goonys evil twin

Would it be a problem to sign Nomar for SS, go with Perez at 2nd and hopefull hit him in the 8th hole? Maybe 7th on days Blanco gets the node? Thoughts? Yes, it would be a problem. With the payroll we have and with Walker, Hairston, and Cedeno here it would be foolish to allow Neifi to be a full time player. It would not be a problem for a team like the Yankees or Red Sox to settle for Neifi as their 8th hitting 2B. Assuming that team didn't have a decent young/cheap option in the system, and assuming they didn't already have access to an affordable/productive veteran via a team option, a team already guaranteed to have a top offense can afford to take the hit. The Cubs, however, are not a team with guaranteed production. They need to take it where they can get it, and are not capable of simply hiding guys. They need so many improvements that it would be foolish to purposefully take a step back at a position of relative strength. If Ronny Cedeno did not exist, and the Cubs didn't own an option on Todd Walker, and they were able to sign a top flight RF, and they were able to acquire a solid CF, and Matt Murton was given 2 months of playing time this year to answer the questions about his ability to play at this level full time, and there were no other reasonable options, then I would consider bringing Neifi back as a starter. But the man is a backup. He's a utility player. With a smart manager I'd be happy to have Neifi as the backup to Nomar/Walker, Nomer/Cedeno or Cedeno/Walker. But lots of things would have to change with this team before I'd be willing to settle on Neifi as the starter.

Is this an attempt at humor? I don't see it as an attempt at humor. Rusch was very effective last year as a starter, and was pretty effective this year until Baker started jerking him around. In April, Rusch was used exclusively as a reliever, and he excelled with a 2.03 ERA. In May, he started 6 games and posted a 2.48 ERA. In 2 more starts in June, he got his ERA down to 2.07. Then, he had 3 Greg Maddux-like games and was removed from the rotation. His ERA was still only 3.13 at that time. He then gave up runs in 5 straight relief appearances. Once he got on track with his new job description, he got his ERA back under 4.00. Inserted back as a starter, it took him awhile to get back on track. If he had been left alone to start all year, I don't see why it would be unreasonable to think that he could post a 3.50 ERA and win close to 15 games. Maddux has a chance to win 15 this year with a 4.40 ERA. I think most of Rusch's struggles this year stem from being bounced back and forth between the pen and the rotation. Well then if it wasn't an attempt at humor it ranks up there with one of the biggest stretches in the history of sports debate. I don't think Rusch stood a chance of winning 15. But to say he could have easily won 15 is absurd. Somehow, one of the crappiest regular pitchers of the past 10 years is going to "easily" accomplish something that no other Cubs pitcher this year will easily accomplish? Yeah right. Rusch is a swingman. He's good for the occasional 5 IP 2-3 ER outing, sprinkled with some disaster starts and great outings. But by and large he's going to be a 4.50 ERA pitcher who will be lucky to win 10 games. If there is one thing Rusch's 2004 taught me about his ability is he could be good if used properly, and one of the aspects of using him properly is not starting him every 5th day for 6 months. He was a good starter for about a month last year, then started to blow up frequently. Rusch moved to the pen and did alright in the swingman role, before finishing up as a starter again. This year he was a starter by May, did fine for about a month and a half, then once again blew up. Rusch has proven time and time again that he's not a good full season starter. He's no short reliever either, because his stuff is so mediocre. Let's stop pretending Rusch is some hero. He's a 6th starter, nothing more. Like a backup QB on a struggling team, brief flashes of quality play tends to warp the viewers opinion of what his ability would be over the course of an entire season.

Is this an attempt at humor?

Again, far enough and well explained. I think you are hoping with your heart on ©. I won't deny that. I used to be a proud Corey supporter. If somebody wants to take a position against him, there's not much to say in his defense. If Hendry chooses to non-tender Corey and cut all ties, I wouldn't really have much of a leg to stand on when ripping that move.

There may be. But I sure don't know any of them. Fair enough. perhaps I phrased inartfully. I think people have spent alot of time on this board ripping perez. While there has been ripping of patterson the perez bashing is out of proportion relative to the patterson bashing to their performances this year. I'm not sure there has ever been a topic discussed on this board to a level in proportion to the level that topic deserved. Some talks escalate, they stir emotions. If somebody says Neifi sucks, and the replies are pretty much in agreement, the discussion isn't going to go anywhere. If a person decides to reply in defense of Neifi, however, the debate is much more likely to rage. I personally rip Neifi more than Corey for a couple reasons: A) I expected Neifi to suck and I hate being proven right on something that hurts the Cubs; B) I can't stand all the over-the-top praise Neifi has gotten from media/announcers/coaches; C) However slim it may be, there's still some hope for Corey to do something positive, whereas Neifi is hopeless.

There may be. But I sure don't know any of them.

Reality is what drives me crazy. All the Santos in the world can't keep spreading the lie that he's been great. He sucks. The numbers back it up. He's always sucked. Does he suck more than Patterson? Do the numbers back that up? This year Corey sucked more. For their careers they are very similar. Neifi is right now what Corey would be if he never improved for 6 years but kept getting chances to play a lot. Corey may never improve. I certainly won't guarantee it. But there is a chance. With Neifi, we know he sucks and he'll always suck.

Nerding it up? Gotta love that tough guy "stats don't matter" attitude. Neifi has had 5000 PA because a lot of people in baseball purposefully avoid objective analysis. It's called conventional wisdom, and it's why so many franchises repeatedly fail. How can you support Neifi so much when his career numbers are no better than Corey's? And that comes with playing half of his career in Colorado.

Reality is what drives me crazy. All the Santos in the world can't keep spreading the lie that he's been great. He sucks. The numbers back it up. He's always sucked.

Neifi is 32, he's had almost 5000 PA, and he's always sucked. Corey is 26, has had less than 2500 PA, and has not always sucked. He's been terrible this year. But the fact is players usually do improve throughout their 20's. Neifi is a lost cause with no upside. However small the likelihood is for Corey, at least he has some chance to be a decent starter.

Well then he was wrong. Sac bunting with your RBI middle of the order guys is an awful strategy. It's especially bad when you have a lineup with the Cubs with only 1 or 2 reliably hitters, and the rest a bunch of hacks. Having Ramirez sac bunt so Hollansworth could try for a sac fly is just not smart baseball.

He is better than what Patterson was this year. I'd rather put Hairston in center at $2m and spend the money on impact bats elsewhere.

Is arbitration really that screwed up that Corey would earn at least a $1m raise this year? I know it's tough to cut a guy's salary, but Corey has had as close to a disaster season as you can get. If the Cubs offered $2.9m I can't see an arbiter siding with Patterson at 4. The right offer to Preston is about $2m. At the most you consider 2/10, but anything over $4m is a joke. He stinks.

What's so dumb about it? What's your reason for even using that word? The Cubs wanted Wilson, they just didn't want to spend what Colorado wanted. Wilson is exactly the type of player Hendry would go after though. He's 31 right now and will turn 32 next July.

Must you ruin my winter before it begins?

What's the over/under on the raise Hendry offers Macias in the offseason? I'll set it at $75,000.

The White Sox should try to get him with Philly paying as much as possible. They need the offense.

Like Matt Jones? I think you're talking about a different time. Things have changed drastically in the football world. I just counted 18 black QBs in my fantasy league's list of all QB's. There are lots of black QBs in high school and college, and they will keep coming into the NFL.

I said Santo was a homer. My point was that he doesn't try to pretend he isn't. I think Santo is a terrible analyst. Buck is not one of the best. Only a STL fan could think so. He's an arrogant preppy popped collar kind of guy. Unbiased? He is so completely biased it's almost obscene.

And his away numbers have been no better. And before anybody tries, don't compare him to Lee. Juan will be 30 when he starts next season. Lee was 28 when he came to Chicago, still in the range when guys improve. Lee was also productive, year-in year-out, consistently putting up solid numbers while in that pitcher's park. He was just 2nd tier. Juan has been anything from really bad to mediocre, and is just now having his first good season. He averages 38 BB and 114 K every 162 games played, and he's not a consistent 160 game kind of guy anyway. He's really just a 4th OF who can be inserted when needed.

Is Encarnacion that bad a target? I would like Giles in conjunction with signing him, but he wouldn't be a terrible pickup depending on the contract. dal, I would not* say you're paranoid. cpatt, yes he would be that bad. .269/.317/.444 career line. He's 29 and coming off a career year, he'll get a decent size deal. Hendry overpays for mediocrity repeatedly. This would not be good. He's a younger JB who will get more money. *edited to make it clear that I think that's a legit fear.

I'm thinking he was showing off his humility, trying to play the humble card. He's leaving the door open for the Cubs to have a press conference with videotape showing Greg standing behind Speier giving fake signs to screw with the baserunners. If they want to dump him, they probably can. But it would be messy, and it's not realistic. He's coming back. And he'll get his $9m one way or another. They could buy him out for $8.5 m, and he'll sign elsewhere for the rest (plus some). But basically it was a throw away line, completely meaningless.

I generally agree with those sentiments. Theoretically they could do next to nothing and once again hope that improved health will provide the necessary improvements to the team. But it would be inexcusable to do so once again (that was last offseason's strategy).

Good golly. Wood did show people he can turn it around in 02 and 03 when he overcame the "he's always injured" stigma and had back to back solid seasons. He's got a different injury now, and I'd certainly be less inclined to show patience now that he's got the contract, but the fact is he still is young and could easily turn into a great pitcher. This year people said Greg was a lock to win 15 because he did it in the past. That was absurd. First off, his win totals don't mean much. What about his loss totals? If you praise him for 12 wins, shouldn't you critique him for 11 losses? His win total isn't nearly as important as how well he pitches from April to October, on the whole.

I'm not a big Buck fan on national broadcasts, but he's tolerable. Last night, however, I was reminded just how terrible he is. The other guy actually seemed alright. But Buck is just awful. He's a homer, much like Santo, but unlike Santo, he tries to portray himself as some sort of all knowing god of baseball knowledge. At least Ronny (who I do not like listening to) is brutally honest with his work.