Vic Sage

get the coffee... from Brazil.

hey, waitaminnit... that's Jeter money!

I expect his next contract negotiation (when he's 40 or 41) will be the one that is problematic to both sides. By then his offense and defense will have worn down to the point that as much as he might be an organizational icon, running him out there every day will harm both the player's legacy and the everyday product. newsflash: he's already there.

it is easy to forget what a pleasure it is to converse with someone who speaks in whole, grammatical sentences. s'long Omah, and don't let the door hitya where the good lord splitya.... knowhatimean?

you mean all it took was a pitching coach tell him to throw strikes? what were they telling him to throw in A ball? Moon pies?

basically, he's complaining because he has too much spam in his e-box. just shut up, you douche. I've got to much spam, too. so what? It's like that scene in 1776: "all because of your petty complaints, your taxes are too high... well, sir, so are mine!"

smg58 wrote: It came out the summer I turned 7, no other movie has ever left as big of an impression on me, and I can't imagine one ever will. The adult me would concede that Empire was the superior movie (and lament the degree to which the franchise tanked from there). But the original Star Wars still holds up really well, and will always hold that special place. even though i was 16 that summer, i feel the exact same way.

for more in-depth analysis of the SF films of the 70s, i recommend this thread: viewtopic.php?f=11&t=8860

if that minimum bid was higher than the cost of a baseball, i'd say you got rooked.

TheOldMole wrote: The Tea Party candidate would probably be Bobby. i'm thinking the Tea Party Candidate would be somebody like John Rocker.

ah. Well then, as Emily Litella used to say... "never mind."

seawolf17 wrote: I'll be in Stamford on October 28; I'll go to Bobby's for lunch and see if I can get a secret message to him. Tell him that "the vessel with the pestle has the pellet with the poison... the flagon with the dragon has the brew that is true." He'll know what it means.

isn't there some affirmative action requirement that they interview a minority candidate? Maybe Alderson's status as a "senior citizen" fulfills the requirement...

here's the thread where we discuss the relative qualities of EMPIRE & STAR WARS viewtopic.php?f=11&t=1972 My point was: the reason that critical opinion has evolved favoring EMPIRE over STAR WARS is that it is... (drum roll, please) ... (wait for it) ...a better movie. Yes, SW had the advantage of being new, for its time. It also had more stilted acting and dialogue, slow expositional sequences, and less impressive effects. EMPIRE uses a non-stop narrative structure, with 2 parallel story lines... one a long chase for the supporting characters (an outward journey, if you will), the other a journey INWARD for the hero... with a convergence at the climax. By moving more quickly, the film has less time to dwell on the wooden characterizations, and more action means less bad dialogue. The film also has a darker edge than the "gee whiz" nature of the 1st. EMPIRE's overriding problem is the one inherent to the middle chapter of any trilogy... it ends before achieving a satisfying climax (which has to wait till the final chapter). Since SW had to be self-contained (with no guarantee there'd ever be sequels), its heroic conclusion gives it a better payoff. EMPIRE holds up better, thus allowing critics time to get past the "fallacy of the new" which overvalues SW, and appreciate the superior story-telling going on in the sequel. Don't get me wrong... i loved SW. Saw it opening weekend at the Loew's Astor Plaza on 44th St in Times Square. When that massive ship came into view overhead, after the opening "Chapter IV" crawl, the place went nuts. and nothing is ever like that twice. But getting past the thrill of nostalgia and taking a hard look at the qualities of the 2 films side-by-side, it seems like no contest to me. and later: As a screenwriter, Lucas is an excellent director. And as a director, he's a terrific technician. He just sucks with words and actors.

good hitters hit good. the longer Tex played, the more likely he was to have an impact for the yanks. s'long tex, and thanks for all the fish.

i wasn't commenting on Wilson in particular. And, of course, you could use whatever cutoff for WHIP that one can make a logical argument for. But what i think is interesting is the general lack of consistency you'll find among even the "best" closers, in terms of their annual WHIP, even if they're consistently getting 25+ saves a year. The point is that too many fans, managers and general managers overvalue the "closer", because its as much a function of opportunity and luck as it is any particular moral virtue. With the rare exception of Mr. Rivera in the current era, even the best ones can cause stress, because they are most likely pitching the last inning of a close game. which is why tying up big $$ in guys who pitch 50 innings a year is stupid... stupid as a bunt.

i think it's interesting to look at closers in terms of their WHIP, to derive some sort of "alka seltzer" quotient. Going back the last 3 seasons, only 1 pitcher in baseball has gotten over 30 saves per season, with a WHIP of 1.00 of less each of those years (I bet you can guess who!). In addition to the inimitable Mr. Rivera, Joe Nathan has done it 2 of the last 3 seasons (he was on the DL this year -- go Seawolves!). Even if you lower the floor to 25 saves a season, you only add Billy Wagner and the unsung Andrew Bailey, who've both done it 2 of the last 3 seasons. So, yes, its a ridiculously small percentage of closers who can consistently be counted on to give you a clean 9th inning. And holding all relievers up to that standard will inevitably cause agita, to managers and fans alike. And far worse than agita, such unrealistic expectations by management can lead (as Edgy has already noted) to disastrous personnel decisions.

Cubs name Quade manager (AP) The Chicago Cubs picked Mike Quade as their new manager Tuesday, choosing to go with the guy who ran the team well for the last six weeks of last season rather than a higher-profile name. The 53-year-old Quade, the team's third base coach the past four years, was given a two-year contract and there's a club option for 2013.

... ughhhh ... `scuse me. i just threw up in my mouth.

they're in the air and everywhere. just like the BUGALOOS... but not as cute.

i just got that... HEH HEH HEH. poopie joke. good one.

i would love to see them do the "Mr. Fixit"-era Hulk, written by Peter David in the 80s. He's stuck in his HULK form as a grey, tough-talking Vegas strongarm gangster type... not as strong as his green version, but smart and mean. At least it would give the story a new spin than the standard "Jekyl-Hyde" parable, making it more of a noir.

dgwphotography wrote: I have to go with edgy here - I thought the Hulk show was full of awesome. What didn't you like about it, BG? other than the fact that it sucked BHMC? Mr. Grimm, stick to your guns. The barbarians are at the gates.

did you see it in 3D? i did, at a rep house in NYC, like 20 years ago. It gave me a headache.

i've never wanted to see the Yankmee logo so much!