Friend of Nordhagen

QUOTE (southsideirish71 @ Aug 7, 2008 -> 07:56 PM) So Ken Griffey Jr. showed up for the first game and drove in some runs. Then settled in and decided to suck offensively. Anytime your HOF self can manage to put some good contact on the ball great. Well, I see that he's decided to fit in with the guys by not being able to hit a changeup.

QUOTE (The Ginger Kid @ Aug 7, 2008 -> 07:46 PM) makes you wonder what he'd be like in a playoff game Totally swell.

Had dinner and drinks with him once -- just a totally down-to-earth, nice guy -- interesting and interested.

The Vulture!

QUOTE (joesaiditstrue @ Aug 5, 2008 -> 10:43 PM) anything less than 3 runs in the bottom of the 14th would severely hurt our pitching staff for about a week Weird deal. Logan, Carrasco and Dotel were outstanding. So was Thornton, until he was left in to die by the manager who was managing for the 19th inning. I just hope that Matt's confidence is back and that the long outing doesn't mess him up too much going forward. He looked great.

QUOTE (bighurt4life @ Aug 5, 2008 -> 10:41 PM) thornton should've been pulled after facing lefty granderson, I was sitting here saying that even before the hr Same. And goddamn the station-to-station bulls*** in the top of the inning. Pinch-run the guy who's here to do that for the 80-year old centerfielder. Goddamnit.

QUOTE (fathom @ Aug 5, 2008 -> 10:39 PM) I hate you Joey Cora. Absolutely despicable that Thornton was left in this long. Flat-out idiotic.

QUOTE (southsideirish71 @ Aug 5, 2008 -> 08:37 PM) Kenny's big flaw is going after guys who can't play center field and saying they'll play center, even after their prime. Jr's bat is a nice addition, but his defense is center is fugly. Slight modification, though I don't disagree with your original sentiment. Here's my list of Williams acquisitions who could allegedly, when acquired, play center: Everett (2003 version) Podsednik (considered before Rowand) Mackowiak Swisher Griffey Hmm.

QUOTE (whitesoxjr27 @ Aug 4, 2008 -> 09:35 PM) It's really a shame. They should be 4 games up on the cubs. Who would you like to see replace Yost? Great question, and I'm not sure I have an answer. It's funny, but one guy that I think could actually get them going is Phil Garner. But he was there for so long before, and with such mediocre results (though with different talent), I'm not sure he'd be welcomed. I'd say they need either a calming, elder statesman type (Jim Fregosi, or is he too old?) or a true feisty guy, like Garner or even Bobby Valentine (next year, I guess). Yost, I think, is the worst of all worlds -- wound too tight but not really a credible motivator either.

QUOTE (whitesoxjr27 @ Aug 4, 2008 -> 08:00 PM) Brewers just don't want it. And just like last year, they're coming unglued. Tonight, Parra and Fielder got into a shoving match in the dugout. I tell you, Yost has got to go. http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/recap?gameId=280804117

QUOTE (fathom @ Aug 3, 2008 -> 04:01 PM) Reed Johnson has been a godsend for the Cubs. He's batting about .340 against LHP. Time to give Hawk a shoutout -- he's been talking up Johnson for years. If the Pirates have any sack, the next time they play, he'll be knocked on his ass for holding his arm up around the bases. More bush league, Cub bulls***.

QUOTE (JFields27 @ Aug 3, 2008 -> 02:25 PM) Uribe looked solid in that atbat He looked like he really cared.

QUOTE (elrockinMT @ Aug 3, 2008 -> 03:07 PM) Roscoe Goald is killing us today. Why did we trade that guy anyway? Because he hits the ball where it's pitched. Can't have that around these parts.

QUOTE (Brian @ Aug 2, 2008 -> 03:28 PM) I'm not digging Toby calling games. Looks like 4 guys swung first pitch and did something positive. Gotta adjust to that approach. Every pitch is up. Not good.

QUOTE (shipps @ Aug 1, 2008 -> 09:31 PM) Nick Swisher is the Dane Cook of "comedian" baseball players.All actions and exaggerated delivery but no content that is actually funny. Post of the day.

QUOTE (Heads22 @ Aug 1, 2008 -> 07:15 PM) Nice "A League of Their Own" and "Borat" references from DJ so far. Great pissed off response from Hawk on the League of Their Own reference (DJ: "Ever seen that movie? Hawk: No.") followed by DJ's "Anyway."

Ridiculous call on Thome. Totally ridiculous.

QUOTE (Frankensteiner @ Aug 1, 2008 -> 07:55 PM) OMG How did he get to that ball????!!! LOL, but Mackowiak wouldn't have gotten to that.

QUOTE (Brian @ Aug 1, 2008 -> 03:10 PM) Yikes. Sweep 4 at Milwaukee than lost game one at home to Pirates 3-0. Lost in all the hoopla during the past few days: since mid-June, the Cubs are exactly a .500 team. Basically, they made their bones with an early home-heavy schedule dominated by games with the Pirates. They've really been treading water since. Maybe they'll turn it on. Maybe they won't. But these are facts.

QUOTE (chitownsportsfan @ Jul 29, 2008 -> 07:40 PM) Let's see, so far in this thread we've had someone call Mark Grace a "underperforming" 1B (119 career OPS+, career .303 hitter, always known for good defense) had a mostly CF playing player with a 99 OPS+ (Swisher) called "garbage" and that said player is lucky he plays in an era where his skillset is recognized as critically important. Wow, another classic. That might've been me. On the right team, Grace would've been a fine player to have (see Diamondbacks, 2001). But not if you were batting him 3rd or 4th, as the Cubs were during the 90's. Take a look at his RBI numbers some time. I know that number is out of favor with stat-types, but his totals were completely lousy for a run-producing position. I'll credit Grace for never taking steroids, but I won't credit him for seemingly never picking up a weight in his life. He looked exactly the same when he left the majors as when he arrived. (His training regimen, so far as I can tell -- and yes, I'm no expert -- was drinking around Wrigley Field and smoking.) But he was a great guy and loved the cameras, so he became "Gracie."

QUOTE (Allsox @ Jul 31, 2008 -> 09:28 PM) Their players (Outside of Morneau and Mauer) aren't that damn good, no matter how much Hawk kisses their ass. I'm tired of seeing Nick Punto and guys named Span absolutely kill us. See, I think that this isn't true, and this is a mindset that has to change for our organization and fans. The Twins have very good players. Look at their usual 3-6 -- Mauer, Morneau, Cuddyer and Young. That's pretty damn good. And their other guys are solid. On the other hand, the Twins don't do everything right, and that's where Hawk and Ozzie and the rest need to shut up. Basically, we'd be a lot better off if we split it down the middle, neither lamenting how mediocre they are nor elevating them to some pantheon. the Twins are a good and talented team -- neither piranhas nor the best goddamn team in baseball. So just go and play.

That's what I'm talking about!

QUOTE (Jake @ Jul 31, 2008 -> 09:43 PM) It's bulls*** that we walk into the metrodome defeated. You can tell as the Twins started to do well today that everyone was looking around as if they were waiting for them to come back to get us. I remember one of our young pitchers being interviewed, I can't remember which, but he was talking about how players had told him of all the things that happen to us at the metrodome. This team needs to act like a first place team. Hawk said it perfectly that we were a team that was behind even when we were in the lead. So true. It starts with our f***ing manager and permeates the entire f***ing organization all the way up to the dumbs*** TV announcer. Show some pride, chickenf***ers. Don't walk in there waiting for something bad to happen. Tonight, when Mauer knocked in a run, Hawk was about to die. You can bet half our team was, too. Jesus. Big f***ing deal. It's baseball. Mauer's good. Deal with it and play the f***ing game. I'm so tired of the attitude we have up there.

QUOTE (southsideirish71 @ Jul 31, 2008 -> 09:38 PM) love this bullpen. Game Glad Kenny spent the time getting some bullpen help. Maybe Griffey can be the long man? One. One pitcher showed up in this f***ing dome. What odds would you have given, at the beginning of the week, that it would be Gavin Floyd? So I want to give a shout-out to the one guy who took that mound this week with an ounce of brains and goddamn nut sack. Thanks, Gavin.

QUOTE (witesoxfan @ Jul 31, 2008 -> 01:08 PM) Have you actually seen Lannan? Because I just can't full believe that Richard has better stuff than him, not when Lannan has an ERA in the low 3's. Even in a pitcher's park and in the NL, that's still a damn good ERA. And if the numbers earlier in this thread are right, his numbers are actually way better AWAY from that ballpark.