mmmmmbeeer

Ya think? It seems that in the past JR will pay for perceived quality. So you think they would've dumped like a Koch and Konerko, replace them with bottom of the barrel players, just to keep Colon? I don't know man, I think I buy into the theory that the money was there ONLY for Colon, once he left it was off the table.

I just found this thread, so sorry for the duplicity between this and my post on Yahoo..... March 1st seems REALLY early for a draft. I mean the Sox first exhibition game isn't until Mar 4th. I think it's important to push it back because of spring injuries and also to get a feel about some guys coming back from injury. Examples would be Koch and Kong. See who's hot in ST and who's cold. All this should have a bearing on the later rounds in the draft. I think that the first draft date/time was perfect, if not too early. Mar 1st just seems ridiculous. I'll be there if that's the popular concensus though.

People who say "supposively" instead of "supposedly". Complete strangers starting conversations while waiting in line at a store or whatever. White guys who homey themselves out People who key cars 3 lane highway and all 3 cars are going the same speed, side-by-side-by-side Paying a "delivery charge" on a pizza dance clubs and those who are inside (alright, everyone except for the hotties) stinky people

That's where I disagree. I think that 2003 we had the right components on the field. The moves were made, especially at the trade deadline, to have a winner. If there were ever a white sox team that should've caught lightning in a bottle, that was the team. I don't know about you, but while watching the Sox play the way they did that month and a half after the ASB last season I thought they were BY FAR the best team in baseball at that point. They choked. The only move that wasn't made last season was to fire JM in May or June.

Two things.... 1.) Do you think this Maddux deal was an under-the-table part of the ARod deal? 2.) Even if the Yankees do fall flat on their faces this season they still have a couple more seasons with this lineup. I mean everyone they've signed, with the possible exception of Lofton and Gordon, signed a multi-year deal. I mean they're setting up like a 3 year run here.

That's from 3am this morning. Sounds like things have changed since then.

I don't know if I'd go with any of those guys as keepers. None of them are irreplaceable, IMO. Colon wouldn't be a bad keeper, but I'd shy away from keeping pitchers unless it's a fantasy ace, the likes of a Prior, Schilling, Schmidt, or Gagne. Go out and find some guys that have the best chance of having decent to good years and are still young. Guys like Cabrera out of Florida, Maeur out of Minny, Blalock or Texeira from TEX, Aubrey Huff or Baldelli from TB, Podesnik from MIL, you get the idea..... guys that you can go and pick up, some of them perhaps not even drafted, who will be superstars in the next couple of years. Those are the guys I'd be looking to keep. I'd take Cabrera and Huff on my team for 2005 before I'd take Colon and Frank. Gotta look at the upside and future man, not just this season. BTW, Buerhle is an awful fantasy pitcher, IMO. I'd see if you have anyone in your league that will buy into his name and trade them for another weak position of yours. Then go pick up a bombass middle reliever, like a Lidge or Soriano, that will get you 10-15 wins but with higher K totals, lower WHIP and ERA. Usually those middle relievers are available in every league unless you are using holds as a stat.

How the hell do the Twins keep on getting picked for a 1st place finish? It's not like they ran away with the division last season, they went on a tear the 2nd half. They've lost some important components of their team. I'm not saying that we should be picked for first, but the Twins??? KC would be a better choice than MIN, IMHO. Oh, and another thing, I agree that we need to have an impressive couple of months to start off the season, but our first month looks like it may be a real b****.

1. Red Sox 2. Houston 3. Yankees 4. sCrUBS 5. Angels 6. Phillies 7. Mariners 8. A's 9. Giants 10. Orioles 11. Blue Jays 12. Cardinals 13. Marlins 14. Royals 15. White Sox 16. Braves 17. Diamondbacks 18. Twins 19. Dodgers 20. Rangers 21. Indians 22. Reds 23. Padres 24. Devil Rays 25. Mets 26. Rockies 27. Expos 28. Pirates 29. Tigers 30. Brewers ALE--Boston ALC--Chicago ALW--Anaheim WC--NYY NLE--Philly NLC--Houston NLW--SanFran WC--Chicago WS--Boston over Houston The rankings are based on potential 2004 records and have absolutely nothing to do with last year's records.

Mad Season is the shiznit my friend. Your list indicates you like AIC too. So...I don't know if you were aware of this, but this is by far the BEST live DVD/VHS I own. I mean seriously, you have to buy this. .. http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detai...=video&n=507846 Go click the link, order it, and next weekend sit down with some reebs, or whatever suits your fancy, and jam out man. You'll thank me later.

Some personal faves....certainly not an alltime list, as far as crediting those who made these possible Radiohead--OK Computer Pearl Jam--Vitalogy, No Code The Jayhawks--Hollywood Town Hall, Tomorrow the Green Grass SonVolt--Trace Beatles--Abbey Road, Rubber Soul Nirvana--In Utero Allman Brothers Band--Live at the Fillmore East Ben Harper--Fight for your Mind Phish--Billy Breathes Tribe Called Quest--Midnight Marauders Method Man--Tical Dr Dre--The Chronic Pennywise--Full Circle Bad Religion--Stranger than Fiction The Verve--Urban Hymns Gomez--Bring it On Neil Young--Everybody Knows this is Nowhere, Harvest, After the Goldrush Grateful Dead--American Beauty

I'm sorry about the scouting, I meant ML scouts. Specifically I have been shocked by the way that pitchers we haven't seen before just absolutely blow through our lineup. We can go out and score runs on proven pitchers but get embarrassed by AAAA rookies. It's awful. I agree as far as minor league scouts go, I'd say they are average. Sure we have a few bright spots, but I wouldn't say that we are heads and shoulders above the rest of the league. Also, I enjoy Comiskey. But there is no denying that it was an extremely plain ballpark when compared to say Jacobs field. I'm ecstatic that they've continuously updated Comiskey, but the bottom line is that it felt short of expectations. It was never a park that out of towners "had to see". Those "have to see" parks increase attendance, something we sorely lack. Ya know?

I haven't watched the movie since I was a kid, but was Eight Men Out a fairly accurate portrayal of the situation?

I wish it were just a matter of payroll, but I think that the Sox problems go deeper. PR and marketing are awful. Scouting, horrible. Development, questionable. Ballpark wasn't even in the same league as other new parks. You name it, the Sox have found a way to f*** it up. Winning will cure a lot though. So if spending some loot brings us a winner, then yes, you're correct, payroll is the answer to our problems. BTW, good article. I'm with Rex though, Maggs isn't worth Vladdy kind of money...hell, Tejada wasn't worth what he got. I'd apparently be one of the few fans who would be satisfied seeing Maggs dealt for some stud ML-ready prospects and a solid major leaguer.

ESPN insider mentions this same deal??? Man, what a steal for the Sox.

Agreed 100%... Maggs, atleast IMHO, didn't have a great year last season. He had a hot month or two right after the break and those months really helped his #'s. He didn't seem very clutch either. To get just Jackson and Miller for him would make me happy. I mean Maggs is a helluva ballplayer, but not $12-$15M good. For that money I want 25SB, >.315BA, 40+HRs, >110RBI and excellent defensive skills. I don't see those statistics coming from Maggs.

Cleveland improved tremendously last season. They are going to be a very scary team in a couple of years. They are doing an outstanding job of rebuilding. KC has an excellent bullpen, strong defense, solid hitting, and great chemistry...those things will help them overcome a weak starting rotation, IMHO. Their staff is only going to improve from last season. Minny got weaker but the Sox cant' win in the dome. Never have, never will. The place suits the Twins style of ball...not ours. It's just a prediction man. I pray that we win this division...i just don't see it being an easy task. I don't look at our roster and immediately think winning season. I don't look at our division and immediately think that we've got it locked up. Of course, I did do that the last couple of years and we came up short. Perhaps things will change this year. I just think that this may be a very long season. But I'm a glutton for punishment and will be subscribing to the Extra Innings package again so I can watch our team fall short of .500 ball. I already warned the ole lady that I'll probably be in a bad mood all summer.

79-83 and a 3rd place finish in the ALC KC got tougher, CLE will be tougher, MIN we will lose all but 1 game in the dome. We'll get slaughtered outside of our division by everyone but TX. The west is solid except for TX. The East got a lot tougher this year with Baltimore stepping up, TOR should be decent, and Sweet Lou doing his thing down in TB. Our national league games are not going to be cake, especially our sets against the sCrUBS. Pitching will kill us, absolutely destroy us, as will the lack of a leadoff man.

I apparently missed this whole cable contract/station deal. I live out of town so, unless I see news on here, I don't know what's going on with the Sox. Is this going to hurt my extra innings coverage of the Sox? Is it a pay-per-view kind of deal? Could someone please shed some light on this for me? Thanks.

So I remember reading somewhere that Jose was practicing batting left-handed against southpaws during winterball, possibly in preparation to become a fulltime LH hitter... Do you think we could see a considerable jump in his average this season if he indeed ends up hitting from the left side fulltime?

and yet another... http://www.dailysouthtown.com/southtown/ds.../pro/311sd1.htm

agreed. not one word about any source, named or not.

http://washingtontimes.com/upi-breaking/20...94014-7323r.htm Interesting.....very interesting. Sounds like this thing was a f***ing gaggle on both sides of the pond.

yeah, i didn't post this as fact. the article also clarifies that this will be fully investigated. I'm pretty sure that we all knew that France had some sort of ulterior motive, now it's just a matter of proving it. And yes, although I think it was just a matter of campaigning, I do give the Germans credit if they opposed the war with absolutely no outside motives.

Also, the fact that he implies that this has never been a Cubs town until just recently also tells me that he isn't blasting the Sox franchise as a whole, JUST current leadership.