Should a man be judge by what he might or might not able to do or should he be judged by what he did do? Should it matter against whom he did it or should it only matter that he did it?

Andrew Luck, Robert Griffin III, Trent Richardson, Justin Blackmon, and Tyrann Mathieu. Those are the names that dominated the college football landscape this season. Most, if not all, of these players will go on to great NFL careers. However, there is something to be said for the student-athlete who chooses to stay 4 years and in the process gives his school 4 years of consistent reliable productivity. They deserve recognition for their achievements even if they don’t go on to great NFL careers. Here is a look at some record setting players without regard to their NFL potential.

All conversations involving NCAA football records this year have to start with Case Keenum. Even though his Houston Cougars lost their first game of the season and their BCS hopes Keenum became the only player in NCAA history to pass for more than 5,000 yards in a season 3 times. He has already broke the career passing yards and TDs records by throwing for more than 18,600 yds and tossing 152 TDs. He has one final game to add to those totals. Also putting up some really impressive passing marks is Boise State’s Kellen Moore.  Moore has amassed more than 14,300 passing yds, 140 TD passes and has 49 career wins, most ever by a quarterback. Russell Wilson also moved into 8th place all time with 107 career passing TDs by throwing 3 in Wisconsin’s win over Michigan State in the inaugural Big Ten championship game.

Montee Ball has scored 32 times on the ground this season adding 6 receiving TDs giving him a season total of 38, one shy of Barry Sanders record with the Rose Bowl still to play. Two things we need to note here, one is Ball has not played in the 4th quarter of 6 of Wisconsin’s 13 games this year. The other is that Barry Sanders Bowl game stats are not included in his total of 39 total TDs. Sanders scored 5 rushing TDs giving him a 13 game (12 regular season and 1 bowl game) total of 44.  This is not an attempt to minimize what Montee Ball has accomplished, I’m simply pointing out a fact that most people don’t realize that in 1988 (the year Sanders set the bar for rushing) bowl game statistics were not counted in a players statistical totals. Ball’s season is easily among the best single season rushing seasons in the history of college football.

Collin Klein who runs the offense at K-State has scored 26 times on the ground this season, one TD shy of Ricky Dobbs record by a QB of 26 set in 2009. Klein will face the #8 Arkansas Razorbacks who have struggled against mobile quarterbacks so Klein looks as though he may tie or even set a new scoring mark.  The virtually unknown Bernard Pierce, a running back for the Temple Owls, has scored 25 times this season which puts him in the top 10 all time in rushing TDs in a season and he looks to increase that total when his Owls take on the Cowboys of Wyoming in the Gildon New Mexico Bowl on December 17th.

Although OU’s top receiver Ryan Broyles missed the last part of his senior season he has left a permanent mark on college football. He has made 349 career receptions during his 4 years in Norman giving him a comfortable lead over the second most of 316 (Taylor Stubblefield, Purdue, 01-04). His 4,586 receiving yards ranks 2nd only to Trevor Insley’s 5,005 (Nevada, 96-99), and his 45 career TD receptions gives him the 4th most in the history of college football.

Broyles isn’t the only receiver capping off a record setting season. Tyron Carrier of Houston has set the school record and ranks 3rd all-time in NCAA history with 311 career receptions, just 5 from tying and 6 from putting him in 2nd place all time with one final game game against Penn State in the TicketCity Bowl on January 2nd. Kendall Wright has hauled in 295 receptions over his 4 years at Baylor easily giving him the school record and placing him in the top 10 all time and will most likely be adding to his total on December 29th when he takes the field with Heisman winner Robert Griffin III in the Alamo Bowl.

There is a tackling machine in college football but because he doesn’t play in the SEC and his team was never in the national title hunt he seems to be playing in anonymity. Let me introduce you to Luke Kuechly, a linebacker who controls the middle of the defense for Boston College. Sure he’s on several All-America lists but can you honestly say when you read his name that you thought, “Good choice, he really deserves that.” Or was it more like, “Who is that?” This year he registered 191 total tackles giving him a 3 year career total of 532 total tackles in just 38 games, that’s an average of exactly 14 total tackles per game. The NCAA record for career total tackles is 545 by 4 year starter Tim McGarigle (Northwestern, 02-05). Kuechly will easily set a new NCAA record assuming he stays and remains healthy for his senior season.

One could argue that some of these records were set against great competition and some against not so great but at the end of the day a record is a record. Each individual mentioned lined up with the same intentions as everyone else who played on those fall Saturdays, to beat the man lined up against them. These men did so more often and with greater success than just about anyone else who has ever doned a college football uniform.

Derrell Johnson-Koulianos still has half a season to play and is currently on pace to lead the team in receptions and receiving yards for the fourth straight season. In the 120 year history of Iowa Hawkeye football program only Jim Gibbons (1955-1957), Tim Dwight (1995-1997), and Derrell Johnson-Koulianos have led the team in receptions and receiving yards 3 times. If he is able to lead the Hawkeyes again he would be the only Iowa Hawkeye receiver in team history to lead his team in receptions  and receiving yards for 4 years. Ricky Stanzi knows that he has a big time receiver, the question is do the Hawkeye’s remaining opponents?

American League

Every year there is a player or two who comes out of nowhere and makes a big impact not just on their team but in the league. For the second straight year the Blue Jays have given us that player. Yes, Jose Bautista will turn 30 next week but until two or even three months into the season I bet, if asked, you couldn’t have told anyone who he was. Prior to this year, 2007 was unquestionably his best season with 75 runs, 15 homers, 63 rbi, 6 stolen bases, and a .254 batting average. The numbers he put up this year earned him the 2010 Fantasy Baseball AL Most Valuable Player. His totals from this year are 109 runs (5th in AL), 54 home runs (1st), 124 rbi (3rd), he also stole 9 bases, batted .260 and was 3rd in the AL with a .995 OPS. Out of the possible 500 points that every player can get Bautista ranked the highest with 390.31. This wasn’t even a race. Second and third went to Miguel Cabrera (366.96) and Carl Crawford (354.85).

National League

It seems that Pujols starts every season with the MVP trophy and someone has to earn it away from him. That might be the toughest thing to do in baseball but this year Carlos Gonzalez proved himself capable. It seems every year we hear from scouts and “experts” about the newest can’t miss 5-tool player yet so many of these prospects never fulfill their potential. Carlos Gonzalez has shown us why these scouts continue to love these 5-tool athletes. When they do make it to the show and reach their potential they are the kind of player a team can build a championship contender around. Gonzalez was among the NL leaders in all 5 fantasy categories; 111 runs (3rd), 34 homers (4th), 117 rbi (2nd), 26 steals (tied 11th), .336 batting average (1st) and .974 OPS (3rd).

Cy Youngs

American League

Just like with last years Fantasy AL Cy Young winner (Zack Greinke 16-8, 2.16 ERA) if Felix Hernandez had played for the Yankees or Rays he would have had 23 plus wins but thats why you have to look at all the numbers when analyzing a pitcher’s performance. King Felix was actually better than he was last year when he won 19 games, had an ERA of 2.47 and struck out 217 batters. Despite pitching better than that he went 13-12. This year the 24-year old Hernandez posted a 2.27 ERA over 249 2/3 innings and struck out 232 batters. In 9 of his 34 starts Hernandez went 7 or more innings, allowed 2 ER or less and his team lost. He also had 9 no-decision in which he went 65 2/3 innings and allowed only 13 ER, thats an ERA of 1.78. In his 13 wins this season Hernandez pitched 103 2/3 innings allowed only 10 ER, for an ERA of 0.87. Hopefully this kind of lack of offensive support won’t ruin what looks to be a very productive career.

National League

A true old fashioned workhorse. The spotlight of the playoffs didn’t seem to affect Roy Halladay, it only made him better. Halladay led all of baseball with 250 2/3 innings pitched and was tied with C. C. Sabathia for most wins with 21.   On May 29th of this year in Florida Halladay was given a one run lead and thats all he would need as he tossed a perfect game in front of a seemingly empty Sun Life Stadium. In only 5 of his 33 starts did Halladay fail to pitch 7 full innings and for the 4th consecutive year lead all of baseball in complete games with 9. For the second straight year Adam Wainwright finishes second. Roy Halladay’s Cy Young score of 329.59 was just a bit better than Wainwright’s, 322.01.

The one difference between the AL and NL selections is I have selected 7 Outfielders and 1 DH.  

Starters:

*Jon Lester, Boston Red Sox

David Price, Tampa Bay Rays

Jered Weaver, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim

Justin Verlander, Detroit Tigers

C. C. Sabathia, New York Yankees

Colby Lewis, Texas Rangers

Andy Pettitte, New York Yankees

Closers:

Jose Valverde, Detroit Tigers

Mariano Rivera, New York Yankees

Rafael Soriano, Tampa Bay Rays

Neftali Feliz, Texas Rangers

Catchers:

*Mike Napoli, Los Angeles Angels Of Anaheim

**Victor Martinez, Boston Red Sox

John Buck, Toronto Blue Jays

***Kurt Suzuki, Oakland Athletics

First Base:

*Miguel Cabrera, Detroit Tigers

Kevin Youkilis, Boston Red Sox

Paul Konerko, Chicago White Sox

Second Base:

*Robinson Cano, New York Yankees

**Dustin Pedroia, Boston Red Sox

Howard Kendrick, Los Angeles Angels Of Anaheim

***Ty Wigginton, Baltimore Orioles

Third Base:

*Evan Longoria, Tampa Bay Rays

Michael Young, Texas Rangers

Adrian Beltre, Boston Red Sox

Shortstop:

*Derek Jeter, New York Yankees

Alex Gonzalex, Toronto Blue Jays

Elvis Andrus, Texas Rangers

Outfield:

*Josh Hamilton, Texas Rangers

*Alex Rios, Chicago White Sox

*Carl Crawford, Tampa Bay Rays

Jose Bautista, Toronto Blue Jays

Vernon Wells, Toronto Blue Jays

Shin-Soo Choo, Cleveland Indians

Torii Hunter, Los Angeles Angeles Of Anaheim

Designated Hitter:

*Vladimir Guerrero, Texas Rangers

*Denotes Starter

**Selected but injured

***Replacement for injured

My FantasyAll-Star teams will have the same number of players as the real All-Star teams, 34. I will choose the 7 best starters from each league to go along with the 4 top closers then I will select the top 3 players at each infield position and the top 8 (NL) , 7 (AL) outfielders and 1 DH in the AL . Thus giving both the NL and AL squads the same number of All-Stars at each position. As always these selections are based 100% on their fantasy rankings. My opinion of an individuals season vs. his peers plays no part in the selection of these teams.

National League

Starters:

*Ubaldo Jimenez, Colorado Rockies

Adam Wainwright, St. Louis Cardinals

Josh Johnson, Florida Marlins

Roy Halladay, Philadelphia Phillies

Tim Lincecum, San Francisco Giants

Yovani Gallardo, Milwaukee Brewers

Chris Carpenter, St. Louis Cardinals

Closers:

Billy Wagner, Atlanta Braves

Heath Bell, San Diego Padres

Jonathan Broxton, Los Angeles Dodgers

Brian Wilson, San Francisco Giants

Catcher:

*Miguel Olivo, Colorado Rockies

Brian McCann, Atlanta Braves

Rod Barajas, New York Mets

First Base:

*Joey Votto, Cincinnati Reds

Albert Pujols, St. Louis Cardinals

Ryan Howard, Philadelphia Phillies

Second Base:

*Rickie Weeks, Miwaukee Brewers

Dan Uggla, Florida Marlins

Brandon Phillips, Cincinnati Reds

Third Base:

*David Wright, New York Mets

Mark Reynolds, Arizona Diamondbacks

Scott Rolen, Cincinnati Reds

Shortstop:

*Hanley Ramirez, Florida Marlins

Jose Reyes, New York Mets

**Troy Tulowitzki, Colorado Rockies

***Juan Uribe, San Francisco, Giants

Outfield:

*Corey Hart, Milwaukee Brewers

*Shane Victorino, Philadelphia Phillies

*Colby Rasmus, St. Louis Cardinals

Chris Young, Arizona Diamondbacks

Justin Upton, Arizona Diamondbacks

Ryan Braun, Milwaukee Brewers

Matt Kemp, Los Angeles Dodgers

Jayson Werth, Philadelphia Phillies

*Denotes Starter

**Selected but injured

***Replacement for injured

We are almost one-third of the way through this season and we’ve already had a full season’s worth of accomplishments. A-Rod has moved up to 7th on the all-time home runs list, Jamie Moyer humbly became the oldest pitcher to throw a complete game shutout at the age of 47, 3 no-hitters 2 of those were perfect games, a home run celebration gone horribly wrong (sorry Kendry Morales owners) and one of the best starts to a season by a starting pitcher in the history of baseball.

The league, even though it may be temporary, has seen a shift in the standings thus far with the Red Sox in 4th in the AL East behind 3rd place (not a type-o) Toronto, Oakland is leading the AL West, Atlanta is a half game up on the Phils, the Reds are tied with the Cards for the NL Central lead and San Diego is on top of the NL West. Things are shaping to be an interesting 4 months for the boys of summer. 

Instead of doing an All-Fantasy Team like last month here are the top 5 fantasy players for each position thus far…as Matthew Berry of ESPN.com likes to say don’t look at the name look at the stats and if you want to argue with the list then you’re arguing based on perception not reality.

C

Rod Barajas, New York Mets  22-11-30-0-.269

Miguel Olivo, Colorado Rockies  22-8-25-4-.307

Mike Napoli, Los Angeles Angels Of Anaheim  17-8-19-3-.271

John Buck, Toronto Blue Jays  18-8-26-0-.259

Victor Martinez, Boston Red Sox  22-7-24-0-.257

1B

Miguel Cabrera, Detroit Tigers  33-14-48-2-.344

Albert Pujols, St Louis Cardinals  31-12-39-3-.316

Justin Morneau, Minnesota Twins  35-11-36-0-.377

Kevin Youkilis, Boston Red Sox  45-10-29-1-.298

Joey Votto, Cincinnati Reds  29-10-33-6-.312

2B

Robinson Cano, New York Yankees  37-11-40-2-.363

Kelly Johnson, Arizona Diamondbacks  35-12-25-5-.275

Dan Uggla, Florida Marlins  36-12-31-1-.268

Ty Wigginton, Baltimore Orioles  23-13-32-0-.288

Chase Utley, Philadelphia Phillies  35-10-24-2-.277

3B

Evan Longoria, Tampa Bay Rays  35-10-42-10-.323

Jose Bautista, Toronto Blue Jays  37-16-41-3-.251

Mark Reynolds, Arizona Diamondbacks  33-12-39-3-.225

David Wright, New York Mets  24-8-34-9-.258

Alex Rodriguez, New York Yankees  30-7-41-2-.294

SS

Alex Gonzalez, Toronto Blue Jays  30-11-32-1-.265

Troy Tulowitzki, Colorado Rockies  39-6-26-3-.312

Hanley Ramirez, Florida Marlins  28-8-26-6-.295

Derek Jeter, New York Yankees  32-5-31-5-.302

Elvis Andrus, Texas Rangers  35-0-13-18-.311

OF

Alex Rios, Toronto Blue Jays  32-11-27-16-.312

Ryan Braun, Milwaukee Brewers  39-8-33-11-.318

Matt Kemp, Los Angeles Dodgers  42-10-30-7-.285

Vernon Wells, Toronto Blue Jays  34-13-36-2-.305

Carl Crawford, Tampa Bay Rays  38-4-24-16-.315

Carlos Gonzalez, Colorado Rockies  34-7-33-7-.309

Shane Victorino, Philadelphia Phillies  29-8-33-11-.258

DH

Vladimir Guerrero, Texas Rangers  29-12-44-4-.332

SP

Ubaldo Jimenez, Colorado Rockies  10-0.78-70-0-0.90

Adam Wainwright, St Louis Cardinals  7-2.28-77-0-1.01

Roy Halladay, Philadelphia Phillies  7-1.99-70-0-0.99

Jon Lester, Boston Red Sox  6-2.97-77-0-1.13

Tim Lincecum, San Francisco Giants  5-3.14-83-0-1.19

CP

Jose Valverde, Detroit Tigers  1-0.44-16-11-0.92

Jonathan Broxton, Los Angeles Dodgers  3-1.16-35-13-0.90

Rafael Soriano, Tampa Bay Rays  2-1.33-16-14-0.84

Get ready baseball fans because this is when the season really starts to get fun. Division races start to take shape and we seperate the men from the boys. Who has the staying power?

Strasburg signed a 4 yr $15.1 million contract. When that contract expires the Nationals will hold the rights to Strasburg for 3 more years.  This is where things can get confusing. If the Nationals had Stephen Starasburg on their opening day roster he would be eligible for unrestricted (free to negotiate and sign with any MLB team) free agency after 6 years with the Nats. But by waiting to bring him up until June 2010  after his sixth year with the Nats he will only have 5 2/3 yrs of MLB service time which means the Nationals still have his rights for one more year because in order to be eligible for unrestricted free agency a player must have 6 full years on a MLB 25-man roster or DL. So essentially the Nationals, by waiting til June to call him up, get to keep Strasburg until 2016 instead of through 2015.

So how does that save the Nationals money? Salary arbitration. When Strasburg’s current 4 yr deal is up at the end of  2013 the Nationals will still have his rights for 3 more years. This is where the Nats gain the most from waiting for June to call him up. Since Strasburg won’t have 6 full MLB seasons he will not be eligible for free agency. Strasburg’s agent, Scot Boras, will undoubtably want more money than the Nats will agree to. Thus, the Nationals and Scot Boras will each submit a contract with yrs (almost certainly a 3 yr deal) and salary terms to a MLB assigned arbitrator and the arbitrator will select one of the two contracts based on which offer is closest to the salaries of players with similar ability and service time. 

On the other side of the equation is the Braves and Jason Heyward. Since Heyward started this season on the Braves opening day roster the Braves have his rights for 6 years. So at the completion of the 2015 season if the Braves don’t have him signed to a longer deal Heyward will be an unrestricted free agent. Pretty straight forward.

On the other hand the Nationals are saying we think this kid is going to be a great pitcher and we are willing to trade the first two months of his rookie year in order to guarantee that we have him for that extra 7th year when he’ll be 28 (traditionally in the prime of a baseball players career).

Those are the things that GM’s and owners spend hours of sleepless nights muling over when dealing with young talent. When to bring big league talent to the big leagues, that is the question.

In 135 years of playing professional baseball 391,362 games have been played. 782,724 indivdual chances at throwing a perfect game. Only 19 times has the dream been realized. That’s 1 perfect game every 7.1 years.  Since the American League adopted the DH there have been 7 perfect games thrown against teams with a DH vs. 3 against National League teams (no DH). Try to explain that.

There have been 265 no-hitters in baseball history. Of those 265 only 7.2 percent (19) were perfect games. A perfect game is just that, PERFECT. A walk, a hit batsman, an error, a wild pitch or pass ball on a swinging third strike are just some of the possiblities that could cause a pitcher to lose a perfect game and settle for a no-hitter.

The only feats rarer for an indivdual to accomplish in a single game is 4 home runs (15 times) and an unassisted triple play (15 times).

The greatest thing about sports is that on any given day anyone at any level can accomplish anything. Because of his performance on May 9, 2010 Dallas Braden will forever have a spot in the Hall Of Fame. Congradulations Dallas!

C- Miguel Olivo, Colorado Rockies  12-5-13-1-.279

1B-Paul Konerko, Chicago White Sox  15-12-24-0-.286

2B-Robinson Cano, New York Yankees  23-9-21-2-.371

3B-Evan Longoria, Tampa Bay Rays  23-6-19-4-.347

SS-Alex Gonzalez, Toronto Blue Jays  16-8-21-1-.280

OF-Ryan Braun, Milwaukee Brewers  19-5-20-6-.354

OF-Matt Kemp, Los Angeles Dodgers  23-7-20-3-.289

OF-Vernon Wells, Toronto Blue Jays  21-8-19-1-.327

This is a purely statistical analysis. This in no way reflects my personal opinions. I plug in the numbers and they speak for themselves. While reviewing my pre-season rankings I found what I believe to be a flaw in my ranking system so I scrapped it and started over and this is the newest version which, as of now, I believe to be the most objective way for me to rank players.

Now lets say he told you that you would have to work those 162 days between the first Monday in April (April 5th this year) and the first Monday in October (October 4th this year). Thats 162 days of work during a 183 day stretch.

Then he adds that you will spend 81 days at your current office (not consecutively though) and the other 81 days of work will be spent between 16 offices in 16 different cities in all 4 time zones throughout the US. This will include 35 flights ranging from an hour to a 5 hour and 30 minute non stop cross-country flight.

During that 6 months and 1 week you will get between 2-4 days off per month. If you are an average employee you will get 4 days off in a row the second week of July. If you’re selected as an outstanding employee you will get to travel to a 2 day all expenses paid getaway where you will get to demonstrate your superior skills and that could earn you bonus money.

If you complete your 162 days of work to the companies satisfaction you will be released from your duties until the first week of the following March at which time you will go through 1 month of training and re-familiarizing yourself with the job.

Repeat…

The average worker for this company lasts 5.6 years and 20% (1 in 5)  only lasts 1 yr in the business. About 1% last 20 yrs in the business with the longest anyone has ever worked is 27 years.

By now it’s probably obvious to most that I am describing a baseball player’s year. While all would-be ball players know about the stress of life on the road before they get in a position where they can play professionally it doesn’t make it any less rigorous. Money aside, would you really be willing to trade your comparatively cushy 40-50 hour a week job for life on the road as a ballplayer?…Not that any teams are interested!!