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ItTakesFaith:So Ned is hustling to essentially field the same team that fell short last season... am I missing something...? Note to Team McCourt/Colletti: In baseball there is no such thing as "standing still"; either you move forward, or you quickly become the 2010 version of the Pads. The only, THE ONLY thing I'd like to replicate of S.D.... is an ownership change!
Now, back to the Sheets signing...
[Talk about a sad state of affairs; Buster Olney is saying that the A's... the freakin A's(!) are in better financial position to make a run at Sheets... These are the same A's that can't afford a bag of popcorn (What does that say about us, Frank?! Damn worthless parking lot attendant!)]
I am thinking that Ned isn't done, but I am scared that dealing George Sherrill will be the dropping of next shoe. I just don't think that Torre will be happy with the choices of Haegerbomb, JMac or Stults as his fifth pitcher. I suppose Joe could exercise some patience while waiting for Wang to get 100% or a reasonable facsimile thereof. May 24 can't come quick enough. Then we will know if this nuclear winter will continue or if we can hope for better times.
I'll play the radio on Southern stations because Southern Belles are Hell at night...ItTakesFaith:So Ned is hustling to essentially field the same team that fell short last season... am I missing something...? Note to Team McCourt/Colletti: In baseball there is no such thing as "standing still"; either you move forward, or you quickly become the 2010 version of the Pads. The only, THE ONLY thing I'd like to replicate of S.D.... is an ownership change!
Now, back to the Sheets signing...
[Talk about a sad state of affairs; Buster Olney is saying that the A's... the freakin A's(!) are in better financial position to make a run at Sheets... These are the same A's that can't afford a bag of popcorn (What does that say about us, Frank?! Damn worthless parking lot attendant!)]
But there's good reason to believe that many of the returning players will be better in 2010 than 2009. I think we all believe that Kemp and Kershaw are virtual locks to be better in 2010, and they were already awesome in 2009. Don't most of us also believe that Billingsley will bounce back? Plus, you won't have Pierre sucking up outs or giving up runs in the outfield, and I still have faith in Loney.
I'm not saying the team is better then last year's version right now, but it's also hard to argue that they're a lot worse.
Mike Scioscia's tragic illness - the blog! For Dodger analysis, reviews, and hilarity.Mike Scioscias tragic illness:But there's good reason to believe that many of the returning players will be better in 2010 than 2009. I think we all believe that Kemp and Kershaw are virtual locks to be better in 2010, and they were already awesome in 2009. Don't most of us also believe that Billingsley will bounce back? Plus, you won't have Pierre sucking up outs or giving up runs in the outfield, and I still have faith in Loney.
I'm not saying the team is better then last year's version right now, but it's also hard to argue that they're a lot worse.
I think there's a chance that Kershaw and Kemp take another step developmentally. Virtual locks? No way.
Kershaw threw 171 IP with 185Ks a 2.79 ERA and a 1.23 WHIP. Is he a virtual lock to improve on those numbers? Not at all. I'd take a full season of that though, but we nearly had that last year!
Kemp hit 297/352/842. Could he improve? It's possible. Is it a virtual lock? No.
I like Billingsley's chances of rebounding, but he's still a question mark at this point ... and the real problem is that Vicente Padilla will be trying to replace these statistics: 214 IP, 3.23 ERA, 1.10 WHIP. Randy Wolf. That's a HUGE loss.
I will tell you that I think Padilla is a Virtual Lock to NOT produce on that level, so we're counting on the young core flourishing ... it's definitely possible. There is a definite chance that Loney, Bills, Martin, and DeWitt take a step forward in 2010. Or that McDonald or Haeger give us a very solid year as a starter. The problem is that now we're COUNTING on that for a good season. Our success is dependent upon that happening instead of acquiring some proven talent to take the pressure off.
It's just frustrating when you're knocking on the doorstep of the world series and the owner drops the payroll.
The mad scientist formerly known as ngrossHeyman is reporting that the Mets have acquired Sarge Jr. As expected, the Halos will eat contract. Looks like the Mets don't expect Beltran back very soon. Ken Davidoff says the Mets are working on Sheets. I still think their chances of signing him are closer to science fiction than fact.
I'll play the radio on Southern stations because Southern Belles are Hell at night...grabarkewitz:Heyman is reporting that the Mets have acquired Sarge Jr. As expected, the Halos will eat contract. Looks like the Mets don't expect Beltran back very soon. Ken Davidoff says the Mets are working on Sheets. I still think their chances of signing him are closer to science fiction than fact.
If not them, then who? Sounds like both us and the Rangers are out ... the Angels are out. Maybe the M's?
I think the Mets will get a damn nice deal on Sheets, unless Omar Minaya ... oh wait, nevermind.
The mad scientist formerly known as ngrossgrabarkewitz:Heyman is reporting that the Mets have acquired Sarge Jr. As expected, the Halos will eat contract. Looks like the Mets don't expect Beltran back very soon. Ken Davidoff says the Mets are working on Sheets. I still think their chances of signing him are closer to science fiction than fact.
Given that Sarge, Sr. does color on the Phillie broadcasts, this should make for some hilarity in the booth when the Mutts are in the City of Brotherly Love.
The Easternmost in Quality...the Westernmost in Flavor!!DoppelgangBang:If not them, then who? Sounds like both us and the Rangers are out ... the Angels are out. Maybe the M's?
I think the Mets will get a damn nice deal on Sheets, unless Omar Minaya ... oh wait, nevermind.
I am back to the M's. It is not like they don't have money and Jack Z. seems to have the golden touch. Of course, if we do something stupid like trading Sherrill for a couple of prospects, I would say we are back in the bidding.
I'll play the radio on Southern stations because Southern Belles are Hell at night...DoppelgangBang:the real problem is that Vicente Padilla will be trying to replace these statistics: 214 IP, 3.23 ERA, 1.10 WHIP. Randy Wolf. That's a HUGE loss.
I agree with you on this point. But I also think that Wolf isn't likely to put those numbers up again either.
Mike Scioscia's tragic illness - the blog! For Dodger analysis, reviews, and hilarity.Mike Scioscias tragic illness:I agree with you on this point. But I also think that Wolf isn't likely to put those numbers up again either.
Very true. There's a good chance he gets injured and doesn't put up 214 IP this year.
However, when you say that the team is essentially the same as last year, I see that as a major fallacy. We were LACKING a true ace last year and we've basically lost a SOLID #2 since then. True, we've added Padilla, who has SOME shot of being good, but let's not kid ourselves, that chance is VERY low. Realistically, he's a #4/5 and technically he was on the team already at the end of the year.
Your argument that we're essentially the same quality of team as last year, to me, falls on deaf ears. Losing someone like Wolf is a HUGE blow, regardless if he were likely to repeat that level of performance.
True, we could be in line for a huge year if everything goes our way and the kids all take a step forward. We could be the same as or better than last year's team. But not at the outset, and isn't that principle true for every team? If everything goes right for the M's they could have a huge year. If everything goes right for the Mets, they could have a huge year. etc.
In my opinion, we're weaker on paper now than we were at this time last year.
Maybe the BP will be better, but the rotation is definitely weaker. Now, if Billz rebounds in a big way, if Kershaw repeats his 2009 performance, if Kuroda stays healthy, if a youngster steps up, if Padilla stays healthy and is decent ... well maybe that won't be the case. Our rotation COULD be better, but damn, man, that's a lot of ifs.
I'm not saying there was a clear, correct move that Ned should've made, but I think it's a little optimistic to think that we'll be the same team as last year.
The mad scientist formerly known as ngrossDoppelgangBang:However, when you say that the team is essentially the same as last year, I see that as a major fallacy. We were LACKING a true ace last year and we've basically lost a SOLID #2 since then. True, we've added Padilla, who has SOME shot of being good, but let's not kid ourselves, that chance is VERY low. Realistically, he's a #4/5 and technically he was on the team already at the end of the year.
Your argument that we're essentially the same quality of team as last year, to me, falls on deaf ears. Losing someone like Wolf is a HUGE blow, regardless if he were likely to repeat that level of performance.
I'm not saying that we're the same team. As of right now, the rotation stands to be weaker, as does 2B. Agreed. But I also think that there's 5-6 areas that could improve from within, hopefully cancelling out what we've lost. Rather than rewrite it all, I made the same argument on my blog last week - http://mikesciosciastragicillness.com/2010/01/16/theres-still-some-good-news-here/
Mike Scioscia's tragic illness - the blog! For Dodger analysis, reviews, and hilarity.Just saw the official report on the Matthews Jr. trade and all I can say is . . . WOW!!!
The Angle's sure took a bath on that one. I wouldn't have expected much in return, but all they get is a middle reliever while paying $21.5 million of the $23.5 million left on Matthews' contract?!? Good golly! This sure makes the Pierre trade look a little better.
I believed from the time they both signed that the Angle's signing of Matthews was actually worse than the Dodgers signing of Pierre. Matthews was all hype and flash (remember the home run robbing catch that got so much play during his career year?) and was coming off his best year by far in the wind tunnel of Arlington. And he was already 32 years old. At least Pierre had some kind of performance track record, limited as it was.
When people and sites talk about how big a mistake Pierre's contract was, they'd better give equal billing and grief to the Angle's for Matthews, if not more.
"It is called being a professional. If you take the money, give the effort. If you are a pro in any sport, you are always supposed to give your best effort." ~Joe Morgan.Mike Scioscias tragic illness:I'm not saying that we're the same team. As of right now, the rotation stands to be weaker, as does 2B. Agreed. But I also think that there's 5-6 areas that could improve from within, hopefully cancelling out what we've lost. Rather than rewrite it all, I made the same argument on my blog last week - http://mikesciosciastragicillness.com/2010/01/16/theres-still-some-good-news-here/
I read that post and just disagree. I should have referenced it in my post.
For the OF, I think it's unlikely that Ethier will improve and not a lock that Kemp outperforms his previous year. I also think there's an equal if not better chance that Manny 2010 < Manny + Pierre 2009. With that said, I see the OF as roughly the same.
It's true that Loney, Furcal, and Martin could rebound ... but it's also just as likely that Blake regresses and that we suffer a downgrade at 2B both in offense and defense. I call that a wash.
The BP could definitely be better with a full season of Sherrill ... but how much better could a BP be? The 'pen was stellar last year. I can see an upgrade, but how much?
Considering the rotation, I see a serious downgrade. Losing Wolf's 2009 stat line is HUGE. Yes, Bills could rebound to career norms. Kuroda can be effective when healthy. But, how much better can Kershaw be in his 22 yo season? 2.79 is a nasty ERA. You're predicting he transforms into Pedro '00? I think that this group has a CHANCE to better than 2009, but it requires a lot of ifs ...
Just imo, the weakened SP outweighs the improved BP.
I'm somewhat annoyed at how the media is turning around slightly on the McCourt regime. If you look at my track record on this site, I constantly gave this regime every benefit of the doubt, when so many others were ripping them soundly. I waited and reserved judgment until they proved to be a gaggle of ass-clowns. Now, I refuse to let hope spring eternal and begin excuse-making ... well, the market was somewhat bare. What's the difference between Sheets and Padilla? Maybe Colletti had to give wolf a "promise" of no arb? And finally, well the team is essentially the same. Not true, imo.
The mad scientist formerly known as ngrossDoppelgangBang:But, how much better can Kershaw be in his 22 yo season? 2.79 is a nasty ERA. You're predicting he transforms into Pedro '00?
It's not that he'd be better, but more effective. If he keeps that 2.79 ERA but can add 40 more innings by keeping the walks down, that's huge.
Mike Scioscia's tragic illness - the blog! For Dodger analysis, reviews, and hilarity.DoppelgangBang:I read that post and just disagree. I should have referenced it in my post.
For the OF, I think it's unlikely that Ethier will improve and not a lock that Kemp outperforms his previous year. I also think there's an equal if not better chance that Manny 2010 < Manny + Pierre 2009. With that said, I see the OF as roughly the same.
It's true that Loney, Furcal, and Martin could rebound ... but it's also just as likely that Blake regresses and that we suffer a downgrade at 2B both in offense and defense. I call that a wash.
The BP could definitely be better with a full season of Sherrill ... but how much better could a BP be? The 'pen was stellar last year. I can see an upgrade, but how much?
Considering the rotation, I see a serious downgrade. Losing Wolf's 2009 stat line is HUGE. Yes, Bills could rebound to career norms. Kuroda can be effective when healthy. But, how much better can Kershaw be in his 22 yo season? 2.79 is a nasty ERA. You're predicting he transforms into Pedro '00? I think that this group has a CHANCE to better than 2009, but it requires a lot of ifs ...
Just imo, the weakened SP outweighs the improved BP.
I'm somewhat annoyed at how the media is turning around slightly on the McCourt regime. If you look at my track record on this site, I constantly gave this regime every benefit of the doubt, when so many others were ripping them soundly. I waited and reserved judgment until they proved to be a gaggle of ass-clowns. Now, I refuse to let hope spring eternal and begin excuse-making ... well, the market was somewhat bare. What's the difference between Sheets and Padilla? Maybe Colletti had to give wolf a "promise" of no arb? And finally, well the team is essentially the same. Not true, imo.
My major point of contention is that we didn't get the picks for Wolf signing with Milwaukee. I knew we would not likely keep him so I was prepared for that eventuality. I would've liked to have gotten the picks for Hudson, if and when he signs, but one can't have everything. What really annoys me is the "business as usual" attitude of ownership.
It is not business as usual! Business as usual is us signing a top flight free agent or dealing for some pitching help to fill a weakness. Signing Jamey Carroll and Vicente Padilla is not business as usual if they are your big moves. Aside from losing Slappy, this has been one very disappointing off-season.
As for our chances - I still like them. I not only expect Kemp to put up better numbers this year, but I expect him to reach elite status among NL players. I also expect Manny to have a big season. If only because he is motivated, he will likely be healthy and I would not be shocked if he felt he let the team down in '09, so he has something to prove. I expect a big season from James Loney and I feel that both Kershaw and Billz will take the next step. Lastly, I think that Furcal, another year removed from back surgery will have a comeback season.
On the other hand, I would not be shocked if Ethier struggled and is hard pressed to repeat his numbers. I am not saying it is impossible, but I will very surprised. I also think that Blake will regress some and we will rue dealing Josh Bell. I also agree with Mike that Tron could struggle because the numbers show he was inordinately lucky.
As for the rest - Kuroda just needs to stay healthy for his final season in the US. If he is healthy, he has a very good chance at winning 15 games and giving us a solid number three. If he is hurt, we will be in trouble. On the other end, I think Padilla is going to put up strong numbers. His numbers are always better in the NL and now that he is pitching in a bigger ballpark, he could flourish. It has never been his stuff that has been questioned. Always been his motivation.
Lastly, Martin and DeWitt scare me the most. I am sure that DeWitt can make all the plays on balls hit at him, I am worried about his range and if last year ruined him, offensively. At least DeWitt has some upside. Martin is another story. His swing was awful and he seemed to fall in love with being a pull hitter. If he goes back to the basics, he could improve. As for his defense, he looked awful and seemed to regress as the season went on. I am hoping he has worked on his flexibility and digging balls out of the dirt. I feel that most of the problem was laziness - until someone can prove otherwise, that is my opinion - and he needs to get motivated because I see both Lucas May and JR Wise on the fasttrack to the show. One more bad season and I have to think that Martin is trade bait.
As it stands today, I think we can win 91-94 games. I actually think that if our pitchers stay healthy, our biggest problem will be the bottom of our lineup - Blake, DeWitt and Martin.
I'll play the radio on Southern stations because Southern Belles are Hell at night...Yeah, I agree with you for the most part. I'd say 85-90 vics, although I could see a few more.
It's true, McCourt and Mannion and even Ned are out there talking to the media and making excuses or just flat out lying.
Again, if our strategy was to sit back and take a pass on this market, because management thought it was over-priced, I understand. However, if that's your strategy, you need to reinvest that money in the draft or international signings ... when you just pocket that money, it makes you look like someone trying to maximize profit. I'm all for profit, just don't expect my money when you are putting out an inferior product and lying about it.
This off-season was a disaster ... we gave up two FREE draft picks! Free! For what? Why? Just to save a couple bucks? Damn, man. I wouldn't have been that upset if we had gotten the draft picks and stayed slot on em ... but just not even taking them? That's pathetic!
Then, Mannion drops that comment about portable concession stands ... dude, I could give two shits less about portable concession stands! You being able to more easily sell me hugely overpriced goods that generates more profit for you, somehow affects the team payroll? Pathetic!
And the whole being scared of Wolf not accepting because he wouldn't be worth the arb raise ... that's utter BS. We clearly were cutting payroll and couldn't afford him even at like $8m!
As fans, we came out in a recession and racked up the #1 attendance in the game, even slightly higher than the year previous ... and this is how we're repaid? Trading A prospects so other teams will eat a couple mil on vets? Short-terming future team stars, because we can't look at payroll past next year? Not being able to sign even a MEDIOCRE starting pitcher? Pathetic.
This regime is completely misbehaving and we need to show our disapproval ...
The mad scientist formerly known as ngrossI see this team winning 90 games at most right now, the Rockies, Giants, and D'Backs may albe able to match or surpass that depending on health. Mostly though, I just don't see the Dodgers being able to get past the Phillies or Braves in the playoffs.
Now that Manny is finally signed, lets get Pierre off the teamDoppelgangBang:Yeah, I agree with you for the most part. I'd say 85-90 vics, although I could see a few more.
It's true, McCourt and Mannion and even Ned are out there talking to the media and making excuses or just flat out lying.
Again, if our strategy was to sit back and take a pass on this market, because management thought it was over-priced, I understand. However, if that's your strategy, you need to reinvest that money in the draft or international signings ... when you just pocket that money, it makes you look like someone trying to maximize profit. I'm all for profit, just don't expect my money when you are putting out an inferior product and lying about it.
This off-season was a disaster ... we gave up two FREE draft picks! Free! For what? Why? Just to save a couple bucks? Damn, man. I wouldn't have been that upset if we had gotten the draft picks and stayed slot on em ... but just not even taking them? That's pathetic!
Then, Mannion drops that comment about portable concession stands ... dude, I could give two shits less about portable concession stands! You being able to more easily sell me hugely overpriced goods that generates more profit for you, somehow affects the team payroll? Pathetic!And the whole being scared of Wolf not accepting because he wouldn't be worth the arb raise ... that's utter BS. We clearly were cutting payroll and couldn't afford him even at like $8m!
As fans, we came out in a recession and racked up the #1 attendance in the game, even slightly higher than the year previous ... and this is how we're repaid? Trading A prospects so other teams will eat a couple mil on vets? Short-terming future team stars, because we can't look at payroll past next year? Not being able to sign even a MEDIOCRE starting pitcher? Pathetic.
This regime is completely misbehaving and we need to show our disapproval ...
If we had the five stars to rank posts . . . This one would get TEN from me.
"It is called being a professional. If you take the money, give the effort. If you are a pro in any sport, you are always supposed to give your best effort." ~Joe Morgan.hunteralan:Just saw the official report on the Matthews Jr. trade and all I can say is . . . WOW!!!
The Angle's sure took a bath on that one. I wouldn't have expected much in return, but all they get is a middle reliever while paying $21.5 million of the $23.5 million left on Matthews' contract?!? Good golly! This sure makes the Pierre trade look a little better.
I believed from the time they both signed that the Angle's signing of Matthews was actually worse than the Dodgers signing of Pierre. Matthews was all hype and flash (remember the home run robbing catch that got so much play during his career year?) and was coming off his best year by far in the wind tunnel of Arlington. And he was already 32 years old. At least Pierre had some kind of performance track record, limited as it was.
When people and sites talk about how big a mistake Pierre's contract was, they'd better give equal billing and grief to the Angle's for Matthews, if not more.
Wow. To save $2m? Crazy.
Thanks for the kind words, btw. I wish that I wasn't so worked up, but frustration and anger have been building in me since last year.
I keep hoping for a sign - something, anything to prove me wrong, but the situation just keeps getting worse.
These jerks made my friends and I give up our shared season seats. I am beyond upset.
To top that off ... I'll never root against the Dodgers, but deep down, part of me knows that outside of a divorce forcing a sale (fingers crossed), a complete nose dive in 2010 might be better for the team long-term. That feels SO awful it makes me sick to my stomach.
The mad scientist formerly known as ngrossDoppelgangBang:Wow. To save $2m? Crazy.
Thanks for the kind words, btw. I wish that I wasn't so worked up, but frustration and anger have been building in me since last year.
I keep hoping for a sign - something, anything to prove me wrong, but the situation just keeps getting worse.
These jerks made my friends and I give up our shared season seats. I am beyond upset.
To top that off ... I'll never root against the Dodgers, but deep down, part of me knows that outside of a divorce forcing a sale (fingers crossed), a complete nose dive in 2010 might be better for the team long-term. That feels SO awful it makes me sick to my stomach.
I agree - great rant !
However, no matter how much of a jerk McDivorceCourt is and how much his mismanagement is heading the team in the wrong direction, the team is currently not in bad shape, because of the previous management, mainly Dan Evans & Logan White, provided.
We do need to catch some breaks to continue on as a highly competitive team, but that was likely to be the case no matter what we could have done this off-season. And us not doing much doesn't somehow translate into our previously trailing competitors catching up when they did nothing more than we did.
I agree with your take and not wanting to give good old Frank more $ to put into his pocket, while the jerk claims to be the steward of this storied franchise. But I have a hard time translating that distaste into a gloomy view of the team we look set to put on the field. They are two different situations. I do have a gloomy view of what we will put on the field in a year or two due to the current BS.
Every silver lining has a cloud.DoppelgangBang:Wow. To save $2m? Crazy.
Thanks for the kind words, btw. I wish that I wasn't so worked up, but frustration and anger have been building in me since last year.
I keep hoping for a sign - something, anything to prove me wrong, but the situation just keeps getting worse.
These jerks made my friends and I give up our shared season seats. I am beyond upset.
To top that off ... I'll never root against the Dodgers, but deep down, part of me knows that outside of a divorce forcing a sale (fingers crossed), a complete nose dive in 2010 might be better for the team long-term. That feels SO awful it makes me sick to my stomach.
I'm sorry mods that my comment is off topic in the done deals thread but I am absolutely with Dopple on this. It's one thing if they can't afford it. It stinks but it's probably something I could live with. It's the dishonesty and treating us like mindless fools that I just can't stand. I have had some share of season tickets with various groups since I turned 18 and at 29 I walked away disgusted. I will watch 162 games a year. I will even see them in person, but at the A and the litter box. Sure he may get some residuals from me, but McCourt will not get my parking money 10x/yr. He will not get my money from hot dogs, sodas, or beers 10x year. And we aren't buying any more merchandise as long as that scum is owner. I am ok saying that too because I know he's not too long for the baseball world. I live in the world of loans and debt and there just aren't lenders for easy money like there were 5 years ago. I have heard others on this board say that to boycott only hurts the employees. First, I just don't believe that to be true. I don't think the number of employees needed to run a baseball stadium fluctuates THAT much even if there is some impact. Second and probably more importantly if he treats his team's fans this bad his employees are probably being treated worse.
To find out today that he couldn't even afford Padilla as 1million of his 5 is deferred per Cot's is just a new low. He must be saving that million for the draft pic....oh ya!
The Orioles signed Miguel Tejada to play third base. It is a one year deal, but no other terms were mentioned.
I'll play the radio on Southern stations because Southern Belles are Hell at night...kennerbuggy:I agree - great rant !
However, no matter how much of a jerk McDivorceCourt is and how much his mismanagement is heading the team in the wrong direction, the team is currently not in bad shape, because of the previous management, mainly Dan Evans & Logan White, provided.
We do need to catch some breaks to continue on as a highly competitive team, but that was likely to be the case no matter what we could have done this off-season. And us not doing much doesn't somehow translate into our previously trailing competitors catching up when they did nothing more than we did.
I agree with your take and not wanting to give good old Frank more $ to put into his pocket, while the jerk claims to be the steward of this storied franchise. But I have a hard time translating that distaste into a gloomy view of the team we look set to put on the field. They are two different situations. I do have a gloomy view of what we will put on the field in a year or two due to the current BS.
Completely agree. I fought it for so long, but you and others were dead on from day one. Frank is succeeding because of a foundation that was laid before he arrived. Pretty much everything he's done since then has been detrimental, with the exception of retaining Logan White and not allowing a GM to wholesale our core when they were young. What's really frustrating is that we're burning a lot of these kids' cheap years ... obviously I'm happy with the success of two NLCS appearances, but taking a step back this year made no sense. They are just going to get more and more expensive and we won't have the cheap young talent to replace them if we can't afford to keep them. It's just a disastrous setup.
I also agree that the poor ownership situation and the state of the team are two separate issues. Good point. However, they are related and I think that one is causing the other to decline ... I understand that some of our players could get better. There is no one on earth that could convince me that replacing Orlando Hudson and Randy Wolf with Jamey Carroll and Vicente Padilla will not lead to a major decline. I agree that improvement from our youngsters can off-set some of that decline, but I won't concede that before the season. There's a chance that Padilla could be solid, the whole rotation could round into ace-like form, and James McDonald has a Fernando Valenzuela experience, but I won't accept that as fact before the season. Development takes time. For example, would anyone be surprised if Kershaw took a step back developmentally and threw 200 innings of ~4ERA ball? I think that's just as likely as him tossing 200 innings and besting his performance of last year! Would it be surprising? NO! He's 22 freaking years old!
Now around this time last year, I would be predicting a Cy Young for Kershaw and co-MVPs for Kemp and Manny ... but I've just had my baseball optimism cautterized by the guy who can't express emotions with his plastic face while he's ruining our franchise.
The mad scientist formerly known as ngrosshunteralan:Just saw the official report on the Matthews Jr. trade and all I can say is . . . WOW!!!
The Angle's sure took a bath on that one. I wouldn't have expected much in return, but all they get is a middle reliever while paying $21.5 million of the $23.5 million left on Matthews' contract?!? Good golly! This sure makes the Pierre trade look a little better.
I believed from the time they both signed that the Angle's signing of Matthews was actually worse than the Dodgers signing of Pierre. Matthews was all hype and flash (remember the home run robbing catch that got so much play during his career year?) and was coming off his best year by far in the wind tunnel of Arlington. And he was already 32 years old. At least Pierre had some kind of performance track record, limited as it was.
When people and sites talk about how big a mistake Pierre's contract was, they'd better give equal billing and grief to the Angle's for Matthews, if not more.
The reviews on this deal are really bad. As bad a deal as the Halos got, the general consensus seems to be the Mess gave up too much as Matthews Jr. is just plain bad all around - slow bat, poor plate awareness, now bad on 'D' and in steep decline into his late 30's.
I can't agree more on how much bad press the Dodgers have gotten over the Slappy signing while the pundits virtually ignored the worse situation with the Halos and Matthews Jr.
It seems that while the take on Slappy ranged from way too negative to way too positive, many acted like the Matthews situation didn't happen. In looking at the recent deals where they were moved from the teams that made the big FA signing mistake, it seems to me that the trades were in fact close to balanced from both sides. Babu got about all he could in moving Slappy, and the Halos were lucky to move Matthews at all.
With all factors involved, - $/yr, yrs and what was obtained in later moving the player, the Halos signing of Matthews Jr was BY FAR the worse move.
And the Halos haven't really done any more than the Dodgers this season in terms of who they lost and who they signed, but the Dodgers are the ones getting all the bad press.
Every silver lining has a cloud.kennerbuggy:The reviews on this deal are really bad. As bad a deal as the Halos got, the general consensus seems to be the Mess gave up too much as Matthews Jr. is just plain bad all around - slow bat, poor plate awareness, now bad on 'D' and in steep decline into his late 30's.
I can't agree more on how much bad press the Dodgers have gotten over the Slappy signing while the pundits virtually ignored the worse situation with the Halos and Matthews Jr.
It seems that while the take on Slappy ranged from way too negative to way too positive, many acted like the Matthews situation didn't happen. In looking at the recent deals where they were moved from the teams that made the big FA signing mistake, it seems to me that the trades were in fact close to balanced from both sides. Babu got about all he could in moving Slappy, and the Halos were lucky to move Matthews at all.
With all factors involved, - $/yr, yrs and what was obtained in later moving the player, the Halos signing of Matthews Jr was BY FAR the worse move.
And the Halos haven't really done any more than the Dodgers this season in terms of who they lost and who they signed, but the Dodgers are the ones getting all the bad press.
That is because the Halos are our ugly stepsisters. Even when they do win something, no one really cares. Let's face it, they are nearly a non-entity when compared to the Dodgers. We screw up - front page news. The Halos screw up - meh, who cares....
I'll play the radio on Southern stations because Southern Belles are Hell at night...Jonathan Broxton's greatest nightmare has come true. Matt Stairs has signed with the Padres.
Best thing that could happen is Broxton puts one in his ribs everytime he comes up. Problem solved. No homer, only one pitch wasted. No threat to steal a base either.
According to ESPN.com, a majority interest in the Texas Rangers has been sold by the Hicks Sports Group to a group headed by Pittsburgh attorney Chuck Greenberg called Rangers Baseball Express for $570 million. The deal includes the Rangers, the lease on the Ballpark at Arlington and 135 acres of land surrounding the ballpark and Cowboy Stadium. Nolan Ryan will continue as president of the Rangers and Tom Hicks will still own a piece of the franchise.
Seeing as how Hicks reneged on a $525 million loan, one has to wonder how much debt will be carried by the new ownership. Given that the MLB moves like a snail with arthritis, the approval of this sale won't happen until probably Opening Day. Too bad this isn't an announcement of the sale of the Blue to someone who actually has real money.
I'll play the radio on Southern stations because Southern Belles are Hell at night...Somewhat off-topic, but for newbies like me I love the built-in glossary of some of the nicknames...Slappy, Babu, etc. Could we get them updated for some of the other nicknames that are leaving me guessing?
ToucheTurtle:Somewhat off-topic, but for newbies like me I love the built-in glossary of some of the nicknames...Slappy, Babu, etc. Could we get them updated for some of the other nicknames that are leaving me guessing?
Start tossing out the nick's that you haven't correlated.
Some history - this habit beagn many years ago on the Dodgers.com fan site when MLB kept cranking up the propoganda and censorship. Posters couldn't post disparaging comments, foul sounding names, etc. It got to where we couldn't post the name of the pitching coach Dick Pole (dirty, har-har, get it!), anybody else with the name Dick, many acronyms and much other BS.
Which brings up one board requirement - you can't say Dick Pole ......... without a preceding or ending comment, like: "har-har, I said Dick Pole !"
torgy and I go a bit crazy with the nix, but there are many others that contribute mightily, and we have problem stealing nix from elsewhere. Anything goes - except for the really filthy stuff, which is best left in torgy's game room when remote and cat are flying.
Every silver lining has a cloud.ToucheTurtle:Somewhat off-topic, but for newbies like me I love the built-in glossary of some of the nicknames...Slappy, Babu, etc. Could we get them updated for some of the other nicknames that are leaving me guessing?
Just off of the top of my head
Pinball - Jason Repko
TWIMITW (the Most Interesting Man in the World) - Casey Blake
A.God - Andre Ethier
Bison - Matt Kemp
Eggplant - Jonathan Broxton (don't ask, we would need a novel to explain the name)
The Bowler - Ronald Belisario (I think Kyle gets credit for this one)
Well - Hong Chih Kuo (OC Mike's creation, IIRC)
Jimmy Ballgame, Smooth, Crazy Eyes - James Loney
Sunshine, The Minotaur - Clayton Kershaw
Thunder Thighs - Chad Billingsley
We have some others, but they are pretty self-explanatory
We also have names for some of our more hated opponents
Errant Thrower - Aaron Rowand
Gintfan, Crash Test Dummy, etc.... Eric Byrnes
Greaseball, Jailbait - Tim Lincecum
Nancy - JD Drew
Nancy v.2 - Stephen Drew
Of course nothing is better than watching the Rockie feed and hearing their nicknames for the Rox - Barmy, Spilly, Ubaldy, etc...
I'll play the radio on Southern stations because Southern Belles are Hell at night...