Balta1701

QUOTE (StrangeSox @ Dec 16, 2016 -> 04:00 PM) it's a garbage site on the same tier as "natural news" Honestly I haven't heard of that either. Will try to remember those names.

QUOTE (LittleHurt05 @ Dec 16, 2016 -> 04:08 PM) The student section turns their back to the opposing team at every game, black or white, but that doesn't fit the narrative. Although the kid that held up the Trump sign is an idiot., Thank you for the extra detail.

QUOTE (StrangeSox @ Dec 16, 2016 -> 04:09 PM) balta please don't post usuncut.com links I don't know the site, it showed up in one of my feeds (probably guess where). Can you add some details about what that was?

Also worth noting that a new law waiting for Obama's signature gives any administration that wants it far more editorial control over Radio Free Europe/Voice of America broadcasts, so even that type of material that during the cold war was one of America's ways to support dissidents is now going to be whatever the administration wants it to be.

QUOTE (Soxbadger @ Dec 16, 2016 -> 02:21 PM) lol You mean giving a way for Russia to prosecute dissidents may not be the best way to "punish" Putin? Go figure. If you really want to hurt Putin, youd have to do something like hack into the banks and take his money. Otherwise youd have to hope to find information on Ramzan Kadyrov or someone else who could actually be a thorn in the side of Putin. I mean finding Putin insulting Kadyrov or Chechnya, maybe hurts him. Even if they find a smoking gun on Crimea, I just feel that they have information to blackmail Trump so it wont go anywhere. No, I mean that if I were a Russian dissident, would I want to give any of my contact information to an American provided network, when that contact information could be "accidentally" leaked to a Russian agency starting January 20? That sounds like a great way for a lot of Russian dissidents to wind up identified and dead.

Oh, and just to interject this one, who wants to watch an all white crowd at a school in Missouri where the basketball team is all white turn their backs on an all-black basketball team while at least one person held up a Trump sign? At least the home team lost.

QUOTE (bmags @ Dec 16, 2016 -> 02:51 PM) The coverage you saw of this was more than any would have seen from within Russia, and part of a cyber attack would be to open up commnucation areas for dissidents currently shut down. But obviously yes people did care in Russia, and the state as always uses their media monopoly to turn it into "US propoganda " Oh joy, so we're going to open up communications lines for russian dissidents and then turn control of those open lines to a person elected with the help of Russia in a month. I'm sure no one can see any potential issue for low level Russian dissidents using that type of system.

QUOTE (steveno89 @ Dec 16, 2016 -> 10:27 AM) Robertson was outstanding his final 22 innings of the season, and really seemed to r"right the ship" so to speak He is the best proven closer on the market and has now become a valuable trade chip. Hahn was smart for not tossing him into the Eaton deal The Rockies have more potential to come up with a big package than other teams, as Rodgers is a significantly better prospect right now than Martes or Tucker. Any way I slice Robertson's last 1.5 months, I find his WHIP comes to about 1.2-ish, often a bit higher. That's better than the 1.3 he put up for the full 2016 season, but still dramatically worse than the previous 3 years where he was around 1.0. His K-rate was normal for him over that stretch, but he was giving up a lot of baserunners, at least for him. It's always dangerous to play this game with a 22 inning stint, but that flows both ways. He got that ERA back down, but one home run would have been the difference between the ERA looking solid over that stint and looking meh, because he was putting people on base. OTOH, 6 of those baserunners came in the 2 game stretch august 9-10 against the Royals - maybe he was just feeling bad those days or something like that and those are the outliers. I default to saying this is just who the guy is, he's basically looked the same to me for 2 seasons. He'll put together stretches of dominance where he looks unhittable, then he'll have a few days where he gets demolished by someone, then he'll have a stretch where he looks unhittable. Not an elite closer or reliever because of those short stints where he gets demolished, but certainly someone you could live with if you had an otherwise strong team and a hole at that slot.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Dec 15, 2016 -> 03:27 PM) Oh, and while we're at it, in response to the Democrats having the gall to win the North Carolina governorship, the Republicans have called a special congressional session in that state to strip the incoming governor of various powers over things like election boards, his cabinet, and the state's universities. The Republicans are barring press from covering this event and have arrested at least 1 reporter for trying to do so. I'll await to hear how this is totally normal and that if the Democrats ever did something like this they'd be total hypocrites for daring to do what the other side did.

QUOTE (Quinarvy @ Dec 15, 2016 -> 06:30 PM) At this point, Republicans, outside of the Grahams and McCains, care more about having power than about America. Keep in mind, good chance Graham and McCain just want something to bomb.

QUOTE (StrangeSox @ Dec 15, 2016 -> 08:12 PM) Hypothetically, what happens if there's evidence of Trump's campaign actually colluding with Russia in some way? Unless somehow you could make the case that the Clinton campaign has standing to sue based on that, it would again be up to the Republicans in Congress to do something about it. Poor people being reminded they don't deserve to live if they get sick is more important.

QUOTE (Soxbadger @ Dec 15, 2016 -> 06:06 PM) Im not talking about Q. They can rebuild and keep Q, those arent mutually exclusive. Im talking about guys like Frazier, Robertson, Cabrera, Shields. If its a real rebuild, those guys should be gone as soon as you get any respectable offer. Rebuilding and keeping Q was not inconsistent until they took back multiple pitchers from Washington. That made it so. Like it or not, they have to have room appear for those pitchers to get their shots in the big leagues, and that's going to require moving one starter out of Quintana and Rodon out of the way in the next year-ish, unless something really bad happens to someone.

QUOTE (shipps @ Dec 15, 2016 -> 05:33 PM) Why is this weird to me? Usually when we sign a "Coopll fix em" guy someone asks the GM if Cooper had any say or input beforehand and everyone always says no, with the exception of Thornton where everyone said "Shut up Coop now you have him".

QUOTE (bmags @ Dec 15, 2016 -> 05:18 PM) I don't see this ending soon thou. Cespedes waited for a while and got exactly what he wanted. Well, "a while" was a full season for him. I don't think EE's moves end soon either, I wouldn't be surprised if he was on the market at this time next month, and I think it's very clear that teams that could use a DH will wait to see if he drops into their range. I can make a case for a number of teams that would have good fits for both players, but if EE or Bautista fall into their price range they'll spend the money and hold the players. Other teams that need DH types will still be waiting on Napoli too.

QUOTE (IowaSoxFan @ Dec 15, 2016 -> 04:07 PM) Yeah, I think Frazier is going to be moved at the deadline when some team finds their 3B under performing or with a season ending injury. The Braves or Giants could still make some sense, but I think they will wait to see what they have this season before giving up prospects for someone like Frazier. I think that the EE market is holding this up. He's asking for money with no teams willing to pay that price right now - once he moves, then it becomes possible to judge the value for both Frazier and Abreu better.

QUOTE (FT35 @ Dec 15, 2016 -> 03:41 PM) I think it's clear that they are doing something--and we all think we know what that is (rebuild), but until some other pieces drop, their actual plan is still a little unclear. So far, Sale and Eaton are gone and a massive prospect return has been secured. We should judge by the confirmed reports, not the speculation. Do they really want to trade everyone? Or did they get back more than they anticipated by dealing 2 guys who were not happy and decide to rethink/redefine the course of action? This organization is notorious for the "hybrid" solution to team construction so for those of us who have been life-long Sox fans--those thoughts are still in the back of our minds. Still think Quintana, Abreu and Jones tell the story because they are happy, productive, affordable and controllable. A hybrid rebuild is on the table as a possibility until the happy, productive, affordable and controllable players get moved. Robertson, Melky and Frazier could go but only because of lost production or expiring contracts, but those are the types of decisions every team makes each off season--but not necessarily indicative of a FULL, 'trade everyone' for prospects rebuild. The basic problem with Quintana being on that list is playing time. Like it or not, if you count Kopech, Giolito, Lopez, Rodon, and Fulmer - right there you have 5 starting pitchers, at least 4 of whom should be in your rotation at some point next year, and if they're not it's a failure of development because 4 of them have already made big league appearances. Add in Gonzalez and Holland, and the fact that like it or not Shields has to get some starts to see if he can salvage his career, and there simply isn't enough room for what we already have in the organization. You can wait on Quintana to the trade deadline and that's a way of keeping some guys in AAA longer, but we need 3 rotation slots available this year and more in 2018, and you're not going to pitch a 6 man rotation unless rosters expand. Someone has to go.

Oh, and while we're at it, in response to the Democrats having the gall to win the North Carolina governorship, the Republicans have called a special congressional session in that state to strip the incoming governor of various powers over things like election boards, his cabinet, and the state's universities.

QUOTE (illinilaw08 @ Dec 15, 2016 -> 12:22 PM) Or BENGHAZI!!!!! Seriously though, there's enough evidence that Russia did attempt to influence the election, so you have to hope that there are enough Republicans in Congress with the integrity to make sure that this is actually investigated. The Democrats don't have enough seats/votes to do it by themselves. This is an issue that should transcend party... There aren't.

QUOTE (steveno89 @ Dec 15, 2016 -> 09:22 AM) I'm totally fine with calling a player up if they deserve it...as long as we gain the additional year of control. Zero point in burning a year of control though. Fans will need to be patient, as we will not see most of our shiny new toys at the mlb level this season There's literally zero reason why anyone should be called up before the end of May and that's the time all these guys hit their extra year of control deadlines anyway. You're off to a great start? That's spectacular, good work. Now go do it for another 1.5 months so I know it's not a fluke and you'll be in the bigs. See how easy that is?

QUOTE (South Sider @ Dec 15, 2016 -> 12:09 AM) I hope the Twins get better and the fact that we traded Sale and Eaton, and hopefully Quintana put the Sox in the position to draft #1 in the 2018 draft. I also hope we can unload some guys who are performing well in June as well as July in order to get talent back for them and increase the possibility we get the #1 spot in the draft by having trash out there in August and September. I hate to say it, but I'm trying to be realistic so what's best for the future might be getting this Seth Beer guy. His name is awesome but if his performance can match the hype then he is a guy we need and I guy I want on this team. It may be a good draft class, and not all would be lost if we drafted in the top 5, but I really think the Sox should just punt this season as much as possible to try and draft this guy. If I go to a game, I'm going to be rooting for a Sox win, but the sting of losing is oh-so-diminished by adding another loss onto the pile of losses we need to be #1 in the draft. I also really hope they don't call up anyone of significance like Moncada, Giolito and Lopez until 2018, unless they absolutely have to. A full season of time in AAA is a Long time to keep someone there, if they're playing ell enough to earn the callup. With what they've already said it seems likely these guys start in AAA and are there at least long enough to give another year of team control - late May. Starting guys in AAA and letting their performance dictate when they get called up would already be dramatically different from the path we've had guys on the last 2 seasons where the needs of the big leagues squad determined who got called up more than if they were ready. While a #1 draft pick would be nice, if a guy has earned his callup out of that group, call him up. Turning these guys into successful big leaguers is more important to me than picking #1, and they may darn well hit the next level and struggle anyway even if they're succeeding in AAA.

QUOTE (greg775 @ Dec 15, 2016 -> 01:28 AM) If Russia can hack our elections, it's all over. You think the great minds in China aren't conniving ways to pollute our water system, ruin our environment? If Russia can dictate our elections through hacking, it's over. The end is coming. Cmon. It's too easy to infiltrate the inner workings of the USA because everything is run by computer and computer can and will be hacked. But the Russians were heroic, they protected you from the horrors of Hillary Clinton. After all, they hacked emails. EMAILS AND HILLARY. HILLARMAILS. How dare you say this. If you have problems with the Russians committing crimes to support candidates running our elections then maybe you should move to Canada.

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Dec 14, 2016 -> 09:09 PM) What's going to be really interesting is if an even more damning report on the hacks comes out before Obama leaves office. On one hand, it could add to the further troubles already going on with the transfer of power, de-legitimizing Trump and causing him to act even more erratically and confrontational. On the other, can Obama really afford to "just let it go" when someone like this is unprecedented, at least going back to Watergate, and the Constitution sure never conceived of defending against cyberattacks/foreign direct intervention into US elections (to steer them to a specific outcome more favorable to Russia). 1. There will be more that comes out. 2. The Republicans in Congress have already proven they will not care. Mitch McConnell was willing to look the other way during the election. They are already refusing to investigate despite 5 years of "Benghazi!" that conveniently ended this month. Rich people will not have to pay for healthcare for poor people and that is far more important. 3. It won't matter if he's "Delegimized", the GOP will be fully in power and the country is built around the assumption that's the way things should be.

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Dec 14, 2016 -> 09:04 PM) So many Japanese phenom/prodigy pitchers (Dice K being the most recent bust) have struggled in America after being overhyped that I would think the Japanese Baseball Federation would want to push for him to come to the States at a time when he will have the best opportunity for success. Other than Darvish, who started out great but has struggled with injuries, there just hasn't been many examples where you could say "that contract was a bargain." The only ones I can think of are Iwakuma with the M's, and their closer about a decade ago (the name escapes me at the moment). QUOTE (chitownsportsfan @ Dec 14, 2016 -> 09:13 PM) Damn, this guy's swing looks like Ichiro's. I really like the way he keeps his hands loose and away from his body and yet has a quick cocking mechanism and obviously a devastating lower body turn. So is he a pitcher or a hitter?

QUOTE (IowaSoxFan @ Dec 14, 2016 -> 06:00 PM) I could see them waiting out the market for a vet looking for a short term deal. Saltalamacchia, Iannetta, Soto, Thole, or Hundley could be left out in the cold and serve as a placeholder for the Sox. Or they could go back to Navarro and Avila. I could actually see an Avila reunion as possible and the only issue would be that Avila and Narvaez both bat left handed so there's no obvious day off for either of them. Avila shouldn't be playing every day, but he has some experience & wasn't awful last year. No urge to see anything from Navarro though.

QUOTE (KyYlE23 @ Dec 13, 2016 -> 09:52 PM) He was the best ever at what he did. If they need to put some sort of exception in for him, they should He should get there but the "limit of 6 players entering the HOF per year" means he's going to constantly be going up against all the other positions. To note - I hate that limit. Too low.