Friend of Nordhagen

QUOTE (SoxFan1 @ Apr 17, 2008 -> 09:23 PM) Bullpen didn't look too sharp either. Just a game I'd like to forget. Alright, you have these games. But here are the 2 issues that come out of it that are likely to recur: (1) The terrible outfield defense of Jermaine Dye. It's about 50-50, on any given day, whether Jermaine will look 33 years old or 49 years old out there. That's not going to change. Get him out of the game with a lead. (2) The predictable Jenks pitch selection. This has been going on for about 2 years now. If it's 2 strikes on a hitter, particularly at 0 and 2, it's going to be a curveball. They have got to mix that up back there. (Oh, and any time, Bobby wants to reach back for the alleged 98 MPH fastball, I'm all for it. But, at the least, stop being so predictable.) Roberts knew it; he sat on it; and he pulled it for the hit.

QUOTE (Wanne @ Apr 17, 2008 -> 07:51 PM) Why do you throw an offspeed pitch to a little fart you just blew 2 fastballs by that hasn't hit s*** all night?!?!?! If Bobby's 0 and 2, it's always the curve. Got to mix that up!

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Apr 15, 2008 -> 07:24 PM) I think he'll get Rowand money or more next offseason on the open market. I think he might take $1-2 million less per year to stay in Chicago if he could get the Boras folks to give up some control. A contract like Konerko's for example. If he puts up the numbers noted earlier in this thread (.270-.280, 25-30 HRs), I could see Boras looking for no less than 5 years at $14-15 million per. That's basically the 2005 Konerko contract ($12 m/5 yrs), with the market mark-up. Time marches; contracts get bigger. Konerko's a better hitter, with more power; Crede plays a tougher position. I also think they'd have a decent shot of getting it, too.

Just checking in now. Waaaiiiiiiiit a minute. You mean, Javy has a high pitch count, is working slowly and getting nicked for runs? Big-time surprises. I mean, huge.

QUOTE(SoxFanForever @ Apr 5, 2008 -> 04:14 PM) His uniform is so tight it is crying.

QUOTE(Greg The Bull Luzinski @ Apr 5, 2008 -> 04:11 PM) Having pictures of Ozzie and Timo together could be the olnly possible reason Toby Hall is on this team. Toby Hall is terrible. I loved how, in the last week of Spring Training, Ozzie and Kenny called Toby in and asked him if he was healthy. He said yes, and they believed him. So he's on the team. NOTE TO THE BRAINTRUST: IF YOU HAVE TO ASK YOUR BACKUP CATCHER IF HE'S HEALTHY, THAT MEANS -- NO MATTER THE ANSWER -- HE'S NOT PLAYING WELL, JUST LIKE LAST YEAR. SO DON'T PUT HIM ON THE TEAM.

QUOTE(SoxFanForever @ Apr 5, 2008 -> 04:03 PM) Gavin struggling to find the strike zone and pays for it. I hate god damn Inge. He only hits off of us I swear. Some solid nibbling by Gavin results in a 2-run home run by Inge.

QUOTE(Balta1701 @ Apr 4, 2008 -> 09:22 PM) Even as a person who wanted to see Fields get the job...the 6 k's in his first 8 AB's at AAA this season aren't anything to write home about yet. Maybe he does have some stuff to work on there, even if it's just brief. This has been a problem for him since he came up in 2006 and, to some extent, last year: for all of his power, he actually has kind of a slider-speed bat. Good eye, short swing -- but slow through the zone. It's not usually the breaking stuff that gets him; it's letter-high fastballs.

QUOTE(ChWRoCk2 @ Apr 3, 2008 -> 04:35 PM) He will never make the HOF. Hes an older player, gonna need to string together a lot of strong years to even be considered. Who cares we didn't get him, they overpaid for his contract, I'd rather have a younger guy in Alexei personally. Yeah, I wasn't really being serious there.

QUOTE(fathom @ Apr 3, 2008 -> 02:30 PM) That was a lame excuse...he was Cubs bound all along. Just so you guys know, I've booked my room at Cooperstown for July 2020. I want to be there when Fukudome is inducted. Let me know if you want in on a block of rooms.

QUOTE(Dick Allen @ Apr 2, 2008 -> 07:43 PM) Don't worry about the umpires. Mike Port is looking into it. If only that were the case. Of course, if such a thing were to happen as to the call on Crede at 1st base, I think what you'd find is that an umpire was cold, wanted to go home, and would make any call that would speed that along. Or he could just be terrible. Either way.

QUOTE(G&T @ Apr 2, 2008 -> 07:35 PM) It wasn't. The Sox can lose games on their own. The umps don't need to help. Harold almost showed emotion. Almost.

QUOTE(fathom @ Apr 2, 2008 -> 07:05 PM) He had a good year last year, but it didn't dispell the theory that he's not a clutch pitcher. Relying on him to be the core of our rotation is no sure thing. Amen, brother.

QUOTE(Wanne @ Apr 2, 2008 -> 07:00 PM) Oh please... Please what? This is how a man gets a career record of .500. That is his career record, right?

QUOTE(knightni @ Apr 2, 2008 -> 06:54 PM) Javy will be lucky to make it through the 6th tonight. What else is new? This is the Javier Vazquez experience -- no sack, nibbling, running up his pitch count. But, yeah, we have some real starting pitching depth.

QUOTE(fathom @ Mar 31, 2008 -> 04:13 PM) If it makes you feel better, Dotel will likely be on the DL in a few weeks, and Wasserman will be back up. The way things have gone with the personnel decisions, if Dotel goes down, I think you should prepare yourself for Sisco.

QUOTE(joeynach @ Mar 31, 2008 -> 04:11 PM) Wow I can not think of a worse pitch to throw to Blake there, a fastball down the middle running middle in about shin high, great pitch Dotel, honestly great pitch. Would anyone have rather seen Ehren Wasserman pitching to Blake there? Yeah, me too. Oh, well. Viva Dotel.

Paul Konerko grounds to third. Let history note: on Opening Day, we got the year's first Konerko head-drop, shoulder-shrug.

QUOTE(daa84 @ Mar 31, 2008 -> 01:27 PM) mark is getting lit up...it looks like the tribe knows whats coming... Coop'll fix it. In other news, it looks like Masset will get some work right away.

QUOTE(JorgeFabregas @ Mar 29, 2008 -> 09:21 PM) Oh my. I figure Alexei is the Sox' fourth-best centerfielder, defensively. Alexei is afraid of the wall. That's not so good.

QUOTE(Want2Repeat @ Mar 29, 2008 -> 05:20 PM) Huge game for Uribe, if K's count. Whoops. Meant to respond to this one!

QUOTE(santo=dorf @ Mar 29, 2008 -> 05:20 PM) Thome up to make the third out.

Joe Morgan holding forth. I have no idea what he's talking about.

QUOTE(Balta1701 @ Mar 29, 2008 -> 04:12 PM) David Wright singles on a ball blooped in front of Swisher. For the first time this season, I get to say "Anderson would have had that" and mean it. Beltran homers. Wright scores. And that's how bad defense costs a run without an error.

Greatest misconception in Chicago broadcasting: Steve Stone was typically critical of the Cubs when he was in the booth. He wasn't. He got into trouble with Mercker and the like in 2004 because those guys had very thin skin, and Baker and Stoney had a personal beef. But there were many, many years when Steve Stone was Cub shill and rooter all the way. And Mariotti's a turd.