Reds' scouting efforts pay off; kudos to Milwaukee

	Former Devil Rays top pick Josh Hamilton was taken by the Reds after being made available in the Rule V draft. AP

It seems that the career of former No. 1 draft pick Josh Hamilton is finally starting to take off this year. Do you think he can sustain his early production (.295 batting average, five home runs)? And, if so, would he be eligible for the NL Rookie of the Year and the Comeback Player of the Year award?
-- Steve Harrison, Charlotte, N.C.

Great question. Wouldn't it be amazing if he won both awards? When I saw Hamilton in spring training I was stunned how good he looked. I mean, his athletic ability is obvious, but I was amazed that his baseball skills were still polished after so many years of near inactivity. Great job by the Reds to be hooked into his rehab enough to know he had turned a corner, prompting them to take a chance on him in the Rule V draft. I still think the long grind of the season might catch up to a guy who hasn't played all that much in recent years, but maybe he really is a special enough athlete to hold up all season playing good baseball.

I've been a fan of baseball since I was 8. I'm now 34. The Toronto Blue Jays have been my favorite team (naturally) all along. Baseball needs to don one of the following a) Open up the playoffs to more teams, or b) Get a salary cap. Every fan of every team needs to feel that their team will be in the playoffs at least once every two or three years. The Yankees and Red Sox do not, in my opinion, have a preordained right to be in the postseason every year.
-- Mark Monteith, Stratford, Ontario, Canada

Dude, your team finished ahead of the Sox last year! Hang in there. The game is cyclical and change happens. But I do think the idea of a second wild card team is worth studying. I haven't done the research into the numbers to see what would have happened under such a format in the past, but I am marginally intrigued by a "play-in" game or three-game series for two wild cards in each league. The reason I would consider doing so is I believe second-place teams deserve an extra hurdle put in their way.

MLB is getting a bad rap about the decline in the amount of African-American players. MLB is probably the most diverse of any major sport. The NFL and NBA have just been more popular over the last two decades. Willie Mays found a way to play stickball without a bunch of expensive gear. If the desire is there, a young man will find a way to play the game.
-- Michael, Broken Arrow, Okla.

I don't know if it's a bad rap, unless you think the rap is that baseball isn't aware of or doesn't care about the declining numbers. Baseball knows what's going on and has tried new initiatives. Can it do more? Sure. I'd like to see more baseball academies like the one in Compton opening up. I believe every team should help fund one in its home city. What you want to do is make it as easy as possible for all kids to, as you say, "find a way to play the game."

Why isn't the city of Milwaukee get more kudos for the attendance at the hastily scheduled Indians-Angels series in Milwaukee? To average more than 17,000 fans for those three games on short notice seems outstanding. I wonder how many other "baseball towns" would have the same kind of turnout? Milwaukee truly is a baseball city!
-- Steve, Milwaukee, Wisc.

Right on. Congrats to those baseball-loving fans in Milwaukee. What a great turnout. The games, on last-minute notice, outdrew six April games the Brewers played last year and they outdrew games in Toronto and Atlanta that week. I was particularly impressed with the midweek day game turnout. I know tickets were only $10, but that was pretty amazing to see the place filled that much. I'm not quite ready to put Milwaukee up there with Boston, New York and St. Louis as the greatest baseball cities, but that got my attention. Now let's see what happens if the Brewers are in the pennant race this September.