CDBears1259

As a native of Louisiana and living only 60 miles to the west of New Orleans, I find the mere mention of the thought to be an incredible affront. I can't say more beyond that right now, because I need time to digest all that's been said in this thread before commenting further. Excuse me but this is an incredibly touchy subject. In short though: IT MUST BE RESTORED!!! And contrary to what most think, not all of New Orleans is a total loss. The city will not have to be entirely rebuilt.

Got to ESPN. They are much better. Unless you're in Houston? I'm in Baton Rouge, LA and it's the Houston market, so I got some other game on ESPN.

Yay me, I get to watch the Astros' broadcast again. :x

Although I wasn't there and can't attest to what they were booing about, I do agree that most of their fans are very casual and don't seem to know much about the game in general. While I've never been to Dodger stadium it has a certain fan reputation and I get the same general feeling when I've attended Astros' games in MMP. And yes, I too think MMP stinks.

I hate having to watch this garbage on the Astros' broadcast. ARRRGGGGHHHH!!!!

I loathe the entire Astros lineup. Especially when they put up the AAA squad and still smash us.

I'm rooting for anyone but the Astros or Marlins to win the wildcard. Especially the Stros though.

Two events stand out in my mind and are the strongest reason in my opinion for a change in manager: 1) the 2003 playoff collapse and 2) the late season collapse last year. Less specific reasons are the numerous ups and downs of this year, the inability to reign in players a la Merker and Alou last year and the stunning ability to let things get out of the clubhouse that should stay there. While his managerial decision often drive me nuts, I really have a hard time complaining about them because although the decisions often seem obvious, Baker is the type who manages on instinct and not the stats. This is something that, while I don't like, was not entirely unexpected. I'm sure I could go on with more examples and explanation, but I think most of you understand where I'm coming from.

I haven't been real positive of the entire season and lately especially, however the only thing that has kept me from thoroughly throwing in the towel was the knowledge that we still have a ton of games left with both the Cards and Stros. Even if the playoffs aren't likely, the opportunity to play spoiler still gives me reason to see the Cubs win. Once you concede to wanting to play "spoiler", there is no turning back. Resist, resist! It's hard, but I'm trying. Games like this make me feel like we belong in the hunt. I hope they can turn it around, but I'm also realistic.

I haven't been real positive of the entire season and lately especially, however the only thing that has kept me from thoroughly throwing in the towel was the knowledge that we still have a ton of games left with both the Cards and Stros. Even if the playoffs aren't likely, the opportunity to play spoiler still gives me reason to see the Cubs win.

Before I saw the lineup I had the all too familiar feeling that the Cubs would make a strong showing against the Cards just to give me the false hope that they could put together a strong run, whether or not they made playoffs. After seeing the lineup I know that won't happen now.

Anybody notice that our current "manager" was a victim on that list in 1980, IIRC.

In all fairness the season was already pretty bad before that bonehead play by Barrett. To say that was were the season turned is foolish IMO.

New Orleans sounds like a great idea to me, being as that I live in Louisiana and need another team nearby that I can cheer for against the Astros. Having lived in Houston and being a native of LA that would be awesome. It would also mean I wouldn't have to go to Houston to see the Cubs play. I absolutely hate having to go to games there to see the Cubs. While not entirely wrong, I believe your premise that they have shown the ability to support pro teams is being stretched to the limit. I don't think the N.O. economy would be able to support another pro franchise as they barely can or don't choose to support the 2 they have. The Saints are entrenched in the fabric of the community, yet are continually rumored to be on the move (people are beginning to get fed up with the financial responsibility of the state to the team) especially after viewing the product put on the field and the Hornets have been struggling on the court as well as at the box office (how bad though I don't know). I don't think the economy of the greater N.O. area, much less the state would be as willing a participant in such a venture as you might think.

While I understand what your saying and agree that I wouldn't want them to tighten up the purse strings, having a low payroll does not automatically make for a less competitive team, just as having a high payroll doesn't automatically guarantee a WS trophy type team (see the 2005 version of the Cubs). No, but it guarantees Prior and Z won't be around for very long. Lower payroll doesn't guarantee that all in my opinion. It just means that if the payroll was lowered that they would have to get a bigger percentage of the total. The only problem then is finding good young and cheap talent. Which could be a big problem obviously.

While I understand what your saying and agree that I wouldn't want them to tighten up the purse strings, having a low payroll does not automatically make for a less competitive team, just as having a high payroll doesn't automatically guarantee a WS trophy type team (as clearly evidenced by the 2005 version of the Cubs). Unless there is some championship title awarded for highest payroll, I don't care if the team spends $50 million. And yes I realize that the more $$ spent the more likely it is that the team is built of quality players.

LoneStarCubFan = find a dictionary. Poise and heart have absolutely NOTHING to do with each other. This team has PLENTY of heart to still be at .500 after everything that's happnneed. They aren't gutless or heartless or any other vitriolic adjective that makes you feel better when you spew it at them. They are talented, but not good. They aren't coached well, and they rely too much on the long ball. They don't execute. All of these are reasons they suck, not because they have a lack of heart. Today a team with a lack of heart would have rolled over. They didn't. Cratering in pressure situations equates to no heart whether you want to admit it or not. If a guy goes up and flails at three straight pitches and runs to the dugout, I might buy that he has no poise. But every single time a guy fails in a clutch situation, you can't just chalk it up to lack of heart. Believe it or not, a pitcher is out there on that mound, and all the heart in the world won't help you when you are overmatched. I am willing to bet that guys like Burnitz, Walker and Lee have more "heart" than anybody out there, yet when one of them fails to come up big, you chime in with "no heart" or the very tired "No.Sense.Of.Urgency." Lame. This team has shown a lot of heart on more than a few occasions. Lack of heart is not what is losing us games. What is? 1.Poor managing. Bad lineups, micromanagement, lack of discipline and accountability, poor management of an already poor bullpen. 2.Too many role players, not enough impact players. 3.Injuries. Key injuries, wrong players getting rested. 4.Bad bullpen. That's what it is, IMO. And as for definitions, IMO: Poise = The ability to remain focused during times of extreme pressure. Professionalism in character and execution, gained mainly through experience and/or training. Heart = Determination. A fighting, competetive, never-say-die attitude. I think the two things are fundamentally different. In all sports, I think there are three major factors that define athletes/teams: Talent, Poise, Heart. Talent+Poise+Heart = Championship performance. Talent+Poise = Great performance, but may fold when the chips are down. Professional, yet somewhat stagnant. Talent+Heart = Unpredictable, inconsistant. Has the ability and the drive, but lacks the capacity to harness either for prolonged periods. Undisciplined. Poise+Heart = Wants it, knows how to make it happen, but can't. Not good for athletes in individual sports or whole teams, great for scrappy role players. See David Eckstein. Clearly, I think the Cubs are the third. Excellent post!!! What motivational poster did you steal it from? J/K

So in a nutshell this team is terribly inconsistent and underachieving. Call me John Madden, master of the obvious.

Why is it that it always happens that when announcer says something hasn't happened or someone is on a streak of some sort that it immediately happens the exact opposite way? I hate it when announcers mention these types of things.

Yes. Yes, it was :x !!!

Not necessarily. It depends on how Illinois state law defines stalking. If it is anything like that of Louisiana state law it would have to be the intentional and repeated following or harrassing of another person causing a reasonable person to feel alarmed or to suffer emotional distress. We just dealt with this exact question in the Louisiana State Legislature this past session.