"Jesus" will start in the minors? - Nats320
Mike Rizzo has stated on XM radio that Stephen Strasburg will start the season in the minor leagues. I'm glad he sees the scenario like I would - the minors aren't just where to fine tune baseball skills, but the skills necessary to be a good baseball player off the field, too. But now, MLB reports that an official decision will be made Saturday, after he gave up his first runs of ST to the Cardinals.

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Spring training is in full swing, and with some regularity, we're seeing some actual baseball again. Box scores, game recaps, and player assessments are running afoul, and in less than a month now, we have real, meaningful baseball again. I'll be honest; ST trips don't intrigue me as much as regular, or dare I say it, post season trips do, which is why I've made such little effort to make my way down to Florida. But with all the excitement in the air, the stories and happenings all around the baseball world, and some of you folks having fun down in Florida, I have to admit that I'm enviously wishing I had the means to jet off to Orlando and just drive around and absorb as much baseball as I can, so that being said, maybe in future year I'll do such.

Now if it would just stop thunderstorming, I would say that this is a wonderful time of the year to be a baseball fan, but regardless, it's not going to stop Things Read in Other Moms' Basements, your look at links from the other teams in the National League East division, from happening every Saturday as we have it.

Jose Reyes does indeed have thyroid problem - MLB.com
This is unfortunate news for Reyes, the Mets, and their fans. Until further notice, Reyes is on the shelf until doctors can find out the best way to handle his overactive thyroid. It's one of those scenarios where he feels fine, and is itching to get back onto the field, but it's not until he exerts a lot of physical activity in which it could begin to hamper him. I was hoping that this wasn't the case, because regardless of whom he plays for, he's always a fun player to watch. But alas, since this is the Mets, it's never this simple - Jose Reyes claims he doesn't have a problem. Sigh. Admission is the first step to recovery. He'll be out anywhere from 2-8 weeks, and likely miss the opener.

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Wow, it's already March!  Can't believe how quickly 2010 is flying by.  At this rate, it'll be mid-season and we'll be bitching about Jo-Jo Reyes, Manny Acosta, and how we need to trade Nate McLouth since Jordan Schafer and Jason Heyward are owning the outfield.

This week's Things Read in Other Moms' Basements, which is your look at links and stories from around the rest of the National League East is brought to you by MLB - Major League Bling.  Well, not really, but it's because of the guy that runs the company that I found the images of Hanley Ramirez in his lame t-shirt.  Because seriously, this guy, obviously through MLB has met a lot of MLB greats - from Albert Pujols to Mariano Rivera, apparently peddling gaudy excessive watches is the key to meeting greatness.  I say that, but the only Brave represented on his list is Manny Acosta.  But the theme of the week is shortstops, and the proprietor of MLB has met and photographed with ALL of our NL East rivals' shortstops.

This week, I'm going to give the lead-off honors to none other than the Florida Marlins.  I've been riding them for being so stale and boring, and their SBN site, Fish Stripes hasn't shown much activity or community, but almost as if they knew the jig, they responded big this past week, and props to craig over there, for dishing the news, even if his community isn't very active.

CEO of MLBling, with Marlins shortstop, Hanley Ramirez

Marlins fans don't exist? - Fish Stripes
You know what bugs me? When all you non-Atlanta based Braves fans accuse those of us who live in town for being lameduck because Turner Field can't sell out. I might be 578 lbs, and fill up three seats, but that's still 3 out of 57,000. But anyway, apparently, repeated comments like mine, and now Will Leitch of Deadspin's comments about how the Marlins don't have any fans have actually prompted some activity at Fish Stripes. It's also prompted Marlins blog Fish @ Bat to post something substantial for the first time in over a month.

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Yo-yo-yo-yo-yo, this week's Things Read in Other Moms' Basements goes out to my boy Frankie Rodriguez down in St. Pimp Lucie, wishing him a speedy recovery from . . . pinkeye.

Welcome to an extra-fluffy week of TROMB, fresh after the first week of official Spring Training.  Optimism is rampantly high, realism is unreasonably low, and if the season panned out like everyone gushes how great it's going to be, then there will be five teams in the NL East with 90+ wins, and somewhere in the NL Central and NL West will have five teams with 100 losses.

In honor of this link, we're going to change things up a little bit. Instead of using Dark Helmet to represent our respective division rivals, we're going to get a more personal look at them by dedicating each team's week of links with one of their players wearing lame cliche poseur dbag shirts.

The New York Mets' centerfielder, Carlos Beltran, shown rehabbing in style with dbag shirt, white studded belt, huge watch, and faux trucker cap.

K-Rod has pink eye - MLB.com
I wonder which one of his teammates bare-ass farted on his pillow? Otherwise, this is another ST fluff piece that has no substantial information, but a lot for me to criticise. Alex Cora calls this squad the "New Mets." Any fan of professional wrestling throughout the 90s knows that tagging anything with "New" is the equivalent of the kiss of death, and destined to fail. Also, is it just me, or is perhaps the biggest blabbermouth in the clubhouse Jeff Francoeur? It seems like every article has at least 2-3 quotes from him, pegging him as the wide-eyed, big-mouthed country boy in the city with all these failed attempts at optimism.

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Ahhh, I bet the air in various parts of Florida smells real nice this time of year, as it's time for Spring Training, as the pitchers and catchers have reported to their respective teams.  The best time of the year is almost upon us, and before we know it, it'll be warm again outside, kids will be playing catch, the fans will be in the stands eating hot dogs and drinking beer, and our favorite players will be taking the fields again.

The "big" kind of news is kind of dying down these days, but there are still a lot of fluffy stories of interesting ST occurrences, or transactions to be made still, so Things Read in Other Moms' Basements will still be going on.

But there was on notable signing made this week, and for that, the Washington Nationals win the first dibs of the weekend.  PECOTA doesn't think it, nor does pretty much every projection system out there, but I have a feeling the Nationals are going to be a better team than many are giving credit for.  Sorry, one of those "gut" things.  That's what the grapefruits are really for.  Anyway, on with the links.

Chien-Ming Wang signs with the Nationals - MLB.com
After a seemingly endless courtship, it pays off, as Chien-Ming Wang signs a deal with the Nationals for a base salary of $2M, with potential incentives to take it up to $3M total, according to reports. Mark it down, NL Comeback Player of the Year.

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Welcome to another edition of Things Read in Other Moms' Basements, a look around the things and happenings of the rest of the National League East, since the Atlanta Braves aren't the only team around.  As we approach the coming of the 2010 season, the news tends to slow to where it's mostly fluff pieces, mailbags, and players in the best shapes of their lives, and a lot of minor league deals.

That in mind, it was a fairly tame week with no big transactions, in our division.  One notable move in the week overall though, was the San Francisco Giants signing two-time Cy Young winning ace pitcher, Tim Lincecum to a two-year deal.  So, to commemorate the occasion, here's a picture of Tim Lincecum's last outing against the Braves, where he got tagged pretty quick and early, culminating with a homer surrendered to our Yunel Escobar.

I'll start this week's links with the Marlins, since they've yet to get a shake yet.  I know there's about fifty feet of snow coating the Eastern seaboard, and amazingly some of it has fallen onto Atlanta, where it almost never snows.  That being said, if you're covered in snow, have a safe and warm weekend, and if not, feel fortunate.  It's a pain in the rear sometimes.

Uh, you might want to mind your company, ROY - ROY's ugh, Twitter
(hat tip: Mets Blog)
It seems like a week can't go by without there being at least one easy fodder to make a Jeff Francoeur joke. The reigning NL rookie of the year and our former maligned right fielder are headed to the Louisville Slugger factory, apparently to do some shopping. When described like that, I imagine two dudes wearing Prada sunglasses, and one of them carrying one of those flamboyant pink striped Victoria's Secret bags. My advice for Coughlin on this trip - keep your headphones on loud, and try to not hear anything in relation to the strike zone. What you did in 2009 worked great for you already.

The rest, after the jump.

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Welcome to a very rainy and miserable edition of Things Read in Other Moms' Basements, news and happenings from around the rest of the National League East.  I'll take the blame for those of us who are sitting in inclimate weather this weekend, allow me to absorb the blame; I saw it fit so bathe the dog, and much like washing your car, doing such a task can only result in the ensuing precipitation, in order to ruin your efforts and cleanliness.

Rain or shine, by the time you guys will be reading this, I'll likely be in a sugar-induced coma somewhere in Raleigh, North Carolina, because rain or shine, it's once again that time of the year in which I participate in North Carolina State University's annual Krispy Kreme Challenge, where I'll have run 2.2 miles, downed a dozen original glazed, and run 2.2 miles back, in under 60 minutes.

So hopefully, the rest of you will remain dry, comfortable, and not feeling guilt-ridden and physically ill as I will, so in the meantime, have some links from around the rest of our division.

I figured, I'll give the Nationals a break; they had a rough week, what with Orlando Hudson feigning interest in going to Washington, only to go to a team that a long time ago, was Washington.  And to make matters worse, PECOTA said "syke" on their previous projected standings, and tucked the Nationals back to where they were the last two years - last place.

OPS guy: Orlando Hudson leaning towards the Nationals - MLB.com
According to Adam Dunn, Orlando Hudson does indeed want to come to Washington. BTW, the other Orlando, Orlando Cabrera, signed with the Cincinnati Reds. You heard it here first - the Reds are playoff bound.
BUT, money seems to be a problem - MLB.com
O-Dawg has come out and expressed his interest in the Nationals, but they're having some difficulty agreeing on the dollars and cents part of it. He made $3M roughly with incentives that took him close to $7M in 2009 with the Dodgers, but the Nationals are only offering $3M-ish with incentives to get him to $4M. Either the Nationals will bend and give in, or they'll turn their interest to Adam Kennedy, who is kind of their fallback plan.
Nevermind, O-Dawg signs with the Minnesota Twins - MLB.com
This kind of came out of nowhere, since the Twins were a late edition into the Hudson hunt.  And, with that, the Nationals pounce all over Adam Kennedy.

The rest, after the jump.

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Welcome to another weekend's edition of Things Read in Other Moms' Basements, where I share news and stories from around the rest of the National League East.

Overall, the week was busy with plenty of marginal talent being scooped up to minor league deals, but there wasn't any gigantic blockbuster news to really come out of the NL East.

I hate to single out Napoleon Dynamite again, but after interacting with this guy at Brian McCann's charity softball game, I'm under the belief that he actually epitomizes the lifestyle.

There's really no rhyme or reason to the order of the teams this week, so I'm going to say that I'll start with the Mets, since they had some of the most interesting stories.  So without further ado, here come the links

John Smoltz looking like a fit with the Mets - Mets Blog
I don't quite get it. One argument I've seen is that he's leaning Mets because in New York, he's a #2, but in St. Louis, he's a #4. Many of us here have discussed what the point is, as long as you're taking the mound every fifth day? I guess it has to do with job security, because no matter how much John Smoltz may stink in New York, it's not like there's anyone adequate enough to replace him.

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