MVN: Most Valuable Network

To celebrate the start of what looks to be a competitive and active winter of dealing among big league clubs, The Pitch's Joe Aiello and Brandon Rosage weigh in on the biggest stories effecting the market this week in Major League Baseball, including...

• Dodgers GM Ned Colleti makes A-Rod-like offer to Manny Ramirez
• The Barack Obama tax plan's effect on player negotiations this winter
• Matt Holliday's desire to skip a pay day in favor of postseason plans
• A.J. Burnett walks away from $24 million and two years with Toronto to hit the free agent market
• Cubs leading the Jake Peavy sweepstakes
• Nationals unveil some sharp and fugly new jerseys

The guys also rewind to their 2008 predictions from March 2008 and relive the embarrassment and glory of sounding like naive idiots. Listen in and participate via e-mail (thepitch@mvn.com) or in the comments.

If you were nervous about the Tampa Bay Rays pulling through at the start of October -- or after Game 5 of the ALCS -- you can calm down. They may just be the best team in baseball.The Pitch hosts Joe Aiello and Brandon Rosage package their excitement for the Rays with a fair analysis of the Philadelphia Phillies, who boast the better bullpen and quite possibly the better outfield and bench.The guys go position-by-position, comparing Phils slugger Ryan Howard to Rays 1B Carlos Pena, B.J. Upton to Shane Victorino and rotation to rotation.Who wins? Who fails? Who steals more bases? The discussion continues on the World Series preview edition of The Pitch. Listen in and participate via e-mail (thepitch@mvn.com) or in the comments.... Read more

We know this: The 2008 postseason won't be a non-competitive month of sweeps. The Pitch hosts Joe Aiello and Brandon Rosage provide their breakdown of how the Red Sox lost their grip on the ALCS with questionable pitching management and misguided decisions in extra innings at Tampa Bay. And the discussion moves to Los Angeles, as well, where the Dodgers crushed Phillies lefty Jamie Moyer early in Game 3 to climb back into the series with power and bench-clearing anger. Enjoy and interact via e-mail at thepitch@mvn.com or via phone at 360-450-MVN3.... Read more

Dodgers first baseman James Loney turned Los ANgeles' postseason around in Game One, and didn't stop hitting until they had swept the Cubs. (DoYouMindTheGap/Flickr). As you might expect, The Pitch's resident Chicago Cubs honk Joe Aiello was in the dumps on Thursday's show. His Cubbies left their bats in the regular season and didn't feel like throwing strikes in the October cold. But his Cubs may have paved the way for October's most dangerous team: The Los Angeles Dodgers. The NL West champions have youth, health and starting pitching going into Game One of the NLCS. But what did the Phillies show in their division series win over the Brewers? The guys breakdown the NL side of the coin and preview the championship series matchup. After a bitter finish to the ALCS, which saw the 100-win Angels drop flyballs and produce outs, the Red Sox earned a shot at one... Read more

The Rays went into October riding high -- and it continued in Game One of the ALDS Thursday. (lucy.c.c/Flickr). The Division Series are unlike anything in Major League Baseball in that Game One can make or break a team's postseason chances. And The Pitch's Joe Aiello and Brandon Rosage were shocked to watch two of baseball's strongest clubs fall in their opening playoff game. The guys discuss the Angels' costly passive plate approach, Vladimir Guerrero's base running gaffe and how the Red Sox' defensive advantages are making a difference early in the ALDS. The Rays-White Sox series debut was less surprising, as both clubs opened postseason play with characteristic play. Tampa Bay's young stars exploded (two dingers from Evan Longoria), White Sox starter Javier Vazquez faltered and the Rays bullpen locked it down. The Brewers stumbled out of the gate, losing Game One in Philadelphia thanks to a mystifying mistake... Read more

Mark DeRosa joined "The Pitch" Thursday following another Cubs comeback win. (markderosa7.com) With the NL Central Division Championship in hand Thursday, the Chicago Cubs decided to give Mark DeRosa, one of their most valuable bats and versatile defenders, a few days of rest. DeRosa suffered a strained calf in Wednesday's 9-6, 10-inning win over the New York Mets. The free time allowed the Cubs right fielder and second baseman to join "The Pitch" and hosts Joe Aiello and Brandon Rosage Thursday for a chat about Lou Piniella's enthusiasm for studying video of opponents, his injuries through the '08 campaign, Chicago's stream of comeback wins and recovering from a heart procedure mid-season to correct an irregular heartbeat. The discussion also covered DeRosa's pre-season struggle with Cubs management over their efforts to find a new second baseman, as well as his risk assessment of blogging in the Chicago clubhouse and managing two... Read more

What's old is new for Yankee Stadium in 2008. (Breslow/Flickr). If you're looking for some Yankees love on The Pitch, you might want to get it while you can. Hosts and Yankee-haters Andrew Kappes and Brandon Rosage give the Bronx Bombers props in the early-week edition of the show after the team's theatrical final game at Yankee Stadium. They also welcome "Tim from NYC" on the program to assess the Yankees' future and the Mets' bullpen woes headed into the final week of their stretch for a postseason berth. Discussions veers to accusations that Bud Selig screwed the Astros in his reassignment of their September Cubs series to Milwaukee -- resulting in a simulated Cubs home game. Plus, Milton Bradley threatens to quit pro baseball if officials don't stop judging him for previous bad behavior. Gary Sheffield competes for biggest loud mouth, though, with his physical and verbal fight with... Read more

Thanks for nothing, Lou. (daveynin/Flickr). The NL Central got measurably more interesting this week, as a result of the Cubs-Brewers tussle that included an untimely injury to Milwaukee starter Ben Sheets and an extra-inning upset at Wrigley Field Thursday. The only bummer for Thursday's show was that The Pitch's scheduled guest Mark DeRosa was unable to make the show due to Cubs manager Lou Piniella's insistence that the Chicago hitters study film prior to their series with the Cardinals. So barring a rescheduled visit with DeRosa, hosts Joe Aiello and Brandon Rosage barrelled ahead with chatter about optimism regarding injuries to the Whie Sox, Red Sox fans getting tasered and nutty Yankees fans who love catching baseballs. The guys also completed the show's MLB All-Underrated Team, marking down the National League nominees position-by-position. Enjoy and interact via e-mail at thepitch@mvn.com or via phone at 360-450-MVN3.... Read more

The Diamondbacks bullpen has been over-worked (einarfour/Flickr). September is a time for hype and pennant races. The Pitch took the opportunity Thursday to turn down the hype and turn up the praise for the game's most underrated players. Position-by-position, hosts Joe Aiello and Brandon Rosage strolled through the American League's best players no one hears about. And, yes, there are a fair amount of Tampa Bay Rays on the list. For a peek at Brandon's official AL All-Underrated Team, visit The Pitch's 2008 All-Underrated Team page. The National League list will take center stage next Thursday. The guys also discuss the demise of bullpens at the hands of managers and GMs that are too scared to let their starters pitch deep into games -- a trend that has dismantled the pennant chase for at least three National League contenders. Plus, the show features a spirited round of "Do you buy... Read more

Carlos Delgado hit 860 feet worth of long ball Sunday. For the indefinite future, The Pitch has initiated a stoppage on all pitches over the plate to Carlos Delgado. The Mets first baseman is too hot to handle coming off an impressive series against his NL East rival Phillies. But Delgado shares a common challenge with nine other big league ballclubs in the playoff hunt: His team is still two or fewer games separated from its closest division rival in search for October. The Rays emerged from the weekend bloodied with a 1.5 games lead over the Red Sox prior to the start of their bout in Fenway. The White Sox are now Carlos Quentin-less with only 2.5 games on the Twins. And the Diamondbacks got swept off the NL West lead by the Dodgers, despite some serious defensive questions in LA. The Pitch hosts Andrew Kappes and Brandon Rosage... Read more

Barry Zito prefers to be seen from behind. (Eric Giberson/Flickr) Only a week after it debuted instant replay, MLB was forced to use it after an Alex Rodriguez home run clipped the foul pole in Tampa Bay. The Pitch hosts Joe Aiello and Brandon Rosage waste no time making quick judgment of how it affected the game and might come into play in future, more intense competitions. The discussion then veers toward criticism of the Brewers and ace CC Sabathia after his non-no-hitter was rebutted by Milwaukee with the argument that the pitcher's gaffe on Andy LaRoche's single should've preserved his no-no. And the show doesn't sneak by without a few jabs at Cubs fans' armor through their one-week skid and news that Carlos Zambrano is headed to the disabled list. The show also features great community e-mail about Barry Zito's ass in new jeans all over metropolitan billboards and... Read more