Soul

So the money's there at the moment, and Hendry's spending it. I have no problem with it. I mean, the man's job is on the line. He's got a farm system that's drained, and he needs to win right now or else. Of course he's going to lay out what cash he has to try and win sooner rather than later. One thing I'll say about Mr. Hendry: he's at least doing what I would expect a GM to do in his position. For me, that's a change. I don't know if it makes him "smart."

What if he beleived in comminism and murdering people? :? As long as he's not actually murdering anyone, he can believe in it all he wants. Believing in murdering people isn't really politics though. Belief in communism? I wouldn't stop a good player from playing on my team because of that. I'd tell him he's misguided.....but then I'd give him the ball and ask him to win that big game for me :wink:

She's always impressive. But her songs......I just find them to be a little cookie-cutter-ish. Doesn't matter though. She can sing anytime, I'll be watching.

Gumbel is pretty boring. Not a good characteristic to have for a PBP guy. That's *GUMBEL*?? Wow. I totally didn't pick that up. He's not doing it for me right now. Hopefully it will get better. So Fogerty flew from Detroit to KC and did two halftime shows? That was pretty neat.

I can't argue that the Cubs have lacked direction and focus. I don't agree with your apparent belief that Hendry is the ultimate source of this, however. I don't really like the job Jimbo has done either, anyone who has read my posts knows this. But the fact is, there have been many other GMs and the results have been similar. I'm a believer that organizations are built from the top down. The overall direction and long-term strategy of the Cubs (i.e. who we want to "be" as a baseball franchise) must come from the top level. And that's the Trib. I don't subscribe to --- and never will --- the idea that owners are simply a financial resource and little else. Yes, the GM is an important part. But he is hired by the owners, and will for the most part carry forth the vision of those owners----whether consciously, or (more dangerously) subconsciously. So while I agree the plan/direction has not been there, I'm not convinced there's going to be one until the Trib either undergoes a massive overhaul of the way they choose to run this team, or alternatively sells the team. As for those who correctly point out the Cubs were ranked the #1 farm system not too many years ago: it would have been nice to capitalize on that with an overall organizational strategy that made sense. But we didn't, instead raping the farms by selling them off for questionable talent. In the meantime, the Cubs still never had a focus on position talent even when they were ranked highly -- which has directly lead to our current need to spend massive amounts of money on position talent.

Floyd would be a strong signing by Hendry. Not sure about dollar figures since this is still just a rumor. I'd prefer him to come off the bench while Murt starts, just because I think Matty has a shot to break out this year. If they're signing him as a bench player/insurance policy against injury, then this sounds like a very good idea to me. It's been since Glenallen Hill that we had solid power off the bench.

what are his politics? how do you even know what his politics are? I don't get it either. I could care less if a guy has diametrically opposed views to me on each & every issue. You deliver a WS to this old Cub fan? You're a saint. He and Kurt Warner were in political ads in St. Louis during the WS opposing the stem cell research proposition that was on the ballot. As a person with a science background, I found the ads offensive because they so blatantly distorted the small amount of truth what they were saying contained. Plus they're idiots for having their viewpoint, but that's just my opinion. But, back on track, Suppan will be too expensive for what he's worth. Even though Weaver's agent is Boras, I think he'll try to sign a short term deal to get his price tag back up and then strike while the iron is hot after Duncan fixes him. No thanks to Mulder, we have enough of those already. Watch it. That's why I said it was just my opinion, which I and everyone else is entitled to. No offense intended, those ads just really pissed me off. Alot of people were upset with Michael J. Fox for his ads, too. Let's say I'm a rebuplican who opposes stem cell research. I'm making a movie and it's having a lot of trouble getting any funding----no name actors, no real interest. Fox reads the script and says "I'll have a go at it." You can bet your bottom dollar I'm signing him up. ASAP. Here's my opinion: not wanting a player because of his politics is stupid. To me this is self-evident.

Early impression of the NFL Network broadcast: Collinsworth is alright I suppose. But the play-by-play guy (missed his name) seems a little weak. At least the game doesn't seem as blowout-ish as the first two.

Yeah, after rooting shamelessly for the Jets last week, and surely just as much for the Patriots on Sunday, they got a respite today watching one of their favs win it. As if there was any doubt the Cowboys would destroy the Bucs, but whatever. Dallas is an excellent ballclub, no doubt about it. I just hope if the Bears play them in the playoffs it isn't Buck/Aikman doing the call. That would be sooooo unfair to Chicago fans.

He looks very good. Tampa is obviously unable to pressure him though.

He took an expansion club to a World Series title in a very short period of time. A title which he won by staring down the mighty Yankees at the height of their considerable powers. I'll take him. He'll do what it takes to win, as he has proven with the Diamondbacks. He is also very well respected as owner of the Suns, where he has been voted executive of the year 4 times. He's a solid owner with a proven track record of success. But to hell with it, let's stick with the 25-year losing streak of the Trib.

More like desperate.

It's the Yankee theory of GM'ing. The more money you have at your disposal, the smarter you become. This year, Hendry's got the cash to drop. But we've already seen when he doesn't he falls flat on his face. Billy Beane he is not (or substitute other GM who has been successful on a limited budget). Say what you will about the Yankees, but I think Cashman is one of the smartest GMs in baseball. Sure he overpays, but he does so in the context of what he has to spend. I have never seen him spend so much on marginal players that he couldn't afford someone who actually makes a difference. And yes...the Yankees do have a limited budget - the limit is just high. It's hard to say because we've never actually seen Cashman try to put a winner together on, say, an $85million budget. Or even push it to extremes and say $55 million. But you could well be right. I was just playing the Yankee card to illustrate a point about Hendry.

One page per SORIANO's Million right? It took me a minute to know what you were talking about. Mr. Vaguey Vaguestrom! :lol: All we have to do to make the Soriano signing seem thrifty is push this thread to 10,000 pages :)

It's the Yankee theory of GM'ing. The more money you have at your disposal, the smarter you become. This year, Hendry's got the cash to drop. But we've already seen when he doesn't he falls flat on his face. Billy Beane he is not (or substitute other GM who has been successful on a limited budget).

Detroit is starting to lose that Thanksgiving edge now. Miami is a much better ballclub than they showed earlier in the season. Too bad they dug themselves such a deep hole.

Depends where it was played. If it was really cold and SD came to Chicago, I would say the Bears have an advantage. If we played in SD, I'd give them the edge. SD is a great ballclub. I don't think they can realistically expect to get down by 17 points and come back every week though. They're going to have to fix their horrible 1st half performances if they want to go far in the playoffs. I think too many people are selling the Bears short. They just went to NY and won twice in successive weeks---something I believe no team has ever done. Everyone said the Bears would collapse on their 3 game road trip. Now they've proven everyone wrong, so all of a sudden they didn't beat the Jets by enough, and the run defense sucks, and yada yada. It's always something. Bottom line: Bears undefeated on the road this season. Bears way, way ahead of all predictions for the season.

Yeah, I'm enjoying it so far. Detroit seems like they are going to actually put in an honest week's work.

what are his politics? how do you even know what his politics are? I don't get it either. I could care less if a guy has diametrically opposed views to me on each & every issue. You deliver a WS to this old Cub fan? You're a saint.

40 year old pitchers don't tend to improve. They tend to regress. There are certain players (ehemrocketehem) who have certain techniques (ehemjuiceehem) to keep going after 40. :wink: Anyway, in all seriousness we need to do *something* pitching-wise, and probably sooner rather than later. The field is looking pretty thin, we have 2 maybe 3 slots to fill. I'd take a guy like Westbrook. Even someone like Padilla. We need inning-eaters. Gooz & Marmol would likely land our relievers on the operating table by August. Solid journeymen SP's aren't ideal, but they might be all we can realistically hope for.

I think Jones is a better player than Mathews overall. I as well. Not to mention that Jones is making what, six mil next year? Matthews wants 3/39. JONES I agree but IMO Jones and a lot of players that are his age that are signed for 2 or more years are going to piss and moan because of the money being thrown out right now. He missed his money by being a free agent a year early and I'm curious on how he'll react to it, especially if the fans continue to "get" on him. You could be right. I'm guessing the new-"ness" of Jacque has worn off, and fans will be watching Soriano for production rather than Jacque. Looking at the landscape and knowing Drew is not a possibility, I'm thinking the best route is to place Jones in CF and just concentrate on pitching. Maybe I'm crazy, but I really think Jacque has a shot to thrive in CF. Anyway, Murt - Jones - Soriano looks much better to me than Murt - Pierre - Jones, even though it's only one player difference. I like the positioning better. Never liked Pierre in CF, his arm was far too weak to play that far from the infield.

1. We're not even close a WS team in my mind right now. 2. What steps? They got Wilken, but this years draft is a very big crapshoot, even compared to the average Cub draft. Alot of risks for a farm system that has rarely coached up positional players. 3. I'd rather win next year, but I don't see how overpaying mediocre players helps us do that. 4. Any smartly run orginization with a plan can retool and be good in just a couple years. The fact of the matter is the Cubs had tradeable assets and are too afraid to use them. They don't want to piss off fans because it would cost them moooneeey to piss off fans. Why would they risk that? Or maybe its just the kind of person I am. I think quick fixes usually end up being long term screw ups. Unfortunately I do realize I'm part of a very hungry fanbase. A fanbase that has not seen true victory in almost 98 years, and is desperate for one NOW. I think our window was 3-4 years ago, we've gone downhile ever since. The farm system has deteriorated. The big league team has question marks all over the place and the plan is to fill those large holes with some nice, old, expensive, mediocre FAs. Again, no direction in this franchise. Throw money at players who get people excited because we can and see the team marginally improve. sorry, i don't usually do this, but... =D> For the most part, they are good points. However, 2 things: 1) Soriano is not a mediocre player. 2) The DeRosa contract now looks to be right in line with the market, not overpaying as it looked earlier. So yes, he's a mediocre player but given the market, Hendry did not overpay. 3) WeGotWood's main thrust is that the Cubs' farm system is terrible. Correct, it is indeed bad. But this is a problem the Cubs need to focus on better, and HAVE needed to for ages. It has nothing to do with spending on free agents. Mentioning the Yankees and Red Sox only proves this point. Both of these clubs lay out way more cash than the Cubs, yet have a proper farm-club focus as well. So the real issue here is that the Cubs don't work on their farm system enough. Agreed.

I didn't even know Morneau would be in the running. Pretty surprising. The NY media wanted Jeter to win, and I hate the NY media so that makes me feel good. And boy are they crying about this one 8)

They're desperate for Chicago to fail. It's so obvious. Grossman's such an easy target. Last week he ran Turner's game plan to a T, not forcing the ball, using his outlets, and not turning the ball over a single time. So they call him Orton. The week before he had a 100+ passer rating and racked up 260 yards in the air. So they focused on the early part of the game when he struggled. Rivers struggled against Cincy and Denver in the first half, yet all they can talk about are his movie star looks and how incredible he is. It's gotten to the point of total hypocrisy with these people. Mike Golic himself called for Grossman to take care of the ball after the Phins game. Now he's saying Grossman regressed because he did what he wanted him to? That's pathetic. Someone go over there and stuff a cream pie in his face, he deserves it. Greenie too. Freaking hypocrites.

3-8 would tend to confirm that. Maybe they'll put it together once they get off the road, I dunno. I was expecting more though. Much more.