Yesterday, MLS released the rules for next week's expansion draft to help Philadelphia select their first 10 players. We must turn in our list of protected players Monday at 2 p.m. CT. Who do you think will make the list? Who would you protect?
Last season we lost Tyson Wahl to Seattle. The list of all players we have lost in expansion drafts is shown below. Click to continue reading...

Kevin Hartman made his 100th start in all competitions for the Wizards. He's the 19th Wizard to hit that mark.
The 33 goals scored by the Wizards in league play, ties for the lowest goal output in team history. The 1999 and the 2001 Wizards both scored 33 league goals.
Claudio Lopez's goal was his 13th in league play for the Wizards, moving him into a tie for 12th place all time with Matt McKeon, Jose Burciaga, and Sasha Victorine. Click to continue reading...

Lots of stuff for Wolff again this week, who is having a career year in terms of goals and minutes played.
Josh Wolff's goal was his 11th of the season, a career high in MLS play for Wolff.
Wolff's goal was his 73rd in MLS play in his career, tying him with Edson Buddle for 13th all time. Click to continue reading...

Here's your stat fix for the week. Lots of land mark appearances this week.
Claudio Lopez made his 50th start for the Wizards in MLS play.
Lopez's assist on Zoltan Hercegfalvi's goal was his 15th for the Wizards in league play, tying him with Chris Henderson for 13th place on that list. Click to continue reading...

The 1998 Chicago Fire MLS Cup and US Open Cup championship team included many talented hard working players with good character including Piotr Nowak, Frank Klopas, Lubos Kubik, Chris Armas, Diego Gutierrez, CJ Brown and Jesse Marsch.

Last week we discussed the keys to assembling and retaining good personnel for a successful front office.

Click to continue reading...

For the first time this season, Herculez Gomez did not appear in a game for the Wizards. Up until last night, Gomez had appeared in all 25 league games and all 5 in the Wizards other competitions.
Kei Kamara appeared in his 100th game in all competitions in him MLS career last night.
In the 38th minute, Claudio Lopez hit the 5,000 minute mark in all competitions for the Wizards. Click to continue reading...

I was going to wait until Wednesday's former Wizards update for this, but decided it was too big of news to not touch on, on it's own. Former Wizard, Diego Gutierrez, is going to be receiving a big honor on Thursday. Gutierrez, who retired at the end of last season will be inducted into the Humanitarian Hall of Fame in Boise Idaho. Click to continue reading...

Josh Wolff's goal was his 10th in league play, tying a career high.
It was also Wolff's 82nd in all competitions, tying him with Cobi Jones for 14th on that list.
Wolff's goal was his 40th in league play for the Wizards, breaking a tie with Chris Klein for second on that list.
It was also Wolff's 43rd in all competitions for KC, tying him with Chris Klein for 3rd on that list. Click to continue reading...

Since scoring 3 goals in the first half against New England back on June 13th, the Wizards have scored 1 goal in the next 13 halves of soccer.
Herculez Gomez is the only player to play in all 25 games the Wizards have played in all competitions this season.
Gomez and Kevin Hartman are the only 2 players to have appeared in all 20 league games this season. Click to continue reading...

Not a lot of stats from today's game, but in the coming weeks we should have a few more, big stats coming up for players, so stay tuned.
The Wizards tied a team record for the most red cards in all competitions in a season. Zoltan Hercegfalvi was the Wizards 8th red card of the season in all competitions, tying the record set in 2002. Click to continue reading...

It was Josh Wolff's 250th appearance in all competitions for an MLS side.
Wolff also made his 114th start for the Wizards in all competitions, breaking a tie with Sean Bowers for sole possession of 14th place on that list.
The red card for Claudio Lopez was the Wizards' 7th of the season in all competitions. Click to continue reading...

Last night was Jack Jewsbury's 150th appearance in MLS play for the Wizards.
Jewsbury's appearance also pushed him into sole possession of 7th place on the list of most MLS appearances, breaking a tie with Mo Johnston.
It was also Jewsbury's 109th start in MLS play for the Wizards, moving him past Diego Gutierrez into sole possession of 11th place on that list. Click to continue reading...

Jimmy Conrad made his 250th career MLS appearance.
In the 9th minute, Jack Jewsbury hit the 10,000 minute mark in MLS play for the Wizards. He's the 10th Wizards player to hit that mark.
Jewsbury played in his 149th game in league play for the Wizards, tying him with Mo Johnston for 7th on that list. Click to continue reading...

Lots of stats from last night's game, milestone appearance, milestone minutes played, milestone goals, almost every kind of stat you could ask for.
Last night was Davy Arnaud's 200th appearance in all competitions for KC.
Last night was also Josh Wolff's 100th appearance for KC in league play. Click to continue reading...

ESPN/Soccernet has a nice article on former Missouri State Bear's goalkeeper, Matt Pickens. It covers his professional experience, and there's a great quote by Diego Gutierrez (a long time favorite of mine at Chicago, and a KC native) that every player should consider:

"Often times when young players get the opportunity to step in and contribute, they fail because the moment gets to them, put too much pressure on themselves, or perhaps they have a run of bad luck.

Click to continue reading...

ESPN/Soccernet has a nice article on former Missouri State Bear's goalkeeper, Matt Pickens. It covers his professional experience, and there's a great quote by Diego Gutierrez (a long time favorite of mine at Chicago, and a KC native) that every player should consider:

"Often times when young players get the opportunity to step in and contribute, they fail because the moment gets to them, put too much pressure on themselves, or perhaps they have a run of bad luck.

Click to continue reading...

JK: As someone who has spent his entire career in Major League Soccer, how would you judge the progress that the league has made, both on and off the field? What changes would you like to see implemented in the future?

DG: I have seen tremendous growth with our league. The level has picked up dramatically in the last 10 years and financially speaking, we have a very solid foundation.

Click to continue reading...

This weekend, Wizards defender Jimmy Conrad and goalkeeper Kevin Hartman appeared in Orlando, Florida at a Nothing But Nets event at the Disney Wide World of Sports. They signed autographs, led a skills demonstration and attended a private meet and greet for members of 3v3 teams who raised the most this year for Nothing But Nets, the foundation led by Diego Gutierrez. Click to continue reading...

Diego Gutierrez from his KC days.
MLS put out the list of Generation adidas players today. The nine players represent seven different schools and are broken down into three forwards, three defenders, two midfielders and one goalkeeper. Read the MLS release and the complete list of 2009 adidas Player Combine teams here. Click to continue reading...

MLS
Nick Garcia - San Jose - Started and played 90 minutes in San Jose's 2-0 win over Toronto.
Scott Sealy - San Jose - Started and played 54 minutes in San Jose's 2-0 win over Toronto.
Jose Burciaga Jr. - Colorado - Dressed but did not play in Colorado's 1-1 draw with RSL.
Chris Klein - LA - Started and played 90 minutes in LA's 2-2 draw with Dallas. Click to continue reading...

Ok all, I wanted to answer a question posed as a comment yesterday on the reserve recap from the Toronto match. Someone asked if fans will be able to stick around after the Chicago Fire match and watch as our reserves look to improve upon their 6-1-2 record. The answer is yes, please stay. We will be keeping at least a couple of concession stands open and would very much like for fans to stay and watch the reserve squad. Click to continue reading...

Hey all, we've teamed up with the Chicago Fire, Nothing But Nets and a few players you've probably heard of for a cool ticket offer for the October 5 match. If you're not already a season ticket holder, this is a great way to become one. If you are, this isn't a bad way to renew. Check out the details below from the press release:
Kansas City Wizards Announce All-Star Autograph Experience for October 5 Match Against Chicago Fire
(September 19, 2008) – The Kansas City Wizards announced Friday an exciting post-game opportunity and ticket package for their October 5 match against the Chicago Fire. Click to continue reading...

New feature I'm going to try to do on Wednesdays now. I'm going to go through former Wizards and give an update on what each player in season has actually done with their new club.
MLS
Nick Garcia - San Jose - Played 81 minutes in San Jose's 1-1 draw wtih Houston
Scott Sealy - San Jose - Played the full 90 against Houston. Click to continue reading...

The UN Foundation and Nothing But Nets, along with Illinois Lt. Gov Pat Quinn's office, is launching a challenge for Chicago schools. It begins on Monday, September 8th, and ends on Friday, December 19th
The prizes are pretty great!!
• A low-cost laptop for each student and teacher in the winning class! Click to continue reading...

There is plenty to discuss regarding this weekend's match-up between the Chicago Fire and New York Red Bulls, from the intense battle that wound up being decided by one mistake to the return of Juan Carlos Osorio to Toyota Park (there is also my 48 hours in Chicago, which I will get into later).

Click to continue reading...

Not many stats this week.
DavyArnaud's goal was his 28th in league play, ties him with Scott Sealy, Josh Wolff, and Digital Takawira for 4th place on that list.
Last night was Jack Jewsbury's 148th appearance in all competitions, breaking the tie he had with Diego Gutierrez for 11th. Click to continue reading...

Here are a few of the stats from after last nights 1-1 draw against FC Dallas.
Jack Jewsbury tied Diego Gutierrez for 11th on the all time games played list with 147 games played.
Jewsbury's assist last night gives him 5 on the season good enough for the team lead.
Last night was Michael Harrington's 50th MLS game. Click to continue reading...

Fulham Football Club gives us a video highlight reel of #8 Brian McBride's years on the team. Set to the tune of the Foo Fighters My Hero. (Thanks to BQ for this one).
~and~
Brad Guzan received his work permit today and can now officially join Aston Villa. Huge congrats go out to El Guzano. Click to continue reading...

Chivas USA take on Chicago Fire Saturday after a break. The team has been out of action for two weeks, and have not played an MLS game in a month due to Superliga.

So whats up?

Injuries are plenty, but that's not news. Raphael Wicky and Alex Zotinca are out. However, a few of our usuals are coming back.

Click to continue reading...

A while ago I mention that Jaimie Moreno technically wasn't an MLS original. He joined DC United after the 1996 season was underway. With Tony Sanneh retiring from the game after his 2007 sting with the Colorado Rapids it appears that there are 5 players left that were with the league on it's first day. Click to continue reading...

The biggest crowd of the year so far for a Chivas USA home game - 24,143 - saw a 2-0 win by the hosts Thursday over the Chicago Fire that was thoroughly entertaining to watch.

Actually, it was fun to ask (most of) the participants questions about it too, although Chicago players were obviously not happy.

Click to continue reading...

One at a time and alphabetically...here are the starting lineups you are looking at the start of the season.
Projected Starting Lineup:
---------Frankowski------Barrett-----------
-------------------Blanco--------------------
Mapp-----------------------------------Rolfe
------------------Soumare-------------------
Segares----Conde------Brown------Robinson
-------------------Busch--------------------
First off the bench: GK Nick Noble, DF Brandon Prideaux, MF Logan Pause, MF Diego Gutierrez, FW Calen Carr, FW Andy Herron
Now there's a good chance Logan Pause will be in there for Bakary Soumare. Click to continue reading...

Former Wizards captain, Diego Gutierrez, will play his final season in the league this year in Chicago. Drafted by the Wizards in 1996 out of Rockhurst University, Gutierrez missed the entire 97 season and was left exposed in the expansion draft in 1998. He was picked up by the Fire and played with until being traded back to KC before the 2002 season. Click to continue reading...

Former Wizards captain, Diego Gutierrez, will play his final season in the league this year in Chicago. Drafted by the Wizards in 1996 out of Rockhurst University, Gutierrez missed the entire 97 season and was left exposed in the expansion draft in 1998. He was picked up by the Fire and played with until being traded back to KC before the 2002 season. Click to continue reading...

We're back with rounds 5 and 6 of the fantasy draft. Rounds 1 and 2 are here. Rounds 3 and 4 are here.
5(1). Team Shook - Diego Gutierrez - With the first pick of the 5th round, Team Shook selects Midfielder Diego Gutierrez
Gutierrez was an original member of the Wizards in '96 starting 24 games and all 5 playoff games then, after a injury and a stint in Chicago, Diego returned to the Wizards in 2002. Click to continue reading...