Dojji

Great game. Put a good team down. Looks like Scalabrine is lobbying for a piece of the "number of different ways we try to replace James Posey" pie. Also, Pruitt and POB sightings. Nothing to actually judge a guy on but both made some interesting plays.

Did... Rondo... just... hit... a... clutch... 3...?

Yeah, I don't like paying for strikeouts instead of outs. I'd much, much rather go for Lowe over Burnett.

It does bring up a point about diminishing returns, doesn't it? I mean, it might look like a slam dunk to bring in a player who's 5-6 wins above average even if the contract is vast, but if you're replacing a guy who's 4 wins above average then you're really only gaining 1-2 wins in net so you have to ask if it's worth the effort. The other side of that question: Of course we're going to pay Youkilis. We're going to pay him a LOT of money. He's worth it. He's what makes it possible for either Teixeira, or eventually Anderson, to replace Lowell. He's got a big role to play in Boston for as long as he wants it.

Considering his reputation, if we do get AJ I want Tek around to call his shots. I don't trust Burnett on his own.

Sure, why not? I mean, Gutierrez has a whopping .258/.308/.409/.717 line, I'm sure teams are lining up to trade 20 HR clubhouse leaders for him.

Coco's a below average hitter and his defensive numbers are inconsistent. I didn't realize Crisp was only average in center this year. I think considering this they did a great job picking up a potentially dominant reliever for him. I do want to thank him for his huge defensive contribution to the World Series title in 2007. There are a lot of games we literally would not have won without his glove in centerfield.

Actually if you look at the BA splits vs left and right, Masterson isn't as badly plagued by lefties as all that. The issue with Masterson was that he walks lefthanders, not that he surrenders hits to them. That will probably get better with development.

Don't look past Florida though, they've played us tough over the last few years I must say it's been great to see this team firing on all cylinders. When it was all said and done I was gratified that the team proved that they could take on a high-scoring game. And how about Phil Kessel? 10 goals already and on a roughly 40-goal pace, and he's really starting to scare defenses on the breakaway.

http://diamondbacks.mlb.com/mlb/images/news/postseason/y2008/tn_delcarmen.jpg Separated at birth. Ramirez is basically Delcarmen. If you like Delcarmen, you'll like Ramirez.

Buffalo is not a pushover team either. They'd be in the playoffs if they started now. The Bruins had every excuse if they wanted to pack it in, right down to and including Manny's 4 goal implosion in the first period. In the last couple years we would have probably written any non-Thomas game in which 4 goals scored in the first as an automatic loss, and we'd have been right. Major kudos to them for not packing it in. And thank you Manny for making an adjustment and keeping the B's in the game. 5 players +3 on the game. 10 players with points. Wow.\ Oh -- and it looks like Chara's got that howitzer shot back.

Sounds like a great attitude. Let's see how he backs it up on the field.

6-4 Bruins. Nice to know they can keep up with high-scoring games too.

One more rotation spot the Yankees will need to replace.

Alright then, we disagree. If Lowell proves unmovable it's very easy to assume that he'd play more in Anaheim, and a player can't just tale LL's word for it that the incumbent will be moved. It might not be possible. Also did I read somewhere that Lowell has limited no-trade protection?

He's in no danger of becoming a bench player in a Red Sox uniform, but do you honestly mean to stand there and tell me that he'd play as much in Boston as he would in Anaheim? Playing time is one of those "some things are worth more than money" things for a lot of players, and so is a set guaranteed role.

And embarrass themselves, but yes.

And while we're wining and dining and making the hard sell for Teixeira, there's actual open roster spots at first base, including on an Angels team that's about a match for us in terms of being a championship team, just begging for a player of his caliber to go fill them. The Orioles are a wildcard here as well with the hometown connection. Anaheim can match every personal concession that we can offer Teixeira, and probably more considering Los Angeles' huge service base. And while I can't pretend to know Teixeira's mind, going back to be a hometown hero can be a perk all by itself to some. But let's look at it purely from the position of a mercenary free agent baseball player. If the money is equal you had a choice between Larry Luccino's solemn promise they'd work you into the lineup as often as possible vs. going to a place where you're the only realistic option at your position, and the first is in New England and the second is in Southern California, and the chances of making the postseason with either squad is identical, both very high, which one do you go for?

Pretty much. It's easy to say in vacuum that Tex would definitely get 500 AB's or some other set number but when you start looking at who those at bats would be taken away from it starts becoming harder to make the argument to pay $20M for the upgrade of Teixeira over those players. VoRP doesn't apply here as an actual expression of the value Teixeira would add to this team because we're not dislodging a replacement player. Whether we're moving Youks, Ortiz or Lowell the guy we'd be shifting for Teixeira is a recent all-star performer and above average baseball player in his own right. If you can't see why that diminishes the value we'd actually get from signing Teixeira, God help you. That's why you avoid free agency unless you actually have a hole.

You're making the assumption that baseball always made sense. If they did make an offer just to drive up the price, that would be nonsense, but it would in fact exist. Stop trying to dredge up contradictions where there are none. And if you really don't know what a secondary issue is, I don't know what to say. A world in which every reason for doing something is equally valid would be a strange one.

Would have to rename the league. Good bye, NFL, hello, IFL. Wouldn't object to a European division, but one lonely NFL franchise across the Atlantic would be doomed.

You don't make a multimillion dollar offer to a player you don't want playing for you. Any other conpsiracy theory nonsense about driving up the price, even if it does exist, is a secondary issue.

I'm still trying to recover from the shock that the league leader in VoRP in both leagues actually won the MVP award.