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Rob

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Everything posted by Rob

  1. Rob
    Why the hell would anybody want to give up anything for Andre Ethier? He's going into his age 30 season. He's expensive. He's an awful fielder. He just experienced a huge power decline. The only reason his stats look okay last year is because of BABIP and defensive fluctuations. Unless somebody else is paying a good chunk of his salary and we're giving up very little there is absolutely no reason to be involved in the trade market for him. Of course, I've made these points to WSR before and it seems he either completely dismissed them or simply forgot all about them.
  2. Rob
    Nobody except B2B anyway.
  3. Rob
    Something like that. More if a dont ask dont tell thing. They needed him to play through pain, and he was going to need something to get him through it or speed up the healing. He didn't ask what it was, they didn't tell him. I doubt that it wod mark the first time that's happened in pro sports. I believe that with steroids you only have to use it once and it can show up in your system for up to 6 months. Are you just making [expletive] up? Most synthetic testosterone is down to undetectable levels after 7-10 days.
  4. Rob
    Garza has always had better stuff that Wells, but in fairness to all those comparisons Garza and Wells did stack up pretty well statistically before last season. Garza completely changed his pitch selection last season though, while Wells suffered through an injury-marred and ineffective campaign.
  5. Rob
    Yeah, he basically has to prove that something was tainted... which can happen. Some guys on the Mexican national team got suspended at one point and were able to prove it was tainted beef at a restaurant. But the most common defense is that an over the counter supplement had something in it that wasn't on the label... and that one has never worked for a player. The MLB has an approved supplements list for a reason.
  6. Rob
    I'm wondering if this might inspire the Cubs to spend a little more in free agency this offseason. Before the offseason began, I had figured we were a longshot to contend... but now Pujols is gone from StL with no major upgrades added, Fielder is likely gone from Mil, Braun is gone for 50 games, and due to the K-Rod thing they likely wont be able to add enough payroll to bring in a bat like Aramis (which I had just assumed they would, before). The window for contention just keeps opening up a little wider.
  7. Rob
    I don't disagree with you in the slightest. I'm not one of those "look how overpaid he'll be in years 6-8" guys. I'm not even one of those "he was paid 10 mil more than he was worth -- BUST" types. I just find myself arguing for no apparent reason (it is the internet after all) when I hear people suggesting he's worth signing to a 7-8 year contract with that much guaranteed money. There has to reach a point where it's no longer a good idea to sign him. We should be able to get something done. I'd like for us to get something done. But if the Mariners come out and offer him 8/170 guaranteed... well, I'd hope this board would understand why topping that would be an awful idea.
  8. Rob
    But like I said, you never know the next time that a 27 year old elite player will even be available regardless of their physical build. That may be true, but it's not a compelling argument for entering into a contract you think will turn out to be a mistake. I have no reason not to believe that Fielder doesnt have at least 4-5 prime years left. Could be more. Would you really be upset if we got 4-5 prime years of Fielder and then he hits an early decline around age 33? He'd still be young enough where we could send him off to DH. The normal prime of a player doesn't last until 31-32... so even if you discount the "heavy players age more quickly" proofs, there would be absolutely no reason to suspect he has at least 4-5 prime years left. That statement demonstrates a willful ignorance of a lot of basic tenets of player development. In all likelihood, Fielder is on the tail end of his prime already. I'm not saying don't sign him. Preaching caution around these parts has a way of being misconstrued. But the length of contract that most here would be willing to offer is almost certainly a mistake. Anything over 6 years is more likely to hurt our team than help it.
  9. Rob
    You should pee on her to mark your territory. Also, because she enjoys it.
  10. Rob
    The posting fee is only paid if the team reaches a contract with the player. And it's worth noting that Matsuzaka was rumored to be looking for something like 5/100 back when he was posted (and the winning bid was assumed to be closer to 25-30 million than the 50+ it ended up being).
  11. Rob
    Do you really not realize what carrying around an extra 80 pounds does to a body? Fielder may be 27, but his body has been stressed like a man much older than that. He is the oldest 27 year old you have ever seen.
  12. Rob
    Watching more enjoyable baseball with a higher emphasis on in-game strategy?
  13. Rob
    never never never trade with Billy Beane. well, maybe not NEVER, but no, actually, never. Hendry actually did really well trading with Beane. But yeah, Beane just destroyed Towers.
  14. Rob
    That is ridiculous. Why are people so freaking afraid? Did Soriano scare you that much? We're just past the midpoint of that bad contract and the team already has plenty of flexibility. Big contracts to big time players will not cripple a big market team. I did learn a lesson about paying superstar money to a player who isn't quite a superstar, yes. Is the Cubs payroll high enough to hide some mistakes? Sure... but that doesn't mean making mistakes is a good idea. There's a price point at which acquiring Fielder is a mistake. What does it take for you to feel that point has been reached?
  15. Rob
    I had 2 targets, Pujols and Fielder, with moderate interest in Wilson. The truth of the matter is that two potential targets that will be hard to replace are gone. Pujols and Wilson. That's it. And we never had a shot if Wilson was that intent on going home. We were never in on Reyes, Papelbon, Bell, etc... (nor should we have been). And lamenting the loss of a player like Buehrle would be silly considering how many comparable or better pitchers there are on the market. If you want to go crazy because we didn't get Pujols, fine. That's well within your rights. But don't pretend our entire offseason is over. Most of the guys we were in on are still out there. Hence, early.
  16. Rob
    Yeah, there's no reason to go ballistic, but it's not early. We are between 25% to 33% of the way through the offseason. The vast majority of moves that will be made this offseason have not been made yet. That makes it early. It's not a linear timeline. We're past the GM and winter meetings. All but one of the top 6 or 7 free agents are gone. It's not early. Just out of sheer morbid curiosity, who were your top 6-7 free agent targets? Because I only count 2 of mine as being gone.
  17. Rob
    This. .. is completely wrong. We're past the GM meetings and past the winter meeting. We are well into the offseason. Stop pretending it's early. I agree, but a few, perhaps some people do need to calm down. The mass media (mostly radio) and meatheads are going to be whipping it up. Theo took control of a mediocre organization that was trending in the wrong direction. Also, we don't know what's going on with the renovations. I think the Ricketts are in investment mode right now and I don't blame them for not giving out too much money (I don't think you do either). It's not just the mass media and the meatheads, look at the number of posts on NSBB about the new FO and expectations. If the Cubs are going to be contenders in 2013, Theo is going to have to start doing something pretty soon or he will have a ton of holes to fill next offseason. Well then it's a good thing we still have 90% of the possibilities we had a month ago. Also, I hope you mean 2012, because it's waaaay too early to be giving up on 2013.
  18. Rob
    It might be nice to have an actual backup SS on the roster instead of just shifting Barney back over on days we need to give Castro off.
  19. Rob
    Yeah, there's no reason to go ballistic, but it's not early. We are between 25% to 33% of the way through the offseason. The vast majority of moves that will be made this offseason have not been made yet. That makes it early.
  20. Rob
    Seriously. It feels like everyone in the league got rich all of a sudden and now our $135 million payroll makes us mid-market. I'd go up to 6/150 for Fielder, and I don't understand why that makes me a cheapskate, but apparently it does. 6/130 for me, and I'd hate myself for going that high. 5/100 is the last number I feel comfortable at.
  21. Rob
    What "big market" moves have been made so far? CJ Wilson gave the Angels a huge discount, so we didn't really have a chance. Pujols, Reyes, and Buehrle will all have to stay perfectly healthy and perform on the very optimistic ends of their projections to have a chance of justifying their contracts -- in other words, they received bad contracts. Are we really mad that the Cubs didn't outbid 3 bad contracts? There are still plenty of places to spend money this offseason that represent real upgrades. Fielder and Darvish are obvious. Cespedes may be worth the gamble. Soler is certainly very interesting. Kuroda is the perfect short term investment. Edwin Jackson is nearly as good as Buehrle and should cost a good deal less. There's also quite a few interesting names who may or may not be available on the trade market: King Felix, BJ Upton, Cole Hamels, John Danks, etc... It's December 9th. We're barely into the offseason at all. People need to calm down.
  22. Rob
    I know we're all busy fighting with Kyle right now, but I thought it might be okay if I gave the short version of my opinion? I don't like Ian Stewart... but this was a good move.
  23. Rob
    The Marlins will probably get him. Their fans are so lucky.
  24. Rob
    Pretty sure you are.
  25. Rob
    I don't know. The very idea is a little irrational because it's based on the Marlins hating Morrison and liking(or at least Ozzie talking up) Z. Brett mentioned it in one of his roundups, so it's a touch more than random speculation at this point at least. Yeah... I'm very intrigued by the idea, but for the life of me I can't get my head wrapped around it.
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