BrandoFan

I love BOTH soccer and baseball - the two games have absolutely nothing in common but there is just so much beauty and awesomeness in either. Of course soccer means very little to you because you're culturally predisposed to dislike it AND you can't built emotional connections with players/teams/nations all the way from childhood, can't appreciate the esthetics of it, the completely different tempo, rules and nuances - or even the history of the sport. That's understandable. Most of my friends are the same way with baseball and football - they don't understand it, don't want to understand it and will never appreciate either sport. In any case, MLS soccer while not as bad as it used to be right after its inception is like minor leagues in terms of quality of play. Not the best place to start learning the game, to say the least. I really don't like Andy Roddick and have been very high on Federer since at least 1999 juniors, so Masha (Maria) and Roge better win it.

Couldn't watch Formula-1 after Senna died in 1993. At 10 or 11, it hit me some kind of hard. But I do remember how f***ing fun it was to watch him win in the Monaco Grand-Prix. If they even do have it in Manhatten streets, it should be a blast - that's what REAL racing sport is all about.

Extreme?? Extreme would be: 1. Randy Johnson (f*** RJ and his pro-Arizona attitude) 2. Steve Finley/J.D. Drew (f*** Atlanta for not falling out of contention) Kenny is playing it relatively safe. I happen to think that Sox' biggest preoccupations should be: 1. Who do we trot out there against Pedro/Brown - in Fenway/Yankee stadium? 2. How do we beat a very good RHP if we could never do it before? If neither is addressed, WHO CARES if you have Guardado or not! Didn't help the Twins last year against the Yankees, did he?

You're telling me, I grew up on both games. :

You got more parity now - a brilliant Roger Federer aside. Ferrero, Nalbandian, Coria, Roddick, Hewitt, Safin can all get on a hot streak and win a slam just like that. Plus as soon as Agassi takes care of the hip, you figure he'll play in 2004-2005. Never a big fan of women's tennis (Sabatini's ass aside), but you have to admit that Williamses, Henin-Hardenne, Clisters, Capriati, Davenport and a bunch of contenders like the Russian Seven, Mauressmo, etc made for some exciting matches in the last few years.

That's probably because your fat uncoordinated A.D.D-riddled ass can't begin to meet the demands of the game. Whenever I hear "tennis sucks" or "soccer sucks", I think "another cultural slave". [/With all due respect]

Haven't followed Tour since my idol Miguel Indurain (sp?) retired. I know Lance Armstrong went from a promising up-and-comer American wannabe cyclist to a 5-time tour champ in the matter of months.....

Keep him, I don't want a rotten former Twin anyway.

This team is simply cursed. I am convinced if Barry Bonds were to come here, he'd put up Royce Clayton numbers.

Sox still do not have a bonafied ace (RJ, Glavine, etc) and our 1-2 hitters are highly inexperienced. 3 weeks ago I would have been more than fine with both Willie and Uribe but they regressed big-time lately. The prospect of having Hurt come up to bat with 2 outs and bases empty against a tough RHP on the road in the playoffs doesn't thrill me one bit. And Guardado is not quite as important if the Sox are losing , say, 4-2 in the 9th in a playoff game because 1) our pitcher wasn't as good as the pitcher he is going up againt on the road and 2) Sox hitters can't handle another tough RHP starter. Steve Finley plays CF and is a #2 hitter with excellent OBP against RHP. Hopefully Willie can get his s*** together and be a decent lead-off guy against RHP as well. Uribe slides lower in the order and challenges Crede for 3B. Competition is good. Robbie Alomar challenges Willie of course..... Against LHP, Rowand and Uribe are 1-2, but then again, neither Yankees nor Red Sox have LHP starters - unless of course Sox face the A's. What are Sox giving up for Guardado anyway?

Loaiza makes only 4 Mill and D-Backs could re-sign him. Garland? Good riddance. He is a FA after 2005 anyway. You can't compare it to the Mariners-Astros deal in 1999 because Unit was in his absolute physical prime back then and was making WAY less than what he is now, so of course Astros had to come up with da goods. Also, Carlos Guillen was just an average player for Seattle. Garcia? Yeah, that worked out for Seattle.....in 2001. In 1999-2000 and 2002-2003 he wasn't all that hot - I could definately see Garland putting up similar numbers while playing in Safeco, with numerous Gold Glovers behind him......That's not rape. Beltran is just entering his prime, so, no, you can't compare the two. Anderson will be a solid player down the line? So f***ing what! You're willing to settle for a solid position player at the expense of 2 World Series runs that this franchise and its starving fanbase badly long for? Especially in the face of a Cubbie World Series onslaught? Sox dodged that particular bullet last year, but only barely. Give them Munoz/Diaz/Rauch + Garland + Anderson/Borchard + prospect, and have Arizona pick up some of Unit's money next year. That's 3 talented players who could start for them next year (plus a prospect) as well as 10 Mill of cash freed up in 2005 to find another starting pitcher or two. Not a great package, but under the circumstances, not bad either. And given that Valentin/Loaiza, Koch and Konerko/Lee could very well be gone next year, the only way Sox can't pay for Maggs is if he refuses a reasonably back-loaded contract. The revenue boost provided by the pennant/postseason run would help pay for part of Magglio's contract, and hopefully Sox could build on that success in 2005 and beyond.

Since when is Anna "model-looking"? She has an average face. But she is a high-profile blond with a great bod, so people often confuse that with beauty. Sharapova ain't that great either, but she is definately cuter. And a better tennis player. Neither can touch the tennis love of my childhood, Gabriella Sabatini, though.

I've made plenty of qualifications and clarifications to my point. I am not going to repeat myself. There is no contradiction here. Well, no s***. Giving up "something" is NOT = giving up "everything". Munoz and Anderson are "something". As are a lot of different prospect permutations. Who do you think Anderson is? Bo Diddley? I'd give him up for Unit and 2 runs at the world series (2004 and 2005) in a SECOND. Contreras makes a lot of money, had some health problems in the past as well. If Arizona is dealing Unit out of financial considerations, it wouldn't be Contreras who is still a big question mark in many respects. Contreras + Navarro + lesser prospect. Sounds good. All Sox need is to match it (say, Loaiza + Anderson + 2 lesser prospects?), and wouldn't Colangelo go with the Sox because of his Steinbrenner Grudge? Unit will be very hard to swing that goes without saying, but if the URGENCY and DESIRE are there, it's totally doable. And prospects are just that - Alex Escobar, Bandon Phillips and Casey Fossum were "untouchable" 3 years ago. Look at them now. :puke There are currently no Mark Priors or Albert Pujolses in our organization, suffice to say.

Reed is not a spectacular prospect - Pujols and Cabrera, now there are spectacular prospects. But when his wrists were healthy back in '03, he could have come into the bigs and posted a 360 OBP (800 OPS) from the 2-spot with his eyes closed - at 22 years of age! I truly believe that. Yes, he was THAT polished a hitter, his swing had very few holes; unlike most Sox hitters, Reed had no problem going the other way or shortening up with 2 strikes. Good eye, plate discipline, hand-eye coordination. Confidence. Those attributes are worth their weight in gold when making a transition to the bigs. I mean, look at the wonders such modest approach briefly did for Willie Harris (.400 OBP from April 10th through mid-June) - and last year, Jeremy Reed had more gap-power and a better batting eye than Willie ever had. He is also better defensively (CF) and on the pads than Joe Borchard, and seems to be stronger mentally - although you can never really predict how a player acclimates psychologically to the Bigs. At the end, both Reed and JoBo could very well be big busts. IMO, Sox needed a Reed-type player more than a Borchard-type player. Giving up on Olivo upset me way more, I realized that either Reed or Borchard HAD to be included in the deal no matter what. I just think Olivo is gonna suprise a ton of people in the next 5-7 years. But I digress.

First of all, Sullivan is NOT an above average reliever away from Kauffman Stadium, especially when he is thrust into a pennant race - and lord knows, he's padded his stats pitching in low-pressure situation in both Cincinatti and KC. I'd rather slightly overpay for Randy Johnson than to waste money on Sullivans or Russ Ortizes of this world.

There is no contradiction here whatsoever. Where did I say they "shouldn't get anyone good"? Getting quality in return doesn't imply a card blanche to rape and pillage another team's farm system. Especially when your franchise is treading bancruptcy. And yes, because of those considerations (huge contract, age, health history, and somewhat diminished skills the last 2 years), Arizona shouldn't get what they would have gotten for Unit just 3-4 years ago. Once again....we're not talking about Prior, Sheets or Zambrano here. It also doesn't mean they should get 3 or 4 cream of the crop prospects and not have to pay a chunk of Unit's salary, either. f*** them and their fans. What do you think Yankees are willing to give? A Young Sheffield and a Young A-Rod? Garland is utterly mediocre. And those other 3 have been either signed as amateur free agents or are late-late draft pick gems who came out of nowhere. Baldwin, Ruffcorn, Seau, Dellaero, Caruso, Mark Johnson, Leifer, Bobby Hill, Stumm, Borchard and Ring are closer to reality. I have no problem with parting with Anderson and Munoz, for instance.

Mike Jackson is a nothing. Grilli is a nothing as well. Politte has been pitching lights out lately, and I sincerely doubt Sullivan will do much better in our ballpark. Even last year, he was the definition of mediocrity while with us. Sox could use BP help, but not Sullivan or his 2.5 Mill a year salary.

He is signed through 2005, not 2006. You know what else has the potential to kill the Sox payroll? Missing playoffs by 2-3 games because Rauch or Diaz made one too many starts. What else? Losing in the 1st round because Garcia couldn't handle the pressure of Game 1 in Fenway or Yankee stadium and Sox had to pitch Loaiza/Garland in Game 3. Those things have the potential to piss Sox fans and JR off, and payroll might not be so pretty in 2005 and beyond ANYWAY. Risk is always there with this franchise, so you have to pick your poison. After 86 years, playing it safe ain't cool. Not when Cubs are trying to bury your franchise by winning the World Series. He'll play in 2005 - and Astros are doing just fine with 41yo Clemens aren't they. . He'll be available with the right offer. Zona is in bad shape. Hold up. Given his age, health risk and somewhat diminished skills (check out his 2003-2004, still damn good but no longer 1999-2002 great), to say nothing of Arizona's money problems.......Why should they get everything they want? f*** them, those hellhole lizzard land-inhabiting b****es. Given how Sox overrate prospects, I honestly wouldn't mind losing a couple of them. And losing Lee (or even Magglioverrated) won't be terrible at all the way he's hitting RHP this year. If anything that's 9 Mill off the books in 2005. So he does, why are you all scared of it? Minds are meant to be changed. If he listens to the offer and shoots the deal down, so be it - you can always look at other options with clean conscience that you've done everything within reason to get the best and it just didn't work out. That's all I ask.

With Kenny's ego, they'd WANT to advertise such attempt -- even if Johnson ends up shooting the deal down or Sox get outbid. They'd get major points for trying. As they should.

1. It's only not gonna happen because Sox are forgetting the meaning of the phrase "going for it" and as usual it will blow up in their face, somehow, somewhere. Instead of Andruw Jones, Jason Kendall and Nomar Garciaparra nonsense that they are/were rumored to be looking into, they should pay just a bit more and get someone who literally doubles our chances of getting past ALDS. With Unit pitching in Games 1 and 4 of ALDS, it takes some pressure off Garcia and Buerhle to be perfect in Games 2 and 3 as well, thus making them more effective IMO 2. As has been pointed out upthread, Unit is making 10 Mill per in 2004 and 2005 with the rest of the moneys deferred. With 2.5 months to go (if Sox were to pursue him right after the break), they'd only be responsible for about 4 Mill of the upfront money for this year. Don't tell me they couldn't pay that - esp before signing Garcia to an extension, which is when getting Unit was more realistic. And 2005? Koch, Loaiza/Valentin and Konerko/Lee could very well be gone, so Unit's 10 Mill (plus deferred) won't be a huge burden either. Worst comes the worst, if things don't work out the way we all want them to (Sox lose in ALDS and do not experience a revenue boom), Unit could always be traded to those same Yankees or Red Sox who are always looking to one-up each other in 2005. 3. Now....If D-Backs want real good prospects, then they better pick up some of the money - not half, but a few Mill a per year. 4. Randy Johnson is very expensive, old and has a knee problem -- to say nothing of him frankly not being as good as he was in 1999-2001 -- so I am not sure what makes Arizona think they have this unbelivable commodity everyone is going to break bank to get. Unit could be on DL next week, so it's not as if we're talking about Prior or Ben Sheets here. Garcia is much younger, much healthier, is having every bit as good a year as Unit and was playing on a team who was in a much better financial state than the D-Backs currently are and threfore wasn't as desperate to get rid of Freddy.....And still, many people feel Sox overpaid with Reed and Olivo. No trade clause whatever, if Yankees are rumored to be the front-runners in the Randy Johnson sweepstakes, then it's obvious that Unit's mind can be swayed and there is NO reason to think Sox can't join in. If they get outbid, fine. But I want a serious attempt to be made.

He holds the Cubs down while up 2-0 and chances are Sox put a few more runs on the board. Zambrano is much tougher when you have to come back from a 4-2/5-2 deficit. When you're ahead and things aren't going his way, that's when you get to him - just as Sox did at USCF. And, of course, if Sox win Friday's game, I guarantee you they would have won at least 1 of the remaining 2 - there would be virtually no pressure on Felix Diaz OR Sox hitters since even if they lose both, they still split the season series.......Lack of "must win" pressure is always an athlete's friend. That's what got me so pissed off at Esteban. He pitched a very mediocre game last Sunday but offense and luck bailed him out. If he pitches like he did against the Marlins on Friday, Sox most likely win and in all likelyhood take 2 out of 3 from the suddenly-desperate Cubs.

Does anyone have Randy Johnson's contract break-down (with deferred moneys naturally) for 2004 and 2005? Also, does this mean Loaiza is not coming back?

He gets no love from me for losing to the Cubs on Friday. Should have picked another team to lose to and shut the Cubbies down instead.

I can live with that IF Freddy really has turned the (night club) corner and is poised to become a very good #2 we all want him to be. Big IF. 5 Mill next year? Why, that still allows the Sox to swallow Unit's contract (assuming with Koch and Loaiza that's 10 Mill gone next year and with Valentin out and Ordonez possibly signing another back-loaded deal, that's another 7 Mill freed up) in 04 and 05. Trading Konerko or Lee pays for Frank, Shingo and Buerhle's raises.

The difference between Unit and Sheets: --Unit is old, has a f***ed up cartilage and is making 15+ Mill for the next 2 years. Arizona is going to lose 100+ games this year. --Sheets is young, not even in his prime yet, won't be making real big money for another 2-3 years. Millwakee still thinks they are in it - only 3 games out of the wild card. Unit could easily be acquired if he would stop being so petulant about the damned no-trade clause - give Arizona better prospects than Yankees or Angels are offering and it's done. Meanwhile, there will be a riot in the Brewer County if they give away Sheets for anything less than, say, Borchard, Honel, Gio Gonzalez and Bajenaru. There are 25 teams out there who would LOVE to have him.