Dojji

You load up on as many talented players as you can in order to avoid depending on any one of them. I don't count on any prospect at all as a serious big leaguer until they start showing it in AA. That's the flipside of my taking underrated prospects a little more seriously than most -- I also take highly rated prospects a bit less seriously until they start getting the job done in a way that suggests they're close.

THe Royals are in a fair position, not great but fair, to offer Greinke a franchise caliber extension, with all the cost-controlled talent they have on the way. If they can clear the salaries of David Dejesus and Gil Meche, then it *is* a great position. The question is if Greinke's willing to commit to KC for the rest of his prime.

The Royals have a very good wave minor league prospects coming up very soon. Kinda premature to call any of them "in the mix" yet other than possibly Moustakas.

THe worst case scenario is that Greinke walks away from the game. He's had to be talked down from doing that once before by the Royals org. It's not a high risk, but that's what's at stake. IF he blows up on the field and loses his confidence, Greinke is a risk to desert.

I wouldn't trade any talent in particular for a guy as inconsistent as Nunez. I don't think we should meet FLA's price. He's not awful, but he's a middle innings guy at best and you don't buy high on those in either talent or dollars. EDIT: OK that isn't really fair, I hadn't realized that Nunez was only 26, all the same he's thrived in a big pitcher's park in KC and not done that well in the NL East (although certainly by no means terrible) so I'm still not in favor of busting the bank to bring him into this division.

Should mention that Randy was a real difference maker in the Vikings loss last night too -- his bonehead OPI call on a ball he could probably have caught even without the two-handed shove in the back of the Packers defender cost them great field position on their scoring drive going into halftime and very possibly cost his team a win. He catches it clean without the idiocy the Vikes have as many as two chances in the red zone, where they'd done well all game, and they'd be playing with house money since a turnover doesn't mean jack. Instead after that play comes back they just decide to go into the break. A TD there is the difference in the game numerically besides being a potential backbreaker.

Agreed. The strength of schedule should be born in mind. There are tougher teams to play than the Chargers and Ravens, but encountering two solid talented defenses back to back as you're adjusting to a new offensive scheme is still a trial by fire, and so far the Patriots are passing that trial -- by the skin of their teeth, but passing.

pena2braves

Putz

Putz`

I was pushing for an exhibition against the local MLS squad, the New England Revolution. WOuldn't mind Celtic FC vs. LFC either. Maybe both can happen, the Rev game at their place and the CFC v. LFC at the Fens.

That would be some assortment of prospects. Anyway, the weak link there is that SD is looking for a reset in the very near future and probably isn't keen to trade a veteran for a veteran, and even if they were they'd prefer a veteran hitter.

I'm sure you don't mean the aspersion on Pedroia that your post reads to be.

You don't remember the post-Damon era very well, I take it? Top notch leadoff men do not grow on trees. Actually though, Pedroia has led off before and there's no reason he can't do it again. He's an ideal 2-hitter but in the absence of an ideal one-hitter he can serve.

Even if you aren't just being your usual, absurdly biased self and that's true, he's still a polished college power bat who led our org in HR's

Lavarnway could be a big trade piece here. They do have Will Myers, but it never hurts to have two offense-first catchers in case one needs to move to corner infield (or in Myers' case, he's been pegged as a possible right fielder if he can't hack it behind the dish) and both have really very good college power bats. On the other hand of all our major prospects, Lavarnway is one of the ones we're more likely to wind up needing ourselves, as it is going to get harder, not easier, to keep a solid offensive catcher around in this league.

The doubters can eat it. That was a great team they just put up a great game against. Especially considering the trade pretty much meant they rewrote their playbook and were testing their theory of how best to play Moss-free football on the fly. That was a top quality game by BB too. The 4th quarter adjustment and Brady once again rising to the occasion to tie that game and get into FG range FTW were both freaking huge. So many shadows of 2001 on this team right now -- and so many more winning players on this team than Randy Moss. And it looks like we're back to old Patriots football just like I'd hoped -- need more games to see but I loved the offensive creativity with the tight ends, we got some good running today, and what a huge play by Chung to force a FG and keep the game winnable. Welker's gonna draw some coverage for awhile, it'll be up to the youngsters to give him room to play by playing well themselves, but this Patriots team suddenly looks pretty familiar to me and even with the roughness in the middle quarters I liked what I saw of the team coming together -- again, against a danged good team -- a major Superbowl contender IMHO -- and the one that knocked them out with Moss on the roster last year too. That was a statement worth making.

Reardon did well too.

you may need to unstall browser, delete browser settings & reinstall. Unfortunately it is a lot harder than it sounds.

Depends on how you look at power. What Mauer lacks in raw muscle he more than makes up for in consistency and gap to gap ability. As a slugger he's actually comparable in XBH and SLG, the only difference is a relative lack of homers. And it's not precisely as if Posada or V-Mart hit 25 home runs more often than they didn't, either. On the whole the MASSIVE difference in OBP MORE than exceeds the relatively small difference in relative power.

Must feel good. Proper ownership affects every other facet of a sports club, from the advertizing to the ticket window to the players on the field, to the enthusiasm in the stands and so does improper ownership. Switching from the latter to the former can be night and day. You'll have to brace for potentially higher ticket prices and more commercialization of the team brand -- these people spend money, and they're going to want to recoup it. But you'll see the effects of their ownership on the club almost immediately I think, especially compared to the group that came before. I bet plans are already on the board to improve the venue, revamp the scouting, analysis and player evaluation system and shake down the front office looking for possible revenue streams. Not that everything will be sunshine and buttercups immediately, it took them a couple years to get Boston fully up to speed after all, but what you'll get immediately is a tangible sense that things should be moving in the right direction again and that the team is both more worth watching and more worthy of support. That's worth a couple extra pounds on the ticket price I'd imagine.

Sadly I've been out of work for over 3 years so I have no chance whatsoever to go to Fenway. My part of Maine (right on that little "bump" or "nose") hasn't had an actual economy in over 30 years so jobs are real hard to come by. Even when I was working, I'm built like a yeti and the seats do not agree with me. They were built for people as they were in 1912 or so, when the stadium was designed, and I'm half again as tall and three times as heavy as the average man was in 1912.

Baseball doesn't do scarves, at least not as a formal sanctioned gear. We rather do caps or replica jerseys. Remember, this is a summer sport, scarves would be an odd choice on that basis if you had to wear them in 30C weather. http://www.clothingfordiscount.com/images_products//Boston_Red_Sox_Franchise_Fitted_Baseball_Cap_Navy.jpg This is your standard issue fan recognition device, it's what most folks who are Sox fans wear when they're in a situation where they're allowed to wear a hat. I have a red one with a navy B, those are OK too. Pink ones are frowned on. Would welcome seeing some Boston caps at Anfield though, definitely. Anything that grows the brand. Don't underestimate the appeal of the Sox though. This is in many ways a marriage of equals. Both teams meaning as much in their spheres as the other.

Ahh I guess it's the equivalent of our "balk rule" then, rather left up to the imagination of the umpire rather than to any hard and fast rulebook description of what it means to begin to pitch. Someone who really, really knows the game can have some grasp of what is or is not a balk, but for the most part it's really tricky to tell. You see moves that are let go that you think ought to be balks, and the reverse as well.

This is why teams need to show a little discipline and not overpay for a favorite talent. This is getting abjectly ridiculous.