7:05 :: MASN2 :: 89° SSE 11 MPH :: Rain: 10%

	Today's Starting Pitchers	GS	IP	ERA	WHIP	BAA	HR	BB	K	W-L
	Armando Galarraga - RH - #58	15 (16)	93.2	3.27	1.20	.214	10	37	62	7-3
	Jeremy Guthrie - RH - #46	20	129.0	3.49	1.19	.239	15	37	83	5-7

Source: Dan Rafael

From the Dan Rafael story at ESPN.com:

Unable to secure a meaningful opponent to wage a middleweight championship defense against in the fall, Kelly Pavlik will move up in weight and face former light heavyweight champion and middleweight champion Bernard Hopkins, Top Rank promoter Bob Arum told ESPN.com Thursday.

Arum said he and Golden Boy Promotions CEO Richard Schaefer struck a deal Thursday for the nontitle fight, which will take place Oct. 18 on HBO PPV at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, N.J.

Pavlik, 26, will move up 10 pounds and face Hopkins at 170 pounds, five under the light heavyweight limit, Arum said.

"There's a deal, but there are a few details to be tied up," Arum said. "But the fight is happening."

Well, that seems to be that. The fight will have a 50-50 revenue split, Jack Loew is saying all the nice things ("Bernard's great, this is an honor," etc.), and Arum is even admitting this isn't exactly what they wanted, but there's just nothing else out there.

Let's kind of point-counterpoint a good-bad list for this fight.

Good: This moves Mosley-Mayorga from PPV to regular HBO, and changes its date to Sept. 27. After two straight PPV weekends, it'll feel nice to not pay 50 bucks to watch Mosley wreck up Mayorga without breaking a sweat. Seriously, they thought they were going to charge us cash for this mismatch.

Bad: Seriously, they're charging us cash for a Bernard Hopkins fight. What is the last Bernard Hopkins fight that you wouldn't have minded paying money for? Hopkins-Tito? If you had paid 50 bucks for his April fight with Joe Calzaghe, wouldn't you have been disgusted with yourself? Bernard is great. He's also a butt fugly fighter with a dreadfully dull style.

Good: More attention for the 26-year old Pavlik, arguably the greatest hope for American boxing to achieve a new mainstream sort of star with the likes of Oscar and Floyd moving on. It is a major fight, perhaps the biggest of his career.

Bad: There's a real good chance Bernard Hopkins puts a dent in Pavlik's record. B-Hop can beat anyone. He won't knock Pavlik out, but as good of a puncher as Kelly is, I don't think he's knocking Bernard out, either. That means 12 rounds, and any Bernard Hopkins fight that goes 12 rounds can be won by Bernard Hopkins.

Good: The fight being made is a decent sign that we aren't yet going to enter another Top Rank-Golden Boy Cold War, as some had feared lately.

Bad: This is the best fight we get out of the Top Rank-Golden Boy ceasefire this year? Past Pacquiao-Marquez II, anyway.

Let's think about this fight, too. 43-year old Bernard Hopkins against 26-year old Kelly Pavlik.

The best thing that can happen -- for Pavlik, for boxing, for the fans -- is Kelly Pavlik knocking Hopkins out and sending him into retirement. As a fan, I don't hate Bernard Hopkins. I have the utmost respect for his talent, for his career, and for his toughness.

But it's guys like the 43-year old Hopkins that have been construction workers on the road that has led this sport to where it is. For years now, Bernard has maintained his status as an excellent fighter, a Hall of Famer-to-be, and a shrewd businessman. He's also rarely been worth the money or even time it took to watch his fights.

Bernard, because of the way he fights, is one of those guys I would never suggest a casual fan or slightly interested observer watch. And I'm not someone that thinks only slugfests or brawls are good for those fans. I've had people watch Mayweather and they're amazed by his pure speed and the way he moves. So it's not that. It's that what Bernard does isn't obvious. And it's certainly not exciting.

With the way Hopkins tired against Calzaghe, huffing and puffing his way through the last four rounds or so, it might be in Pavlik's best interest to come out and fight Bernard fairly hard for a while, and then turn up the heat and test what the old man has left in his legs and lungs. I'm betting -- because he's 43 years old -- that it's not enough.

But you know what will matter to Bernard? This fight is more money for the bank account. Once again, he's landed the big fight. Whether the paying public is interested will be another story.

7:05 :: MASN :: 90° SE 5 MPH :: Rain: 10%

	Today's Starting Pitchers	GS	IP	ERA	WHIP	BAA	HR	BB	K	W-L
	Kenny Rogers - LH - #37	19	114.2	4.55	1.52	.293	11	45	44	6-6
	Garrett Olson - LH - #18	14	73.1	5.65	1.57	.287	9	30	47	6-4

Kenny Rogers is 43 years old. Garrett Olson is 24. When Rogers was sneaking beers and partying down with JuCo co-eds, Olson was eating smushed peas. When Rogers was getting bombed in the '96 playoffs, Olson was...I dunno, probably watching that on TV.

One man is old.

The other man is young.

In one locker, there is Rogaine.

In the other, a PSP.

Who figured there would be a 1.5 game difference between the Tigers and Orioles on July 17?

Steve Kim of Max Boxing is reporting that negotiations between middleweight champion Kelly Pavlik and welterweight titleholder Paul Williams have hit a roadblock, as negotations often do, and that there is now very serious talk of Pavlik taking on 43-year old Bernard Hopkins on October 18, a fight that would be shown on HBO pay-per-view.

ANOTHER pay-per-view? Well, hang on...

There are also rumors that the proposed October 11 PPV "showdown" between Shane Mosley and punching bag Ricardo Mayorga will be moved to September 27, off of pay-per-view. The 9/27 date was originally slated for Pavlik, but HBO is wisely assuming that a great number of boxing fans will not pay to see Mayorga-Mosley instead of Showtime's double-header of Samuel Peter-Vitali Klitschko on tape delay and a live clash between Antonio Tarver and Chad Dawson.

But it has to be said again, because these things really need to be voiced by someone -- by everyone, really, since everyone has the same feeling, and it's not just you or me here.

The amount of upcoming PPV boxing is ridiculous. I'm sorry, but it is. Casamayor-Marquez and Calzaghe-Jones on back-to-back Saturdays in September, and one of these two (Pavlik-Hopkins or Mosley-Mayorga) in October? That's about $150 of pay-per-view in 30 days.

Is Bernard Hopkins really going to sell a fight? Was Shane Mosley? As great as both are, neither have been drawing cards without big-name opponents like, I dunno, Oscar de la Hoya.

Eh, what can you do? This is business as usual. Boxing fans are being gouged and wondering where we're supposed to come up with 150 extra clams to see some fights.

The 2008 Orioles have thus far surpassed almost all expectations for their season, coming out of the first "half" with a competitive 45-48 record, though that is still good for just fifth place in the AL East. To lose 100 games, as some of us thought they would this year, they would have to go 17-52 the rest of the way. Unlikely. Not outright impossible, but highly unlikely.

First Half MVP: Brian Roberts

Take out Ian Kinsler, and Brian Roberts is the best second baseman in the American League. (Even if you factor in Kinsler's brick glove, he wins, so don't start.)

Without Roberts and his .296/.375/.489 line at the top of this lineup, what do you really have? You've got two and a half guys that can hit (Markakis, Huff, and the super streaky Luke Scott) and a bunch of schmucks, only one of whom (Jones) has any real promise of getting any better than he currently is.

Who hits leadoff without Roberts? Trembley has shown a slight fear of pressing too hard on Jones. Is it Mora? Is it the shortstop du jour? The only other truly viable option in the lineup is Markakis (.401 OBP), and then who do you hit AFTER him? Mora (a recent hot spell has bolstered his OBP to a robust .302)?

Without Brian Roberts, this team is a lot worse, because the fact is that Freddie Bynum or Luis Hernandez or Brandon Fahey would be playing second base, with Cintron at short. And with Cintron hurt, that means two of those three is playing out there every day. Roberts is so massively ahead of any potential replacement that it makes Markakis-to-say, Tike Redman, look like a present for all of us.

First Half Cy Young: Jeremy Guthrie

129 innings of a 3.49 ERA and 1.19 WHIP? Sure, I'll take this scrapheap pickup that paid off in spades last season and has only continued his excellent contributions this year. 3.49/1.19 is the sort of line that has made an ace of Chien-Ming Wang, except in fact a little bit better. Guthrie is a pitcher whose repertoire and style seem to me like they forecast a long period of effective big league starting, and he is good enough to carry a staff, especially if his team would ever hit for him. For those of you oldsters with your prospector outfits, setting to head out for a hard day's mine (watch out fer chiggers!) who think win-loss records reflect a pitcher's ability, please explain his 5-7 mark. Sit down, Joe Morgan. He hasn't been "outpitched" in 3-2 games.

The real truth is that you could probably get a fairly pretty penny for the 29-year old Guthrie, whose arm hasn't been beaten on and has now shown in two straight seasons that the hype he had coming out of Stanford really did have some reasoning.

Personally, I wouldn't trade Guthrie. I wouldn't trade Roberts, either. Both of them would require packages better than you're going to get out of anyone at the trade deadline. If something massive comes up this winter, think about it. But not until then.

Should They Stay or Should They Go Now?

Who to trade? Who to keep?

I say keep Roberts, keep Guthrie (whose name hasn't come up but you have to realize he's one of our most valuable pieces), and even keep Daniel Cabrera. If nothing else, Cabrera has value in throwing 200 innings a year, which is not the easiest thing to replace. Keep obvious guys like Jones and Markakis.

Everyone else? Find a suitor. Find a dance partner. See what they've got, hear them out, decide if it's enough.

The Clash's last album (well, I wouldn't REALLY call them The Clash) was titled Cut the Crap. That's the general idea here. Millar's clubhouse prankery and general feel-good attitude is great and all, but he's become a detriment at the plate. When your first baseman is hitting .239/.331/.391, it's a problem that can't be made up for with funny novelty hats or impassioned pleas for another team to win the ALCS. Millar's a great dude, an underrated glove at first base, and I'll remember his time in Baltimore fondly when all is said and done. But I'd like all to be done soon.

Aubrey Huff is on the other side of the teeter-totter. He's hitting a healthy .284/.349/.526 with 18 homers, and had an argument for inclusion into the All-Star Game. (He was one of several more deserving Orioles than the guy who made it in.)

But Huff seems just so fluke-y this year. Look at his WARP3 totals for previous seasons (2005-2007): 3.8, 4.0, 3.7. This year? He's at 5.9, the third-best number of his career and his best since 2004 (6.4, which was preceded by 7.7). Huff's having a dynamite season.

If the Orioles cannot find a contender that wouldn't like to have a power-hitting veteran lefty bat who is comfortable DHing and can also fill either corner infield spot (and in a pinch, either corner outfield spot), then they're doing something wrong. The way he's hit, the rest of his contract looks like a bargain. I'd rather someone else take the chance that it actually will be one. The cute stories of him going out and just not thinking are great and all, but not a lot of guys have long-lasting bouncebacks starting at his age.

All-Star George Sherrill should be traded. Yeah, he's affordable, and for a little while longer. But saves are a silly stat that have overrated his real value. By VORP totals, he's the team's fourth-best reliever. He could be replaced by Jim Johnson at a moment's notice, probably, and believe it or not, Chris Ray's health doesn't much matter to me when it comes to trading Sherrill. Someone on this team will find at least a momentary home in the closer's role (believe me, it happens), and if no one really does...boo hoo? Y'all plan on going to the playoffs? A closer will happen. We'll find one. Sherrill was a non-closer that turned into a closer. Joe Borowski has racked up saves before, too. Todd Jones has done it. It's not the great art some make it out to be (though it's not the easy job some have before made it out to be, either).

The affordable part assumes Sherrill keeps on being good. Relievers are a volatile bunch, man. A guy like Sherrill has no guarantees. You can probably sell high right now -- maximum value. That might mean one troubled prospect who has stalled, or it might mean a couple fringe guys. Fine! Brian Roberts was a fringe prospect. Sometimes those guys pan out. And if they don't, then I just don't think George Sherrill is too good of a bet to factor into the next contending Orioles club to not take the risk.

I don't dislike Sherrill. In fact, I think the guy's just super. He's a fan favorite, like a lot of these guys are. But it's not like we're talking about B.J. Ryan or anything. And despite some of the Sun's more, erm, knowledgable readers/commenters, this is not the best Orioles closer since Randy Myers. Sherrill has probably pitched a little over his head in this role, and it's not been anything too special to begin with. Find a GM that cares about the number under SV on the media guide and go to town.

Or at least try. That's really all I ask.

I ain't speakin' for nobody else, just me. You're free to think George Sherrill is a hot potato, Kevin Millar's leadership is TOO INVALUABLE to trade away, and that Aubrey Huff surely will be hitting 30 homers a year for the rest of his contract. I just do not.

But whatever -- let's hope the second "half" can be as downright fun as the first one was.

Source: Dan Rafael

Welterweight Oscar Diaz, who collapsed in his corner after the 10th round of a TKO loss to Delvin Rodriguez on Wednesday night and was rushed to University Medical Center in San Antonio in critical condition, was being taken into surgery to relieve swelling on his brain early Thursday.

"He's got swelling and bleeding on the brain, he's unconscious and on a ventilator," Ron Katz of Rodriguez promoter Star Boxing told ESPN.com.>

Katz said Donna Duva Brooks of Hall of Fame Promotions, Diaz's promoter, was at the hospital with Diaz. Katz said she told him that Diaz was being taken into surgery.

"It's not good. Obviously, he's in all of our prayers," Katz said.

I can't get over watching the final moments of the fight, as the referee warned Diaz's corner that they could be putting their man at risk, followed by that pained shriek that came from Diaz before his legs betrayed him as he attempted to continue on.

None of this sounds good at all. Here's sending more good wishes to Mr. Diaz, and hoping for the best.

It was a disaster from start to finish as FOX Sports Net attempted to broadcast a pathetic rematch between washed-up heavyweights James Toney, 39, and Hasim Rahman, 35.

Toney was awarded the victory via third round TKO after Rahman was unable to continue due to a cut over his left eye.

The ringside commentators and just about anyone watching the fight were sure the cut resulted from a clash of heads. Replays confirmed this idea. Rahman was ruled as having said he couldn't continue, so whatever -- the Rahman team says they'll appeal the ruling.

More B.S. from the most B.S.-filled class in the sport. There is no other weight division that even comes close to the consistently bad fights, whining, and outright eye-rollability of the big men. Toney says he's the best heavyweight in the world; I wouldn't rank him in my top 30, probably. Rahman says he'll be back. Where? The Soaring Eagle Casino in Mt. Pleasant, Mich.?

The less these two get from this crap performance, the better. And before anyone questions me on my James Toney feelings, it's simple how I feel about him: he's cheated. Multiple times. He's been caught. He's not a legit fighter anymore, I'm sorry. He brought that on himself.

But truth be told, Toney was starting to make it a slightly interesting fight between a couple of washed-up old farts before the cut -- which did not seem as bad as the FSN team made it out -- caused the stoppage in the Rahman corner. But forget about it. If either of these two want a major fight, then give Wlad Klitschko some money to finish their careers and forget about it.

It does seem like it should have been ruled a no contest, though. The FSN team wondered if we'd see a third fight between those two. Oh, here's hoping! The first fight was a stinker of a 12-round draw and this farce went all of three rounds before a cut that would have been shrugged off by men half their size led to a stoppage. No one wants to see these two fight again. Leave it alone.

Oscar Diaz, a San Antonio welterweight, collapsed after the tenth round of his main event fight on Wednesday Night Fights, and was immediately taken to a local hospital for evaluation.

Rumors are floating around that Diaz is in "critical condition" and that it may be a brain bleed with the fighter "on a ventilator," but nothing concrete has been reported.

The scene in San Antonio was very scary, as the referee tried to get Diaz to respond to his questions. He was supported by his corner, and the referee said something like, "Nice trick. You're gonna get your fighter hurt here." Moments later, Diaz collapsed in the corner and the fight was stopped. Delvin Rodriguez was declared the winner via TKO, but that is now an afterthought.

Teddy Atlas at ringside expressed concern because of the fact that Diaz took a lot of punishment in an 11th round TKO loss to Golden Johnson in November of 2006, and had certainly taken several hard shots in this fight, which was pretty exciting and unfortunately and terribly marred by Diaz's injury.

We at Bad Left Hook sends our best wishes to Diaz and his family, and hope for a speedy recovery. Get well soon, Oscar.

The show starts live at 11pm ET on FOX Sports Net. God help us all. This sucked two years ago, and neither guy has exactly been lighting up the world since then. But again, I stick by one of my chief rules of boxing fandom. To love the great fights, you gotta watch the bad ones.

That and I'm thinking these two aging, increasingly desperate guys might just come out and throw down in an attempt to impress. It's do or die for both.

In a piece of news that I'm sure will stun you all, current light heavyweight/super middleweight world champion Joe Calzaghe is backing off of retirement talk, and holding on to at least his WBO super middleweight title (the one he's defended forever) while considering a move back down to 168 pounds after his September fight with Roy Jones, Jr.

And who's the potential opponent? Duh:

“There is no way I am going to give up my WBO title,” Calzaghe said. “I do not have a mandatory [challenger] at the moment, so I do not have to defend my title. If I beat Jones, I might move back down to super-middleweight to face Kelly Pavlik.”

Never, ever, ever take a boxer without a bucket of salt when the word "retirement" approaches. Who's ready for Floyd-Oscar II...in 2011?