The following comment by Smokestack Lightning was such a good one that it deserves to be highlighted on the front page. Quoting dylanj: Friedman is my first choice simply because I think what he is doing is harder than what Theo did. Go write him a very very large check. I have mad respect for Friedman too but to disregard …
Shameless self-promotion
Hi guys, My friend Anno Catuli and I set up a new blog site and added you to the blog roll. Please check it out and let us know what you think. Thanks for letting me hang around all this time, by the way. Linky —> World Series Dreaming
Cubs ask Red Sox for permission to talk to Theo
I don’t have anything to add, but figured since we knew this was coming it may as well be a post of its own. Globe colleague Dan Shaughnessy has learned from a team source that the Chicago Cubs have asked the Red Sox for permission to speak with Theo Epstein regarding a position in their organization. According to Shaughnessy, there …
Breaking Bad: End Times
Walt, left just over the edge of sanity from the events of last week, is left with too little money, too little leverage and too many people to protect.
Series Preview: St. Louis Cardinals (90-72) vs Philadelphia Phillies (102-60)
St. Louis squeaked its way into the playoffs thanks to a late-season collapse by the Braves. Again, I find it crazy that there are 2 NL Central teams in the playoffs. Team Overviews Team stats, with NL rank in parentheses Cardinals Phillies wOBA .332 (1st) .316 (6th) UBR 4.0 (5th) -5.7 (14th) UZR -29.8 (15th) -10 (9th) DRS -13 (11th) …
A thought or two about Carlos Marmol
I didn’t make it a secret that I thought the Cubs 3-year extension given to Carlos Marmol last offseason wasn’t a wise decision. Despite that, I made it clear that Marmol was not being paid like an elite reliever and was worth the contract at the time it was signed. This was true even if you consider the discount that …
Series Preview: Arizona Diamondbacks (94-68) vs Milwaukee Brewers (96-66)
Milwaukee is already up 1-0 in this series but these things take too damn long for me to write to have this up before that happened (laughing). It’s hard to believe that there are two teams from the NL Central in the playoffs this year. Team overviews Team stats, with NL rank in parentheses DBacks Brewers wOBA .321 (4th) .327 …
Series Preview: Detroit Tigers (95-67) vs New York Yankees (97-65)
This series already began in disappointment, as the marquee matchup between extremely likely Cy Young winner Justing Verlander and C.C. Sabathia was suspended due to rain in the second inning. The game will resume tonight with different starters and the score 1-1. I said last night that it was good for the Yankees given how great Verlander is, but C.C. …
Terry Francona to leave Boston?
Terry Francona may be out as manager of the Red Sox as early as today so reports a lot of people with sources. I for one would be very happy if the Cubs targeted him as their manager. He’s one of the best in the game. He might be the best. Terry Francona may depart as manager of the Boston …
Series Preview: Tampa Bay Rays (91-71) at Texas Rangers (96-66)
I’m going to write my usual previews for each of the playoff series. I’ll say flat out that I don’t follow the AL at all, so any of you Rays fans who aren’t still in a daze should feel free to chime in with comments/inevitable corrections to anything I say here. Before we get to the Rays, let’s stop and …