Jake

QUOTE (Jordan4life @ Dec 21, 2013 -> 02:08 PM) Except they don't have their pick. The Hawks do. What a disaster of a year for the Nets. They are shaping up to be the model of a f***ed up franchise. QUOTE (Jordan4life @ Dec 21, 2013 -> 02:41 PM) It's not hard to make sense of at all. But let me help you. Bulls offensive rankings: ppg - 29th fg% - 29th 3pt% - 29th Offensive rating (points per 100 possessions) 29th Efg% - 30th TS% - 29th Want more? Shooting percentage less than 5 feet from the basket: 53.5% -29th overall Shooting percentage 5 to 9 feet from the basket: 34% - 26th overall That is pitiful for any team. But this team was supposed to compete for a title (barf). This says two things: one, you've got a bunch of guys that simply aren't that talented and can't finish around the rim or within 9 feet of the rim. Two, this also says you have no shooting/spacing (the numbers prove just that) to open up the lane and defenses are feasting. This is the roster Rose was supposed to win with. You all thought it. And the FO thought it. Throw in the neverending rash of injuries and the verdict is in - ratchet and busted are the 2014 Chicago Bulls. Shame on you for making me put this in writing. 35 small bunnies were decapitated because I had to spell this out for you. The bunny blood is on your hands, not mine, kind sir. I didn't think my argument looked like I was saying the Bulls have played well offensively. I was saying that there are sound arguments to be made that they could step it up considerably and have a slightly below average offense to go with what is still a very, very good defense. You might argue that without a buttload of injuries and trades, it is bound to happen. Of course, as I said and your post shows, it is also reasonable to think that it will keep being this bad or worse. QUOTE (KyYlE23 @ Dec 21, 2013 -> 09:51 PM) Hornets new logo I like it. QUOTE (chw42 @ Dec 21, 2013 -> 09:55 PM) Thank god they're not the Bobcast anymore. What's that? The Aldi version of the Chromecast?

I'm not feeling too bad about it. It isn't like he was saying it was a dumb move to get Scott Downs. He's saying it was a...Downs...move. Because of Scott Downs. Neither good nor bad move. Just a Downs move.

Thanks so much for sharing hi8is. Sometimes I look at the way I and many other Americans look at sports and I can see how strange it seems. It doesn't seem like something that would organically happen with any intelligent beings. For what it is, it is oddly infused with money. It is practically the only institution we hold so dear that we exempt it from anti-trust law. I feel unreasonable feelings related to sports. Why should a White Sox game of any kind, let alone a September game in the lost 2013 season, totally ruin my day? Why do I weep when I watch the 2005 WS DVDs? I tend to wonder whether it's justifiable. Why so much money? So much time? So much emotional investment? hi8is just showed why it is we allow it to exist, why we invest so much into it. When I watch "Field of Dreams" and cry in the scene where father and son play catch together, it's because doing baseball stuff with my dad are some of the most important and meaningful things in my life. Watching, training, playing baseball together. It's great that hi8is has gotten something just as meaningful from it. Even better, Frank Thomas has embraced his role as somebody that can foster that kind of deep joy in other people's lives. Sure, his play was awesome and he didn't owe us anything else. Great players make us happy. It's so awesome though that he knew he had the power to bring the kind of real, visceral satisfaction that is possible via experiences with baseball. Great story hi8is.

While I would easily do Dunn for Castro (what person who wants the Sox to win wouldn't?), most scenarios in which we trade Dunn will result in a huge talent dropoff on the MLB roster. There's nobody with power in their bat like him and nobody worth a s*** from the left side without him (though we might keep ADA if Dunn goes). The "if everything goes right" scenario is much more right if Dunn is here, with the exception of pipe dreams like a Jason Castro acquisition.

Bashir is a piece of s*** and I don't think I'd say what he said, but it wasn't absolutely crazy. More vulgar, weird, and indecent than anything else. That is, unless I'm not remembering correctly. I think he just said somebody should s*** in her mouth. On one hand, I want to say that Bashir's comments wouldn't have cost a better journalist his or her job. On the other, a better journalist never would have f***ing said that.

QUOTE (DukeNukeEm @ Dec 20, 2013 -> 05:49 PM) You do too. We all do. We've had over 500 people working full time to make more laws since 1789. They've done a lot, we break laws every day with or without knowing. (I've had an awful bit of luck the past few days, hence the delay in response). You driving through some of the icy patches? Stay safe out there, it's pretty gnarly in Chicagoland today.

QUOTE (Jenksismyb**** @ Dec 20, 2013 -> 02:59 PM) Well that's a whole other animal. Why do people get pissy about what Christians believe when they don't care to be Christian? That's why I don't understand why I'm a bigot and hateful person for believing homosexuals are sinners (just like me for the various sins i've committed) according to MY RELIGIOUS BELIEFS, but don't think they should be treated as second class citizens, denied rights, etc.? Most folks like to govern by their religious beliefs. It's basically the reason we have the many protections that we do -- people like rights, but they often fail to see/care when their desires infringe upon the rights of others. So we call out bigots in hopes that they will lose in the marketplace of ideas and we don't need to exercise legal protections for groups like LGBT people. QUOTE (StrangeSox @ Dec 20, 2013 -> 04:03 PM) The Pope is getting lauded by some for changing the church's direction and message. It was a notable change, and people generally like to encourage positive movement even if it's not the full measure they want. That said, not everyone in the LGBT community or people who support LGBT rights is embracing the Pope. Phil Robertson didn't do anything like that. He followed the long line of explicit, anti-gay bigotry of lumping it in with bestiality. That's not quibbling, that's just recognizing very common anti-gay bigotry. Pope Francis would not have been lauded by The Advocate had he mentioned bestiality along with homosexuality. At the end of the day, the words people actually use and the history behind them actually matter. What the Pope has done is in stark contrast to what [we think] Phil Robertson has done in his interview. I say we think since we are presented with a certain impression of the sequence and intent of the interview and Robertson doesn't seem to be raising any issues with it. When you ask Phil Robertson what's wrong with the world, he says it is all the gay stuff going on. To him, it epitomizes ungodliness. The Pope's biggest message is that this s*** isn't the most important thing for the Church. He sees it becoming oversensationalized and being used as an outlet for hatred more than anything else. He rightly sees more fundamental theological issues as troubling (hey, how about all that murder out there?) as well as the immense economic inequality of the world. You can tell he recognizes how troubling it is to expect people to believe in God when he gives his infallible servant oodles of riches and much of the world gets nothing. The Pope seems to think that not only is spreading worldly comforts to everyone the right thing to do, it will bring people into the faith. I'm not going to pretend I like the Pope because I don't believe in god(s). However, since I accept that a Pope will probably exist so long as I'm alive, he's a bit of a breath of fresh air and at least doesn't seem to contradict the doctrine which he is charged with upholding. QUOTE (Soxbadger @ Dec 20, 2013 -> 04:29 PM) Why do I care? Time called Hitler the man of the year, and Stalin too. Person of the Year is not to be confused with Best Person of the Year. It is "for better or for worse, the person who has done the most to influence the events of the year." To not pick a guy like Hitler would have been ludicrous.

QUOTE (Quinarvy @ Dec 21, 2013 -> 04:37 AM) I got my dad a Chromecast and Veeck's autobiography, my brother a book on the White Sox and the Brick Bible, my sister-in-law some funny dog related books, and my mom a couple of Barnes & Noble classics that she likes. My dad kept asking what I wanted for Hanukkah and I said "I dunno" to see if he came up with something. So I made it that my mom conveniently overheard me talking to my best friend about how I was gonna try and save up for a PS4 after he got one for Christmas. They get to feel like they came up with the idea (which rarely happens) and I get a PS4. It's a win. I really wanted this, but I didn't want confuse my poor family with what might be called a satirical bible

Trea Turner needs to have a great season, but not so great that he goes 2.

Hard to make sense of the recent run. A bunch of losses on the West Coast. Beat the Heat. Drop some "easy" home games. Beat Milwaukee in Milwaukee despite losing to them at home. Drop winnable games against Toronto and Orlando. Lose two away games against two of the best in the west. Meanwhile, you've had 4 starting point guards, 5 starting wing players, and...well....let's look at it this way. Every player on the active roster has started a game except Erik Murphy. Carlos Boozer has been your healthiest player and the only one to play in every game -- Joakim Noah has been your second healthiest player, missing just one game. We've struggled to put an NBA-caliber player at the PG position, which has all kinds of rippling effects. Lots of reasons that, maybe, the team is better than the one that has looked like s*** recently. Of course, there are reasons that there could be more of the same ahead of us. Hence the disagreement.

I guess the question is how many draft spots are at stake here. Some people think we can somehow become a top 3 worst team/beat the odds in the lottery. Others see the difference between our ceiling and our floor to be about 4-5 positions, with the top position or two being the playoffs. Why not sacrifice a couple draft spots for some playoff fun, especially when you give young guys like Jimmy and Snell some precious developmental time? Well, it all depends on whether you think you're just trading a couple of spots down to do it.

My empty nest mom still likes going all out so I can't wait to see what I get. I gave her a very detailed list. Headliners: Roku, Victorinox SAK multi-tool, some bluetooth speakers for my desktop/cell phone, and 17 seconds DVD. We'll see how it turns out. We're getting her a mobile wi-fi hotspot since her gift last year, an Android tablet, isn't serving her needs when she's on the go. I think she'll be tickled. No clue what to do about my dad, who buys everything he wants for himself and gets grumpy about the expenditure when we get him much of anything on Christmas

QUOTE (NorthSideSox72 @ Dec 20, 2013 -> 07:51 AM) Jake pretty much covers it here... I will note though, I saw a BA writer hint that Semien may be in the T100 coming up. Johnson already is/was, Hawkins has been previously. Tim Anderson might show up too. It wouldn't blow my mind if Semien does make the top 100. His AA production was pretty tough to ignore, as is his total lack of any non-average tools. QUOTE (hammerhead johnson @ Dec 20, 2013 -> 10:05 AM) Wow, good vibes in the Future Sox forum? From fangraphs: Adam Eaton knew his place from the jump. I'm assuming that coaches are constantly asking Tim to work counts and hit ground balls/line drives. Finding a way to reach first base should be his mission in life. But he obviously has great potential in the speed categories. His BABIP was .384, and he stole 24 bases in only 68 games. Fangraphs also said that he has "modest arm strength". There are exceptions, but in the vast majority of cases, those guys eventually find a home at 2B, correct? God, I hope he works out. Almost all of the scouting stuff I've seen about Anderson reads like the scouts weren't watching much MS juco ball and don't really know what he has defensively. He may become a 2B, CF, or LF, but for now he seems to have the physical tools to play SS and just needs a lot of polish.

QUOTE (IlliniKrush @ Dec 20, 2013 -> 06:50 PM) Good point. Little kid football just appears to be "here, go run into each other for an hour, and one of you gets to carry the ball." It does seem like a sport that you'd be able to "catch up" easier than some others. I've seen these things from experience, too. I remember the guys who were great youth league players and it had essentially no correlation to who was good in high school. I played one year as an offensive lineman when I was 10 and then quit. I started at QB as a freshman for a 5A playoff team. My older brother played golf throughout all of pre-high school and did the same, eventually getting a full ride as a QB for college. In baseball, you can get away with lack of experience to some extent but there is a ton to be gained at certain positions. There is also the whole hitting thing, which can be really hard to jump into at a high level. In basketball, if you want to be anything but a giant, unskilled player, you're best off starting young and becoming a good ballhandler, shooter, etc.

It is indeed plausible that an improving Ratliff and a healthy Briggs could make our defense respectable again. Maybe like, 25th worst or something.

The standard for good GM'ing in the NBA is VERY low. I'd think twice before declaring our FO horrible. Maybe not ideal, though it sounds like the ideal FO is either the Miami one or whichever one is in last place.

Even in the absence of injury, I've always felt there's less to be gained by playing youth football than any other sport. If you start out in high school, you'll be fine if you're a good enough athlete. If you're a QB, I might suggest starting a year before high school on technique. There's always flag football too for those things. QUOTE (ptatc @ Dec 20, 2013 -> 04:54 PM) Not necessarily. Repeated micro trauma to muscles make the muscles stronger. We don't know that micro trauma to the brain causes problems. I agree that it is important not to jump to conclusions, but the theorized link between micro trauma to the brain is much more credible than micro trauma to the muscles.

Privileges of the well-insured

QUOTE (Springfield SoxFan @ Dec 20, 2013 -> 07:32 AM) This is a great signing because of the short term commitment. If for some reason the Sox are not in playoff contention next year and Downs is pitching well (and does not have a lingering injury), he will bring more assets in a trade with a contending team. THIS WAS YOUR ONE CHANCE!!!!

QUOTE (GreenSox @ Dec 19, 2013 -> 10:49 PM) North, considering that organizations have 100+ prospects (or at least players) in the minors, how do these organizations (like BA) or persons (Keith Law) really evaluate the strength of an organization. Do they look at the top 10, top 20 or do they purport to look at the entire system? And then I think about players like Semien, Webb and Erik Johnson...these guys are valuable to the Sox, near ML ready, yet aren't top 100 prospects by any ranking system. Do the higher ranked organizations have 5 or 10 Semiens? I'd say they're mostly thinking about your top 20 versus everyone else's. They'll also have an impression of each of your recent drafts, though, which will certainly overlap with some of your top 20 but they may also like guys from your recent drafts that haven't yet made a name enough to crack the top XX list. Erik Johnson is a top 100 prospect -- someone even mentioned that he probably gets too little love due to BNS (Boring Name Syndrome). Better organizations would have several guys in a given year that look just like Semien. Guys who didn't have any great tools, but really broke out and took a pretty good performance to really really good levels. Some of those guys don't pan out. For us, we need our guy like that to pan out.

My plan was extended at a huge increase in rate, but I then went to the exchange where a 10 dollar increase on my old monthly premium gets me a much better plan, including half the cost on my monthly prescriptions and zero dollars for generics. Lower deductible too.

There...have....been rumors about Deng -- Deng/Waiters rumor has been rather persistent

Heard in every Bulls game lately - "it seems like they should be losing by 20, but it's just a 1-2 possession game"

Peavy was much more of a groundball pitcher pre-White Sox. His sinker really quit sinking post-surgery.

QUOTE (Rowand44 @ Dec 19, 2013 -> 11:24 AM) Agreed. Her I enjoy very much. QUOTE (Athomeboy_2000 @ Dec 19, 2013 -> 11:28 AM) I... um... excuse me.... I need a moment to myself. *grabs the lube* Wow....she KNOWS she's bad. Seal of approval from me. If J4L approves, I think this means the world is unanimous