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I'll explain why. Soriano and Gonzalez...what's the point? They could have kept Wagner, who is better in my opinion, for the same money. I guess it depends on how Theo values the three. If he values Wagner as the best, then it makes no sense. Lackey, I highly doubt. I think this is a two-team race. He will go back to the Angels who can ill afford losing Lackey and Figgins. The only way he doesn't is if the Yankees decide that they want a four man rotation in the playoffs next year instead of a three man one. I can't see the Red Sox getting him at all. I think you have me mistaken with someone else Kilo...you know I am usually more right than wrong with free agents.

Honestly, I don't think you get any of them.

How about a positive test. Kudos to Keeper. Seriously. Acknowledging a player used PEDs when he tested positive. How does it feel to be king of the mental midgets? As a Yankee fan who acknowledges that players on his team cheated, it's nice to see a fan of my rivals believe the same. Keeper...stop trying. If one of their beloved players was caught with a needle in his ass that was labeled STEROIDS, they wouldn't believe it. Take that same player and put him on another team, and he's a cheater for even THINKING of it. The old double standard. These guys can't and don't want to believe that their two championships was anything but ordained by the Almighty himself. You have a better chance of convincing Jacko to trade every first round pick for the next century. Irrespective...kudos to you.

Let's see...Palmeiro LIED before Congress. Let's see...he comes to Boston, almost gets released, then has a miraculous turnaround...then finally he goes clean this year and sucks ass. Nah...I believe him. Of course. Sure....I'll say this...at least, in my opinion, Manny was good before PEDs.

Ha ha ha ha LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL ROFL ROFL ROFL ROFL!!!!!!!!

If I was the Yankees, I'd do it, rather than give up some bonafide prospects.

You mean Big Pa-PED? He got good because like the Yankees clubhouse, it was a walking pharmacy.

I hadn't heard it. Doesn't mean someone else might have said it, either. I actually asked Dipre, and he hadn't heard it either. Do you have a link where it was discussed? I'd like to read it.

Absolutely. You can see the jump a player gets on the ball.

Way to throw your two cents when the debate is done and shown to be a draw. As usual, day late, dollar short. Go back to sleep ORS. We'll wake you up when spring training starts.

I don't know. I'd pretty much try to to push him on any team.

Where did I say Pedroia is no Jeter? Skill-wise, I don't think so. How hard he plays the game, I have no doubt he's every bit as intense and dedicated as he is. As for other players, I rely on stats and what I read. Just like most people. I have an advantage over most since I do go to watch the games more often. Ok, but defense is not as evolved, not as easy to quantify, and they've been working at it for less. Right now, what they've come up with so far with UZR is useless. I don't think anything is an "ultimate judge". The ultimate judge so far on Clay, Hughes, and Joba is that they suck, or at best, they are average. The stats say so. The stats say that Tex is terrible at defense. You limit yourself by saying one method is the ultimate judge. It's uneducated. There is nothing random about my observations. I don't see 1 or 2 games a year.

I just came up with this...tell me what you guys think... What if....the Blue Jays traded Halladay away...but forced you to take Vernon Wells? You'd obviously have to give up less....but the Blue Jays would get rid of that albatross of a contract in Wells, and really get to rebuild. The Phillies could absorb it. So could the Yankees. Ditto the Mets and Red Sox. Don't forget, you guys had to take Lowell in the Beckett deal. Worked out for you, but it shouldn't in Wells' case. I'm not saying it will happen..but as food for thought, what do you think?

Thank you for the compliment, first of all. I believe in stats, more than most of you know. I had fun with Dipre, but I really wanted to get to the bottom of the Holliday thing, so we actually worked together and found out we were both actually right and wrong. I like Dipre, because, he actually THINKS. Ditto you, Kilo, Jacko, etc. What I can't stand though is when people take some statistic and quote it without thought. Also, there are differences in statistical types. Offensive and pitching statistics are highly developed. In a few short years, we've gone from batting average and RBI's to OPS and WAR, from ERA and wins to WHIP and FIP. Defensive metrics aren't there yet. They haven't been studied enough, or developed enough, to warrant a true interpretation of value. Maybe they never will be. I don't know. I kind of hope they won't, to be honest. There is beauty in mystery and subtlety. Baseball isn't just numbers. You really have to watch Derek Jeter every day to appreciate him. Every pitch, he's ready, on the balls of his feet, ready. I've never seen a player run out EVERY at bat. It doesn't matter if he's up 5 runs, or down five runs, whether it's a game in April or October. You can't see that in a box score. I may hate Pedroia, but he plays the same way. I'd f***ing love the guy if he was on my team. I digress. What I'm saying is that when a metric comes out that is, in my opinion, so flawed, it's useless, in my opinion. I'd trust my eyes and scouting reports more. That's where we are with defensive stats. There is nothing I've seen yet that is good enough for me to depend on. I'll wait until someone figures out a good way to judge a player's defense. I go back to my whole debate with Dipre. Looking at the numbers, Holliday looks like a fantastic hitter. He was killed in the NLDS. However, upon further review, and with Dipre's help, we realized that he did have a hole in his swing that was extreme, and it was exploited. I also realized that the hole was smaller than I originally thought. The scouts were right, after all. So when I hear the comments from ignorant individuals about "watch the gamezz" and other nonsense, I really laugh. There is a happy medium, one in which combining scouting and raw data gives the best overall picture. To shun one over the other is pure folly and stupidity, really. I use both, to varying measures. I primarily use my eyes and scouting reports on defense, and stats and scouting reports for hitting and pitching. I watch the games to see holes in a swing, what pitchers throw in what spots, how catchers set up. At the game, I look for the catcher's movement on the pitch [in general, the less the catcher's glove moves, the more likely it's a strike], the jump on the ball a fielder gets, the route a player takes to the ball, etc. Every time I see someone quote "watch the gamezz" I immediately categorize that person as someone who doesn't understand the game and believes everything he or she reads. Incapable of forming any independent thought. I've had some classic battles with Jacko and Dipre..but you know what? I respect their baseball acumen. Jacko is one of my biggest sources for minor league players, even if he is, shall we say, slightly over-optimistic on our team's minor league players, and Dipre is probably just as good as I am, if not better, as picking up flaws in mechanics in players. You don't get that from stats. You get it from watching the game. You can learn a lot from baseball if you take in all aspects of it. People who take just one avenue honestly don't understand the game and are not as qualified as someone who looks at the whole picture.

If I was Beltre, I would absolutely accept arbitration. He's guaranteed a minimum of $10.72 million [80% of his 2009 salary of 13.4 million]. Now that the Phillies signed Polanco...does he really expect to get anywhere near as close to the guaranteed money he'd get from the Mariners?

The Braves would have the best bullpen in the NL. Look out Phillies.

There is another difference with me too. I actually SEE a lot of games live. About 50 a year. It's tough to get a read on TV. At the stadium, it's different. You instantly see the jump players get, and can determine range better. Conversely, at the stadium, you can't see the pitches as well as you can on TV.

Don't knock it till you try it. At least I use a woman for it. Your dominatrix is male. What other options did you have, Dipre? Seriously? You got him for cheap, if he gives you that...well...you overpaid, but not terribly.

Funny...have you ever made a point here? I mean...every had any news that was worthy, or something insightful? Didn't think so. I know your type. You think that everyone who doesn't agree with you, or follow your team, is confused and an idiot. Run along kid. I follow my eyes over most defensive matrices. Absolutely. Why? Not because I believe that I'm God's gift to baseball analysis, or view myself as some super scout. Simply because I do not believe that defensive matrices and formulas have evolved to the point of accepting them within an acceptable deviation of error. That's why. Any defensive matrix that lists Tex as a below average defensive firstbaseman is a faulty matrix. All of a sudden, Jeter gets an Gold Glove firstbaseman, and he has a fantastic, nearly miraculous turnaround defensively. Cano is a below average defensive secondbaseman? Not from what I saw. So...until the day comes that defensive matrices work out the kinks and become more "accurate", I don't trust them. You're the kind of person who believes what is told to you. If you lived in the time, the world would be flat, and you would swear by it. I have no time for fools.

Honestly...I don't see what is wrong with Scutaro for you. You got him cheap, he was the best option out there...why are you all really complaining? He's adequate, and for his versatility and average play...what's the issue? I haven't seen enough of him at short. He looked decent at second, but I only saw him for 6-7 games a year anyways.

Apparently you can't read. Unlike you, I don't need to have someone ball-wash me and stick to my team's forums for a little mental masturbation. I like to go to the heart of the enemy and stick a knife in it. Was that good enough for you? The day you agree with me, is the day I know I've lost it. Funny how you changed your tune real quick on the forum as opposed to IMs. Go away...go beat your girl and wear too much cologne, or whatever you do.