NorthSideSox72

QUOTE(StrangeSox @ Oct 16, 2007 -> 02:52 PM) BTW, a google search turns up a ton of article from May of this year or earlier that predicted $4 in the immediate future. I'm not holding my breath for $4/gallon, but I am glad that I carpool to work. http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=g...244+this+summer Yeah, there are always the panic folks. People said it a few years ago - $4 gas. But here is the thing - the fundamentals keep pushing higher, the price levels keep staying at higher levels for oil, and the people saying $4 now aren't the extremists but the mainline analysts... eventually, its happening. I'm guessing next summer.

QUOTE(StrangeSox @ Oct 16, 2007 -> 02:49 PM) Gas is continuing to drop (2.75 at the Thornton's in Elk Grove Village next to O'hare this morning) while oil futures continue to swell. How long could the market sustain $80+/barrel and $4/gallon gas? The more important question right now is, how long can it sustain $80/bbl+ oil and $2.75/gal gas? The answer is, a very short time. It will be over $3 again at the pump in a few days or weeks.

Oil hits $88/barrel. Gas at the pump still on the lower side of its $2.50-$3.50 band that its been in for a few years, but that will change soon. I've now heard multiple forecasts of $4 next year. That hybrid is really starting to look appealing next year.

QUOTE(Vance Law @ Oct 16, 2007 -> 11:33 AM) Everybody complains about everything, but nobody complains more than baseball fans about their own team. I find it endlessly annoying. FYI, we're going to compile some sites from a bunch of previous threads, and pin it in this forum for reference. I just haven't gotten that done yet.

QUOTE(Gregory Pratt @ Oct 16, 2007 -> 11:56 AM) I'm done with this conversation. Always my favorite part. Its like...

QUOTE(Gregory Pratt @ Oct 16, 2007 -> 11:52 AM) Neal Cotts was and is a fluke. If you're counting on your mediocre starting pitching depth to have a fluke season, together, your organization has some serious problems going into the future. I was just using your definition - Championship caliber pitcher. Would you prefer another one?

QUOTE(Gregory Pratt @ Oct 16, 2007 -> 11:45 AM) Championship caliber pitchers. Well, Neal Cotts falls in that category... so I guess there are a LOT of pitchers in the Sox system with that potential.

QUOTE(Gregory Pratt @ Oct 16, 2007 -> 11:36 AM) Yeah, but it's definitely sub-par. None of these guys except DLS has a real shot at being an impact ML pitcher except for Gio who has an outside shot but I would never bet on it since he's so tiny. I disagree with your assessment. I think there are quite a few in there with reasonable shots to be "impact ML pitchers". But then, what do you mean by "impact"?

QUOTE(Gregory Pratt @ Oct 16, 2007 -> 11:24 AM) What does "stacked" mean? Two arms that may possibly someday do something good -- one guy who will be Matt Thornton with better control, if he doesn't develop control -- one guy who is going to have to be as smart as Mike Mussina to succeed, one guy who is very small and has serious durability questions but who has been good this year and others but hasn't always succeeded? "Stacked" is not the word for our system with any regard unless we're discussing fringe prospects. Pick whatever word makes you feel better. Read my post and Chisoxfn's. The idea that the Sox' system cannot develop and has not developed arms is off base. I was clarifying. Note that I specifically said the system was not one of the best.

QUOTE(gosox41 @ Oct 15, 2007 -> 09:17 PM) That's funny. It's funny (in a sad way) because this regime hasn't shown the ability to develop pitching. IN fact it's just the opposite. I'm just curious, who are the top 5 arms in the Sox farm system right now and where do you project them? Bob You seem to be pointing your ire in the wrong direction. The Sox farm system is and has been for a few years now much stronger in pitching talent than it is in position player talent. Pitching-wise, its a pretty well stacked system right now - not among the top few teams by any means, but not near the bottom either. Position players, on the other hand...

QUOTE(witesoxfan @ Oct 16, 2007 -> 01:25 AM) Whether it belongs in here or not, Jose Martinez is another guy I think there's some hope in too. 6'5, 170, 19 years old and he put up some pretty solid numbers this year in Bristol. I guess I don't know much about him other than that, but he seems to be the kind of player to watch and see what happens. 6'5", 170???? Boy needs to eat.

QUOTE(BearSox @ Oct 15, 2007 -> 06:00 PM) I say just release Hall and sign Molina. If all you want is defense, just call up Lucy and save a few mill. But I'd prefer the team has someone who can hit a bit too. Also, Hall is still under contract, so its unlikely they'll release him. Possible, but unlikely. Also also, Hall's career line indicates that 2007 was not normal.

QUOTE(Tony82087 @ Oct 15, 2007 -> 02:45 PM) It's cases like this that I really feel like the organization is asleep at the wheel. This situation, along with not Hall surgery issue are puzzling. The Sox were out of the race by mid July. Why did Toby not have his surgery then? Has he even had it yet? The Hall thing I get, for some of the same reasons that Chisoxfn mentions. But I agree on Bourgeois. I just don't get it.

QUOTE(Alpha Dog @ Oct 15, 2007 -> 02:35 PM) You know, mexico has cheap labor, land for agriculture AND oil, which is one more thing than China has. How come China is a world power and Mexico is a cesspool of corruption whose biggest source of income is American dollars sent in from the US? At least the dollars going into China are for goods produces, then exported. Imagine China if they had the oil that Mexico has! We would be bowing to our Chinese overlords instead of our Muslim ones. Not sure if you are actually looking for an answer here... but I think the most obvious reasons can be found in the history of those countries. Mexico: An independent culture and nation only very very recently... a land of conquered people, held under the thumb in its infancy of hugely corrupt Spanish or Spanish-inflences governments... An internal clash of cultures - various castes of Spaniards mixed with natives... then eventually becoming the pinata for the United States. Not a distinguished or politically effective history. China: You can't make a long enough list of the things that culture has invented... Dominated their region, along with science and military affairs, for thousands of years... isolated in its infancy (for all political purposes), allowed to grow and gain strength, before being threatened later. Much better national lineage, all things considered.

QUOTE(Balta1701 @ Oct 14, 2007 -> 05:29 PM) You know what I found interesting? Every year for the past couple years, when those "number of hurricane predictions" are made, if they're inaccurate, I keep winding up hearing people cite that as evidence that these kooky scientists have no idea what they're talking about with this anthropogenic climate change stuff. Like last year, where the prediction was for a high number again following Katrina's year, then it turned out to be an El Nino year, and somehow that hurricane prediction being wrong proved science isn't there yet. And yet, if that's the guy making the most public predictions as the article claims... Eh, I don't think hurricane predictions should be looked at as anything other than gambling with a wee bit of science to it. I think meteorology is fascinating, and there is plenty of scientific study to be had... but to predict an exact number of hurricanes in a given year, to me, is just not something that looks very scientific. It looks like educated guessing. And further, I don't think the number of hurricanes should be looked at one way or another as to potential climate change. Its just too volatile and too statistically deviant to be reliable. numbers are too small.

QUOTE(NorthSideSox72 @ Oct 13, 2007 -> 07:42 PM) Surprise beats Phoenix 5-4. Sox players: Lucy: 0-3, BB (defensively: 1 SB, 1 CS against) Hernandez: 0.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K Mexican League - Mochis plays tonight. Hawaiian League - Waikiki plays tonight. Waikiki fell to Honolulu, 10-3. Inouye DH'd, went 0-2. Mochis beat up Navojoe 9-4. Bourgeois went 2-5, 2 R, RBI, SB - leading off and playing CF. He is hitting .313 so far with a .421 OBP and 4 SB's in his 4 games. --- Today... AFL is off, no games. Waikiki plays HON again tonight at 6:30pm Hawaiian time (which I think is 9:30pm Chicago). Mochis is underway.

QUOTE(mr_genius @ Oct 14, 2007 -> 03:18 PM) http://www.smh.com.au/news/environment/gor...1696238792.html *stirs the pot a little* Interesting. I'd be curious to see what explanation he has for the CO2 levels being multiple standard deviations from what they have been in hundreds of thousands of years. If he can offer an explanation as to what else has caused such an outlying spike, I'd love to hear it.

QUOTE(Rex Kicka** @ Oct 14, 2007 -> 08:54 AM) Barack Obama: Your grassroots are showing. I think this is pretty awesome. Despite his lack of experience, I am actually liking Obama more and more. East side - interesting choice. Some rough areas, major meth problems, population is significantly minority... probably not a crowd that votes reliably. Maybe that's what he is hoping to foster.

QUOTE(Chet Lemon @ Oct 13, 2007 -> 07:06 PM) "Untraceable e-mails spread Obama rumor" rest of story: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1007/6314.html

Surprise beats Phoenix 5-4. Sox players: Lucy: 0-3, BB (defensively: 1 SB, 1 CS against) Hernandez: 0.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K Mexican League - Mochis plays tonight. Hawaiian League - Waikiki plays tonight.

QUOTE(DrunkBomber @ Oct 13, 2007 -> 01:36 PM) Heres the wikipedia link Well that's pretty cool - thanks!

QUOTE(StatManDu @ Oct 13, 2007 -> 12:12 PM) It's a three song montage ... Don't know the name of the first song. The second song is "I am a Pirate" by Klaus Badelt of Pirates of the Carribean ... And then there is "Thunderstruck." This comes directly from the man who plays it before each game. Hope that helps. It's "He's a Pirate", and also some splices from the other track I mentioned. Don't mean to be picky, but if he is going to seach for it, he'll need the right name. The one before it is something written by Cliff Eidelmann, that sounds similar to Last of the Mohicans, but it isn't (soundtrack composers tend to re-use their material a lot). Search for Eidelmann's work, you'll stumble on it eventually. Then... AC/DC. Always loved that transition.

QUOTE(Gene Honda Civic @ Oct 13, 2007 -> 12:14 PM) You're right... If only we had a slick fielding, 20-year old SS, with plus speed putting up a .288/.320/.417 line in W-S a couple of years ago, we'd be in good shape now. So I suppose that's Valido's line? We now have 2 guys in the system (Miranda and maybe Paiml) who look like they could be major league shortstops. Its early, so who knows - but right now they look good. I realize you really enjoy breaking the system down and all, but is this all you can come up with? People point out a couple good prospects, add in this 16-year old, and the best response you can muster is "Valido sucked eventually"? Saying "its too early to tell", or, "sometimes guys like that don't work out" is all fine and dandy - and you'd be right. They may both end up combing out. But the constant sarcastic responses to ANYTHING remotely positive get old pretty quickly.

QUOTE(Flash Tizzle @ Oct 12, 2007 -> 06:25 PM) The high expectations have already begun with me. He better be here before his 21st birthday. I have no confidence we'll have an internal SS replacement by then. I have high hopes for Miranda. If he does as well in 2008 in W-S (I assume where he is going) as he did in 2007 with GF and Kanny, I think he's got a bright future.

I've hung around a Tigers board on occasion. There are some smart posters in there. Also, my favorite team site (non-Sox) used to be Bat Girl. People here will probably hate me for that. Anyway, I thought she was bloody hilarious. But I guess she is sort of retired now.