almagest

QUOTE(kyyle23 @ Mar 27, 2008 -> 12:42 PM) I actually feel the same way about Raymond Fiests Magician/Riftwar books. If you havent already, you should check them out. Starting with "Magician:Apprentice" Very good books, though I don't know if I'd put them on the same level as LotR.

Finally saw The Darjeeling Limited. I liked it, though not nearly as much as I liked The Life Aquatic. Probably because there wasn't enough Bill Murray.

Just picked up Rogue Galaxy for PS2 and MLB Power Pros for Wii for $20 each. Also subscribed to GameFly. Seems like a good decision so far, though the first game I rented, Mario & Sonic Olympics, sucks hard.

QUOTE(Mplssoxfan @ Mar 26, 2008 -> 05:24 PM) I'm going to go out on a limb and suggest that there may have been a little alcohol involved. I'm going to go out on a limb and suggest that there may have been a little "I'm going to murder my wife now" involved.

QUOTE(RockRaines @ Mar 26, 2008 -> 05:56 PM) Because Cowards have seen what several of their kin have done across the country, and with the added bonus of instant fame due to tv and the internet it seems like the best option. Unfortunately, this is absolutely right. Look at all the copycats shooting up high schools after Columbine. These kids should be getting even the American Way -- by getting super rich and buying their enemies out.

QUOTE(CanOfCorn @ Mar 26, 2008 -> 06:18 PM) I wonder if someone ever finished out the 1994 season...simulation style. You know, played the rest of the games and see who wins the series. That year could have saved the Expos, too, if I remember correctly, they had Pedro, Pee-Hands, Delino DeShields, Wetteland, Darrin Fletcher, Marquis Grissom, Larry Walker, Rondell White, Cliff Floyd, Wil Cordero...pretty good team at the time. Crap. I'm not entirely sure, but I think someone did. The Expos beat us in the World Series 4-2 IIRC. I remember looking at a picture of that '94 Expos team, and the first thought that came to mind was "holy crap, that team was STACKED!"

QUOTE(DBAH0 @ Mar 26, 2008 -> 07:50 PM) Quentin is the better offensive option out of the 2, and he's pretty good in a corner spot defensively (so long as his shoulder is ok). Agreed. I don't think his shoulder is 100% though. Hopefully I'm wrong, because Quentin has the potential to be a perennial all-star. I'd still like to see Anderson starting in CF, but I understand the White Sox making sure he has to earn everything. It seems to have worked so far for him. I'm looking forward to an '09 outfield of Swisher - Anderson - Quentin. Oh, the offensive and defensive potential there... :drool:

QUOTE(Brian @ Mar 26, 2008 -> 06:27 PM) What the hell, Dotel? Hey, that rhymes. He's gone from nasty early on to awful lately and it's starting to worry me.

Complain all you want, but we have some genuinely exciting young talent waiting in the wings. Quentin, Anderson, Fields, Richar, and Ramirez all have pretty high ceilings, and even Owens can be useful as a 4 OF/speed off the bench guy. Plus, we have Swisher locked up for a while. Seems like a good core of young players to me. Trading Crede and/or Uribe for nothing is a stupid thing to do. KW is right to hang on to them, especially with the rash of injuries this Spring Training. He's betting on one team getting desperate, and giving up something of genuine value. It's a good risk to take. And if no team bites, what's the problem in keeping Crede & Uribe? It's not like benching either or both of them is going to magically make us win 100 games. The offense will score enough runs. We're going to live and die by pitching, as most teams do. If we can't catch lightning in a bottle again, you can bet we'll find some takers for our veteran talent at the break. And other guys, like Cabrera, we can hang on to until the end of the year and grab some type A or B draft picks. I actually think Kenny did a pretty good job this off-season, especially considering we only won 72 games last year, and pretty much all of his "Plan A" moves didn't work out.

QUOTE(SoxWS05 @ Mar 25, 2008 -> 05:11 PM) Uhhmm...probably because he's the best third baseman on our team. I'll love how everyone just drags Crede's name through the mud a year after he hit 30HR and 90RBI's. Trade Josh Fields. What are Crede's numbers this spring, again? And how'd he do last year? And how'd he do in each full season previous to 2006?

QUOTE(Dick Allen @ Mar 24, 2008 -> 04:02 PM) Did you happen to see the pop up Ramirez let drop yesterday? Cost the team 2 runs. Crede hit over .280 with 30 homers in 2006. He was hitting over .300 with 28 homers in August when his back locked up worse than normal. He's healthy now. No hit is not a good description. And how many runs has Ramirez scored or driven in this spring? Probably more than 2. Also, the pitcher is the person who has control over the batters before and after the error occurred, not Ramirez. Do you have anything else that's substantial, or just this one piece of anecdotal evidence? Crede sure has looked good being so healthy this spring, hasn't he? Can the Sox afford to wait until he's got his "timing" back, which stunts Fields' growth at the ML level, and with no guarantee Crede'll be able to put up numbers near his 2006 campaign? Also, hasn't Crede played in more than ONE major league season? And wasn't he spectacularly mediocre in those seasons? Why are you ignoring the rest of his career, then? Selectively pulling data that only supports your points doesn't make Crede a good hitter. It makes him a mediocre hitter with one good season, two years ago. QUOTE(Hatchetman @ Mar 24, 2008 -> 04:08 PM) pitchers have no control (well, very little) on whether a ball in play results in a hit or an out. Which is why strikeouts are so valuable. Also, while it's true that pitchers have little control on a ball after it's in play, they DO have a good deal of control over where and how it's hit.

QUOTE(YASNY @ Mar 24, 2008 -> 03:04 PM) A defensive play that prevents a 2 out bases loaded double is just as effective as a 2 out bases loaded double with the stick. Never realized that defense could be overrated. A pitcher has WAY more control over that bases loaded double than a fielder does. Great defense is seldom going to save poor pitching, and great pitching seldom needs to rely on great defense. I'm not saying having good defensive players isn't needed, I'm questioning the logic of having no-hit, good fielding players anywhere NEAR the starting lineup. Crede fits these criteria, based on last year, this spring, and a good chunk of his career.

QUOTE(nitetrain8601 @ Mar 24, 2008 -> 02:24 PM) Bingo, his power is nice and all, but this team needs more defense, especially with our 3-4-5 pitchers out there. Heck, Buehrle relies on good defense as well. I think people are underrating how important defense is to have out there which is how we ended up with the 2000-2004 teams. We won 95 games in 2000. From '01 - '04 the problem wasn't defense, it was a bad rotation and a bad bullpen. I think you're overrating defense a bit, especially at third base. Up the middle defense matters far more than the corners.

I really think Anderson should be the starting CF. His improved attitude, approach, and the fantastic numbers he's put up this spring have earned him a starting job, at least in my book. I think we should let Ozzie know that if he really wants to build the Sox like the '03 Marlins, he should focus on getting more Josh Becketts, and less Juan Pierres.

QUOTE(Heads22 @ Mar 23, 2008 -> 11:46 PM) .362 avg/.464 obp/.690 slg/ 1.154 ops in 58 AB 4 HR, 1 3B, 5 2B, 11 1B 12 RBI 11 BB, 12 K And, if he was able to sustain those numbers over 550 AB in the regular season, he'd have: 38 HR, 9 3B, 47 2B, 104 1B 114 RBI 104 BB, 114 K I think it's safe to assume these are the numbers he'll put up...

QUOTE(CubsSuck1 @ Mar 21, 2008 -> 12:18 AM) It's 2008, you know. Not 2005.

QUOTE(Kenny Hates Prospects @ Mar 20, 2008 -> 02:16 PM) Izturis was a FA. I don't think the idea of acquiring Blanton is all that speculative considering that Blanton was available, Swish wasn't, yet KW forced Beane's hand. Obviously no one knows if the package that netted Swisher would have been enough to pick up Blanton, but I think it's safe to say we could have acquired him instead by adding to the package if need be. After all, the top of his farm system is largely made up of ex-Sox players. Joe Blanton's career ERA is more than a full run higher on the road. What's even more alarming is that his road ERA was 5.11 last year. Combine this with him having to pitch the majority of his games in US Cellular Field, and you have a recipe for disaster. Swisher is a much better fit for us, and probably came cheaper as well. I'm also pretty sure that we can expect an ERA near or even lower than 5.11 from either Danks or Floyd.

5284-1178-4518 is my Smash Brawl friend code, if anyone wants to play some matches.

QUOTE(BearSox @ Mar 13, 2008 -> 09:48 PM) Did I ever say we shouldn't use stats? Give me a break. You say I am entitled to my opinion, and my opinion is that stats are overrated. I never said they can't be used as a barometer to judge how good or bad a player is. I just think there should be more then .ops to determine if someone is good or not. For example (this isn't the best example, but I think it helps my point about stats), if some piece of crap like Darin Erstad got 10 bloop doubles in 10 AB's, he would have fantastic stats. However, if Stan Musial hit 10 straight line shots to the centerfielder in 10 AB's, but all of them were caught, he would have s*** stats. Now, statistically speaking, Stan the Man would suck but Erstad is godly. Now tell me, would that make Erstad a better player then Stan the Man? Heavens no. And that's why you don't use 10 at-bats to determine anything. The sample size is way too small. QUOTE(BearSox @ Mar 13, 2008 -> 09:48 PM) And while I have only seen about 3 or 4 sox games this spring totalling up to about maybe 8 Anderson AB's... how many time have you seen him to declare that he has actually improved his swing and actually improved rather then hit a hot streak? MLB.tv allows me to watch each game, and hear each radio broadcast. Now, I haven't been able to catch *every* inning, but I've seen or heard quite a few of his at-bats, and heard Hawk, DJ, Farmer, Singleton, Stone, other teams' announcers, and the MLB.com announcers mention how he's hitting well and looks much improved. Oh, and I also have his past spring performances, improvement in the second half of '06, and 1136 MiLB at-bats to go on. I feel that's sufficient. QUOTE(BearSox @ Mar 13, 2008 -> 09:48 PM) My opinion is Brian Anderson sucks and 2 good weeks hardly proves anything besides a hot streak. If you don't like that and think it's a hissy fit... I'll take a line from Rhet Butler: "Frankly my dear, I don't give a damn." Okay, that's all well and good, but the purpose of a discussion is to see a variety of viewpoints, and present logical evidence as to why you feel a certain way, not "HE SUX CUZ I SEZ SO." That's just a bias, and as I've said before, makes you no different than the "Brian Anderson is the bestest player EVAR" camp.

QUOTE(BearSox @ Mar 13, 2008 -> 09:17 PM) I'm predicting Anderson to be his usual bad self. Does everything have to be based on stats? God, I hate stats. And if Anderson is his usual self no amount of defense can make up for his (again, projected by me) weak stick. If Anderson somehow proves that he is better then my Dog with the bat, then yeah, perhaps he can be worth the spot on the team. But I'll believe it when he actually consistently puts up half-way decent numbers vs. actual pitching in something bigger then a spring training game. You know, to be honest, I don't really give a s***. I think the Sox are going to have a HORRIBLE year this year. I just find it comical that even if the worst of players has a good couple of weeks the automatically become Torri Hunter. I especially find it funny now that everyone has been life long Anderson fans as well. So how do you propose we, as fans with no scouting experience, evaluate players, then? Tarot cards? Magic beans? Jesus? And how many games have you seen Brian play in this spring? Seriously, lay off the self-righteousness already. No one here is saying Brian Anderson is the next coming of Willie Mays. We're just excited that he's showing a good attitude, has improved his swing, is playing great defense, and generally just seems like he's learned a lot. You're entitled to your opinion, but no need to have a hissy fit because someone disagrees with you, and has some relevant evidence to back it up.

QUOTE(BearSox @ Mar 12, 2008 -> 09:13 PM) So what... Every player has hot streaks, even ones with as weak of a stick as Anderson's. I am not arguing not to give him another chance, all I am saying is that he sucks and will NEVER ever do anything in the majors. Maybe he will be a 4th OF defensive replacement type of bench player in the majors, but that is all. An .835 career OPS over 1136 minor league at-bats is a "hot streak"? Sounds like you're just as biased as the people who feel he's the "awesomest player of all time."

QUOTE(BearSox @ Mar 12, 2008 -> 07:06 PM) Funny how a couple weeks of good ball vs. mainly crap pitching can now turn Brian Anderson from trash (which I still stand by that he is) to the "awesomest" player of all time. Unless Anderson did a major overhaul with his stance, approach at plate, and swing in general, he will stand no chance, once again, in the majors. He's been starting almost every game. It's not like he's coming in after the 7th inning to face the scrubs. He's a first round draft pick, we traded Rowand and Young to make room for him, and he's also put up a solid .293/.361/.474 line throughout his minor league career. He's obviously got some talent. If he can play good defense for us and have an OPS of around .800, he's basically Torii Hunter. What's wrong with giving him one last shot to see if he can realize that potential, especially since he's playing so well right now?

QUOTE(DonkeyKongerko @ Mar 12, 2008 -> 12:51 PM) I think I'm gonna settle for a GC controller. I can't find a Wavebird better than $50 used + shipping. Seriously Nintendo, why did you stop making these? It doesn't make sense, especially since they tout the Wii as being compatible with your GC controllers. On a similar note, I bought myself a Wii today. Damn Smash Brawl... Got it for $325 shipped, brand-new, on Ebay. Comes with Guitar Hero III (game only). I figure that game is worth ~$40, and tax would've been $25-$30 (damn Cook County), so I only overpaid by a few dollars, if anything. I didn't want to wait for stores to get stock, nor did I want to call/drive around or ask friends at game stores to hold one for me.

QUOTE(DonkeyKongerko @ Mar 11, 2008 -> 12:10 PM) In a moment of weakness, I bought a Wii and Brawl. 0473-7487-2815 for a good time Anyone else using the classic controller? Or should I get a gamecube one? Get the Gamecube controller. It's way better, particularly the Wavebirds.

QUOTE(Vance Law @ Mar 10, 2008 -> 11:03 PM) Somewhat surprising that Cabrera hasn't hit better away. Not only has Uribe benefited from home ballparks, but these 2 are going in opposite directions the past 3 years. Cabrera averaging 40 doubles the past 2 years and some of those turn into homers in Chicago. Cabrera's away numbers make more sense when you realize that he spent almost all of his career in the NL East and AL West. I think the only hitter's park in either of those divisions is Citizen's Bank Ball Park, and that didn't come around until 2003, and Cabrera was traded to the Red Sox 2/3 of the way through 2004. Uribe's away splits are absolutely putrid. I still can't believe how bad they are.