BigbadB

The Riot!

I'll be listening to trade offers this offseason. I promise.

Go Bears! That is all. Carry on.

I don't understand why anyone would believe Kerry would be a good late inning reliever. He's always put up high walk totals.

I can't talk about playoffs either, but my team went 9-3 to close out the season. There is reason for hope in the future. Unfortunately, I started out 1-9.

Considering the fact the team is nowhere near a playoff spot and they have virtually zero chance of making the playoffs, what could Hendry possibly have to do that would be more important than making moves at a crucial and well known deadline that might help the team be better next year? If Hendry didn't work his schedule to free up time to work deals at the deadline, it's just further proof that he is not cut out for the job. Not that I need any further proof anyway. I'm already convinced he's clueless.

Bizarre? Is it bizarre that we sit here on this message board everyday and complain about how bad Dusty is? Why would it be bizarre for someone to write a letter directly to the person they have issues with? I don't do it. But, I wouldn't call a season ticket holder, who has seen enough and decided to write a letter to Dusty, bizarre. Would you?

What's the ratio of "you just plain suck" letters to "racist" driven letters? 1000 to 1? Should all future complaint letters specify whether they are motivated by race or the fact the person the complaint is being lodged against just plain sucks? I would really despise knowing that someone took a "you just plain suck" letter that had zero racial tone to it and attempted to spin it into something racial. I'm sure Dusty has received some racist letters. I feel badly for him for that. However, he does deserve every "you just plain suck" letter he receives during this time that he really sucks at what he does. But, I wouldn't stop there. I'd send one to Hendry, MacPhail and Rothschild as well. I'd send one to the Trib execs that have the authority to put competent people in these places of power. This article is horrible. It gives Dusty another way to spin his horrible tenure as manager off on someone else. It was Dusty that batted sub .300 OBP guys at the top of the order. It was Dusty who felt that Neifi was the team savior when everyone else in the room knew he was nothing more than a decent glove/late inning replacement utility player. I couldn't even begin to list all the poor management decisions he's made over the years. I've wanted him gone for quite some time now. Not because of his skin color, but because he isn't good at managing a baseball team. If his replacement is black, I would be perfectly fine with that. Especially if he showed the leadership skills to be a successful manager. Willie Randolph has done quite well in New York. The pressures there are much more unbearable than Chicago. I don't hear Willie making any excuses. Of course, when you get your team motivated to go out and win everyday, the complaint letters aren't exactly flooding the office in the first place. If this whole thing gets twisted into some "Dusty forced out of managerial job due to racial attacks" deal, it will be a cover up for what he should be fired for. He has proven he cannot do the job. And he has been given way too much time to prove it already. He just got swept by the Pittsburgh Pirates. Who's on that team besides Jason Bay? Roberto Clemente? Willie Stargell? Nope. Chris Duffy. Chicago Cubs with Dusty Baker managing the team<<< Chicago Cubs with a competent manager in charge>>>>Pittsburgh Pirates. Skin color has nothing to do with it. So don't play that. Take responsibility for your own failures and quit attempting to lay them on others. There is plenty of others who deserve their own "you just plain suck" letters as well, though. It's not ALL on Dusty.

Only the Chicago Cubs would still have Dusty Baker on their payroll at this point. Just another thing to be annoyed with in a long line of things to be annoyed with about this team.

San Diego is braindead. They are going nowhere, and I love it.

There's enough ex-Cubs on that roster that I don't see the harm in cheering the Dodgers. Plus, the wife likes the Dodgers about as much as she likes the Cubs. The Dodgers GM definitely outclassed Hendry this past offseason. Got Nomar AND Furcal. Wouldn't let us have Milton Bradley. So on and so forth. The Dodgers are also set to run away with that division for the next umpteen years.

It doesn't really matter what you think this thread was intended for. If you have an issue with a poster on this site, take it up with a mod.

He will most likely be a Padre again next year. They love his defense out there.

Jimmy Rollins is my guy. :D

Mr. Bad Back only played in 156 games in 2004 and put up: .337/.391/.598

If you recall, Moises didn't exactly put up stellar numbers in 2003, even though the Cubs made it to the playoffs. Sosa's defense in RF was atrocious that year. It would have been a great move to get Guerrero. I don't think the Choi/Lee trade happened all that early that year, so there was more speculation around here that Moises could be moved to 1b if San Fran and Felipe didn't want Moises. Of course, Hendry didn't even look away from his donuts when the bidding began for Guerrero, so it's pointless to continue this discussion.

2003 was the year Hendry could have gone after Vlady. Moises could have been shipped to San Fran to play with daddy for peanuts. Sosa to left field and Vlady in RF. Maybe Moises to San Fran for Ray Durham?

Did you not say this? The pitching abuse responses are because of this post. Where is Hendry's name mentioned in this post?

How much more is a baseball juiced up than in the days of the pitchers you mentioned? How many of those pitchers used a devastating slider or curve ball as their out pitch? How many innings are extended these days because of the smaller parks? The older parks had huge foul territories, much deeper fences and a lot less offense in general. Guys like Gibson and Jenkins worked the corners of the plate with their fastballs, not 12 to 6 breaking balls. Those pitchers didn't have to be afraid to run their fastball right down the middle, as many of those that got plunked were nothing more than warning track fly balls instead of 320 foot home runs like they are nowadays. I loved watching the pitchers of the late 60's and 70's. But, I never saw a single one of those guys who were going 350 plus innings a season throw a breaking ball like the one Rich Hill or Barry Zito can throw. The stress created by each breaking ball is very hard on the pitching arm. The more you throw it, the worse off you are. Steve Stone had a long career going as a mediocre pitcher. Then, he won himself a Cy Young award throwing nothing but breaking balls. His career was basically over after that. I watched Rueschel pitch a lot. I watched Jenkins pitch a lot. What Prior, Wood and Zambrano bring to the table in pitch selection blows away what big Rick and Fergie brought. Those old school guys worked the plate with a steady diet of fastballs, with an off speed pitch or breaking ball as the pitch that would keep the hitters honest. That's the way I see it anyway.

Who knew? Most of the members of this community. It was talked about more often than just any other topic DURING the 2003 season. Feel free to dig through the posts in 2003. You'll find many discussions about the pitching abuse we all saw going on during that season.

For 1-2m, Hendry could have had Lofton. For 2.5m, Hendry could have traded for Bradley. Without spending a dime, they could have stuck Walker in the lead off spot. Same with Murton. All 4 of the names listed above are all better options than Pierre in the lead off spot. So, less than 3m with nothing given up (outside of Bradley) for a better option at lead off than a guy you traded 3 prospects and paid 6m is a no-brainer.

So, what you're really tring to say is Hafner basically has as many RBI's in 6 swings of the bat as Juan Pierre has in 500 at bats? Nice!

The Cubs could only wish they had Detroit's offensive deficiencies. Detroit is 7th in run production. Cubs are 30th. Give them the Cubs' staff, do you believe they'd be .500 or better? Yeah, I think they could be better than .500 with the Cubs pitching staff. Not much better than .500, but considering their record now with the pitching staff they have, I think it's conceivable. At the same time, if the Cubs had a healthy rotation of Zambrano, Wood, Prior, Maddux, Marshall, I think the Cubs could be a .500 team with the lousy offense they possess. Unfortunately, I don't think they'd be much better than .500 because of the offense. I penciled the Cubs in at 4th place at the beginning of the season assuming the pitching staff would be healthy. I'm not whining and crying about this team because of their current place in the standings. I was screaming about the poor offseason long before the season even started. The management team completely ignored the one biggest problem this team consistently suffers. OBP. While the pitching failed them this year as well, it was assumed that the staff would be healthy and they would keep them in games and they would at least flirt with .500. With over 40m to spend and lots of talent to trade, I was and still am furious at how poorly Hendry assembled the 2006 Cubs. He's getting exactly what he deserves. Unfortunately, no one in the front office has a clue to see how poorly Hendry has done his job. Changes need to be made, and there is no one with the nads to just do it.

Extensions for everyone!

The Cubs could only wish they had Detroit's offensive deficiencies. Detroit is 7th in run production. Cubs are 30th.