moonslav59

Fine with me, too. I'm hopeful he can do better than a 102 OPS+, but 102 over 600 PAs and GG defense at SS is more than fine.

Are you denying you said you were not a Bloom basher? What's "long ago?" For someone who criticizes me for using the term, you sure don't seem to mind, anymore. It's funny how when we were doing well in July, you went into hiding. You criticized me for saying you seem to get giddy when we lose, from all your self back patting. Now, the team and FO is in turmoil. You point out every day how "nobody wants to work for JH." Your giddiness is leaking out of my laptop, as I type. We lost: you won! Hip-hip hurray for Ole RED!

I do not deny defending Bloom vs overly zealous attacks. Defending does not mean I'm the leader of some legion or that I am okay with most or part of what he did. That's where your reasoning and choice of words go off track. IMO, I had to defend him more than I should have. If most of the board was calling him a great GM, I'd likely be called a Bloom antagonist. I said, before last winter, that offseason would be Bloom's "make or break" winter and likely his "lasting legacy." Somehow that sounds like a big supporter to you and a few others. That was a long time before his firing. You also confuse optimism about the team's chances with thinking a lot of what Bloom did was right. We all knew he neglected the rotation for way too long. I gave reasons to why I think he did, but it's not like I ever agreed with neglecting the rotation. If I am known for anything related to baseball philosophy, it is always about building a rotation from the top. That's been my mantra for decades. If that sounds like a big Bloom supporter to you, I can only laugh. Again, I do deny defending some of Blooms moves or adding context as to why he may have been forced to do so many questionable, half-ass moves. I thought he should have had a fire sale in '22. he did not. I thought he should have been a buyer in '23. he did not, and it probably wouldn't have helped, anyway. I was on the sign Andrus bandwagon and later wondered why Iggy signed with someone else, when we needed a SS badly, mid-season. I hated the Diekman signing day one, and took flack for that. I wasn't thrilled with most of the signings for 2021 and 2022, but pointed out that "for the money" several did better in '22 than in '21, but it didn't seem to help. I can list more. I got many wrong, for sure, and I'm not embarrassed to admit it, and did at the time for most of them.

You can be a bust due to injury. See the Sale last contract example.

LOL. True, I never shied away from calling a Bloom basher a Bloom basher. One denied it for months and months and now says he wears a t-shirt with the slogan on it. (BTW, should I sue for copyright infringements?)

More lies. and "everybody knows it." Nobody would ever name names. I think someone said "Max supports everyone," once.

That's the only thing that changed after the firing. Now, suddenly they feel emboldened to name names.

Am I supposed to care? Why not try to answer a question, just once, instead of deflecting?

It's not sugarcoating it to say maybe it was related to injury or the long time off due to injury. He has been a total bust for 2 years. That does not mean the next 4 will be that bad or even close to that bad. I'm very concerned, but all hope is not lost.

And you say I speak like what I'm saying is fact not opinion. What do I have to be embarrassed about? My optimism was not realized?

I'm not embarrassed by any of my positions, even the many I got wrong. I was far from a Bloom basher. I was never a Bloom "supporter" or part of any "Legion." I was hopeful he did good. I thought many of his moves were good, even in hindsight. I thought many were bad, some at teh time and some in hindsight. I think he did a good job rebuilding the farm, but that remains to be seen. I think he had some very difficult conditions to overcome, and he failed to overcome them. I wear my positions proudly, and they have not changed because he was fired, and more than my beliefs have changed about DD, ben and Theo.

Thanks for finally, after years of asking, giving a name. Why did it take so long? Everybody knows what? The guy was subject to an onslaught of off-base attacks, some totally false and some lacking serious context. Pointing out flaws in someone's attacks does not mean that person supports the person being attacked. He was handed a very difficult situation. Just because you don't care about that does not mean I like what Bloom did. I could give you a long list of Bloom criticism from me, some where people were saying I was going overboard, like saying the JBJ trade was a "head scratcher." The rebuffs went on for weeks. I'm not embarrassed defending what I think is true and pointing out what I think is wrong. Did I take "his side" more than you and Red, yes, and I guess that's all it takes for you to make faulty conclusions- like some of your attacks on Bloom.

That's funny. You used to deny you were a Bloom basher. I criticized Bloom many times. I defended Bloom more times, for sure, because so many lack of context attacks were made by you and "your legion of bashers." Yes, I was optimistic when we hired him that he could do what was most needed. I thought he'd be better at finding "gems in the rough" as he was, although he did find a few. (I've said that phrase over and over, but you and others only see a counter to your baseless or faulty attacks as a sign of support. It is your fatal flaw. If someone disagrees with your attack, we must support the other side. Everything is black and white, to you. I've taken part in discussions about what grade he deserves long before his firing. My grades for him were not out of line with most others, even those who wanted him out very soon after he was hired. The guy who wanted him out before he was even hired hardly ever gave a grade, except to hard on wins and losses and how "the majority of fans see it that way." (Like that matters, at all.) You don't value farm and foundation building, like I do. That is fine, but that doesn't mean I think Bloom did a good job at building winning teams. He didn't. The team played about .500 ball under him. I gave that a C- or D+. I said I was fine with people giving him a D or D- for that. I didn't just say that after he was fired, either. I do think the rest of his work should be part of his final grade, and I gave him better grades for farm building and foundation/budget aspects than others, and was clear to point out that the farm grade was purely speculative. If that sounds like a supporter, you need to look up what supporter means. I think he deserved to be fired. I provided the link on Bloom's hiring for you to go back and look.

There was no "Legion of Bloom," and everytime we ask anyone to name just one poster other than maybe Max, we get nothing. I'm sure you probably think I was one, and if that's true, you will confirm you are full of BS.

Ya-ba-da-ba-DOOoooo!

I'm a big DD supporter. I wish he could have stayed. I'm not sure how he'd have done under the same budgets and what I call mandates Bloom was given. I don't think he was happy about the change happening during his last year in BOS. He was and still is a skilled and very capable GM. It was a loss, and so was the change brought on by the top brass.

Apparently, he was playing hurt that last year in COl, too. I'm not sure how much the injury affected his bat, but .801 was not bad. That's worth $22M a year for a GG SS. (BTW, he was at .910 in his last 55 games in COL, so was he really "trending downwards?" Of course, his home road splits were always an issue. He had a 102 OPS+ in 2021 and 2022. That is not $22M levels. GG and his career 108 OPS+ is close.

Has been a sunken cost. The future is TBD.

Yes, and now the issue is resolved. Inflation has increased healthy player values. I think you might be surprised how much some GMs might value Story, right now. (Maybe I would be, too : to the good and or bad.)

How is 2020 just 5% less? Less than 2019 or less than the tax line?

Indeed, and that's why I mentioned "playing while injured." Certainly his value is lower after these two seasons, but I do not think GM place value on sample sizes like his. He's also still a great defender.

I'm not sure I'm buying the excuse. It's like Manny's grandmother dying before spring training 5 times in his career.

Are you talking about now or 2020? I thought this was about no massive cuts from 2019 to 2020.

I doubt many teams are asking about Story, but GMs don't make decisions based on small sample sizes, especially from players who were playing injured or returning from long times off due to an injury. Many GMs would like Story on their team- just not the contract.

Is Bloom part of his "family?"