Cheech Tremendous

Reminds me of two summers ago when Summerslam was going to be headlined by Eddie Guerrero v. Mark Jindrak and Chris Benoit vs. Hirohito for their respective brand's titles. For what it's worth, Meltz posted on Wrestling Classics the other day that HHH over Cena is penciled in for Summerslam but the plans literally change every day.

A couple more years for Loretta? This guy is nearing the end of his career. Dustin Pedroia is one of the best prospects in baseball. Why give up what could be your future rock of the infield on the hopes that Mark Loretta doesn't fall off a cliff in the next year. Plus any scenario that features A-Gon being the SS past the All-Star break this year is not one that I am in favor of. There comes a point when plus defense can no longer make up for being a black hole in the offese. Papelbon hasn't developed a reliable third pitch that can get guys out. He's been lights-out in the bullpen, but that's not the only reason he is being kept at the back end instead of in the rotation at this point. There are serious concerns that this guy can develop the tools to be a 1 or 2 in this league. As for Hansen, this guy's development has been all over the map. He's probably going to end up being a starter or long man before he's called up for good.

Man the Eminem hate is ridiculous around here sometimes. No one says that you have to be a fan, but to totally discredit what he has done as some sort of fad or a creation for angst-ridden teens is ridiculous and shows you have no perception of popular culture outside of your own little world. Eminem was one of the most well-known and respected underground freestylers for years before he was signed to Dre's label. He released a very good debut album, and two classic follow ups. He has a charisma and charm that has allowed him to have crossover appeal that appeals to a wide scope of people. My father, who won't even admit rap is a musical genre, owns an Eminem CD. My friend, a bassist from a successful SF-area hardcore band thinks Eminem Show is one of the finest albums he's ever heard. That's an example of widespread appeal and that's relevance. Is he one of the five best pure MCs of all time? Probably not. But that doesn't discredit his success as an artist, producer, actor or clothes designer. He at least belongs in the discussion at this point as a defining artist.

I do remember it. It's the dude with 7'8" wingspan who's considered to be a major project years away from contributing (we're talking Andrew Bynum years of experience and work needed).

Please no. I'm all for contending teams moving prospects for a proven player (especially someone young and proven like Dontrelle), but that's like the entire upper tier of the Boston farm system gone in one shot for a pitcher who has shown fits of being inconsistent. Pedroia is already pegged as the 2B (or SS) of the future in Boston and Lester is the most hyped SP since Roger came up. It's too much after they bled the system for Beckett.

A lot of things can change between now and draft day, but the Raptors will take Bargnani. Whether he goes first or they just trade down a few spots is a whole different story.

That is such bullshit. Eminem has been the defining figure of the entire hip hop industry for the past half decade, and whether you like it not, hip hop's assimilation into the mainstream and popular culture is one of the defining points of this generation. His appeal is wide-reaching, drawing respect and record sales from both white suburban America and the inner city culture. He has two albums that were recognized in the top 100 albums of all time by Rolling Stone (which is still the most widely read and accepted music magazine). He was able to cross over into movies and clothing as well, and his label imprint has introduced major acts like 50 Cent. That has nothing to do with kids wanting to be bad, so quit bringing your naivity into this thread.

You know what I find weird about U2 - they always get mentioned as one of the top bands in the world, known for having a wide reaching and devoted fanbase, but I've never met a person who was a fan of theirs. It's always "U2 sucks" or "I hate Bono." Not really a knock against them, but just something I've encountered and wondered if anyone else has as well. Back to the subject at hand. There is no defining artist of this generation. The differing answers in this discussion are proof of that. I still think if you were trying to squeeze someone into that role, it would have to be Eminem, but there are still many arguments against him. There is still time for something major to happen in the music world for this generation, but the whole structure of the industry would likely suffocate any person from dominating the scene like the aforementioned artists in their respective eras.

I've heard the substantial Croatian contingent of Chicago could land Peja, but would we want him? As a Kings fan I was always high on Peja, but I know there is a large contingent (especially on this board) that would disagree with me. But for Chicago he probably wouldn't add any dynamic that they don't already have with their existing team. They need a presence in the middle.

Well I think Toronto has a large European population or something like that. It is supposed to be a more comfortable change for the foreign players. I've heard rumors that they might be able to land Peja this summer for the same reason.

So do the Raptors use the first pick on Bargnani? He's been telling everyone that he will only play for the Raptors.

You're a Mets fan right? I'm guessing some statistical spreadsheet will probably tell you that Mo is worth about 5 or 6 more wins per season over a "replacement player". As someone who has suffered through Billy Wagner so far this year, John Franco, Armando Benitez and Braden Looper how much stock do you put into that stat? I'm sure the best closer of all time has more of an impact than the numbers would say, and I'm also fairly sure that if any of the Mets closers of the last decade had been on the Yankees the Bombers would NOT have 24 Championships, let alone 26. Five or 6 wins is actually really significant. That's the difference between the Yankees winning the division every year and watching it from home. A good closer is extremely valuable in baseball. Teams with a good bullpen tend to routinely outperform their pythagorean record (oh know, some funky stat with a weird name) because they perform much better than is expected in close games. But Mo is an extreme case. He literally has almost no comparables because closers just can't do what he has done for this long. And as far as your comment earlier, saying that sabermetrics have ruined baseball is naive and it makes you sound dense. Oh no! Regression analysis! Correlation! What about Jeter's heart! What about bunting! You nerds with your computers can't tell me anything about baseball. God forbid there are smart people out there who love the game and want to understand it better. I doubt that some fringe group is changing the game for the worse. If you don't understand sabermetrics, that's fine. The stuff is really complicated sometimes. But don't get high and mighty and tell us that we don't know anything about baseball.

2005 WARP numbers: A-Rod: 10.5 Ortiz: 8.0 WARP is wins above replacement player, and it measures the true value of a player in relation to his team. A-Rod created 10.5 more wins than a replacement level player would have in that Yankees lineup given the exact same opportunities. If A-Rod and Ortiz both broke their leg on opening day and were replaced by comparable AAA/fringe major league players the Yankees would have won 85 games and the Sox 87 games. Guess who gets left out of the playoffs in that scenario? Do I need to spell that one out too? I know these stats are a little oversimplified, but you can't just throw out blanket statements without providing some proof. Don't tell us that we know nothing about measuring value when there are dozens of advanced metrics that measure this stuff (VORP, WARP1, EQA, RC/27). And I have no gripes with Mo Rivera, but he has to have a lead to protect in the ninth inning. If he doesn't have guys in the lineup who can mash, his value is limited. A guy who pitches 70 innings a year is not comparable to an everyday player or a starter no matter how great they are at the end of a game.

Right, because you wouldn't want to end up with the next Elton Brand, Corey Maggette, Shane Battier, Carlos Boozer, Luol Deng, Chris Duhon or Shaun Livingston. Those picks really backfired for their respective teams.

Great, great point, and I've been saying this for years as well. But, I also hate Nirvana and love Pearl Jam. This is one of those weird points of view that has gained momentum in recent years as a backlash to love for Nirvana. Pearl Jam was never as popular or influential as Nirvana. Nevermind, In Utero and Unplugged were all classics far above anything in PJ's catalogue, and were the defining band in a movement that changed the entire landscape of popular music.

I do watch these guys play on a consistent basis. You know what I can't do though? I can't remember every at-bat, or every fielding play from a 162-game season. That's why I use stats. They give a composite look at a season's worth of individual moments. That way I can remove biases from my analysis where you can't.

I never had a chance to see Kerr at the same age as Redick so it's difficult to tell who had more raw ability. The second part of your post is what really interests me. JJ has disappeared in big games against good teams. From what I've seen it's because he lacks the ability to create a good look do to his lack of speed and ballhandling skills. Teams that have a good defensive scheme or long, athletic perimeter defenders tire JJ out by making him run around looking for a shot or forcing him to take poor shots. This is a problem that Kerr didn't have, which suggests that there is gap in their true ability.

He only won because the writers refuse to give it to a DH. Or maybe they looked at their identical numbers and figured that A-Rod gets the nod because he plays plus defense. Just a thought.

Any particular reason you left out the stat that lets us know how often he actually hits when trying to determine how often he hits? Batting average is a mostly worthless stat because it doesn't tell you much. Batting average is a component of on base percentage. The goal is to not make an out, not just get a hit. But if you really want to know, it was .305 for both.

Those are career OBP/SLG/OPS. I didn't include batting average.

Edit: Double post

Alex Rodriguez NO-RISP 0.378 0.577 0.954 Alex Rodriguez RISP 0.391 0.564 0.955 He hits the same with RISP as he does without. Make what you want out of that, but those are the facts.

What about Outkast? They've had a good 10 years or so in the mainstream. Every album has been successful and well-reviewed.

Yes, he said that. I don't even like A-Rod. He's a pretty boy whiner with no backbone, and as a Red Sox fan, anyone wearing the pinstripes is a sworn enemy. But this shit is just ridiculous and needs to stop. I feel obligated to stand up for the guy.

If we're talking relative to a generation, then yeah, he was. What are you talking about? He's had a good 7 years or so as the dominant figure in popular music (that's more than the Beatles' original run or MJ's hot period). He has had 3 pantheon-level albums, critical recognition and mainstream success and notoriety. That's far more than a flash in the pan. The argument for Eminemn is as good as any.