When it comes to deciding the Most Valuable Player in each league in Major League Baseball, certain things come into play. Many of the sports writers from around the country who cast these votes have guidelines for whom and what makes a player the MVP.

Many believe the person has to be on a contending team throughout the season, and that player has to be able to carry them throughout certain periods of the long, 162-game marathon. Statistically, the player has to be near the top of every category, while playing enough games to warrant consideration.

Red Sox second baseman Dustin Pedroia fits all of the criteria and more; yet surprises everyone by doing it. Listed at 5-foot-9, he has always been looked at as someone who couldn’t get it done in the big leagues. Even as early as last spring when he first made his MLB debut, people were calling for his replacement. Continue reading →

The Suffolk Men’s hockey team opened up its season this past weekend with a couple of exhibition games in the Dunkin Donuts Tournament at Becker College. The men’s team prepares for another long, grueling season after finishing last year with a 7-15-2 overall record.

The men did qualify for postseason play, but were ultimately eliminated in the semi-finals of the Eastern College Athletic Conference playoffs by Wentworth Institute of Technology. Although the team lost some of its key senior leaders from last season, they have some good young players coming in to help complement a core group of veteran players on offense and defense. They also have a strong young goaltender in sophomore Jeff Rose, who played well between the pipes last year as a freshman. The Ram’s lost the first game of the tournament to Nichols College in a hard-fought, 4-1 decision. The team fell behind early as the Bison scored a mere 46 seconds into the game. Continue reading →