CuseCubFan69

MLB sends all of their All-Star players to Japan to play after the season and it's always close so I don't understand why you guys would think they would dominate the WBC. Add to that these guys (US) are not in baseball shape while a lot of the other countries were means that the US had even more to overcome IMO.

If Bud gets rid of the DH I'll admire him forever.

Or maybe thats why Prior for Tejada wasn't enough. Possible. It seemed odd that the Cubs (seemed and rumored) to turn down Phillies offer of Abreu then were eager to move Prior for Tejada later on.

That's because he got a bigger signing bonus with Texas and could afford to do both. I don't think Colleges can give bonuses and such to students/players. You're right...they're not.

I wonder if this is the reason why the Cubs didn't trade Prior, because they knew he was hurt.

So what team will Welly be traded to for a PTBNL?

That's because he got a bigger signing bonus with Texas and could afford to do both.

If I see another Applebees commercial I'll go insane.

Illinois losing bounces out another one of my Final 4's as Wisconsin was the other. Pitt and LSU are my only ones left.

Since Tom House is Prior's personal pitching coach I wonder if Marshall is putting House down as well. This is a very interesting subject and I'm curious what direction this will go. If I'm not mistaken, this guy has been coming out with this for the past two or three years. Two years ago, I thought he was a lunatic/quack just trying to push his ideas. Now...well I still think he's nuts, but I'm having my doubts. :shock: Dr. Marshall mocks House because he got an internet degree to be a Dr. on his website...it's kind of funny he mentioned it. "Dr. Mike Marshall is once again attacking Mark Prior, Tom House, Larry Rothschild and anyone who doesn't do things Mike Marshall's way. I've (Marshall) been in those crosshairs before--he went so far as to accuse me of plagiarizing his work on two occasions--so I'm going to address this as dispassionately as I can, but you deserve to know the back story. "What set me off this time? This article is just the latest attack. So let's break this down and then take a look at the work Marshall has done. "Prior has what I call a 'loop' in his motion," said Marshall, who had a career 3.14 earned-run average even though he rarely reached 90 mph on the speed gun." "He brings his right hand up close to his ear. When his elbow starts forward, his hand goes back and flies laterally away from his body. That's an incredible amount of stress on the front of his shoulder." Oddly, Prior has never had a shoulder problem. Achilles? Elbow on two occasions? Sure, but never shoulder. In fact, only the tendonitis in his elbow after adjusting his so-called flawed motion to compensate for the Achilles injury could be called a pitching injury."

He was there this off-season from what I've heard.

However, their past performance has no bearing on their tournament seeding for this year. It simply is stated repeatedly by the committee. Sure, Gerry McNamara was still playing this year, but Carmelo Anthony wasn't, so it's illogical to say "you know, Syracuse won a championship 2 years ago, they deserve to be in this tournament over a team that hasn't won a championship". Just like with Illinois' run last year, it's illogical to say "Illinois went to the championship game last year, so they deserve to be seeded 1 or 2". That is the point I am trying to make. Past performance has no bearing for the committee in terms of selecting teams or seeding teams. Cincinnati, Michigan, Seton Hall, and Louisville's past tournament performance have no bearing this year on their selection or seeding, and shouldn't. But it does have an effect. I agree that it shouldn't make a team a 1 or 2 seed but the conferences that have won in the past have proven that they were better year after year after year thus proving that the competition is tougher in those conferences. This is why the Majors get the bids and the Louisvilles get the nod over a MVC team. I understand what you're saying but the MVC teams have to start going farther like Gonzaga did to prove they should get the nod.

And once again you completely miss the point. Nobody is saying the MVC is just as good as the ACC, Big Ten, Big East, SEC, even this year, and especially historically. You've made the argument that the MVC shouldn't get as many bids as those conferences because they aren't as good. That argument is baseless, because the number of bids a league gets has nothing to do with relative strength of the league. That the history of a conference should dictate how many bids those leagues get. However, bids aren't given out by league, they are given out on a team-by-team basis, aside from the automatic bid. Counting the number of bids for each league is something done by media outlets as a baseless form of comparison. Just as performance in the tournament says more about individual teams than about leagues. Yes, Wichita State's presence in the sweet 16 says a lot about Wichita State this year. They are a quality team. Just like Syracuse's title 2 years ago said a lot about Syracuse that year. However, a championship for Syracuse 2 years ago should have little to do with not only Syracuse's seeding for this year, but especially the number of bids the Big East should get. Just like Illinois' championship game appearance last year should and does have no bearing on their seeding for this year, and especially their performance this year. To extrapolate that appearance to the entire conference's seeding/performance this year would be incredibly ignorant. Please show me where I wrote that a BE had to be seeded higher than a MVL team? You just inject these things into your arguement that I never said. Was McNamara on theSyracuse team that won the title? The players that were on these teams may still be playing thus having an impact on the current team. If NC returned all their players from last you would you say they wouldn't be considered the favorite to win this year because that was last year? Let's also talk about the coaches that have been at some of these majors that have won it all....should that be disreguarded as well? They are a big reason these top kids go to these schools and continue to do so BECAUSE of their past thus effecting their future.

From everything I've read he will be sent down regardless of what he does this Spring because the team wants a lefthanded bat (even though he's out slugging Todd Hollandsworth). if i was the creature, i would HATE holla. dude is always in his way. Yeah it's always better to have that crappy left bat instead of a productive righty. I don't understand some teams logic and it's obvious that it's not just Baker and Hendry that do these types of things.

I don't know if hes right or wrong but he feels just about all pitchers mechanics are wrong.His philosophy is vastly different from what is currently being taught and feels that he is being blackballed from everyone.Do a search for his website for more insight. I want to read more about Dr. Marshalls techniques. I had his book in my hand one day and thought about it but I didn't buy it. Where is his website?

I had Wichita State winning until they play Mich St...opps I'm out on that one until it gets to Illinois.

What version of the standings do you look at where Seton Hall finished 10th? http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/standings That's a ridiculous argument, too. Nobody is arguing that the MVC gets bids over the first place Big East/Big Ten/ACC teams. They are arguing that their top 6 are just as good or better than the 5th-6th-7th best teams in these conferences, and should get those bids. Maybe the Big West should get at-large teams every year, since UNLV won a championship in 1990 and made the Final Four undefeated in 1991. Or maybe the A-10 should get guaranteed at-large bids every year since UMass made the Final Four in the mid-90's with Calipari. What a conference has done in the past has no bearing on bids in the future, and shouldn't. The MVC got 4 bids this year, easily deserved, and perhaps they deserved more. Once again you jump to the wrong conclusion. I didn't say the MVC didn't deserve the bids but that they don't advance to the finals and never take the whole thing. It's just amazing to me that these teams get so much credit for beating a decent BE team while Seten Hall gets beat on for having to play the top tier BE teams and not having a great record. Yeah, W. State is a good team and going to beat Tennessee but I think it's ironic that Many people jump on the BE in football and say they are not that good even though they have played for the championship and but argue that the MVC is just as good as a major conference. History DOES have something to do with it. Are you saying that what teams have done in the past means nothing? You once again exagerate to prove a point. How far has the MVC gone in the past 4 years? Duke has made the sweet 16 what 9 years in a row and you say that doesn't mean anything. Why, because you have to because the MVC has no history. Again, get back to me when they win the whole thing and then we'll talk. They are a competitive conference that can't win the Championship and that's about it.

I was hoping to see all the MVC teams do well so that more players will notice the MVC and want to play there, thats what really needs to happen. Sure, neither of us is going to win the NCAA's, but as long as we make people notice us, its good. Yeah. The only team that got their rear-ends handed back to themselves was Southern Illinois, but then, they don't have much of a offense, you know? Bradley, I knew they were going to be tough coming in. I was struggling, on my bracket fill-them between KU and Bradley, but I knew, no matter who I pick, that I think either Pitts or Memphis was gonna handle them. But still, Bradley is gonna be a solid team for awhile in the MVC. As for WSU, I'm happy they won a game. It's been a long time, way back when I was a pup. I hope they can make it to the Sweet 16. Oh, and their Mascot "Shockers" is a good name to have in the NCAA Tournament. I hope that Sunday's Wichita newspaper will go something like "Shockers Shock Vols." or something like that. Finally, Northern Iowa gave Georgetown all it can handle before falling. 2 out of 4 MVC teams advanced. While I would had liked 3/4, I won't complain. Oh, and I hope that Billy "the Fudge" Packer and Jim Nantzy withdraws their sharp critism aganist the MVC teams. Yeah, that's one of those MVC teams (Wichita St.) that didn't deserve to get in, TOTALLY DOMINATING a Big Least team that they hold so near and dear to their hearts. Not to mention that Bradley shocked KU. Yeah, Wichita St. dominated the 10th place BE team. You guys have to get back to me when a M-M wins the NCAA title which a Big (L)east team has done 3 out of the last 6 years.

Garland must be a lot shorter than I remembered but he still has a nice smile.

It's what they do and do well.

That's always the way it is on Saturday of the first weekend. They show a quadrupleheader, but there's only one game during the early time. I don't really like it that way, since there's no other game to switch to if the game turns into a blowout (it wouldn't matter to me anyway; since Duke is a local team they'd stick with it regardless of how ugly it might get). Sunday is only a tripleheader, so CBS can show its usual primetime lineup. Yeah, CBS is good like that. I miss ESPN having the NCAA's, you had a couple of games at 5 EST and on Sunday you could catch more games. I don't understand why CBS doesn't do what NBC did with the Olympics and put the games on the other channels that they own.

Hey I told you guys Syracuse stinks in the NCAA's when they win the BE tournament!

Since Tom House is Prior's personal pitching coach I wonder if Marshall is putting House down as well. This is a very interesting subject and I'm curious what direction this will go.

I thought it was Uncle Junior. And I'm sick of hearing about Clemens and Bonds. I hope MLB investigates the steroid thing and we get to see some baseball and not get this junk thrown down our throats.

Wasn't the Turk on tabbaco juice? I don't which is more unhealthy for your body steroids or that crap.