Nice story, I was wondering about Gagne's response to the accusations.

In Dan Patrick's interview with Joe Torre (the first of many we hear in the next month or so), Torre closed his comments on the players he is looking forward to seeing with Russell Martin, saying that anytime someone is linked with Derek Jeter, he is going to be very interested in seeing that guy.

I love Martin. Even though it seems lineup order doesn't mean much to people on this site, I'd be thrilled to see Martin bat 2nd, Jeter's usual slot.

Jon, for the shirts, why not use a store like CafePress where the store is always open and people buy the shirts from them and you can set your cut of the profit at $0 or whatever you want. That way people can buy shirts whenever they want and less headache for you.

vr, Xei

3 - I'm considering that. But I've heard that the quality is unreliable. But if sales don't pick up, that'll be the only option.

At the same time, if there aren't more people interested in buying shirts after it being 10 months since the last time they were sold, the whole endeavor might be pointless.

Right now, there's no headache for me if people want the shirts. If they don't, that's where the headache starts - but the solution is obvious.

4. I get my shirts from them. The quality is adequate, atleast until I spilled food on it. vr, Xei

2 i've said a number of times #2 for russ is the perfect spot for him. i completely agree.

I would rather see Martin bat down in the lineup, 6th or 7th. I just don't like putting him in such a table-setting position, though he would probably be good at it. I think we could get similar production out of Ethier in the 2 spot without putting additional responsibility and workload on Martin.

I think Grady was about to call Martin back, but all of a sudden Hurley threw Grady's phone into the ocean.

7 it's fair to see martin is a more productive offensive player than ethier, wouldn't you rather have you rather have him higher giving him the most oppurtunties to appear at the plate?

all of a sudden Hurley threw Grady's phone into the ocean

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/209/511032209_4675bf163e_o.gif

Stirring the pot while waiting for spring training...

Martin is coming across as rather "meh" (isn't that how the kids are saying it these days?) toward Colletti. First there's the legitimacy issue regarding a long-term deal for Martin, and now the catcher's not toeing the company line about how resigning was all Grady's idea.

Kid's got character and makeup issues, I tell ya.

I think the best hitters should get the most plate appearances. Table-setting only matters if you want to play "small-ball," sacrificing outs for bases. Which is a bad idea except in close and late situations.

It never bothered me when Rickey Henderson would hit leadoff homeruns. Not when one of the possible alternatives if he'd been slotted lower was that he wouldn't even get that PA.

I don't have a problem with putting a guy in a table-setting position who is really good at setting the table. Torre's not hung up on having his #2 hitter play small ball. Jeter had all of three sacrifice bunts last year. Yankees #2 hitters combined had six, which ranked near the bottom of the majors. (The extreme teams won't surprise you: Oakland and Toronto had just one bunt each from their #2 hitters, while the Dodgers led the majors with 18.)

I think the best hitters should get the most plate appearances

Yep. The remainder of the lineup won't matter much if we're stuck again with Furcal-Pierre at the top all season long.

10 what is that?

I bet Pierre is better at setting tables than he is at getting on base ahead of good hitters.

14 furcal had a bad year last year. it would be pretty reasonable to expect a 100+ OPS+ season and 40 SB's that has to make his EQA, VORAT, pretty good but i'm not sure about his PETCO rating

Martin is a career .288/.364/.454 in 955 ABs and Ethier is a career .295/.357/.464 in 843 ABs. Those are pretty similar numbers, that being the case I would rather see Ethier have to worry about getting on base rather than Martin.

16. He takes bad routes to the salad plate.

17 ok maybe 30 SB's not 40

17 That's a really good way to get people to not like you here.

I love Martin, but why is the overwhelming perception that Martin is the much better hitter? They seem pretty similar to me.

21
It made me laugh.

10 - Awesome.

21 aww come on i don't come up with very many "clever" lines give me credit on that one. i just have no friggin clue what any of that stuff means.

22 Ethier's career line is propped up by the unsustainable BABIP he had during his first couple of months in the majors. Also, the career line isn't the best way to look at it. The most recent season is far more predictive than the one before it, and Martin was a far superior hitter to Ethier in 2007.

22 good point i didn't realize how close they were, maybe the SB potential out of martin makes me value him a little more.

11 I agree with you. Looking at things objectively...If the Dodgers were my employer and I was in my 20's I would be looking for another employer. No recent (last 20 years) history of real success, constant hiring and firings and what seems to be a reluctance to build a baseball team from within (managers, GM's and Players).

The argument is often made that speedy runners distract pitchers. If that's true, it's also probably true that speedy runners distract hitters, and/or inspire hitters to alter their approach to hitting (e.g. so as to "protect" the runner).

With that in mind, it's not at all clear that having speedy runners (who try to steal bases a lot) ahead of your good hitters is unambiguously good.

I would rather see Ethier have to worry about getting on base rather than Martin.

This is the part I don't get. I would rather every player worry about getting on base. I really don't care about anything else. Wait for a good pitch, hit the ball squarely, run hard, and hope for the best. If no good pitches come, take your base that way.

wow me saying having your most productive hitters at the top of the line-up to get them the most PA has gone over almost as well as my johan santana is better than estaban loaiza statement.

25 I hear ya. Thing is, though, if you have no clue about something, making fun of the people who DO have a clue is sort of a strange strategy to employ.

It just makes you sound like Joe Morgan.

(And in case you were wondering, that's not a compliment.)

26 - Yeah, I knew he was somewhat lucky in 2006, but it still doesn't seem that Martin is head and shoulders above Ethier in terms of offensive production. In my opinion, Martin gets additional credit for being an outstanding offensive catcher whereas Ethier is an average to slightly-above average OFer.

27 - To me the stolen basis, while exciting, are a dangerous part of Martin's game. I would rate it as a check against him since he is so vital to the team both offensively and defensively, he may be taking unneccessary risks.

31 I agree with you. Martin = better hitter. Bat Martin higher. I suppose there's an argument with stolen bases being more helpful at the bottom of the order where there's less power anyway, but I say "meh" to that. You can't steal bases if you don't get get on-base. And you can't get on-base if you don't have plate appearances.

31. I can't imagine anyone disagreed with you. Silence could just mean that nobody felt compelled to invent an emoticon for a nod.

32 well i know it says it makes me sound LIKE joe morgan, but i'm going to twist youR words around bit, so far i've been called bill plashke and joe morgan... not good, but i would like to have their jobs so i guess it's not all bad.

Aw, I thought Cargill earned 17 .

But I have to admit I'm not sure i get 31 .

35 i'm just saying those are the 2 things i've brought up where no one has disagreed with me... it's weird

Somebody, somewhere, would do well to employ an organizational philosophy that encourages hitters to simply ignore where they are in the batting order. Hitters get so worked up about what spot they're hitting in, and how they have to change their approach when they change spots in the batting order, and so forth.

Bollocks. If you're a cleanup hitter, hit the same way you would if you were a #2 hitter (and vice versa). If you get hung up on the batting order nonsense, you're just messing with your own head.

So "you there, Strawberry, hit a home run!" was a bad strategy?

33 plus if you steal 30 times and get caught 9, is that good? I like Ethier there as well, mainly because I would rather have Martin hit 5th or 6th

Also, I know its only 2 years: martin

.263/.317/.351/.668 2nd 57abs
.306/.376/.465/.840 3rd 170ab
.294/.364/.471/.834 5th 68ab
.293/.387/.500/.887 6th 290ab

39
Right, and a side note for that is when John Cangelosi (OK, that reference is a bit dated) bats 3rd because he's subbing for Barry Bonds and Jim Leyland doesn't want to disrupt the other players' routine batting order.

40
It's called playing the percentages. :)

I have no problem with Martin stealing bases, especially when his legs are fresh. As late as August 2, last year, Martin was 18 for 21 in SB attempts. He got caught during the last two months because his legs were tired (and maybe his back too, since he was carrying the team!).

The "Russell Martin Isn't Overworked" crowd won't like this very much, but...

Before August 1: 18 SB, 3 CS
After August 1: 3 SB, 6 CS

Being beaten to making a point I can understand. But I know I'm in trouble when I'm not even the first Eric to make the point.

45
That won't please the "Russell Martin is Clutch" crowd either. Anyone can steal bases early on, but it takes experience to steal them late in the season when they really count.

46
Without "Eric", there's no "America".

45 i don't know who would really think martin wasn't over worked. i mean yo try squatting for a few hours every day in the heat for 4 months and see how your legs feel. my guess would be, not good.

44 - I like the fact that Martin can swipe a bag too, but there is always that risk that he could jam a finger or pull a hammy. That fact that we was carrying the team for a large part of the season is the reason I would rather him bat 6th. We should not be leaning on Martin to be our offense, just an effective part of it. Right or wrong, there is mentality the 2 spot is more demanding.

48
Plus, Indian food probably wouldn't be as tasty.

50 Fine. But you get to be the one to tell him: "Russell, we think you play too hard. We'd appreciate if you'd ease up a bit so you don't get hurt."

28 - Really, though, do we want a rabble rouser like Russ Martin on our team? He admits to hanging out with Known Steroid User Eric Gagne. And I heard that Martin's backup is in the Mitchell Report, too.

A real troublemaker, this Martin kid.

46,48: Either of you guys have a middle name that starts with "A?"

If so (and this probably isn't news) you could legitimately claim not just to be vital to America, but to BE America

I Am Eric A.

Say it loud!

Yeah, it is a double-edged sword. We like that he plays all-out but we are fearful that he will get hurt. I guess we just have to hope that he takes care of himself and the staff knows when to get him some rest.

53 Plus he speaks French. That alone should've gotten him on somebody's suspect list.

45 - Simple solution. Attempt fewer steals later in the season.

bedard trade is final, adam jones george sherill, chris tillman, tony butler, and kam mickolio for eric bedard. anyone know anything about these prospects?

57
And clog up the bases? I think not!

58 Adam Jones is really, really good, like Matt Kemp good. Sherill is a solid lefty in the pen, haven't heard of the other three. It's way more than the Twins got for Johan.

60 ya i knew about jones and sherill, but hadn't heard of the other 3

Well, at least Martin's late season SB% dive wasn't as bad as Oscar Robles in 2005.

http://www.bb-ref.com/pi/shareit/8MbZ

Tillman is their second best pitching prospect, the rest I think are dross.

So, from a Dodgers perspective Kemp, Beimel, and McDonald for Bedard.

63 ya no way

Wow, Butler isn't bad either.

furcal finished .400/.444/.560 in 8 games in the caribbian WS

62
Robles was truly a player without a tool...

66 i'm sorry 6 games.

63 however i'm sure kemp's value is much much higher than pac-man's value

66
I vote that Repko plays in RF in spring training. Kent is too slow to get out to the outfield on a popup, so Repko's "all out style of play" won't affect the rest of the team. I love Repko, but...

Matt LaPorta could be this year's Ryan Braun (their outfield seems full, though). I really like his 2007 stat line from U of Florida:

.402/.582/.817/1.399 OPS

20 HRs and 55 BB/16 K rate.

70
And who cares if he takes out Kent for the season.
Maybe Furcal is Chase Utely when he plays 2nd base based on 66 stats. But who would play SS?

71
Except he has no position with Braun moving to the outfield. Braun/Cameron/Hart will be hard to break into. From what I read he's a DH waiting to happen, so maybe he gets dealt to the AL if the Brewers need some pitching help.

71 is he on the brewers?

Do not miss Toy Cannon's poetic and moving tribute to his friend Roger over at TrueBlueLA.

Very well written Mr. Cannon.

72 kent will be productive this year, if he could do what he did last year def a guy we want in our line-up

76 I do agree to a point. Players over 40 do tend to fall off cliffs suddenly. Only 10 players in history have OPSed .800 in 500 plate apperances at age 40 or above. Then again, only 16 players have done it at age 39, and Kent is the only second baseman to have done it.

74 Brewers' first round pick last year. He destroyed Low A after hitting like Babe Ruth in college.

71 Yeah, LaPorta's going to be a hitting beast, but he'll probably end up as trade bait.

Braun plays third base like Pedro Guerrero's more erratic, less athletic brother. He's gotta move to first base or left field. He can't move to first base for Milwaukee, obviously, so he's now a left fielder.

Left field, of course, is the only position LaPorta can play, and that only barely. He's a guy that was born to DH, and he's in an NL organization that has already has a superstar at the only position he can play.

Basically, the Brewers are screwed. And yet, they knew all this when they drafted LaPorta just a few months ago, so they must have some sort of plan.

But who would play SS?

Exactly.

79 I think the Brewer's are screwed one way or the other. They have a bunch of great hitting young players but the only guy with an even passable glove is Hart. Ii guess you get LaPorta, put him in left with Braun in right and Hart in center and just try to score seven runs a game.

79
Mr. Melvin, have we got a player for you. Your guys hit plenty of homers, what you need is some steals and a guy that gets 200 hits every year...yeah...yeah, we'll give you Pierre for LaPorta straight up and give you some cash besides...hello?

http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2008/02/baseball-blog-2.html

"Dodger Thoughts feel that Clayton Kershaw will be in the Dodgers rotation by midseason. It is unclear if this decision will be impacted by a potential acquisition of Joe Blanton from the A's. "

It bothers me that this site misread what I wrote.

56 - My neighbors speak French. When they jump from English to French in my presence, I'm convinced they're talking about me. Especially when they point my direction and laugh.

So yeah, we should definitely trade Russ Martin.

75
Thanks

81
I don't see how they are screwed. He should have plenty of trade value. If Bill Hall doesn't work out they could try Braun again at 3rd base and they just might be able to score 7 runs a game with a lineup of Fielder/Weeks/Braun/LaPorta/Hart/Cameron/Hardy.
I'd sure pay to see that team play offense and defense. Get a bunch of strikeout/flyball pitchers and see what happens.

How did a site called MLB Trade Rumors ever get any credibility, anyway? They pull this stuff out of who-knows-where, then all of a sudden Peter Gammons is citing them as a source.

85 With or without LaPorta really. I just don't see how you fix that defense. Cameron helps a ton this year but they need a real solution.

87
???
Hall should be passable at 3rd base which is a huge improvement over Braun. Then Cameron replaces Hall which again is a huge improvement. Most pundits seem to think that Braun will be a solid LF. Weeks is the weak link but since he's going to be the best hitting 2nd baseman in the NL not playing in Phillie that can easily be overlooked. I don't see the problem you see as they head into 2008.

86 - Obviously they read Dodger Thoughts, so they'll be able to break the Russ Martin trade news.

where's kevin lewis at??

we have a big championship softball game tonight and they have a pretty good scouting report on who likes to go oppo and who's dead pull, i need to ask him if our guys should change their swings or just try to hit it through the shifts. i know his latest swing change didn't work out so well.

Has a basketball program ever collapsed as quickly as CajunDodger's LSU Tigers? They make it to the Final Four, and a year and a half later the coach is fired.

91 yes, watch blue chips

Tarkanian was out one year after UNLV lost to Duke in 1991.

92
OK, that was funny.

83 Unless it was in the DT comments there somewhere, nowhere in that post did you write that Kershaw should be up by mid-season. Just a crack about how famous and yet non-existent he is around these parts. Either I missed something, or the MLBTR guy did. Must be giving these things a really quick reading. And then it's ironic he uses it in a sentence also including Joe Blanton, a rumor that most of us here have handily dismissed as unlikely.

blue chips go great with Whole Foods guacamole. Mmmm.... blue chips...oooooohh.....

Looking again at Gurnicks latest line-up at Dodger.com It looks like you would have a much better line-up by almost anyone's theory by simply reversing it completely.Sure I know you could make it even better with a few tweaks and we expect more out of Furcal. But it strikes me as funny that by simple reversal (and perhaps removing Nomar) you get much more plate appearances for the better offensive players and especially put much more OBP near the top of the order.

96
Whole Food has a great chips isle. I particularly like the pita chips.

86 83
This site is a daily read for me. It is really similar to the links section on Buster Olney's blog on ESPN.

Not sure about the blogging/comments part of the site, though. He has gotten a bit more opinionated than he used to be when it was merely a repository for news and rumors.

83 I suspect cargill writes for mlbtraderumors.com

91
It is a bit embarrassing, but I honestly don't have much use for SEC basketball. I think that I can name 3-4 conferences that are better every year. Just never got that into them. Kind of a fairweather fan in basketball.

The 2008 All Compromise National Championship Football Team is where I obsess to unhealthy proportions.

83 We don't even believe he exists!

101 - If not for SEC basketball, you wouldn't know that John Pelphrey considers Billy Donovan his "male soulmate."

"The latest rumor, according to Dodger Thoughts, is that a mythical creature could be in the team's rotation by midseason. An enigmatic left-handed pitcher named the Minotaur is believed to even have a longshot of making the team's bullpen out of spring training. This bovine beast throws as fast as 98, with a devastating 12-to-6 curveball. It is believed he will be the first horned pitcher in major league history."

104 but not the first horned hitter?

105 Insert obligatory Pierre-is-the-devil joke.

I would love to see someone here at DT with the ability to draw comic book style create a rendering of this 104 creature on a pitching diamond blazing a fastball by a cartoonish looking Barry Bonds.

107
Look further than yours truly.

107
The limits of my drawing ability can be found here:

http://tinyurl.com/2gnk3j

109
Why were you doing a portrait of our President?

110 I think that was a drawing by our... er, {avoiding rule 5 violation}

Come on people, there are false rumors to be spread! Get on it.

75 ,85 Great writing, TC.

The drawings should be drawn in the fashion of the guy that did those weird drawings after the 2005 season. They were sort of anime-ish/comic-bookish, though I think the text bubbles were in Korean. There was one for each player. The only one I remember was for a non-Dodger, Johann Santana. He looked kinda like E.T. in the picture. Anybody remember those?

The first sentence of the AP story on Schilling reads:

The doctor who claims he knows Curt Schilling's shoulder "better than anybody who breathes on this planet" insists surgery is the only way the 20-year veteran can pitch again.

I'm no doctor, but doesn't that quote display a rather stunning degree of arrogance for someone practicing a profession where second opinions are routine and accepted?

111 dodgers have just obtained Mike Blowers to fill their need at 3rd http://tinyurl.com/29faat

Arrogance? From a surgeon? Well I never.

He has a personal relationship with Curt's rotator cuff.

115
That's "the power-hitting" Mike Blowers to you, mac.

115
Wow, the infamous Miguel Cairo was once in the Dodger farm system. I have no recollection of that.

115 Did you just step into a time machine?

Man, I remember when I actually thought Blowers would be good for the Dodgers. What was I thinking? He couldn't even pronounce his name correctly, or accurately!

118 I was at the game when that power hitting 3rd baseman was rounding 3rd and blew out his knee on his way to home. I believe that run was the difference in the game. I think he could have walked in and been safe.

120 not sure what made him pop into my mind. Guess he was just part of the Dodgers quest to fill what constantly seemed to be a hole at 3rd and is ? today.

Ah yes! This game eh? Led by interim manager Bill Russell.

Tough loss. Tough to have Mark Guthrie coming out of the pen, too.

Oops, meant to pop in the link:
http://tinyurl.com/35h2vh

Man, what a bad infield the 96 team had...

http://www.baseball-almanac.com/teamstats/roster.php?y=1996&t=LAN

111,115 just goes to show that adding a hood scoop doesn't supercharge like adding a blower and you still get the same average performance from your vehicle. Mac, how do you remember/find old stuff like that! Incredible.

1996, when Gagne was pronounced "gag-knee."

126 remember:dunno, guess whenever I think of the dodgers/3rd base I am reminded of Blowers. Just always remember thinking "this is your answer to 3rd". That and Harry Cary's pronunciation of his name. I swear he butchered every Dodgers name on purpose.

find: google baby!

100 i don't read that set let alone write for it. also, i'm sure the writers punctuate and spell correctly, so you know i can't be writing for that site.

129 yeah, just being playful. Hope you didn't take it personally. Although I imagine you might be a bit sensitive right now.

130 it's all good

128 Well, thats a good association to use for memory because before and after Beltre, we have had long strings of Blowers for third basemen.

true dat

Also, as long as you capitalize the B you proffer a word that rhymes with Flowers, which can't violate much.

Dodgers get another thirdbaseman,this might be just what Beltre needs to get movin.

http://tinyurl.com/3d427e

131
You really are a good sport...

90

Ahhh, the dead pull hitter, how I love thee at third base.

I would say, if your hitters can go opposite with nice line drives, than go for it. But, it sounds like they tend to hit only one way, so a championship game is not the time to change a swing. Before I made the big change to my swing, I would scan the field, look for the holes, and then use the pitch type to determine where I would place it.

I am just going off on a tangent now. If they are good at placing it, than go for it. If not, don't change what ain't broke.

135 hehe, I think Blowers actually was a bit more productive for the Dodgers

USS Mariner is pretty interesting right now if you like seeing complete meltdowns.

137 sounds good.

kevin you may enjoy this...

http://tinyurl.com/22az65

something was wrong in that link

Yesterday I bought The Sporting News Fantasy Baseball magazine. The scouting report for Andy LaRoche consists of this: "LaRoche couldn't deliver in either of last year's two big league stints, failing to show the power he did in the minors. Of equal concern is his health, as he's suffered recurring injuries to his back and shoulder that could become chronic." What kind of scouting report is that? Then I look at the write up for Billingsley and see that it describes his delivery as "maximum effort." After reading that, I'm thinking to myself, "What the heck? Why are the Sporting News people just parroting Ken Gurnick's usual crap?" Then a few hours later I discovered the page where it is mentioned that all "scouting reports" are contributed by the MLB.com reporters who cover the teams that the players are on. As Homer Simpson would say, "D'oh!"

143 Will you be building a fire anytime soon? You seem to already have the kindling on hand.

143
Canuck, you might like this one:

http://tinyurl.com/2pd4s3

143
That's classic. The only reason I will get that magazine is because we use it as the dollar values for our fantasy league.

145 I don't even follow hockey, but that was hilarious.

*Last week, you made a reference to having been so turned off from covering baseball for five years that you won't even watch the sport anymore.
C'mon Brian - share a few details regarding what turned you off.
Here's a few things – Sevens months on the road and being away from my wife, seven weeks in Vero Beach, Fla., for spring training, and the realization many of the players care most about the paycheck, then about winning. There are other off-the-field things in which some players and front office people are portrayed to be wonderful people, and they are some of the most vile and disgusting folks I've met.*

Why do I get the sense he is talking about Tommy?

That was from Brian Dohn's UCLA blog. He used to cover the Dodgers, until he asked off the beat.

I see Worse/Worst jumbled up regularly, but I can't remember seeing a More/Most mess-up. Superlative confusion: catch the fever!

Actually, scratch that. Since he used the right "then," it's not comparative. As a point of honor I'll fall back to saying it's awkwardly phrased.

96 When I worked at an orphanage in Mexico we were donated a 1000 cases of blue chips. I still dream of blue chips.

Greg Gagne "with a spoon".

I don't know if that's original.

MC Safety's proposed move to Washington has been thwarted. Mini plan is back in the picture. So are two DT shirts for the girlfriend and I to don accordingly.

Steve Phillips must not think the Angels play in the AL West -- he just said the Bedard trade makes Seattle the favorites in that division.

Lakers rebounded nicely tonight after giving up 44 in the 1st quarter. They are now 4-2 on their 9-game roadie (and were oh so close to going 6-0), meaning they only need one more win to be just the 5th team (of 13) in the last 30 years to have a winning record on such a long road trip.

Final three games of the trip are very winnable:

Sunday at Miami (9-39, lost 21 of 22)
Monday at Charlotte (18-32, lost 5 straight)
Wednesday at Minnesota (10-37, won 5 of 8 and are leading Boston tonight)

The Spurs are also on a 9-game road trip. They are 3-2 but are losing in NY by one with about 1:10 left. And they have to finish their trip in Boston, Toronto & Cleveland.

155
There is a good reason why Steve Phillips will never get a GM job again.

Actually, there are reasons outside of baseball too.

155 Sharp, instant analysis from ESPN's resident genius.

Has someone counted how many times he's been dead wrong/flip-flopped on a prediction?

158
426 times by my count.

Congrats on staying in SoCal!

Oh, and the stupid Spurs were down 3 with under 7 seconds in NY, but are now up 7 (!!!) with 2:21 left in OT.

159 Thanks! LOL, wouldn't doubt it either. I can't wait for the return of Andrew Bynum. Happy to be a Californian right now. If Andre could just win Torre over now...

Oh, and Andy please hit this spring!

What a crazy end to the Celtics/T-Wolves game!

162
Eric, have you heard about Floyd going to LSU and Montgomery replacing him?

How ecstatic would that make you?

I don't fallow basketball at all but Shaq to PHX is that bad for the Lakers? I've heard he isn't even an impact player anymore.

164- People are mixed on the deal...

The Suns are taking on a lot of money for a guy who isn't even good for 30 minutes a game any more. Shaq does help nuetralize the countless big men in the west, albeit for 20 minutes a game. It just depends on how effective those 20 minutes are. The part that intrigues me the most, is that Amare gets to move to the 4, where I think he is far better suited...

163
I like Floyd. It would be nice to have some stability and try and build something, so I can't say I'd be ecstatic if Floyd left.*

*Unless of course Pete Carroll decided to coach basketball! :)

39 Agreed. (Batting order nonsense.) If every inning began with batter no. 1 (as in cricket) batting order would matter. But since an inning can end and the next one begin anywhere, it makes no difference except for the first inning. Sometimes a particular sequence of 3-4 batters can be well-placed, if the first 3 consistently get on base and the fourth hits home runs, but even then chances are even that one of the first three will be the third out in an inning.

I'd love to get a shirt, Jon.
BUT I need a larger size than what is available. (embarrassed)

I understand it wouldn't be cost effective to offer 3XL OR 4XL, so I'm not complaining; just explaining why I'm not supporting the site by buying a shirt or two.

168 When I ordered a blue shirt, it looked like they were available from S through 5XL. Did you try the blue?

Andrew Lambo is ready to start is first full season.

http://tinyurl.com/3cwlrc

Don't expect any let up the next time San Antonio plays Memphis.

http://tinyurl.com/36eqxq

I hope Greg Popovich is patient. San Antonio and Memphis don't play each other again this season.

Gregg "Equity" Popovich doesn't seem to have any problem with his team winning more than their share of championships.

New post up top.