Cerbaho-WG

Danks' changeup is absolutely fantastic right now. Should be interesting to see what he does for the next two innings.

Danks just worked over Branyan. Good first pitch change here.

JD line drive single.

Kong HR. 7-0.

Branyan doing his best Adam Dunn impression in LF.

2B for Hall.

Nasty 3-2 change by Danks. Looking really, really good right now. Getting under the curve a bit, but locating the fastball well.

QUOTE(DBAH0 @ Feb 12, 2007 -> 05:31 PM) As Keith said, trade Podsednik. Trade his ass with a prospect for Linebrink. Unless you're willing to give the Padres Fields or Sweeney, Towers would die laughing at that proposal.

QUOTE(Jordan4life_2007 @ Feb 9, 2007 -> 02:22 AM) I've been on the Boone Logan bandwagon for a while. I think last year he was kind of overwhelmed (most would be). He should be a lot better this time around. Also, I remember Kenny mentioning they were very high on Paulino (I think that's how you spell his first name) Reynoso. I expect him to get a legitimate chance at winning a spot in the 'pen as well. Reynoso won't even sniff the big league team. He's like Marte with somehow worse control. If Logan pitches well, he should get the LOOGY spot and Sisco should start at Charlotte.

QUOTE(Chisoxfn @ Feb 5, 2007 -> 07:53 PM) What was the current stream? 350 kbps. It's a perfect tradeoff! Thankfully I'll only be home for three weeks this summer, so the DirecTV thing won't affect me much. But it blows for a lot of people, namely my parents who will probably miss all the Sox games now.

QUOTE(Kalapse @ Feb 5, 2007 -> 04:16 PM) Poor. It doesn't help that MLB.tv isn't very good quality either. MLB.TV is upping their streams to 700 kbps this season, so the picture should be fine.

QUOTE(Chisoxfn @ Jan 26, 2007 -> 04:22 PM) But you have to factor in the fact that for a top of the lineup hitter, I think OPS is extremely over-rated. Add in the fact that you don't compare his positives defensively, on the field or when it comes to sacrificing himself and giving up outs (which he did a whole lot from the 2 spot in Anaheim under Scioscia). For cripes sakes, I understand if people want to say he doesn't have a good OBP for a top of the order guy but thats the only thing you can really slam when it comes to a healthy Erstad. And yes I think stats are such a bulls*** way to go about something. I think you have to factor in a lot of other things and I'm glad our organization doens't just throw stats out there because had we done so we wouldn't have picked up AJ and his crappy OBP/OPS (yes he hits for a decent avg but with no power prior to joining the Sox and we would have ignored the fact that he calls a good game and adds a ton of intangibles; we wouldn't have picked up Cliff Politte because his stats were awful in Toronto or Podsednik who was coming off a down season and statistically wasn't good aside from stolen bases). Ya, stats are the be all end all. AJ brought intangibles to this team (and a good stick for a catcher, even if he won't hit for power). Politte turned into a damn good reliever for two seasons. Pods had a great year for us in 05 (even though he tailed off near the end). Heck, we'd have dumped Garland and Crede long before if we based things on stats and ignored how Garland was young and had stuff or the fact that even when Crede stunk offensively he was a whiz kid defensively. All you guys doubting Erstad will be flat out wrong if he is in fact healthy. If he isn't, you'll be right and we'll have spent 1.5 mill on him. Big whoop...we were paying Ben Davis that in 04 or 05 when he wasn't even on our roster. Sorry for the rant but f*** I hate people that just throw stats at me since I'm so not a stat guy (even though I do look at them, I just don't call them the end all be all). First of all, Jason, you're right, OPS is overrated. OPS+, like the poster before you used, is a much better barometer of talent and it showed how Erstad has been a bad baseball player, period. Secondly, you're assuming Erstad is healthy, and that's not even known. Everyone knows that Anderson plays a superb center field and is better than Erstad because one, he's not old and two, he hasn't been injured like Erstad has. It's not a stretch to say that he's lost a fair amount of his range, and then coupling that with his offensive numbers, he's an even worse investment. When you start listing names like Pierzynski, Pollitte and Podsednik, you show that you have no idea what you're talking about when you say things like how the aforementioned were great intangible pickups. Bulls***. Pollitte was picked up off the scrap heap, Pierzynski was picked up because Ben Davis sucks and we freed up money by trading Carlos Lee and Podsednik was a gamble on Ozzie's smallball philosophy. Erstad, like Rowand, Eckstein, etc., are overrated because they run into walls and s*** and try real hard. Good for them, but that doesn't mean that they don't lack talent that other players have. While you say he brings intangibles to the team like trying really hard, eating raw meat for breakfast and getting dirty, you're ignoring something: he flat out is a liability on offense and will make more outs than an average player. Now does his defense make up for his offense? Probably not, but he could fluke his way to a good year. If Ozzie uses Erstad right, which we all know he won't, this can easily be a beneficial move. If he gets more than 200 at-bats, it's a bad move.

QUOTE(Chisoxfn @ Jan 23, 2007 -> 04:12 PM) I don't expect a price raise to the baseball package Then you're not noticing the obvious. Extra Innings, like NFL Sunday package, will now be under monopoly control. Supply curve shifts leftward, some people who have Cable, like me, will not switch to DirecTV and demand shifts leftward, but not by the amount that the supply curve shifted. Price then goes up, and because it's a monopoly, by an exorbinant amount. It's really not that hard to understand. That being said, I'll just get an S-Video out cable for my laptop and watch it on my TV.

QUOTE(Steve9347 @ Jan 23, 2007 -> 05:08 PM) Erstad... hmmm, an oft-injured lefty who can't hit lefties (a whopping .238 from 2004-2006)... just what this team needs. bad signing. The point is that he'd never face lefties. Iguchi, Konerko, Dye, Crede and Hall are pretty good against lefties I hear. Pure rumor though.

I'll go with Michael Rocco. Good K numbers and ERA at Great Falls last year. Should be in the Kannapolis bullpen this year.

I went to HS with him, and he only touched 95 is freshman year of college. His offspeed stuff isn't good, and he wasn't that great in High School. You don't throw $8 million to a guy who's upside is a reliever.

Jeff always had the reputation of not being the smartest guy alive, but $8 million guaranteed is $8 million guaranteed. Don't know what he'd get by being selected in the first round of the NFL Draft, but my gut says more than $8 million.

QUOTE(Chisoxfn @ Jan 9, 2007 -> 04:57 PM) I wouldn't disagree with them being more fiscally irrisponsible than I'd like. However, they are still far superior in that category to the dem's. So for me it is the lesser of two evils at this point. Kind of like when I voted for Arnold who I actually think is pretty terrible (just better than Gray Davis) because my guy (McClintock) had on chance at winning. Explain to me how neoliberal economics, supply-side economics, whatever the f*** it's called these days, is superior to neokeynesian economics, Rubinomics or whatever the f*** it's called these days. I'm willing to bet that your economic stance falls in line with "taxes are bad" and "the progressive tax system is unfair," rather than "the crowding out effect is a bunch of balls" and "consumption to the terms of a negative savings rate will only produce moderate, short-term economic growth, if at all." The problem with 99% of voters is that they subscribe to the idea of taxes as the only pertinent piece of economic evidence that effects their vote. Trade deficits, economic subsidies, basically anything that effects the nation and not directly them is not important. Thus, it's asinine to say "I subscribe with blah because of their stance on economics," when both the voters and politicians have no clue what they're talking about. Also, 12.

It is completely mind boggling to see how Dale Murphy, a career .265 hitter, can get more votes than Harold Baines, who was a career .289 hitter and had roughly 700 more hits than Murphy. And then Jack Morris gets 25% of the vote? He never had an ERA under three his entire career and people still vote him in?

I'd bet Gio heads to Birmingham because he's very young.

QUOTE(The Ginger Kid @ Jan 1, 2007 -> 04:32 AM) Verducci's top ten break out stars for '07 includes... I want to believe this trade was good. I really, really do... Look at McCarthy's home run rates over the past two years and then realize he'll be pitching in Arlington.

1. I'm a 21-year-old Junior at Indiana University majoring in Germanic Studies, International Studies, and Economics. Yes, all three. I'm also a student at Albert-Ludwigs Universitaet Freiburg. 2. My Great Uncle was deported from Ireland for being in the IRA. 3. I had a birth defect that led to my lung partially deflating. It was awesome. 4. I've seen the catacombs under Stefansdom in Vienna, Austria. 5. I'ver interviewed a bunch of major league players (McCarthy, Majewski, Sweeney, etc.) and future ones as well (Broadway, Haigwood).

QUOTE(Heads22 @ Jan 2, 2007 -> 01:34 AM) Are you suggesting Jason Cage? Myself and Mario included. We would deserve to be shot on sight.

QUOTE(IlliniKrush @ Jan 2, 2007 -> 01:32 AM) I could care less how many you find. His random out-of-place cheerleader rant began to overshadow what was happening on the field. BTW, the constant David v. Goliath references got old fast. They weren't 30 point underdogs. Furthemore, i wasn't the first one to bring it up, which means i'm not the only one to "nit pick" this. Oh Jesus. If you can't find anything good to say, go place your neck in the path of the nearest operating circular saw. I think that's how my Mom told it to me.

QUOTE(IlliniKrush @ Jan 2, 2007 -> 01:22 AM) That's fine and all, but my point still stands. I could pick literally billions of people to broadcast the game worse than Thom did. And after seeing one of the greatest football games ever and you nitpick the broadcaster, something tells me you might have missed the ridiculousness that was the last 10 minutes of the game.