G&T

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Mar 2, 2012 -> 04:22 PM) Frankly, no one would beleive that, nor should they. Thats' why 2 independent samples are taken. I don't understand. Do you think it was smart for him to come out and attack the collector? Was it not foreseeable that he we defend himself and make matters worse for Braun?

QUOTE (StrangeSox @ Mar 2, 2012 -> 03:54 PM) But if he doesn't say anything, everyone assumes he really did test positive and got off on a technicality. Instead, he attacked the collector and insinuated that his results were tampered. The result of the attack was that Braun was exposed and it's not like Dino's reaction was unforeseeable. Which is why I am firmly entrenched in the Braun is an idiot camp who is trying to convince himself as much as anyone else that he didn't do anything wrong.

QUOTE (Milkman delivers @ Mar 2, 2012 -> 03:52 PM) I don't think I like that at all. Looks dumb but makes some sense. Minimizes travel and the better seed has game 5 at home.

QUOTE (Soxbadger @ Mar 2, 2012 -> 03:27 PM) Balta, Thats why Im wondering. I would have assumed that the samples are numbered and therefore only the tester knew what sample belonged to who at first. The reason I assume this is because I also assume that the test is supposed to be blind (aka they dont know who the sample is until after the result). If that is the case, then the only people who knew the results had to be pretty high up. People in those positions generally dont risk their job over releasing confidential information. I dont know, Im just speculating. The tone of Braun's speech seemed to suggest that he believes the tester did something to him, not that the tester just made an innocent mistake in delivering the sample late in the afternoon instead of early in the morning. Hard to speculate, just seems like a mess from day 1. Yeah, he insinuated that the collector tampered with it. He couldn't have leaked it. And the tamper evidence seals weren't broken, so he didn't actually tamper.

QUOTE (KyYlE23 @ Mar 2, 2012 -> 09:45 AM) Brauns Attorney criticizes sample collector He got away with it because of the day the sample was shipped. LOOP. HOLE. I would guess that the purpose of that statement is to deflect anger away from Braun and to the attorney by mocking people choosing to think independently.

QUOTE (Milkman delivers @ Mar 1, 2012 -> 04:48 PM) Where the hell were you?! I was getting massacred for that opinion. I remember getting s*** for not fapping to DK.

QUOTE (StrangeSox @ Mar 1, 2012 -> 02:38 PM) I first heard his speech on B&B yesterday. My god, what a gigantic asshole. I sorta wonder if he's ever really been questioned by the media in his career. It's like he thought he could go out, make up a bunch of crap and it would never come back to haunt him. Even at the presser, no one asked him a tough question.

No. But I sometimes wonder who the racist is: the headline writer, or the person that actually made that association?

I really liked Drive. I thought it was as good as anything nominated this year. I don't know if that's saying much.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Feb 29, 2012 -> 05:54 PM) Could really go for getting through February without a tornado warning. Alas. And I could have gone all winter without a real snow fall, but here we are. And yes, I am comparing a tornado to 6 inches of snow.

I like it. It's the unofficial end of winter to me. And I think it would be ridiculous to have sunrise at 4:15am in June and set at 7:30pm.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Feb 29, 2012 -> 10:14 AM) For what he is paying the guys, I would hope this was Braun going off on his own. Otherwise he didn't get what he paid for at all. Here are the most damning parts of his statement: business insider Notice that he reads the facts off his sheet but he seems to be ad libbing large chunks. Notice the part at about 2:20 where he talks about finding things out about the collector. He isn't reading that. That's not to say it wasn't written, but from watching him, it looks like he wrote notes and tried to ad lib the rest. The entire weird analogy he makes about having a disease is not being read either. Edit, it is embedded at the end of the article.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Feb 29, 2012 -> 09:43 AM) Wouldn't you be equally shocked if the publicist wrote that statement and then didn't run it by the lawyers who had just won the case? It's easy to blame publicists and lawyers, but it's usually the client that's the moron. Some clients don't really care what their lawyer has to say and Braun was very talkative from this moment this became public. These people are represented by skilled and experienced attorneys and publicists that deal with the press for a living. But then...some lawyers are kinda crazy. I would also suspect that no lawyer would allow that press conference. Just like the collector, a statement should have been sent out by the team or the player's union. There was no reason to talk about it.

QUOTE (iamshack @ Feb 28, 2012 -> 07:14 PM) I think you're misinterpreting what I am telling him to do. This chick is nuts. If he starts blocking her and refusing to answer her texts, she's going to slash his tires and f*** all his best friends. She wants drama, she wants conflict, she wants to rile his ass up. If he just always deflects her insults she'll get tired of playing with him or get frustrated that he won't play along and give up. It's worked with all the crazies I've ever dated, as long as you never actually let them back in the door. Edit: And by the way, the fact that someone is married in no way makes them better at dealing with this sort of thing...if anything, it makes you out of practice, since you haven't been dealing with it like us single guys have... Married people usually know what a healthy relationship looks like and what it takes to maintain one. Even non-married people in solid relationships know the difference between a good and bad relationship and, more importantly, the personality traits of healthy, stable people. I really doubt she is going to slash anyone's tires, and if she does, then you call the police. It is far more likely that she will find someone else to annoy. Sorry, it is a pet peeve of mine when good people (assuming WilliamTell is a good person) suffer the nonsense of unstable crazies. It's not just in relationships, it's in the workplace as well. Can't appease the crazy. And...done.

QUOTE (WilliamTell @ Feb 28, 2012 -> 06:17 PM) Very interesting approach. It's like a double reserve psychology or something haha. Jesus, don't do what Shack is saying. The reason she wants you around is because she sees you as a pushover that she can get attention from then push away. That's what she means when she says "too nice." She wants to have sex with someone who ignores her because that's how she gets their attention. If you give her attention, then her mission is accomplished without sex. Barney Stinson would prey on her. She's an insecure f***tard. At some point in all of our lives we get stuck in weird situations with girls. I would guess that almost, if not all, happily married guys will tell you to cut off all communication. She has no impact on your life. Whack-jobs can go pull that crap with someone else. If you communicate with her, she gets the attention she wants. /rant

QUOTE (StrangeSox @ Feb 28, 2012 -> 04:44 PM) One theory why the arb. ruled the way he did: to keep his job. It's not unheard of for arbitrators to do things like that. But no one would do it in such a huge case. Pick a smaller thing that no one will remember. In any event until we can read the decision it's dumb to think that's what was going on.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Feb 28, 2012 -> 03:56 PM) So if I understand all of that correctly, Braun should be able to identify his sample by its numbers on its seals, right? Well he probably wouldn't remember the numbers on the seals. The numbers are probably kept by the testing company and maybe shared with MLB to verify when the results are in. But theoretically yes.

The collector released a statement (USA Today). I'm very interested to read the decision to see what the panel was thinking here.

QUOTE (Reddy @ Feb 28, 2012 -> 02:37 PM) ah touche. i don't usually check there cuz i'm broke. Yeah, I couldn't believe how expensive Broadway tickets are. StubHub is actually below face.

QUOTE (Reddy @ Feb 28, 2012 -> 02:30 PM) when are you going? because if you wanna see Mormon, get tickets NOW. It is sold out forever. There are plenty on StubHub.

QUOTE (FlaSoxxJim @ Feb 28, 2012 -> 02:18 PM) The speakeasy connectd to Crif Dogs is Jim Meehan's PDT and I am dying to get there. If you make it there be sure to report back on the experience. Pegu Club, Death and Co., and Employees Only are the other NYC serious cocktail joints I would love to check out. My wife and I are thinking of going to see The Book of Mormon or something on Broadway. So these are places I might have to check out if we do.

I've been there a few times on short trips. Once for New Years. My favorite memories come from just walking Manhattan and eating and drinking as you go. We (wife and I) walked from Battery Park to Midtown and went through Soho and Washington Square. It took the better part of a day. I still remember the random restaurant that I could never find again in Soho that served one hell of a brunch. Or walking through Central Park and just taking it in. It's a hell of a place. I've also been there and planned everything and enjoyed what we did but felt more stressed. NY is crowded. No, I mean it is REALLY crowded. The cabs are great but getting around without leaving time to just relax will become stressfull. On some level you have to plan because restaurants require reservations well in advance but NY is a city you can just walk outside and enjoy. Bobby Flay's Mesa Grill is good but nothing I'd go out of my way for. Eat at the food carts! Especially when drunk. When I went I was usually staying with my brother and the chicken and rice cart was good stuff.

QUOTE (Jenksismyb**** @ Feb 28, 2012 -> 12:44 PM) Wait until he's absolutely, 100% ready to go. Why even chance it? Give these guys about 20 games to finish the season and that should be enough to get their timing down. If he looks great in practice then how much longer can you wait to find out if he is 100%? You can't know it unless he plays.

QUOTE (StrangeSox @ Feb 28, 2012 -> 10:02 AM) These guys make some delicious beers, but I'm not sure if they're available around here. Both the DBA and the "805" were delicious. http://www.firestonebeer.com/home.php Firestone is available in IL. I've only had the Double Jack and it was good. Malty for an IPA, but really interesting.

QUOTE (illinilaw08 @ Feb 28, 2012 -> 09:35 AM) Black Acre is about 4 blocks from my house. They opened last Wednesday and have not started serving their own stuff yet (should be happening by the end of March). They had a tasting a few months back while cutting through the licensing red tape and it's pretty good. I can provide a better report when I start filling growlers there. As an aside, Two Brothers had done a nice job entering the Indy market. I can find it at a couple different liquor stores and a surprising number of places have it on tap. Two Brothers is actually available in NY now. We get a ton of it. It's pretty good but they definitely have some oxidation problems.