EVIL~! alkeiper

I have no words. Man, what a weird game.

For once I agree with Tim McCarver. This game sucks.

Goose Gossage more and more seems like a bitter ex-baseball player, lamenting how great pitchers of his era were, and how these modern punks aren't fit to hold his jockstrap. Its quite common actually. Relief pitchers are usually pitchers who failed the cut as starting pitchers. They pitch less innings than starters, and pitch for shorter periods at a time. Would a pinch hitter merit serious HOF consideration? I think a relief pitcher who is a candidate for the Hall needs to truly dominate his era for a long period of time to merit discussion. I do not think the Hall should open the floodgates for closers. Of all closers, only Gossage really merits any kind of serious consideration. Ultimately, I can't see giving any closers serious thought when fine pitchers such as Bert Blyleven have yet to make the Hall. Perhaps in the future I'll do a Keltner List on Gossage to see how he rates. Mariano Rivera will be interesting, as many see him as a HOFer due to his postseason work. I don't see it. Rollie Fingers has pitched the least innings of any modern day HOFer, 1701. Rivera trails him by nearly 1,000. Think about that. If his career ended today, Mariano Rivera would have less than HALF the innings pitched of the HOFer who pitched the LEAST. That's not a HOFer. Designated hitters are a different argument, because their shortcomings have far less effect on the overall team. Moreover, few players actually DH their entire careers. Even Edgar Martinez spent a third of his career on the field. Paul Molitor, inducted today, played nearly half of his games as a DH. I think if the stats of a DH measure up to those of 1st basemen/corner outfield standards, they deserve consideration.

Assuming he winds up with TNT, David Aldredge adds a sense of class to his reporting, which Stephen A. Smith lacks. As an aside, I hate how not just ESPN, but every sports telecast has to appeal to younger viewers. All too frequently, this dumbing down involves less actual game footage, and more theatrics.

Thank god for gameday Audio. I muted my tv and I've got the radio call coming along on my computer. Unfortunately, I still have to watch Paul Abbott pitch. There can be quite a difference in weather in that distance. I've seen it pour in Philly while its sunny here.

Its not postponed. For some reason they changed their minds.

Hawkins has only blown two saves since earning the job. His season ERA is 2.81, and his K:BB ratio is 40/9. I see nothing to indicate he is not a cabable closer. He's not a sure thing like Hoffman, Smoltz or Gagne, but not every team can have an All-Star closer. Bottom line is, the Cubs have several issues they could improve before their closer.

Jose Vidro Livan Hernandez Nick Johnson You can take off Nick Johnson and put Cabrera instead. Johnson can't draw flies in the giant toilet bowl (Olympic Stadium). But who cares anymore, we lose the team at the end of the season. Orlando Cabrera has a career .314 OBP, and .404 Slugging. Any GM who views him as untouchable has serious issues running a major league ballclub.

I know LaTroy Hawkins isn't a "proven" closer, but is there honestly anyone better on the market?

There was one out. Cancelled out by the fact that both Derek Jeter and Bernie Williams had garnered safe hits, and that Martinez had allowed three baserunners the previous inning. Where does that come from? I don't believe in any kind of playoff aura, and I'm just pointing out that Embree, Timlin, and Williamson have postseason success, and there's no reason to think they would choke under pressure. Did you even look at their stats? Timlin's postseason numbers have come against the Twins, Athletics, Braves, White Sox, Phillies, Orioles, Mets, Diamondbacks, and Yankees. Only 1/5 of Timlin's postseason stats are from facing the Athletics. Embree has faced the Mariners, Braves, Orioles, Marlins, Mets, Athletics, and Yankees. His numbers are 1/7th Athletics games. As for Arthur Rhodes, one single pitcher is not indicative of an entire position of pitchers. That's like saying because of Don Larsen, all journeymen should pitch Perfect games in the World Series. Why the hell should Pedro get heat for the Red Sox? That's just utterly stupid. He isn't a bad pitcher.

That's a bunch of nonsense. Schilling surrendered two runs in 7 1/3 IP. 90% of the time, that will earn a win. And how can you say he didn't deserve the co-MVP award? 1.69 ERA, 21 1/3 IP, 26 Ks, 2 BBs. Johnson had a lower ERA, but didn't pitch as many innings.

.600 when you count game 1 of the 2001 World Series.

Oliver Perez could be an absolute stud in the making. 3.14 ERA this season, along with 122 Ks and just 38 BBs in 103 1/3 innings. And he's still only 22!

Since Schilling himself beat the Yankees in 2001, does that really apply? In the future, please refrain these postings to a single thread.

Done. I've been debating on how to manage pinned topics. For fantasy leagues, here's my running idea. I'll pin the thread for a week, to allow for sign-ups. After that, bump the thread if you need, but I assume most everyone has at least seen the thread.

The Sox are only a half game out of the Wild Card. It is a long way from over.

ESPNNews has got to stop mentioning no hitters in the 6th inning. I don't believe in a jinx, but with the laws of probability, no hitters aren't worth getting excited about until the middle of the 8th inning.

Three runs with two innings to go. A reliever with less than a 4.50 ERA will nail that down. Timlin's career ERA is 3.56. He's got a 3.03 ERA in 29 2/3 IP. Alan Embree has a 4.41 career ERA, and a 1.29 career postseason ERA. Scott Williamson has a 3.13 career ERA, and his postseason ERA is 1.12 in 8 postseason innings. There are three proven postseason relievers for you. Because most players are skilled in media control, and know the right, uncontroversial things to say. Seriously, is there a rational reason for leaving Martinez in? Perhaps a magical pixie that makes him less tired because he's an ace?

Good god no. Mendoza has barely pitched this season. Lowe looks every bit as bad as his piss poor peripherals would indicate. There's no way this trade improves the Phillies.

Jose Vidro Livan Hernandez Nick Johnson

Perhaps they meant to cheer up the Yankees after that debilitating loss, by reminding them that NYC is the greatest place in the world. But I can see your point. I live relatively close to NYC, but never visit. I wasn't effected by the WTC attacks, so I can't really debate the point.

Well, lets debate the merits of fake Pedro vs. real Pedro...... Real Pedro is a headhunter, is sometimes reputed to be difficult, and is often terse. Fake Pedro has never thrown at anyone, smiles constantly, and other players enjoy conversing with him. Which would you rather have in the dugout?

Like Don Zimmer? I like Zimmer, but it sounded good.

What was so offensive about it. At some point, the Yankees are your opponents, disaster or no disaster. Yankee fans would certainly have gloated if they had won, so they should expect it in kind. There's no lyrics in New York, New York that refer to disasters, so there's really nothing I can see there.

Ace or no ace, ballplayers are human, and managers need to recognize that. Sooner or later, blind faith in some kind of faceless aura catches up with you. Pedro Martinez gave up three consecutive hits in the seventh inning, one of which was a home run. He had shown that he was not shutting down the Yankees, and there was no reason to show confidence in him. Especially since Mike Timlin, Alan Embree, Bronson Arroyo, and Scott Williamson had all pitched well that series. All were better options at that point. Also keep in mind that while Grady Little showed blind faith in his ace, another manager did not. Another manager recognized the game situation, the seriousness of the game, and the need to use his best available pitcher. Another manager had a future Hall of Fame pitcher on the mound, in possibly his last game ever. Joe Torre pulled his ace, Roger Clemens, off the mound after just three innings and change. This same manager pitched his closer for three innings that night, while Little kept Scott Williamson waiting for a save situation which never arrived. Blind faith in your ace is not smart management.