ptatc

QUOTE (Chisoxfn @ Jan 23, 2015 -> 03:25 PM) Presume this portion of the benefit is for Illinois residents only. I'm surprised that it works for out of state schools. Of course I'd have to do the math to see what the actual returns are from this sort of policy. Given the insane increases in tuition, you'd think this would be a pretty positive as it provides you with really insurance that you know the cost is covered (vs. estimating what is necessary). Flip side is, its less transparent right, since where your kids ultimately go to school can vary significantly in price so you might prepay and end up paying more and they go to a less expensive school vs. the more expensive so if you just put the money aside, you'd have more that you could roll over to a grand kid or another child (if it went unused). The way it works is that once you finish paying the tuition is guaranteed at any state public school. Even if the kid goes to the cheapest state school, it's a benefit after 10 years of tuition increases. If the kid goes to a private or out of state school the plan pays the average of all of the state school tuition. As I said earlier we paid about 43,000 over the 10 years of the plan and the average of the state schools tuition is about 19,000, so she will get about 80,000 of money from our 43,000 investment. My son is 3 years behind her. we will pay about 60,000 for his plan, so the benefit will depend on how much the tuition goes up in that time. Either way I don't think I could invest the money and get that type of return.

QUOTE (flavum @ Jan 23, 2015 -> 01:35 PM) First 11 starts, I have Sale going on 4 days rest five times, and 5 days rest six times. For Samardzija, Quintana, and Danks, I have them going 4 days rest six times, 5 days rest four times, and 6 days rest once. If they can't handle that, then shut down baseball forever. Sale has shown he does need to be shut down for a time during seasons. I would not have Sale and Q going on 4 days rest. Again, they have shown they wear down at the end of the season. The others seem to be able to handle it. You can have them do it but they will pay the price at the end of the season.

QUOTE (Jenksismyb**** @ Jan 23, 2015 -> 12:25 PM) I mean, if that's the case, that's moronic. That's hurting the middle class, not just the rich. My wife and I were about to start looking into this for our son. But if there's no tax advantage, there's no point. Off topic but if you looking at a college saving plan I would suggest the College Illinois plan. It gives you the current tuition price for when they go to college. You pay over 10 years and it's a great benefit. We paid 43,000 over 10 years for my daughter and she will go to an out of state school and they are paying 19,000 a year for her during this year.

QUOTE (Jose Abreu @ Jan 23, 2015 -> 01:23 PM) So are you suggesting that we occasionally skip their turns in the rotation and give someone like Scott Carroll a spot start? No. Not Carroll. I say you stick to the 5 man rotation and don't skip the 5th man on days off. That way the Sox will space out the starts for Sale and Q. The 5th man would currently be Danks or Noesi.

QUOTE (LDF @ Jan 23, 2015 -> 11:38 AM) i have been complaining about this the whole offseason. what are the backup plans for pitchers who never had a full season without injury, now have to have extra innings to pitch b/c of the playoff. that is why i been spouting off on a 6 man rotation to rest the main pitchers. all this crap of, well the pitchers know how important playoff are and will dig deeper. that is bull if their whole resources are spent. A six man rotation for the whole season is too much rest, I think. There is a fine line in workload for a pitcher. I think guys like Samardja can handle it. Guys like Sale and Q need a break. You can't treat them all the same once they've shown you what they can do at the MLB level.

QUOTE (flavum @ Jan 23, 2015 -> 10:36 AM) Disagree. The 5th starter is there to service the other four. Plus there is a Monday/Thursday off day the second week. If the Sox don't lean on Sale, Samardzija, and Quintana for 33 starts, that would be a mistake. Sale and Q have shown they tire at the end of the season. The Sox may have a better overall season with them in that many starts but will pay with poorer performance at the end of the season/playoffs. The 5th serves to space out the starts of the first four. I think it's a mistake to give Sale and Q that many starts.

We do the Souper Bowl takeoff. 1. Siricha (sp?) chili 2. Potato rue based potato soup 3. Chicken and dumplings 4. Sauerkraut/bean soup 5. Seafood gumbo. Along with buffalo chicken dip and other assorted appetizers.

QUOTE (flavum @ Jan 23, 2015 -> 09:59 AM) After 4/11, the Sox won't need a 5th starter until the 21st. So Noesi will probably be in the pen as an emergency pitcher in between. Very unlikely Carroll makes the club out of spring training. If the Sox are smart they don't skip anyone and give Sale and Q who have been shown to tire at the end of the season more rest early on. With the hope of playoffs this year the Sox may want to decrease the starts a little.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Jan 23, 2015 -> 10:14 AM) Think about it. Even the crappiest rookie call up is making half a million dollars a year. At least. Don't forget the extras such as baseball card license which is usually around 250,000.

QUOTE (Y2JImmy0 @ Jan 23, 2015 -> 09:10 AM) I don't think there's a spot for him. I feel like you have to take the best 7 and I just don't think he's one of them. I think there is. Many times the spot starter is a guy who you don't want to mess with his routine or don't want to use an option if he is a good prospect. There really isn't another "long guy" to use that spot on that isn't in the long term starter plans.

QUOTE (KyYlE23 @ Jan 22, 2015 -> 05:16 PM) I heard it, you can download it on their podcast on the CBS website. A few weeks ago in crosstalk all of them were discussing Brandon Marshall and whether the Bears would keep him or not. Mannelly started to say he thought the Bears would keep him but Bernstein interrupted him and told him "agree with me and you will look smarter in a few months." Mannelly kind of stopped and said "well ok then" but you could tell Spiegel didn't like it. Today Spiegel blasted him for walking back his strong conviction that the Bears won't have him on the team. He is becoming the Joe Cowley of the Bears. Like cowley was fed all of the Sox info from the Guillen family and only took their side. He is the mouthpiece for someone in the Bears organization and will scream his views. He continues to rip Trestman and the Ravens apart to make the Bears look good. He really started it when Trestman showed up the Bears by announcing the benching of Cutler. It's a shame to because at one time he was one of the funniest and entertaining personalities on the radio. His Saturday morning show was absolutely hilarious.

QUOTE (Mike F. @ Jan 22, 2015 -> 08:48 PM) If everything works out a perfectly, a bullpen consisting of Petricka, Putnam, Guerra, Duke, Crain, Jennings, and Robertson seems damn solid to me. You also have guys like Cleto, Montas, Jones, Carroll, Surkamp, etc who could possibly be in the fold as well. It's nice to have a plethora of options. Plethora? Would you say we have a plethora of men? Do you even know what a plethora is? (said in my best mexican accent from the Three Amigos)

QUOTE (StrangeSox @ Jan 19, 2015 -> 10:56 AM) Which is why you need to maximize the scoring opportunities when you're within the 5 yard line. However, since it's one of the best, your likely of getting it are minimal. It's better odds to get any points while you can because of the defense, thus the field goals.

QUOTE (StrangeSox @ Jan 19, 2015 -> 07:05 AM) McCarthy should have gone for it on those first two field goals. When will nfl coaches learn to start paying attention to win probabilities? Might have sonething to do with facing one of the best defenses in the league.The win probabilities are based upon the entire league averages not against one of the best defenses. This just like all of the stats used in baseball become meaningless in the playoffs when you face the best teams.

QUOTE (LittleHurt05 @ Jan 17, 2015 -> 12:35 PM) The Star Wars George Lucas isn't the same guy who owns the Cubby Bear. Same name, different guys. Really, I thought it was the same person. I guess it doesn't matter then.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Jan 17, 2015 -> 06:45 AM) In the why didn't you do this a couple of years ago department, According to public records, Ricketts has bought 3 rooftop buildings and businesses. Were these some of the ones that george lucas owned? Rumor has it that part of the concession for the lucas museum was the release of some of the legal battles involving the rooftops. I know he was not going to give up ownership of the cubby bear.

QUOTE (Chilihead90 @ Jan 17, 2015 -> 02:36 AM) I really hope Micah starts the season in AAA. I think 2B is going to be Bonafacio's job, and I want to see Micah get full reps versus just a bench role. Prior to Bonafacio signing, I was pulling for Micah to win the 2B job, but now I think that's just not happening unless we see an injury in the spring and Bon has to take over that position. Hopefully that situation doesn't come up and Micah can be completely ready to go for 2016 in the majors. Possible. But I think it's more likely that bonifacio is a super sub in the role that they thought keppinger would fill.

QUOTE (Chisoxfn @ Jan 15, 2015 -> 01:28 PM) In the pro business, you can't just sit around and spend months evaluating things either. Their is a sense of urgency here and if you feel good about Fox, you go with Fox. If you didn't like it and have a better feel for Quinn (and the Bears have met with him and Pace has ties to an assistant who worked with Quinn) than you move on from Fox. No big deal, but you don't not hire Fox because you got to meet Quinn? We've met a lot of guys already to the point that we should know whether Fox is the right guy or not. If he's not, fine, so be it, but you don't sit around there and go, nah, Fox didn't impress me and than go back to him a week later, imo. They aren't talking months. They are talking two weeks at most. They could talk to him in between the playoffs and Super Bowl if they win next week. There is no rush here. More poor decisions are made if you do it too quickly. There is no way to tell if Fox is a better candidate than Quinn, if you don't talk to him. All this is probably moot as the reports are it's Fox waiting not the Bears. However, the same idea applies. He needs to sit back and decide what is best for him. Should the Bears be upset that he didn't jump right away. It isn't black and white. It isn't if Fox impressed or not. He could have been impressive but Accorsi and the group said Quinn was as well. fox is not going anywhere there is no it has to be today or never.

QUOTE (Chisoxfn @ Jan 15, 2015 -> 01:02 PM) If he becomes the next head coach, I presume it was nothing more than Fox telling Chicago he wanted to make sure he was ready to take on the Chicago job. I doubt anything more than that. If he doesn't, than the real speculation begins. It isn't like our next candidate is going away in the next day or so, since the rest of the teams are likely waiting on Quinn (well at least Atlanta..no one knows for sure with Denver). The key to me is you don't want to piss off Fox by saying eh, we aren't sure. You either are or you aren't with Fox. Understand when it comes to new candidates but Bears have met with everyone (maybe Pace hasn't) but the Bears have. If you are afraid of doing this then you have no business running a pro sports franchise. If you are the coach you should hope that they look at everything and are sure they are committed to you.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Jan 15, 2015 -> 12:10 PM) Fox is going to be more expensive than Quinn. One reason Phillips and George for that matter, IMO shouldn't be asking football questions and interviewing these guys is because of money. Once they get it in their mind Fox will cost x more than Quinn or whoever, the non-football guys start getting involved in football decisions. Accorsi should interview them alone before Pace was around, and then Pace and Accorsi. If that's their guy, then bring the money guys in. I have no idea if this really is a factor now. George did say money wouldn't be an issue. I would just not be surprised if it is. Of course money will be an issue. The Bears are a family owned team. This is their primary source of income. The money people have to be there to protect that interest.

QUOTE (bmags @ Jan 15, 2015 -> 10:04 AM) I'm with you. I understand ptatc' point of view, but I would be worried if the bears WANTED Fox and could not land him. If this is that they don't actually want him and are trying to save face with him, I'd be fine, but that doesn't seem Bears. I agree. I was just proposing a scenario where they might like him but are unsure and saw enough in Quinn where they wanted to wait. Where else is Fox going to go? The only job left is Atlanta and they reportedly want to talk to Quinn as well. Fox isn't going anywhere.

QUOTE (bmags @ Jan 15, 2015 -> 09:30 AM) Accorsi/Bears Brass spoke to Quinn first week. Maybe that gave enough interest that the new GM wants to talk to him.

QUOTE (Chisoxfn @ Jan 14, 2015 -> 09:36 PM) Waiting for Quinn would seem like a foolish decision. Either we want Fox or we don't. Need to make up the mind and you can't just sit around and wait for Quinn, imo (not when we moved as quick as we did with Fox). I also think waiting on Quinn could be a significant mistake as Fox might be irrupted and say he isn't interested (and sit out a year) with the Falcons hiring Quinn (as on paper they have the better roster). It seems that Quinn is reportedly a heavy favorite in Atlanta. It really makes little sense to me. Hire Fox or don't but if you are lukewarm on Fox and need to wait for Quinn than he probably isn't your guy anyway. If they haven't talked to Quinn, it's not a black and white "they want Fox or not." He has some question marks just like any coaching candidate. He may be the front runner but that doesn't mean it's all or nothing. Maybe they've heard good things about Quinn and wouldn't be doing the proper due diligence if they don't talk to him. Getting more information is rarely a bad move.

QUOTE (Kalapse @ Jan 14, 2015 -> 07:33 PM) Because Jordan Danks has a first round pedigree and a ring? There's a strong emphasis on defense in today's game, more so than we've ever seen before, Anderson's ELITE level defense would be invaluable between Melky and Avisail. You mean since PEDs were rampant in the 90's and 2000's. Prior to that the league was filled with defense first guys in CF, SS and C.

QUOTE (chw42 @ Jan 13, 2015 -> 02:08 PM) So true baseball teams restrict players' diets? Most pro teams have a dietary plan for their athletes. Most colleges as well. AZ was just a little overboard in the way they reinforced it.