I really worry about Chad getting injured trying to adjust to pitching in the bullpen. It just makes no sense to me to even consider Tomko for this spot.

Not a huge deal to me, in fact, I would guess that this gives Kuo the lead for the job because I don't think they believe he can pitch out of pen right now.

The likelihood of the 5 starters on April 2nd being the only 5 guys that start a game for the Dodgers is pretty slim, so Bills will get his chance and I would not find it hard to believe that it won't happen sometime before June.

1 - I doubt Billingsley is more at risk of injury as a reliever.

I hope we are trying to trade Hendrickson. That is the only reason I can think why he has not been taken out of the competition.

1 When was the last time someone got hurt doing that, I mean guys get hurt but just because he is pitching out of the pen would not by itself increase his chances anymore than starting.

This also could be one of those dreaded tests that old school folks like to give young players, though Chad seemed to handle everything well last year.

Look at this way, if you are going to showcase someone, showcase Tomko and Hendrickson right now.

I think it's good for him in the long run because it saves the wear on his arm at an age where he's particularly vulnerable to arm injury. A lot of really successful starting pitchers began their MLB careers in the bullpen -- everyone from Oswalt to Pedro to Nolan Ryan.

That said, I only agree with the move if it means the 5th starter spot goes to Kuo and not any of the other dross in camp.

I honestly don't see any reason that Hendrickson should make the squad. That list of pitchers is nice, I just see him as the weak link...let's home nothing comes of Kuo's arm soreness...

3
Well he puts a lot into his throwing motion and I worry he may try to overthrow. He also took a long time to get loose last year so that could be a problem as well. Our rotation is deep and good enough to where he may only pitch an inning and that may change how he throws.

8 His arm was sore during the winter time off, I have not heard anything about any injury right now in Spring Training.

I do not really have a problem with the notion of letting players start out in the bullpen at all, but I guess I am just paranoid about Billingsley because of how he pitches.

I don't love it, but it's not dumb, yet. As long as they do the right thing by Kuo, it's okay. I'd rather they made the easy decisions first.

Quick application to the International Irony Committee: is it ironic that Hendrickson went from being the "sixth best left handed starter in the AL" last year, to being maybe the sixth best on the Dodgers?

7 Don't forget Santana. While the Twins undoubtedly kept Johan shackled in the bullpen too long, all in all that experiment worked out rather nicely.

Ditto to Eric Enders' comments in post #7. Pedro Martinez was a middle reliever for a year, and Johan Santana spent some time in the bullpen before cracking the Twins' rotation. But I am going to be extremely disappointed if Kuo doesn't get the 5th rotation slot.

And does anybody agree with Gurnick that Billingsley has a "maximum-effort delivery?" He has said that twice now, and it is not true. Billingsley's delivery isn't effortless, I realize, but it isn't maximum-effort either.

12 - Rejected, as there is no reality in which both statements are true.

13 Except that they lost quality service time with Santana in the pen. He lost a year as a starter that the Twins can never get back when Johann is a Yankee in two years.

If Kuo gets the nod because he looks better than Billingsley, I have no problem with that. If he loses it because Kuo isn't capable of being a reliever it will really bother me. It's the kind of failing upward that would make corporate America proud.

Wow, Santana and a vote for Pedro. I think I will be a little more reserved in my hopes there but I also think he will get a start sooner rather than later.

Correct. Hendrickson is the worst pitcher on the roster.

Bad idea. They should have sent him to Las Vegas.

First of all, I'm not buying into the idea that Kuo couldn't be a reliever if he needed to be. But again, it's paramount to remember that the Dodger rotation could be in flux all year.

If Tomko cracks the rotation ahead of Kuo and Billz...

So help me gaahd!

6. Look at this way, if you are going to showcase someone, showcase Tomko and Hendrickson right now.

I agree. I've always ASSUMED that the Dodgers would like to trade BOTH Tomko and Hendrickson. But it takes two to tango. If Ned can't get a deal he deems suitable then we may be stuck with one or both. In that case I think we're likely to see Kuo at Las Vegas.

Now is the time to question bhsportsguy's Dodger fan bona fides, I think. First Kemp isn't Kareem, now Billingsley isn't Pedro or Santana? I smell Giants fan. . .

18- There are only six left handed starting pitchers on the 40 man roster.

Coming back from injury, Mays so far has exceeded a lot of expectations. Anyone know if his contract allows for him to be stored in Vegas?

Former 17 game winner, former All-Star and all, but??

24 - I think he has to agree to it. And yes, it's a big "but."

By the way, where is the D.J. Houlton Marching and Chowder Society?

25. Probably planning a "Welcome Back to Las Vegas" party.

Sarah Morris tried to get an Eric Stults Marching and Chowder Society going, without much luck.

Motion for Reconsideration Granted, with leave to amend, given that Tommy Lasorda is left-handed.

28- Also, Kershaw and Elbert aren't on the 40 man, so it's Enron accounting no matter what. But it's not even a coincidence if a player goes from being the sixth best something to the twelfth best something else.

16 That's definitely true. But given the fact that management has already shown a willingness to start Billingsley (in an pennant race no less) I'm not so concerned that they've decided to consign him to the 'pen. To the extent the Santana comp is worth making (just in terms of the path they take): if Billingsley starts in the bullpen, making spot starts as injuries require/permit, I'd see this season as most like Santana's 2003 season (i.e. the year before he was unleashed as a full-time starter). Given that that was Johan's 24-yr old season, and this will be Chad's 23-yr old season, I don't feel too bad about the (proposed) arrangement.

And no, I am making no representations that Chad = Johan.

If he's just another lousy middle reliever, then it doesn't matter who he is.

I actually like this choice for Billingsley. With a nod to Jon's frequent point that nothing is forever (or even for April), this points to a plan whereby Kuo moves into the rotation either over the demoted, disabled, or departed bodies of Tomko/Hendrickson, or when some other injury pops up.

Meanwhile, Billingsley will be in the majors, learning and improving.

The optimist in me says we'll see both rookies starting by June. The pessimist says that two of Tomko/Dessens/Hendrickson will be starting, with Billingsley still in the 'pen and Kuo in AAA.

Ultimately, I can't imagine it will matter much, not as long as Juan Pierre gets 700 ABs.

Oh, and I guess the question of whether or not Colletti should trade one or two of the excess starters comes down to whether you trust his trading acumen more or Little's playing-time choices.

The best deal would be for high-quality single-A types (since Adam Dunn ain't in the cards). But if Colletti were to work a trade for another mediocre veteran who demands a 25-man spot and maybe even a starting slot (Jacque Jones, anyone?) then it'd be better to have Tomko and Hendrickson stick around for low-leverage innings and as injury replacements.

I do not trust Colletti in trades, but there is no possible trade that we would lose in if we got rid of Tomko and/or Hendrickson.

I don't think we should allow our desire to get rid of BT and MH to lower our standards in a trade. Crappy starting pitchers are worth a lot in today's market, and I'd be disappointed if we didn't exploit that fact by getting something good in return.

I really believe the 5th starter should be Tomko or Hendrickson(although I wanted it to be chad before this announcement). My only reasons for this is Kuo has never pitched over 110 innings in a season. Plus he has a large injury risk. Start out with Tomko or Mark, and if they fail send tomko to the bullpen, trade or release hendrickson, and call up Kuo from AAA.

Tomko and Hendrickson for Milledge lol.

It was bad enough that both Billingsley and Kuo wouldn't be in the rotation this season. I don't understand what Randy Wolf has over either of them.

But can management possibly be so amazingly stupid as to put Tomko back in the rotation based on 7 meaningless spring innings (with only 2 Ks--worse than Kuo's 2/6)?

They have to be humoring Tomko, right?

Until the Odalis trade got done, I didn't think there was a way to lose on that one. It doesn't matter much, but it is possible to lose even when dumping the worst player on the team.

I don't understand what Randy Wolf has over either of them

1. Veteran status
2. Publicly expressed desire to play in LA

Oh: and Wolf also makes a lot more money

Also we shouldnt bash either Tomko or Hendrickson to hard. I would rather have them over most teams 5th starters. Last year for pitchers with at least 100 innings, mark finished 54th in ERA for the league. Tomko was 79th out of 138 pitchers(Weaver was 125th). Trading one of them now for next to nothing would be a huge mistake. Wait for another teams starter to go down, or for the Nats to realize they need help. Get a prospect out of them.

40
3. Big contract.

34 trainwreck
I do not trust Colletti in trades, but there is no possible trade that we would lose in if we got rid of Tomko and/or Hendrickson.

I don't like either guy at all, but this statement is just incorrect. Of course there are ways to trade these guys and make the team even worse. Indeed, there are trades that would be worse than simply releasing them outright. And I laid out a plausible scenario in which it could happen (plausible, given Colletti's fetish for mediocre veterans). Anything that might mean even more PAs for "proven veteran hitters" and even fewer PAs for the rookie hitters could (not necessarily would) be greater than the expected difference between more innings for one of these guys and more for the rookie pitchers.

I do not think the Nats really care about being good this year and they do not really have any prospects to deal.

41. Beat me to it.

Beat me to it

Off-topic, but I applied for a few academic positions over the winter, and hadn't heard anything until today, when I got a rejection email.

Do you think it's appropriate to seek feedback from the school regarding why I was rejected, what I could do better in the future, etc.?

(NOTE: I wasn't really expecting much success, given that I'm not finished, don't have any publications, etc. But my wife wants me to follow up and get some feedback)

43
I highly doubt Colletti would get anyone with a lot of years left on a deal (he has yet to do that). I highly doubt he would get anyone to replace Martin or Ethier. I cannot think of a third baseman that fits the mold of not having a long term deal and bad enough to trade for Tomko and/or Hendrickson. At every other position it would just be a veteran replacing a veteran so that seems pointless.

Basically, I think Colletti would deal either one for some prospects, presumably outfield prospects. This is all assuming there are no injuries and this is before the season.

I don't consider "big contract" or "makes a lot more money" a reason since my argument is that he shouldn't have been given a big contract or a lot of money when LA already had better pitchers.

46
Yes, you can always ask for feedback from someone on the committee if you ask politely. I'm sure many on the search committee have been in your position before.

49
Getting rejected by e-mail is unusual from an HR standpoint. Normally organizations like more of a paper trail.

44. Seeing as how we have no outfield prospects that are highly regarded i would trade with the Nats for a package including Chris Marrero.

46
In addition, not angering your wife would be a good thing.

I am watching A's vs Giants and it is weird to see Bochey as the Giants manager.

*Bochy

If the Nats gave up Marrero for Tomko and/or Hendrickson, blood would flow in our nation's capitol.

Hell, if Marrero got dumped for Tomko/Hendrickson, I'd be willing to charter a truck to drive Sam's stuff out to him, just to get in on the rioting.

The Nats seem to hate Ryan Church. I'd trade Tomdrickson together to get Church.

Can we trade Tomko and Hendrickson to the Nats for the guy we sent over for Marlon Anderson?

46 If you don't have any publications, that would be reason #1 for the rejection. I'd wait until you have a good vita.

48 In a perfect world, guys like Wolf and Luis Gonzalez could be your insurance if guys like Kuo/Kemp don't pan out. But guys like those won't sign to be backups. So what's the answer? If you try to get too cute avoiding name FA vets you get Cruz/Ledee platoons. But we all know the name vets are impossible to bench/trade/cut (see Steve Finley 2005). I guess it's the dilemma of being a big market team- you can't have auditions at 4-5 starting spots.

Most teams constructing their bullpen look for one long reliever that can also start in a pinch. For some reason, the Dodgers have three (Tomko, Hendrickson, Dessens).

Also, I was taken aback by the Yahoo box score for today, which lists "O Saenz" as pitching a scoreless inning with one strikeout. For a minute I thought the Dodgers were really desperate, then I remembered it was probably Rudy Seanez.

36 Kuo has never pitched over 110 innings in a season. Plus he has a large injury risk.

This is my problem with Billingsly in the pen. Rather than not being able to pitch out of the pen, I think Kuo can't pitch in the rotation the whole year without significantly increasing his risk of injury. If he starts there, I don't know how you limit his innings.

Does anybody else see a poll here asking which #1 seed will lose first that looks like it's been Brocked?

http://espn.go.com/

60

Well put. I would love Gonzalez as fourth outfielder and Wolf as sixth starter, but to get there you have to let them lose a bunch of games for you first.

63 That's awesome. I'm sure the Ohio State fans are just thrilled about that.

The Worldwide Leader Strikes Again...

Little said the team's second round of roster cuts will be made soon.

"We don't have an exact day, but they'll be coming regularly from here on," he said.

The Dodgers still have 47 players in camp, including 22 pitchers.

http://tinyurl.com/ywxvcc

63
So awesome lol

MH is a lefthander. A lefthander has a major league job until 3 days after he is dead.
Also, Ned values depth. MH is insurance against an injured or a bad Beimel.

Zito says he feels like a samurai being in orange and black.

Weber State lost a game to Sacramento State this year. I would say they dont have a chance

Thing is, Billingsly pitched about 90 innings in the bigs last year and roughly 150 overall, I think. (I could be wrong about the Vegas numbers; too lazy to look 'em up right now) Anyway, if he starts the season in the rotation he's on pace to pitch north of 200 innings. That's too big a jump for one year. I don't recall where I read it, but somebody did a study looking at pitchers younger than, say, 25, who make a jump of more than 20 percent in innings in a given year. Ugly stuff. Francisco Liriano, I believe, was their poster child. My guess is he'll get into the rotation when the calendar says he'll get 130 to 150 ML innings. That would be a reasonable bump at his age.

Thing is, Billingsly pitched about 90 innings in the bigs last year and roughly 150 overall, I think. (I could be wrong about the Vegas numbers; too lazy to look 'em up right now) Anyway, if he starts the season in the rotation he's on pace to pitch north of 200 innings. That's too big a jump for one year. I don't recall where I read it, but somebody did a study looking at pitchers younger than, say, 25, who make a jump of more than 20 percent in innings in a given year. Ugly stuff. Francisco Liriano, I believe, was their poster child. My guess is he'll get into the rotation when the calendar says he'll get 130 to 150 ML innings. That would be a reasonable bump at his age.

I guess I don't understand what prevents a pitcher from having his innings controlled after making the rotation. Especially with fifth starters, it should be relatively simple to keep them from throwing till their arms fall off.

Am I missing some joke on the ESPN page? Is it the ads for Ohio State souvenirs? When did "Brock" become a verb?

71.Kuo would be at even greater risk having never pitched over 60 innings other than last year.

Milton Bradley just hurt his knee taking an open base.

73.You can control it but the average 5th starter pitches 170 innings a season.

Bob -- Look at the Sportsnation poll.

74 Bob, there is a poll on ESPN.com asking which #1 seed is most likely to lose first in the NCAA Tourney:

-Florida
-Kansas
-North Carolina
-UCLA

73. I meant the fifth slot not one individual pitcher

The one I'm looking at reads:
1) Which No. 1 seed will be eliminated first?

Florida
Kansas
North Carolina
Ohio State

They fixed it...I should have done a screen grab.

I'm sure there was much e-mailing coming from Columbus.

Funny -- I still see the wrong one.

73
I think mostly shortsightedness. But if Kuo starts all year he would have to be limited to under 5 innings a start prevent a large increase. Maybe that would be a good idea, but I don't really see it happening.

83
Me too. I still see UCLA on there.

i still see the wrong one to

I guess if you already voted it doesnt change

I did a screen grab of the SportsNation Map. Not that anybody cares. I'm sure I could e-mail it to Bob...If he wanted.

It is pretty darn funny.

Every team has ten starters like Tomko, Hendrickson, and whatever other losers keep getting into this category. They are nothing special and we are nothing special for having them.

Is it funnier, or less funny, that everybody was voting for UCLA?

90
I do not think it effects it either way. It would have been funnier if UCLA got the least number of votes.

Yes, you can always ask for feedback from someone on the committee if you ask politely. I'm sure many on the search committee have been in your position before.

I guess it won't hurt to ask.

Getting rejected by e-mail is unusual from an HR standpoint. Normally organizations like more of a paper trail.

I was expecting a letter by mail, which still might be forthcoming.

In addition, not angering your wife would be a good thing.

Not angering my wife is a consistent goal of mine. You'd be surprised how difficult that goal is to achieve.

If you don't have any publications, that would be reason #1 for the rejection

Yeah, that's what I've been telling my wife. But she thinks that coming from the top program in my field should be enough to guarantee me at least an interview.

*affects

Are many of you teachers?

A lot of highfalutin college professor types.

Some others teach high school.

Some of us used to and now happily do something completely different.

I am thinking about teaching at some point so I guess when the time comes I know where to get some advice.

97 Run and hide...Run. And. Hide.

I kid.

Re: 92

It really shouldn't hurt to ask, but be aware that in my field (History), there can literally be hundreds of applications for a tenure track position. So don't expect a response, although I don't think anyone will mind you asking.

WWSH

99
Thanks. Yes, I was told in my rejection message that there were 200 applicants (for 2 positions), only 7 of which were invited for interviews.

I'm not surprised that I wasn't among the 7.

ok, i'm lazy but i'm also bored and, as a result, i looked up billingsly's numbers. he threw 160 innings last year, counting AAA and MLB. so i take it back: he could be the fifth starter and earth would continue to spin. grady/ned, etc. seem to be taking extra precautions...

101.plus he threw 150 the year before that

101.im also bored..and sick

i choose to believe the billingsly thing is a smoke screen. ned will trade penny and, say, delwyn young for alex rios.... to the extent that reality is what we choose to perceive, my world is excellent.

I just found out that Billingsley married a girl named "Tiffany." That doesn't sit well with me, as I have always considered that name to scream "I was born to be a stripper."

Bob would love this, get to hear Russ Ortiz be interviewed during the game.

He thinks he's back guys. We better watch out.

"Born to be a stripper" and "Born to marry a professional baseball player" are not too far apart. Those worlds have been known to intersect.

"I was born to be a stripper."

Or mall singer

105
The book "Freakonomics" has a chapter on how names, especially female ones, evolve over time. The theory is that the wealthy try to find names that are different from the lower classes. Tiffany was one such name since connoted class because of the stained glass maker and the high end department store.

But once people named start reaching positions of prominence, other people notice the name and then everybody wants to start naming their children with that once unusual name (i.e. Tiffany). Then the name loses its cachet. And the upper classes start doing things like naming their children Apple or Suri.

BTW, Darren Collison sprained his ankle, but will play on Thursday.

110 I was going to post about the same thing.

At dodgers.com, team depth chart link shows Tomko as 5th starter as of March 13.

However much such a thing may be worth. It also lists Brazoban in the bullpen, along with 10 others. Unless the Dodgers plan to revolutionize baseball, a 16-man staff (15 healthy) is rather unlikely.

Starters listed were Lowe, Schmidt, Penny, Wolf, and Tomko.

Relievers: Saito, Brazoban (eventually, I guess), Tsao (interesting), Beimel, Broxton, Billingsley, Dessens, Stults (insert adjective of choice here), Hamulack, Kuo (!), and Hendrickson.

My kids, if I were to have them, would all be named after dinosaurs.

92 "guarantee you at least an interview"? I teach at a UC campus. For all our tenure-track positions there are anywhere from 50 to 250 applicants or so, or even more. The number of interviews is limited to THREE. No one who has not yet published, provided something that can be evaluated, would ever get invited.

The other important thing is having great confidential letters of recommendation from highly respected and known referees, so if your wife thinks you have those in your corner, she's not wrong to think that matters, but it's not enough.

Generally those who are invited have finished their doctorates, held a non-tenure track position already for a couple of years, have several publications (articles) to their credit, and great letters of recommendation from valued sources. We did hire someone from Princeton just finishing her Ph.D., but she had superlative letters from well-known people at the top of their field, and articles to review.

Getting an interview is the HARD part - the competition is incredible. If you get the interview, then it's up to you. It's getting that interview that's near-impossible. I have had very few students who have managed it - those who have got the job.

114 You're going to name your kid Barney?

116

No, Julio Franco.

115
Everything you said is consistent with what I've heard. The only reason I applied this year is that my wife has wanted to move ever since we got here, and I've had a lot of pressure to finish as quickly as possible so that we could leave. I didn't think I had much chance, especially since I applied to good programs. It's tough for someone who isn't even finished yet to compete with people who have already been working for a few years.

46 50
Actually, D4P, getting a rejection notice of any kind is pretty unusual in academia. Generally, the rule is "no news is bad news." Only people who will be invited out for a job talk/set of interviews hear anything at all, or, sometimes, people who make a short list.

Typically, feedback is only useful if you get as far as an interview. I don't know about your field, but in mine, we'll get 300 applications for a single job. Most are skimmed quickly and only a few are read very carefully. So it'd be hard to GIVE feedback except for files in the latter group.

In my experience, the sort of feedback you're talking about comes through personal contacts. If you don't know anyone in the departments to which you applied, they'll likely not be inclined to help you out much.

Moreover, and this is the hardest thing for academic job seekers to believe, a lot of the decision making is idiosyncratic. Taste matters as much as quality. You could be the best in the country at what you do, but if the department for some reason doesn't like that style of work, your application could be dismissed out of hand. This is probably even true in the "hard sciences," which you'd think might be more objective (good is good, bad is bad), but it's definitely true in the social sciences and humanities.

I'm actually the placement coordinator for all of our job-seeking PhD students, so I go through this process for 20 or so students every year, as well as from the other side (reviewing applications for jobs in my department). I don't know much about your field, but if you'd like, we can chat more by email.

I don't know much about your field, but if you'd like, we can chat more by email

That'd be great. You can reach me at

delino4pedro@yahoo.com

I knew that not having heard from anyone was a bad sign. I served on a faculty search committee in my department last year, and I learned a lot, including how idiosyncratic the process can be.

I'm not really disappointed about being rejected, as I figured that would happen. But if I get rejected next year, that will be really really really bad.

92 Yeah, that's what I've been telling my wife. But she thinks that coming from the top program in my field should be enough to guarantee me at least an interview.

Yeah, that's just not the case. Being from the top place might get your application looked at more closely than most, but nothing guarantees and interview. In my field, and I think also in History and Economics, the general rule is 3 interviews for 1 job. If there are 2-300 applications, there's no way any particular program gets all the interviews. The only way that should happen (and it could be like this in some fields) would if there were really only 1-2 decent PhD granting departments.

And isn't it the case that different departments are known for strength in different subfields? For example, in political science, Stanford is a good place to look for people who study American Politics, but not so much for Comparative Politics or Political Theory. UCLA is among the best places for Comparative, but not for IR. And so on.

99. Wayne Wei-siang Hsieh

Hey there, Professor Hsieh. Small world: I was out at Yale this weekend for a conference at Luce Hall, and I saw your name on a list of speakers who came through in February.

Well, it was you, or the person whose identity you've appropriated...

In the library world, at least the public library world, I've received rejection letters or phone calls from every place I've applied to with the exception of the LA Times Editorial Library, which completely blew me off despite posting a big ad in several magazines advertising an opening.

I got back at them and put a curse on the whole organization. Apparently, it's working.

(People named Marty are exempt from the curse. Curse void in Nebraska and Quebec. No cash vale to this curse.)

And isn't it the case that different departments are known for strength in different subfields?

Yes. The first ever quasi-official rankings of city planning programs came out within the last 6 months or so, so they are very fresh in people's minds right now. UNC is ranked #3 overall (behind MIT and Berkeley), but #1 in land use planning and #1 in environmental planning, which are my two subfields.

120 I sent you an email.

Wow - and apparently killed the thread in the process.

126
I'm responding to your message in the other tab...

So how bout those dodgers...

16 - "lost a year as a starter that the Twins can never get back when Johan is a [Devil Ray] in two years."

69 causes one to wonder exactly what SHINJO is up to these days...

and Trainwreck, you just might be in for a pleasant surprise after I return from the Rays/Reds game tom night, assuming the projected starters are as listed.

129
Woo hoo.

Seriously speaking, I have been recently rejected by numerous parties even though I have a long resume, so I feel your pain D4P.

Tsuyoshi Shinjo retired at the end of last season in Japan after his team, the Fighters, won the Japan Series.

Rotoworld on Billingsley to the pen
"Now this is the kind of decision making we expect from a Grady Little team. No he didn't work deep into games as a 21-year-old rookie, but Billingsley was 6-4 with a 3.34 ERA in his 16 starts for the Dodgers last season. Brett Tomko had a 4.73 ERA last year and hasn't been under 4.00 since 1997. Mark Hendrickson's career ERA is 4.98. We wouldn't mind seeing Hong-Chih Kuo as the Dodgers' fifth starter, but he's far and away the worst bet of the group to hold up for 200 innings. Billingsley has no real experience out of the pen, and it's doubtful he'll be very effective unless the Dodgers can find him consistent work. It's probably not going to be a long-term arrangement, but it's still going to hurt the Dodgers' chances this year."

That's the thing. It may not hurt Billingsley, but he's the most talented and highest ceiling guy for the fifth spot. It hurts the Dodgers. Losses as a result of bad decisions cost just as many games in April as they do in September [/cliche].

121 "Stanford is a good place to look for people who study American Politics, but not so much for Comparative Politics or Political Theory."

Okay, that's it. It is so on.

133 - Perhaps the Dodgers' plan is as simple yet diabolical as Kuo pitches until he blows out, then Billingsley steps in and does the rest. There's your ace.

135

"That's it Sausage Boy. It's go time! Weisman! Weisman! Weisman!"

I meant to add that if the fifth spot went to Kuo, it would soften the blow a little bit. Just not Tomdrickson. That's all.

so im watching the machinist right now and christian bayles is 120lbs in the movie. thats insane.

anyways, i think tomkos going to start the season in the rotation and DT will commence end of the world rants.

On some level, it's difficult to envision the entire 2007 season taking place without either Rosenko or Guildrickson in the rotation, not because they belong there, but because $7.6 million is kind of a lot to pay them to be relievers, and they're not likely to accept an entire season of bullpen duty.

Something's gotta give.

I used to weigh 120 lbs.

I think I was about 11 years old.

For crying out loud, Tomko already lost his rotation spot to both Kuo and Billingsley last year. At season's end, they were starting, and he was blowing leads in the 7th inning.

I shouldn't even have to be worrying about this as something that is actually going to take place.

I weighed 130 pounds as recently as age 20 or so.

Hendrickson, too.

Outta the way, D4P.

but icaros, tomko has a new delivery that hides the ball better and hendrickson has been visiting a sports shrink!

im 5'11 170lbs. i cant imagine losing 50lbs.

I got mono hepatitis when I was younger and got down that low. I was a runner so I was pretty thin to begin with. But I couldnt eat anything solid for weeks.

What's even more crazy is that Bale bulked back up to around 225 pounds nine months later to film Batman Begins.

That can't be good for you. Especially since I read that he had nutritionists monitoring his calorie intake for three months. I guess when you pack on that much weight after near starvation it can really mess you up.

And I really liked The Machinist.

I was 145 before and got down to 125 i believe

148
Yeah, he got really sick for a brief period of time.

148

movies pretty good so far. i just get knots in my stomach whenever i have to look at bayles without a shirt.

how tall is he? anyone know?

I was 165 when I left Basic Training at eighteen. I haven't even been in that area code in years. Man, I gotta drop some tonnage.

I weighed in at 176 at the gym tonight, wearing gym clothes and shoes.

151
Around 6'1". Checked imdb. I hope you guys remember him from Newsies.

If The Giving Tree gets the fifth starting spot, I'm going to be visiting a sports shrink.

148. Jared Leto suffered from gout after gaining 60 pounds for a part and then losing in very quickly.

commmence?

I mean "commence?" Geez, it's late.

on the bright side, a bullpen of billz, tsao, broxton and saito looks pretty filthy.

159

Then add Miller and Meloan just for fun.

110 Man, what's with all this baby name discussion on the Toaster these days? Is someone around here expecting?

135 Okay, that's it. It is so on.

Now that I know your family is juicing... I humbly apologize and beg your forgiveness.

I am hoping that Jon's #2 scenario where Guo is sent to AAA to stay on a 5th starter schedule and get called up come April 10th or there abouts would be ideal. Tomko or Hendrickson as the 5th starter would get me riled up a bit. There is no reason to bump Billingsley out of the rotation this early, if it's for Tomko or Hendrickson, but if they are planning on going with Guo, then this move fits right in with the plan.

34. One of the better posts I've read this spring training.

36. If you are worried about Guo's innings, sending him down to AAA to start does not accomplish that. The only thing you can do to limit his innings is to pitch him in relief which isn't gonna happen at this juncture... wouldn't be prudent etc...

vr, Xei

I concur with Xei that 34 is a wisely stated post. If we get a box of crayons for those two, I'd be happy, especially if it has a sharpener on the back.

Although to be fair, I kinda like the Ethier trade.

Not many teams have a lot of depth on their rosters to deal from. We would be most likely getting a prospect or prospects.

The Maddux for Izzy deal was good, too. Colletti is capable of not being a moron. He just needs to be more conscientious in fighting his demons.

If Ned does not deal prospects we win! When Ned deals prospects, you get taken to school by the D-Rays.

yeah, [36] doesn't really make sense to me. if kuo is pitching in the minors, those innings aren't any less stressful on the arm than pitching in the majors would be, so the dodgers may as well get some use out of him in the majors. didn't somebody have the idea to maybe combine him with billingsley, and have them "share" starts? i don't see why we couldn't get about 30 starts, 5 innings per, out of kuo. that's 150 innings.

i'm trying to gain weight. i gained about 15 pounds over the past month and a half. my goal is to make it over 160 by the end of june, which is about another 10-15 pounds away.

For those who didnt get 36-If starts off in AAA then you can limit his pitch count (75 pitches a game or so). This does a few things. He still gets to start and work on his stuff. Plus, you dont want to limit big league starters to that low of a pitch count because that could hurt your pen. Then, in the 2nd half, or when you want/need to bring him up for the 5th spot or a bullpen role, he's not overworked and you don't have to hold him back as much when it matters the most.

Re: 121 122

This thread's brief foray into discussion of the academic job market reminds me of the one where I grumbled about postmodernism a few years ago.

Yep, GoBears, that was me. That title was mainly a product of the fact that I wasn't sure what paper I was going to give until I wrote it, and they needed something long before I actually did that. I thought it far too long and cumbersome, but the ISS crowd claimed it actually provoked a lot of interest.

Oh, and in history, the standard practice it seems is also to have 3 on-campus interviews for every position. My vague impression is maybe a dozen usually get invited for the first cut of short interviews at the American Historical Association meeting--I must assume PoliSci does a similar thing for its job searches.

BTW, regarding weight, barefoot I'm 6'1" and weigh around 145 lbs. There isn't much meat on my bones, so dropping another 25 is pretty unimaginable.

WWSH

If Kuo starts off

i choose to believe the billingsly thing is a smoke screen. ned will trade penny and, say, delwyn young for alex rios.... to the extent that reality is what we choose to perceive, my world is excellent.

If this happened it would make the Pierre signing look even worse.

As far as the rotation goes...I just don't see any reason not to give that 5th spot to either Kuo or Bills (preferrably Bills). Tomko isn't the worst pitcher in the bigs, but common sense dictates that Bills should get the 5th spot. The games count just as much in April as they do in September...

173. True Bills was by far the best choice for the spot.

169*i don't see why we couldn't get about 30 starts, 5 innings per, out of kuo. that's 150 innings* thats more innings than he pitched over a 6 year minor league career. Before last year he had never pitched over 28 innings in a season. If Kuo pitches 150 innings without a major injury in the bigs next year I will be shocked.

I can help some on the academic job market. I am a department chair and have chaired a number of searches. We send out standard rejection letters once the chosen candidate has accepted the job so it might be a long time after your application. We have to wait that long to make sure we do not have to go back to the files. There is a very long process that has to be followed with every box checked to avoid the possibility of lawsuits.

And getting the interview is the hard part. Once you are on campus, any of the finalists (usually three for us) can come out on top. The weird part for our school is that the Dean has the final decision. We can only recommend.

We care about letters and teaching evaluations because we are more a teaching school than a research school. We have hired people finishing and people who have taught for a number of years. But now we have to be careful about people finishing just because we have been badly burned once.

Hope that helps some.

D4P- UO wants you :) I'm assuming that you are looking for a tenured position.

I have a really bad feeling that Tomko/Hendrickson will be given the 5th spot in the rotation. BJ because he complained about his role on the team last year and Tomko because he's a proven mediocrity. I actually don't mind seeing Billingsley go to the bullpen as I think that Kuo can make a bigger impact in the starting rotation this year.

I'm 5'11 and about 155-160 pounds. I'm sure I could put on some more weight if I didn't run so much. Yea, I'm pretty skinny. Freshman year of high school, I was 5'9 and 120-125.

Tomko was actually a very good pitcher at the beginning of last year. If he can be packaged in a trade I have to think that his value will be greater on May 1 than it is now if he again starts out well.

He has been around for awhile so other GMs are not going to be too fooled by a hot start but there are teams that need Tomko's ability to pitch innings, rather they be good ones or just pretty good ones.

And other than salary, Hendrickson is showing he can be a very good middle innings/long reliever and all teams need that kind of a pitcher.

Presented without comment==

http://tinyurl.com/2p9m2s

177
D4P wants a tenure track position. He's not going to be given tenure right off even if he changes his name to Jesus Christ.

baseballanalysts.com has an article up ranking the 3rd Base Coaches and surprise, surprise, Rich Donnelly is the 3rd worst in baseball.

http://baseballanalysts.com/

180
As I remember Ji wasn't exactly given tenure so instead he had to settle for being just a wondering miracle worker. I have found that jobs that "serve at the pleasure of" pay more than tenured jobs anyway.

I believe Jesus was given a guest lecturer post at Sanhedrin Tech, but was ousted after running afoul of the power structure.

Like in business today, they got rid of him on a Friday because it's easier to fire people at the end of the week.

D4P- UO wants you

I can't see us going back to Eugene.

even if he changes his name to Jesus Christ

CHANGES...?

it's easier to fire people at the end of the week

Studies have statistically shown that

Easier in the sense that the person won't fly off the handle and start shooting up the place.

If Kuo gets the 5th starter position over Billingsley, it will make sense because if the simple economic principle of oppurtunity cost. Kuo has no oppurtunity cost as a starter since he has zero value otherwise, while Bills starting has the cost of not having him available in relief. As an analogy, in 1920, Ruth would likely have been a better staring pitcher than some of the other guys the Yankees were sending out, but the opportunity cost of him in that role was too great.

Nobody has any value otherwise.

105 etc.

For what it's worth, my wife is named Tiffany. She is a Ph.D. astronomer...

I kind of wish Billingsley's bride had picked a different (onetime) Dodger prospect, so that there would be someone out there named Tiffany Tiffany.

189
Either that, or Chad's bride could have been named "Barbara"

As I've always said, if Wayne Kirby had married Kirby Puckett, he could have been Wayne Puckett.

188 - Gagne from 2002-2004: 248 IP, 1.78 ERA, 365 K, 58 BB, 152 Saves; and it was all worthless as soon as he stopped starting.

No more so, and quite a deal less than, if he had started for the same period of time.

I was in the applicant pool for PoliSci last year. My experience with it was that even if you get to the short list or interview you may not get the job for a number of reasons that have nothing to do with you (dept. focus, internal politics, etc.). In PoliSci the quantitative/qualititative split can exclude you before they even consider you on your own merits. With small schools limited teaching experience can be more of a killer than publishing.

But what do I know, I'm working a 9-5 job while I wait for my wife to pop out the baby and the dissertation (preferably not in the same manner).

At Screen Jam, we take note of the 35th anniversary of Variety's review of The Godfather. Have at it ...

[175] according to the baseball cube, he pitched about 60 innings in 2005 (28.1 in AA, 26 in A+, and 5.1 in the majors) after he came back. last year he pitched 112.2 between AAA and the majors without a setback. i don't see why that couldn't be stretched to 140-150 this year as long as he feels okay. i wouldn't do more than that, but 150 isn't a completely unrealistic hope.

Now that Gary Matthews Jr. has made his Raffy Palmeiro statement (I have never taken HGH), do you think the Angels and MLB are happy to accept that or will they still try to void his deal or suspend him?

To void his contract would be something very interesting. His signing was one of the most criticized of the offseason, of course along with some guy named Juan Pierre.

With Abrue listed at 5'9" I would think his weight would effect his range. Too bad he can't give 20 pounds to Hu. I must be guilty about weight because I'm leaving shortly for a check-up.

Statements such as "I have never taken HGH" are annoying because, even if true, they don't necessarily address the issue. It's obviously possible that he didn't take "HGH" per se, but that he took other banned substances instead, which he is apparently not addressing.

Weren't they just talking about how Abreu's bulking up over the offseason has helped him, possibly giving him more power? It seems like that way, just from watching him in Spring Training, anyway.

Y'know, I decided I'm no longer as freaked out about the possibility of Tomko starting the season as the 5th starter, over Kuo and Bills. Why? Because a) the 5th starter won't get a lot of looks at the season's start, b) Tomko has looked a lot better (yes, it's spring) after fixing some things in his delivery - which doesn't change the fact that I wish he wasn't on the team and have little faith in him long term - but now I feel like he won't suck as much and c) I really do think the Dodgers plan on trading him to a needy team, if not in Spring, then within first 2 months of season, and need to showcase him. That could be wishful thinking on my part, but it's getting me through this. Then Kuo replaces him, Bills replaces Penny in the rotation by later in the year or next year, and all is well with the world.

That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

Now, Hendrickson is another matter... but maybe he'll be a LOOGY to start before he, too, is traded to make way for a Greg Miller.

Has anyone seen that Baseball Prospectus has Matt Kemp as the projected third best 2007 NL CF?

5' 9", 200 lbs., very fast, muscular, nimble, generates momentum quickly--I think I would just get out of Abreu's way.

Kent, are you listening?

Jason Simontacchi is busy locking down a spot in the Nationals' starting rotation, in case you were wondering how the other lives.

Baby names, personal weight discussions ... when did this turn into Chick Thoughts? (No offense to any ladies among the crowd.)

FWIW (zero), I'm 5'7", ~142 lbs., down from a pudgy peak of 175. When I lost, I overshot and bottomed out at 136, which my wife and other found noticably too thin; Bales in "The Machinist" - a pretty good movie - is downright alarming.

200 Matthews has been accused of ordering and, perhaps, receiving HGH only . Why would he want to introduce the subject of any other substance? IMO, HGH is the only substance he should have addressed, once he chose to address it at all.

If the Dodgers were to package Penny, Hendrickson, and Tomko in a trade, where would that new player play?

If Kuo and Wolf have arm trouble again, who would be the the fifth starter if that trade were made?

Assuming Gonzo and Juan are going to start at least through May, third base would be the most likely place for a newly acquired player to play again assuming Nomar never moves to third.

I don't see a trade prior to June 1 unless someone gets hurt.

Fantasy Baseball Question:

In a 6 x 6 rotisserie league (OPS is the other category), your pick in the draft comes down to Holliday, Jeter, Abreu or Ichiro. Who do you take?

Abreu

Abreu no doubt. Decent AVG, OBP, power, RBI's and runs. Dude is on the Yankees.

Abreu
Jeter
Holliday
Ichiro

Unless its a keeper league. Then I take Holliday.

211 That was my first instinct, but Holliday was really, really good last year and he's just turning 27 this year. Meanwhile, Abreu declined big time. It seems like I'd be trading 15 home runs, 40 points of average and 80 points of OPS for 10-15 steals.

Basically, Abreu is the sure thing while I think Holliday has more upside.

212 It is a keeper league, but Holliday would have to outperform Berkman for me to want to keep him.

Apparently Pete Rose bet on baseball.

Who'd a thunk?

Holliday...hes rated slightly higher on almost every fantasy list

Zips Matt Hollidaylf 27 .324 .383 .570
Bobby Abreu rf 33 .287 .414 .466

208 Except I don't see the Dodgers trading those three this year - I see them trading one of them. (Maybe two by mid-year.) As for where the other player would play, depends on what they get in return and who they are trading away, but my assumption is, especially for Tomko and/or Hendrickson, they'd more likely ask for low to mid-minor leaguers so roster space would be less of an issue. Maybe get some minor league OF depth. These are all just my gut-level guesses that could be completely wrong.

208 Or alternatively, maybe we'll trade them for Gary Matthews, Jr.

If Abreu just pinch-hit think about how much more valuable he would be.

plus Abreu currently has a strained oblique

Holliday or Jeter. Holliday because he can mash and is going to get better or Jeter because he hits so well for a short stop.

They are remaking the film Piranha.

209. Plugging your categories into the MLB Mock Draft software program I came up with
1. Holliday
2. Jeter (position scarcity)
3. Abreu
4. Ichiro

adjusting for keeper probably keeps them in the same order, making Holliday an even more obvious selection. This assumed a C,1B,2B,3B,SS,OF,OF,OF,U configuration. You didn't tell us that part.
vr, Xei

james camerons first movie was the sequel, Piranha 2.

JMO-all the projections I've seen for Abreu are to low this year. They are taking to much into account his down time in Philly in 06 and not his resurgance playing in NY. I'm expecting a big year for Abreu and since yours is an OPS league his OB% and increasing slug% this year will allow him to outperform Holliday. However since it is a Keeper league then I'd also opt for Holliday. Ichiro should be last especially in a league that values OPS and devalues SB.

For those doing roto leagues don't forget about Corey Hart. He'll deliver 20/20 this year and most players don't have him near high enough on their draft lists so you should be able to grab him near the end of the draft.

224
Awesome! I am like a fantasy software program.

226 Oh don't worry, Hart is very high on my list. I'm just scared that Kevin Mench is going to take his play time away.

BTW, Pete Rose admitted he bet on the Reds every night. Expect to hear about this all freaking day.

223 Nooooooo! The original was classic - scripted by John Sayles, directed by Joe Dante, had the perfect mix of late 70s cheese and knowing humor, scary and funny b-movie. That's how it should stay. Why am I not surprised though? Hollywood has apparently run out of ideas when it comes to horror films.

The Cameron sequel was so horrible it's amazing to think he went on to actually do some halfway decent movies after that, yet alone make bazillions.

230. I bet it will be straight to dvd anyway

229. Shouldn't the Griddle be all over this?
vr, Xei

Don't I get to eat lunch sometime?

When Tyler Hansbrough talks like his a character out of Sling Blade.

A-Rod says he wants to stay a Yankee after this year, which he calls "do-or-die." Not that he would put any additional pressure on himself or anything.

"I know I had a lot of options to go to several teams this offseason, probably five or six," Rodriguez said. "I chose to be in New York."

http://tinyurl.com/2mck9n

*When Tyler Hansbrough talks he sounds like he is a character out of Sling Blade.

231
It is being directed by Alexandre Aja, who did Haute Tension and the Hills Have Eyes remake. So I highly doubt it goes direct to DVD.

236
He does have a broken nose, so that's probably not helping.

237 I thought it was Chuck Russell remaking it, no? Or is he just producing?

---
Back to baseball, does anyone have a good sense of how the Dodgers pitching is scheduled for the Giants series in SF next month? Is it Wolf on Saturday and Schmidt on Sunday?
Trying to scrounge up tickets. Would be fun to see a Schmidt-Zito match up if that's how it lines up.

Apparently, Schmidt will not pitch in SF.

239 Based on the announced Dodger starters, I believe it will be Penny, Lowe and Wolf. Schmidt is the announced starter when the Dodgers open up their home schedule on April 9th.

239. It says Chuck Russell on imdb. I wonder what happened.

I think its gonna be wolf vs zito

Russell got taken out or was pulled not sure which.

*took himself out

uggghhh

244 Ahh, thanks.

And thanks all for the pitching match-ups; I remembered after I posted that I'd read they wouldn't have Schmidt start against his old mates. Hmm. Wolf vs. Zito. Hmm.

Nice piece on Maury Wills and Dave Roberts in today's SF Chronicle, btw:
http://tinyurl.com/yov69h

The NY Times Sports Section was taken over by Steve and Icaros. There were long articles about the BYU and Cal State Long Beach basketball teams.

Kurt from Forum Blue and Gold probably wrote the CSULB article.

All I really know about 49ers basketball is that I was living in the dorms the last time they appeared in the tournament (1995). One of my former roommates played trumpet in the band. I think the first-round matchup, which we of course lost, was in Idaho.

I guess if it was the New York Times I should have written it C.S.U.L.B.

If it's the New York Times, shouldn't that be Mr. CSULB to you?

I'm rooting for Long Beach, as Big West supporter, and think they have a chance in the first round game vs Tennessee (I picked them in one of my 3 pool sheets) but not much hope beyond that.

The New York Times refers to the school as "Long Beach State" all the time.

The school is compared to U.S.C. and U.C.L.A.

One of the quirks of scheduling is how interleague play really can, on paper, really give teams an advantage before they even play the games.

This year the NL West plays the AL East plus their "rivalry" games. The Padres rivalry games are against Seattle (maybe some coffee or killer whale dispute) while the Dodgers play the Angels. The Padres will also play 3 games apiece against the Red Sox, Baltimore and Tampa Bay while the Dodgers will play a home and away series against Toronto and also go to Tampa Bay.

But now you have the added bonus of getting an additional series with an NL team out of your divison. The Padres play the Cubs three separate times for a total of 8 games, while the Dodgers play the Mets 3 times for a total of 10 games.

Based on last year's schedule, the Dodgers have 59 games with teams with .500 or better record while the Padres have 48.

Again you have to play the games but I knew something was up when I saw the Mets coming to town twice within a month.

I wish the Dodgers were playing the Yankees for one series vs. one extra series against Mets, just because that would be fun and interesting. The Giants play the Yankees this year it appears.

I hear the Dodgers are like most high revenue teams and don't like to play nonconference games on the road.

202 Tomko usually looks good out of the gate, then craps the bed around the halfway point, doesn't he?

FSNPT is showing a Beyond the Glory on the '88 team. Just saw Gibson come up gimpy during the NLCS game, and it sounded like the crowd cheered his injury. I don't remember it much at all (I was a kid), but did that really happen? Or was it just sinister sound editing?

The Padre home series against the Red Sox is are considered "premium games" and are priced $7-$2 more than their regular advanced sale price. The other 4 games that are priced at the level are 4 games against the Dodgers (Friday and Saturday games).

The only way you can purchase a ticket to the Yankee series at AT&T is to buy a 6-pack of games.

You can buy tickets to see the Yankees at Coors Field or the Red Sox at Chase Field at the regular price.

The Padres did not take the opportunity like their football counterparts and make Red Sox nation buy games against Rockies or Pirates.

Oh, and I guess the question of whether or not Colletti should trade one or two of the excess starters comes down to whether you trust his trading acumen...

I realize I'm late to this party, but I had to chime in on this comment. I think it's tough to trust his acumen for trading away a crappy pitcher, considering HE was the one who traded FOR him in the first place!

Ugh.

Udawg- I agree that we should get prospects for pitching unless we get a eal star. I was just musing that Abrue's wieght and power gain could cost him range, if as some people think he has value as a shortstop. A power hitting second baseman doesn't need a lot of range; look at ours.
Plus, not nowing much about fantasy ball, it took me a while to figure out the Abrue mentioned above was Bob and not ours. Why was Jeter in this discussion, I didn't think he ever played outfield.

If every month were July, Brett Tomko would be a passably good pitcher.

And so it begins for the Rangers . . .

http://tinyurl.com/2424gs

262 So indeed!

261 - If every month were July, Derek Lowe would be banished like Scott Erickson.

262 {singing} "We've only just begun..."
or is that, "the shape of things to come.." ?

260 Got it. Yeah, I think Abreu (no relation to Bobby) is destined to stay at 2nd base, which is a better fit for the Dodgers anyway. He'll never put up anywhere near the power numbrs that Jeff Kent did, though, so if he does replace Kent it'd be nice if they do finally find some power in the line up somewhere.

If every month were March, Eric Gagne would be healthy and optimistic.

I wish every month were July

If every month were July, I'd have to move to Brazil. Or Australia.

The primary difference between hell and North Carolina in July is that the latter has more bugs

As the poet once said:

July is the sweatiest month.

Except for August.

People on the west coast don't sweat

I tried humidity once. Didn't much care for it.

Humidity is not an acquired taste.

So, I just took my first look at the NCAA schedule. I see that some "Midwest" games are being played in Spokane, WA, while some "West" games are being played in Columbus, OH.

I remember it used to get horribly humid in New England. Yuck.

It would have been okay if it was a dry humidity. But it was the really humid kind.

the worse is DC

I lked this quote from Colletti on the (not at all surprising) release of Fernando Tatis today:
"We released Tatis because we released him. That's all I want to say about that right now," Colletti said Wednesday.

I know this will never happen, but I'd love it if a G.M. just said "we released X because he's not a good baseball player."

I think I need to set up some FAQs for this.

In the first two rounds of the NCAA tournament, teams are put into "pods" of four teams. They are the teams that would face each other in the second round. E.g., 1,8,9,16 or 2,7,10,15.

The NCAA puts each of these pods (they don't like that term anymore) in a location as close as practicable to the highest seed in the group. This is designed to reduce travel for fans in the early rounds.

After the first weekend, teams go play in the designated site for the regional and those match up more or less to their region:
West - San Jose
Midwest - St. Louis
South - San Antonio
East - E. Rutherford, NJ

Teams can't be seeded to play at home or at a city that is within a certain distance of its home. So Washington State couldn't play in Spokane. But Louisville is allowed to play in Lexington.

Sometimes no one is really close to the site. There is one group in Buffalo that consists of Maryland, Davidson, Butler, and Old Dominion.

In the old days, the NCAA tournament used to have lots of teams playing at home. I saw UCLA play an NCAA tournament game at Pauley Pavilion once against Pepperdine. USC played DePaul in the second game.

But now the teams draw well enough that they don't need a home team to get people in to the games. But for a pretty long time, the NCAA basketball tournament was a relatively smalltime affair.

Let me tell you about a time that they played consolation games in the Final Four. Heck, let me tell you about a time they played consolation games in the Regionals.

"Humidity" is one of those conversation subjects that I can't really relate to, but it all sounds horrible -- like pregnancy. I have never lived in, or even visited, a humid climate.

279
You've NEVER been in a humid climate? Even on a vacation?

There are humid places in Canada. I've been to them. Toronto in August was humid. Not St. Louis humid, but it was humid nonetheless.

Wait until global warming catches up to you...

Wait until global warming catches up to you...

I think Canada's more likely to be covered in water, which I guess in one sense is humid, but not really in the hot, sweaty sense

DC is horrible, I agree. Houston too. But the worst I've spent a lot of time in is Tokyo. You can go weeks in 90-100 degree weather without seeing the sun. Or at least it seemed that way.

Let me tell you, 100 and overcast is no fun at all.

You haven't lived until you've felt like dying during an incredibly humid spell somewhere - in my case, it's been in: Florida, Illinois (in August), NY (ditto) and Mexico. Gosh, I'll take a dry heat any time.

I was permitted the opportunity to see 105° with thunderstorms while wearing a tuxedo, last year. The only thing to be said for it is that people can't tell you're crying.

The only thing to be said for it is that people can't tell you're crying

Do you wanna talk about it...?

Maybe UCLA doesn't travel because it doesn't like weather.

285- I have a low threshold for hot weather. I'm not proud of it, but there you go. And it never eased up. I walked out on to the balcony at three in the morning for a smoke, and it was still impossibly hot and unpleasant. I assume, at some point, residents grow gills to allow them to breathe, but for me, it was like spending a weekend with pneumonia.

It's true: humidity doesn't leave when the sun goes down. Over the summer, our house is literally 80° inside at 2-3 in the morning when I go to bed. You just sit and sweat all day, and all night, in the alleged "comfort" of your own home.

It's disgusting.

Doing a little research on the net, I guess I have been in humid climates and just didn't realize it. I lived in Edmonton, Alberta for a few years, and that seems to be classified as having a "humid continental climate," yet I don't recall the summers there being any more uncomfortable than summers in Vancouver. I have also been to Europe in the summer, and the climates of the various countries I was in (briefly) seemed quite pleasant.

It is possible to be humid without also being hot. The real problems with humidity begin when the temperature gets over 60 degrees or so.

278 I think they cannot play an arena if it is their home arena (or if they have played their four times during the regular season) or if they are named the host school.

Ohio State cannot play in Columbus, Kentucky cannot play in Lexington and Washington State cannot play in Spokane because they are the host schools for those sites. Gonzaga could be placed in Spokane because the Bulldogs play only three games at Spokane Memorial Arena, the maximum allowed before a venue is considered a home arena.

Next season, UCLA, USC can play at the Pond when it host the Opening Round of the 2008 Tournament but Long Beach, Fullerton, Northridge or other memebers of the Big West Conference cannot play there because they are the host conference.

289- Edmonton averages three days a year with temps over 86°. I spit in the general direction of your humidity experience.

This year UCLA fans will have to drive 352 to Sacramento and if they make it to the Regional finals, and 295 miles to San Jose.

Next season, if UCLA is a top seed in the West, they could play at Anaheim (36 miles) and Phoenix (395 miles) away.

As someone who has lived his whole life, with the exception of one year, in either the San Fernando or San Gabriel Valleys, I have no beef with heat.

Humidity can be tough, but after a while you adapt.

292 -- When I was in Edmonton, there were plenty of summer days with temperatures over 100 degrees. By the way Americans measure temperature anyway. At 100 degrees Celsius I think the human body would be in flames.

Phoenix! You ask a lot.

296 Its better than 2009 when the two closest opening round sites are Portland and Boise.

Louisville is travelling 74 miles to Lexington to play.

North Carolina is travelling 77 miles to Winston-Salem.

Wisconsin is travelling 150 miles to Chicago.

293.
"Next season, if UCLA is a top seed in the West, they could play at Anaheim" (how do you guys make this crap bold anyhow?)

Then they would be the UCLA Bruins of Anaheim? Spare me.

299 All your Toaster questions solved here:

http://tinyurl.com/22lwzd

Worst humidity I've been in is two weeks in Allentown in August of 1989. Chicago last July was pretty miserable too.

But then, I've never been to Florida.

By 2009, UCLA might have saved up enough frequent flyer points to get to Boise.

As a kid I could handle humidity but the bugs in DC just kill you when you want to play ball. I thought a family of gnats had adopted me the way they became my own personal halo.
To me it is always the bugs that keeps me in SoCal not the weather. No one has seen a mosquito until they've seen one in Kansas.

The problem with the mosquitoes in NC is that you can't see them. In Oregon, they're big enough that you feel them land on you. Here, you'll be outside for 2 minutes then come back in with 10 bites and never knew what bit you.

When the Tse Tse flies start carrying away small children, that you can definitely always see.

I went to Toronto in the summer, but it was not as bad as I was expecting. On the other hand I spend two days in Arizona. The first night it was so hot I thought I was going to die and the second day there was a crazy storm. Thankfully I ended the trip by going to the greatest place in America, Vegas.

UCLA? Boise? I'm game!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pHceOvR464s

Watch out Bob. Sumner Redstone is going to sue you.

Wow, just back from a thrillingly fast Rays/Reds game, 2-1 Cincy final in 2 hours 10 minutes here in Sarasota.

Rays starter EDWIN JACKSON danced his way around the Reds' lineup for three innings that were not nearly as pretty as his line in the box score. EJax gave up a leadoff double to Alex Gonzalez (the good one, not the retired one) to start the game, and the Reds plated him on successive groundouts by Hatteberg and Former Prospect Brandon Phillips. DT hero Adam Dunn had a surprisingly non-three-true-outcomes game, grounding weakly to first base his first time up and then doing the same to 2nd his second time around, before being pulled for some nobody named Joey Votto in the 6th. Jackson did settle down somewhat after the first though, allowing a single to the newly-resurrected Josh Hamilton (whom I sniped several pix of meeting with Dukes, Delmon, and company before the game) in the 2nd and striking out Bronson Arroyo lookin gin the 3rd before being lifted for JP Howell.

Rays rightfielder DELMON YOUNG had a relatively uneventful night, but one that still managed to hurt the team somewhat. After a one-out triple by Carl Crawford in the bottom 1st, Delmon lunged at a pitch that looked low from where I was and popped up to first, failing to score the runner. He then struck out swinging on low stuff from Arroyo leading off the 4th, popped to shallow right off Dave Weathers one batter after Red Sock-to-be Rocco Baldelli smashed a homer off of him, and struck out swinging again with one out in the 9th against Reds depth chart filler Brad (not Tim) Salmon. In the field, Delmon only made one play himself, a routine flyball off of AGonzalez in the 3rd, and the most interesting part of his night was filling in the divot that Rocco made while catching a sinking liner from Bubba Crosby in the bottom 2nd.

Rays superprospect BJ UPTON saw limited action in this one, entering in the bottom 8th as a LIDS for Baldelli and doing little but spectating from CF. Former Future Dodger JO-EL (JtD) GUZMAN also got in on the LIDS action, coming in at third base in the 7th inning after Aki Iwamura had finished turning Japanese. Guzman looked comfortable at the position, fielding a soft head-high liner off the bat of the aforementioned Votto to end the bottom 7th, and the Destroyer in his only at-bat smashed a hard sinking liner right into the glove of Red substitute leftfielder Norris Hopper for the second out of the top 8th.

ELIJAH DUKES did not play.

Overall a good, clean, crisp ballgame, in which Arroyo and the Reds' stable of pitchers (including the impressive Homer Bailey) silenced the Rays bats for all but the one swing from Baldelli. Paid attendance 4,821, and pix will be uploaded as soon as my batteries hold a charge long enough to get 'em off my camera!

New post up top....ack sorry, now I am done channeling Jon!

I have watched the end of the UCLA-Gonzaga game about 50 million times.

I may be exaggerating a bit.

No dodger thoughts NCAA pool this year?

Sadly, I can't find YouTube footage of Danny Ainge's length of the court drive to beat Notre Dame at the buzzer of an East Regional semifinal.

Never again in my life, would I be as happy about the accomplishments of Danny Ainge as I was that night.

That was back in the day when you only saw games from the Round of 16 if your local TV station thought there was local interest.

309
Thank you for the report and keeping an eye on those players. Ned or anyone affiliated with the Dodgers, PLEASE trade for one of the Devil Rays outfielders.

If you do this, I promise to keep Sad Panda from posting on ITD.

311
Join the Griddle one. Loser has to go to Oregon.

314 Thanks, just found it

You are powerless to protect them, trainwreck. I'm afraid Sad Panda will be fully operational when the season arrives...

What to make of yourself when you feel the twitch of regret at Gagne's success?

Time to get ready for some exciting MWC NIT action at 8 pm! Austin Peay at Air Force.

San Diego St. leads Missouri at halftime.

Friends of DT 5x5 Roto league drafting in 15 minutes. Some how I managed to get the first overall pick. No brainer as to who that will be.
vr, Xei

The tennis match on ESPN2 is headed for the 3 hour mark. The whole first half from AFA is going to be blacked out.

Did anyone read ChrisBahr's blog: regarding Tomko?
Bahr's SportingBlog
Oh no! Not Brett Tomko (again)
March 18, 2007
"Imagine my surprise when I thought I saw Brett Tomko lying on the side of the road the other day. As I got closer, I realized it was a huge chunk of tire. But then I came to another realization: The only difference between Tomko and the hunk-o-tire is that one of those retreads will be wearing a Dodger jersey this season...
Full URL
http://www.sportingnews.com/yourturn/viewtopic.php?t=188644