I wasn't referring to you jg, I was referring to bernreuther's post which I thought was policing which threads could and couldn't be mocked. He was the one who referred to the quality of the site going down since the inclusion of the "general population." That's where I based my seniority remark. There have been plenty of "civil and growing" discussions around here that have been canned because of a dumb FPP launchpad. I know because I've posted in them, assuming that they would probably get deleted anyway. I don't like the Padres, so any marginal move that harms them (which I feel this does) I'll gladly throw my 2c in about. I don't think that amounts to estoppel for me to question a thread's FPPnessiness. In conclusion, save your emboldened italics for the visually challenged and your rage for the machine and the yankees. edit: and there are worse things in life than being cast as BullpenPro's sidekick.
Yep, that's me. Thread wrecker. Just spitting on civility. I can't tell you how many times I have read in the locker room that rule #1 on posting is that the post is the important thing. I have been instructed time and again to post good journalism -- NOT fluff pieces just to bring up a topic I want to talk about. As a result, I have declined to post on a number of subjects upon which I would have LOVED to discourse, including A.J. Burnett's injury, Derrek Lee's injury, Papelbon becoming the closer, etc., because the stories about them weren't that interesting themselves, they were just vehicles to a discussion I wanted to have. So, you'll have to forgive me if I get all heated up when the leader of the task force against bad posters puts up a seven sentence ESPN article so we can talk about the retreaded, .182-hitting backup catcher for the Red Sox. There are a lot of smart and thoughtful people on this sight, including JG, and I enjoy reading their observations on stuff like this. I'm happy to see more threads like this, but some people seem to get dunned for these posts while others skate. Not fair. Plus... confusing... Look, I'm willing to abide by whatever conventions this place wants to adopt. But I am not that smart -- I thought they were spelled out for me, but I guess I was wrong. To me, this post is a hair's-breadth above posting back to SportsFilter with a comment like "Mirabelli's back with the Sox -- how stupid was it to let him go in the first place, huh?" But I am open to the possibility that this perception of mine is totally wrong. If so, I will set this as the meterstick by which to measure the worthiness of future FPPs, and proceed from there. Sincerely, Blind Squirrel On preview: and there are worse things in life than being cast as BullpenPro's sidekick Like being BullpenPro, apparently.
gary/rcade, just please delete this when you can and end it, already. JG, out!
Bard leads the league in past balls (10). The next in line? Ramon Hernandez and Kenji Johjima with 4. Apparently the thought of catching Wakefield every 5 days made Flaherty piss his pants contributed to Flaherty retiring . I love the Uecker quote that accompanies the Times graphic: "The way to catch a knuckleball is to wait until it stops rolling and then pick it up."
Flutterballs can make grown men tremble. I'm sure Bard couldn't stop smiling when they told him he'd been traded. And Boston needs to get someone else working on catching the knuckle or Mirabelli can choose his orifice to pleasure himself with come contract time.
...I have declined to post on a number of subjects upon which I would have LOVED to discourse, including A.J. Burnett's injury, Derrek Lee's injury, Papelbon becoming the closer, etc., because the stories about them weren't that interesting themselves, they were just vehicles to a discussion I wanted to have. If their is a good link to push those stories forward, by all means, post! If you can find an article/analysis/projection for what Burnett/Lee's injury mean to their teams outside of, our replacement is going to suck, then be my guest! And as for Papelbon, you just missed this great thread back in March. Questioning the validity of an FPP while admitting you're not sure what qualifies for a good FPP... *checks Roberts Rules of Order* *gives up* ...kinda sucks. I understand the logic: FPP for trading to return your backup catcher, for your #3 starter? Except how many other backup catchers who catch for # 3 starters are targeted by an opposing team, simply to keep them from catching for a # 3 starter? Which reminds me of the Jose Mesa suspension. Posting about a player suspended for plunking a batter? Who cares right? Posting about a pitcher suspended for plunking a batter who wrote that said pitcher is a choke artist? Priceless. I think we can all be grown-ups now and say that this thread makes the grade.
FPP for trading to return your backup catcher, for your #3 starter? But that isn't the story here. Nor is it the same as some random roster move. The sox trade wakefield's catcher, thinking it's not going to be a problem. New catcher is on pace to set a record with passed balls. Red Sox will play yankees tonight, basically tied for first place. They trade to get old catcher back, and yankees try to block the deal. It's interesting on many levels. I understand what you're saying bullpenpro, but it's a slippery slope. And I also think the examples you gave could have all been fine fpp if done correctly. JG linked to espn, but with such a quick breaking story, there wasn't a whole lot out there. If someone doesn't think the thread belongs then it would be better to ignore it or email one of the admins.
Wow, am I glad I missed this.
Questioning the validity of an FPP while admitting you're not sure what qualifies for a good FPP... *checks Roberts Rules of Order* *gives up* ...kinda sucks. Okay, I hear you. On the first part, I think it is fair to investigate the overall threshhold of good FPPs by calling into question those that don't appear, from what I've been told, to make the grade. The response helps assess the true value of the post. As for the second part, it's possible that if more people erred on the side of not posting when they were on the fence about the worthiness of a FPP, there might be more overall happiness with the state of this site. Maybe not. Hard to say. That was my judgment, and I stand by it. (For the record, my Papelbon had a different angle than the pre-season article in yerfatma's thread, but you're right, I did miss that. Bummer.) I think we can all be grown-ups now and say that this thread makes the grade. As ninjavshippo observed, things have been respectful here. And as I clearly stated in my last message, I'm willing to be shown where I'm wrong. Judging from the fact that one respected member did the posting and a second is rushing to defense leads me to believe I was off-base. If I behaved less than grown-up in my objection, I apologize. Wow, am I glad I missed this. I think everyone wishes I had. Including me. Sorry for the junk.
Gettin' tired a' all this crazy jibba jabba!
Doug Mirabelli, Knuckleball Savior, from the Sons Of Sam Horn MB Link
Mirabelli is O-V-E-R-A-T-E-D thats why he sucked when given the chance to start. A good fielder, and a marginal hitter, but not everyday starter material.
So you think the Sox should just use him as a backup?
Oh, the humanity stupidity.
