I am too. It was during the interview process where he was saying that they'd already made up their minds, and it was going to be Francona. I'm almost positive I heard that. That's a few guys saying they heard it.

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"Play until it hurts, then play until it hurts to not play."
http://soundcloud.com/darkside124 HOF 2013, MM Champion 2014

prince fielder fills huge needs..power..obp%..and a first baseman..and he is a lefty and he makes your divisional winner weaker...it is a smart move for the cubs..5 maybe 6 years at 22 million per year...the cubs can be real contenders in 2 or 3 years.

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Division will likely be without him if the Cubs don't sign him. Dude's a couple years away at best from being a FT DH. The Cubs aren't really going to be contenders within the next 2-3 years. Why pay big bucks for a guy who will be at the end of his prime when the team around him is ready to contend? Fuck Fielder. I say, give us pitching for the money instead.

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"Play until it hurts, then play until it hurts to not play."
http://soundcloud.com/darkside124 HOF 2013, MM Champion 2014

Sign them both and play Pujols at 3rd and Fielder at 1st. And then move Soriano back to 2nd so you can have the most expensive infield ever.

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I wouldn't sign either one of them.

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CSFMB 2014 Nascar Pick 'em Champion

We don’t have a trillion-dollar debt because we haven’t taxed enough; we have a trillion-dollar debt because we spend too much. — Ronald Reagan

They just need to go to Japan and resign Micah Hoffpauir. He's younger than Pujols!

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Not sure it would be more than the Yankees.

Tex, Cano, Jeter, and A Rod are not making the league minimum.

Fielder - 1B
Pujols - LF
Soriano - CF

Me -

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Well then you have to give Castro a 13 year extension for 250 MIL

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Luis Montanez!!!!!

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OK. The stockpiling picks I can understand. But, the cap isn't going to prevent them from signing anybody, except the borderline guys that other teams pass on but the Cubs are willing to throw money at. But, there are only a few of those guys per year. And, as I understand it, you can spend over slot if you want to. It's a cumulative cap for a team.

It does seem that it will have a negative impact but not so much so that it should drastically change their gameplan and start throwing money at aging free agents. I think this is strictly a play to the fans, possibly a jacking up of the price tag to other more serious competitors, and that's about it. I'll be surprised if either put on the honored Cubs "C".

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You know me like that.

Dr. Ken, I miss your Tebow avatar. Please bring him back.

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"He is a loathsome, offensive brute
--yet I can't look away."

When the mourning period is over.

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You know me like that.

Maybe Tebow can bring Zook back to life?

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"He is a loathsome, offensive brute
--yet I can't look away."

Teams will no longer be able to draft younger players and pay them to skip college as they did before. So, more kids will be going to college instead of going straight to MLB. There are also new rules on pay for international players under the age of 23, which may lead to more international players staying home until they are 23.

Basically, it hurts draft teams in the short run trying to get a jump on top players. However, it should, in the future, lead to better college prospects.

I'm not sure about that. Kids would have done that in the past to hold out for a bigger payday. But, now the big payday will be all but eliminated for everybody but the top picks. They've taken the leverage away from the kids. Why go to school for a year or two when you might end up a 3rd round guy that isn't getting all that much more money?

It's one thing to say "forget this, I might get a $10 million deal next year" and another to say "forget this, I might get $850k next year." Kids are going to take what they can get and try to get to the majors more quickly so they can get paid.

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You know me like that.

The big payday should go to the top picks. These changes aren't a surprise. The free agent compensation policy was a joke and needed to be shit canned. The draft was also broken and needed to be fixed. I'm not sure this will fix it but everyone knew changes were coming. Teams will still be able to build through the draft if they are good at identifying and developing talent and I can't imagine these changes would make them radically change their way of doing business.

The new draft rules really hurt the Tampa Bays of MLB that rely on developing talent. They are now capped so they can't garner as much talent. Yes those teams with superior scouting and player development will have the advantage but not as much as before when they could get more prospects in the system simply by paying for them. Everyone will have to adapt.

As to Fielder and Pujols, I would def. favor Fielder but it all depends on years. I see him getting at least 6 years and that is certainly a risk. Also risky is his subpar defense esp. with Castro at SS.

I'd prefer to see them develop someone and give the job to LaHair in '12 to see what he can do.

Keep the money and invest in pitching.

i dont want either one of em...im tired of the starry-eyed bully mentality

just let things evolve over time, let the players grow together, and that would be more satisfying...stop trying to impress and all this bullshit...Im fuckin tired of it

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Fielder fits within the guidelines Epstein laid out for free agents he might target. he would give them the run production lost by Ramirez' departure and then some. Plus, they could use a good left handed bat. I just wonder whether nor not it would be money wasted, as the first couple years the team is unlikely to contend with/without Fielder. Does it make sense to spend 20 million or more a season, to finish 3rd instead of 4th or 5th? Perhaps it might keep more butts in the seats, as fans might want to go see the new slugger and with a slightly better record keep the interest a bit longer into the season...

Puljols-NO....he's too old and his numbers have gone down over the past few years. That trend is not likely to reverse itself. The final years of any deal with Albert would be no bargain. It would violate Theo's stated parameters to sign a player of Alberts age.

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Go Cubs!!!!

Now you know how we all feel about you

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Fielder would be a good signing. Even if he can't play first anymore 5 years in, he would still most likely be tradeable to an American League team as a DH.

How's that working out with Soriano?

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Soriano was not a consistent hitter. His OBP was always shit and he didn't hit for average either. Plus, he was 32 or something like that when he signed it. That was a dumb signing for a zillion reasons.

Fielder is an excellent hitter for average, power, and a great OBP as well.

Phil, your sig was an editing error. Dr. Ken wrote the 61-58 thing, but I fucked up the quote button thing and apparently didn't see that.

My whole life is a lie!

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lahair ? ...no way in hell..lahair is 2 years older than prince

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is that to say that u just moved to the USA from Canada?

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Believe that playa

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how was canada, and how long did u live there?

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