goonys evil twin

Now that I could see. But, you still need somebody to steal for you to get the information to make the % move. I agree with dav when he says to steal in the minors but still, that doesn't give you that golden number to go by to be able to make sure you have that exact 70% or above type success. Goony, what happens if everyone in MLB feels this way. How do you get the correct barameter to judge this by? I really don't understand your question.

I wouldn't want to completely eliminate the SB. But I'd definitely want to be on the lower end in terms of attempts, the same way I'd be with sacrifices.

We need prospects across the board on the line. I'd even like to see them go after a young center. I think this line would disintigrate without Kreutz right now. And going into his 10th year, with an already declining performance (I'm not saying he's bad by any stretch, just not the stud he once was), they should find an heir apparant ASAP.

I think he was looking for the highest paid guy out there who would have a relatively poor production/salary ratio. Aramis is a very good hitter. But he's not elite, and he's got some downside risk. The Cubs absolutely had to keep him though. i think he's more than elite at his position, though. 3 years in a row with a 900 ops is pretty impressive. Yes, of all guys on that list, I think he'll probably be the closest to most productive for his position. But again, it was about listing a roster of very expensive players who signed contracts this past offseason. He's not calling Ramirez mediocre, he's making a mediocre team that costs a lot of money.

He's not constructing the Cubs lineup. He's putting together a very highly paid team that won't be great. Soriano in LF makes perfect sense for such an endeavor. Well let's just move Todd Walker to SS and Carlos Lee to CF while we're at it. Are you kidding me? Soriano played LF last year. Those guys have no business at SS or CF. That's an asinine comparison. Soriano in left is completely legit. I really don't get the complaints about this article's main point. It's an extremely expensive ballclub that would probably not be that good.

He's not constructing the Cubs lineup. He's putting together a very highly paid team that won't be great. Soriano in LF makes perfect sense for such an endeavor.

Hence the "Catch 22." Dempster would have to pitched solidly (say high 3/low to mid 4, with a whip in the 1.15-1.25) to have any value. Or maybe come June, maybe the Cubs could convince the Reds to take Dempster for whatever. Not necessarily. He makes less than Jason Marquis, he'd be a viable trade option unless he completely tanks. He could have a 4.50 ERA and 1.35 WHP and still have trade value. The key is keeping his save % reasonable and maintaing his stuff. Lots of GMs will look for a "proven closer".

I think he was looking for the highest paid guy out there who would have a relatively poor production/salary ratio. Aramis is a very good hitter. But he's not elite, and he's got some downside risk. The Cubs absolutely had to keep him though.

He makes some very valid arguments. Except this one: Second base: Mark DeRosa, Cubs (3 years, $13 million) Why this was a bad contract: Umm, let's see, the Cubs are overly right-handed and needed a lefty bat to hit right-handed pitching, so let's sign a guy who … can't hit right-handed pitching. Oh, and he's a 31-year-old utility guy coming off a career year in Texas (a good hitting park). And you wonder why it's been 99 years? Among NL teams, the Cubs were 16th in OPS against LHP last year, 9th against RHP. The Cubs need to find guys who can hit LHP. They are not as desperate for guys who can hit against RHP (although I wouldn't mind some). There's no reason to throw out the LH/RH argument in a discussion about just how risky the Cubs spending was this offseason.

Maybe he's not talking about taking Russell over Quinn, but rather, teams like Detroit who have Jon Kitna at QB and are years away from contending, but going for something other than QB. There are teams between Oakland and Miami that need QB's, but from all accounts aren't looking to draft one. A lot of people believe a franchise QB is absolutely vital, and should be selected above anything else. If I were Detroit, I'd take the fatty from Wisconsin. The Lions' offensive line has been brutal for years. Kitna isn't great but he'd be serviceable if anybody could protect him. If they draft Quinn or whoever, he'll just be a bust because he'll be constantly under pressure, and no quarterback can succeed like that. I definitely agree with this. But what good is a servicable 35 year old QB when your team is still years from contending? Why can't you draft Quinn, then draft/sign O line later in the draft? Quinn doesn't have to be thrown to the wolves right away. You can solidify your line before you start him. I can see the point in Det drafting the lineman, I just don't see the point in sticking with Kitna. If you're going to suck anyway, you might as well be developing a young QB, and not relying on the Kitnas of the world.

I keep seeing their name brought up as the favorite dark horse candidate. But I'm having trouble believing in what's going on. What's the case for the Brewers again?

Maybe he's not talking about taking Russell over Quinn, but rather, teams like Detroit who have Jon Kitna at QB and are years away from contending, but going for something other than QB. There are teams between Oakland and Miami that need QB's, but from all accounts aren't looking to draft one. A lot of people believe a franchise QB is absolutely vital, and should be selected above anything else.

What colors my opinion of how this org is run is how this org has been run since Ted/Jerry took over and hired Lovie. And I have been extremely pleased with what that triumvirate has accomplished, and how they have accomplished it. They didn't mortgage the future by creating a roster based largely on hope. They built a foundation from within and added from outside when necessary. The Bears are in great shape to maintain their recent run for the foreseeable future (which, in NFL terms is 2-3 years). I really don't see what a Bears fan would have to complain about. I'm not talking about the post 2004 (hey just be happy for back to back .500 seasons) Cubs support. There is definitely room for improvement. But the general direction of the Bears is very positive.

That might be the key though. It's not outlandish to assume he will not play 160 healthy games this year. Coming off a serious wrist injury, Lee could suffer productivity wise due to both his rate stats, and the number of PA. FYI, Lee had 691 PA in 2005, but he had 688 in 2004 and 2002, so his spot in the order isn't going to make up that much of a difference.

I don't see why you'd get flamed for that. The consensus seems to be that Pie is not ready. People are talking about best case scenarios when they talk about Pie being ready to start in CF this April.

If the Bears were poorly run, but still the best run organization in town. You'd have a case. But they aren't poorly run, and there isn't a single bit of evidence to suggest they are. People are seeing things that aren't there. They negotiated a contract extension with their GM and head coach (who were both under contract already) 3 weeks after their season ended. As for other org in town, you have the Blackhawks at the bottom of the barrel, followed by the no reckless Cubs. I'd say the Bulls are next in line, and all evidence I've see suggests they are run well, if not to championship caliber. The White Sox are a bit better than the Bulls, given their consistent winning, championship season and contender status. But I think the post-Michael/Hatley/Jauron Bears are run even better than the CWS.

They aren't 20 under the cap every year, and the McGinnis thing was the straw that broke the camels back. I'm talking about the Phillips/Angelo Bears. There is no reason why this had to get done earlier. There were people who got freaked out by it and those who didn't. Instead of blaming the Bears for freaking people out, I put the onus on the freakers. All of the evidence point to this team being run much differently than it was when free agency first started. People who work in pro sports do honor contracts. If you fire a guy, you still have to pay him everything that is guaranteed. It does not make an organization cheap when they sign a guy to a contract and pay him what that contract stipulates. Some organizations like to throw money at all of their problems. I don't think it's done a whole lot for Snyder, nor has it helped Jerry Jones. Other organizations are more pragmatic when it comes to expenditures, like Philly, New England and the Bears. People will scoff at comparing the Bears with those organizations, but the fact is the current regime has ammassed the most talented team in their conference and have set-up the team for lasting success. They have a president who hired his current GM who hired his current head coach, and a head coach who is being allowed to have the coaching staff he wants to keep.

Agreed. Many of the predictions out there don't seem to realize DLee was hurt last year. Or they do realize he was hurt and don't think he'll return to his 2005 form. Lee has passed the 100 RBI mark once in his life, 2005. The reasons are varied. He's often hit 6th, he's had some OBP issues in front of him. But hitting 6th gave him opportunities for RBI, given the quality OBP in front of him. Lee should have better OBP from the 1 and 2 slot this year than he got in 2005. But Soriano's OBP will be affected by HR, which take away RBI opportunity from Lee. And the Cubs 2 hole is far from secured. You've got a pretty wide range of potential OBP from the 2 hole, including Izturis who will probably suck, DeRosa who may or may not be decent, and Murton, who should be pretty good. And with a .300/30 prediction for Lee, you're looking at a guy who will be somewhere between 2005 Lee and all previous Lees. Not to mention, a guy who could miss some time. On the surface I'd expect Lee to surpass Soriano in RBI and be well over 100. But when you look at it a bit, it's not shocking for him to be predicted under that mark.

No it isn't. Fair market value is based on what the market is willing to give you. If you don't hit the market, there's no judging of what that market is. Coaches hit free agency all the time. College coaches are virtual free agents at all times, as are most coordinators. Then you have your steady supply of former head coaches not under contract.

I have a feeling that Jones will end up some other place, and Pie being the CFer. Those are two things that would not surprise me at all.

you can use the control key in add/drop to drop them all at once. why was the deadline extended again? I would have thought you could, but that trick doesn't work for me. I click a name, hold ctrl, then when I click another the first one goes clear again.

Is there a good way to release all the guys you aren't keeping at once? Do you have to actually drop guys after selecting the keepers?

Didn't Manning give the Colts a little salary relief too or was that another QB? Yeah, although it really was an accounting move that was expected since the day that he signed the contract. Basically, he had a 10 million dollar signing (roster) bonus, which was going to count all against the cap, and they converted it to a signing bonus, and now only 2 million of it will count against this year's cap.

I dunno if I agree with that given how stupidly the McCaskeys have conducted themselves in the recent past (does any major sports city have as many "ify" owners as Chicago?), but I am very happy that Lovie is getting what he deserves. The Bears have been run completely differently ever since Virginia backhanded her son. I don't know why the national media insists on calling this franchise cheap for honoring contracts and why so many locals still think it's 1988. This is the best run organization in town. They work smart, take calculated risks and spend big when they need to.

please, no more Dusty talk. It's over.