The only visibleFilipino fighter in the U

His demeanor in the clubhouse is great, his pop is much appreciated, and his defense is above average. He’s the best option at third base, or even second base if the brass decides to move Freddy Sanchez over or get rid of Renteria. Fate of the FranchiseThe Giants will have at least Ishikawa and Sandoval under contract next year. Carlos Delgado wasn't offered arbitration, so signing him wouldn't cost the Giants a draft pick. But, with his history, I wouldn't pay $10M for a multi-year deal if it would just sit on the disabled list. Nick Johnson would definitely help the Giants put someone on base, which is never a bad thing.

They have also been linked to Miguel Tejada, who would most likely be inserted at third base, moving Sandoval to first.All of those options, however, relegate Ishikawa to a platoon role at most. His development over the last two seasons has been more than enough to convince me to let him start, and if he can fix his road woes to even remotely match his home numbers, he could become a great all-around player.But the Giants need to add offense, and with the shortage of outfield options, a corner infield spot seems the best place to do it. Look for a splash signing on either corner, or maybe a sly little Sabean roster move to make things shake out. Make sure to keep an eye out for the Fate of the Franchise minor league profile coming soon from Community Leader and Featured Columnist Danny Penza. . Yet the very same critics were aware of those circumstances beforehand and still picked against Pacquiao because of their doubt in his talent and boxing ability. But to the surprise of his doubters, Pacquiao not only beat Oscar but did it in a dominating fashion. Then he followed that up with a performance for the ages against Hatton. Once again, more attention was given to the assumption that Hatton was washed up and no longer an elite fighter. The fact is that no one had beaten Hatton at 140 pounds and was still in his prime the night of the time.Pacquiao’s record in the lower weight classes had also been put into question. Some accuse him of ducking Tim Austin and Rafael Marquez by skipping the Bantamweight Division. Pacquiao would have fought those fighters in a heart beat if given the chance. What some boxing fans fail to realize is thatFilipino fighters, despite their talent and accomplishments, have had a difficult time obtaining a fight in the U.S. Many promoters did not feel that there was a market for Phillipino boxers. The only visibleFilipino fighter in the U.S during the 90's was Luisito Espinosa. Pacquiao was a champion at flyweight and had a solid record, yet only Freddie Roach and Murach Muhammad were willing to take a chance on him. Nonito Donaire validated this issue in an interview atEastside Boxing when he said " Early in my career I could not get a fight, I was the one that was chosen on two days notice I never had the choice to make things happen.

When I tried to sign with managers in the past I was told that Filipinos were not marketable. basketball team started to lose in the Olympics We had a difficult time accepting that other nations were catching up with us in terms of basketball skills. Just imagine if the Americans started dominating the sport of soccer. Soccer fans from Latin and European nations no doubt would find excuses to downplay the accomplishment of the U.S soccer team.It’s just human nature to find it difficult to accept something different. NFL20Can20Help20Prevent20Concussions20Right20Now&srcsp" name"fbshare"> Paula DuffyExaminerMore than a year ago I wrote a piece about a simple mouth guard which prevented concussions when worn by athletes. I asked why the NFL wasn't all over it, testing it, buying it, and making it part of their equipment.The mouth guard was developed and is sold by a dentist named Gerald Maher who for many years has been the dentist for the New England Patriots.

As Patriots players got the hang of the device they raved about it, (testimonials on Maher's company's website ) especially players who had already suffered heard trauma.As those Patriots players like Matt Cassel and Mike Vrabel moved about the league they brought their mouth guards with them and members of their new teams were introduced to the device. But this was mere anecdotal evidence and the NFL said it needed peer reviewed studies, in which it never seemed to be interested enough to put into motion.The Maher mouth guard doesn't prevent all concussions. It works specifically with the lower jaw but its success rate, until recently all anecdotal, is eyebrow raising if not astounding.And then a few weeks ago, a study was published on Dr Maher's device. Its study subjects were high school age football players, and according to a statement filed with the House Judiciary Committee by Maher's company, Mahercor Laboratories, LLC, it validates the company's methods of examining a player's jaw and fitting a device to help prevent concussion from direct blows.Two weeks ago, that same committee, chaired by Representative John Conyers, (D-MI) heard testimony from NFL executives, former players, wives of former players, and medical professionals. The topic was what the league will do with recent study results that found its retired players are 19 times more likely than the average person who never played football to be diagnosed with a memory disorder.The league now has data it can't ignore any longer. But since the study didn't prove a direct causal link between concussions on the field of play and the condition of the brains of ex-NFL players, it doesn't want to admit anything and says it needs to study the problem in more detail.In the meantime, concussions occur weekly on every team, some more newsworthy than others.All the Judiciary Committee did was to give the league its chance to insist that it was working on the problem therefore government intervention isn't necessary.Some conservative members of the committee used that time to talk about their disdain for poking Congress' nose into a private workplace, even if worker safety is a factor.