This forum is for talking about non-music-related stuff that the DBT fanbase might be interested in. This is not the place for inside jokes and BS. Take that crap to some other board.
Zip City wrote:The Yankees produced guys like Jeter, Bernie WIlliams, Mariano, etc. from their core 90's dynasty teams. They weren't a completely "bought" team
No, that's absolutely true. The Cubs tried to duplicate that kind of spending without the homegrown talent and failed to win playoff games. Now the Dodgers are a different case as their payroll is $238 million for 2013. They may very well win a pennant but the back end of those contracts is going to hurt and fans don't flock to Chavez Ravine when the Dodgers don't win. Of course that TV contract is absurd so maybe that will get them through.
We call him Scooby Do, but Scooby doesn’t do. Scooby, is not involved
Tequila Cowboy wrote:I was listening to a baseball columnist yesterday, I didn't catch his name but he was a younger guy who works for Yahoo, talking how interesting it was that the Red Sox and Yankees who epitomized the big money era of the last decade are now slowly building up their minor league systems and have become are becoming much more cautious about paying players big money for past performance. He contrasted this with the Angels and Dodgers who are still using that model and he predicted that both would fail and that big market teams would start being more willing to start from scratch like the Cubs are doing. He was asked how fan impatience would play to that, particularly since Cub fans are already balking at another losing season, and was asked whether Yankee fans or Red Sox fans would be any different. He had no answers for that. The Cubs are not only likely to lose big again this year but next year as well and 2015 is certainly no guarantee and while I think smart baseball fans are encouraged at what they are doing there are some loud voices of criticism as well. I think fans in Chicago (the White Sox don't count in this discussion), NY, LA, Philly & Boston except their teams to throw money at the big free agents. If they stop doing that how will fans react? Is rebuilding actually possible in a big market? I think this whole trend is fascinating.
The funny thing is when the Yankees and Red Sox were enjoying their greatest successes, a lot of it was due to developing key, core players from within. The Red Sox had/have players like Garciaparra, Varitek, Nixon, Varitek, Pedroia, Lester, Papelbon, Ellsbury, Buchholz that came up through their system. They complimented those homegrown players with some high(er) profile signings/trades - Manny, Schilling, Pedro, Beckett, J.D. Drew, Matsuzaka, Damon; as well as low(er) profile signings/trades - Ortiz, Bill Mueller, Mark Bellhorn, Orlando Cabrera, Gabe Kapler, Dave Roberts, Derek Lowe, Keith Folke, Kevin Millar, Mike Lowell. There was a multi-pronged, balanced approach. The problem with trying to build a team by signing a ton of high-profile, expensive free agents that want long-term contracts is that you get them on the tail-end of their careers and you essentially wind up paying top dollar for a few years (if you're lucky) of peak performance. The contracts are guaranteed, and while MLB does not have a "real" salary cap in place, the luxury tax cap has a harsh enough effect that even teams like the Yankees and Red Sox are no longer willing to venture into that threshold.
Your point is well taken, but just for accuracy, Lowe & Varitek came from Seattle in the Heathcliffe Slocumb trade, perhaps the Red Sox front office's greatest moment. If I remember correctly, both went directly to the Sox farm system, so literally came up from the minors, but they weren't homegrown talent. OTOH, being really, really good at the trading game is an often overlooked (and really difficult) part of the team building process and this was a crowning moment.
As I recall they had to take Lowell as part of the Beckett deal and were as surprised as anyone when he became a linchpin of the team and a fan favorite. Don't know how much credit they get for that
Cabrera, Mueller, Ortiz and Roberts were classic "we see value nobody else does" signings for which the team gets full credit and gold stars.
All opinions and commentary in my posts are solely my own and are made in my personal capacity.
Bad new for the Dodgers. Zack Greinke is out for a couple of months after this crazy ass brawl started by Padres OF Carlos Quentin. I didn't see the game but on a 3-2 pitch it seems unlikely that Greinke was intentionally throwing at Quentin. The Dodgers are asking that Quentin be suspended for as long a Greinke is out. Peter Gammons seems to think it will happen. Interesting precedent there if it does.
We call him Scooby Do, but Scooby doesn’t do. Scooby, is not involved
Hell of a series this weekend btw. The 8-1 Braves are in Washington to face the 7-2 NL East rival Nationals. Tomorrow team aces Hudson and Strasburg go head to head. I'm ready for some good baseball!
We call him Scooby Do, but Scooby doesn’t do. Scooby, is not involved
Tequila Cowboy wrote:Hell of a series this weekend btw. The 8-1 Braves are in Washington to face the 7-2 NL East rival Nationals. Tomorrow team aces Hudson and Strasburg go head to head. I'm ready for some good baseball!
im probably gonna be there for that one. should be a good one. of course i said the same about strasburg/cueto last weekend and that was a slugfest where neither pitcher ever hit a groove.
the braves are looking good but they havent exactly played the elite of the nl. obviously a win's a win but i think this is their first real test of the year. nats swept the marlins easily, got humbled big time by the reds, swept the white sox easily. should be a huge test for both teams. someone's momentum is gonna end.
Tequila Cowboy wrote:Bad new for the Dodgers. Zack Greinke is out for a couple of months after this crazy ass brawl started by Padres OF Carlos Quentin. I didn't see the game but on a 3-2 pitch it seems unlikely that Greinke was intentionally throwing at Quentin. The Dodgers are asking that Quentin be suspended for as long a Greinke is out. Peter Gammons seems to think it will happen. Interesting precedent there if it does.
Quentin fucking creamed Greinke. They both lowered their shoulders and Quentin must've knocked him back 6 or 8 feet. Given the situation in the game (full count, one-run game in the 6th) it doesn't make sense that he was throwing at him, but the Pads' pitcher did almost bean Kemp earlier in the game, so it does make you wonder. Plus, I think AJ Ellis fucked up by not getting in front of Quentin as soon as he stepped toward the mound. Tough one for the Dodgers.
Mark Mulder was on espn earlier saying the fact that Ellis didn't intervene initially lent him.to believe there was no intent. I just cannot believe Greinke meant to bean him in that situation.
jr29 wrote:Mark Mulder was on espn earlier saying the fact that Ellis didn't intervene initially lent him.to believe there was no intent. I just cannot believe Greinke meant to bean him in that situation.
There's no way there was intent. Close game, 3-2 count it makes no sense. On the other hand Quentin is batshit crazy. He had numerous troubles w the White Sox which is the main reason they got rid of him. The dude is not right.
We call him Scooby Do, but Scooby doesn’t do. Scooby, is not involved
Zip City wrote:THIS JUST IN: Athletes are egotistical goons
Not all of them and this was rather shocking if you weren't aware of Quentin's history. The guy is nuts. He broke his hand breaking a bat in the locker room a few years back and he was rumored to have ripped the hood off his car after a day where he went 0-5 at the plate. In any case last night's incident was not just business as usual. it was certainly out of the norm, especially in a close game and one of the Dodger's key assets was lost to them for months. Kind of a big deal.
We call him Scooby Do, but Scooby doesn’t do. Scooby, is not involved
Zip City wrote:THIS JUST IN: Athletes are egotistical goons
Not all of them and this was rather shocking if you weren't aware of Quentin's history. The guy is nuts. He broke his hand breaking a bat in the locker room a few years back and he was rumored to have ripped the hood off his car after a day where he went 0-5 at the plate. In any case last night's incident was not just business as usual. it was certainly out of the norm, especially in a close game and one of the Dodger's key assets was lost to them for months. Kind of a big deal.
Enormous deal. I'm just saying I'm not surprised that this kind of thing happens considering what the personality profile of most pro athletes is
And I knew when I woke up Rock N Roll would be here forever
You're officially out of the Cubs fan club. We do not stand for such fair-weather fandom. Someone will be by shortly to revoke your membership
I've always followed 3 teams in this order: Cubs, Red Sox, White Sox. I've jettisoned the White Sox in favor of the Braves since I wanted a team in the region. It eliminates a lot of Chi town conflict too.
We call him Scooby Do, but Scooby doesn’t do. Scooby, is not involved
Tequila Cowboy wrote:I've always followed 3 teams in this order: Cubs, Red Sox, White Sox. I've jettisoned the White Sox in favor of the Braves since I wanted a team in the region. It eliminates a lot of Chi town conflict too.
On my way to Fenway today.
From Peter Abraham this AM:
Red Sox starters have allowed three or fewer runs in all 10 games, their best such streak to start a season in team history.
This from MLB:
The Red Sox haven't won a season series against the Rays since taking seven straight from 2001-07.
Zip City wrote:The Yankees produced guys like Jeter, Bernie WIlliams, Mariano, etc. from their core 90's dynasty teams. They weren't a completely "bought" team
No, that's absolutely true. The Cubs tried to duplicate that kind of spending without the homegrown talent and failed to win playoff games. Now the Dodgers are a different case as their payroll is $238 million for 2013. They may very well win a pennant but the back end of those contracts is going to hurt and fans don't flock to Chavez Ravine when the Dodgers don't win. Of course that TV contract is absurd so maybe that will get them through.
Huh? The lowest attendance in over 10 years is 2.9 million/year.
No, I get that oilpiers, but there are a lot of empty seats when they lose very similar to the Cubs and the real ballpark money is made on concessions. That being said I'm probably wrong as that TV money will most likely pay for those contracts just fine.
We call him Scooby Do, but Scooby doesn’t do. Scooby, is not involved
Damn the Braves are impressive with B.J. Upton just starting to hit and Heyward hasn't yet. As good as they've looked I didn't expect a sweep of the Nationals.
We call him Scooby Do, but Scooby doesn’t do. Scooby, is not involved
Tequila Cowboy wrote:Damn the Braves are impressive with B.J. Upton just starting to hit and Heyward hasn't yet. As good as they've looked I didn't expect a sweep of the Nationals.
Tequila Cowboy wrote:Damn the Braves are impressive with B.J. Upton just starting to hit and Heyward hasn't yet. As good as they've looked I didn't expect a sweep of the Nationals.
You were saying...
I wasn't expecting it. Didn't say I wasn't happy about it. They look great. Go Braves!
We call him Scooby Do, but Scooby doesn’t do. Scooby, is not involved
Tequila Cowboy wrote:I've always followed 3 teams in this order: Cubs, Red Sox, White Sox. I've jettisoned the White Sox in favor of the Braves since I wanted a team in the region. It eliminates a lot of Chi town conflict too.
On my way to Fenway today.
From Peter Abraham this AM:
Red Sox starters have allowed three or fewer runs in all 10 games, their best such streak to start a season in team history.
This from MLB:
The Red Sox haven't won a season series against the Rays since taking seven straight from 2001-07.
Alex Cobb vs. Clay Buchholz.
You got a good game from your boys today. Awesome.
We call him Scooby Do, but Scooby doesn’t do. Scooby, is not involved
Tequila Cowboy wrote:You got a good game from your boys today. Awesome.
It was a good game.
Buchhholz had a no-hitter into the eighth (although he issued four walks). Not to take away from the pitching performance by Mr. Buchholz, but, that Rays lineup is just awful. They really need the prospect Wil Myers to be a breakout sensation when he comes up because they have no-one to protect Longoria right now. Zobrist looks ok, but, that's it. Maybe they will look better today against Dempster. For the Red Sox, it was nice to see the kid Jackie Bradley Jr. in the lineup. He got a nice hand from the crowd every time he came to the plate, and, he hit one ball to deep right which was caught - but, in general he seems over-matched at the moment. Andrew Miller pitched the ninth in a non-save situation; but, it would have been Bailey if it had been. Hanrahan reportedly has a hammie - which is good news because otherwise his miserable performance thus far would mean Cherington got fleeced by Boras.
