Keeping up with chickenboy's Mentor Al

quote:

Originally posted by Al:
Take out a pair of eight-run outings in wins at woeful Houston last weekend, and Milwaukee had scored just 2.7 runs per game.--JS

Take out all the games they've scored runs, the Crew has been shut out in every game they've played. Talk about junk stats.

quote:

Originally posted by Al:
Craig Counsell stats

2008--.355/.302
2009--.357/.408
2010--.322/.319
2011--.367/.370

He's got limited pop, but he gets on base at a nice clip, especially for a good defensive infielder.

Now, as you may have caught on, those are not Craig's 2011 numbers...well, they are, but minus his infamous 0-45 streak. Such silly things don't mean much to me, as they have more to do with bad luck than skill. As I pointed out, Brandon Boggs went 0-30some in AAA a while back. He's not "done" either, it's just a bad run.

quote:

Originally posted by Al:
Jon Heyman reports that Counsell's agent is saying Craig plans to play next season.

Whether or not the Brewers have a spot for him depends on who else they bring back, and who the SS is. As I pointed out a few months ago, his numbers were nearly identical to his past few seasons, if you overlook his 0-whatever streak, when he just kept hitting the ball right at guys.

If the Crew brings in an everyday SS, especially a RH hitter, Counsell might well be invited back. Much of it might depend on whether the Crew employs a platoon at 1B and/or 3B, and if Hairston returns/in what role Hairston returns.

Take a gander around the majors, you'll see some extremely weak middle infield reserves. Craig gets on base and defends very well at three positions. He'll have no trouble finding a job,to say the least.

Many don't get this of course, which makes it easier for me to figure out who to ignore. When you can't even see a quality utility infielder when he's played on your team for several years, you're as casual as they come.

quote:

Originally posted by al:
Wednesday, November 09, 2011

Maybe it's the contrarian in me, but Paterno is not the focus of any criminal investigation. He did not "witness" anything, and if he would have reported what he knew to police, it's nothing but hearsay, inadmissible.

And, to be blunt, while the crime described is horrible, no one has been convicted, and the alleged event happened more than a dozen years ago.

Also, if this event would have happened to me when I was running a retail store, I would have been told to discuss it with my boss, who would have directed me to someone in legal at corporate. I would not have called the police either, unless I was instructed to. Don't forget, in my example, I didn't see anything...and neither did Joe.

quote:

Originally posted by al:

11/10/2011 09:08:00 PM

Al,

Thank you so much for your thoughts, which I agree with 98% of the time. By the way, the grad assistant who actually "saw" the alleged incident is now an assistant coach, and will coach Saturday. I'm not sure why Paterno was fired, and in a year, I'm sure many others will feel the same way. Right now, everyone acts like time is of the essence, when in reality, this happened a dozen years ago.

They'll be lucky to get a single conviction, and as you pointed out, in a corporate setting, you can get fired for not going through proper channels. I know if I witnessed such an event, I would be told to call security, and they would fill out a report, and decide whether or not it was an "internal" or "external" matter. That's the way it is at my job, and many, many others.

Thanks again.

Harvey

quote:

Originally posted by al:

Thursday, November 10, 2011

SI writer Posnanski spoke to a Penn State class today and is simply tearing the old media apart. His line about "I'm more against child molestation than you," really, really rings true. Of course, Paterno neither saw, not molested anyone, which is why I'm not really certain what the supposed "rush" was either.

quote:

Originally posted by al:
Wednesday, November 09, 2011

He did not "witness" anything, and if he would have reported what he knew to police, it's nothing but hearsay, inadmissible.

quote:

Originally posted by chickenboy:
Maybe you should man up and put your thoughts out there instead of the constant stream of condescension you spew on here. Maybe it could be something about becoming an expert on suicide from google searches or something along those lines.

Now be a pussy and put up the little girl.

quote:

Originally posted by El-Ka-Bong:
If someone were to say something completely moronic about suicide, I'd respond. When that persons perspective is idiotic, it is probably better to provide a responsible response rather than continue to perpetuate stupid. Sorry that saddens you.

quote:

Originally posted by Al:
I think we'll have us a Ramblings chat on Friday. Haven't done one of them for a while. We'll aim for 3PM, just to destroy workplace productivity at the end of the week.

Put it on your calendars and iphones.

quote:

(11/16/2011 05:32:00 PM) - Al

Bottom lip unbearably itchy, but it doesn't help when I rub it.

Also wondering if I should go with tomato soup or mashed potatoes for supper.

quote:

(11/16/2011 04:45:00 PM) - Al

Just when you think Fangraphs has hit the bottom of the barrel, they manage to dig a little more out.

The irony here is, this guy think almost every reserve is terrible, and can be easily replaced by...well, some magical inexpensive player that falls from the sky when a team needs a backup to fill in. Of course, in reality, no such guys exist, which is why Kotsay (and many other veteran OF's) can easily find a job, and why they will always continue to find a job.

Kotsay had a decent '11, filling in as needed in the OF (he can play 1B too, but with Prince, barely donned a 1B's glove). His skills do not seem to be falling off a cliff, and I have to assume he'll do a decent job in a similar role for SD. Pretending he's a terrible defender is incorrect, and makes one wonder about other exaggerations. Kotsay is not going to be used as an everyday OF, and if he is, SD is already in deep trouble. That said, considering the Cards went with Holliday and Berkman as their corner OF's makes any such worries about LF/RF defense imaginary anyway.

quote:

(11/11/2011 07:01:00 AM) - Al

In the words of the great philosopher, Toby Keith, never apologize for being patriotic.

quote:

Originally posted by PackerJoe:
Trying to figure out the purpose of this thread and the only thing I can come up with is that it's an attempt to try and made this board as idiotic as the Packer board.

quote:

Originally posted by El-Ka-Bong:
I'm curious, was al's clear mission to be "contrarian" an inspiration for your ( ) posting style on X4 or was that evolution natural?

quote:

(11/08/2011 02:30:00 PM) - Al

Hearing Jim Breen doesn't think the Crew will end up with Jose Reyes...which makes me think he'll end up in MIL even more.

Some people are just wrong far more often than they're right.

quote:

(11/08/2011 02:52:00 PM) - Al

Source: 2B Scooter Gennett is largely considered "untouchable" within the #Brewers organization.--Jim Breen

Breen is perhaps the most well known of all Brewers' bloggers because he had an "inside source" in the organization and was able to break the Greinke trade the night before it took place. I've been high on Scooter since he was drafted, and at this second, he looks to be 1.5-2 years away from manning 2B in Miller Park 81 times a year.

I also had Scooter #2 in the prospect rankings before last season, only behind Mat Gamel, who shouldn't have counted, but I make my own rules. Many others proudly went with...Mark Rogers.

quote:

Originally posted by El-Ka-Bong:
thanks for your contributions Joe and diggr, and I agree with your points about evaluating our sources of information. I noticed that al likes to take snippits from other online opinions and point out how stupid they are, so in fairness we can do the same over here. Unlike al though, we'll link the source material so you can see it for yourself, and also unlike al, people can comment on the material. It really is a more democratic process.