Dude, I am at work doing three things at a time so I will make mistakes for time to time on clutchfans message board spelling. Tim is doing one thing when he is infront of a camera and that is talking about the Astros so it is not too much to expect to hear plausible sentences come out of him fat mouth. Edit My answers in bold
I talk to him on a somewhat regular basis, and he's articulate. Anyone who's watched him consistently I'm sure would say the same. You're taking a couple of quotes you don't like entirely out of context and making it into something else. His baseball moves are up for debate, but I think we can have a discussion higher than third-grade level and drop the fact that he's fat. I could care less if a guy weighs 150, 200, 250 or 300 pounds, and I could care less what kind of quotes he gives to the media (and I say that as part of the media). As someone who follows this team, what matters is his knowledge of the game and of evaluating players and transactions. He's certainly left himself open for criticism there, as almost any GM has. But let's stick to that instead of the 9-year-old pointing and saying "look, he's fat!!!"
Whether or not "you" think its realistic is irrelevant. The fact is, it's happening right there for you to see.
No, it's completely relevant. You don't build teams based on fairy tales and taking 1 in 1,000 shots. You make calculated decisions based on what gives you the highest probability of success. If something's happening but it doesn't appear to be something that is likely to be replicated, you bet it's relevant.
Dude, it's "TRUE FAN!!!!!!11". If you really *were* a TRUE FAN!!!!!!11, you would "of" gotten it right.
Isn't that kind of what Purpura did with the Jennings trade? Counting on Jennings continuing to play or better than his career-year last year, counting on the NL Central to continue sucking, counting on our 0.500-type team winning said sucky NL Central, counting on a miracle run through the playoffs with said 0.500 type team that won the terrible division?
No, but you can directly contrast the performance of the same team under Garner compared to his predecessor. They had to craft a scenario for fans to believe it was a serious, legitimate option. It wasn't. I mean, they held out hope that maybe they'd get lucky and he'd have a change of heart, but there's a reason they almost completed the Garland deal before any of the "player option" BS came into play. No, they don't. This team needs so much more than Andy Pettitte and Willy Taveras that it's not even funny. Besides, Pettitte wasn't an option. No, most fanboys who don't understand how the game is actually played and evaluated would. Pence had (and still has) significant holes in his swing. He was a good but not great player (didn't break .900) in AA a season ago. He had no AAA experience. They had a guy who played a capable CF a season ago while swinging the bat well (Burke). Given those circumstances, there's not a team in the league (save maybe the Royals or a team desperate for a headline) that would've played Pence out of spring training. Not one. Most teams and executives were stunned the Astros brought him up as soon as they did (trust me, I've asked).
To be fair, given that last year was the first season that Coors wasn't incredibly hitter-friendly, I think he had good reason to have confidence in Jennings. It just hasn't worked out over the last three starts, for whatever reason (the velocity is extremely discouraging). The rest, I won't disagree. It was a blueprint to be the best of a mediocre bunch and get lucky in the postseason.
True Fans stick by their teams but demand a winner and if they are losing they demand change. Bandwagon fans, women and children "root for the good guys" Now I think Garner should be fired today and Cooper should be hired, as soon as the season is done I would get rid of Purpura. It's Garner's fault this team looks like the bad news bears out there and it's hard to defend many of his moves that go against conventional thinking. I blame both Purpura and Drayton for the terrible off season but you can't fire the owner so Tim needs to go.
No, your thoughts on the practicality of such success is irrelevant. It's neither a "fairy tale" nor a "1 in 1,000 shot". It's a team that has pumped out a minimum of 87 wins per year over the last 8 years with a payroll that is roughly 1/4 less than the payroll that you are saying it's "unreasonable to expect 90 wins from".
The Cat is going to use every card he has before he admits it was a poor offseason. We're just fanboys who don't understand the game.
fanboys? lol, Pence is having one of the best rookie seasons of all time and you still think the Astros (who would still have Miguel Cabrera in AAA if he was an Astro farm hand) made a mistake and "rushed him along" Did you ever play sports? If you did than you would know that playing against top competion is what helps players progress not staying put where you have been dominate. As far as Pettitte goes, he told the truth period. The Astros never denied it, Purpura said that they were not gonna offer a second year "player option". Andy was gonna take 2 million less to stay here. I would of told the Astros goodbye as well and I am a native who wanted to grow up and play for the Astros. Cat, you seem like a true fan but it also seems like your pretty clueless about this issue.
I said it was unreasonable to expect 90 wins from them every year for 20 years... you left off that point. In any event, I could care less what that team has done -- as I said, the management level is off the charts. If it's replicable, that's something the Astros need to examine closely. If it's not (and I haven't seen evidence to believe it is), you have to consider the entire landscape of the game and not one isolated extreme example when evaluating a point of view. If it's not practical, it's quite relevant to what long-term decisions the Astros make.
I don't know the guy so I am just gonna guess that he is a baseball only fan because those are the kind of statements "baseball only fans" make.
Seriously, cut this BS drivel out. Everyone calling each other "bandwaggoners", etc. No one questioned whether or not you were a fan. Of course you are--you care enough to feel angry and to question and criticize management loudly. Guess what--people who *agree* with management are fans, too. Now, cut out this immature BS of "TRUEFANdickmeasuringcontests" and discuss the issue at hand. I disagree. With this bad team, what could Garner have done differently, other than his maddening continuance of batting Bidge leadoff? I would wait until season's end to decide what I would do with Purpura. Some folks are acting like this trade deadline is a make-or-break moment of catastrophic proportions for the next 10 years of the franchise, and I just don't buy it. It is, however, another opportunity to evaluate Purpura's performance on the job.
fair point on Garner and Purpura but do you really think this is one bad season in a string of good ones? Last season was 82-80 and it took a hell of a run to do that. In addition we are in a poor division in the weak NL. I think it's time to have a firesale on all non long term pieces that we can move and admit to the fans that 2008 we are gonna be in a rebuild not a patch up mode.
They've made it to the ALCS one time since 1992, and they got swept badly in that. I'll take the Astros management over the A's, thank you
He never said they "made a mistake," and he's interviewed the baseball-higher-ups who relayed this opinion to him? Have you? He heard it straight from the horse's mouth. Yet you're still going to continue to throw your contrived guesswork in our faces? Hence the move from AA to AAA. Did you ever pay attention to Pence's career? What an arrogant statement. He's talked to people on the inside of the situation, and you have nothing but your imagination and your ESPN Sportscenter updates. Keep on condescending to people, though. Awesome. Because, you're a "TRUE FAN!!!!!".
