Dick Allen

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Jan 18, 2014 -> 02:02 PM) Wow. Who cares? The fact is Tanaka is regarded as a great pitcher by people who get paid a lot of money determining these things. Acquiring him helps the White Sox win, and the bonus is it may sting the Cubs a lot. And since a lot have jumped off their bandwagon, and they could be leaving WGN, it is no guarantee all their games will be seen by everyone after this year by just paying for basic cable. It is an opportunity to pounce on the people looking for a winner to cheer for. If you are a White Sox fan, you should care. Although in the end, I think it is one reason the Cubs might throw crazy money at him. Enough where even if he thought the White Sox situation was better, it would be next to impossible to say no.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Jan 18, 2014 -> 01:44 PM) Why? we play them what, 3 games a year? The star is dimming on Theo. This, if it worked out, would be a huge blow to them and quite a large feather in the White Sox cap. It also would probably cost the Cubs some money in their upcomindpg broadcast negotiations.

QUOTE (ewokpelts @ Jan 17, 2014 -> 04:18 PM) well, he's no longer under a contract. i think the team health care plan ends when you are not on the roster. which is why i see someone like jerry floating a minor league deal on him. If it did, I am sure he had COBRA or some sort of alternate coverage. This is no doubt union coverage and I think very unlikely he is paying any medical bills.

QUOTE (pettie4sox @ Jan 17, 2014 -> 02:54 PM) The Japanese education has mandatory English for students at a very young age (I've seen kindergarten). Most Japanese people speak English but are too shy to actually use it in the presence of an American. This is due to the fact that Japanese people are very prideful and to be ridiculed and shamed is very devastating to them. For the sake of modesty, Tanaka is saying his family doesn't speak English because it couldn't be further from the truth. I know some Americans that have a hard time with English.

QUOTE (timbo @ Jan 17, 2014 -> 02:34 PM) yeah he needs to adjst beucae of his work style I read an article that said his "style" was more American than most Japanese pitchers. He pitches off his fastball, which I guess isn't common in Japan. That should help catchers call games, and pitching coaches (hopefully it's Cooper) communicate. I do have a serious question. Supposedly he doesn't speak English. Will MLB allow a translator to go to the mound with a coach or manager to talk to him? To me, this could be a huge issue during a game. Even when a catcher has to go out there.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Jan 17, 2014 -> 02:30 PM) Jon Morosi ‏@jonmorosi 6m The Tigers were prepared to pick Clayton Kershaw at No. 6 overall in 2006 draft until Andrew Miller fell to them. That's a shame. But didn't Miller get them Cabrera?

QUOTE (timbo @ Jan 17, 2014 -> 02:30 PM) say the sox get tanaka how much cooper will help him pitch in majors I think Tanaka will be doing his own pitching.

What would happen if the Cubs got Tanaka but the posting fee check bounced? If they are carpooling to save money, there must not be much cash on hand. I worked somewhere where they told us to start printing on both sides of the paper. We weren't around too much longer.

QUOTE (KyYlE23 @ Jan 17, 2014 -> 02:17 PM) Well, Joe Cowley is coming on in a few minutes to discuss the bulls, so I bet he is feeding Bernstein valuable white sox information he got from the Guillen family I'd love for Cowley to take some calls. I'd like to ask him what happened to his column.

QUOTE (Quinarvy @ Jan 17, 2014 -> 02:17 PM) But Phil Rogers said to always bet the streak! Now I'm conflicted. Thanks. I wonder why Phil didn't bet the streak when Dave Wilder was feeding him bogus information on White Sox prospects.

QUOTE (timbo @ Jan 17, 2014 -> 02:10 PM) why do you believe bernstain does he a a source to back it up Of course. He hasn't been correct yet about Sox stuff. But he's due.

KW has to be lying. Bernstein said the Sox were backing off.

I hope Manning wins. He seems pretty cool and I think takes a bad rap for winning "only" one Super Bowl. The other game, I think Seattle will win but if it's SF, I wouldn't mind. I know Harbaugh comes off as a chooch sometimes, but when he was with the Bears, I played in a card game with him once, and he was really nice. He didn't seem like the sharpest knife in the drawer, but he sure has been a successful coach. And you should win some points for wearing $8 Walmart pants on national television.

QUOTE (Boogua @ Jan 17, 2014 -> 12:15 PM) And Kansas gets much more exposure than Illinois. I think that has leveled off, especially for a Chicago guy. With the Big Ten Network and ESPN, Cliff's friends and family could catch just about every one of his games on TV, and as for pro scouts, they will be at every game he plays regardless. The Big Ten might suck right now on the gridiron, but they are a top of the line baskeball conference.

I thought Jermaine Dye was a mistake.

Cliff's mom on his decision. Doesn't mention Kansas tradition: Added his mother, Latillia Alexander: “John Groce is great. I know, most definitely, John Groce would care for him on and off the court, but I think (Kansas coach) Bill Self will get him to the next level.”

QUOTE (The Ginger Kid @ Jan 17, 2014 -> 12:00 PM) I'm surprised I haven't heard Keppinger's name mentioned with the Yankees need for a 3B. They had interest in him last season. Unfortunately, the Yankees probably saw him play last season.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Jan 17, 2014 -> 11:11 AM) Again, this is the difference between a Kansas and an Illinois. I agree with that, but if you already have the coach that Kansas wants, you are probably in good shape. And my stance is the coach makes a difference. IMO, coaches have a fondness for the Blue Blood schools, not necessarily the players. Many believe the pinnacle of their profession is Kansas, Kentucky, UNC. If Kansas sells itself to players, there really would be no need to pay big money to a big name coach. Self at Illinois for a 20-25 year run would have been happy times for Illini fans. Probably a lot like Izzo in East Lansing. Multiple Final Fours.

QUOTE (Jenksismyb**** @ Jan 17, 2014 -> 10:42 AM) See also, Mike Davis at Indiana, Bruce Weber at Illinois, Tubby at Kentucky, Matt Doherty at UNC, etc. But really those blue blood programs like Kentucky/Kansas/UNC are only down for so long. That's where the "school" becomes so important. It becomes important because look at who they can hire. They don't get the hot MAC coach to take over.

I know the Mariners have Japanese ownership and have wooed Japanese players in the past, but if I had to bet about being unprepared, my money is on Jack Z.

QUOTE (southside hitman @ Jan 17, 2014 -> 09:20 AM) It makes me suspicious that this is a race that the front office intents to "come up just short" on. I don't doubt that we will make an offer, but this reeks of being happy to have a dog in the fight. Hahn has talked a lot about being more "active" in the international market and reshaping the franchise. Tanaka is a perfect example of a guy we at least have to create some press releases about. Also, anyone notice how quickly this has killed all the Sale trade speculation? We went from discussing the pros and cons of effectively tanking for the foreseeable future to building a contender in 2014. Either way, it's a brilliant move by the front office and it will most likely will cost them nothing. I don't think so. I think they are going to their limits to land him. They have been in on guys like Soler even Fukudome they offered more money than the Cubs. 25 year old, potential ace, all it costs you is money is exactly what rebuilding teams with not a lot of future contract committments should be looking for. If, and it is a huge if this guy is as good as hoped, and say the Sox draft Hoffman #3. Rondon is compared to David Price, and I read 2 scouting reports that say Hoffman can get to that level of effectiveness. These are all ifs that couldn't be any bigger, but if they all remained healthy, you are looking at Sale, Tanaka, Hoffman, Quintana, Johnson or whomever else for a long stretch. That is 1990s-2000s Atlanta Braves. If any of the young offensive players reaches their potential, it would be a team that would be expected to make the playoffs year in and year out for quite a while.

So the Octomom fails to report $30k in income and could get a couple of years locked up. Ty Warner doesn't pay taxes on $25 million and gets a couple of years of probation. If there is one thing in the world to ever not try to find something a little cheaper is a good lawyer. Always go with the best you can afford.

QUOTE (lasttriptotulsa @ Jan 17, 2014 -> 08:20 AM) When Jordan left to play baseball, Reinsdorf honored his basketball contract and paid Jordan $4 million to be a minor league player. JR still came out way ahead on that deal. MJ made JR a lot more money than JR could pay MJ.

I'm with the can't believe KW is spilling the beans crowd. Even if the Sox offer isn't up to snuff, it has to be very significant. A lot more than they have ever offered anyone.

QUOTE (HickoryHuskers @ Jan 17, 2014 -> 07:57 AM) Forty years ago today, UCLA won their 88th consecutive game with a 66-44 win over Iowa. That same day, one of my father's co-workers offered him a ticket to that Saturday's UCLA @ Notre Dame game because his wife didn't want him driving over 1½ hours to South Bend in the middle of winter. Did he take it?