EVIL~! alkeiper

Indeed. And considering that Carlos Delgado played extremely well down the stretch, he's hardly responsible either. What really gets me about the Mets' wailing is that the Phillies lost the playoff chase in the last two weeks of the season every year from 2003-06. What the Mets have done is not unique in the slightest. And to say that they should have won because hell, it's only the Phillies is insulting. The Mets finished below .500 every year from 2002-04. Since they hired Minaya, they have averaged 89 wins a year. In the three years Minaya was GM of the Montreal Expos, they finished above .500 twice. And that was a team with NO ownership support whatsoever. And the Mets' minor league system is starting to show the fruits of Minaya's labor. Even if the oh my god championships aren't there, Minaya has made the Mets better.

Responding to a query in the last thread. Christian/Swagger started with some stalling, but developed into quite the good match. Swagger won clean but it was extremely competitive. On the whole, the wrestlers employed stalling tactics in every single match. That got frustrating.

I can't give many details, but prowrestlinghistory.com indicates what shows aired on PPV.

Sgt. Slaughter! A tremendously underrated worker who can compete equally as a face or heel.

I gotta wonder about some of these "draft plans." Were you really just assuming your fellow drafters would pick utter crap?

I don't think Daniel Murphy was ever the second baseman of the future. He's stretched defensively there and the Mets tried it because they had a weak spot. Obviously they aren't pursuing it. I think Minaya's greatest strength will become apparent in a few years. As much as he's joked at for his love of Dominicans, there are some DAMN good looking prospects coming up through Brooklyn right now. Wilmer Flores, Jefry Marte, etc. The Mets are two wins away from having three straight playoff appearances under their belt.

Went out to the house show in Wilkes-Barre tonight. Spotted Edge at the Cracker Barrel before the show! Melina p. Beth Phoenix Kane p. Santino Marella in 12 seconds Mike Knox p. Goldust Fit Finlay p. Mark Henry in a Belfast Brawl William Regal/Boogeyman confrontation Jack Swagger p. Christian Chris Jericho p. Kofi Kingston Shawn Michaels and CM Punk d. Randy Orton and Edge (Michaels pinned Edge)

The Royals signed type A free agent RP Juan Cruz to a two year contract. Given that they lose a second round pick rather than a first, this may be a decent move.

Here's how I view fundamentals. They are hugely, vastly important. If you do not have them, you will no doubt lose many games. The problem with harping on them is that at the major league level, every team already HAS fundamentals. So it then takes talent to separate the good teams from the bad. Fans who insist modern players (in any sport) aren't fundamentally sound aren't watching closely.

Usually after each show. In all seriousness, the last Raw there was indeed the Steiners/Quebecers title change. WWE actually used the venue once since, for One Night Stand '06. Smaller arenas. Madison Square Garden (current incarnation) was built all the way back in the 1960s. This page will give you an idea of some of the historical venues used in wrestling. http://basketball.ballparks.com/NBA/misc/pastindex.html Not all of them hosted wrestling, but that's what was available. Now if you're talking WWWF from the 1970s or early '80s, they would run smaller buildings for their tapings and build towards larger arena shows.

Nah. A first baseman with a .379 slugging percentage is probably not going to merit a guaranteed gig.

BPro projects Guillen for 13. The only reason Guillen will hit 20+ home runs is that the Royals feel obligated due to his contract.

Sorry. I've been reading too much Joe Posnanski.

Shoot. And I'm going to a house show tomorrow.

Oddly, I watched everything BUT the Monday Night Wars.

Anderson wasn't expected to testify at all. And from what I understand of the case, the government is highly unlikely to win without Anderson testifying.

Just got an email from Amazon about the Summerslam volumes (at least Vol. 1) going on sale March 10. $34 for 1988-92. I am all over that.

There's something funny about this Dodgers' offer again. A player option worth less than the first year of the deal?

My next selection recreates one of the longest running feuds in wrestling history. The American Dream, Dusty Rhodes

Picking a right fielder for Team USA is an absolute bitch. Markakis, Ludwick, Bradley, Hamilton, Werth, Pence. Lots of guys on the same level.

I thought about taking Tokyo but I didn't want to adjust to a Japanese roster. If someone else wants a city in that region, they can take it. I'd be surprised though.

Let's see. Interesting to see what is still available at this point in the draft. For venue, I am going to take the Mid-South territory. The home venue is the Louisiana Superdome. I also intend to stake claim to Oklahoma, Mississippi and Arkansas. My first pick is one of the most versatile wrestlers of all time, Terry Funk.

This is a tough choice. I'm going with a real dark horse, but this pitcher struck out 126 batters in 77 2/3 innings last year across AAA and the Majors. RP Jason Motte

Why not? I mean it's not good PR but there's nothing inherently wrong with it.

SP Clay Buchholz I know it's not him, but it's the first Google Image result and I'm not topping it.