NorthSideSox72

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Oct 31, 2014 -> 08:35 AM) Do you want the full text of the scene from memory? "I don't know whether to congratulate you or not Jim. I wouldn't. We volunteered? There is an old vulcan proverb, only Nixon could go to China. How could you vouch for me? That's arrogant presumption My father requested that I open negotiat- I know your father's the vulcan ambassador for heaven's sake, but you know how I feel about this. They're animals" Jim, there is an historic opportunity here Don't believe them, don't trust them. They are dying Let them die. Has it occurred to you that this crew is due to stand down in 3 months? We've done our bit for King and Country. You should have trusted me" ... Enterprise this is SD 106 approach to space dock over... I'm not surprised you know that from memory. It's actually one of the best scenes from the ST movies IMO, that dialogue between Spock and Kirk. I like the Nicholas Meyer (II, VI) films better than any of the others, at least until the JJ Abrams reboot.

I'd suggest it may be more important to have managing and coaching staffs familair with the playoffs, than players. Game 7 was won by SFG in part due to a managing gaffe (the bunt) and a baserunning gaffe that should never happen (sliding into first). No guarantee what would have happened in either case, but in both cases, poor leadership caused poor decisions that gave the Royals fewer chances to win.

Mike Blanke reporting that his pitching experiment is over. He's going back to catching.

The quote from this movie screen shot is perfect for this moment. Also perfect is that Brian is one of the few who will probably know the quote immediately upon seeing the picture...

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Oct 30, 2014 -> 04:33 PM) As to being told to do something for the 3rd time in a row? I think you almost need to start him at AA if the spot is there. Well let's think about that - outfield candidates for AA other than Hawkins... Jared Mitchell, Trayce Thompson and Josh Richmond should be the AAA OF, almost assuredly, so I don't think they're in the BHAM picture. Jordan Danks could be there if he's still in the org, or could be MLB, hard to tell. But he won't be in AA either. So that leaves... >>Jason Coats: He's in AA for sure I'd think. Did very well in A+, was promoted to AA late in the season. So that's one that's solid. >>Jacob May: Legit prospect, though he wasn't that good in A+ last year. But he did do much better in the 2nd half - I'd put him as 70/30 likely to go to AA. >>Keenyn Walker: I can't see him leaving A+ until he gets it right, which he hasn't yet. >>Michael Earley: Org guy with very good defense but the stick didn't play in AA, he could return there in 2015. >>Adam Heisler: Played only 40 or so games due to PED suspension and he's a non-prospect, same category as Earley - could be there, could be a bench guy there. >>Christian Marrero was brought in as a ringer, can play 1B and OF, but I guarantee he won't be in anyone's way. He's also MiLB FA eligible, and likely gone anyway. So I'm gonna say your BHAM OF will be Coats and May, and then who knows. But none of those possible 3rd/4th OF's will be in Hawkins way - which makes me think he's there. Coats/May/Hawkins going left to right, Earley or Heisler as the 4th OF, that's my guess. Marrero gone, Walker in A+, and the other of Earley/Heisler might be in AA as a DH or could be back in A+ again.

QUOTE (StRoostifer @ Oct 30, 2014 -> 03:21 PM) And how many Sox fans will write him off if he struggles? IMO, its too aggressive. Given his .249 average and 143K's in 515 PA in A+, that's really where he should start 2015. It's a tough call. He did improve, a lot, repeating A+. And was still young for the level. I wouldn't be as opposed to him in AA next year as I was to him starting 2013 in A+... but starting in A+ before AA next year would probably be a good idea.

As someone pointed out a while back, the BHAM team next year will have some really fun guys to watch. Likely Montas, Danish, Anderson all there. Rotation of Montas, Danish, Dykstra (probably), and some combo of Brennan/Wendelken/Bucciferro should be pretty darn good.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Oct 30, 2014 -> 09:59 AM) http://www.ucatholic.com/blog/pius-xii-1951/ So that says, basically, eh, both sides are right. Which is interesting from that timeframe. The statement from the current pope goes a step further.

QUOTE (CrimsonWeltall @ Oct 30, 2014 -> 09:51 AM) Not a shift at all. The Catholic Church has been pretty liberal on scientific issues for a while, including evolution. It's primarily evangelicals who push Creationist nonsense. That's a good point - particularly the Jesuits have always been very into science. But there's also been some internal conflict at times over those topics, and the shift here is really about public stances. No pope has ever (from what reporters are saying) said things like this publicly, even though many within the church at lower levels knew it to be true.

QUOTE (KyYlE23 @ Oct 29, 2014 -> 02:14 PM) speaking of bad remakes/reboots, I just read a plot synopsis of Terminator: Genisys http://screenrant.com/terminator-5-genisys...-images-script/ aaaaand i am not interested That's a shame. I think I was the only person who liked T3 - I thought it was a pretty good end cap for the series, and in some ways was a superior movie to T2. Never did see anything since T3, the Bale movies and all that. But this is an empire where nothing has come close to touching the original film.

This is only tangentially related, but... the new pope has recently said, in public, that the theories of evolution and the big bang are perfectly acceptable and good things, and that they are even necessary for how we perceive God. That was kind of a big shift. Also said that God isn't a wizard with a magic wand - seemed to suggest that the creation of man was never meant to be understood as an event literally described in the Bible.

He was pretty dominant in A+ last year after the first couple starts. I'm not opposed to him starting in AA, but he's likely there soon even if not on Opening Day. As for AAA... not before late in the season if at all, and then only if he dominates AA like he has the other levels. No matter the level, I want him to build up more innings over last year.

QUOTE (Heads22 @ Oct 29, 2014 -> 09:17 PM) NS, you guys do fantastic work. Thanks!

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Oct 29, 2014 -> 09:59 AM) He definitely has a 3rd pitch, his curveball sits in the mid 70s and it looks like PitchFX has him throwing that just about as often as the slider last year. IT's not IDing his pitches perfectly (calling some a change) but it looks like when he gets good break on it, it's a strong pitch, but he hangs it sometimes and when he does that it gets destroyed. QUOTE (witesoxfan @ Oct 29, 2014 -> 10:04 AM) I don't know that a curve ball is anything more than an additional offering though. I don't think it'll help against tough lefties as anything more than a change of pace pitch. I think he'd need to refine a change or a cutter to become a consistently good starting pitcher, which isn't out of the realm of possibility but also isn't something that can be counted on. I haven't heard any scouting reports about the CB - just seen reports that his pitches outside of the FB and SL are not consistent.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Oct 29, 2014 -> 09:28 AM) But then again, by all accounts his slider was significantly improved during ST this year and times afterwards, so that could put him as having a better chance at being a starter. He's got a plus fastball and a slider that is looking quite good. The issue is, he's really a two-pitch pitcher, at least right now. That could change of course and I'm sure he's working on that, but right now he profiles as a reliever for me. I guess this is partly a question of timing. Do you want to... A. Make him a reliever, and in that case IMO, he's MLB-ready today or B. Keep him in AA/AAA to refine secondary stuff and see if he can make another pitch or two at least playable or MLB average (knowing that may or may not happen, but the value then goes up) I don't have the answer, though I'd lean towards A myself.

QUOTE (witesoxfan @ Oct 29, 2014 -> 08:39 AM) He absolutely does. He just prefers pitching out of the bullpen. Yeah it's not a makeup thing. It is partially his comfort level, but also some questions about the breadth and quality of his secondary arsenal that make a relief role more likely.

Our write-up here. Brisbane starts 10/30, Melbourne 11/7.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Oct 28, 2014 -> 03:50 PM) He's been a very slow starter at every level he's stopped at. No one should have been surprised by that whether he's a usable player or not. I was curious about this, and it turns out it isn't really the case. 2010 Rookie ball he rocked right out of the gate 2011 skipped to A+, was good in April, very good in May, down in June, Big up in July, down somewhat in August. So he was just plain streaky. 2012 in AA it was sort of true - he was bad in April, better in May, very good in June then back down for the rest of the year 2013 he was decent in April and strong in AA by May and held it, and actually did quite well his first few weeks in AAA before falling apart slowly as the summer went on 2014 in AAA it was certainly true - he got better each month through a monster July, then came back down in August and really suffered in MLB I'd say if there is a pattern there, it is that he falls off late in the season generally. He may have been just plain tired in September. The very slow starter thing hasn't really been there, until 2014.

Thanks everyone. QUOTE (DrunkBomber @ Oct 25, 2014 -> 12:38 PM) You can also get something like this and use it with the apple headphones or whatever other headphones you like That's an interesting alternative thought. Not sure I can pull off the hairdo from the model in that picture though, LOL.

Saw St. Vincent over the weekend (Murray, McCarthy). Story arc was somewhat predictable, but still really enjoyed it. Murray was excellent, McCarthy was too (she's much more subdued here than you may be used to, so her humor goes a lot farther and just works better). Actually the actress who played Murray's lady was the best of the bunch. And the kid was good too. As a character study, I was impressed and entertained. No great need to see it on the big screen, but as a stream or rental or whatever it is worth it.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Oct 25, 2014 -> 06:06 PM) I received a season ticketholder extension package today. My invoice is for the same price as last season, however, the chart shows a significant increase, probably for new accounts. I think it means they plan on spending money and being good. Ours came in basically the same as last year as well - hilariously, our seats cost one dollar more each for the full season. Not one per game - one for all 81 games combined. Why bother raising it at all? We're in Premium UD, front row (536). Which section are you in?

QUOTE (thxfrthmmrs @ Oct 24, 2014 -> 04:21 PM) I think the whole Great Fall team was overlooked this year. Outside of Peter's debut and the few starts by Luis Martinez, I don't think anyone paid much attention to GF. Trexler is already 24 years old, so next year is make or break for him. Hopefully he pitches well and ends up in BHam by year end. First on the bolded... no. He was just drafted in 2014, this was his age 23 season. You don't write off a guy with the tools he apparently has at age 24, whether he's in A, A+ or AA. That would be ridiculous. Yes he's old for level, but that just means you challenge him level-wise a little more next year, maybe split time A and A+. Then the next year at 25 can be AA & AAA, for example, which is fine. Second on Great Falls, remember that the team generally sends the older, college-grad guys up there (though not always), and also that it is a hitter-friendly league. So hitters can put up some big numbers, but that doesn't necessarily mean a whole lot. You'll know a lot more about those guys when they hit A ball.

I had heard very little on Trexler before these reports myself. Peter got some pub this season with his gaudy PIO numbers and double-promotion. We did discussed Trexler in this article here on FutureSox, near the bottom. He led all qualifying ChiSox prospects in GB:FB ratio, showed nice peripherals (9.7 K/9, 2.6 BB/9) across both rookie affiliates. Honestly, since I had no scouting data on this kid, I saw a 23 year old 17th round pick in rookie ball and didn't give it a lot of thought. If he turns into something, that's fantastic. He did sign for 100k, which is a wee bit high for a 17th rounder, so maybe there's a hint there that the Sox knew something. Also, at draft time, various sources had him listed as either William Trexler or David Trexler.

Also, does anyone know how or if Islam, Hinduism or other religions view the treatment of their natural environment? I know basically nothing about that, but would be curious.

Global Warming does represent a challenge for people who are literallists w/r/t the Bible. If the world is 5000 or 6000 years old, how can there be a comparison to make, climate-wise, to long previous eras? Of course, it also causes a problem where dinosaurs can't have existed, yet we are using fossil fuels. Is there an argument made that oil is something other than a fossil remnant? But most people I know who are Christians, don't honestly believe that the earth is only a few thousand years old. It's silly on its face and they know that, and look past it. To respond about the scientists maintaining their grantability, that makes zero sense, at least at this point. I mean, there have been thousands or tens of thousands of scientists now who have all come to more or less the same conclusion. Meanwhile, there have been nearly zero peer-reviewed scientific works that have claimed GW is not anthropogenic to at least some degree, and literally zero that pretend it isn't even happening. Any school would LOVE to publish a paper that actually broke new ground, assuming it was scientifically valid. That's where the money would be.