KSaw

When Arencibia, Lawrie, Bonifacio, Davis and even Bautista go up hacking at the first pitch they like, no matter the count, score or situation, it's easy to rip on the team's approach. I'm tired of seeing the team down 3 in the 8th with no one out and a runner on and seeing hitters swing at the first pitch or even worse, a 3-1 pitch.

Haha. I actually reported it 7 hours before he pitched and reported here, on FB and in Twitter and it got re-reported a fair bit. I had the advantage of knowing that they had borded a plane to San Diego from Pearson around noon. It was on a day when the Padres were on the road at Miami and with the kid pitching in Tijuana the same evening. It was simply too logical and obvious as to where they were going and why.

As I mentioned much earlier in this thread, Zimmerman would walk. Your reaction was that the world would be a horrible place if that happened, or something close to that. I see it all as sad but I don't agree with you. Zimmerman shouldn't have followed Martin but he did. That was the only mistake. Martin got freaked out by who he called a creepy assed cracker on the phone. During the 4 minute period where Zimmerman did nothing but watch the kid at a distance while waiting for police, Martin could have walked home. Instead, he chose to sneak up on Zimmerman and attack him, smash his head and break his nose. Zimmerman, on his back and bleeding, shot a kid who was on top of him. It's bad. It's awful and it all could have been avoided but Zimmerman does not belong in jail for it and the world is not an awful place because of it all. Keep in mind that in the wake of the verdict, several legal experts pointed out that had Martin survived the gunshot wound, he would have been charged with assault and his conviction would have been open and shut, in contrast to the case against Zimmerman. It's worth noting.

Why? It does look like he will walk. Legal experts and media think so (for the most part), based on the evidence and testimony. The prosecution's lead investigator, under cross, admitted that Zimmerman seemed to be telling the truth. -Zimmerman called police prior to knowing whether Martin was black, white or purple -The forensic report confirmed that Zimmerman was on his back, with Martin on top of him when the shooting occurred -The only confirmed racist comment at the scene was uttered by Martin on the phone, saying, "I'm being followed by some creepy assed cracker." -Martin's conversation backed up the notion that Martin panicked over being followed and attacked Zimmerman -The angle of the wound and Martin's falling position back up that he was reaching for Zimmerman's gun Considering all of that, the prosecution requested that the jury could also rule on manslaughter or even 3rd degree murder-- a clear act of desperation. He's probably going to walk and based on the evidence and the sad truth. And I don't see how it would be wrong. -Man trying to help calls police -Man oversteps his boundaries in trying to do the right thing -Kid gets creeped out -Kid physically attacks a man instead of verbally confronting him or running away -Kid sees gun and reaches for it -Injured and beaten man shoots kid who was on top of him and reaching for the gun It's sad but that seems to be what happened-- at least on the surface and according to the prosecution's investigator.

Agreed that most of the people he described would be black but check East LA and Latinos are on board with the look. And you do get the odd white guy doing the same. The point is that it was a crack at a certain group of people, mostly of the same race and not a blanket statement at black people. I really think though subtle, there is a distinction. If a black person says that he can't stand red necks and their NASCAR loving hillbilly attitudes are they being racist against white people? I don't think so.

I'll argue it. Commenting on a culture or attitude is not racial. Saying something about persons who embrace a street punk look and attitude and noticing that they end up in trouble with the law a fair bit is an observation and a fairly accurate one. I assure you that many black people say the exact thing about those who embrace the hood. And all who sport that look and live with that attitude are not black, most but not all. Looking and acting like a gangster from the hood and trying to impress your old ghetto friends doesn't often lead to anything good. Is it really racist to say so?

Sharpton is going to snap tomorrow when Zimmerman walks. To him it will be all about race.

I just read some of Rocker's columns. The writing isn't great but even in his White Guilt column, he did not come off as racist and there was plenty of opportunity to go that route. Most of what I just read was a mish mash of pro guns, pro veterans and lots of ra ra personal freedoms rambling. Nothing more.

It's a right wing site. Big deal. That's like saying that everyone who works for Fox News is an idiot or a bigot. Fox News can be extreme at times but the overall political stance does not label it's staff.

A thread is started to announce that Delabar got in and his name gets misspelled in the title... on a Blue Jays board?

John has grown up a lot. And his point at the time wasn't anti immigrant, it was that he felt that people who came to America should learn English and speak it and be a part of the melting pot/ American culture. He just often had a habit of opening his mouth and speaking without thinking it through or being crystal clear. Rocker is far from stupid but being a hillbilly polemicist can certainly make you come off as an idiot, if not a bigot. I know his old agent, Joe Sambito and I've spoken with John a few times. He's no dummy. He just plays one on TV.

Too soon to throw him under the bus. Pitchers adjusted and are throwing him more strikes. Lind in seeing more of them is probably focusing too much on trying to drive a strike with power. That's natural. Perhaps we've seen Lind tank so often that a little slump has people hitting the panic button?

Foot speed, first step instinct in infield and outfield, bat speed, hands and plate approach. Don't know where you got weak fielder from. He was always considered as good in all 3 outfield positions, at 3b and 2b and decent at short. The throw from the hole was the SS question mark. All that said, scouting isn't perfect. He can't hit! And even with the positives that were seen, they weren't plus or elite skills, they were viewed as decent skills. A versatile player with upside--- that he never realized. Colorado had it right in the end.

Unlikely = Definitely? AA always tips his hand right?

He started 78 games in the minors and only converted to being a reliever after being injured. Health and staying healthy would be the concern. He was always a starter. With that said, he was a wild starter who had little success and he really only has 2 good pitches.

That injury bug is really starting to catch up with Boston. Their 4th and 5th starters and the bullpen are holes and take a look and you'll see that Lester has kinda stunk over his last 10 starts. Ellsbury's wrist will be an issue, Ross is done and Salty is looking tired. They've patch worked 3b and SS too. I just can't see them hanging onto first for long. I figure that they are 3rd in a few weeks, with Toronto behind them and the Yankees last. End of July: Tampa Bay -- Baltimore 2.5 Boston 3 Toronto 6.5 Yankees 7

Leap frogging multiple teams is harder because they play each other and someone gets to win. I get it. The good news is that there is nearly half a season remaining. The goal is first but clearly they need to start passing teams before September when there's a large number of divisional games for everyone. Get to 3rd by mid August and there's a shot. I do expect them to be out of last on August 1st.

And the Rockies were ripped by the local media when they DFAd McCoy and couldn't slip him through waivers. He was claimed by multiple teams and the Jays were called after acquiring him to see of they'd trade him. Oh well, he was a flop and I guess they knew what they had in Colorado, though they misjudged the market and should have traded him instead of getting nothing.

In fairness when Toronto first acquired McCoy he was considered a steal. There were at least 10 other teams that wanted him. McCoy was thought to be a versatile, blossoming talent who would hit enough to be a very good utility player, with a ceiling that could see him jump to the next level and start in the middle infield or in CF. Obviously the quickness, bat speed, arm and high baseball IQ meant nothing because he simply can't hit big league pitching. Wilner had no way to know this. Scouts were all over McCoy calling him a late bloomer with tools.

Just want to add that 4 weeks ago everyone was hoping that this team would be only 1-3 games under .500 at the break. I think many got spoiled by the 11 game win streak. Well it looks like they'll be 2 under, with a rainout to make up with the White Sox later. With the 10-game home stand that includes 4 with Houston after the break, the boys are likely at 56-57 wins and only 5-7 games out 1st at the end of July. They are buyers!

Well he'd be a rental that really wouldn't cost much in regard to players. He did start his career with Toronto and has always said that he liked the city. If we actually wanted to keep him I doubt that getting a deal done would be all that difficult. He wants to get a ring and probably has this year and maybe 2 more to get one.

Career .347 OBP 2013 .347 OBP Career .301 Avg 2013 .289 Avg His slugging and OPS aren't far off career numbers either. Who cares if he's 36?

It would be nice to add a high OBP hitter and one who isn't just a mistake masher. Young hits good pitching and this team has a big problem in that department. They feast on mistakes and do nothing against good pitching. Sure it's an uphill climb to beat a pitcher who is on his game but it's like this team is altogether doomed when it runs into a guy who is on.

They still claim they aren't selling and they've been winning of late but I just can't see them making a run. Btw, the Giants have tanked and will be selling. Lincecum will hit the market.

Whether it happens or not, it seems obvious that Michael Young would be the target with Lawrie playing 2b. Philly is one of the teams that like Bonifacio and Utley probably gets shipped too, often rumoured to Baltimore. A meh prospect and Bonifacio probably nets Young. He has an expiring contract that Philly would like to dump if they're selling.