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6 Things Gun Lovers and Haters Can Agree On
I was 7 when I shot a gun for the first time, and probably 17 before I realized guns were a big deal in national politics. Some of that comes from growing up in Texas. Guns aren't controversial in this part of the South: I once bought a pistol and three old Soviet rifles from a dude in a parking lot for $300. Even our hippies conceal-carry handguns in the waistbands of their hemp pants. But on a national level, the gun debate rages on.
And for some reason we've handed off the responsibility for this debate to the loudest, angriest people in America. On one side are pissed-off but well-meaning folks who know less than nothing about the objects they plan to regulate. And on the other side is Ted Nugent. It's not exactly the recipe for productive debate. As Cracked's resident weapons expert, it's my duty to shoot a hot, steaming load of perspective into this argument. If we want a productive discussion about guns, we all need to accept a few things:
#6. Gun Owners Aren't a Unified Group
The Washington Post / Getty
You don't have to travel far on the Internet (or in the South) to find people defending the Second Amendment because it protects us from government tyranny. The basic idea is that, at some point in the perpetually imminent future, millions of Real Americans (TM) from across the nation will surge forth with their M16s and John Wayne commemorative six-shooters to take back this country from the twin demons of BIG BROTHER and YOUNG PEOPLE.
Faith in the ability of American gun owners to fight back against government tyranny is often expressed through image macros.
Thermopylae comes up a lot for two reasons: 1) Xerxes asked the Spartans to give up their weapons, and 2) Zack Snyder's 300 gives members of the "patriot" movement hard-ons that could burst a carbon-fiber condom. I've made a habit of correcting these macros whenever possible:
Molon LAME, is more like it.
But there's a certain ring of logic to the premise: A vast army of patriotic gun owners might provide a check to the government. Forty-four million armed angry people (minimum) could threaten the military, even in this age of flying murderbots and boat-mounted lasers. Alas, this grand army of tyranny-hating middle-aged white dudes rests on one flimsy premise: the idea that "gun owners" are a unified block.
But gun owners are just about as divided as the general population. There's no silent, unified army lying in wait for Obama's mad campaign of moderate health-care reform to finally go one step too far. About 55 percent of Republicans own guns, as do 40 percent of Democrats. Oddly enough, this represents a high point in gun ownership among Democrats. Our soldiers tend to mirror the country: Half of them don't give a fuck about politics, and the other half split pretty evenly between the two parties.
Marco di Lauro / Stringer / Getty
"I support whichever party gives me more Xbox time and less getting-shot-at time."
Gun owners don't even agree on gun control: The NRA loudly opposes universal background checks, but the vast majority of actual people with guns sees no problems with making sure the dude buying a Glock doesn't have a restraining order or history of schizophrenia. Eighty-five percent of all households support universal background checks, including 74 percent of NRA households.
"OK," I hear you ask in the half-Swedish, half-deaf-Portuguese-woman voice I attribute to all my readers, "if most gun owners aren't hiding out in the woods shooting at cutouts of U.N. peacekeepers, why won't you let us ban assault weapons already? Those aren't useful for anything but war."
Ted Aljibe / AFP / Getty
And certain species of duck.
#5. Assault Weapons Aren't the Devil
Hemera Technologies/PhotoObjects.net
I own a semi-automatic version of the AK-47, and it's good for so many things that have zero relation to killing. It can cut down trees, disassemble old cars, and, in a pinch, help me hammer tent poles into the ground. It's like a Swiss Army Knife, but powered by explosions and Communism. You can even cook a goddamn omelet with one:
The legal definition of "assault weapon" is based primarily on things that could not ever possibly decrease gun crime. Most people assume that an "Assault Weapons Ban" must make the terrifying black rifles we're all most frightened of illegal. So this AR-15:
Paul J. Richards / AFP / Getty
... would clearly be illegal in a world with the Assault Weapons Ban. You could assault the shit out of people with a weapon like that. But guess what? That gun is as legal as flamethrowers and thermite charges. In fact, it isn't legally an assault weapon at all. Meanwhile, this pile of ugly:
U.S. Tactical Supply
... IS an assault weapon. Not because it shoots more bullets, or bigger bullets, or even faster bullets. This bad boy has a collapsing stock and a pistol grip. More than one of these "evil" features turns your humble rifle into a murder-hungry assault rifle. Other terrifying features include "threaded barrels," "bayonet lugs," "foregrips," and a long list of features no one needs in order to commit extremely efficient murder.
Here's the reality: The top 10 guns used in violent crimes are nearly all revolvers or pistols. None of them are rifles, and only one is a shotgun. We tend to fear huge black rifles with giant army-style magazines, but those guns are used in a tiny minority of crimes. In fact, the average number of shots fired per weapon in a gunfight is between two and four. Gunfights are terrifying, and real bad guys are more likely to pop off a round or two at close range and then run like fuck, rather than reenact the shootout from Heat.
PRO TIP: Successful heists rarely end in shoot-outs with dozens of cops.
And if the anti-gun people can agree to stop banning shit like "foregrips" and "collapsing stocks," the pro-gun side should agree that ...
#4. Self-Defense Is Less of a Factor Than Fun Is
Ted Aljibe / AFP / Getty
Gun owners are defensive of their hobby, like many nerds are. If you're talking to someone who clearly thinks what you're doing is "weird," your brain kicks its Flimsy Justification Lobe into overdrive. Most gun owners claim they bought their weapons for self-defense. But if you were actually there at the gun show when Jimbo picked up his AK-47, you wouldn't have seen a hard-bitten desperado sizing up defense tools or a violent madman looking for a people-ender. You'd have seen a big kid forking over $700 because he wanted to do this:
Try shooting a flaming M16, and you'll start to understand why we lost Vietnam.
Take a camera to Comic-Con and find somebody who just dropped $700 on a super-rare comic. Ask him why, and I guarantee his response will include the word "investment." People get embarrassed when they're called out for spending a shitload of money on toys. Of course, guns aren't comics, and no Spider-Man fan ever tried to justify his obsession via vigorous lobbying. The same isn't true for the NRA.
They never tire of citing that 2.5 million people each year use their guns to heroically fend off bad people via tiny controlled explosions. It's easily in the top three most commonly cited gun facts on bumper stickers:
In parts of the South it's illegal to put this on anything smaller than an F-150.
There's a reason the NRA brings that "fact" up on a schedule more regular than a cranberry farmer's urinary tract. If it were true, the whole debate over gun control would be over. But here's where that number came from: A breathtakingly shitty criminologist did a phone poll of 5,000 people and asked how many of them had used a gun in self-defense. More than 1 percent claimed they had. This Michelangelo of conclusion-jumping extrapolated that to the national population (200 million at the time) and came up with 2.5 million.
These numbers came out in 1995, and they've been "coming out" on a yearly basis ever since. In reality, self-defense via firearm is incredibly uncommon, because very few Americans will ever need to defend themselves from a violent attacker. If you want to keep a gun at home as potential security for that unlikely day, fine. I certainly do. But don't pretend that gun is a guarantee of safety -- gun owners are actually at greater risk of homicide and suicide than the general population.
That said, a Mossberg 500 makes any night in the woods 400 percent less creepy.


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You'd be hard pressed to find a film license that has spawned more video games than Star Wars. If you took the time to count them all (and I don't advise doing so, it takes ages), you'd find well over 100, covering just about every console and genre you could imagine. Unfortunately, many of these titles aren't worth the time of day, but equally, there are some truly fantastic games hiding amongst the shovel-ware. The games below are of that second category; the ten best Star Wars games of all time.
Episode 1: Racer
There's simply no denying it; Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace was a bad film. It did, however, have two redeeming features: one was the impossibly cool double-ended lightsaber, and the other was Pod racing. Episode 1: Racer was a Nintendo 64 game (and later Dreamcast) built around the second of these features; an arcade racer that allowed players to pilot vehicles made out of space scrap, with an overall experience fitting somewhere in between Wipeout and Mario Kart.

subset: commoncrawl


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Source: Scientific American
quote: Ethanol itself isn't a sham.
quote: your current engine produces heaps of carbon monoxide.
quote: less efficient is because there are no ethanol-only engines being produced.
quote: if you don't follow motorsports
quote: Look how much milk has gone up in the past year for example, that's not made with corn obviously.
quote: Not saying I don't agree with you but they feed dairy cows that corn you are talking about. So that corn going up would raise milk prices in theory.


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Let's Animate - Ellettsville
Monday, June 24, 2013 | 6:30 pm - 8:00 pm
Let's Animate! We're going to make our own stop-motion cartoons right in the library. With the help of the mad makers of Bloominglabs, we will animate the action right in the library. We will provide the computers, cameras, and a variety of things to animate, but feel free to bring your own action figures, props, or whatever!
Grades 4-8.
Josh Wolf
- Location:
Ellettsville Program Room
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on July 10, 2013 - 6:27 AM
, updated July 10, 2013 at 10:33 AM
An accident on the northbound span of the South Grand Island Bridge early today caused major traffic delays for northbound commuters. The accident occurred sometime before 5:30 a.m. while the span was carrying two-way traffic. The northbound span was reopened to traffic by 7 a.m.


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Corporate Social Responsibility and Economic Performance
Catherine J. Morrison Paul
University of California, Davis - Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics; National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER); University of Hartford - Barney School of Business
Donald S. Siegel
University at Albany, SUNY
January 2006
We describe some perspectives on corporate social responsibility (CSR), in order to provide a context for considering the strategic motivations and implications of CSR. Based on this framework, which is based on characterizing optimal firm decision making and underlies most existing work on CSR, we propose an agenda for further theoretical and empirical research on CSR. We then summarize and relate the articles in this special issue to the proposed agenda.
Number of Pages in PDF File: 12
Keywords: Corporate Social Responsibility, Total Factor Productivity, Environmental Performance
JEL Classification: L15, L21, M14
Date posted: May 16, 2006
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text: From swing sets to hot tubs and everything in between, BJ's Wholesale Club has everything you need for outdoor living at discount prices you'll love! Discover our exclusive low prices on a wide variety of outdoor and seasonal products, including sheds, patio furniture, air conditioners, gift cards, emergency preparedness kits, swimming pool accessories and more. We're proud to offer a year-round selection for every season.


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Volunteering in South Africa
08 May 2006, 11:11
by Pierre van den Berg
I have started a volunteer program for USA rangers (US Forest Service, etc.) to South Africa (SA) 3 years ago, and it runs very well. I will soon be in a position to considerably broaden the scope of the program, and will be looking for international volunteers with a wide range of skills and experience who would be interested to volunteer in SA. Examples of projects will include work on nature reserves, wilderness areas and private game farms (e.g. rehabilitation of eroded sites, construction and maintenance of fences, trail/footpath development and maintenance, monitoring of plants and animals, etc.); various projects on agricultural farms, e.g. building of cottages, assisting and motivating local farm workers in a wide range of duties, AND A LOT MORE.
If this sounds like the perfect experience for you, please send me a mail at firstname.lastname@example.com or email@example.com I will need a resume/CV and some contactable references. I have a list of previous international volunteers who did awesome work on my program, and you will be welcome to contact any of them.


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Remote desktop experience in Windows 8
- Date: to
- Day 3
- Stinger
- Speakers: Nadim Abdo, Gaurav Daga
- 1 comment
Loading user information from Channel 9
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Right click "Save as…"Slides (view online)
Oops, something didn't work.
thank you for this video. Now, I can utilize Remote Desktop connection the proper way. You have to run > "MSTSC" 43:30 on video. Only then will the RDC work on the new Metro.... at least with me. I had only one computer monitor and not two but after this I get two. PS. There are no options are available to adjust these settings in the Metro....maybe for a good reason but with Win 8 do I have to use Run command to drill down in RDC? Fix this please.
Also, I did not know about the options features on RDC. This is really cool. I went from mad to glad. Love these self help Videos!
Windows 8: I love it but I'm still getting used to the Metro even after weeks....it will take time or I must leave 7 forever.
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on January 27, 2013 - 1:14 PM
After decades of population loss, Niagara Falls has found a way to draw young people downtown by offering to pay off their student loans.
Now comes the challenge of drawing the businesses the young creative types will demand.
The honeymoon capital this year will place the first of 20 recent graduates into homes and apartments near the falls, the first step in building a market for what officials hope will become an Elmwood Village of the north.
The idea is to inject young people into a downtown area that edges closer toward disrepair each year. Federal urban renewal funds will pay two years of the graduates' student loan bills if they move into a targeted tract just blocks from the falls. The program has already attracted more than 200 applicants from across the country.
In turn, leaders hope the young blood will attract the sort of businesses common to a thriving commercial strip – coffee shops, bookstores, restaurants and bars.
Attracting businesses to the downtown area is no easy task, leaders acknowledge.
Many of the commercial buildings in the Main Street/Third Street area have been sitting vacant for years, and some blocks resemble a plywood wall of boarded-up businesses and broken dreams.
And while the state has made years of infrastructure improvements in the downtown tourist strip, significant business investment has yet to materialize.
But the state has pledged new money toward revitalizing the area where the young graduates will live, including $200,000 for property acquisition, $160,000 for demolition of blighted structures $60,000 for administrative costs and $30,000 in matching grants for storefront improvements.
"You're taking away blight in the surrounding area, and at the same time you're rehabbing storefronts in your commercial district," said Seth A. Piccirillo, the city's director of community development. "That's important for current residents, new residents and tourists."
"Ultimately, what we want is [investors] seeing new people moving in, they see strategic commercial improvements. What we want is seeing the people privately investing on their own in the area," he added.
The loan program is the first step in addressing the lack of downtown housing in Niagara Falls, according to leaders who see it as an untapped market.
Recent developments, like the $30 million Niagara Falls Culinary Institute, have attracted college students downtown, and officials from local colleges and universities say they need a more permanent solution than renting out hotel rooms for the students.
A key step in attracting the young people downtown – and making them want to stay longer than two years – is making them feel safe.
That's one of the reasons why city leaders were thrilled when Sen. Charles E. Schumer recently announced a new partnership between city police and federal anti-crime officials to cut down on violent crime in city neighborhoods and property theft in the downtown tourist district.
"To put it simply, this amounts to a one-two punch for Niagara Falls," Schumer said in November. "Not only does it cut crime, it will attract new tourists and businesses to this subsequently safer landmark city."
The program is also designed to help ensure the city doesn't dip below a population count of 50,000 for the 2020 Census, when it would lose key state and federal funding that is based on population figures.
Those interested in the residential component of the program have already sought one of the 20 spots that will be filled in the program's first year.
More than 200 people from as far away as Hawaii have asked about renting or buying a home in the city since officials announced the program in June.
Half of those interested are from upstate New York, with the others coming from California, Oregon, New York City and other coastal areas.
The applications are being reviewed by five officials from the city, its library, a local business association, Niagara University and Niagara County Community College.
Graduates who have received two-year or four-year degrees within the past two years, or those in graduate school, would be eligible, and the city promises to cover up to $3,500 per year of student loan payments for two years.
The graduates would need to rent a market-rate apartment – or buy a home – within the downtown area. If they meet all of their loan and rent or mortgage commitments after the first year, they would be reimbursed the cost of their student loans for that year. The same thing would happen after the second year.
City leaders say they plan to start moving the students into the neighborhood in summer, and soon after they will know whether their strategy pays off in real business investment.
The city has received three business inquiries since word of the program went national.
"If we can see in 2013, three new businesses, I think that is very positive," Piccirillo said. "Some people say, 'What's three new businesses in a city that needs many businesses?' I say it's momentum."
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Top Definition
Ancient indian tribe best known for getting lost frequently.
When the Fa gow we's went on a hunting trip and became lost, they would send a young brave up a tree to see which direction they should go or to see where they were at. While he was up there the indians at the base of the tree would yell,"Where the Fa gow we"? This is how they got their name.
po Robert McDonald Јануар 13, 2007
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Can you define these popular missing words?


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Go Green!
There are only so many hours in the day, but still, students in the second session of Digital WAVE this summer managed to build an entire 3D house in a virtual world in just 2 weeks. The goal was to show all the ways that we can use "green energy" in our houses, schools, and communities, with solar panels, wind turbines, energy-saving appliances, and lots more. During the program, they also went on a field trip to Oleta River State Park with the Museum's Reclamation Project Director Fernando Bretos, put together electrical circuits powered by water, wind, and solar power, built and tested remotely operated vehicles, and even climbed into a real OceanGate submarine in the Museum. They also met with Mark Spalding, CEO of the Ocean Foundation, from within the virtual world. Mark (through his avatar) talked about the importance of blue carbon, which is the atmospheric carbon absorbed by coastal environments like mangroves and seagrass beds. Students even met with a Museum employee who lives "off-the-grid" without electricity or running water – proving it can still be done! All of these experiences, along with their own research, helped students design our energy efficient virtual house. Enjoy our photo slideshow!
Students built solar-powered circuits and tested them in the sunlight outside the Museum… took measurements of trees at Oleta River State park to determine the carbon they absorb from the atmosphere… built and tested ROVs in a tank at the Museum's Sea Lab…
…climbed into a real OceanGate submarine at the Museum… and tons more! All of this resulted in an energy efficient, environmentally friendly virtual house with a green roof, solar panels, CFL light bulbs, energy efficient appliances, just to name a few.
One green energy source was a solar chimney, which provides power by heating air which then rises and powers the turbine. The bathroom has CFL bulbs, a ceiling fan for cooling without AC, and a water efficient toilet. And at the end of the program, students presented their projects, including this bird-friendly wind turbine, to their families and Museum staff. Jobs well done!


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Give your merchants the solutions they need today and the flexibility for tomorrow with 4Access Orion Credit Card Machine/Check Reader Combo Terminal.
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Everyone would agree that the sexual abuse of children is a horrendous thing.
But what if the children were even younger and what if they were not only abused but even killed?
Would this not be an even worse crime? Yet that is what abortion does. It kills an unborn child. Abortion has been described as the ultimate child abuse.
Joe Paterno did not abuse any children. He made a big mistake by not reporting the abuse to the authorities. But it is unfair, I think, to lay all the blame on Joe. He is the fall guy, the innocent one who nevertheless gets all the blame.
Paterno did not keep things quiet so that more sexual abuse of children would take place. However, that is what happened, and that was Joe's big mistake. But to take away his victories and punish today's athletes for something that someone else did, is unfair.
And until the media and society gives equal condemnation to the horrendous practice of abortion, they will get little sympathy from me.
Louis Freeh is a great investigator, and he always seems to do a very good job.
But I would like to see him investigate planned parenthood and abortion clinics. That is a report I would like to see. He could also investigate the Catholic Church with which I am associated.
The sexual abuse of children that took place in State College was very wrong and should be condemned and punished. But abortion is worse.
That the practice of abortion and the government funding of Planned Parenthood should be such a sacred cow, I find difficult to understand.
Bernard A. Przybocki


text: In the past, a meal was often served to the poorer citizens on Shrove Tuesday. It must be remembered, however, that until the end of the 19th century a rice dish was a rare thing. It was a meal for weddings, thus a special treat. The charitable aspect has disappeared, but the tradition of the huge vat out in the openair, with enough food for everyone, still remains. The people no longer fetch their risotto in a little pail, preferring to eat it together in one place and enjoy a community meal. This usage has become especially popular in the villages. Varying from place to place, gnocchi, polenta, or risotto with luganighe, little locally made sausages, is served.


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COL DE L'OSPEDALE, France (AP) — Tour de France runner-up Chris Froome won the Criterium International on Sunday after a solo victory in the third and final stage.
Froome escaped 5.5 kilometers (3.42 miles) from the end of the 176-kilometer (110-mile) stage to beat Team Sky teammate Richie Porte by 27 seconds and overtake the Australian in the overall standings.
Froome had started the day two seconds behind Porte, who won the individual time trial on Saturday.
The British cyclist timed his attack to perfection on the grueling ascent up Col de l'Ospedale above Porto Vecchio in Corsica — where the Tour starts on June 29.
Bauke Mollema of the Netherlands finished the stage in third to take fourth place overall.
American rider Tejay van Garderen took third after crossing the line fifth, just behind Jean-Christophe Peraud.
There was an early break of seven with Florian Vachon, Jeremy Roy, Edwig Cammaerts, Paul Poux, Yann Huguet, Jose Goncalves and Laurent Didier building a lead of over more than four minutes by the 40K (25-mile) mark.
They were slowly reeled in and all the leaders had been swallowed up by the peloton with 17K (11 mile) remaining.
Team Sky was in control of the group, with Vasili Kiryienka leading ahead of teammates Froome and Porte. Johann Tschopp broke 7K (4.3 miles) from the finish and was followed by Froome and Peraud.
Froome then left those behind and swiftly built up a gap of more than 15 seconds.
Behind him, Porte also attacked — along with Van Garderen — overtaking the duo as well as Bauke Mollema 2K (1.2 miles) from the finish line.
Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.


text:
Cub Contingent Leads Solar Sox to Victory
Andrew Cashner threw four innings of no run, no hit ball, and Starlin Castro had two hits, drove in a run and scored two more, and made the defensive play of the day, as the Mesa Solar Sox exterminated the Scottsdale Scorpions 12-5 in Arizona Fall League action this afternoon at HoHoKam Park in Mesa.
Pitching on a cool & breezy day with the wind blowing out at 15-20 MPH gusting to 30, the 23-year old Cashner (Cubs #1 draft pick out of TCU in 2008) had no trouble with the Scorpions. He threw just 44 pitches (25 strikes) in his four innings of work, getting ahead of most of the hitters as he mixed a 94-96 MPH fastball with a sharp breaking ball and an occasional change-up. The only glitches were a four-pitch walk to Steve Susdorf (Phillies) leading off the 3rd and a walk to Brandon Allen (Diamondbacks) on a 3-1 pitch with two outs in the 4th. He struck out four (including Phillies top position-player prospect Domonic Brown, swinging), got four outs on ground balls, and another four on fly balls or pop-ups.
Starlin Castro played SS for the Solar Sox and hit 2nd today, and got five plate appearances. He grounded a single sharply through the box into CF off RHP Chaz Roe (Rockies) with one out and nobody on base in the bottom of the 1st inning and later scored on a Josh Vitters RBI single, lined out to right on a hit & run play with a runner on 1st base and no outs in the 2nd off junkballin' RHP Tooru Murata (Tokyo Yomiuri Giants), punched an RBI single to left through a drawn-in infield off RHP Edgar Garcia (Phillies) in the bottom of the 3rd and later scored, struck out swinging on a hard-breakin' slider in the dirt against RHP Andrew Johnston (Rockies) in the 5th, and reached base on an E-4 (short-hopper ricocheted off Scottsdale 2nd baseman Chase D'arnaud's chest).in the 7th.
Castro also turned-in the defensive play of the day, showing off his range and his arm as he made a diving stop behind second base, and then, from his knees, threw out speedy lead-off man Jose Tabata (Pirates). Castro also made a nice turn on a 6-4-3 DP in the 8th. And although Castro was charged with an error on a D'arnaud RBI double in the top of the 5th when his relay throw got past Solar Sox catcher Hank Conger (Angels) allowing D'arnaud to advance from 2nd to 3rd on the play at the plate, the throw really wasn't that bad. Conger just couldn't catch the short-hop.
Josh Vitters (Cubs #1 draft pick in 2007) was the Solar Sox DH and hit 5th. He grounded an RBI single through the box to CF (scoring Castro) off Roe in his first AB in the bottom of the 1st and scored later in the inning, and then he ripped another hit through the box off Murata in the bottom of the second. He flied out to the warning track in CF in the 3rd, bounced into an inning-ending 5-4-3 DP against Johnston in the 5th, and struck out swinging on a 1-2 breaking ball at his shoe top (and looked bad doing it, too) in the 7th against LHP Matt Reynolds (Rockies).
LHP James Russell entered the game in the top of the 8th and pitched a shutout inning (11 pitches - eight strikes). He gave up a lead-off line-drive single to LF to Brandon Crawford (Giants), but then got Buster Posey (Giants) to ground into a 4-6-3 DP (that was the nice turn by Castro) and Susdorf (Phillies) to ground out weakly 3-U to end the inning. Russell had a really good change-up today, and he threw strikes, which is the key for him.
After allowing three runs in his first AFL outing a couple of weeks ago, Russell has thrown five consecutive shutout innings over his last four appearances. The son of one-time MLB closer Jeff Russell, James was the Cubs 14th round selection in the 2007 Rule 4 Draft out of the University of Texas, although he did get "3rd round money" to give up his senior year in college (he was considered to be likely unsignable going into the draft, which is why he fell to the 14th round). He should be a strong candidate for a back-of-the-rotation starter gig at Iowa in 2010.
Re: Cub Contingent Leads Solar Sox to Victory
thanks for the report...
have you seen any of the defensive yips that seemed to plague Castro during the season?
And is James Russell just a younger Sean Marshall?
Re: Cub Contingent Leads Solar Sox to Victory
how fast does the infield surface play? how good/bad predictable are the bounces through the infield?
Re: Cub Contingent Leads Solar Sox to Victory
thanks. been told a long time they play fast, but that was years ago and groundskeeping techniques tend to make strides every few years.
Re: Cub Contingent Leads Solar Sox to Victory
What do you make of the poor performance in the AFL of Gaub and Parker?
Re: Cub Contingent Leads Solar Sox to Victory
i thought parker was doing well....
Re: Cub Contingent Leads Solar Sox to Victory
only 3-6 more games until the official offseason
Re: Cub Contingent Leads Solar Sox to Victory
i hate the offseason...but it does give me time to catch up on movies.
by dec/jan i'm ready for spring training games.
Re: Cub Contingent Leads Solar Sox to Victory
Overture? Make-Good? That Jaramillo connection?
Mark DeRosa underwent wrist surgery Monday to repair a torn tendon sheath in his left wrist, an official with DeRosa's agent's office confirmed this afternoon. The surgery was performed Monday in Atlanta by hand surgery Dr. Gary Lourie.
The Cardinals plan to go into 2010 with rookie David Freese having a chance to win the starting third base job. That doesn't eliminate their interest in having DeRosa return, but it does limit the role DeRosa could see for himself. At the end of the season, he said he wanted to look for the best opportunity for playing time and for contending.
The Chicago Cubs figured to make an overture toward DeRosa as a make-good for trading him to Cleveland before the 2009 season — a move general manager Jim Hendry conceded was a mistake.
Re: Cub Contingent Leads Solar Sox to Victory
Hopefully Hendry isn't stupid enough to give DeRosa 3/30 NTC type of deal.
However I would be all for bringing DeRosa back on a 1 year and maybe a vesting option for year 2 type of deal. Especially if they money isn't more than 5-7 million per season.
Re: Cub Contingent Leads Solar Sox to Victory
How about getting Greg Maddux and Ryne Sandberg back?
You can bitch about who we got for DeRosa, but trading him when he was at his peak value was probably the best move Hendry made last year. 2008 is gone, let it go.
Re: Cub Contingent Leads Solar Sox to Victory
Unless DeRosa was the one missing link that would've put them over the top? It's possible...
Re: Cub Contingent Leads Solar Sox to Victory
On Mike and Mike this morning, Yankee anouncer Michael Kay speculated that with loss yesterday and bring back CC on 3 days rest that Chad Gaudin would be the game five starter.
Re: Cub Contingent Leads Solar Sox to Victory
the one missing link...
Neanderthal DeRosa?
Re: Cub Contingent Leads Solar Sox to Victory
AustraloDeRosacus? DeRosalopithecus?
Re: Cub Contingent Leads Solar Sox to Victory
baseball prospectus' prospect guru, Kevin Goldstein, had this to say about Cashner after his 4 inning shutout stint:
Andrew Cashner, RHP, Cubs (AFL: Mesa)
Yesterday's stats: 4 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 4 K
Whatever order you want to put them, Cashner, along with infielders Josh Vitters and Starlin Castro, are the top three prospects in the Cubs system, and all of them are having outstanding seasons so far for Mesa. Four no-hit innings are even more impressive considering the offensive context of the league, and his stuff matched the stats, as he sat at 92-96 mph with his fastball, and his slider is a wipeout offering at times.
Re: Cub Contingent Leads Solar Sox to Victory
Earlier on Castro:
Generating a ton of buzz right now in the desert is Castro, the 19-year-old shortstop who, after Tuesday's outburst, is now 12-for-23 in six games for the Solar Sox without a strikeout. His ability to put the bat on the ball is remarkably advanced for his age. While he's not the next Ozzie Smith, he is a true shortstop who also has surprisingly solid defensive fundamentals for such a young talent, as he's also yet to make an error in Arizona. Is he the top prospect in the system? You could at least make the argument.
At some point this season I could swear he called him a 2nd basemen... I'll have to stalk around a bit more and see if I can find it.
Re: Cub Contingent Leads Solar Sox to Victory
Here we go:
"markDC (Washington, DC): Starlin Castro - starting Cubs shortstop in 2011?
Kevin Goldstein: No. Second base, maybe, but not shortstop."
Which maybe I read into too much, but it seems like he's come around since then.
Re: Cub Contingent Leads Solar Sox to Victory
if you just look at numbers you'd jump to the conclusion he wasn't destined for SS.
they're horrid. i asked about them not too long ago (here) because i didnt know much about the guy. i was told his numbers were lieing. it seems that may be true.
Re: Cub Contingent Leads Solar Sox to Victory
That's not something he typically does.
I often wonder how much a scouts' appraisal of a player's defense goes up as the player's bat improves.
Re: Cub Contingent Leads Solar Sox to Victory
yeah, he used to work for BA and did a lot of west coast work and he's got his cred, etc...i just wonder how stretched out he is.
it's ultimately his call on whether he thinks a player is destined to move, but he seemed pretty adamant about it in the quote.
Re: Cub Contingent Leads Solar Sox to Victory
CarrieMuskat: Jeff Samardzija threw six shutout innings, struckout seven in Mexicali win Friday. He's expected to make at least one more start
Recent comments
j.buchanan with a nice start...5ip 2h 1bb 3k, 0r/er
zobrist with 2HR and a double through 8
heyward 0-4 :(
Mark Gonzales @MDGonzales
Soler likely to return Sunday, Maddon says
Right now, I'd like to see the Mets first, Giants 2nd.
I believe that since most of the team from last years' NLCS is on the squad this year, they will really amp their game up even more to kick their ass in payback for 2015.
The Giants just do not have the depth in years past, and I think all things equal - and at Wrigley - they could handle them.
I do not want to see the Cards, period. Or their fans, media, or Joe Buck.
I don't want to play Braves in the first round. Any friggin team in the league can win 3 of 5..I hate the first round. Furthermore, I wanted to play the Marlins in 2003 and the Mets over Dodgers last year.
With that said in reverse order:
3. Cardinals: It will be devastating to lose in the first round, but even worse to their main rival. It is increased incentive for the Cardinals, especially after last year. Cards would have nothing to lose, Cubs have everything to lose.
2. Giants: Rotation in the playoffs scare me a bit, but what a lousy team.
1. Mets--because of the losses in the rotation
2. Giants--because they're not the team they were BUT they maybe have bullshit even-year magic?
3. Cardinals--because rivalry and not making the playoffs hurts them more than losing in the NLDS plus getting eliminated by them in the playoffs would make for horrible sports commentary next throughout next season.
Who's asking?
CLE/DET rained out last night already, possible rain-outs in New York (vs. Baltimore), Boston(vs. Toronto) and Philly(vs. Mets) this weekend too.
Not only games involving playoff spots that would need to be played, but any that involve home field advantage.
I got the first one! Second one I'm not even sure what even/odd betting is.
any opponent preference for NLDS?
Mets are down to 1 great pitcher instead of 4. Syndegaard may pitch Sunday which means if Mets win the WC game, he'd be set up for Game 1. There's a chance they clinch a spot by Sunday so he'd pitch the WC and then we'd probably get Colon for Game 1. They've certainly had the hottest bats over the last week and month out of the WC options.
A couple of Cub related puzzles.
Can't teach height and thinness
Hopefully Pirates don't call up A. Lincoln.
j.buchanan going friday...should be...baseball...or something like it.
Wow. I didn't know they could do that.
Nice for Willson, not so much for Addy.
Game is officially called...also officially a tie.
Stats count, no make-up date of course.
Yeah -- seeing the weather -- I hope KB and Rizz are inside, wrapped in blankets and drinking hot chocolate.


text:
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Optometry schools require applicants to take the Optometry Admission Test (OAT). It is offered via computer at various testing sites. The exam should be taken the year before beginning optometry school, typically in the junior year.
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text:
Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Update (11AM, CST): Cubs.com site makes it sound official. Per ESPN, Gathright will get a one year deal at $800K. Gordon Wittenmyer at the Sun-Times also weighs in with this confirming article, as does Paul Sullivan from the Tribune.
This is far from being confirmed, but I have found several links saying the recently non-tendered KC Royal, Joey Gathright will be finding his way to the Cubs roster. Apparently a report by Jesse Rogers on WSCR-AM mentioned that he's been signed (around 6pm Monday evening). Carrie Muskat then posted this odd mention of Gathright at Cubs.com. Noting that the 27 year old speedy, no power, lefty hitting OF could be added to the roster soon. She also reminds us that Gathright played for Lou Piniella and stole 20 bases for Tampa in 2005. Finally, in an interview with Joe Castellano on XM radio monday night, Cubs superscout Gary Hughes (special assistant to GM Jim Hendry) mentioned that "we're going to add a speed guy". He didn't name names but it sure seems odd to have this confluence of soft information match up all at once.
Maybe Jim Hendry wants Gathright for his jumping skills. You can see his famous car jumping video here. The Cubs can use anyone who can top Dodger pitcher Hiroki Kuroda and Gathright garnered attention when he jumped over Kuroda avoiding a tag in a spring training game last year. It certainly isn't based on his hitting prowess, 263 .324 .308 are his career splits vs righty pitching.
If the Pitcher Jumping, Car Jumping, 5th OF is signed to a contract, does that hasten, ala Snagglepuss, an exit - stage door left for Felix Pie? I'd like to see Pie get one more chance but it seems like he may literally as well as figuratively be running out of options. In any event, it's hard to get too worked up over the 25th roster spot in December, particularly when the starting right fielder has yet to be sorted out.
I've put my notes from the Gary Hughes interview after the jump...
Gary Hughes (special asst to the GM) interview on XM (interviewed by Joe Castellano, Monday evening 12-15):
Disappointed over the Peavy non-deal. Can't get into names on the table but overwhelming as to what they were being asked to give up.
LH bat, Milton Bradley... tremendous talent. Hughes has seen two of Bradley's most famous games including when he tore his ACL and threw a plastic bottle.
LH bat, hopes we'll get the Fukudome he scouted back next year. He doesn't know what it was that went wrong, he just didn't finish well.
Bullpen, How ready is Marmol? He will be an outstanding closer but Kevin Gregg will be a factor. Also we resigned Chad Gaudin, expect him to be a big factor for us. Loves Sean Marshall. Neal Cotts also a factor.
Reed Johnson, GH grandson dove for a ball reminding him of the Reed Johnson play. He was a great pickup for us.
Micah Hoffpauir, he'll take DWard's role. Some time at 1B backing up DLee plus OF on occasion. UnGodly year at Iowa. Another LH bat.
We're going to add a speed guy too (Joey Gathright reference?)
Discussed scouting players with declining skills (ie. Garrett Anderson, Omar Vizquel) Is there a lineup he can fit in? What happens if he can't hit, Vizquel certainly can still field.
Felix Pie, often youngest guy on any team he's been on. 23 yrs now. Felix needs to separate himself on the positive side.
Playoffs. Bang we hit a wall. Block that out of your mind for next year.
Shark. Starter role? He could be a starter or reliever based on our need. He could even start at Iowa until the team needs a starter.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
I guess Pie should pack his bags! A shame would rather have a young guy like Pie learning who could amount to something instead of a washed up vagabond.
Does this mean the Peavy trade or some other trade is in the works? Speaking about options....what happens to Hill (he's getting killed in the fall league)..outright release?
Abreu is crazy if he wants that kind of money nobody is going to give him that in this market. Bradley is probably holding out for that kind of money too...if Furcal can get 4/40 after having missing half the year people are crazy...so maybe Abreu can find some idiots like Washington to bite...or bid up his asking price.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
I'm doubting that Felix ever develops into the force many thought he would. He simply cannot control the strike zone.
I'd rather see Hendry trade him while he still has value. Trade him in a deal for a Jeremy Hermidia.
It's better to get .75 cents on the Felix Pie than to get nothing if he continues to flop. For once I'd like to see Hendry trade a guy a year early than a year late.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Unfortunately, I think we're already a year (or two) late on Pie.
sproong truening
CHICAGO (AP) - The Chicago Cubs and Chicago White Sox will play two split-squad games in Las Vegas in March.
The Cubs said Monday the teams will play March 4-5 at Cashman Field, home of the Triple-A Las Vegas 51s - a Toronto Blue Jays affiliate.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
This is a weird move if it's true. Even if Pie's hitting sucks, he would still likely be better than Gathright.
And at least there's a chance Pie might be able to hit better than Gathright's career line.
Minors: 1508 ABs; 315/398/365 (763 OPS)
Majors: 1145 ABs; 263/328/304 (632 OPS)
Minors: 2528 ABs; 299/355/470 (825 OPS)
Majors: 260 ABs; 223/284/331 (615 OPS)
There must be other reasons why the Cubs don't believe in Pie.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
i'd like someone to clear up whether this is a major or minor league contract...
either way, though...it looks like vitters/marshall are 2 nearly untouchable cubs in all the trade talk this winter while pie's name is thrown around a lot. i wouldn't be surprised to see joey g. with the club as a 4th OF come april, though.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Hanging out after hours with Sori and the ladies can make it hard for one to get to the ball park earlier and take in some needed BP. Also, emulating Fonzie at the place doesn't help much either. Sayonara, Pie.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
furcal to ATL according to rosenthall
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
That could mean, eventually, Peavy to ATL too.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Or Ankiel or Ludwick.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
I was referring to the fact that the Braves don't need Furcal and Escobar. The Cards, on the other hand, have Greene so wouldn't seem to be a team that immediately comes to mind as interested in Escobar.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
The report I saw said that he'd play SS or 2nd, which could cause the Cardinals to revisit Johnson trade talks.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Or Johnson goes to left and Furcal plays second.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Or one of the three plays 3rd when Chipper gets hurt.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Is Escobar or Furcal the better choice to play SS from a sabermetric perspective. It seems to me unless this leads to Peavy in a Braves uniford, they would have been better off signing Grudyz for 2b, signing another SP, and trading Johnson for Anikel or Ludwick. I really cant see Furcal being a better choice to play SS than Escobar.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
The Johnson to left field thing doesn't make a lot of sense. Johnson's supposed to be a pretty good defender at second, and if you want to sign a player for $10 million to play left field, there are certainly better options than Furcal. Not saying it's not true, just that it's not smart.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Not so fast on the Furcal deal according to his agent, he's going to decide sometime today.
Seems like Atlanta has money burning holes in their pockets.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Joey F. Gathright. Are you kidding me? What a freaking waste of time. Seriously.
This is a guy who washed with the Royals and the pre-WS run D-Rays. Wow...
He can't hit for power, or average, but boy he doesn't walk much either.
.263/.3328/.304...great?? In 2 of his "full" seasons in the bigs, he slugged under .300. Let me repeat, this is just unbelievably bad.
This would be just a great signing. Great...if the Cardinals did it.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Whoa - you are reading too much into this (if it is true). PErhaps you have not read this, but the prospective new owners for the Cubs are wishing to have a Cubbie MAscot, who will also perform during innings - ala a minor-league game. Including, you know, jumping off those mini-tramps you see at sidelines at college football games and for the Bulls games.
Joey Gathright has really been hired for this gig, and will be performing his uncanny jumps during these breaks.
And, of course when the team hits the field coming out of the dugout to the Van Halen song "JUMP".
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Furcal to Atlanta sounds done. Props to Ruz - I can't believe anyone picked that one in the FAF. Unless Abreu goes back to the Yanks I'm toast.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Got the link for the contest handy? I think I'm about 2 for 6 myself.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
I updated it last week, no Furcal yet though, but as you said, just Ruz
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Thanks. 2nd place and falling - the Furcal matter did me in.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Damn. I really wanted Furcal to be hitting in front of Holliday. Stupid Furcal, you screwed me again.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Here's an idea I came up with all on my own for handling Milton Bradley. It's my understanding that the trainers keep things like cortisone shots handy for when players need them. Why not just keep some Ativan handy for MB? If he starts to freak out, a trainer can just shoot him full of Ativan and calm him the f%*k down before he hurts himself.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Mister Whipple, I miss the good ole days where a few shots of good scotch would do the trick.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
As much as I enjoy a good single malt, it's better comedy to imagine him with a syringe in his ass.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Rotoworld is saying the Cubs have signed Gathright, but no source is listed. They're also saying the Cubs will probably send Pie to Iowa, but isn't he out of options? I think I've heard that. A lot.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Cubs.com has it sounding official
4-14 (.286) as a pinch hitter...woo!
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
WSCR was actually right on a rumor. This is indeed the season of miracles.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Rotoworld also has Ibanez signing a 3 year $31.5 million contract with the Phillies.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
I don't dislike the Gathright idea--but then, I didn't dislike Juan Pierre.
I think every team should have someone more or less like Gathright, and bat him leadoff. KC used him mostly at leadoff and also hitting ninth, which is like leadoff. (If it's early in the inning, you're getting on base for the #3 hitter--which was LaRussa's thought when he batted the pitcher eighth.)
He's coming off his best base-stealing year, 21 out of 24. And he only had half a year's worth of at-bats.
They may actually be planning to use the guy. Maybe they have an exit strategy for Fukudome, after all.
The question is not what you think of Gathright's OBP, but what Lou thinks of this type of hitter at the top of the order.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Dusty, is that you?
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
"I think every team should have someone more or less like Gathright, and bat him leadoff."
Oh. My. God.
"The question is not what you think of Gathright's OBP, but what Lou thinks of this type of hitter at the top of the order."
You mean what Lou thinks of having a guy with absolutely no power AND a ridiculously low OBP who also strikes out too much at the top of the order? I can think of a number of guys I'd rather have batting leadoff rather than Gathright: Soriano, Theriot, Fontenot, Johnson, DeRosa, Lee, Aramis, Pie, Fukudome, Cedeno, Soto, Blanco, Hill, Zambrano, Fuld, Josh Kroeger, Andres Torres, Tyler Colvin, Tony Thomas, and others.
Rich Harden is fast, too. Maybe Lou will bat him leadoff on days that he pitches.
We better get value back for Pie, cause either he is on his way out or Hendry just spent $800,000 to motivate Pie (he could've just threatened to give Fuld the spot, or signed some AAAA minor league free agent).
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
I just read Muskat Love's blurb on the official release. It still does not say if its a minor or major league deal. If the latter, I guess Pie and Gath will fight it out in spring training? Pie is out of options. So, he stays or gets traded, right?
It is a shame, unless he is part of a really worthwhile deal.
He STILL is only 24 and defensively is really incredible. I would really like him to stick one more year.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
there's a press release on the site as well and it says nothing about a minor league deal and he's on the cubs.com 40-man roster. It's a major league deal, which just means the $$ is guaranteed.
it's $800,000, Hendry blew that much on the buffets in Las Vegas most likely.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Gathright has been criticized for taking bad routes in the OF, can't get on base, and has zero power.
Tyoical fucking Cub signing. Great...
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Yes, some dude on MTR made those criticisms...in the comment section. Carrie Mustache says he'll be fighting for the 4th OF'er slot, let's not go crazy about this signing. He's basically the same guy as Pie, except we pick him up for next to nothing. Pie is still valuable, though, and is out of options...so he can and should be traded.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
They are not basically the same guy. Pie is better defensively and has a significantly better arm. Pie also has power potential. Gathright is strictly a slap and tickle hitter.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
If it was a 100% typical Cub signing he'd also be slow.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
dumb question I'm sure, but whats the difference between a minor league and a major league deal?
Does one provide more flexibility? Is it strictly a difference of how much money the contract must be for? I mean even though Gathrights contract is a major league deal, if he doesn't make a spot on the opening day squad, he can be cut regardless of it being a minor or major league deal?
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Depending on the wording of the contract. The player can get cut anytime. And, the balance of the contract would be owed. Unless there is a breach. Which we rarely do not know what it is, but there are logical ones we could all assume - such as committing a felony would probably void it! Think Michael Vick on that point.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Good work, BEASLEY!
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Gathright is the same guy as Pie, except he is
1) 4 years older
2) Considered average at best defensively
3)Has shown absolutely no power...not even doubles power
4)Costs twice as much
5)Been let go by two teams, the D-Rays who were bad at the time, and the Royals, who are still bad.
Pie should be platooning in CF with Reed Johnson. I know this will never, ever happen. I'm sure the Cubs could acquire some AA catcher or a pitcher in A ball who used to be a 3B but couldn't hit for Pie.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
You are making us feel even worse. Please stop. I am feeling sick.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
True, Pie has more potential than Gathright. But for next year, neither one of them can start. Fukudome and Reed in CF with a new RF'er in Right. So we've got two bench players. Neither one has power (now) and if they did it wouldn't matter because neither one can really hit.
They're both fast. I've heard contradictory reports about Gathright's defense. I read somewhere that Pie is slightly better...and also that Gathright sucks altogether. Gathright is approaching the age when guys tend to break out so he might have a good season in the next year or so.
Gathright costs twice as much? I guess that's true, but it's a bit misleading. $800,000 isn't that much money.
Anyway, my point is that Pie wasn't very usefull on the roster last year. Sucked as a starter and a pinch hitter (didn't check that), but was a good defensive replacement, and pinch runner. Gathright can do those things. If someone values him and wants to give him a shot, it'd be nice to turn him into someone useful for the Cubs rather than keeping him as an instant out in pinch hit situations.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
I'm not seeing the comparison to Pie either. Gathright's ceiling is Tike Redman. Pie's ceiling is Curtis Granderson. Not that I ever see him coming close to that.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Not sure if this was directed at me, but my point wasn't ceiling. Pie is out of options, so he needs to be good now.
Right now, he has the ability of a bench player, who, if I remember correctly, hasn't been any good at pinch hitting. They both have the speed of a replacement guy. Sure, Pie is an excellent defensive replacement, but his real value is in his ceiling...which is only useful to the Cubs in terms of trade value.
I haven't seen Gathright in the OF, so I don't know how good he is. Prior the comment on MTR, I had read that he was a good defender.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Do you think it was a good signing if it leads to say:
Pie/Rich Hill/Tyler Colvin/Mitch Adkins
Jeremy Hermidia
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Seems like a lot to give up for Hermida, even with Hill having Steve Blass disease.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
There is absolutely no way that the Cubs would give up Pie/Rich Hill/Tyler Colvin/Mitch Adkins for Hermida.
That would be awful.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
As a 5th OF whose primary job will be pinch running, Gathright will be fine. For a guy not even likely to get 150 ABs before we clinch the division there sure seems to be too much aganst about this move. Also for all of those who still think Pie can play, I have Ben Madoff on line 1 for you, he has a great investment plan he wants to sell you on.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Assuming there's a new RF coming, we should already have our 5 OFs, unless Pie is as good as gone, which I think is what most peoples' problem is with this deal.
Personally, I'd way rather have Pie than Gathright on the bench, and I can only assume this is because Pie is getting traded.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
You'd rather have Pie than Gathright on the bench because Pie is being traded? So if we kept Pie you'd rather have Gathright?
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
I'd rather than Pie than Gathright. I assume the signing is because we won't have Pie for one reason or another.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
I like how Jim isn't backing himself into a corner this year. Sign Dempster so that he doesn't HAVE to trade for Peavy. Sign Gathright on the cheap so that they've got flexibility in case a Pie deal comes up. If it doesn't, well then they can fight it out in ST.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
What I'm reading here is that this Gathright signing is all about replacing Pie.
Couldn't it be just a little bit about replacing Fukudome? He's already been kicked out of right field. Maybe he's not the perfect centerfielder, either?
Have you guys ever looked at Fukudome's monthly splits in 2008? His .253 slugging percentage in 83 at bats in August?
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
If your argument is that Gathright is better than Fukudome, I don't think slugging percentage is the way to go.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Not what I meant. Gathright could have an everyday role batting leadoff or possibly #2, just based on speed and scratchiness (sort of like scrappiness). Where does Pie fit into the batting order? Nowhere. Fukudome? Same place.
Edmonds held down the centerfield job just based on fairly regular long balls to left. Fukudome can't do that, according to his SLG in the second half.
I quite agree with you that Fukudome could straighten himself out and hit like a major leaguer. So could Pie, maybe. But Pie won't get that chance, and Fukudome may not, either. Piniella is famously impatient.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Not what I meant. Gathright could have an everyday role batting leadoff or possibly #2, just based on speed and scratchiness (sort of like scrappiness).
Come on dude, give it up. Your argument makes no sense. What does Gathright have that Pie doesn't? There's not a person on this board other than you that would dream of batting either of them 2nd.
Edmonds held down the centerfield job just based on fairly regular long balls to left. Fukudome can't do that, according to his SLG in the second half.
Fine, but what's your point? Gathright can do the same? Come on.
The point is, even if you don't like Pie or Fukudome, neither of them are in any worse than Gathright, and are much better than him in some ways.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
"What does Gathright have that Pie doesn't?"
Gathright had fifteen bunt singles last season. I doubt Pie had one at Iowa or in Chicago. You would like a leadoff hitter to be able to bunt for a single once in a while, for a variety of reasons including the fact that if you can bunt against a righty, you can bunt against a lefty.
Pie could probably jump over a car but he can't bat leadoff. So where would he bat? Is he going bat sixth or seventh and hit long balls and drive in runs like Edmonds did? Piniella was talking about the number 8 hitter the other day, saying that you'd like a guy who can draw an intentional walk once in a while, to get the pitcher's at-bat out of the way this inning. So even the 8 hole is not a good fit for Pie.
Hendry said yesterday that the Cubs have been looking for a guy like Gathright for a long time; and that Lou loves this type of player. If you don't understand what I'm saying, you don't understand Hendry and Piniella either.
It's this simple: Lou is very tuned into whether a guy has the skills to handle a specific slot in the order.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
"Lou is very tuned into whether a guy has the skills to handle a specific slot in the order."
If you're argument didn't hinge on the idea that Gathright is a leadoff hitter, it wouldn't seem so ridiculous. But claiming that Gathright is a leadoff hitter because he can bunt, and Pie is not a leadoff hitter because he can't bunt just doesn't make sense.
What about batting average? What about OBP? What about working the count, seeing a lot of pitches? What about making a lot of contact? What about getting into scoring position? Gathright does none of these things significantly better than Pie, and Pie at 24 looks to improve, while Gathright looks to have peaked in 2007. The fact that Gathright is an extreme slap hitter doesn't make him a leadoff hitter--if he were an extreme slap hitter that could post a high OBP and get into scoring position/score a lot of runs, then he'd be a leadoff hitter. There is not one position player on the Cubs 25 man roster that I would have take a seat so Gathright could get an AB, nor would I substitute Gathright for Any of our Fukudome, Reed, or Pie as a defender.
I just don't understand why you think Gathright has value as an offensive player, or why he is better suited for the top of the order than Pie (when right now neither one of them really has any business hitting at the top of the order).
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
"We've been looking for a guy like this for quite some time."
"It's no secret Lou likes to have people like this in the organization."
People like what? Lou likes to have people like Felix Pie in the organization? Obviously, Hendry is talking about the things Gathright does that Pie doesn't, like beating out a bunt and then stealing second.
There are games when you're not going to drive too many balls against a tough pitcher. I refer you to Cub games of last October. Hendry and Piniella probably believe that a smart hitter who can steal first might be useful in such games.
You asked, "What about getting into scoring position?" Stealing a base usually accomplishes that.
You say Gathright is not a leadoff hitter. Well, he's not a great hitter. He was just released. But he seems to have better credentials at leadoff than anyone on the Cubs except Soriano, who has his own issues in that role. In his career Gathright has started 59 games at leadoff; 15 games hitting second; 60 hitting eighth; and 185 hitting ninth. It's debatable whether the #9 hole is more like 8 or more like 1.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Gathright clearly is a #9 hitter, which means he's a god-awful leadoff hitter, a player with a lot of speed, but no power, no patience, who strikes out too much, doesn't make all that much contact, and really is only a decent base stealer--not good enough to make up for all his other weaknesses. If Lou or Hendry believe taht he is a better leadoff hitter than Soriano, Theriot, Fontenot, Lee, Cedeno, Fuld, and just about anyone else, they greatly overestimate the importance of speed when it is not combined with strong baserunning or on-base skills. This is a poor use of roster space and resources. Why not just give the job to Fuld, if you want a guy who can bunt and steal a base? I guess that's a rhetorical question, since I don't plan on returning to this post.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
I, for one, love this logic!
Let's take the guy who one of the Major's shittiest offenses only gave 300 PA's to, and when they did give him PA's batted him in the slot where he'd get the fewest possible in any given day - move him to the NL's best offense, and put him in the slot where he can get as many PA's in a given day as possible.
Just because Lou says he wants it - doesn't make it right. Just like when Baker said he wanted Neifi. Part of your job as a GM is to indetify which players the manager likes, but also which ones will help him win games.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
The logic is sound only if Gathright is the starting center fielder, but that's not going to be the case (at least the way the roster is right now). He's the 4th or 5th OF.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
it's $800,000, probably had to guarantee him the money to get him to sign here. He can still be cut w/o much worries. It's a decent fallback option and cheap gamble if they do trade Pie or another OF'r gets hurt between now and spring training.
I don't think this is the writing on the wall for anyone quite yet...just some extra competition come spring training.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
This is all about winning in 2009 vs. Pie's potential.
Lou knows Gathright and has confidence in his ability to be a late-inning pinch runner and defensive replacement. He simply lacks confidence in Pie's ability to perform the same role in 2009.
Pie is out of options and out of time. But his potential has trade value, which will be leveraged to obtain something else we need to win now.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Why would anyone give a 5th OF an $800,000 major league contract? There are always guys floating around AA/AAA who can do what Gaithright does and for the league minimum. At least Pie has a little power and is probably better on defense. Gaithright looks like an out-making machine at the plate.
Does Pie have any options left? (Is that what "auto-renewal means on AZ Phil's Payroll list?) If Pie can't rebuild some of his value now in AAA, I can't believe he would bring much back in a trade at this point.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Pie may also be the inducement needed for someone to take on Marquis' salary, which is critical to landing the RF bat they need.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Submitted by Summer of Zimmer on Tue, 12/16/2008 - 2:02pm.
Does Pie have any options left? (Is that what "auto-renewal means on AZ Phil's Payroll list?) If Pie can't rebuild some of his value now in AAA, I can't believe he would bring much back in a trade at this point.
SUM of ZIM: "Auto-Renewal" means the player is not yet eligible for salary arbitration and so he can have his contract unilaterally and automatically renewed by the club if the player and club cannot come to agreement on a contract by the first week of March.
Both Felix Pie and Joey Gathright are out of minor league options, so both players would have to clear Outright Assignment Waivers (which are irrevocable) before they could be sent to the minors. However, because he has 3+ years of MLB service time, Gathright can refuse an outright assignment to the minors, either becoming a FA immediately when outrighted, or by deferring the right to be a FA until the end of the season. There are exceptions, but most players who are eligible to be free-agents if they get outrighted accept the assignment if it happens during Spring Training or during the regular season because otherwise the player loses his "major league contract."
Pie does not have the right to be a free-agent if he gets outrighted (he has less than three years of MLB service time and he has not been outrighted previously in his career), but he would certainly get claimed if the Cubs try to outright him. But Gathright might get through waivers without being claimed because he has less upside.
One problem with trying to outright Gathright is that if he is placed on Outrright Waivers and gets claimed, the claiming club is only responsible for the prorated portion of the MLB minimum salary, and the Cubs would have to pay the balance. Same thing if the Cubs release Gathright after the start of the season and another club signs him, the signing club only has to pay the prorated portion of the MLB mimumum salary (as happened with JIm Edmonds last year when the Cubs signed Edmonds after he got released by the Padres) .
Depending on whether Gathright's contract is guaranteed or not, the Cubs may be able to release him prior to Opening Day and save most of his 2009 salary. If Gathright does not have a guaranteed contract and gets released at least 16 days prior to Opening Day, the Cubs would only have to pay him 1/6 of his 2009 salary (or about $135K), and if he is released 15 or fewer days prior to Opening Day the Cubs would have to pay him 1/4 of his salary (or $200K). Of course, that's only if his contract is not guaranteed, and generally only "auto-renewal" and "arbitration eligible" guys have non-guaranteed contracts.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Thanks, AZ Phil! Clear and informative as always.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
If this deal happened a month from now, there'd be a lot fewer people freaking out. The problem is we still don't have our new RFer. Despite reports that the Cubs have focused solely on Bradley, and that they're his #1 choice, we've had no hint that a deal is close. One would assume, after the Peavy debacle, that could be because of salary woes. Nonetheless, we're blowing money on worthless players like Gathright.
If we didn't have Pie, and if he weren't out of options, then I could maybe understand this deal. However, since he's still on this team, and since he can't be sent down to get better, why do we need Gathright? Even as sucky as he is, Pie is a better hitter and far better defender.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Submitted by Rob G. on Tue, 12/16/2008 - 1:56pm.
there's a press release on the site as well and it says nothing about a minor league deal and he's on the cubs.com 40-man roster. It's a major league deal, which just means the $$ is guaranteed.
ROB G: Gathright's contract is not necessarily guaranteed, but it probably is. Most free-agents are able to get their contract guaranteed, the exception being if the player has no interested suitors willing to give him one.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Submitted by CPH2133 on Tue, 12/16/2008 - 12:14pm.
dumb question I'm sure, but whats the difference between a minor league and a major league deal? Does one provide more flexibility? Is it strictly a difference of how much money the contract must be for? I mean even though Gathrights contract is a major league deal, if he doesn't make a spot on the opening day squad, he can be cut regardless of it being a minor or major league deal?
CPH2133: If a FA (like Joey Gathright) signs a minor league contract, the club can pay him less than the $65K minimum minor league split (at least until he gets added to the 40-man roster), can send him to the minors out of Spring Training without having to place him on waivers, can keep him at AAA for the entire season (if necessary) as a fallback in case of an injury to one of the MLB guys, and the club would only be responsible for two weeks severance if the player gets released, and that's even if the player gets released during the season. So clubs much prefer signing a FA to a minor league contract, if possible.
Conversely, a FA (like Gathright) would want a major league contract because he can usually get his money guaranteed and without a minor league split if he does end up at AAA, it is more difficult for the club to send the player to the minors because the player would first have to clear Outright Assignment Waivers, and there is always the chance that if his club does try to outright him, he'll get claimed by another MLB club.
So Gathright apparently had some leverage in this deal, because otherwise the Cubs definitely would have rather signed him to a minor league contract with an NRI to ST instead.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Submitted by Seamhead on Tue, 12/16/2008 - 1:55pm.
This is all about winning in 2009 vs. Pie's potential. Lou knows Gathright and has confidence in his ability to be a late-inning pinch runner and defensive replacement. He simply lacks confidence in Pie's ability to perform the same role in 2009.
SEAMHEAD: Joey Gathright is to Lou Piniella as Tom Goodwin was to Dusty Baker.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
This is all about winning in 2009 vs. Pie's potential.
Because Joey Gathright is the piece that puts the Cubs over the top?
If he's the answer, I don't want to know the question.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
I think the Cubs signing Joey Gathright is a clear indication that Felix Pie will be traded prior to Opening Day, probably sooner rather than later, because the closer it gets to Opening Day the more Hendry will be under pressure to trade Pie (or risk losing him off waivers), and the other 29 GMs know that.
I could see the Cubs trading Pie to the Baltimore Orioles for Garrett Olson, partly to have a pitcher on the roster that Hendry knows Padres GM Kevin Towers would take back as part of a Peavy trade later in the season, and partly to give the Cubs a lefty AAA rotation starter with some MLB experience.
And Rich Hill could be going to Baltimore, too, to give the Orioles (and Hill's one-time minor league pitching guru Alan Dunn) a chance to try and fix whatever is wrong with him. Watch and see if the Orioles sign Michael Barrett, because if they do, R. Hill is going to Baltimore. Hill is VERY fussy, and Barrett is one of Rich Hill's buddies.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Gathright is a 25th man, and is not intended to put anyone over the top.
Per Dr. aaron B's comment above (#70) I am beginning to wonder if Bradley's salary demands (or more specifically length of contract) are forcing Hendry to look at the trade market for his RF.
He did indicate today that he has been approached with some new trade inquiries since the winter meetings, and has now positioned himself to offload Pie in a package deal.
I also wonder about Piniella's comfort level with Hoffpauir filling Ward's role on the bench. Despite his AAA numbers and left-handed bat, Hoffpauir is completely unproven as a ML pinch-hitter and backup 1B-OF. He is cost-effective, but makes me wonder if he has greater value as trade bait and can be replaced by a cheap veteran FA.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
fwiw, pinhead publicly (and not lip service "talking to the media" crap that some get bent out of shape over as gospel) has been all about some hoffpower on his bench from spring of last year all the way though 08 when his name was brought up.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Hoffpauir hit .364 .417 .409 in 24 PA's off the bench last year - 10 K's and 2 BB's isn't too good, but I doubt Pinhead remembers that.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
The Cubs have spent a lot of time with Pie in the minors working on his SB ability, but he just doesn't seem able to translate his raw speed into successful base stealing. I wouldn't be surprised if that played a role in the Cubs deciding to cut bait with Pie and sign Gathright. If you watch Lou's usage pattern of his bench players the last two years, he REALLY wants a guy he can use to essentially be a pinch runner and defensive replacement, not even getting an AB at the plate. That's exactly how he chose to use Pie oftentimes.
I would argue that in this very limited role, Joey Gathright is a better bet than Felix. Spend the $800K, trade Pie, and see what you get for him. The logic is there on Hendry's part.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
I wonder if Larry Beinfest regrets trading Josh Willingham and Scott Olsen so early in the offseason?
Surely the Cubs could have pieced together a better package for those two. It would almost be problem solved for the offseason if that deal could have been made.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
I guess people forget Pie still can't hit breaking balls to save his life. But whatever Pie is a god in the making, just like Vitters.
Read up on the article, Gathright brings versatilty to cover any OF position, can steal bases, and is a great bunter.
He makes an ideal pinch hitter, pinch runner, and has the ability to bunt people up into scoring position.
What more do you want out of a back-up OFer?
I am sure its fun to watch Ronny Cedeno fail to put down bunts, but this team kinda needs a person that can actually get the job done in that department. We are an NL team aren't we?
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
pie is a rare talent given how fast he can put his bat through the zone. it's something you can't learn and very little can train for. it's the basis for soriano's career.
it's no sure thing, but it's a hard thing to give up and plenty of GMs would love to have a kid like that around.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
You're right. If Pie can get that thing on a few fastballs every once in a while, then he'll be on his way to being a Soriano-lite. But, while neither of them can't hit a buried slider, Soriano tees off on fastballs. Pie doesn't tee off on anything.
And, with Felix running out of options, it's about time to figure out a few other contingency plans. Nothing says Joey is on the roster on April 6. Unfortunately for Felix, nothing says he is either.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Yeah, we are an NL team, which means we have a whole bunch of guys who can sacrifice bunt, they're called pitchers. I've never even heard of it proposed before that you add a position player to an NL roster for his sacrifice bunting ability.
Gathright has had 1300 MLB PA's to show that he's a 68 OPS+ hitter and a decent, not great base stealer. He's an inferior fielder to Pie, and inferior power threat, and when all is said and done, probably an inferior BA and OBP guy.
He's not totally worthless, but let's not get too excited about someone who's best skill in the batter's box is to make an out while advancing a runner.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
He makes an ideal pinch hitter, pinch runner, and has the ability to bunt people up into scoring position.
Well, two out of three anyway. He's not an ideal pinch hitter, not with an OBP of .328.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Arguing about whether Gathright or Pie is the best player is like arguing over which central African nation has the best investment opportunities.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
from the Sun-Times
``We're thrilled to have him,'' Hendry said of Gathright, who rates a top scouting score of 80 for speed and has backed it up by stealing 78 of 105 (ed note, that's only 74.3%) bases he's attempted in his career. He also is an adept bunter and a .263 career hitter (399 games).
Epic Fail, Wittenmyer
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
I'm not sure why anyone would be upset over this... what I take from the situation is:
Gathright and Pie bring more or less the same skill set to the table. Most Cubs fans should be able to clearly see that Pie is unlikely to ever develop into much beyond the career Gathright has had. Gathright comes very cheap, while to a team with the time and space to take a chance on him, Pie could have quite a bit of value. We essentially replace Pie with Pie while having the ability to turn him into a commodity more valuable than the cost of Gathright.
I'm kind of drunk, but that made sense in my head.
Pie is more valuable to the Cubs as a trade chip, I guess is the point.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
"Most Cubs fans should be able to clearly see that Pie is unlikely to ever develop into much beyond the career Gathright has had."
Because (while drunk) you say so?
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Anyone with eyesight can see Pie is a lost cause he might as well have David Patterson's eyesight at the plate because he swings at anything anyways.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
I presume "David Patterson" means Corey Patterson?
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Or David Patterson means David Patterson, the blind governor of New York.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Of course! I was just thinking baseball -- silly me. Of course, Corey's eyesight at the plate was no better. Maybe it's a Patterson thing.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Jon Heyman from Sports Illustrated is saying the Cubs are showing interest in Derek Lowe
My guess is he's gotten into some bad liquor.
"The Cubs could become a landing spot for star free-agent pitcher Derek Lowe...
Lowe could become a suitable rotation replacement in Wrigley Field. Peavy has $63 million over four years remaining on his contract, and that's very likely Lowe's price tag, as well."
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
I would take Gathright over Pie, but in the end who cares. We have yet to make any serious improvements to our team and one could argue that we have weakened the bullpen by letting Woods go. I am still waiting for Hendry to impress me this spring. And I am sorry signing Bradley is not going to impress me. I want Johnson (1 year), Abreu (2-3 years) and Roberts (yes he would still add value to our team). These three players together would make us better.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
I'm not sure that it matters who is the better player, Pie or Gathright. The fact is that Pie needs work and he's not going to get it sitting on the bench at the ML level. He's out of options, so he won't be getting the work he needs at Iowa either. Whether you consider Pie tradebait because a)the Cubs are tired of waiting for him to come around, or b) Hendry wants to give Pie a chance to reach his potential in another uniform, the result is the same. Either way, he's gone.
The roster is a work in progress. Signing Gathright just means that more moves are going to be made. Come opening day, I seriously doubt if signing Gathright will be anything but a footnote on the offseason.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
I somehow wished that Pie could be given a real shot at 200+ AB's or more.
Ain't gonna happen now, imo.
One thing I will remember was the throw he made Cir. 2007 from mid-depth center and threw the ball on the fly to nail a runner at home trying to score from 2nd.
It was truly spectacular.
No one on the current Cubs team can do that.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
I'll always remember that start he had in Pittsburgh last April. The one where he watched 2 fastballs right down the middle of the plate for strike 1 and 2.
Then the next pitch was a slider in the dirt that Felix missed by a foot.
Lou promptly took Pie out the next inning.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Pie won't succeed in the Cubs organization. It's as simple as that. His swing is shit and no one in the organization seems able or willing to help him swing the bat like a big leaguer.
And I'm sorry if any of you are excited about this signing, but Joey Gathright is a dud move for the Cubs, imo.
I hope I'm wrong, and I hope he does really well for us, but I think we'll be looking for somewhere to unload him by July 09.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Can't get that excited over the 5th outfield position. If Pie can be traded for somebody of value, great. I saw him a few times in Des Moines and I've never seen a prettier swing while missing a breaking ball by a minimum of 6 inches. I'm counting outfielders: Sori, Fuko, Reed, Gathright, the Hoff. That's 5, does this mean Cub no longer are going after a left handed right fielder?
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
LF - Soriano
CF - Fuku/Reed Platoon
4th OF - Gathright
1B (RF?) - ThePower
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
pretty much it...not like hoffpower or gath should be too much apart on plate appearances, though, no matter who considers which one the 4th/5th OF.
i hope gathright is a luxury the team can afford. yes, he can play all 3 OF slots and instantly becomes the fastest guy on the team available selectively almost any time off the bench, but his power is non-existant (yes, less than theriot hands down). everything he will do as a cub will rely solely on his legs. even if he ends up hitting .280+ or something respectable it will all rely on his speed.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
The whole Pie-Gathright debate is like arguing over which turd smells the worst.
My only thought is that sometimes it is better to have a 25th man who knows he is a 25th man, rather than some hotshot stud who believes he shouldn't be in that role.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
From the Royals blog: "He does not hit homers, ever. He does not triple, ever. He does not hit doubles, ever. In 1239 big league PAs, Gathright has a total of thirty eight extra-base hits. He walks, hit hits singles, that's it, and on most team that just isn't good enough. He's one of the most extreme slap hitters in the modern era. Like the wine fridge, he's a waste of money..."
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Pie/Hill/Colvin/Atkins for Jeremy Hermida.
The Jeremy Hermida!??? Can we give them Vitters, Samardzija, and Marmol too?
.249/.323/.406 last season in 142 games. 48 walks and 138 K's.
I understand that Pie will never get to play here. I understand that Gathright fills a need for a pinch runner, pinch out-maker, and car jumper.
I also understand that I am leery of why the Marlins would want to trade the soon to be 25 year old OF if he has so much potential.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Cause none of those guys are really "Prospects"
1. Hermida is on the block
2. He is cheap
3. He would be under club control for 3 more years
4. He plays a decent RF
5. He hits left handed
What doesnt seem to fit?
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Which of those six conditions does Felix Pie not satisfy?
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Since when is Colvin not a prospect?
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
They're all 'prospects', but since Colvin repeated AA poorly and had TJ surgery he's not much of one.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Maybe because Hermidia by atleast one scout shows no passion for the game of baseball. Just playing the game to get a paycheck. He was benched towards the end of the season
I think as Cubs fans we have seen far too many of those players come through our organization that just go through the motions.
That attitude for sure wont gel with Piniella who wants players that have a fire inside them. Thats why he likes guys like Theriot, who work their ass off. They may not be the best, but sometimes wanting it more gets the job done more than the guy with all the talent in the world who just doesn't give a fuck.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
I'd take Manny Ramirez... at shortstop... over Theriot.
I think the not caring thing can be from a Bakerized scout who doesn't like to see hitters try to work the count. That's the same thing that was said about Dunn, which turned out to be a complete fabrication.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
One of the teams that reportedly approached Hendry at the Winter Meetings was the Twins, who supposedly had interest in DeRosa's availability.
The Twins do have Jason Kubel, a lefty hitting RF who hit 20 HR's last year and has an OPS superior to Hermida's, and whose salary fits within the Cubs budget constraints. The Twins can afford to move Kubel as there are some adequate in-house replacements on their roster.
I'm not suggesting a DeRosa-for-Kubel, but perhaps there is a fit here somewhere if Bradley decides go with Tampa.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
I saw the Twins continuing interest in DeRosa this morning. I'm for trading DeRosa depending on what we can get. Kubel would be OK, but I really like Delmon Young. I still think he has super star potential and is plenty young.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Well put Mike C.
If Hermida was working the count...he should probably stop at this point:
2007: 47 walks/ 105 K's
2008:48 walks / 138 K's
Hey...at least the Marlins were giving him a shot to play I guess?
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Sorry, I thought Young was a lefty. I still like him though. The marlins top 10 prospects came out in Baseball America and Ceda is number 10. It makes me sick that we gave him up.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Who cares about Ceda? Now we've got Gregg, who is one of our top 10 relief pitchers.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Yeah, the whole "don't sign the gutsy face of the franchise, who can be unhittable at times and who everybody absolutely loves, then trade your top closer prospect for a middle-of-the-road closer" thing hasn't gotten any easier to understand with time.
Still hurts.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
I think Hendry has believed for the past couple years that he wouldn't have a job with the Cubs in 2009. So, he kept signing FAs and re-signing guys on the team to backloaded contracts that would give the team a great chance to win in the short-term (2007, 2008, 2009), but would be crippling to the payroll in the long-term.
Now, with a piss poor economy and new ownership yet to be determined, Hendry's handcuffed with regards to the payroll and can't afford to make any significant moves this offseason. It suddenly became very important to save $3-4 million here and there. That's the only legit reason why he would have traded Ceda for Gregg and told Kerry to take a hike.
Let me also say that I don't think that all those contracts were that bad (except Soriano's), and it probably did give us the best possible chance to win in 2008. Unfortunately, it all hinged on Fukudome being the star we were promised. Unless he turns it around, 2009 may be our last chance with the team as currently configured. Beyond '09 we lose Lilly, DeRosa, and probably Harden, Lee will continue to get older and less productive (if that's even possible), Aramis may start to decline (hopefully slowly), Soriano won't be getting any better or more healthy, and unless Vitters works out we have a dearth of prospects of any kind.
World Series in 2009, then blow up the team.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Two problems.
Lilly's on a four year deal.
How are you going to blow up the team when all your high priced players have NTC clauses and just won a World Series?
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
Winning a championship and blowing up the team worked fantastically for the Chicago Bulls.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
I'm thinking more like the Marlins after their first championship, but keeping enough guys around to still compete.
I didn't consider the NTC mess Hendry got himself into, but I just don't see how this team can compete beyond '09 without acquiring some really good prospects/young guys.
I'd love it if the Cubs spent $150-160m a year, but at least for the foreseeable future, that's not likely. That means they're stuck with the guys they have and a weak farm system. Unfortunately, most of the guys they have are going to get worse, not better.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
" but keeping enough guys around to still compete."
1998 Florida Marlins won 54 games.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
handcuffed or not...the day cubs fans start bitching (and im NOT saying you are) about a 130m-140m team is the day i lose hope for cubs fans. heh...
i could care less that they "could" spend 200m or so...personally, i don't want to watch 162 games of a guns-for-hire NYY/BOS style team. for all the winning they've both done there has been NOTHING close to the 96 yanks team as far a "feel good" win.
for as much winning as BOS does that clubhouse seems to be a constant source of players who are unhappy or being forced out. it's always someone who's a problem who doesn't seem to have problems elsewhere...pedro, nomar, manny (well...), etc.
given all the stress youkillis seems to be laying on the team, he's probably next.
Re: Is the Car Jumper a Cub?
...implying that Hendry could be a basketball scout in a few years.
Recent comments
Friday's games will be in Washington, Chicago, Arlington, and Cleveland or Boston. Someone's game is starting laaaaaaaate - 50-50 chance it's the CDT Cubs.
Meh, I messed that up. Mets are in.
Cards and Giants can still tie though.
Kershaw gets hurt by his defense and gave up 2 more runs. Blach has 8 shutout innings.
Mets already won as did Cards.
tomorrow is gonna be helluva fun if Giants hold on. We're all rooting for a 3-way tie I presume.
good news is now 5 K's for Lester through 4 (in a quest for 200 for season). Bad news is he's already at 86 pitches.
be curious how long Maddon sticks with Lester to try and let offense get back into it and get him the win (4-2 as I type, was 4-0)
Fwiw, he needed 2.1 IP to cross 200 for season so he got that at least. He also needs 9 K's for 200K's on season and he has 4 through 3.
cubs score 2 runs thanks to predictable reds pitching and horrible CIN defense...cubs only down by 1 now. heyward even got a gift 2rbi double out of an easy popout. neat.
something named Ty Blach has outpitched Clayton Kershaw through 6 innings (1-0 Giants).
not that finishing 2nd place will matter much nor did this game, but have to think if Hendricks pitches well tomorrow, he could leapfrog Lester in Cy Young voting. Don't see anyway Scherzer doesn't win it regardless and it doesnt' look like Lester has any incentive clauses that matter. Also might give Cueto some votes.
Rather remarkable how many teams have really good 1-2 options this year.
Nats: Scherzer and Roark (and Strasburg was great before injuries)
Cubs: Lester and Hendricks (and Arrietta is still damn good just not as consistently lately)
pretty much what I'm gathering from this thread is that it doesn't matter who you play in 5-game series, but no one wants to have to deal with Cardinal fans if we end up losing.
I can respect that.
first game for lester giving up more than 2 runs since july 24th. hell of a run.
doh, yes...dunno what happened there. jake arrieta is all "bro wut?"
lester going for #20...cubs haven't had a LH (thanks jpep for the correction) 20 game winner since d.ellsworth in 1963.
fwiw, all the games are free on mlb.tv
Short rest for MadBum would be 2 days. WC game is Wed., Games 1 & 2 are Friday/Saturday.
A left-handed one...
J-Hey not finishing with an offensive onslaught.
If Geoff Blum could be a Playoff hero, there is hope still...


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