Nightengale on new Sox Swagger

[fathom]

That's pretty scary to me. What's to stop him from folding at the first sign of adversity again?

 

Better leadership in the clubhouse

[LittleHurt05]

Better leadership in the clubhouse

 

I'd expect an in-your-face guy like Eaton to be one of those leaders, not to be on the guys that needs a pat on the back when they lose a couple games.

[SCCWS]

That's pretty scary to me. What's to stop him from folding at the first sign of adversity again?

 

Worse. He didn't say he folded, he said "we" folded.

Of course, that doesn't explain the July surge. They folded , then unfolded, then folded again. Must have been another series w KC.....................

[RockRaines]

HUH????

 

 

http://m.mlb.com/news/article/158894110/je...ect-fit-in-2016

 

Samardzija's competitiveness will play well at AT&T Park. Had he continued his football career, he would have been a perfect fit for the old Raiders, as he wears his emotions on his sleeve and plays off the crowd. Samardzija fought with Lorenzo Cain and the Royals last April, showing teammates he had their backs in an incident sparked by Yordano Ventura.

He's a toolbag. I dont care if he played football, hes very unlikeable.

[RockRaines]

I'd expect an in-your-face guy like Eaton to be one of those leaders, not to be on the guys that needs a pat on the back when they lose a couple games.

Frazier adds quite a bit to the mix.

[southsider2k5]

That's pretty scary to me. What's to stop him from folding at the first sign of adversity again?

 

He is referring to the team, not himself. He didn't fold.

[shysocks]

Worse. He didn't say he folded, he said "we" folded.

Of course, that doesn't explain the July surge. They folded , then unfolded, then folded again. Must have been another series w KC.....................

It all just seems like revisionist history to me. They lost because they lost. Who cares if they were sad.

 

"Just win baby" is right. If the team is good, everything else will take care of itself.

[southsider2k5]

It all just seems like revisionist history to me. They lost because they lost. Who cares if they were sad.

 

"Just win baby" is right. If the team is good, everything else will take care of itself.

 

I swear if there is an underutilized area in baseball right now, it is what goes on between the ears. What is going on there has so much of an influence on everything else.

[shysocks]

I swear if there is an underutilized area in baseball right now, it is what goes on between the ears. What is going on there has so much of an influence on everything else.

Sure, fine, but you can't control it. Todd Frazier is a feisty, fun leader until he doesn't play well. Then he just annoys everyone.

 

This stuff is always, always cast in a different light depending on whether the team wins or loses.

[shysocks]

A fun example I thought of:

 

Mark Buehrle drank beer during Game 3 of the 2005 World Series.

John Lackey, Josh Beckett, and Jon Lester drank beer and ate fried chicken during Red Sox games in September 2011.

 

What is the difference between these two incidents and how they were covered? Besides the literal presence of fried chicken, it's the team's performance at the time. Transplant those Red Sox pitchers to the 2005 White Sox, and it's evidence of how much pressure Ozzie took off the players or something.

[southsider2k5]

A fun example I thought of:

 

Mark Buehrle drank beer during Game 3 of the 2005 World Series.

John Lackey, Josh Beckett, and Jon Lester drank beer and ate fried chicken during Red Sox games in September 2011.

 

What is the difference between these two incidents and how they were covered? Besides the literal presence of fried chicken, it's the team's performance at the time. Transplant those Red Sox pitchers to the 2005 White Sox, and it's evidence of how much pressure Ozzie took off the players or something.

 

The difference? The local media selling the story. The Boston media is brutal and cut throat, they will literally do anything for a story. The Chicago media protects the sources it has with the team so that it keeps a good relationship with manage.

[fathom]

The difference? The local media selling the story. The Boston media is brutal and cut throat, they will literally do anything for a story. The Chicago media protects the sources it has with the team so that it keeps a good relationship with manage.

 

The difference is also that White Sox team won and the Red Sox choked.

[shysocks]

The difference? The local media selling the story. The Boston media is brutal and cut throat, they will literally do anything for a story. The Chicago media protects the sources it has with the team so that it keeps a good relationship with manage.

Right, but my point, which I didn't express very well, is that both winning and losing teams have players who drink beer during games, and that the team's ultimate performance is what affects how we look back on its chemistry.

[southsider2k5]

Right, but my point, which I didn't express very well, is that both winning and losing teams have players who drink beer during games, and that the team's ultimate performance is what affects how we look back on its chemistry.

 

Chemistry absolutely affects performance. All you have to do is work in a place that has horrible management to realize that. Working in a place where everyone hates each other also will drag down performance.

[shysocks]

I mean can you imagine if instead of adorable Joe Maddon, Robin Ventura had hired a clown - an actual f***ing clown - to show up to Spring Training?

[Harry Chappas]

Winning is fung and fung is winning

 

Everything other than winning is BS.

 

 

[shysocks]

Chemistry absolutely affects performance. All you have to do is work in a place that has horrible management to realize that. Working in a place where everyone hates each other also will drag down performance.

I don't deny that, but two responses.

 

1. Performance affects chemistry much more than the reverse.

2. You can't predict chemistry. There's no grading scale. Nobody has any idea what each acquisition is going to do to the formula. Bringing in an obvious a-hole like AJ Pierzynski has wreaked wildly different consequences for different teams.

 

This is why I ultimately don't think twice when I see how happy the Sox are this March. It's better than the alternative, like the Mets telling Yoenis Cespedes to stop riding horses to work, but in the end I think the team is gonna play how it's gonna play.

[southsider2k5]

I don't deny that, but two responses.

 

1. Performance affects chemistry much more than the reverse.

2. You can't predict chemistry. There's no grading scale. Nobody has any idea what each acquisition is going to do to the formula. Bringing in an obvious a-hole like AJ Pierzynski has wreaked wildly different consequences for different teams.

 

This is why I ultimately don't think twice when I see how happy the Sox are this March. It's better than the alternative, like the Mets telling Yoenis Cespedes to stop riding horses to work, but in the end I think the team is gonna play how it's gonna play.

 

That is my point. If someone can figure out how the stuff between the ear works, they can make up more ground than any statistical study can.

[shysocks]

That is my point. If someone can figure out how the stuff between the ear works, they can make up more ground than any statistical study can.

That'd be great but it just seems impossible.

[LittleHurt05]

He is referring to the team, not himself. He didn't fold.

 

So that was a subtle shot calling out his teammates??? I assumed he was part of the "we".

[southsider2k5]

So that was a subtle shot calling out his teammates??? I assumed he was part of the "we".

 

That is how I read it, except not really subtle at all.

[LittleHurt05]

That is my point. If someone can figure out how the stuff between the ear works, they can make up more ground than any statistical study can.

 

I think some coaches/front offices realize that more than others are better at trying to manage it. That's why I like Joe Maddon, he knows baseball, but I think he realizes how important the non-baseball stuff is and is good at keeping players happy.

 

Phil Jackson was a great basketball mind, but his two best skills were keeping MJ from killing everybody and letting Dennis Rodman be crazy while still dominating on the court.

[BlackSox13]

What I took from Eaton's comment was the old saying "win as a team, lose as a team". I like Eaton's comment and agree with him.

[southsider2k5]

I think some coaches/front offices realize that more than others are better at trying to manage it. That's why I like Joe Maddon, he knows baseball, but I think he realizes how important the non-baseball stuff is and is good at keeping players happy.

 

Phil Jackson was a great basketball mind, but his two best skills were keeping MJ from killing everybody and letting Dennis Rodman be crazy while still dominating on the court.

 

I could agree with that sentiment.

[flavum]

The Sox will have great chemistry if they come home from Baltimore 17-10.