Sammy Sofa

i don't know much about injuries and whatnot, but this is what rotoworld said on June 8th, and it might be why the Cubs waited. So further proof the Cubs medical staff is full of jackasses So you're saying it's impossible it wasn't damaged further over the last 3 full months? And are these type of tests done by some sort of exclusive "Cubs medical staff?" I thought things like this were handled by doctors that treated players in general from around the league.

Ironically, this is exactly the type of game that, to me, shows why Marmol would often be wasted as a closer. Yes, I agree he would have likely not given up any runs...but that means you just used him when the Cubs have a 5-1 lead. That seems like a waste of a guy who is so dominant. At the same time, contrary to recent dramatics, games like this are still very much the exception for Dempster, not the rule.

Yeah, I saw Tourgasm as well. I think he was the 2nd best comedian there though. I don't think what he did at Tourgasm was his best stuff. A lot of people hate him and I don't understand why. Yeah, he's kind of obnoxious and I don't like his on stage antics all that much, but a lot of his stuff is actually funny. I think a lot of people overrate him, but I also think a lot of people severly underrate him. I can't listen to his Harmful if Swallowed CD and not crack up. I've found that most people that can't stand him do so because it's pretty clear he's a joke thief a la Carlos Mencia. Cook has ripped off so much of Louis CK's act that it should be criminal. You pull out all of the bits that he's stolen and you're left with a guy braying like a jackass and bragging about his MySpace page. Joke stealing is common as hell...every big comedian ever has probably stolen one or two jokes from a guy/girl no one ever heard of...sh*t happens really. And not that I'm a fan of either Cook or Mencia...but I heard one joke Mencia stole from Bill Cosby and it actually ended up being more funny...and Cook's "stolen material" is more topical than it is the actual joke. I'm not saying you're not gonna get jokes ripped off here or there or that it's impossible to have instances of "parallel writing," but it goes beyond that with guys like Mencia and Cook and Leary and the mother of all joke thieves, Robin Williams. They steal entire jokes and routines often almost wholesale and then to pass them off as their own with little to no change...and then they do it again and again. It's happened so often with these guys that to anyone even just paying a little bit of attention that's it clear it's not just an accident or a coincidence. And these kinds of talk and accusations against these guys have been around well before they got their big breaks and became ultra-famous. Williams was so bad with it that people would stop and walk of stage mid-set if they saw him come in the room. People like Joe Rogan and George Lopez were calling out Mencia well before he got his show simply because he was such a notorious hack and it was pissing people off. Leary got a LOT of crap right before and after Bill Hicks died for practically lifting Hicks' entire routines, and this was before Leary got his break as "the rant guy" on MTV. Cook got the same accusations levelled at hime for ripping off guys like Louis CK. And yet, the typical response is that people who say these things or don't like him because of it are just "jealous of his success" or "don't like him because he's popular." That's such a cop-out. Look at all the other comedians that have a ton of success and are very popular (even with the dreaded "young folk") and don't have anything like this said about them. It doesn't make any sense to brush off the criticisms of Cook as meaningless when it's not like that kind of response is par for the course with most other famous comedians. Besides, it's incredibly easy to hate Cook just for doing garbage like this alone: http://wwtdd.com/post.phtml?pk=2882

So...is anyone gonna start today's game thread?

It was really hilarious and creepy at the same time.

54% is pretty bad. That means the closer is giving up a run in every other inning they pitch more or less. I would think a great closer would be around 90% and an average one around 65%. I don't think anyone is really defending 2006, though that was really a collapse of the entire team, plus you had Dusty using Demp on about the most horrible closing non-schedule possible.

huh? I'm saying, I'll take 85% every time. Marmol has been awesome, but I still want Dempter closing. When he's celebrating winning the WS, I'll be happy, but dbags like you will be questioning why 85% Dempster will be out there. Huh? Dbag, why waste a post. What's with the name calling?

regardless, dempster puts far too many runners on base to be an effective closer with 1 run leads. Can Fred provide us with the numbers that show how many inherited 1-run leads Dempster has saved or lost? In order for it to be relevant, you'd have to know how many saves and blown saves the average closer has in those situations. Average % is going to be a lot lower. I'll check what Dempster's done. Well, whatever needs to be checked. I'm curious to see what his numbers in those situations look like.

like Dempster did today? SPECIFICALLY like today? Ideally, no. But so long as the end result is the team wins at least the significant majority of the time when the closer comes in, it works for me.

Real closers save ballgames.

regardless, dempster puts far too many runners on base to be an effective closer with 1 run leads. Can Fred provide us with the numbers that show how many inherited 1-run leads Dempster has saved or lost?

Wait...what?

Exactly. And if people want to argue that a closer then has to deal with those flukes, well, he did. I think these are the kinds of closes that, contrary to the drama, show how good Dempster can actually be in the role. maybe, but i'd still rather have Marmol Remember, a lot of closes aren't like this...most of them aren't. The high drama ones just stick out. Marmol is much more useful coming in between the 6th and 8th innings, where the pressure is usually MUCH higher.

Do we get to see the postgame press conference? Comcast always shows it, and this is one of the times I wanna hear Lou!

Exactly. And if people want to argue that a closer then has to deal with those flukes, well, he did. I think these are the kinds of closes that, contrary to the drama, show how good Dempster can actually be in the role.

I'm not excusing the hit he gave up (compunded by Pie's fielding) or the walk, but when the tone is set by an easy grounder flying off of 1B like that, well, you gotta be willing to chalk up the "unlucky" if you're only going to say he got "lucky."

Damn, Dempster got a bit of reDemption by motoring over to 1st as fast as he did.

Holy crap, Lou is pumped.

OH, JESUS GOD, YES!!!

GAH.

Man, they are just stacking the lefties against him. Not good.

Someone somewhere is already blaming Dempster for that.

Did anyone get a screenshot of Eyre?

Eyre is terrifying.

The ass-slaps have been saving the day tonight.