Friend of Nordhagen

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.

QUOTE(Dick Allen @ Dec 12, 2007 -> 03:12 PM) I think Dye and Buerhle may be the last "hometown discounts" KW will ever get done. Nah. Pablo will sign for less.

QUOTE(hitlesswonder @ Dec 12, 2007 -> 03:02 PM) I really think you are wrong there. This greatly increases the chance that the Sox trade for Crisp or Pierre or Bay (and put Quentin in AAA this year). And the only thing the Sox have to trade are Fields, Gio and DLS...so I'd get ready to say goodbye to at least one of the Sox 3 top prospects if not more. Yeah, I'm excited about overpaying with prospects for Bay. I mean, it'd be great to diversify our team by getting a slower guy who strikes out 140 times a year. We need more guys like that. Crisp, too. He's a grinder and such. Awesome.

QUOTE(G&T @ Dec 12, 2007 -> 02:55 PM) How bout we wait to see the numbers before more complaining? Meanwhile, I'm suprised the Sox didn't up their bid. Not that Rowand is what this team needs. No, Torii Hunter was. Good thing we came up short on that one.

QUOTE(G&T @ Dec 12, 2007 -> 02:55 PM) How bout we wait to see the numbers before more complaining? Meanwhile, I'm suprised the Sox didn't up their bid. Not that Rowand is what this team needs. You know what's sad? As bad as things have gone the past few weeks, Williams is having a better off-season this year than last year. He's at least upgraded shortstop. Last year, he needed a new LF, CF and SS. But he DID ABSOLUTELY NOTHING BUT CRY AND WHINE AND ACQUIRE ANDREW SISCO. He's paying for it now. Oh, so are we.

QUOTE(iamshack @ Dec 12, 2007 -> 09:35 AM) Another factor was that he wanted to be the first Japanese player to play for the Cubs. Thus, he requested uniform #1. Another player who for some reason believes that the Cubs have a rich tradition. To most of these guys, that's what not winning a pennant in 60 years means. I've never understood this, and I never will. I must go to sleep now.

QUOTE(NorthSideSox72 @ Dec 12, 2007 -> 08:19 AM) The funny thing about that headline is, the only reason Hendry has "deep pockets" is that he is spending someone else's money. Its an odd position to be in, but there it is. He basically has NO pockets, just a pile of phantom cash to spend. All this talk about Jim Hendry's pockets is disturbing.

QUOTE(Vance Law @ Dec 12, 2007 -> 12:16 AM) Thank you. Of course he's overpaid. He was a free agent. I'm still waiting for anyone to give one single instance of a free agent (without injury concerns) not getting overpaid. This is right. I think the reason that folks often say that a team "overpaid" is because they compare to whatever contracts were given the year before. But the market increases every SINGLE year -- no matter what Kenny Williams thinks. That's why you can look back and see guys like Reggie Jackson and Joe Rudi, in the first free agent crop, getting about $500,000 a year. That seems silly now. And it's because we understand, intuitively, that the market increases. In fact, the only time that the market didn't increase was 1987 -- and the reason was collusion. That doesn't mean that there aren't bad signings. But there's risk in almost any enterprise. So -- you either go along, or you build another way. But if you're a GM or an owner, you don't whine about it. You don't like it? Find another line of work.

QUOTE(Dick Allen @ Dec 11, 2007 -> 10:01 PM) And the drunks in the RF bleachers will be shown bowing to him constantly next summer. God, this is so true.

QUOTE(fathom @ Dec 11, 2007 -> 09:51 PM) KW failed last offseason, he failed last season, and he's doing awful so far this season. Can't we promote him to some higher position, and let someone else take over? Something that's killed us in our trade chances this offseason is how bad all the young arms we acquired last year have been. Bingo. Last year's Kenny Williams cry-baby-fest about "the market" and "a correction" resulted in Aardsma, Sisco and Heartburn. About 72 wins -- and only 72 wins - later, we're a bottom-feeder and look like it: you think Torii Hunter and Fukudume couldn't see that? Thanks, Kenny, for your plan last year. It's been a boon for this year, too.