a700hitter

Even a drunk manager would not keep his best catcher on the bench for 7 seasons. Hanigan is a back up type. Them's the facts. He has always been a backup. After he left the Reds , he backed up a 39 year old catcher in Tampa. The purpose of the Blanchfield story wasn't to prove anything, but rather to illustrate that some guys are just role players. Everything in a conversation is not about evidence in a courtroom. It's a conversation. It is not a story misremembered by me. I wouldn't even know the story if I didn't hear his former team mate tell it. I don't remember the name of his former team mate or whether he embellished the story. It is also irrelevant whether the A's got him to be a starter. All he knew was that he had been obtained in a trade. No one spoke to him about his role and his team mate was just trying to make him feel better by telling him that he would probably be playing more. Being a backup catcher was a step up for him. Edit: All of that being said and your attempt at courtroom argumentation, none of it changes the fact that Hanigan always has been and always will be a backup catcher. We don't have a major league starting catcher at this time. We are waiting for Swihart.

LOL!!! I thought the number was a joke, but when I called they answered "Boston Red Sox". Hey, I'm not his keeper. If he insists upon embarrassing himself, that is his business.

I am a reasonable and wise man. It just takes people some time to figure me out. Some never do. Some don't want to. LOL!!!

Our best hope is for Swihart to come up by June and take the full time job. I can't see getting through the season with an aging backup (no matter how good he had been in that role) and a bush leaguer discard. That is not a good situation. We have to hope that Swihart blossom like Mookie Betts when he comes to Fenway and doesn't sputter and fail like Boegaerts, Bradley and Middlebrooks.

I know that you are old enough to remember Johnny Blanchard of the Yankees. He was the best third string catcher/pinch hitter of his day. The Yankees traded him to Kansas City and he cried. One of his teammates urged him to look at the bright side, that he would be starting in KC. Blanchard looked his mate in the face and was still upset and told him that he knew he wasn' t good enough to play everyday. He quickly slipped out of baseball. His Yankeee managers utilized him in a limited fashion giving him his best chance to succeed. He was not a full time player. Rather than blaming Dusty Baker, maybe it was Baker's utilization of Hanigan that gave him his best opportunity to succeed. If he was the Reds best catcher, he would have played more. Your criticism of baker with relation to hanigan is baseless. He is a part time player, and the first season that he was separated from Baker was his worst season. He is a backup -- a good one-- but nothing more than a backup.

He was a good part time catcher, and he is 34. Edit: I never said that he wasn't good. I said that he wasn't "that good". I don't put a lot of value on guys that start 60-70 games a year. Good yes. "That Good" ? No. If he was "that good", he would have started more games. He has been the primary catcher on his team in 2 of his 8 seasons. He is a backup type, nothing more.

He was never more than a part time catcher.

He should be. He couldn't beat UN or SFoC either.

PayPal. I'll send instructions to your email. We have 9 teams with SFoC dropping. We need one more. Also, on the prizes, I am thinking 3/4 to the Champion and 1/4 to the team with the best regular season record.

Some one should let Ben know that he is making himself look bad by disagreeing with me. Putz.

Interesting. All that money in Pawtucket.

You are clucking away. LOL!!

+1.

I think someone gets DFA'd and traded. Coco Crisp is out for 8 weeks. The A's could use one of our spare OFers -- Craig or Nava. Castillo is coming north with us.

They break camp very soon. How many OF's are still in camp? They have some big decisions to make in the next day or so.

Come on guys. We need a replacement for SFOC. What about some of the regular posters/baseball sabremetrics authorities. Come flex your statistical muscle. Fantasy is pure stats. Afraid that the old school guy will kick you ass. it really isn't difficult or time-consuming. Like the overpaid knucklehead mlb field managers, you just need to check your lineup once a day.

The lack of black faces at sporting events is pretty widespread. First of all, they are only 13% of the population and they are at the bottom of the economy. I don't think the lack of black fans at Fenway is a remnant of past racial intolerance by the Red Sox.

I resent link to goJohn99 and Gringo in pms.

I sent you the link in a pm.

Fair enough. We will have to see what Leon has. I doubt he is anywhere close to Vasquez behind the plate. Vaszuez has incredibly quick feet and throwing release.

Yes he did, but I don't remember who the Cards got for him.

They had a bunch of mashers on that 1977 team.

Reggie Smith was traded to the Cards for Rick Wise and Reggie Cleveland. Wise pitched a couple of games in the cold damp Boston April weather and he missed the rest of that year with shoulder trouble.

I sent you a pm with a link. The draft is Friday at 8 pm.

I am sorry to learn that. I hope that you feel better. We will miss you as your teams have always been very competitive.