USSoccer

Did Lovie say anything after the game to indicate that Rex was pulled for performance, or is ESPN just making this up? The Muhammad quote in the article seems to imply that people were asking how he felt about making a change...which makes no sense. Rex didn't play badly, and it's not like Griese lit it up. Their ratings were nearly identical.

Gordon sucks when he starts, so I guess Sef would be the only option. I'm not sure a rook is ready for a starting job, hence Duhon starts. It appears to be working anyway, so why mess with it. As Stacey King said last night on the telecast, Duhon is a guy coaches like for his on court presence, etc. His stats don't look great, but he calms the team down when he's on the court, distributes the ball, etc. Chris Duhon! What a player! What a man!

Can anyone help me with playoff game scheduling? Does it depend on which WC team wins? I'm trying to figure out which day the divisional game for the Bears is going to fall on.

I am the only human that can drink a gallon of chocolate milk in less than one hour.

Anyone who thinks Hendry has been a successful GM is crazy. The team has steadily gotten worse over the last 3 seasons. Our farm system has gone from top 5 to bottom half. We still haven't developed an impact position player, and he consistently overpays for mediocrity. He's not a good GM. The fact that he spent like a drunken sailor this winter will improve the team, but that won't indicate he's a good GM.

Sure, if that's a guarantee, but I don't buy it. I think Lilly/Marquis at 200 IP each would give you better years than Guzman/Marshall over 200 IP each. But that's MY opinion vs. yours... I really don't think Guzman or Marshall would have to do much to outpace Marquis 2005 and 2006 numbers. As Goony said, stable badness isn't worth much. I don't see how it pitching 200 bad innings is worth anything,

It's very important when you have a ton of near ML ready, but not quite options. Guys that give you 200 innings at a league average ERA become quite valuable when you're looking at Marmol, Marshall, Mateo, and Guzman. One of those guys in a decent rotation is not a problem. 2+ of those guys (like last year) is a recipe for bad things. Lilly and Marquis are not world burners. No one is claiming that. They do prevent the severe swings of rookie pitchers, who don't (generally speaking of course) know how to keep their teams in ballgames. Marquis won a ton of games w/o his best stuff last season. Some of that was run support and some of that was knowing how to pitch. Same with Lilly, who somehow managed to get away with being a flyball pitcher in a bandbox for years. If you tell me I can have an up and down rookie with a high ceiling or a guy who's going to give you 200 mediocre to bad innings (like Marquis), I'll take the rookie every time. I see no benefit to overpaying some veteran just because he doesn't get hurt, when a pitcher like Guzman or Marshall could give you a similar ERA at a fraction of the cost.

No Bobby Convey. A very MLS-heavy squad.

My #1 concern is which date and time the Bears divisional game is going to be.

I think that's right, I haven't seen his name anywhere this season. His form has been terrible for the past 2 years anyway. He's like a shell of his former self. If only that goal against Italy had counted...

I am hoping PSV or Ajax will show some interest in him. Really? I would think a Spanish league side would be a better fit. I'm still a little biased towards Holland for young players. I just don't really want to see him to England or Germany. I'll agree with you there. Germany would be the worst fit. England would be bad, considering he's still pretty slight, and would take a beating over there. BTW, how is Beasley doing in the EPL? I haven't read anything on him.

Agreed. The Saints will be the only real NFC competition, and I'm not convinced that they'll be as tough as they've looked at some points. And the Saints just lost to a very bad Washington team at home. How anyone can say with a straight face that the Saints are better must be crazy.

104.5

really? what was said? (not that it surprises anyone) the unpredictability blah blah blah, with Garcia you know what you are going to get and the Eagles just keep winning blah blah blah. lot's of over analysis by him and Bradshaw at the end of the game criticizing the 'bad thows he made today were the same as in previous weeks, throwing off the back foot, etc.' I don't remember too many bad throws by Rex today. a couple balls could have been more accurate, but overall he was very good. There were 2 bad throws today. The slant to Hester and the throw to Berrian in double coverage down the sideline. And he had about 3-4 balls dropped, including a deep ball to Muhammed that went threw his arms. Rex played really, really well. He checked down, took sacks when warranted, made the right reads and didn't try and force throws downfield. And Jeff Garcia? The same Jeff Garcia that was terrible last season for Detroit? Jeff Garcia threw a terrible INT tonight and took a stupid personal foul penalty. If NY had a defense left, or could protect Eli Manning they would have won that game. Jeff Garcia and the rest of the NFC East suck, and should never ever be the model for anything. Joe Buck is, and always will be a hack. I can't wait til the Cubs make a World Series, so that we will get the 2004 Boston treatment until we win.

That's insane. No one should ever wear #21 again, ever. Even if the Cubs want to publicly continue to stick it to the one of the 2 best players in franchise history, they should at the least informally retire that number. McDonough and whoever else at the Tribune Co. who had input in this decision ought to be ashamed of themselves. They'll likely trip all over themselves to honor a pitcher who spend the vast majority of his HOF career with another team by retiring #31, but won't show respect to Sosa.

I am hoping PSV or Ajax will show some interest in him. Really? I would think a Spanish league side would be a better fit.

Jae Kuk Ryu is still listed as wearing No. 20. Subject to change at any time, certainly, but No. 20 Ryu and No. 17 Pie is what the roster says at present. Yeah, I saw that too. Pie shouldn't be #17, that was only good for Gracie. (Bobby Hill sucked in it.) I believe he wears #22? in the minors, but in the winter leagues he wore #20 from pictures I've seen. In his time in the minors, he's worn #15 and #20. The Cubs better retire Sammy's number!! The Cubs should retire #21 before #31. Unless the 31 is Jenkins, I agree 100%. Maddux shouldn't have his number retired by the Cubs.

Taveras is a career .284 hitter in his first two years in the majors. He did start to show some patients at the plate last year. Doesn't he have a career BABIP of like .340?

Even for a guy like Hendry who's in love with toolsy players, what tool other than speed does Taveras have? He can't hit for power or average, regardless of that Cub series doesn't have a great arm (2 of those 3 players thown out were Aramis and Barrett), and never struck me as an exceptional CF. Is speed really that damn important to the Cubs?

Oh barf. Taveras is terrible.

That's my opinion, too. Washington basically slashed his trade value by not playing him last year and basically telling the world they want him gone. That's something that mid market teams need to understand. Washington holding onto Church serves no purpose, as does Tampa holding onto their 9 OF's.. They overvalue their own players to the long term detriment of their roster and organization. Marmol or Marshall would mean much more to Washington than Church ever would. They're not going to get a top 50 prospect for Ryan Church. Why mess around?

Yeah, we fixed that problem. :D Okay, back on topic. Going back to my post where I quoted all the Rotoworld excepts on Ryan Church since December, what would be a fair offer for Ryan Church, and is he worth what it would cost? And finally, will Washington continue playing hardball, or will their demands come down the longer he isn't traded. (Using what Bruce Miles has heard through the grapevine as gospel that they are asking for the moon). Fair for Ryan Church would be something like Mateo or Marmol + one other player. He's clearly talented, but he's also 28 and never had a full time job. The Nats have no business asking for Hill for a player like Church. Mateo or Marshall plus a mid prospect.

Funny. I nominate goony's evil twin. Now that would be funny. Goony might kill someone his first week.

No big deal, TB can't pass. Hillenmeyer can play all game again. Poor Hunter. I am going to enjoy Hester getting more reps at DB, though. God, why? He's not a very good corner right now. Based on what? The one play where he got beat by Holt? If there is any game Hester should be getting time, it's this one. He had the one nice tackle, but didn't look very sharp in coverage. I'm not saying he doesn't have potential as a DB, but he's not there yet, IMO.

No big deal, TB can't pass. Hillenmeyer can play all game again. Poor Hunter. I am going to enjoy Hester getting more reps at DB, though. God, why? He's not a very good corner right now.