Dick Allen

QUOTE(ptatc @ Feb 25, 2008 -> 02:19 PM) This is true. In the minors Crede was known as a good hit-no field 3B. As was Ventura at OSU. A lot more guys considered bad fielders in the minors continue to be bad fielders than the amount of bad fielders who turn into GG quality guys.

QUOTE(almagest @ Feb 25, 2008 -> 02:23 PM) Let's settle this once and for all -- Crede's dad vs. Fields' in a no-holds-barred television free-for-all! "My Dad is Better Than Your Dad", Mondays at 9/8 C on NBC. I met Crede's dad during spring training a couple of years ago. He was really nice. Probably still is.

QUOTE(southsideirish71 @ Feb 25, 2008 -> 01:57 PM) Funny in the wayback machine, we were talking about how much of a stud that Ventura was and how Crede wasn't near his offensive prowess and how could Crede take over for the defensive wizardry that Ventura showed. Now a few years later, people act like Crede was a gold glover coming up. In 2002 Crede received his first taste of the big leagues, he had a 2.36 RF9(Range Factor for 9 innings played) with a zone rating of .766 while Fields had a 2.69 with a zone rating of .713. Crede had 8 errors in 53 games while Fields had 9 errors in 79 games. The almighty's Fielding Percentage was .938 for the god of Gold Glove while Fields has a .958. So as much as we remember the DVD's and the Hawk comparisons to Brooks Robinson, Mr. Crede wasnt Brooks out of the gate like some people believe. How did their offense compare?

His medical reports must be awful. Boston didn't have to give him any guaranteed money.

QUOTE(Leonard Zelig @ Feb 24, 2008 -> 02:52 PM) LaRussa's made similar moves. He did move the pitcher to the 8th spot, but did he move his 3 and 4 hitters up a spot?

QUOTE(The Beast @ Feb 24, 2008 -> 12:01 PM) I do not play World of Warcraft, so stop saying that I do. I do know why some people make different decisions, but I'm just saying, it's hard to hang with people on the weekends when they are drinking and you are trying to have an intellectual conversation with someone. Regardless of what the belief is, it is STILL against the law. What the heck is this supposed to mean? When I was going away to school, I knew what I was going to do, and that was to maintain my relationship with my girlfriend when I was going away. I do not feel like doing this whole, going to a party or hanging around people who are drinking kind of thing. When I'm 21, I probably will have a beer or two when I watch a baseball game, but I'm really not one to like to go to bars or go hang with people who are drinking to get drunk. I've never been around people drinking underaged and I've never in my 19 years of existence had a drink in my life. The life I want to live is what I have right now, with a healthy relationship (which I will not go out and ruin by doing said things), a close family, a few close friends, hobbies, a job when I return home, and just overall, the life I want is not too shabby. No need to change things, IMO. And I'm not going to go hit on some girl or drink and do something I regret to hurt things in my relationship---that would just be dumb. I guess I think a lot of people at my campus are not in control of their drinking, so that makes things ridiculously idiotic. I am social without drinking and hang around others who don't as well, and as I mentioned, things are going well in my life, so there's no need to change to drink, among other things. When I went to college, I drank underage, I joined a fraternity, got hammered a lot. It really never affected my grades as far as I could tell, and really the people I was around were doing the same thing as me so I really never even thought how my behavior would affect others in the bars and restaurants and parties where I was drunk, although I was a happy one. Now several years out of college, I don't drink that much, maybe a couple of beers at a game, or some cocktails at a party. There are a few occassions when I know I'm probably going to be overserved, so I'm pretty much prepared for it. The thing is, when I go to places sober like I used to go in hammered and see people acting like I did, to a point I see they are just having fun, but in a way I do see your point of view. While I was a lot different than you when I was a student, and may not totally agree with all of your views, I do admire you sticking to you them.

QUOTE(thedoctor @ Feb 23, 2008 -> 11:03 PM) it's really not all that difficult to get a drinking "ticket" at the u of i. So that makes it OK.

Ned Yost, a questionable manager at best in my mind, is thinking about doing something that sounds interesting. Jason Kendall batting 9th, and moving Braun and Fielder from 3/4 to 2/3. Theoretically it should provide a couple more AB for those 2. If it works, we probably will see it with a lot of NL teams.

QUOTE(thedoctor @ Feb 23, 2008 -> 03:38 PM) i think there's a big difference between beating women and dui. that's just me. From wiki In 2002 Pierce was charged with third degree sexual abuse. At a parole hearing in 2005, he described the event, "It was a friend I knew."[1] Pierce eventually pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of assault causing injury. Pierce sat out the 2002-2003 season, completed 200 hours of community service, a year of supervised probation, and counseling. Afterwards, since he had successfully completed the terms of his plea bargain, the charge was expunged from his record. Since Pierce had no prior criminal record, he was held out of competition for one season, taking a redshirt year, but he was allowed to remain on the team. That decision sparked a number of campus protests by students, who wanted Pierce removed from the team. The protests also objected to what some felt was excessive involvement by school officials and Coach Steve Alford in mediating the criminal charges against Pierce. [2] Misdemeanor, no jail time on the first offense, expunged from his record, doesn't even seem to be as serious as Smith's, using your criteria, and we all deserve a second chance. He got to redshirt, just like Jamar. At least with him there was a he said/she said leaving doubt. Smith was plastered and almost killed Carwell who was in the hospital for 4 days with a bad concussion. I believe he spent time in ICU, but drunk driving is fine, boys will be boys. Whether he was charged with it or not, Smith was quilty of more than just your run of the mill DUI, and Pierce made Alford look the fool for sticking up for him. Once again, if either of them were average or below average players for their schools, they both would have been long gone hours after these incidents occurred.

QUOTE(Soxbadger @ Feb 23, 2008 -> 03:20 PM) How about once again you leave out KEY FACTS; http://sports.propeller.com/story/2006/08/...mith-from-vols/ GRADE TAMPERING and INAPPROPRIATE RELATIONSHIP. This seems like a 3rd strike your out, not a first time offender.... You have no clue about any of these players, you have no clue about Smith. You have something against U of I because they suspended your father, and you think that it gives you some entitlement to say they should be handling things better. When in reality first time offenders almost never get kicked off the team. :shrugs: At least be so considerate to find us situations that are analogous instead of easily distinguishable. (Edit) Damn Dr you were quicker than me. I suppose you guys also had no problem with the way Iowa handled Pierre Pierce.

QUOTE(Soxbadger @ Feb 23, 2008 -> 03:20 PM) How about once again you leave out KEY FACTS; http://sports.propeller.com/story/2006/08/...mith-from-vols/ GRADE TAMPERING and INAPPROPRIATE RELATIONSHIP. This seems like a 3rd strike your out, not a first time offender.... You have no clue about any of these players, you have no clue about Smith. You have something against U of I because they suspended your father, and you think that it gives you some entitlement to say they should be handling things better. When in reality first time offenders almost never get kicked off the team. :shrugs: At least be so considerate to find us situations that are analogous instead of easily distinguishable. (Edit) Damn Dr you were quicker than me. A focus of an investigation, not charged with anything. In fact, an inappropriate relationship with a teacher may be something where he's the victim. The other one the guy's first offense was underage drinking. Smith was drinking underage, was originally charged with a felony, and allowed to stay on the team. In fact, Weber went so far as to call his sitting out the remainder of last season a mutual decision. He couldn't even call that a suspension. So technically Smith has never even been suspended for his felony arrest. He's not suspended this year, its a redshirt hoping people's memories will fade. I just used my father as an example. I do hate the U of I, not because of that, in fact I hated them long before my dad even told me about his deal. He went back after a year, and he became a lawyer too.. I actually like Weber. I don't think a below average player would get the same punishment as Smith. If its 3 strikes you're out, underage drinking, that's 1, dui, that's 2, leaving the scene of an accident, that's 3.

QUOTE(thedoctor @ Feb 23, 2008 -> 03:09 PM) you left the end of the story out, not surprisingly. here it is: again, this was smith's first offense. How about this one: Another football player at a distinguished college program is also dealing with the consequences of a DUI. University of Tennessee freshman tight end Lee Smith was charged with DUI, and was subsequently dismissed from the team. Smith was arrested after he was found driving on the sidewalk along the university's campus. Coach Phillip Fulmer made the decision to dismiss Smith, telling the Sporting News that he had "embarrassed this great university and not presented [himself] in a manner that appropriately represents our program." First offense. Do you really think if the 12th man on the team was the driver he would have received the same "penalty" as Smith?

QUOTE(thedoctor @ Feb 23, 2008 -> 02:19 PM) i don't think the code of conduct specifies immediate expulsion for a student who is convicted of drunken driving, which is the offense they would review in regards to any punishment since that is his charge. in fact, if the university hasn't made practice of dismissing first-time dui offenders, they would likely be setting themselves up for a lawsuit. now, i understand the circumstances surrounding the incident (although i think people have taken many, many liberties with what happened that not, mainly off of hearsay and message board chatter) have made it exceptionally unsavory. i get that. but again, as i stated earlier on this issue, if smith knowingly and willingly "left a teammate to die" then why was he so roundly supported by the people who were there and knew what happened that night, including brian carlwell himself? to me, that reaction speaks volumes about what happened. none of that is to absolve smith of anything. but i also think it's bunk to suggest he wasn't punished or got off easy in the context of how college athletes are routinely punished for dui's. i'd say there are very, very few occasions where players are suspended for an entire year, let alone a year and a half. certainly the circumstances of the night dictated a more severe penalty than normal, but to me the penalty he received is above and beyond any punishment i've seen for a dui case at any other school. if you can cite other instances where a similar penalty was dispensed, i'm all for hearing about it. The Tennessee punter got suspended for 5 games and lost his scholarship and his accident didn't hurt anybody, and he didn't compound his mistake like Smith did. From USA Today: KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Tennessee punter Britton Colquitt was suspended for five games and lost his scholarship after he was arrested on charges of DUI and leaving the scene of an accident early Sunday morning. The 22-year-old hit a parked car around 2 a.m. ET and then fled the scene, said Lt. Mark Pressley, a Knoxville police spokesman. "I am very disappointed that Britton doesn't appreciate the blessings he has been given from his family and his team," coach Phillip Fulmer said in a press release announcing the suspension Sunday evening. "Along with the five-game suspension, I am taking his scholarship away and he will be required to undergo alcohol counseling as well as other internal punishments." Pressley said Monday night that Colquitt was visibly intoxicated and could not complete field sobriety tests.

QUOTE(thedoctor @ Feb 23, 2008 -> 01:38 PM) flaws in the system? sure. it's still the best one out there. as i am sure i don't have to tell you, in our country "justice" is dictated by the judicial system, not the wants, opinions, or wishes of individuals. considering the concept of "justice" probably would get a different answer from just about anyone, i think it's absolutely just that flawed or not, our judicial system makes those calls. and in that regard, in our system, america's system, smith most certainly received a just punishment as defined by the laws of our country. now, if you want to debate the validity of that system, that's another topic probably best off for the filibuster. The University still could have stepped in and took away his scholarship. It would be interesting to see how many students have been kicked out of the U of I the past couple of years and what their offenses were. Someone getting a free ride should be held to even a higher standard IMO to keep the free ride. I think Smith's punishment was weak, but he really wasn't punished by the University. He had a redshirt year, big deal. I think Smith should have been thrown off the team, or at the very least, had his scholarship taken away and let him stay on the team and in school if he wanted to pay his way. Who knows maybe the same booster who paid for his defense would pay for his tuition.

QUOTE(Balta1701 @ Feb 21, 2008 -> 12:00 PM) Of course...the other problem with that statement is that our pen is now pretty darn full. In fact, we have more pitchers out there than we have spots for. Jenks, Thornton, MMac, Dotel, Linebrink, Logan...Wasserman, and Masset. And for the icing on the cake...Masset is also out of options, and lord knows we're not going to want him walking for nothing either. So Wasserman is probably the odd man out as the righty with minor league options left, so I think he'll start the season in the minors. But if you want to stick Floyd out there...either you do so and wind up with only 1 lefty because you send Logan down as he's the only other guy with options remaining, or you cut Masset. In other words, thanks to the Dotel signing, the bullpen isn't an option for these guys either until rosters expand/someone hits the DL. Why are you so high on Masset? He is 17 games under .500 in his minor league career with a WHIP of 1.47 and an ERA of 4.53. In the major leagues his ERA is 6.35. He has a hard time with control. I'm not ripping you, I'm just curious. Unless he shows a ton this spring, you may be the only one losing sleep over his walking away for nothing.

QUOTE(Jenksismyb**** @ Feb 23, 2008 -> 11:13 AM) A) I don't think Soxbadger was talking about the "cream of the crop" applicants. If you have a school that has a 3.0 gpa for its entire student body, which increases to 3.5 because their sports programs are doing well, you're not getting the "cream of the crop" but you're certaintly getting much better students than you had before. Anyone denying the role of sports in the selection of a school (not THE factor, but certainly an important one) probably also believes that bball and football players are actually "student athletes." B) I'm pretty sure McPhearson was also caught with firearms, which yes, makes it much more serious than Smith. And you still haven't addressed the point that the State didn't punish Smith severly, not even as severly as McPhearson. Instead they gave him, what, like 2 weeks in jail and a couple years probation. I think the mental state required to drink and drive (and make stupid decisions thereafter) is much less than the mental state required to have guns and rob people. Soxbadger: attorneys/soon to be attorneys unite! (and I have the Bar in 3 days, I'm starting to freak out!) Didn't some fugitive who shot a cop and left him partially paralyzed 40 years ago get sentenced to 30 days? The punishment doesn't often match the crime. There are flaws in the system. Smith probably got a little break for being an Illini basketball player considered to be a nice piece of the team. If Weber had thrown him off the team like Zook did McPhearson, it wouldn't surprise me that Smith wouldn't have even been offered a plea, or if he was, one that was a little more harsh. The university could still have taken action. People get thrown off teams all the time for things less serious than almost killing someone. I once was injured in a head on collision with a drunk driver. He crossed the center line and nailed me directly. There actually was a cop right behind me that saw the whole thing. It turned out my car was totalled, he had no insurance. I went to observe his court appearance and actually talked to the prosecutor who informed me he had no prior convictions, that they were dropping the charges. I was disgusted. I asked her how he would ever get an offense if it required a prior to procede. He probably would have had to kill me, just like Smith probably would have had to kill Carwell for any type of real justice to be served.

QUOTE(Soxbadger @ Feb 23, 2008 -> 03:47 AM) Um what are you talking about? Ivy league schools take their sports very seriously, they offer "scholarships" (they are "need" based, not based on "athleticism"). Ever heard of Dan Jiggets, he went to Harvard... Where did I say that the reason those schools offer great education is because of sports? I said that they get national recognition, which leads to getting better applicants, which leads to the school improving its national rank, which then improves its prestige. Not to mention you are comparing ivy league schools to INDIANA which is not even a top 50 school. Ivy league schools get the best of the best in terms of applicants, every single kid I knew that went to ivy league never even cared about sports, so the fact that their school wasnt a sports school didnt matter. Conversely Big 10 schools, which are for much more mainstream students, sports does play an important role in how people decide to go to school. Case in point, The year before Wisconsin went to the Final Four, 5 people went to University of Wisconsin from my HS. The year Wisconsin went to the Final Four over 20 people went to Wisconsin. These were all the same type of students, except more started choosing Wisconsin over Michigan.... Well all the large alumni donors I know donate for the sports programs. /shrugs. Its funny you bring up Indiana. When I was visiting there all they wanted to talk about was basketball and the 1986 championship and how there is still one fish or something missing from the fountain. The entire time I was there all they wanted to sell me on was their basketball program. The same can be said for Wisconsin, Michigan, and Illinois. (all wanting to sell sports) I cant remember 1 of them even talking about their academics, when they were trying to get me to decide which school to go to, all they wanted to tell me about was which was the highest rated party school, which had the best football team, which one had the library rated by playboy as the best place to pick up girls, etc. Not exactly sure what school you went to, but Indiana whom offered me an academic scholarship, never once tried to sell me on their academics. Jimbo, I know, but a warrant is a warrant in the eyes of the law. I just was pointing out every program has problems (not saying Self is a bad guy or anything). Just that generally the team stands by its player. 101, An odd time where we agree. Im not saying sports are the most important thing, but to many of the applicants sports is more important than academic rank. When you are talking the difference between Purdue and Iowa this year, (both ranked 64 by US News) what will be the determining factor for many who get accepted into both? My experience has been the sports program. Most college students dont even know the major they are going to be taking, let alone are selecting schools for certain programs. What they know, what they hear, is about sports. I have a real hard time believing most of the cream of the crop non athlete students base their college choice on the success of a football or basketball team. Maybe in the mid to late 80s it helped schools a little bit before cable really exploded because only the top sports schools were on television all the time and basically received free advertising. BTW, McPhearson the Illini WR that Zook threw off the team for stealing a laptop, of course a far more serious crime than aggravated drunk driving in your book was sentenced to 180 days in prison. Smith only got a few weeks on a plea deal. Carwell was in the hospital for 4 days with a serious concusion, Smith initially thought he was dead, so like the coward he is, he ran. Smith gets a redshirt, so free room and board, free tuition, free books this year. There's something very slimey with that, and you know it. If he were projected to be a guy who scores 4 points a game, he would have lost his scholarship, most likely wouldn't have received the plea deal, and his life would be screwed. Certainly if you think Smith's offense is worthy of a second chance, you probably think McPhearson should have been slapped on the wrist.

QUOTE(Soxbadger @ Feb 22, 2008 -> 02:27 PM) Carlwell did not die, so its pretty irrelevant what penalty would be appropriate if he had died. It would be like saying: "Well I got in an accident, and it could have been way worse. Luckily nothing really happened, but can I sue the other driver for the terrible things that may have happened?" No you cant. The facts are Carlwell was not seriously injured. Carlwell decided to get in the car he was not forced. He made a decision to get into the car and put his life at risk. In my opinion he is almost as guilty as Smith, he could have stopped Smith from driving, he could have said no to the ride. In the end "could have" is all that it is. No you dont know. Your father was kicked out for 1 year, so what. Not every crime or criminal is treated the same way. Was your father in school in the last 10 years (no) so its not the same time, its not the same administration, its not the same attitude towards drinking. I was caught using a fake ID 3 times when I went to Madison. I never even had to talk with the Administration, I was not put on probation, I was not suspended, no one cared. My roommate was given multiple public drinking tickets, he was never suspended, placed on probation, etc. My other roommate was caught smoking dope by the RA, he was never disciplined, reported, or placed on probation. I kept an illegal alligator in my apartment for a year, I was never placed on any sort of probation. The only time I slightly got reported was: Failure to go downstairs on a false fire alarm. And even that went away. So just because you have 1 example of where the administration was tough, there are a thousand of other examples where they just dont care. Im sure that there are people who want to U of I here and who got drinking tickets or there id's taken and were not suspended. So you cant just use your own personal experience to paint the administration. Well thats your first problem. Cheating is not enforced by law makers, its enforced by the NCAA. I dont know of any illinois statute that says its against the law to make phone calls to recruit, care to find me one? The problem is you keep comparing apples and oranges. One being handled by the state and the school. The other being handled by the NCAA. See how those are not the same entities, the NCAA is not the state of Illinois, and the state of Illinois is not the NCAA. So if the NCAA feels cheating is worse than drunk driving, thats THEIR problem. Perhaps you should talk to the NCAA and say that players who are caught drinking and driving should be suspended and lose eligibility to play in the NCAA, they have the power to do that. And you shouldnt be upset im not a lawmaker, the lawmakers clearly agree with me as Jamar Smith already has been charged by the state of Illinois and that case has come to its conclusion. So clearly the state of Illinois feels that what Jamar Smith did was not that bad either.... The only people that seem to have a problem are those who either: A) Dislike Bruce Weber B ) Dislike Illinois Because Leonard Little of the Stl Rams actually killed some one while driving drunk and all he received was a slap on the wrist, not sure why Smith should be held to a higher standard... http://www.usatoday.com/sports/football/nf...e-charged_x.htm Yeah Little not only killed some one in 1999, but then six years later in 2004 was again arrested for drunk driving. But I dont hear any one of you on a crusade against him.... If there wasn't the "everyone deserves a second chance" attitude like you have perhaps Little wouldn't get another DUI, but there's really little one can do to keep him from driving unless you have him behind bars. You can send a message to Smith and any other U of I athlete by kicking his ass off the team or at least stripping away his scholarship. I like Bruce Weber. I do think his recruiting failure is why Smith wasn't kicked off the team. If he could bring players in like Self could, Smith wouldn't be needed so they would have done the right thing. How Smith could affect the record of the Illini basketball team was a huge factor in his "punishment." There is something terribly wrong with that. Of course I'm a guy who thinks schools should not lower their admission standards for the sake of their basketball and football records. I think in a way it cheapens everyone's degree.

QUOTE(Soxbadger @ Feb 22, 2008 -> 01:39 PM) Care to explain? The University of Illinois makes the policy on whether a student should be suspended, kicked out, etc. The only thing Weber was in charge of was with Smith in terms of the basketball program. If Weber's bosses said this is how to handle the situation, why would they fire him when he did what he was told? Personally I dont think Weber did anything wrong. In my opinion drinking and driving is not the worst crime in the world, and yes something bad happened, but if everyone on the team and within the Administration feels that Smith's punishment should be X, thats what it should be. Well people do care about whats happening in Illinois, its just not against any rules, so why would people be outraged? DUI's happen all the time, im sure that plenty of people in the NCAA etc have gotten a DUI. A DUI is not an NCAA problem, it is a state of Illinois problem. The state of Illinois could have sent Jamar Smith to jail, but it did not. The University of Illinois did not even have to suspend Smith. I guess my problem is that these are kids, and kids make mistakes. In college, especially at a campus like Illinois where you can get into bars at 19, underage drinking is common and accepted. People make mistakes and Smith is serving the time the University of Illinois and state of Illinois have deemed appropriate. Sampson is an adult. Sampson was specifically told by the NCAA to not do something. Sampson to benefit himself and his school chose to cheat, he chose to cheat to gain benefit for himself. That is far worse than making a mistake and driving in horrible conditions after you drank. I guess im not going to throw stones, because I am no better or worse than Smith or Carlwell. Maybe I wouldnt have left the scene, maybe I would have called the police, but I dont know, Ive panicked before Ive made the wrong decision, and I would hope that my friends, teammates, and coach could eventually forgive me. As for Carlwell being pushed out, so far Ive seen nothing to prove that. If anything Illinois wanted to keep him in the program, work with him to rehab him and get him back in shape. How is it pushing him out of the program to ask him to red shirt? Thats the exact opposite, its trying to protect and keep a player in the program. If your theory was true, Weber would have never wanted the red shirt because hed have wanted Carlwell's scholly off the books? Or maybe Weber wanted to keep Carlwell for another year next year, burn a scholarship on him, and then have Carlwell transfer after next season? Because thats basically what your arguing in terms of asking Carlwell to take a red shirt, since a red shirt keeps a player in the program an extra year.... Seems odd youd want to keep a player your trying to get rid of. :shrugs: People make mistakes, they should be given another chance. If Smith drank and drive again, hed be gone. I bet even if Smith is seen drinking under age he gone. Sampson had his chance, after his big problem not only did he not get kicked out of OU, he got a better job and a nice raise. Perhaps you can see the irony in an Indiana fan saying that a player should never get a second chance, because your University gave Sampson another chance.... Smith could have a second chance, that's debatable. If Carwell died because of Smith's carelessness would you feel the same? He shouldn't be going to school for free. If he were a regular student he would have been expelled, I know because my father went to U of I when he was 16. He got caught with a fake ID. He was thrown out of school for a year. I'm glad you aren't a lawmaker, , one where making phone calls is far worse than driving drunk, getting into an accident, and compounding your mistake by leaving your injured friend in the car to try and save your ass.

QUOTE(Controlled Chaos @ Feb 18, 2008 -> 10:38 AM) Can they issue a subpoena for that first draft?? Now there's a report someone who was 11 at the time took a picture and still has it of Clemens at the party. Rocket needs to go into hiding. Of course, there could be misremembering.

For everyone who thinks playing Toby Hall at 1st base last year was stupid, what are your thoughts about having MacDougal, a guy who throws hard, but even in midseason form a guy with very little command, pitching batting practice to major league players? Let him throw to some minor leaguers. If they aren't there yet, let him throw to those plastic dummies. You're just asking for trouble having him throw to people you are counting on, or looking to trade.

Here's Hawk Harrelson's top ten 1. KW 2. KW 3. KW 4. KW 5. KW 6. KW 7. KW 8. KW 9. KW 10. KW

QUOTE(WSoxMatt @ Feb 21, 2008 -> 08:40 PM) Geez, he is having visa problems, its not like he is on his couch watching oprah eating Bon Bons He was told to work on his visa early but apparently he waited until the last minute anyway. Ozzie is not happy Richar has this problem. He tends to hold grudges when young guys screw up off the field. That said, I don't think this is a too major of an offense depending on when he does arrive, but he probably has to clearly have a better spring than the others now to get the job at the beginning of the year. He might not have had to before. In other words, it probably went from a job that was his to lose to an open competition.

QUOTE(jenks45monster @ Feb 21, 2008 -> 05:46 PM) Personally, my worst was trading Chris Carter for Carlos Quentin. I just don't think Quentin will pan out as many think he will, and I think Carter is going to be a monster. And my best was trading for Swisher. How about you guys? I think it depends when judgement day is. If its 5 years from now, I think the Swisher trade is one KW would swap back right then if he could, and I think the Quentin trade will be a winner. For 2008 the Swisher trade is good for the Sox, probably the best, and the worst is the Garland trade IMO because he eats innings and while Cabrera is an upgrade over Uribe, he was sold high by the Angels, I look for a little dropoff and I think Uribe if starting at SS in a contract year could be outstanding.

QUOTE(NCsoxfan @ Feb 21, 2008 -> 03:07 PM) What are the contracts for Hughes and Gooden? I think Hughes has big money and 2 years left after this one, and Gooden has 1 more year after this one. While I like Ben Wallace being gone, I don't see how this move helps the team win, other than open up PT for Thomas and Noah. Of course sitting Wallace down would have accomplished that. I think Smith is better than Gooden, and Hughes doesn't do much for me.