hogan873

QUOTE (Leonard Zelig @ Sep 22, 2011 -> 11:03 PM) Do you really think that in 2008, when Tampa Bay finished above 4th place for the first time in franchise history, made the playoffs for the first time in franchise history, won their division for the first time in franchise history, won a playoff series for the first time in franchise history, and won the AL pennant for the first time in franchise history, the team was a failure? Tampa's rise from baseball obscurity was quick, but there are other teams out there that would consider just having a winning season a success. Look at the Pirates. The year they finish above .500 will be this first in over 20 years. After that happens, they will be expected to do more to have a "successful" season. The whole idea of a successful season is not black and white. It's not just winning the World Series. It depends on the team and the situation they are in.

QUOTE (Tex @ Sep 23, 2011 -> 05:29 AM) Tough to celebrate guys who achieved because of cheating, well for most people it is. So at the end of his career. and he'll need many more years of 12-15 wins, would you rather visit the hall and see a video of Mark's no hitters and him sliding on a tarp, pitching in a World Series, smiling, or Clemens, Bonds, Sosa, etc etc? Which promotes the game of baseball more? It should be a celebration, but is it when this era produced so many dark moments? That's also a reason why I believe the hall needs Frank in on the first ballot. Well put.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Sep 22, 2011 -> 02:37 PM) BSLillibridge Brent Lillibridge Heading back to Chicago tomorrow for last 6 games. Get the cast off. More importantly intimidate KC and Tor from the bench with my game face Can't help but like this guy.

I'm looking forward to Person of Interest tonight. I hope it meets the hype.

QUOTE (Milkman delivers @ Sep 22, 2011 -> 10:09 AM) This whole argument is a joke (sorry, I know you didn't make it up). If the teams in our division play so much harder against us and none of their other opponents for the ridiculous reasons that greg brings up, then the opponents in the AL East would be doing the exact same thing to the Yankees and Red Sox. The issue here is that the AL East teams are far superior down the line. 4 out of 5 AL East teams are better than all but one AL Central team. Once again, this guy shows that he uses no logic whatsoever. He tries to claim that the Sox are at some sort of disadvantage when, in reality, they should be one of the best locks in baseball most years to win their division. You're right about the Central being a weaker division. And, yes, the Sox should be at an advantage playing the likes of Detroit, KC, Cleveland, and Minnesota vs. NY, Boston, and Tampa. The only part of his argument I could get on board with is that I think teams do take those divisional games seriously. I'm not saying they don't play as hard when playing a team outside their division, but teams know they have to beat those teams in their own division. The Sox seem to choke so often, though. And that's what frustrates me.

QUOTE (greg775 @ Sep 22, 2011 -> 01:50 PM) You guys like the fact that we play Det, Cleve and KC and Minnie so many times? It sucks. This divisional crap was done so the Yankees could play the Bosox every other week. It is awful. Come on, greg, I dislike the Yankees/BoSox love as much as the next guy, but the scheduling of a lot of divisional games is not part of some vast conspracy.

Congratulations! Being a dad is probably the best feeling in the world.

QUOTE (greg775 @ Sep 21, 2011 -> 11:02 PM) Damn, he's getting old. I thought he was much younger than that. That is pretty damn old. Slight exaggeration there, Greg. No, 30 isn't "young", but he's not ancient. He seems younger because he hasn't been playing in the US for that long, but remember he played in Cuba for quite a while.

QUOTE (greg775 @ Sep 21, 2011 -> 11:05 PM) I really think baseball sucks in one way: teams play divisional teams way too many times. This was done for ONE reason only: Yankees-Red Sox. Really really is awful. And as a White Sox fan it really bothers me because as much as you guys disagree with me on this, I truly feel the other teams in our division really get "alert" when we play them. I'd say extra fired up when they play the Sox, but it's not like it's a rah-rah sport. I just think our divisional foes are on top of their games WAY MORE when they play us than when they play the others in our division. Why?? Chicago is by far the best and biggest city in our division. We are the most recent to win a WS in our division. I HATE playing the teams in our division so many times. I sort of agree here, Greg. I'm not against teams playing teams within their division more often than the rest of the league. If your battling to win a division you should be able to beat the teams within your division. I don't think this was done just for the Yankees/Red Sox, also known as ESPN baseball. Where I agree is that teams within the Sox's division are likely more alert (as you said) when they play the Sox. But that's probably true in any division. A team has to play hungry when they're playing a team that they are battling for a division title. The problem has been that the Sox do not play hungry. Until this year, the Sox wet their pants and curled up in a ball when they played the Twins. This year it was Detroit (although Detroit has a very good team). Hell, the Sox have a hard time beating the perennial spoiler Kansas City Royals! I'm as frustrated as you seeing the Sox play so poorly within the division. But we can't go changing the schedules because of that. The Sox need to man up when they play the Twins, Tigers, Indians, and Royals. The Sox could play awesome baseball against every other division, but if they can't beat AL Central teams they don't have a great chance of making the playoffs.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Sep 21, 2011 -> 11:29 AM) $125 million payroll in a major market with major endorsement opportunities compared to a $55 million payroll in a tiny market with limited endorsement opportunities. Well for the Florida fanbase, you've got Viagra, Life Alert, Metamucil, Centrum Silver...

QUOTE (fathom @ Sep 21, 2011 -> 11:23 AM) I disagree...NL East is way more competitive than AL Central But that doesn't matter. It's about being smiled at in a restaurant, speaking your mind, and being one of a kind. Besides, once Ozzie goes to Florida, he's got at least two WS titles in the bag.

I remember when the good Colon was pitching for the Sox, and he took the mound in the 9th in what could have easily been another complete game for him. Instead, he plunked the first batter square in the back after at least two of our hitters were hit. That's the kind of stuff we need to see from the Sox. Instead, we got Ozzie saying they didn't do it on purpose. When Hawk goes on a rant about the need to plug the other team's hitters, you know it's bad. Oh well, maybe our next manager will have some balls in that respect.

That was utter destruction. It was like watching a boxer take a beating. But instead of letting the guy fall to the mat twitching, he was held up with one hand and punched repeatedly with the other.

QUOTE (greg775 @ Sep 21, 2011 -> 01:15 AM) In answer to the thread title.... Reasons he might want to stay ... • Love of Chicago. It is a helluva town with passion for baseball. Fla. Nobody cares. • Chicago restaurants and things to do. Unless Ozzie truly loves boating Chicago is better. • Great uniforms. Best in baseball. Reasons he might want to leave. ... • Dunn. • Rios. • AJ can't throw anybody out. • No team speed. • Bullpen always looks good on paper but just is average. Add it all up and the team has .500 as it's high water mark. Chances of another s***ty season are pretty good; going to Florida gives him a fresh start. On paper our team is on the decline. Why should he want to be in charge as the ship continues to sink? So you've gone to bullets. Nice. j/k Your reasons on why he might want to stay have nothing to do with baseball, and maybe that was your point. The reasons he might want to leave? Well, I can agree on Dunn and Rios, but as we have discussed ad nausem, Ozzie could have delat with those guys by pointing to the bench and saying, "Keep that spot warm." The other three reasons...I don't know. I don't think AJ's inability to throw anybody out makes Ozzie want to not manage the team. The lack of team speed might frustrate him because he's all about Ozzie-ball. The bullpen has been pretty solid, so I don't see that as a valid reason. You forgot one of the best reasons why Ozzie might want to go to Florida...a new ballpark.

QUOTE (VictoryMC98 @ Sep 20, 2011 -> 09:06 PM) If you thought I was talking 2011, Pierre, than you are a bigger fool than the one who wanted Lilly to replace Dunn. And I have some Ocean property in Utah to sell to you. HRs are great, but if you think they are needed in leadoff spot, and not a luxury.. I suggest you educate yourself on the game. I don't think anyone was thinking that you were talking about anything other than the 2011 Pierre. So, either everyone is a fool or you're trolling and then throwing insults. Classy. And, no HRs are not needed at the leadoff spot, but no one said that. It was stated that De Aza has way more power than Pierre and will actually hit a few HRs. Another thing is that what if your leadoff guy is the fourth guy up in an inning, and there are runners on 2nd and 3rd with one out? Wouldn't you want a guy with some pop in his bat?

What makes me laugh (or cry) is that the past 12 or 15 pages were consumed by one argument. That being replacing Dunn with Lillibridge. Now, I didn't take the time to read every single post, but I think I got the idea. I don't remember anyone saying that playing Lillibridge over Dunn saves the season. But that's what the argument became. Well, that and sticking out tongues, name-calling, and inaccurate claims of having won the argument. I don't see how anyone can't see that playing Lillibridge over Dunn gives this team a better chance of winning (and I think that was the original thought). Dunn was almost always a certain strikeout or weak flyball to centerfield when Lillibridge has shown THIS SEASON that he had a better chance of getting a hit, including a HR. Throw out as many numbers as you want and skew them how you wish, but on August 1, how could anyone say, "Well, I'd rather have Dunn up right now with two outs and the bases loaded"?

QUOTE (farmteam @ Sep 19, 2011 -> 11:46 PM) I taped (I know it's no longer "taping" but it's just the verb that comes naturally to me) the pilot of the Playboy Club, and I'll watch it at some point this week. Not quite sure what to expect. I watched it last night. Not bad. I can definitely see that they are trying to follow in the footsteps of Mad Men. Of course it's not nearly as good, but for network TV it's decent. I'll keep watching for now. I can say this: It's better than I thought it would be.

QUOTE (greg775 @ Sep 16, 2011 -> 06:21 PM) It's part of the Internet world that resembles my old Queen of Martyrs grade school playground. I find it very interesting myself, this world we call message boards. Just because I disagree with the popular view I am evil and/or mocked. I don't care, though. I am a Sox fan like the rest of the people with more than 500 posts. And this is a playground not life and death. I like you Greg because you're a good sport. That, and you state your opinion and stick to it. I chose you and BigSqwert to be announcers because it would just be hilarious stuff. I could have paired you with many others, but since BigSqwert started the thread and you guys usually disagree, I thought it to be a perfect match.

QUOTE (greg775 @ Sep 16, 2011 -> 02:26 PM) You guys have lost it. We have no choice but to lose it after this season.

QUOTE (BigSqwert @ Sep 16, 2011 -> 01:55 PM) at the announcers. It might get as uncomfortable as some of the games in the Hawk/DJ era. BigSqwert: And Dunn goes down on strikes again. I'll tell ya, Greg, I'm surprised we didn't see a pinch hitter there. greg775: Well, it was the right decision. The guy makes a lot of money, he's gotta earn it. BigSqwert: But at the cost of losing the game? greg775: If that's what happens, then we all know who to blame. The bum who struck out. BigSqwert: *pause* Greg, you and I both knew Dunn had a better chance of striking out than driving in a run. *pause* *chuckle* Doesn't the manager know that? greg775: I talked to some friends in Lawrence, Kansas, and they said it's always the right decision to play the guy who makes the most money. BigSqwert: *pause* You know... *pause* I wish I could swear.

Alright, I'll give it a shot. GM - RockRaines Manager - Steve9347 Pitching Coach - Kalapse Hitting Coach - caulfield12 Base Coaches - Jordan4Life and fathom Bench Coach - Tex Announcers - BigSqwert (play by play) and greg775 (color) - That would be some interesting listening.

QUOTE (greg775 @ Sep 16, 2011 -> 12:13 AM) He's definitely one of a kind. He'd really make a good reality series if one could only understand his English. Subtitles. Of course, sometimes you'd see "???????" at the bottom of the screen.

QUOTE (Jordan4life @ Sep 15, 2011 -> 02:56 PM) This should no doubt be a required prerequisite for any potential hire. I require smiles whenever said manager goes out in public. And funny, loud, and in your face. The Sox could just hire George Carlin or Sam Kinison or Redd Foxx or Rodney Dangerfield.

QUOTE (robinventura23 @ Sep 15, 2011 -> 09:36 AM) C'mon, if they finish second, everyone on the team gets $10K. So there's that. Right. That's Christmas presents for the kids!

QUOTE (greg775 @ Sep 14, 2011 -> 11:20 PM) Me thinks you guys overvalue the importance of coaches and undervalue the failure of the guys with the bats in their hands and ball in their hand. No one is saying it's not the players' fault when they fail. But, how can anyone not see that Ozzie did not make the right decisions when it came to whether or not to play the players that were struggling? Rios batting 4th? Dunn not being PH for against a lefty when the game is on the line? Ozzie's excuse that he left Dunn in there because he makes a lot of money? The manager can't throw the ball for the pitchers or swing the bat for the hitters or run the bases for the baserunners. But he can play the pitchers, hitters, and baserunners that give the team the best chance to win. Ozzie hasn't done that. So, his importance in that matter is not overvalued.