Bradley asks for help from Mariners' management

Baseball Betting Lines

05/05/2010 - Seattle, WA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Outfielder Milton Bradley, sometimes a lightning rod for controversy, has asked the management of the Seattle Mariners for help after he was pulled from the game by manager Don Wakamatsu in Tuesday's contest against Tampa Bay.

The Mariners decided to start Ryan Langerhans in left field instead of Bradley Wednesday. Bradley struck out with the bases loaded in the sixth inning Tuesday and is hitting just .214 this season and has 24 strikeouts in 70 at- bats.

"This morning Milton Bradley asked if he could have an opportunity to sit down with Don Wakamatsu and myself," Mariners general manager Jack Zduriencik said. "He's going through some things in his life right now that are very personal and very emotional. Therefore, Milton has asked us if we could be of assistance to him, if there was any way that we as an organization could help him get through this period of time. We will do everything we can to help Milton. We will join together as an organization and help him receive the assistance that he needs."

Bradley was traded from the Cubs to the Mariners last offseason. On the heels of his first-ever All-Star appearance in 2008, Bradley inked a three-year, $30 million deal with the Cubs. However, as has been the case in almost everywhere Bradley has played, things did not go smoothly for him, as he feuded with manager Cubs manager Lou Piniella, his teammates and the fans.

Bradley's troubles last season were nothing new. He had an altercation with Cleveland skipper Eric Wedge which led to his trade from the team to the Dodgers in 2004. In 2005, he accused Dodgers' teammate Jeff Kent of being racist. Bradley then tore his ACL in 2007, while being restrained by Padres manager Bud Black during an altercation with first base umpire Mike Winters.

"Milton came to us for help," Wakamatsu said. "I think that's a step in the right direction. I think this is a critical point where he finally came out and said he needs some help and we're happy to be there for him."

While with the Rangers, Bradley also attempted to confront Kansas City Royals television announcer Ryan Lefebvre in the press box following a game due to what he believed were unfair comments made on the air.

"Milton is very remorseful of some of the things that have happened in his recent past and feels very badly about it, but the fact that he has stood up and asked for us to help him is an extremely important step for him as a young man," Zduriencik said. "Milton has spoken to his teammates and has asked for their help, their understanding and their assistance."

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Numerous College Basketball teams take final big step to March Madness betting

So, what turned on the lock spigot? Well, after what felt like weeks of teams treading water and slipping back into the bubble muck, a bunch of them finally decided to say "to heck with parity" and won games that should put them into the Big Dance.

Disagree with some of these? Then here's the challenge. Take all of the "should be ins" and make a legit case that each should be ahead of the team that's a lock. Then find 10 more teams that also should be placed in the bracket ahead of that lock team. Not so easy, is it?

If you want more evidence that these locks should be good to go, check out what our research department dug up. Since the NCAA Tournament went to 64 teams in 1985, only six teams from a "big six" conference have had a record of 10-6 or better in conference play and not been selected: Colorado (2004) and Nebraska (1999) from the Big 12, Boston College and Seton Hall (both 2003) from the Big East, Indiana (2005) from the Big Ten and UCLA, which somehow went 12-6 in the Pac-10 in 1988 and still missed out. (Note: Five teams went 11-7 and didn't get in, the latest being last season's Stanford team, which had a brutal nonconference run.)

Yes, 10 conference wins doesn't always mean what it used to because of unbalanced schedules, but this season, it should be plenty good in all but the extreme cases (see: Iowa).

In a way, this is a welcome development, because this is a bubble watch, not a lock watch. We can finally be done with teams like Maryland and Virginia Tech and start really bearing down on at-large battles such as Syracuse-West Virginia and Appalachian State-Georgia Tech.

Interestingly, all the shifting of teams into lock status appears to be more administrative than impactful. The number of remaining available at-larges didn't change one iota. The only difference is that teams on the bubble now have a clearer idea of which team(s) they are competing with for those precious bids.

The Bubble Breakdown
CONFERENCE LOCKS SHOULD BE INS AT-LARGES TAKEN
(assuming no auto bid outlier)
ACC Betting Odds 6 0 5
Big East Betting Odds 5 0 4
Big Ten Betting Odds 2 2 3
Big 12 Betting Odds 3 0 2
Pac-10 Betting Odds 5 1 5
SEC Betting Odds 4 0 3
MVC Betting Odds 1 1 1
MWC Betting Odds 2 1 2
TOTAL 28 5 25

As always, I've tried to be as inclusive as possible while only including teams that would have a reasonable chance of at least being discussed if this were Selection Sunday. If your team's not on here, there's probably a good reason (or three) -- start with the RPI and SOS numbers and work your way down.

(Please remember, per selection committee criteria, that records displayed are Division I only. Next update: Feb. 28)

If you have a legitimate grievance, or just like talking bubble, send an e-mail. Polite ones with fact-based arguments have a much better chance of receiving a response. I apologize in advance if I can't get back to all of you.

Atlantic Coast Conference

Work left to do: Clemson, Florida State, Georgia Tech

The ACC moves to six locks as BC, Va Tech and Virginia all got their 10th ACC wins, which should be more than enough this season, and Maryland rallied past North Carolina to get the final piece the Terps needed. After that? It could end there unless FSU, Ga Tech or Clemson picks things up in a hurry.

 

Work left to do:

Clemson [19-9 (5-9), RPI: 41, SOS: 42] The Tigers are closer to locking up the collapse of the year award (in a good battle with OK State) than they are to grabbing an at-large. Clemson's been very competitive, but there's no really positive way you can spin nine losses in 11 games. They now cannot get to .500 in ACC play and still must head to Virginia Tech in the season finale (after hosting Miami). Unless the Tigers win both and/or do some serious work in the ACC tourney, they very well could be left out. There are no great nonconference wins, but ODU, App State, Miss. State, South Carolina and Georgia are all respectable W's.

Florida State [18-11 (6-9), RPI: 48, SOS: 14] The Noles got thrashed at Maryland to run their losing streak to five, but then pounded NC State at home to set the table for what likely is an elimination game at Miami. You can at least make a case for the Seminoles at 7-9 in ACC play (and some work in the ACC tourney), but 6-10 is not going to cut it. Wins at Duke and over Florida will resonate, but the computer numbers remain questionable. Beyond Florida, FSU thrashed bubble buddy Providence, but there's not a ton beyond those two games that will help. They didn't show well in big-time opportunities against Pitt and Wisconsin (before the Florida win).

Georgia Tech [18-10 (6-8), RPI: 51, SOS: 46] The Jackets beat Wake on Wednesday but couldn't get it done at UVa on Saturday, which could be a crucial loss with UNC and BC (both at home) remaining and 8-8 almost a certain need for at-large consideration. A nonconference win over Memphis helps, but the RPI and SOS are not at-large quality right now; if you combine those with a sub-.500 ACC mark, that could spell NIT for GT.

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