NorthSideSox72

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Oct 13, 2009 -> 10:58 AM) Insurance companies losing vast, vast amount of money on insurance policies they don't understand? Ring a bell? AIG joke. That's not where AIG lost vast sums of money (their insurance business was pretty much OK).

QUOTE (LVSoxFan @ Oct 13, 2009 -> 10:40 AM) Oh, please. It's laughable that on a team with people like Konerko you would claim HE out-hustled Pods? I'm not talking about stealing bases, I'm talking overall hustle and spirit. Like I said, bring Pods back. I like the attitude. I would say Konerko and Pods were about even on the hustle-to-first meter. AJ is another guy who usually doesn't hustle to first very often. Most of the other guys who are current position players (Beckham, Alexei, Getz, Nix, Rios, even Dye) hustle more than those three. Quentin was on and off, but in 2008 when not injured, he seemed to hustle it down the line a bit better.

QUOTE (lostfan @ Oct 13, 2009 -> 10:47 AM) I don't think it's possible to insult the general public, we have proved we're as stupid as the cynics think we are time and time again. If be "we" you mean a large swath of people but not all (and not me or you), then I agree.

QUOTE (Athomeboy_2000 @ Oct 13, 2009 -> 10:24 AM) The little ankle biting dog Orly Taitz Slapped With $20,000 Sanction Excellent. Hopefully some of the other districts where she has brought such tripe to the court will also fine her, and she can be bankrupted out of her "career" of nonsense.

QUOTE (LVSoxFan @ Oct 13, 2009 -> 09:53 AM) Was there ANYBODY who hustled more this year than Pods? When he first came back I thought it was a sign of how desperate we were; by the end of the season he was arguably our best player. Bring him back. He's a leader. I realize we have space issues with the outfield, but he seems like the kind of guy who will play any role without b****ing. Almost everyone - and no I am not exaggerating. Pods actually tended to NOT hustle down the line, more often than not, which is particularly shameful when a player's game is so reliant on speed. Pods is still fast, and he made serious changes that allowed him to hit a lot better - which is why I have some confidence that he would hit well again in 2010, assuming he stays healthy. But make no mistake, Pods needs serious work on his baserunning - he needs to hustle it down the line to 1st more than occasionally, and he needs to be a LOT more selective about when he attempts to steal bases.

QUOTE (kapkomet @ Oct 12, 2009 -> 11:59 PM) You mean Brazilian cities, right? Otherwise I'm confused as to what you're getting at. I think he's saying that the things that might be done to the homeless and destitute here, would pale in comparison to what might happen to those people in Brazil.

QUOTE (StrangeSox @ Oct 13, 2009 -> 09:38 AM) I really, really hate the 24 news networks. You mean the ones that are 23 hours of gossip, shiny objects and internet finds, with an hour of actual news sprinkled in?

QUOTE (Athomeboy_2000 @ Oct 13, 2009 -> 10:04 AM) OOPS! Accounting Firm Admits Cost Savings Left Out Of Report Prepared For AHIP Report So, the report being waved around by the GOP and featured prominently on their icky new website failed to include some major parts. PWC didn't forget anything - the insurance companies asked PWC to only analyze certain, specific aspects... then released the report with big flashy numbers that led people to believe it was all-inclusive. Basically, PWC got duped, then the insurance companies tried to dupe everyone else. Embarrassing for PWC, and insulting towards the general public that these insurance idiots thought they could slip one past us.

QUOTE (PlaySumFnJurny @ Oct 13, 2009 -> 09:31 AM) Here's a similar story that might be even more crazy: http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/33289924/ns/...y-today_people/ This is really just a lack of common sense. I mean, come on - a 6 year old with a combo tool? Take it away from him for the day, call the parents, tell them to talk with the kid about it, mail it to the parents or whatever... and then let it go.

QUOTE (Athomeboy_2000 @ Oct 13, 2009 -> 09:38 AM) Thanks to Twitter for this: The header background image has and odd resemblance to... the Chinese Flag! Dude - its a solid red background. And someone made the leap to the Chinese flag from there? Maybe you could just set up a bot to auto-post RSS feeds from the DNC and ObamaCo in here, and save yourself some time.

QUOTE (scenario @ Oct 13, 2009 -> 09:06 AM) Looks like Sergio Santos has replaced Henry Mabee on the roster. That's sort of interesting - I wonder what the reasoning was.

QUOTE (hogan873 @ Oct 12, 2009 -> 02:48 PM) I read Pillars of the Earth for a class once. It's a huge book but worth the read. Agreed, very long, but overall a solid book.

QUOTE (Kalapse @ Oct 12, 2009 -> 07:13 PM) Those 6 players were already on the 40 man roster (so they're all rule V ineligible) including Viciedo who signed a major league deal so he was placed on the 40 when he signed. They're the only 6 players on the 40 man roster that weren't in the majors at the end of the season, such players are "recalled" by each team once the season ends or outrighted to the minors and removed from the 40 man roster. I'm kinda surprised they elected to protect Armstrong.

I guess I am in the minority, but I think he comes back and has a monster 2010, a la 2008.

QUOTE (Rex Kicka** @ Oct 12, 2009 -> 04:13 PM) The CTA has tons of systemic funding issues. If I recall correctly, they have a very old system that they haven't had the budget to maintain because funding from Springfield had been disproportionately gone to PACE and METRA from the RTA instead of the CTA, despite the fact that by and large PACE and METRA operate as feeders for the CTA system. If you really wanted to know the best reason for Chicago to have gotten the olympics - it would have been Chicago and Illinois would have basically been forced to fix the CTA. All the above are true. It wouldn't surprise me to find out that the CTA has inefficiencies, but the CTA is actually funded less per track mile than most systems in other cities, and its an older system with higher maintenance needs. The CTA is only partially to blame here. The larger problem is the completely bizarre mentality about transportation funding, where a state will spend billions on roads without any revenue expectations, but balk at spending $100M on mass transit which asks its users to pay fares. Its idiotic in the extreme, and other countries with mass transit systems do it in a more sane way. I am OK with the CTA raising fares, but I would like to see the state and federal government take a broader look at transportation funding, and try to level the playing field a bit. This is part of the reason this country has such an oil use problem - the addiction to cars. There is so much externalized cost to driving our cars around that are not being charged to the driver, and instead are being paid by all of us by way of immense taxation and indirect costs due to pollution and higher gas prices. This is consistently one of the most frustrating things about modern politics, for me. The whole philosophy is absurd.

QUOTE (BigSqwert @ Oct 12, 2009 -> 07:20 AM) Some more info on them. I don't care of they get financial gain from it, that part is fine with me. The only thing that bothers me is that the subject of the insurance should get to know, and approve, of it. If that doesn't happen, THAT is when it bad.

I'd be OK with a law stating that: 1. You are not allowed to take out a life insurance policy on someone without them being legally notified, and... 2. That the subject of the insurance also has the right to say no and not be insured by whomever that 3rd party is.

QUOTE (Thunderbolt @ Oct 11, 2009 -> 12:31 PM) I don’t see Carlos Torres making any notable long-term impact on the major league team. I see him as a guy that can produce down in AAA, but not really establish a spot on the 25-man roster. That’s my definition of an AAAA player. I find his listing at #11 suspect. Although, i will concede that his minor league performance warrants a spot on the list. Also, Upchurch got his ass-handed to him this year. I quite like the kid, and I see the long-term potential, but I find more potential in a kid like Holmberg who’s projected to be hitting 93 out of his left-arm, with solid control and poise. I do like the list quite a bit, and I can’t take much issue with the top ten at all. You guys at Future Sox do great work, and any quibble I have with this article is minor. Ranking prospects is a wooly discipline; it’s a matter of different scouting and opinion. For the record, I actually agree with you on Upchurch, and he wasn't in my 25 or even 30 either. Torres is a tough call. I actually liked what I saw at the major league level, despite some problems. When he isn't afraid of the strike zone, I think he's a major league starter (back end of the rotation). And I think it may be a mental thing with him, so, I see some real possibility there. But its all opinion of course, I could very well be totally wrong.

QUOTE (Thunderbolt @ Oct 11, 2009 -> 11:25 AM) Agreed, i don't understand the inclusion of some of the older AAAA players, over guys like Holmberg and S-Rod. What i got from the intro to the article was that this was a combo of various opinions from a panel. So, it's possible that Santos and Holmberg did recieve votes just not enought to warrant a spot on the top 25. It's understandable, but i don't really agree with it. Also, I see no one in the Top 25 that could remotely qualify as "older AAAA". Who are you referring to?

Well, I can't speak for all nine people - only myself. Rodriguez was indeed in my Top 25, but only barely. His K numbers and the scouting reports on his arm are very encouraging, and he's only 21. But, he still walked almost 6 batters per 9 this year in rookie ball, and that was his third year in rookie level baseball. He'll be 22 next season and in A ball (low or high), so that will be a nice test for him. And while he has a high ceiling it appears, I think his chances of reaching that ceiling are low, so I couldn't justify putting him higher than the low 20's on my list. I didn't rank Holmberg as a Top 25, though some other voters did. It should be noted though, he ranked no higher than #20 on any of the 9 lists. There seemed to be a general concensus on him being in the 20-30 range, someone definitely worth watching, but not necessarily an elite prospect. I think a lot of focus on his potential is on his age and draft rank (2nd round). And while it is certainly impressive to see him doing anything at all at that age in Bristol, I am not yet comfortable with him being an elite name. Part of it is, honestly, I don't think anyone knows enough about him to make a judgement yet. His secondary stuff is inconsistent (not surprising of course), and his fastball isn't hitting 90 yet. The value being put on him, in my view, is based on some very shaky supposition. They are both guys were watching, but IMO, neither are Top 10 guys or even real close to it, YET.

FutureSox has pubished its post-season top prospect list, which can be found here.

QUOTE (vasox @ Oct 9, 2009 -> 04:25 PM) Well, here is another link that can keep the conversations going: http://minors.mlblogs.com/archives/2009/10...f_the_year.html Welcome aboard!

Thread title would seem to indicate that golf and rugby would be become ONE olympic event. In that case, hellz yeah.

Key part: Kid has a very good legal case here against the school, and I think he should take them on. I understand the rule is there for a reason, but this is a case of two problems at the school. One, the rule is too vague, and if you consider the New York State Penal Code "reasonable", then the school didn't follow their own rules. Two, common sense should have stepped in here. The school f***ed up here.

QUOTE (BigSqwert @ Oct 9, 2009 -> 12:10 PM) You obviously haven't been back to that neighborhood in a LONG time. Eh, if you go far enough east along North Avenue, say anywhere from the Kennedy going east to the river, there is still some of that going on.