EVIL~! alkeiper

Saunders is back?!

As for the site, if we really put some planning into it, I don't see why we couldn't put out a site of similar quality to any of the other wrestling/pop-culture sites out there, like 411mania. Seriously, looking through that site, some of their columnists are utter shite. We already have a good nucleus of talent on board here. I like to think of myself as a talented writer, and I'd stake my reputation on the rest of the crew here. It's difficult to pinpoint exactly what the problem is with the site. While improving the forums, I think closed registrations hurt us in the long run. We have to ask ourselves, what is more important? Are we concerned with running a web site, or a forum? Tom's stated that he'd like to ditch the wrestling content. While wrestling may be passe at the moment, our wrestling writers constitute the majority of our assets. Without wrestling, the site loses its identity. There's honestly better pop-culture stuff out there. We need to take advantage of what we have. While the lack of quality wrestling these days hurts, I believe there are ways we can work around it. Historical projects such as the ones Loss has banded about are excellent ideas. There particularly is a lack of good wrestling information pre-1990. Also, I think it might be a good idea to explore issues beyond the current product. What really draws fans, etc.? If we could get some good analysis that digs to the heart of professional wrestling, that could really benefit the site. I think we could use some new writers to beef up the content of the page. Cover undercovered areas, such as NWA-TNA. Perhaps have someone write up a weekly wrap-up, so that those of use who don't watch as much can still keep up with current storylines and developments quickly. Just my two cents.

Is Wood a free agent after this season? I see the Cubs keeping Zambrano and Prior out of pure economics. Although Sosa's monster contract comes off the books as well after this season.

Williams' accomplishments are undeniable, but what did he do to transend baseball? Very little, in my view. Certainly nothing that would rate him among the Ben Franklins and Mark Twains of our nation. Its possible, but I have never come across anything to comfirm that story.

ESPN.com has a head shot, but Rusch is wearing a Brewers' cap.

I've never read anything stating Cobb killed a man. Cobb's mother killed his father (according to the trial she mistaked him for a prowler), so maybe there's a mixup there. In any case, Cobb had little impact on the world outside of baseball. Jackie Robinson definately would have a shot at the list, but I can't see Branch Rickey there.

Sign #1 of Sports insanity, wanting to slug players on your own team.

Sorry, we've had this topic pop up twice now. Check out the original topic... http://forums.thesmartmarks.com/index.php?showtopic=65754

Just remember that there are some good Philly fans around, despite the reputation.

I'm curious to see what sports figures rate on that list. I'm guessing Babe Ruth, Muhammad Ali, and Jesse Owens will land on that list. I'd love to see John L. Sullivan figure in as well.

The gal and I play board games all the time. We tend towards Scrabble (and now Super Scrabble). Otherwise, we'll play Monopoly, Upwards, and Uno. We got Scene It for Christmas as well, which is surprisingly fun.

Repeat Topic... http://forums.thesmartmarks.com/index.php?showtopic=65754

It's Angel Guzman.

Pocono Pines, which is in Monroe County. Hazleton was somewhat effected, but not to the effect we were. And believe me, this is a truly rare occurance. We'll get heavy snows from December-March, but otherwise our area is unaffected by severe weather, for the most part.

I can't believe high school basketball doesn't have a shot clock. The rules invite a blatent misuse to suit ones advantage, and it happened here. It doesn't have to be a short period of time, but there has to be something there to tell the teams, "quit fucking around and play basketball.[/i]

My predictions... Philadelphia over Minnesota Owens or no Owens, I just don't see how the league's 26th best defense can beat the league's second best. Atlanta over St. Louis The Rams are a remarkably mediocre team all around. Atlanta is the only NFC team outside Philadelphia that belongs. New England over Indianapolis This is as good a match-up as we could get in the playoffs. The weather and Indianapolis' relatively weak defense should make the difference. Pittsburgh over NY Jets NY's primary weapon is their rushing attack, and the Steelers kill the run. Pittsburgh's got a chance to rank among the greatest teams, and I think it will take more than the Jets to stop them.

Michael Vick rushed for 902 yards this season. I think to criticize him based on his passing statistics undervalues him as an overall quarterback.

Hafner makes a deadly DH combo on his own.

He should, but he didn't last year. And that was the very problem with the Blue Jays. A bunch of talented players, who just took a step back for some reason.

Yes, but that they traded him for virtually nothing has to count against his overall contribution.

Just the Blue Jays, because a loyal reader requested it.

As promised, a week late due to ice storms... In 2003, the Toronto Blue Jays finished 86-76. Carlos Delgado was the best hitter in the American League, while Roy Halladay won the Cy Young Award. The team finished second in the league in runs scored. Surely with some improvements to the pitching staff, the Blue Jays could even make a run at the big clubs. However, 2004 turned into a disaster. The team finished 67-94, forcing the Tampa Bay Devil Rays out of the cellar for the first time in club history. So what happened? Quite simply, nearly all of the Toronto regulars took a step backwards. Here are the Top Ten Blue Jays of 2003, as rated by Win Shares... Carlos Delgado (32) Vernon Wells (26) Roy Halladay (23) Orlando Hudson (18) Frank Catalanotto (15) Kelvim Escobar (12) Eric Hinske (12) Reed Johnson (11) Mike Bordick (11) Aquilino Lopez (10) Josh Phelps (10) Three all stars, and seven other reasonably talented players. This group of 10 earned a total of 180 win shares. Two of those players, Escobar and Bordick, left over the offseason. The other eight? Take a look at this list of the same players, with their 2004 Win Shares in parenthesis... Carlos Delgado (17) Vernon Wells (14) Roy Halladay (10) Orlando Hudson (16) Kelvim Escobar Frank Catalanotto (5) Eric Hinske (7) Reed Johnson (10) Mike Bordick Aquilino Lopez (0) Josh Phelps (5) The eight players who remained on the Blue Jays declined a total of 73 win shares. That is a significant figure. There are few teams who could survive that kind of dropoff from their best players. With Delgado and Halladay missing significant time, it is easy to see how everything went wrong for the Blue Jays. So what does the future hold? I have several reasons to believe the Blue Jays will improve next season. For one, the regulars should regain form. Roy Halladay pitched well in September, and he should regain his status as an elite starting pitcher. Vernon Wells will certainly perform better, and Eric Hinske can not possibly perform worse. The Blue Jays patched the third base hole with Corey Koskie, and Shea Hillenbrand will help ease shore up the lineup. Between Hillenbrand, Hinske, Frank Catalanotto, and Eric Crozier, the Blue Jays should be able to develop a patchwork at DH/1B. The Blue Jays also have several fine young prospects on the rise. Three of them have already reached the Jays' starting lineup. Alexis Rios, Russ Adams, and Guillermo Quiroz form a trio that will not see free agency until after the 2010 season. All three players appeared on Baseball Prospectus' top 50 prospect list last season, and all three have all-star potential. In addition, Gabe Gross, another prospect, should form a platoon this season with Reed Johnson, strengthening the Blue Jays at left field. David Bush breezed through the minors and earned himself a place in the Blue Jays' rotation. Bush features excellent control, and he struck out nearly a battar an inning in the minor leagues. Along with Halladay and Ted Lilly, the Blue Jays can count on a solid 1-2-3 punch in their rotation. Brandon League is another intriguing prospect in the Blue Jays' organization. League was converted to a reliever last season. His specialty pitch is a hard sinker. League is an extreme ground ball pitcher, as evidenced by his incredibly low home run rates. League has only surrendered nine bombs in 364 minor league innings. League features a solid strikeout rate, good control, and he'll hit AAA this season. If he performs well, he could land in the Blue Jays bullpen by the All-Star break. Steve Andrade is another interesting prospect. He is usually not considered a high prospect, but his minor league numbers are eye popping. 286 strikeouts in 200 innings, alongside only 66 walks, and eight home runs. The Toronto Blue Jays claimed Andrade off waivers from the Anaheim Angels. If Andrade can keep up his numbers, he could land in the Blue Jays bullpen as well this season. Keep an eye on Dustin McGowan. He missed most of the season with Tommy John surgery, but he still remains an interesting prospect, and has dominating stuff at times. The Blue Jays also flipped Kevin Cash to the Devil Rays for Chad Gaudin. At first glance, Gaudin looks like a decent middle reliever. 82 2/3 IP, 53 Ks, and 32 BBs. Remember however, he is doing this at the age of 21, when most pitchers are plying their trade at Single A. I think Gaudin has the potential to be a very good reliever down the line. Whether the Blue Jays can overcome the Red Sox and Yankees remains to be seen. But I think within a year or two, they can compete with any other team in the American League. As long as they win as many games as they can, they can compete, and with a little luck (or a Yankees collapse), they can sneak in one of these days.

Name me some usefull ones. Now that I'm back home, I can reference Pro Basketball Forecast again. The author uses a stat called turnover ratio.... Turnovers x 100 ------------------- FG Att. + (FT Att. x 0.44) + Asts. + TO The lowest Turnover Ratio in the NBA last year was 5.4 (Michael Finley) and the highest was 21.0 (Chris Kamen).

In response to Loss' idea, I don't know how many of you have read Bill James' Historical Abstract. Basically it covers baseball through the decades. I'd love to see that kind of thing done with wrestling. Wrestling by the decades. Who were the stars? The workers? The flakes? The comedy act? Wrestling history is undercovered, and I'd love to see some more light shed on the subject.

For what its worth, Atlanta is denying the Mondesi deal. I can't see why any team would want him at this point, honestly.