KevHead0881

I applaud your philosophy on the matter. But any references to going out and getting drunk are figuritively speaking. What we are really saying is to cool down a little. I think we are all frustrated at the moment, but we are hardly in the position to panic. 1st place is a nice place to be.

Then have a virgin dacquery or something.

To those who seem to think losing this series means the end of civilization as we know it, I seriously think losing 2 out of 3 to Montreal was worse.

Yes and yes. When you place too much emphasis on this series as many on this board do, you'll have a tendency to get too excited when we win a series against the Cubs or you'll be too disappointed when we lose it. Don't forget, we are pretty short-handed too. No DH means that we are missing our best hitter in the Big Hurt. And with Maggs out, that essentially means that we are without our two best hitters this series, with pitching matchups that our to their favor. We've got a good team assembled here with an excellent shot at the playoffs. And I don't think a Cubs sweep will change that. I don't like it, but we got bigger fish to fry than pouting about one damn series. Either way, cheer up. The sun will rise again tomorrow. Until then, in the words of the wonderful Oz, "Go out and get drunk."

Looks like somebody jumped the gun. And even if this start sends him back to the bullpen, I'll bet dollars to doughnuts that he doesn't b**** and moan about it to the media.

Another reason that many people seem to forget is that Atlanta is far from being out of the pennant race. If they started getting rid of guys now, unless it's for someone who could help them sooner rather than later, it could be looked at in the same light as the white flag trade that we pulled.

Schoenewies has pitched well at times and will get a chance to keep his job when he comes back. Ozzie has said this. And although I think he still deserves a starting spot when he comes back, he doesn't sound very willing to take one for the team. Although his words may have been taken out of context, Ozzie made it sound like Schoenewies's attitude is a problem. "Schoeney is always upset, he always has something to [complain] about," Guillen said. "I don't say [schoeneweis] is selfish, but it sounds like that." And if my memory serves me correctly, I remember SS b****ing his way out of Anaheim. If this were under different circumstances, I wouldn't have much of a problem with Schoenewies's comments. But we are in a pennant race and everybody seems to be pulling for each other. Apparently this doesn't mean a whole lot to good ol' Schoeny. At the very least, he should keep it out of the f***ing papers!

Good point. Plus, I think there is an added bonus to getting Ortiz in that it moves Schoeneweis to the bullpen, which could increase his effectiveness and give us another lefty option. I like Schoeneweis, just not in the rotation. His good start seemed kind of flukish to me.

I'd like to say that we wouldn't need Smoltz since we already have a closer, you can never have enough pitching, especially in the bullpen. And although I don't think it will happen, you have to be prepared for the possibility that hitters might start to figure out Shingo. I still find it hard to believe that the Braves are in selling mode though. They are only 3 1/2 back, the last time I checked.

Although I liked some of the things that Robbie did for us last year, I don't see what he would add that we don't already got. And as far as I'm concerned, we could do a lot worse then the Uribe/Harris/Valentin middle infield combo. As far as Ramon Ortiz goes, I find it kind of funny that the Angels considered Valentin a "low-ball" offer. I think it's too much for a guy that they don't think is good enough for their rotation. Forget that deal. And I am also really starting to warm up to the Maggs for Ortiz/Jones deal. If it wasn't almost a sure thing that we'd lose Maggs at the end of the year, I'd say no way. But the fact of the matter is, this would almost be a steal on our part, considering that we'd get a good pitcher and an all-star caliber CF who is under contract for a while. Sure Jones numbers have declined a bit, but he's still quite young. Honestly, I think the only thing holding up this trade is the fact that Atlanta is far from being out of the race. And I think making this trade doesn't make them better for this season.

Haven't seen this anywhere around here, so I thought I'd post it. Most of this stuff is old news, but there are a couple interesting notes here. First is the interest in Alomar. I don't know why we'd want Alomar back after he stiffed us last year, plus he pretty much is washed up and would not fit in our already crowded infield. Also, take a look at Russ Ortiz stats against the AL; not bad. Roberto Alomar, 2B, Arizona: He's on the list more because the Diamondbacks are committed to Scott Hairston as their second baseman than there being a high level of interest in the 12-time All-Star on the trade market. Alomar probably will be unloaded essentially for peanuts, and the Arizona Republic reports the Astros, White Sox and Yankees are believed to have interest. Of course, the Yankees are more focused on dealing for pitching, the White Sox were burned by "renting" Alomar last year and the Astros have some guy named Jeff Kent at second base, so none of those three proposed destinations is a guarantee. Alomar is unlikely to revert to his old elite Fantasy form even if he does get moved in the coming weeks, but at least he would have a better chance at starting status on another team. Ramon Ortiz, SP, Anaheim: He makes the list because he has filed nearly as many requests for a trade than starts he has made this season. The Angels simply have better starters -- at least in their minds -- on their roster, so Ortiz has become more of an afterthought. Unfortunately, the right-hander's persistence in his requests has done nothing but decrease the likelihood he'll be moved, as the Los Angeles Times reports the White Sox offered Jose Valentin and the Orioles offered Buddy Groom in exchange, proposals the team felt were of the low-ball variety. Ortiz only will warrant Fantasy consideration if he moves to a team that will grant him a permanent rotation spot. Russ Ortiz, SP, Atlanta: The "other" Ortiz has attracted much more interest on the trade front, but any deals involving him might not come for a few more weeks since they would surely signal the Braves packing things in this season. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that before the Garcia trade was completed, the Braves and White Sox had been discussing a swap for Ortiz that would have had Andruw Jones moving to Chicago and Magglio Ordonez landing in Atlanta. Ortiz also has caught the Yankees' eye, a move that would help boost his run support (he's currently at 4.63). Incidentally, those worried about how Ortiz would fare in the American League should take into account that in 20 career games (19 starts) during interleague play, he's 7-5 with a 3.48 ERA.

Case in point: the Jose Offerman at bat. With 2 strikes on him, he was waiting on the frisbee. The result: He was late on a 87 mph fastball. Maybe his stuff will be figured out. But I don't see it happening any time soon. He seems to be a master at changing speeds and can locate his pitches. That's usually a recipe for continued success. Now, if only he was 25 instead of 35. As far as Boras goes, being Shingo's agent scares me in terms of keeping him past next year. Then again, it could be a good time to finally establish some kind of relationship with him. Shunning players who have him as their agent isn't the best way to go. OF course, I wouldn't mind giving Boras the old "f*** you" either. :fyou

Jose for RUSS Ortiz - Maybe. Jose for RAMON Ortiz - f*** no.

This may have already been posted, but I cought this in this mornings Herald. North vs. South II From e-mailer YASNY, responding to an e-mailer who said Cubs fans ask questions about the Cubs game, while Sox fans ask if the Cubs won rather than questions about the Sox: "A Sox fan doesn't ask those questions because he already knows the answers. A Cubs fan will ask those questions as he is stumbling out of Wrigley Field.'' Adds e-mailer Greg from Tampa: "That's because the Sox fan was actually watching the game and already knows what happened." http://www.dailyherald.com/sports/col_rozn...?intid=38160149 :fthecubs

My conclusion did not come from the 1st inning results alone, although they inspired it. I just think that his last 5 or so starts, put together with his unimpressive career stats, are more telling than the good start he had this year. Once again, I sure hope I'm wrong, and very well could be. At the very least, Shoeneweis would look a lot better as a 5th starter than a 4th.

Looks like Shoeney's good start was more aberration then revelation. When you don't throw strikes while you don't have great stuff to begin with, sustained success is unlikely. I hope I'm wrong, but I think the Schoeneweis that we are seeing now is the Schoeneweis we should expect for the rest of the season. Then again, I thought Koch was going to turn it around this year.

It really doesn't matter what we think. As long as the kids like the mascot, it's a great addition. They sure as hell didn't bring that thing in to entertain the adults. That's what the 5th starter is there for.

Maybe you could share some of the force, Yoda. I could use it.

Sox record when I'm in attendance: 1-8. The one win came on opening day. Went to the Wednesday loss against the Phillies and left in the 5th inning, thinking it might give us some good luck without my presence. Didn't work. I apologize to all of you for my bad luck. Next game I'm going to is July 10th. Just pretend I'm not there. Good to see the big crowds this weekend though.

When you are up by 6 runs in the ninth, you shouldn't need the closer. Save him for the next game when we are up by 1. Puting and keeping Koch in the other night was a mistake. Trust me, if this game was closer, Ozzie would not have left Jackson out there in the ninth. As you could see, Takatsu was warming up while Politte was out there. It's a bit disturbing that Jackson got pounded and we were unable to keep the huge lead, but I can't blame Ozzie for keeping Jackson out there with a 6 run lead. I mean, if we are afraid to use him with a good lead, then what is the point on having him on the team. Finally, our bullpen has been steady almost all year. I'm don't think a couple bad nights is worth going nuts over. Koch's failure the other night drove me as nuts as the next person. But the good news is, not every team has other closer options. I'm pretty happy with Marte and Mr. Zero as our fallback guys. But, that's just my two cents.

Personally, I think Freddie Garcia will be the best "available" in that I don't think half of those guys listed are going anywhere. Although, if I thought that the Mets were truly shopping Glavine around, he'd move to the top on my list. You might want to add Livan Hernandez to the list. I'm not exactly high on him, but he's posted some pretty solid numbers for a horrible Montreal team. He's also been a stud in the playoffs, which believe it or not, hold some importance now.

I love Ozzie, but we lose this game with him too. Of course, if I were coaching today, I would have put Milt Pappas in there before Rauch. Is that the winning strategy you were talking about?

Twins lost. We're still up two. If there is anybody who should be in a state of panic, it's Cub fans, who's team has just lost 3 consecutive games to the Bucs, and has cought a serious injury bug. Our 5th starter situation sucks, but as long as we can hold up with the other four until the trade deadline, things will be fine. Although nobody is biting now, once the deadline comes along, I have total faith in Kenny that he'll pull off a deal. Hell, he apparently was on the phones yesterday looking for a pitcher. Call me an optimist, but while we are in first place and playing well (with the exception of a game here and there) against some good teams, I see no reason to be upset. Besides, we can always pick up Todd Ritchie.

Bob Uecker - One hit? That's all we got is one god damn hit? Color Guy - You can't say god damn on the air. Bob Uecker - Who cares, nobody is listening anyway.

Another great ad campaign that I saw was the S.F. Giants. Starts off with a guy in a Dodgers jersey standing next to a Giants fan at a street corner. All of the sudden it starts hailing on the Dodger fan. He starts running around and the hail keeps following him (and only him). After this sequence, "God is a Giants fan" pops up on the screen. I thought it was funny. Although, I thought God was a Toledo Mudhens fan.