Balta1701

Ok...we give...?

QUOTE(YASNY @ Sep 5, 2005 -> 05:08 PM) Great game by BMac today. But, I want to know if anyone caught the real bonehead play made by the Sox that wasn't even mentioned in this thread. Ok...which one you mean? There were a couple...Uribe caught off second...Pods caught off first, the error by Blum, the error by Iguchi...?

QUOTE(YASNY @ Sep 5, 2005 -> 05:28 PM) You comment on the pitch counts was right on. The BoSox had several quality AB's where they were fighting off a lot of good pitches. They do that to almost everyone...that's why they're the best offense in baseball. They're hard as hell to get out. But when guys see 8+ pitches from you, and you still retire them and keep the team shut out...that's a hell of an accomplishment.

QUOTE(Jordan4life_2005 @ Sep 5, 2005 -> 05:18 PM) PK is a tad underrated. I'll give him that. But I don't think he's worth 12 million or whatever I've been hearing. I believe that's what Sexson got last year...and I'd put Paulie basically at the same level in terms of total value to some franchise. Here's the 2 things we have to consider; our budget, and how much better he would be than Gload. First...in terms of our budget...if we give Paulie $11-$12 million, that may mean sacrifices elsewhere. If you give me the choice between Garland or Buehrle and Konerko, I take the pitcher in a heartbeat. If you give me the choice between paying Paulie a few extra million and picking up Everett's option...I probably try to hold onto Konerko. This is the Carlos Lee trade dilemma...by trading the big salary of Lee (and by dropping Ordonez) we were able to add almost every one of our key additions this season - AJ, Tadahito, Dye, Dustin, Pods, Garcia. The real question though might be this...we make a playoff run...and that has to put a lot of money in JR's hands...especially with the attendance burst that we've had this year. That has to help. And I know I'll be buying a lot of merchandise when the playoffs hit. The other issue is his replacement...we could maybe save $10 million a year by going with Gload. Can Gload hit .310 and 15-20 home runs? If he can do that...that's a real savings and a limited downgrade. But if he can't do that, or can't stay healthy for a full season...then Paulie rapidly becomes the best option we have.

QUOTE(Jordan4life_2005 @ Sep 5, 2005 -> 05:14 PM) Homefield to me is very important. I don't care what our road record is, you would always want to play more games at home than on the road. Game 1 of the ALCS in Chicago sounds a lot better to me than game 1 of the ALCS in Boston/New York/ect. Also...if Freddie winds up pitching game 3 or game 4...I think every one here would vastly prefer it if that game were on the road.

QUOTE(juddling @ Sep 5, 2005 -> 05:10 PM) well...i think in this instance the mayor and governor got caught with their heads up their asses. and if they would have spent more time trying to help the situation instead of screaming "It's all the fed. gov't fault" thing might have been a little different. (Note..before anyone jumps...i said a little different. i'm not saying that they could have saved the whole day, but they could have been more instrumental in the situation) The mayor and governor clearly were caught with their heads up their arses. With any luck, as soon as this is over, the voters of Louisiana, if there are any left living there next election cycle, will make them pay dearly for it. As will they make their senators pay. But all things considered...from what I've looked at, the failures of the local and state governments are basically insignificant compared to the disaster that has been the federal response. Here is a small list of the things Fema has helped do: FEMA won't accept Amtrak's help in evacuations FEMA turns away experienced firefighters FEMA turns back Wal-Mart supply trucks FEMA prevents Coast Guard from delivering diesel fuel FEMA won't let Red Cross deliver food FEMA bars morticians from entering New Orleans FEMA blocks 500-boat citizen flotilla from delivering aid FEMA fails to utilize Navy ship with 600-bed hospital on board FEMA to Chicago: Send just one truck FEMA turns away generators FEMA: "First Responders Urged Not To Respond". Probably the worst thing that the Mayor did was failing to order every single bus in th e city to evacuate everyone possible in the hours before the storm hit...despite the fact that there was no National Guard to help round people up nor was there a place to send the buses to...even if he'd just ordered buses to drive north it would have saved lives. But the fact is this...in any disaster of this scale...state and local agencies are going to be completely overwhelmed. It always happens. Even disasters much smaller than this. That is why FEMA exists...it is their job to provide a coordinated command for all the branches of government - local, state, and federal. And it is their job to coordinate the work of the national government. There were clear failures and inept actions by all around. But nothing, in my opinion, comes even close to what FEMA and the DHS have done in terms of damage.

While watching the game yesterday...Hawk said that the Big Hurt paid a visit to the team while they were in Texas and really beat up on Juan & helped him with his swing. From that point on...bang, zoom, right to the moon. Juan...just keep this going through the end of October. Your hot streak last year lasted about 2 months or so...can it last that long this year? We can average 10 runs a game if he gets truly hot.

QUOTE(3E8 @ Sep 5, 2005 -> 04:57 PM) No we won by two runs. Yes, but his was the 4th run...the Sox in the ugly color wound up with 3 runs. And yes, I believe the sarcasm in the post above was caught.

QUOTE(Brian @ Sep 5, 2005 -> 05:02 PM) Today was a bigger game for us than I first thought. If we had lost, we would of only been up 3 games on the Red Sox for homefield in the ALCS if we were so inclined to make it there. With the win, we are 5 games up on them now. Since you brought it up I'll chime in...Boston also has one heckuva hard schedule this week...Anaheim followed by the Yankees.

QUOTE(JoshPR @ Sep 5, 2005 -> 03:29 PM) 1. No more than 40 Innings 2. Less than 140 At bats 3. Or less than 45 days on the Active Major League Roster After today, I believe BMac has thrown 46 innings. Guess he'll just have to beat out Buehrle and Garland for the Cy Young next year if he wants some hardware.

Well, this thread certainly took a bit of a U-Turn since the last time I was on. Anywho...back on track... Congrats Podsie! Now get running!!!

QUOTE(ceffa2000 @ Sep 5, 2005 -> 04:48 PM) ^^^^ It's called clutch hitting. I believe his home run today was actually the margin of victory, was it not?

QUOTE(Jordan4life_2005 @ Sep 5, 2005 -> 01:32 PM) This was a HUGE win. For one, the Magic number is now 17. Two, this gives us a full 5 game lead on Boston for homefield advantage through the AL playoffs. Three, it proves that B-mac's performance against Texas was no fluke. This kid is the real f***in deal. And, of course, we're 5-0 this month. We're still on pace for our 30-0 September! Side note...the last time I shaved on my field trip was the night after the last game of the Texas series. I haven't shaved since then. The Sox have not lost since I shaved. I'm starting to wonder how a Goatee would look on me.

QUOTE(Yossarian @ Sep 5, 2005 -> 03:27 PM) I should have listened better to you guys who saw him in Spring Training. Great effort by BMac. It's nice to see guys get called up who look good for the long haul. This is my second helping of crow where this kid is concerned. Keep it coming! The taste is starting to grow on me, and you know you need at least a little beer to wash it down. BMac lost his changeup earlier this year. He wasn't throwing it. And he was getting hammered. He had all 3 pitches working today...good location on the fastball...a good curve, and a change that he was throwing for strikes. He puts those 3 out there, he can beat anyone. Now...just wait until next year...when they teach him to throw another pitch, and maybe he adds another few mph to his fastball. This kid is going to be incredible. And you know the thing I really loved about his performance today? He was getting the ball, getting the call, and throwing it. No delays. He didn't take time to think...it did take him a lot of pitches because the BoSox are a very good hitting team...but he was getting the ball and throwing it. I think we all know where he learned that. Get him out there, throw strikes, work quickly, and change speeds. That's Mark's formula...and Mark doesn't have the arm this kid has.

QUOTE(Jeckle2000 @ Sep 5, 2005 -> 12:50 PM) Well even if BMAC isn't as sharp it's still better then going to war with a tired El Duque... I mean in Texas he was fine through 5... but as soon as he got close to that 100 pitch mark they just starting teeing off on him like batting practice... I'd sure hate to see that in the playoffs... BMac was shelled by Texas earlier this year and in Spring Training...clearly he can't pitch well. Seriously just try to remember guys... a bad start, or even a couple bad starts, or even a bad month doesn't ruin a guy's season. A bad start does not constitute a trend.

QUOTE(Jeckle2000 @ Sep 5, 2005 -> 12:43 PM) I have a better idea... drop Orlando out of the rotation... just start BMAC... Seriously if BMAC is going to keep pitching like this it makes no sense to even leave El Duque on the playoff roster... The real key there is the if...BMac looks like he could be a great pitcher, but we haven't seen him in the playoffs. There is a big difference between shutting out the Red Sox today and facing them at Fenway in October. By the way...quick question...what does a pitcher have to do so that they no longer qualify as a rookie (and therefore are ineligible for the ROY award)? I'm wondering if BMac will have a shot next year...I think it's something like 125 at bats for a position player, anyone know for a pitcher?

QUOTE(bulokis @ Sep 5, 2005 -> 12:39 PM) Uribe has been a big lift on our offense. Instead of not turning the lineup around, Uribe is getting on base and setting up the top of our lineup. This is a whole different team with a hot Uribe. An entirely different lineup. It goes from being an average/mediocre lineup to a good lineup...possibly a very good one.

QUOTE(Jeckle2000 @ Sep 5, 2005 -> 12:40 PM) If i'm KW i'm seriously considering leaving El Duque off the playoff roster... Make him like the Count's personal pitching coach or something... Seriously if BMAC keeps this up Orlando will be out of a job next year... I really wonder how well El Duque would handle working as a long relief pitcher...if memory serves, at least 1 or 2 guys in our bullpen (Viz included) are free agents after this year. Yeah, he'd have to warm his arm up more often to pitch from the bullpen, but there'd be a much lighter workload per outing.

For the rest of this year at least...why the Hell not? If BMac can do anything close to what he's done the last few games...all it does is give Buehrle, Garland, Garcia, Duque, and Contreras some extra pre-playoff rest.

Whatever happened...all I can think about is this... We have a kid that just took the best power hitting lineup and the best overall lineup in baseball and totally shut both of them down for 14 2/3 innings. 5 hits total, 0 runs. This kid will be making $400,000 or so next year. And if he can do this...he's got a shot at winning 15 or more. Salary flexibility...thy name is McCarthy. We'll have him around for years at a cheap price. In a few years, we may very well have a Buehrle, Garland, McCarthy, Gonzalez, etc. rotation. And no one in baseball will be hitting it. Whatever happened...thank God we didn't mortgage this kid for some free agent to be.

QUOTE(3E8 @ Sep 5, 2005 -> 12:23 PM) Their kids will be fast and hot.

Brandon McCarthy. 14 2/3 innings. Against first, the best power hitting lineup in baseball, and second, against the best overall lineup in baseball. 0 runs. 5 hits. Brandon...wow. Well done kiddo. I can't wait to see you do this over a full year. Oh, and welcome back BMac's changeup...the pitch that disappeared in June! Man, that was fun to watch.

Thank God that's over...DON'T SCARE ME LIKE THAT BOBBY!

QUOTE(Reddy @ Sep 5, 2005 -> 12:05 PM) what happened to him? food poisoning? His Back's been bothering him for a couple weeks.

QUOTE(fathom @ Sep 5, 2005 -> 12:02 PM) Is there any word on whether or not Colon will make his start against us this wknd? Last I heard Colon was basically day to day...there was no reason to think that he wouldn't start...but there's a decent chance he won't be available for more than 5 innigns or so. That could change in a few days.