mmmmmbeeer

I don't have one. I've had them in the past but found that the convenience wasn't worth the cost. I was distracted on the road if I was talking while driving. Family and friends always getting calls at inopportune times (dinner, golf course, etc.) really doesn't put me in the mood to get one anytime soon. Although, the wife is expecting here in about a month so she's trying to push me into getting one again. yuck.

I lived in Atlanta for awhile and you obviously haven't made it far from your hotel to check out the city. There are definitely nice parts in the city...check out Buckhead, Virginia-Highland, Little Five Points, Midtown, Centennial Park... lots to do. Sounds like your hotel is right near the airport which is in a s***ty area, I don't know who in the hell told you that that was a nice part of Atlanta. Anything South of 20 and north of McDonough is ghetto, like avoid it if you can kinda ghetto. Downtown is just like any other downtown area, there are nice parts and s*** parts...you've just got to know where to go.

QUOTE(WSFAN35 @ Aug 2, 2005 -> 06:04 PM) Steroids aren't the only answer for players getting busted by the new policy. For Bears fans, I'm sure you all remember Jim Miller getting suspended 4 games for violating the NFL's substance abuse program. He never took steroids, but there was a banned substance in the suppliment he was taking that made him fail the drug test. I'm not sure about what substances are banned by major league baseball, but I'd say that there's a good possibility that Palmiero and Franklin could have a similar case as Jim Miller. I've got no pity for these guys, even if they fail due to a supplement. If you make millions of dollars a year in MLB, you better damn well know EXACTLY what you're putting in your body everytime you take a vitamin or supplement. A pro athlete's livelihood is based on their body, they should know more about what they ingest than any other living person....Jim Miller included.

It's over. ..no one can catch us at this point.

Great article. I remember in '03, checking out the Royals MLB board, Sweeney actually posted on there a few times (and yes, it was him). Very religious guy from reading his main note/post. I also heard on the Sox/Royals broadcast that Sweeney had asked Runelvys if hitting Carlos Guillen (Det/KC brawl) was intentional, to which Elvys replied it was not. Apparentl, Sweeney called Carlos Guillen to let him know that there was no bad intent and would hope that there's no hard feelings. Classy, definitely classy.

I don't think it could be much more obvious that the market just wasn't there for us to make an impact trade. You shouldn't just make a move for the sake of making a move, especially when you're 30+ games over .500 with a 13 game lead in your division. Could we use a bat? Sure, but we've also scored 41 runs in our last 6 games. Could we use a bp arm? Sure, but as we stand now our staff ERA is amongst the best in baseball. Could we use a utility IF? Yeah, it was a GLARING weakness and KW filled it. I think MB hit the nail on the head in the posted article, the Sox aren't in a position to overpay for decent, not great, decent talent (Huff, Baez, Vizquel, Burnett). If it were a matter of overpaying just a bit, I'm confident that KW would have made the move (see El Caballo trade, which we certainly did overpay for Pods) while having faith that the player he's targeted will be a stronger, more valuable contributor to the vision he has in his head. So, knowing that KW won't hesitate to overpay a bit if necessary, it's clear that those selling GMs were asking for ridiculous returns on their trades. There was not ONE blockbuster deal that went down, that really says a lot about this season's parity as well as the state of the market.

QUOTE(White Sox Josh @ Jul 31, 2005 -> 01:50 AM) yeah and what is he doing this year. Look Tracey, Sweeny, and another prospect however Chuck LaMar has a history of asking for the moon. Huff can't play defense because he is a BUTCHER with the glove. Sweeny is the number 3 prospect on the sox however to ask for Anderson, McCarthy, and maybe young is BS. Look it has to be a fair deal for both sides however all LaMar is doing is asking for the moon. Would you rather we stand pat? Personally, I wanna take advantage of the opportunity '05 has presented us. Also, I'd be willing to bet Huff's #'s will increase if he comes to chicago, not only because he'll be hitting in the Cell, but also because he'll actually be playing for a shot at the postseason year in and year out.

If this happens, Rowand or Dye will no longer be with the Sox. The Red Sox are not going to be looking for prospects, especially with Nixon down. You could be looking at Pods patrolling CF, Manny in LF, and Dye in RF. That's a tremendous downgrade in defense. Is it worth the money and defense to add Manny's bat, not to mention his attitude? I don't know.

While i absolutely despise giving up McCarthy for a rental, atleast we'll be dealing him for the far-and-away best rental that's available. As we've discussed to no end on Soxtalk, Wagner would have a real impact on this Sox team and this deal epitomizes the idea that you have to trade the future for the now. Now if we could somehow pull Vizquel from SF, we'd have a very successful trade season, IMO.

QUOTE(fathom @ Jul 27, 2005 -> 03:34 AM) How many other teams do you see just do mass subs like Ozzie does? And please don't give me the best record argument, because our record is crap with the B squad this season. The whole mentality of the team is different when you're benching 2 or 3 everyday starters. Would you say that our fresh bench has had any impact on our record this season? Do you believe that our starters are happy that they know they'll get days off while, at the same time, our bench players are happy because they know that they'll get to see a good bit of playing time? Did you honestly believe that we'd lose this game with MB on the mound against Lima, regardless of the # of bench players starting? I can't believe that Sox fans have the nerve to get on a guy who appears to have a unanimous lock on manager of the year. There's a reason for that clubhouse chemistry every player raves about, and his name is Ozzie and his uncanny ability to satisfy nearly everyone on a team and make them feel needed and important.

QUOTE(SoxFan1 @ Jul 27, 2005 -> 03:31 AM) Get outta here. These are fit, Major League baseball players. If they can't take it, get off the field. Yipeee, Jizz walks the lead-of guy. 162 games in 6 months, or 162 games in roughly 180 days. I guess you're right, Ripken's streak really wasn't very impressive.

QUOTE(fathom @ Jul 27, 2005 -> 03:29 AM) The thing is, this frustration is just more than one game. It's the fact that Ozzie has been using RIDICULOUS lineups far too often this season. We were statistically much worse in those games than we were in games where we were playing the A squad. Now, with tonight's debacle, maybe people will finally start telling Ozzie to quit benching 3 starters every 4th game, etc. So would you prefer to see the team minus 1-2 starters every game? They've got to get their rest and anyone who thinks otherwise is nuts.

We'll be glad Ozzie rests guys come playoff time...resting not only leads to fresh starters but also to warm bench players. Sucks this one got away from us, but it's a grueling season and the Oz man needs to keep his eye on the big picture.

This is one of the few good things about overpaying in the past. In Seattle and MIL, KW has GMs that understand that KW is not looking to fleece anyone, he's looking to truly make deals that will improve both teams. Also, there's no doubt that other GMs across the league have taken note. This puts KW in a much better position than conceited assholes who write autobiographies about their GM abilities before reaching age 50.

QUOTE(Chisoxfn @ Jul 26, 2005 -> 03:02 PM) Would you guys do Contreras, Bmac, Sweeney and say Valido for Schmidt and Vizquel. I must say, I'd definately think long and hard about it. Mainly because I want Vizquel badly Plus Schmidt is a total horse and wouldn't be a 3 month rental. In a heartbeat...we fill two holes on this team by only giving up one ML player.

I don't get that Jayson Stark quote. If they don't want to take the Sox package because they'd need a starter, then why in the hell are they trading a starter away? I know that there's been some issues with Burnett down in FL, but are they really bad enough to move him prior to a run at the division crown? What do the Marlins know that we don't know about AJ?

QUOTE(Rowand44 @ Jul 24, 2005 -> 10:30 AM) A lot of time the "little" trade is the one that puts a team over the top. cough, shannon stewart, cough

It really is getting f***ing ridiculous. 9/11 was a tragedy, no doubt, but the brutal fact of the matter is that the attack resulted in the deaths of roughly .00001% of the US population. There is no way in hell that the infiringements upon our personal liberties, blatant disregard for our constitution, constant fear tactics delivered by our government, and a president with carte blanche powers over war, can be justified by an incident that claimed the lives of .00001% of our population. It's absolutely mad. Worse yet, a surprising majority of our citizens back these insane attacks on liberty. Ask 10 people how they feel and probably 7-8 of them will respond with the ole loveable, "well, if you don't have anything to hide why should it bother you?" response. Federal legislation like the Patriot Act and local legislation like this bag search program should be raising cynicism across party lines; the democrats and their strong backing of civil liberties and republicans with their strict constitutionalist tendencies. Well, neither party gives a s*** beside their fringe members. Our "free" press does very little to bring sanity to the debate, for fear brings about better ratings. We're walking down a treachorous road. We need to start getting the common man back in power from Washington down to the smallest municipalities.

He went to full counts entirely too often for a guy who wears down easily. Seemed like he did a nice job for the most part getting ahead of the hitters but then would refuse to throw them a strike. I just don't have any faith in him, 5th starter or not.

QUOTE(Antonio Osuna @ Jul 18, 2005 -> 12:05 AM) The trade becomes pointless to me if we have to give up an SP. This trade only makes sense if it lets us add another top-notch starter and put a Cuban in the bullpen/emergency #5 spot. If Florida won't give us SP for AAA OFs, then we need to find somebody who will. Agreed...I thought the point of a trade was to fill Duque's void with Contreras and fill the Count's #4 spot with an above average (stuff-wise) pitcher. If we lose Count, we're in the same boat as we're in now.

Extra Innings subscriber here, just wanted to let those of you who haven't subscribed that they are having a free trial right now. I don't know how long this will last, probably through the weekend, but looks like it's a good Sox series to catch.

Can't remember who wrote the article, but there was an editorial concerning this in the SunTimes. The guy brought up a great point. He believes, and I'd agree, that a gold medal should be the highest award in an olympic sport, the holy grail that an athlete of that sport pushes to attain. With sports like baseball and basketball, the gold medal pales in comparison to an MLB or NBA championship, for those are the true grails of those sports. With the olympics offering the opportunity to attain a second-rate award, players have less to play for and the talent can be watered down. I think he really had some valid points.

It was his hatred for the press that got him into this mess...why in the f*** would he want to go to the All Star game?

QUOTE(winodj @ Jul 8, 2005 -> 01:58 AM) Try 65-70 Grand a year to be more realistic. And try paying back huge student loan bills every month that amount to bills larger than most mortgages in Indiana. Where I live, and with my modest means - I need almost 40K a year to break even at the end of the day. And I don't have student loan payments to deal with. If they think conditions are unbearable, or inappropriate, or god forbid, put the people they serve at risk (by perhaps not being conscious enough to realize they're giving one drug instead of another) - then they have every right to organize and try to make their conditions better. If it works, more power to them. Not to mention the fact that when they do screw up, claiming that the store was understaffed will not save their license. When your employer's negligence puts your livelihood at risk, you should be completely justified in stopping work until that negligence has been addressed.

QUOTE(farmteam @ Jun 27, 2005 -> 07:15 PM) Stupid question--did you try Ebay? way to make a new member feel welcome...