Unfortunate Facial Hair: One Last Time

38 Responses to “Unfortunate Facial Hair: One Last Time”

1. rebecca says:

   April 28, 2008 at 11:47 am

   I think we have Lugo because Tito wanted him. He was always a pesky player playing against us on the (formerly known as devil) rays. Of course, as we’ve just witnessed, the rays can be a pain-in-the-ass no matter who’s playing for them. At this point we’ve become conditioned to groan at the mere sight of the man, but chances are strong that he will turn it around just like Drew has.

   As for Crisp, I believe he’s considered a great value for a veteran contract! Many people feel he ought to have been awarded the gold glove last year. His offensive numbers have not been up to career standards here in Boston, but he’s raking well so far this year. If he could just stay out on the f’n field for two weeks straight without straining his *whatever it is this time* we could probably work out a good haul for him.

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2. Sarah Green says:

   April 28, 2008 at 11:58 am

   The problem is, when JD Drew turns it around, he’ll OPS in the high .900s. If Lugo does, we can expect an OPS in the .600s. At that rate, we really would have been better off keeping Alex Gonzalez.

   I agree that Terry was in on the Lugo man-crush, but I still don’t know what it is about him that so beguiled Tito and Theo. I suspect Dark Magic.

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3. Lyndsay says:

   April 28, 2008 at 12:31 pm

   Coley – so now we’re calling players dicks because of the agent they choose to represent them, and putting them on the same level as wife beaters? that really makes sense, considering Boras represents half the MLB. okay…so guy A chooses agent who can get him the best deal possible from the best team, and as far as we know, does not beat his wife. guy B slams girlfriend’s head into car hood. hmm, think I’d rather have guy A on my team.

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4. Lyndsay says:

   April 28, 2008 at 12:36 pm

   “As for Coco Crisp, Peter Gammons reported today that Billy Beane called Theo AGAIN on Friday to beg for him.”

   seriously?!? how likely Sarah do you think this is to go thru? and who would we get? please don’t tell me some “underrated” 45 year old washed up former 1st baseman “who can learn to be a catcher” but had a lot of walks back in May 2002.

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5. Sarah Green says:

   April 28, 2008 at 1:17 pm

   That’s a really interesting question, Lyndsay. Theo seems to want a lot for Coco, since whoever becomes Boston’s 4th OF is likely to get a fair amount of playing time with Drew and Manny at the corners. But Billy Beane is no dummy, either.

   The acquisition of Frank Thomas makes Mike Sweeney expendable, but Sweeney isn’t someone the Red Sox want or need. The A’s have a couple of decent fourth OFs in Rajai Davis and Chris Denorfia, but Oakland would have to give Boston someone else too, since a one-for-one swap of OFs makes little sense. If Oakland really wants Crisp, I could see them giving Boston one of their backup OFs and a prospect. One problem with trying to predict a deal is that Oakland is in a tricky situation—they’re playing to win but also playing to rebuild. If they start losing and appear out of contention, however, this could become a much bigger deal, with Crisp and some of Boston’s good prospects going to Oakland for a starting pitcher. This becomes even more likely if Jon Lester continues to struggle and if Bartolo Colon opts out of his deal (he’s said he won’t, but as above, you never know). Oakland starter Joe Blanton is rumored to be on the trading block, but he won’t be cheap.

   Otherwise, I don’t see a great match between what Boston needs and what Oakland has. For the future, the Red Sox would probably most like to acquire a catching prospect (which the A’s don’t really have) and a 3B prospect (ditto).

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6. rebecca says:

   April 28, 2008 at 1:39 pm

   Boston is not looking for outfielders in return for Crisp. They plan to use Kielty and/or Moss as a fourth outfielder. (Moss is drawing interest of his own but is currently unavailable for trade until Kielty makes it back from hand surgery.)

   Teams have been playing the waiting game here, hoping to corner the sox in a roster crunch or disgruntled player situation. That seems unlikely to happen in my opinion, and I’m sure we’ll see interest from more than just the A’s as the season wears on and injuries take their toll. Theo will be looking for prospects and/or pitching in return for Crisp, and he’s proving he can hold out for good value.

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7. Sarah Green says:

   April 28, 2008 at 2:09 pm

   Rebecca, I agree with you except for one point. Kielty and Moss are both okay as 5th OFs, but I don’t think either of them is the 4th OF Boston needs. Kielty isn’t someone I’d want playing very much. Moss has an okay bat and he’s fine defensively, but there’s nothing remarkable about him. I think a more valuable option for a fourth OF is someone who can be a defensive replacement or a pinch runner. If Boston deals Crisp, I think they would probably look to pick up a budget version of him from somewhere, if not necessarily in the same deal—a guy with some defensive prowess, a fair bit of speed, and not a lot of offense.

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8. Sarah Green says:

   April 28, 2008 at 9:17 pm

   Ooh, update (sort of):

   “Theo and I have talked, and knowing the type of players he wants in return, it’s not something we’re willing to do right now.”
   –Padres general manager Kevin Towers, on his interest in Red Sox outfielder Coco Crisp.

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9. Lyndsay says:

   April 28, 2008 at 11:36 pm

   well, Beane is also known to get a lot of different teams involved and somehow end up with the guy he wants – I couldn’t even draw on a map for you some of those trades from Moneyball. So I could see some sort of multi-team deal going thru before the trading deadline that the Sox get to throw Crisp into, if Billy Beane has any say in it.

   they definitely have TOO many 4th outfielder options right now, so I definitely can’t see them trading for another one. Jed Lowrie and Sean Casey have both the infield corners covered, if they want to play Lowrie as a bench guy for a season to see how it goes. I don’t see them looking for a star reliever, seeing the failure that was Gagne. the best thign for them would be a backup catcher – God forbid they should ever have to use little Pedro behind the plate. and they should really look to get that thru a multi-team trade.

   Sarah – any “word on the street” about Lugo? I would love to get trade rumors started on him, you know, just to plant the seed…what I would give to have Theo’s ear, and just maybe once a day casually mention, “so, I hear so-and-so may be available, and they are really interested in Lugo.”

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10. Sarah Green says:

    April 29, 2008 at 8:04 am

    Alas. No one is interested in Julio Lugo. No one. [Sobs]

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11. John Siudut says:

    May 14, 2008 at 3:09 pm

    You are dirt Sarah Green. The way you speak about sport, about baseball and about people is thoroughly disgusting.

    You know nothing. You are not a paid baseball analyst or on Boston’s payroll. You nothing of what happens in the clubhouse, in the general managers office and you don’t know anyone of great significance which is why you sound like a fool. You read scouting reports by men who are paid to watch young men play a game. And then you try to make it sound like you have all the answers.

    Dark magic…good one. You are not a fan of baseball nor could you be a real fan of the Boston Red Sox.

    There are Julio Lugo fans.

    As:
    There are Manny Ramirez fans.
    There are David Ortiz fans.
    There are JD Drew fans.
    There are Coco Crisp fans.
    There are Dustin Pedroia fans.
    There are Youk fans.
    There are Jason Varitek fans.
    There are Jacoby Ellsbury fans.
    There are Terry Francona fans.
    There are plentiful fans for every single person on the team and in the clubhouse….

    All of these players make up the great team that won a spectacular championship and I hope they win more…and they will.

    I am a fan of Julio Lugo and I am a fan of the Boston Red Sox.

    Your fandom is sleek, snappy and full of bunk.

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12. Sarah Green says:

    May 14, 2008 at 4:46 pm

    Wow John, that was a thorough ripping even more over the top than my over-the-top ripping of Julio Lugo! [Golf clap]

    You can insult my writing, but I defy you, sir, to question my fandom. That’s just low.

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13. melissa says:

    May 14, 2008 at 7:29 pm

    John,
    I’ve got one for your list:

    There are Sarah Green fans.

    I love Sarah and her hatred for Julio Lugo.
    It’s great to hear a fan admit they detest a player even though he’s on their favorite team.

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14. Nick Kapur says:

    May 15, 2008 at 12:35 am

    I like how John says that “the way” Sarah “talks about people” is “disgusting” the *very sentence* after he wrote “You are dirt Sarah Green.” Nice one there.

    The fact is, anyone who is actually a “Julio Lugo fan” has clearly never actually watched Julio Lugo play actual baseball.

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15. Dirty Water says:

    May 18, 2008 at 11:17 am

    Kudos, John. Sharp yet appropriate.

    To all you Boston ‘fans’ who believe your shallow criticisms have merit I’d like to remind you that you’re labeling Theo a buffoon by doing so.

    I’m a Lugo fan, or more to the point – I’m a Theo fan.

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16. cj says:

    May 19, 2008 at 2:28 pm

    what the hell is that brown streak on his left shoulder of his unifrom?

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17. Lyndsay says:

    May 20, 2008 at 9:49 pm

    oh man, even the horrid bleached look will not distract me from thinking it’s a midget head on a regular sized body. I think something went horribly wrong when he was coming out of the birth canal.

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