Bored

HA! I think Beane's hard on for Cust ended a long time ago.

No one will care but...WOO HOO STANFORD WHOOPED ARIZONA'S ASS! A Lute Olsen coached Arizona team had never lost three in a row to the same opponent at home and now they've lost four years in a row to Stanford. 13-0 baby!

Sweet...years since the last double overtime game.

I see Peter Angelos hasn't learned the mistakes of the past he's made of just throwing money around without any rhyme or reason.

Bleh its 1bob so take it with a grain of salt. My opinion is the #2 belt in the company should not be up for grabs in the main event of WMXX.

I think Ibanez is a good player but what I wondered about them going after him was why didn't they make hardly any effort to keep Mike Cameron? Now when you at just their straight up numbers Ibanez had the better year but when you look at OPS+, which takes in park factors, Cameron had a 106 and Ibanez only a 99. Then of course when you throw defense Cameron is arguably the best defensive center fielder in the game while Ibanez is just an average corner outfielder. On top of that Cameron is a year younger. The only reason to not have kept Cameron over going after Ibanez would be if Cameron told them he wouldn't re-sign but I don't know if that was the case.

Ummm if part of the point of the DVD is to show why WCW went to shit then they HAVE to show the Hogan/Sting match and the Finger Poke of Doom. Seriously you couldn't talk about the fall of WCW without those two matches.

Here's how Baseball Primer's transaction oracle sums up the Mariners move:

Let's see trade Guillen who is four years younger who had a better OPS last year and is a much better fielder than Aurillia. Bill Bavisi is a GENIUS! Oh well at least Aurillia has more years left in him than Omar Vizquel.

Awww that was a thing of beauty. I remember even the Daily Show played the clip to make fun of Salisbury. I hope he takes the job to as he is easily the most annoying "analyst" out there right now and comes off like a complete douche bag.

Is this going to be the last season?

Sorry the above was payback for three horrible calls that went Green Bay's way in two previous match-ups. -1996 at Green Bay, MNF, Don Beebe makes a diving catch and as he slides on the ground Marquez Pope touches his leg marking him down. But oh wait Beebe gets right up and runs the 30-40 yards he had left for a touchdown and the refs counts it. 49ers lose in overtime. The loss would end up costing the 49ers homefield in the playoffs. -1998 NFC Championship Game, 49ers down by 10-0 late in the 2nd quarter, J.J. Stokes catches a pass in the endzone near the sideline. He gets one foot down, is about to put his second foot down and his pushed out by a Green Bay defender. By definition this should have been called a force out but the refs rule an incomplete pass. 49ers have to settle for a field goal. -Same game, first play of the 2nd half. Favre completes a pass to William Henderson. Henderson turns up field and makes TWO full steps, is hit, fumbles, Gary Plummer picks it up and runs it in for a touchdown. But the refs rule it an incomplete pass. Two touchdowns ripped out of the 49ers hands by the refs and both would have been huge momentum changers but Packers end up winning easily. So payback is a bitch and the '99 Wild Card was a thing of beauty.

At the moment no, although his stats do compare most favorably to Duke Snider but it did take Snider 10 years on the ballot for him to get in. He's 34 though so he might have another four or five good to great years left in him. He's got a very good shot at 500 homeruns and even an outside shot at 3000 hits. So I'd say barring him hitting the wall the next year or two he'll end up having HOF numbers.

Yes and on top of that Dickie Kerr, who wasn't on the fix, pitched a gem in Game 3 and cost the gambler's a ton of money so after that they needed the Sox to lose the series to make their money back.

Anglesault is going to be one of those Little League dads who tries to kill the umpire at his kid's game when a call costs them the championship. Then of course the kid will be grounded for two months for being a loser.

Kevin Jarvis has a career ERA of 5.83, a career high of 4.79, and a career ERA+ of 75. Bleh. I think Kevin will be the most surprised person of all if he has a good year.

Believe it or not the bowl season starts on Tuesday so figured it was time to start this thread. Obviously there will probably be a desire to have solo threads for the Rose Bowl and Sugar Bowl when those games are played but I think one thread will do for talking about the rest of the bowls. Oh and let's see if we can keep this thread from turning into another Oklahoma against the World thread for at least a little while, okay? Here is the complete television schedule for the bowl season. Tuesday, December 16 New Orleans Bowl: Memphis 27, North Texas 17 Thursday, December 18 GMAC Bowl: Miami of Ohio 49, Louisville 28 Monday, December 22 Tangerine Bowl: N.C. State 56, Kansas 26 Tuesday, December 23 Ft. Worth Bowl: Boise State 34, TCU 31 Wednesday, December 24 Las Vegas Bowl: Oregon State 55, New Mexico 14 Thursday, December 25 Hawaii Bowl: Hawaii 54, Houston 48 Friday, December 26 Motor City Bowl: Bowling Green 28, Northwestern 24 Insight Bowl: California 52, Virginia Tech 49 Saturday, December 27 Continental Tire Bowl: Virginia 23, Pittsburgh 16 Monday, December 29 Alamo Bowl: Nebraska 17, Michigan State 3 Tuesday, December 30 Houston Bowl: Texas Tech 38, Navy 14 Holiday Bowl: Washington State 28, Texas 20 Silicon Valley Bowl: Fresno State 17, UCLA 9 Wednesday, December 31 Music City Bowl: Auburn 28, Wisconsin 14 Sun Bowl: Minnesota 31, Oregon 30 Liberty Bowl: Utah 17, Southern Miss 0 Independence Bowl: Arkansas 27, Missouri 14 San Francisco Bowl: Boston College 35, Colorado State 21 Thursday, January 1 Outback Bowl: Iowa 37, Florida 17 Gator Bowl: Maryland 41, West Virginia 7 Capital One Bowl: Georgia 34, Purdue 27 Rose Bowl: USC 28, Michigan 14 Orange Bowl: Miami 16, Florida State 14 Friday, January 2 Cotton Bowl: Mississippi 31, Oklahoma State 28 Peach Bowl: Clemson 27, Tennessee 14 Fiesta Bowl: Ohio State 35, Kansas State 28 Saturday, January 3 Humanitarian Bowl: Georgia Tech vs. Tulsa, 12:00 PM EST/9:00 AM PST, ESPN Sunday, January 4 Sugar Bowl: #2 LSU vs. #1 Oklahoma, 8:00 PM EST/5:00 PM PST, ABC

Quick name the active leader in career OPS? Don't say Barry Bonds. It's Todd Helton. He's only played seven years so obviously he's got a ways to go before you start talking HOF with him but if he finishes his career with a higher OPS than Bonds then there is no way you could keep him out even if he does he play his whole career with the Rockies. It's just bizarre if you look at the all-time leaders in OPS it goes Ruth, Williams, Gehrig...Helton. Also on top of that Helton's career adjusted OPS is the same as Alex Rodriguez's so Helton isn't only a great hitter because of where he plays.

Those franchises are poorly run. Give the Twins, and maybe the A's (Bored can help me out) a new stadium and people will show up. Yes and the A's draw fine as it is considering the ownership takes every chance they get to piss on its fans. That place will be a ghost town if they ever fall off from contention again though as the season ticket base is very, very low and that's where a new stadium helps. But of course if you don't keep a contender on a field you'll only get one year boost in ticket sales and revenue and then it goes right back down the shitter as the examples al brought up. A's will never get a new stadium in Oakland with the current ownership though. Actually the Coliseum was probably the best of the cookie cutter, multi-purpose stadiums of the 60s to be built (okay not exactly the best compliment in the world) and was a perfectly fine place to watch a basbeall game. But it was ruined when the Raiders moved back and put up that monstrosity "Mt. Davis" and took out the old school bleachers. Now it really does feel like your watching a baseball game in a football stadium.

Since I mentioned all those names guess I should make my comments. Larry Walker - Forget the offensive numbers and playing in Coors for a second, in his prime he was the best defensive right fielder in the game. But what is really going to keep him out probably in the end is that he has never been able to stay healthy. Only one season has he played more than 150 games. If he could stayed healthy most of his career his numbers would be good enough no matter what ballpark he played in. Albert Belle - If he had been a media darling he would be a near lock because he'd get a lot symapthy votes for having his career being cut short because of injury, almost like a Gale Sayers situation. But as we all know he wasn't and he'll get no votes of sympathy. His numbers in his prime are off the charts good and if he'd stayed healthy and played three or four more years his numbers would be too good to keep him out even if you hated the guy. Alas 12 years just isn't enough to get him in. Bernie Williams - If he retired today he's definently not in. It will be very interesting to see what numbers he puts up now that he will be a fulltime DH. That move might save his career as if he continued to play the field everyday his numbers would continue to spiral down like they did last year. Also even though he does have four gold gloves I don't know how much really deserved any of them, with the exception of 1999. His range numbers for his career are actually below the league average. One thing is for sure...playing for the Yankees in a bunch of World Series never hurts a player's chances of getting in. Edgar Martinez - Forget Paul Molitor, Edgar will be the first real test to see if a true DH can get in the HOF. I personally don't think he should get in and its all but your own opinion on the DH. I just don't see his numbers being as good if he played the field his whole career, yes even at first base. Again just his induction will be based purely on personal opinion and not numbers. Barry Larkin - I vote yes but considering what has happend to Alan Trammell I'm really doubting Larkin's chances. Who does Larkin's compare to the most? Yup...Trammell. Obviously the influx of offensive shortstops has had an adverse effect on previous shortstops and doesn't help someone like Larkin played at the same time as Cal Ripken. Like Larry Walker, Larkin also has had a lot of trouble staying healthy through out his career as he's had four season where he played less than 100 games and seven where he played less than 120. At his age and health it's tough to see him pushing his career numbers over 200 homeruns and 1000 rbi even though he's only 10 and 84 short repsectably. I'd like to see him get in but its going to be iffy. Fred McGriff - I give him a slight nod for the Hall but as already suggested I bet he is first the 500 HR club member to not make it. If he can stay healthy this year and put up 30 HR that might tip some votes but if he has another year like last it will just look like he was just barely hanging on to get to 500 homeruns. He did have a seven year period (1988-1994) that he finished in the Top 5 in the league in OPS. One thing in his favor is that his numbers most favorably compare to Willie McCovey. Of course what would have McCovey done in this era? Craig Biggio - Definently should be in but in this offensive era his numbers will get overshadowed. Of course the thing that sets him apart from others was the transition from catcher to a gold glove second baseman. His numbers compare favorably to Roberto Alomar and most would agree Alomar is a lock. Wouldn't shock me if he it took Biggio a few years to get in but he will and should get in. Curt Schilling - Its amazing how good he has become but he still has only 163 career wins. Granted that had some to do with playing on some bad teams but at this point he's not a HOF. He's definently someone to revisit in a few years to see how he finished off his career. If he can top 200 wins and 3000 strikeouts then he's got a good shot. If he leads the Red Sox to a World Title then he'll probably be inducted the next day. John Franco - Yes until Goose Gossage gets someone like Franco has no shot and plus I've always felt Franco was a bit overrated so I'd never vote him. Mike Mussina - He's only 34 and he isn't showing any signs of hitting the wall just yet. He continues to string 17 and 18 win seasons for another four or five years he'll definently get in. Right now I don't think he really has that great of a case to get in so he's another to revisit down the road. Kevin Brown - Injuries have absolutely killed him. When healthy he can and has put up Greg Maddux type numbers. If he can somehow stay healthy for two or three more years and put up good numbers I think he's got a shot and I think at that point I'd put him in. Trevor Hoffman - Yes the Gossage argument again but Hoffman is a better pitcher than John Franco. Problem is he's already 35 but only played 11 years and missed almost all of last year so it's hard to imagine returning to his form of the late 90s where he was the N.L.'s best closer. If he can stay healthy he woud have a shot at the all-time save record but considering Lee Smith isn't exactly close to getting into the HOF that record doesn't at the moment seem to mean much. Personally...I might put Hoffman in if he can continue to pitch at a high level.

All you mentioned are locks except Smoltz, at the moment. I know everyone is down on Griffey but think about it just a few years ago you would get people to argue that he was on his way to be the best player EVER. His numbers are still excellent no matter how you look at it and he's simple a no brainer. Smoltz needs two more years as a dominant closer I think to lock up his spot in the HOF. His numbers as a starting pitcher aren't quite as good as some might think but a couple of more years as a dominant closer puts him in Eckersley company. What position you play is important and this why Piazza is a lock and his .960 career OPS is pretty damn good no matter what position you play and is just sick as a catcher. As for Palmeiro, ya I would label myself as a sceptic too in the past but when you really look at the numbers (and not just the homeruns) there is no way he's not a HOF. Now here are some real borderline cases at the moment to discuss: Larry Walker Albert Belle Bernie Williams Edgar Martinez Barry Larkin Fred McGriff Craig Biggio Curt Schilling John Franco Mike Mussina Kevin Brown Trevor Hoffman

I got this off another message board so these numbers might be unofficial ELECTED Paul Molitor 431 (85.2%) Dennis Eckersley 421 (83.2%) NOT ELECTED Ryne Sandberg 309 (61.1%) Bruce Sutter 301 (59.5%) Jim Rice 276 (54.5%) Andre Dawson 253 (50%) Rich "Goose" Gossage 206 (40.7%) Lee Smith 185 (36.6%) Bert Blyleven 179 (35.4%) Jack Morris 133 (26.3%) Steve Garvey 123 (24.3%) Tommy John 111 (21.9%) Alan Trammell 70 (13.8%) Don Mattingly 65 (12.8%) Dave Concepcion 57 (11.3%) Dave Parker 53 (10.5%) Dale Murphy 43 (8.5%) Keith Hernandez 22 (4.3%) Joe Carter 19 (3.8%) Fernando Valenzuela 19 (3.8%) Dennis Martinez 16 (3.2%) Dave Stieb 7 (1.4%) Jim Eisenreich 3 (0%) Jimmy Key 3 (0%) Doug Drabek 2 (0%) Kevin Mitchell 2 (0%) Juan Samuel 2 (0%) Cecil Fielder 1 (0%) Randy Myers 1 (0%) Terry Pendleton 1 (0%) Danny Darwin 0 (0%) Bob Tewksbury 0 (0%) Anyone under 5% is off the ballot.

Cardinals are getting a new stadium in 2006. http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=1693365

Tonight's Game New Orleans Bowl: Memphis vs. North Texas worth 6 pts. We have a 12-11 split in the picks for this game (only the Silicon Valley Bowl has a split like it) so even though its not worth many points it could go a long way to deciding the winner of the contest. Here is the breakdown for who picked who for tonight's game: Memphis (12) - MarvinisaLunatic, 2GOLD, cartman, The Mighty Damaramu, Cuban Linx, Kotzenjunge, bps "The Truth" 21, JHawk, Bored, Landon Griffin, HarleyQuinn, Choken One North Texas (11) - Agent Bond34, razazteca, Rob E Dangerously, teke184, the pinjockey, phoenixrising, Gatornibs, bravesfan, CanadianChris, Edwin MacPhitso, Vern Gagne