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Geoff Blum will return to the Houston Astros for the 2010 season after inking a one year deal worth $1.5 million with an option for 2011 valued at $1.65 million.

Last season Blum was cast into the role as the teams starting third basemen after they let Ty Wiggington go and Aaron Boone was forced to undergo open heart surgery.

Blum responded much the way he has though the course of his career. Hitting .247/.314/.367 with 10 homers and 49 RBI in 381 at-bats.

The feeling in Houston is that the team will at-least attempt to find a fixture at third base. Last season Blum was signed to a $1.2 million deal in an attempt to ease Chris Johnson into regular playing time. Johnson however struggled at Triple-A and was unproductive at the big league level as well.

Idealy Blum is the type of player a team likes to have on the bench. Though stretched at second and short at this point in his career he’s still able to be penciled in at those positions and should the situation arise he’s got experience in the outfield.

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Halloween on a Saturday, what a crappy thing to do to college football. Perhaps I’ll catch the end of the Texas game…

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In case you haven’t seen all the headlines floating around. The question of when will the Titans start Vince Young has been laid to rest. After starting the season 0-6 with Kerry Collins the Titans have opted to put Vince Young back as their starting quarterback. Whose call was this will be asked as owner Bud Adams said he wanted Young to start while head coach Jeff Fisher had remained true to Kerry Collins despite his struggles.

Here’s all the proof you need.

Google News

ESPN Report

USA Report from the Tennessean

I could link to all the other reports out there but they pretty much say the same thing.

I don’t know what success if any Vince will have but considering the team is 0-6 and out of the playoff picture already does it really matter if Jeff Fisher thought Kerry Collins gave the team a better chance to win? After they got stomped 59-0 in their last game against New England that should have been a clear sign to anyone that something needs to change.

I respect Jeff Fisher for I think he’s done wonders for the Titans franchise but if he was playing for wins this season going forward I have to scratch my head. This is hypothetical here, If Tennessee wins 5-6 games this season with Kerry Collins are they any better then if they had of won 3-4 games with Vince Young and at least seen what if anything he has to offer going forward?

Collins is 36, Young is 26. Collins has proven to be a statue in the pocket and for the course of his career has pretty much been a below league average QB. On the flip side Young didn’t prove anything when his career started but isn’t it worth seeing if there’s anything in the guy you drafted third overall in 2006, a guy you committed $25.8 million in guaranteed money to?

It’s been stated that Young could be gone following the season. Then again Kerry Collins is almost certainly gone and Jeff Fisher probably has burns on the back of his legs by now.

All I’m saying is you are 0-6 at worst you are 0-7 following Sunday’s game. You’re coming off a 59-0 defeat so things can’t be any worse.

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I recently took the time to write an article over at Fan Huddle detailing what the resigning of Tim Hudson means to the Braves. Obviously one of their starting pitchers must go due to financial reasons so I listed the highs and lows of each.

The Braves have three pitchers who are on the trade block this winter. For the money owed to Lowe, the success of Vazquez last season versus his track record and the uncertainty that Kawakami is a 30-plus start pitcher in the majors it figures to be an interesting winter for the Braves.

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Jimmy Johnson gets in one of those groves that you just can’t define. Whether it’s luck, tracks he’s good at or good ole’ fashioned cheating the driver of the Lowe’s Chevrolet is easily on his way to his fourth straight Championship, a feat that I have a tough time uncomprehending when you think of how guys like Petty, Earnhardt and Gordon won their titles.

Don’t let the points lie to you or believe what they are saying on tv. Jimmy Johnson simply needs to start the next four races and little else and the title is all his. Currently Johnson leads teammate Mark Martin by 118 points. If you divide 118 by 4 races you get an average of 29.5 points per race  Martin would have to make up just to tie Johnson. For Jeff Gordon it’s 37.5, Tony Stewart the number jumps to 48.

A driver picks up 185 points for winning the race, 5 for leading a single lap and 5 for leading the most laps. If Mark Martin was to win the final four races and lead the most laps he’d gander 780 points. Jimmy Johnson would need just 662 or a fourth place finish. Ok so fourth place finish isn’t easy in NASCAR you say. Ya maybe for someone not named Jimmy Johnson.

I got the following stats off Jayski.com.

Since finishing 24th at Talladega in the fourth Chase race in 2006, Johnson has accomplished the following over the last 32 chase races:
* No finish worse than 15th
* 28 Top 10s out of 32 races
* 22 Top 5s
* 20 Podium Finishes [top 3]
* 11 Wins

Sure Johnson’s 118 point lead may not match the 149 he had this time last season but it’s pretty close. Last year Johnson had the championship wrapped up after Phoenix and needed little to claim his third title.

So I was wondering. Is NASCAR better for the Chase? A driver with a 118 point lead with 4 to go or perhaps the old points system.

Currently Johnson leads Tony Stewart who was the first half leader by 192 points.

Following the 26th race of the season Stewart would have amassed 3806 points on the year, Johnson 3534. . A difference of 272, take out the 192 points Johnson leads Stewart by and it’s Stewart leading the standings by 80 points over Johnson. (Note: Both drivers had 3 wins following Richmond)

As for Jeff Gordon he had 3627 points following the race at Richmond, 179 points behind Stewart. Factor in the current points amassed and subtract 20 from Stewart for the win bonus and his lead over Gordon shrinks to 117.

So with that being said the old system actually would have fielded us two drivers closer then the 118 points Mark Martin currently trails by. Obviously NASCAR can’t change it’s system midway though the season (though they do make up the rules as they go so who knows) and with the belief that the word playoffs create excitement things don’t figure to change. I’m not saying they should or shouldn’t I just found it interesting that with the old system things would be closer.

Can you imagine the excitement over “can Jimmy Johnson run down Tony Stewart for his fourth straight title?” over “can anyone keep up with Jimmy Johnson who seems to be on cruise control again?”

I don’t know about the rest of you but I certainly liked the first headline better.

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The answer figures to come soon. Who will drive the 07 car in 2010? Current driver Casey Mears and Richard Childress Racing publicly have stated they’d all like to see the partnership continue but sponsorship is a sticking point.

In recent days sources revealed to Fox Sports that Ask.com could come aboard the 07 car for a partial schedule which would seem to suggest that Mears would be returning. However it’s also worth noting with the recent crew changes, Doug Randolph is the new crew chief for the 07 car and in the past was the crew chief for Paul Menard when the two were a part of Dale Earnhardt Inc.

Menard would bring full time sponsorship to the 07 car should he fill the seat currently occupied by Mears. John Menard, the owner of Menards, is said to want his son to drive the 07 car next season at RCR while Paul would like to finish out his contract in the 98 car.

The above statement is curious as it only leads minds to wonder. John Menard obviously wants to see the car which he is paying for to be competitive and I would assume Paul has the same desires. The fact that Paul is interested in finishing out his contract in the 98 car begs two questions to be asked once you get past the initial rhetorical why?

Is Paul Menard wanting to finish out his contract in the 98 to shush critics that say he’s only in a car due to his fathers money or does he really believe that with the merger between Yates Racing and Richard Petty Motorsports that he would be more competitive in his current ride?

It’s easy to say Menard’s 2009 season is partially a result of a move from Dale Earnhardt Inc to Yates Racing. But is it better to race again with the team he was with this season and talk about 2011 later or would he be better served to go ahead and switch rides now?

I figure we’ll soon see what’s in store for these drivers and more.

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Under the hood of two of the Roush-Fenway Racing entries at Talladega will be the new FR9 engine specifically designed for NASCAR racing. In simple terms the wait for Ford Racing’s new engine has ended.

In a release on Ford Racing’s website it was confirmed that cars driven by Matt Kenseth and David Ragan at Talladega will be utilizing the new FR9 engine.

Code-named FR9, this new piece is the first purpose-built NASCAR racing engine to ever come out of Ford Motor Company. Its design has been spearheaded and developed by famed engine builder Doug Yates and Ford Racing engineer David Simon.

Brian Wolfe the director of Ford North America Motor-sports stated the enthusiasm at Ford over the new engine. “All of us are anxious to see it in competition for the first time.”

He’s not alone, as fans are wondering if Ford is again going to be a player in NASCAR. Currently the sports top three positions are occupied by Hendrick powered Chevrolets, while the fourth place car is in all essence a  satellite ran organization.

The highest ranking Ford in NASCAR’s top series is Greg Biffle who currently rests in 7th position. Of the 31 races won this season only 2 have been won by a Ford driver. Those two wins were a long time ago as Matt Kenseth won the first two races of the season.

The only question that remains to be asked if why are these engines only being used by Kenseth and Ragan. It’s an interesting enough question mainly because Biffle is 268 points out of first entering Martinsville. While the reasons aren’t stated publicly it’s likely that Ford doesn’t want anything engine related to happen to the two cars in the Chase (Biffle and Edwards) which will ask a bunch of questions going forward.

As for why Jamie McMuarray, Paul Menard and Bobby Labonte won’t be using the new engine your guess is as good as mine. If the engine was ready I would think that the guys at Ford would want to get as many laps on the new engines to see what they could do in an actual race. Considering that none of these drivers are competing for the right to be in the Top 35. It’s also possible that none of these drivers could be with Ford next season, with the exception of Menard whose contract situation is a bit mucky right now.

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Sitting in 31st in points has to be the pits for Bobby Labonte who is some 1000 plus points behind 13th place driver Matt Kenseth has been stuck in NASCAR purgatory the last four seasons.

A former series Champion, who has 21 career wins, and 114 Top 5’s over 577 career starts (including 575 consecutive) you’d be hard pressed to find a fan of the sport who doesn’t think Bobby Labonte is a good driver.

Perhaps a wreck back at Daytona in 2006 was a bad omen for Labonte who asked for his release from Gibbs racing following a disappointing 2005 season. He had spent the last 11 years of his career with the team dating back to the beginning of 1995. While a member of Gibbs racing he picked up his first career victory in the Coca-Cola 600 and after finishing second in the 1999 points captured the Winston Cup in 2000 ahead of a guy named Dale Earnhardt.

Here’s the problem since his departue from Joe Gibbs racing at the end of 2005 Labonte hasn’t been a very good driver stat wise. Labonte’s last win came at the final race of the 2003 season, back when it was still called the Winston Cup Series. Over the next two seasons Labonte totaled 5 then 4 top 5’s.

In the four seasons since his depature from the green and black #18 he has a total of 4 Top 5’s in 106 races. His lone Top 5 this year came in the season’s third race at Las Vegas.

Obviously when you have made 575 consecutive starts you’re experienced at every track on the circuit and you don’t have to look too hard at any tracks leader board to see Bobby Labonte sprinkled across it with wins, strong finishes or both.

The problem is when Labonte joined Petty Enterprises it was already in the dumpster. No matter how good Bobby Labonte could have been would have changed much he simply wasn’t going to be competitive and the team was going nowhere. Even if you take a look at the merged team of Richard Petty Motorsports today you’ll notice that their only successful car (Kasey Kahne in the 9) wasn’t fielded by the organization last year.

When Petty Enterprises was ready to merge with Gillett Evernham Motorsports they opted to dump Labonte leaving the former champ with few viable options for the 2009 season. Originally it had been rumored Labonte could head over to Richard Childress Racing in the 07 car with General Mills as sponorship but Casey Mears was introduced as the driver of that car back in August of 2008 prior to Labonte being dumped.

Whatever the reasons were for the above Labonte signed with Hall of Fame Racing for 2009 with his cars to be fielded by Yates Racing. Needless to say things haven’t went well for any party involved to the point where Yates opted to remove Labonte from driving the seven races in which Ask.com (the primary sponsor) was not on the car. Labonte has filled in the 71 TRG machine in those weekends.

One thing is simple: Labonte will not be back with Hall of Fame Racing, which has been rumored to be possibly partnering with Penske or Childress Racing in 2010.

So where does Bobby Labonte go for 2010? It’s unclear.

Back in August Ask.com commented that they were still interested in sponsoring Labonte for the 2010 season as has Academy Outdoor & Sport stores. So wherever he goes he carries not only only a champions provisional but also sponsorship dollars.

New reports suggest he’ll drive a second car for TRG which really seems like a step sideways for a driver of Labonte’s statue.

Some suggest he could still end up in the 07 car for RCR, others mention the 1 car as an open ride which could be his.

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Jason Wilson of the Dallas Morning News has reported that the Texas Rangers sent Derek Holland to Japan to meet with Yusei Kikuchi. The Rangers are one of about six teams thus far to express interest in the 18-year-old. Kikuchi is considering whether to bypass the Nippon Professional Baseball draft in an attempt to start a major league career in America.

So let me see here. The Rangers seem determined to make a splash in international signings and sent 23 year old Derek Holland to Japan to try and sell a guy on why the Texas Rangers are a first class organization.

Holland accompanied Jim Colborn, the Rangers’ director of Pacific Rim operations, in what were described by Japanese media as first-round meetings with Kikuchi. To his credit, Kikuchi understands that he will have to pitch in the minor leagues and picked Holland’s brain on the subject.

I’m not sure how much Holland could sell anyone on joining anything. Sure sending a player rep won’t hurt anything but did it really help anything in the case of the Rangers? Holland could of discussed how the Rangers kept him fed in the minors, and how there was always a bus ride to the next city. Sure I know the reasoning here, young pitcher, left hander. Who knows maybe the two could get together with left handed reliever CJ Wilson and film the next Guitar Hero commercial in their underwear.

I also assume Holland made no mention that Texas is hot as hell in the summer and their ballpark plays like a sand box at an elementary school. Oh those are the finer parts of being a major leaguer though.

Ultimately this news just comes in as underwhelming. Come on Texas this is just another dog and pony show to act like the organization is up to something. The Rangers like to keep their name in the news on this kind of stuff but always seem to be second to fourth when it comes down to anyone’s final choice.

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