RynoRules

I really just don't like the 4th yr on the deal. I think that will turn out to be a big mistake.

That's the point. It's not about Marmol replacing Wood. Ideally, Marmol doesn't replace Wood, but the pen as a whole is probably going to be worse. Assuming Peavy at this point is a stretch. Assuming improved OF production is a bigger stretch. Confidence in Bradley playing 140 games is very risky. Repeating 2B production is a near impossibility. You've glossed over nearly every concern and are only assuming positive outcomes to as yet undetermined questions. The Cubs had a lot go their way last year. Most teams suffer unexpected setbacks. That's the whole point - I am not being realistic. Meph's argument of a 10-12 win digression ignored the assumption that we will acquire Peavy. And what is wrong with ignoring such an assumption? The Cubs are who they are right now. If the story changes, the projections will change, but I don't see the point in assuming Peavy is a Cub. B/c the projections (10-12 less wins) - as I understood them (look at the original posts) - were based on Peavy and Bradley being here and DeRosa and Marquis being traded. That's what this whole argument is about - he now wants to be able to base his prediction on a team without Peavy (which naturally greatly benefits his argument), when the prediction was actually made based on the assumption that Peavy will in-fact be here.

I don't know why I bother. You still think Greene is the Second Coming and won't come off of it for anyone. My argument was based on the assumption that Peavy will be here. If he is, it changes Marshall's and JS' roles, allowing Marshall to essentially "back up" Harden and JS to replace Marmol as the primary set up guy. If he isn't its a different story. And yes, a pen can be better if the rotation is better. I don't understand why you don't get that, other than purposeful ignorance.

That's the point. It's not about Marmol replacing Wood. Ideally, Marmol doesn't replace Wood, but the pen as a whole is probably going to be worse. Assuming Peavy at this point is a stretch. Assuming improved OF production is a bigger stretch. Confidence in Bradley playing 140 games is very risky. Repeating 2B production is a near impossibility. You've glossed over nearly every concern and are only assuming positive outcomes to as yet undetermined questions. The Cubs had a lot go their way last year. Most teams suffer unexpected setbacks. That's the whole point - I am not being realistic. Meph's argument of a 10-12 win digression ignored the assumption that we will acquire Peavy.

If you had read my post you would have seen that I asked you to assume the chips fall as predicted. One already has - DeRosa was traded. So your comment that we "probably will not" is already weakened. In any case, I asked you to show me how the team will digress by 10 or 12 wins assuming that Peavy is in fact acquired, which was part of your orginal hypothesis. So, please add that to your caluclations and show me. That might be the only point you have made that has some tread. That said, all teams have injuries. Harden for 115 innings and Marshall for the other 6 or 7 starts is still far better than what we had last year. Fukudome and Johnson will likely not to equate to what Edmonds/Johnson produced in CF last season. However, Bradley is a big upgrade from Fukudome's production in RF. And I am confident he can play 140 games. He's not the risk Harden is in that regard. Micah is a good backup and I don't have an issue with him in that role. While I believe we overpaid for him, there's no reason to believe Dempster won't be very good again this season. Its not unusual for pitchers of his type to get better in their early thirties. Based on Fontenot's and Miles' splits, I think they can give us DeRosa's production at 2B. I don't understand why people think Marmol won't be as productive as Wood was in the closer role. The rest of the pen is a concern, yes, but since the starting rotation will be better, so will the pen. But I digress. I am not the one who asserted that we will be 10-12 wins worse this year. I just want to see the numbers that bear that out.

Right. The Cubs are going to get the same production out of shortstop, secondbase, centerfield, two pitching spots and our bullpen. If you think that is true, then perhaps we're somewhere in the low 90s. If you think that is true. Is 88 wins really all that surprising? Everyone thought we were close to that last year when we had almost the exact same team. Then a lot of guys had outlier seasons. The 2009 team will have Harden for an entire season and - assuming the chips fall as predicted - Peavy as well. They take the place of Marquis and the three or four guys we were using in the 5 spot of the rotation. How can you possibly think that this - coupled with the change at 2B, closer (assuming Marmol closes and Gregg sets-up), and RF - will cause the Cubs to digress by 10-12 wins? Really - please show me your work on this one.

First, let me say I am thrilled that Milton is likely to be here. Here's my b.o.: Fukudome Lee Bradley ARam Soriano Soto DeRosa Theriot

High marks to Marinelli for standing up in front of the media and facing the music yesterday. Had to be hard for the guy. By comparison, no one has heard from Mangini (except for a closed-door team meeting) and Romeo issued a written statement (which, at least, was contrite).

yeah, he wants to be a Cub, but the Cubs apparently have shown little interest How on Earth did you come to that conclusion on the basis of the blurb you quoted? Honestly, man....

Don't forget about Eddie Perez and the immortal Jeff Treadway. Hell, while we are at it, I wonder if the ageless Alejandro Pena is available. Pete Smith? Steve Avery?

EDIT: Romo is scared to death right now. Ok, OO? :thumbsup:

Yup. Too lazy to look it up,. but I'd bet his stats against "good" teams (teams that finish over .500) stink compared to those against "poor" teams.

This really is fun to watch. I just wish Buck would shut the hell up. I cannot stand him. Let Aikman - who actually still knows the Cowboys - talk and stick to pitching Budweiser.

Nope, that ship has sailed. They are several players away from an elite defense. Back to back seasons of mediocrity (or worse) isn't a fluke. I agree. The D Line is slowing down in a big, bad way. To go sackless against a pass-happy offense like Houston is horrendous. They had a 16 or 17 quarter sackless streak earlier, and they have bene inconsistent against the run. I think that Adewale has played his last game as a Bear, and much as I like him, Dvorachek has been hurt during each of his three seasons. Harrison and Adams have played well enough to be alongside Harris, who is suffering, IMO, from the fact that no one else on the line has played well (save for Brown in bursts). As for the LB's, Briggs is a stud. Notice I didn't mention a certain MLB'er. I am not sure what Urlacher's deal is, but I can't believe he is all of a sudden that bad. I wonder if it has something to do with the scheme. The DB's are ok. I don't think they are as bad as many do. Again, the Cover 2 depends on pressure on the QB. The DB's look bad when they are hung out to dry by the QB having too much time to set and throw. On "O", we need two new tackles (Williams is one) and a new guard to replace Garza. A possession WR is needed to pair with Hester. TJ Who's-Your-Momma would be perfect, but I doubt we can afford him. What happened to the Bennett kid we drafted? I'd like a backup RB who can catch a pass and move with some speed . Probably need another FB as well. Truth is the D is much more screwed up than the O.

Nice grab by Lloyd. Also good to see him in there over Rashied "venus de milo" Davis.

Man do we need new O-Linemen. Especially at LT. St Clair is awful.

You know, your wife isn't going to appreciate that you think her ass is as big as your hand...

They should get Rickey Henderson for CF and ink Jamie Moyer while they are at it. All bad jokes aside, I understand why Sabean is "going for it" in that division.

Oh my.

they said they would. Link?

I believe it's Jeremy Brown. Meh, must have been thinking of the former Gov. and Presidential candidate.

FWIW, I met Swisher at a work event a couple of weeks ago. He appears to be in very good shape (very muscular). I had a chance to talk with him for a minute and asked if he is excited to play in NY with the short RF porch. He said he's been working very hard this offseason and is highly motivated to do better than last year. I also "won" a signed Swisher jersey (Sox, but hey, it beats coal in your stocking) because I knew that he, Jerry Browne, and Youkilis were featured prominently in "Moneyball". Along those lines I told him that I am a bit of a "stat head" and that I and others I know love guys like him who take walks and hit for power. All that being said, I think he'd be a really good addition in RF, and would probably come cheap, as noted earlier.

Meh, whatever. They shed a ton of payroll by letting Abreu, Giambi and Pavano walk, plus Mussina retired and to date Pettite has not been retained. If you have it, you might as well spend it.

First, nice semantical wiggle-out. Second, 07' was the first time since 97' that he didn't meet that threshhold, and he blew past it in 08'. So he's a lock. It wasn't a semantical wiggle-out. I knew he had a down 2007 so I looked it up and I was right. Then I posted that it's hard to call him a lock to put up a .975 ops since he didn't do it last year. Maybe it's kind of a semantic wiggle in I suppose, but it's not like I made a mistake then covered it up. Freudian.

That's some pretty good company. I think Reggie is a very good comparison skillset wise, BTW.