RockRaines

IMO a low WHIP is a must for a good reliever. Walks and hits are death when you come in with runners on.

Deplor-you might want to put Gino's East on the list.

Art of Pizza on ashland. The original is uno's Next is Lou's then Giordannos

QUOTE(Chisoxfn @ May 5, 2006 -> 11:05 AM) If you get rid of them quickly than you may be better off with leasing, especially since you only pay sales tax on part of it. What the deal with trading in a leased car, do you just get to lease a newer model, how much money down is then involved?

QUOTE(Whitewashed in '05 @ May 1, 2006 -> 09:00 PM) Arroyo just tossed a CG gem for the Reds again. I haven't seen him pitch this season. What do you guys think about him? NL is weak. Arroyo is mopping up in a weak division as well.

ESPN power rankings: Yankees are at #3 4 games over .500 They arent even the best team in their own division. Who writes this s***?

QUOTE(WCSox @ May 5, 2006 -> 11:26 AM) I agree. There's no point in playing ultra-conservative "small-ball" during the regular season against teams like the Royals and Devil Rays. Thats just the thing. With thome in the lineup, moving Pods over hurts our production, it doesnt help it. You can play small ball all you want, but you play whichever kind of ball helps your team most in the situation. Ozzie knows this, and that is why we have been scoring this many runs, and winning this many games. And I trust his view and the teams record alot more than one guy with one opinion.

QUOTE(hammerhead johnson @ May 5, 2006 -> 11:19 AM) Why shouldn't it be? If it wins in the playoffs, shouldn't it win by default during the regular season? Thats where you are fundamentally wrong. Baseball in October is not the same as baseball in the middle of the summer. The way Ozzie has managed this team with Thome in the lineup has been brilliant, and I get exactly what hes trying to do with the tools he has. You are stuck on last year's playoff run and that team's makeup. Well its just not the same as this year's. You need to figure that out.

QUOTE(hammerhead johnson @ May 5, 2006 -> 11:17 AM) So, the way to go about things on offense in the playoffs is NOT the way to do things during the regular season. I gotcha. Can you see the ridiculousness that I'm putting up with right about now? Don't you want to play your best style of ball at all times? Hmmm, let's try our best to be greedy pigs now, and then we'll tone it down a notch in the playoffs? This is a common sense issue. SO, you would like to go on the record and say that the baseball style in the playoffs is the exact same in the regular season? And the subtle insults are kinda childish are they not?

QUOTE(hammerhead johnson @ May 5, 2006 -> 11:11 AM) LOL, so you probably long for the days of Thomas/Ordonez/Lee/Konerko, yeah? You enjoy watching us get shut out by some rookie, or some dude like Joe f***ing Mays? Not me. I like to be in every single game. It's called conservatism, not an all-or-nothing style of offense that you support. I think you're a great poster for the most part, but you gotta kick this bulls*** philosophy to the curb. Are you seriously comparing this offense with that one? Grasping at straws are we? That team didnt have the ability to go out in the 8th or 9th inning, steal a base and single him home. It just wasnt in the cards. This team does if the situation permits it. BUt your philosophy of doing it every inning, is simply not smart baseball.

For comparison's sake. Last years April offense 21 HR, 106 runs, .255 BA .316 OBP .691 OPS 2006 April 33 HR 140 runs .281 BA .358 OBP .825 OPS oh, and more doubles, triples and hits.

QUOTE(hammerhead johnson @ May 5, 2006 -> 11:03 AM) We'll see what's up come playoff time. And you know, with Konerko hitting the cover off of the ball, you don't think that a lot of those walks are going to come back and bite the opposition? They're not walking Thome to get to Rondell White, you know. That's Paul f***ing Konerko on deck. You're gonna have some GIDPs, and you're also gonna have a s***load of runs batted in with that guy at the plate. Oh, now its whats effective in the playoffs. I see. Playing for every run possible is the way to win playoff games, no s***. And this team has the ability to do that if necessary. The playoffs are like playing every regular season game from the 8th inning. Which basically agrees with everything Fathom has been saying. Right now, the way Ozzie has been managing it, it has worked to perfection. Last year's lineup is nothing compared to this years, and I think the stats support me on that.

QUOTE(hammerhead johnson @ May 5, 2006 -> 10:56 AM) You act like it's my opinion or something.... It's a f***ing undeniable fact, come on. You play conservative on offense. There ain't no opposing viewpoint. It is your opinion, because the manager of the WS champs doesnt share your view. With your offensive strategy, we might not have even won the game yesterday, because you would have sac'ed iguchi, walked Thome, and may have not even had a run in that first inning. Since this team hasnt really played YOUR way this year, I would say im pretty happy that they havent.

QUOTE(hammerhead johnson @ May 5, 2006 -> 10:48 AM) It's called conservative, playoff-style baseball. ONE RUN AT A TIME. Especially with our pitching. Again, I feel like I'm talking to a Cubs fan whose entire baseball philosophy revolves around greed. Is it really neccessary to insult him just because he doesnt share your point of view?

QUOTE(hammerhead johnson @ May 5, 2006 -> 10:43 AM) Then maybe Iguchi is a #6 hitter, but we need to get that leadoff man (whoever is leading off an inning, not just Podsednik) in scoring position. That's what championship teams do, because you're not going to slug your way deep into the playoffs. Once in a great while you'll have an exception like the late 80s Oakland As. LaRussa was of that same train of thought: let's not get too aggressive with Lansford/Weiss sacrificing themselves to put Henderson into scoring positon. Let's wait for Jose and Mark to clean up. They got their one championship, but it should have been like three or four if their offense was more conservative, given the circumstances. Playoff ball is all about defense and conservative offense. That applies to all the major organized team sports. Yes that is a great concept, the point of baseball is to get men in scoring position and then knocking them in. I think you just dont understand how much having a man on second hurts Thome. He obviously wont drive him in with a single. He has walks at a .700 clip with a runner on 2nd. So we have taken the bat out of his hands effectively, and given up an out with one of our best contact hitters at this point. I would rather take the added benefit of letting iguchi make it 1st and 3rd, than make the #2 and #3 hitters give up their at bats just to get a man on 2nd.

QUOTE(LosMediasBlancas @ May 5, 2006 -> 10:01 AM) What's the bar right across the street from Lalo's called? They have little tvs built into the booths. Juniors sports lounge. NIce place.

Basically Thome's OBP and power potential changes the face of this team, and how we manage our offense, especially early in the game. Look at yesterday's game, if Iguchi bunts or sac's PODS to 2nd base, and they walk Thome because the base is open, do we even win that game?

QUOTE(fathom @ May 5, 2006 -> 10:34 AM) Yep, playing for one run at at time, in the American League, is pretty dumb. Especially when the ball is jumping at our park. From the 8th inning on, playing for one run does make sense though. You can even play for one run without having Iguchi sacrafice himself. If he swings and gets himself out, there is already almost a 50 percent chance that Thome will reach first base somehow. So you may already have PODS in scoring position with Konerko up. Thus, the same result, but with the benefit of having Thome actually see some pitches. Also with the field shift and how fast PODS is, the DP is not automatic, so with a ground ball you still have a runner in scoring position with Konerko up. So you have the same results, but instead of giving up outs, we have a chance of scoring more than one.

QUOTE(hammerhead johnson @ May 5, 2006 -> 10:25 AM) Yeah, I have you figured out. You want to wait around and pray that Thome hits a double or a HR while first base is occupied. But if first base is not occupied and Thome gets a walk, we are f***ed! Because walks are teh worst!!! Especially with Konerko and Dye coming up. Why would you want to take the bats out of probably our 2 best hitters right now? I dont understand that concept. Theres no overall benefit. You either let iguchi swing and have the added benefit of 1st and 3rd with no outs, or maybe even an RBI. Or take the bat out of his hands, and then take the bat out of your best hitters hands.

QUOTE(fathom @ May 5, 2006 -> 10:24 AM) Unless it's the 8th or 9th inning, why give up outs with our powerful middle of the order coming up? Well, with the team the way it is this year, there is almost no difference between sacraficing PODS over to 2nd vs letting Iguchi swing. Last year our 3rd place hitter had an OBP of barely 300, while they werent nearly as dangerous as Thome is. With Thome's walks, the field shift, and his power potential, its almost better to have him hitting with a runner on 1st, than on 2nd, because with an open base, the bat is basically taken out of his hands, and also Iguchi's. Last year it worked wonders because we wanted to rely on singles and flares from our 3rd place hitter, but this year its not the case.

QUOTE(hammerhead johnson @ May 5, 2006 -> 10:18 AM) LOL, so the #2 hitter should NOT try to get that leadoff guy in scoring position for the 3/4/5 of Thome/Konerko/Dye???? You're in favor of sitting around and waiting for a HR. That's winning baseball. I guess you dont understand the concept. If Iguchi, who is probably our best hitter right now, sacrafices PODs to 2nd base, will the odds are with first base open, Thome will be walked, so now you have 1st and 2nd with Kong up. Lets say that iguchi flied out instead of moving pods. You now have Thome up with about a 40+ percent chance of reaching base. I would say there is a good chance he either hits a double, HR or gets walked. Then you have 1st and 2nd with Konerko up. Now if you hit and run with Iguchi and PODS, and Iguchi singles you have 1st and 3rd, no outs, with Thome up. Now thats winning baseball.

QUOTE(fathom @ May 5, 2006 -> 10:12 AM) If he's going to double, then the runner was going to score anyways. In the first week, where Ozzie tried to play a lot of small ball, I believe PK hit into four double plays. My philosophy is quite simple: unless it's the 8th or 9th inning in a tie game, you don't bunt in front of Thome and Konerko. If Pods can't steal a base against a reliever in a late game situation, then his value is even lower than most of us give him credit for. Thats the thing. Thome is a 280 hitter with a 400+ OBP. If 1B is open this year, he wont see a pitch. So regardless or whether you bunt PODs over, or Iguchi just swings himself out, theres around a 40+ percent chance that with Konerko up it will be 1st and 2nd. Iguchi is probably our best hitter right now, and taking the bat out of his hands to just move PODS to 2nd is just stupid. The odds are he will reach second almost a majority of the time, whether he steals or Thome gets walked. PLaying for 1 run is a great idea, but its not always with PODS and iguchi, because at this point, letting Gooch swing is more beneficial.

QUOTE(LosMediasBlancas @ May 5, 2006 -> 09:46 AM) I was there two weeks ago after a Sox game, fun time, good Margaritas. http://chicago.citysearch.com/roundup/40074/?brand=msn I live just north on Halsted to madison. I was just at Morgan's last night for the bulls game.

QUOTE(hammerhead johnson @ May 5, 2006 -> 09:24 AM) You get that runner in scoring position with one out, and you give both Thome and Konerko a chance to drive that run in. You play for one run at a time, especially against prototypical #1 and #2 starters. That's winning baseball IMO. Thome isnt exactly a singles hitter, so most likely with a base open, he will get walked. So you have effectively taken the bat out of our best hitter's hands just to move a runner who had around a 50 percent chance to get to second with Thome up anyway. In that situation, it almost makes more sense to let iguchi hit and try to advance Pods to 3rd on a single, or back to 1st on a fly out. Its more beneficial to let iguchi try and either drive PODS in, or advance him to 3rd on a good at bat, instead of taking the bat out of his hands, and then taking it out of Thome's hands. With your reasoning you are taking the bat out of two of our top hitter's hands, with no real benefit over what could have occurred without a sacrafice. This is the overall change that has come to with a 3rd place hitter with a .500 OBP, and 40 HR potential.

QUOTE(THEWOOD @ May 2, 2006 -> 04:47 PM) I can not wait for that matchup against UNC....that should be a great game. God damn thats a great matchup. Oden will slap those hoes.