EVIL~! alkeiper

Re: The Cameron signing. The Mets have lacked a true center fielder for quite some time. Cameron will not only boost the offense, but provide a great addition to their outfield defense. This signing does more for the Mets' pitching staff than any moves made with their actual pitchers. So thumbs up from me.

Might as well give my thoughts on today's moves.... JD Drew, Eli Marrero for Adam Wainwright, Jason Marquis, Ray King -Strange to see the Cards trading away both Drew and Marrero. They have three holes in their lineup now at RF, 2B and LF/1B (wherever Pujols doesn't play). Steve Cox isn't an answer. It'll be interesting to see what else the Cardinals have up their sleeves this offseason. -Adam Wainwright becomes the Cards top prospect, almost by default. Juan Encarnacion for a PTBNL -The Dodgers are looking to upgrade their offense this offseason. So why in the name of all that is holy did they made this f'n dud of a trade. Encarnacion hit .270/.313./.446 last year. His career totals are almost exactly the same (his slugging pct. is one pt higher, and his BA and OBP are the same). And you're moving him to one of the worst hitting environments in the majors? Encarnacion certainly isn't better than Shawn Green. I don't think he's better than Chin-Feng Chen for that matter. Unfortunately, they'll probably play him at left over Chen. The Dodgers need to do better than this.

Source? I think most players will go for the best offer. If some team offers him 3 years, he'd likely take it. The Source is his agent saying so in the New York Star Ledger when they asked about Maddux before getting Brown. Fair enough. I have no reason not to trust an agent.

Source? I think most players will go for the best offer. If some team offers him 3 years, he'd likely take it.

Pretty good sum up there. Lets take a look. The Marlins are taking a hit at catcher. I seriously doubt Javy Lopez will match last year's performance, especially since he drew the same number of walks he did in previous years. Also consider he hit 26 of his 42 home runs at home. So even if the Marlins sign him, they're going to see a drop off. Otherwise their options are Ramon Castro and Mike Redmond, who are passable. The Marlins replaced Derrek Lee with Hee Seop Choi. Choi can hit, its only a question of when he takes the next step. If Lee explodes next year, its just an illusion of his home park. He hit 20 home runs on the road last year, compared to 11 at home. For next year, this is a step down, but long term its a good move for the Marlins. I would not expect AJ Burnett to contribute this season. And his complete games were only a result of previous management pushing his arm until it fell off. The way I see it, the Marlins success next year depends on four things. 1. The players who improved maintain those improvements. Mike Lowell had a career year. We'll see if its a step forward, or just a good year. Same with Miguel Cabrera, Dontrelle Willis, and Alex Gonzalez. 2. Who the Marlins get to replace I-Rod. Currently they're looking at a huge drop in production. 3. How quickly Hee Seop Choi develops. He, not Cabrera, is the Marlins best hitting prospect in my view. 4. Can the pitching staff avoid injuries? A key question for most teams. Realistically, I see the Marlins winning 81-86 games next season.

Well, its Encarnacion for a player to be named later. Encarnacion isn't a big loss. He had a .313 OBP last year, and the Marlins have Cabrera and Conine to man the outfield corners.

Encarnacion traded to the Dodgers. Awaiting details.

I doubt the Yanks are going to look for another starter. Right now they've got six guys they can consider for rotation slots. And I agree with Pinjockey's assessment. Besides, the A's won't cry over this. They have $7 million now they can go shopping with.

I'm working off what they have right now. If the season started today, their lineup would include Adam LaRoche, Mark DeRosa, and Gary Matthews. I can't see that overcoming the Phillies and Marlins. I assume you mean 2003. Yeah, the Braves won, but in all fairness, its hard to predict a 394 rise in OPS by a 32 year old catcher.

Well in our system, doesn't a judge have to decide if a case has merit before allowing it to go to trial in the first place?

Doesn't count as a curse, but almost no announcer will actually use the term "no hitter" or "perfect game" in the midst of one.

I knew what you meant. There is also a difference between teams who don't compete because they suck and teams who don't try to compete, don't you agree? Well just because a team doesn't compete for a championship doesn't mean they suck. The thing you're missing is that a championship is not a status quo. The playoffs consist of the 8 elite teams in the world. Missing the playoffs isn't necessarily a sign of failure. Sometimes it just comes down to luck.

I worded that incorrectly. It was meant to say "compete for a championship."

And Anglesault, 95% of teams don't compete every year. For us, its building up every year. Winning as many games as possible, and hoping it all comes together for a year so the team can win it all. Look at the 50s Dodgers. The "wait til next year" mentality, and the big event when they finally win it. I guarantee you Brooklyn celebrated '55 more than any World Series the Yankees' fans ever got to celebrate.

No Philly team has won a title since 1983 (76ers). As a Philly fan, I can at least take comfort in our boxing legacy.

Pettitte is overrated. Compare Pettitte/Vazquez in every catagory outside of W/L record. Vazquez is clearly better. Pettitte had a 4.02 ERA last year. That's decent, but its not anything to write home about. And Anglesault, speaking as a fan of a non-World Series winning team, a fan can take pride in a strong season. Have the Phillies won it all the last three years? Of course not, but I still take pride in winning each game. There's a big difference between 75 wins and 85 wins.

I have to disagree here, I really don't think the Yankees or the Red Sox have made the deals that the Blue Jays have. Toronto was really just a few arms short of a real play-off run last season and they seem to be working very hard to improve that rotation. I don't see Schilling really helping the Sox cause I see him on the DL most of the season. And the Yankees didn't make the smartest of deals so far. I think the Jays may surprise everyone and snag the division from both of them with the Yankees missing the wild card to the Red Sox. Well, Schilling's DL stints were non-pitching related, so I don't think he's a big risk. You certainly can't count on a DL stint. And as much as people like to piss on the Yankees (and lord knows I'd like to), the Yankees' trades have improved their team this upcoming season. Long term its questionable, but I really think the Yankees look better for 2004 than they did for 2003. And that club won 101 games.

There's an honor. I think so. They could be as good as the fourth best team in the league. Only the Red Sox, Yankees, and A's are clearly better. And I know you like the argument that winning it all is the only thing that matters, but I disagree. If they finish third, winning 85+, its a good season. They've won many games, and they have a solid foundation to build upon for the future.

For the heck of it, an early look at next season. AL EAST Its close between the Yankees and the Sox. I'd make the Yankees slight favorites to win the division next year. Blue Jays finish a strong third. AL CENTRAL White Sox look to be the early favorites here. Twins need to trade their surplus outfielders to improve their team. The Royals will finish under .500. The Indians make a run for third place. AL WEST I like the A's here. 1-5, there isn't a better rotation in baseball. NL EAST I've gotta pick the Phillies here. Marlins finish second. Braves drop to third, ending the dynasty. NL CENTRAL Close race between the Astros and Cubs. I'd make the Astros slight favorites. This is the year the Cardinals collapse. The Reds could surprise people here. NL WEST Gotta take the Giants. Their pitching is solid, and Bonds will supply the offense. Padres make a big improvement, and possibly finish as high as second. This could, and probably will all change after Tejada, Vlad, etc. land with teams.

Am I the only person who thinks the SI curse is nonsense? SI prints over 50 covers a year. OF COURSE sometimes the teams will slide after making the cover. Its simple probability.

Ted Lilly, Jason Arnold, and John-Ford Griffin. All three ended up with the Blue Jays organization eventually, and Arnold and Griffin will likely find their way into the majors by next year.

While certainly not among his best matches, DiBiase's SNME title match vs. The Ultimate Warrior is the first wrestling match I ever saw.

Because of the dismantling. Its disheartening to see a team drop payroll by $20 million, and lose its top two hitters, and its HOF pitcher. Unless of course, you're a Phillies fan, in which case you say "muahahahahaha." Looking back, you can't possibly say the Weaver trade looked stupid at the time. The conventional wisdom of the time said it was another example of the Yankees buying pennants. (I don't believe that myself.)

Well, just thank your lucky stars you don't cheer for the Braves.

Just for the heck of it, minor rumors have said the Yanks might sign Tejada, and move Jeter to third.