tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-358616402024-02-20T14:13:12.297-06:00Baseball and other thingsI'm an unhealthy Royals fan, and I have a blog.Mindahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12296930777620801951noreply@blogger.comBlogger297125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35861640.post-32341786684774183712009-01-08T00:58:00.004-06:002009-01-08T01:03:49.235-06:00ANNOUNCEMENT: I have moved!The other day I hinted at some possible news, and well...here it is.<br /><br />I have moved to MVN (Most Valuable Network) to be one of the featured Royals bloggers alongside Clark and Craig at <a href="http://royalsauthority.com/">Royals Authority</a>.<br /><br />I've shed my awkward name - the new site is called <span style="font-weight:bold;">Royal Blues</span>, and it can be found <a href="http://mvn.com/royalblues/"><span style="font-weight:bold;">HERE</span></a>. Please update your bookmarks/RSS feeds accordingly. <br /><br />This site's archives were also moved, but I will keep them here as well, for posterity and for the sake of the good people who have linked here in the past.Mindahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12296930777620801951noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35861640.post-5709619092958098522009-01-06T20:42:00.004-06:002009-01-06T21:20:33.782-06:00A few links and a plea to Dick KaegelI'm feeling linky today, so let's share some cool stuff from around the sports Interwebz. <br />1. Fascinating 2-part series from Roto Authority. You know how, every spring, MLB players swear they've lost weight, gained muscle, or improved their body through some radical new workout system? These articles put those claims to the test.<br /><a href="http://www.rotoauthority.com/2009/01/follow-up-sprin.html">Part I</a> - Players who claim to have lost weight, gained muscle, or lost body fat percentage. <br /><a href="http://www.rotoauthority.com/2009/01/follow-up-spr-1.html">Part II</a>: Vision improvement, new exercise routine, finally healthy, working on a new pitch, expected to run more<br /><br />2. A horribly fascinating <a href="http://www.faniq.com/blog/Athletes-With-Illegitimate-Kids-The-Comprehensive-List-Blog-17243">list of pro athletes</a> who have illegitimate kids. Yikes.<br /><br />3. Jonah Keri brings us this <a href="http://jonahkeri.com/2009/01/06/pat-burrells-condo/">hilarious video of Pat Burrell</a> showing off his condo. The video's old, apparently, but it's a hoot.<br /><br />4. Royals Review's own devil_fingers makes his debut at Driveline Mechanics by <a href="http://www.drivelinemechanics.com/2009/1/6/709812/2008-gold-gloves-designate">awarding Gold Gloves...to designated hitters</a>. He works in a Justin Huber reference, so you know it's good.<br /><br />5. This wouldn't be a true Baseball and Other Things link post without a link to some of my own work offsite, so here are <a href="http://twoliablog.com/getting-to-first-base/2009/01/06/quicklist-7-little-things-i-miss-about-baseball-season/">7 little things I miss about baseball season</a>. <br /><br />6. Dick Kaegel is again <a href="http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20090103&content_id=3731989&vkey=news_kc&fext=.jsp&c_id=kc&partnerId=rss_kc">unrealistically optimistic</a> at Royals.com. The money quote is the very last paragraph, which I will post here in case you don't want to read the whole article:<br /> <blockquote>Everyone seems ready to surge into '09 after a super September lifted the Royals into fourth place, ending a four-year stay in the American League Central cellar. If there's to be a new version of the 2008 Tampa Bay Rays, fans in Kansas City have a candidate in mind. </blockquote><br /><br />Sigh. Oh, Dick Kaegel. You honestly think that the '09 Royals and the '08 Rays are similar things? That's...cute, but horribly misguided. I'm amazed there are still so many baseball journalists - people whose <span style="font-style:italic;">job</span> it is to <span style="font-style:italic;">know about baseball</span> - who still refer to the Tampa Bay '08 season as "a total surprise" and things like that. <br /><br />I'm no professional sportswriter, but I wasn't totally shocked by the Rays. You know why? I spent 20 bucks on a Baseball Prospectus book, and then read it. It's not that hard to be somewhat educated, and if mainstream writers continue to insist on staying in dark caves where only grit and RBIs matter, they are cheating their readers. It's not noble to hang on to antiquated sports ideals at the expense of actual expertise. Not when your <span style="font-style:italic;">entire job</span> is to inform fans about a sport. <br /><br />The Royals can not, and will not, have the kind of season that the Rays just did. The Rays spent years acquiring talent and building up a young core, and made a small number of moves last offseason that, in the words of the '08 Baseball Prospectus book, "[made] the Rays more of a real baseball team rather than a random assemblage of talented youngsters."<br /><br />The Royals do not have an assemblage, random or not, of <span style="font-style:italic;">talented </span>youngsters. They have a few elite pitchers, and a few sundry parts on offense who are either "solid," "unproven," or "horrible." Kansas City can't just make one trade, like the Delmon Young-for-Matt Garza deal, that will allow everything to fall into place for a playoff run. The Mike Jacobs acquisition isn't going to boost this team from the depths of hell to a 97-win season. Ditto for Coco Crisp. And signing Kyle Farnsworth for such a huge salary might actually damn us all to more hellfire. <br /><br />So no, Dick Kaegel, don't try to say that the Royals are a candidate to do what the Rays did last year. That's an uninformed, hacky, stupidly optimistic proposition that does no good for anyone. False hope isn't enough to float a fan base that's been this far from goodness for this long. Please...just stop. You're hurting me.<br /><br />...Wow, that got a lot more bitter than I thought it would. One more link for you:<br />7. Keith has supplied us with the latest profile of a Royals prospect: 2008 third round draftee <a href="http://royaltower.blogspot.com/2009/01/trt-prospect-17-tyler-sample.html">Tyler Sample</a>. <br /><br />K, I think that's all. Happy Tuesday!Mindahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12296930777620801951noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35861640.post-80161229057660040422009-01-05T14:48:00.003-06:002009-01-05T14:51:20.894-06:00Why? (and some possible news...)Why didn't I see <a href="http://hirejimessian.com/2008/12/07/winter-meetings-preview/">this utterly brilliant video</a> BEFORE the Winter Meetings? <br /><p><object width="402" height="377"><param name="movie" value="http://www.overstream.net/swf/player/oplx?oid=tsaltrlqndeu&noplay=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><embed src="http://www.overstream.net/swf/player/oplx?oid=tsaltrlqndeu&noplay=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="402" height="377" allowFullScreen="true"></embed></object></p><br /><p><script type="text/javascript">SHARETHIS.addEntry({ title: "Winter Meetings Preview", url: "http://hirejimessian.com/2008/12/07/winter-meetings-preview/" });</script></p><br />Oh, also...I might have some big news coming. Maybe. More details later.Mindahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12296930777620801951noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35861640.post-69732856358592506192009-01-04T00:26:00.003-06:002009-01-04T00:51:35.507-06:00Bottom 10: The Royals and OBPLeaderboards are fun...I could look at Top 10s all day. (Related side note: <a href="http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_gw_1_15?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=top+10+of+everything&x=0&y=0&sprefix=top+10+of+every">Top 10 of Everything</a> is a book I'd buy every year if I could afford it. It's fascinating stuff, and always random, which suits me well.)<br /><br />But I am a Royals fan, and Royals fans have no business hanging around Top 10s. Royals fans are better suited to Bottom 10s, because our GM insists on signing players who rack up all the wrong numbers. <br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">The Bottom 10 in OBP</span> among all regular MLB nonpitchers (2008 salary)<br /><br />#10: <span style="font-weight:bold;">Jose Guillen</span> - .300 ($12 million)<br />#9: Corey Hart - .300 ($0.4 million)<br />#8: Yuniesky Betancourt - .300 ($1.6 million)<br />#7: Kevin Kouzmanoff - .299 ($0.4 million)<br />#6: <span style="font-weight:bold;">Mike Jacobs</span> - .299 ($0.4 million)<br />#5: Freddy Sanchez - .298 ($4.2 million)<br />#4: Carlos Gomez - .296 ($0.4 million)<br />#3: Bobby Crosby - .296 ($3.6 million)<br />#2: Jeff Francoeur - .294 ($0.5 million)<br />#1: Michael Bourn - .288 ($0.5 million)<br /><br />Drink up, Royals fans. We own two of the 10 worst on-base players in all of the Majors, and Moore has been publicly salivating over another of them (Francouer) since he became our GM. <br /><br />Nothing more to add; just know that I am heaving a deep sigh as I type this. 2009 is not going to be very fun.Mindahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12296930777620801951noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35861640.post-54135253111152190692009-01-02T23:37:00.001-06:002009-01-02T23:39:19.860-06:007 Random Athletes who should give their paychecks back<a href="http://www.fannation.com/si_blogs/hot_stove/posts/37244"><span style="font-weight:bold;">Andruw Jones</span></a> has truly inspired me...let's see if he also inspired these 7 athletes - among many others - <a href="http://twoliablog.com/getting-to-first-base/2009/01/03/quicklist-7-random-athletes-who-should-give-back-some-money/">who should really give their teams some money back</a>!Mindahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12296930777620801951noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35861640.post-90707386231857874912009-01-01T00:34:00.003-06:002009-01-01T01:59:42.844-06:00Looking back and looking forwardLong story short (for once), I didn't go out for New Year's. That puts me here, in my computer chair, at less than two hours into 2009, and somehow I don't feel any different than I did before 12:00 struck. Also, all the <a href="http://deadspin.com/5121435/the-year-indeadspin">cool kids</a> are doing years-in-review, so I have to too!<br /><br />This blog and its author had some fun times in 2008. <br />Like...<span style="font-weight:bold;">January</span>, when we <a href="http://minda33.blogspot.com/2008/01/annnnndback.html">went to Texas</a> and caught up with <span style="font-weight:bold;">Mike Sweeney</span> again. Fun times, right?<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a345/Minda33/Blog%20stuff/n1319580043_30148927_2703.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 402px; height: 300px;" src="http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a345/Minda33/Blog%20stuff/n1319580043_30148927_2703.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br />We also hit up <a href="http://minda33.blogspot.com/2008/01/royals-caravan-complete-with-pictures.html">the Royals Caravan</a> in that month, got a snazzy pic taken with <span style="font-weight:bold;">Ryan LeFebvre</span>, and made <span style="font-weight:bold;">John Mayberry</span> chuckle. <br /><br />In <span style="font-weight:bold;">February</span>, we <a href="http://minda33.blogspot.com/2008/02/few-quick-things.html">had some trouble with an old laptop</a> (may it rest in peace), and openly <a href="http://minda33.blogspot.com/2008/02/wrap-finally-nu-ksu.html">mocked KSU superfrosh <span style="font-weight:bold;">Michael Beasley</span> to his face</a>. One of those things was more fun than the other.<br /><br />In <span style="font-weight:bold;">March</span>, we <a href="http://minda33.blogspot.com/2008/03/no-worries-its-just-spring.html">fretted about Spring Training</a> performances, <a href="http://minda33.blogspot.com/2008/03/tables-about-royals-inspired-by-bill.html">made some pointless tables</a>, and also got "discovered" by a couple of Royals message boards and other Royals blogs. Finally, someone who doesn't share my last name or bloodlines started reading this! Then Opening Day finally arrived, and we <a href="http://minda33.blogspot.com/2008/03/woooooooooooo.html">babbled like idiots</a>.<br /><br />Then came <span style="font-weight:bold;">April</span>, which meant the Royals home opener. We ogled Crown Vision's enormous glory and <a href="http://minda33.blogspot.com/2008/04/shiny-metallic-hats-wins-for-bannister.html">watched <span style="font-weight:bold;">A-Rod</span> strike out</a> FOUR times. Then we <a href="http://minda33.blogspot.com/2008/04/big-news-for-b.html">became </a>one of the <a href="http://www.ladiesdotdotdot.wordpress.com">Ladies...</a>, which was pretty exciting, and reflected on the <a href="http://minda33.blogspot.com/2008/04/how-did-i-become-royals-fan.html">origins of our Royals fandom</a>. <br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">May</span>...was mostly stupid. We <a href="http://minda33.blogspot.com/2008/05/on-buzz-bissinger.html">stewed about the <span style="font-weight:bold;">Buzz Bissinger</span> affair</a>, had our <a href="http://minda33.blogspot.com/2008/05/excruciating.html">hearts broken</a> by a 12-game losing streak, and finally had <a href="http://minda33.blogspot.com/2008/05/breaking-news-aviles-gets-callup.html">something to celebrate when <span style="font-weight:bold;">Mike Aviles</span> got called up</a>.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">June </span>was all about branching out, like a <a href="http://sports.yahoo.com/fantasy/blog/roto_arcade/post/Our-24-7-coverage-of-Mike-Aviles-continues-?urn=fantasy,88988">piece for Yahoo!</a> about <span style="font-weight:bold;">Aviles</span>, and a new sports blog elsewhere where I pondered the <a href="http://twoliablog.com/getting-to-first-base/2008/06/17/tis-of-minor-importance/">human drama of minor league ball</a>, and shared a tale of <a href="http://twoliablog.com/getting-to-first-base/2008/06/29/who-needs-a-scoreboard/">a game the ORoyals played with no electricity</a> after a horrible storm beat our fine city to a pulp. (That game ended up being my favorite sports moment of 2008 in <a href="http://ladiesdotdotdot.wordpress.com/2008/12/29/the-ladies-pick-their-favourite-sports-moments-of-2008/">this Ladies... post</a>.) Oh, I also saw my first no-hitter in person, and was <a href="http://minda33.blogspot.com/2008/06/i-have-now-seen-no-hitter.html">not amused</a>. Oh, and I <a href="http://ladiesdotdotdot.wordpress.com/2008/06/26/a-journey-in-pictures-kansas-city/">went to Kansas City</a> for a few days!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a345/Minda33/Ladies%20stuff/Tuesday03MewithDeJesus.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 456px; height: 300px;" src="http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a345/Minda33/Ladies%20stuff/Tuesday03MewithDeJesus.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br /><br />The beginning of <span style="font-weight:bold;">July </span>contains my birthday, so we figured out <a href="http://minda33.blogspot.com/2008/07/birthday-cake-royals-style.html">how the Royals have done on birthdays past</a>. We later wrote our first-ever FanPost at Royals Review, which was a <a href="http://www.royalsreview.com/2008/7/8/566799/trade-rumour-tpj-for">trade rumor involving <span style="font-weight:bold;">Tony Pena Jr</span></a>. And then <a href="http://minda33.blogspot.com/2008/07/mind-blowing-pitching.html">TPJ <span style="font-style:italic;">pitched</span></a>. Then, we were giddy to learn that the Hawaiian Punch himself, <span style="font-weight:bold;">Kila Ka'aihue</span>, had been <a href="http://minda33.blogspot.com/2008/07/kila.html">promoted to Omaha</a>. <br /><br />Remember the time the Royals won <a href="http://minda33.blogspot.com/2008/08/new-low-in-nsfw-rant-form.html">seven f*^*^&*^*ing games in an entire month</a>? Yeah, that was <span style="font-weight:bold;">August</span>. But we had <span style="font-weight:bold;">Kila </span>to keep us sane. His <a href="http://minda33.blogspot.com/2008/08/hacking.html">plate approach</a> was a sensational break from people who we won't specifically name, but whose name might rhyme with...<span style="font-weight:bold;">Mason Pith</span>. Oh, and here's a <a href="http://minda33.blogspot.com/2008/08/tale-from-dugout.html">tale from the dugout</a>.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">September </span>was SO. MUCH. BETTER! <span style="font-weight:bold;">The Shealy</span> finally got his much-deserved callup when rosters expanded - and was <a href="http://minda33.blogspot.com/2008/09/dear-trey-hillman-shealy-edition.html">still misused</a> - and hit a bunch of homers. But we also got to see <a href="http://minda33.blogspot.com/2008/09/kaaihue-up-apparently.html"><span style="font-weight:bold;">Kila (now!)</span> in KC</a>. We <a href="http://minda33.blogspot.com/2008/09/letting-myself-feel-good.html">enjoyed all the winning and pondered</a> why we're still Royals fans. Then we got to see The Shealy at <a href="http://minda33.blogspot.com/2008/09/thoughts-from-8-20-royals-win-because-i.html">an awesome win over the Stupid PoopySox</a>.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a345/Minda33/Blog%20stuff/n1319580043_30210514_9381.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a345/Minda33/Blog%20stuff/n1319580043_30210514_9381.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br /><br />In <span style="font-weight:bold;">October</span>, we <a href="http://minda33.blogspot.com/2008/10/mike-jacobs-do-not-want.html">DID NOT WANT</a> Mike Jacobs, but it <a href="http://minda33.blogspot.com/2008/10/adios-leo-hola-mike.html">happened anyway</a>. How miserable. <br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">November </span>came, and the Royals did a bunch of stuff with catchers, which prompted us to <a href="http://minda33.blogspot.com/2008/11/royals-make-lots-of-catcher-related.html">examine the catching market</a>. Then Coco Crisp happened, and we <a href="http://minda33.blogspot.com/2008/11/crisp-to-royals-my-immediate-reaction.html">reacted</a>. We then <a href="http://minda33.blogspot.com/2008/11/expectation-vs-reality-2008-royals-part.html">ate our words</a> for your enjoyment, and hopefully more of those posts are coming soon.<br /><br />December was a month of farewells, like <a href="http://minda33.blogspot.com/2008/12/mad-dog-makes-his-exit-everyone-is-sad.html"><span style="font-weight:bold;">Greg Maddux</span></a>. And the Royals said <a href="http://minda33.blogspot.com/2008/12/arb-offer-to-grudz-was-easy-choice.html">farewell to <span style="font-weight:bold;">Mark Grudzielanek</span> but helllooooo to a sandwich pick</a>. The Baseball Writers Association of America said some hellos, <a href="http://minda33.blogspot.com/2008/12/bbwaa-and-bp-plus-some-other-things.html">inviting two Baseball Prospectus writers to join their ranks</a>. And we <a href="http://minda33.blogspot.com/2008/12/farnsworth-after-smoke-clears-still.html">tried but failed</a> to make any sense of the <span style="font-weight:bold;">Kyle Farnsworth</span> signing. <br /><br />Going into 2009, I hope to post more often, use shorter sentences, and use more statistics. I hope more people find this blog to be worth reading and sharing. I hope the Royals give me happy things to say. I hope I don't suffer any awkward injuries at an ORoyals game in front of 6,000 people, because <span style="font-weight:bold;">Joey Gathright</span> is no longer around to save my life. I hope <span style="font-weight:bold;">Brian Bannister</span> bounces back to his 2007 form. I hope <span style="font-weight:bold;">Zack Greinke</span> signs a long-term extension already. I hope there's at least one person who has read this far, and I hope anyone who is reading has a happy new year!Mindahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12296930777620801951noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35861640.post-30556492619985274262008-12-30T17:03:00.003-06:002008-12-30T17:56:32.985-06:00If the Royals did MySpace surveys...<span style="font-weight:bold;">Where did you begin 2008?</span><br />We had a fanfest thing in January in KC. Tons of people came out to see our new powder blues and our expensive new outfielder Jose. He took advantage of the spotlight to complain about the plan to use him as a left fielder. what a baby lol. Some of us went around the midwest on the Royals Caravan. <br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">What was your status by Valentines Day?</span><br />all checked in at Surprise and in the best shape of our lives! or at least that's what we always say.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Were you in school anytime this year?</span><br />Only the School of Hillman, where we learned how to make idiot baserunning mistakes, cut down on walks, and say inflammatory things to the media. <br /><span style="font-weight:bold;"><br />Did you have to go to the hospital?</span><br />some of us had some pretty crazy injuries, like hives in the middle of a game, punching doors, and having Ross Gload cut us down at the ankles. <br /><span style="font-weight:bold;"><br />Did you have any encounters with the police?</span><br />Yeah Callie got picked up for driving drunk. we also had an encounter with the mitchell report. Oh, and some suspensions for punching pierzynski and Co. too. We have no regrets for that.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Where did you go on vacation?</span><br />Well all of us were free to go wherever we wanted after the regular season ended, just like every year. Then some of us went to Venezuela, Hawaii, the Dominican, and other places for winter ball.<br /><span style="font-weight:bold;"><br />What did you purchase that was over 100?</span><br />We bought an outfielder before the season started, but it turned out that may have been a stupid idea. We got a raise in our allowance after the season, and got all excited and spent it foolishly on junk we didn't need and won't like by the time we actually use it.<br /><span style="font-weight:bold;"><br />Did you know anybody who got married?</span><br />Yeah, a couple of our guys get married every year. As long as their wives are nice and they keep playin decent ball, we don't mind much.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Did you move anywhere?</span><br />Our AA players moved from wichita to nw arkansas, but other than that we mostly stayed put.<br /><span style="font-weight:bold;"><br />What sporting events did you attend?</span><br />Do our own games count as sporting events? lol I guess we went to about 162 of those, even though we were told during ST to prepare for about 185. Some of us - OK just Jack - also attended the all-star game and stuff.<br /><span style="font-weight:bold;"><br />What is the one thing you thought you would not do, but did, in 2008?</span><br />we did better than some ppl - ok just the baseball prospectus ppl - said we would. it was only one game's difference, but we'll take what we can get. We also gave in and gave some major league ABs to a few first basemen whose initials are not RG. That's something we never saw coming, and might regret someday.<br /><span style="font-weight:bold;"><br />What has been your favorite moments?</span><br />We had a lot of great moments from our pitching staff, and we're really happy with those guys. We signed Joakim to a pretty cool long-term deal, and felt great about that every time we watched him pitch. <a href="http://kansascity.royals.mlb.com/media/video.jsp?mid=200808023243244&c_id=kc#">Filthy</a>, isn't he? We also had some exciting moments from DeJesus, like that walkoff he hit in July against the Mariners, and one he hit off of Mariano Rivera in June. Grudzy got his 2,000th career hit - he's the 6th guy to do that as a Royal. And we as a team played a big part in making the battle for the division as tight as it was. Those games felt a little like the playoffs, and we liked that! Oh, and we didn't finish in last place. That was sorta cool too.<br /><span style="font-weight:bold;"><br />Any new additions to your family?</span><br />Well John Buck's wife had twin boys, and we made a lot of changes to the "family" of the team - like Hillman and everyone else. <br /><span style="font-weight:bold;"><br />What was your best month?</span><br />September was a blast. We won a ton of games and people quit making fun of us so much. <br /><span style="font-weight:bold;"><br />Who has been your best drinking buddy?</span><br />Alberto Callaspo...well, he used to be. j/k but seriously i dunno.<br /><span style="font-weight:bold;"><br />Made new friends?</span><br />We always make new friends but the thing that never changes is how much aj pierzynski is NOT our friend.<br /><span style="font-weight:bold;"><br />Favorite Night out?</span><br />Prolly the night of that DDJ walkoff. Is there anything that feels sweeter than a win like that? Well prolly the playoffs but we don't relaly know how those feel.<br /><span style="font-weight:bold;"><br />Change your hairstyle?</span><br />Well this one time Gil shaved Bucky's head and then he pitched really well, so he kept doing it. Whatever works for the team, right? And a bunch of us grew all different beards, but none were as awesome as the Soria Abe Lincoln look lol.<br /><span style="font-weight:bold;"><br />Do you have a New Years resolution?</span><br />We gotta play at least .500 all season, and try not to let the Star pick up on so many things we don't like in the clubhous. And maybe don't make Trey wanna yell at us out on the field again!!1!<br /><span style="font-weight:bold;"><br />Do anything embarrassing?</span><br />Lots of things - see above - getting yelled at right there on the field made us feel like total losers. Then in August we got no-hit, which was cool for Lester but that doesn't mean we liked it! Then we lost 11 more games in a row after that. Oh and then there was August - we only won 7 games that ENTIRE month. wtf? What kind of major league team does that? seriously it was stupid.<br /><span style="font-weight:bold;"><br />Buy anything new from eBay?</span><br />idk maybe like some ash for new bats!<br /><span style="font-weight:bold;"><br />Get arrested?</span><br />Yeah one of us did but Callie's turnin it around<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;"><br />Been snowboarding?</span><br />That's prolly not a great idea, we might get hurt. That doesn't mean none of us went though!<br /><span style="font-weight:bold;"><br />Did you get sick this year?</span><br />Lots of us had the flu in arizona, that was really gross. Puke everywhere ewww. Then there were some problems with hives for SOME of our guys - DDJ i'm lookin at you lol - but otherwise no huge illnesses i don't think<br /><span style="font-weight:bold;"><br />Are you happy to see 2008 go?</span><br />YES!!!!! we can only get better from here, right? ...right??????<br /><span style="font-weight:bold;"><br />Been naughty or nice?</span><br />lol we all try to be nice buuuut it's hard to be that way in baseball. plus we lost a lot of games which isn't very nice.Mindahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12296930777620801951noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35861640.post-38364725900282951422008-12-26T11:54:00.003-06:002008-12-26T11:58:19.249-06:00What have I done for you lately?After examining Mark Teixeira's <a href="http://twoliablog.com/getting-to-first-base/2008/12/18/mark-teixeira-worth-all-the-fuss/">worth as a player</a>, I broke down <a href="http://ladiesdotdotdot.wordpress.com/2008/12/22/hot-stove-hotties-because-we-dont-hear-nearly-enough-about-mark-teixeira/">the week in Hot Stove action</a> on Monday. Then Tex became a Yankee, and I was too disgusted to write anything about that.<br /><br />On Thursday, I used <a href="http://ladiesdotdotdot.wordpress.com/2008/12/25/merry-christmas-or-other-applicable-happy-day/">attractive athletes to wish a Merry Christmas/whatever</a> to Ladies... readers. That took more man-hours than I'm ready to admit.<br /><br />And about 5 minutes ago, I realized I was <a href="http://twoliablog.com/getting-to-first-base/2008/12/26/rose-colored-glasses-do-me-no-favors-a-look-back-at-2008/">repressing some of the horribleness of the 2008 Royals season</a>. <br /><br />Happy Boxing Day!Mindahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12296930777620801951noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35861640.post-27923278644138409822008-12-18T21:23:00.001-06:002008-12-18T21:24:20.991-06:00On Mark TeixeiraI wrote a thing <a href="http://twoliablog.com/getting-to-first-base/2008/12/18/mark-teixeira-worth-all-the-fuss/">here</a>. Go forth and read!Mindahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12296930777620801951noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35861640.post-5368093680016667052008-12-17T01:04:00.004-06:002008-12-17T02:25:13.769-06:00Farnsworth, after the smoke clears: Still a thumbs-downI have given myself a few days to digest the <span style="font-weight:bold;">Kyle Farnsworth</span> signing. I thought that perhaps my initial rage would subside into something more palatable, which I could then turn into a blog post that was actually worth something (very unlike my <a href="http://minda33.blogspot.com/2008/12/yipee-oh-and-kyle-farnsworth.html">first attempt at analysis</a> of the deal). <span style="font-style:italic;"></span><br />All I had to say that day was this:<blockquote><br />$9.25 million? Really, Dayton?<br /><br />That's a lot of money, for not a lot of pitcher. </blockquote><br />...And really, that's all I can think of now. It still makes absolutely no sense to sign a "pitcher" (I'm using that word generously) like Farnsworth for THAT MUCH MONEY. In last year's Baseball Prospectus book, he was described as "an overpaid trash-time pitcher, albeit one with unusually good velocity for that role."<br /><br />Once again, it seems that the Yankees' abundance of money is at the root of this problem. After 2005, by far Farnsy's best season, the Yanks snagged him for about $5.5 million, when he had previously never made more than $1.9 million. This year, when New York traded him back to Detroit for Ivan Rodriguez, his salary was up to $5.9 million.<br /><br />That's quite a trick he's playing; being a guy who throws pretty hard but can't actually <span style="font-style:italic;">pitch</span>, and getting ridiculous millions to do it. But if the Yanks had never been so jumpy to sign him at whatever cost, we wouldn't be here today. (Sorry, apparently part of my grief over this signing includes finding someone to blame. I don't really mean anything by it.) <br /><br />Was there a purpose in paying him that much in the first place? I know his 2005 season was awesome, but did it warrant a pay raise of $3.5 million? Were the Yanks that desperate for a right arm in their pen?<br /><br />In 2005, New York had these right-handed non-closers throwing significant innings in their bullpen: Tom Gordon, Tanyon Sturtze, Felix Rodriguez, Scott Proctor, and Paul Quantrill. <br /><br />Sturtze and Proctor stayed with New York for 2006, and the team added righties Farnsworth, Brian Bruney, and rookie T.J. Beam. (Again, those are just the guys with more than a handful of appearances.) That pitching staff was already pretty darn good in '05, and improved in the standings in pretty much every category in '06. So I'm not trying to say that the addition of Farnsworth was an inherently bad thing for the Yankees from the start, but did it have to be such a high-dollar signing? <br /><br /> I can understand New York grabbing him off of his hot season; it's easy to see why he was a tempting free agent target for them. But I'm having a harder time understanding why Dayton Moore was so jumpy for him <span style="font-style:italic;">this </span>year. Does Moore really believe that no one as good as Farnsworth (but preferably better) would be available at all this winter? Oh hey look, <a href="http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20081213&content_id=3716623&vkey=news_fla&fext=.jsp&c_id=fla&partnerId=rss_fla">I found one</a>! And I'm not even a GM.<br /><br />Farnsworth in 2008 was NOT Farnsworth from 2005. So why be so quick to throw craploads of money at him? Like I said, I can understand why a team would want to bite on a reliever after a really good year, like Boston going for RamRam or the Yanks and our boy Farnsy. But this line, and all the scouting reports on Farnsworth do not inspire confidence, and certainly not $9.2 million worth of confidence.<br /><br />IP H R ER HR BB SO HBP WP BFP IBB BK ERA *lgERA *ERA+ WHIP<br />60.3 70 32 30 15 22 61 1 1 261 4 1 4.48 4.44 99 1.525<br /><br />(Sorry if the spacing is all weird; you can just look at <a href="http://www.baseball-reference.com/f/farnsky01.shtml">his baseball-reference page</a>)<br /><br />I'm trying my hardest to find a silver lining. <a href="http://www.royalsreview.com/2008/12/14/692255/mo-o-re-on-farnsworth">We all are</a>. But the best anyone can come up with is that the Royals are well-equipped with players who can lead the team to victory in bench-clearing brawls. Oh, goody. <br /><br />I have officially spent too much time thinking about this waste of money and roster space. I'm going to bed.Mindahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12296930777620801951noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35861640.post-43906551172290942082008-12-13T17:19:00.003-06:002008-12-13T17:33:08.887-06:00Some linksSome other stuff I've done in the last few days, because I sure as heck haven't done anything notable here. <br />At Just Other Things: <a href="http://minda-justotherthings.blogspot.com/2008/12/googling-for-dum-err-for-everyone.html">Googling for dummies</a>. (with a new update!)<br />At Getting to First Base: <a href="http://twoliablog.com/getting-to-first-base/2008/12/13/athletes-being-people-and-people-being-athletes/">Athletes being people and people being athletes</a><br />At Ladies...: <a href="http://ladiesdotdotdot.wordpress.com/2008/12/10/the-ladies-gift-lists/">Ladies... Gift Lists</a><br /><br />So there's that. I really, really, really, REALLY miss baseball season.<br />Oh, and here are two threads at Royals Review that win my award for Bestest Unintentional Comedy of the Winter:<a href="http://www.royalsreview.com/2008/12/12/690508/guillen-is-our-best-hitter"><br />Guillen is our best hitter - I dare you to question this</a><br />and<a href="http://www.royalsreview.com/2008/12/12/690467/can-you-all-just-shut-up-f"><br />Can you all just shut up!! Farnsworth will be better in KC than Ramirez in Boston</a><br /><br />I have no idea what I'd do without Royals Review.Mindahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12296930777620801951noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35861640.post-10609826384436307762008-12-11T18:57:00.003-06:002008-12-11T19:08:37.787-06:00Yipee! (Oh, and Kyle Farnsworth)Short personal note:<br />My computer works again! A friendly Dell tech fixed it and now it's all better. Huzzah!<br /><br />Now, on to this Farnsworth business. <br /><a href="http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2008/12/royals-reach-ag.html">$9.25 million</a>? Really, Dayton?<br /><br />That's a lot of money, for not a lot of pitcher.Mindahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12296930777620801951noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35861640.post-23363707599955236962008-12-10T19:07:00.002-06:002008-12-10T19:55:34.589-06:00BBWAA and BP, Plus some other things (naturally)Every time I think I'll have lots of extra time to post more here, my computer dies. Well, OK, my laptop didn't DIE, <span style="font-style:italic;">per se</span>, but it only runs in Safe Mode and the laptop display doesn't work so I have to hook up an external monitor. But being in Safe Mode means suuuuuper-low resolution, which makes my head hurt. YUCK. Oh, and the sound doesn't work (by default) in Safe Mode. Thank God (or your own deity of choice) for warranties. Tomorrow, a tech will come and all will be well again.<br /><br />ANYWAY, the Baseball Writers' Association of America is continuing to eschew its fear of the Internet and all the nerds therein by <a href="http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/blog/big_league_stew/post/BBWAA-opens-doors-wider-admits-four-more-Intern?urn=mlb,128191">adding Will Carroll, Christina Kahrl, Rob Neyer, and Keith Law</a>. <br /><br />Law and Neyer were the only two 'Net writers excluded last year, a year in which 16 Internet writers <a href="http://baseballanalysts.com/archives/2007/12/bbwaa_opens_up.php">were added</a>. <br /><br />All four are deserving of inclusion in the BBWAA, and I'm especially pleased for Carroll and Kahrl, the first writers from Baseball Prospectus to be recognized this way. I have a particular fondness for Carroll, ever since he friended me on Facebook and took me under his wing. Both he and Kahrl answer every question I've ever had about baseball and life as a baseball writer, and I am grateful that they are so accessible. They, obviously, are also very talented and I think will set a good precedent for other BP writers to be added to the BBWAA. <br /><br />And certainly, many other BP folks deserve inclusion. I'm honestly a little surprised that Joe Sheehan, Nate Silver, Rany Jazayerli, etc. were not included. Perhaps next year. But in the meantime, a hearty congrats to Carroll, Kahrl, Law and Neyer. <br /><br />In the comments on <a href="http://www.baseballprospectus.com/unfiltered/?p=1125">Kahrl's Unfiltered post</a> on the topic, Carroll left this response:<br /><blockquote>First, let me say thank you. In large part, this is a validation of you, the readers, who have shown that there's an appetite for this type of content.<br /><br />Second, let me say thank you to everyone who helped with this process, especially the BBWAA board and the members who supported us through this, like John Perrotto.<br /><br />Finally, I'll say that I wouldn't expect anything to change because of this. If anything, we'll get better due to additional access. CK and I will be asking questions, attending games, and continuing the growth of BP from niche to slightly larger niche.<br /><br />As I was walking through the hallways of the Bellagio, I ran into Peter Gammons. He smiled and said "welcome to the club." Yeah, it's been a good day.</blockquote><br />Awww. <br /><br />Shoot, this post is getting longer than I anticipated. I still owe you all some thoughts on clubhouse leadership, and in fact am thinking of starting a whole series called "How Much Does ______ Matter?" There are so many factors that fans and media see as important, but might not actually be too big a deal to players. Maybe some things are the other way around. ("Veteran Presence," Jose Guillen's attitude, whatever.) I would like to explore lots of these issues, so if you have any ideas, please let me know in the comments or by e-mail (mhaas33 at gmail dot com), facebook, whatever. <br /><br />A Will Carroll <a href="http://www.baseballprospectus.com/unfiltered/?p=1116">post </a>about what statistical evaluation MLB front offices use sparked this great <a href="http://www.royalsreview.com/2008/12/8/687034/mlb-front-offices-are-usin#comments">discussion at Royals Review</a>. It's worth a read, and could also turn into a post at some point. <br /><br />OK, now I must go back up all my stuff in preparation for the Dell tech tomorrow. He is going to replace my hard drive, so it will be like starting all over, again. Umm...yay? (For the record, I do absolutely love my laptop. My family surprised me with it when my old computer died, and it is <span style="font-style:italic;">fabulous </span>when it's working. But my understanding is that bad sectors can happen to any hard drive at any time, regardless of brand or age or anything. Hard drives are fickle by nature, and I'm just lucky this one decided to fail while still under all kinds of warranty protection, and that it didn't happen last week when I was scrambling to finish all kinds of final projects, job applications, etc.)Mindahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12296930777620801951noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35861640.post-51356578258990431622008-12-08T01:17:00.004-06:002008-12-08T02:13:40.912-06:00Mad Dog makes his exit, everyone is sad.I've spent the last two or three hours reading dozens of tributes to Greg Maddux. There's really no way to sum up in words what he has meant to the game of baseball. Many players have had a huge impact in my lifetime: The bats of Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa carried bats that brought all kinds of fans back to baseball after they'd been turned off by the strike. Pedro, Clemens, Johnson were scary good (emphasis on scary). Pujols is simply the best hitter I'll ever see, a dominating force at the plate. A-Rod is A-Rod, and on and on.<br /><br />And then there's Maddux. Mad Dog. The Professor. Whatever you want to call him. Every time I think I'm finished reflecting on his quietly amazing career, I feel the need to pour out more words, and read more that others have written. I collected some of those words at <a href="http://ladiesdotdotdot.wordpress.com/2008/12/08/hot-stove-hottie-timeout-farewell-to-mad-dog/">Ladies...</a> but it's not enough. This is a really sad day for baseball, because I can't imagine anyone else being so cerebral but thrilling, someone who made thousands of little pitchers fall in love with pitching as <span style="font-style:italic;">beautiful craft</span> rather than a contest to see who can throw the hardest fastball. <br /><br />We will be hearing from Maddux again, at the very least to shoo him into the Hall as soon as we possibly can. Hall of Fame voters get things wrong sometimes, but they'll get this one right in 5 years. You just can't deny a guy like Maddux.<br /><br />Anyway, I've got some thoughts coming soon about clubhouse leadership, because Mark Grudzielanek has declined arbitration, as expected. Mike and Kevin, I swear I'm not ignoring your comments from <a href="http://minda33.blogspot.com/2008/12/arb-offer-to-grudz-was-easy-choice.html">my last post</a>; you both bring up great points about clubhouse leadership, and I've been wanting to post about that but I have been ridiculously busy with school. Hopefully we'll get to that today or tomorrow.Mindahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12296930777620801951noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35861640.post-1454241119183026252008-12-02T12:51:00.004-06:002008-12-02T13:19:10.810-06:00Arb offer to Grudz was easy choiceIf some silly person made me the Royals GM for one day, and that day happened to be yesterday, I'd also offer arbitration to 2nd baseman Mark Grudzielanek. Naturally, some commenters at <a href="http://kansascity.royals.mlb.com/news/press_releases/press_release.jsp?ymd=20081201&content_id=3697343&vkey=pr_kc&fext=.jsp&c_id=kc">Royals Review are seeing this as a negative thing</a>, but I don't see it as a problem at all. (RR fellas, I love you dearly, but y'all are a lot more negative than I am.)<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">If he accepts:</span><br />The Royals have a 2nd baseman whose production is predictable, in a good way. OR, if Dayton Moore doesn't actually want him on the team any longer*, the Royals can release him and only pay 1/6 of whatever the offered amount was. From <a href="http://www.kansascity.com/news/breaking_news/story/917121.html">Bob Dutton</a>:<br /><blockquote>The Royals retain some financial wiggle room if Grudzielanek accepts arbitration because arbitration-determined salaries are not guaranteed. Teams must pay only one-sixth of a salary if they release a player with 45 or more days remaining before Opening Day.</blockquote><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">*most likely scenario</span><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;"><br />When, errr...if he declines</span><br />We get a sandwich pick in next year's draft. Mmmmmm, sandwiches...<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a345/Minda33/Blog%20stuff/world_most_expensive_sandwich.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 370px; height: 294px;" src="http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a345/Minda33/Blog%20stuff/world_most_expensive_sandwich.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br /><br />Grudz will almost certainly decline the Royals' offer so he can try and get on board with a winning team. He all but said that in <a href="http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20081201&content_id=3697379&vkey=news_kc&fext=.jsp&c_id=kc&partnerId=rss_kc">this Royals.com article</a>. <br /><br />Don't get me wrong, I love Mark Grudzielanek. He's, as stated many times, a fabulously professional player who keeps his mouth shut when it's not necessary to talk, who produces consistently on the field, and by all accounts works hard. I realize his numbers aren't the greatest, but to me there's value in knowing what you're getting from a player, especially if your team is otherwise chock-full of question marks. <br /><br />Grudzielanek was a valuable addition to a club that needed stability <span style="font-style:italic;">somewhere</span>. If he declines yesterday's offer, which I'm almost certain (I'd say about 95-98% sure) he will, I hope he can find what he's looking for, which is the chance to win. What player doesn't want that? <br /><br />Farewell, Mark. I'll miss you, but I'm also looking forward to that sandwich...pick.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a345/Minda33/Sports%20hotness/MarkGrudzielanekWOW.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a345/Minda33/Sports%20hotness/MarkGrudzielanekWOW.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a>Mindahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12296930777620801951noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35861640.post-50494337536496213952008-11-29T22:11:00.003-06:002008-11-29T22:20:30.555-06:00Royals sign JR HouseVia <a href="http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2008/11/royals-sign-jr.html">MLB Trade Rumors</a> - Royals sign J.R. House, a 29-year-old catcher who was drafted by the Pirates, but has spent the last 4 season with in the Astros and Orioles organizations. <br /><br />In AAA Round Rock last year, House hit <a href="http://www.baseball-reference.com/h/housejr01.shtml">.306/.378/.480</a> with 53 walks and 52 strikeouts in regular duty. House has only seen a handful of Major League games over the last 5 seasons, so there's not much known about his readiness. <br /><br />Tim Dierkes mentions that House was highly touted in his early career, to the point where Pittsburgh would make a drastic move to get him behind the plate:<br /><blockquote>Back in the day, House was considered the Pirates' top prospect before he was derailed by injuries. There was a time when Jason Kendall was expected to move to the outfield to accomodate him.</blockquote><br />Does this mean Matt Tupman will not end up back with the Royals after all? Or is this signing just an insurance policy for the Omaha lineup in case Brayan Pena gets lost to the waiver wire in the spring? Either way, not a bad pickup for the Royals<span style="font-style:italic;"></span>.Mindahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12296930777620801951noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35861640.post-36568073448411515332008-11-27T17:28:00.003-06:002008-11-27T18:13:27.961-06:00Things for which I'm thankfulNot a complete list, not in a particular order, and all completely sincere:<br /><br />My God / my parents / my brothers / my sister-in-law / my brothers and sisters in Jesus / my puppies / Joakim Soria / Dr Pepper / Sudoku puzzles / Google reader / getting paid to blog / <a href="http://ladiesdotdotdot.wordpress.com/">the Ladies...</a> / my car / goodish health / choirs / blogger / Joe Posnanski / the Internet and all it has allowed me to accomplish without ever leaving my mother's basement / large piles of pillows / Journey / my hearing / Denny Matthews and Fred White / that my family hasn't dispersed as we all "grow up" / life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness / higher education / <a href="http://childsplaycharity.org/">Child's Play</a> / cellos / cows / two shoulders that (mostly) work / Christmas decorations / the way the last note my choir sings echoes off the church ceiling / the women of my Bible study / a fresh start with a new bank / my summer job / my new computer (!) / 4-inch heels / free speech / warm blankets / Dayton Moore / Photoshop / "<a href="http://grabthatmusic.com/?q=old+city+bar+trans+siberian+orchestra&searchtype=music">Old City Bar</a>" by TSO / wearing pearls with jeans / Opening Day / the people who read and comment here / random acts of kindness / fountains / <a href="http://cdn1.ustream.tv/swf/4/viewer.45.swf?cid=317016">Puppy Cam</a> / tiny adorable children / Ryan Shealy / the two previous items standing next to each other / Molly / a roof over my head / plenty of food / chiropractic care / Latin / the simple, honest sound of a single acoustic guitar accompanied by a djembe / that my brothers have let me crash at their houses the last two summers / facebook / the Red Zone / always knowing I'm loved / seat belts / firefighters and EMTs / Michael John Sweeney / Beethoven / the History Channel / honest mechanics / the city of Omaha / the two strangers who helped me move in last year when I was too proud to ask for help / January 6, 1978 / Brian Bannister / The Office / packing / car washes / some wood and three nails / Baseball Prospectus / The United States of America / YouTube / the way my dog just woke up from a nap and came to sit at my feet / the men and women around me at the Newman Center in Lincoln who constantly teach me what it means to be excellent / Zack Greinke (and moreso if he signs a long-term deal in KC) / you, again, for reading this far. <br /><br />Happy Thanksgiving!<br />129 days...Mindahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12296930777620801951noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35861640.post-56873417860204579722008-11-25T12:44:00.007-06:002008-11-25T15:21:10.912-06:00Expectation vs. Reality: 2008 Royals (Part I)As we head into the depths of the offseason, I thought I'd look back at some of the predictions I made last winter. What did I want from the 2008 Royals? What did I think was realistic? I'll go over one or two at a time periodically, whether I was wrong or right.<br /><br />I'll start with an easy one: <span style="font-weight:bold;">Joakim Soria</span>, from <a href="http://minda33.blogspot.com/2008/03/final-thoughts-before-real-o-day.html ">March 2008</a>.<br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Expectation:</span> Soria would be Soria. <br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Quote:</span> "He’ll continue to do his thing, and people will continue to suggest moving him into the rotation."<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Reality:</span> Um, yeah. This is like expecting the sky to keep being blue. His numbers are <a href="http://www.baseball-reference.com/s/soriajo01.shtml">here</a>, and some fun videos are <a href="http://kansascity.royals.mlb.com/team/player_media.jsp?player_id=465657">here</a>.<br /><br />The 2nd part of the "prediction" is also true. Just <a href="http://joeposnanski.com/JoeBlog/2008/11/25/my-mvp-ballot-finally/">today, JoePo mentioned in passing</a> that he thinks that Soria should be moved to the rotation.<br /><blockquote>I mean, look at this Royals team: They have a couple of very good starting pitchers in Zack Greinke and Gil Meche. That’s as good or better than the Yankees 1-2 starters — better, I think. The Royals have Joakim Soria, who appears to be a 24-year-old version of Mariano Rivera — unless they decide to try him a starter, which I believe more and more they should.</blockquote><br />Joe's not the only one to write this; it's been discussed from top to bottom, side to side, and underneath the paws at places like Royals Review. Making Soria a starter vs. Leaving him in the pen is one of those issues that could be frighteningly polarizing until it either happens or Soria retires. <br /><br />From the same <a href="http://minda33.blogspot.com/2008/03/final-thoughts-before-real-o-day.html">post back in March</a>, I listed some numbers I hoped to see from <span style="font-weight:bold;">David DeJesus</span>. <br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Expectation:</span> David DeJesus would increase his productivity<br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Quote:</span> "He ought to deliver; I’m hoping to see his OBP in the .360s and his batting average much closer to .300. Steals will be another thing I’ll be watching for from DeJesus, and I really want him to far exceed his career best of 10 (from last year). I’d love to see him swipe 20, actually."<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Reality</span>: I wanted a .300 BA and an OBP in the .360s; DeJesus actually put up a .307 average and a .366 OBP. Man, I'm good. The thing he didn't do was steal a ton of bases - he swiped 11. I think at the time I wrote that post, the stories had been coming in from Spring Training about how DDJ and Joey Gathright were figuring out how to watch the pitcher's shoulder instead of his leg movement, and I thought that would lead to more steals than it actually did. <br /><br />It's now time to pack up the computer and head West to see my parents, little brother, and dogs(oh, and chiropractor! My back is killing me!). I'll be back at some point with more of these posts, but first, a few thoughts:<br />1) I hope you all have a happy and peaceful Thanksgiving. Whether you have a big family dinner or a pizza in front of the football games, I hope it's an enjoyable day.<br />2) This blog got a 90% Manliness rating according to genderanalyzer.com, meaning their AI examined the text of the site and figured with 90% certainty that I am a man. Heh. More amusing analyses of Royals sites <a href="http://www.royalsreview.com/2008/11/23/668314/top-5-manliest-royals-site">here</a>. <br />3) If you somehow missed these, here are <a href="http://twoliablog.com/getting-to-first-base/2008/11/20/sam-mellinger-part-i/">Part I</a> and <a href="http://twoliablog.com/getting-to-first-base/2008/11/22/sam-mellinger-part-ii-press-access-and-more/">Part II</a> of an interview I did with Sam Mellinger. <br />4) I also wrapped up <a href="http://ladiesdotdotdot.wordpress.com/2008/11/24/hot-stove-hotties-3/">the week's Hot Stove activities</a> at Ladies... .Mindahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12296930777620801951noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35861640.post-61120284191193122942008-11-19T10:28:00.006-06:002008-11-19T11:03:50.265-06:00Crisp to the Royals: My immediate reactionFirst, <a href="http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20081119&content_id=3684444&vkey=news_kc&fext=.jsp&c_id=kc&partnerId=rss_kc">here's the story</a> if you haven't read it yet. <br /><blockquote>Sports Radio 810 said the Royals had acquired the 29-year-old Crisp, who hit .283 with seven homers, 41 RBIs and 20 stolen bases in 361 at-bats in 2008. Crisp, who will earn $5.7 million in 2009 with a 2010 club option worth $8 million or a $500,000 buyout, started 98 games in center field for Boston but had to share playing time because of the emergence of Jacoby Ellsbury.</blockquote><br />(SI.com has <a href="http://www.fannation.com/si_blogs/hot_stove/posts/24823">confirmed the report</a> - it's official)<br /><br />My immediate reactions:<br />1. Yay!! David DeJesus can now play left field full time! As a CF,DeJesus is good enough, but when he plays left he's one of the best in the game. I've been hoping KC could find someone to play center every day who is not Joey Gathright, but didn't think it was possible given the market and budget constraints. <br /><br />With DeJesus in left and Crisp in center, that's the start of a pretty good (and rangey!) defensive outfield. Yeah, then there's Jose Guillen in right, but that's another concern for another offseason, I think. <br /><br />2. This lends credence to the <a href="http://www.kansascity.com/sports/royals/story/897263.html">Mark Teahen to the Cubs</a> rumors, but now suggests it will be for one of the infielders (SS Ronny Cedeno or 2B Mike Fontenot) instead of Felix Pie. <br /><br />Crisp will play as an ever-so-slight offensive upgrade to Teahen except with a little less power. In 2008, Crisp walked more and struck out less, so he fits in with Dayton Moore's OBP plan a <span style="font-style:italic;">little </span>bit better than certain other acquisitions thus far. <br /><br />Mark Teahen stats: <a href="http://www.baseball-reference.com/t/teahema01.shtml">Baseball-reference</a> and <a href="http://www.fangraphs.com/statss.aspx?playerid=4511&position=OF">FanGraphs</a> (which includes Bill James and Marcel projections)<br /><br />Coco Crisp stats: <a href="http://www.baseball-reference.com/c/crispco01.shtml">Baseball-reference</a> and <a href="http://www.fangraphs.com/statss.aspx?playerid=1572&position=OF">FanGraphs</a><br /><br />3. I rather liked RamRam, and wonder who will take his spot in the bullpen. This move definitely dashes the hopes of people who were hoping that Ramirez would emerge as the new closer as Joakim Soria is eased into a starter's role. <br /><br />That said, I think trading Ramirez for Crisp straight-up is <span style="font-style:italic;">fabulous</span>, and offer some form of applause to Moore for pulling it off. <br /><br />4. I have to think at this point, after trading away two relievers, that Ron Mahay will stick around, and John Bale will find himself in the bullpen to start 2009 (which is as it should be). <br /><br />More thoughts later...I have homework now. :(Mindahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12296930777620801951noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35861640.post-47400622519782267392008-11-11T19:34:00.002-06:002008-11-11T20:19:05.887-06:00ORoyals roster projection: Pre-free agent editionThis will of course be shaken up if/when the Royals pick up random free agents when the FA market opens up on Friday. Before I begin, here are some highly bookmarkable links for you: the list of <a href="http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2007/12/2009-mlb-free-a.html">MLB free agents</a>, and <a href="http://www.baseballamerica.com/blog/prospects/?p=1786">Minor League free agents</a>. <br /><br />Now, here's who I think we'll be seeing in Omaha next year, at least to start. The usual caveat applies: I'm not an expert, and I'm preemptively labeling this post with "eating my words" for when this roster is totally wrong.<br /><span style="font-weight:bold;"><br />Starting rotation:</span><br /> Carlos Rosa<br /> Brandon Duckworth (gets placed above Cortes solely b/c of seniority)<br /> Dan Cortes<br /> Jose Capellan<br /> Matt Wright<br /><br />Duckworth, Wright and Capellan are ultimately roster filler. I'd love to try Wright as a long reliever but there's currently not enough starting pitching depth to test that theory. Cap is a decent pitcher but has never quite been able to crack it in the Majors because of a lack of movement in his fastball. However, no AAA team would suffer from having them on the roster, and of course Duckworth is good for a handful of spot starts in the event of an injury. <br /><br />**Note: Roman Colon can be used effectively as a starter if any of the 5 on this list are not retained or if Cortes starts the season at AA again (not entirely sure why that would happen, but it could). Colon showed the ability to throw a lot of innings when he had to start games last year, often going deeper into games than some of the regular starters. However, I’ll also list him as a possible reliever, because he can be either according to the team’s needs.<br /><br />BULLPEN:<br />Devon Lowery should start the year at Omaha; his September performance showed he has the ability to strike batters out, but he still gave up too many hits in limited appearances. He’s not quite ready for the Majors and will spend part of next season dominating AAA batters.<br /><br />Greg Atencio, who was promoted from AA NWArk late in the 2008 season, will start the season at Omaha this time around. He’ll again serve as a durable middle reliever, and maybe even see a little time in the Majors later in the season.<br /><br />Brad Salmon had a rough 2nd half of ’08 after being thrown into a starter’s role for which he wasn’t fit. If he gets to go back to the pen full-time he’ll be OK but probably won’t be first in line for a callup if KC has a need in their bullpen. <br /><br />MIDDLE INFIELD<br />Because the Blue Jays claimed SS Angel Sanchez in November, the Omaha middle infield will be even more full of holes than before – and I didn’t think that was possible. Unless Dayton Moore makes some moves here, Omahans may be stuck watching Josh Labandeira and Gookie Dawkins butcher everything that comes their way again. Throw Dave Matranga into that mix as well, although Matranga is the most talented of this trio of filler. <br /><br />CORNER INFIELD:<br />Kila Ka’aihue will likely anchor 1st base for at least the start of the year. On days he needs to take off, Mike Stodolka can come in from the outfield to fill in. This could change depending on how Dayton Moore handles Billy Butler, who is not out of options. <br /><br />Third base is more up in the air, as stud Mike Moustakas isn’t going to be ready for AAA for a while yet. Expect to see 3b manned by a revolving door of fill-ins like the middle IF trio mentioned above, and even catcher-cum-utility man Brayan Pena as needed.<br /><br />OUTFIELD:<br />The Royals will stick with Chris Lubanski in the outfield, but only because they have to. As soon as a different option comes along, the team should cut ties with Lubanski, who has been a pretty big disappointment after being the team’s #1 draft pick in 2003. I think Shane Costa will return, because his late-season injury problems will chase away any teams that might have otherwise wanted him. Mike Stodolka and Damon Hollins will probably return, but again it’s just out of necessity and a lack of OFs in the lower minors who are ready to move up to Triple-A. <br /><br />CATCHER:<br />Brayan Pena has been added to the 40-man roster, and Matt Tupman was removed from it, a sensible move given Tupman’s lack of power, failure to develop throughout his 20s, and recent injury history. Pena will likely see more of the starts in ’09, but the two will continue to share duties. If one is hurt, the club can bring up someone like Demaso Espino from AA.Mindahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12296930777620801951noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35861640.post-14027450552071835882008-11-10T19:48:00.003-06:002008-11-10T20:53:53.698-06:00Links 'n' notesThe Royals are quiet, so here are some other things I've been up to...<br />-Some <a href="http://twoliablog.com/getting-to-first-base/2008/11/10/hope-oakland-isnt-giving-up-much-for-matt-holliday/">speculation on the Matt Holliday trade</a> before details came out.<br />-I really really <a href="http://twoliablog.com/getting-to-first-base/2008/11/10/going-for-two-failed-chiefs-fans/">hated that the Chiefs went for two</a> at the end of their game yesterday.<br />-Some <a href="http://minda-justotherthings.blogspot.com/2008/11/making-someone-feel-uncomfortable.html">ideas for International Make Someone Feel Uncomfortable Day</a>*.<br />-<a href="http://ladiesdotdotdot.wordpress.com/2008/11/06/hot-stove-hotties/">Last week's Hot Stove roundup</a>, featuring hotties. Starting next week, I'll be writing on Mondays instead of Thursdays at Ladies..., so update your Minda-stalking schedule accordingly. <br /><span style="font-style:italic;"><br />*by the way, I started a <a href="http://minda-justotherthings.blogspot.com/">new blog</a> as a spinoff of this one. No more non-sports here. </span><br /><br />Back to Monday Night Football and studying. Toodles!Mindahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12296930777620801951noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35861640.post-22069307975335833602008-11-09T17:15:00.002-06:002008-11-09T18:09:07.610-06:00Grammar, the Royals, and YOUSince Dayton Moore appears to be finished for the season*, I would like to explore the fascinating community of commenters on the Kansas City Star Royals section. I don't understand where any of these people come from; the commenting community in most of the Royals' online community seems to be made up of intelligent, thoughtful people who understand what stats are and how they work. But reading the comments on Star stories is a far more negative and, um...not very well-researched. <br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">*So much for the massive shake-up Moore promised. I was sort of excited to see what he'd do. What a disappointment, like paying 8 bucks to go to a movie, and then realizing it was</span> Saw V. <br /><br />I don't even know why I read these comments, ever. It only serves to frustrate me and make me cry a little for humanity. But since I have been reading these oh-so-enlightening comments, I thought I'd share a few of my favorites nuggets of Royals wisdom from <a href="http://www.kansascity.com/sports/royals/story/881869.html">this column</a> I think was JoePo's but isn't labeled as such. All [sics] are implied.<br /><br />1. <span style="font-weight:bold;">"...I'm guessing there won't be any "I was wrong." ever put in here after Jacobs gets 600 AB and draws 50-60 walks and a few more hits fall to bring his OBP up to around .338..."</span><br />There was about 4x more to this sentence, but I snipped it for you because...if Mike Jacobs gets SIX HUNDRED at-bats, I will quit being a Royals fan. There are simply not that many ABs available against righties, and if anyone has any sense Jacobs won't be seeing more than a dozen ABs against lefties. <br /><br />Jacobs has never appeared in more than 141 games in a season and never had more than 477 AB. And that's the way it should remain, no?<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a345/Minda33/Blog%20stuff/0764553224.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 254px;" src="http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a345/Minda33/Blog%20stuff/0764553224.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br />2. <span style="font-weight:bold;">"Oh, I forgot most royal's fans aren't to bright."</span><br />One of the best things I've ever read. If you're going to insult a group's collective intelligence, you might want to use the right "too." And don't put a random apostrophe in "Royals." <br /><br />3. <span style="font-weight:bold;">"Who cares! Glass won't spend any money so I'm going to spend my money somewhere else."</span> <br />OLD. Also irrelevant, because Glass has been spending money. <span style="font-style:italic;">Someone </span>hasn't been paying attention. <br /><br />4. <span style="font-weight:bold;">"Maybe Joe the intent is to trade him somewhere else for what he really wants ...."</span><br />I wish. Except that Moore has already said that he's finished for this offseason. But good try. Also, punctuation and nouns to accompany pronouns are good things.<br /><br />5. <span style="font-weight:bold;">"Please remember triple A and the majors are a lot different, let KK develope, look at Gordon & Butler they are realy playing like they did at triple A, right? wrong not even close."</span><br />Yeah, man, you actually do have a point. Except the part where Gordon ever played at AAA. <br /><br />6. <span style="font-weight:bold;">"You are right Joe, the Royals should just stand pat, they are doing awesome. Kila will probably be the next great power hitter in the MLB.<br /><br />Signed,<br />Craig Braizel"</span><br />I give 1 point for cleverness, but deduct about 50 for spelling "Brazell" wrong. Kinda ruins it. Also, I'm pretty sure Joe wasn't suggesting that Moore stand pat this winter, but that signing another 1B/DH who can't on base is asinine. <br /><br />7. <span style="font-weight:bold;">"What do you know? Again, we traded a middle reliever for a guy who hit 32 homeruns last year. I'm glad you are not the GM and Dayton is!!"</span><br />Yep, and homeruns [sic] are the only thing that matters!!!1!1!one! Never mind what Jacobs did in his other 445 ABs last year...<br /><br />8. <span style="font-weight:bold;">"I don't know much about Tilman, but the way he seems to manage best is when he has runners on base. Hit and run, pressure on defense."</span><br />I have...no words. <br /><br />9. <span style="font-weight:bold;">"Remember that home runs count for OBP too! You win by reaching home plate more times than the other team, not by reaching 1st or 2nd. A TEAM needs to have a good OBP to win, but not every batter on the team needs to have a high OBP..."</span><br />How can a team's already-low OBP go up if it signs a player whose OBP is significantly lower than the team average? I guess I'm not cut out to understand this kind of math. Curse my decision to only take three years of math in high school!<br /><br />OK, I'm done. I have no idea what made me do that. I must really like pain.Mindahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12296930777620801951noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35861640.post-55791789888677018282008-11-03T18:21:00.005-06:002008-11-03T23:14:52.531-06:00Royals make lots of catcher-related announcementsThe big story today is that the Royals and Miguel Olivo both <a href="http://www.kansascity.com/sports/royals/story/872703.html">exercised his $2.7MM option</a> for next year, so Olivo will still be a Royal. <br /><br />I'm a little surprised by this, mostly because I thought Olivo was pretty darn sure ("hell no!") he wouldn't remain in Kansas City after this season. But more than that, I'm relieved that the team won't have to go shopping for a backstop this winter. Here's a complete list of free agent catchers this offseason from <a href="http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2007/12/2009-mlb-free-a.html">MLB Trade Rumors</a>:<br /><br />Brad Ausmus (40)<br />Paul Bako (37)<br />Josh Bard (31)<br />Michael Barrett (32)<br />Gary Bennett (37) - $900K club option for '09 with a $50K buyout<br />Henry Blanco (37)<br />Johnny Estrada (33)<br />Sal Fasano (37)<br />Toby Hall (33)<br />Paul Lo Duca (37) - Type B<br />Adam Melhuse (37)<br />Chad Moeller (34)<br />Ivan Rodriguez (37) - Type B<br />David Ross (32)<br />Javier Valentin (33)<br />Jason Varitek (37) - Type A<br />Vance Wilson (36)<br />Gregg Zaun (38) - Type B<br /><br />Of those names,none really stand out to me as someone I'd want. Many, like <a href="http://www.baseball-reference.com/r/rodriiv01.shtml">Pudge Rodrigue</a>z, are in decline. Others, like <a href="http://www.baseball-reference.com/z/zaungr01.shtml">Gregg Zaun</a>, <a href="http://www.baseball-reference.com/b/bakopa01.shtml">Paul Bako</a> and <a href="http://www.baseball-reference.com/f/fasansa01.shtml">Sal Fasano</a>*, have been with the Royals before and are well past their prime compared to the catchers KC has now.<br /><span style="font-style:italic;"><br />*Side note about Fasano. In the summer of 2007, I found someone on Facebook who was allegedly David DeJesus. It obviously wasn't DDJ, just someone pretending to be him, but one thing I remember about the fake profile was that one of the only groups "DeJesus" was in was "<a href="http://www.new.facebook.com/home.php#/group.php?sid=6e9e5b6ee7547eea8c63491037473038&refurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.new.facebook.com%2Fs.php%3Finit%3Dq%26q%3Dsal%2Bfasano%26ref%3Dts%26sid%3D6e9e5b6ee7547eea8c63491037473038&gid=2383432087">Put Sal Fasano on the Ballot for the 2007 MLB All-Star Game.</a>" Random!</span><br /><br />Moving along in the list, I feel that Varitek would be too expensive. <a href="http://www.baseball-reference.com/l/loducpa01.shtml">Lo Duca</a> was booted to the minors far part of this year and wouldn't be an improvement. <a href="http://www.baseball-reference.com/b/barremi01.shtml">Michael Barrett</a> seems to have a fallen off a statistical cliff after his very good 2006 season.<br /><br />So yeah. It's a pretty uninspiring free agent market for catchers. To let Olivo part ways with the Royals would create a difficult task. <br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">MID-POST UPDATE:</span> Since starting this post, the Kansas City Star has expanded its story about Olivo's retention to include the news that <a href="http://www.kansascity.com/sports/royals/story/872703.html">Olivo will be the Royals' #1 catcher</a> for 2009. Interesting. <br /><br />Elsewhere in the Royals roster:<br />Matt Tupman and Yasuhiko Yabuta outrighted to Omaha. I'm glad the team has ended - at least temporarily - the Yabuta-as-a-Major-Leaguer experiement. Dutton referred to him as an "expensive whiff" at this point, and I agreed with that assessment a long time before he wrote it. <br /><br />As for Tupman being moved, I'm not surprised. He didn't show enough improvement through his mid- to later 20s to warrant staying on the 40-man. His shoulder problems didn't help, and at this point Brayan Pena deserves the roster spot instead. I had hoped that Pena would be given a shot in September, but I can wait until Spring Training to see what he can do. <br /><br />And farewell to Angel Sanchez. He certainly had - and still has - potential to be a nice middle infielder at some point, but is injury-prone so I don't blame the Royals for not pushing to hold on to him. The way to build organizational depth in the middle infield is not to fill roster spaces with guys who get hurt often and carry a light bat when they do play. I wish him the best with the Blue Jays.Mindahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12296930777620801951noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35861640.post-3081112781088746602008-10-30T14:43:00.002-06:002008-10-30T14:47:38.802-06:00Adios, Leo. Hola, Mike.Well...<a href="http://www.kansascity.com/sports/royals/story/866594.html">it's a done deal.</a> <br /><blockquote>The Royals wasted no time Thursday in pulling the trigger on their first major off-season move by acquiring slugging first baseman Mike Jacobs from the Florida Marlins for reliever Leo Nuñez.</blockquote><br />Sigh. I can expect the club to let Shealy go now, right? And will they shop Billy Butler this winter? To me...it's a little too soon to deal Butler. It's probably selling low. <br /><br />Anyway. I'm not thrilled with this deal, but I'll just wait and see what happens. As for Nunez, I love him dearly and he sure is fun to watch, but I don't generally get attached to relievers because they're bought and sold so frequently.Mindahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12296930777620801951noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35861640.post-42865755582280692592008-10-29T17:40:00.004-06:002008-10-29T17:55:07.771-06:00Mike Jacobs: DO NOT WANT<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a345/Minda33/Blog%20stuff/340x-2.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 340px; height: 518px;" src="http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a345/Minda33/Blog%20stuff/340x-2.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br />This stupid Mike Jacobs trade keeps popping up. I thought it <a href="http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2008/10/jacobs-to-royal.html">fell through</a> a few days ago, but this morning <a href="http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2008/10/jacobs-remains.html">it's back</a>. If you've missed it, this rumor has the Royals sending outstanding pitching prospect Carlos Rosa to the Marlins for first baseman Jacobs. <br /><br />I'm unhappy about this, almost livid. It doesn't make any sense at all to add ANOTHER 1B to the mix in Kansas City. I think the team has more urgent needs (like an OF who can hit) than that for now. Acquiring Jacobs would spell the end of things for Ryan Shealy in KC because he's out of options and I don't think they'd retain him <span style="font-style:italic;">and </span>Jacobs <span style="font-style:italic;">and </span>Billy Butler <span style="font-style:italic;">and </span>Ross Gload. <br /><br />And I don't understand trading Rosa, who is the club's only starting prospect who is close to Major League-ready. Who does the club acquire to replace him? Why not just leave first base alone? The ONLY good thing I see about the team discussing signing a new 1B is that they clearly aren't looking at Gload to be the everyday 1B for 2009. But as a Shealy fan, and a Rosa fan, and a fan of taking care of priorities before adding to a position where we have 934571495784 choices already, I hate this trade idea. <br /><br />(And personal side-note: I'm still computerless. I came back from a break from school over a week ago, and my computer would not start up. Turns out the motherboard's toast, and as my mom said, "When motherboard ain't happy, ain't nobody happy." In the meantime I've been using my dorm's computer lab and my roommate's computer, but it's not even close to ideal. The longer I go without having <span style="font-style:italic;">my own</span> computer with <span style="font-style:italic;">my own</span> stuff on it, the closer to insane I get. I have like 30 Royals-related posts started on that machine, and I can't get to them until at least Saturday. AUGH!)Mindahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12296930777620801951noreply@blogger.com0