Sammy Sofa

And that k rate.

Artest just blew my mind. That was hysterical.

And what you are doing is reading WAY TOO MUCH between the lines. I was not judging anybody, sorry if you took it that way, but that's not what I meant. Wait, how am I reading between any lines? You flat out said that people who thinks this is funny have a weird sense of humor. That's a judgment call. I don't know why you're acting like that's a bad thing; if you think that people who find this funny are weird, hey, that's your call.

Calm down, spaz.

Actually, what you did is practically the definition of judging someone else.

I haven't seen Colvin's minor league splits, so maybe that is what you are referring to, but I surely wouldn't wouldn't say that he can't hit LHP based on a .263 average over 19 at bats. The strikeout rate is a definite concern though. he hit .277 in over 500 ABs against minor league pitchers with an OPS that was something like 20 points below his OPS against RHP... i have no idea where people got the idea that he is wretched against LHP, but they really should stop saying it. Based on how he's looked and performed against LH pitchers thus far plus the strikeout rate. Granted, sample size of a sample size, but his approach and the disparity between those numbers and his numbers against RH shouldn't really fill us with confidence as to how he'd look against LH pitchers, especially given how unsustainable his numbers against RH pitchers are.

The first option should be the obvious choice.

Spending money in and of itself won't win you a championship. It's how you spend the money, i.e. not giving huge contracts to players who either won't be any good by the end of it (Soriano) or bafflingly high contracts to players who just aren't all that good (Grabow, Miles). Right. Spending money is no guarantee of ending up with a good team. You look at the other teams with payrolls around or above the Cubs and they've spent a good portion of that on at least one, though typically at least two, "sure thing players" just on offense that you can normally count on year after year, and they usually were signed while they were still young and productive with some time to go while they'd still be in their prime. The money the Cubs have spent on offense has been tied up too often in players who were too old (and overpaid) and simply are not or were not the type of players you build a team around.

I think that's debatable. Not trying to justify the Z or Soriano contracts, but I still can't figure out what the hell Philly was thinking with that extension. Unless Utley is an idiot and is just going to accept a non-comparable deal out of the goodness of his heart, that's going to mean around $50 million a year locked up in just two players. Utley I could see arguing being worth it, but Howard? That's nuts. I think it was about keeping together a rare Phillies team that created interest in the city. They don't live and don't with that team, so if they see it falling apart, the fans could bail. It also helps when you've already won a WS, been to another, and have been raking in greater than expected revenues as a result. Understandable, but I guess I just find it hard to believe that they wouldn't have been able to keep Howard for anything less than $25 million a year for 5 years, especially when you have a much more valuable player who is also going to be getting a new deal during that span of time and is likely going to expect (rightly so) something comparable. Is Howard a Boras client?

I think that's debatable. Not trying to justify the Z or Soriano contracts, but I still can't figure out what the hell Philly was thinking with that extension. Unless Utley is an idiot and is just going to accept a non-comparable deal out of the goodness of his heart, that's going to mean around $50 million a year locked up in just two players. Utley I could see arguing being worth it, but Howard? That's nuts.

Agree to disagree. I in no way think he's doomed to be a crappy defensive OF, but to this point it seems like he makes a lot of bad decisions out there and takes some really questionable routes to the ball too often. He's not hopeless, but that seems like it could be a problem stretched out over a whole season, especially if he's manning RF at Wrigley. It's not just his defense he'd have to compensate for. The strikeout rate is one; the inability to hit LH is another. Totally agree that he has some potential; just not that he's demonstrated enough potential to justify benching someone you're trying to trade and actually get a decent return on.

I don't get it...are we not supposed to be watching those? They're typically one of the few watchable programs ESPN has these days.

With the Cubs going nowhere fast this season, it sure seems to me that they would want to find out what they have in Colvin going into next season. That gives them plenty of justification to start him regularly over someone like Fukudome who only has one more year on his contract and will not be here long term. I'm still leaning toward the opinion that Colvin will eventually prove himself to be nothing more than a solid 4th outfielder, but the possibility of him succeeding as a starter sure appears better than it did prior to this season. I'm not willing to bet on his success based on a relatively small major league sample size, but I'm also not willing to dismiss him based on his minor league numbers. Why not let him start for an extended period of time and see what happens? Because there's nowhere to start him. It makes no sense to bench Kosuke if you're trying to sell him and get any kind of a valuable return or not to have to pick up too much of his salary. It's not like Colvin won't get plenty of AB's in the meantime as the backup OF, and then if they do trade Kosuke he'll get plenty more platooning with Nady. There's simply no rush where the Cubs "have" to find out what they have in Colvin right now.

Great point. And I don't understand why people would assume that the power he's shown in the limited sample size of his time in the bigs would just carry over to a full season. If that's the case, then is his appallingly high strikeout ratio going to stretch out as well? His relatively limited defense is going to carry out over the whole season? LH pitchers having their way with him completely and totally? Why are some people acting like the power is the only thing that'll stick around? Well, the power would have to stick around and he'd need to have to keep hitting at these ridiculous levels all season to offset the liabilities he displays as a player. That's why his success as a starter is such a long shot despite what he's shown this season. That's why in a sane world it makes much more sense for him to be starting in the minors since he's yet to show down there that he can be a viable option as a starting OF. Production in a limited role as a part time player up here for a couple months doesn't just suddenly prove he's a good option to be starting over the Cubs current starters, especially when they're trying to shop one of them for a trade.

It should be noted that PR wise sending down Colvin anytime soon to get at-bats isn't really possible. It's a tough situation. While I also believe some of Colvin's minor league numbers have been skewed, that still leaves him as a huge question market with plenty of tools and some flashes but not much of a track record. That isn't much to fall back on when giving a lot of PT at the major league level . But the minors isn't an option at the moment and I don't know when it will be an option again unless he does get significant PT and struggles. Well, it's certainly possible, but I agree that it's unlikely. Too bad.

Are you talking about Fukudome? A typically productive player? Are you watching the same games I am? 715 OPS in May and dipping to an abomination like 552 OPS this month. This happens EVERY YEAR. He starts off hot (fukudome), and everyones like oh hey he gets on base he's a pretty preductive guy. Then the wheels fall off in late may/early june and its downhill fukucopter drilling into the batters box from then on. Fukudome was better in the second half of the year last year than the first half. He could easily end up doing that again this year. Right. June has been one of his weakest months both of the last two seasons for whatever reason, but then he bounced back last year and was very good in July and August.

Who is completely writing him off? And if his minor league numbers skewed, isn't it a reasonable expectation to actually prove that they were skewed?

You mean right now? Nothing. He still has a ton of work ahead of him in the minors and he's only 20.

I'm not convinced at all we're teaching our players concurrent approaches from the minors to the bigs, fwiw. I always feel like we don't adequately prepare our prospects for the bigs anyway, so it's pointless. And on top of that, what's Rudy Jaramillo for? Rudy's here to coach hitting. Colvin still needs coaching beyond just his hitting. Unless he's going to keep hitting out of his mind, any hopes of him being a productive starting OF will be dashed if his defense doesn't improve. Look, the Cubs just don't need to start Colvin right now. The team as it stands simply isn't worth forcing him into a position that's almost certainly going to be over his head at this point. He hasn't proven he can be a productive starting OF in the minors yet (in terms of his potential as a starter in the majors), so why assume he can be a productive starting OF based on a very limited sample size as a part time player in the majors?

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You may think he blows, but the odds are much, much more in his favor in regards to being more productive for the Cubs this season than Colvin. It also makes little sense to bench him if you expect or hope the Cubs to trade him and get a decent return and/or not to have to pick up too much of his salary.

He's been horrendous over the last month. His history before his surge couple with his peripherals as well as his recent history would argue much more in favor of "prolonged fluke" than anything else. He was a pleasant surprise, but he's definitely still a work in progress. I hope he pans out, but his recent struggles plus how many of his key numbers trended in the second half last year indicate that nobody should really have a conclusion about him at this point. Because he needs to be coached well and he needs to show that he can have the type of success he's had so far, or some variation thereof, as a full time player. It's simply much smarter to do that in the minors when your team is set in terms of starting OF and it's with a player who hasn't demonstrated anything like this when he has been a full time player. I agree with the final point, which is one of the reasons I'd prefer him starting in the minors. It's better for him and the Cubs in terms of the bigger picture. I think you're really overstating that final part. The Cubs are not lacking for quality starting OF players and this team as it's constructed really isn't worth potentially sidetracking a player's development. If there's a chance Colvin can be a productive starter then he needs to be doing in full time in the minors since he's yet to demonstrate down there that he could be a productive starter. Colvin's success so far this season is by no mean proof in that regard, and it simply isn't realistic or smart to plug him in as one of the Cubs starting OF right now. Why possibly waste any potential he has on a team this bad? Let him get the coaching he needs.

Come on. McGehee is not a good player. We should be praying that Colvin isn't another McGehee. I'm not saying he's a good player! I'm saying Milwaukee has the brains, unlike us, to ride the hot hand until it's over. Of course Casey won't keep this up forever, but he is right now! So is Colvin! But that's really not "brains." It's the Brewers not having a better option. They got lucky that McGehee had the stretch that he did, but in the big picture it's basically meaningless. Colvin, unlike McGehee, actually has a shot at being a productive part of this team for an extended period of time, even if his ceiling does end up being basically a 4th OF. With a player like Colvin you don't "ride his hot hand;" you get him in the minors starting full time working with the coaches to see if his new found power isn't a fluke and what type of player he can ultimately be. The answer isn't to prop him to be some kind of short term savior or boost because he hasn't demonstrated anything before this year that showed he can be that player. This current team isn't worth potentially wasting whatever potential he has. RIGHT NOW isn't and should not be important with this team.

Come on. McGehee is not a good player. We should be praying that Colvin isn't another McGehee.

It's not a catch-22; you don't bench a typically productive player you hope to trade for an unproven one who has to keep hitting at or around his current ridiculous level to justify his starts due to his defensive shortcomings. Colvin will still get plenty of AB's up here even if he's not starting regularly over one of the other OF.