Balta1701

QUOTE (CrimsonWeltall @ Feb 28, 2013 -> 07:35 PM) How is voting an entitlement? Because people who don't deserve to do so might get addicted to it and want to keep doing it.

QUOTE (Jenksismyb**** @ Feb 28, 2013 -> 06:18 PM) It's got nothing to do with race, it has to do with "entitlements." If you give an inch, people demand a mile. If you give people the right to vote, they might vote for things that benefit them. This is totally unacceptable and a great reason why we should make every effort to keep people who disagree with my vote from voting (blacks, women, youth, whatever).

QUOTE (buhbuhburrrrlz @ Feb 28, 2013 -> 06:14 PM) sure seems like it. can't wait. I'd say it seems like much more than 1 week.

QUOTE (Jenksismyb**** @ Feb 28, 2013 -> 04:50 PM) He got 47% with 95% of African Americans voting for Obama, so yeah, that makes sense. And after all, they ought to count less. They don't appreciate that we've given them voting as an entitlement.

QUOTE (Harry Chappas @ Feb 28, 2013 -> 04:13 PM) He has the ability to work a count and make the pitcher throw strikes. That's definitely a useful feature, and it really should help him become a productive big leaguer by keeping that OBP reasonable even with a low average, but the power is really what's going to define whether he's useful or discarded. If teams keep him in the park, he'll be a guy hitting around the mendoza line with maybe a respectable OBP but really hurting the lineup. If he's cranking out 25+ HR a year, that'll push his average up into the low to mid .200's and make his OPS start looking great.

QUOTE (Jose Paniagua @ Feb 28, 2013 -> 03:10 PM) And that's basically his starting point. Ehh....we hope. Those strikeouts could be a quick mechanism for making him come out lower than .700 OPS. He's got to actually be hitting HR to overcome that, since he'll almost certainly have a low average. If teams can figure out how to keep him from going deep...

QUOTE (Cali @ Feb 28, 2013 -> 02:13 PM) Hey how bout that Conor Gillespie? No batting gloves, what's that about? You gotta always admire the scrappy guy who goes gloveless. Every team needs to bring one of those guys through every few years just so you can admire it.

QUOTE (Buehrle>Wood @ Feb 28, 2013 -> 01:16 PM) And yes, wite, he did well down the stretch to change that opinion, but I think the catcher position has to be far and away the biggest concern going into the season. One of the things our experience with AJ (and our experience at 3b last year) should have taught us is that if we're willing to take on a couple million dollars, there will be a veteran or two available for fairly cheap who can at least hold down these positions at an average level if it comes to that.

QUOTE (oldsox @ Feb 28, 2013 -> 09:34 AM) Speaking of third basemen, I wonder how Kevin Youk is doing this spring? Now that he is clean shaven in Yankee tradition, he looks ten years younger, but, more importantly, if he has a bad spring, the Yanks will be looking somewhere for a 3B. No GM is going to replace a veteran player based on a bad spring of 50 at bats. They might do that if his back goes out again, but not for "having 50 bad at bats"

“@CST_soxvan: Thornton threw 40 BP pitches, all good.” “@scottmerkin: Alexei Ramirez returned home to Florida for family reasons. He's expected back this weekend” “@scottmerkin: Jordan Danks feeling much better compared to even Tuesday. He threw from 45 feet. Thinks he can return by this weekend.”

“@Ken_Rosenthal: Javier Vazquez is out of WBC and will not pitch in MLB this year, according to @Nasty_Rodriguez, editor of El Nuevo Dia in Puerto Rico.”

QUOTE (YASNY @ Feb 27, 2013 -> 06:49 PM) I wasn't talking about them replacing Wise this year. I was thinking about taking away AAA AB's from them. If Sizemore signs anywhere it'll be a place where he can have a major league roster spot, I'd guess.

QUOTE (YASNY @ Feb 27, 2013 -> 05:55 PM) Even with that, you impede the progress of our young up and coming outfielders. Bah, none of them should be even really considered to replace Wise this year, and that'd be Sizemore's role if he was ever signed.

QUOTE (Chicago White Sox @ Feb 27, 2013 -> 06:07 PM) If he puts up a .900 OPS over a full season at Charlotte, given his strong defensive abilities and the scarcity of quality 3B in the majors, he'd be worth a lot more than an A ball pitcher. Obviously he's not going to put up an OPS like that, but he could still have decent value if he could put up a low .800's OPS in AAA. Whether he can do that or not remains to be seen, but first he needs to prove his back can hold up over an extended period of time. No team is going to give up something of value for an unknown quantity that also has a questionable back. A 26 year old with a questionable back basically in AAA or above for his 4th season who already had a nearly full go at the MLB and put up a .653 OPS that only is non-terrible because of a rash of late-season HR's? I still wouldn't give up anything of use for him if he put up a .900 OPS at AAA this year; i'd expect there's a decent chance I can get him on waivers in the near future. He could very well be worth more than an A-ball pitcher to the White Sox if he can put up an .800+ OPS at Charlotte and suggest that there's a chance he's not a complete fail...but I'm not trading anything for him that I think I could use.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Feb 27, 2013 -> 05:53 PM) They wouldn't unless the return was insane. But as always...the important thing to remember is that it's Rick Hahn's fault that there isn't an insane return coming for him, so we can be mad at the GM for it.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Feb 27, 2013 -> 05:37 PM) You have to expect injuries from certain guys on the Bulls. Noah doesn't play full seasons. Deng probably should be expected sometime as well. If the schedule I thought was going to happen, Rose back sometime in Early Feb., came true, then Hinrich being banged up for much of February wouldn't be the killer that it has been.

QUOTE (flavum @ Feb 27, 2013 -> 05:45 PM) I don't agree with that. If he shows he's healthy, there are plenty of teams that would want to take a chance on a plus defensive player at 3B that has shown some offensive promise. It's a gamble, but teams would give something better than a hard-throwing relief pitcher. I certainly wouldn't give up a hard throwing, A-ball level relief pitcher for him at the end of spring training. If he came out for the whole season, stayed healthy, and put up a >900 OPS at Charlotte, then I might give you an A-ball pitcher for him, but not a great one.

QUOTE (balfanman @ Feb 27, 2013 -> 05:30 PM) I could agree with this, but on the other hand, Morel is a guy with back issues. If he has a good spring, but doesn't make the team, I think that I would rather take what I could get for him before his back gives out again. And why would another team give up something valuable for him if they think his back might give out again? The fact that he had a back injury isn't exactly a big secret.

QUOTE (southside_hitman @ Feb 27, 2013 -> 05:17 PM) With all due respect , I am not sure I understand why he would not be traded. Morel is at best an average third baseman who has had back issues. The Sox have acquired two guys that are just as good if not better in Keppinger and Gillaspie. Beckham can play third if necessary. That makes Morel expendable in my opinion. I don't see a spot for him on the 25 man roster if Gillaspie and Keppinger make it. That's entirely fine. So why can't he play 3b in Charlotte? (leaving him particularly useful if someone else in the IF gets hurt or struggels and Keppinger, with a utility player background, winds up moving).

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Feb 27, 2013 -> 04:01 PM) You can only get by on smoke and mirrors for so long. On a night by night basis, there are very few nights where the Bulls have the most talented team on the floor at any one time. They out play teams most nights, but it isn't going to help if the other team plays hard and is better. Missing Hinrich for much of it, as well as other people (Noah's foot, now Taj's ankle) is really taking its toll as well.

Both Te'o and another potential draft prospect at the combine are saying that teams are asking about whether those players are gay in their combine interviews. If it's being asked, it would appear to directly violate NFL-imposed discrimination rules and possibly state laws in the handful of states where it's actually not legal to fire someone for being gay. The NFLPA has issued a statement and the league seems to be saying they'll investigate.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Feb 27, 2013 -> 02:22 PM) But there was very little they could do since they are already over the cap. Especially with Rose a total question mark for this season. Basically, if they didn't want to pay the luxury tax, they had to not sign Hinrich. When they signed him, it made it nearly impossible to avoid.

BP has a good long read from a former fringe major leaguer named Eric Knott who made the Diamondbacks and Expos rosters briefly at the height of the steroid era, including descriptions of using Greenies and how he felt when he saw other guys who were juicing. Really good read, recommend it.

QUOTE (KyYlE23 @ Feb 27, 2013 -> 01:34 PM) But goddamnit, it is time for the front office to show some balls and stop being afraid of the luxury tax. I am glad that Derrick is unhappy with status quo. They're paying it this year?

QUOTE (pittshoganerkoff @ Feb 27, 2013 -> 10:04 AM) Monetary value alone. There's a risk with both; AJ with his age and possible (probable) regression, and Peavy with his health. I think the Peavy move made more sense, and if he pitches like he did last year (which seems reasonable), he's more than worth the money. Of course, it's also possible that they were able to partially insure Peavy's deal again, that would make the risk on his deal even less if that were the case.