EVIL~! alkeiper

Yeah, I don't think scaling back the graphic nature of the programming is a bad thing at all.

Listening to the talking heads whine about Michael Phelps was annoying. He let down his fans? Hasn't it been 15-20 years since we first learned about not putting athletes on pedestals? And yet every time we get a new young sports sensation, we get all the stories of what a great person he is. Hey sportswriters, want to not get disappointed again? Either stop putting your trust in athletes, or refuse to write about their shortcomings, ala Babe Ruth. But spare me the moral outrage.

This is a ridiculous criticism. WWE has also stated that wrestling is not real, yet it's portrayed as real in the shows. If WWE hasn't stated that wrestlers are independent contractors as part of a storyline on television, then what does it matter in basis of another storyline?

Someone made reference to the bird. Mark Fidrych was an absolute phenomenon. He went 19-9 his rookie year, started the All Star game, led the league in ERA and finished second in Cy Young voting. He was immensely popular, one of the few pitchers who legitimately drew big crowds. And just as quickly, he faded.

I see Travis Minix and Jorge Padilla for Puerto Rico. This is a tournament that's been in existence since 1949. It's a heck of a lot of fun.

I looked for a list for Hotbeds: Florida. Apologies if this has been posted before. Matt Hardy vs. MVP (No Mercy 2007) Mike Graham vs. Bob Bradley (MSG 10/17/83) Michelle McCool vs. Natalya (No Mercy 2008) Paul Orndorff vs. Arn Anderson (Clash of the Champions XI) The Big Show vs. Eddie Guerrero (No Mercy 2003)

And 27 wins for a team that won 59.

You mentioned Davey Johnson. Hitting in Atlanta in 1973 and hitting in Baltimore in the late 60s and early 70s are two different animals. Had he played in the same environment earlier in his career, he might have popped 30 home runs a couple more times. Nick Esasky nah. He hit 21 and 22 home runs in part time play in Cincinnati. Then he goes to Boston, gets a friendly left field fence and 200 more plate appearances, and no wonder he hit 30 home runs. Kevin Elster, if adjusted for 162 games had three seasons where he was on pace for 20+ home runs. Now how about Darin Erstad? .355 batting average in 2000, he never hit above .300 in any other season.

Statistically it's Charley Radbourn in 1884. He pitched 678.7 innings, struck out 441 while walking 98. 59-12 win/loss record. He pitched every game for his team down the stretch when the other starter jumped the team. The problem is that pitching was far, far different. Radbourn was pitching underhand/sidearm, from a box and not a mound, and from 50 feet away. So much of pitching then was fielding dependent that it is difficult to take all the performances at face value. Pedro 2000 was incredible.

This is something like fluke seasons, but I see it a little differently. To me, a flash in the pan is a player who comes into the league, dominates almost immediately, and then disappears almost as quickly. Herb Score comes to mind. He was 36-20 with a 2.63 ERA when he was hit in the face by a Gil McDougald line drive. He was the first pitcher to strike out more than a batter an inning over a full season.

We desperately need some fresh baseball talk with the MLB Offseason being boring as !@#$^ this year. So here's a starter topic. I'll check in with some opinions later on.

Maybe he was auditioning for a sports broadcasting job in case he doesn't make the team. Like Nuke Laloosh, Crash Davis taught him well.

In their Holiday '96 issue, Ring Magazine presented their 100 greatest title fights of all time. Here's the heavyweight fights separated from the rest of the list. 1. Muhammad Ali KO15 Joe Frazier, September 30, 1975. 2. Jack Dempsey KO2 Luis Firpo, September 14, 1923 3. Joe Frazier W15 Muhammad Ali, March 8, 1971 4. Joe Louis KO13 Billy Conn, June 18, 1941 5. Rocky Marciano KO13 Jersey Joe Walcott, September 23, 1952 6. Larry Holmes W15 Ken Norton, June 9, 1978 7. Jack Johnson KO12 Stanley Ketchel, October 16, 1909 8. Muhammad Ali KO8 George Foreman, October 30, 1974 9. Rocky Marciano W15 Ezzard Charles, June 17, 1954 10. Buster Douglas KO10 Mike Tyson, February 11, 1990 11. Riddick Bowe W12 Evander Holyfield, November 13, 1992 12. Muhammad Ali W15 Ken Norton, September 28, 1976 13. Jim Jeffries KO8 Bob Fitzsimmons, July 25, 1902 14. George Foreman KO10 Michael Moorer, November 5, 1994 15. Rocky Marciano KO8 Ezzard Charles, September 17, 1954 16. Rocky Marciano KO9 Archie Moore, September 21, 1955 17. Jack Dempsey KO4 Georges Carpentier, July 2, 1921 18. Joe Frazier KO7 Jerry Quarry, June 23, 1969 19. Evander Holyfield W12 George Foreman, April 19, 1991 20. Mike Weaver KO15 John Tate, March 31, 1980 21. Larry Holmes KO12 Mike Weaver, June 22, 1979 Since then Holyfield-Tyson I would probably make the list. I'm not certain if there's another fight that really qualifies, even amongst the alphabet soup.

What about David Schulz slapping John Stossel?

It's not personal. Morris would have the highest ERA of any pitcher in the Hall of Fame. That has to be a significant statistic to some voters. Red Ruffing is the highest but he had quite a reputation as a hitter as well.

This strikes me as something we can easily look up. http://www.baseball-reference.com/pi/pspli...a02&year=00 Scroll down and you'll find Morris's splits by inning. His numbers actually get better as the innings go on. It doesn't prove much about Morris's clutch performance, pitchers only get left in late generally when they are performing well. It does show that his ERA probably wasn't hurt by staying in games later. I don't think Morris would be a horrible selection though. That '84 Tigers team won 104 games and the World Series in dominant fashion, yet no Hall of Famers? They should have Trammell, maybe Morris and maybe Whitaker. For the record, Sandy Koufax 1965 was the greatest game seven pitching performance in World Series history. Complete game shutout, ten strikeouts, the Twins never got a runner to third base. And Koufax pitched on two days rest!

Utley's not exactly young, he just turned 30. 909, not everyone I listed is going to the Hall, or likely to. I just gave thoughts on guys who have a more than miniscule chance. I'm surprised I forgot to mention Jamie Moyer. He'd really need to pitch three more seasons at least though and get up to 290 career wins. That's unlikely.

I don't see anything resembling an effective argument. Saying Anderson is comparable to Williams as YKRG did ignores the minor problem that Williams walked almost 700 more times then Anderson did. That's a full 54 points of career OBP. I wouldn't even say Hall of Very Good. Anderson was an above average player who had a couple very good years.

I dont want to bash players from previous generations but there are alot of head scratchers who made it into the HOF from the catcher posistion. Roger Bresnahan, Buck Ewing, Rick Ferrell, Ernie Lombardi, Ray Schalk all stick out to me. I think that if a player is one of the top two/three players at their posistion year in and year out for over a decade they should be a lock. Posada has to pad his stats a little more to be able to be compared to Berra, Bench, Fisk, Carter, IRod and Piazza. Ewing's deserving, he was one of the legitimate stars of 19th century baseball. Per game he was one of the greats, his games played totals just don't look good because they were playing shorter schedules, and catchers could not play every day then.

Absolutely. Hell, if I had a HOF vote I'd gladly cast it for Bernie.

I could see a Vets' Committee inducting Posada someday. He'd be a better choice than some players with similar length careers like Chick Hafey or Ray Schalk.

I don't think Kevin Youkilis has a realistic shot. He turns 30 in March and he has 66 career home runs. Surprised people are down on the Mets. David Wright, Johan Santana and Carlos Beltran are all Hall of Fame caliber players. Jose Reyes could be a Hall of Fame caliber player if he hits the next level in his prime. Carlos Delgado has 469 career home runs. Their injured closer is the best left handed reliever of all time. Their new closer is 27 years old with 208 career saves already under his belt. And the Phillies STILL beat them! As for the Dodgers, Russell Martin in three MLB seasons is a two time All Star. Keep an eye on him.

I'm seeing a lot of Dustin Pedroia. That's interesting. Pedroia had a little bit over a typical Brian Roberts season, and Roberts is never mentioned as a Hall of Fame class player. Of course Roberts never won the MVP award either. Pedroia would need to put up a career of 2008s, and I find that highly unlikely.

I'm not. Maybe my meaning doesn't come across well. Look at this from the Yankees perspective. Jeter is a nice player, a popular player. This is not a team desperate to sell tickets though. They are going to sell out that stadium no matter who is playing shortstop. If Jeter is a subpar player, not reaching the postseason is going to kill their income far faster than selling #2 jerseys. And if Jeter says, "I'll go to Pittsburgh or someplace," the Yankees avert a PR problem. If Jeter wants to stay in NY and hit 3000, the Yankees can offer him a one year deal or whatever and get it done. If Jeter wants to be a Yankee, the negotiation ball is in their court.

Wouldn't the pressure be on Jeter though? He's the one seeking the milestone. If he wants to go to the Pirates and pursue 3,000, the Yankees might bid him adieu at that point.