DBAHO

Da Tribe or KC.

The only way I accept Byung Hyung Kim on this ballclub is if he is converted into a starter.

It'll be the Braves or us I think. The A's are out of the runnin now since they just traded for Hammonds. But don't be suprised if the Yanks wind up with him as well.

My cat used to catch mouses too BEGOOD, until 1 day he got into a fight with the cat down the street and now he can't walk properly.

$9 million for Milton? Man O Man talk about overpayin.

I don't see why we need Williamson that much anyways. Sure we need right handed relievers desperately, but I wouldn't giv up a prospect like Cotts just to get 1. I'm sure we can get 1 on the free agent market, plus I think we'll be gettin Arthur Rhodes anyways since the a's got Chris Hammonds from the Yankees.

Exactly do no giv up on Cotts or Wright. Munoz or Rauch I can see bein let go.

Nice to see sum luv for Quincy, too bad he mite not be the QB next year if he doesn't play well the last 2 games and da playoffs. Anyways here's a Carter jersey for ya BEGOOD, and they hav a Cheerleaders Calendar as well, and I'd know u'd luv that. Carter Jersey

I'd luv to come, but I'd need plane tickets ASAP.

How bout Roger Cedeno rite now?

Where would a spider hole be in the Mens Room at Wrigley Field though?

supercalifragilistikexpealladocious.

Here's what John Sickels thought of him at the start of this year. Heilman should be in the rotation mix for the Mets next spring; he has little left to prove in the minor leagues after a solid Double-A/Triple-A season. I see him as a durable inning-eater type pitcher, someone who'll post above-average numbers in most seasons, throw a lot of innings, but who won't win any Cy Young awards. A good solid pitcher in other words.

KW get's bashed a lot around here, and most of it is for a good reason. His hands are tied by the payroll however, and I think he's actually doin a good job this offseason. He's not shoppin his major players e.g Maggs and Lee because if he did this, than he would get far less than what has been currently discussed. I would be stoked with a Mota, Perez and Miller package from the Dodgers for Nomar or Maggs and that's exactly the type of trade KW needs to make. If we can get some stud young prospects we should be fighting Cleveland for the next 5 to 10 years. Guys like Reed, Cotts, Honel are the future of our ballclub.

I'm sure every team in the MLB would say that bout Roger Cedeno. Unfortuantely 1 team's gotta hav him and hopefully it ain't us.

Whateva happened to Superman anyways. The last time I saw Clark Kent was on Ripleys Believe It or Not.

Exactly. Very important advice rite there.

He'd a bench player at the most. Reed or Borchard would get a start bf Roger.

Even Selig's not enough of a dumb ass to realise that he needs the game's best player playing for a winning team, in World Series', not for a team that has come last in its division 4 out of the last 5 years. He'll do whateva he can to get this deal done.

That's a nice pic there Pastime, u should put in in the SoxTalk Photo Album, and the Official Post a Picture of Yourself Thread.

Let's see 5pm American Time, what's that my time. Bout 9am my time, betta get up early, hopefully the domino effect will result in a few deals tomorrow nite.

Whoa, u r a lucky man Pastime judgin by that pic.

Well there's 4 teams that'll end up gettin him. The Dodgers, the White Sox, the Angels or the Mariners. Wasburn, K-Rod and a stud prospect would also be a very good trade for Nomar, if he really doesn't want to trade Nomar to the Dodgers. KW needs a backup plan if Evans won't end up takin Nomar from us.

There may be hope for u yet Beastly , If managing doesn't work out for Ozzie Guillen, he can always become a scout. He proved himself in that department years ago, speaking up for the skinny Venezuelan outfielder who could be headed to Boston before Guillen ever gets a chance to manage him. These days, there are no guarantees about Magglio Ordonez. He's in the last year of his contract and slated to earn $14 million next season, terms that made him an endangered species the day he got Jerry Reinsdorf to agree to them. Guillen wishes it weren't so. "We all understand this is a business," Guillen said. "But do I want him on my team? Hell, yeah. He's batting third and he's my right fielder." Guillen, then the starting shortstop, was the first member of the White Sox's major league organization to notice Ordonez. He spoke up for him, possibly at his own expense. "I think I got released from the White Sox because of Magglio," Guillen said while in New Orleans for the winter meetings. "Schu and I fought back and forth. I didn't back down from what I was saying because I knew what I was saying. It turned out I was right. I know what I see." Guillen, then one of the best Venezuelans in the big leagues, was sold on Ordonez's potential after seeing him play for the Oriente Caribes in winter ball. But Ron Schueler, then the Sox's general manager, wasn't interested until Ordonez won a Triple-A batting title in 1997. Earlier that season, Guillen had pleaded Ordonez's case in the Tribune. He had been enraged when his countryman was bypassed for an invitation to the major-league camp in favor of Jeff Abbott, Jeff Liefer and McKay Christensen. "If that had been me, I would have gone crazy," Guillen said at the time. "I would have started screaming and I wouldn't have stopped. I would have demanded to be traded." Guillen then stated the case for Ordonez. "Magglio is a great hitter, and a very good outfielder," he said. "He is better than our other [minor-league] outfielders. He just does not get a chance. He is not a first-round draft choice, and he has an ugly Latino name. He has to do twice as much as someone else to get an opportunity." When an injury caused Ordonez to be promoted, he went 2-for-3 in his first game and then homered off Jose Lima in his second game. "I said [to Schueler], 'See?"' Guillen said. "Maybe my mouth was a little too open." It's debatable whether the bigger issue was Guillen's candor or the Sox's shaky finances. But not long after that exchange it became clear the club was not picking up Guillen's contract option for 1998. He played three seasons elsewhere but never again got 300 at-bats. Having jumped at an offer to replace Jerry Manuel, the still-outspoken Guillen finds himself on the other side of the business. He already has gone off on some ill-advised monologues, picking a pointless fight with Frank Thomas when protocol called for him to sweet-talk him in private. Thomas is not the White Sox's problem, not when he's hitting 42 homers at $6 million a year. He's a valuable part of the team when he's in uniform but doesn't always represent himself in the best fashion. The Sox's problem is the resources Reinsdorf's ownership group provides require the employees running the team—most recently Ken Williams, Duane Shaffer and Rick Hahn—to make the most of every dollar they spend. Williams doesn't want to trade Ordonez. Who would? But the Sox need pitching—to be specific, they need two right-handed relievers and at least one starter. There's no money currently available to fund the purchases. So Williams must find a way to do as St. Louis GM Walt Jocketty did last Saturday, trading expensive hitters for pitchers whose salaries leave money left over to fill other holes. Williams described himself as having "a lot of balls in the air" when he left New Orleans earlier Monday and that still appeared to be the case Wednesday. The White Sox were positioned to land Nomar Garciaparra and Scott Williamson from Boston for Ordonez as part of an Alex Rodriguez-Manny Ramirez. But that wasn't all. According to some sources, Williams had lined up a Jose Valentin deal with either Seattle or Los Angeles. He also was continuing efforts to trade first baseman Paul Konerko. Should the White Sox wind up with Garciaparra, it will be tempting for them to hang onto him seemingly to make a run at a Central title in 2004. But don't be fooled. Ordonez for Garciaparra is essentially a zero-sum game—one free agent-in-waiting for another. It doesn't accomplish the goals Williams set for an Ordonez trade. For the White Sox to come out ahead on an Ordonez trade, Williams has to trade Garciaparra to Los Angeles or Seattle for a package of low-cost pitching. If he can wind up with Williamson, Odalis Perez, Guillermo Mota, prospects—or Williamson, Ryan Franklin, Julio Mateo, prospects—and enough flexibility to sign Sidney Ponson, he'll have increased the outlook both in 2004 and future seasons. Hard to imagine Williams getting much sleep until he has found a way to add some shelf life onto Ordonez's unexpectedly large legacy, which few other than the new manager saw coming.

Here it is, White Sox fans might want to hold off on erecting that statue of Nomar Garciaparra at 35th and Shields. Even if the proposed Alex Rodriguez-for-Manny Ramirez deal comes to fruition, baseball sources said Wednesday that major obstacles stand in the way of a trade that would send Garciaparra to the South Side for Magglio Ordonez. One source went so far as to call the deal "dead." Sox general manager Ken Williams, working from home while he battles the flu, declined to comment specifically on the Garciaparra rumors, citing tampering issues. "Everybody thinks they know [what will happen], but until something's announced, nothing is official," Williams said. What is known is that Williams won't trade Ordonez unless he is confident it will improve his club. Acquiring Garciaparra, a five-time All-Star, plus reliever Scott Williamson would help. But for the deal to make sense, Williams will need to complete at least one additional trade that will bring starting pitching and enough financial relief to sign another right fielder. In other words, Williams won't pull the trigger on Garciaparra unless he has a favorable deal lined up for fellow shortstop Jose Valentin. A potential trade with Seattle fell through Wednesday after the Mariners signed third baseman Scott Spiezio to a three-year deal. Carlos Guillen remains Seattle's shortstop after Omar Vizquel flunked a physical, nullifying a trade to the Mariners. But with Seattle committing $3 million per season to Spiezio, the Mariners are far less likely to trade for Valentin, who is due $5 million next season. Another problem: If the Sox trade Valentin, their lineup would be exclusively right-handed, with the exception of leadoff man Willie Harris. A potential deal with the Dodgers also doesn't appear likely, with a source saying Williams and Dodgers general manager Dan Evans haven't spoken since Saturday. Although Los Angeles is desperate for a big right-handed bat, Dodgers officials stubbornly have refused to offer ace setup man Guillermo Mota or top pitching prospects Edwin Jackson and Greg Miller. Williams' efforts to entice Evans in a deal for either Frank Thomas or Paul Konerko also have gone by the board. The Dodgers appear more likely to try to solve their hitting deficiencies by signing either Vladimir Guerrero or Ivan Rodriguez. A Sox deal for Garciaparra would be a financial wash. Ordonez is due $14 million, about the same as the combined salaries of Garciaparra ($11.5 million, including $1 million deferred) and Williamson ($3 million through arbitration). Williams would need to move at least one big-ticketed player to sign a replacement for Ordonez. Juan Gonzalez is believed to be Williams' first choice, but it could take well more than $5 million to sign him. The Sox have another concern about Garciaparra. A source said the two-time batting champion has given mixed signals about whether he would welcome a deal to Chicago. Garciaparra's agent, Arn Tellem, could not be reached for comment Wednesday. Tellem also represents Frank Thomas and is said to have a strong relationship with Sox Chairman Jerry Reinsdorf. Garciaparra, a native of Southern California, apparently has his heart set on playing in Los Angeles. That might make it impossible for the Sox to re-sign him before free agency calls after the 2004 season. Don't forget that a Garciaparra deal is contingent on the completion of the Rodriguez-Ramirez trade. And that prospect was dealt a serious blow Wednesday when the players' union rejected Boston's proposed restructuring of Rodriguez's $252 million deal because it did not add any monetary value, as union rules dictate. "We did suggest an offer the club could make to Alex that would not do that," union official Gene Orza told the Associated Press. "As was its right, the club chose not to make it." Neither Orza nor Rodriguez's agent, Scott Boras, would detail Boston's proposal. The last time the union became involved in such a negotiation, after the 2001 season, Mo Vaughn agreed to defer $8 million of a signing bonus and $13.75 million in salary after being traded from Anaheim to the Mets. As part of the agreement, the money was deferred at 5.436 percent interest from 2005 through 2011. Boras said he expects to meet with the union again Thursday. Texas owner Tom Hicks said there is a Thursday night deadline for an agreement. Ordonez and Valentin soon will learn their fates. At least until the next blockbuster deal comes along.