vance_the_cubs_fan

Equating Cub fans who wanted Baker gone with those who sent death threats is pretty ridiculous.

Frankly, I find that ridiculous. I'll say it right now...Cal will lose to USC and the Irish will beat USC in Southern Cal. The Irish won't beat USC. Personally, I don't think ND is as good as their hype. They beat Penn State, but Penn state isn't an elite team. The only elite team they played was UM and they got their asses handed to them. MSU has shown they they aren't that good either and it took a miracle for ND to win that one. There's no way that ND beats USC at Southern Cal. No chance at all.

Agreed. I'm a nice guy. Can I make four million to manage the Cubs?

I read an article that implied that Torre isn't as good a manager without Zimmer as the bench coach.

But also, on Dusty's watch the 2004 team which had all the talent needed to win a World Series collapsed. Should he blamed for it? I don't know. Sure, Dusty is a good man from what I can tell. There are lots of good people in baseball, but baseball is a production game. When you don't produce, you don't get to keep your job. This is true for playersl; this is true for management; this is true for front office personel. I've never thought Dusty was anything but a good person. However, his team failed. When that happens, you will not be retained as a manager...especially when you are making four million as a manager.

I think Tennesee would beat both of them.

I think what the A's advances proves is just what everyone has said all along. The playoffs are still a crap shoot. Getting there is the goal. Beane critics have said his methods won't win in the playoffs. They were wrong. His methods have just as good a chance to win as any other methods in the playoffs. This year just verifies that. It validates that in this crapshoot, his methods have validity. It's not proving the playoffs aren't a crapshoot, but in essence is an answer to the critics who never believed the playoffs were a crapshoot in the first place.

My team has sealed the victory against Raw.

Speaking of shoulda-starts, I should've started Evans and Galloway. :shrug:

You're up by 2 points.

And as usual they're on crack. What do you see is wrong with it? Just curious. Cal #6 is a joke. Missouri in the top 10 is ridiculous. No way does Mizzou play a Louisville, Notre Dame, Auburn, etc and beat them. No disrespect to Mizzou, but they've played a soft schedule to get to 6-0. Play Oklahoma or Texas and beat them and then we can talk. (Michigan behind Tennesse is also a mistake, but not a huge one.) Cal #6 is a joke? No way. I have them at #7 right now. I would put them as a favorite over USC if they were to play next week. Didn't Tennessee beat Cal. Why would Cal be ranked ahead of Tennesee?

When UK plays ULM, bet heavily on UK.

Regardless of whether it was Dusty's fault or not is irrelevant. Dusty was paid and paid handsomly to come here and win. He didn't. In the world of professional sports, when a team doesn't win, it is the manager who pays with his job. Dusty made over 15 million dollars to preside over this trainwreck. He didn't win. Now, we'll see if someone else can.

Not really. They may not want the distraction of having their coach interview in the midst of the playoffs. They will likely be happy to let him interview once the season for them is over.

Sounds like the table could then be set for Washington, Mills, or oh please....Larry Dierker. Can the Cubs interview Washington without tampering? If they can the only potential candidate off limits now is Boche who's 07 avaiablility is uncertain. Regardless of who we want as the next manager, the nonchelant attitude of Hendry is un-acceptable. They could only talk to Washington if Oakland granted permission. Chances are, they have to wait until after the WS or until Oakland is eliminated.

i see him getting around 3 mil for a year. I think he'll get double that.

I like the Dallas defense scoring points! Raw, you're going down!

Sounds like the table could then be set for Washington, Mills, or oh please....Larry Dierker.

While his average may have slipped, he still had a very respectable 365 OBP. The only Cubs who had a higher OBP than that were Theriot in his limited AB's and Lee and Barrett. Murton matched him in this area. His low BA does not affect his ability to get on base. With that 365 OBP, he produced a 490 SLG, his lowest in three years. That SLG combined with his OBP gave him a 855 OPS. Only three Cubs were better, Theriot (who won't repeat these numbers over a full season), Ramirez, and Barrett. Looking at only BA as a metric for Dunn is asinine. He's still extremely productive. Furthermore, he's only 26, there is time for him to improve his game. His adventures in the field are overplayed. The clutch argument against Dunn is a joke. With a man on third, with less than two outs, Dunn has a 355 OBP. In close and late situations, he has a 389 OBP. With runners in scoring position with two outs, he has a 410 OBP. In a line-up where he could be sandwitched with two good hitters as he could in Chicago, Dunn would be a great asset. With bases loaded, he batting 273, his OBP was a poor 214, but in those situations he slugs 636. Dunn would be a huge upgrade for this team. I think the argument can be made that in those type of situations, he is not driving the runs home. I would think that is one instance where his Batting average would matter. He is a run producer, those are situations where he needs to HIT, not walk. Sure the walk helps and the OBP is great, but it isn't bringing the run home. Hitting .094 with a runner at third and less than two outs is atrocious, regardless of his OBP. I'm for getting Dunn despite this, but I don't think he is worth what it will take. I'd rather have him get on base, not make outs and allow for a better chance for an even BIGGER inning, rather than hitting sac flies. In out lineup he'd be hitting ahead of Ramirez and Barrett. I'd rather Ramirez come up with one out and a man on first and third than with two outs and none on with a run in. But hey, thats just me, I like to score lots of runs. A run producer, which Dunn is, is supposed to drive in runs not take walks with runners in scoring position. Wanting someone to take a walk over a hit with RISP is crazy talk. I think that OBP is an important stat, but you put a little to much emphasis on it. Dunn is a middle of the order guy when there is a RISP situation it is his job to get that run home, period. He had 90 RBI this year and thats with 40 homers. Assuming some of those were more than solo shots which some were. That means more than half of his RBI were off of homers. He also lead MLB in errors by outfielders with 12, a fielding % of .960 is terrible for an outfielder. To put that in perspective that is the same amount of errors that Aramis had and he is an infielder. Keep Dunn out of the North Side. No. His job is to prevent outs. Dunn is what he is. His spot in the order, not withstanding. He is a selective hitter who prevents outs. When he gets on base, if the rest of the team continues to prevent outs, runs will score. Dunn would be a wonderful improvement in the line-up as his ability to prevent outs would extend innings, giving the Cubs a chance to have more multiple run innings. Please bring Dunn to the Northside!

Bonds at Ameriquest would be fun to watch as well. There is a short porch in right field and Ameriquest is a hitter's haven.

Prior for Dunn might be an intriguing deal. There's a lot of reasons why not to do that trade on both sides, but there are a few reasons it could happen. The Reds are frustrated with Dunn. His abysmal production down the stretch has made him the number one scapegoat for their missing the playoffs. The Cubs have serious questions about Prior. I'm guessing the Cubs are frustrated over the injuries that have turned Prior from savior into major question mark for 2007. The Cubs would like to add power to the line-up. The Reds want to add pitching. Both players have enormous ceilings, and both come with warts. Dunn is more likely to reach his ceiling, but some would say his ceiling is lower than Prior's. Prior has the highest ceiling, and if he returns to form, could easily become one of the top five pitchers in the game. On the other hand, Prior could be injured beyond repair for the forseeable future. It's a risky deal, but one both teams could be inclined to make. If the Cubs make this deal, they will have to sign and acquire some pitching to replace Prior. It's an easier deal to make if the Cubs could sign either Zito or Schmidt first.

I'll never root for the Cardinals. NEVER!

I'm also hearing reports if Lou is in, Arod will stay. Lou and Arod supposedly had a good relationship in Seattle.

What if we could get Dunn for Prior? Would you do it?

While his average may have slipped, he still had a very respectable 365 OBP. The only Cubs who had a higher OBP than that were Theriot in his limited AB's and Lee and Barrett. Murton matched him in this area. His low BA does not affect his ability to get on base. With that 365 OBP, he produced a 490 SLG, his lowest in three years. That SLG combined with his OBP gave him a 855 OPS. Only three Cubs were better, Theriot (who won't repeat these numbers over a full season), Ramirez, and Barrett. Looking at only BA as a metric for Dunn is asinine. He's still extremely productive. Furthermore, he's only 26, there is time for him to improve his game. His adventures in the field are overplayed. Productive outs...excuse me. :lmao: I want a player who is good at not making outs. Dunn is one of those players. He's 26 years old and he already has three season of 900 or better OPS. He's never had a season under 800. The clutch argument against Dunn is a joke. With a man on third, with less than two outs, Dunn has a 355 OBP. In close and late situations, he has a 389 OBP. With runners in scoring position with two outs, he has a 410 OBP. In a line-up where he could be sandwitched with two good hitters as he could in Chicago, Dunn would be a great asset. With bases loaded, he batting 273, his OBP was a poor 214, but in those situations he slugs 636. Dunn would be a huge upgrade for this team.