iamshack

QUOTE (Milkman delivers @ Feb 22, 2010 -> 09:21 PM) I had a girlfriend who often dumped her frustrations with others on me. Same as you, I am very easy-going and friendly, so she felt like she could do it. I didn't care very much (I've actually had the problem with girlfriends not liking how I don't get mad when they apparently want me to show some passion or something), but she eventually pulled that s*** when I was in a bad mood and I snapped on her. That worked in my favor in the short term, as she obviously tried to walk on eggshells around me after that and was, let's say, "nicer". If I were to do it again, I'd have let her know early on that she can't take her frustrations out on me because one of her girlfriends pissed her off. So, if your girlfriend has been doing this a lot, I'd advise you to tell her as soon as possible, otherwise I'd see if it happens a couple more times and then tell her. Yeah, this has come up one previous time and I think the situation has improved. It has now happened again, so I have to decide whether or not to be a jerk about it or let it slide since it was a "high-leverage" situation. I can say that I treat this woman like a queen so I think sometimes maybe she tries to push me just to see if I have a backbone (kind of what like you were saying). So sometimes I feel they respect you more if you do show some backbone and stick up for yourself.

QUOTE (Middle Buffalo @ Feb 22, 2010 -> 09:58 PM) I've never heard that definition before. The one I meant isn't much better, but I hope you know it was meant as a joke either way. Enough of this nonsensical thread hi-jacking. Resume getting shredded. I'm just teasing you.

Well, I did graduate from law school, and yet you feel perfectly knowledgeable enough to decide that adding an addendum to a player's contract would take too much time to make this realistically possible, even though I can tell you from experience that it could be drafted in 30 minutes or less. I can also tell you that we all heard and read how quickly the acquisition of Jake Peavy occurred right before the deadline, so apparently things can be done in a prompt fashion when the parties are interested. I can also tell you that most of our American-based players seem to respond to phone calls from their agents and/or GMs when such calls are made (at least this is what I read in the press). It seems to be when a player is home in South America or the Caribbean, where cell service might be substandard or non-existent that these issues of "losing" a player seem to occur most (again, from what I read in the press). Obviously, if you are privy to knowledge that our American-based players do not seem to want to answer their phones, then I cannot challenge you on that. However, I have never heard/read of this being the case before, and in fact, have heard/read of the opposite being the case.

QUOTE (wsgdf_2 @ Feb 22, 2010 -> 08:47 PM) I'd love it if my company hired a kick ass new programmer to help me get my work done better and faster... but I ain't paying for him. You really want to ask that of the newest guy on the team... the huge acquisition who agreed to waive a no trade clause to come here... the guy who's actually worth his contract to overpay for another guy? No. The difference is you don't go to the press and make your bosses look bad for not hiring the programmer, do you? And yes, I would say "hey Jake, if you really want to win this badly, well, here is where and why we came up short. Now I'm doing the best I can here, but I have some financial constraints I have to adhere to and we couldn't match up because Boras and Damon won't take deferred money." Maybe then he'll respond in a more suitable fashion in the press, or put his money where his mouth is.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Feb 22, 2010 -> 09:35 PM) Yeah, I think asking them would be akward. Now if they volunteered............................................. I can agree with that. The entire reason I brought up the concept is because Peavy said in the press that he wanted Damon on his team, because he is a winner. I think if Jake is going to start proclaiming through the press who he wants on his team, than maybe he should be willing to not take up 15-20% of the payroll himself.

QUOTE (knightni @ Feb 22, 2010 -> 09:28 PM) Women are emotional. You just rolled the dice at the wrong time when you called. The kids, the truck, and the day's stress was getting to her and you happened to be the one she chose to vent it on. Buy her something nice, and let the issue go. If the attitude later becomes a trend, then talk about it. No way man, she was sending me snarky text messages! She knew I knew nothing of what had happened to her, and she CHOSE to respond to my text message OFFERING to bring a movie, food, and a gift to her home by saying she didn't have time because her truck broke down... I already did buy her something nice! That is what I was offering to do in the first place!

QUOTE (Middle Buffalo @ Feb 22, 2010 -> 09:23 PM) You, sir, are a double bagger, no doubt. How rude.

QUOTE (knightni @ Feb 22, 2010 -> 09:04 PM) Wait until she cools down, go visit with something nice and/or relaxing that she likes (chocolate maybe) and bring up the subject of how you would like her to feel free to call you first in case of emergency. Tell her that you care about her and her kids and their well-being and that you were surprised when she hadn't called you when she got in trouble. Jer, I really appreciate the advice here, but I am not concerned at all that she called her friend instead of me. What I am concerned about is that she took her frustration out on me when I did absolutely nothing to deserve it (I can hear the jokes already). Am I supposed to just allow her to do that?

QUOTE (Middle Buffalo @ Feb 22, 2010 -> 08:12 PM) Oops. I've been in and out of this thread since the beginning, and I never saw it answered. I see it a few pages back though. By the way, your first post in this thread was also a question about equipment. Great minds.... Didn't mean to come off that harsh, but the question has been asked and answered about 5 times in the last 5 pages. I felt like saying "Objection! Asked and answered." And by the way, don't bag on me for my first post in here, MB...

QUOTE (knightni @ Feb 22, 2010 -> 07:55 PM) It shouldn't matter. It sounds like she could have the "single lady doin' it for herself" mentality going. If you were married to her, she would have probably called you first. Ok, perhaps. I guess I didn't ask for people to psychoanalyze my girlfriend though. I would prefer advice on what I should do now.

QUOTE (knightni @ Feb 22, 2010 -> 07:50 PM) Perhaps she is projecting her experiences with previous men onto you, expecting that you'll act the same as they did. That's why she called her gf (who was with her through other men) when she was in trouble. She could have trust issues. I think she called her girlfriend simply because I live on the opposite side of town while her girlfriend lives very close to where she was at the time. Should have probably stated that.

QUOTE (Ranger @ Feb 22, 2010 -> 08:33 PM) It's my job to know this s***. What do you think I do when I am at the park and in the clubhouse for 81 games? Take pictures? And while I don't hear every single thing that happens, when I say something with confidence it's because I know it to be true, not because I'm speculating. When I'm guessing, I'll tell you I'm guessing. I also know some players, scouts, coaches, front office employees (not just in Chicago) very well, and I know and have heard things that I could never mention because the source would be obvious. Like I said, I have also worked in an agency before, I know for a fact (this is not guessing) how difficult it is to get in touch with players sometimes. I know because I've made the calls myself and I watched my superiors make the calls and have seen their frustration. And if a player isn't going to call his agent back right away, who is he going to call? I also know that sometimes it is very difficult for the front office/coaches to get ahold of players during an offseason (and sometimes in-season when a player is away from the team recovering from an injury, for example) because they complain privately about it. I don't have to be employed in a front office or be a Major Leaguer to know this stuff, dude. Relationships matter. That is all very relevant and great, Mr. Rongey. But guess what? Posters here don't have to work for the Score or be at the ballpark to hear and know things either. And yet you treat many of their opinions as irrelevant or inaccurate because they don't hold some publicly-known position. How do you know what I know? How do you know who I know? I know current players and ex-players, and I know people who know other celebrities and entertainers, and I happen to know that it is quite simple to get in touch with many of them simply by calling their cellphone. Especially when the call is coming from one of their bosses or someone who completely and utterly controls the fate of their current employment situation.

Question: My girlfriend's car doesn't start today in the parking lot of the grocery store. Previously I had sent her a text saying "How did it go today at the salon? (she is a hair dresser) I want to rent Couple's Retreat. I have some shrimp in the freezer I could bring over, and I have your sunglasses case I need to bring over to you. (I bought it for her) Do you want me to rent the movie and we'll make a night of it?" Like an hour later she texts me back saying "Sorry. My truck isn't starting. I don't have time for a movie." I was like wtf is this? Like I knew she was stranded in the parking lot and still sent her this text to make her day worse or something. But I figured, hey, she's stranded with her kids and frustrated, I won't be a jerk. So I text back and write "Ok. May I do anything to help?" She writes back "No thank you. Lissa is on her way to pick us up now." Again, I am like wtf? She's like rubbing it in that I am not there to pick them up when I wasn't even aware this had happened. At this point, I am thinking, s***, I guess it was my fault that her truck broke down. But no, I will call her, make sure she is alright, etc. So I call, and ask if she is alright, and she says yes. So I say "What is with the attitude? I didn't know your truck was broken down. Is there anything I can do to help? I wouldn't have asked you if you wanted to watch a movie if I knew you were currently stranded in the parking lot." She was all frustrated, crabby, and crying, and basically said she didn't want to talk to me then and would call me back when she had settled down. So my question is, how does one handle this? I don't feel like I did anything wrong, but I feel that because I am always so nice and helpful to her that she tries to dump s*** on me when she is upset. I don't feel like it is a good idea to allow her to think she can do that. What should my next move be? Should I just let it go? Or should I ignore her calls and texts for a bit, just to show my displeasure? This relationship is a few months old, and we were friends before that for about 5 months. I am just trying to set the ground rules here at a reasonable level, so I don't have to deal with a ton of bs and nonsense down the road...

QUOTE (whitesoxfan101 @ Feb 22, 2010 -> 06:31 PM) Only way you get Halladay without giving up Floyd or Danks is by trading Beckham, and I just don't think they'd have done that. I disagree. Flowers/Hudson/Jordan Danks could net a LOT of players in this league.

QUOTE (ScottyDo @ Feb 22, 2010 -> 06:31 PM) Is this an office space reference? If it is, it was not intentional.

QUOTE (Ranger @ Feb 22, 2010 -> 07:16 PM) You're right. I guess I don't do this for a living or anything. My apologies. Carry on. Mr. Rongey, no offense intended, but as far as I am aware, you are the pre and post game host for Chicago White Sox games on the Score radio station, correct? Again, no disrespect intended here, but you are not a MLB player. You are not an agent for an MLB player. You are not currently employed by the front offices of any Major League teams. You are not currently employed in any offices of Major League Baseball. In what field would you say that you are employed?

QUOTE (GreatScott82 @ Feb 22, 2010 -> 06:06 PM) I love his aggressivness towards starting pitching. However, I wish he would direct some of that aggressive behaivor towards aqcuirering a lefty power hitter. Although KW did mention "There is something we don't see right now, you can bank on that- there is something thats going to happen that we don't see right now, so try to insulate yourself, because its going to happen" I wonder what he means by this? Is there a trade in the works for that lefty hitter? Was he just talking about a mid-season deal? He looked smirky. . I think he is saying that there is a deal that will happen in the future that isn't apparent right now because the circumstances which will cause it to occur have not occurred yet themselves.

QUOTE (whitesoxfan101 @ Feb 22, 2010 -> 06:00 PM) If Danks or Floyd isn't part of that trade, Gordon Beckham probably is (and I'd bet Dan Hudson is too.) Just seems to me that the best 5-man rotation in baseball history would not include Freddy Garcia, and replace Danks or Floyd with Halladay. Seems more like it would have been Halladay replacing Garcia.

QUOTE (IamPabloOzuna @ Feb 22, 2010 -> 06:55 PM) If you watch the video, kenny pretty much gives it up that it was Halladay. Plus Garfien was just on Chicago Tribune Live and said it was Halladay. Ahh, I see..thanks for the clarification.

QUOTE (knightni @ Feb 22, 2010 -> 06:50 PM) Danks or Floyd would have been gone if we got Halladay. That doesn't seem to be what he was implying. I have a feeling it was Cliff Lee though, instead of Halladay.

QUOTE (Ranger @ Feb 22, 2010 -> 05:22 PM) Yes Kenny has called playrs during an offseason, but has he told you how long it's taken to get these players on the phone? Has he told you that? Has he told you that every player he calls answers the phone right away? Or has he told you that sometimes it takes a couple of weeks to get ahold of guys, and not even their agents can find them? And I'd like for you to tell me how -- in the actual professional baseball world -- this would work when you finally did get one of these guys on the phone. I mean, who gets to be the player that you ask to restructure? The first one that calls you back? And do you say, "hey Johnny, just hang tight for a minute, don't sign with the Tigers just yet because we're trying to reshuffle some things over here." Factor in what you know about agents, professional ballplayers (who, by the way, are operating in a completely different world than the rest of us), and the union, and then enlighten us as to how this might actually work and how you think this would get done in a matter of hours. There's really a difference between having to say the last thing just for the sake of making the last comment, and refuting an hypothetical idea that's not based in reality. About the subject, I can say nothing else. I've given you the facts of the business regarding asking players to restructure. Feel free to be confident in your opinion that has no real-world application. You are more than welcome to do that. Ok, slow down here, Mr. Rongey. Explain to all of us, enlighten us, if you will, what makes you qualified to know "the facts of the business regarding asking players to restructure"?

QUOTE (Ranger @ Feb 22, 2010 -> 05:54 PM) With all due respect, you're simply wrong here. It matter if players have cellphones, they often times make themselves unreachable. Even for agents. I've worked for an agent. I'm not just pulling this stuff out of my backside. You can call the cell phone all you want, but it doens't mean they're going to call you back in a timely manner or that they're going to answer the first 30 times you call. It's different getting ahold of them during the season because you know where they are and know where to find them. It's not like he can gather all the vets in one room and say, "hey guys, now that I have you all here, who wants to change their contract so we can sign Johnny Damon?" You can respond with whatever you like (and I know you will because you're a 'last word' guy), but this is just not a real-world suggestion. The only way it happens is if a player wants to volunteer it. I'm not creating this idea out of thin air, it's based on how real-world baseball stuff works. Having said that, there's really nothing else I can say about it. SO, believe what you want, even if it's wrong. Mr. Rongey, I am perfectly happy to admit I am a last word whore. But as long as we're being open and honest here, why don't you fess up as well, my friend. We've seen players mention numerous times in the press how Kenny has contacted them. And considering the fact that it has been VERY publicized that Kenny and Jake talk, I don't think Kenny would have had a very difficult time getting him on the phone, especially considering he was due to be in Glendale on Sunday. Regardless, my point wasn't so much that Jake or another veteran SHOULD have volunteered to defer the money from their own contracts, my point was that if this was really about the money, and not about principle, than there were other ways to make this signing occur. And push come to shove, I think some of our veterans, if they were willing to talk to the press about wanting a player on our team for the sake of winning, just might be willing to make some sacrifices if their own to make that a reality.

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Feb 22, 2010 -> 11:17 AM) Commiting all that money to Peralta at such an early stage wasn't such a wise idea, either. It's one of the many reasons (along with Kerry Wood) they had to trade away DeRosa. I'm not even sure what happened to Sizemore last season. Hafner, it's pretty obvious his body shrank noticeably. So much for Pronk, more like Shrek as a hitter now. It basically exposed the inherent risks in the "Indians Model," which is to buy out the arb years and the first few FA years of your promising young players.

Just did my CST for the day. I hate this workout.

QUOTE (Reddy @ Feb 22, 2010 -> 03:47 PM) she's obviously made some big improvements. hah, what do they call that, a double entendre?