FARMINGDALE, N.Y. -- No one with a chance to make the U.S. team for the Ryder Cup wants to talk about it.Patrick Reed is getting to the point where he doesnt have to.The start of the FedEx Cup playoffs also was the end of Ryder Cup qualifying, and while five Americans already have clinched a spot on the team -- Dustin Johnson, Jordan Spieth, Phil Mickelson, Jimmy Walker and Brooks Koepka -- the other three automatic spots were up for grabs at The Barclays.Reed was at No. 8, and his chances have improved dramatically with a two-shot lead going into the weekend at Bethpage Black.He sees a bigger picture.Im going into this week trying to win a golf tournament, Reed said.He was at 8-under 134 and had a two-shot lead over Rickie Fowler (69) and Emiliano Grillo (69). The 16 players within five shots of the lead included defending champion Jason Day and Jordan Spieth, both four shots behind.REEDS DROUGHT: Reed has gone 55 tournaments worldwide since his last victory, dating to his victory at Kapalua to start 2015. He has had five runner-up finishes since then, and hes pleased with his consistency. He just wasnt pleased with his finish on Friday.Reed was three-putted from 30 feet for bogey on the 16th hole, leaving his first putt some 8 feet short. And after a 5-iron to tap-in range on the par-3 17th to restore a three-shot lead, he went with driver off the 18th tee. Reed thought about hitting 3-iron short of the bunkers, leaving him 165 yards. His caddie said driver would leave him 100 yards, and as well as he had been hitting it, he gave it a try. Reed went left into trouble and made bogey.No matter. He says he has made only two mistakes all week, both leading to bogeys.FLAWLESS FOWLER: Fowler blasted out of a bunker to 4 feet on the ninth hole on Thursday, and his par putt looked good all the way until it spun around the back of the cup and came back toward him. He still remembers that hole because its the only bogey he has made at Bethpage Black this week.Fowler was bogey-free for a 69 on Friday and was two shots out of the lead, along with Grillo.Any time you can go bogey-free out here at this place, its good golf, Fowler said. Yesterday I had about a 4-footer that came back at me -- hit a good putt, should have went in, but didnt. Other than that, Id be bogey-free through two rounds.So yes, he feels good about his chances.SPIETHS COMEBACK: Jordan Spieth thought he hit a good approach on the 10th hole to start the round, only for the ball to miss by a foot and plug at the base of a bunker on No. 10. His only option was to play away from the green, and he made double bogey. Just like that, he was around the cut line.Spieth steadied himself with a 31 on the front nine for a 67 and was four shots behind.JASONS FADE: Jason Day came out firing, with five birdies in seven holes to tie for the lead. And then it all went sideways, mainly off the tee.Day played the next three holes in 4-over par to give all but one of those shots back. He also three-putted the 14th hole from 25 feet and wound up with a 70, leaving him four shots behind. The defending champion says the hard work he put in last week is starting to come around, and he has big hopes in store for the weekend.THE CUT: The cut was at 4-over 146, and it was significant for 16 players.Thirteen of them started the week out of the top 100 and were trying to advance to the next playoff event. Their season is over, a group that includes Francesco Molinari, David Toms and Boo Weekley. Three others still had a mathematical chance to qualify for the Ryder Cup team until they missed the cut -- Bill Haas, Kevin Na and Daniel Summerhays. None has ever played in the Ryder Cup.RYDER CUP: Perhaps the two players that interest Ryder Cup captain Davis Love III the most on the weekend are Zach Johnson and J.B. Holmes. Johnson is No. 7 in the standings, $188,257 ahead of Holmes, who is No. 9. Going into Saturday, it wouldnt take much for Holmes to make up the difference. Holmes was having a rough day until he birdied the 17th and 18th holes to salvage a 72. He was tied for 10th. Johnson was in a large tie for 39th. All White Ultra Boost China . -- Its been a long road back for Sean Bergenheim. Grey And Blue Ultra Boost China .4 million title. Ryan Riess emerged with the title after a session in which he started behind, but used expert skill to gather the chips to his side amid the unpredictability of no-limit Texas Hold em. Riess put his final opponent Jay Farber all-in with an Ace-King. http://www.cheapultraboostchina.com/ .com) - Yankee Stadium is the home of the Bronx Bombers, but on Sunday afternoon it will open its gates to host the latest addition of the Hudson River Rivalry. Cheap Ultra Boost China . -- Ryan Getzlaf grabbed the three pucks wrapped in tape and held them up to his chest in the Anaheim Ducks dressing room for a celebration nine seasons in the making. Youth Ultra Boost China . Vettel was 0.168 seconds faster than Red Bull teammate Mark Webber around the Suzuka circuit. Mercedes driver Nico Rosberg was two tenths of a second off Vettel. "The car balance is decent, but I think we can still improve," Vettel said. On the second Tuesday of July, the stars will sparkle in the San Diego sky. But enough about astronomy. Its the stars sparkling below, on the glimmering grass of Petco Park, that were here to talk about.If the All-Star Game is a time to celebrate star power, lets just come out and say it. You know where you find the brightest stars and the most star-studded franchises in baseball at the moment?In the National League, ladies and gentlemen. The NL has finally won baseballs star wars.Think about it. All of a sudden, its the NL thats the league of marquee franchises and must-see rivalries. Its the league of fire-breathing aces. Its the league of Buster Posey and Bryce Harper, Kris Bryant and Andrew McCutchen, Clayton Kershaw and Madison Bumgarner.Its true -- 100 percent true. And well begin proving it in a moment. But first, ask yourself this: When was the last time you could say that?Not 10 years ago. Not 20 years ago. Not 30 years ago. Were talking the 1970s, friends. The days of Pete Rose, Johnny Bench and Joe Morgan in Cincinnati. Of Mike Schmidt, Steve Carlton and Greg Luzinski in Philly. Of Willie Stargell and Dave Parker in Pittsburgh. Of Steve Garvey, Ron Cey and Davey Lopes in L.A.And how long ago was that? Jimmy Carter was president. The Village People had just released Y.M.C.A. And CC Sabathia and Kim Kardashian had yet to make their debuts on planet Earth. So were talking about 97 lifetimes ago.Then, of course, the American League took over. From 1983 to 2013, the AL won 21 of 30 All-Star Games (not counting that infamous tie in Milwaukee) and 18 of 30 World Series. Curses were shattered in Boston and on the South Side of Chicago. And the Yankees spent about $4 billion to buy every star who changed planes at LaGuardia.But however long the ALs reign of stars lasted, can we agree that its over? At least for now?Im an American League guy at heart, said one longtime executive who has worked in both leagues. But the National League has the better teams right now. And I dont think Im going out on a limb to say the better players are in the National League right now.So how do we measure star power? Dont bother looking at wins above replacement or expected fielding-independent pitching (xFIP). The metrics that tell us most about this shift in the balance of star power are fascinating little trends like this:Jersey sales: Of MLBs top 10 most popular jerseys during the first half of this season, eight belonged to NL players. The only exceptions: Mike Trout and David Ortiz. Thats not a fluke.Attendance: Want to look at road attendance? Six of the top seven attractions, as measured by average per game, are NL teams. (The only exception? Those Boston Red Sox.) Want to look at home attendance? Three teams in baseball average 40,000 or more per game. Theyre all NL teams (Los Angeles Dodgers, St. Louis Cardinals, San Francisco Giants). Only three average under 20,000. Theyre all AL teams (Cleveland Indians, Tampa Bay Rays, Oakland Athletics).TV attractions: Our friends in sports marketing tell us there is no better measure of star power than which teams are shown on national TV the most. So what does it say that, on ESPNs Sunday Night Baseball -- the one true national game of the week -- the past 10 weeks in a row have featured NL matchups? And in the first half, there were more than twice as many appearances by NL teams (23, by 10 different teams) as by AL teams (11, by five different clubs)? Sounds like a trend!Head-to-head: New York, Chicago, the Bay Area and greater Los Angeles are the only four metropolitan areas in which you can find NL teams and AL teams playing in the same market. In all four of those markets, its the NL team that is now dominating TVs. And yes, that means even in New York. As of mid-June, the Mets were out-rating the Yankees by 33 percent, according to the New York Daily News. Amazin.I could keep beating on this timpani, but you get the idea. The balance of star power in this sport has shifted. Dramatically.Just about all the young stars in major markets are in the National League, said Bill Sutton, one of Americas pre-eminent sports-marketing minds, and the director of the Sports and Entertainment Management MBA program at the University of South Florida. L.A., Chicago, New York. The young stars on those teams are fun to watch, fun to watch interview and fun to watch make commercials. What young stars do the Yankees have? Who do the White Sox have? Who do the Angels have except Mike Trout? They dont have nearly the young stars that the Mets, Cubs and Dodgers have.So what are the forces at work that have led to this fascinating new installment in the Baseball Star Wars saga? Lets take a look.Mound controlHeres a homework assignment for you. Make a quick list of the 10 most dominating, charismatic, must-see starting pitchers in baseball. How many of them currently work in the NL? Seven? Eight? Nine? Sadly, way too many of those guys -- Kershaw, MadBum,?Noah Syndergaard, Stephen Strasburg -- wont be able to pitch in this All-Star Game. Nevertheless, its not even worth debating which league has cornered the aces market.We were talking the other day, said another exec who has worked in both leagues, about the difference between playing in the one-game [wild-card] playoff in the American League this year versus the National League. Take all the teams in the playoff race in the National League. They all have that guy youd never want to face in a one-game playoff: [Jake] Arrieta, Bumgarner, [Max] Scherzer, Kershaw, Jose Fernandez, Carlos Martinez, Syndergaard, Gerrit Cole.Every single team has that kind of guy, who might throw a shutout in that game. Then think about the American League. Outside of [Corey] Kluber when hes on, [Chris] Sale might come the closest. But none of the other teams has a guy like that. Its incredible the difference.And if youre going to corner the market on stars at one position, isnt starting pitcher that position? On the night these aces pitch, theyre the closest thing that baseball has to a Steph Curry, a LeBron James, a Tom Brady or an Aaron Rodgers. They hold the game in their hands. The outcome revolves around them. And when theyre great, theyre the biggest story in their sport for those three hours.Its something to think about as you watch the All-Star Game. Has the difference in ace star power ever been larger?The color of moneyMy dad always told me that the way to answer just about every question is this: Follow the money. And once again, its excelllent advice for charting the shift in this tide.ddddddddddddFor most of those years [of AL domination], it seemed like the American League pretty much inflicted its will monetarily, said one of the execs quoted earlier. The Yankees and Red Sox were like behemoths with money. And the American League became the league of the big, big spenders and the highest payrolls.You wont be shocked to learn that the Yankees had the highest payroll in baseball for 16 consecutive seasons, from 1998 through 2013. From 2001 to 2010, the Yankees and Red Sox ranked 1-2 seven times in 10 years. As recently as 2006, only one NL team (the Mets, at $101 million) had a payroll higher than $98 million -- at a time when the Yankees were at $195 million and the Red Sox were at $120 million.But now, as you look at the economics, said Atlanta Braves president of baseball operations John Hart, the game is a lot different. More clubs have more money, more access to big television deals, more dollars from new stadiums. So more clubs have more access to the [free-agent] market. They see the right guy out there at the right time, and boom, they go get him.I think were seeing a combination of factors that werent there in the 90s and the early 2000s, Hart continued. But theres been a change in the financial giants of our game. Im not saying the Yankees are not still one of them. Theyre still formidable. And obviously, the Red Sox are still formidable. But more clubs can do it. The mindset has changed. When a big free agent hits the market, does he expect the Yankees to be the only player or the biggest player? I dont think so.Feel a draft?So what do the Nationals, Cubs and Giants -- the NLs three first-place teams at the break -- have in common? One of the executives quoted above thinks you can sum it up in two words: the draft.The Nationals were really bad for a while, and now theyre good, the exec said. The Cubs were really bad for a while, and now theyre good. The Giants were bad for a few years, and now theyre good. I dont think you see those swoons in the American League. You see more rebuilds in the National League.And as ugly as those rebuilds can get while theyre unfolding, the rewards are obvious. The Nationals got to pick first in back-to-back drafts, in 2009 and 2010, and howd that work out? Well, their timing was excellent -- they now have Strasburg and Harper to show for it (plus Anthony Rendon, who was the sixth pick in 2011).The Cubs never got bad enough to scarf up the No. 1 pick. But how about this four-year run: Javier Baez at No. 9 in 2011, Albert Almora at No. 6 in 2012, Kris Bryant at No. 2 in 2013 and Kyle Schwarber at No. 4 in 2014? Thatll work.The Giants didnt fall as far as those two teams. But do you think its safe to say they did OK with Bumgarner as the 10th pick in 2007 and Posey as the fifth pick in 2008? Uhhh, yep!Then there are the Pirates, who hit on Pedro Alvarez at No. 2 in 2008, Jameson Taillon at No. 2 in 2010 and Cole at No. 1 in 2011. Not to mention Neil Walker and McCutchen, both at No. 11, in 2004 and 2005, respectively.Thats really when this started to change, is four, five, six years ago, when you look at the drafts that some of these teams had, Hart said. The National League has really had its share of clubs that drafted extremely well and hit on the right players. And now, with this new system, its not just that you pick in the top three or four. Youre also going to have the money that goes with those picks.Its safe to say the Braves, Reds, Phillies, Brewers and Padres have noticed, since theyre now in the major rebuild phase themselves. High picks and more dollars: Its a formula that works. And the NL has the glamour teams -- and the stars -- to prove it.Market watchWe live in an age when the star-making machinery no longer consists of bats, baseballs and a ballgame on TV. More than ever, stars arent just made on the field. Theyre also manufactured off the field, with commercials, with appearances, with social media, with marketing. And at the moment, NL teams seem to be winning that game, too.In the front offices of the National League, I would definitely tell you that they have understood the marketability of star players, said Sutton, whose life revolves around studying these trends. And done it. And maximized it. And created personas. ... Its almost NBA-like.He salutes the Giants, who have done it longer and better than anybody. And these days, he especially admires the Mets, who have seized on the opportunity to turn their young starting pitchers into superheroes at every turn.Youve got teams that are really doing smart things, Sutton said. Im watching Syndergaard in New York. And Im watching Coca Cola. And Im watching Muscle Milk. And Im watching all these people saying, Hey, this is the guy. Lets get behind this guy. Have you seen him walking the streets of New York dressed up like Thor? I mean, theyre just really playing this stuff to the max. Its incredible.Now, none of this means the National League is about to go on a run and win eight of the next 10 World Series, or 15 of the next 20 All-Star Games. But remember, we live in an age in which star power has never meant more than it does right now. So get used to seeing these guys -- Syndergaard and Kershaw, Harper and Posey, McCutchen and Giancarlo Stanton -- everywhere you look. Theyre not going away.I think this is the way its going to be, Sutton said. Because of fantasy. Because of video games. Because of coverage, and the emphasis on superstars and stars, people are going to be more star-driven than theyve ever been. Youre still going to love your team. But youre going to make room in your heart for superstars on other teams, who you root for and admire. Because youve seen them and read about them, and we soundbite you to death and video-bite you to death, we make it easier for stars to emerge.So when the spotlights gleam down on the stars who take the field at Petco Park on this magical Tuesday night, take note of which of those magnetic players youre drawn to -- and think about which league they play for. It shouldnt be long before its totally clear which league has taken control of baseballs star wars.Im not saying the American League doesnt have great players, said Hart. Just, the balance has swung. Look at the clubs with the most impactful kind of players. Its swung to the National League. Cheap NFL Gear Cheap Jerseys Store Cheap Jerseys Online Cheap Stitched Jerseys NFL Jerseys From China China NFL Hoodies Youth NFL Jerseys Wholesale Cheap NFL Womens Jerseys Camo China NFL Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys 2019 Stitched Jerseys Cheap Jerseys From China Wholesale Jerseys 2020 Wholesale Authentic Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys Outlet ' ' '