ashbury

"That's why we don't have nice things."

"Dozier led middle infielders in home runs in the period 2013 to 2015, and extended that lead to double digits over four years with his 2016 production." Falr? Why are we arguing about this? There isn't any controversy that home run power is the reason Dozier is a trade chip at all. There was a little mixup only when the word "elite" was applied, as to whether it meant the player as a whole, or just his home run power among second basemen.

Chippy play? He must mean something different than I usually associate with the term. Also, total aside: any relation to actress Tracy Scoggins?

So, a sentence construction begging to be misconstrued.

Sweet battery, if we can swing it.

In more ways than one. What are the odds Falvey and Levine haven't already had major disagreements on how to proceed on this lengthy decision?

It's what one realistically does. But I'm not fine with it.

Unless your webcam is turned on while you surf the web, you may be overestimating the algorithms the ad services use.

A male around 60? Nope.

Thanks for clarifying. My recollection is of letter grades in school, at least past the early elementary years, being based on achievement, not on exceeding expectations. Ditto, though not assigned by letter, when receiving performance reviews at work. I find it odd that when the front office was shopping any and all veteran spare parts before the trading deadline, no one apparently offered much for the A- and B+ relievers in this rundown. But if you're using a different system, that's fair, and so be it. Good for Kintzler - a C from me or a B+ from you equally means he is in line for another year's salary from someone.

I guess I still don't understand the grading system. Is it relative to expectations going into the season? Because, a dumpster-dive bullpen is going to come out well by this method, and yet be a below average group. The AL had an average ERA of 3.84 from relievers, and only Kintzler and (barely) Pressly managed to excel this mark. Since relief is characterized by Small Sample Size, you kind of expect at least one guy will have an ERA under 3 - not so with our team. I guess Kintzler counts as our SSS Wonder. I usually like to factor advanced stats into my opinions, but when I watch Kintzler and Boshers, the eye-test tells me they have a ceiling of "grind it out". You hold your breath while watching them, I don't care what their results this year look like in the box scores. The younger guys still have a higher ceiling than that, but so far haven't produced. Had this relief crew been grafted intact onto some contending team's staff, they would have been slaughtered in the postseason. Maybe O'Rourke would have come in to strike out a lefty batter, in an otherwise unmemorable loss on the way to a sweep; but you don't build your bullpen around your LOOGY anyway. I give Kintzler and Pressly a C each, and successively lower grades for everyone else. For grading purposes, I'm sorry if someone was used improperly, but a bullpen with too many pitchers who can't function unless used optimally becomes unnecessarily hard to manage.

Socialists can be bloggers. I seen it happen, on behalf of Bernie, all last year.

One of those ads looks like a Bad Idea to me. / The other is for a T-shirt company.

What about Jorge Polanco for Jose De Leon, more or less straight up?

Not at all. My reply was merely one of these: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L4cvM4zaUa4

We traded him AGAIN? Ugh. This front office is no better than the last one.

"But if I really say it, the radio won't play it." You couldn't get a lot past the CBS censors, nor radio, but put it sideways and the subversion sometimes slipped through.

Carnac: "Julio Urias, Jose De Leon, Yadier Alvarez, and Clayton Kershaw." Ed: Julio Urias, Jose De Leon, Yadier Alvarez, and Clayton Kershaw. And what could these gentlemen possibly have in common, oh Great One? Carnac: Those are the names that come to me. Unless you have some information about Walker Buehler. Ed: I have no such information, Your Magnificence. Carnac: When exactly did you ever have any information? Ed: Only in your presence, Sir. We drink at the fount of your wisdom. Carnac: Fount? May the firehose of Internet Rumormongering fill your basement and damage your sump pump. Ed: Sage prognostication, oh Seer of Seers. Now, would you be so kind as to open the envelope? Carnac: "Name four pitchers who will serve on the Dodgers' welcoming committee for free agent Brian Dozier in 2019."

You click on a news item that is too good to be true, you get Rick Astley. You click on a link purporting to rick roll you, be prepared for a news item that is too good to be true. / or porn, if it's someone else

Wonderful wife, great kids - glad to know you feel I am worthy.

Oh, you're just mad because you got rickroll'd. / Go ahead, click the link. It won't give your computer a virus.

Good. Then I can go back to laughing because you clicked on a link that suggested Urias might be negotiable. In a game thread.

The bad news is that I laughed when I read this response. The good news is that I am genuinely sorry if I caused you even a hint of trouble.

No, but the rumors on MLBTR just took an interesting turn. Urias now, maybe?