BaseballNick

QUOTE (iamshack @ Nov 13, 2009 -> 11:07 AM) Yeah, but then they might offend the great Torii Hunter. Hunter is the best CF in the history of the game! That's preposterous! That's exactly what I was thinking. Torii's ego would be hurt if he (the 9x Gold Glover) would be asked to move from CF to RF. I don't see that happening.

QUOTE (KyYlE23 @ Nov 13, 2009 -> 09:53 AM) MLBTR showing that Angels and Tigers are negotiating regarding Granderson The Angels really love outfielders. I imagine CG would play LF, Hunter would stay in CF, Rivera would swing over to RF and Abreu would DH.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Nov 10, 2009 -> 02:41 PM) Out of curiousity, how much of Jordan Danks have people actually seen that are saying if he is ready or not? I would think Buddy Bell has seen plenty of JD2's games, and he was the first to say he's Major League ready. Keep in mind, Buddy Bell also thought DeWayne Wise was a hidden gem.

QUOTE (bigruss22 @ Nov 9, 2009 -> 03:36 PM) I thought milksteak and jellybeans would be bad for your diet. They're probably why I got sick in the first place.

I went with the flu crash diet. I had the worst sore throat of my life from the virus and could hardly eat anything for the better part of a week. I ended up losing about 10-15lbs. Since then, I've been exercising and eating well so I haven't gained any of the weight back.

I'm ready to move on as well. I don't like the idea of having a player on the roster whose primary position is DH.

QUOTE (1977 sox fan @ Nov 5, 2009 -> 08:55 AM) I totally agree with you we still need a power line up everybody seems to want this speed line up and slap bunt type hitters we play in a homerun park . Yeah we need some speed types but more importantly we need good avg guys who can hit 25 to 30 homeruns at least our 3 to 6 hitters . Thats why i would love Beckham at 2nd and getting a power guy for 3rd or if we keep him at 3rd get a guy like B. Roberts for 2nd a guy who can hit and steal bases with some pop i mean the Twins have more power then we do and there lineup 1 to 7 is much better then ours . I don't think anyone said they wanted slap hitters. The team needs to be more well-rounded so that when they aren't hitting HRs, there's another way to score runs. For instance, Alex Rios and Gordon Beckham are guys who can deliver HRs and score from second base on a single. The idea is to get more athletic so it doesn't take four hits to score one run. Jared Mitchell and Jordan Danks are guys in the minors who also fit that mold.

Usually I'd say take talent over character because talent wins games, but this is one case I don't think the risk is worth the potential reward. Bradley is such a prima donna and a distraction that I just can't envision a scenario where a deal for him would end well.

Congratulations Steve. That's an amazing accomplishment. I wish I could run one, but I'd breakdown long before the finish. A coworker of mine finished in 2:27:09. Needless to say, he's an incredible runner.

QUOTE (LittleHurt05 @ Sep 30, 2009 -> 11:22 AM) Just noticed that 9 different teams have won the last 9 WS, crazy, although looks like only 3 of the 8 teams this year will have a chance to extend that streak The BoSox have won it twice in the past nine years, so that can't be right.

QUOTE (joeynach @ Sep 29, 2009 -> 11:28 PM) Yep, same thing my econ Prof said!! QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Sep 30, 2009 -> 08:24 AM) I've been saying it for a while now Obviously, there are more than a few opinions about where we're headed. The chief economist at my firm happens to be incredibly bullish. I'm not quite as bullish as he is, but I do think the worst is behind us. Time will tell.

Twins beat the Tigers, 3-2 in 10 innings, in the first game of a double header to move within one game of first place.

QUOTE (WCSox @ Sep 28, 2009 -> 04:11 PM) Greater investment in the markets doesn't mean much if the unemployment rate is at almost 10% and still rising. People who are out of work or are in fear of losing their jobs tend to not spend money on extras like baseball tickets. You're also not accounting for the inflation that will hit in another year or so after all of the excess money that the Fed has printed over the past year and a half floods the market. The current interest rates are so low that the Fed can't lower them further to fight the impending inflation. In addition, our over-dependence on investment from overseas (especially China) will mandate that interest rates will increase, which will further weaken the economy. These two factors very well may trigger another recession in 2011. I have to disagree with you. The fact that the S&P 500 has run up some 60% from its low suggests two very important things to me. First, the market was probably oversold during the recession (which I believe is now over). It's easy to understand why that would be - there was panic and uncertainty fueled by financials that led to uncertainty everywhere else. Financials back all other industries, so when banks are broken, every other industry will suffer to some degree. The second reason for the run up is why markets continue to increase in any time period, and that's because actual production (i.e. sales) exceed expectations. If the market runs up due to earnings numbers exceeding expectations and encouraging guidance from these companies, then jobs will soon follow in order to keep up with demand. Getting back to the original point, if the White Sox drew well over 2 million in the midst of a recession, then there's little doubt in my mind attendance figures will be strong next season (provided the product on the field is competitive and prices aren't too outrageous).

QUOTE (WCSox @ Sep 28, 2009 -> 02:46 PM) Not really. The markets are improving, but unemployment is still on the rise. Ticket sales will be determined by the latter. The stock market can be looked at as a leading indicator of the economy. By the start of next season, things project to be a lot better than 2009. Also, it looks as if Chicago will get the bid for the 2016 Olympic Games - that's going to create a ton of local jobs. This year's attendance figures were very good considering the product on the field and increased ticket prices during a recession.

QUOTE (MHizzle85 @ Sep 24, 2009 -> 01:37 PM) Speaking of last night, am I wrong for thinking Shivers won that fight? I don't think McSweeney did enough in either round to warrant winning either. I was pretty surprised by the decision for the same reason. McSweeney didn't show us much at all. I thought Shivers was more aggressive and landed cleaner strikes. I don't think either of them have what it takes to win this season, so I'm not too bothered by it.

QUOTE (Thunderbolt @ Sep 18, 2009 -> 10:38 AM) That station to station thing sure seems to win us a lot of games. I think it had a lot more to do with the pitching. Obviously, you need a good offense and great pitching to win a division. Clearly, there are flaws with having an offense that is one-dimensional. Thankfully, guys like Beckham, Getz, and Alexei (to a lesser degree) are making this offense a lot more well-rounded. That appears to be the kind of players Jordan Danks and Jared Mitchell will be as well. When a defense has to respect the bunt, the hit-and-run, etc. it opens up holes in the infield and makes an offense a lot more dangerous.

QUOTE (Thunderbolt @ Sep 18, 2009 -> 08:39 AM) The Bunt makes the pitcher's job easier, it doesn't stirke fear in to anyone. It is beyond me that you still cannot see the value of a bunt. You're a bright person who makes valuable contributions to this site, but in no way can I agree with you here. The bunt is especially valuable to a team like the White Sox who are slow and prone to hitting into double plays that negate so many potential scoring chances. I am especially a fan of the bunt when you advance a runner to 3rd with less than 2 outs because a pitcher then has to be extra careful with with any low breaking pitch - so I really don't see how that "makes the pitcher's job easier." It takes away some of a pitcher's arsenal to what should be an RBI threat coming to hit.

QUOTE (Buehrle>Wood @ Sep 17, 2009 -> 04:07 PM) Why the f*** they didn't stop the fight is beyond me. Abe was only half defending himself out there. They really shouldn't have even gone to round 2.

QUOTE (Tex @ Sep 17, 2009 -> 11:42 AM) Are we suggesting the Pods (as in the guy that is hitting .303 and 2nd most likely on the team to get a "real" hit) or a generic Pods hitting close to the team average? The .303 Pods I'm leaving up there to hit in the early and mid innings and looking really long and hard before squaring him around in the 7-8-9. The .303 Pods fails to get a hit 7/10 times - meaning 70% of the time he's not going to get a "real" hit in that situation. Take a look at the game yesterday, 3 hits in 1 inning and 0 runs for our Sox. I'm not saying that happens every time, but it happens far too often with this team. I like the idea of having runners in scoring position and staying out of the rally killing double play.

Both Maine South (#14) and Mount Carmel (#21) moved up in the USA Today national rankings this week.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Sep 16, 2009 -> 08:02 AM) The couldn't raise the money. It was all over the news. I apologize. I was so sick of the news about the sale that I tuned it out if it was being talked about. I'm surprised this was even an issue seeing all of the checks and balances that are in order when a potential new ownership group makes a bid.

QUOTE (southsideirish71 @ Sep 15, 2009 -> 11:03 PM) They moved Viciedo to 1st base at the end of the season in AA. That should tell you their thoughts. I wasn't aware of that. Wow, so he didn't even get a full season at 3B... I'd love it if he could play a corner OF spot because he's supposed to have a plus arm. 1B seems like it would be a waste.

QUOTE (Princess Dye @ Sep 15, 2009 -> 10:53 PM) I'm envisioning lefthanded RF and DH. With regard to the infield, I want stellar defense foremost--and I think we maximize that (and Beckham's worth) with him at 2b I agree that Beckham has a lot more value as a 2B and eventually he'll move there. I find it hard to believe there's enough money to spend on Beltre and a power hitting OF. Odds are that Beckham stays at 3B until Viciedo is ready or they decide to give up on him (Viciedo) as a 3B.

QUOTE (Princess Dye @ Sep 15, 2009 -> 10:49 PM) Curious, what will Beltre command in FA? I'm not 100% positive yet I need to have Gordon at 3b (or should I say Getz...starting) As of now we're way too right handed going into next year. Beltre doesn't seem to fit our needs.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Sep 15, 2009 -> 05:43 PM) There has been zero indication that they are going to raise the payroll over there. As a matter of a fact, the Rickett's deal took so long to get done because they were having trouble putting together the money to finish the deal. I don't see that changing with the choke job over there and the economy still not doing any favor to advertising revenues for sports franchises. Was it because he didn't have the money, or was it because he was negotiating a deal to better suit the current economic environment? There's a huge difference. If he didn't have the money, I find it hard to imagine that Zell would have taken him seriously in the first place.