TooLiveBrew

but - big but (like Mo'Nique big) - isn't it possible that he, being Jewish, simply thought it was clever/funny (the avatar)? The rest of his antics, I mean, it goes without saying that he's dun4. But if you think about the use of the Cowboys 5-pointed star logo, isn't there a little bit of creativity involved? Just curious - maybe that makes me racist. I definitely remember that avatar, and his sort of aggressive style at times. Too bad he just couldn't handle the way of BF.net life - oh well, there's always the flame-tastic boards for those too elite and intelligent for us in-bred *******. EDIT: Probably because its "reek", not "reak". So glad someone else caught this - nice work sbryl. Gotta love irony, though!

nah, didn't get that (anti-semitic) vibe. It's just a whiny piece that's anti-reality. Heck, this goof lists Tulowitzki's turning of an unassisted triple-play (a play almost completely dependent upon luck) as a gigantic reason why he should be ROY. The only leg on which his argument can stand is the defense, which doesn't nearly compensate for Braun's torrid offensive output. Just another "writer" (honestly, this thing is written at a middle-school level) who can't see beyond runs & rbi. And one that's totally jealous that his new favorite player is overmatched by a much, much better hitter.

I know what you mean about being skeptical of the "fashion statement" Brewers gear. It's impossible to tell - plus, since people like us have been avid supporters of the team through both thick and thin, it's easy to categorize nearly every new Brewer hat as "fairweather." I've seen waaaaaay more Brewer hats than I'd ever expected since moving to Portland, and I have the same hang-up as you do idn doubting their 'credibility.' I saw a blue-with gold front-ball & glove logo cap today at the farmer's market, but I didn't say anything due to said concern. To be fair, the first Brewer hat I ever saw here, I yelled across the quad (also coincidentally at the farmer's market - held on Portland State's campus), "GO BREWERS!", and actually the guy grinned big and yelled back. So who knows - the one drawback of how freakin' awesome the 'B & G' logo is! (And I wore a UW basketball shirt that day, and had a stranger approach me just to say, "Are you a Badger? Go Badgers!") And hawing - I have the same/similar fears with the prevalence of the B&G logo around campus in Madison. I'll tell you what - it wasn't nearly as prevalent a couple years ago, when the B&G was first readily & widely available again, so I think a lot (most? http://static.yuku.com//domainskins/bypass/img/smileys/frown.gif) of it is bandwagoneers. Even with a spike recently, I'm sorry to say Red Sox caps still probably give Crew hats/gear a run for the money. As a side rant, what the heck makes the BoSux the 'acceptable-we-won't-whine-about-big-market-capacity' team? This enrages me, and I couldn't even begin to count the number of dumb arguments I got into while in Madison & wearing my Yankee cap.

fondybrewerfan, did you really call out J.J.'s defense? Holy moly.

fondybrewerfan, did you really call out J.J.'s defense? Holy moly.

did anyone suggest we get rid of Weeks? Not trying to be a jerk, I just don't recall hearing that.

all the way across the board = 4 well-known statistical categories? his BB/K rate is similar to 2006 - which was a career year in nearly every category - at 39% ('06) to 34% ('07); his 2B total (35) is on pace to pass his 39 from '06 - even with significant time missed due to injury; his OBP-BA differential is, I think, in line with career norms (again, '07 may prove to be an outlier for Hall); his ISP is at .180 (not great, but not cause for alarm) I'm not attempting to argue that Hall hasn't dropped off this year, merely that it hasn't been in much other than HRs. Sure, his approach at the plate has been terrible at times this year, but I just don't think there's cause for concern going forward.

bullox, that's made especially funny by the 'Ari Gold convincing you of something' avatar!

Why a dig at Hall? I don't mind players being criticized, but please tell us why. Just a lower HR total? Or his defensive struggles in playing CF (by far the toughest OF spot) for the first time in his career? I know he hasn't put up the monster year we'd all hoped for from him, but a large part of why his HR totals are down is just literally due to his missing time because of injury. He's still got some impressive 'secondary' stats, and I think it'd be a stretch (barring more injury woes) to think that Hall won't eclipse 20-25 HR in 2008, and probably each season for the remainder of his contract. That's pretty good for the position of CF, and in that vein, I think it's also reasonable to expect that his routes & fielding will only be improved next year, as well. I'm not saying he hasn't been struggling this year, but -like Weeks- his numbers when struggling are still not that bad. If Hall had dipped across the board, I'd be very worried about his future. Good thing for us that he hasn't.

rluz, thanks for this and all the great stat work you do for bf.net

Uh, you are putting words in my mouth. I said 80% of BF.net was down on him this year. I never said he would never play well again. Sheesh. Please don't do that. Was Molitor's primary position 2B??? If I remember correctly Jim Gantner played most of his time at 2B during Molitor's years. Hmmmm. Ok, I apologize. Didn't mean to do that. To claim that 80% of BF.net was down on Weeks is also an overstatement. And to be fair, why shouldn't they have been? He was playing incredibly poorly, and I'm sure he'd be the first to admit that. You are making broad-sweeping claims about how we haven't supported Weeks, when I personally was one that stuck up for him the entirety of his struggles. You make a broad-sweeping claim that he will be the greatest (or has the chance to) 2B ever, and then when I point out a player with 200 games played at 2B for our franchise, he's dismissed because he didn't play there enough. If I remember correctly, Molly was moved since Gumby was a better defensive 2B. Don't you agree that it's fair to assume that if a significantly more consistent fielder becomes available to play 2B while Rickie is here, he might get shifted to LF? Would his games played at 2B then not count?

so, what do you think of Molitor?

I just think to say something like "80% of BF.net felt Rickie Weeks could never again play well" is wildly out of line. Just mo

'92Casey - was that Terry Francona's father? He kinda looks like Terry...

It's a composite -- good enough to make the dance, and hot enough to bring it all home.

We can only hope that Vargas's "injury" lasts the rest of the year. Goog grief it's been nice to not have him come around every 5th day.

fwiw, Bill Hall's 2B/HR ratio as of today (after the game), is 2.69. Also, his ISP this year is .180 - not bad, especially considering that by any objective account, he's struggled in 2007. Looking up for 2008, I'd have to speculate. Am I wrong?

http://www.nasm.si.edu/collections/imagery/apollo/PATCHES/Apollo9patch.jpg and just because under our premise, I think this is funny... http://www.insurance-finance.com/gif/nine.jpg

C'mon Buccos! C'mon D-Backs!

BOOGA BOOGA GOOGA MOOGA!

http://www.spaceflightnowstore.com/ww/catalog/images/imagecache/apollo10.jpg

You guys were so down on Rickie Weeks this year, but we all knew he'd snap out of it. Who the heck is "you guys," and who the heck is "we all?" Honestly, are you just trying to pick an argument? I don't get the comment. I have supported Weeks, although it's been in the 'I hope he can up his BA to roughly .245' vein. I am loyal to Rickie, but he's done nothing to suggest that he's the be-all and end-all to our woes this year. I honestly don't mean any offense here; I'm just very confused as to what you mean.

agreed, sbryl. I am fully ready to learn that > 90% of MLB has been or currently is using HGH/other PEDs.

"This is one of those games where the Cubs are only leading one to nothing, but it feels like they're leading six to nothing...They've hit the ball hard all game..." -- Len Kasper No, trust me, "Len", I've been watching this game, and it "feels" exactly like it's 1-0. Slow, uneventful, and both teams failing to capitalize on scoring chances.

well done, mac.