Texsox

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Sep 5, 2011 -> 10:55 AM) He's a teacher... of course it is the players faults and not the managers Please check your grammar notes and post again. Was Oz really responsible for 10 losses this season? Five?

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Sep 5, 2011 -> 10:53 AM) Let me ask you this hypothetical...if the players did everything right on a franchise and the manager did everything wrong...from bad decisions on the field to making sure players were ill prepared for games, whatever you could imagine...wouldn't that same standard hold true? If you really want to discuss a hypothetical extreme than I would rather the players did everything right and the manager do everything wrong than the manager do everything right and the players do everything wrong. No amount of managing will compensate for players having a season worst than their harshest critics would imagine. In the AL I place the mangers influence as less than 5% of the total. Maybe a handful of games.

QUOTE (LittleHurt05 @ Sep 5, 2011 -> 09:42 AM) I was up in the NorthWoods for a few days, now back at home actually trying to be productive. Then hitting up Taste of Polonia for some damn good eats and beer. Where? I miss the Eagle River / St. Germian / Minoqua area.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Sep 5, 2011 -> 10:31 AM) How do you know this? Because I never saw him strike out or give up an earned run.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Sep 5, 2011 -> 10:27 AM) Apparently on this team, the manager controls a whole lot, because he has had veto power over addition of players for several years now. The GM has had only partial control of players and limited control of strategy. I was thinking the manager as compared to the player's control. I'd say the players have a little bit more control of the outcome.

QUOTE (Flash Tizzle @ Sep 5, 2011 -> 08:09 AM) What is with you continuing to post this? I don't know of one person that has said that line. It doesn't even f***ing matter, either way. He's unable to properly use his lineup, often his pitching staff, and has a demeanor that has just run its course. Sorry for posting that twice. And thank you for not repeating something you have already posted.

QUOTE (Cerbaho-WG @ Sep 5, 2011 -> 09:21 AM) This is what I don't get about all of the Ozzie supporters. All of you are more or less saying that the manager doesn't matter but you will perform some incredible mental gymnastics to defend Ozzie. Look, you can't have it both ways. Either Ozzie deserves some accountability and actually influences the outcome of the game or we should hire a traffic cone to be manager. How important is the X% that the manager can control. The GM hands him players and a strategy. They have to be working in concert with each other. My defense of Oz is this season, with the level of suck from key pieces of the plan, he's being way over criticized. Bottom line to me, baseball managers get too much credit, and too much blame for the outcome of a season. Perhaps that seems like having it both ways.

Cooper. He's earned it. I can't believe no one has thought of him for the spot.

QUOTE (bmags @ Sep 5, 2011 -> 03:13 AM) It's amazing to me in the face of another September when "our fate was in our hands" and we fail miserably, how many people are willing to give our leadership a pass. You all don't want to win as much as being proud of being non confrontational. Leadership by players, coaches, managers, or front office?

Then

Welcome back to SLaM Sox fans. The off season is starting early. Graphically he's where we are at and where we are going

Pinch hitting Dunn the other day was Ozzie's going away present to the organization. The moves and contracts that worked out bad were not even huge risks when they happened. I don't think it was enough to get KW fired. On paper, which is where the GM has to play, this team should have won the division. I'll take that from a GM every season.

Ozzie is not why this team did not win the division this season.

Nada

So the 2005 team won despite Oz and the 2011 team lost because of Oz.

Just thinking "wait until next year"

Hell is where this season went. 26 ways to say it's over . . . begin

Ozzie has become the symbol for all the disappointment. Once again, he has deflected the blame from players.

Excellent theater, for a little while everyone was able to forget the team will not be playing in October, again. I really love following the tweets from the Sox beat writers and assume it's all orchestrated and scripted. A few guys all saying the same stuff is boring. Throw in some jabs and everyone wins.

Great move by JR, terrible move by KW, and about as good as he could with the cards dealt by Walker. A. You do not make personnel changes during an argument. You don't quit, you don't fire someone. B. JR smoothed things over, but probably just until the end of the season.

QUOTE (TheBigHurt @ Sep 3, 2011 -> 01:52 AM) Why is that? It better be a good reason. "They are paid the highest so they need to play" is NOT a good reason. If you think that's a good reason then it's proof you know nothing about baseball... or any sport/activity in which the goal is to WIN, for that matter. Also love how you said you wish we had Ozzie for 20 more years (ROFL) yet flip over and say you won't be sad if he's gone. Seems kinda strange to me. How quickly do you abandon a strategy that you have invested $$$$ in? As an organization, it was decided that the team would win the division by doing X.Y. and Z this season. They were convinced it was a winning strategy, they invested a lot of money to make it work. It isn't as much about playing the guys that are making the most money, it is following the blueprint.

Bottom line, with a variety of lineups, veterans coming and going, there are two consistent truths for the past 6 seasons The team underachieves Ozzie is the manager If it was the same group of guys, then let's give me a try with a different group. My hunch is Ozzie will have a LaRussa style career, he'll be loved somewhere. But it's time to make a switch, even the ghosts of 2005 have quit watching. I'm not rabid about it, I'm not screaming at Ozzie during games very often, but I think the team needs a change in attitude and atmosphere, the way to do that is to Oz a big kiss and send him to "pursue new interests", to "spend some time with the family", or whatever story comes out.

I have had T-Mo for five years and honestly they have been the best cell company I have dealt with since CellularOne in the late 80s. But that was when you had to schedule an install for your "car phone". T-Mo has called me twice to lower my rates without lengthening my contract. That builds loyalty.

You would be surprised how many adults do not receive regular email. I have 100 students and have email addresses for less than half. Of the 40 or so I do have, a dozen of them had to ask their kids what their own email address is.