Quin

f***ing stupid

QUOTE (scs787 @ Nov 5, 2013 -> 11:23 AM) I'm giving Samardzija the slight edge just due to his ability to get deeper into the game. Do I think Santiago can get to point where he's going 6+ next year? Sure. Does AZ believe that as well? Ya, they probably should. I really like AZ as a trade partner so I hope Hahn gets in there before the Cubs do. The deal I suggested my last post for Santiago or expand it a bit and try to get Aaron Hill as well. Probably over valuing Q here if I think they could get Parra/Hill/Owings/Barrett, but I can dream right? Depending on how confident the team is in Webb, you could possibly pull off Santiago/Reed/De Aza for Parra, Owings, and Barrett. You basically have to trade Gordon to someone like the Blue Jays in this scenario. Then you can put Owings at 2B and Semien at 3B. With the Abreu signing, I'm inclined to keep Alexei for one more year.

QUOTE (scs787 @ Nov 5, 2013 -> 10:01 AM) AZ is expected to discuss with the Cubs about Samardzija so they're looking for pitching. Q should be considered the better pitcher, not sure if I can say the same about Santiago. ERA wise Santiago put up a better number but everywhere else I'd probably give it to Jeff. I'm actually ok with giving Gillaspie/Kepp another year, he's a LH bat who wasn't THAT BAD. I'd rather try to snag Owings/Parra/Barrett which would then open the door to trading Lexi and Reed. Before his Sept. dead arm period, Santiago was actually right around Samardzjia stat wise

QUOTE (DrunkBomber @ Nov 5, 2013 -> 01:27 AM) I have a few friends on FB who are Packer fans saying things like "Congrats, you beat our B team" In all fairness, our B team did beat their B team.

QUOTE (MexSoxFan#1 @ Nov 4, 2013 -> 10:44 PM) Yeah, that's so lame. McCown isn't our starting QB either. ASTERISK.

McClellin and Peppers exist. This is weird.

QUOTE (IlliniKrush @ Nov 4, 2013 -> 09:38 PM) My 11 and 12 year old years I played travel for our town, and was the 10th guy on that team. We had absolutely crazy coaches, our whole team was afraid of them. We had so many ejections that year it was nuts. Our team was nasty (went 55-5-1), but our coaches were something else. They were the total live-through-your-kids guys. Anyway, same thing that you had - me and my buddy would get screamed at for errors etc. It was intimidating just to be on the bench. I remember once I had enough of it. A guy had just made a bone head play in RF (which again, where I would have been a huge upgrade) and he turned the bench and yelled "GOTTA STOP WITH THESE ERRORS GUYS" and yelled at us. And I just looked at him and said "So when are you gonna play new outfielders or are we supposed to just will the ball into their glove?" There was a dead silence because the bench coach and other bench players all knew that he couldn't really respond in a way that didn't make him look like an ass.

In HS baseball the head coach always told my dad that I was the hardest worker on the team and a lot of teammates backed it up. I ran through leg injuries while we had guys fake injuries and walk, skip practices, all that. Guess who didn't play more than 7 innings all year? The OF coach didn't take me so I was left at 2B, where I'm terrible. The OF coach just had 0 respect for me as a player. He often yelled at me and a few other bench players for mistakes made in the field while we were in the dugout. So we had a hitting contest where we split up into two teams and went in the batting cage. Losing team had to do 20 pushups, coaches picked teams. Each team had six hits, I had two of my team's hits. As a tie breaker, the coaches pick the hitter from the other team for a 3 pitch hit-off. My coach (the head coach) picked the team's starting 1B who was one of the injury faking, practice skipping, self-entitled jackasses. I get picked by the OF coach. The first basemen fouls off one, strikes out on the other two. I hit two fouls and have the OF coach and first basemen shouting s*** at me. Next one I hit nearly broke the pitching machine. Walked out of the cage, dropped my bat, and smirked at that coach. That was the highlight of my season. Finally though my back began to give out at second and our third coach sent me to OF practice one day. RF had been my natural position and I played a good LF as well because I had worked on OF skills every day my first two years of baseball. It's worth noting here that other than our CF, our outfielders were god awful. We had 3 or 4 guys taking reps at LF and RF each and only our CF. Since it was only one day of OF practice for me, I was sent to CF, which for the slowest guy on the team who hadn't had a OF rep in two years, seemed like a bad idea. I shocked everyone. At 2B my arm was non-existent but in the OF I could throw a rocket to home. Our SS (who also had a low opinion of me) was taken aback when I through the ball to him in a simulated situation of getting the runner at second. He didn't expect the ball to come in so fast so it went right by his unready glove. When we finished the head coach and our bench coach each told me I would start getting to see playing time because even with so much rust I was our second best OF defender. Then shagging fly balls I hyper extended my knee and my season was done. But those two moments made a lot of it worth it.

That catch was ridiculous.

QUOTE (HickoryHuskers @ Nov 4, 2013 -> 08:08 AM) AJ's teams have gone 34-50 the last three Septembers. But winning one ring 8 years ago gives him a lifetime pass to be a jackass and fail in September.

QUOTE (Marty34 @ Nov 3, 2013 -> 11:28 AM) Carlos Martinez wasn't thought very highly of (on this board) when the rumor appeared. What are you talking about? Everyone flipped out when the rumor said Hahn turned down Martinez for Ramirez.

QUOTE (greg775 @ Nov 2, 2013 -> 09:00 PM) I don't really care about the jackass part if the player can back it up. I've heard Moustakas is a dick, which if true, is unacceptable to a team since he hasn't backed it up. You can't blame the choke jobs on AJ. Winning a ring (doesn't he have 2?) takes away any of that stuff. This is the dumbest f***ing thing you've ever said.

QUOTE (SoxPride18 @ Nov 2, 2013 -> 10:45 PM) Ken Rosenthal ‏@Ken_Rosenthal 11m Source: #Tigers to hire Ausmus as manager. First reported @AdamSpolane. Thoughts? Makes less sense to me than the Robin Ventura hiring.

QUOTE (TheFutureIsNear @ Nov 2, 2013 -> 10:35 PM) Very underwhelming free agency class this year. Would anybody take a look at Sizemore? I know theres a good chance he ends up not playing or he just has nothing left, but what do we have to lose? Lillian is that you?

QUOTE (scs787 @ Nov 2, 2013 -> 04:42 PM) Red Sox declined Thorntons option...I know a lot of people here hate him, but I wouldn't mind him back as a Loogy. Depending on the other moves we make I'd be ok with it.

QUOTE (CaliSoxFanViaSWside @ Nov 2, 2013 -> 05:24 PM) A lot of us are advocating Ellsbury because we want the Sox to compete ASAP and we also know theres financial room for him .Beyond that we also know there's a 90% chance it won't happen because he should defintely get more than the 5yr/100M me and scs87 wish he'd get. We want to get as good as possible as fast as possible while we still have our good core of starting pitching. This is where we have our fundamental difference. You think we were so bad that its going to take a while to compete again wheras we see a lot of close loses thats can be turned into wins with defensive , hitting and baserunning improvement and Ellsbury provide s all 3 of those things . That's why guys like Ellsbury and Manny Machado and a handful of other are so valuable. There just aren't that many players in baseball who are good offensively and defensively. Then throw in his baserunning . It's very difficult to develop minor league pieces that might be ready right when our starting pitching starts disintegrating. You also said when we get close then add that one big free agent piece but going after that piece and getting it are 2 very different things. But I've enjoyed the discussion on both sides and am glad a poll or thread about Ellsbury didn't have to be made in order for everyone to get their 2 cents worth in about it. Here's why I'm advocating for Ellsbury. We could give him 7yr/$140M and McCann 5yr/$80M because our payroll is so low right now. Then Dunn comes off the books and McCann can become the DH eventually. Ellsbury is an all around player who did just steal 50 bags and I can't expect his speed to disappear completely next year. I'm paying him that money for the next 2-4 years of him being a top flight player. His defense, ability to get on base, and power that he does have makes him incredibly valuable. Same for McCann. I don't expect him to be a top flight C for his entire tenure in Chicago if he were here, but to get 2-3 years out of him then DH him? Sign me up. Ellsbury and McCann, combined with Abreu, completely changes the complexion of the lineup. Ellsbury vastly improves the defense. Add in a full season of Avi and you may have the workings of a good offense to compliment the pitching staff. You could be in contention next year. Edit: Also, for reference: AJ was 28 when we signed him and Dye was 30.

I'd be all in for giving Ellsbury a $140M/7 years Frontload it, give a signing bonus, and do a PK style deferred payment.

I liked the old logo and scheme. But this is sick.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Nov 1, 2013 -> 12:57 PM) So you said all this without answering my question...what do they have that might be available for Alexei that could make sense as a return for him? Carlos Martinez and that's about as low as I go.

Those are both god awful deals. Dodgers would be lucky if we just ate Ethier's entire contract. Alexei is leaps and bounds better than Freese.

I'd bring him back as insurance for Rienzo and Johnson.

QUOTE (bmags @ Oct 31, 2013 -> 03:27 PM) #STEALTHMODE Kenny Williams to stand pat at deadline.

QUOTE (KyYlE23 @ Oct 31, 2013 -> 08:09 AM) Anyone want to change their profile description to "Statnik"? Should definitely be Greg's title.

QUOTE (LittleHurt05 @ Oct 30, 2013 -> 09:29 PM) This quickly went from a top 5 thread to a bottom 5 thread. Lock it up mods. This thread was so great...then that stopped.

Cubano is back!