Dan Gould

BTW, we need to make sure Allen knows that Hot Dog is in this batch.

Would the rest of the James Williams photo be his "ICU" group? I recall none of the members were what you'd call "name" guys.

Yeah, Dewey's throw was flat-out terrible, especially when you consider how much time he had to set his feet. Oh wait a minute. He didn't have time to set his feet, did he? No, he made a spectacular leaping catch, turned and threw to first base in the same motion, a la Willie Mays. Because of the extraordinary catch, his throw could have been sixty feet off target and they still get the double play. The Reds runner was no more than halfway between second and first when Yaz shuffled the ball to, iirc, Doyle. Congratulations, you've come up with another incredibly stupid claim.

As for this reissue "program" - they're trying out one model, CD-R on Demand. It doesn't work due to foolish pricing decisions, they're more likely to go to downloads than to decide "F-it, this doesn't work."

"32 used and new from .01" I don't think there's too much demand ...

The Bennie Greens are foot-tappin', put-a-smile-on-your-face music, so if that usually appeals - and I think it usually does, Tom - I wouldn't hesitate.

More on Clemens, from the NYT: If you didn't have other evidence to back up McNamee's version (like Pettitte) then the history of the needles/gauze pads etc might give Rusty a chance to overcome the physical evidence. But when you put it all together, how can you refute the conclusion that he used when all of the evidence points in one direction? And it won't help Clemens if he changes up and says "I didn't know what he was injecting into me" because that isn't what he said in front of Congress. The Daily News has it right - Clemens is likely in deeper doo-doo than Bonds, because Bonds was the artful dodger in his grand jury testimony (and admittedly having questioners who didn't do the greatest job in nailing his testimony down with simple, direct questions) but Roger gave unequivocal statements, both on his own and in answering questions.

Well Piazza was all hit and no field, and I-Rod's offense was chemically enhanced. So that's a fair choice. Now looking at Fisk and Munson while they were both alive, I think the numbers favor Fisk. I think that comparison is closer. Remember, Fisk was a right-handed batter playing at Fenway (and pre-new pressbox Fenway at that), while Munson had Yankee Stadium, with "death valley" to contend with. What separates Fisk from Munson is longevity, with Fisk playing a ton of games after the age of 35. Both great players, but I would still take Munson over Fisk at the top of their games. OPS+ which takes into account Park Effects, starting with their first full time seasons and continuing for nine seasons, and concluding with the year prior to Munson's untimely demise (when his OPS+ was 95): Munson: Fisk: 126 162 105 105 114 158 141 150 101 109 126 138 125 125 121 96 101 118 So on a critical stat that is normalized for park effects, Fisk averaged 129 to Munson's 118 for their first nine seasons in the league. To Munson's credit, he was a better run producer (three seasons of 100 RBIs, Fisk had only 1) and a better hitter for average (six years of .297 or better). Of course, this is an argument that raged back then, too! I think if Munson had played a still high level to age 35 or so, he'd have gone in. But I'm left to wonder if those last two seasons were the start of a pretty precipitous decline.

Well Piazza was all hit and no field, and I-Rod's offense was chemically enhanced. So that's a fair choice. Now looking at Fisk and Munson while they were both alive, I think the numbers favor Fisk.

I always found it strange that Munson was not is the Hall. He has a great resume: first Yankee captain since Lou Gehrig, seven time all-star, MVP in 1976, clutch hitter, played the game the way it should be played. When he died, I just assumed that he would go in -- and yet, he loses out each year. Sometimes I wonder how the baseball writers come to their conclusions on who's in and who's out. You would even think the Yankee publicity machine would be out in force over Munson. Remember when Rick Cerone didn't go out to the catcher's position for the national athemn the next game? Yes, he belongs. Not sure that first Yankee captain since Gehrig should be part of it, but he did win ROY in addition to an MVP. But actually looking at his stats page on Baseball-Reference, I can kind of see where his numbers are a little short in some ways. OBP and SLG aren't great, for one thing (Fisk was really quite consistent in beating him there, and OPS+, which adjusts for Park effects, show Fisk to be superior through their early 30s, with Fisk declining years bringing him back to Munson's level by the end of his career). It can also be argued that Munson was showing the usual steep decline that most catchers have in their early 30s, so it makes me wonder if Munson would have played as long, and as successfully, as Fisk did. Thurman definitely was a lot more pudgy than Pudge. But Munson was a good hitter for a period of time and obviously a strong defensive catcher. I'm curious where that .756 OPS compares to other catchers in the Hall. As for a Yankee publicity machine, did they go all out for Scooter because he was alive to enjoy it? And does Munson deserve it completely based on his stats or does he need a little extra credit because of his premature death?

Question for my stats-saturated friends: Does Thurman Munson belong in the Hall? I ask because my older brother's response to Rice's election is that he regards no one as worthy of the Hall until Munson and Santo are inducted. I have always believed Santo deserves it based on his performance relative to other 3Bs in the Hall, but Munson shouldn't get special dispensation just because he died before he padded his stats enough (though I guess there is some precedent since Puckett went in after his career was cut short). But at the same time, I've never really looked closely at the question of Munson so I am curious what you guys say.

As disappointing as it is for Hawk and Blyleven, overall the baseball news just keeps getting better: According to multiple sources, the FBI has impaneled a Grand Jury to consider whether Clemens should be indicted for perjury. On the other hand, the Times article has this quote: Personally I suspect that the former (as in, the Daily News report) is more likely than what the professor said to the Times. Do D.C. prosecutors waste resources by convening a Grant Jury if they don't have evidence but want to "show Congress they are doing something"? Furthermore, the committee that referred the matter to them has no pending plans to call the FBI in to report on their investigation, so there is no "see? We've convened a grand jury, what else do you want?" - they simply put the matter into the FBI's hand. And if the News, which has been accurate in its reporting throughout, has it right, then you can expect an indictment sometime pretty soon. What I wonder is whether or not they have DNA samples from Clemens yet or not. Rusty denies any knowledge but I doubt he'd come out and announce that they asked for a sample. On the other hand maybe they will present the evidence to the grand jury, presuming that the grand jury can subpoena a sample.

Dawson and Blyleven went up, marginally. I believe that in the next three years there are few if any slam dunk candidates. The Hawk should go in quickly, Joe Posnansky notwithstanding. I'd like to see Joe explain why it is that a single poor statistic - OBP - should be enough to eliminate the other reasons why Dawson belongs - great defense, arm, SB potential at the beginning of his career, and ultimately pretty damn good counting stats. I think that Raines might be the next guy to wait the longest. Didn't his vote go down the most? Actually though, Rice had a big drop one year when a couple of great players went in, can't remember who. It was as if a lot of people decided, "I can't vote for this marginal guy at the same time" but then went right back to voting for him. If that's the same for Raines, then maybe he bounces back again. Obviously he doesn't belong ahead of Rickey, but I do believe he belongs. Its unfortunate that Tommy John goes to the Veteran's committee. All things considered, I think he deserves it, but the recent history of the veterans is pretty dismal. Does he have enough respect among his peers that got there ahead of him? But the biggest travesty remains Blyleven. Watching MLB Network (what a great thing to have a live announcement, no mindless surfing to find out what happened), some asshat insisted that he was just a "compiler" who didn't quite do enough. Shutouts and strikeouts alone should be enough to get him in. But add in his win total and CGs, factor in the sometimes very poor teams he played for, and there is no reason he should be overlooked. And don't forget his was the Gold Standard for curve balls, and still is.

Well old Gator ain't getting in but the tradition will continue when Manny goes in with a Red Sox cap. The thing about Rice is that he fell of a cliff at a relatively young age. There's no doubt if he had gotten over 400 home runs and maintained the .300 BA, he'd have gone in a long time before. But his extremely marginal case was his own creation. At the same time, what I can't stand are the people who act as if the Hall is unbelievably sullied by this election, and that others will now make it who don't belong. Every choice is a new one, based on the merits. Did any writer who wrote a column about Jim Rice say "well, we elected Tony Perez, so on that basis, I couldn't deny Rice"? No - every body who voted for him looked at his numbers, stacked up against the rest of the league during those years, and said "this guy belongs". I need to keep an eye on MLB Network to see if they dig up some Rice-related game broadcasts in the coming week, or else at the end of July (same with ESPN). Would be cool to see one of those crazy games at Fenway - I seem to recall at least one where Rice, Evans, Fisk, Hobson, Lynn, Yaz and Scott all hit homers. Or most of them hit homers. Or most of them hit homers, and some of them hit more than one.

And the class of 2009 will be Rickey Henderson and JIM RICE!!!!

Fwiw, Ratliff is "taking questions": http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/12/business...hetimes.html?hp Did anyone else presume that he was a bit older than 40? And how in the hell did he get the gig at 28?

Thanks, T.D. I guess I'll still root for the Cards, but a bit less enthusiastically.

Now that I've listened, I completely agree. But I have to believe that there are better examples of Wynton solos that his detractors would have a harder time ripping, so while the idea behind the thread was a good one, I don't think this was the best example for it.

I guess I should root for the Chargers to make it a road team sweep, which has got to be a first if it happens. Can anyone tell me if Bidwell or however you spell his name is still the owner of the Cards? I was in St. Louis when he masterminded that departure and I'd feel much better about rooting for Arizona if he doesn't benefit.

If health problems develop (Lester due to his workload last year) or continue (Beckett, Penny, Smoltz and to a lesser extent, Wakefield), then yes, starting pitching could be a problem. Not sure why Penny's health is "always" a concern, given his track record up until 2008. And Wakefield had his highest ERA+ since 2003, and his lowest WHIP since 2002 (also the second lowest of his career). I said it before, I don't want to see Wake in the playoff rotation but the contract renewal decision was a no-brainer based on his performance. As for the rest of them, Beckett is reportedly fully over the problems he had last year, and Penny was never diagnosed as needing surgery - by his own admission, his desire to help the team led to his coming back too soon each time he was on the DL. So you can take that one of two ways - his injury was made worse by his own actions, in which case there is no reason he shouldn't be healthy this season, or he had a serious injury, not yet properly diagnosed, and he'll arm will blow up this year. Working against that supposition is that the Sox are nothing if not cautious. They put Saito through a rigorous exam process and I am sure they did the same thing with Penny. I'll admit the risk to Lester bothers me a tiny bit I just hope that they are correct in their belief that his frame and his strength and his consistency in his delivery will mean that he won't have any adverse effect from last year. But the only way that starting pitching will be a problem is if Buchholz, Bowden and Masterson are forced into the rotation, and each of them pitch like Ian Kennedy/Phil Hughes c. 2008.

With a four member bench there are twelve members of the pitching staff: Beckett Lester Matsuzaka Wakefield Penny Papelbon Okajima Saito Masterson Ramirez (from KC in the Coco trade) Delcarmen Lopez That's twelve, and you still have Aardsma, Wes Littleton (acquired from Texas) and a Rule 5 draftee who would have to make the team or be sent back wherever he came from. Unfortunately none of them have options so they'd have to clear waivers to be sent down to Pawtucket. But how much better is that bullpen with Saito, Masterson full-time, and no Mike Timlin? The worst guy is Javy Lopez, the LOOGY with mixed results against lefties. Starters waiting in the wings would be Smoltz, plus Buchholz and Bowden. If Smoltz is ready to start and there are no openings due to injury, Wakefield could move to the pen and someone would need to be traded (unless Ramirez or Delcarmen have options, not sure if they do). They'd go nine deep in the rotation, which is sick, with Buchholz, Bowden and Masterson behind Smoltz.

Encouraging news about Saito's elbow: I can't quite figure out why an elbow ligament "sprain" led to a recommendation of Tommy John surgery - isn't that for when the ligament actually has a full tear? But if the ligament damage no longer shows up in an MRI and he reports "no pain", this could be a huge addition to the bullpen.

I think Tampa's achilles heel will be the bullpen, which is unlikely to duplicate 2008 (a lot of variation is inherent in middle relief performance, the likelihood of everyone pitching as well again is pretty slim, plus their closer gave everyone heart attacks on the best days) but David Price is a big upgrade to a pretty strong rotation; the Sox will be in trouble if Lowell and/or Papi don't bounce back (more so if Papi isn't Papi, I think that Youk is fine at 3B and Kotsay is good backup for Youk at first) but if they do, they'll be strong, and if the medical reclamation projects workout, they could be a juggernaut; the Yanks have questions about the back of the rotation plus Burnett, and a lot of aging players are relied on to come back and be as good as they were (Posada, Matsui, Jeter, plus Damon is no spring chicken).

I agree, though you seem to have missed the pre-New Year's announcement that this was happening. And I guess we should now officially call Theo "Low-Risk/High-Reward Epstein": First Penny. Then Smoltz. Now Takashi Saito: http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/9058832...reliever-Saito- A one year deal with a club option. I know the guy had a serious elbow injury for which he underwent some weird experimental injection therapy instead of surgery. But he's passed his physical, according to Rosenthal, and when he was healthy with the Dodgers, he was positively nasty. The bullpen has some serious potential now, particularly if Masterson is kept there. Saito/Okajima/Masterson + that Ramirez dude they got from KC in the Coco trade; and you still have Manny Delcarmen as a sixth/seventh inning reliever (if he'd ever put it all together, that's a guy who could easily be a premier setup man too). Suggests strongly that Smoltz is ticketed for the rotation, which means potentially Wakefield as a long-man. Also suggests even stronger the possibility that they will pull the trigger on a deal for a catcher, but I really wish they wouldn't. Too many medical issues with too many of their additions. Bring 'Tek back cheap - they could easily have the pitching staff to cover up his offensive shortcomings. If everyone is healthy, they'll have sick depth in both the bullpen and rotation. Even if only two out of Penny/Smoltz/Saito are healthy, this takes one of the best pitching staffs and makes it even better.

Yeah, it seems like the odds are pretty good that we'll see something approximating the old Smoltz, instead of getting Old Smoltz. According to the Globe And now the Herald's Sean McAdam and Michael Silverman, Kotsay has indeed agreed in principle to a one year/1.5 million dollar contract. http://www.bostonherald.com/sports/basebal...sox#articleFull This is fine news, as we know he can back up Drew if Baldelli can't, and he's insurance if Youk has to play 3B for Lowell, particularly at the start of the season. Now if they re-sign Varitek, a bench of Baldelli/Kotsay/Lugo/Bard is pretty darn good (as long as Lugo doesn't have to play too much). Oh, and I saw that Rosenthal is reporting that the Sox still won't give up Clay for Salty, but might give up Bowden or Bard. As long as its not both, I could probably deal with that.