TSN Baseball Insider Steve Phillips answers several questions each week. Cheap Nike Air Jordan 3 . This weeks topics include the Colby Rasmus-Colby Lewis bunting controversy, Yu Darvish suggesting a six-man rotation and the difficulties faced by the Colorado Rockies. 1. On Saturdays game against the Texas Rangers, Toronto Blue Jays outfielder Colby Rasmus laid down a bunt in the fifth inning with nobody on base with two outs and the Jays up 2-0. The shift was on and Rasmus got a base hit. The Rangers pitcher Colby Lewis took offence with the play after the game. Did Rasmus break an unwritten rule, or was Lewis simply complaining after a loss? Bunting for a base hit with two outs in an inning and no one on base is not good baseball. In that situation, the batter should go to the plate with the intention of getting a pitch he can drive to the gap for extra bases. That means that it would only take a single to score him. When a hitter bunts for a single, it means that it will take two singles to score him from first base. The only time that it is acceptable to bunt for a hit with two outs and no one on is if the man bunting has the kind of speed and ability to steal second base even when everyone knows he is going to try. Rasmuss bunt for a hit was bad baseball. Even with a shift on and the fact that they just about gave him first base on a bunt, it isnt a good play. He certainly doesnt have the kind of base-stealing ability to justify it. So Colby Lewis was right about his evaluation of the play. It was either very selfish of Rasmus or it showed a lack of baseball knowledge. Take your pick. Neither is flattering. What I dont understand is why Lewis voiced disgust over the play. Since it was bad baseball by Rasmus, he was doing Lewis a favor. Lewis should thank Rasmus rather than criticize him. Lewis just sounds like a pitcher who has a 6.23 ERA and has given up 139 hits in 95 innings leading to a .345 opponents average. Quite honestly, what Lewis did is worse that than what Rasmus did and what Rasmus did is bad. I guess I would rather be ignorant than whiny. 2. Texas Rangers ace pitcher Yu Darvish told the Japanese media that he believed that if MLB teams switched to a six-man rotation that teams could reduce injuries to pitchers. What do you think the ideal numbers in a starting rotation are? How ironic is it that a Texas Rangers pitcher made the suggestion of going to a six-man rotation? Former team president and Hall of Fame pitcher, Nolan Ryan, is just a year removed from the franchise. It was Ryan who had suggested that the Rangers pitchers needed to work harder. He thought that the organization needed to demand more from its pitchers. He wanted guys to be like him when he played. What Ryan didnt recognize is that he was a freak of nature. Others cant do what he did. Ryan wanted to do away with pitch counts. He thinks that todays pitchers are pampered and overprotected. Pitchers arms break down from fatigue and/or poor mechanics. At one point this year, the Rangers have had eight pitchers on the disabled list and five of them have had elbow injuries, four of whom had Tommy John surgery. Nolan Ryan is no longer with the Rangers organization, but he has left a mark for sure. Darvishs recommendation of moving to a six-man rotation to protect the health of the pitchers is an understandable suggestion. In Japan, teams typically play six games per week and starters make one start per week. It certainly has worked for him. One of the major adjustments for Japanese pitchers coming to the States is their ability to handle the workload. Masahiro Tanaka got off to a great start with the Yankees, but unfortunately he couldnt handle the rigors of a five-man rotation and tore his ulna collateral ligament in his elbow. I think a five-man rotation is sufficient. A six-man rotation would mean that there would be one fewer position player or reliever on the roster. This would tie the hands of the manager far too much to be functional. Adding a sixth starter would also drive payrolls higher, as starters make more money than relievers and utility bench players. The next suggestion will be to expand the rosters, adding three players. The MLBPA would support the addition of major league jobs, but owners would reject it as it would drive payroll budgets even higher. The answer isnt to add another starter - it is to better manage the innings of the five in the rotation. Managers need to trust their middle relievers to soak up innings. They need to make fewer pitching changes and trust that a pitcher who has one solid inning of work can keep pitching for a second inning. 3. The Colorado Rockies are poised to miss the playoffs yet again and now there are rumblings that their two star players – who are both under long-term deals – Troy Tulowitzki and Carlos Gonzalez are open to being moved. If you ran the Rockies, how would you try to the turn this franchise around? The Rockies have the toughest path to long-term winning because of playing in the high altitude of the Rocky Mountains. Coors Field is a hitters dream come true and a pitchers nightmare. It is also so dramatically different than playing on the road that it almost feels like a different sport. Hitters stats drop significantly almost across the board away from Coors Filed. At home, pitchers have to cope with the reality that they are going to give up more hits and home runs and it is okay. Baseball is a mental game. The mind can play tricks on players. The roller coaster of emotions takes a toll to the point that players dont know which direction they are going. It takes a special breed to play in Colorado. The Rockies have been able to configure winning teams here and there, but the inability to sustain success will forever be a trademark of this franchise. There swing of the emotional pendulum at home and on the road is so tiring that it will be nearly impossible to consistently win. The key to winning in Colorado is to have strike-throwing, ground-ball pitchers. It is also critical to have a solid defence. The idea is to not give the opposition free passes on the bases or extra outs in a game. Because every at-bat can be an extra-base hit at Coors Field, runners are in scoring position when they are on first base. It is critical to make the opposition earn every base runner and run that they get. Offensively, contact hitters are critical because, every time a hitter makes contact, they have a chance to do something impactful. I would not trade Tulowitzki or Gonzalez. As soon as the Rockies get more competitive, they are going to wish they had them. They are both extraordinary defensive players and impactful offensive studs. A trade is not the answer. Their best chance to win in Colorado is to stockpile pitchers and hope to catch lightning in a bottle with a couple of them. They need to have at least 20 major league-ready pitchers every year because of the mental toll of pitching at Coors Field. They need a full-time sports psychologist to aid in keeping the pitchers sane. Ballplayers like stats. Pitchers hate to give up runs. They try to miss bats when they give up hits and runs. Rockies pitchers need to understand that giving up five runs over six innings may be a successful result, despite what the stats may say. The key for the Rockies will be to keep their successful pitchers. If a guy shows he can handle the stress of performing at Coors Field, they need to secure him for the long term. The Rockies are fighting an uphill battle because of the nature of their stadium. That isnt going to change. So they need to change the thinking of their players as to what is success. They will win again at some point, but I think it will be very difficult to win year after year. -- This weekend is the induction ceremony for the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, NY. It is a big year for the Hall. Bobby Cox, Tony LaRussa and Joe Torre, three of the games best managers ever, are being enshrined. So too are Tom Glavine, Greg Maddux and Frank Thomas. It will certainly be a weekend to remember. Bryant Gumbel from HBOs Real Sports made a really good point this week about the contradiction that exists in Cooperstown, particulary around Tony LaRussas induction. Gumbel said, “La Russa is being honored for guiding teams he managed to 2,728 wins — a total that ranks third in baseball history. But heres the rub — about 43 percent of all of those wins were recorded when La Russa was managing Mark McGwire and winning because of his prodigious power. Thats the same Mark McGwire who has been denied inclusion in the Hall because voters believe that prodigious power owed a great deal to steroids. By what logic can the guardians of the Hall vilify McGwire for his pharmaceutically assisted feats — yet glorify La Russa, who benefitted most from those same feats — and who, by the way, conveniently played dumb while his slugger morphed into the Incredible Hulk?" Now the same could be said about Joe Torre, too. He had multiple players tied to PEDs over the years. I would add that Tom Glavine and Greg Maddux and Bobby Cox won a ton of games over the years with some PED-users on their teams, too. Isnt there some amount of shame for all of this years inductees? Now, you can make the argument that all of this years inductees had to overcome cheaters to earn their success, as well. The reality is that all of them, in some way, were impacted by steroid-users, one way or another. So why discriminate? The Hall of Fame is a museum that documents the history of the game. In every era of baseball, performance was enhanced in one way or another. Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig, two iconic Yankees never faced the best African American players of their time. Didnt that enhance their performance? Isnt there some shame in the segregation and discrimination that existed in that era? The mound was lowered in the early 70s to increase offence. Didnt that enhance performance? In the 70s, baseball introduced the designated hitter. Doesnt that mean that, every season prior to that, a pitchers performance was enhanced as they didnt have to face line-ups of the same strength? I could go on and on with examples which changes the balance of power in the game. The Hall of Fame needs to induct all worthy players based upon their production. They need to document the era by inclusion and then explanation, not by exclusion. This weekend has a chance to be one of the best ever in Cooperstown, but it could be so much better. Air Jordan 3 Discount . During the furious first few hours of free agency Tuesday, the team agreed to terms with strong safety Donte Whitner, a Cleveland native who cant wait to play in his hometown. Air Jordan 3 Wholesale . The ninth-seeded Safarova doused Swede Johanna Larsson 6-2, 6-3 on the green clay at Family Circle Tennis Center. The Czech player was a finalist here two years ago and captured back-to-back doubles titles in 2012 and last year. http://www.cheapairjordan3.net/ .com) - No Sidney Crosby, no problem.LAKE FOREST, Ill. -- The Chicago Bears were already losing games. Now theyre going to be without their most important players on both sides of the ball. Injured quarterback Jay Cutler will miss at least the next four weeks of the season and Pro Bowl linebacker Lance Briggs will be out for around six weeks, staggering blows for a struggling team. The Bears announced the news Monday, a day after Cutler suffered a muscle tear in his groin during a 45-41 loss to the Washington Redskins, forcing the Bears to go with veteran Josh McCown. Briggs left the game with a small fracture in his left shoulder. Neither player will need surgery. "Theyre not done," coach Marc Trestman said. "Theyre going to be back (this season)." Pro Bowl cornerback Charles Tillman also left the game with a knee injury as Chicago (4-3) lost for the third time in four games. The Bears are off this week, but with the injuries mounting, their season could be slipping away from them. The defence has been hit particularly hard in recent weeks, and with Cutler out, itll be veteran McCown lining up behind centre as they try to keep up with Green Bay and Detroit in the NFC North. Cutler came up clutching the top of his left leg following a sack by 333-pound nose tackle Chris Baker with about 10 minutes left in the first half. He stayed down for a few minutes and eventually limped off the field. "They said this is a minimum four weeks and then well evaluate it week to week," Trestman said. "Based on the history -- I talked to the doctors this morning -- of this injury, four weeks is a reasonable start and that it would be week to week." The Bears insisted Cutler will return this season. "Unless theres a complication during his rehab, with the injury that he has that Im certain hell be back at some point," general manager Phil Emery said. Where Cutler will be next season remains to be seen, given his expiring contract. Its the second time in three years that he will miss a significant chunk of time, after suffering a season-ending injury in 2011. Emery said he doesnt see a pattern. As for how this injury will impact contract negotiations with Cutler after the season, he wouldnt discuss that. "Theres no reason to because its not the here-and-now," Emery said. The here-and-now has the Bears forced to go with McCown, hoping he can at least keep them afloat while Cutler recuperates. He entered Sundays game at Washington in the second quarter, seeing his first game action since the 2011 season. He completed 14 of 20 passes for 204 yards, including a 7-yard touchdown pass to Martellus Bennett that gave his team a 41-38 lead with 3:57 to play. MMcCown looked understandably rusty in his first few plays, but he did put Chicago in position to win the shootout with the Redskins. Air Jordan 3 Retro China. The Bears will need more of the same if theyre going to have a chance of winning their next game at Green Bay on a Monday night following the bye, not to mention beating Detroit the following week. They didnt fare well the last time they went an extended period without Cutler. After he broke his thumb two years ago, the Bears dropped five of six following a 7-3 start in a collapse that cost general manager Jerry Angelo his job. Back then, Caleb Hanie struggled in a big way. The Bears then turned to McCown, who had been coaching high school football in North Carolina, late in the season. They have more weapons now with Brandon Marshall, Alshon Jeffery and Bennett, not to mention a rebuilt offensive line and a system thats geared more to quick, high-percentage passes than what they were running under Mike Martz. "Especially in this league where the quarterback drives the ship, I dont know if youre ever ready to handle losing your starting quarterback," McCown said. "But I think the structure is in place and the emphasis has been put on individuals to do their job and do their part. If we continue to get that, and we felt like we got that yesterday, it allows the quarterback to step in there, whether its Jay or myself, to function and play, because guys are going to be coached to be where they are supposed to be and do what theyre supposed to do." With Cutler out, Chicago is bringing in Jordan Palmer to back up McCown. The Bears were one injury away from having receiver Earl Bennett line up behind centre because they only carry two quarterbacks. Emery said that wont change. He also said the Bears are looking to bring in a veteran with Briggs injured. And just for the record, Brian Urlacher is not a candidate. Emery shot down that idea, pointing out that the former star middle linebacker filed his retirement papers before the season and received his termination pay. He also said the Bears wont make a trade simply because of the injuries, even though they have some big holes to fill. They lost defensive tackle Henry Melton, his replacement, Nate Collins, and middle linebacker D.J. Williams to season-ending knee injuries. With Briggs out, rookie Jon Bostic or veteran James Anderson figure to call plays and rookie Khaseem Greene will likely get more playing time. "Weve worked trades here the last couple of weeks, we just havent found the correct combination of value and player exchange," Emery said. NOTE: To make room for Palmer, Emery said the Bears released TE Steve Maneri. ' ' '