Fotop

QUOTE(3E8 @ Jul 19, 2005 -> 11:45 AM) Palmiero will be a first ballot. On Bill James' HOF Monitor stat, Palmeiro scores a 156. This stat determines how likely it is a player will enter the hall of fame. A score of 100 means the players has a good chance to enter the Hall of Fame. A score of 130 means the player is a practically a shoe-in. With 156, Palmiero ranks 63rd amongst every batter to ever play the game and that number can only rise. /beginrant HOF Monitor Stat? WTF. Now this is in no disrespect to Bill James, Bill James is a very smart and knowledgeable man. But really, inventing statistics like this just have a moneyball like effect on pseudo-sabermetricians. What I mean is, people start to run around and say "hey this obscure statistic says Cliff Politte should win the Cy Young!" (see: Cy Young Predictor, also made by James and promoted by Rob Neyer and ESPN) just because they read it somewhere and believe it to be absolutely true. But baseball isn't about obscure predictors and obscure statistics. It's about what's played between the lines. It also involves many more factors other than just numbers...especially if we're talking about awards. So really, my main gripe about all of these wacky stats is that it's not about WATCHING baseball anymore. If you're using things like Cy Young Predictors and HOF Predictors as law, just WATCH more baseball and make your own opinion. That is all. /endrant

fathom hit this trade right on the head...Gerut got benched in favor for Casey Blake. I read about the first three pages of this thread and it seemed he was the second coming of Roberto Clemente. Gerut, is a decent outfielder...really nothing all that special but does everything decently. Dubois on the other hand...well he's got some really good pop. I really don't see the "fleecing" or the "raping" here. Especially since the Cubs could have packaged Dubois for someone much better (see: Juan Pierre or any of the Reds OF). Instead they have someone who blocks the likes of Pie and Murton and to a certain extent Corey Patterson when the Cubs are probably just better off letting one of the young guys play. On the other hand, if the Sox could get this kind of value for Joe Borchard, I'd be ecstatic. Granted, we wouldn't need another OF in return but maybe there is a market for Borch after all. /endwishfulthinking.

QUOTE(Rex Hudler @ Jul 17, 2005 -> 03:07 PM) Perfect, that's exactly what I was looking for. I had always thought the Rivals stuff was only available for $$ so I had never seen it. Thanks! By the way, how are the Irish going to be this year? Well if I could control them with an XBOX controller...they'd be awesome. Sadly, that isn't the case. Still, I'm thinking something along the lines of 6-7 wins. Probably another Gator Bowl type bid, with maybe one or two regular season upsets. We're in transition this year on defense, but the offense is pretty loaded (Quinn, Walker, McKnight, our whole offensive line is back, and we're real deep at TE). Either way it's going to be a fun season, even if it's my last as a student. Can't wait.

Well Cleveland I've got two options for you: 1) We can toss you out in a pre-dug hole in Vegas (surrounded by a vast desert wasteland) Or since you've given us oh so many wins we're willing to buy this for you: You deserve it.

QUOTE(Rex Hudler @ Jul 17, 2005 -> 02:36 PM) palehosefan (or anyone else), where might I find a list of incoming freshman for Michigan football this year? Is there a recruiting list that can be found on the web? Thanks! Hey Rex, here's the list of 2005 recruits for Michigan (would be incoming freshman)...don't know if that's what you're looking for but I figured it couldn't hurt. Michigan Recruits That should link you to the rivals list, just use the drop down menu and pick 2005.

That's MONEY. I love it. Thanks DePloderer!

Caught this on BBTN; they cut right to it during their broadcast. Of course right when they cut to it, next pitch...perfect game over. WTG, BBTN. Jinx.

QUOTE(Soxnbears01 @ Jul 14, 2005 -> 05:40 PM) Alright guys, these are the sliders i've played with and am using at the moment OFFENSE HUMAN/CPU QB ACC-25/50 PASS BLK-50/75 WR CATCH-50/50 RB ABLTY-25/50 RUN BLK-50/75 DEFENSE HUMAN/CPU AWR-25/50 KDWNS-75/75 INT-25/50 BRK BLK-50/75 TKL-25/50 SPECIAL TEAMS FG LENGTH-50/25 FG ACC-25/50 PNT LNGTH-50/25 PNT ACC-25/50 KO LNGTH-50/25 I lost my first game against the CPU on AA with these. My biggest gripe before sliders was i was running too much, these made my average about 4 or 5 per carry, instead of 10. Try em out. Do you have the codes for these? I heard this year all you need to do is put a code in and it sets the sliders...I haven't messed with it yet, and it may be different for each system but take a look around the settings and see if you can find any codes for your sliders. Genius idea I think, if it works.

QUOTE(Tadahito15 @ Jul 14, 2005 -> 04:54 PM) I dont see Burnett getting dealt until the deadline or a few days before. I am sure the Marlins are just waiting for a great package that they cant pass up as teams will start to get desperate with so many teams aggressively pursueing Burnett. Just my .02, but I hope it happens soon. That is a large concern, seeing as everyone is always looking for more pitching. As much as everyone is tossing around the Jays and the Orioles, I'm most worried about the red sox in this situation. They defintely have some minor leaguers that are attractive to prospective trade partners and they have the deep pockets as well. Plus, with Schilling going to the pen they're going to need a starter...BAD.

QUOTE(Adam G @ Jul 14, 2005 -> 04:34 PM) The Score said that the trade would be Burnett and Mike Lowell for McCarthy, Crede, and another prospect or two. Didnt specify the prospects. Holy hell, unless the prospects were something like Chris Young and Gio I'd do that in a friggin heartbeat. Basically if it was one of our top propsects and something like Baj (Marlins could use bullpen help) I'd jump on it. And even if it were something like any one of our top outfielders and a top arm I'd still consider it. Lowell is having a down year (although he does have 24 doubles...we'd probably see a bit of a power spike if he came here), and I'm not as high on Burnett as a lot of people are on this site but that price certainly seems right. We add two guys with a good amount of postseason experience, shore up our rotation to a point where we don't have to rely on duque, and if we sign Burnett past this year, we don't really "lose" much in this deal because he'd take McCarthy's place in the future plans for our rotation. The big hesitation here is that this is the type of move big market teams do. Are we finally going to make a leap in payroll? If not, prospect-laden deals hurt us in the long run where we'd need to rely on quality league-minimum salary players. We are starting to prove to be a place where some players want to go in FA, but we're not on everyone's short list. To me, a deal such as this shows not only the direction of this year's team, but the team in general for the next 3 years.

So I'm getting sick of All-American already...blowing way too many people out. I was wondering if anyone has seen any sliders yet for All-American or even *gasp* Heisman If so, could you please post them or direct me to them? Thanks.

QUOTE(CWSGuy406 @ Jul 12, 2005 -> 08:50 PM) Fotop, I know you got it for X-Box -- could you tell me how to celebrate? I've had it for PS2 all the time, this is the first time I've got it on X-Box. Certainly, here's what the instructions say since I haven't celebrated yet: "To celebrate during a big play, pull and hold L, then move the right thumbstick in any direction to activate a player celebration. For mild or extreme celebration after a big play or score, pul and hold L or R respectively, and then press: X to activate a player celebration; Y for a mascot/cheerleader celebration; or B for a fan celebration." pg. 7 Sounds like a good time, maybe i should try it.

Get it for Xbox if you like: Better graphics, faster load times (better on pretty much all cosmetic ends) Get it for PS2 if you like: good controls (less awkward than Xbox controls) It's pretty much that simple. I have played it for both and I prefer Xbox just because you get through menus much quicker and load times are significantly less. In general I like the Xbox controller better than the PS2 controller, but for this game I wish I had a PS2 controller so I'd have more shoulder buttons. Using the white and black is just way too awkward...good thing ND doesn't run the option. About the juke stick, I'm having trouble using it as well just because it's awkward to sprint and juke at the same time. However, I love the fact that the stiff arm is more prominent in this game...I don't even think it was in the last game. I've always been a big fan of the stiff arm. As for my personal RFTH, I'm a CB...it's way to easy to win the heisman with an offensive player. My CB is pretty sick though, got offers from USC, TENN, and MICH but I walked him onto ND. 82 Overall, 96 Speed, 2nd on the depth. He returns punts and kicks and also likes to blitz a lot. Probably won't get a good amount of buzz until he becomes an impact player...but I think this is much more fun than throwing to the same guy or running to the same guy the whole game.

I've only played one game so far but here's my early take on it: -Race for the Heisman: cool idea, and i've chosen to be a CB because any offensive position would be rather easy to win the heisman with. Once I get my rosters though, I'll probably play dynasty more since RFTH doesn't let you recruit. -Gameplay: Think '04. I just played my first game on All-American and i beat Pitt 56-3 (default quarter length), so I think it's safe to say the offense got juiced up this year. However, defense is still fun. Sacks don't come as easily as they used to, but the Hit Stick is always a pleasure. Xbox controls are a bit awkward, but I'm sure I'll get used to them. -Graphics and Such: Not Madden good, but damn good. Frame rate is nice, I haven't seen any slowdown yet. Xbox load times are nice, not too long at all. More along the lines of '05 graphics without all the slowness. This game is really well done. I'm not immediately disappointed like I was last year, and I'm very critical of NCAA games (it's my favorite line in the the EA sports series). Early signs point to EA recognizing the problems of last year and addressing them, not just churning out a new game with new features. The only thing that has bothered me is friggin' Desmond Howard on the cover... But I've already fixed that

I for one am very leery about trading for Burnett. However, my reasons have nothing to do with his performance...performance wise the kid is a stud. But there have been a few things I've heard/observed about him that strike me the wrong way. 1) For a guy with a history of arm trouble...he sure as hell throws a lot of pitches. Last night being the prime example. I know strikeouts are sexy and all but he basically is giving a big F YOU to Florida's policy of pitch for contact (early in the count). 2) I know I shouldn't always believe what I hear when it comes to being a "cancer" (prime example: AJ Pierzynski) but there has been plenty of talk about burnett and his attitude. I don;'t know how much sock to put in it, but when there's smoke there's usually fire. 3) Why the HELL would Florida want to deal him. Beckett's on the DL, they're in the hunt, so why in the world are they so hell bent on shipping this guy off? From what I've heard, he wants to hit the market this off-season, no matter what. What I really fear is this guy wants to be a Yankee, and by golly they could sure use him. Either way, for how good this guy is there has to be something seriously up if Florida wants to deal him this badly. It just doesn't add up. I don't know what it is, call it a sixth sense, call it ESP, call it stupidity but I just don't feel right about Burnett (and this isn't about Schmidt, because I feel the same way about him). Things just don't seem to be adding up, but with the season we're having I'd have to say any risk to put us over the top may be the correct risk to take....even if they don't feel right.

Man, Nate must REALLY love the hydroponic pot. Someone had to do it....I mean it IS the Blazers.

Scotty makes the All-Star Team! WTG Scott, and WTG White Sox Fans!

Mariners it is. And wite, if you want Bloomquist...it's gonna cost ya. EDIT: Btw, my AIM = Styxmaster.

Any teams still open?

Word on the street is that this game is getting sold already. I haven't had any luck here in Illinois, but in other states local Target, Wal-Marts, and CompUSAs have sold copies already. Of course you could always buy it off of ebay for an insane price and get it a day before you'd normally get it (on the 12th). Either way, I can't wait until next Tues.

Thomas I believe, DBAH0.

A lot of good names in there, don't really know what the Bulls would really need but these guys strike me as quality pickups for anyone: Azubuike, Banks, Bynum, Winston, Basden, Roberson and maybe Morris and Walsh if you're desperate.

I've been watching....mainly because I have money on it. (You can all toss out the degenerate gambler jokes at the guy who bets tennis ) Anyways, I'm with Roddick on this one (was listed as basically 9-1 to win the tournament.) and today's match was a little too close for comfort for me...however it was nice to see him win a 5-setter for once. I would LOVE for Hewitt to knock of Federer, but I know that's not going to happen. Hopefully Johanssen doesn't play spoiler, I get my investment back and let it ride of a Roddick v. Federer final. It would be a monster match.

That's a pretty sweet poster. I'm a sucker for a good movie poster. [/enduselesspost] (I'm allowed one every once and awhile. )

QUOTE(Benson&Rexage @ Jun 28, 2005 -> 10:44 PM) Do you go to ND? My neighbors at Ball State Parents own a resturant right next door to Notre Dame Stadium it is an Itlian place called Pireces ( I think thats how you spell it) I went over there for the BC game this year and we ate there for dinner with Digger Phelps. Great food. Digger is a douche bag though Yea, I go there and that's awesome...Parisi's is a great resturant. I agree, Digger is quite the douche. Small world, ain't it?