Little Slide Rooter

I wouldnt chalk up Colvin as a bust just yet. Hes in AA because of TJS, not A and hes off to a good start there.

You do relaise that this board has a revolutionary feature which allows you to ignore any poster you dont want to read. Go ahead, give it a try.

Has anyone else heard the story that back in the Dusty era, they were considering Bradley(this part we know) but Dusty and Milton had a head to head meeting, and Milton rubbed Dusty the wrong way Dusty told Hendry no. I remember hearing about it on one of the Score shows, M&H or B&B.

Speaking of small ample sizes, is it me, or does he seem to hit better when hes playing defense than when hes DHing? It could be coincidence, but I really hope we see more of him at 3rd and let Font, Freel, and Andy White fight it out for 2nd.

I think hes getting exactly the replies he wants.

But we're talking about being a baseball fan. Obviously the chemical addiction of a drug compared to being a baseball fan is quite an exaggeration, but the fact is people are unhealthily addicted to a baseball team and cannot break said addiction even if they hate the fact that they are a fan of such a lousy team. It's like saying, if you hate being a fan of a team that's perpetually bad (historically) like the Cubs, why don't you just be a Cardinals fan? Its more like family or love than a drug addiction. Its not a chemical or physical need, more an emotional thing that you cant walk away from even if you wanted to. If nothing else, it keeps things interesting. I liken it to the loser relative in the family. You routinely want to smack the crap out of him, he'll never amount to anything, and you stopped depending on him long ago because he's always let you down, but you still love him and you'll always be there for him when he needs you. That's Cubs fandom to me. For the record, I could have been a Yankees fan. As a kid growing up in New York, my dad tool me to a lot of Yankees games, but I was like 5 and I was just in it for the sundays in the mini helmets. It was my grandmother who who got me into the Cubies, and now at the age of 88, shes seen as many championships as I have. She probably couldnt tell Carlos Lee from Bruce Lee, but she'll still give you the low down on any Cubs player in her lifetime.

Beautiful. Wouldnt the Team of Destruction suggest that its a good team?

But we're talking about being a baseball fan. Obviously the chemical addiction of a drug compared to being a baseball fan is quite an exaggeration, but the fact is people are unhealthily addicted to a baseball team and cannot break said addiction even if they hate the fact that they are a fan of such a lousy team. It's like saying, if you hate being a fan of a team that's perpetually bad (historically) like the Cubs, why don't you just be a Cardinals fan? Its more like family or love than a drug addiction. Its not a chemical or physical need, more an emotional thing that you cant walk away from even if you wanted to. If nothing else, it keeps things interesting.

Cubs get Matt Holliday Brad Ziegler Russ Springer Bobby Crosby A's get Jay Jackson Jose Ascanio Jake Fox Tyler Colvin Mike Fontenot Wellington Castillo I know, and Billy Beane has a good laugh. it even sounds wild eyed and unrealistic to me.

Apparently this clown views it as an unofficial 3 way trade between the Cubs-Cards-Indians http://www.stltoday.com/blogzone/bird-land/bird-land/2009/06/mark-derosa-3-team-trade-that-never-was-yet-really-is/ Heres the jist The tale of the transactions, told as if they were parts of a trade: Cubs acquire Miles from Cardinals, and three minor-league pitchers from Cleveland. Cleveland acquires Chris Perez and PTBNL from Cardinals. Cardinals acquire DeRosa. Hey, we got Aaron Miles out of the deal, so its not all bad after all :banghead:

Too late for some of us. run while you can.

My cousin got salmonella from too many.

I'm not trying to police it, I'm trying to understand it because some people seem to REALLY hate this team more often than not. Its hard to explain. Id probably be happier if I werent a Cubs fan, or at least have a lot less stress in my life. Yes, I hate this team at this moment. I hate they way the team is playing. I hate Lou Piniella. I Hate Jim Hendry. I hate Milton Bradley, but no matter what, Im going to keep crawling back like a little dog. I dont hate the Cubs, but I really hate the way the team is playing. I cant explain why. Its just the way it is. During games, yeah, a lot of us get irrational. and its a lot easier to say I hate the team than it is to say I hate the way the team is playing at this time. What makes it worth it is the payoff. If they ever do win it all could you imagine if you had walked away? Which is why were not bangwagon fans. Im sick of the cliche that real fans dont boo. Real fans do boo. Fake fans go away, and come back when the team decides to do better.

Why are Cobs will never win anything 2009.

I'm not trying to police it, I'm trying to understand it because some people seem to REALLY hate this team more often than not. Its hard to explain. Id probably be happier if I werent a Cubs fan, or at least have a lot less stress in my life. Yes, I hate this team at this moment. I hate they way the team is playing. I hate Lou Piniella. I Hate Jim Hendry. I hate Milton Bradley, but no matter what, Im going to keep crawling back like a little dog. I dont hate the Cubs, but I really hate the way the team is playing. I cant explain why. Its just the way it is. During games, yeah, a lot of us get irrational. and its a lot easier to say I hate the team than it is to say I hate the way the team is playing at this time.

True, not making a trade at all sure is working How much help would a Mark Teahen or someone like that be? That's likely all we can afford and we'd likely overpay in prospects for him. If a good deal is there that we can do, we should go for it. Given Hendry's willingness to make trades in the past, though, I suspect either a good trade is not there or we can't add payroll. He already made it clear that hes going to wait until Ramirez returns and adress the needs then. As much as we want a shiny new toy now, he might be right. Once Ramirez returns the need may very well shift from the offense to the bullpen. Felipe Lopez would be a nice platoon partner for Fontenot, but once Ramirez returns, Font is a #8 hitter, and you can do worse than Font at the 8 spot. The pen, on the other hand is an absolute disaster. I dont like it any more than anyone else, but waiting it out could be the thing to do, unelss we want to dump a bunch of prospects for Branyan and then in 2 or 3 weeks, hes a pinch hitter. If a trade was to be made before Ramirez' return, it would have been done about a month ago.

So don't accept it. Stop watching the games. Stop buying merchandise and tickets. If it's so miserable being a Cubs fan now, then don't be one because odds are against them (and any other team) actually winning it all even if they have a bunch of worldbeaters out there during the regular season. I get being pissed off by a crappy team/management/owners/etc.. What I don't get is acting like it's a horrible thing being a Cubs fan and then staying a Cubs fan. I explained in the post 2 above this 1. People are going to get crazy and complain, and you cant police that just because you tell us to stop being Cubs fans. Those capable probably did after 2006.

Its going to take more than 1 player to fix this. If we could get a good bat and a solid reliever or 2, that would work, but at this point, I dont think a Mark Teahen or Felip Lopez is going to fix anything. Its a start, but Jims going to have to go all out. I dont know what the financial situation is exactly, but we need to do what we can. As much as the Cubs want to fall out of this division and start selling, the Brewers and Cardinals wont let them.

Hmm, why didn't I think of that? ](*,) I ask it all seriousness. It's not like crappy Cubs teams are a surprise to anyone who is a Cubs fan and over the age of, say, 15. Yes, this team obviously had huge expectations and the Cubs being bad is never going to not "hurt," but the repeated bemoaning that being a fan of this team is so horrible just seems pretty hollow when people could easily just stop being an active fan if they wanted to. It honesly seems like some (not saying you) prefer being able to complain about the team and players doing poorly and wallowing in self-pity. Real fans want results. Were not going to jump ship no matter how much of a mess the team is, but were going to piss and moan and wallow in self pity all the way. The 2003 and 2008 bandwagoners are the ones who will just shrug it off go away with these kinds of seasons. Ive been a fan all the way since 1984 when I was 8. Ive sat through a lot of crappy, crappy Cubs incarnations, with a few bright spots in 1989 and 1998, but 2003 was the first time I really felt that this team was capable of doing that wining thing that other teams do, and since then, the bar has been raised, and back in the 90's and ealry '00s, something like this or even 2006 would be acceptable. Damn those expectations Ive developed. Expectations are one thing, but the complaining some do that being a fan of a team is somehow a burden to them is just ridiculous, melodramatic nonsense. I'm mad as hell at how this team is playing, much as I was at the very end of 2004 and over 2005 and 2006, but that's just part of being a fan. Maybe it's because I'm an all-Chicago fan when it comes to sports and I'm 30, so all of my teams have been bad more often than not (I guess only the Bulls close to being an exception). I guess I've just come to accept it that my teams are more likely to let me down when all is said and done. That doesn't mean I like it, but it's just part of the fan experience. I would never question my fandom over a crappy team like this. They're not worth such a reaction. I agree with what much of what you're saying, but this consumes me 12 months a year, hell ask my wife, ask anyone I know. It literally drives me out of my effing mind, as Im sure you've figured out in my 2 years on this board. I know Im noit the only person who feels that way, becasue I know others. If I could turn it off and wait until September, believe me, I would, but I physically cant. Thats what an addiction is.

Hmm, why didn't I think of that? ](*,) I ask it all seriousness. It's not like crappy Cubs teams are a surprise to anyone who is a Cubs fan and over the age of, say, 15. Yes, this team obviously had huge expectations and the Cubs being bad is never going to not "hurt," but the repeated bemoaning that being a fan of this team is so horrible just seems pretty hollow when people could easily just stop being an active fan if they wanted to. It honesly seems like some prefer being able to complain about the team and players doing poorly and wallowing in self-pity. It's so much harder to quit being a fan than you make it sound. There have been times when I've been absolutely disgusted by this team and I've made it a week or even two, but the same thing inevitably happens. I'll be flipping channels and stumble on the game; the addiction begins all over again. I just wish I could stop following them so closely that their level of play affects my mood. So you're addicted to...what? Unless you're very young, you've experienced far more bad Cubs teams than bad. Are you just luckily tuning in when they have a winning streak or an amazing game? Between 1984-2003 there was little to get excited about, but we followed the team anyway, but once we got that taste of real winning in our mouths, we want more and wont accept garbage. Why is that so unbelievable?

Hmm, why didn't I think of that? ](*,) I ask it all seriousness. It's not like crappy Cubs teams are a surprise to anyone who is a Cubs fan and over the age of, say, 15. Yes, this team obviously had huge expectations and the Cubs being bad is never going to not "hurt," but the repeated bemoaning that being a fan of this team is so horrible just seems pretty hollow when people could easily just stop being an active fan if they wanted to. It honesly seems like some (not saying you) prefer being able to complain about the team and players doing poorly and wallowing in self-pity. Real fans want results. Were not going to jump ship no matter how much of a mess the team is, but were going to piss and moan and wallow in self pity all the way. The 2003 and 2008 bandwagoners are the ones who will just shrug it off go away with these kinds of seasons. Ive been a fan all the way since 1984 when I was 8. Ive sat through a lot of crappy, crappy Cubs incarnations, with a few bright spots in 1989 and 1998, but 2003 was the first time I really felt that this team was capable of doing that wining thing that other teams do, and since then, the bar has been raised, and back in the 90's and ealry '00s, something like this or even 2006 would be acceptable. Damn those expectations Ive developed.

Lately, I don't get the feeling he'd even care. Seems like he's been making gestures that if this season doesn't end well he'll resign. Right, I've got that impression, too. It could be time for a new regime. Too many NTCs and massive contracts for a fire sale, but I could see Hendry and Lou both out of town one way or another if these guys dont pick it up.

That and Chris Perez becomes the next Mariano Rivera.

Rumor has it the Twins are lobbying for a move to the NL Central.

You really have faith they won't pick a toolsy outfielder or college reliever though? Not really, but I do know that I enjoy watching minor league prospects much more than I enjoy watching this circus. I have been following the farm a lot more intensely than I have in the past. Partly because we have a few really good guys down there, partly because the "big leaguers" are such a joke this year.