Outshined_One

That was fun. :D

As for Hendry, there's an interesting perspective you can take on all of this. As much as some people may dislike it, it may behoove some Cubs fans to hope that former Cubs prospects like John Garland and Dontrelle Willis do really well. Willis especially, since he'd likely win the Cy Young if the season ended today. There are plenty of guys people have regretted letting go in the past, especially with Choi, Harris, and Bellhorn. But, their success helps Jim Hendry in his trading quite a bit. Think of this from the perspective of, say, Cincy's GM, Dan O'Brien. The Reds are a pitching starved team, both in the majors and in their system. You don't think they'd want a Dontrelle Willis or a John Garland from the Cubs? Their scouts may have looked at the Cubs' system and they think that some one like Carlos Marmol or Renyel Pinto could come in and provide the Reds with the same impact that the players I've mentioned above have. You look at the systems who have produced impact players who have flourished both with that team and elsewhere. It's not like other teams where they've unloaded overhyped players onto other teams for gold. You'd like to see that, but getting that reputation as a GM is not the best of things. Being able to broker trades that end up with both teams getting equal value in the end is a good rep to have, imo.

He traded Capellan, one of his top young minor league arms for Kolb. Capellan's numbers for the Nashville Sounds (AAA): 19 G, 12 GS, 4-2, 4 SV, 70.1 IP, 4.35 ERA, 36 R, 34 ER, 2 HR, 71 H, 54/32 K/BB No, I don't have his splits from starting and relief work. Even still, his numbers don't seem to indicate he's back among the top pitching prospects in the game. Juan Cruz also hasn't been doing well: 21 G, 0-2, 23.1 IP, 8.49 ERA, 28 R, 22 ER, 4 HR, 29 H, 27/19 K/BB There's also the matter of Dan Meyer. Ugh.

He'll keep hitting Burnitz cleanup from time to time, and that is a no-no in my book. I don't mind doing the lefty-righty split, to be honest with you. Burnitz has been struggling lately, but I think he's fine there. I could have them either way, but that's just a bit of a preference I have. I wish all our players were struggling like Burnitz. Burnitz AB R H 2B 3B HR TB RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS 06/02 - 07/02 100 20 31 8 0 5 54 14 13 18 0.310 0.389 0.540 0.929 I was referring to the past few days Fred. :D

Box Scores Iowa won 9-4 Box Score 2B M. Fontenot 2/5, 2 R, RBI DH B. Grieve 0/4, BB, R 3B S. McClain 1/5, R, 2 RBI RF D. Kelton 2/3, 2 BB, 2 R, RBI 1B M. Hoffpauir 3/5, RBI C G. Soto 1/5, R SP R. Hill 7 IP, 6 H, 4 ER, 10/2, 2 HR RP C. Bartosh 2 scoreless, 2 H, 2/0 West Tenn lost 5-3 Box Score CF D. Bacon 2/5, R, SB (20) RF A. Greenberg 0/4, HBP LF M. Murton 2/5, RBI 3B C. McGehee 1/5 1B B. Sing 2/3, BB, 2 R 2B R. Theriot 0/4 SS B. Coats 0/4 C J. Reyes 2/4, RBI P S. Marshall 1/1, BB (hehe) SP S. Marshall 6 IP, 4 H, 3 ER, 8/2 RP D. Aardsma 1 scoreless, 1 H, 0/0 Daytona lost 4-0 Box Score CF C. Walker 0/4 3B S. Moore 1/3, HBP 1B B. Dopirak 0/4 RF J³ 1/4, 2B (17) DH J. Fox 1/4, 2B (13) SP A. Polanco 4 IP, 3 H, 3 ER, 1/4 RP R. Wells 2 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 4/0 Peoria won 12-3 Box Score CF S. Fuld 3/4, R, RBI, CS (10) 2B E. Patterson 3/3, BB, 3 R, RBI, 2 2B (15), SB (23) RF R. Harvey 3/5, 2 R, 2 RBI LF B. Flowers 0/4, BB, R, RBI 1B D. Larsen 1/5, R, 2 RBI, 2B (18) SS J. Simokaitis 2/3, BB, R SP M. Weber 6.2 IP, 10 H, 3 ER, 2/2 Boise lost 8-6 Box Score CF D. Gregg 2/5, R, RBI C M. Reed 0/3 3B E. Puello 1/5, R, 2 RBI, 2B (4) 1B C. Gaskin 1/4, BB, RBI LF A. Joseph 1/3, BB, R, RBI 2B S. Hode 3/4 SS J. Mota 1/4 SP M. Hyle 3.2 IP, 1 H, 1 ER, 3/0 RP L. Hagerty 0 IP, 2 ER, 0/3 Mesa lost 7-5 Box Score 2B E. Serrano 1/5, R 3B L. Rivera 2/5, R, RBI, 2B (2) CF D. Lewis 2/3, 2 BB, RBI LF R. Episcopo 1/4, BB, RBI SS S. Baez 2/3, BB, 2B (1) SP A. Francisco 4 IP, 6 H, 4 R, 3 ER, 3/1 OVERALL: 2-4

I never say he'd be perfect, just that he's well-suited. Also, doesn't Barrett have some weird splits when it comes to hitting in the 2 hole? I could have sworn that last year he didn't do so hot there. So, what's your lineup look like?

I think he'd be well-suited to the two spot at this point. He'll see plenty of strikes hitting in front of Lee, has a very respectable AVG/OBP, and could contribute effectively there from the get-go. Might as well give him those opportunities and acclimate him to hitting at the top of the order, ya know? That is a logical theory, but don't forget good OBP in the minors doesn't always translate into good OBP once they get into the show. For instance, Dubois had a .389 OBP with Iowa last year, but since he's arrived in the majors he has had a terrible K/BB rate. Not saying this will happen to Cedeno, seeing as how he is a different type of player, but I still think that for now he needs to prove his ability to get on base consistantly in a less pressure filled position in the lineup. My personal theory is that Dubois' numbers would translate as expected from his career minor league numbers if he were allowed to play every day for long stretches of time instead of playing once every five days and used to PH.

He'll keep hitting Burnitz cleanup from time to time, and that is a no-no in my book. I don't mind doing the lefty-righty split, to be honest with you. Burnitz has been struggling lately, but I think he's fine there. I could have them either way, but that's just a bit of a preference I have. I think he'd be well-suited to the two spot at this point. He'll see plenty of strikes hitting in front of Lee, has a very respectable AVG/OBP, and could contribute effectively there from the get-go. Might as well give him those opportunities and acclimate him to hitting at the top of the order, ya know?

2B T. Walker SS R. Cedeno 1B D. Lee RF J. Burnitz 3B A. Ramirez LF J. Dubois C M. Barrett CF C. Patterson

Because Jeter's intangibles make him the best player in baseball. Without him the Yankees wouldn't have won any of those World Series! Plus he made the greatest catch ever last year. Haven't you been watching ESPN? If that catch where he lands on top of Cano ends up being a top Web Gem of the year, I may very well puke.

Potentially, yes. But hey, the more the merrier. Worst comes to worst, Burnett, Wood, and Prior could all build blanket and pillow forts in the clubhouse together. :D

If the trade rumors are true, I wonder if the supposed AL team he'll end up with manages to re-sign him during the season? I'd really like to have Burnett aboard with the Cubs, especially considering the injury problems that always seem to come about. Having a rotation of Prior-Zambrano-Wood-Burnett-Maddux would be just terrific, imo.

I think Bay ends up actually being an All Star, though. Seriously, who else do the Pirates have? As for the possibilities for each candidate... Canada: Jason Bay (Conf.) Dominican Republic: Miguel Tejada (Conf.) Venezuela - Bobby Abreu (Conf.) Curacao/Netherlands - Andruw Jones Japan - Hideki Matsui USA - Derrek Lee Panama - Carlos Lee Puerto Rico - Carlos Delgado Kinda stinks that a bunch of guys who'd be fun to watch in this contest will be snubbed. Matsui's a questionable candidate, but knowing MLB, they'll be doing everything they can to pimp this freakin' thing internationally...

You could have just saved time if you had any confidence in my posting ability. :P

Box Scores Iowa lost 7-6 in the 10th Box Score 2B M. Fontenot 2/5, R, 2 RBI, 3B (7) LF B. Grieve 1/5, RBI PH/LF D. Kelton 0/0, R DH S. McClain 2/4, BB, R, RBI, HR (18) 1B M. Hoffpauir 1/4, BB SP R. Valdez 5.1 IP, 8 H, 4 ER, 2/2 RP B. Brownlie 2 scoreless, 1 H, 01 RP R. Rohlicek .2 perfect, 0/0 RP J. Van Buren 1.1 IP, 1 H, 3 ER, 3/3, HR RP C. Bartosh 0 scoreless, 1 H, 0/0 West Tenn won 11-0 Box Score CF D. Bacon 2/5, R, RBI RF A. Greenberg 2/5, 2 R, 2 RBI, HR (4), SB (12) LF M. Murton 4/4, 4 R, RBI, 2B (17), HR (7), SB (17) 3B C. McGehee 4/5, 2 R, 3 RBI, 2B (20) 1B B. Sing 1/5, RBI SS R. Theriot 2/5, R, 2 RBI, 2B (19) 2B R. Lewis 0/3, 2 BB, R SP JK Ryu 7.2 scoreless, 5 H, 5/3 Daytona lost 4-2 Box Score CF C. Walker 0/4 1B B. Dopirak 1/4 3B S. Moore 0/3, RBI LF K. Collins 1/3, R, RBI, HR (16) RF J³ 0/3 C J. Fox 0/3 SP A. Tavares 5 IP, 10 H, 4 R, 3 ER, 4/1 SP J. Wylie 1 perfect, 2/0 Peoria won 8-7 in the 9th Box Score CF S. Fuld 1/4, BB, 2 R 2B E. Patterson 2/4, R, RBI, 2B (13), SB (22) DH L. Montanez 1/4, R, RBI LF B. Flowers 1/4, 2B (7) SS J. Simokaitis 1/3, BB, RBI SP S. Gallagher 5 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 1/2 Boise lost 8-2 Box Score CF D. Gregg 0/5 C M. Reed 0/4 3B E. Puello 1/4 LF J. Valdez 0/4, RBI DH J. Muyco 1/3, R 2B S. Hode 2/4, 2B (2) SS J. Mota 1/1, 2 BB, RBI SP M. Billek 2.2 IP, 3 H, 4 R, 0 ER, 5/2 RP A. Santana 2.1 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 3/2, HR RP L. Hagerty 1 scoreless, 1 H, 1/0 Mesa won 10-9 in the 9th Box Score SS L. Rivera 2/5, 2 R, 2 RBI DH J. Defendis 2/5, 4 RBI, 2B (2) RF D. Lewis 0/3, 2 BB, R LF R. Episcopo 1/4, 3 RBI, 2B (2) 1B R. Canzler 0/4 C M. Mercedes 1/3, R PR E. Serrano 0/0, R CF R. Brown 1/3, BB, 2 R SP M. Avery 1.2 IP, 2 H, 2 ER, 1/2 OVERALL: 3-3

*Coughs*

I'm here, I'm here. Just had a fun night out on the town tonight! :D Boxes shall be all posted momentarily.

I'm guessing they'll have A-Rod represent the US.

I hate Vinny Castilla.

Yep.

It's like a rite of passage for the DJaxx.

:( *Groans* Ron, got any updates on this?

My list, in no order: 1) Call my mom, who grew up watching Cubs games on WGN way back in the day and is still a pretty big fan even now. Plus she's convinced the Cubs will never win a WS in her lifetime, so this would be a fun topic of conversation. 2) Call my sister, who's just as passionate and loves the Cubs as much as I do. 3) Call every single other Cubs fan I know. Likely topics of conversation: "Oh my God!" "I...I can't believe it..." "This isn't a dream, is it?" "*Expletive deleted* YEAH! *expletive deleted* YEAH!" and so on... 4) If I'm not already, get absolutely hammered during celebrations with other Cubs fans. Stay that way for at least two or three days. 4a) In doing so, give cheers to every current and former Cub, even guys like Todd Hundley and Mel Rojas. 4b) Also give cheers to every Cub fan who never saw a Cubs WS championship in their lifetimes. Deceased family and friends to be cheered individually. 4c) And while we're at it, toast Ron Santo about 40 times for being the biggest Cubs diehard ever to live while living out the dream of starting at third base and broadcasting for his favorite team. 5) Hit on any female who is wearing Cubs gear. 6) Happily shed tears at least 8-9 times within five hours of that victory. 7) Hug everyone wearing Cubs gear. 8) Walk around in a dream-like daze for the next month or so. 8a) During said time, have one of two looks on my face: utter disbelief and total bliss and happiness. 9) Likely have at least two unexpected irrational breakdowns when it really hits me that the Cubs won it all. 10) Buy almost every single piece of merchandise that comes out dedicated to the Cubs' WS win. DVDs, shirts, jerseys, hats, you name it. 11) Attempt to get my voice back after running it hoarse throughout the playoffs and WS victory. 12) Go home to Chicago to attend all of the victory celebrations and likely parade. 13) Die happy.

No, but you're not getting the right reason that he won all those games. He has 300 wins because he's been durable, and because for 11 straight years, he was in the top 8 in the league in ERA - in all but one of those years he was top 4 in ERA. When you make all your starts and pitch that well, you're bound to win 15+ games. The last two years he's been able to win that many games because he's been durable and he's gotten good run support. If Kerry Wood had that much run support, he'd have won plenty more than 14 games in a year before. ...not to mention a bullpen that could hold a freakin' lead.

Box Scores Iowa lost 6-5 Box Score 2B M. Fontenot 1/5 DH S. McClain 1/4, R RF D. Kelton 1/4, R 1B M. Hoffpauir 2/4, R, 2 RBI, 2B (8) C G. Soto 0/2, 2 BB SP T. Wellemeyer 3 IP, 5 H, 3 ER, 5/1 RP C. Pignatiello 2 perfect, 3/0 West Tenn lost 5-2 Box Score CF D. Bacon 0/3, BB, PO 2B R. Theriot 1/4, CS (6) RF A. Greenberg 2/4 3B C. McGehee 0/4 SS B. Coats 1/4, R, 2B (18) LF B. Sing 1/3, R, RBI, HR (15) 1B M. Craig 0/3 C J. Reyes 0/3 SP R. Pinto 6 IP, 7 H, 4 ER, 3/3 Daytona lost Game 1 of the DH 11-6 Box Score CF C. Walker 0/4 3B S. Moore 1/4, RBI 1B B. Dopirak 0/3, BB RF J³ 1/4, 2 R, 2B (16) C J. Fox 2/2, R, 2 RBI SP J. Mateo 0 IP, 6 H, 7 R, 5 ER, 0/1 RP R. Wells 2 scoreless, 1 H, 2/2 Daytona lost Game 2 of the DH 1-0 Box Score CF C. Walker 0/3, SB (32) 3B S. Moore 1/3 DH B. Dopirak 0/3 1B K. Collins 2/3 RF J³ 1/3, SB (5) SP JR Mathes 6 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 4/0 Peoria lost 8-0 Box Score CF S. Fuld 2/3, 2B (16) PH/RF B. Flowers 0/1 2B E. Patterson 1/4 LF L. Montanez 1/3, BB DH R. Harvey 1/4 1B D. Larsen 0/2 SS J. Simokaitis 0/3 SP J. Estrada 5 IP, 11 H, 8 R, 6 ER, 5/0, HR Boise won 5-2 Box Score CF D. Gregg 1/4, BB, R, SB (12) DH A. Joseph 1/4 1B C. Gaskin 0/4, BB C J. Muyco 0/5 LF J. Valdez 2/4, 3B (1) 2B S. Hode 2/4, R, RBI, HR (1) SS J. Mota 1/4, 2B (3) SP D. Downs 5 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 7/2, HR Mesa won 6-0 Box Score 2B E. Serrano 1/4, BB, 2 R CF R. Brown 0/3, BB, R RF D. Lewis 0/2, 2 BB, 2 RBI DH R. Episcopo 1/5, RBI 1B R. Canzler 1/4, BB C M. Mercedes 0/0, BB SS S. Baez 0/4 SP J. Pina 4 scoreless, 2 H, 2/1 RP S. Williamson 2 scoreless, 1 H, 1/0 OVERALL: 2-5