Gregory Pratt

QUOTE(DBAH0 @ Oct 18, 2007 -> 06:37 PM) Well under Mazzone the O's didn't exactly have the best ERA as a team, that bullpen didn't have great numbers, but a few guys in Guthrie and Bedard had excellent numbers. Mazzone had a very similar season in 2007 to Coop now that I think about it. We had a few guys in Buehrle and Vazquez who did extremely well, while the rest besides Jenks probably struggled. Yeah, because the rest besides those guys aren't all that hot. And same with much of Leo's team in Baltimore.

I'd be surprised if we signed him. From what I've heard -- and I can't be the only one here -- he's still sore about Guillen's comments re: WBC, the other side of Chicago is a much better fit for him because of Lou, and I really doubt we pay what he asks for -- or that he deserves what he asks for. But I'll wait and see.

QUOTE(beautox @ Sep 26, 2007 -> 01:22 PM) hey GP whats this supposed to mean? taken from Talking Chop I just barely saw that -- I don't know why it's funny. It's a bad comparison because of contract length. It's a good comparison because I don't think Garland's shoulder is all that good right now.

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story...mp;sportCat=mlb Sam Alipour: What spurred you to write this book? Paul Byrd: Here's the thing, I haven't had a Greg Maddux career, a career that warrants a book. Mine is a spiritual journey. It's an inside look at what it's like to have a spiritual journey and be on a baseball team, an encouragement for people who struggle to not give up and engage in the battle of walking with God in a lifestyle that's tough to do so. I'm called to a locker room that's a different kind of church. It's not the front lines of the world, but there's filthy stuff in the locker room and on the road. It's tough to walk with God when you have all of these options staring you in the face. I'm respected for surviving this lifestyle and loving my wife and family, things like that. Christian book writers will say that they had a guy they counseled with that struggled with this. Well, I didn't counsel with anyone. This is me. The author. I don't call people out like Canseco. I share my struggles. I think the last thing the Christian community needs is another person who says they have it all together, a 12-step process for being perfect. That doesn't exist. I can help people by being honest. ALCS Indians-Red Sox series page Alipour: It's clear you have a lot to share, but will this book speak to non-Christians, readers who might not respond well to preaching? Byrd: People who aren't Christians, like one of my good friends in the game who's an atheist, read it and was like, "Man, I've never heard somebody be open about this. They usually write about how they have it all together, and here you are telling me about the things you struggle with." I also gave [the book] to someone who doesn't play baseball, and he was like, "You struggle with this in your job, competing against your teammates, and it's the same way at my work." So far, the response has been terrific. I have two publishers who have made firm offers, so it's officially going to become a book for next spring. What's cool is they're both major publishers with spiritual, religious divisions. And it's going to be available in both Christian bookstores and regular, secular bookstores like Borders. Alipour: What's your religious background? Byrd: I grew up in a mildly religious background. My mom took me to Catholic church. I went to Catholic school. But I became a Christian somewhere in '91. I was the guy who said a prayer to receive Christ about 35 times, but kept struggling with all kinds of stuff. Eventually, I realized I'm not perfect. I need to relax. When I was honest with where I was, it made a difference in the lives of people around me. Here they were thinking I have no struggles, no issues. But I said, "No man, I battle stuff all the time." Alipour: You describe this book as being graphic. How so? Byrd: It's not a politically correct book. It's not for a young audience. It's for people in their 20s and 30s that go through similar battles, like with pornography. I've had a real struggle with pornography, from before I became a Christian, when pornography was the good old American way. After I became a Christian, it really began to bother me, but God didn't really take it away. I struggle with porn one night, and somebody asks me a question about Jesus the next day in the outfield, so you feel like a hypocrite trying to share. It's the elephant in the locker room. Alipour: In what other ways does the game test your faith? Byrd: Religion can go over into every area, like whether I should cheat out on the field. I write about the desire to just make money at any cost. I share about my temptation to spit on the ball, put KY jelly on it or scuff it, to win more games and make more money. That's a big temptation for me, being a guy who throws 82, who relies on movement. You have a pull, because you have a certain window up here that stares you in the face. Are you willing to take steroids? Because that's available. People viewed that as me being weak. Like, "This guy doesn't want to win." I also write about what it's like to play on a team where you're trying to get a start and, in a weird way, you can start to pull against your teammates. You're like, "Man, I want my chance." And the only way you get your chance is if the other guy does bad. You have these thoughts, like "Man, that's not right. Why did that pop into my head?" These are the things you encounter when you try to walk with God. Alipour: Will you also be covering infidelity? Byrd: Yeah. I don't really cover it a whole lot. I'm married, but I never really struggled with that, so for me to say, "Other people struggle with this," that would come across as me pointing the finger. I think everybody knows that can be an issue. Alipour: What are your thoughts on how the Jon Kitna backlash went down? Byrd: You know what? That's Jon Kitna. I like when guys say what's on their mind. I don't know him, but now I feel like I have a better understanding of who Jon is. What's wrong with Kurt Warner thanking God after winning the Super Bowl? That's who Kurt Warner is. If you want to praise Buddha, then do it. There's such a thing as being too politically correct, where you're constantly worried about offending that you don't say anything but generic answers like "I'm just happy to help the team." That would make for a boring world, and a boring locker room, and boring interviews. That's no good. Alipour: Did you ever experience anything similar to what Kitna went through? Byrd: Boy, I know how he felt. I have a chapter about getting my shot with the Phillies and beating Randy Johnson, and I dropped a Jesus quote in the paper that gets into USA Today. Later, I walk into the locker room and, on my chair, I find a manila folder with names of all of these people who claim to be Christians but have really dropped the ball. The folder was an inside job. No name, nothing. And the note said: "I wanted to let you know that this is the God you serve. This is who he turns out." Basically, it said, "Shut your mouth, you don't know what you're talking about." Alipour: What types of examples did this person cite? Byrd: One of the names was David. I just met you so I don't want presume … I don't know how much you know about David … Alipour: The bullet points. Not a lot. Byrd: David does these great things for God, then he turns around and takes a bunch of wives, sleeps with a soldier's wife and has him killed, and God says this is a man after my own heart. The person who gave me this note was like, "Let me tell you about David …" That chapter is called "Beating Randy Johnson and the Trouble with David." Alipour: When you were pegged last week as the ALDS Game 4 starter, and not staff ace C.C. Sabathia, many questioned the decision. Then you came in, pitched remarkably well in perhaps the biggest game of your career, and proved the critics wrong. It wasn't quite a miracle, but it was a great achievement. Do you feel your performance in that game -- and generally speaking -- was God's work? Byrd: Here's the thing, I think it's a We. We're both involved in this thing. I didn't create me, so I think for me to say I can do something apart from him is pretty arrogant in my mind. But then, for me to say, "Well, it's not me, it's all God. If I don't work hard, God will make sure all my pitches go where they're supposed to go," I don't feel like that's correct either. At times, I do feel his blessing, that he can heal you and allow you to pitch through tremendous pain. I also think there are times when he says, "I'm going to allow this setback, or this surgery." I do feel like it's a beautiful thing to have to struggle, to work through things. I've been on a team where a guy shows no passion, and he says, "God meant for me to give up that home run." I'm like, "What does that mean? God didn't hang the slider, you hung the slider." That's not going to go over well with teammates. You're not going to turn anybody over to Christ with that attitude. I think if Christ goes into second base to break up a double play, he'll do it cleanly, but he'll try to knock the guy into left field. Look, I don't bring a lot to the table. I throw 82, had different shoulder surgeries. But I compete with what God gave me. I get angry when I give up a home run. I'm passionate about the game and I'm not into using God as a scapegoat. People hide behind religion. Alipour: Do you feel religion is a unifying force in the locker room, or more of a divisive force? Byrd: It can unify a team if you learn how to respect each other. That's one of the good things that religion and Christianity brings out. Everybody isn't going to have the same beliefs, but the good teams learn to work together and respect each other's differences and backgrounds, to care about each other, care about your brother. But it can be divisive, too. If you have a problem, the way you bring it up is huge. If you can say something to a teammate in a way that he knows you care about him, like, "Hey man, I don't mind if you have pornography in here, just don't make me look at it. Don't have the centerfold open on the ground. Are you OK with that?" I can say that in a nice way. Or I can be like, "Hey, I'm going to post scripture up and see how you like it!" Man, I wish we had some good books in the stalls. Not just Penthouse. Alipour: Have you ever witnessed or experienced a clubhouse incident along those lines? Byrd: One of the biggest ways that it can divide a clubhouse is with music. When I was playing for the Braves, no music was allowed in the locker room. You had to have headphones. It was obvious that can be an issue. But I remember one time (with another team), someone was playing hard-core rap, something offensive with curse words, and a Christian was offended by that. He walked up, tore the cord out of the wall, called the music trash, and it turned into a fistfight. That divides teams. The way he explains himself is important. That's one of the problems I have right now with our country. An example is, we make fun of our president. There's a way to disagree with somebody. Go out and vote and have your say, or write a column. But we make fun of everybody. Alipour: When Shawn Green sat out a game during the '01 playoff race because it fell on Yom Kippur, the reaction from pundits and players was mixed. On which side of the line did you fall? Byrd: Everybody will feel differently on that. I played with a guy in Double-A when I was with the Indians in '94, Ramser Correa. He was a Seventh-day Adventist. They believe in keeping the Sabbath holy. Meaning, from sundown on Friday until sundown on Saturday, you don't work. He was a starting pitcher and very good, but it was Saturday, and he couldn't pitch. He was like, "Paul, this is what I believe." Now, I didn't agree with him, but I respected where he was coming from. He was a Christian, loved God, but he just wasn't going to pitch, man. Didn't matter what you said. He'd rather pack up his things. And he told me how that hurt him with different managers. It was perceived as, "You feel there's something more important than baseball." He confided in me that that hurt him, and he was willing to accept any persecution that came with it. He wasn't punished, but the reliever had to start the game, and you heard grumbling in the dugout. That affected the team. The reliever must've been like, "What's the deal?" I remember worrying about that. Like, "Man, I hope the starter does well for Ramser's sake. If he doesn't, he could transfer the blame." Alipour: There are many ways that guys bring their faith onto the field. Do you have any religious pregame or in-game rituals? Byrd: I used to memorize a bible verse and say it over and over again. But I felt like I was using God. Like it wasn't right. This is something I talk to the guys about: Do you see when guys point to the sky when they hit a home run? It's funny, I never see anyone point up when they strike out. I'm not a sky-pointer. I'm more of a chest-grabber. I feel God inside of me. People seem to give praise a lot more when they hit a home run and not strike out. I give praise regardless of the outcome. But I feel like he's right there with me. I talk to him during the game. A lot of times, guys are like, "You're 36. Why are you talking to yourself?" I'm not talking to myself, I'm praying. But I'm not praying for a strikeout. Alipour: Do you plan to up the chatter with God when you're on the mound facing the potent Red Sox lineup? Maybe try to get a tip on how to pitch to Ortiz? Byrd: (Laughs) Our talks don't increase or decrease based on the competition. Now, if he wants to give me a tip on Ortiz, I'd certainly welcome that. And since he's listening to us right now, "God, if you've got something, fire away."

QUOTE(Alpha Dog @ Oct 18, 2007 -> 02:33 PM) Just remember, they can defend a gang rape if it fit thier political ideals. You funny.

QUOTE(Alpha Dog @ Oct 18, 2007 -> 02:32 PM) Read it a little closer. Are you aware HE (Savage) hates Bush? You lumped him with republicans/conservatives, and he does NOT identify himself with them. He just hates them less than Democrats. So you can come down off your high horse now before you get hurt, no assumptions were made here about you, at least not by me. You're telling me to read a little closer -- and yet you mentioned Republicans/Conservatives. I didn't mention either. I mentioned The Right. And if you're denying that Savage is a figure from hte Right, you're mad. It's like Nader -- he's not a Democrat, but damn if he isn't on "The Left." "You're aware that he hates Republicans/Bush"? Good for him. I didn't say s*** about Republicans and Bush. I said that I find him the most abhorrent member of The Right.

Why would he come to Chicago? What makes you think we'd pay him? Where else in Chicago have we seen a "College of Coaches" before? PS: he didn't get "fired," per se. I don't care what the newspapers say -- he went for his best friend, his best friend left, he left too. Whether it was mutual, whether they wanted him gone more than he did, whatever they say, there's no way he just up-and-got fired and wanted to stay, per se. No one can be that stupid as to fire him just like that. But then I remember that we're dealing with a certain Owner...

QUOTE(NorthSideSox72 @ Oct 18, 2007 -> 01:39 PM) Anyone can write "crap" next to some player's name. Do you think your response has done anything at all to answer the poster's questions? he wants to know what we have. In response to a lot of these guys, it's crap.

The guys who I said "Suck" or "Crap" to, unequivocally, have no legitimate major league future as anything resembling productive and successful players.

QUOTE(Alpha Dog @ Oct 18, 2007 -> 01:31 PM) Are you aware that he hates Bush? And most of the Republican congress? I guess because he hates the Dems more, that makes him on the right? Just askin, because I know he doesn't consider himself a republican, nor to be anywhere aligned with the religious right. Umm, I don't hate Bush. And I'm pro-War in Iraq. And I'm a Capitalist. It has s*** to do with "The Left" and everything is "HOMOSEXUALS!" and "BORDERS!" and all the other nonsense he writes about. This is the second time that you have gotten me and my ideology and political affiliations wrong but I'll excuse it as I guess you had no way of knowing whether or not I affiliate myself with the Liberal Left as my numerous criticisms of men ranging from Jimmy Carter to Kofi Annan and my criticisms of women from Cindy Sheehan and Nancy Pelosi don't display anything resembling independent thought. It is clear, I suppose, that I'm a Partisan hack. really. "Are you aware that he hates Bush?" Yeah, that's what I base everything on. And just because he identifies with the Right doesn't mean he isn't on the Right. He's definitely on the Right.

Which of my criticisms is unfounded?

I don't think there's anyone I find more abhorrent on the Right than Michael Savage. In fact, I lose respect for all those who say they enjoy him or appreciate him. I'm sure there are one or two things people of all stripes could agree with him on but he's a violent (in rhetoric, at least) jag with a foul attitude and crazy ideas.

Jack Egbert -- will be exposed, I think, once he gets to better competition. I think he's a fluke and he has a lot to prove. Donny Lucy -- Career backup at best. He's lousy with the bat, as was shown when he came up, and needs to do a lot of work. Good defender, though. Ryan Sweeney -- needs steroids. Only partially kidding. He took a huge step back this year. Needs to learn how to turn on the fastball. Hit pitches hard. Lance Broadway -- I think he's crap. He definitely has a lot to prove. He did really good in September, especially in his spot-start, but his stuff isn't all that hot and he isn't a safe bet to do much, IMO. Could be a surprise, I guess. Gavin Floyd -- Probable fifth starter, unless he manages to once AGAIN lose a job that's gift-wrapped for him. I don't think he's any good. Heath Phillips -- Sucks. Adam Russell -- Fastball disappeared, or Slowed, after leaving ST. Reliever at best. Robert Valido -- Crap. Dewon Day -- Crap. Brian Anderson -- Crap. With injuries. David Aardsma -- Still got good stuff, but he's got some issues with control. People say it's in his head. Ryan Bukvich -- crap. Nick Masset -- I think he sucks. Lots of people think he's got a better chance of being a good starter. All I know is he's never put up consistently good numbers and it's in fact the other way around. Andrew Sisco -- knock on him is that he's lazy; he's also got ridiculously bad control. He's got potential, but he's getting old. It'll be awhile before he is "restored" to quality. He's just not good now. he's being made a starter, though.

I don't have a problem with what Bush said. And no, it isn't "warmongering."

QUOTE(Chombi and the Fungi @ Oct 18, 2007 -> 12:32 PM) Maybe. To me, Braun is potentially the best young hitter in all of baseball. Hughes is on that level from a pitching standpoint...somewhat. Someone mentioned Arod/Pujols. I honestly think he can be in that caliber offensively. That said, do I think Hughes can be on the level of Johan? Not really no. So the question becomes do you trade a guy under your control and has his potential, for a great pitching prospect and Wang? I wouldn't. I'd be like trading Pujols 3-4 years ago for Zito and Harden. Weird analogy but it was the first that popped into my head. It works a too. Zito IMO was better then Wang 3-4 years ago but hey. A better question should be. Can you get Wang and Hughes for Sheets? No, you can't. And no, nobody's trading Ryan Braun.

QUOTE(witesoxfan @ Oct 18, 2007 -> 11:06 AM) Lee is more valuable. Rivera played in 5% of every inning the Yankees had, while Lee played in 93% of the Astros. If you are going to bring up the "better at the job" topic, Daryle Ward was better at his job than Carlos Lee; I do not see him as more valuable. Does the comparison between #1 pinch hitter and best bat off the bench not compare to the closer role? No, it doesn't. Rivera > Lee. It's apples to oranges, but Rivera is more important to a ballclub than Carlos Lee.

QUOTE(Texsox @ Oct 18, 2007 -> 12:22 PM) It seems to me that this state by state process does not serve much value. The candidacy itself has little value. It is merely further deterioration of political and intellectual discourse. Oh, he rails against it and satirizes it, to be sure, but he's no better than those other men who do the same he does for serious. And I've always found it deplorable that people get their news from The Daily Show or Colbert, or that they get their Cues, just as I find it disturbing that people "learn" from Rush Limbaugh and Shrill O'Lielly.

You laughed at Mark Redman, too.

QUOTE(witesoxfan @ Oct 16, 2007 -> 11:16 AM) For what it's worth, the White Sox did sign probably the best Panamanian player in the MLB right now, depending on how you rate Carlos Lee to Mariano Rivera (because to me, a 3 hitter has more value than a closer) Who's more valuable? I don't know for sure. But Rivera is definitely better at his job than Lee at his.

I was introduced to FOUND today. It's damn good. Postsecret, of course, is a long love of mine and I'll be attending next Wednesday as he comes to Chicago. Anyone else a voyeur?

QUOTE(Heads22 @ Oct 16, 2007 -> 09:30 PM) JEINAP I don't know what the correct answer is, Heads. 1. "He isn't." 2. "He must be really hung."

QUOTE(knightni @ Oct 17, 2007 -> 04:55 PM) I've got a mic and have experience talking out of my ass about sports. Do I qualify as a guest like GP? Yer kyoot. I like you.

QUOTE(whitesoxfan101 @ Oct 17, 2007 -> 09:39 AM) They won't be playing either of those teams in the World Series though, as the Indians are about to finish off eliminating them both, so that holds no relevance. The greater point is that the Rockies can hang with the AL. I concur.

QUOTE(Jenks Heat @ Oct 17, 2007 -> 01:45 PM) Weren't the White Sox right there for A-Rod and when Hicks made the move Reinsdorf responded with something along the lines of new owners regreating the moves that they as new owners make. I don't think so. I know that the Braves were number two in the bidding at literally half the amount the Rangers offerred. I know that the White Sox asked to speak to Alex Rodriguez alone and were, of course, laughed at. I don't think we made any serious bid or were in serious contention for him. I know we were "involved" but I don't recall it being serious.

I really don't care for Manny.