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TSN Baseball Insider Steve Phillips answers several questions each week. This week, topics include the "bean wars" between the Red Sox and Rays, Blue Jays draft pick Jeff Hoffman, Justin Verlanders struggles, and surprising all-star voting results. 1) In light of the “bean wars” between Tampa Bay and Boston, what should the league do to reduce the number of retaliatory on-field incidents? Are the suspensions enough of a deterrent? Major League Baseball has reduced the number of on-field violent confrontations in a pretty significant way from the 1980s and before. The issuing of warnings to teams after a potentially intentional beaning has reduced the number of retaliatory responses. As we saw in the Rays/Red Sox series, boys will still be boys but it is better now than it used to be. Baseball also has a “heads up” program where umpires are alerted prior to a series about any bad blood that exists between the teams. Umpires can issue warnings before a game if they believe the lingering animosity could surface. This pregame warning serves as a deterrent and puts players on notice that at the first sign of monkey business there will be action taken. There are two changes that I would make to further address this issue. Firstly, I would encourage umpires to eject the instigator in a bean ball situation. Too many times the pitcher who strikes first suffers no penalty. Rays pitcher Davis Price hit Res Sox slugger David Ortiz with a pitch that may have been intentional. The umpire chose to only issue a warning to both teams. That was done with the intent of heading off possible retaliation against the Rays. That warning didnt work and Brandon Workman, Red Sox pitcher, was later ejected for throwing a pitch behind Rays third baseman Evan Longoria. If Price had been ejected, then the Red Sox would not have felt as compelled to bean Longoria for payback. Price didnt get a suspension at all. Second, I would institute a “no third-man in” policy. If there is a fight on the field, no other player can leave his position on the field or in the dugouts and bullpen. If they do then they face an automatic 10-game suspension. This should serve as a team deterrent that will keep all-out brawls from occurring. Thirdly, I propose that penalties become stiffer for the initial combatants as well. If you fight, you know you will serve at least a five-game suspension for a position player and relief pitcher and a 15-game suspension for a starting pitcher. It would be great to end all on-field violence. It wont ever happen but these changes would get us a bit closer. 2) The Blue Jays used the ninth-overall draft pick on Jeff Hoffman on Thursday; a player who just underwent Tommy John surgery. What does this say about the Jays development strategy, especially in light of Alex Anthopoulos drafting habits in the past? The Blue Jays have been drawn to the high-ceiling type players in the first round under Anthopoulos. They have shot for the moon. They want impact from their first round pick. Nowadays, many teams like predictability in first round selections. They will take less impact and a lower ceiling for a greater likelihood that the player will get to the majors. Not the Jays. Jeff Hoffman was thought to be one of the top three picks in this draft prior to injuring his arm and undergoing Tommy John surgery. This selection makes a statement on so many levels. First, the Jays believe that Hoffman is an extraordinary talent. Why else would any team take a baseball player whose injury prohibits him from doing what he does best? Secondly, the Jays believe in Tommy John surgery. It isnt quite as predictable as getting ones tonsils removed but the track record of success is very good. The Jays fully expect Hoffman to be 100 %. Thirdly, the Jays are saving money. Hoffman is a value because they took him with the ninth pick when many thought he could go as high as second overall. With the injury, the Jays will likely save some money but they are also assuming some level of risk and that has dollar value. With multiple first round selections, the Jays gave themselves the financial flexibility to get their picks signed this year. The fact that Hoffman is a college pitcher means that he is a bit more advanced in his development than if he were a high school pitcher and therefore missing some playing time now should not set his development back much at all. 3) Justin Verlanders 2014 numbers have been less than inspirational. Hes 6-5 on a first-place club, has an ERA over 4.00, is presently sporting the worst WHIP of his career, and hasnt logged a complete game since 2012. Should the alarm bells be going off for the Tigers? The Tigers should be alarmed about Justin Verlander. He is still a good pitcher but the dominant overpowering ace from a few years back is no longer on their roster. Verlander has thrown 1,885 innings in eight and a half years, which includes seasons of 251, 240, and 238 innings pitched in individual seasons. He has thrown the most pitches in baseball this year. In fact, he has thrown the most pitches in baseball since 2009. He has led the league in pitches thrown every year but one from 2009-2014. In 2010 he finished four pitches behind Dan Haren for second most. Verlander is a workhorse. He loves to go deep in the game and he loves to strike out hitters. He has been an amazing pitcher. The fact that he has such great stuff is a blessing and a curse. It is a blessing because he has won a ton of games for Detroit. It is a curse because he has been so good that he works deep counts since he strikes out so many hitters. And he has always been a better option for the manager than anyone in the bullpen, so he pitches deeper in the game. All of this has taken a toll. He is wearing down a bit. We have seen CC Sabathia fall off over the past couple of years because of the same reasons. The arm only has so many bullets and they have both used their fair share. Verlander can still be successful, but he is going to have to make adjustments. Command has to be more important than velocity for him. He used to regularly run his fastball into the high 90s. He no longer can pitch there. If he tries to generate too much velocity from delivery, his command suffers. Verlander needs to try and retire hitters on three pitches or less with well-located pitches. Velocity cant matter. This will allow him to be more efficient now and give him more years on the back end of his career. 4) The most recent All Star vote tally had some very interesting results. Torontos Melky Cabrera, is ranked third among AL outfielders in voting. Orioles designated hitter, Nelson Cruz, passed Red Sox slugger David Ortiz for the top DH. Brewers outfielder Ryan Braun is in a close race in the NL outfield as well. Why are these results so significant? All three of these players have served suspensions for performance enhancement drugs. Yet, the fans seem to be putting that aside as they consider their performances this year. The fans believe that what they are seeing on the field is legitimate and real. They dont think it is enhanced. It is just good ol fashioned baseball. The All Star balloting has long been a popularity contest. The fans votes dont always coincide with the players votes or the stats. If the fans like a certain player, he has a shot to be an all-star regardless of his numbers. What is even more amazing is that the fans arent holding grudges like they have in the past. It had seemed that fans wanted to send a message to cheaters that their actions were unacceptable. One of the few ways they could do that was with their voting. But that feeling seems to be waning. Fans are either forgiving the players for past wrongs or just accepting of what has happened to the game. Either way, we all win. I have learned that giving forgiveness is not for the other person but it is for me. When I forgive someone they may react in any number of ways. But when I give forgiveness it releases a burden on me. I no longer feel pain and resentment. Baseball fans are showing healthy growth by surrendering their anger to baseball players. It shows growth. It shows a certain trust in the drug policy. It shows compassion and understanding. My hope is that baseball writers will take the lead of the fans. Writers feel duped by players. They feel like they were made fools of for celebrating home runs and record-setting accomplishments. They resent it and dont ever want to get burned that way again. My hope is that the writers will move to a place of forgiveness of the players as well. It is time to move forward. The writers need to look at the steroid era as just that, an era. It wasnt done to them. It was just what happened and they were there to document it. So they should document it. Vote steroid users in the Hall of Fame. Lets appropriately remember what happened so we dont repeat our mistakes. The writers should make history by passing that history forward. It is time to heal. It is the right thing for all of us that made mistakes in the steroid era of baseball. So let this day start the all-out campaign for Melky Cabrera, Nelson Cruz and Ryan Braun for the All Star team! Nevin Lawson Jersey .C. -- Tony Stewart will not race Saturday night at Bristol Motor Speedway, the third Sprint Cup race hes skipped since his car struck and killed Kevin Ward Jr. Darius Slay Jersey .S. international midfielder Michael Bradley is complete. http://www.officialdetroitlionsfootball.com/authentic-teez-tabor-jersey-womens . However, the 38-year-old is in no hurry to sign with another team. "Im not in a rush. This will be my last contract, so I want to do it right," said Burris on Thursday. Kenny Golladay Jersey .com) - Top seed Klara Zakopalova reached the second round, while former French Open champion Francesca Schiavone came up a loser Tuesday at the inaugural Rio Open tennis event. T.J. Lang Jersey . -- The anointed starting quarterback for the Oakland Raiders is strengthening his hold on the position this training camp instead of losing it.TSN.ca presents its latest weekly power rankings for the 2013-14 Barclays Premier League season. Rankings were weighted evenly between separate lists made by TSN Radio host and soccer analyst Gareth Wheeler as well as TSN.cas soccer editors. 1. Manchester City (Last Week-2) Manchester City climbed to the top of the table with another emphatic victory, 5-1 on the road against Tottenham. Sergio Aguero scored the first of the five goals but then limped off the field just before halftime with a hamstring injury, causing some concern for the new league leaders. 2. Chelsea (LW-1) Chelsea heavily dominated the action, firing 39 shots on goal including two clear scoring chances in added time but were forced to settle for a 0-0 draw with West Ham. Frank Lampard had probably the best chance of the game in the 97th minute but was denied the goal that would have won the game. 3. Arsenal (LW-3) Arsenal was only able to get a point out of their trip to St Marys Stadium as they settled for a 2-2 draw with Southampton. Olivier Giroud and Santi Cazorla scored four minutes apart but the elusive third goal never arrived for the Gunners. 4. Liverpool (LW-5) The 222nd Merseyside Derby was painted red by Liverpools emphatic 4-0 victory over Everton. Steven Gerrard converted a Luis Suarez corner to open the scoring, before Daniel Sturridge scored twice in two minutes to put the game away. Suarez would get one of his own and Sturridge would miss a penalty in the one-sided contest. 5. Manchester United (LW-8) Juan Mata debuted, while Robin van Persie and Wayne Rooney returned to lead Manchester United to a 2-0 victory over Cardiff City. Van Persie opened the scoring in the sixth minute and Ashley Young put the game away with a screamer in the 59th minute. 6. Tottenham (LW-4) A red card to Danny Rose and a penalty for the same offence doomed Tottenham in their 5-1 defeat at the hands of Manchester City. Michael Dawson also had a goal controversially ruled out for offside that would have equalized the game early and could have changed Spurs fortunes. 7. Everton (LW-6) There were not many positives for Everton as they were beaten 4-0 by Liverpool in the Merseyside Derby. Adding injury to insult, Romelu Lukaku was stretchered from the field with an ankle injury. 8. Newcastle United (LW-7) Loic Remy was sent off for Newcastle in an altercation with Norwichs Bradley Johnson who was also shown red in a game that ended in a 0-0 draw. 9. Southampton (LW-9) Jose Fonte and Adam Lallana scored on either side of halftime as Southammpton drew Arsenal 2-2 in a wild, back and forth contest.ddddddddddddnbsp; Lallana tied the game for good just two minutes after Santi Cazorla had given the Gunners their first lead of the match. 10. Aston Villa (LW-10) The West Midlands derby was a wild affair that was settled in the favour of Villa, 4-3 over West Brom. Christian Benteke scored the deciding goal from the penalty spot after his team battle back from an early 2-0 deficit. 11. Swansea City (LW-14) For the first time in nine games, Swansea earned all three points in a Barclays Premier League game after beating Fulham 2-0. Jonjo Shelvey and Chico Flores found the scoresheet for the Swans. 12. Norwich City (LW-13) Norwich traded red cards with Newcastle but neither team scored in a 0-0 draw. Bradley Johnson was shown red for Norwich City after getting into an altercation with Newcastles Loic Remy who was also sent off for the infraction. 13. Crystal Palace (LW-16) Jason Puncheon earned himself another Barclays Premier League winning goal as he led Palace over Hull City 1-0. Tony Pulis continues his efforts to save Crystal Palace from the relegation zone. 14. West Bromwich Albion (LW-11) Chris Brunt and a Fabian Delph own goal gave West Brom an early 2-0 lead but in the end they dropped the West Midlands derby 4-3 to Aston Villa. 15. Hull City (LW-12) Hulls new strike partnership of Shane Long and Nikica Jelavic were not able to find the net as the Tigers fell to Crystal Palace 1-0. Hull dropped their fourth straight Barclays Premier League match. 16. Sunderland (LW-17) Adam Johnson was the difference as Sunderland climbed out of the relegation zone with a 1-0 victory over Stoke City. 17. Stoke City (LW-15) Steven Nzonzis red card early in the second half ended any thoughts of a Stoke fight back as they fell 1-0 to Sunderland. This was Stokes sixth straight league game without a victory. 18. West Ham United (LW-18) With only one shot on target and 28% of the possession, West Ham managed to hold on for a 0-0 draw with Chelsea. Keeper Adrian was forced to be brilliant many times during the contest and answered the bell each time he was called upon to secure the point for his team. 19. Cardiff City (LW-19) Ole Gunnar Solskjaers return to Old Trafford was spoiled as his Cardiff side were defeated 2-0 by Manchester United. The Welsh side remains at the bottom of the table. 20. Fulham (LW-20) Brede Hangeland and Ashkan Dejagah both failed to convert first-half chances for Fulham as they fell 2-0 to Swansea City. 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