Yes, we just extended him last like a year ago. At a cheaper than normer deal for an ace, too. Pisses me off even more

At least you didn't get stuck with Mister "Oh, you mean there were only two outs" LaRoche as your everyday first baseman & new strikeout threat. I'd rather have Peavy if he had a leg amputated.

I understand this trade fully.


I've also been drinking heavily since 8 this morning.

And at what, about a quarter of the salary.

Well, I hope it works out for the Chisox. Buehrle, Peavy, Floyd, Danks does sound pretty good. need a decent 5th starter tho.

Apparently Brian Jordan just explained the Kotchman deal on one of the sports talk stations in Atlanta. According to Jordan at least, he was shipped out because he was "too quiet" and didn't fit in with the clubhouse, never hung out with the team outside of the stadium or tried to make any friends.

Somebody get me a third clip for Wren.

Oh... well... in that case... I don't want the team winning to get in the way of partytime.

Fuck the winning, they just don't want baseball to interfere with fall hunting season.

my my count, you now have 2 major building blocks to the Pirates 2008 67-95 success. Good luck with that.

:)

"Frankly I am flabbergasted that the White Sox would want to make this deal with him in his physical condition," [Peavy agent Barry] Axelrod said.

Interesting. Not the first time hints of this have come. About three seasons ago, Kotch missed most of a season with mono, which turned into (or always was and was mis-diagnosed) a more serious form of the disease. Kotch made noises that the Angels' physicians had mis-diagnosed him, even talked about a lawsuit, I think. Or at least being bitter. At the time, he hadn't done anything either, and was a long time coming, so Angels fans were a little put off by all this. He always was quiet, but mostly figured it was that he's just a kid in a clubhouse with a lot of proven vets, so why talk?

I feel a little bad for him. He was basically sacrificed here for a short term fix in Teixeira, and that was after he had finally gotten good playing time and was playing steadily for the Angels. He was with the club that employed his dad and doing well. Then they ship him to the Braves, he loses his mother, and turns into (or back into, perspective) a headcase. Bad start to this year, too, I think.

Now he gets traded to the Sox (second deadline deal in a row) and is described as "too quiet" and "not fitting in".

I am glad he's going to the Sox. If he's not a "fit in" sort, Francona's a good guy to have as a manager, really seems to know how to get the most from his players. And Kotch does work hard and play good D at first (an underrated need, even if it's not like a SS or a C)--I think this can be a good move for him. Hope he gets back to where he can be, although I really hope we don't have some situation in October where he's the one beating the Angels in the playoffs. That would suck.

Umm ... isn't that an odd quote coming from his agent or am I missing something here?

I mean, Peavy had to approve the trade himself, right?

Local paper blog says the Angels and Jays were trying to hammer out a deal for Doc right up to the end, but they just ran out of time. They last proposed deal was Saunders and three others (prospects were suggested, but I find it hard to believe the Jays would do the deal without getting Wood or Aybar).

Things got a little nutty for a short while, because the Halos only have one open roster spot, and but had called up both C Bobby Wilson and 2B Sean Rodriguez today. Angels followers/insiders were thinking this might be a prelude to a deal, and people were scrambling around for info.

Turns out Mathis is just sore and seeing a doctor, so Wilson is a "just in case" call up. Rodriguez was called up to fill the known hole in the roster.

Yeah, that tripped me out, too.

Eh, the "not fitting in" stuff says a lot more about the attitude in the Braves clubhouse than it does about Kotchman I think.

It's been a cliquey bunch for a long time. You had the golfers in the starting rotation (which worked very well for them), you had the nightclub group (most of which have retired or are otherwise gone), you had the good ol' boys (basically Chipper & McCann at this point along with some young/role players that come & go). Even younger players were accepted as long as they picked a niche to hang with.

Kotchman meanwhile was a professional who came to work, did his job, and lived his life. He's not the first player to have this happen or so I've heard at least (one of those "know somebody who knows somebody" deals so take that FWIW). Apparently being a professional just doesn't fit into any of the cliques.

I wish the guy nothing but the absolute best in the world, he did what he was paid to do, no muss & no fuss, gave us great defense & hit more than well enough on a team that has chosen to endure such greats as Francouer & Norton while he was here.

Well, he is almost by default going to fail the physical. Maybe not saying that Peavy is irretrievably broken as much as "guys, he's still recovering from an injury. I'm surprised they'd give up that much to take the risk of buying low."

That could be it.

It just sounded more to me like Axelrod didn't want him to go to Chicago for whatever reason & Peavy approved the deal over his objections.

Im excited that no one upgraded in the NL Central like the Cardinals did. Their lineup is solid top to bottom and the rotations first 3 pitchers are in the top 14 in the majors in ERA. Things are looking good in St Louis.

Lol, Kenny Williams said there was 23 seconds left in the deadline when the deal got done.

I hope Peavy isn't more hurt then people think.

That'll help. :rolleyes:

A year and a half in and Bill Smith still hasn't made a good trade.

News in Chicago is that they expect him back by the end of August. I guess you could say that the move was made not just for this year, but the next few. Gives them an Ace alongside Buerhle, Danks, and Floyd. Definitely one of the top rotations in baseball.

apparently they are gonna have him throw off a mound tomorrow to see where he is at.

Problem is that neither Kotchman nor LaRoche hits nearly well enough for a starting 1B on a team that is even potentially thinking about playoffs.

I can't speak for him now, but Kotchman was hitting well enough for a team that was certainly going to make the playoffs last year. The Angels already were pretty much locked in before they even dealt for Teix.

That said, agreed, not exactly an offensive force.

It's strange from the Boston perspective too because we were unloading Laroche to free up at bats at 1B for Victor Martinez. I guess Kotchman is a better defender, and has potential, so in a trade of lefty 1B we won, but we were trying to get rid of that position since we've now got 3.5 guys whose primary position is 1B (Youk, Ortiz (DH) Kotchman and V-Mart when not at C). Hopefully it means more Youk at 3B and less Lowell, but that still doesn't leave much/any time for Kotchman.

I like the V-Mart deal. Masterson was useful and fairly unique as a long reliever who could go on back to back days and soak up innings but he'll probably always be around league average with his repertoire (basically a hard sinking fastball.) Price has potential as a bullpen arm but hasn't shown much more than 5 other guys in the lower levels. Hagadone has the best potential in it. If the Indians stretch him back out to starter he's probably 2 years away, but if he stayed healthy in our system he would have been a great power lefty out of the bullpen by mid next season. Even coming back from TJ surgery he's been dominant. Still, a fair deal and we kept the important players (Buchholz, Lars, Reddick, Kelly, Westmoreland)

Then why isn't Peavy a Brave ? :D

It seems strange to me, especially for a team as cost-conscious as the Braves; I guess Kotchman would have probably been non-tendered at the end of the season. The only silver lining is that LaRoche has consistently been a 2nd half player; to quote: Red Sox Trade: Understanding Adam LaRoche, second-half stud - Small White Ball
- "he hit .323 in the second half of 2006, .328 in the second half of 2007 and .321 in the second half of 2008 after horrendous starts. "
- "according to BaseballHQ.com, he is one of just 3% of batters who show a 'consistent increase or decline' between their first half and second half numbers in home runs, RBI and batting average. "

FWIW, I'd expect him to outperform Kotchman offensively, but give it back on defense for the rest of the season.

Dude, didn't you see the Brewers picked up Claudio fucking Vargas?

*hurls*

Really? Masterson + 2 others for VMart?

HE'S NOT THAT FUCKING GOOD!!! HE DOESN'T SOLVE ANY GLARING PROBLEMS THAT YOU HAVE!!!!

*feeling ill*

or maybe lowell's hurt worse than they've let on...but still...I think they gave up too much to get a player who frankly is a giant turd

Cubs already made a few trades (essentially) with the return of Ramirez a couple of weeks ago and Soriano finally beginning to produce, and will enjoy the return of Soto in the next week. Also, despite the injury to Lilly (he is not expected to be out for the year) Harden has been lights out his last 3 starts and you have to think Dempster will round back into form at least a little following his return from the DL. He was beginning to show signs before his freak toe injury.

Add that to the one actual trade they made to get another lefty in the bullpen and the Cubs are looking pretty solid for making their run to the playoffs.

I ran some numbers and Rolon + Balentein comes out to a 44-20 record for the Reds over the rest of the season. CHAMPIONSHIP!

daddytorgo (8:06:42 PM): mastersn's a dirty-throwing young reliever who has shown the ability to stretch out and start

daddytorgo (8:07:25 PM): martinez is a mildly above-average c/1b/dh...he can't catch full-time and he's blocked at 1b by a gold-glover (i don't like the idea of moving youk) and he doesn't have enough power to replace the production we should be getting from the roid-head at DH

daddytorgo (8:10:13 PM): do you really think VMart+Youk-Lowell-Masterson makes you that much better than Masterson+Youk+LaRoche+Kotchman?

Honestly, I think Peavy will be fine. He's signed through 2012 and is still an ace quality pitcher.

If we're still in the thick of it by the time he gets back, he'll be a -huge- boost. Our rotation's gonna be filthy over the next few years.

Me: Yes.

That was the conversation we had :)

BTW, Dodgers just missed out on a major deal.

Via Twitter, Jon Heyman of SI.com reports that the Padres almost dealt Heath Bell and Adrian Gonzalez to the Dodgers for James Loney, Russell Martin, Blake DeWitt, James McDonald and Ivan Dejesus. Wow.

I think the DOdgers dodged a bullet there.

here - this bit from si.com asks the question i'm wondering:

The difference between Martinez's 22.4 runs above replacement and Red Sox catcher Jason Varitek's 13.8 is worth roughly a half a win over the remainder of the season, but a closer look at their seasons reveals that Martinez did most of his hitting in April and May and has hit just .211/.303/.378 since June 1 to Varitek's .238/.366/.389 over the same span. Martinez could very easily rebound down the stretch; his .313/.361/.552 line at Fenway Park is well above his career rates despite the fact that it was compiled against the often excellent Red Sox pitching. As of right now, however, he doesn't represent a meaningful improvement over Varitek behind the plate.
Martinez has split his time between catching and first base this season, but the Red Sox already have the latter position manned by their top hitter, Kevin Youkilis. Youkilis, too, has slowed since June 1, but not nearly as much as Martinez. In fact, Youkilis's line since June 1 (.243/.345/.459) isn't that far behind Martinez's season line (.284/.368/.464), which very nearly matches Martinez's career rates, the latter two of which are no better than league average for a first baseman (.272/.353/.488).
Youkilis could slide over to third base, where he's already started 28 games this season and 150 in his major league career, but Mike Lowell has been one of the Red Sox's hottest hitters since coming off the disabled list two weeks ago, hitting .406/.447/.625 in that span. Martinez or Lowell, who is having a rough season in the field due to the hip injury which prompted offseason surgery, are good candidates to DH, but David Ortiz has that spot locked down, having pulled out of his early-season doldrums by hitting .275/.352/.575 with 13 homers since June 1.

I have to say that I am suddenly liking this Lee trade much better. So far a no hitter through 5 in his Phillies' debut and he's faced the minimum (one walk erased on a double play).

I jinxed him.

Sign Holliday please Mozeliak!!!

You so jinxed it, EF ;)

Yep, was hoping that would hook foul. Still a one hit shutout through 6 and he has looked completely in control.

The only aspect I dont understand is Russell Martin. Did Colletti think we had Carlos Santana still in the minors?

Still hard to believe that we got an impact player mid-season for pocket lint and loose change. Not to mention that we're still the defending champs.

Is this really the Phillies franchise I've come to know and love?

Lee definitely operates fast. Not much waiting between pitches.

And I guess Lee knows how to hold a bat as well with two hits tonight.

Yeah
When you factor in salary and prospect costs Lee was a much better acquisition IMO.

Not very inspiring.

It's really just a depth move. The Sox had Jeff Bailey and Mark Kotsay playing 1B on occasion when Lowell was injured. So it's an upgrade from Bailey/LaRoche to Martinez. And maybe Varitek plays slightly less.

I guess I like the trade just because Martinez is signed for next year. That will further ease Varitek out the door, giving the Sox another year to figure out a long-term answer at catcher.

LOL-the 2008 Pirates opening day roster

Pitchers:
Matt Capps
Zach Duke
Phil Dumatrait
John Grabow
Tom Gorzelanny
Paul Maholm
Damaso Marte
Evan Meek
Matt Morris
Franquelis Osoria
Ian Snell
Tyler Yates

Catchers:
Ryan Doumit
Ronny Paulino

Infielders:
Jose Bautista
Chris Gomez
Adam LaRoche
Doug Mientkiewicz
Luis Rivas
Freddy Sanchez
Jack Wilson

Outfielders:
Jason Bay
Nate McLouth
Nyjer Morgan
Xavier Nady

Injured
Traded
Released/not retained

that's crazy!!

The sad part is, that you have one really good player(Bay), a couple above average player(Sanchez, McLouth), some decent relievers, a few decent hitters, and then a bunch of guys who are mainly just filler.

Around here people act like they traded away the '27 Yankees.

Man, I really wish the Dodgers had made that trade with the Padres.

apparently the Chisox can suck it up against central opponents, but the yanks, ahh the Yanks are nothing... I'm sick of this jekyll and hyde act.

Zambrano leaves the game with back stiffness. Knew it wasn't smart to trade a starter away in the Grabow deal.

Yeah it's been frustrating, but we're only a game back.

It'll work out.

Yea it does make me quite happy to beat the yanks 3 in a row. Todays drubbing was even extra nice. lol

dola, it also makes me a little more confident knowing that we have the most road wins out of anyone in the central.

Prior was always an asshole in my opinion, but it is kind of sad to see such a talent just never able to get his arm healthy. In 2003, he was literally unhittable in the 2nd half. One of the best young pitchers I've ever seen pitch.

Report says Mark Prior to be released by Padres | Hardball

I agree, I always wanted to seem him get back on track. I think it still might be possible, he just needs to go about it the right way

Holliday 3-4 with 2 HR's and Carpenter pitches a 1 run complete game!

Andrew McCutchen with 3 homers? I knew there was a reason he's on my fantasy team.

He's awesome. 4-for-5, 3 HR, 6 RBI tonight.

Lincecum dominant again :)

Best pitcher in baseball.

Saturday night's win over Minny, combined with the White Sox defeat of the Yankees, officially moved the Angels--at least for today--into first position for the best record in the American League, and second best in baseball.

If anyone was paying attention, the Angels, with all the crap they have been through this year, would be the story of the year in this sport. But no one pays attention to West Coast baseball. ;)

-Martinez won't be catching full-time, but Mike Lowell's hip is so bad he's costing us games in the field, Varitek's defense has slipped noticeably (mainly he can't throw out runners) and Youk isn't even the best defensive 1B on the team. If it makes you feel better, just think he'll be resting Varitek half the games, Lowell a couple times a week, hopefully Youk once and sitting Ortiz against lefties with no dropoff in hitting. And possibly an improvement since all 4 of those guys can use the extra rest.

-Bard is a dirty-throwing young reliever (last 12 appearances, 14 IP, 4 H, 0 BB, 23 K) and it wouldn't surprise me if Hagadone becomes one within 2 years. Masterson has one pitch that lefties tee off on and he would never be anything more than an innings-eater as a starter, and consequently, never a starter for the RS. Bowden or Tazawa can spot start just as well if necessary now, and if Smoltz is being moved to the bullpen as he should be, Masterson was probably the odd man out (Saito being the other possibility.)

-Martinez is also signed next year, so he can be a bridge from Varitek to when they can find a long-term replacement at catcher (coincidentally, Joe Mauer is also a FA after 2010, but I don't want to get my hopes up.) And he'll almost certainly be a Type A, so that's a 1st rounder and a supplemental pick if we decide not to retain him.

-Lastly, no he's not a 3/4 hitter like Ramirez and Ortiz were, but he would be an extremely good hitter at 5/6, and you can get by with him at 3 because 2-7 are so balanced and interchangeable - if it helps you feel better, consider Bay or Drew the 3 hitter and Martinez the 6/7. We lost the chance to sign a true 3/4 before 2011 when Tex signed with NY and to trade for one like Gonzalez would require the actual star prospects we have. So even for someone as biased towards the Sox prospects as I am (to the point I want Bay gone and Reddick playing the OF next year, and Buchholz starting from Day1) I really don't mind this trade. We traded a solid reliever and a guy with potential to be a great reliever in a couple years for an all-star position player. People were ecstatic when we traded a HoF'er for Jason Bay last year and Martinez is basically the same hitter except he plays a more difficult position half the time and actually plays it competently. As an added bonus Martinez was the one Indian that didn't give up or choke during the ALCS.Fun with team vs. team standings. NYY 0-11 vs. either Sox, 62-31 vs. others. Red Sox now 18-2 vs. Bal/NYY, 43-40 vs. others including 10-18 vs. AL West.They only do when you have a HoF slugger (and unfortunately doesn't look like Vlad will cut it) - should've signed Manny or Barry. :) Or you could just enjoy the success - as a fan of Boston sports teams, seeing incessant coverage and half-knowledgable analysis on ESPN really isn't that fun (and it makes everyone else hate your team.)

Does anyone else find that PA lady in SF annoying? It's like listening to an announcer at some third rate WNBA game.

Yeah, I was wondering if he thought no one was paying attention to the Dodgers this year ;).

WTF?!

Report: Boston Red Sox fired 2 staffers in steroid probe - ESPN

Two security staffers for the Red Sox were using steroids? And the BoSox found out and fired them in 2008? And only cared if they were giving steroids to high profile stars?

Not looking good.

One of the two was Jerry Remy's son.

That article sure picks out random parts of the whole story:

Boston Red Sox - Sox fired two in steroids case - The Boston Globe

Seems like a lot to make out of a couple of roided up security guys. Who cares? They caught got with steroids, got fired, and are talking about....what...nothing really. They clearly don't like that they got fired. Investigators asked them if steroids were being sold in clubhouse, if they saw anybody using, and everybody said no. What's this story even about? One of them was specifically asked about Manny because he was known to run errands in Manny's car.

The security people don't think the investigation was through enough. That's just an odd thing for roided up security guards making $11/hour to have an opinion on.

Part of it is about why in the fuck are security guys roided up? And, after all the MLB steroid hubbub, the investigation seemed to be a bit piss poor.

From the Globe article:


Kinda swept under the rug stuff.

Do you think professional athletes are the only ones that use steroids? I'm sure the % of security/bodyguard people that use something is even higher than athletes, since they're not subject to testing.

What was swept under the rug? Even in this detailed investigation months later, after they've been fired and are no bad-mouthing the team - they still have no info. Clearly the investigation was fine. How much of an investigation do they need? They can't lock these guys up in an interrogation room. You fire 'em, asking if they know anything, and move on.

It seems like they asked them a handful of questions, took them at their word, and then fired them and forgot the whole thing ever happened. The guy says he swapped advice about steroids with Ortiz's personal assistant and that doesn't even raise an eyebrow... REALLY?

We have no idea if eyebrows were raised or if the team forgot about the whole thing afterwards, or how big the investigation was. These guys made conclusory statements about there being a brief investigation, but then talk about all the questions they were asked. They can't arrest them for questioning, can't search their apartment, can't bug their phone. They can contact the police, which they apparently did, since the one that actually was found in possession was charged. And they can contact MLB, which they did.

We have 4 pieces from the 69 win 2005 Seattle Mariners in Meche, Betancourt, Bloomquist, and Olivo and probably at least 10 guys in the org who played for the, I dunno, 2003 Greenville Braves. Also, pick some year and Braves minor league affiliate since Dayton loves failed Braves farmhands.

SI

Apparently it doesn't seem to have been all that big if the two security guards weren't contacted later about further interviews of other individuals, etc.

They didn't have any info. That was clear then, it's even more clear now since they have a motivation to talk.

What in your mind, would be the proper MLB response to this? And who's in charge of steroid investigations, MLB or the Red Sox? Do you think the Red Sox have their own protocol for "investigations", or are they just supposed to refer these matters to MLB?

It's just one of those things where it's just easy to say, "they should have done more". If they did a 1-hour interview with both afterwards (which the two security guards would not have to take part in), the story would be "the only did 1 interview, and they didn't even ask question X!"

It seems like a nothing story the Globe has been sitting on for months, but now with the Ortiz/Manny news a few days ago, they figured this was the only time this could possibly seem newsworthy.

That's a great way to put it into perspective.

SI

To be fair, Balentien is a reasonable risk, tho you actually had to give up something to get him.

SI

So the short answer is that neither of the John Schuerholz bastard stepchildren, Wren or Moore, were ready for a primetime job.

Both took the wrong lessons away from "winning the Braves way". Tho I think it might be the step of "Employ a trio of HOF starting pitchers for an entire decade" that was the biggest key

SI

YMMV, but it clearly seems to me that they wanted to sweep it under the rug. They found out that it wasn't directly being given to the big name stars, and said, ok, we're done with this.

They also asked them if they saw anyone using, or if the sold it in the clubhouse. Then later they say they only cared about the big name players. What an expose.

It's a story if they claimed to see players use, or claimed to know of use, or if they were kept on the job after they got caught with steroids. Here we have $11/hour fired meatheads critiquing a steroids investigation.

The only thing I learned from this article is Jerry Remy has a loser son.

and we're all ignoring the bias of the fired kids - of course they're bitter about it

Yeah he could turn into Phillips 2.0 or bust, but giving a reliever who can't hit 90 mph for him seems a reasonable risk.

Heh, true. Although a couple weeks ago, the guys at Baseball Tonight did a "who will get in" of current guys on the edge, and they all actually put Vlad in. They based it on him tying Gehrig for seasons in a row hitting at least .300 with 25 HRs, for his MVP, and for how dominant he was in Montreal, both at the plate and in the field. We'll need to see where he ends up at the end of his career, of course, but I am pessimistic myself, given how the HoF writers have been with putting guys on the edge in.

Oh, and I do enjoy the success. ;) I guess it cuts both ways. It may be a lot of crap getting a ton of coverage, but at least you're getting the coverage. Like you said, you need a Manny or someone like that for a lot of the East Coast to care.

I'm hoping the Angels catch the Dodgers, too, so I can jokingly throw it in my Dodgers-fan brother's face. ;)

Speaking of perspective, I decided to do a similar thing with the Angels to see how out of whack the Pirates' thing is.

Angels' 2008 Opening Day Roster

Pitchers:

Jered Weaver
Jon Garland
Joe Saunders
Ervin Santana
Dustin Moseley
Francisco Rodriguez
Justin Speier
Darren Oliver
Jason Bulger
Rich Thompson
Darren O'Day

Catchers:

Mike Napoli
Jeff Mathis

Infielders:

Casey Kotchman
Howie Kendrick
Chone Figgins
Erick Aybar
Maicur Izturis
Robb Quinlan

Outfielders:

Vlad Guerrero
Torii Hunter
Garrett Anderson
Gary Matthews Jr.
Juan Rivera
Reggie Willits

Disabled List:

John Lackey
Scott Shields
Kelvim Escobar
Chris Bootcheck

Injured
Traded
Released/not retained

I would say the Angels are very stable and don't trade much, but even they have a few hits here. I fully expect the Pirates have seen the most movement, but I wonder if it skews that far from many of the rest of baseball.

MLBN is showing Royals half innings from now until the end of the game, probably. Still 0-0, tho, as Banny also has also allowed 0 runs so far

SI

Not yet here. They're showing (I think) the 1998 HR derby on MLBN here. BTW, Big Mac is hitting.

Yeah, I was laughing at that. They showed the top of the 7th but the Rays have been up the last few minutes so they went back to Home Run Derby

SI

Should be back on after commercials. Banny just finished up his 7th shutout inning

SI

Yeah, MLBN coming back

SI

And there it goes

SI

Man, I just broke up the no-no. Saw your post and jumped back there. Very first pitch I saw, dropped into rightfield.

At RoyalsReview, many of us were trying to say "no hitter" as much as possible to break it up ;)

SI

It would be an interesting exercise to see all the teams but darned if I've got the patience or the energy to do it.

I will do the Braves though, comparing 2008 Opening Day vs today's roster

Pitchers (4) -- Manny Acosta, Rafael Soriano, Jair Jurrjens, and Peter Moylan.
Mike Gonzalez was on the DL last year to start the season, while Tim Hudson was on the roster but is currently on the DL. Gone are Glavine, Hampton, Smoltz (DL), Blaine Boyer, Jeff Bennett, Will Ohman, Royce Ring, and Chris Resop

Catchers (1) -- McCann.
Gone are Brayan Pena & Corky Miller, replaced by David Ross

Infielders (4) -- Jones, Escobar, Johnson, and Prado.
Gone are Texeira and Reuben Gotay, replaced by Diory Hernandez & Adam LaRoche

Outfielders (1) - Matt Diaz
Gone are Francouer & Kotsay, with Gregor Blanco back in the minors. Replaced by Anderson, McLouth, and Church

So a season & a half later, only 10 players remain from Opening Day 2008.

It really does depend on how this season fits. If its the beginning signs of age catching up with him, he's probably out. If its just a blip and he goes back to 2008 level production for 3-4 years, he's definitely in.

The Wall Street Journal ran an article during Induction Weekend last week that featured a computer-based prediction of whether current stars would get into the Hall of Fame. Two college professors created the computer program and you can read more about it in the WSJ article.

The computer model was able to identify whether a given player had been elected to the Hall of Fame based on statistical criteria 98.7% of the time. The model gives Vlad Guerrero an 88.8% probability that he will be elected to the Hall, Trevor Hoffman an 86% probability and Jeff Kent just a 14.2% probability.

It's a kick in the gut to see Banny pitching as well as he has been, but I'm still glad to see it. Seems like a very interesting and intelligent guy from the interviews I've seen and I'm a fan of any player who is interested in how sabermetrics can help him as a player.

I guess I hadn't really realized how many AB's he'd actually put up the past few seasons (East Coast Bias undoubtedly). It seemed like he was always injured and day-to-day with the knees at least when Boston played them, but he hasn't missed more than 20 games and has at least 600 PA every year with the Angels until now. Looking at that profile and from watching him play he definitely should make it in, but like ISiddiqui said I wouldn't bet on it if he can't get another 2-3 good .850+ OPS years. The guys who know their stuff will vote yes, but fairly or not, he'll get thrown in with the steroid era and his counting stats don't stand out yet (which is also why formulas based on historical HoF'ers are silly and overrate players from this era in terms of their chances imo) - his 6 similar recent comps are Larry Walker, Moises Alou, Juan Gonzalez, Albert Belle, Ellis Burks and Jim Edmonds - who's getting in there? Juan gone has 2 MVP's, but I feel like he's a late 90's Dale Murphy. Larry Walker has 7 GG's and an MVP, but all his good offensive numbers were put up in pre-humidor Coors. Hopefully Vlad can come back and make it a moot point - him and Nomar were so great to watch because of how phenomenal they were/are at hitting pitches out of the zone.Have you been to any bars/clubs lately? Stopped by a Gold's Gym? If I go out on a night in Boston I can pick out 5-10 meatheads who are on 'roids, and when I went to Gold's I regularly saw evidence of steroid use or even deals going down. Beyond that, I really don't see what you want from the Red Sox. They weren't conducting a criminal investigation, these guys weren't dumb enough to admit any additional criminal behavior (and they're not claiming to have seen any now) and they were fired. After that, it's up to the Boston police if they want to try and roll up the suppliers.

Keep in mind the Red Sox Front Office were openly talking about how Gagne was a known steroid user and still trading for him. I imagine that's the same feeling most front offices had/have - they're all for MLB "cleaning up the game", but they're not really interested in giving themselves a competitive disadvantage by digging up dirt on their own players. Even with that said, I'm not sure where the Red Sox "swept under the rug" the firing of 2 non-baseball operations employees. Sox fans may be obsessed, but ticket takers and security guards are still a little too far to be news.

He's never had great stuff that projected into a #1 which is why he was an overdraft but I've never heard of a pitcher preparing more for his starts and going in with a more detailed plan than Bannister. Kudos to him for making the most of his talent.