Cubzfan64

This is obviously my personal opinion, but I started collecting cards around age 8 or 9. The excitement I got out of collecting cards was in opening the packs and looking for my favorite players, trying to get all the players of my favorite team etc... I rubber banded them, sorted them, sorted them again, looked at them continuously etc.... It wasn't until I got into my late teens that I started "getting into" the hobby - as in trying to collect cards, go to shows, trade etc... to try to get valuable cards. I'm sure I ruined many a card with rubber bands around them, but if I had to go back and do it all over again, I would do it the same way - get him started collecting cards strictly for the fun of it - if you want, pick up a card or two here and there that has some value (speculate on some rookies or something). I have to say that from a personal standpoint, it breaks my heart to see kids buy $3-$5 packs at card shows, rip through them for the insert cards and "worthwhile" ones and then toss the rest in the garbage - imho that's not the best way for a kid to get started on this great hobby.

Oh God - those are 2 words that should NEVER be uttered together!!!! Izturis & Cornerstone *sigh*

Agreed regarding ARod - he's done in NY. If I had to guess, I would say he goes to Angels

No way is ARod a Yankee next year

I think Thomas deserved it in the AL

While I don't want Piniella, I still can't see how Girardi and the Cubs are a match made in heaven. I'd rather have someone who is not so tied to the conventional wisdom, small ball, method of management. Largely, Vance, I agree with you. However, I REALLY don't want Piniella, and while Girardi is a bit of a conventional wisdom type of guy, I don't think he is to the same extent as many of the other old-school types. I would not complain at all if we hired Girardi (even if he's not perfect), but I sure would complain if we hired Piniella. Until a hire is made, I'll still hold out hope for a good hire, not an acceptable one. I'm not sold on Girardi at all. And from what the Marlins bloggers had to say, my fears about Girardi seem to be well-founded. I'm hoping that Hendry's deliberance in this process is a sign that he will look at numerous candidates and not just the ones who have been reported thus far. I can't pinpoint it either, but as much as I liked Girardi as a player, I don't think he would be that great in Chicago. I'm with you - I'm hoping that there are some guys outside of the names we've been hearing who Hendry may be talking to. I'll reserve judgement until it's a done deal

It can and will be argued over and over again, but personally I put team chemistry and lack of hustle in the same category for the most part. When a team is winning, the chemistry is good and everybody seems to be hustling - and even when little things happen, they are quickly forgotten and or glossed over as long as the team keeps winning. When the team is losing, team chemistry seems to become an issue too much and when a guy doesn't hustle in some given situation, it's overblown and overexamined to death. It's just human nature to perceive the sky is sunny and bright when everything is going well and it's doom and gloom when it's not.

I'm surprised as well that Hendry is still part of this organization. The team ended up in last place, the manager was let go, the president resigned and yet the man who's name is first and foremost (by title at least) responsible for putting all of this together is allowed to remain to "try again." Unless a lightbulb has suddenly gone off over his head, I have little to no confidence that Hendry has the ability to right this ship. He seems to be stubborn with many of his moves and decisions, and I'm seriously afraid that he's one of those folks who "if you don't learn from history, you're doomed to repeat it." I would much rather have seen a full cleaning of the front office than this partial one.

Your mention of the hit and run just severely soured me on Girardi. The hit and run may very well be the worst call a manager can make, outside of choosing who plays. If the Cubs never again called for the hit and run as long as I lived, I'd feel much more confident in our ability to win a World Series before I die. No problem, there. It's just a form of baseball that I like to watch. I like the bunt too. The trick is, the players have to execute for that form of baseball to be effective. They did it in 89, and that is the year I fell in love with the Cubs. It's good baseball, and that is just my opinion. I agree also - the hit and run can be an awful call in baseball, but in the right situations, with hitters who have bat control, the hit and run can be effective. As you said, it's all in the execution of the play.

forgive me for my ignorance, but is there a time frame that Aramis has before a decision one way or another must be made regarding signing or becoming a free agent?

When exactly did Maddux lose his chin and start looking like Rick Reuschel? Congrats to Greg - bet it feels darn good to not be ending the season in last place on a team for an organization that looks to be going nowhere for awhile. Hope he wins another WS ring!

I'll make a prediction.... If Aramis Ramirez decides to opt out and test the free agent waters, Manny gets traded to the Angels for Ervin Santana and the Red Sox grab Ramirez for 3B and to provide the protection needed for Ortiz. The Red Sox then go out and move Lowell and Crisp for some good bullpen help (maybe a closer?) so that Papelbon can go into the rotation for next year. Willy Mo Pena starts in one of the outfield spots and they pick up serviceable guys for the other two OF spots. If Ramirez doesn't opt out, Manny stays with the Red Sox unless they can find a way to add a VERY solid bat behind Ortiz. I doubt very much if Manny is gone if they don't seriously improve the offense.

Boy am I sick of the inability of this organization to evaluate talent well enough to avoid consistently selling low and buying high. To be honest, I don't trust this front office to do ANYTHING right anymore. But then again, it's a business and if you can fill the stands and make money by throwing what we've thrown out there the last 2 years, what the heck - they probably consider it a success. *sigh*

I absolutely agree with you - I've seen nothing to prove to me that this organization "get's it" yet. I have every reason to believe they are going to sign Pierre to a 2-3 year contract which I think is a mistake and I'm virtually positive that the organization thinks highly of Izturis and plans for him to be our everyday SS. The direction this organization has taken to try to build a contending ballclub is frustrating and depressing. Then when you look at the standings and realize that even a halfway decent team has a good chance of getting a wildcard berth and at least a shot at a WS makes it even that much more sickening that we can't even accomplish that.

Right now I think they have more people on the DL then the Cubs do...however a lot of the people on the DL just went on recently, unlike the Cubs. They have barely gotten anything out of Clement for the last 2 years, and hes on the DL too. I think fans are really going to jump on Theo for this mess (and already are). The thing is, he made a lot of gutsy decisions while dismantling the championship team, he mostly stuck to his philosophy. I have no problems with the Crisp trade when it was made, the Beckett trade mostly too. Hanley Ramirez would have been great for this team, and Beckett was a walking injury the last few years, but the gamble had big upside, and they got a lot out of Lowell until recently. I think the Red Sox ownership realized this was a transition year anyways (athough a transition year in Boston is nothing like one on the Northside), and to be competitive most of the season in a 'transition year' is pretty good. They have a lot of young pitching talent that they are developing and probably will be great in a year or two. The key for them is to not let time waste while Manny and Ortiz are still in their prime. The Red Sox will be back in the playoffs next year, fear not. Personally I think you're about dead on with my feelings as well. I honestly don't think Theo expected them to have been in the hunt as long as they were because realistically the only way they could have added talent at the deadline was to trade some of their young arms which other teams wanted. You're right that Theo is taking a gamble, and likely one which will either make or break his link with the Red Sox in 2007 or 2008. It's a tough gamble to make to believe that you have star arms in the making with Hansen, Del Carmen and Lester - at least 2 of those kids HAVE to be better than average by 2008 for his gamble to have worked because despite Boston having a high payroll, I just don't think they're going to go overboard to pay big money for free agents. If it turns out 2 of the 3 pitchers fade and don't ever live up to expectations, all it will take is one of the guys Theo traded (A. Sanchez, H. Ramirez or A. Marte) to become a better than average player and he's going to suffer the wrath of the fans despite getting them a WS ring in 2004. You're absolutely correct that they really can't afford to waste too much time with Ortiz and Manny passing the midpoint of their careers, but I'd add Schilling, Wakefield and Varitek to that list of names as some guys who may not have many years left. I expect the Red Sox are going to look quite a bit different in 2007 and even more different in 2008. I'll tell you one thing - as a Cub fan moving out to the east coast a few years ago, I used to think Cub fans were tough on their team sometimes, it's NOTHING compared to the ridiculousness of Boston fans!! One minute you're the best thing since sliced bread and the next they want you out the door for a sack of peanuts!! They're absolutely idiotic at times!!

There's a multitude of reasons why Boston won't make the playoffs this year: 1) Wells being hurt for most of the season 2) Wakefield being out for too many starts 3) Beckett picthing like a #4 or #5 starter rather than the #2 they were hoping for 4) Crisp not living up to expectations and offensively taking a big step backwards from last season coupled with Damon putting up great numbers in NY. 5) Basically having no pitchers to carry them from the 5th inning where too many starters have ended to Papelbon in the 9th - See Saenez & Tavarez. Papi is in the hospital with heart problems, Varitek is out until who knows when, Manny and Pena are back in Boston and I heard today that they're hoping to trade Wells by Thursday. They're pretty much over for 2006 and they have alot of retooling to do for 2007.

Shouldn't that read "one man's trash will likely be another man's trash?" :)

I guess I'm in the minority here because I don't see why the idea has no merit. Barrett is a good hitter and has really hit his stride offensively this year, but it's fairly easy to see he isn't that great of a defensive catcher and I'm not sure he's that great of a "caller" of games for a pitching staff either. Why does anyone assume that Barrett's offensive numbers if he was capable of playing LF would equal the numbers he's put up as a catcher? Playing catcher really takes a toll on your body throughout a season and career. Even during a game it HAS to be more physically and mentally exhausting to catch than to play LF. I'd be willing to bet he would be a .280-.320 hitter capable of 25-35 HR's per year which would be fine in my book for LF. I have no idea if he can play the OF defensively, but I see no reason not to consider it.

Supposedly the Hinske deal is for a low to mid level prospect from Boston. It's not a bad move for Boston really since Hinske can play alot of positions and still has potential upside. Carlos Pena actually had reasonable AAA stats, .260BA, ~.350OBP, 19 HR's - he strikes out alot (~90 so far), but isn't a bad pickup either. He's reporting to Pawtucket, so I don't know if he's so much in the plan for this year (although I'm sure he'll be up in September), but possibly for next. It doesn't address the Red Sox problems in the pitching department, but they're reasonably moves.

Heard this morning that Soriano was placed on waivers - wonder where he ends up?

Too small a sample size - It would be remarkable for a guy with only a couple pitches to be able to succeed in the ML. That said, of course I'm happy to see what he's done recently, I just think it's way too soon to think he's turned any kind of corner.

I have no source for this as I just happened across one of the sports guys on a local radio station mention it, but he said that the Braves pulled Jones back.

I'll give you Liriano, but personally I think Papelbon has a better shot at ROY or CY than Verlander or Weaver (if Weaver even gets enough starts). FWIW, I saw where Verlander may miss a start or two due to arm fatigue. If Papelbon keeps up this pace, you have to admit it will be one of the best set of closer stats in the history of baseball. His ERA is 0.49 now with a 0.65 WHIP. I will admit though that if he falters AT ALL, his ERA and WHIP will increase pretty significantly taking him out of the running imho, but right now, other than Liriano, he has to get significant consideration.

I forgot to mention.... Not bad for a guy who was a starter in the minors and was "pressed into the closer role" early in the year!

30 saves in 33 chances, < 0.50 ERA, OBA < .144. Ortiz may be the offensive MVP for the Sox, but Papelbon has really put up some amazing closing numbers!! I think if he keeps this up for the rest of the season he certainly could have a shot at both those awards.