ZoomSlowik

QUOTE(Milkman delivers @ Jun 29, 2005 -> 01:36 PM) Alright, I give up. Jason Schmidt sucks. He was a fluke. I never said he was a fluke. I said he isn't the same pitcher that he used to be. There's a difference. Why don't we go get Chan Ho Park too, he used to be pretty good. Maybe we can get Kerry Wood while we're at it. Take a look at his stats for this season and tell me that he is an ace that is going to get us to the series. I'll believe it when I see him put up a few more good starts.

You could also either direct her to read this book or give it to her as a gift (kill two birds with one stone on Secretary's day): The Million-to-One Team: Why the Cubs Haven't Won a Pennant Since 1945 by George Castle It chronicles the ineptitude of their drafts, horrible trades, and mis-management. You could also simply tell her that at the beginning of their history the Cubs were the Chicago White Stockings. See if she can comprehend that the Cubs used to be the Sox. Maybe if you're lucky she won't be able to handle the truth and jump out the window, not only ending the E-mails but ridding the world of another Cub fan. Or if all else fails, just show her the standings.

Cubs magic number= 911

QUOTE(Milkman delivers @ Jun 29, 2005 -> 01:18 PM) I never thought I'd hear somebody say they'd be upset to get Jason Schmidt. On another note, it's not so easy to just get Burnett. We might not have the parts to swing that deal. Why wouldn't I be upset if we gave up our top 2 prospects for a guy who's coming off an injury this year with a lower velocity and to this point has similar numbers to El Duque? Unless he strings together a couple more solid starts (I don't consider last night solid), I don't see him as being much of an upgrade. As for Burnett, I doubt Florida's asking price is any different than Schmidt's. If the Marlins are shopping him, he's gonna cost about the same. We've also probably got better prospects to offer than the other contenders (except Philly if they wanted to deal Howard and Floyd, or if Texas gives up some of their young major leaguers).

I'm gonna be upset if we get Schmidt (unless the deal centers around Contreras and McCarthy or Anderson, that'd be pretty cool). The guy has allowed 42 walks and 86 hits in 82 1/3. He's simply not the same guy. He was highly mediocre last night, he could have been hit a lot harder. He allowed 9 hits and 3 walks. If Kenny is absolutely set on getting a starter, I'd much rather try to get Burnett. The guy has 13 quality starts already and has pitched much better. However, I'd still much rather see us improve in other areas, like finding another guy that can hit, or another arm in the pen so we can use more than 4 guys. Also if we get Schmidt, I sincerely hope that he doesn't start over one of our current big 3 unless he returns to being his old self or one of our guys falls apart.

I highly doubt we are going to be able to get Lidge. He has outstanding stuff and is very cheap. Houston would have to be dense to get rid of him. I also would expect Phillly to hang on to Wagner as long as they are somewhere near the division league. However, someone is going to have a decent/solid reliever somewhere that can help.

QUOTE(Jabroni @ Jun 28, 2005 -> 11:30 PM) Exactly. We don't need a SS. We need a 3rd baseman that can consistently hit A LOT more. I don't get how you can support hanging on to Uribe while also supporting getting an upgrade at 3B. Their attributes are so similar it's scary. Neither is exactly a consistent hitter, but they both have some pop and play very good defense. There aren't exactly a whole lot of third baseman that can hit (only 18 qualified hitters are over .250), and many of them aren't available. Even assuming we do get one of them, we'd take a hit on the defensive front. Getting Chavez is one thing, but I don't really think the available guys are a major upgrade. I would, however, like to get a contact hitter who can play SS/3B that can give these guys some days off and give our offense a different look once in a while.

QUOTE(southsideirish @ Jun 28, 2005 -> 11:17 PM) I am assuming Garland will because I have seen him pitch the last few years besides this one. COuld he have turned the corner? Sure, but what if he hasn't? The Marlins? Please! They never try to add payroll. The season is not even half way over. Adding another starter still has a lot of value. An ace starter such as Schmidt has A LOT of value!!!!!!! Okay, if you are using past history for Garland (which has no bearing on what he will do this year), and saying that this year means nothing, why are you doing the reverse? Schmidt has done little to show you that he is still the ace that he has been the past few years. In fact, he's been getting hit about as hard as El Duque. You're making the assumption that he will return to form and that the switch to the AL and the switch to a hitter's park won't affect him. We'd be paying an awful lot based on the chance that he performs like he used to, both in money and talent. As for the Marlins, they've made several moves to try to improve their team, and are in a similar financial position as we are. They signed I-Rod and Benitez, acquired Urbina, and signed Delgado in this offseason. You could argue that they are more prone to make a big move than we are.

QUOTE(southsideirish @ Jun 28, 2005 -> 11:02 PM) I didn't and I wasn't looking to make a ton of changes. I just wanted Schmidt and a 3rd baseman that makes contact. Those are the changes you wanted to make. From what the insiders say Schmidt is available and the Giants want to get younger. Burnett is available because he is a FA next year and will be demanding crazy money. I thought we were making a push for the World Series? If we are then I am not counting on the Count and El Duque. I am also not going to count on Garland to produce like this for the whole year. If he does great, but I don't want it to be something I am banking on in order to move on. There is no telling wether Jenks, Baj, or Gload will produce when they get here. However, there is also no telling another major league reliever, backup ss, or lefthanded 1B will either when they come to the Sox. There is no telling whether Schmidt, or Burnett, or Zito, or Babe Ruth if we dug him up would get us to the series, especially since one of them had an ERA of 4.85 before today, Zito was around 4.4, and Burnett only has 5 wins. You missed the whole point my rumor statements. We DON"T know what is going to happen. As I said, about a month ago Chavez and Zito were hot rumor subjects, now they are probably not available. The same thing is the case with Schmidt. It's just a dumbass writer, like we rip on all the time, saying that he might be traded. That's far from solid evidence. And Burnett's contract status has nothing to do with whether or not he is traded this season while Florida is in contention. They had no problem letting I-Rod, Benitez, or Urbina walk at the end of a season, and they weren't exactly locks to win the division at the deadline. We're not exactly counting on Contreras or Hernandez to carry our team in the playoffs either. One of them probably won't start, the other one would make 3 starts TOPS, and that's assuming we make it to the series and play the max amount of games in each of them. As for Garland, he's shown no signs of slowing down, so why should we assume he should? Did the Marlins try to add another starter because they weren't sure that Beckett and Pavano would be able to hold up in the playoffs? Hell no! All you're doing by adding a starter is making one of our three solid starters that have gotten us to this point much less valuable to your team. We're simply not going to find a guy out there who is a significant upgrade over Garland unless by some miracle Clemens demands to be traded and decides that he is going to come to the Sox. Edit- also, Vizquel is an absolute waste of assets if you are going to put him on the bench, and in the trade another poster proposed Uribe was part of the deal. Acquiring a $6 mil a year old man with two years left to use as a backup SS is simply asanine.

QUOTE(southsideirish @ Jun 28, 2005 -> 10:43 PM) Because I don't want to just MAKE the playoffs. I have seen the White Sox do that plenty of times. I want to win in the playoffs. I want to move on and have a realistic chance of winning the World Series. Just because we have the best record in baseball does not mean we have the best team in baseball. We have an opportunity to get better, so why shouldn't we take that opportunity? Bobby Jenks will be that solid right handed reliever. We don't have to go out and get one, we already have him. Done. Ross Gload. Done. Maybe we can have the Giants include Vizquel in a deal with Schmidt. That would enable you to move Uribe to third and he can be the reliable backup SS when he is needed. Chavez is not going anywhere. I would like to have A-Rod and Jeter as well. While we are at it why don't we see if we can get Scott Rolen and Albert Pujols from the Cardinals. Point is Schmidt is available. Chavez is not. We don't know that Schmidt is available. We're just speculating. About a month ago Chavez was available and we were speculating the same way. Zito is the same way. In fact, his GM said that he isn't going anywhere. And we're assuming that Burnett is available, despite the fact the Florida is only 6 out in their division and 3.5 out of the wildcard. The difference in this situation is that the Giants aren't a cash-strapped small market team that can't afford to keep anyone. They're also probably still under some crazy impression that they can compete once Bonds get back. I'm also not sure why you expect them to throw in Vizquel, considering that he is hitting close to .300 and is signed for two more seasons, or that we would want him after signing Uribe. We don't really know who is available the vast majority of the time. At this time every year we sit here arguing about whatever big name players we can acquire that we never really even come close to getting, and many of those guys never get dealt anyways. In the end, it's highly unlikely that these big name potential impact players will get dealt, which is why I'm looking for and expecting more minor changes. You don't see the division leaders making that many moves that drastically alter the makeup of their team, it's always the teams trying to make up ground like the Astros last year. I definitely see this being the case with us, especially in regards to a starting pitcher, since we have 5 starting pitchers under contract through the end of next season, and our top prospect is also a starter. Also, there's not telling whether or not Jenks (or Baj for that matter) will come up to the big club and produce, or if Gload will be able to be a solid role player. Edit- By the way, how have you seen the Sox "just make the playoffs" plenty of times? It's not like it's that common an occurance. They've only made the playoffs 3 times since 1980, and before that you have to go to 1959. And I wouldn't exactly call the '59 team "just making the playoffs" since they were in the series, or the '93 team since they were a pretty good team.

QUOTE(Jabroni @ Jun 28, 2005 -> 10:22 PM) He could replace Cotts as our long reliever and also spot start if needed. Would he be better out of the bullpen than Vizcaino? I think so. That's not exactly saying much. Then we'd have a $4 mil long relief guy with little bullpen experience.

QUOTE(GreatScott82 @ Jun 28, 2005 -> 10:14 PM) Heres is what I expect to happen before the trade deadline: KW picks up another start- Schmidt, Zito or Burnett. 1. McCarthy gets sent back down to triple-a for some seasoning. (unless he is part of the deal to aqcuire a starter) 2. El-duque comes back from the DL and goes to the bulpen. A trade like this kills 2 birds with 1 stone. We add a solid arm to our already strong pen and gain an outstanding starter. Makes sense- go for it KW!! Since when is El Duque a solid bullpen arm? He doesn't exactly have loads of experience in that area, and who knows if he could pitch every day. Also, right now I wouldn't really call any of those starters outstanding (Burnett is somewhat close, Schmidt was before his injury but has struggled a bunch this year, and Zito has been iffy for a while now despite pitching fairly well now). And does every potential trade target have to play in a pitcher's park?

QUOTE(southsideirish @ Jun 28, 2005 -> 10:06 PM) So then what do you want the Sox to do? A reliever? Who is out there? There is no one that would make a difference. Just doesn't seem like your willing to take a chance on anything. Why do we have to do anything? We have the best record in baseball, don't we? Why must we always make changes; why must we change something that isn't broken? If I were going to make changes to the team, I'd try to add another solid right handed reliever, try to find a left-handed backup for Paulie (or wait for Gload to come back, if that ever happens), and find a dependable backup shortstop. None of those options should cost that much, and they would solidfy the team without making massive changes. I'd also like to get Chavez, but I know that is a pipedream.

QUOTE(WHarris1 @ Jun 28, 2005 -> 10:08 PM) I bet $10 you didn't in January. No, I remember him saying it quite some time ago, and we all ripped on him.

QUOTE(chi-guy2 @ Jun 28, 2005 -> 10:08 PM) not mine, i had him second round Apparently you are psychic, because there was no indication of that at the time. What are this week's winning lottery numbers?

It's amazing how far a guy's stock can drop in the course of a couple of weeks. Taft was a projected lottery pick for a really long time.

QUOTE(Kalapse @ Jun 28, 2005 -> 10:01 PM) '06 Schmidt has a $10 Mil option. Team option or player option?

QUOTE(southsideirish @ Jun 28, 2005 -> 10:00 PM) The guy is coming back from an injury. All the more reason to avoid him, especially since he was struggling in his 4 starts before he hit the DL too.

QUOTE(AirScott @ Jun 28, 2005 -> 09:55 PM) that would be a great problem to have. you can always trade the guys you don't need. Not really, because the only guys we'd want to deal would be the Cubans, who have much less value than the rest of them. We'd be giving up talent and spending money in order to create a log jam.

QUOTE(AirScott @ Jun 28, 2005 -> 09:55 PM) I really like seeing Atlanta starting to get hot, because the further out the Marlins get the more likely Burnett is to be traded. that seems like a KW move. I don't think so. He's already got one starter with injury issues, and Burnett is a free agent at the end of the year, and it is unlikely we'd sign him. I don't think Kenny would make a move for a rent a player (obviously this is also an issue with Schmidt, although I believe he has a rather sizeable option).

QUOTE(GreatScott82 @ Jun 28, 2005 -> 09:51 PM) Looks like Zito is pitching better than Schmidt tonite. As i said before Zito is getting hot as the season progresses. He has always been a 2nd half pitcher- just food for thought. The problem with Zito is he is signed through next year too. We've already got 5 starters for next season, plus B-Mac and potentially some other prospects may be competing to try to sneak into the rotation. Then you'd have 6 major league starters plus the other guys.

QUOTE(beck72 @ Jun 28, 2005 -> 09:33 PM) I guess injuries can be planned, huh. Ineffectiveness as well. My larger point is that there are over 3 months to play. Jon and MB's pitching has been fantastic. I'd love to see both keep up the career years they've been having. Odds are that at least one of the sox top 3 guys won't be able to keep up what they've been doing. If they can, so much the better. The sox wouldn't exactly waste a top tier SP who can hang with the best 3 SP's they've got now. But you also plan for the worst [the 4th and 5th guys are spotty, with a season ending injury to the big 3 after July 31st--I forgot those never happen] Getting another SP who can easily be the #2 or #3 starter, wouldn't exactly be a luxury if such a scenario came to be. and last time I checked the world series can't be won in June. But it can be lost in the last three months leading up to October, without the strongest possible SP. The point is that unless something bad happens getting another starting pitcher is a waste of talent and money. If you acquire someone like Schmidt, either Jon or Freddy or him will have their effectiveness drastically minimized in the playoffs, which is supposedly what the deal is meant to help us with. I especially don't like this idea when the guy has struggled for most of the year like Schmidt.

QUOTE(AirScott @ Jun 28, 2005 -> 09:38 PM) if KW trades for Schmidt, he's going to have to wait until July 31 to do it, so it's a sure thing he's healthy. he was getting K's in those two starts, not affected by the park. He only had 5 K's in the first one against our division rival, and there were 18 flyball outs in those two games. I didn't watch the games, but I gotta imagine at least one or two balls would have done more damage in the Cell. Also, knowing KW and his past dealings, if he were going to make this move he'd do it sooner rather than later.

QUOTE(Frankensteiner @ Jun 28, 2005 -> 09:29 PM) Schmidt's getting hit around by the D-Backs: 2.2 IP, 5 H, 3 ER Notice that his only two good starts since April came in extreme pitcher's parks.

I've gotten some beauties, especially in my leagues where I'm struggling. Teams seem to think I'm going to give up proven players for whoever is hot or ranked high at the moment. The ones that frustrate me the most are when someone offers me a player who plays the same position as the guy they want. Obviously they'd rather have the guy on my team, so what makes them think I'm any different? I also highly dislike 2-1 trades with me giving up the best player in the deal by far. I admit some of them might have helped, but I reject an awful lot of trades. I'm not big on counter offers because the guys I counter for are usually guys they don't want to trade, even if it would be fair given the guy they are asking for. I'm a little weird with trades. Usually I don't propose a deal unless I think there is at least some chance that the other guy will accept it. However, sometimes when I'm looking for deals I offer something a bit unfair. However, I typically am more willing to deal major players than most owners.