Heard in the Cheap Seats

Due to the inactivity here at “Heard in the Cheap Seats” this would probably be better suited as a 4 Sunday’s Smattering–but we’ll stick with this week for the sake of tradition.

I picked a good week to make my triumphant return with MLB trade season kicking into high gear, NBA free agency, and of course the Brett Favre soap opera.

So here it goes…

Favre Forgoes Retirement (for now): In what has become a yearly ritual, Brett Favre has once again handcuffed the Green Bay Packer organization and sent his loyal fan base into a dizzying frenzy.  The latest word is that the Packers will not honor Favre’s request for unconditional release. And why should they?

I have great respect for what Brett Favre has been able to accomplish both as a football player and as a person. However, this constant waffling has to stop. He owes it to the fan base that dedicated so many years braving the frigid Green Bay winters to watch him play.  He owes it to Aaron Rodgers.  Most importantly, he owes it to an organization that was home to his storied career.

Brett: do us all a favor and have a little bit of conviction in your decisions.  It’s the least you can do.

Monkey See, Monkey Do in NL Central: In a very tight NL Central race, the Brewers and Cubs upped the ante with the additions of C.C. Sabathia to the Brew Crew and Rich Harden to the Cubbies.  With Sabathia and Sheets at the top of the rotation, the Brewers are a formidable bunch.  But does that duo top the pitching prowess of Harden and Zambrano? Each new acquisition comes with an inherent risk–Sabathia’s weight and Harden’s injury-plagued past.  But with enormous upside, these were moves the teams had to make.  From top to bottom, I still think the Cubs’ rotation is deeper and will propel them to the NL Central title.

Brand New Sixer: As a Sixers fan, this was my favorite story line of the week.  It what may turn out to be one of the biggest free-agent coups in recent memory, the Sixers nabbed Elton Brand from Hollywood when he appeared destined to five more year of Clipper futility.  Earlier this year, I wrote about how the Sixers had many of the building blocks in place to build a championship team, but that they lacked the ability to score in the half court set.  The move to acquire Brand immediately solves that need and provides some much needed front-court toughness.  Will the Sixers contend in 2009?  Probably not.  But with a dead-eye shooter and a year more maturity, 2010 is looking pretty promising.