Marty34

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Apr 27, 2013 -> 12:54 PM) Interesting, had no idea. Seemed to me like an organic response to a hawk rant, but hey, why not preplan something like that. The amount of time he repeated TWTW, it sure seemed like a plant and that's fine.

QUOTE (IlliniKrush @ Apr 27, 2013 -> 12:39 PM) Now you're just being weird. Why take this stance? Anti-Cubs? It's also a lie, Hahn uses this stuff. Why not take this stance? You can't out-saber Theo and the Cubs, your biggest competitor. As far as it being a lie, that's ok. The Red Sox were built on PED's and the 2nd-largest payroll in MLB during Theo's years.

QUOTE (iamshack @ Apr 27, 2013 -> 12:08 PM) Let the Cubs do what they want...Hahn quietly does what he does and there is no need to talk about it with anyone. I like it when the Sox have a chip on their shoulder. Why not publicly embrace #TWTW and use sabermetrics? Same as Theo publicly embraced sabermetrics as a cover for PED's.

QUOTE (iamshack @ Apr 27, 2013 -> 12:09 PM) These things don't have to be black and white or mutually exclusive. Joe Maddon can be a great manager because of those guys, and separate and apart from them. I think Maddon is an excellent game manager. OTOH, I'm not a believer in Ventura's in-game managerial skills. That said, I think the Sox have overachieved so far this year and last under his guidance.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Apr 27, 2013 -> 12:01 PM) LOL. Why do people keep pretending this s*** is even worth mentioning? We need to be anti-sabermetrics because Theo? Absolutely. Theo's got all the answers most of which were PED's and not numbers.

QUOTE (IlliniKrush @ Apr 27, 2013 -> 11:56 AM) Well that couldn't be further from the truth. Tell that to a GM or a good manager like Joe Maddon who's all about the numbers, matchups, probabilities, etc. They aren't made to tell you who's an MVP type hitter, cmon now. Joe Maddon is a great manager because of David Price, Evan Longoria, James Shields, Matt Moore, BJ Upton.

QUOTE (iamshack @ Apr 27, 2013 -> 11:50 AM) Hah, no. My point is that we're basically stuck with Hawk as a mouthpiece for the team at this point...maybe I am wrong, but I am viewing this as Brooks making the best of the situation and sort of running with the acronym tongue and cheek...perhaps I am just giving them too much credit though? I'm sure the Sox are a little perturbed hearing over and over again in the local media about how the great Theo Epstien and his "proprietary information" can do no wrong. They need to franchise that publicly positions themselves against sabremetrics for that reason alone.

QUOTE (BigSqwert @ Apr 27, 2013 -> 11:45 AM) You're probably the same person who thinks climate change is false because it was really cold one morning when you woke up. Never mind the evidence from 99.99% of the scientific community. I think Sabermetrics have their place in evaluation, but seamheads have overstated theiir value.

QUOTE (IlliniKrush @ Apr 27, 2013 -> 11:43 AM) Hawk's interview was beyond stupid, I didn't find it funny. It's actually sad that a major league broadcaster is that ignorant. A gimmick? Uh, no. Gimmicks aren't used by front offices and managers to help determine the future of their franchise. It's largely a gimmick. I don't need WAR to tell me Miguel Cabrera is a great hitter.

QUOTE (IlliniKrush @ Apr 27, 2013 -> 09:59 AM) Fantastic? Hardly. Yes, throw would go to 2nd base there. They are slamming Hawk because Hawk is a buffoon. Not embrace stupidity? Why does that have to turn into a rallying cry? Really need a sense of humor. I think this outfit should embrace #TWTW. After all Sabermetrics is largely a gimmick too.

Hawk was mostly pulling Kenny's chain it was great. Also funny to see the sabermetric crowd up in arms about it.

Hawk was fantastic in that debate. I loved how he could not give one damn about sabermetrics, but Kenny was still trying to "educate" him on it.

QUOTE (iamshack @ Apr 26, 2013 -> 01:54 PM) Keppinger is a pretty decent example. Keppinger is a good example, but the big reason he got playing time is the Rays couldn't afford anyone better. Moneyball's distinct advantage is you can go through guys until you find the right one because they aren't making any money. Dunn would not be playing right now if he were making the minimum.

QUOTE (StrangeSox @ Apr 26, 2013 -> 01:46 PM) I think someone wrote a book and made a movie about it. I don't know. Hawk is right about the A's of that era, it was more about Zito, Mulder, and Hudson than "moneyball"-type position players.

QUOTE (StrangeSox @ Apr 26, 2013 -> 01:18 PM) Right, and MVP-level players aren't really where advanced stats show the most value. It's the margins and the atypical players that would have otherwise gone unnoticed. Example?

Don't sabrmetrics guys and non-sabremtrics guys agree on the value of players 99.99% of the time?

QUOTE (JoshPR @ Apr 23, 2013 -> 03:30 PM) Rain? no, loss avoidance.

QUOTE (NorthSideSox72 @ Apr 23, 2013 -> 11:05 AM) I was talking fundamentals. Fielding errors, bad fielding judgement, mental mistakes, poor situational decisions, that sort of thing. That does not fall off a cliff in a year across a team. The age thing might be in play for things like Dunn or Keppinger not hitting, particularly Dunn. It is unlikely it is what is causing the fundamental mistakes. These guys didn't all become senile going from 30 to 31 or the like. A year is a long time in baseball life. Teams that are not very good are also not very good at fundementals.

QUOTE (NorthSideSox72 @ Apr 23, 2013 -> 10:50 AM) The defense, and some fundamental hitting/baserunning stuff, does conern me too. And getting that fixed falls on the coaching staff. It seems very hard for me to believe that this is "who this team is this year", considering most of the team is the same as last year. The mistakes in the field have been heavily made by the same cast of characters from 2012. What changed? They got a year older. It happens all the time, when you think a team's core has another year left in them they fool you.

QUOTE (iamshack @ Apr 22, 2013 -> 06:06 PM) This and your first post in this thread, Jake, have been the two best posts in the thread, in my humble opinion. Everyone needs to stop believing that improving = dump everyone good for prospects. If it were that simple, we'd see a lot more of the Royals and Pirates in the playoffs. The key is, as Jake so wisely put it earlier, is to stop spending money poorly. We need to find inefficiencies in the marketplace and capitalize upon them. We need to invest in good developmental coaching. We need to continue to have outstanding medical staffs and training staffs. We need to put money we allocate for the draft into selecting the positions or types of players that are the most difficult or expensive to acquire otherwise. Trading anything of value to throw as many prospects against the wall and hoping they stick is not the answer. Especially now that most of the League is obsessed with the value of prospects...in fact, the League is so obsessed with them, that I'd argue (and I have argued for a few years now) it's not even worthwhile to trade for prospects in most instances, but rather for mlb players with track records in areas of need. The offense is in desperate need of help. Peavy and Rios should get them a couple of solid young everyday options. Guys like Reed, Floyd, Crain and Thornton should bring something decent back too.

anyone know what his velocity is at?

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Apr 22, 2013 -> 04:24 PM) So Chris Sale can't possibly keep up a rate of 3 good starts out of 4? Yeah, that'll never happen. Do you still think this team wins 90 games?

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Apr 22, 2013 -> 04:15 PM) Sale has been dominant? 3 out of 4 starts.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Apr 22, 2013 -> 04:10 PM) Yes, we are going to hit like this for the rest of the year. This has drama queen written all over it. No upside for a team hitting .232 with a .170 mark with RISP? This has to be a joke. And the bullpen will keep a 2.22 era and Quintana, Peavy and Sale will continue to dominate.

QUOTE (LittleHurt05 @ Apr 22, 2013 -> 03:29 PM) Who are all these difference-making draft picks that the Royals & Pirates lost that kept them from making the playoffs? Teams that the Sox are clearly better than in AL? Astros and Mariners (not-so clear).