hogan873

Great win. A needed win. I was ready to tip my TV over when Jenks gave up the bases loaded single. Then I was ready to tip it over when they turned the DP. Joe Crede is not now and probably never will be the Joe Crede of 2005. He's a good defensive 3rd baseman that can't hit very well now. I know, I know two homers tonight...but it was against his old club, and Floyd did not pitch to him well. But I will always remember what he did for our Sox in 2005. Without him, the Sox do not have that WS championship. We take the series tomorrow, and we go into the break in great shape. Go Sox!

QUOTE (Tex @ Jul 10, 2009 -> 03:29 PM) I thought some jobs were only available to veterans? I've seen signs at the post office where they were only accepting applications from vets. This could be the case, I'm not sure. I never looked at all of the different types of federal jobs available, but the ones I looked into were not geared towards veterans only.

There may be a Veteran's Preference" when it comes to federal jobs, but I don't think it gives you much of an advantage.

Yes, picking a job that will translate to the civilian world is very important. I often got slack, called a p****, etc. for doing what I did, but when I got out I got a job right away dealing with the same thing I did in the CG. Not sure the guys who spent their whole career at sea could say the same thing. There was a common saying, "Choose your rate, choose your fate".

I was in the Coast Guard for ten years. It was a good experience until after 9/11. Up until that point, I specialized in pollution prevention...inspecting oil and chemical facilities, inspecting freight containers, inspecting cruise ships, responding to oil spills, etc. It was a good job and pretty fun, actually. I spent time in Alaska, Connecticut, Maryland, and Chicago. But, after 9/11, it all changed. There was a standing order that we did not respond to oil spills less than 1000 gallons. Most spills, even big ones, were pushed off on the EPA. Our job was to sit in the office and wait for the phone to ring telling us of another terrorist attack. Now, I firmly agree with having a strong Homeland Security, but it just wasn't organized right within the CG. Someone earlier posted that the days of rescuing sinking boats and such was a thing of the past. This is true. Although the CG is still there and will respond if needed, the logistics have changed. The primary goal of the CG nowadays is to sit and wait. Now, I wouldn't tell you to join the service or not. I just wanted to put out there what I have experienced. Navy, Army, Marines, you might have a good chance of going overseas (Iraq or surrounding countries). Even the CG has some cutters over there. If you want to have a good chance of staying stateside, the Coast Guard is your best option. But, like I said, it's not what it used to be.

QUOTE (kane0730 @ Jul 10, 2009 -> 12:40 PM) If/when CQ comes back, here's what I'd like to see: Pods Alexi Dye Thome PK AJ CQ Getz/Nix Beckham I agree. Imagine CQ peforming like he did last year...from the 7 spot.

It's somewhat scary how well Pods is doing. Even though I welcomed the signing and thought he would do okay, I did not expect what we have seen. I keep waiting for the other shoe to drop, be it injury or a major slump. Obviously he's no spring chicken and may not play like this ever again. I'm just glad we got him when we did. Getz, I'll admit, I didn't think much of. I suppose I wasn't even aware that he came up from our minors. But, he has been fantastic as of late and had a career day yesterday. I wonder if he might be a better #2 hitter than Alexi right now. He doesn't have the power, but he's hitting well and has great speed. He could even be a leadoff man next year. If CQ comes back and contributes even okay, it's an upgrade over platooning Wise and Anderson. I'm sure he'll be on base much more with walks and getting plugged by pitches than Wise/Anderson. He comes back with some power and our middle of the lineup will be very dangerous. With Pods getting on base and aggravating pitchers, the big hitters are even more formidable. Overall, I agree that we will have a great lineup in the second half...that is provided Ozzie doesn't continue his love affair with Wise. If the starting pitching keeps up (I'm not looking at you Clayton Richard) and the bullpen is tight, the Sox have a real chance at the division.

They can trade him to the Indians for the guarantee that he will pitch in every game the Sox play against the Indians.

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Jul 10, 2009 -> 03:14 AM) Some of my favorites, off the top of my head: Danny Wright (actually Jason Bere Lite before the injuries, won 14 games with a bloated ERA) Josh Stewart Mike Porzio Felix Diaz Jon Adkins Nick Masset Gary Glover (blast from past) Rocky Biddle (surprised he became closer for the Expos and was sort of decent one year) Sean Tracey Arnie Munoz Matt Ginter Jon Rauch Scott Eyre (not sure if he ever started or not for us...maybe he came out of the pen?) I was just going to say what about Danny Wright?

It's so damn frustrating in games like this. If is wasn't for Richard being off (way off), it's a whole different game. 1+ inning changes everything.

Nice inning by Matt.

QUOTE (Jenks Heat @ Jul 9, 2009 -> 04:13 PM) He threw two yesterday so no. If we are losing it will be Pena if we are winning or tied it will be Jenks. Well, hopefully we'll be winning. But if Pena makes his debut...I'm a little frightened.

QUOTE (elrockinMT @ Jul 9, 2009 -> 04:10 PM) I like this kids hustle. I think folks forgot this fellow is a rookie and may get some ROY vites. He has done well in the field and has speed. Getz has really impressed me as of late. His defense has been solid all year, but his offense has really kicked in.

If we're still down or tied in the ninth, who pitches? Do we trust Linebrink?

Two more innings vs. Indians pen. Our pen needs to hold. Two more runs with the heart of the order due up? Here's to hoping.

Ugh

QUOTE (elrockinMT @ Jul 9, 2009 -> 03:25 PM) And remember how some roundly criticized the signing of this giant among men In the long run, who cares? It turned out to be a fantastic signing. I don't think anyone expected this.

Unfortunately I can't watch the game...just following it on Yahoo. Sounds like the ump sucks?

What an awesome article. I get the feeling he's being 100% honest about everything. I talked to Mark very briefly (how are ya? having a great year) about 6 years ago when he was signing balls, tickets, hats, etc. before a game. He just seems like a genuinely great guy. After reading the article I see him as a great pitcher and an even better family man. Selfishly I think we'd all like to see him pitch quite a few more years and strive for that 300th win, which I think he can get. But, I wouldn't blame him one bit if he did retire. The comparison to other great pitchers was a surprise to me. I didn't know he was that far ahead of the curve. Maybe it's the fact that he's not flashy (personality-wise or as a pitcher) that he's not thought of in the same vein as Johnson, Glavine, etc. A good example of how much of a gentleman of the game he is was when he tipped his hat to Ichiro after Ichiro got his third hit off Mark in a game a few years ago. I remember him throwing a 50 mph curveball trying to fool Ichiro. When he didn't bite, MB just smiled and kept on pitching. Could you ever see Zambrano acting like that?

I mentioned a while back that I thought Paulie had somewhat re-invented himself as a hitter. I saw (and I guess still see) him as a great contact hitter with decent power vs. strictly a power hitter. Obviously when a player cranks out three homers, including a grand slam, it's hard to say he's not a power hitter. But Paulie has been nothing short of awesome this year. Batting around .300 and getting key RBIs. He's a workhorse that deserves to be an All Star. Hell, he's our All Star for sure.

Encouraging for sure. Obviously Danks hasn't gotten great run support.

QUOTE (qwerty @ Jul 1, 2009 -> 01:24 PM) Dye is one of the very worst fielders annually in all of baseball. Dye is simply disgusting to watch out there. Dye's throwing arm just so happens to be one of the worst in the majors also. Quentin has long proven to be a better right fielder than left fielder, he is actually a plus defender out in right. While quentin in left is no where near as good as he is in right, he is several times better out there than dye on his best day. All the numbers and visuals suggests that much. Granted Dye is not a great RFer, and is probably below par, but I don't think he's horrible. Certainly lacks some speed, but he still makes some good plays.

I thought I remember there being some traffic on this site about wanting the Sox to acquire Milledge. Seems like a good trade for the Bucs.

I voted yes by winning the division. I suppose it's an optimistic yes. I don't see the Wild Card coming out of the AL Central.

I'm not going to make a prediction and say that the Sox will go to the playoffs. They may, especially if they continue to play like they have of late. This team, however, is very exciting to watch right now. And that is what makes me happy. We've got some young talent (and some not so young, Pods I'm looking at you) that are playing very well. The pitching is good, runners are getting on base, and bases are being stolen. Sure the homers are still there, and no one is going to complain about that, but we are starting to see more manufactured runs. Playoff bound? Not sure yet. Team worth watching? Absolutely.