CubinNY

Goony, that post depresses me so much. It is true mind you, but deeply depressing.

Hopefully one that wants to win

The Jets problem is different than the Mets problem. Financing is always the toughest hurdle (just ask the Marlins) and with the property already ready, the Stadium is a go. The Jets were having property/development issues and financing issues. (I posted the link to the stadium so others could see it. Trying to bring back Ebbets). And to say that Minaya has no bearing on the stadium deal is silly. He as GM is in charge of the vision of the team for the foreseeable future. How easy would it be for them to get a stadium deal if they were going to finish last every year? Not too easy. As Mike Lupica is fond of saying, the fact that they are talking about 2 baseball teams in NY these days is a minor miracle by itself. Minaya is the man that made that possible. You have absolutely no idea what you are talking about. There is nothing finalized about the stadium. They have to go through mulitple levels and have just begun the process. However, the likelihood that they get a new stadium is pretty high. The plans for the new stadium have been around a lot longer than Omar. The Wilpons have been in the process of doing this for a number of years. Omar has nothing to do with it. In fact, this has more to do with A) the new TV network revenue and B) the Yankees. Last year the Yankees got the go ahead. If would be difficult if not impossible for the Mets not to get approval.

And the funny thing is, I will only stick to my guns until someone can poke holes in the logic surrounding their decision. sarcasm? No, honesty. I mean it. I didn't base my opinion of this move on anything other than the logic at the time the decision was made. To base it on anything else, anything including any hindsight would be unfair. If someone can engage the facts and logic that I have laid out and show how it is either incomplete or faulty, I will gladly alter my opinion. They already have a number of times.

Definately.

I hate that this once great thread has been hijacked.

Cox was actually thrown out by the 2nd base umpire. Lo Duca was thrown out by Angel. And he made a terrible call. But it was on the same play. It was a very weird play.

Source? Exactly. He ad hock disqualifies the move that made the most sense because he says it ain't so. Horse crap

I will never have apathy toward the Cubs. My love for them is like a burning ring of fire. Hate is not the opposite of love, it is apathy. Hate is merely love that is unrequited.

Not really. The Cubs have had an execution issue for a long time. You have to factor that into your decision on whether or not you call for it. Sac bunts are dumb even when they work. Giving up an out for 90 feet doesn't help the team. But they don't always work, which just makes them even worse. Also, just because most managers would sac bunt doesn't make it a smart move. Conventional wisdom in baseball has been shown to be wrong often enough that you can't simply defend a decision by saying a lot of others would make it as well. You have to be able to prove the conventional wisdom wrong for your claim to have any relevance. In one run games the numbers show an increased likelihood of scoring with conventional small ball approaches. In every other scoring situation, the numbers show conventional small ball doesn't increase run production. Dusty had a one-run scenario late game to work with all three times, and the conventional wisdom was the correct approach if you believe in following the numbers. However, there is a legitimate claim that Dusty doesn't have these guys game ready when it comes to execution. That he deserves to criticized for as a manager. But the failure to execute doesn't disprove the value of the bunt in that situation. It just shows poor fundamentals and lack of coaching wisdom by the manager for not putting the best bunter on the bench out there to ensure successful execution. The 5th, 6th, and 7th innings are not late in the game.

I don't believe one word of his story. Why would the Cubs intionally ignore an injury from a guy they've invested this type of money in? The Cubs biggest mistake was drafting him in the first place.

Would they last year? How about 2004? Would they have pulled Prior in Game 6 in '03? The Baker "hate" is not from 30 games this season. I think Baker hate is too strong of a word and paints the wrong picture. I don't hate Dusty. He seems like a nice guy. I had the chance to talk to him for like two minutes and he was very friendly. Nevertheless, it is a poor plumber who blames his tools when he can't fix a leak. Saying that no manger could do a better job is at best inaccurate and at worst appologetic of Dusty's performance as a manager of the Cubs. It's one thing to have a player commit a physical error, but quite another to see the same types of mental errors occur again and again. At some point you have to stop blaming the tools, and fix the leak or whomever you work for will find another plumber.

What an interesting read. Why in the wide, wide, world of sports would the Cubs draft a guy like that in the first round? Here is a kid who quit his high school team and quit is college team yet the Cubs saw fit to draft him in the first round of the suplemental. Now I am understanding why things are the way they are. They threw away @$2 mil on this looser.

IF they hire Brenly I hope it is on an interm basis only. He is as sac happy as Dusty.

Couldn't agree with you more. All it takes is the Cubs to sniff first place and Chicago will go crazy yet again. Cubs and Bears are the pulse of sports world in Chicago. It's just the way it is. The Sox just won a freaking WS and still only draw 20,000 for a weekday night game. Not that we should care whose more popular, but if questioned no doubt the Cubs are what Chicago craves... I wish the Cubs had a crappy draw and were good. It would be much easirer to get ticktes. Instead they draw great and are crappy and I still can't get tickets. ------------- Let's get back on topic. I beleive it is only a matter of time until Dusty has a Lee Elia type meltdown that will be the tipping point.

I agree that this year's mess is not Dusty's fault. Hendry put together a flawed team. On the other hand, 2004 was Dusty's fault. That team had plenty of talent to get the job done and Dusty let the "us vs the world" metanlity implode on that team. It is not all Dusty's fault but he is not without blame. On Saturday Len metioned that guys missed signs in Friday night's loss. JJ has made numerous base running mistakes and can't hit the cutoff man. Hairston failed to lay-down a sac bunt. And then there is the sac bunting issue that abuck has mentioned (a little understatement there), as well as other minor things that all add up to a loss. Not pinch hitting for Marshall in the 7th etc, etc. Dusty hasn't been dealt a good hand, but he hasn't played the cards well eiether, and he hasn't played them well for a long, long time.

Looking back now, it wasn't just a dark cloud but a Level 5 hurricane of the likes Cub fans haven't seen in years. However, it was forcasted about as well as can be during the off-season by some here. Like Bush and Brownie, Hendry and Dusty didn't heed the warning signs and provide the necessary provisions to weather the storm.

The problem is if you bring up minor leaguers who aren't ready, what are they going to show you? They're going to look overwhelmed at the plate and on the mound. How are you going to decide who can produce at a consistent level for 2007, if they come up and stink. Kaspar and Brenley were talking about the fact that Guzman will be a good major league pitcher. I haven't seen anything yet that suggests that. I disagree with that last statement. Guz clearly has plus-stuff, but he isn't comfortable being in The Show. Is there any guarantee that he will ever be comfortable being in The Show. Juan Cruz had plus-stuff, Rich Hill has plus-stuff, Guzman has plus-stuff, as do many AA and AAA pitchers, but all that means is they have the potential to be a good major league pitcher. Personally, I would like the Cubs to put some of these players in a package for Craig Wilson (even if it means overpaying). Neither Guzman nor Hill have pitched enough to make any claims about their ability to pitch in "the show". Trading either one for the likes of Craig Wilson would be beyond stupid.

I saw the Thome play too, and he wasn't hustling at all. He hit the ball so freaking high he just jogged to second. It also didn't hurt that the KC centerfielder was sprawlled out on the ground either.

Bravo! The worst thing is that, the very problems the Cubs are having are ones that have been talked about for a long time. If we can see them, why can't the Cubs???

Not even close, and has been shown ad nauseum by the numbers. You have dedicated threads to beat and bash the players you dislike. Take it there. What the hell are you talking about?

So far the rookies haven't been the problem. The problems have been the "lead-off man", and the guys who can catch the ball.

nice Just because Sandberg played, it doesn't make him a genius at baseball strategy (see also, Morgan, Joe).

Greg Maddux for Lastings Midledge anyone? or Glendon Rusch for Victor Diaz or Glendon Rusch for Cliff Floyd

This is actually good news for the Mets. Zambrano is terrible with a T.