Blueheart05

Gerut smoked that ball :x

Maddux makes a great play to nip Clayton!

LOL, I'm too busy listening to and reading rumors (while keeping an eye to the game).

His last AB, I believe he knew he was traded for Nomar. I dont think that's true. Remember, Clement reportedly thought he was being traded right after that game. The reporters went into the locker room and said that Matt was upset until Dusty spoke with him and told him that he had not been traded...

Not bad. Not bad. Hope Gerut starts producing soon. I just heard the lineup again and apparently, Barrett is 8th so Gerut and Perez move up a slot.

Today's Cubs lineup: 1. Hairston, CF 2. Walker, 2B 3. Lee, 1B 4. Burnitz, RF 5. Ramirez, 3B 6. Barrett, C 7. Gerut, LF 8. Perez, SS 9. Maddux,P Edit: Barrett is batting 8th. Gerut and Perez move up one slot.

Interesting, ESPN's J Stark is now saying that the Ramirez/TP/Mets deal is "not" dead (after saying emphatically that it was dead earlier) but that Boston and Tamps Bay are continuing to talk to other teams to cover themselves in case it does not go through...

LOL :lol: :lol: :lol:

Well then, if that report IS true... then the stuff about him really not being traded all of a sudden does look alot more credible. But if I were the BoSox, all his actions over the course of the last week have literally screamed "I WANT OUT OF HERE! I don't care what it takes, TRADE ME!!!". I'd be basically BEGGING teams to make me a deal to get him if I were Epstein and if all the stuff we've been hearing is anywhere near the truth. J Stark just said on ESPN News that Boston kept Manny out of the lineup to quell the rumors. LOL, they should have known it would have the opposite affect. Also, he stated that he spoke with someone close to Tampa Bay who said the deal is off and that they are taking offers for Huff and Baez. Finally, he said keep an eye on the White Sox who will dangle McCarthy to complete the deal.

Floyd out the the line up too? Hmmmmm EDIT: ESPN News boldly just put on the screen: "Manny Ramirez is not going to the Mets" and that he would not be traded. Maybe Cliff Floyd is going someplace else? It's very odd that they are both not in the lineup considering the offense they provide for their prospective teams. :-k

This is odd, ESPN News cut in with "Breaking News" to say Manny would not be traded this year. Perhaps they are giving him the day off?

Murton strikes out swinging. Way too anxious

IBB to Murton

Neifi doubles Barrett scores 1-0

Barrett doubles to the gap.

Maybe just semantics but I noiced that Hendry said Murton would be a good every day player but when he spoke about Cedeno he specifically said he would be a great everyday player "for us." Interesting.

Cintron singles to Left

Actually, in this lineup I think Murton fits in well in front of the pitcher. Murton is more likely than Perez to turn over the lineup by getting on base thus allowing the pitcher to hit or sacrifice. Another benefit of Neifi batting 7th is if he can get on base Matt can potentially drive him in. Conversely, Neifi has the lowest OBP of all the regulars so there is a greater chance that the pitcher will leadoff more often. All things being equal, you don't want Neifi batting 8th. I've heard these theories before and I don't buy any of them. The advantages of dumping someone like Neifi in the 8 hole easily outweigh the disadvantages IMO. There is a big advantage to turning over the lineup and allowing our 3,4,5 hitters more opportunities to bat. Considering Neifi's sub 300 OBP there is an outstanding chance that the pitcher will always leadoff. Additionally, it's more advantageous to keep our pitchers off the base paths even though most of them are decent hitters. I contend that its better to have the pitcher come up in a sacrifice situation... I think you're a little too obsessed with turning over the lineup. Neifi at 7th gives us more stranded runners and killed rallies, and putting Murton at 8th makes it difficult for him to get good pitches to hit. Of course it would also make it tough for Neifi to get good pitches, but who cares? He's an offensive non-entity. "obsessed" wow, that's strong. Like most teams, this club's middle of the lineup is its meat. It only makes sense to want them to get as many at bats as possible. Murton doesnt need good pitches to hit all the time; what's wrong with him taking a walk and allowing the pitcher to sacrifice with less than 2 outs?

Actually, in this lineup I think Murton fits in well in front of the pitcher. Murton is more likely than Perez to turn over the lineup by getting on base thus allowing the pitcher to hit or sacrifice. Another benefit of Neifi batting 7th is if he can get on base Matt can potentially drive him in. Conversely, Neifi has the lowest OBP of all the regulars so there is a greater chance that the pitcher will leadoff more often. All things being equal, you don't want Neifi batting 8th. I've heard these theories before and I don't buy any of them. The advantages of dumping someone like Neifi in the 8 hole easily outweigh the disadvantages IMO. There is a big advantage to turning over the lineup and allowing our 3,4,5 hitters more opportunities to bat. Considering Neifi's sub 300 OBP there is an outstanding chance that the pitcher will always leadoff. Additionally, it's more advantageous to keep our pitchers off the base paths even though most of them are decent hitters. I contend that its better to have the pitcher come up in a sacrifice situation... If you want to turn the lineup over more, then Murton should be hitting where he can get more PA's than Neifi. I don't buy the idea of keeping the pitcher off the basepaths. You're much more likely to waste runners that are on in the 7 hole by hitting Neifi than by hitting him 8th. Straight forward, you'll score more runs on the whole with Murton hitting in front of Neifi. There is no way of knowing if more runs will be scored by a switch of the 7th and 8th hitters. By the way, I'm not asking you to buy anything. I understand your argument but apparently you are not open enough to consider the validity of the opposing view. I read alot of comments in the game threads and by and large I don't challenge the views of others but the bottom line is none of us are major league managers and as such we may not consider all of the advantages and disadvantages involved in setting lineups or making in-game moves. Yesterday I was reading the board while most people called for Aramis to pinch hit for Macias. That move didn't make sense with a base open. Melvin was more likely to walk him. Additionally, after Macias got on base, it was a great move to allow Barrett to bat because he has a better chance to break up a DP. Another major bone of contention here is the L/R lineup. I know that many of us feel that Aramis should always bat cleanup yet I was delighted and a bit surprised to hear Steve Stone applaud the Left/Right lineup stagger( where Burnitz bats cleanup against righties). It is a tactic that forces opposing mangers to switch relivers late in the game. Having said that, I do not always agree with Dusty's moves but it does me no good to second or first guess. I am just a fan that wants this team to win. The players have to execute no matter where they hit.

Actually, in this lineup I think Murton fits in well in front of the pitcher. Murton is more likely than Perez to turn over the lineup by getting on base thus allowing the pitcher to hit or sacrifice. Another benefit of Neifi batting 7th is if he can get on base Matt can potentially drive him in. Conversely, Neifi has the lowest OBP of all the regulars so there is a greater chance that the pitcher will leadoff more often. All things being equal, you don't want Neifi batting 8th. He's the worst hitter in the lineup. There's a much higher chance of Neifi stranding runners, which is more important than turning the lineup over, or getting on base for the 8 hitter. If Murton hits 7th, he's going to get more runners to drive in than in the 8 spot. Again, he's the worst hitter in the lineup(by far), he should be hitting in the lowest spot. The 7th slot is not considered an RBI position. The 8th slot is not considered an RBI position either, yet you specifically mentioned possible Murton RBI opportunities as a reason for putting Murton 8th. Be a little more consisitent. Yes, I mentioned it as a benefit but not the purpose of him batting 8th. I think that Neifi is more likely to make the first out in an inning that starts Perez, Muron, and the pitcher. However, with Murton batting 8th there is a chance that he can get on base (walk or a hit) and or collect an RBI. The pitcher would be asked to sacrifice. No NL team's bottom of the order is stellar. You just ask that those guys work the count and try to get on base especially in front of the pitcher.

Actually, in this lineup I think Murton fits in well in front of the pitcher. Murton is more likely than Perez to turn over the lineup by getting on base thus allowing the pitcher to hit or sacrifice. Another benefit of Neifi batting 7th is if he can get on base Matt can potentially drive him in. Conversely, Neifi has the lowest OBP of all the regulars so there is a greater chance that the pitcher will leadoff more often. All things being equal, you don't want Neifi batting 8th. I've heard these theories before and I don't buy any of them. The advantages of dumping someone like Neifi in the 8 hole easily outweigh the disadvantages IMO. There is a big advantage to turning over the lineup and allowing our 3,4,5 hitters more opportunities to bat. Considering Neifi's sub 300 OBP there is an outstanding chance that the pitcher will always leadoff. Additionally, it's more advantageous to keep our pitchers off the base paths even though most of them are decent hitters. I contend that its better to have the pitcher come up in a sacrifice situation...

Actually, in this lineup I think Murton fits in well in front of the pitcher. Murton is more likely than Perez to turn over the lineup by getting on base thus allowing the pitcher to hit or sacrifice. Another benefit of Neifi batting 7th is if he can get on base Matt can potentially drive him in. Conversely, Neifi has the lowest OBP of all the regulars so there is a greater chance that the pitcher will leadoff more often. All things being equal, you don't want Neifi batting 8th. The 7th slot is not considered an RBI position. He's the worst hitter in the lineup. There's a much higher chance of Neifi stranding runners, which is more important than turning the lineup over, or getting on base for the 8 hitter. If Murton hits 7th, he's going to get more runners to drive in than in the 8 spot. Again, he's the worst hitter in the lineup(by far), he should be hitting in the lowest spot.

Actually, in this lineup I think Murton fits in well in front of the pitcher. Murton is more likely than Perez to turn over the lineup by getting on base thus allowing the pitcher to hit or sacrifice. Another benefit of Neifi batting 7th is if he can get on base Matt can potentially drive him in. Conversely, Neifi has the lowest OBP of all the regulars so there is a greater chance that the pitcher will leadoff more often. All things being equal, you don't want Neifi batting 8th. All the reasons I gave for why Matt should bat 8th once applied exclusively to Barrett but Michael is a greater power threat (while Murton has shown no power to this point) thus, Matt bats lower.

Alot of cardinals fans are on the ledge because their lead is shrinking daily. Did anyone see LaRussa's reaction when Morris didn't stop the runner from coming home on a groundball? CLASSIC! TLR almost died. It was so bad he ran into the tunnel and came back. The redbrids never recovered.

Just win!