Bleed Cubbie Blue

Nickname for Rodrigo.

A very loving one too.

chilango2 - January 19, 2012 reply

Speaking of nicknames

now they don’t have to add a “y” to the end of everyone’s name. I like Dunston Jr.’s nickname for Dan Vogelbach: Vogel-BOOM-OH YEAH!

Dustin0224 - January 19, 2012 reply

Oh, help me, dear doctor, I'm damaged

There’s a pain where there once was a heart….

ClarkFan - January 19, 2012 reply

She plied me with bourbon so sour!!!

daver - January 19, 2012 reply

I'll be soakin' up drink like a sponge!!!!

cooliogirl47 - January 19, 2012 reply

I loved that so song so much in college...

…I figured out how to play it on guitar. Still do.

Great post.

scottsdalecubs - January 20, 2012 reply

The only way he makes the team is

if he is the 12th pitcher and takes the Ramon Ortiz roll as inning eater and if he gets hurt “oh well”. Plus, now we have our ninth pitcher!

For the record, I hope he gets cut in spring training, I don’t want him eating anyone’s innings at any level.

That was Carlos Silva's job!

Although by the end, innings were the only things he didn’t eat.

ClarkFan - January 19, 2012 reply

Not last year, because he ate everything

in 2010.

the only way he makes the team

Gatorade machine repair man, and even then, he should be second fiddle

VegasCubFan - January 19, 2012 reply

Every time I've seen him pitch in person,

the Cubs have won. So if he plays, we just have to make sure I’m there.

Write Ricketts now - you must be comped for season tickets!

ClarkFan - January 19, 2012 reply

Thanks, but I don't want to get greedy.

My record isn’t so good with the other pitchers.

BrewCrew'sPrinceofDarkness - January 20, 2012 reply

Some times you just gotta say WTF.

WTF?

BAMACOLONEL - January 19, 2012 reply

.....

When I first saw the title of this post

I thought for sure it was just a joke.

Dustin0224 - January 19, 2012 reply

I wish.

I checked the date to see if it was April 1 already.

Archie - January 19, 2012 reply

Just outta curiosity

but remind me again why everyone hates this guy? Didn’t he pitch pretty well for the Cubs last year?

DTJchris - January 19, 2012 reply

Didn’t he pitch pretty well for the Cubs last year?

No.

The SBNation's page for him

Is way off, it said he had a 2.59 ERA, that seemed off so I looked at his baseball-reference page, tells a much different story

DTJchris - January 19, 2012 reply

I have no idea where those numbers came from.

Yeah, those numbers are way off

I wasn’t quite sure of his stats so I took a look and was pretty shocked. Wish they were mire accurate than his actual stats.

DTJchris - January 19, 2012 reply

He ate innings

His performance was probably the minimum than you would want from a #5 starter. I do not have a problem with this signing if it is just a thank you for coming in during a very tough situation for the Cubs and giving more innings a game than Casey Coleman and other options were capable of doing. I expect the plan is to get him a touch of visibility and some proper conditioning so that if a team has an injury cascade early in the year, he could be ready to help them as he helped the Cubs last year. It would take 3-4 starters getting hurt in March for Lopez to make the Cubs opening day roster IMHO.

Qixotl - January 19, 2012 reply

No, he did NOT eat innings.

He started 16 games. He went six or more innings only six times. That’s not “eating innings”.

You know who else didn't "eat innings"??

Davis, Ortiz, Russell, & Coleman.

Hopefully, no pitcher of that “ilk” has to start a game for the Cubs this year. I assume Theo didn’t sign him with the plan that he’ll start a game for the Cubs, either.

I agree.

And Davis and Ortiz are gone, and Russell is a reliever, and Coleman likely fills out the Iowa rotation.

The Cubs have other pitchers who can pitch better than any of those four AND Lopez.

They certainly do.

And I would wager that they’ll all be called on to start games before RoLo is.

Which, again, makes this signing pointless, IMO.

Someone has to pitch at Iowa.

What DCR said.

And if all the viable “young guys” in Iowa pan out, he’ll pitch in the pen there or be released.

As I mentioned in the longer post, this is a lot of angst over a non-guaranteed minor league contract.

Most replacement fifth starters don't throw six plus innings very much.

BULL. You're more than misrepresenting those stats

He pitched 5.1 or more innings as a starter TWELVE TIMES. When your retread, washed ip, free agent fifth starter can get you at least 16 of 27 outs TWELVE TIMES, he hasn’t failed.

I'm not misrepresenting anything.

Six innings is considered competent. You can get a “quality start” with a 4.50 ERA if you go at least six innings.

Lopez failed to do this 10 of 16 times. He was a failure.

Felix Hernandez failed to get a QS 12 of 34 times last year.

Does that make him a failure? a QS is not considered “competent” by anyone, it’s a measure of performance that no experts really like. Going 5.2 innings with no earned runs isn’t a QS but going 6 innings with 3 ERs is? Going 9 innings with 4 runs isn’t a QS? It’s a pointless stat that measure an arbitrary amount of success.

Look up the average % of QS among 5th pitchers in MLB (which RoLo wasn’t, he was technically a 7th starter forced to become the 5th), and I bet RoLos numbers are extremely comparable.

That means he DID get a QS 22 of 34 times.

Pretty good, IMO.

For kicks...

Here are the MLB leaders in QS%.

To me, they go with a giant grain of salt… as BeerCub noted, you can go 5.2 shutout innings and not get a QS but give up 3 in 6 counts. So the stat is inherently flawed.

Lopez was obviously not real good. He’s not nearly as bad as Al has made him out to be… and he’s largely comparable to other teams’ 9th starters.

Thanks... and Blake Beavan being top 15 in QS instantly shows me how pointless it is to use to determine a competent pitcher.

Trade for Blake Beavan!!!! GETITDONETHEO!!!!

Now that I might be interested in!

To extrapolate...

RoLo was tied for 142nd in MLB for all pitchers that threw at least 80 innings. Out of 30 teams, that puts him towards the back end of all #5 pitchers for QS%.

His ERA was 4.42, which ranked 109th out of all pitchers with at least 80 IP. That would put him towards the back end of all #4 starters for ERA.

He was 127th in K/BB%, right at the top third of all #5 starters in MLB with 80+ IP. His WHIP was 143rd, back end of all #5….

Point is, no, he wasn’t a great pitcher… but I bet he’s probably one of the best #9 pitcher options in baseball for 2012, and that’s important.

Acting like he was the worst player to touch a baseball last year is ridiculous (and that isn’t at you, FSU, just in general.

When you start making up your own definitions.....

… there’s no talking about this.

San Diego Smooth Jazz Man - January 20, 2012 reply

MINOR league contract.

That’s it. Unless he’s lights out in AZ, he’s filling a roster spot in Iowa. No reason for angst.

He was fine

He did what he was asked to do. The level of hatred for him here is irrational.

BeerCub - January 19, 2012 reply

Hey, if some here can have irrational hatred for Koyie Hill

… I can have irrational hatred for Rodrigo Lopez.

cost of hatred. Koyie's was 800,000

Rolo is 480? if/when he’s pitching on the major league staff….

Right.

And Koyie was blocking other players (like Wellington Castillo in early 2011). RoLo’s not going to block anyone.

No, that's not correct.

RoLo gets $900,000 if he makes the MLB roster.

And there's no guarantee of that.

Koyie was signed to a big-league contract.

gets?

or is pro-rated time served? so while he’s up for a spot start or relief filler he’ll make $5,555.56 a game? thats 4 seconds on the new LED right field wall.

----

Hammer - January 19, 2012 reply

that's BLOU after getting banned

Hammer - January 19, 2012 reply

LOL!

jeffstorm2 - January 19, 2012 reply

HA!

sue369 - January 20, 2012 reply

IT'S HAPPENING!!?!?!1!!

jasperthepilot - January 19, 2012 via mobile reply

The angst over this signing is way overblown

It’s a minor league contract. Most likely outcome: he spends most of the year in Iowa praying for one last taste of the show and checks in as the #9th or 10th (Garza, Dempster, Maholm, Volstad, Wells, Wood, Sonnanstine, Coleman, and McNutt) SP for the big league club.

Another possible / likely outcome: he goes to the bullpen as the “long reliever / spot starter”…. aka the designated arm to abuse in games the Cubs are winning or losing by 5+ runs (file this all under the caveat that Sveum understands a long reliever can pitch more than 1.2 innings). Possibly/Probably competing with Sonnanstine and Coleman for this spot.

Another possible / likely outcome: he is released or traded for 3 hotel room upgrades so a couple of our scouts won’t have to double up.

As for the “he reminds me of Hendry”… get over it. If you want to wash your hands of everything Hendry touched, that means Castro, Garza, KWood, Geo, Barney, Wells, Marmol, Brett Jackson, Matt “Scrabble”, Trey McNutt, and the entire 2011 draft class (and then the cast of guys we would say ‘good riddance’ to) need to be out the door, too.

And for those that love numbers… his “mainstream” stats were awful last year along with a WAR of -0.3. But he did post a 4.48 xFIP… right in line with his career average.

Chances RoLo spends some time on the 25 man roster this season? I’d say roughly even money.

Chances he’s on the 2013 Cubs as Theo continues the organizational overhaul? Less than 1%.

Re-signing RoLo doesn’t “represent Hendry’s failures”. It represents signing an ‘old guy’ to a non major league deal to abuse him and eat innings in Des Moines and / or Chicago while the search for actual baseball talent continues.

The Cubs already had decent starting pitcher depth.

They didn’t really need a 36-year-old retread.

Did they NEED to sign him?

No.

To me, the age doesn’t matter. You’re talking about filler innings when the Cubs don’t have many near big league ready options in AA and AAA.

I agree that the Cubs SP depth is decent. Of course, you could have said the same thing this time last year… and Hendry got broiled for not having a better plan for the #10 starter.

You say “what’s the point?” and I say “what’s the harm?” We aren’t going to agree… and that’s fine.

I think the depth is already deep enough.

And, there’s the association with last year’s failed regime. I think that does matter.

As noted, I agree in part on the depth, to a point.

And, there’s the association with last year’s failed regime. I think that does matter.

I don’t think it does. You do. Okay…. then, as I noted above, if we need to rid ourselves of all Hendry connections……. there are a lot more moves to make. Where would you like the house cleaning to start? Castro? Jackson?

You can’t play both sides and say that good players Hendry acquired don’t have an association with the former GM, but less productive / bad players somehow embody all of Hendry’s failures.

And in particular… the Cubs “face of the franchise” also “represents” the Hendry regime. This player is also soon to be 35 years old. He also plays a highly volatile position where you can find a number of players to fill the role… especially for less than $3M.

But I seem to remember you lauding the signing of Kerry Wood (and rightfully so… I agree he should have been resigned).

Oh, please.

Obviously, you don’t get rid of EVERYONE associated with the old regime.

I’d say you don’t repeat his grasping-at-straws things like signing Lopez. I’m thinking that’s pretty obvious.

I thought the Lopez trade was a pretty good one.

We gave up minor league roster filler for a guy to pitch a hell of a lot better than Russell and Ortiz for half the season.

Oh please what?

You stated:

And, there’s the association with last year’s failed regime. I think that does matter.

So only “bad” players are associated with Hendry?? Why? And if so… that’s the fan’s fault if they think Hendry only acquired players who stunk / under performed / were way overpaid / etc.

Why is it “grasping at straws”?? If they’d signed him to a big league deal and installed him in the rotation, I’d agree. But this is a minor league contract. They aren’t “grasping at straws”. They are filling out the bottom end of the major league bullpen or a spot on the Iowa staff. Period.

Were the Sonnanstine, Corpas, Amezega, and Jaramillo signings all “grasping at straws” as well? Why are you not vocalizing your disdain for these players?

Why have you given Theo the benefit of the doubt on every move except this one??

Theo will undoubtedly make bad moves. Maybe this is one. But the worst case scenario is he makes the major league roster, gets paid the vet’s minimum, and pitches some mostly ineffective innings for the Cubs in a punted season. Oh well.

The best case scenario… he fills the long reliever role you have long called for (and we agree on) and still has a negligible impact on the Cubs’ season outcome while pitching in games that most often are already decided.

Once again, you're twisting my words.

Just because I think this ONE acquisition of Hendry’s exposed his regime as a failure, does not mean that every single such acquisition did.

I'm not twisting anything, Al.

In fact, I’ve been using quote boxes.

Of course every acquisition didn’t “expose his regime as a failure”.

You stated that part (hence the “and, there’s the association…”) of the reason you are opposed to resigning RoLo is his… and I’ll use your quotebox again:

association with last year’s failed regime. I think that does matter.

So… you are saying that being “associated” with a failed regime is at least partial justification for not retaining players.

My point is that “association” doesn’t matter. If it did, you would also need to get rid of the “good players”.

If you want to keep the good players and get rid of the “bad players” (which seems like a sound strategy)….. then any “association” they might have with the “Hendry regime” is irrelevant because you’re using baseball ability as a trump card.

A team shouldn’t be making any decisions that go like this: “well, we think he can be useful to our organization… but he might represent the failures of my predecessor… so let him go.”

Theo thinks RoLo might be useful to the organization. You disagree and it is entirely possible that this one gets scored “Al 1, Theo 0”. That’s all this boils down to.

And… really?? The Rodrigo Lopez acquisition is the ONE that “exposed” the failed regime? That was the last straw? Nobody embodies Hendry’s shortcomings more than Rodrigo Lopez?? My gosh… it’s hard to fathom that trading for RoLo is even in the top dozen moves that would represent Hendry’s failures.

fascinating examination of a minor league contract

Ivy Walls - January 19, 2012 reply

Sigh.

Hendry wound up grasping at straws, in hindsight because of many other failures. Lopez represents that.

Do we really need to revisit that? Theo and Jed have signed on quite a number of pitchers, giving the system depth it did not have when Cashner and Wells went down a year ago.

Why revisit Lopez, who I view as a failure?

Then all you have to do is say NoMo RoLo because he's a bad player

You can expand on that point all you want to fill the space desired, but it seems to me his badness should be enough of an argument to not want him on this team.

No reason to bring up the whole associated with last year’s failed regime thing. Because if you do, you’re opening yourself up for all sorts of logic fail. Lopez didn’t suck last year because of Hendry. Lopez sucked because of Lopez.

ballhawk - January 20, 2012 reply

All that is true.

But people seem to want more, so I give them more.

Honestly, I think pretty much every one of us as fans is entitled to a player or two that we have an irrational dislike for. Lopez happens to be on that list for me.

Marlon Byrd for me.

the way he snatches the ball on the third out and takes his glove off.

See, everyone has players like that.

Most fans love Marlon Byrd for his effort. His performance can be lacking at times. But if you want to have an irrational dislike for him, I won’t try to stop you.

But if you want to have an irrational dislike for him, I won’t try to stop you.

Yes, because you’d never belittle or question someone’s dislike for a player or member of this organization. o.O

Hey, we all have our irrational dislikes.

Doesn’t mean I can’t criticize others, or that you can’t criticize mine.

As long as you don’t devolve into personal attacks.

No blanket statements, Al!

All of my dislikes are completely rational… in my head.

#34 for me...

…but, I’m thinkin’ you all already know that. But, just in case…#34 for me!!!

Easy Ed - January 20, 2012 reply

Mine is Garza.

Not exactly sure why. Could be the constant trade talk or that I didn’t want him in the first place and need to correct some cosmic wrong or most likely it’s the beard. I’m trying to like him, but I just can’t seem to.

that I didn’t want him in the first place and need to correct some cosmic wrong

it’s this and only this

jesus christos - January 20, 2012 reply

...

Such a good episode.

Saved LOST from its awful third season.

And then there was the 6th season.... sigh

Na-It's the facial hair.

Makes him look like a devil.

Guessing LaHair is on your list as well.

You know

… I’m willing to give LaHair a shot, now that it appears he’ll be the opening day 1B.

I’m not expecting much. Hope he proves me wrong.

Sounds good.

Unfortunately for me, I’m usually proved wrong the other way around. I tend to defend and give the benefit of the doubt too easily.

I'm actually kind of looking forward to watching LaHair.

I don’t have crazy high hopes, but he might be one of the more interesting storylines this year if he can hit well enough.

I'm more interested in watching him now that I know we have Rizzo in the wings.

As dumb as it sounds…

Just something about going in with LaHair as plan A, B and C wasn’t working for me.

My biggest fear about LaHair

… is his defense.

I'm extremely interested in seeing what he has to offer

and this is absolutely the perfect season to do so.

I suppose.

Again, I hope I’m wrong. I do worry about his defense.

Nationals just signed Morse to a contract extension.

Ya never know.

Wait what?

But people seem to want more, so I give them more.

Nobody asked you to make ridiculous leaps in logic. You did that all on your own.

Can we sign NoMo RoLo to a minor league deal, too?

Ironically, Al...

Hendry was stuck grasping at straws because he did not have enough pitching depth throughout the minor leagues.

Now that Theo is sitting on a pile of starting pitching depth, you’re upset with the move? A minor league contract for 200k?

You’re moving into Easy Ed territory with RoLo, Al… you’re not able to look at this move objectively.

Maybe not.

But I think you made my point. Theo & Jed ALREADY have a pile of starting pitching depth. Why revisit this bottom-of-the-pile guy?

Because it's a split contract that has absolutely no downside.

If you have a 9th guy on your staff that held down a 4.50 ERA the previous year, I’d say you’re doing alright.

this is where that extra Kerry Wood Million is going...

Rolo’s major league salary!

...

Look at it from the other end - what's the harm?

Can’t be the cost – otherwise you’ll be painting yourself into a penny-wise, dollar-foolish corner.

Player development? Obviously we’ll have to wait until spring training (and possibly regular season) to see how this plays out, but given what we already know about Theo & Jed’s stated long and short-term objectives, do you really think RoLo will be allowed to block the development of another (presumably younger) player with more potential/value/worth to the club?

Again, what’s the harm?

ballhawk - January 20, 2012 reply

This is where the argument goes to ...

Al: Why do this?
Many of us: Why not do this?

The truth is the move is so unimportant that either argument is pretty valid.

I disagree that it's unimportant, though.

I think the pitching depth is so important and can’t be overlooked. If we had this last year, we wouldn’t have been nearly as bad as we were.

Again, what’s the harm?

The irony is this is the same argument Al makes about every single other minor league signing in the last five years.

Wow, that's a leap.

EVERY SINGLE ONE? Hardly.

Ok, other than Rodrigo

Has there been another minor league signing you’ve been upset about?

Why can't I have different opinions about different minor league signings?

Because they are about different players.

Or does every opinion I have, have to be set in stone forever?

I'm not sure how this an answer to my question

You have a real problem with people challenging your opinion

On certain issues, and those issues tend to be “because I said so!”

You questioned those of us who wanted nothing to do with Koyie HIll last year to the point where you were belittling us for making too big a deal about a backup catcher. Yet when you make a goddamn front page post about how much you hate a minor league signing, when every other time there has been a minor league signing your dislike has been at most “I don’t get it, but there’s no real harm” suddenly it’s “WHY WON’T YOU LET ME HAVE MY OPINION UNCHALLENGED!!!!!!!?”

Or does every opinion I have, have to be set in stone forever?

Of course it doesn’t. But for god’s sake, when you change an opinion that has been your opinion for quite a while, you should effing expect someone to ask why. You never seem to get that.

Maybe I’ll just stop responding to you until you stop trolling.

Ok

But I’m not trolling you and you damn well know it. I challenge your opinion and you bitch about it. I ask you a question and you go on a rant.

I'll freely admit I get after you, but it's because I've rarely seen

someone who thinks their opinion should simply be taken as gospel the way you do.

I have NEVER said that, nor do I think it.

It’s other people who keep bringing up stuff I said five years ago that they think I still believe.

I, just like anyone else, am entitled to change my mind and admit I’m wrong, which I have done.

Have you?

It’s other people who keep bringing up stuff I said five years ago that they think I still believe.

Who is doing that here? I said OVER the last five years, I’ve seen you say nothing but “what’s the harm” to a minor league signing. (Which by the way I agreed with you 99 if not 100% of the time)

That’s why I said it was ironic that suddenly signing Rodrigo Lopez to basically the same freaking deal that countless other washed up veterans have been signed to with “no harm” was worthy of your angst.

And I’ll admit I’m wrong, when I’m wrong. Hell, I ASKED you to show me where I’m wrong and you countered with “CAN’T I HAVE AN OPINION?!?!?!”

I'm not real sure why you're debating nuances and semantics

when your position boils down to:

Honestly, I think pretty much every one of us as fans is entitled to a player or two that we have an irrational dislike for. Lopez happens to be on that list for me.

And I have absolutely no issue with that stance at all.

That’s really all you have to say. I don’t “like” RoLo… I just don’t care that Theo signed him to be the 9th starter.

For the record… my guy is Soriano because of the way he plays the game. His limited production / value and excessive contract are byproducts. But I just can’t stand the way he plays the game… and nobody can convince me any different.

I think most of us are just having some fun at RoLo's expense.

The only possible role is as the designated arm to abuse. If he starts at any level he is taking innings from someone else.

Lopez wasn't really a big part of the failure.

He had the second best ERA of any cub starter.

Matters to the fans, the clubhouse, or both?

San Diego Smooth Jazz Man - January 20, 2012 reply

And of course, I didn't read this far.

Rec’d.

Whatever, I never hated the dude.

Eat it up, Cubs fans.

Ohhhhh, sweet spoonfuls of batting practice fastballs!

daver - January 19, 2012 reply

Is this a real thing?

I want it more than oxygen itself.

chilango2 - January 19, 2012 reply

lol i was thinking the same thing when i saw it.

AzCubfan24 - January 19, 2012 reply

No one can resist these.

English Cub Fan - January 19, 2012 reply

I can't endorse

an ice cream whose moniker recalls a German mispronunciation of “Sweaty Balls”.

Still one of the absolute finest SNL routines ever.

“Act now and get my balls on your plate in time for Christmas.”

LOL.

Cubfansince1957 - January 19, 2012 reply

At McDonald's and it was much better than the pitcher.

I don’t know if it is still there.

Sadly the Rolo McFlurrry was a limited time deal

I’m usually not a McFlurry fan, but the Rolo ones were awesome.

Invalid User - January 19, 2012 reply

It was at McDonald's and was much better than the pitcher.

I don’t know if it is still available.

If not, it should be.

santoswoodenlegs - January 19, 2012 reply

Is he getting a raise? Is he going to actually be starting ML games?

If no…then I don’t care.

I hear he's asking for Koyie Hill to be his personal catcher.

santoswoodenlegs - January 19, 2012 reply

The I hope they go out like Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid...

in AAA.

GOOD!

Koyie signed with Cards. Works out perfectly!!!

jeffstorm2 - January 19, 2012 reply

OT - Does anyone know if "Camp Colvin" was held again this year?

I recall there was talk about changing the name (even before he was traded), but was it indeed held, and if so who attended?

BAMACOLONEL - January 19, 2012 reply

It has been renamed Camp Bussy after Tim Buss.

Campana gained 10 lbs. there. Don’t know who else attended.

I heard Barney also added muscle along with little Tony.

I said this in the Byrd weight thread,

but Barney added 18 pounds according to Muskrat, tremendous work.

CubFan90 - January 19, 2012 reply

Hell, for him that's like 20% of his body weight added on.

The Cubs should set up "Camp 'How to Take a Walk'"

Wow, people need to calm down.

It’s a minor league deal, and it’s crazy how much angst the guy gets when you could argue he was our second best starter for a long portion of 2011. Barring multiple injuries, I doubt he’s even considered to battle for a SP role in ST. He’s most likely AAA depth, or maybe they want an actual long reliever instead of the Ramon Ortiz guy who is just there to mop up once a week, in which case he’s competition for Andy Sonnanstine. I’d actually rather see Lopez than Sonnanstine if someone has to make a spot start.

Clarifying reference to Reyes and Ayala:

The correct translation is: “Rodrigo López signs minor league contract with the Chicago Cubs… only Dennis Reyes and Luis Ayala are left as free agents.” I assume the author meant that they are the only Mexican free agents left.

Fraggin Judge - January 19, 2012 reply

Thank you for the more accurate translation.

Google Translate is OK, but sometimes misses nuance.

as long as he never pitches on the big league team

i guess i don’t care

jesus christos - January 19, 2012 reply

When Cubs are out of it by the trade deadline and half the staff is traded for prospects...

He will come in handy..

lakhania - January 19, 2012 reply

They should have announced this at the Convention.

If Pat would've hyped up the mysterious new signing like he did and then announced Rodrigo instead of Kerry

I would probably be re-watching the video of that for the 9,000th time by now.

If Pat had done that

… there might have been a riot in the room.

And it would've been a youtube sensation!

And it may have replaced the "Thrilla in Manilla"...

…as my all-time favorite sports moment on video.

Easy Ed - January 20, 2012 reply

That would've been hilarious.

Right before they REALLY announced the Kerry Wood re-signing.

Rodrigo Lopez: The Latin Greg Maddux

RiskyBusiness - January 19, 2012 reply

It's true -- squint and he looks just like him when he pitches.

http://www.purobeisbol.com.mx/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1229:es-marinero&catid=3:portada&Itemid=28

Good. I didn't go and learn this for nothing...

Go Go de cachorros. Go Go de cachorros. Oye Chicago ¿qué le digo? Cachorros van a ganar hoy!

Tat14 - January 19, 2012 reply

There are going to be a lot of blowouts...

This team is likely to be bad. Wells has a history of blowing up in the 1st. Wood and Volstead are young. Sveum is going to need a guy who can come into a 5-0 game in the top of the 3rd and throw 70 pitches to save the rest of the bullpen.

I’d rather have Ortiz be that guy than one of the young pitchers who actually may have a future. I’m thinking Jon Lieber 2008… 26 games, 25 in relief, of which there were:

- 9 Cub wins – of which twice were in the 4th, twice in the 9th in a road blowout, 4x in the 6th, and once in extras.
- 16 Cub losses, of which 10 times the opposition scored 7+ runs, another game he came in during the 3rd, and another he came in to pitch the last inning down 3-0.

I’m perfectly happy to have Lopez start the season as the "up by 5, down by 3’ pitcher to mop up on irregular rest. I’d rather not stick a rookie in that role, I’d rather the rookie spend time pitching at Iowa on a regular schedule.

Invalid User - January 19, 2012 reply

Lopez is one expensive batting practice pitcher

This makes zero sense. Maybe Theo is so paranoid that he needs to keep adding veteran starters.

propheteer - January 19, 2012 reply

I hope he makes the team

BeerCub - January 19, 2012 reply

I posted this on 12/6/11 in response to a certain blogger

Remember, all I said was he kept them in most games. His overall ERA was 4.42, relatively decent by today’s standards.

The team was 7-9 in games he started. His last 15 appearances of the year, from July to September, 14 were as a starter. He went 5.1 or 5.2 IP six times, 6.0 or 6.2 five times, 7.0 once. He had two starts of 4.0 and 4.1, making for his 14 starts.

The two four inning starts were his worst, where he gave up six runs in each. However, the team won one of those. His five inning starts he gave up 2,3,5,2 and 5. The team won one of the five run starts. His six inning starts he gave up 3,1,4,1 and 0. His seven inning start was a no run, two hit, no walk start.

Rodrigo Lopez was a competitive pitcher who kept them in games. He has the type of arm that can start, relieve, and he won’t cost that much. If the team signs him to compete for a spot on the roster, it’s because he’s earned the chance.

BeerCub - January 19, 2012 reply

I really don't get...

your over the top disdain for Lopez. As a starter last year, he was 6-5 with a 4.50 ERA. If I told you on March 31st last year that the Cubs 5th starter would have a 4.50 ERA, you’d probably think they’d be a playoff contender… right?

kanderber - January 19, 2012 reply

Señoras y señores, sus Cachorros de Chicago!

BDR529 - January 19, 2012 reply

Garza was the only starter with a better ERA than Lopez!

Some of the hatred over this minor signing, especially by Al, is ridiculous. He probably won’t even pitch for the major league team. Some people need to look at the stats of other pitchers on the team before they bash this guy.

DMBCub - January 19, 2012 reply

Ayala and Reyes References

Lopez, Ayala, and Reyes are all Mexican and Puro Beisbol is a Mexican sports page that is tracking Mexican free agents.

Check out the news on Oliver Perez , they seem very excited that he signed a minor league deal with the Mariners:

So anyway, according to Twitter dude, Ayala and Reyes are the only major Mexican FAs left on the market.

Kyle From Chicago - January 19, 2012 reply

Worse ideas than signing Rodrigo Lopez:

Signing Ramon Ortiz;
Signing Doug Davis;
Installing Casey Coleman in the ML rotation;
Moving James Russell out of the bullpen;
Moving Shark out of the bullpen (maybe)

Limey Cub Fan Jay - January 20, 2012 via mobile reply

Remove the maybe on Spellcheck

And I agree 100%.

Lopez is serviceable, and one of nine or ten starters.

Szamardija FINALLY had an acceptable season as a sixth/seventh inning guy with a strong arm that can go two innings often. He needs to be left there. Not smart enough, doesn’t locate well enough, to start, ever again.

KO Stradivarius - January 20, 2012 via mobile reply

I think Zach Duke would have been the better option

To me, duke has better stuff and is younger. He could be the inning eater that’s been talked about. Duke also has a better WAR and better HR/9

ChicagoBlues1983 - January 20, 2012 via iPhone app reply

DINGDINGDING!

And, he’s lefthanded, too.

What indication is there that Zach Duke would sign on to be a teams 9th starter?

for 200k?

Because no one has yet made him an offer.

I didn't realize you were Zach Duke's agent.

C’mon Al, you know you can’t claim that. Theo may have offered him and Kazmir the exact same offer he gave RoLo and they both turned it down.

Maybe.

Doesn’t seem likely, as you’d think either of those guys would have signed somewhere by now.

Or they could wait until

someone gets hurt in ST and better position themselves for a major league job, knowing they can probably catch a minor league deal at most any point.

Neither have a lot of other starters.

Lopez and Hill

The overthetop ridiculous hate of these 2 has gone beyond the pale. I think that the President, Governor, Mayor, Cook COunty Board President and the Head of the UN should hold a conference today and announce these 2 are to blame for the world problems.

Nothing is as bad as the hate of Crane Kenney especially since its based on people not knowing the first thing about how an organization runs and don’t know he has nothing to do with the onfield product.

puckishcubsfan - January 20, 2012 reply

Heh.

Al, this is such a weird crusade you’ve started. Earlier in the offseason — when Theo said the team was interested in bringing RoLo back — you objected because you thought RoLo would be a cog in the big-league rotation. Many of us pointed out that RoLo would be nothing more than the team’s No. 8-9 starter, based on other comments TheoJed had made.

And that’s precisely what happened! The Cubs signed Maholm, traded for TWood, replaced Z with Volstad and now have six goodish starters at the big-league level. As fsu correctly pointed out, Casey Coleman and Andy Sonnestine will probably be the seventh and eighth options … leaving RoLo as the No. 9 guy if someone like Trey McNutt doesn’t step up.

You mentioned Zach Duke, but Duke might not have accepted a minor-league contract to fill this role. RoLo is an insurance policy on a couple other insurance policies. Remember that he was the best of the bad Russell-Davis-Ortiz-RoLo squad that filled out the rotation last year. Still, I’d bet you dollars to doughnuts that he starts no more than two games in Chicago in 2012.

As for the whole “reminder of Hendry’s failures thing,” you really just need to get over that. Not signing RoLo because of his time with the Cubs last year would be as ridiculous as not signing Kerry Wood (to a reasonable contract) because he’s some sort of reminder of the failures between 2003-08. What we all need to realize is that TheoJed are not making decisions based on fan or franchise anguish from the past decade. They’re simply making decisions that they think are in the best interests of the team.

You’ve patted them on the back for doing that regarding Kerry. I’d suggest you consider their approach regarding Rodrigo Lopez.

Regarding Zach Duke

… it’s four weeks to spring training, and he doesn’t have a contract. I’d think he’d probably accept a minor league deal — quite a number of players with significant MLB time have done so.

Just as I accept your irrational dislike of Kosuke Fukudome, I ask you to accept mine of Lopez. It’s not something you can necessarily explain to anyone.

If you can't explain it to anyone, why post about it?

If you didn’t want to have to explain your position, you could have simply written that the Cubs signed RoLo to a minor-league deal, posted the contract details and moved forward. I doubt most of the people who read your post were at all confused or uninformed going in when it comes to your feelings on Rodrigo Lopez.

And I don’t think my dislike of Kosuke Fukudome was irrational, though it was certainly emotional. After a while, I had a visceral dislike of the guy (something I owned up to, BTW) that stemmed from being annoyed with the endless justifications on this site — He made the Cubs more patient in 2008! He made the Cubs more popular in Japan! He just needs another year to get acclimated! His dedication to conditioning will spill over to other players! — for his failure of a contract and time in Chicago.

After I posted comments about Kosuke, I was more than willing to defend my position among the many BCBers who disagreed with me. Respectfully, you can’t expect that no one will call you out when you make a comment that you, yourself, describe as irrational — and you can’t presume that the discussion will stop because you say you KNOW you’re being irrational.

Oh, and the justifications for Kosuke weren't coming exclusively from you, Al.

Want to make that clear.

Understood.

I could say the same things about RoLo.

He eats innings! (no, he doesn’t).

He DOES give up a ton of home runs, making him ill-suited to Wrigley Field.

The Cubs already have a ton of pitching depth thanks to Theo & Jed’s deals and signings — and as you note, Zach Duke would have been a better choice. For that matter, if you want to take a flyer on someone who might have a chance at a real comeback, why not sign Scott Kazmir?

Lopez is 36. He represents the past — never mind Hendry, he’s 36. Let’s move on.

Kazmir and Duke might not have taken split contracts.

This isn’t a spot where a pitcher should expect to make a comeback. Again, RoLo has to know that his chances of starting more than a couple games in Chicago in 2012 are incredibly low. Duke and Kazmir, because they’re younger, probably want more of a shot to actually make a big-league club and produce, whereas RoLo, at 36, apparently doesn’t take issue with hanging in the PCL until he’s needed.

As for the eats innings thing, it’s important to note that RoLo ate more innings than the other fifth starters we went through. So if we’re picking a No. 9 starter …

Now, if you wanted to argue that this signing is pointless and a waste of $200,000 — we have Garza, Dempster, Maholm, Volstad, Wood, Wells, Sonnestine, Coleman, McNutt, etc. — then there would be fewer disagreements. Some might cite the Looper, Wellemyer backups last year, but I think it’s safe to assume that the crop I just listed even without RoLo will be more reliable than Dempster, Zambrano, Garza, Wells, Cashner, Silva, Coleman, Wellemyer and Looper. No Z outbursts, no unproven rookie, no jerkwad Silva, no old guys coming off major injuries.

But the pointless argument can be turned around. It’s just as easy to ask why as it is to say ‘why not’, considering RoLo’s price tag.

Kazmir and Duke might not have taken split contracts.

And yet, they still sit unemployed.

Possibly because they wouldn't take split contracts. ;)

If Duke or Kazmir ends up taking a split contract in a similar situation to this one, I’ll definitely rethink my position.

The closer we get to spring training

… the more likely that the remaining free agents (other than someone like Prince Fielder) have to take minor league deals or split contracts.

Or, they can sit out and wait.

RoLo, setting everything else aside, genuinely wants to keep playing baseball, even if it means doing so in the minor leagues. I don’t think you can assume that Dukes and Kazmir would (or wouldn’t) be willing to do the same.

All we can do is judge TheoJed’s actions based on available evidence.

Depending on their age,

some might rather retire.

Regarding Duke and Kazmir

… both lefthanded, Duke is 28, Kazmir 27.

Sometimes lefties mature later. I’d take a chance on either or both of them before Lopez.

Kazmir...

what the H happened to that guy? wasnt he the second coming of Cy young in tampa a few years ago?

Yeah.

Hurt his arm. But he’s only 27 — what’s the downside? If he’s recovered, you have a 27-year-old lefthander who was once dominant and might be again.

what’s the downside?

There must be one. Because as you’ve pointed out NO ONE has signed him yet. I highly doubt every single major league general manager just forgot he existed.

Perhaps there are reports out there that neither Kazmir or Dukes are mechanically sound. You said “if he’s recovered” perhaps he hasn’t and that’s patently obvious to those who have actually scouted/talked with him.

Rodrigo Lopez is the very definition of filler. He’s a healthy body. Perhaps that isn’t the case with these other guys.

Perhaps.

I think it’s worth it. Obviously, up to now all 30 GM’s disagree.

We also might be comparing apples and oranges.

RoLo accepted a split contract knowing he’s the Cubs’ ninth option (if that) for the rotation. The other guys might not be willing to do that.

Kazmir because HE CAN'T PITCH

Until someone brings him into camp

… and he shows that, that is not a true statement.

He’s been injured. Sometimes injured pitchers come back. If he were, oh, say, 36 like Rodrigo Lopez is, I’d agree.

But he is TWENTY SEVEN.

28 (in four days) and DONE

The Angels could not fix him. They paid him millions to stay away. They gave up. Mike Scioscia decided he’d had enough. If you talk to people around their organization, they question his mental toughness, his dedication to his craft, and willingness to listen and adjust the way he pitches. The Anti-Lopez, if you will.

Does that mean Kazmir is done?

Or maybe the Angels organization isn’t the right place for him?

IMO, it is worth a NRI. If the same issues happen again, you cut him with zero risk.

Who's to say the Cubs didn't give both Duke and Kazmir NRI.

At least with Lopez, they know for sure, right now, they have a 9th man.

ubercubsfan - January 20, 2012 reply

Other than his age.....

….. point to one thing he’s done the last three years on the field to merit anything at all.

I believe he's probably injured.

Injured pitchers who are 27 can recover and be productive.

but 36 year old healthy pitchers who are marginally decent

have no place in our minor leagues?

So you pointed to his age anyway...

….. and nothing on the field. The Angels had him checked out thoroughly before they paid him several million dollars not to pitch for them. He’s not injured.

The Angels had him checked out thoroughly before they paid him several million dollars not to pitch for them. He’s not injured.

Any chance he could have been injured AFTER he was signed?

Sure there is.

You're guessing, trying to support your opinion

Maybe I wasn’t clear. Before they released him, he had been sent to team doctors. All agreed, including Kazmir, his problem was mechanics. Tampa had signed him to a huge deal, and the Angels were obligated to honor that deal. He came with a huge contract. He made $12M in 2011, and he was done by June. All of Arte Moreno’s horses and all of his men couldn’t put Scott Kazmir together again. He.can’t.pitch.

If mechanics are the only issue

… SOMEONE should be able to fix that.

Well, I don't know how you can say he isn't or wasn't injured

I mean, the dude went from dominant to dookie in the matter of a year.

I have a hard time believing none of his problems are physical.

See above

See: Hill, Rich

Didn't Hill actually get injured?

If Kosuke Fukudome had signed to a minor league deal

you’d have an argument.

Truly, if you can't explain it, maybe you shouldn't say it

I can articulate why Lopez deserves a shot to make the team. I said it to you last month and I’ve reposted here. All you can offer is “no, I don’t want him”. At least back it up with something. If you can’t explain why, then you’ve got nothing to offer here.

People here that have been worshipping at the Boy Geniuses Throne are going to have to be consistent if the Geniuses make moves like this. We’re told their baseball acumen is unparalled in today’s game. They made the decision to sign Lopez. They see something he might be able to offer. End of discussion if these guys are so smart.

"End of discussion"?

You mean these guys are ALWAYS RIGHT?

Yes, I trust their vision for this team. It does not mean that every single decision they make is the right one.

You probably won't answer this

But other than being a throwback to the Hendry era, what exactly is the harm in signing Rodrigo Lopez to a minor league contract?

Because the Cubs have enough pitching depth

… that they shouldn’t need him.

Al, promise i'm not Nunya Part two here but

i thought the old adage is, " you can never have enough pitching"?

I don't disagree with that.

I just feel the Cubs have already reached that point.

Or to put it more precisely

you can never have enough quality pitching

Not sure how keeping RoLo helps with that.

lookingdeadred - January 20, 2012 reply

He's better than Sonnanstine and Coleman.

Coleman?

Probably.

Sonnanstine? I’ll take my chances with the younger guy.

Why?

Lopez was by far better than Sonnanstine has been at any time over the last three seasons.

Lopez was just about the worst rotation starter in the NL in 2010.

Again, I’ll take my chances with the younger guy maybe putting it together, than the 36-year-old retread.

Al Yellon - January 21, 2012 reply

Eh. There were guys that pitched worse than Lopez in 2010.

I’d feel more confident if Lopez was thrown out there over Sonnanstine, and he was much better than Andy’s ever been since ‘08, but I can agree to disagree. And even though Sonnanstine is younger, he’s still going to be 29 in March, so he really shouldn’t be expected to get any better because he’s not really that young. Let’s just say neither is an ideal choice.

Dcr18 - January 21, 2012 reply

I'd agree with your conclusion here.

I still maintain that at 29, it’s still possible for Sonnanstine to get better. Will he? Probably not, but it’s more possible than Lopez, at 36, to improve.

Al Yellon - January 21, 2012 reply

See my stats about him, Al... he clearly wasn't.

bdlugz - January 21, 2012 reply

Honestly your constant assertions that the younger guys are always the better choice

ranks right up there with Ed’s “never bring ex players back ever…..EVER” crap

Nunyabidness - January 22, 2012 reply

Clearly the organization disagrees with you. Also, having too many pitchers in your minor league isn't actually harmful

So…..What is the HARM.

And I'll ask a completely different question that just occurred to me.

Because the Cubs have enough pitching depth

So they have too much depth for Rolo, but not enough for Kazmir and Dukes?

OK, let me spell this out again.

IF the Cubs were going to sign another pitcher — which I am not convinced they had any need for — I would have rather seen a younger LHP like Kazmir or Duke.

Do I really have to explain every single thing I post to you?

Only when they contradict themselves.

Or someone changes his mind.

Again, you seem to be in the “AL’S OPINION ONCE STATED IS IMMUTABLE AND CAN NEVER BE CHANGED” camp.

That. Is. Just. Wrong.

Are you changing your opinion by the hour now?

Because I’m talking about statements that contradict themselves in this thread

Isnt there an old saying?...

You can never have too much pitching. As long as he’s better than the fifth starter at Iowa who’s spot he’s taking, then it’s not a bad deal.

As a Hendry hater

I’m not really experiencing the whole “reminder of Hendry’s failure thing” now that he’s gone. Koyie was (rightfully) non-tendered, and I think I’ll lay off DeWitt this year. It’s just not the same now that Hendry has been replaced.

Rodrigo Lopez is not exactly the Free Agent splash I am expecting from the great Theo Epstein

Only a minor league deal, which is the good news.

I guess I’ll still be patiently. waiting.

BoilerUp1982 - January 20, 2012 reply

you might be waiting

for a year or two

jasperthepilot - January 20, 2012 via mobile reply

We've basically sat through the entire offseason

If it hasn’t dawned on you yet that there isn’t going to be a big free agent splash this year….I don’t know what to tell you.

I know, I know - just expected a bit more out of the gate I suppose

BoilerUp1982 - January 20, 2012 reply

The gate's been open for a while.

There may have been a point in time over the past several months when TheoJed were setting their sights a LITTLE higher, like maybe before the new CBA rules came into effect. But if you were expecting much more based on anything in the past month or so, you weren’t paying close enough attention.

Stock up time!

Let’s get a look at as many players with Major League ability in camp. Lopez isn’t great, but at least he can be a credible option to fill in for a few starts if someone goes down for a short time.

More, more more! Now is the time to go bargain shopping. I expect Theo/Jed to sign a few of the many unsigned free agents to deals soon. I’d like to see deals for Dave Aardsma, Wilson Betemit, Connor Jackson and Juan Cruz. Most on minor league deals. We need some depth and competition in the bullpen and infield.

tom veryzer - January 20, 2012 reply

Wow, just went and looked at Conor Jackson's stats

He sure fell off a cliff. I would imagine he is one we wouldn’t go after (at least right now) Because Rizzo will be manning 1st base in Iowa.

I suspect the Valley Fever got him good.

ubercubsfan - January 20, 2012 reply

And Carlos Pena was just signed by the Rays again

Aaron Gleeman on Lopez at Hardball Talk.

First he says:

Rodrigo Lopez did a decent job in 98 innings for the Cubs last season, posting a 4.42 ERA in 16 starts and 10 relief outings

But then he says:

He also served up 18 homers in 98 innings last season, which along with sub par strikeout rates and mediocre control makes him a pretty marginal big leaguer at this point.

So was it decent? Or not? Sounds like “not” to me.

As many have tried to point out to you

He was decent for what he was. He was the 9th option in a field of bad options.

So a marginal big leaguer was signed to be a ninth starter?

Sounds okay to me.

If this is the best you got, you ain't got

Sounds like marginal.

But granted we can toss around stats all day… but…

Which is more important: ERA or how he gives up runs (HRs) or gets outs (Ks).

I’m not saying those stats have no meaning. They do. But I would think that ultimately ERA is more important.

And then there’s more stats on RoLo here… for perspective on how he compares to other 5th starters (which he is still awfully unlikely to be).

C'mon, Al.

Gleeman used the word ‘decent’. Clearly, Gleeman thought Lopez did a decent job.

But then he said 18 HR in 98 innings wasn't very good.

You're really reaching.

He said he did a decent job, and then elaborated about his overall performance. But he didn’t say, “Oh, on second thought, Lopez is the sum of all evil that Al Yellon says he is.”

I know, I know — you didn’t say he’s the sum of all evil. I was exaggerating for the sake of humor. Now, you could argue that Gleeman is indicating that Lopez has nowhere to go but down, and that if he went down any further, he’s not worth a roster spot.

But, again, RoLo isn’t getting a roster spot. He’s insurance on insurance who won’t block anyone and who costs relatively little money in baseball terms.

How he got the results wasn't always impressive...

The results were decent. It’s not difficult to follow.

Do you still not realize he was our second best starter last year?

Good Gawd......

200+ comments on a minor league signing of RoLo……..only at BCB.

jballgame - January 20, 2012 reply

It's a slow day.

its a slow century +3...

Sometimes I think a few of you just like to argue

for the sake of arguing.

I object to that assumption!

BoilerUp1982 - January 20, 2012 reply

You say that like there's something wrong with it!

Just an observation.

BCB: Where we all get along and everyone loves every decision the Cubs make.

is boring.

When the arguing gets predictable and routine

it gets boring too.

i'm sorry i fell asleep during your predictable and routine reply...

(are you going to AZ with your husband?)

Go back to sleep. You're not missing anything.

(Later in the week, yes.)

...................

(awesome! have a blast…hope its awesome for him, too!)

Thanks!

You're WRONG!

: )

jballgame - January 20, 2012 reply

I bet the vast majority of Cubs fans forgot this guy even pitched last year.

santoswoodenlegs - January 20, 2012 reply

I tried...

but Al kept bringing his name up over and over again….and now this.

That's the only reason I remember him.

Did you know Ramon Ortiz pitched for the Cubs last year too? Crazy.

doug davis

Doug Davis was awesome.

My favorite Cub of 2011.

Um...

… why?

I just irrationally liked the guy.

There weren’t many players to rationally like, anyways.

yeah, i felt really bad when he was let go...

DOUGIE D WASSUP

jesus christos - January 20, 2012 reply

YOU KNOW IT, DAWG

Hey.

If you can have irrational hate for Koyie Hill, I can have irrational hate for RoLo.

santoswoodenlegs - January 20, 2012 reply

I don't consider any of my hate of Koyie Hill to be based on irrationalities.

He underperformed and was overpaid to do it….while blocking cheaper alternative that may or may not have been better..but couldn’t have ever been worse.

I'm considering creating two additional BCB accounts so I can turn this green myself.

unnecessary

jesus christos - January 20, 2012 reply

What exactly was Hill supposed to do?

Discard his paycheck, just quit to step aside for the cheaper, younger option that may or may not have been better? Hating Hill for this seems irrational to me, while hating Hendry and/or Quade for how much he was paid and how he was used would seem more rational.

By that logic, the only player people should dislike are the a-holes.

I'm not debating whether or not to like him,

just whether or not it’s rational or irrational.

Is it rational to like or dislike a baseball team?

If you like a team and he’s hurting that team, isn’t that grounds for dislike?

Basketball - January 22, 2012 reply

Well ...

it comes down to whether SWL hates Koyie Hill the human being (which would be irrational) or if he hated Koyie Hill as a baseball player for the Chicago Cubs.

I don’t hate Hill. He shouldn’t have been a Cub in 2011 and I’m glad he won’t be in 2012. But, clearly, certainly posters decide that certain players embody the worst parts of the Hendry years.

Personally, I hated Kosuke as a baseball player (though not as a human being) because his signing was the first of many dominoes that set the Cubs in the wrong direction — his failure forced the Cubs to make an escalating series of bad signings to work around him — and for the ridiculous justifications made to excuse the signing on this site between 2008-11.

But, clearly, we all have different opinions as to who embodies the failures. TJ would probably pick Soriano. Al would pick RoLo. SWL would pick Koyie Hill. I’m sure someone (Worf?) would pick Zambrano and someone else (Easy Ed) would pick Kerry Wood.

As long as our arguments are based on something, and as long as we don’t hate these players as human beings … I think the emotion is probably rational, if overly strong.

Sorry, the judgment is rational, not the emotion.

I'm trying, but I can't pick just one.

Now I'm just confused.

Maybe my definition of irrational is irrational.

Rec'd ...

…but only for using Easy Ed as a reference.

Easy Ed - January 20, 2012 reply

"Old, boring, tired, repetitive and self soothing"

Hammer - January 20, 2012 reply

All I want to say is that I want to puke.

Fraggin Judge - January 20, 2012 reply

Better get a bucket.