I do respect and appreciate the work you put into your posts. I don't like when you generalize about my views by trying to show some predisposition on my part whether it be that I don't follow or know about prospects or I don't like young players, etc. It reminds me of political leaders and special interest groups that make accusations of racism, sexism, or some other discrimination because they don't like the way an issue has been decided. It's a cheap shot technique and you engage in it all the time.
I have attempted to clarify these issues several times by stating that I do follow our prospects. I just don't get excited about AA guys that I don't see play until they hit the majors and they succeed. I have made all sorts of posts about young guys that I have liked from the beginning, e.g., Papelbon, Ellsbury, and Bard. I also liked Buchholz. I saw his debut against the Angels in '07. I was impressed by him in ST '09, but I remain cautious about declaring him to be a star after seeing how bad he was in '08. I am hoping those were growing pains. Would I be thrilled about trading him now? No, because this should be a year when he finally becomes a productive major leaguer. I'd like to get Halladay and keep Buchholz to pitch in the #5 slot and send Wakefield to an Assisted Living facility. How does this jive with my so-called predisposition against young players? Oh, I forgot. I hate Wakefield too. It shows very poor debating skills or just laziness to pin labels on people rather than to debate the issue. For instance, I watched Lars Anderson for a week in Ft. Myers. I watched his batting practice and his ABs for a week and I reported back that he looks over matched. I get back these posts about how I hate all the young kids, and as proof I get the examples of my impressions about Pedroia etc. I never said that I am always right about these evaluations, but I am right more than I am wrong, so to point out the times when I have been wrong as proof that my opinion is invalid is demeaning and intellectually lazy and dishonest. It's called smearing in politics.
BTW I was spot on about Anderson who suffered through a miserable year in '09. Will he bounce back? I hope so. I realize that when I see a guy in ST, that he may be getting his timing down etc. , but to me he looked awkward and confused in every aspect of the game. He looked raw. In 2011 or 2012, if he is playing 1B for the Sox, you'll be telling me that I was wrong about him, even though I was right and he needed seasoning.
You didn't like it when I posted that you think every Sox prospect is going to be a star. I didn't believe that when I posted it, but I wanted to see how you like your views to be ridiculously generalized. Yet, you do it to me all the time. If you want to persist with that tactic, I can play that game too and I will dismiss your posts with ridiculous generalizations of your views. How about arguing an issue based on the merits in its current context. That's how an issue is debated. You would rather research my posts to try to find some statement where I said something different about that issue or some other issue, and use it to invalidate my opinion. You spend a lot of time trying to get "gotcha material" on me. Usually, you can't find anything, because I tend to be consistent about issues unless the facts have changed. If the facts have changed, the prior opinion is irrelevant in the new context. Yet, you will use a post from years ago as some sort of invalidation of my opinion. If I was skeptical about Pedroia in March 2006 and love him now how is that discrediting? Changing the facts changes the discussion.
For instance, I get people telling me how I want to get rid of Buchholz and I have wanted him gone since July. No, wrong. I would have been okay with trading him in July for Halladay (probably even Lee), but facts have changed since then. Nevertheless, I am told to take a position about Buchholz and stick to it. How ridiculous. Should my opinion be the same about him next August whether he is 15-2 with a 3 ERA or he is 2-15 with a 7 ERA? How could it be?