MONEY DOESN’T BUY TITLES

By Fred Guzman
ESPN550.com

Money, as the Beatles reminded so many years ago, can't buy you love. And, as we have repeatedly found in the most free-market of our sports leagues, money can't buy baseball titles, either.

Take the New York Yankees, as prime example. Baseball's freest-spending franchise routinely carries a an annual payroll of $200 million, but it's been eight years since the Yankees last won a ring.

During that championship drought in the Bronx, the Arizona Diamondbacks, Florida Marlins and St. Louis Cardinals have won titles and the likes of the Tampa Bay Rays and Colorado Rockies have reached the Fall Classic.

A more recent example of how money alone doesn't guarantee titles is the Detroit Tigers. Many instantly conceded Detroit the AL Central crown after acquiring both slugger Miguel Cabrera and pitcher Dontrelle Willis. Those signings pushed the Tigers' payroll to $137 million and slightly over the luxury-tax limit.

It took a while for Cabrera to get going. He finished with team highs of 37 homers and 127 RBI, but by the time he got hot the Tigers were dust.

The Tigers got off to a 2-10 start and never recovered, staggering to a 74-84 mark and a last-place finish in the five-team division they were supposed to dominate.

Willis was a total disaster. The left-hander appeared in just eight games, averaging three innings per start, while compiling an 0-2 record with an astronomical 9.38 ERA. Willis earned a demotion to the minors for a significant part of the season.

So don't concede anything to the New York Yankees yet. All together now: Money can't buy you love … or guarantee a title.

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TRIO ON RECRUITING RADARS

By Fred Guzman
ESPN550.com

At least three current high school seniors with Maui ties appear to be in line to receive Division-I football scholarships for next season.

Baldwin defensive end Mana Rosa has verbally committed to Oregon State and has told us he intends to enroll at that school despite offers from several other colleges – including Colorado, Utah and UNLV.

The 6-2, 240-pounder gave an excellent account of himself during last week's Hawaii/Polynesia vs. Mainland Bowl game at Aloha Stadium. Rosa had three tackles, all for losses and including one sack, and forced a pair of fumbles.

Simione Vehikite is starting to attract attention. A standout linebacker and fullback, Vehikite transferred from Lahainaluna to Kapolei last spring.

An impressive showing in the all-star game, during which he registered five tackles, caught the eye of USC linebackers coach Ken Norton Jr., who said the Trojans will make a pitch for the 6-1, 243-pounder.

Vehikite made 119 tackles this season, including 10 sacks and 12 tackles for a loss. He also averaged 10 yards per carry.

After being overlooked early in the recruiting process, Baldwin defensive end Jordan Pu'u-Robinson has recently received scholarship offers from the likes of Washington State, Utah State, Wyoming and Idaho.

Topping Norton's and USC's list of local recruits, of course, is Punahou linebacker Manti Te'o, who has scheduled visits to BYU, Stanford and USC. Te'o – ranked No. 7 overall and the No. 1 linebacker in the national recruiting ratings -- previously visited Notre Dame and UCLA.

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TRANSFERS BOOST BOWS

By Fred Guzman
ESPN550.com

After compiling an 11-19 debut record following his belated hiring as head coach last year, Bob Nash is showing what he can do if given the time and opportunity to recruit.

The University of Hawaii basketball team improved to 5-3 last night and, again, a pair of talented newcomers from the junior college ranks played a key role in the victory.

The most celebrated of the pair is 6-foot-7 swingman Rodney Flemings, a highly touted prep player who spent one season at Oklahoma State before earning JC All-America honors last season.

Flemings was initially hampered by a tender ankle, but he's been living up to the hype as he has gotten healthier.

On Saturday, Flemings erupted for 37 points in a 75-55 romp past Eastern Washington, making 16 of 23 shots from the field. Last night, Flemings he scored 20 on 7 of 14 shooting and added seven rebounds in Hawaii's 85-75 win over Chicago State.

But the biggest star for Hawaii was forward Petra Balocka, who had 21 points, 10 rebounds and six assists. Balocka's story is also interesting. A native of Lithuania, he moved to the state – not the country – of Georgia to play his prep hoops and spent two seasons as a standout player at a Texas JC.

Hawaii now has an eight-day break before returning to action on Dec. 23 against UC-Riverside.

The Rainbow Wahine, meantime, are in the midst of a long layoff. UH won for only the second time in nine games on Dec. 7, defeating UC Irvine 74-46, and don't play again until Friday night against Washington State. Sophomore point guard Keisha Kanekoa led the way with a 19-point, 11-rebound, six-assist performance in the victory and was named to the all-tourney team.

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WAHINE ROUTED; BOWS ROMP

By Fred Guzman
ESPN550.com

In what only can be described as a humbling and sobering setback, Stanford made easy work of the Rainbow Wahine in Saturday's regional final.

The second-ranked Cardinal routed the seventh-seeded Hawaii in emphatic fashion, needing just 89 minutes to demolish UH 25-19, 25-9, 25-18, dominating every aspect of this mismatch in Fort Collins. Colo..

Stanford advanced to the Final Four, which starts Thursday in Omaha. UH goes home with a 30-4 record that included a comeback four-game win over Purdue on Friday.

Stanford will meet third-seeded Texas in one national semifinal match, while top-seeded and unbeaten Penn State will take a 36-0 record against No. 4 Nebraska in the other semi. The Nittany Lions have yet to lose a set all season.

While things ended poorly for the Rainbow Wahine, things went very well for the UH men's basketball team thanks to a stunning offensive performance by newcomer Rodney Flemings later in the evening at the Stan Sheriff Center.

The highly-touted junior college transfer surpassed the hype by scoring 37 points in leading Hawaii to a 75-55 win over Eastern Washington.

A 6-foot-7 swingman, Flemings made 16 of 23 shots from the field, displaying a varied game that include gravity-defying dunks, dazzling moves to the hoop and a surprising soft left-handed shot from the perimeter.

The win improved UH's season record to 4-3 going into tonight's home game against
Chicago State. The tip-off is set for 7:05 p.m.

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TOUGH TIMES? NOT FOR CC, K-ROD

By Fred Guzman
ESPN550.com

As most of us know, from listening to the news reports and watching the value of our homes and 401(k) accounts shrink on a daily basis, we are in the midst of tough economic times.

Even the NFL, the gold standard by which all American pro sports leagues are measured, is not immune to the recession. The league is cutting 10 percent of its headquarters staff, eliminating about 150 of its 1,100 employees.

Earlier, the NBA, Major League Baseball and NASCAR announced layoffs.

And there are reports that the Arena Football League, which has grown in popularity and attendance during the past decade, is contemplating the cancellation of its 23rd season in 2009 with an eye of working toward a more economical single-entity business model in 2010.

But some baseball teams appear to be immune from – or are ignoring -- the difficult financial times.

Earlier this week, the Yankees made a seven-year, $161 million offer to land free-agent left-hander CC Sabathia and have followed that up with a five-year, $81 million offer in an effort to secure the services of free-agent right-hander AJ Burnett.

The Mets signed closer Francisco Rodriguez to a three-year deal worth $31 million, plus incentives. And the lowly Washington Nationals have offered free-agent first baseman Mark Teixeira an eight-year $120 million contract.

Recession? What recession?

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CC CASHES IN WITH YANKEES

By Fred Guzman
ESPN550.com

After all of the talk about CC Sabathia wishing to remain in the National League and staying close to his West Coast home, it came down as it almost invariably does – in both business and sports -- to money.

I don't say that as a criticism or any sort of indictment. It was just proof positive, once again, that money talks and just about everything else walks.

The most prized pitcher in this year's free agent class is going to end up in pinstripes. To put it simply, the Yankees made Sabathia an offer he couldn't refuse.

After initially offering him a six-year, $140 million deal, the Yankees sealed the deal by adding another year and bumping the value of the contract to $161 million – by far the biggest contract for a pitcher in baseball history. And the contract allows Sabathia to opt out of the deal after three years.

Those numbers dwarf the six-year, $137 million package the New York Mets gave another talented lefty, Johan Santana, last off-season.

So much for returning to Milwaukee. So much for San Francisco's late bid to lure CC back to his Bay Area roots. And so much for general manager Ned Colletti's comments about Sabathia telling him over the weekend about his desire to play for the Dodgers.

The Yanks aren't through with their off-season free-agent shopping spree. They also are expected to make serious bids for the likes of AJ Burnett and Ben Sheets in addition to making a one-year, $10 million offer to retain Andy Pettitte.

Burnett reportedly has been offered a five-year, $85 million by the Yankees, who also are rumored to be on the verge of offering Sheets a one- or two-year deal. And did we mentioning that New York has made a one-year, $10 million to retain Andy Pettitte?

Can a team buy a World Series title? The Yankees have done it before and, quite obviously, they're seeking to do it again.

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TOUGH SETBACK FOR HAWAII

By Fred Guzman
ESPN.550.com

This was going to be one of those victories that University of Hawaii football fans were going to be talking about for years.

But a not so funny thing happened to UH en route to an apparent win over a team that already had assured itself of a berth in a BCS bowl game.

Depending on your perspective, either 13th-ranked Cincinnati rose to the challenge or Hawaii simply collapsed down the stretch.

Either way, the Bearcats rallied for 19 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to make up a 14-point deficit for a 29-24 win at Aloha Stadium.

After just about everything that could go right did for UH en route to a 24-10 lead after 45 minutes: Quarterback Greg Alexander was on the mark with his passes. The defense was containing Cincinnati's attack.

And then, just about everything that could go wrong did during the decisive four quarter.

The play that triggered the turnaround came with 5:05 left in the game and UH leading by four. On first down deep in its own territory, UH inexplicably called on Daniel Libre to run the ball wide to the left. Libre fumbled and recovered the ball in the end zone, giving Cincinnati a safety and forcing UH to give the ball right back on a free kick.

Cincinnati promptly scored a touchdown and, as a resulted, will be taking an 11-2 record into its New Year's Day showdown against ACC champion Virginia Tech in Miami.

UH did receive a consolation prize, of sorts: A chance to play against Notre Dame in the Hawaii Bowl on Christmas Eve. But for the moment, that's small consolation, isn't it?

WAHINE ADVANCE The sixth-ranked Rainbow Wahine swept their way through Los Angeles. Next stop in their itinerary: Fort Collins, Colorado.

Hawaii roared into the regionals of the NCAA women's volleyball tournament with a pair of impressive victories in the sub-regional rounds..

On Friday, the Rainbow Wahine opened with a 25-19, 25-11, 25-22 romp past Atlantic Sun Conference champion Belmont.

On Saturday, UH pounded out a 25-21, 25-18, 25-22 win over 12th-ranked and sub-regional host USC. Jamie Houston's 17 kills and freshman Kanani Danielson's double-double of 11 kills and 15 digs led Hawaii, which improved its record to 30-3.

Friday's turnout was about 200; Saturday's was 1,019, with a surprisingly large portion of the crowd rooting for the visitors from Hawaii. Hawaii applied for and was denied the opportunity to host a sub-regional, despite again leading the nation in average attendance with well over 5,000 fans per game.

UH will next play against 10th-seeded Purdue (26-8) on Friday. Second-seeded Stanford (28-3) will face 15th-seeded Florida in the other regional semifinal.

HOOPS UDATE: Things haven't gone as well for the UH women's basketball team this season, although the Rainbow Wahine did improve their record to 2-7 last night with a 74-46 rout of UC Irvine in the third-place game of a tournament in Tempe, Ariz. Sophomore point guard Keisha Kanekoa led the way with a 19-point, 11-rebound, six-assist performance in the victory and was named to the all-tourney team.

The UH men, winners of three straight, face a major basketball challenge tonight on the road against Illinois of the Big Ten.

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