I'm just going to copy and paste the press release that I just received below:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
JANUARY 30, 2009
FROM: MICHAEL FRANK, CURATOR-IN-CHIEF, MUSEUM OF BAD ART
WEB SITE: MuseumOfBadArt.org
MUSEUM OF BAD ART TO AUCTION PAINTING FOR BRANDEIS
As curator-in-chief of the Museum of Bad Art (MOBA), I, along with most of my colleagues in the art-world, was shocked to learn that the trustees of Brandeis University have decided to close the Rose Art Museum and sell the valuable collection to raise money to cover a deficit in their operating budget. We assume that they have considered and rejected alternatives such as renaming the university "Brandeis Bank" to qualify for the federal Troubled Assets Relief Program (TARP), digging up and selling the shrubbery that currently decorates the beautiful Waltham campus, and assigning undergraduates to patrol the Mass Pike Weston toll plaza with collection cans.
MOBA does not sell items from our Permanent Collection, although we have so far not been tempted with the opportunity to liquidate any of our works into "six figures".
In support of the Rose Museum in crisis, the MOBA Board of Directors have decided to sell a picture from our Rejection Collection; "Studies in Digestion" by Deborah Grumet. Executed with colored pencil on paper, this framed 18"x 24" piece portrays the human digestive system skillfully drawn in the styles of Keith Haring, Georges Serat, Rene Margritte (with mislabeled organs a la the Key of Dreams Series), and a Picasso single line drawing.
"Studies in Digestion" is offered on eBay, with the auction closing February 8, 2009 at 1:37pm PST. The listing address is: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=250365321206
An official MOBA Certificate of Rejection will accompany the item.
The proceeds of this auction will be donated to Brandeis University in the hopes that we can help prevent the disintegration and sale of the Rose Art Museum collection.
Happy bidding!
Saturday, January 31, 2009
And Our Bong Smoking Olympian Is....
....Michael Phelps. According to this picture from News of the World, Michael Phelps likes to hit the pipe. I'm sure the marketing dollars may start to decline just a bit. Not exactly the brightest move in a series of bad moves (including dating a Las Vegas stripper) by a guy who seemed to have some big money deals ahead of him as long as he stayed clean. Towlie would be proud...
This quote is my favorite:
“He looked just as natural with a bong in his hands as he does swimming in the pool. He was the gold medal winner of bong hits. Michael ended up getting a little paranoid, though, because before too long he looked like he was nervous and ran out of the place.”
Amazing...
Well I guess he used that large lung capacity for another use...
Eli's Going Get the Big Bucks
The National Football Post reports that Eli Manning and the New York Giants are close to a new deal that will make him one of the highest paid players in the NFL. One clause that's keeping the deal from being finalized is that he requested is that they eliminate wind at Giants Stadium.
Who Is Our Bong-Smoking Olympic Hero?
From Drudge.
"PAPER: OLYMPIC HERO PICTURED SMOKING BONG... DEVELOPING...
'NEWS OF THE WORLD' SET TO ROCK SPORTS WITH SHOCK PHOTO, STORY..."
Deadspin has an idea of who it might be (wouldn't be surprised if it was Michael Phelps considering some pictures we've already seen of him...)
"PAPER: OLYMPIC HERO PICTURED SMOKING BONG... DEVELOPING...
'NEWS OF THE WORLD' SET TO ROCK SPORTS WITH SHOCK PHOTO, STORY..."
Deadspin has an idea of who it might be (wouldn't be surprised if it was Michael Phelps considering some pictures we've already seen of him...)
Friday, January 30, 2009
My Super Bowl Squares
| | Steelers | Cards | Q1% | Q2% | Q3% | Q4% | Overall EV% | Ownership |
| Score 1 | 2 | 2 | <0.1% | <0.1% | <0.1% | <0.1% | <0.1% | Me |
| Score 2 | 7 | 3 | 4.7% | 4.5% | 3.3% | 2.0% | 2.7% | Me |
| Score 3 | 4 | 4 | 0.2% | 1.8% | 2.3% | 1.5% | 1.5% | Me |
| Score 4 | 9 | 7 | 0.1% | 0.5% | 0.7% | 0.8% | 0.7% | Me |
| Score 5 | 0 | 5 | 0.1% | 0.2% | 0.4% | 0.7% | 0.6% | Mom |
| Score 6 | 3 | 4 | 0.9% | 2.3% | 2.3% | 1.5% | 1.6% | Paul |
I posted here the scores from my office Super Bowl "squares" in which I have a stake. Four of them are mine and two I get a finder's fee for, so I'll be rooting for all of them. I read a 2005 Sabernomics breakdown of the odds...but then saw there was a 2008 review and revision to that which is where I got the values from above. Basically, I got the absolute worst square on the board which is 2/2. This has basically has a .04% chance of happening (though Paul is writing this game down as 12-2...I'll believe it when I see it...haha). So I can forget it. I'm riding on my 7/3. I have never won anything in these pools. I always end up with the worst numbers. But I'm keeping my fingers crossed.
A few other afternoon links:
-Securities Industry traders, say that they expect the Steelers to win, but to take the points.
-I wish that Monsters vs. Aliens was not going to be an animated film, because the cast seems AWESOME.
-Now this is luck (H/T Wendy)
-Freakonomics: Treasury Hero and Princeton's Angus Deaton on development economics (I got both Bachelors and Masters degrees in Economics and I was a bit lost...so I can't say it's an easy read).
-Waiting for this shoe to drop in regards to JP Morgan and the Madoff scandal.
-I think that we should keep Blago around solely for the entertainment value
-For big Rangers fans (or just really big hockey fans), this story about John Muckler is great.
-Tek back to the Red Sox...hopefully one more tussle with A-rod is in store
-Over at the Astron blog on the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act.
-Over 4000 signatures for the Rose Art
Off to Massachusetts for the weekend...will update when I come and post my "airtight" Super Bowl prediction (get ready to bet the other way!)
Rose Art And Other Mid-Friday Links
Lots of goodies
-Rose Art Museum articles: Brandeis financial troubles on The Daily Beast (H/T Jay), the New York Times article from 1991 about Brandeis planning to sell its art (H/T Ari), and from Boston NPR (H/T Sarah) with the quote below:
"Lois Foster, who has a wing of the museum named after her, and serves on its board, is talking about launching a campaign to stop contributions to Brandeis."
Others:
-The Greatest Super Bowl Snack Ever (H/T Sarah)
-Fannie Mae news
-Google hits a deer.
-Bloomberg announces $1 billion in cuts with 20,000 jobs lost (15,000 of them teachers).
-Rod Blagojevich late night jokes (H/T Wendy)
-Derek Jeter stole more than a base and teenage girls hearts
-Good-bye to Shea (H/T Deadspin)
-5 more Super Bowl commercials
-Amazing! Could this be Harry Potter in Equus?
-This is great news from stem cell research
-Wall Street Journal says to cut pay, not people
-Last summer's missed opportunity (it involves Eliot Spitzer)
-Deleting friends from Facebook, New York Times-style
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Great Sign, Great Escape...and Other Afternoon Links
-Maybe the best sign ever...(a wonderful prank...H/T Jim)
-Whoa...Robert Reich has a blog!
-I feel a little safer going to New Zealand in a month (woo hoo!) because their criminals seem to be totally inept, as these guys whose escape was stopped--by a pole. Video here
-Have to say I'm really sad to see Sam Weinman go. His hockey honest and humorous hockey analysis will surely be missed.
-Torre stands behind his book. Bashes Bernie Williams (H/T Paul). And you can understand why Roger Clemens would be a little, um, heated during games (H/T Pete Abraham).
-Speaking of big balls...
-Wow...so the Steelers should guard Larry Fitzgerald? You don't say! The Terrible Towel (don't forget it!!!). And the Super Bowl is not that big a beer holiday (H/T livethelushlife on Twitter)
-Technicolor Yankee Stadium.
-A good Rick Reilly article!
-Good-bye to CDS as we know it?
-Freakonomics blog: Hopefully spurring more free online content (23,000% increase in sales!!!!), putting a price on friendship, California gets a "green" light, coupons are more popular than Britney Spears, true cost of credit cards, the failure of macroeconomics, do uncommon names turn kids into criminals?
-I thought the weather delaying my flight yesterday sucks...but this probably sucks more.
-Also sucks to live in California.
-Bloomberg goes after salt.
-Cesspool in Dubai
-The Maverick is back from her hole (Tina Fey, one last time?)
-Happy Birthday, Sixpoint
-And Starbucks is not only cutting jobs, but also decaf coffee after noon (though now they say they will still provide upon request)
iGoogle's Jon Stewart quote of the day:
"NO!!!! You cannot interrupt David Blain’s Dive Of Death to give us news about our economies.. dive of death." -(The Daily Show 9/25/08)
Hopefully more Rose Art Museum updates later if I can find something good...
Rose Art Links
Over 3,400 signatures on the Save The Rose petition
And great stuff over at savetheroseart.org
Lots of links today for the Rose Art...just going to list them all:
The Hoot recording of President Reinharz answering questions.
NPR has an interview with Boston art collector David Genser who donated a print
The Art Law Blog has some great stuff: initial reaction, morning after, the evening after, about not being able to sell individual pieces, more on all on all or nothing, more about the story, then, lastly "Think about it"
Innermost Parts with a lot, lot more articles.
The Arctic Penguin with a suggestion that it was the Rose's failure, not Madoff.
And, TIME magazine about the Madoff selloff ends with this unfortunate quote:
Meanwhile, here's a statement I'll best Rose Art Museum Director Michael Rush wishes he hadn't made to the Brandeis alumni magazine two years ago. After telling an interviewer that he planned to have a formal appraisal done to put a dollar value on the museum's collection, Rush added:
“I'm confident that, after its real estate, art is the university's largest financial asset, and I want everyone to know it.”
Obviously the trustees got the news.
Brandeis endowment down 25 percent, budget gap projected to grow to $23 milion by 2014
This news according to the Justice. I was expecting some more to come out on this story, but this is a lot worse than I expected. It's time for Alumni to step up to the plate to help out Brandeis
-Andrew
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
Rose on Front Page of NYT Art Section
Really good article about the Rose Art Museum situation on the front page of the Arts section of the New York Times. Make sure to check it out. Heading to Jamaica for the day so updates won't occur until tonight, but I'll make sure to post updates then.
http://mobile.nytimes.com/article?a=305559&f=29
Also, Bloomberg article: http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601088&sid=aflP5HOcTgRU&refer=muse
-Andrew
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
An Update on the Rose Art Museum
"Well, I guess you can cut the arts as much as you want, Gene. Sooner or later, these kids aren't going to have anything to read or write about."
- Mr. Holland's Opus
- Mr. Holland's Opus
That quote from Mr. Holland's Opus occurs when Mr. Holland learns they're shutting down the music department because of budget cuts. I've heard a lot of people today (Alumni, current students, parents, donors and outsiders) express very strong feelings about the situation. It is a shame we are in this economic crisis. And measures need to be taken to make sure that Brandeis does not continue to fall behind. But this was done all the wrong ways. Brandeis never planned ahead and was caught flat footed and that's why we (and that's an extremely collective "we") are losing the Rose Art Museum; a decision that was made without any input from anyone outside the Board.
My biggest problem is that there was never any effort to save it. If Brandeis had come to myself and my fellow Alumni saying that the budget deficit was so great that they would have to get rid of the Rose Art Museum and all of the collection, I'm sure that my fellow Alumni, students, parents and outside donors would get behind this mission. Look at the outpouring of support in the aftermath. There was never any effort made to take a community that is known to be great organizers behind a cause and give them that cause to organize behind. We're really big at getting behind causes--trust me.
Another problem that I have with this whole situation is the mismanagement of financial planning done at Brandeis. Long before most of us ever knew who Bernie Madoff was, we all knew that the economy wasn't doing so well. And although we didn't have a large endowment, we were accumulating more than we ever had before under Jehuda, Brandeis' CEO. But Brandeis wasn't used to having all this money, and so like a rapper who had finally made it big, they wanted to spend that money on big, fancy things without ever worrying what would hapeen when the cash ran out. Since I came to the school in 2002, I can't even count the amount of new construction that has gone on. And even through this economic climate, Brandeis has gone full speed ahead with construction of a new C-Store, a new admissions building, a new science quad, brand new Rosenthal suites, among many others. There is no area of campus that hasn't been updated at some point since 2002.
But any child who has ever played Monopoly knows that just because you have the money, doesn't mean you just go out and buy houses...because God-forbid you ever come upon tough economic times, you're going to have to sell something back for half the price. And that's EXACTLY what Brandeis is doing now. This is not even remotely a good business decision when they're getting 50 cents on the dollar for these pieces of art. And unlike closing the pool which can be reopened at any time, you cannot just get these unique pieces of art back when your finances look better.
Here's the worst scenario: what's going on right now. The alumni, students, parents, donors, faculty and public are all blindsided. People who gave money to the Rose or donated art are furious and refuse to ever give again. Alumni are upset and stop donations. The school somehow makes $10 million but there's a budget shortfall next year...so there goes X and X could equal an unsucessful sports team or the music program or the Bran Van or The Justice or WBRS...(this is not so unlikely, since the economy isn't getting better anytime soon). And of course, they won't tell anyone they're doing it next time too until it's done (the stupidity of that is astounding--people are still upset about the fact they ended the football program without telling everyone and that happened in the '60s). This leads to even more backlash from donors.
Here's my solution for Brandeis. I have found out that you cannot sell some of the pieces of art without selling them all, so that option is out of the picture. But since keeping the Museum open isn't making money for Brandeis (and has been described by some as a money pit), temporarily shut down the Museum. Don't sell any art. Reach out to the alumni, parents, students, concerned public, teachers, etc and tell them this: We need to raise $x million. For current students, we're going to do this by raising your tuition dollars by ~$500 next year. That's less than $50 a month. Let's say that raises $2 million. We say to the students: "listen, we understand you guys paid a certain amount of money to have a spring concert, but we're going to have to cancel it this year and the money will go to keeping the Rose Art Museum open for a big fundraising night. We're having a danceathon DJ'ed by WBRS, with prizes for whoever can donate the most money". We then reach out to the rest of the population interested in seeing the Rose succeed and say: "listen, we read your petitions and Facebook groups and letters and such and we'll keep the Rose open as long as you can all raise $8 million by April 15th." 1100 people so far have signed that petition. Many others are out there who are interested in helping (including, I'm sure, wealthy individuals outside Brandeis' regular donor list who would be interested in helping the arts). And lastly, Mr. Reinharz, we're going to start charging you rent for that free house that Brandeis has provided for you. We like you and all, but we sort of need the money so we can save another building--this one on campus.
I think it's doable. Or at least can get us close. And it's a helluva lot better than what's going on right now.
In other Rose news:
The online petition has blown past the goal of 1,000 signatures.
Savetheroseart.org has continuous updates on the situation and is a great resource for information on the topic including a page with the voice of the Alumni and parents. And I've pasted the website creators' letter below.
And a Facebook Group has been set up as well.
Let's hope this campaign continues going strong. Thanks for all the support so far!
Dear Fellow Brandesians,
Thank you for the overwhelming support of this website, the Facebook groups, blogs and petition site. Everyone's involvement speaks highly to the deep connections we all have with our alma mater and our determination to support it during these trying times. The sixties are over, yet the legacy of activism of the Brandeis students and alumni base remains strong. Our combined involvement on and off campus is what made Brandeis such a wonderful place to live and study.
We have been in close contact with several administrators at the School as well as those at the Rose Art museum. There have been some updates since the last post on the site. Many of us have suggested that Brandeis only sell a select few pieces of art to raise money, while still keeping the museum and the vast majority of the art. According to a Facebook post we were informed that, legally, its all or nothing. If the museum sells just a few pieces of art, it must go into a special fund for art acquisitions. Only by liquidating the entire collection can they use the money from the sale of art to "pay the bills."
We are asking visitors to our page and the Facebook groups to make a pledge toward saving the Rose Art. We will be posting the results of our combined efforts on this website. Many have applauded our ultimate goal, yet the road ahead remains steep. We have to come together as one to help our alma mater. One of the greatest funding shortfalls facing Brandeis is that of scholarship funds. As a scholarship recipient myself, I know first-hand how important that is to the University for attracting the best minds and making it one of the most distinguished universities in the world. I would have not been able to attend Brandeis had it not been for the scholarships I was awarded. As you make your pledge please select whether you would like that money to go toward the scholarship fund if we fail to save the Rose Art Museum.
Thank you all for your overwhelming support!
Sincerely,
Endri Tolka '03, Taher Baderkhan '03, Vidian Tolka '00
Gooooooaaaaallllll
-Andrew
The Most Underrated Links Ever
The subject of the Post comes from Bill Simmons column about rooting for the underrated is overrated.
-RIP John Updike.
-No one in New York actually gets elected anymore.
-First Citi was going to go through with the plane order, then they grounded it.
-Obama: Gave his first TV interview to Al-Arabiya. Received Mad Magazine treatment (which will now only be quarterly...sad). Faces a tough decision on Cape Cod wind farms. Was 14 times bigger than the Super Bowl (H/T Deadspin on the last one).
-More thoughts on the Torre Book from Joel Sherman. Buster Olney weighs in and says Torre can't hide behind the author.
-Hal Steinbrenner on WFAN.
-The New York Rangers goal: home ice advantage according to Sam Weinman. I think acquiring a scorer and an upgrade on defense...but we can agree to disagree.
-More on the Google Web Drive!
-Hartford Mayor latest politician to be arrested (H/T Wendy)
-Lego Baseball with a Red Sox tilt (see, I'm not biased) (H/T Deadspin)
-Those bailout recipients are a-holes.
-Benicio del Toro is channeling his inner Vinny Chase. Benicio would make an awesome Medeian.
-Another safe place to be, electronic trading staff (H/T Wendy)
-Lastly, NYC eyes a split ride fare. Maybe it's just me, but I just don't see this working.
Save the Rose
I saw on the comments section of one of the articles that some people had created websites to save the Rose. I recommend you visit both of these:
The Boston Globe article on this situation is their most sent article of the day so I hope the information is getting out there.
Some more information was posted by another commenter (unverified, but figured I'd post):
The full collection, according to the director, is worth $300m at a minimum. On the other hand, the museum draws only 13,000 visitors a year, is almost unknown outside of the art world, and lacks the space to exhibit its treasures. Plans to build a huge new wing evaporated a few months ago, when the donor withdrew.
Let's not let Madoff and the economic climate dictate what happens here...
More Rose Art Closing Info
I cannot really express the upset I've heard from many fellow Alumni about this quick decision to not only close the Rose Art Museum, but to sell off the entire collection. The Brandeis "Justice" has some more information about exactly what happened.
I understand the need to make some changes in tough economic times. But unlike faculty cuts or the closing the pool, once you sell this artwork, it's gone. And we're in such a down economy, you will be selling those pieces of art for, if you're lucky, 50 cents on the dollar. Really a shame. Will get some more reactions and hopefully post them here. Feel free to post comments below.
And after the great start the women's basketball team had gotten off to, it seems to have gone sour, judging by this passage in the Justice after a recent loss against Emory University:
Coach Carol Simon could not be reached for comment by press time, and guard Jessica Chapin '10, the Judges' leading scorer, who missed nine of her 11 field goal attempts against Emory, declined to comment on the game.
Come on Brandeis, get your act together!
Monday, January 26, 2009
Really Bad News for Brandeis and the Rose
Really bad news today for Brandeis University and the Rose Art Museum, according to the Boston Globe (H/T Wolinsky). I'm not much of an art person, but some of the stuff they had there was amazing (although many of the better things was kept in storage). Now they're selling off their art. The fact they're going to have to do this has a lot to do with losing donor money due to the Madoff Scandal (as pointed out by the LA Times). Also some news on the different cuts and restructurings Brandeis has announced it will have to make due to the financial crisis. Sad times indeed for my alma mater.
Channeling Uma Thurman Once Again
So not only did Freckles survive being buried alive (Uma Thurman in Kill Bill: Volume 2), but to revive her, Bill had to use an adrenaline shot to the heart (Uma Thurman in Pulp Fiction). I think Kiefer Sutherland may have a crush on Uma. I think he also may have a crush on Freckles.
"24" Season 7 hasn't exactly gotten itself off to a great start. I found myself bored at times this episode. Even the plane blowing up was less fantastic than similar things in other seasons. I'm hoping they pick up the pace and come up with some new plot twists.
I like Chloe's new look, a lot. Bill...not so much. The best line was Chloe's "stay-at-home mom" bit. She always seems to be the comedic relief this show needs at times and this season seems like no exception.
And the plot is sort of weak up until this point. Tony, Chloe and Bill thought they could bring down a big international government conspiracy? At least when they did this in Season 5, they had the Secretary of State and a government agency behind them.
I have to say, I'm still excited and hooked to see where they're going with this season. But I'm just hoping Jack does some more work at adding to this (H/T to Jim)
"24" Season 7 hasn't exactly gotten itself off to a great start. I found myself bored at times this episode. Even the plane blowing up was less fantastic than similar things in other seasons. I'm hoping they pick up the pace and come up with some new plot twists.
I like Chloe's new look, a lot. Bill...not so much. The best line was Chloe's "stay-at-home mom" bit. She always seems to be the comedic relief this show needs at times and this season seems like no exception.
And the plot is sort of weak up until this point. Tony, Chloe and Bill thought they could bring down a big international government conspiracy? At least when they did this in Season 5, they had the Secretary of State and a government agency behind them.
I have to say, I'm still excited and hooked to see where they're going with this season. But I'm just hoping Jack does some more work at adding to this (H/T to Jim)
Afternoon Links
Some afternoon links from around the world...
-Some more non-surprising things about Torre's book emerged. But the one "interesting" one is that Torre realized Carl Pavano would fail in New York because of a wedding rehearsal dinner...ummm...and Pete Abraham says that nothing ever ends well, which is also quite true.
-Wal-Mart going green to make more green.
-Incoming Senator Kirsten Gillibrand may have a little bit of problem from Hispanics after this headline...And she may have 2010 competition from one of my favorite New York Rangers players (H/T to Rangers Report).
-Russ Feingold wants to introduce an amendment banning gubernatorial appointments. And I couldn't agree more. Although runoff elections would be dominated by special interests groups, at least the person elected would be done so by the people.
-He's #30 on the all-time list right now, but if A-Rod drives in at least 100 runs a season over the next 7 seasons, he'll easily shatter Hank Aaron's record. At his career pace, it would take him less than 5 1/2 seasons. Yet another record he's in line to take down.
-I'm doing my part to protect wild turtles (H/T Sarah).
-TWPs most ridiculous moments on "24". I think they sort of left out all the times Jack has "died" and come back to life as well and how well-recovered he is afterward. Only at the end of Season 2 does he seem to have any lasting effects.
-SAG Awards were last night. I didn't watch. But I would like to comment a bit about the TV categories:
-I know there's a lot of love for "House" and especially Hugh Laurie...but this award should have gone to Michael C. Hall or Jon Hamm. Not that Laurie's role as House isn't good, but I just believe the other two deserved accolades for their performances.
-Sally Field won because she is Sally Field. I know that. But Elisabeth Moss was phenomenal on "Mad Men". Or maybe one of the other women. I don't know. I just say spread the love a little.
-"30 Rock" is a really funny show, but I think that Alec Baldwin rode the wave to his award. I think any of those actors on there would have been worthy.
-I love Tina Fey...but I also love Mary-Louise Parker. So while I can't quibble about this one, I wouldn't have been disappointed if it had gone to Nancy Botwin.
-How is "Weeds" a comedy and "Dexter" a drama? Not saying that "Dexter" shouldn't be a drama, but I don't see how they fit into two different categories like that. PLEASE explain that to me...
One of the Coolest Photos, Ever
From the inauguration, this awesome 1,474 megapixel photo made up 220 images is one of the coolest photos I've ever seen (H/T to The Daily Dish)
Pettitte Headed Back the Yanks
I was pretty sure it would get done at some point, but now ESPN.com is pointing out the Andy Pettitte is heading back to the Yankees. Someone asked why I didn't put Pettitte on the list for possible Hall of Famers yesterday. And maybe it was an oversight. But I really just don't see him getting in. I understand that Pettitte had some great stats, especially for a left-hander. Among players currently signed, he ranks 3rd in wins and his .629 winning % is pretty damn good. He racked up another 14 wins in the postseason where his teams went 18-7 in postseason series. Pettitte also ranked in the top 6 of Cy Young voting 5 times.
The key for any Pettitte-to-the-Hall candidacy to carry any weight would be for him to have a few effective seasons still left in the tank. Pettitte is "only" 36 and has very similar statistics to Mike Mussina through age 36 (according to Baseball-Reference.com, he's the most similar through 36). From age 36 onward, "Moose" won 49 games, including 20 to close out his career last year. I think it would take another 50 wins or so to get Pettitte into the running. Doable, but not very likely.
Will "24" Rest After Day 8?
It's been a real question on a lot of people's minds and Ausiello talks to Kiefer about it here. I think that they will keep Kiefer alive for the "24" movie series to be a possibility. But other than that, who knows. They say the two possibilities are Jack can have a happy ending or he can die...but that really isn't the end of the choices: he could be in jail, he could be unhappy and free, he could be wounded and recovering, etc.
But the problem with "24" since season 3 is that the plots have been recycled way too much. After another season of this, I'm not sure there will be a lot that will continue to capture my attention from week to week. I think that Jack needs to make some selfless decision at the end of "Day 8" that will result in him going to jail or killing someone from his past that's wronged him again/taken something else away from him. Maybe this is where Kim gets back involved. Or Audrey. I think that a movie can start with his sentence being over/being commuted/being pardoned (like anyone would think Jack wouldn't be pardoned after his service to this country...that's why this season's "Senate hearings" are somewhat laughable).
I think the series can't go on past 8 seasons. There's a problem in sports sometimes of stars hanging on too long and ruining their image. I think that "24" needs to quit while it's still got me on the edge of my seat and excited from week to week.
Let's Get Drunk
I'm just going to post this article and let you read it for yourselves (H/T to livethelushlife via Twitter). Interesting study for men.
Morning Links
Not a ton this morning...but some good ones
-Google plans to make PCs history. Or something like that. I already reported before on G-drive, but I guess some feel it's controversial. I bet if it wasn't Google doing it, they wouldn't feel the same way, but I digress...
-GE will hold on to it's AAA S&P Rating...for now (up 3.5% in premarket trading)
-A scary article about stock prices possibly headed for zero (I own two of these, so let's hope they're wrong)
-And I think that we need to all be done with this Kate Winslet crap...I think the new rule is that if you get up there and don't have a speech ready, we give the award to someone else. I think it'll make award shows so much more entertaining. You have 30 seconds to get up there and start a coherent speech...if not, it goes to second place. Ratings would be ridiculous!
And, also, if she's so shocked that she's won for a second time, maybe her performance really wasn't good enough to win. Academy voters, take note. We don't need to go for a trifecta. I rather give it to Paris Hilton. At least she'd have a speech ready. Seriously consider taking her out of the running just because of this. I am now boycotting both The Reader and Revolutionary Road. Take that.
Yankee Thought Before Bed
Why is this story about Torre's book that big of a deal?
We know that fellow players didn't/don't like A-rod
We know that Torre felt betrayed by Cashman at the end
So what new, exciting things are we learning here? Will this be in the same category as the Jay McGwire and Kurt Radomski books?
The one piece of information that was interesting was that the Yankee doctors told George Steinbrenner about Joe Torre's cancer before him?
So the big news is that The Boss was a little scummy at times? Please.
We know that fellow players didn't/don't like A-rod
We know that Torre felt betrayed by Cashman at the end
So what new, exciting things are we learning here? Will this be in the same category as the Jay McGwire and Kurt Radomski books?
The one piece of information that was interesting was that the Yankee doctors told George Steinbrenner about Joe Torre's cancer before him?
So the big news is that The Boss was a little scummy at times? Please.
Sunday, January 25, 2009
LOST, LOST, LOST
I still haven't recovered from the premiere episodes...but I'm going to try to explain what I saw.
I agree with Jay (for some reason in the comments section as "Levi") in one respect: I think that I have just as many/more questions than I had before...
I have to say one thing. I'm a Jack fan. In the Jack/Locke debates, I side with Jack. In the Jack/Sawyer debates, I side with Jack. I know that it's not a coincidence this show opened up on Jack and whether he likes it or not, he's the most important character to this show in many ways.
But one place that I think that Sawyer shines are in episodes like this where he really seems to be the only voice of reason. Regardless of what you think of the ideas behind the show, if any of this shit happened to you in real life, you'd probably question things a bit more...don't you think? If some guy showed up on the island and you didn't trust him not that long before, why would you start taking his theories on time travel that seriously.
(Full disclosure...here's the articles I read before I wrote this: EW recap on "Because You Left", EW recap on "The Lie", TV Guide recap, TWP recap of "Because You Left", TWP recap of "The Lie", Zap2It recap, and a good Chicago Tribune article)
Ok...since there really is no order to this episode, here are some thoughts:
-We know that Asian baby at the beginning who is the child of Marvin Candle (or whatever his name is). We have a few choices here: Miles (probable), Jin (or one of his family members), Sun (or one of her family members...maybe her baby?), or the guy Sun had the affair with. Candle creeps me the fuck out, but he's a really interesting character.
-One of my favorite theories that I heard this past week are the whispers are really people moving through time. Since they can't interact with themselves in the past, they're trying to warn them of impending doom...but instead all they hear are whispers.
-Faraday's interaction with Desmond will end up being an attempt of his to save Charlotte...but will prove bad for the rest of the island dwellers
-So Hurley got advice from two people in these episodes: Ana-Lucia and Sayid. Ana-Lucia said not to go to the police and Sayid said not to trust Ben. Although Hurley seems to have no trust for Sayid, he still goes with his advice over Ana-Lucia's when he turns himself in to avoid Ben.
-The one thing I don't like about the show is that at times it gets too self-referential. Certain characters are supposed to talk for the audience. They're supposed to reference the own craziness of the ideas in the show and how people are supposed to just go along with it. I just feel like at times it's a bit much. Especially with Sawyer's shirt off the whole episode. But I did love Hurley's quick recap of the show so far and his mother's disbelief but assurance she believes him.
-I feel like either Hurley's mom or dad will end up being bad at some point. Total gut. But just a feeling.
-Where is Sun's baby? She travels all this way and no baby? Maybe she's really trying to kill Ben and just get back home as she says and not up to something else as has been suggested. It'll be interesting to find out.
-Frank Lapides is going to play a big role at some point. I just feel it.
-A little more backstory of Miles, Charlotte and Faraday are in order
-Everyone on this show has some daddy issues...do you think maybe Aaron's daddy with reappear at some point? I'm pretty sure Jack's daddy will. And I think Christian is a BIG part of what's going on behind the scenes of this whole island.
-Ben can't be good. He just can't be. Whatever he's trying to do now is to benefit other people, not the Oceanic 6 or the people left...right? We've spent too long with him as a villain to accept him as anything else
-Do you think something happened to Charlotte's mother that she can't remember her name? Maybe something that was changed in the past, changed some event in the future? Just throwing that one out there too...
-Is Alpert angry because Ben made Locke the head of the Others? Do you think he's telling Locke he has to die so that Alpert can take over? Richard Alpert has seemed to be too good up until this point. I think maybe there's something else there. Maybe that's why Ben wants to go back with Locke, to take back over.
-The Losties are jumping through time and people are hung up on how Faraday ended up in the opening scene? Maybe he ended up back there and didn't want to get killed so he tried to blend in. You figure eventually this record has to stop spinning...and then where in time do they end up?
-The record does stop spinning...right?
-If you asked me in Season 1 who the last person I would expect to become evil was, I probably would have said Sun. Now I have no clue what to think of her. Does she blame Kate for the death of Jin? Jack? Ben? Widmore? No one? Will she try to kill Jack in front of Kate to make Kate feel the pain she felt? Will she try to kill Penny in front of Widmore to do the same to him?
-Thought it was interesting that Locke tried to climb up the same vines that Boone fell down from many moons ago trying to get to that plane.
-Mrs. Hawking as Faraday's mom makes almost too much sense...there needs to be some twist there, right? It can't be the same person...Or will it just be like the Claire being Jack's half-sister wink/wink-nod/nod thing we've done for a while?
-British soldiers on the island? Think maybe that one of them was Charles Widmore? (sort of liked that theory...especially after hearing "my island"). But if that's true, what happens now that Locke has stuck a knife in his back?
-What happened to all those children who were kidnapped? Why were they kidnapped? Why did they take Walt? What about those kids from the flight who were kidnapped? Or the flight attendant? Or those kids who were walking through the forest that time when Jin spotted their legs? Did they just drop this plotline a la the polar bears actually being on the island?
-I think these episodes helped to point out so much more that Kate is the most selfish person on this show. There are a lot of selfless characters: Jack at times, Locke at times, even Sawyer at times (I mean he jumped out of a freaking helicopter)...but Kate always seems to be looking out for her own self-interest.
-Who sent the lawyers to Kate's house? My list of top candidates: 1) Ben, 2) Sun, 3) Widmore.
-Jack's brought a lot of people back to life when they've seemed dead...will Locke be the next one he saves?
-I am so conflicted about reading up on LOST spoilers because I don't want a lot of these surprises to be ruined for me...but in some ways, I want to know already. I told people who haven't seen the show yet to wait until it's done and then just watch all the DVDs over a month. It's torture waiting so long in between answers.
-Loved the suggestion that the reason Widmore and Ben "can't kill each other" is because either one or both are dead in the past...which occurs in the future. Might that knife wound of Locke's done it? Is Widmore searching for the island to stop that from happening?
-We've had a lot of people reappear after death. But one person's story which still has lots and lots and lots of questions is Libby's. Why was she in the mental hospital with Hurley? Now we have to ask if this happened in the past or in the future?
-I need to go back to watch that first episode with Desmond and Mrs. Hawking.
-I, for one, love the character development with Jack. He crashes and burns but always needs to come back to play the hero. I think that Jack may be more with it than we think. Maybe I'm giving him too much credit. But he always seems to have a little more of a plan that just following Ben along for the ride. Jack and Ben have always had this sort of Cain and Abel, brotherly, but rivals relationship with each other.
-Jack saved Ben at some point and it seems like Ben may be trying to do the same with Jack here. Maybe I'm wrong, though. As I said before, Ben doesn't ever seem to be able to move to the "good" side
-Juliet and Sawyer are going to get it on at some point. Jack and Kate as well.
-We NEED to find out what Sawyer whispered into Kate's ear before he jumped out of the helicopter
-I don't think it's any coincidence we learn about an Arrow Station as a protective station and then arrows rain down later on the Losties.
-Again...I'll end on a previous note. Faraday is trying to save Charlotte by contacting Desmond...but Desmond is "special" and may not be held to the same rules of effecting future events as others would be
I can't wait for Wednesday! Thoughts and theories are welcome!
I agree with Jay (for some reason in the comments section as "Levi") in one respect: I think that I have just as many/more questions than I had before...
I have to say one thing. I'm a Jack fan. In the Jack/Locke debates, I side with Jack. In the Jack/Sawyer debates, I side with Jack. I know that it's not a coincidence this show opened up on Jack and whether he likes it or not, he's the most important character to this show in many ways.
But one place that I think that Sawyer shines are in episodes like this where he really seems to be the only voice of reason. Regardless of what you think of the ideas behind the show, if any of this shit happened to you in real life, you'd probably question things a bit more...don't you think? If some guy showed up on the island and you didn't trust him not that long before, why would you start taking his theories on time travel that seriously.
(Full disclosure...here's the articles I read before I wrote this: EW recap on "Because You Left", EW recap on "The Lie", TV Guide recap, TWP recap of "Because You Left", TWP recap of "The Lie", Zap2It recap, and a good Chicago Tribune article)
Ok...since there really is no order to this episode, here are some thoughts:
-We know that Asian baby at the beginning who is the child of Marvin Candle (or whatever his name is). We have a few choices here: Miles (probable), Jin (or one of his family members), Sun (or one of her family members...maybe her baby?), or the guy Sun had the affair with. Candle creeps me the fuck out, but he's a really interesting character.
-One of my favorite theories that I heard this past week are the whispers are really people moving through time. Since they can't interact with themselves in the past, they're trying to warn them of impending doom...but instead all they hear are whispers.
-Faraday's interaction with Desmond will end up being an attempt of his to save Charlotte...but will prove bad for the rest of the island dwellers
-So Hurley got advice from two people in these episodes: Ana-Lucia and Sayid. Ana-Lucia said not to go to the police and Sayid said not to trust Ben. Although Hurley seems to have no trust for Sayid, he still goes with his advice over Ana-Lucia's when he turns himself in to avoid Ben.
-The one thing I don't like about the show is that at times it gets too self-referential. Certain characters are supposed to talk for the audience. They're supposed to reference the own craziness of the ideas in the show and how people are supposed to just go along with it. I just feel like at times it's a bit much. Especially with Sawyer's shirt off the whole episode. But I did love Hurley's quick recap of the show so far and his mother's disbelief but assurance she believes him.
-I feel like either Hurley's mom or dad will end up being bad at some point. Total gut. But just a feeling.
-Where is Sun's baby? She travels all this way and no baby? Maybe she's really trying to kill Ben and just get back home as she says and not up to something else as has been suggested. It'll be interesting to find out.
-Frank Lapides is going to play a big role at some point. I just feel it.
-A little more backstory of Miles, Charlotte and Faraday are in order
-Everyone on this show has some daddy issues...do you think maybe Aaron's daddy with reappear at some point? I'm pretty sure Jack's daddy will. And I think Christian is a BIG part of what's going on behind the scenes of this whole island.
-Ben can't be good. He just can't be. Whatever he's trying to do now is to benefit other people, not the Oceanic 6 or the people left...right? We've spent too long with him as a villain to accept him as anything else
-Do you think something happened to Charlotte's mother that she can't remember her name? Maybe something that was changed in the past, changed some event in the future? Just throwing that one out there too...
-Is Alpert angry because Ben made Locke the head of the Others? Do you think he's telling Locke he has to die so that Alpert can take over? Richard Alpert has seemed to be too good up until this point. I think maybe there's something else there. Maybe that's why Ben wants to go back with Locke, to take back over.
-The Losties are jumping through time and people are hung up on how Faraday ended up in the opening scene? Maybe he ended up back there and didn't want to get killed so he tried to blend in. You figure eventually this record has to stop spinning...and then where in time do they end up?
-The record does stop spinning...right?
-If you asked me in Season 1 who the last person I would expect to become evil was, I probably would have said Sun. Now I have no clue what to think of her. Does she blame Kate for the death of Jin? Jack? Ben? Widmore? No one? Will she try to kill Jack in front of Kate to make Kate feel the pain she felt? Will she try to kill Penny in front of Widmore to do the same to him?
-Thought it was interesting that Locke tried to climb up the same vines that Boone fell down from many moons ago trying to get to that plane.
-Mrs. Hawking as Faraday's mom makes almost too much sense...there needs to be some twist there, right? It can't be the same person...Or will it just be like the Claire being Jack's half-sister wink/wink-nod/nod thing we've done for a while?
-British soldiers on the island? Think maybe that one of them was Charles Widmore? (sort of liked that theory...especially after hearing "my island"). But if that's true, what happens now that Locke has stuck a knife in his back?
-What happened to all those children who were kidnapped? Why were they kidnapped? Why did they take Walt? What about those kids from the flight who were kidnapped? Or the flight attendant? Or those kids who were walking through the forest that time when Jin spotted their legs? Did they just drop this plotline a la the polar bears actually being on the island?
-I think these episodes helped to point out so much more that Kate is the most selfish person on this show. There are a lot of selfless characters: Jack at times, Locke at times, even Sawyer at times (I mean he jumped out of a freaking helicopter)...but Kate always seems to be looking out for her own self-interest.
-Who sent the lawyers to Kate's house? My list of top candidates: 1) Ben, 2) Sun, 3) Widmore.
-Jack's brought a lot of people back to life when they've seemed dead...will Locke be the next one he saves?
-I am so conflicted about reading up on LOST spoilers because I don't want a lot of these surprises to be ruined for me...but in some ways, I want to know already. I told people who haven't seen the show yet to wait until it's done and then just watch all the DVDs over a month. It's torture waiting so long in between answers.
-Loved the suggestion that the reason Widmore and Ben "can't kill each other" is because either one or both are dead in the past...which occurs in the future. Might that knife wound of Locke's done it? Is Widmore searching for the island to stop that from happening?
-We've had a lot of people reappear after death. But one person's story which still has lots and lots and lots of questions is Libby's. Why was she in the mental hospital with Hurley? Now we have to ask if this happened in the past or in the future?
-I need to go back to watch that first episode with Desmond and Mrs. Hawking.
-I, for one, love the character development with Jack. He crashes and burns but always needs to come back to play the hero. I think that Jack may be more with it than we think. Maybe I'm giving him too much credit. But he always seems to have a little more of a plan that just following Ben along for the ride. Jack and Ben have always had this sort of Cain and Abel, brotherly, but rivals relationship with each other.
-Jack saved Ben at some point and it seems like Ben may be trying to do the same with Jack here. Maybe I'm wrong, though. As I said before, Ben doesn't ever seem to be able to move to the "good" side
-Juliet and Sawyer are going to get it on at some point. Jack and Kate as well.
-We NEED to find out what Sawyer whispered into Kate's ear before he jumped out of the helicopter
-I don't think it's any coincidence we learn about an Arrow Station as a protective station and then arrows rain down later on the Losties.
-Again...I'll end on a previous note. Faraday is trying to save Charlotte by contacting Desmond...but Desmond is "special" and may not be held to the same rules of effecting future events as others would be
I can't wait for Wednesday! Thoughts and theories are welcome!
Sunday's New York Times Links
Not necessarily all from today...but needed to get these on here:
-First from the Times, got to go to Brandeis alum Thomas Friedman who says that diplomacy needs to happen now in the Middle East.
-Next, the #1 article for Sunday: What Do Women Want?
-A really good article on the new President's Chief of Staff and his relationship with President Obama
-From the Freakonomics blog, a post about how commercials are actually helpful interruptions
-Also from the Freakonomics blog, a bunch of great links including one about whether business schools are good for their graduates...
-Lastly an article about how this bad economy spurs people to jobs viewed as safe.
I recently went to an alumni event for my business school (Brandeis University International Business School). The new dean is a former executive for Bank of America. He gave a powerpoint presentation which ended with the "top jobs you would want to have in this economy" (paraphrasing). They included consulting, public sector, risk management, energy and life sciences, among others (I pointed on to him he left off compliance from the list and he quickly reversed course...Thank God). So while some may feel like business schools may be part of the problem, in the end, they should become part of the solution.
-First from the Times, got to go to Brandeis alum Thomas Friedman who says that diplomacy needs to happen now in the Middle East.
-Next, the #1 article for Sunday: What Do Women Want?
-A really good article on the new President's Chief of Staff and his relationship with President Obama
-From the Freakonomics blog, a post about how commercials are actually helpful interruptions
-Also from the Freakonomics blog, a bunch of great links including one about whether business schools are good for their graduates...
-Lastly an article about how this bad economy spurs people to jobs viewed as safe.
I recently went to an alumni event for my business school (Brandeis University International Business School). The new dean is a former executive for Bank of America. He gave a powerpoint presentation which ended with the "top jobs you would want to have in this economy" (paraphrasing). They included consulting, public sector, risk management, energy and life sciences, among others (I pointed on to him he left off compliance from the list and he quickly reversed course...Thank God). So while some may feel like business schools may be part of the problem, in the end, they should become part of the solution.
Saturday, January 24, 2009
Who Will Make the Hall Of Fame? AL East Edition
I always find it fun to go through rosters and figure out which current players will be Hall of Famers. It's always tough to project how some players will play during the line, and even harder to figure out who will stay healthy. But it's always interesting debate. This will be guys who are currently on teams or who are still free agents/retired but finished the year on a team (since there is a Hall of Fame unemployment line). We'll break this down into four categories:
The first group is sure-fire, first-ballot Hall of Famers, guys who, if they retired tomorrow, would make the Hall of Fame. The second are probable Hall of Famers, guys who should make it as long as they continue along their path or guys who may not make it the first ballot, but will be in eventually. The third are guys that are just short of the Hall of Fame but could get in if they have some big years. The fourth are guys who are really young, but seem like they could be on the Hall of Fame path.
Let's get going:
New York Yankees
Category 1
Alex Rodriguez. Who cares about the ring? This guy is a three time MVP who may be the best player in the game over the past decade.
Mariano Rivera. Did you know he had the best WHIP of his career last year? He's the best closer ever. Maybe the best postseason pitcher ever. And no doubt he's a Hall of Famer.
Derek Jeter. He's less than 500 hits from 3,000...and no matter how people view offensive stats in this era, 3,000 hits is still Hall of Fame material. He should have those 3,000 hits in less than 2 1/2 years under his current average of 219 hits a season. As a shortstop, I think he's first ballot Hall of Fame right now.
Category 2
Mike Mussina. He's a Hall of Famer, although maybe not on the first ballot. For those naysayers who wanted to keep him out for not winning 20 games, they've lost their last argument. His pitching statistics in the steroid era were Hall of Fame worthy, especially pitching in the AL East all of his career.
Category 3
Jorge Posada. He may need a few more seasons to state his case. But his offensive statistics for a catcher are pretty amazing. He's in the top 30 of active players in OBP, BBs, Adjusted Batting Runs, and Batting Wins. For a catcher, that's pretty amazing.
C.C. Sabathia. He's 28 with a Cy Young, 117 wins, and a track record that he gets better every year. Being a lefty in Yankee Stadium should help him out as will the run support from the Yankee lineup and having Mariano at the end to close out his games. And he always pitches better under the bright lights (sans the postseason)--his ERA+ after joining the Brewers last year was 260.
Mark Texeira. He's already 28 as well, and that could hurt both Tex and C.C. But if you believe he's just hitting his prime and he can win some MVPs while playing under the bright lights of New York and put up big numbers hitting around the A-rods and Jeters of the world...maybe
Ivan Rodriguez. Probably will never get in with the steroids cloud hanging over his head. But if he can find a way to bounce back in the next few years post steroid testing, then maybe the voters will find a way to get him in, considering his position, his arm and his offensive prowess during the late 90s.
Category 4
Joba Chamberlain. Who knows. But his star is shining bright and he's going to get chances to rack up Ws while he's on the Yankees...as long as he can stay healthy.
Boston Red Sox
Category 1
John Smoltz. He just signed with Boston, so we need to put him on this list. He "only" had 210 wins...but he also had 154 saves. He won a Cy Young (going 24-8) and then saved 55 games and didn't win. He had 3000 Ks and pitched for one of the most dominant teams of the 1990s. And he also pitched 207 innings in the postseason going 15-4 with 4 saves, 2 complete games, and a 2.65 ERA. And he's still not done. He got shadowed by playing with Greg Maddux and Tom Glavine, but he was no less important to the success of that team.
Category 2
Curt Schilling. I don't care what he says about himself (have you ever heard someone so self aggrandizing talk about themselves in this way?). The guy will probably end up being a Hall of Famer...eventually. He never won a Cy Young but was the runner up 3 times (to Randy Johnson twice and Johan Santana once) and came in 4th once. He was a huge part in three world series wins (twice for Boston and once for Arizona). He had a .597 winning %. His career K/BB ratio of 4.38 is the best mark in post 1900 baseball. He's in the top 10 of many active pitching categories including WHIP, BB/9 IP, K/9 IP, Ks, Innings, and Shutouts. He's a Hall of Famer according to all the Baseball-Reference.com's Hall of Fame monitors. He will get hurt by only have 216 wins, but I think this guy is a Hall of Famer...even though he's a world-class jerk.
Category 3
David Ortiz. I debated back and forth with myself over whether he was Category 2 or 3. But there's no doubt that he's close...and needs a few years more of success to get in. Last year was a bad sign for that as his knees seemed like they're starting to give. But from 2003-2007, he was in the top 5 of the MVP voting and was a Hall-of-Fame-caliber player. But the problem, as shown with the Jim Rice election, is that 5 years of Hall-of-Fame-caliber play is not a Hall of Fame player. He doesn't reach any of the Hall of Famer monitors on Baseball-Reference.com. I think he's still short.
Josh Beckett. I think he needs a lot more years of health and dominance to get there. He's 28, the same age as C.C. Sabathia, but with 24 less wins, and only has one really dominant season. This is a stretch at this point to put him here. But if he can roll off a couple of seasons like his 2007 season and add a few more rings to the two he's already won, he'll make it interesting.
Category 4
Jonathan Papelbon, Dustin Pedroia, Jon Lester. All three are in the same category: great start, but needs many more of those to get into the Hall of Fame. Papelbon has great stats already, but needs to continue on an upward progression and is still young. Pedroia just won an MVP and plays a position that is not known for its offense. Jon Lester is 24, but has a .771 winning % so far.
Tampa Bay Rays
Category 1, Category 2, Category 3
No one.
Category 4
Many candidates. Any of their young players could be in the Hall someday. I think it's just going to be a lot of years until we're able to tell.
Toronto Blue Jays
Category 1
No one.
Category 2
Roy Halladay. He has a Cy Young, and 3 other seasons in the top 5. If "Doc" Halladay pitches his entire career in the AL East and continues to do what he's done (a .665 winning %) while staying healthy, he should make the Hall. He's 31, so if he continues on this path for another decade, his stats could look similar to a Smoltz- or Schilling-type. He also is a rare starter in today's game who constantly finishes what he starts with 40 career complete games. Of players currently on teams, only John Smoltz and Randy Johnson have more complete game--and they have 85 years between them. Let's put this in perspective: Roy Halladay had as many complete games last season as Johan Santana has had in HIS ENTIRE CAREER. Wow
Category 3
Scott Rolen. I think he's short despite all the Gold Gloves. But if he can find a way to play well the next 7 years or so (he's only 33), he'll make it interesting.
Category 4
None. One could emerge, but none right now.
Baltimore Orioles
I really don't think the Orioles have anyone in any of the categories. A sad state for a team that once had Cal Ripken, Jr. Brian Roberts and Nick Markakis maybe could someday...but they just don't seem to be on that path.
Agree? Disagree? Thoughts?
The first group is sure-fire, first-ballot Hall of Famers, guys who, if they retired tomorrow, would make the Hall of Fame. The second are probable Hall of Famers, guys who should make it as long as they continue along their path or guys who may not make it the first ballot, but will be in eventually. The third are guys that are just short of the Hall of Fame but could get in if they have some big years. The fourth are guys who are really young, but seem like they could be on the Hall of Fame path.
Let's get going:
New York Yankees
Category 1
Alex Rodriguez. Who cares about the ring? This guy is a three time MVP who may be the best player in the game over the past decade.
Mariano Rivera. Did you know he had the best WHIP of his career last year? He's the best closer ever. Maybe the best postseason pitcher ever. And no doubt he's a Hall of Famer.
Derek Jeter. He's less than 500 hits from 3,000...and no matter how people view offensive stats in this era, 3,000 hits is still Hall of Fame material. He should have those 3,000 hits in less than 2 1/2 years under his current average of 219 hits a season. As a shortstop, I think he's first ballot Hall of Fame right now.
Category 2
Mike Mussina. He's a Hall of Famer, although maybe not on the first ballot. For those naysayers who wanted to keep him out for not winning 20 games, they've lost their last argument. His pitching statistics in the steroid era were Hall of Fame worthy, especially pitching in the AL East all of his career.
Category 3
Jorge Posada. He may need a few more seasons to state his case. But his offensive statistics for a catcher are pretty amazing. He's in the top 30 of active players in OBP, BBs, Adjusted Batting Runs, and Batting Wins. For a catcher, that's pretty amazing.
C.C. Sabathia. He's 28 with a Cy Young, 117 wins, and a track record that he gets better every year. Being a lefty in Yankee Stadium should help him out as will the run support from the Yankee lineup and having Mariano at the end to close out his games. And he always pitches better under the bright lights (sans the postseason)--his ERA+ after joining the Brewers last year was 260.
Mark Texeira. He's already 28 as well, and that could hurt both Tex and C.C. But if you believe he's just hitting his prime and he can win some MVPs while playing under the bright lights of New York and put up big numbers hitting around the A-rods and Jeters of the world...maybe
Ivan Rodriguez. Probably will never get in with the steroids cloud hanging over his head. But if he can find a way to bounce back in the next few years post steroid testing, then maybe the voters will find a way to get him in, considering his position, his arm and his offensive prowess during the late 90s.
Category 4
Joba Chamberlain. Who knows. But his star is shining bright and he's going to get chances to rack up Ws while he's on the Yankees...as long as he can stay healthy.
Boston Red Sox
Category 1
John Smoltz. He just signed with Boston, so we need to put him on this list. He "only" had 210 wins...but he also had 154 saves. He won a Cy Young (going 24-8) and then saved 55 games and didn't win. He had 3000 Ks and pitched for one of the most dominant teams of the 1990s. And he also pitched 207 innings in the postseason going 15-4 with 4 saves, 2 complete games, and a 2.65 ERA. And he's still not done. He got shadowed by playing with Greg Maddux and Tom Glavine, but he was no less important to the success of that team.
Category 2
Curt Schilling. I don't care what he says about himself (have you ever heard someone so self aggrandizing talk about themselves in this way?). The guy will probably end up being a Hall of Famer...eventually. He never won a Cy Young but was the runner up 3 times (to Randy Johnson twice and Johan Santana once) and came in 4th once. He was a huge part in three world series wins (twice for Boston and once for Arizona). He had a .597 winning %. His career K/BB ratio of 4.38 is the best mark in post 1900 baseball. He's in the top 10 of many active pitching categories including WHIP, BB/9 IP, K/9 IP, Ks, Innings, and Shutouts. He's a Hall of Famer according to all the Baseball-Reference.com's Hall of Fame monitors. He will get hurt by only have 216 wins, but I think this guy is a Hall of Famer...even though he's a world-class jerk.
Category 3
David Ortiz. I debated back and forth with myself over whether he was Category 2 or 3. But there's no doubt that he's close...and needs a few years more of success to get in. Last year was a bad sign for that as his knees seemed like they're starting to give. But from 2003-2007, he was in the top 5 of the MVP voting and was a Hall-of-Fame-caliber player. But the problem, as shown with the Jim Rice election, is that 5 years of Hall-of-Fame-caliber play is not a Hall of Fame player. He doesn't reach any of the Hall of Famer monitors on Baseball-Reference.com. I think he's still short.
Josh Beckett. I think he needs a lot more years of health and dominance to get there. He's 28, the same age as C.C. Sabathia, but with 24 less wins, and only has one really dominant season. This is a stretch at this point to put him here. But if he can roll off a couple of seasons like his 2007 season and add a few more rings to the two he's already won, he'll make it interesting.
Category 4
Jonathan Papelbon, Dustin Pedroia, Jon Lester. All three are in the same category: great start, but needs many more of those to get into the Hall of Fame. Papelbon has great stats already, but needs to continue on an upward progression and is still young. Pedroia just won an MVP and plays a position that is not known for its offense. Jon Lester is 24, but has a .771 winning % so far.
Tampa Bay Rays
Category 1, Category 2, Category 3
No one.
Category 4
Many candidates. Any of their young players could be in the Hall someday. I think it's just going to be a lot of years until we're able to tell.
Toronto Blue Jays
Category 1
No one.
Category 2
Roy Halladay. He has a Cy Young, and 3 other seasons in the top 5. If "Doc" Halladay pitches his entire career in the AL East and continues to do what he's done (a .665 winning %) while staying healthy, he should make the Hall. He's 31, so if he continues on this path for another decade, his stats could look similar to a Smoltz- or Schilling-type. He also is a rare starter in today's game who constantly finishes what he starts with 40 career complete games. Of players currently on teams, only John Smoltz and Randy Johnson have more complete game--and they have 85 years between them. Let's put this in perspective: Roy Halladay had as many complete games last season as Johan Santana has had in HIS ENTIRE CAREER. Wow
Category 3
Scott Rolen. I think he's short despite all the Gold Gloves. But if he can find a way to play well the next 7 years or so (he's only 33), he'll make it interesting.
Category 4
None. One could emerge, but none right now.
Baltimore Orioles
I really don't think the Orioles have anyone in any of the categories. A sad state for a team that once had Cal Ripken, Jr. Brian Roberts and Nick Markakis maybe could someday...but they just don't seem to be on that path.
Agree? Disagree? Thoughts?
Yankee Pitching Analysis
Baseball Analysts recently did a study of strikeouts per 100 pitches (a new stat which they say is a better correlation to the number of runs allowed) and the results of the top 30 are below (H/T Baseball Musings). #3, #4, and #6 (in bold) as pointed out by River Ave. Blues, are now owned by the Yankees. I also highlight Ted Lilly here because I believe that one of Brian Cashman's worst moves was not signing Lilly and signing Kei Igawa a few off-seasons ago. The Yankees are still paying for that move.
The other two italicized pitchers are Mets (or, in Perez's case, probably going to be such). Interesting to see that CC Sabathia is almost 1 K/100 pitches better than Johan Santana. A whole season of pitching in the AL East may nullify that difference, but I still feel it shows that the Yankees may have made the right move in passing on "Brohan" and signing CC.
Also interesting for the Yankees is in the bottom 30 where Darrell Rasner (113 1/3 innings last year) and Sidney Ponson (80 innings last year) reside. Replacing two pitchers with some of the worst K/100 pitches with two of the best is probably a very good move. The biggest concern is that almost everyone in that first grouping have some sort of injury risks associated with them due to the amount of strain put on their arms.
The other two italicized pitchers are Mets (or, in Perez's case, probably going to be such). Interesting to see that CC Sabathia is almost 1 K/100 pitches better than Johan Santana. A whole season of pitching in the AL East may nullify that difference, but I still feel it shows that the Yankees may have made the right move in passing on "Brohan" and signing CC.
Also interesting for the Yankees is in the bottom 30 where Darrell Rasner (113 1/3 innings last year) and Sidney Ponson (80 innings last year) reside. Replacing two pitchers with some of the worst K/100 pitches with two of the best is probably a very good move. The biggest concern is that almost everyone in that first grouping have some sort of injury risks associated with them due to the amount of strain put on their arms.
TOP 30
Rich Harden 7.37
Tim Lincecum 7.20
Joba Chamberlain 6.90
CC Sabathia 6.58
Josh Beckett 6.40
A.J. Burnett 6.33
Ervin Santana 6.24
Dan Haren 6.17
Edinson Volquez 6.08
Chad Billingsley 6.05
Scott Kazmir 6.04
Randy Johnson 5.97
Javier Vazquez 5.92
Jake Peavy 5.80
Roy Halladay 5.79
Wandy Rodriguez 5.76
Ricky Nolasco 5.74
Johan Santana 5.73
Cole Hamels 5.72
Ted Lilly 5.68
Jorge de la Rosa 5.67
Zack Greinke 5.67
Ryan Dempster 5.60
Jonathan Sanchez 5.55
Felix Hernandez 5.47
Brandon Webb 5.45
Brett Myers 5.40
Clayton Kershaw 5.38
John Lackey 5.36
Oliver Perez 5.35
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