Cheech Tremendous

Over a sample size of more than 2,000 games? It would be kind of shocking if it weren't tied.

It doesn't particulary matter if the $700 billion was an accurate amount of money to solve the problem. In fact, the true amount of bad debt out there might be closer to $2 trillion. What does matter is that it will allow confidence in our markets to return and open up the freeze on credit. Getting this shit over with, as you put it, might require 5-10 years of unbelievable economic conditions. Is that really necessary? A short-term stand against big government causes 300 million people to suffer? Guess what, 909, I lost thousands of dollars in savings today because this bailout didn't go through. I'm in real danger of losing a six figure job that I am very good at, solely because the markets that I work in rely on the availability of credit. I own a home (with a real 20% down mortgage) and don't have one dime to my name in credit card debt. Why in the fuck should I have to suffer?

After the election? A couple more days of the stock market wiping out everyone's personal wealth and you'd think that timeliness would outweigh political machinations. Then again, I'm the same fool who thought that this bill would fly through. I think we are all leery of $700 billion of debt, not to mention the notion of the US government being landowners. It's scary, and the rhetoric of a "bailout" isn't the helping the cause. Bu the fact of the matter is our economy needs this to go through to prevent an utter financial collapse that rivals the Great Depression. Is it a band-aid on a severed limb? Most likely yes. Doesn't change the fact that we still need available credit for our markets to function, lest we usher in the era of double digit unemployment, unprecedented inflation and maybe much worse...

The Republican Party is fractured. The Republicans that went against this bill did so as a statement against Bush and the party line of the past eight years. There is an attempt to being made to rebrand the party as truly "conservative." The bailout is viewed by this group as the last vestige of the Bush years. Today was a clear example of political ideology winning out over the people's best interest.

Depressions don't happen overnight. But the wheels are definitely turning in that direction. Got to love the rhetoric about "Oh my god $700 billion" being too much money, and then the market crashes and $1.2 trillion is lost in a day. You have to admire the foresight and vision of our members of Congress.

Dow closes with the single largest point drop in history. Oil is down $10/barrel. Glad that those people in Congress were more interested in making a political statement against a lame duck President than act in the best interest of the people. Un-fucking-believable.

Do you work for a small or mid-size company? If they aren't able to get a short-term loan for payroll purposes, you may be out of a job. Own a home? Watch that value spiral downward. Want to buy a car? Secure a new credit card? Get a college loan? Good luck. Oh, and you better hope you don't have any moved saved for your retirement because it might be gone.

Fuck fuck fuck EDIT: And the Dow drops 550 points. Awesome.

Ah yes, the old "they acquired the most name players so they'll be the best" routine (see also: the 2008 Mariners). I didn't think they would be this bad, but anyone could see that a team starting Cabrera, Renteria and Guillen in the infield was going to have a tough time. I continue to be baffled by analysts who fail to account for 1. defense and 2. the law of diminishing marginal returns.

Looking at the standings, is it a stretch to say that Cleveland threw in the towel too early this season? They missed the playoffs by seven games. Could CC, Blake and Byrd have bridged that gap had they stuck around? I'm inclined to say no, but then again I still think they had the best team in the division.

I'm speaking talent wise, not performance wise. But holy hell, I didn't realize Detroit was below KC. I might have to retract that statement a bit. Yeah, Detroit's horrible. Not sure how you missed that. They had a worse record than the A's fer chrissakes. Detroit's not even that talented. Cabrera, Granderson and Ordonez are good, but the pitching sucks and the defense is even worse. Not a lot to be excited about there.

Really? I'd like to see that. If that's true, then sorry for your damn luck, guys. I'll see if I can find it, but it was subscription only. Joe Sheehan summarized the findings on his segment with Espnnews. It had something to do with performance, strength of schedule and all that jazz. I don't know if it was overly convincing, but I don't think it's a stretch at all to call those teams some of the best in baseball. They are probably the four best in the American League.

Baseball Prospectus had some big fancy study they did about a week ago that showed that four of the top seven teams in MLB resided in the AL East. So Treble is right on the money with his assessment.

The Cardinals are working out an extension with Kyle Lohse. Although the numbers aren't available, the rumor is four years, $48 million. Let the crazy offseason spending begin!

Okay, miserable is a harsh word. But in terms of expectations and recent history, the Yankees had a very tough year. Talking to the Yankees fans I know you'd think that they lost 100 games this season.

Didn't see it mentioned here, but Mike Mussina finally got to 20 wins yesterday. That might be the bump he needs to get voted into the Hall of Fame. A bright spot in the otherwise miserable season for the Yanks. I don't like the sounds of this Beckett injury. As of today, he's penciled in for Game 3. On one hand, Lester and Matsuzaka were clearly superior pitchers this season (3rd and 4th best in AL this year, according to SNLVAR), but I think we still know that Josh has the best stuff and the history of postseason success. I'll stay cautiously optimistic.

Do it! The time is now.

Another one bites the dust... http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/30/business...agewanted=print

This show is phenomenal. I started watching this season and totally got hooked. I'm now working my way through the Season 1 DVD set. Highest recommendation.

I don't care how comfortable they are, Crocs look like shit.

Okay, that game was excruciating to watch. There's bad football and then there's whatever that was.

Also, Raul Ibanez is the worst defensive outfielder in the bigs not named Manny Ramirez. Since the Mets offense is already really good, adding Ibanez would probably be a net negative for the team. They are going to have to find a closer for next year. K-Rod would be a bad move, but Chad Cordero, Brian Fuentes, Huston Street and others will be available. It will be important, however, that Minaya show some restraint in acquiring bullpen arms. You don't want to go all '07 Orioles on the market.

CC is in the discussion for Cy Young, but he can't compete with Tim Lincecum or Johan Santana. Those guys were great for an entire season, not 2/3. Had either of those guys slipped up down the strecth (see Brandon Webb), then yes, I would have voted for him. As for Manny, no way. I don't think he'll crack my top 10.

We need to an MLB Awards thread again. Santana 2nd? Really? I'm guessing that means Santana leap frogged Lincecum for the Cy, too?

Omar Minaya's done a decent to good job the fast few years, despite ultimately coming up short. He's been able to put out a team in position to make the playoffs every year and there aren't many organizations you can say that about. He's had several great signings/trade acquisitions (Beltran, Wagner, Johan, Delgado and Oliver Perez). If you seriously think the guy should go over the failures of a bullpen, then your hate is seriously misguided.