text:
The (Media) Circus Comes To Town
|Jason Schmidt, RHP 2-2, 3.77 ERA, 43 IP 33 K, 18 BB, 4 HR
|Rich Hill, LHP 0-1, 11.25 ERA, 4 IP
The rematch we've all been waiting for, who could forget the epic duel between Hill and Schmidt last year on July 25th. In his first major league start, Hill labored through 5 innings, but held the Giants to merely two runs while striking out five. The veteran Schmidt though was up to the task, hurling seven strong innings, his only blemish - a Michael Barrett dinger. The Cubs offense persisted though, scratching a run off of Boo-Bird Hawkins in the eight, and then finally pushing through in the ninth off Tyler Walker. Cedeno leads off with a single, was moved over on a sacrifice bunt by Hairston, a sharp single to right by Todd Walker advanced Cedeno to third and that was followed up by the easiest decision ever made in baseball, an intentional walk to Derrek Lee. That set the stage for the one and only Jeromy Burnitz, who promptly flied out to centerfield, deep enough for the young Cedeno to scamper home with the winning run. 3-2, Cubs Win, Cubs Win!!!! Why did I write just write in such great detail about a meaningless game last July? Because it's a lot more exciting than the drivel the Cubs have produced over the last week or so. One other quick note from the game last year, Omar Vizquel stole 3 bases in the game, 2 off the Hill/Barrett combo that we'll see tonight. With Randy Winn now on the team, Hill's inability to hold runners and Barrett's well-known throwing deficiencies, I expect a track meet out there. Of course we stole five bases off Piazza over the weekend and scored one run off a Ramirez home run, so it probably won't matter much. The Cubs seven game losing streak though will take a backseat (at least on a national level) to the Barry Bonds pursuit of Babe's home run total. A mere two home runs from becoming the second greatest home run hitter of all-time, it will be up to the Cubs pitching staff to try and stave off the celebration until a later date. With Alou out at least 2 weeks (and likely more), I don't see any good reason to pitch to Mr. Bonds with anybody on base. Normally I abhor the "Walk Bonds" approach, because telling your pitchers that you don't think they're good enough to get Bonds out isn't the way to inspire future confidence when they do need to get a good hitter out. But in this case, I'd rather not watch that buffoon celebrate while I'm trying to watch the game. He may possibly be the greatest baseball player ever and I could care less, chemically enhanced or not, he's a jerk, a creep, and I hope he never even sniffs Aaron's record. If I was a major league pitcher, if I ever reached a three ball count on him, I'd just throw at his armguard every single time. Heck with George Mitchell's steroid witchhunt, go find out how much his home run rate went up once he started setting up half an inch off the plate with 2 feet of body armor covering his "tender" elbow. (On a sidenote, he is a free agent next year, man we could use a bat like that, Any takers? Anyone?........kidding) The Cubs are in desperate need of some offense, some defense, some kind of spark, a bench-clearing brawl, who knows. I suggest drilling Bonds each time, see what happens. Win a freakin' game!!!
Any takers?
Any takers? Anyone?ÖÖ..kidding
Why are you kidding? I would take him.
i am so tired of this shit.
i am so tired of this shit.
i second that.
i second that.
I woudl take him in a
I woudl take him in a heartbeat too. Oh yeah and that Alou guy who hendry didn't want. His stats the past 2 years have sucked (sarcasm).
why can't we have a "fun"
why can't we have a "fun" team? you know, one that you root for, and is young and trying, and, yes, making some mistakes, but, like a puppy, you forgive their transgressions because you know they are trying and will get better. but these guys, jeez, they just suck.
winds only blowing 20mph out
winds only blowing 20mph out to right, what a lousy day for Bonds to try and break pass Ruth. :)
yeah Manny, complain about
yeah Manny, complain about Hendry going after injury-prone players, then complain about Hendry not going after Alou. Pick a side, Mariotti!!!
i mean you just pick up
i mean you just pick up their shit and complain. there is no joy in mudville.
try and pass Ruth I meant in
try and pass Ruth I meant in post #6
Rob G.: "yeah Manny,
Rob G.:
"yeah Manny, complain about Hendry going after injury-prone players, then complain about Hendry not going after Alou."
How was he injury prone???
The past 6 years he has averaged playing in over 137 games per season. For someone with his age and great production I would take in a heartbeat. I know you might want to deflect any critism away from hendry, but the fact is he made a mistake not keeping Alou. PERIOD!!!
well PERIOD!!! Holy
well PERIOD!!! Holy s****!!! I suppose there's no point in even attempting a retort. I mean PERIOD!!!, must make it true.
Alou has played 14 major league seasons (I'm starting in 1992), he's played less than 150 games 9 of those seasons (excluding 1994). I am including this year cause he's already on the DL for at least 2 weeks if not longer. A 38 year old with a huge injury history is a pretty poor risk, especially on a team with enough injury issues. Of course there were contract and money issues that went into the decision as well. He's also a bad baserunner and a marginal defender (you know the anti-fundamental player you keep telling Hendry to go get more of).
Anyone don't really care if you really thought he should have kept Alou, but since you enjoy piling on Hendry for continuing to go after injury prone players, it's just another example of you talking out of both sides of your mouth.
"there is no joy in
"there is no joy in mudville"
Actually there is joy in "Mudville".... I was at the Toledo Mudhens game tonight and who was catching for the Norfolk Tides?
Sandy Martinez! Ya he sucks, but he will always carry a special place in my heart for catching the 20 K game in '98.
I had actually forgotten all about the guy, and got pretty excited. I blamed it on my love for the old Kerry Wood, my wife blamed it on the beer.
Either way, it was a good time.
At 39 years old, Bonds' OBP
At 39 years old, Bonds' OBP was .609. I still can't believe that's real. When most players his age are thinking about managing a AA team somewhere, he was busy getting intentionally walked 120 times.
I agree with you, Rob. With his gigantic elbow literally over the plate, he still 'only' got hit 9 times in his last full season, and has never been hit more than 9 times. Compare that to Fernando Vina, another platemonger, who got hit 28 times one year (compared to 36 walks).
If you're going to walk him, hit him-- and make sure it's in the ribs, not that hockey-goalie elbow pad he has. Make him think twice before hoarding the plate again. If the Giants look to retaliate by hitting one of our star hitters, the joke is on them -- we don't have any!
there is a difference in
there is a difference in re-signing alou and replacing alou. wisely, hendry did not re-sign. stupidly, hendry did not replace.
for what it's worth.
roids...no roids...whatever...the man is f'n awesome at the plate.
off the field, pre game, post game, in the dugout, in the clubhouse...whatever...at the plate he is just simply awesome.
Manny, you're NOT a dipshit
Manny, you're NOT a dipshit (sarcasm).
don't disagree with any of
don't disagree with any of that crunch, I can appreciate his game, doesn't mean I root for him
"If you're going to walk
"If you're going to walk him, hit him-- and make sure it's in the ribs, not that hockey-goalie elbow pad he has."
I'm sitting here smiling as I imagine Bob Gibson or Ferguson Jenkins pitching to this guy. Or Whitey Ford, or Charlie Root, Three-Finger Brown, or ... oh, anyone from the old days who had a mean fastball and an attitude. Bonds would be picking dirt or horsehide out of his teeth.
Wow, that Pujols guy is
Wow, that Pujols guy is something else...
totally...i dont root for
totally...i dont root for bonds either, but i find it hard to look away when he's at the plate.
even if he's chocked full of roids to the point of overflowing what he's done at the plate the past few years is probally something we'll never see in our lifetime again.
Rob G.- Just admit Hendry
Rob G.-
Just admit Hendry screwed up and stop trying to attack me and make it about me. Alou would of been 1200 times better than the LF crap last year or JJ this year.
Dc: "there is a difference
"there is a difference in re-signing alou and replacing alou. wisely, hendry did not re-sign. stupidly, hendry did not replace."
maybe so and if hendry did go out and actually get a real corner OF I wouldn't complain, but we had a very productive one and Hendry let him go. So when people say "not hendry's fault as there was nobody to get", that excuse doesn't hold water.
BJS: "Manny, you're NOT a
"Manny, you're NOT a dipshit"
Thanks man, I love you too...
Manny, Hendry probably
Manny, Hendry probably would've kept him around if your boyfriend Dudsy was half the player's manager he's supposed to be. Dudsy ran such a smooth clubhouse in 2004 (sarcasm). Baker's no-account ass is why Hendry purged the clubhouse. He was getting rid of the distractions that the no-account, shit-for-brains Baker couldn't control and didn't want to take any responsibility for. PERIOD!!!
BJS- Thanks for your deep
Thanks for your deep intellectual thoughts on the matter. (sarcasm)
Was There Last Year - for
Was There Last Year
- for Rich Hill's debut. I was so excited for what I thought was a can't miss prospect.I don't feel that way now. Rich even showed some terrible base running skills and COULD HAVE scored from 3rd. I did enjoy booing a little bit of LaTroy Hawkins, and he truly stunk up the joint and didn't last an inning on his "return" to Wrigley. I still would just like to blow up this team save for Cedeno, DLee and Murton. Trade ARAM to an AL team where he wouldn't need to run as a DH. Fire Dusty, Gene Clines, and Sarge. And Spier too. JUST CLEAN HOUSE. No Neifi. No HAirston. No TWalk. Suck for a couple of years, yet build something up that has energy and is hungry to win - and of course plays fundamental baseball.
Was There Last Year - for
Was There Last Year
- for Rich Hill's debut. I was so excited for what I thought was a can't miss prospect.I don't feel that way now. Rich even showed some terrible base running skills and COULD HAVE scored from 3rd. I did enjoy booing a little bit of LaTroy Hawkins, and he truly stunk up the joint and didn't last an inning on his "return" to Wrigley. I still would just like to blow up this team save for Cedeno, DLee and Murton. Trade ARAM to an AL team where he wouldn't need to run as a DH. Fire Dusty, Gene Clines, and Sarge. And Spier too. JUST CLEAN HOUSE. No Neifi. No HAirston. No TWalk. Suck for a couple of years, yet build something up that has energy and is hungry to win - and of course plays fundamental baseball.
SORRY for the DOUBLE POST!
SORRY for the DOUBLE POST! PLEASE EXCUSE ME!!
good response, manny. I
good response, manny. I figured you wouldn't have any comeback for the truth about your boyfriend.
Hendry sucks, stop attacking
Hendry sucks, stop attacking Manny.
Hendry sucks. Stop attacking
Hendry sucks.
Stop attacking Manny.
Hendry sucks?
Stop attacking, Manny.
Hendry sucks.
Stop! Attacking Manny!
fun with punctuation.
Just admit Hendry screwed up
Just admit Hendry screwed up and stop trying to attack me and make it about me
Huh? Attack? All I did was call out your double speak, stop playing the victim.
Hendry screwed up by waiting too long to move Sosa. He didn't pick up Alou's extension cause he wasn't sure if he was or could move Sosa and there was a budget issue. By the time the dust settled, everyone was gone. It's totally on him, I agree. I probably would have cut bait with Alou to at the time, but would have moved a lot quicker on the Sosa deal. Hopefully find someone else OR worst case scenario, resign Alou at a discounted rate (remember his option was quite high)
Hendry does suck... Dusty
Hendry does suck...
Dusty sucks much more and is a bigger problem than Hendry...
Manny refuses to see the reality that Dusty is a piss poor manager...
Manny deserves to be called out for being a pud and for constantly coping an attitude like he did with Rob.
thanks anyway, Fred
"Paranoid thinking and
"Paranoid thinking and behavior are hallmarks of the form of schizophrenia called "paranoid schizophrenia." Individuals with paranoid schizophrenia commonly have extremely bizarre delusions or hallucinations, almost always on a specific theme. Sometimes they hear voices that others cannot hear or believe that their thoughts are being controlled or broadcast aloud. Also, their performance at home and on the job deteriorates, often with a much diminished degree of emotional expressiveness."
"In contrast, people with relatively milder paranoid disorders may have such symptoms as delusions of persecution or delusional jealousy, but not the prominent hallucinations or impossible, bizarre delusions of paranoid schizophrenia. Those with milder paranoid disorders are customarily able to work, and their emotional expression and behavior are appropriate to their delusional belief. Apart from their delusions, their thinking remains clear and orderly. On the other hand, those with paranoid schizophrenia are often intellectually disorganized and confused."
Manny, which one are you?
Rob G.: "It's totally on him
Rob G.:
"It's totally on him (hendry), I agree."
There you go...Thanks!!!
Rob G.: "stop playing the
Rob G.:
"stop playing the victim."
Ironic consdering the previous posts, huh?
The pitcher for the Padres
The pitcher for the Padres just had a better at-bat than any Cub over the last 2 weeks.
settle guys, it's one thing
settle guys, it's one thing to argue about baseball, another to go after a guy personally. Relax!
Hill is getting pounded, but
Hill is getting pounded, but of course he's doing it in San Fran. I'll take Guzman over this, thank you.
Pierre just took away #714.
Pierre just took away #714. That's gonna be the play that rights this ship. Just watch.
Okay, who am I kidding. But still, if Pierre gets on this inning, it could be just what the (voodoo) doctor ordered.
Hey, where's Carrie Muskat's
Hey, where's Carrie Muskat's mailbag this week? She must be sifting through all the hatemail, or trying to come up with more snide remarks to fans with legitimate questions.
Who here can honestly say
Who here can honestly say that this team wouldn't have been better off if Dusty had been fired the day after the 2004 season. He let a team lose focus the last week of a season when they had a 1.5 game wild card lead. The team underachieved all year and shouldn't have even let Houston back in the race. They were basket cases and the clubhouse was basically an asylum.
Furthermore there is no way a manager could have done LESS with the 2005 and 2006 teams than Dusty. And even if you disagree with that -- is he doing a 4 million dollar a year job with this team?
He basically admitted in the spring training press that he was distracted last year and took no responsibility for it.
As far as this year, name another team could lose one player and go into this kind of slide. And yes manny Hendry takes some of that responsibility (I have been terribly disappointed with him the last two years) but Dusty is the cancer that got the whole thing going. And his job is to handle adversity and he makes it exponentiallly more severe instead. Shame on Hendry for keeping Dusty after 2004 - shame on Dusty for his performance the last 2.2 years.
And shame on Crunch for
And shame on Crunch for whatever bullshit he is about to say.
Just kidding crunch . . . I
Just kidding crunch . . . I just know you are going to disagree with me of course.
jacos- You win $5 virtual
You win $5 virtual bucks...
Cedeno had 4 Ab's tonight and saw a atotal of 11 pitches (2.75 pitchers per PA)
Neifi had 3 AB's tongith and saw a total of 8 pitches (2.67 pitchers per PA)
I owe you a beer when you go to a game with me in my seasons....
yeah...this is obviously the
yeah...this is obviously the manager's fault.
god knows these players aren't to blame...that would be too hard to accept, huh?
sorry, but this is NOT a manager's fault.
what lineup would you march out there? what difference would it make? isn't this as close to optimal as it gets? whining about a 2nd basemen when the whole lot are no-power sub-.300ob% performers would not be a good place to start.
insted of focusing on results of players who are failing...let's treat them like 10 year olds and blame the lineup jockey insted of the grown adults who are put in their proper roles. maybe if dusty says he'll take them out to chucky cheese if they win will get them going...maybe give them some tokens to play skee-ball.
yes, you are watching professional ballplayers fail...you are not watching a manager turn professional ballplayers into crap by mismanaging them.
how ya like dem apples? they're fresh off the f'n tree...eat up and digest that. sorry if its hard to swallow.
Only the Cubs advance
Only the Cubs advance scouting staff can prepare the pitching staff for a guy who is 1 for 25 from the right side .... he goes 3 for 5 tonight. This crap has to start at the top. I'm sick and tired of excuses. The scouting staff doesn't prepare the team for success.
I think my observations vs. the Cardinals earlier were correct....I thought...why is it when the Cubs hit a ground ball, it turns into a double play...and the Cardinals hit one, it goes through somewhere where nobody is playing? The answer: poor coaching/scouting and preparation. Other teams have a plan and execute...the Cubs go up and hack away.
If I were made manager...and I don't think I would do any better than Baker...I'd institute rule 1....If you swing at the first pitch and make an out...$5,000 fine. If you hit (on the first pitch) into a double play....$20,000 fine.
2. Jacques "choke" Jones would become the most expensive player at Iowa ever.
3. Wood is coming back tomorrow. May 17th may be too late. His contract is up this year. My guess is he'll have a great year.
4. Nefi and Jerry Jr. aren't going to play anymore....Walker at 2nd...or the new guy..and Mabry (or Walker) at 1st.
This is rediculous...buy a share in the Tribune company and demand results.
BOYCOTT Wrigley...
Boo mercilessly when you are there....and only go if the tickets are a comp.
Drink at the bars in Wriglyville...and don't buy anything inside Wrigley field.
A message needs to be sent that the product is unacceptable.
Herzog once said something like...give me 9 guys in the last year of their contract and I'll manage a winner.......
The Cubs have scored ELEVEN
The Cubs have scored ELEVEN runs the last TEN games. Somebody ought to get fired...
Crunch, Dusty is not
Dusty is not motivating this team. End of story.
No lineup change. No starting pitching. This team is playing like zombies.
No fire
No spark
No life
its painful to watch. its
its painful to watch.
its even more painful to accept what you're seeing while watching it.
the last win was a 2-1 win over pitt (may 1st)...the last time the team scored more than 3 runs in a game was april 28th (6 vs. mil)...
the only guys hitting worth a damn during that time period was j.jones and murton hitting his singles...aram with his 2 homers in the 2 previous games...
Dusty is the worst manager
Dusty is the worst manager in baseball and I and others have been telling that to you for 3 years. He will never win. No WS under Dusty. That's a promise. Why? He's nuts, he's stupid and he thinks he is incredible. Bad combination.
Crunch please explain to me why Dusty is a good manager? On a daily basis several of us school your ass on details and you just ignore the facts (the double switches, freaky lineups, pitching rhythms, bullshit press conferences, pompousness in the face of TOTAL failure) and your response is what?
Cubs are doing great. Manager is great. CLubhouse is great. Latest callup Great. Blahblah blah.
You either enjoy countering everybody and the truth itself OR you are a bully planted here by «ubs' to try and counter bad PR.
Either way your ideas are absurd. Enjoy your losing team. They are just what you order and constantly defend. So go get'em Crunchie.
98 years and counting.
As I said in week two and thee when the Cubs were soaring, wach Dusty fall apart. Watch the magic. Well you ain't seen nothing yet. Dusty Baker is bad at his job and emotionaly unstable. The fireworks are just starting.
Guy still resents stone and sammy and ivy league girl and chicago and the press. For $4 million a year you think he'd hire someone to tell him how to make a substitution, light a fire under a team, and hold a press conference. Maybe even say ONCE "I blew it." Never has though . . .
Eh, not including today the
Eh, not including today the pitcher's ERA this month was like 4.20, not great but it's really, really hard to blame them.
As much as the Cubs have
As much as the Cubs have sucked the last couple of weeks or so, it's hard to put all of the blame on Dusty. The 25-man roster we have right now is flat out terrible. Dusty isn't helping, but Dusty's negative impact is negligible at this point. This team just sucks and no manager can change that.
Manny...who was talking
Manny...who was talking about triples on the broadcast?
It looks like someone on that production team reads Hardball Times.
sj...where did i say dust
sj...where did i say dust was a good manager?
are you watching these games?
are you watching these professionals?
is dusty really what you gotta bitch about watching this?
are you for f'n real? dusty? what? HUH?
i see players in their proper roles failing...you wanna bitch about a guy who doesnt throw a ball or swing a bat.
that's a cop out where i come from. these are not children out there.
im not a cubs PR person...what's going now has NOTHING to do with the past 98 years...
and this shit:
"Either way your ideas are absurd. Enjoy your losing team. They are just what you order and constantly defend. So go get'em Crunchie"
*** you have no idea what you are talking about and even less about what i am talking about if you can even type that crap and think it even remotely applies to me or my statements. ***
sorry if its easier for you to blame 1 person rather than keeping track of 25+ other people.
and i dont counter everyone's post...but to watch this past few weeks and have people STILL bitch about a manager is beyond obsurd.
lemmie get this straight so you can understand it...
that clear? seems crystal clear to me.
now you can go on and on about steve stone and girls and other crap that has nothing at all to do with what's on the field if it makes you feel better, but those are grown men out there creating their own fate.
I think some of the Dusty
I think some of the Dusty apologists are asking the wrong question. Rather than asking "Would any manager do better?"- we should be asking "Is it worth paying a manager $4 million a year if he can do NO BETTER than Joe Shmo?"
Granted, you can't pin it all on Dusty. But Dusty definitely deserves some of the blame. So does Hendry, Tribco, McFail, and of course, the players. But Tribco ain't selling the Cubs any time soon; Hendry just got an extension, McFail is the luckiest sob on earth, and you can't fire all 25 players. So you start in the highest leadership position that YOU CAN DO SOMETHING about. And that position is Dusty and the whole staff. That doesn't mean you stop there, but you START there. It's important to get some new perspectives and new approaches to the players.
The point is NOT that Dusty
The point is NOT that Dusty is causing this current drought. He is NOT fully responsible for this. No way. BUT he is a big reason why this organization is in disarray. Hendry is a fool for backing him and has not helped the team much the last two years. But Dusty cancer is a powerful sickness and his scapegoating attitude in 2004 and 2005 were dispicable and coupled with Hedry's reactive purgation of talent and personalities led to what Baseball America call MLB's most dysfunctional organization. Look at the big picture for f%cks sake. The standard you are holding Dusty to is "well he is not responsible for one of the worst offensive droughts in MLB history. Hell THAT is a losing attitude. Can we please hold a manager to a higher standard than "one out of every 3 games he doesn't jsut plain hurt the team's chances to win". 4 million dollars a year and in 2004 possibly the most Cubs talent of my lifetime. The standards need to be MUCH higher. Wake p Cubs fans. Do you want to win someday?
Super, Dusty is not a bad
Dusty is not a bad manager. He's not the right guy for this team but he's not a bad manger. The only people who don't like him are people OUTSIDE of professional baseball.
And before anyone says that
And before anyone says that Dusty is a big reason that a lot of the free agents came to the Cubs (because he's a player's manager), save it. Alou came in 2002; Juan Pierre has seen better days; Jacques Jones just plain sucks; Todd Walker is a nice fit at best; same with Michael Barrett; Maddux wanted the highest paycheck; and Howry and Eyre are merely set up men.
I don't think anyone is stupid enough to say it's ALL Dusty's fault. But there is a stockpile of reasons as to why Dusty could and should not be given a new contract. Don't even have to fire him this year. Just don't extend his contract.
Crunch you are just plain
Crunch you are just plain wrong. About everything.
"Crunch you are just plain
"Crunch you are just plain wrong. About everything."
awww...poor poor baby. evidently you're the one who needs TLC and your hand held to make it through this slump.
super...the past weeks you've been watching these games and dusty is what you find the time to go on a rant about?
losing attitude? steve stone? ivy girls? the big picture? 4 million dollar manager?
i dont care if jesus christ is managing the club...you give him this club/roster and you're not gonna find very much variation at all with the lineup...definately not any impact moves.
the right players have been playing almost every game in almost all the right places and THEY didn't cash in their chance.
you seem to think they need their hands held to produce and the clubhouse is in chaotic anarchy.
its hard to accept players in a slump not cashing in their chances, but we're knee deep in it.
Dave: "Manny...who was
"Manny...who was talking about triples on the broadcast?"
Kasper said something about Finley being #1 active in triples (when he hit the triple). Then I looked up the list to see if he was right. He was... To note, Bonds was #4 active and Neifi was #10 active in triples.
Nazey, if we have to wait
if we have to wait another 5 months to have Dusty fired...it's going to be a long summer.
btw...im not wrong about
btw...im not wrong about everything.
and ya know what...unlike you i can accept and respond publically when i am.
he only people who don't
he only people who don't like him are people OUTSIDE of professional baseball.
I don't think the Giants organization liked him much either at the end there.
Chad, we've been through
we've been through this before. First of all I don't care what other people say in baseball or out. I know stupid management when I see it. It is obvious. Throwing Hawkins out there when he blew 9 of 11 one run save opportunities. Stupid. Batting Neifi #2 Stupid. Paying attention to a frickin' TV Color man with a week left in a playoff run. Stupid. Forgetting to report a double switch with an umpire in 2004 and giving the team an out. Stupid. Sitting Murton until everyone on the planet knew he was a hitter. Stupid. pinch hitting Neifi and Macias in late inning situations. Stupid. Replacing Jaque Jones in late innings with a worse defender. Stupid. Removing two of your best hitters whe the team was struggling for runs. Stupid (and that could have been te da the Cubs cme out of the funk. Instead they had NO CHANCE, this is how Dusty continues negative trends with his lineup).Batting Korey number one. Stupid. having pitchers that only care about strikeouts and hitters taht won't walk. Being too reliant on the HR. STupid. And yes he has some control over these things. His teams in Chicago have consistantly been HR heavy and BB lighht. And pitchers throw too many pitches trying to get K's. Stupid. It is a trend. Stupid Stupid Stupid. Bad manager.
Also you have no proof that ALL people in baseball think he is great and only peple outside MLB think he is bad. It's not true. Players nad front office personell wouldn't go on record that way anyways.
All of that said. I think you are somewhat right that Dusty is the wrong guy here. There might be a team that he would excel under and not look so stupoid. But it ain't in Chicago. And for the record this guy doesn't like Chicago fans at all. Only Cubs' fans woudl defend a guy who is bad at his job AND doesn't even like us! LOL.
Nazey: "I don't think anyone
"I don't think anyone is stupid enough to say it's ALL Dusty's fault. But there is a stockpile of reasons as to why Dusty could and should not be given a new contract. Don't even have to fire him this year. Just don't extend his contract."
Replace the word Dusty with Hendry and I think that would fit nicely...But the Cubs fucked that one up with the extenstion.
wrong again crunch. Man you
wrong again crunch. Man you are consistant.
This is the worst $100
This is the worst $100 million payroll team I've ever seen. That ain't got shit to do with the manager. Allow me to pull out a little Rick Pitino:
Connie Mack ain't walking through that door fans. Sparky Anderson ain't walking through that door and Casey Stengel ain't walking through that door.
Even if they were, they wouldn't win. I don't know who you want to manage this team. LaRussa? Cox? Pinella? Torre? All 4 of them are in the 25 top in wins all time. They couldn't do shit with this team. We can't hit. We can't field. We can't throw. Half of the team can't pitch.
Don't blame the coaches for having shitty players.
And that's coming from a Dusty hater.
sj...you really cant stand
sj...you really cant stand me and my input.
you can't stand being wrong...and you sure as hell can't stand someone with a differing opinion from you.
you even have to make personal attacks on me and make crap up just to make your views on me fit.
and yes...your statement:
"Crunch you are just plain wrong. About everything."
...is childish, stupid, unrelated to a postive conversation, and quite honestly...a copout so you don't have to deal with reality.
you are what is known as a crybaby...now take your toys and get outta my sandbox before you piss all over it.
Wes, is it possible that we
Wes, is it possible that we have a bad roster AND a bad manager and THAT is why we have practically set a record for futility these past couple of weeks?
Being too reliant on the HR.
Being too reliant on the HR.
Man, what I'd do for some home runs right now.
Crunch you are
Crunch you are hilarious.
Oh . . . and quite incorrect.
Rob. Correct me if I am
Rob. Correct me if I am wrong but most of our runs the past few games have been from HR's. No?
in cubs related news (aka,
in cubs related news (aka, non crunch/superj related news)...
i wonder what's up with walker.
aside from his slump, that is.
he's usually chatty cathy with anyone who has a mic, pen, or 10 minutes to spare.
this year he's been kinda subdued. i'd like to hear his take on the past couple weeks.
The only people who don't
The only people who don't like him are people OUTSIDE of professional baseball.
Baseball is still a network of good ole' boys and well they need to embrace better efficiency which an open capital market needs and sabermetrics can bring.
I know I won't be the first one to say this, fire Hendry; bring in Paul Depodesta, and you can all flame the heck out of me. I am a stathead.
/rant on Cubs not being A's/Jays/Sox, but I have to be a Cub fan.
Calm down everyone, the Cubs
Calm down everyone, the Cubs are going to make a second half run.
They'll make the playoffs and maybe even win the NLCS.
This team is THAT good.
Once we get healthy, Jones shows us what his real potential is, Murton and Cedeno have their breakout seasons, Walker's defense shows much improvement, Pierre comes alive to hit over .300, and Dusty gets that double switch down, the Cubs are a lock for the postseason. Speaking of which, I'm on the verge of winning the lottery, a pulitzer, an oscar, and a latin grammy.
I can't wait!!
I would be fine with firing
I would be fine with firing HEndry -- I just think that it would be hard to do with the new contract. Youthful fiery leadership (or any kind of leadership on the field) seems the easiest factor to address. Maybe purge our longterm bullpen dudes to the yanks and package pierre or JJ with Eyre or Howry. That is one way to get rid of these bum outfielders.
Rob. Correct me if I am
Rob. Correct me if I am wrong but most of our runs the past few games have been from HR's. No?
The Cubs are 2nd to last in the NL in home runs, 2nd to last in slugging, you don't win when it takes 4 hits to get a run across. Of course the Padres are the worst in home runs and slugging, but their little hot streak isn't going to last very long. There's nothing wrong with home runs. Now home runs without people on-base, that's another story.
Chad's right by the way.
Chad's right by the way. I've talked to all of the people inside baseball, and they all LOVE Dusty.
And it's a lusty love at that.
Funny thing is, if they were
Funny thing is, if they were to miraculously fire Dusty during the season, look at the last time they did that: they fired Don Baylor, interimmed Bruce Kimm, then replaced him with DUSTY! As someone posted earlier, I would love to see them make some heads roll and just go young, but it's the frickin' Cubs that would control that. So 2007/08 would be any better? The only reason Dusty hasn't been fired yet is that they are probably tired of paying guys mega millions to leave the team (Sosa, Borowski, Patterson, etc.). If Dusty was making $1M or so, it might be easier for the tightass Tribco to justify.
God this is fucking hopeless- no matter how you look at it. Do we really think it's gonna happen in our lifetimes? I vote no.
Yeah I am in complete
Yeah I am in complete agreement with you Rob. I was mostly talking about the last few years. But I do find it interesting that we don't score even NOW without the HR. Barrett, Aram's 2 HR etc. Just since we don't hit the HR much now we also don't score at all now.
no matter what your stance
no matter what your stance on dusty happens to be, it doesn't take a genius to realize that when a team has underperformed for 2+ years, the manager is the first to go. Fair or not, it's just how baseball works. If this streak lasts till Friday, expect a lot of chatter about Baker getting fired. If we hear the "vote of confidence" speech from Hendry, you know it's over for him.
Supperjimmer- Any manager is
Any manager is going to have a hard times succeding here as the front office is not very good.
Dusty is PARTLY to blame with the Cubs not making the playoffs the last two years and most likely this year (you will not get an argument from me about that), but I think Hendry is MUCH more liable. Remember there is ONE MAN responsible for having Dusty the manager.....HENDRY!!! If you think Baker is the cancer, well hendry is the doctor to cure the cancer, but hasn't done it. He hired him, he signed JJ for 3 years. He signed Neifi for 2 years, He traded away three top poitching prospects for Pierre. He signed Rusch for 2 years. Yes he has made a couple deals that were good, but the bad and losses WAY outweigh them.
The Cubs showed their still incompitent selves when tehy reupped with Hendry.
dusty isnt universally loved
dusty isnt universally loved in baseball, but there's not many he doesn't have respect from.
he's not one of the highest paid managers by accident.
some may not give a rat's ass, but his ability to personally deal with all kinds of attitudes, backgrounds, cultures and have the players actually understand it is his main tool and its not a tool that's easy to come by.
i do NOT need a lecture on what dusty doesn't do...if you can't tell i'm kinda clued in already.
moving on...
a manager has a lot of roles to play on a club...for the fans its to guide the team to victory. a lot of this belief is held by football-mentality fans. a lot in the baseball realm do not share this belief...that a manager can make/break a team by the sheer will of their presence.
for most clubs, a manager is there to keep everyone in their roles and happy/ready to perform. its not sexy, but that's it...200 days together without killing each other, working on crap, and knowing your role.
they write the lineup, make the switches, and occasionally make the call on in-game strategy.
ultimately its up to the players to perform in their given roles.
ultimately its up to the
ultimately its up to the players to perform in their given roles.
But dusty is one of the best at putting the wrong guys in the wrong roles, which is why he should go.
Deposesta? AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAHAHAHAHAHAHA
Great job he did in Los Angeles.
I agree manny. I had a big
I agree manny. I had a big scary Aha! moment when Hendry supported him after 2004. It was a horrible moment. I had imagined after watching that whole season (not just the last two weeks) that Hendry was embarassed by the Cubs perforamnce and attitude and was gonig to do something about baker. IOnstead the Stone contraversy breaks out AND Hendry backs baker. BTW Hendry could easily have NOT backed stone and NOT backed Baker. Something along the lines of addressing that it is innappropriate for players nad managers being paid MILLINIOS of dollars per year to bring Chicago a WS victory got in a yapping contest with stone while their perforamnce suffered. Somehow acknowledging that this was not appropriate and fair to the ticket paying public who count on the manager and players not watching or listening to the announcers and instead being fully focussed on winning games would have been nice.
Until then I had Hendry on a pedastal and Baker alone as a freak. But it made me wonder about the whole arganization when Hendry and McPhail said nothing to assure us fans taht this behavior would be dealt with.
Then Hendry basically dismantled the team based on Baker's assertion that the attitudes were the problem. Sosa, Farns, Mercker. Sisco, Alou. and Hendry didn't bring in a LF or a closer and Dusty throws Hawkins back out there. A PROVEN disaster as a clsoer and crowd pleaser. Sheesh.
All the while Dusty teams miss signs, blow bunts, are fundementally unsound, stupidly strategized, and OH! they cannot afford a LH batting practice arm. WTF!
This organization is a joke. And Dusty is the punchline.
But I like your analogy Manny. Baker is the cancer and Hendry is the doctor watching it spread . . .
Let's take a look at what
Let's take a look at what "manager" actually means. I took this out of Webster's: "Sports:
One who is in charge of the training and performance of an athlete or a team." If we deem Webster a reliable source, then I'd say Dusty should be judged on the criteria of the definition. In that case, see ya!
hendry's attitude shakeup
hendry's attitude shakeup was all him, btw...
dustbag didn't have much if anything to do with it...you're better off blaming mcphail and hendry if you want a partner on that cause.
and the whole stone thing was nothing...nothing at all...
well, it was to alou/mercker but it didnt seem to phase them.
Superjimmer- Actually the
Actually the Merker/Stone incident happened in late August and after that HOU series the Cubs went on to go 16-7 in the next 23 games. The Stone thing had nothing to do with the collapse of the last 10 days.
yesterday i tried willing
yesterday i tried willing them to win.
that blew up in my face when maddux got shelled.
last night i prayed to my father's ghost for some help here.
no dice.
the guy who commented yesterday on how houston was 11-19 at this point last year really gave me a bit of a pickup. but man, this is looking bad.
how in hell did we score 16 runs?
what in hell must we do to get a damned rally going?
how much bad mojo is there here? if there was a bad mojometer we'd have fucking broken the damn thing by now!
everybody, sacrifice some living thing for the sake of this club. a chicken, a turtle, a wombat, a cardinals fan.
Siperjimmer: "But I like
"But I like your analogy Manny. Baker is the cancer and Hendry is the doctor watching it spread . . ."
For the record, I don't think Baker is a cancer, I was just throwing that analogy out there as something you can use, since it seems that is how you feel.
to add to the "stone
to add to the "stone incident" talk...
after the "stone incident":
.309avg .424ob% .546slg .970ops
9 games 6.1ip 2h 2r 3bb 8k 2.84era 0.79whip
now can we shut up about this already?
geez...just cuz the press got some fans worked up and got some quotes outta dusty cuz the story was 1- good and 2- would not die, it doesnt mean that the club was fixated on it. they weren't...the meida was...the fans were...
general manager n : the
general manager
n : the highest ranking manager
So as someone posted earlier, Hendry hired Baker. So it falls on Hendry's shoulders as well. But with the new extension, we can forget about Hendry being gone. I remember when Hendry got the extension that a lot of fans were pleased since you could point to a change in attitude by the direction of the organization, as well as key player acquisitions (Lee, Ramirez, Nomar*, Alou, Barrett, Maddux, Dempster, Pierre, etc.). Funny thing is, why the hell should we care if we acquire AllStars if it doesn't produce winning teams? Last I checked, how many AllStars did Kenny Williams bring in for the 2005 season? How'd that work out? I'd trade Derrek Lee, Aramis, Demp, and Barrett for average joes if it meant we would improve our team.
Also, this new "attitude" of the Cubs organization is crap. How many said that the 2004 Cubs team was the best team on paper they've probably ever had going into a season- and that team won a whopping 89 games!!! I think 1969 and '84 were the last 2 time the Cubs broke the 90-win barrier. So that 2004 team (wildcard choke or not) was unable to sniff 95 wins? Good god. I'd take a 100 win season and first round playoff upset if it meant I could enjoy 6 months of superior baseball (of course I'd rather have a WS, but I'd settle for consistency if nothing else).
Nazey- And "general manager"
And "general manager" means the highest ranking manager. In that case, see ya Hendry!!
sorry nazey, I posted my
sorry nazey, I posted my post before seeing yours...
No worries Manny. You're
No worries Manny. You're just on top of it like a two hopper deep in the hole.
manny you are wrng I'll get
manny you are wrng I'll get you the dates of when baker went to the press about teh stone comment. The incident I am talking about happened right before the collapse.
Crunch you are the best argument I have on most fronts. Do you think anyone with a brain thinks that managers don't really do effect the outcome of the game (for $4 million) AND that the Stone thing was nothing? Dusty sure didn't think it was anything. Why are you so dead set on making sure that everyone believes that YOU have inside informatoin ("hendry's attitude shakeup was all him, btw..."). I mean what the hell do you know? What info are you privvy to?
And you are just plain wrong about the Stone thing. It happened. It mattered. It is why Ston is not employed for the Cubs.
You are insane.
Crunch- Thanks for those
Thanks for those stats of Alou and Merker. Those along with the stats I have shown about the Cubs record after the incident, should end that complaint against Dusty, but just like the playing rookies, hurting pitchers arms and clogging bases, the inaccurate depictions will continue I am sure.
Any chance Cub Nation could
Any chance Cub Nation could petition Mark Cuban to make TribCo an offer they can't refuse? I hate that guy, but one hell of an owner (at least in terms of taking a laughing stock and turning it around with money).
Unless your Darren Baker, I
Unless your Darren Baker, I can't imagine why anyone would even care right now if Dusty got fired. Who gives a shit? We suck, we've underperformed for 2+ years, something has to change and that change almost always starts with the manager. Firing a manager can spark a team, it's been done. It may not in this case, but you can't fire 25 players unfortunately.
Blaming Hendry is all well and good, but firing the GM isn't going to change anything right now (and of course isn't even plausible with his extension). Players don't relate to the GM, they relate to the manager and a fresh perspective, a new attitude can only help at this point. I suppose Hendry might try and wait to see what happens with Wood/Prior/Lee, but we're going to be out of it again like last year by the end of May.
they're flat sept. stats,
they're flat sept. stats, btw...
alou actually had an even more kickass oct. to pump his stats throught the roof and mercker had 1 oct. outting where he gave up 1 hit (a HR) in 1ip to bump down his stats a bit.
by oct. i figured it didnt matter too much, though...
and superj...BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH. you don't listen to a damn word i type and just wanna make this some kind of personal arguement. go dig your underwear outta your crack and get on with life. you're asking questions that have already been answered and on things you can't find answers to you're accusing me of poising having insider information. christ man, you wanna put dusty in charge of the minor league organization and i'm full of shit? damn dude...don't you have any new conspiracies to dream up?
jack mckeon's wonderful
jack mckeon's wonderful managing lasted all of a 1/2 year before he was "shit" again...
bob brenley's wonderful managing lasted all of a year or so before he was "shit"...
joe torre couldnt "manage" his way outta a box til he got a competative payroll and tallent to work with...
managing and wins do not go hand in hand...tallent and wins do...
managers have control over strategy of the game, but ultimately the players on the field have so so so much mroe control over it than any manager could ever have. most of the "strategy" of a manager involves shit players that are asked to bunt a runner over or hit to a certain field on the batting side and pitching changes/matchups on the pitching side.
ya know who's a good in-game guy to have manage...davey johnson...know why he isn't a manager...cuz he has the people skills of an autistic child.
Geez, if you're going to
Geez, if you're going to argue endlessly and wrongly about the Mercker incident, at least spell the guy's name correctly.
The fact is, Baker and Stone were feuding well BEFORE Mercker supposedly called Stone in the booth, which he did not, he called Sharon Pannozzo. And Stoney was one of the people instrumental in convincing Baker to come to Chicago in the first place, so he obviously thought Baker was a great manager. Things between those two just apparently went bad earlier that season and came to a head in August.
Frankly I think both of them are nuts.
Unbelievable....STILL talking about how poor Stoney was run out of his job.
Bob, Losing Stoney was the
Losing Stoney was the greatest injustice ever committed by humanity. The Killing Fields, Holocaust, Milosevic, nothing compared to losing an above average color guy for a Cubs telecast. The travesty, how are we supposed to go on?
Stoney dug his own grave folks, he violated the broadcasters 1st commandment, "Don't become part of the story." Whether it's his fault, Baker's fault, the player's fault, it don't matter, broadcasters are there to tell us what's happening, not be a part of what's happening. It's why I can't stand to listen to Joe Buck, his reaction to Moss's mock-mooning was far worse than the act itself. You think VIn Scully would ever get involved with a war of words with the players? Hell, Harry Caray bagged on the players all the time, but I guarantee if anyone had issue with it he'd either back off his comments or publicly apologize. Stone was pining for a bigger payday and it all backfired on him. There's nothing wrong with criticizing, but whether you feel it's right or not, it was up to Stone to back off. I don't tune into the game to find out what the hell is up with Stoney and whether he feels he's right or not. I tune into to watch the Cubs. I appreciated Stoney cause he was insightful and did know what he talking about, but he crossed the line, DON'T BECOME THE STORY!!!
Commence with the flaming now....
Rob G., could not agree
Rob G., could not agree more. What people seem to overlook is Stoney's monstrous ego in all of this. Personally, I feel that's why he took the job with the Score, so he could continue to be viewed as Chicago's Baseball God while sticking it to the Cubs at every turn.
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Recent comments
Dan Vogelbach is working on his firstbase defense in Seattle. Seems to say the Cubs didn't teach him properly.
Oh my! Cards down 2-1 to Reds in the bottom of the 9th -- get a leadoff triple -- and don't score!
Gameday has stopped at the top of the 8th inning. Google tells me it ended up 8-4 Pirates but I can't get further detail. Guess I'll have to wait until the Cubs' website updates...
Phil, thanks for posting. Where do find the schedule? I have a condo in Surprise, yet I drove to Mesa and Tempe looking for a game today! Thanks!
Dear Baseball Gods--
My trip to Chicago has nothing whatsoever to do with the Cubs. In actuality, I am a Red Sox fan.
Well, if Strop had to give up a run...at least he hit Sean Rodriguez to do it.
jaso has a cycle and 5 rbis...pit leads by 4.
have a nice
bowl of pizza soupdeep dish pizza...or a leisurely walk around the notorious south-side (bring money)...shopping at one of the walmart supercenters...waiting in line to waste $20 at willis tower...
seriously, though...it's chicago, a lot to do. have a dog for lunch, a great dinner, and catch some local comedy.
Strange, because he really seemed to have the Pirates number last year.
Bummer for Jake -- I think this is the first time all year his ERA has been over 3.00, and that will be his number for the year.
Jinx remover -- your trip doesn't have to be for a baseball game -- lots of stuff to do here in town.
Guess they could always try to White Sox (and Bears...sob) approach: Never Rebuild! Seems to work pretty well for them.
3rd time this season he's given up 6+ runs to PIT...only team he's given up 6+ runs to this season.
7 runs is the most he's given up since august 6th in colorado...in 2014.
Over 100 pitches, only the 5th.
coghlan out...got his cleats stuck in the wall attempting a play (failed, but looked great doing it). walking off on his own, precautionary/day-to-day looking stuff...hopefully not worse.
also, jake arrieta is literally worse than hitler. 1-5, bottom 5. ...make that 1-6, bottom 5. ...make that 1-7, bottom 5.
Coghlan crashes into wall and comes up limping, looks like left knee or ankle. Leaves game...
Arrieta inspiring no confidence yet again.


text:
Notts Outlaws reclaimed top spot in the Friends Life t20 North Group with a over Yorkshire Vikings at Headingley.
In front of a 7,100 crowd, the visitors successfully defended a total of 155 for eight built around 46 from Samit Patel and David Hussey's unbeaten 52.
Patel and fellow spinner Graeme White each claimed two wickets apiece for Notts, who replace Lancashire Lightning at the summit. Yorkshire, with just five points from seven games, appear to have blown their chance of reaching the quarter-finals.
The Vikings were going well when Joe Sayers and Dan Hodgson shared 67 in 10 overs for the second wicket, but Patel and White soon broke through to knock the stuffing out of the home side.
Patel finished with 2-19 from four overs and White 2-18 as Yorkshire limped from 75 for one to 130 for six.
The recalled Adam Lyth was an early victim for Harry Gurney prior to Sayers and Hodgson's handy partnership.
Notts' bowlers struggled to keep things in check for a while, but the momentum swung their way when Sayers drove Patel straight to long-on and departed with 38 to his name.
The score read 90 for three after Hodgson, who made 32, was lured from his crease by White and stumped.
Yorkshire became increasingly desperate and Andrew Hodd fell lbw to White before dangerman Gary Ballance was brilliantly caught by White on the midwicket boundary off Patel to make a Notts triumph inevitable.
Put into bat on a cloudy afternoon, the Outlaws lost Michael Lumb in Ryan Sidebottom's first over, while Alex Hales saw his off-stump sent spinning by Liam Plunkett with the score on 33 in the fifth.
Yorkshire perked up even further when James Taylor hit Plunkett straight to Adil Rashid at midwicket, but Patel batted fluently in a 37-ball innings containing four fours and two sixes.
Hussey then took Notts to a respectable score, aided by a nine-ball 18 from Ian Butler featuring sixes off Sidebottom and Azeem Rafiq.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
In addition, outfielder Josh Alley has been activated from the disabled list and outfielder Drew Davidson has been placed on the disabled list. Davidson's move to the DL is retroactive to Friday, July 7.
Hundley hit .274 with 19 doubles, eight home runs, 44 runs batted in and 29 runs scored for the Wizards. He was named the Midwest League Offensive Player of the Week from June 12 – June 18 when he hit .539 (7-for-13) with five home runs and eight runs batted in.
Lobaton joins Fort Wayne after hitting .213 with seven doubles, four home runs, 15 RBI and 12 runs scored in 42 games for the Storm. He split time last season between the Wizards, the Arizona League Padres and the Eugene Emeralds of the Northwest League. With Fort Wayne, he hit .176 (6-for-34) in nine games. Between the three teams he hit .250 (20-for-80) with five doubles and six runs batted in.
Alley, who was placed on the disabled list in early June, has been on a rehab stint with the Arizona Padres. In seven games, he was hitting .323 with six runs scored, a pair of doubles and triples and six runs batted in. Alley has appeared in 32 games with Fort Wayne this season, hitting .165 with four doubles, eight runs batted in and 32 walks.
Davidson is currently hitting .265 (9-for-34) in 11 games, including having scored six runs with three doubles, three triples and six runs batted in.
Following a three game road trip that starts on Wednesday at 7:05 PM against the Lansing Lugnuts (Toronto Blue Jays affiliate), the Wizards return home to Memorial Stadium and begin a four-game homestand at 7:00 p.m. on Saturday, July 15, against the Burlington Bees (Kansas City Royals affiliate).


text:
|May 01, 2009, 12:29 AM
Join Date: Feb 2007
Posts: 198
Greek Strategy
I did something different with the greeks. To make a story short I horsed Rush and Currency rushed. I used Athens as a pure growth city(courthouse use all GL and PL) to make Athens a big and powerful city. Used ai Caps as settler farms. Rushed any techs I thought I can get first. Made currency and republic a priorty to get free market and Trade post in a nice sand gold city. Using any gold I have to make my science, gold, and culture production stronger (libraries, banks, temples etc). Democracy and the court house is strong.
Greek Strategy
I have come to the conclusion that the greeks are open to more possibilities than your typical minimal city turtle-teching. Now before we go into the strategy lets go over their benefits.
Starting: Begin with a courthouse
- Courthouse is a very strong building early. Especially the way I use it. Your typical workhorse capital now becomes a massive flourishing growth/sci/gold/prod city, due to the fact that your open to 20 tiles. This will also benefit you because no one can flip your city and your free wall will go into this great city.
-Plus its a save of 80 hammers.
Ancient: Knowledge of Democracy
- Amazing to have in Ancient times. A free 120 beaker tech.
-Gives you Pikemen which will protect you from rushers and most attacks until cannons and tanks are out. The reason why I say this is because pikemen will protect you from your ancient and midevil units. But your guarenteed to be safe if you have Catapults to skirmish.
-50% increase in your gold and science production. Very strong teching advantage also will give you a gold advantage.
- Your open to the Magna Carta Wonder. Perfect, Build it and your free courthouse will produce more culture.
Medieval: More Great People
-More Great people can be a game winner especially when youll be powerful in Gold which will lead to rush buying of temples. This will expand certain strengths of your civilization wether it be a free wonder or +1 to pop.
Industrial: Half cost library
-Time to Library Spam all your cities.
Modern: +1 food from sea tiles
-You would think this comes late BUT with the tech rate the Greeks can maintain. This kicks in alot sooner than youd think.
Realize that your settler now shows 20 tiles around him im guessing because its showing you what will fall under the courthouses range. So you can settle on your starting spot or move one tile just to see if resources like fish and dye pop up. Ive gotten both resources without losing my first turn. You should get a nice balance of sea/hammers/food. Your first 5 turns you will produce 2 warrriors by setting your workers on 2 Forests. Than buy a 3rd for 20(this is up to you). Now you will rush for horse back in 4 turns due to democracy. Produce horsemen with 2 forests. You should have a army of Horses from 11-16 turns in. It depends if you waiting for the free settler or simply you werent getting enough gold. Ive averaged 13-14. So 14 turns in you have 3 warriors, 1 Horsemen Army and a free settler.
3 Warriors- Used for scouting.
Horsemen Army - Taking cities and protecting your land offensively.
Free Settler - Use to make a science city.
Have your 2 cities build one Hop each or rush them if you can afford it. Grow both to pop 3 and tech. Tech what you think you will get first. Walls, Irrigation etc.
At the same time>>>>>>>>
Go conquer your neighbors. When you finish off that AI switch back to Democracy. Your usually gaurnteed one ai cap(never had a problem getting one). 2 ai is possible 3 can happen but I dont try for a 3rd. Remeber when your going to attack you need to come out of democracy.
Any and All Ai caps will be used to make Hops and Settlers. Thats the differnce between this strat and other strats. Your expanding agressivly with your horsemen army and your Hops. Also this strat is allowing you to go from 3-4 cities to 7-12 cities.
Once you have your early Ai caps and the possible side cities Turn Athens into a pure growth city. While all the other cities do your teching and expanding. Athens will be big and produce. This is where your wonders and needed units will come from.
Tech Path (pretty much what morte followed)
-Very important to remember that you need to fit currency and republic to do a nice desert gold city. If no good Desert city than just currency for a nice gold coastal or island city. Currency is a big must because this will allow you to have a gold city before anyone. A early Gold city will start to compound and grow to a big advantage.
Last edited by MKElderGod; May 01, 2009 at 02:29 PM.
|May 01, 2009, 01:22 AM
Le CivRêve
Join Date: Dec 2008
Posts: 188
intresting read.
I've tried Greek horserushing online, and it seems the main advantage you have doing it against human players is the element of surprise. Not many players expect to see Greek horses. It's won a few games for me, but I wouldn't do it everytime. Against the AI it'll be effective, horserushing the AI with any civ will usually do the trick.
The only advantage the Greeks have over any other civ in the game for horserushing is the 1 turn you save while researching Horseback Riding. This turn is lost later after you switch out of democracy, but that doesn't really matter if you've got the horses at their cap and you're able to take it.
It's nice to play outside the box and catch others off guard, but it's still a costly risk. If those horsmen are killed, then you've just spent 60 hammers or 120 gold or any combo of those and got nothing to show for it. But that's the risk/reward of horserushing. The Greeks have good enough defense and a powerful enough capital to regroup.
Most games I'd rather grow fast in Athens, spam some settlers from there, hammer out a library in my cap, and tech up. It's fun to be aggressive with them out of the blue though.
xbox gamertags= amazingrayson , test Grayson, GGrayson
psn ids= anarak , GGrayson
|May 01, 2009, 03:34 AM
Join Date: Nov 2008
Posts: 331
I will add it in the Strategy Archive, good strategy, I never wanted to take the risk of an horsemen rush. I still remember when others tried it but failed more times, but maybe now that I won't care so much about points, I will try everything, and I would like also to play you.. Did your game freeze yesterday?
|May 01, 2009, 09:03 AM
Join Date: Feb 2007
Posts: 198
The Horserush is very useful with the Greeks because not only are you a defensive teching powerhouse. You now have the ability to go on the offensive. Ive stoped other peoples horse rush like this which can be a big hit to America, Aztec or Arab.
|May 03, 2009, 08:07 PM
Join Date: May 2009
Posts: 9
I tried this method and didn't get the Greek achievement.
|May 03, 2009, 08:34 PM
Le CivRêve
Join Date: Dec 2008
Posts: 188
if you're having trouble with the greeks, a horserush might work. But they don't need to horserush at all. Just defend and grow in athens, expand to about 7-10 cities, and you should have no problem beating the AI.
xbox gamertags= amazingrayson , test Grayson, GGrayson
psn ids= anarak , GGrayson
|May 03, 2009, 09:03 PM
Join Date: May 2009
Posts: 9
I only need to have one more city to get.
|Apr 10, 2011, 01:45 PM
Join Date: Apr 2011
Posts: 2
Hey anyone want to play on the 360? my gtag is some1sobored.
|Thread Tools


text:
WHEN TALKING about his unexpected and remarkable run as the everyday third baseman playing in place of the injured Placido Polanco, Kevin Frandsen described himself with the following:
"You're not going to fall in love with me one day; it's going to be something you appreciate over time."
Frandsen said that 12 days ago, when he was in the midst of a stretch that saw him start 20 straight games at third base. Nearly 2 weeks later, he pretty much proved his words invalid.
With the bases loaded and no one out in the sixth inning of Tuesday night's game - and Cliff Lee and the Phillies clinging to a one-run lead - the Reds' Ryan Ludwick ripped a rocket of a ground ball to the hole between third base and short.


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MARTINSBURG - Trey Boyd missed about half of the regular season for Martinsburg this season because of an injury.
Enough so that the sophomore who transferred from a school in Florida couldn't reach a 1,000-yard season.
"He's just getting back to where he could be 100 percent," Martinsburg coach David Walker said.
Article Photos
Martinsburg sophomore Trey Boyd bursts through a hole on the way to his state-championship-game-record, 83-yard touchdown run. (Journal photo by Ryan Decker)
So maybe he's 83 percent.
At the very least, he was good for a state Class AAA championship-game record of 83 yards on a touchdown run as Martinsburg vaulted to a 38-14 victory over Cabell Midland for the Bulldogs' third title in a row.
Boyd, who finished the game with a second touchdown and ran for 193 yards on 17 carries (a 11.4 yard-per-carry average), is being named as The Journal/Gold's Gym Athlete of the Week for the period Nov. 25-Dec. 1.
"He could be special," Walker said.
His 83-yard touchdown run gave the Bulldogs a 21-0 lead early in the second quarter.
He acted kind of ho-hum about the run when asked it about it later.
"I'm just trying to get to the end zone as quickly as I can," he said.
After Cabell Midland trimmed Martinsburg's lead to 14 points, Boyd bounced quickly back and managed a 4-yard run on the Bulldogs' next possession, making the Bulldogs 4 for 4 to start the game.
Boyd gained some votes as his team's most-outstanding player, an award won by quarterback Justin "Cookie" Clinton. Clinton, of course, stepped up his game over the latter part of the season while Boyd recuperated.
It's been such a season for the newcomer that he calls his teammates "his family."
One happy family after a third straight state championship.
The Bulldogs will celebrate their title at the schooll gym at 6 p.m. today.
Other Accomplishments: Martinsburg quarterback Justin "Cookie" Clinton won most-valuable player honors during the state championship game after throwing for two touchdowns and rushing for another. Teammate Cedric Brown caught a pair of touchdown passes on the Bulldogs' first two possessions to spark the squad to a 14-0 lead. Martinsburg's Tyler DeHaven's 48-yard field goal in the title game was the longest in the state this season. ... Shepherd's Gabby Flinchum netted a career-high 26 points, going 11 of 12 from the floor, and pulled down 12 boards as the Rams defeated Charleston. She earned West Virginia Conference player of the week honors. ... Brantley Osborne of Shepherd also won WVC player of the week honors after a 21-point effort in a win over previously undefeated Charleston. ... Hedgesville swimmers Jerry Slocum, Seth Townsend, Sabrina Buhagiar and Meghan Breen won two individual events during a dual-meet victory over Hampshire.


text:
Hours before one snowflake fell, public works crews were layering the streets with salt and brine, South Jersey's first defense against today's rain-snow mix.
It was still unclear Monday night if the region was in for winter's worst, or just some slick rush hour road conditions, but crews in Gloucester and Camden counties weren't about to take any chances.
"We will have school, and people need to get to work," said Freeholder Heather Simmons, liaison to the county's public works department. "Our job is to be out there, make sure our roads are safe for everybody."
The mix of snow and rain was expected to hit near 3 a.m., but the Mount Holly-based National Weather Service reported a "few flakes flying" for the morning commute with some rain.
"At worst, a slushy accumulation around a half-inch," added meteorologist Kristin Kline.
Then, the flurries change to rain, with temperatures possibly hitting the freezing marks around 32 to 33 degrees.
"The roadways are certainly going to be wet and slick," Kline said. "It's a good idea to plan on a few extra minutes. Take it slowly."
Through the night public works crews in Camden County monitored the small storm's course, according Freeholder Ian Leonard, whose fleet of salt trucks were filled Monday night and ready to hit the road.
"We have brine solution that we spray," he said. "We're so well prepared for this because we've done it so many time. As of right now, we don't have a big mess."
More than 5,000 tons of salt stored in Gloucester County's salt sheds will be more than enough to handle more than 440 miles of county roadways. Simmons is confident the tons of salt already on hand will be enough to battle today's wintery blast and the next, which the National Weather Service is certain will happen this winter.
"The next three months, we're expecting temperatures to be near or slightly below average, with snowfall to be near or just above average," Kline said.
Temperatures this winter aren't expected to plummet too far, she added. But, compared to last year's mild winter, the next three months are sure to be chillers.
So far, the National Weather Service has not predicted record-setting snowfall for South Jersey/ Kline, however, claims it's likely there will be far fewer consecutive warmer days — days that spike near 50 degrees — than last winter.
Highs this winter are expected to stay mostly in the upper 30s and 40 degrees.


text: On Tue, 25 Jun 2013, Luke Prince wrote: > Yes, I felt it was a missed opportunity not saying something about EPB's fiber. Tony Stark could have been amazed that we have it and the > beauty pageants all in one place! Without any real info, just experience in Chattanooga: I'll bet someone on the movie staff had a run in with mucky-mucky types in Chattanooga, possibly even got "Fried" (Dave Brockman and others are laughing..) and this was their response in the movie. For the record: Chattanooga was online officially on October 2nd, 1994. One day after Al Gore "invented" the internet as a vehicle for commercial use, with a 128kbps connection, which was more than twice the entire University of Tennessee statewide network. It's had a -lot- of connectivity ever since from many providers until recently. Now it's mostly "the big three", EPB, Comcast and AT&T.. although there are some niche players. --Mike--


text:
|Request a copy of the video for this Item
|Loan request:
(Studio: Peter Jennings) Report introduced.
(No location given: Rebecca Chase) The issue of child neglect examined in light of last week's police raid in Chicago that netted 19 children living in squalor; scenes shown from the apartment. [POLICEMAN, Mayor Richard DALEY, boyfriend Gregory TURNER - talk about the case.] [Cook County public guardian Patrick MURPHY - cites the amount received in public assistance.] [Mother Diana MELTON, neighbor Debra WRIGHT, disguised family MEMBER, Illinois Governor Jim EDGAR, child services department Sterling RYDER - comment on aspects of the case.] The problem of the lack of caseworkers to handle the load of children needing social services detailed. [Child services investigator Chuck ROCEK, Cook County child services John GOAD - talk about the job.] The impact of poverty, lack of jobs and the drug trade on family problems and child neglect reiterated.
|Program Time:
|05:47:50 pm - 05:52:30 pm. Duration: 04:40
|Chase, Rebecca; Jennings, Peter
|Link to this page
|Broadcast Type:
|Evening News Segment Type: News Content
|Record Number:


text:
New "America's Got Talent" judge Mel B sparked global buzz on her first day on the job at Lakefront Arena on Monday (March 4), as the NBC series began a two-day taping schedule of about 60 acts, many of which auditioned at a February open-call audition in New Orleans for the season to air later this year.
The very first act to perform for judges Mel B and Heidi Klum (both new to the show), and Howard Stern and Howie Mandel (both returning) was the hard-working local Lagniappe Brass Band, who performed an original song titled "Instant Grits."
According to a taping observer, the tune brought the partisan audience to its feet. Mandel "said a bunch of positive things," the observer said, and Klum "was blown away, you could see it on her face," while Stern "wasn't very personable."
Then Mel B (real name: Melanie Brown; Spice Girls name: Scary Spice) said she wasn't a fan of brass band music, and boos filled the arena.
As TMZ.com reported in a post very early Tuesday:
"The audience went nuts on her, screaming "Go home," and "No respect."
Mel became unglued, and leaned over to Howie, who comforted her.
In addition to her pop-star bona fides, Brown is a veteran of both being judged ("Dancing With the Stars") and being a judge (the Australian version of "The X Factor"), and managed to continue with her "America's Got Talent" duties.
But the TMZ blurb got picked up far and wide (love for the Spice Girls remains an international phenomenon).
Interviewed Tuesday between taping sessions, Mandel said he had heard about the tabloid coverage of Mel B's moment and was glad for the opportunity to clarify.
"Any one of us on this panel went into the business because we're willing to put ourselves out there to be accepted," he said. "You want the audience to love you, you want them to applaud for you, you want them to laugh at you. Then you take a job as a judge where you come to a local area, and, if for nothing else, the town is behind their local people. Someone comes on stage and says, 'We're from New Orleans!' And that's what happened to her.
"All she said was, 'I generally don't like brass bands.' That's all she said. She was being honest, and it was going to head to a good critique of the act. But because she said that, (the audience feels) like this is their child up there. The hardest thing for us as performers is to realize, 'Oh my god, 2,000 people sitting behind me hate me.' Ultimately, we are judging for the person on stage and the millions of people watching. The room is there to support the people on stage. Because she's done the other shows before, it didn't throw her as much, but it made some news."


text:
Hello Kitties
November 19, 2013 - Diane Laney Fitzpatrick
Last week was a big week for introductions for me. I met the two newest members of my family: Cats newly adopted by my son and his girlfriend and by my daughter. My son's cat is Phoebe (nickname Smelly Cat) and my daughter renamed her cat Cat (nickname . . . um, . . . Cat).
We've always been a dog family. Cats have come into the periphery of our family several times, but they were kept at bay by my husband's claim to have allergies (the same reason he uses to keep us in artificial Christmas trees, away from state fairs, and out of Michigan altogether).
In 1999, we came very close to convincing him to let us keep Bridges, a stray kitten who entertained herself by walking under any leg, arm or curved piece of plastic that formed an overpass, and entertained us by stalking her reflection in the broiler door. But then someone sneezed on NYPD Blue, my husband snapped out of his daze, and that was shut down. We gave Bridges to the piano teacher, who renamed her Linus, fattened her up, and moved to north Jersey.
We embarked upon a lifetime of one dog after another and forgot the cat idea.
Until last month.
My daughter decided she needed a low-maintenance roommate, so she started looking for a cat at the exact same time that my friend Toni was moving and needed to find a home for hers. Meanwhile, my son and his girlfriend decided they needed a four-legged companion and adopted Phoebe from a shelter foster home. These two cats are polar opposites. I'm not sure they're in the same species.
First I visited my daughter. It was 48 hours before the cat would even come out from under the bed while I was in the apartment. One night I got up to go to the bathroom and glanced into the living room and there was Cat, sauntering around unawares. When she saw me she froze - and I mean froze - mid-step, until I walked into the bedroom and shut the door.
I didn't see Cat again until it was time to take her to the vet. My daughter was the captor and I was the assistant captor, relegated to approaching the capture process with the carrier and then backing off when the cat freaked out, scratching my daughter to ribbons and causing other secondary injuries. Despite my ancillary role, the cat insisted on associating me with the whole nightmarish incident. I doubt I'll ever see Cat again. Her last words to me were a quiet but pointed hiss.
"She's really very sweet," my daughter said, "to me. When it's just me and her here, she lets me pet her and she's really, really nice. To me."
Next I went to my son's apartment. Phoebe greeted me at the door, poked her nose into my camera bag, and was trying to figure out how to search my pockets. She let me swish the ribbons-and-feathers-on-a-stick and performed tricks such as jumping all around the room, chasing the laser, closing the blinds with one paw, and participated in a group activity: putting a Lord of the Rings jigsaw puzzle together. I blame her for the temporary loss of tiny Viggo Mortensen's head, which wasn't found until after I left town. Phoebe was seen swiping at the puzzle pieces. You do the math.
They're not dogs, new in-laws or babies, but as far as new family members go, these are two cool cats. Hello, kitties. Welcome to the family.
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on March 2, 2012 - 12:01 AM
Political consultants tell candidates to be authentic -- to "be yourself." In Mitt Romney's case, that might not be such good advice.
Once again, for what seems like the umpteenth time, Romney is being crowned as the presumptive Republican nominee. His victories in Michigan and Arizona took much of the wind out of Rick Santorum's sails, Newt Gingrich is lost at sea and Ron Paul is, well, Ron Paul. As long as Romney keeps winning, talk of some kind of deus ex machina plot twist at the convention -- someone just like Jeb Bush surfaces, but with a different last name -- remains pure fantasy.
Given the Romney campaign's huge advantages in money and organization, and given the has-been nature of his opposition, the only reason he hasn't wrapped this thing up is the "authenticity" issue: Not just "is he a real conservative" but "is he even a real person," in the sense of having some idea of how most Americans live.
The campaign has sought to answer that question with stunts such as sending Romney to the Daytona 500. The optics were good until a reporter asked the candidate if he follows NASCAR. Romney's response will live forever.
"Not as closely as some of the most ardent fans," he said, "but I have some great friends that are NASCAR team owners."
Well, who doesn't? In Romney's world, I mean.
There was a similarly clueless moment in Michigan. Romney was trying to atone for his vocal opposition to President Obama's bailout of the auto industry. He said he liked seeing so many Detroit-made cars on the streets -- to be expected in Detroit -- and noted that he drives a Ford Mustang and a Chevrolet pickup. As icing on the cake, he added that his wife Ann "drives a couple of Cadillacs, actually."
Again, who doesn't?
The explanation of why Ann Romney can't get by with one did not advance the candidate's quest for regular-guy authenticity: The cars are garaged at different residences.
And who can forget the way Romney, whose wealth is estimated at $250 million, described one of his sources of income. "I get speakers' fees from time to time, but not very much," he said.
His tax returns showed earnings from speaking engagements of more than $370,000. Indeed, that's "not very much" compared to Romney's income from his investments. To most Americans, it's a fortune.
I could go on and on with examples of Romney's Marie Antoinette rhetoric, but you get the point. It's not just what he says that tends to distance him from voters, but the whole way he carries himself. He's just not believable as a NASCAR fan, ardent or otherwise.
Advisers tried putting him in jeans. At the end of a long day, they still have a crease.
Romney has been running for president for the better part of a decade, yet still hasn't made a personal connection with the Republican base, let alone the wider electorate. Romney's "gaffes" look unmistakably like glimpses of the real Romney -- not a bad person, but a man with no ability to see beyond the small, cosseted world of private equity and great wealth that he inhabits. He has to be reminded that most voters live in a world where people drive their Cadillacs one at a time.
From the Romney campaign's point of view, it may be that while fake authenticity is bad, real authenticity is much worse. If I were an adviser, I'd send out a memo to all hands: Whatever you do, don't let Mitt be Mitt.


text:
Real flash suppressor
Tools and Technologies
Rifle Country
> Real flash suppressor
January 22, 2004, 09:34 AM
Can I put a real flash supressor on my new Bushy A2 (20")? I would like to get one as close to military style as possible. Where can I get one? I would rather not have the barrel threaded.
If you enjoyed reading about "Real flash suppressor" here in TheHighRoad.org archive, you'll LOVE our community. Come join
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January 22, 2004, 09:57 AM
Wait until September.
January 22, 2004, 10:19 AM
I felt that way myself about several issues. Then I learned about the new ban that some idjits want to pass and I desided to get as much as I can now before it is too late. I also believe Ohio is still wanting to pass its own AWB.:mad:
January 22, 2004, 11:08 AM
You can't legally install one (or have the barrel threaded, IIRC) until the AWB sunsets. A flash suppressor/flame damper is one of the official Evil Features listed in the AWB, and since your rifle already has one (the pistol grip), you can't add the flash suppressor or you'd have the prohibited Two Evil Features.
January 22, 2004, 02:48 PM
The "illegal" thing has already been commented on at length and im sure you get the point. But, here is the problem. You say you want to put one on your Bushy without having it threaded. Quite simply, you cant. Or more to the point noone makes such an animal that i know of. Your going to have to get the end of your barrel turned down to the proper diameter and threaded. Once done you will be able to attach any one of a variety of quality flash suppresors.
January 22, 2004, 02:56 PM
I see that this is a no go for now. Thanks for your help.
January 22, 2004, 05:14 PM
I guess theoretically, you could. However, you'd have to remove the pistol grip and put one of those awful-looking thumbhook replacement grips (like in this picture (http://zmweapons.com/Lg_images/Posbhcrk.jpg)). Then you'd have to have the flash suppressor permanently pinned on, because the threaded barrel is an evil feature in and of itself. Or you could permanently attach the magazine to the receiver and put as many evil features on as you wanted because the AWB wouldn't apply (the AWB only applies to detachable-mag semi-auto rifles).
Both of those options are rather silly though, IMO.
January 22, 2004, 06:14 PM
In theory you could also neuter your gas system and make your ar15 a bolt action. Then you could have all the evil features you want since you wouldnt have a semi-auto. I wouldnt imagine permanently closing up the gas system on an ar15 just for a flashhider though. Really, just wait till september.
Plan B, you COULD just buy a pre-ban style barrel and keep it handy untill the AWB sunsets (or not). And beat the rush when (if) it happens.
January 22, 2004, 10:33 PM
Armalite will be offering a pin-on flash supressor for their non-threaded barrels to replace the infamous Armalite "Blast Enhancer" in September if all goes well.
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Featured Golf News
Clear & Present
Wouldn't it be great if you could learn a new swing change and never suffer any setbacks? You would probable say yes, what's the secret? Wouldn't it be great if there were some magical position to make during the swing or a type of swing trainer that would groove the swing for you? Actually, the answer is no, and that's a good thing. One of the worst things that could happen for you as a golfer would be to not go through the growing pains of improvement. Ask yourself if you would like to evolve as a golfer or stay right where you are.
As you go through tough spells while playing, try to recall the trials of simply growing up. Enduring some of life's tests is - to a great degree - the reason you are where you are and who you are today. You had to go through the tests and pains and will continue to do so until you can get beyond resisting the struggles. By that point you are probably enlightened in some way and en route to learning a new life lesson.
When you try to make a swing change it is often the same thing. You may say to yourself something like, "I shouldn't have to struggle this much or it can't be this hard to change." These thoughts and words are without a doubt the reasons behind more struggles. The reality is that you have to accept the struggle in order to overcome it.
If you look at this the wrong way, you're going to miss my point. To go to the practice facility and just pound balls while trying to make a change or create a new swing is like going through life without a purpose - you are going about life aimlessly. Doing something without being there is the problem.
I have been a great believer in staying in the moment, the here and now. Hitting thousands of balls every week is like whipping yourself. If your mind isn't in the moment for each ball, staying consciously aware of the moment for each shot, you won't succeed in making change. Hitting a golf ball demands your attention in the moment. This is, in fact, the reasons mis-hits happen.
In so many ways a missed shot is a reflection of what occurs in life. They both have to do with your attention. I believe that I have hit better shots - with very little to do with making the perfect swing - simply because my awareness of the shot was absolutely in the moment. I have also missed shots with good swings by not being in the present; I was in the future, caught up in the results of where I wanted the ball to go. I think these were good swings - perhaps the tension that floods into the body right before the club makes contact only leaves the impression that it may have been a good swing. I can truly say that I wasn't present for the swing, so I don't really know.
Forming a good golf swing is important; staying there for the shot is more important. It's kind of like that old quote by Woody Allen: "90 percent of life is just showing up." There is quite a bit of truth to that. Scott McCarron told me that at one point when he was playing well on the PGA Tour a few years back that he stopped working so hard on his swing because he felt he got it to where it worked well. All he did was work with mind coaches.
I can see significance in this. Once you have the swing formulated, let it be formless. Scott had a formless attention to hitting a ball. On a separate note, Scott said that he has undergone a surgery on his elbow that occurred while he was trying to protect a broken rib. This is why we have not seen much of him lately. He recently told me he was working on his short game and will be coming back strong. He has been an avid reader of my mental game stuff on PGA.com and my book 7mythsofgolf.com.
I can imagine that Scott will become a modern version of Gil Morgan. For those of you that may not remember, Morgan was out from a back surgery for a whole year and was only able to work on his short game. The following season he won a bunch of tournaments and became the first player to go to double digits under par in the U.S. Open. The wind that year got him as it did most everybody, except for Tom Kite. I'm interested to hear from Scott on his comeback. I'll keep you posted.
Bill Bondaruk is a PGA Class A member and the director of instruction at Catta Verdera Country Club in Lincoln, Calif. He was named the 2006 Northern California Teacher of the Year. Billy learned the principals of golf by such legendary luminaries as Eddie Merrins, Jerry Barber, Paul Runyan, Mike Austin, Ben Doyle, Mac O'Grady, Jim McLean, Mike Labauve, Scott Sackett and his father.
Bondaruk started playing golf and caddying at age 7 at Franklin Park Golf Course in Boston. He played for the University of Massachusetts golf team while pursuing studies in Biomechanics. He took his game to the upper levels at age 24. He's played in over 100 tournaments on various mini tours, including the Hogan Tour in 1990. He was a Benson & Hedges Tour member in Mexico 1992-93, and was a second stage qualifier for the PGA Tour in 1995.
His playing highlights: two-time winner on the NGA Tour, 1985 Arizona; two-time winner on the Sun Belt Tour 1989, Phoenix; winner of the North Atlantic Tour 1991, Massachusetts; winner of the Northern California Section Apprentice Championship 1995; runner-up in the Western States Apprentice Championship 1993, Palm Desert Calif., and Mass State Open in 1996.
After traveling on the mini tours, Bill began teaching at a few world-renowned golf schools such as John Jacobs, Jim McLean, and Scott Sackett's Resort Golf.
He came to Catta Verdera by way of Tucson, where he was the Director of Instruction at Arizona National, Canoa Hills, San Ignacio Golf Club and worked as an instructor for the University of Arizona men's and women's golf teams. Among the Tour pros, sports celebrities and collegiate stars he's worked with are Glen Day, Lorena Ochoa, Natalie Gulbis, Ricky Barnes and Scott McCarran.
Billy's book, "The 7 Myths of Golf," is a video-enhanced web-based learning system, complete with e-lesson capability. The "The 7 Myths of Golf" (visit http://www.7mythsofgolf.com) has grown in popularity as it features videos of Tour pros. He is currently a feature writer for PGA.com's "Improve your Game" section and writes for the Press Tribune of Lincoln, Roseville and Grant Bay.
With his background in Biomechanics, Bill is leading the way on how best to teach and learn golf. Above all, he promises to bring joy and enthusiasm to your game.
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