Middle Buffalo

Should we start Javy on short rest?

"When I stepped out into the bright sunlight from the darkness of the movie house, I had only two things on my mind: Paul Newman and a ride home. I was wishing I looked like Paul Newman—he looks tough and I don’t—but I guess my own looks aren’t so bad." -- Opening sentences from "The Outsiders" Paul Newman had so many great roles. Anyone who hasn't seen "The Hustler," "Slap Shot," "Butch Cassidy," etc. should make it a point to see them. He was a great actor. Good looking without just being pretty. Tough without being a muscle-head. And, by all accounts I've seen, a humble, great guy. He took advantage of his star power to help others without making himself the story.

I make my kids chocolate chip pancakes practically every day. I have to say, they're pretty good. I have a grilling issue. Charcoal grill - pretty much all the meat (steak, burgers, chicken) won't cook all the way through. What am I doing wrong? I've solved the issue somewhat by boiling the chicken.microwaving the steak for a little while before putting the meat on the grill, but I know that's not the proper way to grill. It drives me crazy. Help!

QUOTE (Jenksy Cat @ Sep 23, 2008 -> 09:14 PM) how many rings do those pesky piranhas have? If given the choice between 4 first round sweeps in the playoffs or 1 ring? I'll take the ring every f***in time. The twins play 82 games in that stupid stadium, which benefits from speedy guys who slap the ball around. The sox play 82 games in a park where a pop-fly has a high chance of going out. Do we need some balance? Sure, but I don't want a team full of fast .260 hitters with 5 HR's either. I'd recommend people put aside the emotion from a tough loss and actually think for a second. -Our 2 biggest needs were OBP and Bullpen. He bought a new bullpen, which for the most part worked out (sans injuries). He then brought in 2 good career OBP guys, which didn't work out so well. -We now have Quentin, Ramirez, Floyd, Danks, Swisher, and Jenks to build around. I think pretty much any team in the MLB would take those building blocks, especially considering they cost us ~$100 a day in salary. -BA has shown he can play, so he will either get traded or get a shot. That leaves us with Thome-Konerko-Dye as DH options, and Swisher as a solid 1B option. So we have decent pieces to trade -You can't "brush aside" injuries to our only 2 All-Star players, our 5th starter, our setup man, our closer, and our first baseman as "minor". The Twins won the World Series in 1987 and 1991. Oh, and I know it's being a little picky, but both teams play 81 home games.

It's probably already been pointed out (I'm not about to read 11 pages devoted to Jay Mariotti) that Jay would have a field day with any Chicago athlete who quit on his team before his contract was up. Out clause or not. I'm pretty sure he went after Scottie Pippen pretty hard after he sat out with 1.8 seconds left in a playoff game. But that's Jay. He's a hypocrite to the core.

QUOTE (shipps @ Sep 17, 2008 -> 11:48 AM) Mullet Camaro

QUOTE (DABearSoX @ Sep 12, 2008 -> 08:59 AM) I always wondered if this whole "fence" thing is really gonna work. I mean as Ian Malcom puts it "Life finds a way." Do you know if they are building it like 20 feet into the ground to deter tunnels as well? At some point in the fence, there will be a gate. The gate will be patrolled by guards. The guards can be corrupted. Far more people than we think pass through the border because the people patrolling it look the other way. That's why building a wall is a waste of time/money.

I WAS POSTING THIS IN THE "SARAH PALIN" THREAD, BUT IT WAS CLOSED AS I WAS TYPING. I'LL POST IT HERE BECAUSE I REALLY LIKED THE IDEA BEHIND THIS THREAD. I'M NOT CHANGING THE CONTENT OF MY POST BECAUSE IT'S LATE, AND I'M LAZY. [As submitted to the "Sarah Palin" thread] This thread perfectly represents the worst things about politics. People are so dug in as Dems or Reps that they won't admit when someone from their party is wrong, made a mistake, is underqualified, etc. It's really pretty disgusting. 39 pages of people bending the truth to fit their argument. I was watching CNN (Anderson Cooper) tonight, and there were experts on assessing the performance of Palin in her interview with Gibson. The Republican said she did great. The Democrat wasn't impressed. Wow. Shocking. This thread has been exactly the same. I like when I see McCain and Obama being cordial to one another. I think they're both pretty classy guys who've pretty much been above much of the mud-slinging. I wish the liberals and conservatives in the media (and here on Soxtalk) would follow their lead and talk about the issues. This forum should be a place where people can go to see what the other side thinks and why. Maybe, people might even change their minds on some issues based on some of the discussions they participate in here. Unfortunately, it's mostly a place where staunch Dems/Reps go to post rhetoric.

QUOTE (Rex Hudler @ Sep 8, 2008 -> 09:55 PM) join us in the member's thread ss2K... Lately I feel like when I am talking there is an echo. Everybody quit on me, I think..... I haven't quit, I just haven't made any progress. I have excuses, but they're just that. I'm thinking about signing up for a half marathon in January to kickstart things. I keep checking in on this thread, and it does seem that you are the only one following through completely. And it's really impressive. Keep up the good work!

QUOTE (ChiSox35 @ Sep 11, 2008 -> 04:25 PM) Anyone else get annoyed when a celebrity starts a foundation for an ailment that somehow effected him/her? They're doing good, but how novel would it be if you had a guy who doesn't have cancer or diabetes (or a daughter with some eye ailment) to start a cancer or diabetes (or eye ailment) foundation? I don't like Curt Schilling, but he has an ALS (Lou Gherig's Disease) foundation, and I don't believe he has anyone in his life that has been affected by ALS. That said, it's kind of unlikely that someone would just randomly start a charitable organization.

QUOTE (Milkman delivers @ Sep 11, 2008 -> 08:37 AM) Armstrong would have to be more than just a freak of nature to be so dominant in the sport. It is possible, though, that he is a freak of nature. His heart is 33% larger than the average man's. http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/statitude.../armstrong_btn/ That gives him a pretty distict advantage athletically. Granted, I don't know how his heart compares to other cyclists, but it is possible that he has a God-given advantage. Maybe he's like cyclings version of Wilt Chamberlain - ahead of his time athletically. As stated earlier, he has been tested for all the banned substances - repeatedly, and the cycling organizations seem to be pretty good at catching cheaters regardless of their stature in the sport. That said, I wouldn't be totally shocked if he, or any athlete tested positive for PEDs. Sad, but not shocked.

QUOTE (knightni @ Aug 24, 2008 -> 11:37 PM) I'm going to try and knock out 2 or three tomorrow (err later today). Is that a masturbation reference? Try sextalk.com - it helps.

QUOTE (YASNY @ Aug 30, 2008 -> 09:46 AM) BlackJack was one of those pitchers that pitched just well enough to win. In fact, he's the one example I use when I run into that argument that W's is a bad stat to judge a pitcher by. BlackJack was the exception to that rule. He was the type of pitcher that when he didn't have his best stuff and the game was close, he'd battle his ass off. He was also the type that if he had a 5 run lead, he'd come right after a hitter and if that guy hit one out, so be it. ERA be damned, Jack McDowell was a winner in every sense of the word. I can't tell you how many times I've had this exact "discussion" with people. Spot him a five run lead, he'll give up 4 runs and take the win. That's what's so frustrating about guys like Vasquez and Jon Garland (when he was young), they would always follow up a good offensive inning by the Sox by relinquishing the lead. They try (tried) to be too perfect, and they got burned by it.

His HR call is really weak, but I really hate that he says "YES!" with Hawk when Hawk calls a HR. It sounds terrible.

QUOTE (IlliniKrush @ Aug 15, 2008 -> 05:35 PM) Anyone who goes to CO's deserves two black eyes. Well, because of swelling, I'd say I had one and a half black eyes. And who could turn down quarter beers?

QUOTE (Texsox @ Aug 14, 2008 -> 11:08 AM) So the cops released us first because we were on the losing end and would probably be smart and follow their orders to leave town. Nope, we found a hidden away bar, down the end of an alley, and drank some more. As we were leaving, and turning a corner, we bumped into our buddies. I had a very similar experience. During Summer School at U of I, a few friends and I were out at CO's for quarter beers. I ran into some friends from high school who I really hadn't seen since freshman year (I was going into my senior year). So we're talking, and it's one of their 21st birthdays, but the guy's had enough. I couldn't have been with them more than 15 minutes when my newly 21 year old friend leans to the side and pukes. Right at the bar. Unfortunately, the splash gets a guy standing near us. And he's big - an Illini football player. So the football player and one of his friends start getting rough with the guy who puked. I stepped in to try to break it up. I'm apologizing and explaining that it's his birthday, etc. Trying to be a peacemaker. The bouncers see it differently. I get tossed, and so do the football players. No one else gets thrown out. They send the football players out the back door and tell me to wait a little while, then they send me out the front. A friend comes with me. So we're walking home, and La Bamba is between CO's and our house. I decide to go get a burrito, and my friend says he'll see me at home. I walk into La Bamba and get in line, and I notice that the football players are at a table eating. I try to avoid them seeing me, order to go and walk out. As turn the corner, the two guys are outside waiting. One of the guys starts to talk to me, and I again say that I was just trying....BAM. The other guy nails me in the eye. Really hard, and I'm seeing stars. Total cheapshot. I didn't really have time to retaliate or anything before they walked away. That was the extent of the fight, but I had a terrible black eye. The next day, I saw the guy who puked on the way to class, and he had no memory of seeing me at CO's, and he found it funny that his puking led to my black eye. I should have given him the cheapshot treatment right there on the Quad.

I really thought he was going to be great. I was wrong. Injuries and being out of shape really derailed his career. He has a career arc that is pretty common among White Sox players in the last 3 or 4 decades. A few really good years, and then injuries ruin their careers. Then they kick around MLB for a little while and disappear.

Seems Julia Child was more than just dead sexy. http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080814/ap_on_.../spies_revealed ps Add Moe Berg to my list of favorite ex-Sox players.

QUOTE (Texsox @ Aug 12, 2008 -> 11:32 AM) No it doesn't invalidate your list at all. My comment was partly tongue in cheek, if you read this thread you will see how much I agree with you. BTW, based on the date you mentioned, you would have seen his play. No problem. I didn't read the whole thread, and I did put Baines on my list. And I was just explaining how I voted and how if others here were in their early 20's, they might not have much of a memory of Baines playing. Based on the results so far, it seems as if most people only voted for players they saw play. Unfortunately, that leaves out a bunch of really good players. In fact, the players left off the list are probably better than those who will make it if the voting keeps going like it has.

QUOTE (Texsox @ Aug 11, 2008 -> 11:01 PM) If Baines is not in the top 5, then some Sox fans need a history lesson. It's "favorite" white sox players, so his achievements are only part of the equation. What makes someone a favorite is different for every person who took the time to vote. I didn't vote for anyone who I didn't see - which dates back to 1978 or so. That left quite a few of the all time great Sox - Fox, Aparicio, Pierce, Shoeless Joe, Appling, etc - off my list. Does that invalidate my list?

QUOTE (knightni @ Aug 9, 2008 -> 01:35 AM) And Wilbur Wood was more than a baseball sideshow, he won twenty four games in 1973, while losing 20. Add ‘em up, 43 decisions in one season. And you say it with such confidence. Hope you're not in charge of the head count at the jamborees.

The thing I loved about Chet was that no matter how routine the fly ball, he'd manage to lose his hat in pursuit of it. Don't know if he had an ill fitting hat, lop-sided head, or if (as I suspect) he knocked it off to make the play look more difficult. Whatever the reason, he was a one of my original Sox favorites.

I've been a groomsman seven times, and only received a few gifts that I have used in any way. I have a money clip, a flask, a couple of monogrammed steins, and a few other things I don't recall. When my brother got married he gave us all a pair of Chuck Taylors that we all wore to the reception. The groomsmen wore black - groom wore green. The rest of the stuff sits in drawers or holds pens. One of the steins is actually quite nice, though it's never used. The groom got each of us a stein with our nationality on it. Mine has a shamrock and says Ireland (for example). I had another guy give me Blu Blockers as a gag - in addition to a monogrammed gym bag. I also received a mini-Bears helmet one time (there was another small gift as well). On second thought, I've received some pretty good stuff. I like the idea of going to a Sox game with the groomsmen, but it's only good if everyone can make it. However, you have to do it big. See if you can get a suite. Regular seats won't do. It has to be special or it's just another game. Whatever you do, don't be cheap. If you can't afford to do it up big, don't do the game. I know the wedding is a big expense, but you'll remember that game forever. And think of how much your wife to be is wasting on flowers and center pieces and get a little selfish. If you're going to go with one of the less expensive options - I like the Jersey option. I don't think I would differentiate between the groomsmen and best men, though.

QUOTE (lostfan @ Jul 25, 2008 -> 11:15 AM) I only really have a problem when rookies do it, especially first-rounders. STFU you dickhead, take your millions in guaranteed money you get automatically but haven't earned because the team has no idea if you'll amount to anything or not, and go out and show you can play. Then they go on to be guys like Cedric Benson and Cade McNown. Especially troubling and confusing because the salaries are basically slotted.

QUOTE (lostfan @ Jul 25, 2008 -> 08:59 AM) At the same time - and I'm just talking semantics at this point - some GMs like to front-load salaries and give as much of the guaranteed money up front as they can when they have a big chunk of salary cap space, especially when the bonus is massive. It gives more flexibility with the cap later in the contract. Angelo does this sometimes, I think Tommie Harris's contract is like that. Urlacher's was too, if I'm not mistaken. Freeney made something like 30 million in actual dollars last year (dollar amount is different from the cap value). In cases like this, I think it's horrible for a player to holdout. What has to be considered is the average salary (including bonuses) when compared to players of similar value. If a player is by all accounts a top five player at his position, but his average salary is 20th in the league at his position, I think he has a strong argument for renegotiating. If the player was being paid top five, but his performance was well below that, the team would be justified in cutting the player and saving on the salary.