Praise for Ryan Theriot from Bruce Bochy

"Theriot has a resume and a history of hitting."

BREAKING: Cubs fire GM Jim "Anchovies" Hendry after 9 sad, beautiful years

Could be good for the Cubs, but bad for this blog, and for scrappy, middle-aged ballplayers everywhere. In tribute, I'm cramming in one last round of Hendry tags.

IOC sounding like spoiled children

Crain's is reporting that Michelle Obama, not the president, will go to Copenhagen to represent Chicago before the IOC. That means "the odds on Chicago's Olympic bid just got longer." The IOC knows all about our bid, and knows Obama supports it, but apparently somehow he needs to get on an aeroplane and fly over there in order to prove it to them. (And I'm not sure he's actually president anyway.)

"Mr. Obama’s absence could be a major blow to Chicago’s bid with weeks to go before the vote. Heads of state have become an expected part of the bidding process since 2005 (ooooh, it's a tradition that stretches all the way back to... last time? Ed.) when British Prime Minister Tony Blair convinced the IOC to send the 2012 Games to London ... Mr. Obama told Mr. Rogge earlier Friday that he wouldn’t be able to attend the IOC meeting in Copenhagen."

Can we send Tony Blair? He's a proven veteran, after all...

"'She's not the president,' said Rob Livingstone, who runs the Toronto-based Web site GamesBids.com, which tracks the race to host the Olypmics. 'The IOC members are hoping for the president.'"

Waaaaah for them. I'm still hoping for a pony.

"Bid watchers, however, smell a smoke screen that Mr. Obama might ultimately show up on Oct. 2 in Denmark."

I await the Lou Dobbs poll on that possibility.

William 'the Bloody' Kristol: Always Wrong (cont'd)

Guess i forgot that the Washington Post added him as a columnist after the NY Times shitcanned his ass. It's like a "Proven Veteran" in baseball... Also, other than DICK! Cheney, is there a person alive who loves war more than this asshole?

No Will, No Way by William Kristol
George Will is dismayed by American casualties in Afghanistan, unhappy about the length of our effort there, dismissive of the contributions of our NATO allies, contemptuous of the Afghan central government, and struck by the country’s backwardness....
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Was Todd Hollandsworth not available?

White Sox land Kotsay for Anderson
Veteran outfielder should provide help off the bench in Chicago

MINNEAPOLIS -- Brian Anderson got his wish to be traded, and in the process, the White Sox apparently have added a valuable veteran piece to their bench for the playoff push over the next two months.

Anderson, 27, was traded to Boston in exchange for Mark Kotsay and cash considerations on Tuesday. Kotsay, 33, is a .281 hitter with 110 home runs and 614 RBIs over 13 Major League seasons. He batted .257 with one homer and five RBIs in 27 games for the Red Sox in 2009 before being designated for assignment on July 24.

He just wants to help the ballclub any way he can

"We just need to bring a little more energy and intensity to the table ... Through a season, teams go through ups and downs. It's a little dead period for us now. I know the media has been asking questions about Detroit coming in because they're simply leading the Central, but every game is important, every series is important. We're not really looking at the standings right now. We've just got to take some energy into each and every game."
-- Podzzzie

proven veteran...P R O V E N

Scott Podsednik(notes), signed to give the White Sox better baserunning, has been picked off first base in three straight games. Thursday, he also was doubled off first on a bases-loaded liner to third.
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Will Alzheimer's sufferer "No Title" Nellie remember where the Warriors are playing tonight? Or if they are playing at all??

Corey Maggette was a surprise play off the Warriors' bench on Tuesday after Don Nelson changed his mind just before game time and decided to play him. Maggette had 16 points and seven rebounds, but also committed six turnovers and didn't have an assist tonight. If he was in your lineup, you have to be pleased that Nellie had a change of heart, and early word out of Oakland is that Maggette should play again on Wednesday.

Or not. Who the phokk knows with this phokking idiot of a coach. Operation shutdown, not playing a veteran every game. Shouldn't the NBA put a stop to this? Used to be they would scorn on tanking with 2 weeks of the season left. How about 2 months? And how bad must Minnesota be to get blowd out by Golden State?

Say it ain't So!

The Cubs have reportedly agreed to a minor league deal with outfielder So Taguchi.
Assuming that Felix Pie is gone, Taguchi would battle Joey Gathright for a job as a reserve outfielder in spring training. However, it'd be one of those cases in which a team would much prefer to see the younger player win the job. Taguchi hit .220/.283/.297 in 91 at-bats for the Phils last year.
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How to flush $12 million down the terlet...

Warriors president Robert Rowell said recently that Don Nelson's job as head coach is secure.
"No, I've not given [Nelson's job performance] an ounce of thought," Rowell said. "Nellie's a great coach." This isn't surprising, considering Rowell gave "No Title" Nellie a two-year, $12 million extension this past offseason.

$6 million a year for a coach who has never won anything? I tells ya, Smiff could coach this team to a 10-26 record for just $1 million a year.

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How to Flush MEEEEEEEllions Down da Terlet

Wouldn't trust him to take the garbage to the curb:

SI.com's Jon Heyman believes the Mets and free agent Oliver Perez are too far apart in negotiations for a deal to be reached. Heyman lists the Brewers, Dodgers, Reds and perhaps the Mariners as potential suitors for Perez. He's believed to want $14 million per season for five years.

Half of the 5 years will be spent on the D.L.:

Yankees signed RHP A.J. Burnett, who had been with the Blue Jays, to a five-year, $82.5 million contract. The Yanks announcing a big contract six days after it was agreed to is actually pretty good for them. Most players have to wait weeks. The details of Burnett's deal still aren't known, such as the annual salary breakdown and what kind of no-trade protection he received. He will average $16.5 million per season, which is a nice raise from the $12 million per year that he would have earned in the final two seasons of his contract with the Jays.

Didn't he like totally suck last year:

According to SI.com's Jon Heyman's, Andy "Pettitte's people apparently are telling folks he has a $36 million, three-year offer" from an unnamed team. A rather odd line. Pettitte's "people" are the Hendricks brothers, unless Heyman is using the word to refer a group other than his agents, and they haven't gone public with much of anything regarding the Pettitte negotiations. This could be nothing more than an attempt to get the Yankees to boost their offer. Pettitte wants to stay in New York, and he hasn't gone looking for a multiyear deal since leaving Houston.

And the coup de grâce, the drunk, gutless, neverwuz... Royals GM Dayton Moore must have reached this decison thusly: "Hmmm, I've heard of him...he's still in major league baseball, right?...a proven veteran...sold!"

Royals agreed to terms with RHP Kyle Farnsworth, who had been with the Tigers, on a two-year, $9.25 million contract with a club option for 2011. We'll be generous and say Farnsworth is just as good of a bet as Ramon Ramirez for next year, even though Ramirez was the far better pitcher last season. That would essentially mean that the Royals are paying $9.25 million for Coco Crisp. After all, Ramirez was going to make about $500,000, while Crisp comes in at $5.5 million. Farnsworth will get $4.25 million next year and $4.5 million in 2010. There's a $5.25 million option for 2011 with a $500,000 buyout. It's a ridiculous sum for a small-market team to be spending on a reliever who has graded out as below average each of the last three seasons.
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because he hasn't totally killed him off yet

Reds' Dusty Baker wants to manage Kerry Wootz again

"We have a closer already in [Francisco] Cordero, who we have under contract for a few more years," Baker said Monday. "But somebody can use Kerry Wootz. I am going to call him. I like Kerry Wootz as a person, not just as a ballplayer, but as a person. I will give him a call and see what's up... man"

NYT fawns over "everyman" professional hitter

“Matt’s a guy’s guy,” Ricciardi said. “There’s just not a lot of frills with him.”

America wants to know

So are we having a phokking debate tomorrow night or not?

Trey Hillman is a McCain man: Brain-Dead

Manager Trey Hillman said Wednesday that Kila Ka'aihue isn't playing much because he's trying to "pick the right spots" for him.  Unbelievable. Hillman said last week that Ka'aihue and Ryan Shealy would split time at first base for the remainder of the season, but since then Ka'aihue has started once. Hillman gave Ross Gload the start there Wednesday, because apparently the last-place Royals need to keep giving playing time to a 32-year-old with a .270/.312/.343 line this season rather than give their top MLB-ready prospect a chance after he hit .314 with 37 homers between Double-A and Triple-A.

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I'm guessing he also likes guys who are ballplayers

Clint Hurdle said he consulted with several people when putting together his National League batting order. Oakland GM Billy Beane probably was not one of them.

"You look at the numbers that many of these men have put up," Hurdle said. "(But) you know, I’m a big fan—I hear about OPS, OBP—I’m a big fan of G-U-T-S. I like guts."

He's a gritty, gutty gamer...a throwback, a BALLPAYER!, comes to play...eats nails, check his stool, etc.... (cont'd)

Michael Bourn was benched Monday in favor of Darin Erstad for the third time in four games. Bourn is in the midst of a 0-for-19 slump and is hitting just .218/.274/.293 overall, while Erstad has batted .307/.353/.441 in a part-time role. "We'll go with the veteran," manager Cecil Cooper said. "He's been through these kinds of things before, and we don't lose anything defensively. This guy is a Gold Glover, and he's ready to go every day."

"been through these kind of things"...last place?

he clearly has no idea what he's doing

Obama moves quickly to reshape DNC

I wish we had a proven veteran running things.

Hendry vindicated

No doubt: Jim can do it
Edmonds no longer a star, but play answers critics -- and himself

Jim Edmonds is 37 years old, can't run anymore, can't hit. That's what the critics were saying when he signed with the Cubs. Stupid critics. The least they could have done was give the guy a chance, and ...

Yes, I was the one who wrote that four Wednesdays ago. I also said he couldn't make his signature diving, back-to-the-infield catches anymore. At least I wasn't booing, like the fans.

In other words, it was ''Welcome to Chicago, Jim.'' And while he's still 37, still can't run, still can't make the highlight dives, he has been a big catch for the Cubs. Edmonds still has something left after all.

And it's something the Cubs needed: a left-handed hitter to share the job in center field.

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