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biittner77

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Everything posted by biittner77

  1. biittner77
    1st,RF,LF -he could play 3rd, C- in a pinch maybe what was the 6th position? I should have excluded HOF candidates to eliminate obvious choices such as Dawson, Sosa, Palmeiro, Smith and Sutter. Rick Monday was just a bit before my time. I vaguely remember him being on the team but that's about it. Another active player I'd consider is Jose Viscaino. He'd solve the SS problem and be a better back up than Perez.
  2. biittner77
    This is good news for the people that want to see as few Cubs as possible take part. Arod should push Ramirez out of the starting lineup. No if we can just find a way to make the Venezuelans not want Zambrano...
  3. biittner77
    From the O's perspective this trade has been a bust so far. Considering all their injuries, (Matos, Mora and Roberts) the O's could have used Hairston and Fontenot. Sosa hasn't provided as much power as they had expected. On the bright side, he's not as much of a distraction because no one cares about him. Also, with the team winning it sort of puts Sosa's lack of productivity on the back burner.
  4. biittner77
    Who is it that thinks McCarver or Morgan are any good? I have never heard anyone express anything but disgust at their "Talent" for calling games yet they've been around for 3 forevers. I may even hate McCarver more than Morgan. McCarver is especially bad during the playoffs. "Do you see that thread hanging off the CF pnats cuff? That could be the difference in the game." ugh. I don't really mind Buck as much. Compared to McCarver, Joe Buck is Steve Stone.
  5. biittner77
    Rafael Palmeiro, Ritchie Hebner, Tim Stoddard I thought about Hebner as he eliminates any justification for Macias being on the roster. I loved "The Hacker"
  6. biittner77
    Here's my picks: Starter 1989's Jerome Walton. He was everything Baker thinks Patterson should be. He got on base and played solid defense. Pitcher 1984 George Frazier. After coming over from Cleveland in the Sutcliffe trade he was a brilliant set up man for Lee Smith. Bench I thought about Larry Biittner but the Cubs already have a poor man's Biittner in Hollandsworth. I'll go with 1984 Thad Bosley, a great PH for that team.[/b]
  7. biittner77
    I hate the all star break. Here's a game to kill the time as we endure this insufferable lack of Cubs baseball. We all know that this team is missing some key ingredients to make it successful. Suppose you could add some former Cubs to this year's roster. Who would they be and why? The rules: 1. No hall of famers as that makes it too easy 2. players must have actually played a regular season game for the Cubs (so no Dontrelle Willis or Andy Sisco) 3. pick one starting position player, one bench player and one pitcher I think this could be interesting to see who people pick.
  8. biittner77
    I disagree with this part. Making adjustments is a lot easier said than done. A lack of effort is one thing though as fans we have no way of knowing whether the player cares or not. Are you implying that Patterson doesn't want to improve? It's not like Patterson is a multi millionaire. He stands to gain a lot more by improving than by staying the same. I'll never understand why fans think booing is going to make a player perform better. If they don't care enough to give it max effort in the first place then why would they care what the fans think? Booing didn't improve Sosa, it just made him bitter.
  9. biittner77
    How often are they planning on doing this? The way the pools are set up it's basically a contest between the US and the survivor of the Venezuela/ DR match up.
  10. biittner77
    Didn't Andy Pratt lead the minor leagues in Ks right before the Cubs got him? Perhaps that has crossed some minds even if it is a completely unfair comparison. Kearns is the type of guy Hendry loves: young, talented, needing a change of scenary. The only question is the price. Hendry doesn't overpay. Hill would seem to have the inside track to the 5th starter spot simply by being LH. Baker and Hendry seem to think that's important. Of course this season they did go with Dempster over Rusch.
  11. biittner77
    Keep in mind that Dunn's stats are limited by the fact that he doesn't get to face Reds pitching. That should be good for 20 points of BA right there- if you think that's important. If the Cubs are going to trade Williams, Mitre and Hill for Dunn who's the 5th starter next year? I suppose Burnett would be the first choice but he has bidding war written all over him.
  12. biittner77
    You'd pass out by the time the second HR was hit...well, that might take a while with the crew we have this year. Luckily, I will be missing it. My manager just called me and asked me to work till Ten. Clean up in aisle 7?
  13. biittner77
    Isn't Matt Stairs Canadian? If so I can't see why they'd let Bay embarass himself. THe chance to see Ichiro was my only reason for watching this. I'm too old to play a drinking games related to HR derby: Every time you're annoyed by Berman- drink Every time Morgan says something stupid- drink drink twice every time Morgan mentions a Reds teammate. Of course you may not see the 3rd batter.
  14. biittner77
    Presumably, Dusty Baker won't finish his career as manager of the Cubs. Whe he does leave Chicago, be it next week or next season, I wonder if he'd consider a job in the AL. It seems like a lot of the shortcomings Baker has wouldn't be as big of a deal in the AL. For example: Double switch: almost never happens in the AL. One less thing for him to screw up on a regular basis DH: this would allow him to rotate his player and keep them fresh. This *might* defray a lot of the criticism for not playing young players. If Dusty was managing the D-Rays and had a guy like Murton on his team he could always bat him 9th. lineup: without having to worry about the pitcher's spot it's a lot easier to make the lineup card. For example, batting Hairston 9th because Dusty doesn't like him and having Perez lead off means that Hairston can still get on base for Lee, Ramirez, etc. pitching staff: carrying a 12 man staff would be less of a liability in the AL as there aren't as many PH opportutnies. The switch from the NL to the AL worked for Torre and Scioscia, why not Baker?
  15. biittner77
    Why do you believe his stock could've been higher? He was coming off of three straight years of declining numbers in hrs, OBP, avg, rbi's and total bases. I think slugging pct, too, but I'm not sure. I am sure of the other categories, though. I don't know what team would've overpaid an aging guy with those numbers. I suppose Sosa's value might have been higher if more teams wanted him. I doubt they could have gotten much more for him. However, had they gotten Cliff Floyd it might have made a substantial difference in the standings. His hot start coupled with Lee's could have been big. But we have no way of knowing if the Mets-or anyone else- were even interested. I also reject the idea that the bad pub hurt his value. The Cubs publicly were shopping him because of clubhouse issues. That had to be better than trading him because he's no good anymore. Sosa having something to prove was enough to convince many people that he'd rebound. He still might put together a decent season.
  16. biittner77
    THe worthless Delmarva Shorebirds media guide didn't even mention that Jason Fransz was in the Cubs system. When was that? Delmarva has a weird habbit of bringing in guys that have no business in low A. They have one player (Cates) who's in his 4th season with the Shorebirds. Luckily he can't touch Earl Cunningham's record of 17 seasons in A ball.
  17. biittner77
    OK, so we wants to get Hollandsworth into the lineup- although if I read the box scores yesterday didn't Hollandsworth bat twice? Baker could give Burnitz a day off and play Hollandsworth in RF.
  18. biittner77
    It would not be surprising since Dusty Baker has never seem enamored with Hairston Jr. as a starter. I am not sure what we could hope to get for Hairston Jr. though. The Orioles tried to trade Jerry Hairston Jr. for a few years before they finally dumped him in return for Sosa. Also it does appear that for better or for worse Felix Pie will make it to Chicago this season, since this is at least the third or fourth report I have read that stated that Pie would becoming up soon or already be here if not for injury. -Banghart I never got the impression they were trying to trade him. It seemed like he would always get hurt just as he was about to break out. Once Roberts emerged they tried to work both of them into the lineup. That's when they moved Hairston to the OF, had him DH and were considering moving Roberts to SS to make room for Hairston until he once again got hurt. Promoting Pie makes no sense unless they're planning on trading Patterson or firing Baker and I doubt Baker is going anywhere.
  19. biittner77
    After reading that article I almost felt sorry for Morgan. It must be very difficult to have every belief you've ever held about baseball proven wrong. He reminds me of the Catholic Church's condemnation of Galileo. The Church didn't think they could admit that they were wrong because they thought people would stop believing them. What they didn't realize was that denying the truth only drove people away faster. The Church survived anyway. Even though it wasn't held in the same prestige there were still lots of followers. It the same thing with the sabr debate. Statistics will never be able to replace human judgement. Statistically, Hawkins should have been an effective closer. However, in the 9th inning he looked nervous. Close up shots showed that his hands were shaking. He looked scared. What Joe Morgan is too dumb to realize is that he shouldn't be threatened by stats. They are part of the game. He doesn't mind using batting average as a sign that a player is good. It's silly to ignore newer stats. Morgan, like most people, fears the unknown.
  20. biittner77
    Baker has been given the tools to get it done in the past two years, but unfortunately they were not the tools that he wanted. Ergo he has NOT used them so he has NOT gotten it done. Or....he DID use them and they failed (LaTroy Hawkins anyone)? I think LaTroy was MISused. He clearly wasn't a closer, and the Cubs tried it anyway. Off the top of my head: Mark Bellhorn- best as a leadoff hitter, Baker hit him 6th Lenny Harris- best as a bench player, Baker had him start Corey Patterson- not a leadoff hitter, Baker had him lead off Jerry Hairston- Best as a leadoff hitter, Baker used him there sparingly LaTroy Hawkins- Effective set up man, Baker used him as a closer Kyle Farnsworth- Effective if not used 3 days in a row, Baker ran him out there as often as possible Mike Remlinger- More effective against RH hitters, Baker used him as a loogy Neifi Perez- Career averages suggest he's bottom of the order material, Baker has him lead off Chad Fox- recovering from surgery must not be used too often, Baker pitched him 3 days in a row. Shawn Estes- generally ineffective, Baker continued to start him even as he got hit very very hard.
  21. biittner77
    He said that moving schilling to closer was a desparate move, that the whole team wants Timlin as closer and that he doesn't think Schilling can get ready fast enough to come into games that suddenly get close.
  22. biittner77
    I don't know about Greenburg. If Hairston continues to get on base they'll have to keep him in the lineup. Murton will get at least one start so that he can go 0-4 and Baker can justify not playing him again. It really depends on Lee's health. If he misses more games-which might not be a bad idea in the long run- there's an opening in the lineup. At this point it's up to Baker to not play Macias over Murton or even Greenburg (and especially not Hairston).
  23. biittner77
    If Lee went on the DL they have a number of options at 1st base. Dubois would probably be first in line. Kelton might be considered. There's also Brandon Sing who's having a good year. I doubt any of those guys would play but they could all potentially get the call.
  24. biittner77
    After reading all 14 pages I've come to the following conclusions: 1. Selecting Murton and Greenburg means that Hendry is rewarding them for their good seasons but it also means that he expects the move to be temporary. Greenburg is not a blue chip prospect so promoting him sends a mesage to all the 2nd tier guys to hang in there. Murton might actually get some PT if they decide to hold Lee out until the break. That move would make sense and it would allow Murton to start while keeping Hollandsworth in the lineup 2. Baker is going nowhere. It would be nice to think so but Hendry is the guy that hired Baker. If Hendry was on the hot seat firing Baker likely wouldn't save his job so he's better off sticking with Baker and seeing what happens. We don't have to like it but there it is. 3. Patterson could be traded. Hendry seems pretty frustrated with him much like his frustration with Bobby Hill before he was traded. 4. The idea that this move will hurt Murton's trade value is silly. No team is going to assess his value based on what he does in a couple weeks in the majors. If he does well it helps a little but if he struggles it's a small sample and he still has lots of upside.
  25. biittner77
    Without digging up my copy of the CBA, I don't think he would. Corey hasn't accumulated enough service time to refuse a minor-leauge assignement, and he'd only be exposed to the waiver process in question if he were out of options. Due to the rapid pace at which he was moved through the system, I'm guessing he's got at least one option year left on his clock. (IIRC, options aren't used if a player spends the entire year on the 25-man roster or on one of the MLB disabled lists.) In other news, I'm glad to hear Hendry finally seems to be getting the hang of the whole buy low/sell high concept. I always thought that the option clock lasts for 3 seasons since being called up to the majors. However, if the Cubs are actually considering sending him down then that must mean he doesn't need to clear waivers since someone would claim him.
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