frostwyrm

This is flat-out wrong. Read the first 5 pages of the thread again. How many games has Neifi started in favor of Walker and Cedeno this year? Before the season started, multiple people on this board guanranteed Neifi would be higher on the depth chart than those two and would get more at bats than either even if/when all are fully healthy, and that Hairston never had a chance to start over Neifi. They were wrong. Dusty's first choice this year has not been to insert Neifi into lineups - unless you're talking about last night, in which case, as a late inning defensive replacement - he was the correct choice. Neifi hasn't been the first bench option. It seems to me that the Neifi-hate is a comfort blanket for people anytime something on this team goes wrong. How many games has Neifi started since Lee was injured? Zero, yeah? So that makes the Neifi concerns pre-emptive. Can't people at least cry after Neifi starts, if that is even the case (which is unlikely anyway)? I'll throw a log on the Neifi fire and admit I may have been wrong about how Dusty will use Neifi this season, although it's a little early to be sure. I'll also say it's pretty pathetic that it's taken 3+ years for Dusty to surprise his critics by deviating from his predictable trademark idiocies. If I have to wait another 3 years for that to happen again then I want a new manager. Back to the Lee discussion now.

Neifi got $2.5M per year for this type of situation. I'm sure he'll be the regular 2B for the time being.

Yeah, it's Neifi time. The Cubs never really liked Walker at 2B anyway, but he's too hot to sit so he goes to 1B fulltime.

Comparing apples to oranges with the basketball comparison. Robert Horry just makes a lot of big shots. Then there's golf. There are golfers you'd pick to make the big putt more than others, but the concept doesn't really translate into baseball, unless someone has a Billy Baroo bat.

Add Peralta to that list, and Felipe Lopez was very close. Peralta, Young, Lopez and Tejada combined don't make what Jeter makes. You can disagree if you wish, but Jeter is my choice for most overpaid player in baseball. Jeter is overpaid but he's still a valuable player, unlike Beltre, who has turned into a useless pile of puke.

If Nomar had taken that 4yr. $60M offer from Boston he would currently be the king. He can't play any of the middle positions anymore so it would be $15M per year for an average-to-poor-hitting hideously injury-prone corner IF/OF.

As I recall, KC offered the same 3 year deal with the same $$$ (perhaps a few dollars more) and Jones chose to come to Chicago. KC isn't the best-run organization. If KC offered Jones the same deal as the Cubs that's all the more reason why Hendry should have ran screaming in the other direction.

sure they do, if they swing and miss at hittable pitches often. Dunn doesn't have the bat control of bonds. Yeah, if you're like Dunn and you strike out and walk a lot that means you take a lot of pitches and go deep into the count. That takes some discipline.

If Pierre is bothering the pitchers so much then why are Walker's numbers so much better with bases empty than with runners on? http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/stats/individual_player_splits.jsp?c_id=mlb&playerID=123842&sitSplit1=All&statType=1&statSet=1&splitSet=2

I don't get why people think Jones is marketable. Unless he has a resurgent season he won't even be regarded as a viable starter by this fall. Who would want a reserve outfielder for 2 years at $5.33M per? Hendry would have to eat at least half the contract.

Lee's deal looks amazing compared to Ortiz'. Sure Oritz is a great hitter, but it's $13M per year for a 30 yr. old fat dude who doesn't play the field. When guys get over 30 they have a progressively harder time keeping the weight off, so 4 years from now Ortiz could be Jabba the Hut. Lee has a long lanky look and guys like that don't usually get fat.

He's 4 of 24 with a walk since opening day. Then which of these are classified as bad games: 1 for 4 2 runs 2 SB 1 for 4 1 run 1 for 4 1 RBI 1 for 3 1 BB If all of a player's numbers other than runs and SB suck then the player sucks. Period.

After 8 games Pierre has put up .235/.257/.324. Pitchers can produce that. If these numbers are acceptable from a leadoff man then any good and speedy pitcher is worth at least $20 million per year.

We all know Neifi has kept playing because of defense. The bad hitters that intrigue me are zero-tool guys like Ron Coomer and Charlie Hayes. They did nothing well offensively or defensively, were unathletic fat slobs, and yet had long careers. How did that happen?

I think those guys can do the job. Hairston needs PT anyway.

One week into the season and he already has tweaked a lower-body muscle. Not a good sign.

I would guess what the players have to say is far more important than the opinion of people on a message board. The players know who is a good manager and who is a bad manager. It really is no surprise why people who work in baseball have such a low regard for most message boards. I truly doubt that there ever has been decision made in baseball based on the opinions expressed on any message board. If you only listen to players then all managers are good. Have you ever heard a player trash his manager? Even when a blatantly crappy manager is fired there's always some player who'll say something nice about the guy.

Isn't Lee aware that Dusty probably cost him a shot at the MVP?

In his mind Mabry's a Yankee.

Na, a lot of us here are process-not-results guys, e.g. - Neifi going 3-4 in the 2 hole was dumb regardless of outcome. Leaving Marshall in would also have been smart, regardless of outcome.

Told ya.

I predict a hit for Jacque here.

Jacque will get a hit tonight.

Jacque will get a hit now, if we cyberfans have anything to say about it. Honestly, I hate having him on the team and hate his contract, but more than that I don't want another Hawkins/Patterson/Hundley/Alfonseca situation where the hometown crowd boos the guy mercilessly. It makes games very unpleasant and even embarrassing to watch. Jacque needs to get some hits so I can watch games without being embarrassed by the Wrigley crowd's behavior. Also, how will Hendry ever unload Jacque if he totally bombs? I would hope he does at least well enough to be tradeable.

If you must use an insulting nickname I think "Jocque" is more elegant.