OQB;896363 wrote:President Mark Shapiro rumored to the Chicago Cubs GM job.....thoughts?

http://www.waitingfornextyear.com/2011/09/mlb-rumors-mark-shapiro-intrigued-by-cubs-gm-position/

Part of me says good riddance, the other part of me says he would do well there, because I am sure he wouldn't have to deal with a cheap ass owner. He did set up a nice team in 2007 and if he was able to sign everyone the Tribe would be contending for a playoff spot every year since then imo.

Great points, kind of my thoughts too.

Maybe he will give a deal on Starlin Castro. Imagine him and Druby up the middle.

Meh. 1 playoff appearance in 9 years as GM, horrible amateur drafting, and while he definitely made some good trades he got absolutely fleeced in the two biggest ones (Sabathia and Lee deals). I say good riddance.

OQB;896363 wrote:President Mark Shapiro rumored to the Chicago Cubs GM job.....thoughts?

http://www.waitingfornextyear.com/2011/09/mlb-rumors-mark-shapiro-intrigued-by-cubs-gm-position/

As a lifetime Cubs fan I would be very optimistic if this occurred but I wouldn't even blink if Ricketts went to see Moneyball and hired Brad Pitt tbh

Meh. 1 playoff appearance in 9 years as GM, horrible amateur drafting, and while he definitely made some good trades he got absolutely fleeced in the two biggest ones (Sabathia and Lee deals). I say good riddance.

I'm not sure that I'd go so far as to say "Good riddance"...I think Shapiro's record of putting together teams capable of contending given the miserly owner is pretty good. On the other hand, putting the final, finishing touches and polish to those teams eludes him. He certainly had the personnel capable of winning championships....but those teams fell on their face horribly. Alot of that is his fault...failure to bring in proper coaches at the proper time was hamstrung by the 'loyalty' to Wedge/Shelton and their inbred relationship of coming up through the organization together. As a result they had a bunch of 'yes men' teaching/preaching the same thing over and over and the fatal stagnation that followed.

This year, you have to give him and the front office credit for this team coming out of nowhere to contend....but then shake your head at what they did (or did not do) to keep it in contention.

He knows what it is like to spend money and contend year in and year out....he started working for the Indians in 1991. So, he does know how to do a good job when the money is there to spend.

The Tribe is clearly #1. Good job guys!

http://sports.yahoo.com/top/news?slug=ys-247wallstreet-pro_teams_losing_fans_091511

My dad just got back from his annual golf trip with his college friends (Bob DiBiasio). He asked Boz about the Ubaldo trade, and the stuff is interesting.

Said they viewed Alex White as a Bullpen pitcher and MAYBE a back-end 5th starter. Said the other huge thing is over the last 15 years 33 guys have had the finger surgery that White had (Adam Miller included) and only 1 of them lasted more than 3 years in the bigs after the rehab.
He said they really think Pomeranz can develop into a great pitcher, but it would take 2 years (Im think it will be sooner) so they pulled the trigger trying to get the proven guy for 2 years rather than wait 2 years for a possibility.

Now, if Ubaldo can be great it is all moot, as its a good trade for us. If White falters (he sure has sucked thus far) than that looks good as well. The wild-card is how quickly Pomeranz becomes a stud.

Thing I couldnt believe is how many guys just never recover from that damn finger injury.

Indians magic numbers:

To be eliminated in AL Central (DET clinch): 1
To be eliminated in Wild Card: 2

Sonofanump;897877 wrote:The Tribe is clearly #1. Good job guys!

http://sports.yahoo.com/top/news?slug=ys-247wallstreet-pro_teams_losing_fans_091511

smh...

Fans are tired of supporting a losing franchise, point blank.

However, how is 9+ thousand the lowest attended game in MLB history? I've seen Marlins games that have what seemed like hundreds of fans in attendance..

Also, how did we lose a "Heartbreaking World Series to the Boston Red Sox"?

lol

Laley23;898000 wrote:My dad just got back from his annual golf trip with his college friends (Bob DiBiasio). He asked Boz about the Ubaldo trade, and the stuff is interesting.

Said they viewed Alex White as a Bullpen pitcher and MAYBE a back-end 5th starter. Said the other huge thing is over the last 15 years 33 guys have had the finger surgery that White had (Adam Miller included) and only 1 of them lasted more than 3 years in the bigs after the rehab.
He said they really think Pomeranz can develop into a great pitcher, but it would take 2 years (Im think it will be sooner) so they pulled the trigger trying to get the proven guy for 2 years rather than wait 2 years for a possibility.

Now, if Ubaldo can be great it is all moot, as its a good trade for us. If White falters (he sure has sucked thus far) than that looks good as well. The wild-card is how quickly Pomeranz becomes a stud.

Thing I couldnt believe is how many guys just never recover from that damn finger injury.

It was well documented on how much I liked Alex White on here. I followed the guy since he played @ UNC.

However, I was perfectly fine with the trade and the finger issue was exactly the reason. He's sucked since his return as well, and his velocity has supposedly dipped too.

Ubaldo seems to be getting his velocity back. His 85th pitch the other night was a 98 MPH fastball that made Konerko look silly. People forget that Ubaldo was dealing with a hand injury all year as well, though no where near as serious as Alex White's.

I also see the point on Pomeranz taking 2 years to full develop, though I agree with you, it'll probably be sooner that we find out who he truly is. However, I'm hoping that this points to the Tribe FO actually spending money and developing this 2 to 3 year window to make a serious run at it.

ts1227;898092 wrote:Indians magic numbers:

To be eliminated in AL Central (DET clinch): 1
To be eliminated in Wild Card: 2

Regardless of how much they are "going out like a lamb" this season, for the most part, has been damn fun to watch and I thank them for that. Plenty of last at bat "magic' that we haven't seen here in awhile.

It was nice to see a Tribe team relevant into August. Hopefully they don't shit their pants next season and come back down to their expectation level.

BR1986FB;898223 wrote:Regardless of how much they are "going out like a lamb" this season, for the most part, has been damn fun to watch and I thank them for that. Plenty of last at bat "magic' that we haven't seen here in awhile.

It was nice to see a Tribe team relevant into August. Hopefully they don't shit their pants next season and come back down to their expectation level.

That's my biggest concern. Small market teams tend to do this. See: 2008 Indians, and 2011 Reds.

like_that;898234 wrote:That's my biggest concern. Small market teams tend to do this. See: 2008 Indians, and 2011 Reds.

There are already signs that it could happen. Carrasco won't be back and there key two starters will likely be Masterson & Jimenez. Will Masterson duplicate the kind of stuff he threw this year but get some run support?

I'm wiping the slate clean with Ubaldo. Fresh season, hopefully he starts out like gangbusters.

After those two I really don't know WHAT to think of this rotation.

BR1986FB;898238 wrote:There are already signs that it could happen. Carrasco won't be back and there key two starters will likely be Masterson & Jimenez. Will Masterson duplicate the kind of stuff he threw this year but get some run support?

I'm wiping the slate clean with Ubaldo. Fresh season, hopefully he starts out like gangbusters.

After those two I really don't know WHAT to think of this rotation.

Same. It's hard to imagine that some of the good performers for the year (ACab, Pronk at the beggining, Brantley kinda, Tomlin, etc) will repeat what they did next year, but also on the other side of the spectrum it is hard to believe that Choo and Santana will be as worthless as they were this year (along with Ubaldo). If those 2 played the way they are expected to play, the Tribe would have buried the tigers early before the tigers 12 game winning streak.

I have given up all hope on Strikemore. One of the biggest busts in all of the MLB in recent history imo.

Sizemore hasn't been the same player since his injuries and of course shelton. He had superstar written all over him too. It's a damn shame.

May have been mentioned but 92.3 is having a "Jim Thome Night" next Friday 9/23 to commemorate his 600+ HR's. They are giving away 9230 free tickets to the game. Guess it's also Dollar Dog Night and there will be a fireworks display with a video tribute to Thome showing his greatest Tribe moments. Not watch the douchebags bench him in favor of China Doll Hafner. :mad:

Crimson streak;898318 wrote:Sizemore hasn't been the same player since his injuries and of course shelton. He had superstar written all over him too. It's a damn shame.

HA! I was about ready to change that "has superstar" to "had" but you beat me to it.

Haha damn auto correct on my phone pisses me off sometimes

BR1986FB;898319 wrote:May have been mentioned but 92.3 is having a "Jim Thome Night" next Friday 9/23 to commemorate his 600+ HR's. They are giving away 9230 free tickets to the game. Guess it's also Dollar Dog Night and there will be a fireworks display with a video tribute to Thome showing his greatest Tribe moments. Not watch the douchebags bench him in favor of China Doll Hafner. :mad:

Yep. Walked up to their tent before the browns game and snagged 4 tickets. Should be a fun night.

Too bad the "What If.." promo came down to free tickets to the Thome honor.

Sonofanump;897877 wrote:The Tribe is clearly #1. Good job guys!

http://sports.yahoo.com/top/news?slug=ys-247wallstreet-pro_teams_losing_fans_091511

Sorry man. I just noticed this and started a whole separate thread on it. My bad...

Not sure if this was mentioned on a game thread but remember that grand slam HR Josh Hamiliton hit the other night? Well...listening to 92.3 this morning they said some "mom & pop" home improvement store in the Arlington area was having a "if Josh Hamilton hits a grand slam in the month of September your carpet and countertop purchase is free" promotion. Apparently they are paying out the wazoo...

Laley23;898000 wrote:Said they viewed Alex White as a Bullpen pitcher and MAYBE a back-end 5th starter

Was that a post-injury evaluation? I have a hard time believing that was the way they viewed a guy who they had just drafted in the 1st round under 2 years ago before he got hurt.