Phightins

I hate listening to Eklund, but he is saying that the Flyers have asked Simon Gagne to waive his NTC.

How do you go from not being able (or caring) how to spell Byfuglien (or knowing how to spell Toews), to providing in depth scouting reports? Something is fishy here... And Niemi is a RFA. I could easily see the Hawks getting screwed there, if someone signs him to a big enough offer sheet.

You don't miss having the league's 2009 leading pinch hitter? He would have been start to stay with the Marlins. Way more at-bats for him there. Hard for him (or any other bench player) to get into any sort of rhythm when they are only getting 5 or 6 ABs a week. He and Ben Francisco are both getting victimized by that this year.

Looking 2-3 years down the line, they are definitely replaceable. But as far as this upcoming season, to expect the new guys to stop in and provide the same production they got from Byfuglien, Ladd, and Versteeg in particular is not very realistic. But you are right that Eager and Burish are plugs and can easily be replaced by AHL guys. Also, lets not forget that there's a chance they can still lose Kopecky and Niemi.

Everyone knows why they did it, lol. Doesn't change the fact that most of their depth and physical presence from last season is gone.

This year, maybe. But the worst bench player ever wouldn't have led the league in pinch hits 2 years ago.

This is not in response to the troll, but on a serious note about the Blackhawks...they have lost a ton of their physical presence. Byfuglien, Eager, and Ladd specifically. Their depth was the main advantage they had over the Flyers in the Finals, and now basically all of their depth is gone. And also, this goes without saying, but the Canucks look damn good.

Honestly. That bottom 4 might be the worst in MLB history.

:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

Eh, that's true I could have. It was more of a general statement about how lethal walks are (and how bad the Cubs are).

Wow, just noticed Eklund has his phone number listed on his Twitter. I seriously think people prank call him and pretend to be NHL execs, and that is how he gets all of his "rumors". He was wrong on literally everything yesterday. Now he is saying that a big trade is coming for the Flyers, so lets see if his wrong-streak continues.

Wow, talk about a [expletive]ty 7th inning for Cubs pitchers. 58 pitches, 34 of which were balls. 5 walks, 3 doubles. 9 runs in the inning. For the game, they have allowed 10 runs on 5 hits. Ouch. Walks will truly kill ya.

Interesting lineup tonight.... Rollins SS Ibanez LF Werth CF Howard 1B Francisco RF Dobbs 3B Valdez 2B Sardinha C Moyer P And apparently Brian Schneider has been seen walking around with some sort of cast on his hand. I guess his injury is worse than initially thought.

Yup. You can have your punch and judy slap hitting 1st baseman, I'll take the guy with the 22nd best career OPS in MLB history. And actually, Ryan Howard is only striking out once every (roughly) 4 at bats this season, which is down from his career average of about once every 3 at bats. And his OPS is down from his career norm. Batting average up, OBP down. He has a different approach this year. Higher batting average and less strikeouts, but less production. Still having a very good year, but aggressive Ryan Howard (with all of those strikeouts) is one of the most dangerous hitters in the game.

Oh, Gaby Sanchez. He is still a prospect? And, I will take Ryan Howard and his .950 career OPS, please and thank you.

I am not sure who that is, but if you are 27 years old and still sitting in the minor leagues, with very few exceptions you are not a "prospect". They have other words for that.

Dustin Pedroia is a prospect?

He is not ready, and it goes beyond those numbers. Any other organization and he doesn't make the jump from AA to the bigs. That is a disaster waiting to happen.

How many 20 year olds are in the Major Leagues?

By baseball standards, yes.

So, if a more youthful catcher was behind the plate instead of Carlos Ruiz, getting drilled in the head by a broken bat would not have given him a concussion? Or, if a more youthful base runner than Chase Utley would have jammed his thumb into 2nd base, it would not have caused an injury? If more youthful players than Brian Schneider or Placido Polanco get hit by foul tips/pitches, they are immune to injury? Dustin Pedroia fouled a ball off his foot and is out, and he is pretty young, so why is he on the DL?

Freak injuries affect players of all ages, homez.

The Madson one, yes. That one still baffles me, he should have been happy that he was getting a chance to be the closer since Lidge was out. And he did this after a game the Phillies won!

You make me laugh. Tell me the correlation between these injuries and age... Chase Utley tears the ligament off his thumb by jamming it into 2nd base. Carlos Ruiz gets a concussion after being hit in the back of a head with a bat. Brian Schneider takes two foul tips off his thumb. Ryan Madson breaks his toe after kicking a chair. Antonio Bastardo is on the DL with an injured elbow, but oh wait, he is youngest player on the roster. Placido Polanco gets drilled in the elbow by a Tim Hudson fastball. Chad Durbin strains his hamstring by misplaying a bunt. The list is so long that I am probably forgetting one or two. But yes, if you put your youthful Marlins in any of these situations, they are going down too. Please do your homework next time so I don't have to make you look like a dunce again.

Like the Marlins youth?