sucks is now a valid legal precedent!

Watching the Mets game, and a scary moment for Felix Hernandez. On a wild pitch with Carlos Beltran sprinting home, Hernandez appeared to twist his knee and/or ankle, and looked to be in considerable pain. Hernandez attempted to come back out and throw a practice pitch, but hobbled off the field with help. Obviously, there have been no tests performed as of this writing, but I would guess that he misses at least a few starts. It's a shame too, as Hernandez had been in the process of taking a giant leap forward at the age of 22.

In other terribly shocking recent news, Nick Johnson is making slow progress in his recovery from torn wrist ligaments. At this point, doctors suspect that his injury may be more “complicated” than initially thought. It is possible that Johnson may now be out for the season. With 109 at bats over the last two years, the Nationals may not be able to afford keeping Johnson's seven figure salary on the roster anymore. Look for them to try to move him in the offseason, where perhaps he can minimize injuries as a designated hitter in the American League. For the time being, Dmitri Young will benefit with more playing time. He is a worthwhile pickup in all NL-Only leagues, as well as in deep mixed leagues.

Curt Schilling underwent surgery today to repair his labrum and biceps. He is certainly out for the remainder of 2008, and he may be done for his career. If he retires today, he'll finish with over 3,000 strikeouts, and one of the better post-season resumes you can find (10-2, 2.23, 0.968, 3 World Series rings). What I'll remember most about Schilling is not the “Bloody Sock” game, but rather two things: one: prior to his trade to the Boston Red Sox, he apparently logged onto the popular Red Sox message board Sons of Sam Horn, and solicited feedback from the Red Sox faithful, which supposedly played a role in his decision to come to Boston. This was the kind of story I loved reading, if only because it made him so accessible to regular fans. And two, he is part of one of the best stories I can recall reading about baseball, where Doug Glanville discussed why he had it in for Schilling.

That will do it for me this week. I am off to China for a two week vacation in the Far East, and therefore, will not be “grumbling” for the next two weeks. Good luck making it through the All-Star Break, and I will see you all again upon my return.