The recent events in Chicago remind of the Seinfeld episode in which Jerry becomes Kramer and Kramer becomes Jerry. You know, the one with Roger's Chicken. Anyway, it seems as Kenny Williams has taken to the way the Cubs have done business the last few years. You know, just throwing money around without paying attention to whom it it is going to. First he trades Jon Garland. Not to say that i have such a big problem with trading Garland, i just dont understand the timing and the return on the trade. Yeah, Cabrera is a solid player, but in a FA market in which Carlos Silva is the big fish, i cant imagine that Cabrera was the best the Sox could get in return for Garland. Garland was never really a good fit for the Sox. He was too laid back for Ozzie, and his fly ball tendencies weren't a good fit in the launching pad that is US Cellular Field. Plus, the Sox just lost their second best starter, and they dont really have any viable replacement for him. John Danks did nothing to inspire last year, and the same can be said for Gavin Floyd. Lance broadway pitched well in his final start, but he is very young and raw. Maybe one of them could work out, but i dont see it happening. With the continuing decline of Jose "im only 30 years old" Contreras, the Sox pitching staff will struggle nect year. Also, Garland was going into the last year of his deal and Kenny has made it clear that he wont have enything to do with long term deals, which Garland is sure to demand. But thats where i have got a problem with Kenny. Fine, if your gonna take that stand, take it. But dont turn around just a few days later and throw 20 million over five years at a guy like Scott Linebrink, who Bruce Levine, ESPN Chicago's baseball guy, said has just signed with the Sox for that amount of money. Not only is Linebrink coming off of his worst year as a relieve, but in offering him that deal kenny went aginst the principal that he so often sites as his main criteria in making offers. Considering that he posted an ERA in the high 3's the last two years while pitching in cavernous Petco Park, the move to the Cell will only make him less efective. His strikeouts were way down in 07 and his WHIP was way up. He is also 31 years old, but with relievers, 31 isnt as big of a deal as it is with hitters and starting pitchers. P

Overall, i dont really like the moves that Williams has made. He signed Uribe, then traded for Cabrera. He would have to find an absolute #### to take Uribe and his 4.5 million that he is owed this year. The Sox would probably have to eat at least half the contract anyway, nullifying the cash they got in the deal for Cabrera. And now, with the rumor that the Dodgers have offered Torii Hunter a six year deal worth 102 million, the Sox chances at landing Torii look really slim. Kenny has got a lot of work to do, and i dont particularly like the start he has gotten off to. They have no left and center fielder. Jerry Owens is OK, but hes already past the prospect age, and still hasnt shown anything outside of speed. Dye is old is not going to repeat his 2006. Konerko is older, and Danny RIchar is also way too raw and hit very poorly last year. To me, it looks like Kenny is trying to patch everything up in one postseason, but there simply arent enough good players avilable to fix all the problems on the South Side. If he continues making desperate and ridiculous offers like the one he has extended to Linebrink, he is only hurting his team.

At a time when almost any baseball achievment, whether it be pitching related or hitting related, raises questions of steroids, it is strange that the players that have been clean(can we really know for sure?) dont get lauded more often. I may not have been old enough to remember just how good Frank Thomas was during his peak years, just the fact that he was an MVP candidate last season at the age of 38 is quite remarkable. Even more remarkable is that he had such a good year despite playing terribly for the first month or two last year. While others that have taken steroids are breaking down and forced into retirement(Sammy Soa had to take off almost two full years to rest up and get back into shape), Thomas is still around and slugging home runs at a respectable pace. He has started off slow this season but that should change soon just like last season.

The man was an absolute beast during the 1990's. In just his first full season in the majors he batted .318, slammed 32 hr's and knocked in 109 RBI. With time he would only get better. He batted .353 with 38 hr's and 101 RBI in just 113 GAMES in the strike season of 1994. If Thomas's 2001, 2004 and 2005 seasons hadn't been ruined by injuries he could be heading towards 600 hr's this season and be considerd one of the all time greats. The idea that a player that toiled so long for one time could be treated as badly as Thomas was towards the end of his tenure as a White Sock is pretty rediculous. He was tossed out of Chicago in a classless manner by GM Kenny Williams and manager Ozzie Guillen as well as badmouthed by the both of them. If the Sox management had been a bit wiser they could have hung onto him, kept fan favorite Aaron Rowand(who everyone in Chicago is clamoring to have bak by the way) and used Thoms at the DH and he would have produced as well if not better than Jim Thome. Remeber that the White Sox have maybe the best hitter's ball park to call home and Thomas would have definietely used that to his advantage.

EIther way, i think it is only right that if so much negative light is going to brought upon players who have cheated and pumped steroids "unknowingly" into their backsides then positive light should be shed upon players who have played the game right and did a damn good job while doing so. 

Today was just brutal. The Mets basically conceded today's game before the game started, more precisely when the lineup cards were handed in. The Mets planned to go without Jose Reyes, Carlos Beltran and David Wright, and to top it off they marched out a terrible pitcher in Vargas. After watching the Cubs for a while, it came as no surprise that the Cubs struggled for the first 4-5 innings to score runs, as the Cubs seem to make the worst pitchers look like Nolan Ryan and Johan Santana. Last night Jorge Sosa killed th Cubs for 8 innings and allowed 0 runs. But they broke through with 2 two run home runs  and had a 4 run lead in the ninth and once again the bullpen broke down after a solid start by youngster Angel Guzman. With a pitching staff pitching as well as the Cubs' is, there is no reason the Cubs should be anywhere near the .500 mark. THey should be right up their with the Brew Crew atop the NL Central.

Lou Piniella should have never taken the job. I am sick of watching a team that hs gotten used to losing and is complacent with mediocre play. Lou really has no options. Jim Hendry has left him with an almost talentless group of farmhands down at triple A and a group of incapable relievers in the Bigs. A functioning bullpen is a must if a team wishes to contend in the Major Leagues. Look no further than the Millwaukee Brewers, who have an elite closer in Fransisco Cordero and a great setup man in Derrick Turnbow, along with a bunch of other solid relievers.

THis just goes to show that the most overrated position in baseball is the managerial one. No matter what Lou Piniealla says or does, the numbers in the win/loss column is decided by the players on the field, and the players on the field are decided on solely by the GM, and in the Cubs' case it is the woeful Jim Hendry, who overspent on Alfonso Soriano and waited too long on resignig Zambrano and is now caught in Limbo with the pending sale of the Cubs.

I am seriously considering dropping baseball altogether or picking a new town to root for, maybe even the White Sox.