heirdog

QUOTE(SSH2005 @ Jan 24, 2006 -> 01:10 PM) Hey, isn't that Soxfan1's little brother on the right? Poor guy getting mocked and probably doesn't even know it.

Uribe will explode in 2006! I think he broke out with his defense and decent hitting in the post season but this will be the year he puts it all together.

Any thoughts on Felix Heredia or Alan Embree? I hope Arnie Munoz wins the lefty specialist role in ST with his wicked curve but in case it doesn't work out, what about these two guys?

Good thing we traded Rowand. He's hitting .133 against the Chiba pitching staff.

QUOTE(Dick Allen @ Jan 8, 2006 -> 07:08 PM) Ozzie is questioning Anderson's defense while KW raves about it. The only quote I have seen about Anderson from Ozzie is the one where Ozzie says he is not worried if Anderson can hit and "only worried if he can catch the ball." I think too many people have translated this the wrong way. Ozzie means to say that Anderson will be a bottom of the order hitter so his bat doesn't matter as much as his defense. He is not saying that he thinks Anderson can't catch the ball but just that it is the only thing he needs to do to help the team. Any one heard anything else from Ozzie that makes them think otherwise? As far as Rowand, he was a great character guy and definitely helped the team last year so KW and Ozzie are being politically correct but I think he was as good as replaced this year so they were really looking to trade him. His defense was stellar most of the season but he did really make costly mistakes in clutch situations defensively and like some said previously, he was too often out of position for Ozzie's liking. Also, he struck out way too many times (especially with RISP) and he made baserunning mistakes, mental errors (bunting foul with 2 strikes without getting the signal from Cora), etc. I remember seeing Ozzie's face during the playoffs and how he cringed many times with Rowand at the plate, on the base paths and in the field. I think he was as good as gone then.

QUOTE(witesoxfan @ Jan 6, 2006 -> 05:14 PM) Thanks for an intelligent response. I really agree with a lot of the points you made, and will reconsider everything I have ever believed in my life. ALL HAIL HEIRDOG! :headshake Witesox fan, sorry about that. It was a bad joke. Just got a little punchy on a friday and lost my internal filter.

Also (off topic here): Recently (yesterday), one of the posters had an avatar of a hot asian girl listening to an ipod or something in jeans and a cut off shirt (semi-upshirt view) bobbing from side to side. Who was that girl?

QUOTE(Balta1701 @ Jan 6, 2006 -> 04:45 PM) I believe it is specifically frowned upon unless a base stealer can successfully swipe at above a certain rate (something like 80%), because the numbers supposedly state that you're vastly more likely to score an additional run with the runner on 1st and waiting for a home run than you are by trying to push the runner to 2nd and potentially wasting an out. Okay. Thanks. Its all a bunch of crap anyway. If you never steal. you never get the pitcher's attention off the batter, which might lead to more hits for the team. Is that accounted for in Moneyball? I hate billy beane and I hate Moneyball.

Didn't KW go after Clement last year before he signed with Boston thus changing our focus to El Duque? If that's the case, maybe KW goes and gets Clement (thinking Coop can fix him too) for a smaller package and then trades Contreras for pitching prospects and bullpen help. Thus keeping 6 starters and bolstering the bullpen.

QUOTE(nitetrain8601 @ Jan 6, 2006 -> 03:49 PM) Well the reason why Damon's stolen bases have gone down is because Boston believes in moneyball(one reason why they hired Francona). Stolen bases are frowned upon in moneyball so he like many others have been told to cut it out. I don't think stolen bases are frowned upon in moneyball, they are just devalued (some might say undervalued). Its not like Damon is hurting the team by stealing bases, its just that its not as important of a stat, which I don't agree with.

Good news....Matt Franco busted out of his slump. Garcia or Garland will have to be careful with him (maybe pitch around him) in Game 3.

QUOTE(White Sox Josh @ Jan 4, 2006 -> 07:59 PM) Players from Japan are better at the fundamentals and could probably beat a team like the Yankees who aren't very fundamentally sound. If you guys really think the Sox would into Japan and crush them you are high. You aren't giving Japan enough credit. WNBA players are better at fundamentals than NBA players...that doesn't mean that the San Antonio Spurs would not destroy the Sacramento Monarchs. The person that is high is the person that thinks fundamentals alone will allow you to overcome talent. The Whitesox may have won some games with fundamental "small" ball but the talented pitching and the defensive talents of several players was the main reason. The Yankees and the majority of the MLB teams would beat the Japanese champions or rather the cast-off Mets (Franco, Agbayani, Valentine???) and it wouldn't be close.

I voted for >110 because I think this team will be better than last year and I wanted to be overly optimistic so instead of 105 I just boosted it higher. But as far as the championship, is anyone else worried about the Yankees? I mean there line-up has always been dangerous but now with Damon they are that much more potent. Their big downer last year was the pitching. This year they bring back 6 bonafide big league starters (although not as good as the Sox overall). Johnson was down by his standards last year but is still a legit ace and then Mussina is a decent #2 or #3. Chacon pitched extremely well for them and will be there for a full season. Wang looked pretty good and if either Wright or Pavano regain the previous season form, they would be solid #4 or #5 pitchers. The bullpen has the best closer in the game in Rivera and just fortified with Farnsworth, Dotel and Ron Villone as set up men. Aaron Small looked great in spot starts last year and they will have specialists like Sturtze and Mike Myers. The pen at this point in time looks stronger than that of the Whitesox and while the starting pitching is not as good as the Sox, it is still solid to very good. That coupled with a line-up that features unreal talent might be a serious concern for the Sox. I think Sox still take them in 6 but I think part of all this line-up bolstering by KW is to think ahead to the Yankees. He did mention earlier in the off-season that the championship will have to go through NY (not sure I ever heard a world champ GM say it goes through some other team but whatever) and he understands that the Yanks have a talented pitching staff and if they get the bounces that the Sox got last year, they could very easily dominate from start to finish. I still say Sox in 6 over the Yanks but I am a little more worried than I am about the Indians, Angels or Redsox.

QUOTE(RockRaines @ Jan 5, 2006 -> 11:05 AM) you used ad hominem twice in one day?? Is that word on your dictionary calendar today? Lol. I thought there was a Soxtalk rule that stated you could use the word "ad hominem" only once per thread. I was saving mine for later.

QUOTE(RockRaines @ Jan 4, 2006 -> 05:53 PM) EH, what makes you think that? He hasnt really had GREAT success, and at age 26 has already had surgery. He had Tommy John surgery back in 2003 and had a decent 2004 with the big league club, still starting 26 games as a rookie. He has a nice K/IP ratio of about 1 and at 26, is still young (2 weeks older than Buehrle). His stuff is pretty solid and while he is a week older than Santana, he has not pitched as much as him yet so I think he is just tapping into his potential now. Bedard looked lights out in the beginning of last year (5-1, 2.08 ERA) before he hurt his knee. Now he will have a full off-season to come back from the knee injury and regain his form. If we could get him as a "throw-in" now because of his injuries and "under-achievement," it would be another coup for KW. If he hadn't hurt his knee last year, he might have reached 18-20 wins and CY Young consideration. I would take my chances with him recovering from the knee injury as opposed to Tracey or Liotta panning out.

QUOTE(BlackBetsy @ Jan 4, 2006 -> 05:14 PM) I'd do this trade every day of the week and twice on Sunday as long as the pitching prospect is not named McCarthy. Remember, Contreras is of low value to the Sox because McCarthy is waiting in the wings AND he is a short-termer contract wise. Sweeney is a prospect at best - we are still waiting on corner OF power from him - and the pitching prospect would have to be a low level guy anyway (the Sox have traded all the good AA/high-A guys anyway). Put it at Contreras, Uribe, Sweeney and Liotta for Tejada and, say, an Oriole high-A IF prospect, and it's a deal for me (every day and twice on Sunday). So no Bedard included, huh? I really hope he gets added because I think he has elite lefty potential a la Santana.

My only point in ever putting Prior and Contreras in the same thread was that they were the centerpieces in similar deals offered for Tejada. Cubs supposedly offered Prior, Neifi Perez, Patterson, and Rich Hill for Tejada and Bedard. So my thought was that since the Sox were probably offering a better OVERALL package than the Cubs, it seems that Bedard should be included in the deal. Somehow Rock Raines pulled off the part where I said we are giving up arguably the better "ace" (Contreras vs. Prior) and ran with it...who has more value to the Orioles... But in the end, does anyone else think that if this trade rumor is true, that KW will absolutely have Bedard included in any deal?

QUOTE(RockRaines @ Jan 4, 2006 -> 04:00 PM) Seriously, you need to research your claims before you type them. Why should I? If everyone did their research as well as you, we could have an "Ask RockRaines" website instead of Soxtalk. Contreras at Prior's age was dominating Cuba so you can put the "potential" BS back into your crack pipe. I'm not talking age and potential (I conceded that in my reply as I know Baltimore wants to win later not now). Contreras was dominant during the second half and post season and you can put up whatever stats you want to state who was better. I observed Contreras second half last year as I did Prior's '03 season and to me, Contreras was the better pitcher. I again point you to my "arguably" claim because I understand and want to convey that it is "my" opinion and NOT fact. You, on the other hand, can find another source to vent your pent up frustrations upon.

QUOTE(RockRaines @ Jan 4, 2006 -> 03:45 PM) If I was the O's Prior would be of greater value to me than Contreras I don't disagree with you but in terms of who is the better pitcher, I think Contreras with what he showed at the end of last year is better than what Prior showed in his lone healthy stretch in 2003. Again, Prior may end up being a real stud for the next 12 years but who knows? That is why I put the disclaimer, "arguably" on there. The rest of the deal really favors the Sox players over the Cubs ones so that is why I think for this to happen, Bedard would need to be in the picture too. Kenny has really set his sites on Bedard too so I could see him going for the kill with both. That makes our other pitching prospects less necessary if we have a young Garland, a resigned MB, BMac, Bedard and either Freddy or Vazquez anchoring the staff for the next few years.

This rumor will get heated up and tomorrow we will see Contreras resigns with Whitesox for 2 years $22 mill with a team option for a third year. He knows its either that or play in Baltimore, suck it up in an all-white locker room in Houston, or continue his success as a top of the rotation pitcher with the World Champs.

Sounds similar to the Cubs type deal that was being offered so I would think for the package the Sox are giving up, Bedard would be included as well. Cubs offer was like Prior, Neifi, Patterson and Rich Hill. We would give up arguably the better "ace" in Contreras, a better younger SS in Uribe over Neifi, a better OF prospect in Sweeney over Patterson and maybe a solid lefty like Lumsden or Liotta for Tejada and Bedard. The Cubs deal went nowhere but it was a start, now that its been upgraded with Sox players it might happen. I would give up Count, Uribe, Sweeney and either Liotta or Lumsden as long as we got both Tejada and Bedard. No BMac in the deal!!!!!

QUOTE(Heads22 @ Jan 4, 2006 -> 03:16 PM) I'm pretty sure his middle name is Nikola. Per Whitesox.com, it is in fact Nikola

QUOTE(Reddy @ Jan 4, 2006 -> 02:09 PM) i think kevin is his middle name... on rotoworld they always put Brian K. Anderson I thought it was Brian N. Anderson. I'm pretty sure that's what it said at the end of the Sox Pride video when they roll the credits and list the players on the 2005 White Sox.

QUOTE(greasywheels121 @ Dec 30, 2005 -> 02:01 PM) Are you saying now that the Sox have won it, you're not going to follow them anymore? Is it criminal to want your team to win multiple championships? Umm, no. But the sig says: "If the Bears make the Super Bowl, I will have seen it all." So in essence the quote can be interpretted that he has not seen the Bears make the Super Bowl and would like to see that before he is done either with life or with sports. In reality, he has to have seen it all but would like to see MORE. Hope that clears up what I was asking...as it seemed pretty clear to me when I asked.

Andy the Clown, Thanks for the info to get things stirring on the board. One question not related to the Tejada discussion: In you sig, you say you have "waited 37 years for this" (so I assume you are at least 37 years old) and then you say "if the Bears make the Superbowl..." So weren't you around in 1985-86 when the Bears not only made but won the Superbowl?