Rockets add firepower with Howard signing, Is anyone excited?

FORT STEWART, GA, UNITED STATES

07.11.2013

Story by Staff Sgt. Roger RyDell Daniels 

Warrior Transition Battalion - Fort Stewart

FORT STEWART, Ga. - Is anyone other than me excited about the Major League Baseball's All-Star game this Tuesday?

I happen to enjoy the baseball ASG, and I think it’s the best of the major sports all-star games.

One reason why I like it is they select a player from each team. I know people may not agree with me and say that a player on a losing team may take a spot from someone else. To that, I say “horse hockey” as the colonial use to say on the television show MASH.

I believe that regardless of the team’s record, there is at least one player who is having a good or great first half of the season and should be recognized for it.

This year’s team includes Jason Castro, a catcher on the Houston Astros. The Astros have the worst record, but Castro has a .270 batting average with 12 home runs and 31 RBIs.

Still, these ASG always seem to be dominated by a few teams.
This year’s roster includes six players from the Detroit Tigers and five from the St. Louis Cardinals. There are two teams with four players each, six teams with three players, 11 teams with two players and nine teams with only one player each, including the Atlanta Braves and both teams from Los Angeles.
All together, there 59 players currently scheduled to play in the game, with two more players who will be added to the roster later today.

This will be the last ASG for New York Yankee pitcher Mariano Rivera. Rivera has 29 saves this year and a MLB record 637 career saves. He has recorded a save in 18 consecutive seasons and is making his 13th ASG appearance.

As great and consistent as Rivera has been, he is not among the leaders in ASG appearances. Three players, Hank Aaron, Willie Mays and Stan Musial lead with 24 ASG selections. Cal Ripken was selected 19 times; Rod Carew and Carl Yastrzemski with 18 each, and Ted Williams and Pete Rose were both selected 17 times.

Now that the National Basketball League season is over, the free-agent season has taken over. Is anyone, other than Los Angeles Lakers fans, excited about Dwight Howard going to the Houston Rockets? Does the Howard signing make the Rockets a better team or will they be another average team?

I know one thing; the Lakers will be a mess again next year. They may just find themselves out of the playoffs.

Things that may only interest me

We all know that the football season is a little less than two months away, therefore now is the perfect time to sign up for a fantasy football league.

I did just that and recently had my team drafted. When I looked at my team, the first thing I noticed was Aaron Hernandez listed as my starting tight end. I quickly dropped him for obvious reasons.

• Date Taken: 07.11.2013
• Date Posted: 07.11.2013 10:48
• Story ID: 110054
• Location: FORT STEWART, GA, US