DLD Weekender 9/16-17: Catharsis

by eamb on Sep 16, 2006 9:53 AM PDT

Beat writers and bloggers often grab on to some event or milestone and make it the story line of the season. Last year it was Crosby's return, this year, Kendall's home run. There's another popular story line this year, and to borrow from bat-girl; it's how Thomas got his groove back. Many will point to his return to Chicago, completing the emotional circle of changing allegiances after 16 years. To wit, Thomas was quoted:

"That series was so important to give me closure," he said. "I left on bad terms. ... I really think I was kind of going through the motions when the season started, still trying to get things sorted out in my mind. ... I did a lot for that team for 16 years. I deserved to have it end well. That was a nice ending, and now I have moved on. Some great players have changed teams and moved on. Looking back on it, that series in Chicago was what it took for me to move on."

Good for him. Ozzie, OTOH, had this to say:

''I don't care about Frank right now,'' Guillen said. ''If Frank gets a base hit, it takes five hits to score him.

Yeah, we don't care about you either Ozzie, have a beer and STFU.

Today, Z against Vázquez on FOX. Sunday, Cupcakes against The Count (Contreras).

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Let no one forget the lame White Sox act

of refusing to mail Frank Thomas his gear after he left the team. Said the Merc in its piece on Frank's rebar last month:

White Sox officials, in no hurry to do Thomas a favor, concluded that returning his stuff would not be worth the cost of shipping, the postage on steel bars being what it is.

Instead, the Sox held on to Thomas' gear until he could pick it up himself, when the A's played at Chicago during the fourth week of May. Thomas got his equipment on the last day of the series, as he was headed out of town.

That's really one of the most petty, low rent, classless stunts I've ever heard of from a team. The ChiSox deserve another 88 years of futility for that alone.

Like the Swingin' A's...except that Reggie is batting RH!!! -- saint

by FreeSeatUpgrade on Sep 16, 2006 10:04 AM PDT reply actions

Looks like the Charlie Comisky

tradition lives on on the South Side.

"And Julio Franco is batting right-handed!" -- Wayne Hagin, A's radio play-by-play, mid-80s

by Nick on Sep 16, 2006 10:06 AM PDT up reply actions

Typo -- should read Comiskey

"And Julio Franco is batting right-handed!" -- Wayne Hagin, A's radio play-by-play, mid-80s

by Nick on Sep 16, 2006 10:08 AM PDT up reply actions

The Curse of the Big Hurt?

I'm down with that.

"This must be heaven," he says.
"No. It's Oakland."

by Kyli on Sep 16, 2006 10:07 AM PDT up reply actions

is it the rebar?

maybe thomas started hitting better not because of closure or moving on, but because he got his rebar back?

A's v Giants "is kind of like the difference between going to see the Ramones and going to see the Bee Gees. A's fans will go see the Ramones." -BB 07/27/05

by xbhaskarx on Sep 16, 2006 10:58 AM PDT up reply actions

Look at it this way

Frank Thomas has re-barred the White Sox from the playoffs.

"The first night, we were right there," Bradley said. "All we needed was a couple of touchdowns, and we would have had them."

by jeepers on Sep 16, 2006 10:15 PM PDT up reply actions

C'mon, it wsa a joke, not insult

Saying Five is so over the top, it's obviously a joke. Three would have been an insult. (And in the context, Ozzie is saying he has to remember about all 9 batters, not just one Frank. We, however, know differently!)

by MobiusKlein on Sep 16, 2006 10:12 AM PDT reply actions

I wasn't intending to come off as pissy about his

quote. (fwiw)

"When the A's suck, the terrorists win" ~ Poppy

by eamb on Sep 16, 2006 12:01 PM PDT up reply actions

Interesting that the end of the quote was left off

''Frank can do a lot of damage when he's doing what he's doing. But if you worry just about Frank, you forget about the eight guys.''

www.myspace.com/jeffaugust

by jeffro on Sep 16, 2006 12:32 PM PDT up reply actions

Kenny Boy

Everytime I read somtehing from the GM of the White Sox I have knee jerk "what a classless individual" reaction.

I am glad that Moneyball depicts him as an idiot. Ha! I am sure he si a smart man, but his unprofessionalism is pretty much MVP caliber. The fact that he got into personal issues (Frank had no money so Reinsdorf loaned him some when he got divorced) in discussions with reporters is unexcusable but unfortunately typical of things I have read that have come out of his mouth.

www.myspace.com/jeffaugust

by jeffro on Sep 16, 2006 10:15 AM PDT reply actions

I'm really nervous about Harden's imminent return

I hope they keep this in mind

by rebus on Sep 16, 2006 10:20 AM PDT reply actions

That's a terrific article

Good find!

"I miss taking showers with Kendall" ~ Brian Giles

by Poppy on Sep 17, 2006 9:25 AM PDT up reply actions

Not to be rude or arrogant

or anything like that, but the article really doesn't say anything that anyone with any experience in strength training could't tell you.

Train the hips, legs and trunk? Duh.

Free weight exercises like lunges are better than machine exercises like leg pressess? Duh.

Asymetrical exercises like lunges are important? Yeah.

The shoulder is very flexible but also "weak" as a result of this flexibilty? Nothing new.

Furthermore, without going through his article point by point, there are other issues with it too.

To simply state that some exercises may be too stressful and should be avoided is simply way too simplistic. Stress is not a bad thing. Too much stress is a bad thing. And completely avoiding an exercise simply because it is "stressful" may very
well lead to imbalances and injury.

Don't get me wrong, the article is for the most part useful and imformative if one does not have
any background in strength training, and the rest of the articles on the site isn't bad, but he does tend to oversimply things.

On Sunday, Minaya ticked off a list of candidates to join the rotation, and for once this season, none of them was Jose Lima.

by rfloh on Sep 17, 2006 12:12 PM PDT up reply actions

Stupid typos

Should have proofread that.

On Sunday, Minaya ticked off a list of candidates to join the rotation, and for once this season, none of them was Jose Lima.

by rfloh on Sep 17, 2006 12:18 PM PDT up reply actions

Mulder faces long road back

Cards lefty doesn't expect to start 2007 season on time

Sign Mulder to a 2 or 3 year incentive laden deal? Thoughts?

On Sunday, Minaya ticked off a list of candidates to join the rotation, and for once this season, none of them was Jose Lima.

by rfloh on Sep 16, 2006 10:30 AM PDT reply actions

Hell no..

Seen that act before....

by BleacherDave on Sep 16, 2006 10:54 AM PDT up reply actions

After what he said after leaving Oakland...

..let him rot.

"I smell like a meadow." - Yuniesky Betancourt

by Ozzz on Sep 16, 2006 11:36 AM PDT up reply actions

This sounds weird...

In addition to his availability, surgery will likely affect Mulder's marketability. He is a free agent for the first time this winter. Still, Mulder said he has yet to ponder what the procedure may mean for his offseason decision-making process.

"I haven't given that one single thought, nor do I really care*," he said.

(emphasis mine)

He doesn't care? Regardless of whether or not he has any control over GMs' opinions about his surgery, or how too-early it is for him to be making decisions, shouldn't he at least care?

"I miss taking showers with Kendall" ~ Brian Giles

by Poppy on Sep 17, 2006 9:30 AM PDT up reply actions

oops...

meant to emphasize the nor do I really care part of the quote

"I miss taking showers with Kendall" ~ Brian Giles

by Poppy on Sep 17, 2006 9:31 AM PDT up reply actions

Oh my god, oh my god...

I mean, just thinking of playoff baseball is giving me a heart attack.

That is all.

by CyZito on Sep 16, 2006 10:55 AM PDT reply actions

so this is why

sal and arakSOT have been stockpiling cow dung...

http://www.time.com/time/business/article/0,8599,1226355,00.html

A's v Giants "is kind of like the difference between going to see the Ramones and going to see the Bee Gees. A's fans will go see the Ramones." -BB 07/27/05

by xbhaskarx on Sep 16, 2006 11:01 AM PDT reply actions

I wish...

Harden's simulated game was televised.

by CyZito on Sep 16, 2006 11:56 AM PDT reply actions

Urban just gave a recap of it...

on Marty Lurie's pregame show. Basically, he topped out at 96, got stronger as he went along - his last 6 pitches in the 4th inning were 91+, and, according to Urbs, had a nasty changeup of which he had great command. Jeremy Brown roped the 96 fastball off the wall.

Urbs and Marty both think he should work out of the pen....

by BleacherDave on Sep 16, 2006 12:01 PM PDT up reply actions

yea...

Thanks for the recap!!! GREAT TO HEAR!

I am torn on the Pen issue too. I completely understand Billy's thinking regarding trying to find out if he can start or not.

I mean the bottom line -- whatever happens this year -- Billy needs to know if Rich can be a major league starting pitcher. Clearly the talent is there, but if you can't stay off the DL you're not much use. Thus he needs to know if he's shopping for 1 or 2 new pieces of the rotation next year.

I mean clearly, his most value is as a SP. But if he just can't do it year in and year out perhaps we should throw him in for the ninth and have street slot into the 8th. That would be pretty dominant!

by CyZito on Sep 16, 2006 12:09 PM PDT up reply actions

Bunnies wants to play, too

BoCro claims he might come back:

and this ...

Crosby said. "I've never been a good cheerleader.

Good ... because we already have Witasick in a tube top, I really don't think Crosby would look that much better in a cheerleader skirt.

by Rickeyfan on Sep 16, 2006 12:14 PM PDT reply actions

Harden to pitch on Thurday?

Here's a link to the yahoo article

and Guillen is pissed there isn't beer inhis clubhouse after the game (quoted from yahoo):

Chicago had plenty of frustration after the game, and not just because its hitters couldn't solve Loaiza. Guillen was stunned by the A's postgame beer ban, which has been in place since midseason following Loaiza's arrest on suspicion of drunk driving.

"He doesn't run my club. I run my club," the mercurial manager said of A's general manager Billy Beane while complaining loudly within earshot of reporters.</font>

I don't know how to post quotes in that nifty gray box. There should be an HTML BASICS for POSTING diary up on the home page.

Live forever or die trying.

by oaklandpete on Sep 16, 2006 1:35 PM PDT reply actions

it's in the FAQ

but it is a little buried in there. a succinct list of commonly used tags would be nice.

by rebus on Sep 16, 2006 1:37 PM PDT up reply actions

YES!

Oh my god!

by CyZito on Sep 16, 2006 1:45 PM PDT up reply actions

Poppy put HTML help

in her glossary, but Blez hasn't updated the one on the front page to include the updates.

Help:

http://www.athleticsnation.com/story/2006/9/7/53054/51473

http://www.athleticsnation.com/comments/2006/9/7/53054/51473/57#57

Something tells me Joe would not be cool with that.

by Jennifer on Sep 16, 2006 1:53 PM PDT up reply actions

ah

thanks!

by rebus on Sep 16, 2006 1:57 PM PDT up reply actions

Wear it, Ozzie.

You have all of October to drink beer.

"The first night, we were right there," Bradley said. "All we needed was a couple of touchdowns, and we would have had them."

by jeepers on Sep 16, 2006 10:16 PM PDT up reply actions

Prospects website

My friend is starting a new prospect website that covers prospects of all the teams. It's just starting out so there's not too much context yet, but he has a few interviews scheduled that should be interesting. If you're interested you can go to www.projectprospect.com and check it out! Thanks!

"I never saw a hooligan I did like. They're like left-handed pitchers, they all have a screw loose somewhere." - The Asphalt Jungle

by drmmerchk on Sep 16, 2006 4:30 PM PDT reply actions

here's a link

incase anyone is too lazy to copy and paste :)

http://www.projectprospect.com

"I never saw a hooligan I did like. They're like left-handed pitchers, they all have a screw loose somewhere." - The Asphalt Jungle

by drmmerchk on Sep 16, 2006 5:17 PM PDT up reply actions

I'm too lazy to copy & paste

But not too lazy to click and bookmark. Thanks! :)

"I miss taking showers with Kendall" ~ Brian Giles

by Poppy on Sep 17, 2006 9:38 AM PDT up reply actions

Great photo-set

from today's game on yahoo.

Link Disclaimer: Photo's at this link are time-sensitive.

"When the A's suck, the terrorists win" ~ Poppy

by eamb on Sep 16, 2006 6:10 PM PDT reply actions

Johnny Knoxville threw the first pitch!!!!!!!

Why was i there and didnt even know that he threw the first pitch?

by iloveoakland on Sep 16, 2006 9:06 PM PDT up reply actions

Did he throw it at Milton's head...

...like a Jackass would?

"I miss taking showers with Kendall" ~ Brian Giles

by Poppy on Sep 17, 2006 9:39 AM PDT up reply actions

for the record, Ozzie also said

that Frank Thomas was perhaps the greatest right handed hitter he's ever seen

by OaklandSi on Sep 16, 2006 9:05 PM PDT reply actions

Where Are They Now Dept.

Former Gnat Tsuyoshi Shinjo is being encouraged to run for the (sort of) equivalent of Congress in Japan, by the ruling (not very) Liberal Democratic Party.
No word yet on whether he can wear the orange wristbands.

http://mdn.mainichi-msn.co.jp/national/news/20060915p2a00m0na020000c.html

"The theme of the day is murky." -- Ken Macha, August 11, 2006

by Englishmajor on Sep 16, 2006 9:21 PM PDT reply actions

OT: I'd like some help

I'm looking for a spreadsheet that will do an optimizing calculation for me; so I'll either have to find it and download it (perhaps having to actually purchase it) or create it myself (but how?).

What I have is rolls of fabric that are shipped to me -- rolls of fabric that I must receive off of a container. These fabric rolls are shipped at various lengths (anywhere from 40 to 65 meters in length). While I'm receiving the fabric rolls, I'm also processing orders against the just arriving shippment -- creating "hot" goods that I have to ship out right away and which do not get stored into inventory as the others generally do.

What I need is a spreadsheet that would prompt me (dedicated field) to input the total amount of meters of fabric I need for an order and then will do a search through a "list" of inputed individual sized rolls of fabric, selecting the individual rolls that would fulfill the order and do it optimally. The tolerance can be + 10% or -5% (for what it is worth, this seems like a lot slop to me and makes me glad that I am not a business level fabric customer). What I want is a spreadsheet that will select the best fabric rolls that meet the criteria and also happen to be the closest to the actual ordered size.

Anyone know where I can find this or how to create it? Download.com didn't seem very helpful from the 'advanced search' Stat Heads, up!

4 8 15 16 23 42

by LowcountryJoe on Sep 17, 2006 5:41 AM PDT reply actions

I would hire someone for that

You need someone who can handle advanced Excel functions and make them work for your custom needs. Craigslist has a "Computer Gigs" section, you could post your need in there for free.

Link

"When the A's suck, the terrorists win" ~ Poppy

by eamb on Sep 17, 2006 8:54 AM PDT up reply actions

Sounds more like a database

then a spreadsheet.

by Zonis on Sep 17, 2006 9:06 AM PDT up reply actions

It does

But then again, Excel can pretty much act like a db if the data isn't too robust.

"When the A's suck, the terrorists win" ~ Poppy

by eamb on Sep 17, 2006 9:08 AM PDT up reply actions

agreed

You can get someone to build a database or spreadsheet for you, that you can then upkeep yourself. Excel or FileMaker or something similar would be my program of choice, but see if you can get a poor starving grad student to build it for you - they can tell you what's best.

There's no crying in baseball!

by gigglingone on Sep 17, 2006 9:40 AM PDT up reply actions

OT

Some jerkpants broke into my car and grabbed my radio right from under my nose last night. Good news? They failed to notice my super heavy duty gauge jumper cables in the back seat! HAHA, jokes on them, those cables are worth more than the crappy radio they stole.

"When the A's suck, the terrorists win" ~ Poppy

by eamb on Sep 17, 2006 9:48 AM PDT reply actions

When I was 16...

...someone broke into my car while it was parked outside my job, and they unalphabetized all the tapes in my tape case (yes, cassette tapes... shut up...). Nothing was stolen, including the easy-to-remove new tape deck. I think the perp must have known me and how much having my stuff simply disorganized would bug me...

"I miss taking showers with Kendall" ~ Brian Giles

by Poppy on Sep 17, 2006 9:54 AM PDT up reply actions

A lady I work with told me a story last week.

She said her grandmother's home was broken into recently, or so her grandmother said. I asked what was missing. She said her grandmother could find TWO things missing: her cast-iron Dutch oven and her ceramic dog collection.

Something tells me Joe would not be cool with that.

by Jennifer on Sep 17, 2006 10:28 AM PDT up reply actions

when i was in college....

someone broke into my car...all they took was my pool cue and a couple indigo girls cd's. they left the stereo, the textbooks, and about 15 other cd's that were much more popular than the indigo girls....odd...

There's no crying in baseball!

by gigglingone on Sep 17, 2006 10:38 AM PDT up reply actions

There's your Indigo Girls

fan base for you. (;

by mikeA on Sep 17, 2006 1:05 PM PDT up reply actions

Derrek Lee is done for the year

http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/article.jsp?ymd=20060917&content_id=1667409&vkey=news_mlb &fext=.jsp&c_id=mlb

A tearful Derrek Lee said he will not play for the rest of the season with the Chicago Cubs so he can be with his 3-year-old daughter, Jada, who has lost vision in one eye.

Something tells me Joe would not be cool with that.

by Jennifer on Sep 17, 2006 10:29 AM PDT reply actions