a700hitter

Tough break for Dave Wallace and the Red Sox. Hopefully, he will make a full recovery.

I do. I do.

I agree with everything you are saying. It would be a kick to see Clemens pitch for the Sox for one final season, but that doesn't mean that he isn't a jackass. I loved watching him pitch, but I could do without listening to him.

He was at the end of a pretty good career at that point. I think he only had one good year after that. Tony Fernandez was a far superior fielder to PD, and he wasn't a bad offensive player either. He had more than a few good years. 26 to 6, did you ever see Fernandez play for Toronto from '83 to '90. Numbers don't tell the whole story. Fernandez was a premier fielding SS-- sure-handed, acrobatic, strong arm and great range. On a scale from 1 to 10, he was a 9.5 and PD a 7.

Since 911, these ballplayers have not been able to get away with lying about their ages, because of stricter documentation standards. A lot of the latino ball players gained a year or two in that one off-season.

Hopefully, his guarantees are as good as Patrick Ewing's were.

Cheap shot fellas.

You got that right. I saw Clemens as a rookie, and it was a privilege to watch him pitch. He is one of the all-time greats. Only a very elite few have surpassed him, but he was always a jackass, and epitomizes the term "mercenary." However, he would be a great addition to this years staff. One of the few that surpasses Rocket is Pedro who is the most spectacular and best pitcher that I have ever seen.

Missing a few days is no big deal, but the truth is that coming on the heels of his trade demand and all the trade rumors, I won't exhale until he shows up and acts like his goofy Manny self. I hope he doesn't show up disgruntled.

When Jeter got the SS, the Yanks hadn't been to a WS in 15 years. In those years, it was not unusual for rookies, especially MIFs, to get a shot at starting.

As tough a guy as Rocket was on the mound, I was disappointed when Tony Phillips (I think) charged the mound. Rocket stood his ground until the last moment when he threw his glove in the guy's face and then side-stepped him. It struck me as a little cowardly.

It's got nothing to do with violence. No one except Ortiz can call him out about this, because Manny can tell them all to F off until they put up his kind of numbers. If some Chad Curtis-type gets in his face, he will find himself on the waiver wire pretty quick.

And you would be cut from the team before they stopped the bleeding. Do you remember when Chad Curtis criticized Jeter's behavior during a fight. He was gone no long after, and Jeter was a only second or third year player. Manny is a bona fide superstar heading to the Hall of Fame.

That's their mistake. There will be MLB at the same time. I'll be watching the Grapfruit Games.

He may not be healthy for quite some time. He still canot push off his foot.

I wish MLB would cancel the WBC. IMO is that it is going to be a bomb. I have no interest in this tournament.

...and he was robbed of the MVP in 1999.

It was a very slow read. At times, I also had difficulty knowing who authored which entries.

IMO Manny's eccentric and sometimes bizarre behavior has scared off potential trade partners. No team wants to deal with crazy.

Yeah, I got it.

Not a chance. The morons on WEEI are devoting the entire day to this.

He's just a very immature guy. Hopefully, it won't affect his team mates. WEEI and the journalists have to lay off this. It's nothing new.

WEEI is reporting that the Red Sox have announced that Manny will not report to FT. Myers until March 1st. I guess he'll do a drive-by and go to the WBC.

I dont disagree with anything you are saying. As a fan, I am rooting for the Sox to win. I may not cheer a guy if I think he is a jerk, but I will only boo our players if I think they are not giving a full effort. IMO booing a hometown guy for any other reason is pointless. Showering a hometown guy with boos, because we don't like his attitude isn't going to improve his attitude or performance. Chances are that his friends on the team will circle the wagons to protect him and this will cause bitterness by other players against the fans. It's just not helpful to the team.

Not every player that is not fan friendly is an idiot. Some just don't have an outgoing personality. Others are idiots. Those who are not fan friendly will not get endorsements, etc, and they limit their opportunities. Some of these guys who we think are fan friendly are complete phonies and they put on the act to get to endorsements. The fans are not going to like a guy like Foulke, but on the other hand, I don't agree with the opinion that his fan friendliness issues should have any bearing on whether he should be traded. His personality, or lack thereof, should only be relevant if it affects team chemistry and performance. I think it is stupid to boo the guy just because he is an ass, when we will let other guys slide who are performing worse, because we perceive that they are nice guys. It just doesn't achieve or prove anything. Truth be known, Foulke is probably no better or worse a person than any of the others. I think we would be shocked if we knew what most players think about the fans. I really don't care, because I don't expect to be having a drink or breaking bread with any of them anytime soon, and I can live without the phony waves, handshakes, etc.