Dirt Dog Sparly

The A's guy got an Email that told him how to pronunciate a players name and then finished with,"Give a shout out to North Side Baseball."

Feast or famine this offense will be, I'm warning ya. How many long counts did the Cubs get into this inning? Not to be the consistant dark cloud out there, but something to look out for. When a guy is leaving pitches over the plate though....

Ya think the hitting coach maybe told the hitter to look for a tip on Kennedys part?

Excuse my lack of modesty, but I've been trying to make this case for years. Finally someone of stature lets it slip: unwavering fan support even in the face of utter failure can have a negative impact. If the Cubs had good players that played poorly, maybe that would make sense. But the Cubs have sucked because their personel decisions have sucked, not because overly supportive fans brought about complacency. Why bother making great personnel decisions when it doesn't really matter? Soul you make a very good point. To me it just makes the bad personel worse because of the fan support.

Greene is always hurt. He makes incredible defensive plays when he's in there, but his defense isn't nearly as impressive when he is out with an injury. Come on, I bet he's NEVER made an error when he's out with an injury. :lol: Then he and Isturis would be an even swap on that point.

That would be a good trade for the Cubs, and SD might do it depending on how badly they want out of Walker's deal and what they think of Greene long term (his numbers have been OK but not outstanding). He only has 4 years of service time so he'll be cheap for a while longer. They probably would take Murton, but I think I could live with that. The reason I think this doesn't happen is because I think the Hendry/Dusty regime didn't like TWalk and Hendry wouldn't consider bringing him back. I am with you in thinking that Walker is on the downside of Hendrys braintrust. The way I saw it Walker was the guy we would have to take to get a contract off the books to get Greene w/o giving up a ton of arms. Maybe platoon Walker and DeRosa?

QFT

I would rather see Theriot at SS in that scenario, and I am not wanting to see Theriot play SS anymore than he has too. Aaron Hill from Toronto maybe to play SS? ORRRR (Crazy Trade Idea Alert) We get Kalil Greene and Todd Walker back from SD for Jones/Murton, Izturis, and Marshall/Guzman/Mateo/ and a mid range prospect depending on if they take Murton or not. I do not want to trade Murton at all but you have to give value to get value. Derosa becomes your very expensive utility guy and Walker and Greene become your MI tandem. That would let Pie play CF and hit toward the bottom of the order and still give us a good overall IF defense. Please be nice in your replies.

Look at the last week of ST. By then a team has 26 or 27 guys that could make a roster and they will be lost if they are sent through waivers. Or the converse they have a hole through injury or a guy not stepping up to take a spot.

Needs to go to an AL team. That way he can DH which is is his best position. He would be a nice corner IF option off the bench because of his bat, but with twelve pitchers you just dont have a slot.

Look at it this way. If I get one guy on base an inning I have a chance to score nine runs that game. If I have a nine pitch inning in the first I only have a chance to score in eight of those innings now. So on and so forth. Now once the base runner is on if he comes around to score or not is another conversation. Having the runner on creates the opportunity. Now I believe in the work of James, but I also believe that you have to apply it to real world people. Those broad stats now become situational. Say I have a line up that has outs in the 7-8-9 holes. Yes getting one of those guys on by a walk not only extends the inning, but opens the pandoras box of matchups, game score, and inning. The variables that you talk about now come into play. In the end however by getting one of the outs on by walk at least I have created the opportunity to have a positive inning.

Entertaining? More like annoying. Am I the only one that reads a little grinning condescension into that statement? Or do I just have wishful thinking? Yeah the first time I read it I thought Lou was saying Ozzie is like on of those little celebrity dogs. They are cute for a little while but then they just turn annoying. IMO adding the, "He's also entertaining" is a back handed slap with an opps sorry I didnt know you were standing there fake appology.

According to Muscat on MLB, Piniella has set his lineup for the game tomorrow. Sori leading off followed by Murton. Lets see how this works out as the spring plays out, but this is a big step in a good direction.

Well, I don't think Santo is the greatest. Schmidt has that title by a long way. But, I could easily place Santo in the top five and maybe top four. Top three seems like a stretch. Based on the numbers, I'd probably go Schmidt, Brett, Matthews, Boggs, and then Santo. Some might argue that Robinson's defense places him right above Santo. Add to that the fact that Santo did this with Diabetes. He might have been right there with Schmidt if he hadnt had to battle that too. Morgan wants to know why you're making excuses. If Santo deserved to be in there, the intellectual giants who comprise the VC would have put him in the Hall already. :roll: Joe Morgan can kiss my lilly white and hairy backside. :evil:

Well, I don't think Santo is the greatest. Schmidt has that title by a long way. But, I could easily place Santo in the top five and maybe top four. Top three seems like a stretch. Based on the numbers, I'd probably go Schmidt, Brett, Matthews, Boggs, and then Santo. Some might argue that Robinson's defense places him right above Santo. Add to that the fact that Santo did this with Diabetes. He might have been right there with Schmidt if he hadnt had to battle that too. While that may be true, I don't think that really should be accounted for. Many players have physical ailments or injuries or what not that affect them. While I think that is a testament to his strength and courage and surely makes him an admirable person, I prefer the HOF to be based on what they accomplished on its on merits. That being said, Santo belongs based on those things alone. I agree with you that he belongs on his numbers as they currently stand. What I am saying is that with his body not recovering like someones without Diabetes, his accomplishments stand out even more so.

Well, I don't think Santo is the greatest. Schmidt has that title by a long way. But, I could easily place Santo in the top five and maybe top four. Top three seems like a stretch. Based on the numbers, I'd probably go Schmidt, Brett, Matthews, Boggs, and then Santo. Some might argue that Robinson's defense places him right above Santo. Add to that the fact that Santo did this with Diabetes. He might have been right there with Schmidt if he hadnt had to battle that too.

Givem Heck Boys and Girls. National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum 25 Main Street Cooperstown, NY 13326 Main switchboard — 607.547.7200 Toll-free number — (888) HALL-OF-FAME or 888.425.5633 FAX — 607.547.2044 http://www.baseballhalloffame.org/hofers_and_honorees/veterans/contact.htm Direct link to the Vets committee.

Who is she? Yeah I'm an old fart. :wink:

Look at all the quotes in total. He wants the hitters to attack. Not hacking attack but looking for the "happy pitch" attack. You do know what a "happy pitch" is dont you? Its the pitch that you hit hard because you are getting that pitch in that location that you are either looking for, (situational), or never miss, (player strength). I cant believe the ignorant nitpicking I have seen on this board the last few weeks. :roll:

That's much much much easier said than done. I'm glad they finally got around to making this change. It protects the arms of pitchers from coaches who have shown that they will put temporary success over the health/future of the kid. From what the coaches were telling me the pitch count was something like 85 for Major league (11-12?) which seems pretty high. I think this creates a danger that they may have a pitcher who has already thrown 60 pitches and they figure they might as well leave him in. I will say it again. The number of pitches arent the #1 danger!!! Poor mechanics will screw up an arm quicker than the pitch number. IMO the reason you see more arm injuries these days is a lack of between outing throwing to help build up strength and endurance. Wood tends to throw across his body. His new and improved mechanics still dont overcome a lifetime of habits. Add in riding him like a horse till he is tired and overworking tired muscles and you get injury of the year. Prior is the same way. When he gets tired the elbow sinks and he gets a little east/west instead of north/south. Same as Wood pitching when tired adding to the breakdown of mechanics leads to the injury of the year. Z is waiting to happen because of the poor mechanics toward the end of the year when he was canidate #1 to get the Cubs a complete game.

I'm waiting to see how he handles adversity before I really decide my opinions on him. It's easy to be liked before the games begin and the competition heats up. I say it's because we are hearing and reading things like strike zone discipline, professional pride, and personal responsability from Piniella. Something that at the end of last year we can all pretty much agree were missing. Its like a HS coach whose is replacing someone who won four games in four years. Until you only win four games in four years you are a messiah to the masses.

How many Dudes in the interview Bruce? :wink: Seriously Bruce another quality piece. Any chance the Trib is up to hiring a real baseball writer?

Way too many LL coaches are there to win and teaching correct fundamentals is an afterthought for many. Add to this they don't know what to look for or even how to teach it in many cases keeps these bad habits going way longer than they should. I hear way too many LL coaches spout out their w/l record and this means all the world to a great percentage of them which is not a good thing IMO. Plus, of course the coaches sons always making the All-Star teams even though sometimes they are some of the worst players on the team and the fact that the manager with the team with the best record gets to coach the All-Stars. What bothers me is the kid that pitches 6 innings and the next game he's at SS or even worse, catcher. If there are a few days in between that would be fine but if it's 2 days in a row or just one day off that just ain't good. I see the pitch and next day at SS in HS all the time. I spent two years at a HS where we had a kid who was 6'4 210 as a junior and still touching 90 in the seventh inning. The head coach would throw this kid 7 innings and 110-130 pitches every Monday and SS on Tuesday. When he started complaing of arm tiredness and soreness I wasnt in the least bit surprised. Basicly I was told to keep my mouth shut and keep him ready to pitch every Monday. The coach told the kid he was soft. The coach was old school and believed in throwing everyday. I didnt have a problem with that either, I did have a problem with him not knowing good pitching mechanics and stepping on my toes when I tried working with them despite my being brought in to work with pitchers, catchers, and MI. Needless to say I left as soon as I had the opportunity.

The pitch count is nice but is treating the symptom the wrong way. The number of pitches is not the big danger in a LL game. The #1 danger, the one that makes me cringe, is God awful mechanics. I saw so many kids pitching last year flying open with the front shoulder, throwing uphill, throwing across the body with a closed front sholder, windmilling in the delivery, shortarming the ball, ect, ect. I would go to the coaches and try to explain why their guys were walking the world and I woulf get the thousand yard stare. I had one tell me after the closing ceremony, real brave, that I didn't know anything about baseball even if I had coached on the college level. :roll:

I was privy to a conversation in a AAA clubhouse on this topic. The old vet told a rook that it is ok to run down the line at 3/4 speed on a routine groundball to an infielder if speed wasnt his game. Run through the bag and look like you hated you were thrown out and you wont get booed. Turn off before you get to the bag one time and you will be labeled as a guy who dosent hustle. The conversation is true. If Aram goes down the line at 3/4 speed on the rountine grounders I dont think there will be a legitimate complaint from anyone here. In the end you know who this issue is important to? His teammates. Lets leave it to them. I am getting tired of coming here lately and seeing all the gripey threads.