Introducing Courtney Upshaw

                First off both Tyler and Matt in their draft prediction mentioned the chance of the Ravens trading back out of the first round. That is exactly what the Ravens did with their 29^th pick in this past weekend’s NFL Draft. The Ravens traded the pick to the Minnesota Vikings in return they received the 35^th pick and the 98^th pick. With the pick from the Ravens the Vikings selected Harrison Smith a Safety from Notre Dame.

                Watching the draft there was a sense that this was going to happen. Don’ta Hightower was taken by the Patriots at 25 a pick that all three of us here thought the Ravens wanted to make. Overall I am a fan of this as the Ravens were able to trade back 6 picks and get the guy who they most likely would have drafted at 29 anyways in Courtney Upshaw. With the other pick they received from the Vikings they took Gino Gradkowski a Center/Guard from Delaware. Gradkowski has the potential to be the Ravens Center of the future or at the very least provides some young and depth to the offensive line which is always a good thing.

Upshaw should fit right into the Ravens defense.

More following the jump.

You should try this...

Currently at Camden Yards awaiting the first pitch of A's-O's and decided to get the new crab mac and cheese hot dog. An amazing investment. Arrieta on the mound tonight, let's go O's!

Ravens Draft Preview: 1st Round Targets

With the first round of the draft being this coming Thursday its time to look at who the Ravens may select with the 29^th selection in the first round. I have looked through all of the mock drafts that I could find and these are the names that the experts have said the Ravens may pick.

Image from Wikipedia.

More after the break.

Breaking Down the Ravens 2012 Schedule

So as you have probably heard by now, the NFL schedule for 2012 was released Tuesday, as a part of a three hour TV special extravaganza on the Mothership. Usually by the third week of baseball season, Ravens fans are already dying for something to talk about as the Orioles are 2-15 and mathematically out of playoff contention. But with the Orioles in first place, this news about the Ravens is a nice little reminder that we have another exciting football season coming up this fall.

We knew the schedule would be tough after finishing in first place last year (and getting matched up with the AFC's other first place teams this year), as well as divisional matchups against the vaunted NFC East and a challening AFC West. So I'm going to break down the schedule game-by-game and give you a predicion of how I think the Ravens will finish up, and Matt and Vince will also chime in with their predictions.

Check out our game-by-game picks after the jump:

Mychal Parker to Transfer.

Mychal Parker has announced his intent to transfer from the University of Maryland. While this may not seem like a very big deal with JakeLayman coming in next year as well as Nick Faust currently on the roster it does have some implications. From the sounds of his statement it sounds like Turgeon may have encouraged him to do this.

Parker entered College Park as the prize of the 2010 class,
but never put it all together as a Terp.  (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

In terms of recruiting this opens up a much coveted scholarship for the team. Before this Maryland had one scholarship remaining for this next season and only one available scholarship for the 2013 class. Now even if Turgeon brings in another recruit this year, which seems possible, he would still have 2 available for 2013 which of course is the Harrison twins class.

At this point I would expect either Sam Cassell Jr, who sorta committed a few weeks ago or Michigan transfer Evan Smotrycz to be that final recruit brought in for next year. Both of these players have many positives to them. Cassell has a lot of upside as well as furthering the Baltimore-Maryland connection for recruits. However he would be the sixth recruit in an already crowded 2012 recruiting class.

Smotrycz would have to sit out next season most likely and would not become eligible until 2013 when he would be a junior. This would mean he would be the third recruit to the Alex Len and Nick Faust class. Personally I am a little bit more in favor of this. Smotrycz is a known quality. He has produced at Michigan and has a lot of potential. He is a PF who can also shoot the outside shot and get rebounds. Much different than the other big man Turgeon already has brought in. Also it would even out the scholarship situation at Maryland so we don’t have one scholarship to give one year and seven the next which means lots of turnover. He is scheduled to visit this upcoming Friday.

Who knows who if anyone else will join Maryland before the next season? All we know now is that Mychal Parker will not be on the team next year. This had been rumored for a while but having it confirmed opens up the rumor mill for Maryland basketball. My guess would be either Cassell or Smotrycz to be on campus next year but maybe Turgeon will save the scholarship for 2013 and have a three man class or bring in someone else for next year. 

2012 MLB Predictions

Baseball is back, boys and girls. And how sweet it is. There is no greater feeling than Opening Day, when each team starts the season with new found hope for greater glory. With the first game being played in the United States tonight, I thought it was time to release my predictions for this year. Enjoy.

Look for the Rays to be jumping for joy again this September

AL East

MVP: 3B Evan Longoria, Tampa Bay

Cy Young: SP James Shields, Tampa Bay

Rookie: SP Matt Moore, Tampa Bay

1. Tampa Bay Rays

The pitching staff one through five is as deep and talented as any in baseball, and will carry the Rays to the playoffs yet again

Key to success: Offensive players other than Longoria picking up the slack

2. New York Yankees (Wild Card)

Concerns about the back-end of the rotation and an aging offensive core make a fall-off likely, but there is too much talent to not give a Rays a run for their money

Key to success: Alex Rodriguez bouncing back from his first injury-riddled season and returning to old form.

3. Boston Red Sox

After missing the playoffs in game 162 in 2011, they will again be sitting at home in 2012. The health of Clay Buchholz and new closer Andrew Bailey, as well as the inexperience of Felix Doubront and Daniel Bard in the rotation could cause problems. Lineup should be strong as usual, but there are question marks

Key to success: Development of Doubront and Bard, as well as the revival of Carl Crawford

4. Toronto Blue Jays

The Jays have won 80+ games in 12 of the past 15 seasons, yet have failed to win 90+ or make the playoffs once in that time. Could they get over the hump? Sure, but they are still a legit ace or two away from truly challenging the big 3.

Key to success: The back end of the rotation and the development of stud prospect Brett Lawrie at 3B

5. Baltimore Orioles

Here we go again. Too many holes in the rotation and the lack of a true leadoff or cleanup hitter make the hill too big to climb for the O’s, yet again. Hey at least they’ll get a top 5 draft pick, right?

Key to success: “The Cavalry” – aka Jake Arrieta, Brian Matusz, Chris Tillman and Zach Britton and their development. This is essentially a make or break year for all of them