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Annual reminder.....scouting comps are physical comps, not performance comps.

Cancel the ASB...keep playing!! 🤣

Tigers targeting college players who have little leverage in negotiations. Someone’s gotta pay for our Day 1 high schoolers.

I’ll be shocked if she’s even a judge in a few years. I expect her to resign and take a ridiculously high paying job with the Adelson Family Foundation.

Probably drafting a bunch of college seniors for below slot over the next couple of rounds.

Weird, I thought saying Trump was chosen by God was ridiculing Christians.

If God was watching out for Trump why didn't he watch out for that Firefigther and father who was there and protected his daughter? Why didn't God look out for that man's life?

you have a problem.

Not sure whether you are being sarcastic, but a lot of people won't make that connection. People have short memories when it comes to Trump. I will never forget Trump throwing Pence under the bus while chants of "Hang Mike Pence" rang loudly in the background.

If you actually care about accurate calls, the best thing a catcher can do is get into the path of the throw, catch it and don't move. That is all.

Then she fits right in with the other candidates.

Another way to think about this: Trump picked Pence in 2016 at a time when his support with evangelical voters was shaky at best. Which was a demographic that he absolutely needed in order to win. One case where it probably did help picking one particular candidate over another. Trump's pick of Vance here will bring no one in that wasn't already in the tent when the day started. He's certainly the favorite to win the election, but not so much so according to the aggregators that he shouldn't have interest in trying to make appeals *beyond* the base. Maybe I'm wrong, but this signals to me that he doesn't think he needs to do that. Which reeks of some overconfidence.

Jack Strong would be better.

Kamela is articulate. The problem is she's articulate like a woman sending her steak back to the kitchen. So, there is that.

I don’t see that angle getting any traction. Trump already appeals to the blue collar guy/gal. He’s their hero against the establishment. The establishment is anything Washington. Biden represents over 50 years old political waste land in D.C. Vance isn’t going to hurt or change that perception among Trump’s base. Vance will be a boost to Trump’s chances over what a Mike Pence type could offer. Biden has his own issues within his own party right now and that isn’t going away. I don’t like either candidate. Should be interesting from here on out.

So, just for kicks, I married the 1st Round draft info on Reference with the Lahman People database to determine, of all the first round draft picks from 2010 through 2022, how many had made the majors through 2023, and how many seasons did it take? Again, this is everyone drafted in the first rounds only. Here's how it looks: Kids Drafted 566 Played MLB 355 Percent 62.7% Debut Lag Number Percent Rookie? 0 3 0.8% 2024 1 22 6.2% 2025 2 47 13.2% 2026 3 115 32.4% 2027 4 71 20.0% 2028 5 62 17.5% 2029 6 17 4.8% 2030 7 9 2.5% 2031 8 3 0.8% 2032 9 2 0.6% 2033 10 3 0.8% 2034 11 1 0.3% 2035 Average: 3.67 seasons Here's how to read this: There were 566 kids drafted in the first round between 2010 and 2022, including supplemental first rounds. Of those, 355 have debuted in the majors, which is almost 63%. Debut lag is how many seasons it took before they made the majors. Three players made the majors with "zero debut lag"—that is, the very year they were drafted (Garrett Crochet, Chris Sale, Brandon Finnegan). That's 0.8% of all players chosen. A player drafted this year with zero draft lag would debut this season, 2024. Twenty-two players made the majors with a one-year debut lag. That's 6.2% of all players chosen. A player drafted this year with zero draft lag would debut next season, 2025. You get the idea. The most common debut lag is three years (2027) with 32.4%; second most common is four years (2028) at exactly 20.0%; third most common is five years (2029) at 17.5%. So, nearly 70% of first-rounders who make the majors do so at three to five years after they were drafted. Another 13.2% make it in two years. The implication for our first rounder Bryce Rainer, such as it is, is that if he makes the majors, he's most likely to make his debut between 2027 and 2029, and if he is more exceptional, he could make it in 2026. How fast Bryce Rainer makes the majors could set a good benchmark for how solid the developmental team in the Harris administration is. Or Max Clark or Kevin McGonigle, for what that's worth. If they could make it in two, that is an outstanding job. If it takes at least five, well ... tl;dr: I think we both may be right, in that Rainer should make the majors certainly by 2029, hopefully by 2028; and 2030 is probably when we can hope/expect him to start contributing as a solid first-division regular.

Low cost index funds, diversify some, set and forget. Easy peazy and you come out ahead.

Is he gonna make him shave his beard? Not a great choice T already has the hillbilly vote wrapped up

I think Youngkin is his best choice and I could see it ending up being him. The Trump team may think they have a shot at Virginia with Youngkin on the ballot.

Now the Republican Speaker... Looks like Politico had a legit angle here

To me it’s gamesmanship. I don’t see the logic in making it illegal to not try to get a call. The umpire is responsible to get it right. Not the catcher. If the pitch was a strike and they “frame” it and it’s called a strike do you then call it a ball? Don’t punish the beneficiary of a blown call. Do we expect a runner to say “no I was out” when the ump makes a bad call on the bases?

I agree that we should not move prospects for rentals to help our cause this season. However, I would move some in a trade for a controllable player that can help beyond this season, similar to our first round picks we dealt for Cabrera (Maybin, Miller) and Anibal and Infante (Jacob Turner).

Some AllStar break fodder for your immediate dismissal/disdain: Foundational Building Blocks · SP Tarik Skubal – current and future ace. Should only be moved for a total haul. · SP Reese Olson – solid #3/4 starter. Has looked good over 200 career MLB innings. · OF Riley Greene – Only 23, should continue to improve, but he’s very good as is. · IF Colt Keith – hitting over .300 with power since May 1. Should continue to improve. Might end up at 3B, eventually. Promising, but still have something to prove: · OF Kerry Carpenter – bat looks good when he’s been healthy. Defense improved, as well. Just needs more AB’s to prove he’s the real deal. · SP Casey Mize – Has shown some flashes in first season since TJ. Probably not an ace, but valuable as a #3/4 and is controlled for a few more seasons. · OF Wenceel Perez – versatile and can hit some. Might be a good version of Willi Castro. · OF/3B Matt Vierling – on pace for a 20 HR season. Valuable on this team with the number of LH bats. Also nice to be able to plug into CF and 3B. · UT Andy Ibanez – one of the best platoon utility guys—crushes LH pitching and can fill in at 2B and 3B (helpful with LH Keith and Jung at those positions). · C Jake Rogers – He is what he is, but in the world of below average catchers, you can live with his arm, D, occasional pop and .215 batting average. · RP Tyler Holton – not as dominant as last season, but still very effective. Should be part of our pen for many years. · RP Beau Brieske – he should continue to get better as a reliever. · RP Jason Foley – not sure he’s a closer, but probably valuable in a set-up role. · RP Will Vest – same as Foley, though more of a roller coaster. · RP Alex Faedo – would like to see what he could do for an extended period without an injury. Valuable in a swing role. · OF Justyn-Henry Malloy – looks like he is starting to figure things out offensively. Will need to hit a ton, though, to find a regular spot in the lineup. Promising start. Prospects who should be able to contribute: · CF Max Clark – due for a promotion to High A. Could be ready by late 2026 or spring 2027. Should fill gaping hole at leadoff and provide the best outfield defense in the league, with Meadows and Greene. · SS/2B Kevin McGonigle – same as Clark—should be in West Michigan soon and on a similar time horizon (‘26/’27). Key will be whether he can stay at SS, though perhaps less of a concern with Rainer. · SS Bryce Rainer – Lots of accolades for him – should provide power and solid defense. Arm would also play at 3B, but he’s more valuable to us if he can stick at SS. Will also be invaluable in blowouts when we have to have a position player pitch (can hit 95 MPH). · C Dillon Dingler – looks like a bit of a Jake Rogers clone, at least up until this season. Bat really turned the corner in Toledo—he gets promoted if we trade one of Kelly/Rogers. · SP Jackson Jobe – could probably pitch in the bigs right now. Biggest issue with him is getting his innings up so he can pitch 150 or so next season. · 3B Jace Jung – looks pretty close to being ready. Will be interesting to see if the Tigers do the same with him as Keith and Malloy, or if they promote him in the 2nd half. No one is blocking him in the bigs. · 2B Ho-Yu Lee – looks like a great trade with the Phillies, and provides optimism for what a Flaherty trade might look like. He’s only 21 and raking in Erie/AA. Showing power and good base running ability. Should move up to Toledo this season. Prospect Wild Cards (players who have either regressed, injured or had a bit of renaissance this season). · SP Tyler Madden · SP Keider Montero · SP Wilmer Flores · SP Sawyer Gipson-Long · SP Troy Melton · SP Brant Hurter · SP Owen Hall · SP Ethan Schiefelbein · SP Paul Wilson · SP Jaden Hamm · SP Dylan Smith · SP Blake Dickerson · RP Tyler Mattison · C/1B Josue Briceno · SS Eddys Leonard · 2B Max Anderson · SS Gage Workman · 3B Carson Rucker · IF FRANYERBER! · OF Roberto Campos · OF Justice Bigbie Taking up Space (might not make it through the season) · RP Joey Wentz – given too many opportunities. Failed starter who is now acting like a failed reliever. · UT Zach McKinstry – versatile, but his bat doesn’t warrant playing as much as he does. Only on roster because he can play a passable shortstop. Impending Free Agents · RP Andrew Chafin – worth resigning to a one or two year deal · IF Gio Urshela – was a stopgap for Jung. Should not be extended. · OF Mark Canha – Would like an upgrade here. · SP Jack Flaherty – if not traded, should be given a qualifying offer. · C Carson Kelly – worth extending for up to two seasons (i.e. 2/$16M). If his market is high, probably need to cut bait. · RP Shelby Miller – depending on how he finishes, would not likely resign, but upgrade through free agency or a failed starter at Toledo. Damaged Goods (low likelihood of contributing) · SS Javier Baez (contract through 2/27) · SP Kenta Maeda (contract through 2/25) · 1B Spencer Torkelson – would like to be optimistic but his demotion has only fueled more pessimism that he’ll figure things out. · SS Ryan Kreidler – can’t seem to stay healthy or take advantage of opportunities when presented.

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Did you expect more? This offseason is about what I expected, they weren't adding a savior. Maybe they could have sin-ate more but would you want to blow up your cap space for the next several years and slow the offense to a crawil to get a 1st for Lavine? Not me. It's been said many times, the Pistons fate will largely lie with this core. They'll need to supplement the core with a better supporting cast eventually but these are the guys the Pistons are riding with. If you look at most of the contenders in recent years, they're mostly driven by their drafted players and then trades were made to bring in strong support players once they started contending.

Depending on the evidence that was being used, they would have needed to litigate who was going to say what. When a number of the government's witnesses were probably people close to him during his administration (e.g., Nauta), there are arguments to be made that those statements are official acts. Likewise, if an element of any of the charges is that he have personally delivered the documents to their improper location, he can argue that when the documents were delivered (when he was President) they were official acts, so the government can't prove that element. It's the same reason the sentencing on the Stormy Daniels case is delayed. If any of the evidence used was evidence of official acts that SCOTUS now says shouldn't have been used against him, he may get a new trial, without that evidence being introduced.

I suspect Bochy and Thompson are going with bullpen games tomorrow.

She was waiting for this...needed a news cycle to dump this in.

It’s a moot point. I think it’s probable this ruling will be overturned, and yet nothing in time for anything to proceed before the election. So judge Eileen, Cannon, “mission accomplished“, your job is done. Put off this trial until after the election. Bravo miss. and when Trump loses this election, given that we know it will be contested again, this trial will be put off for a while longer. However, there will be a day that it will come to trial, and be heard. And a jury of his peers will listen to the evidence and decide his guilt or innocence. And that’s the way it should be. …… That’s if we still do have a working democracy. Because if Trump wins, you can throw everything in my second paragraph right out the window.

Reminds me of my foray into the 1990’s market rise and 2000 crash. Lots of good war stories have been written about that time period in the markets.

Also, let’s pretend that we come out of the break and go 7-4 or better by the morning of July 30. That might be unlikely since we have three at TOR, four at CLE, and then home for MINx3 and CLEx1. That would make us 54-54 at minimum. Do we become buyers? I predict we don’t. I believe the idea was always that we would use this season to evaluate what we have in-house from Avila that we can go long with, and if we happen to contend, that would be a happy upside outcome that will be good experience for future seasons for the guys who do stay. I think the bigger, tougher question at that point would be, would we still sell Flaherty et al? I think we probably would not unless we were to get a Mayo+ or Salas+ type package, which I think is super unlikely. Trading our top chip at the deadline while we are in such an upsurge would be really demoralizing to the guys, and I don’t think Harris would do that; plus if we keep Flaherty, it would not be a dead loss because we would go the QO route with him this winter.

It's also the height of hypocrisy for you to whine about YOUR religion after supporting the dozens and dozens of antisemtic videos MB posted. Apparently your religion deserves special treatment you fail to afford to others. Even weirder you do that on a sports forum.

Phil Mankowski is one of our neighbors. Great guy.

Looking at the MLB grades would put Rainer #3, Hall #6 and Schiefelbein top 10 in the Tigers top 30. Yes of course I copy and pasted Schiefelbein...twice.

Spared Reagan for the Billionaires and Trump for the Trillionaires?

I think when Christianity gets linked to politics, it loses a lot of spiritualism. In order for ones faith to be something special, I think it needs to be above politics.

And the guys who are currently playing (hitting) well in MLB: Greene, Keith, Carpenter...

Remember, he is just a prospect. You could read glowing reports about how amazing Mize and Torkelson were too

Fcl got pushed up a month this year. They may not get the choice. Last year doesn't matter.

In the MLB report on him is speculation of moving to third and winning a gold glove there.

When my heart is pulling for them, but I’m not physically present through any media connection to follow them, they seem to do better. It’s kind of like Schrodinger‘s cat but when I open the box it’s alive.

The Dodgers come to town 47-0 when they have the lead after 8 innings. They're now 47-2. Hee-Hee

Standing O for Maeda. Nice. Best fans in baseball. We deserve a winner. Get er done Harris/junior.

I summon a rally

I'm a terrible, terrible investor—it's practically more like gambling to me—and my losses are legion. I am the only guy in the history of the world to lose money on Microsoft in the 1990s. Even so, I have had a couple of big wins. Notably, I put $5,000 into Netscape in 1995 and sold it a few weeks later at $7,000. Then I put all that in Sun Microsystems and held on. Around 2000 or so, whenever they hit their top and even after it had slud some 30% or so, I sold off and still collected more than $70,000. In my case, though, it was truly blind squirrel nut. I'm sitting on another win here, although not as big as I'd like it to have been. I bought 10 shares of NVDA last May at $313.40/sh, which after the split works out to 100 shares at $31.34—so, some $3,100—as part of a play in AI with some discretionary money into stocks including MU, ORCL, PLTR, IBM, and, funnily, MSFT. NVDA went up as high as $140 yesterday. That's a four-bagger, the company is now the highest valued on the market at over $3T, which seems completely overheated, and I'm thinking, maybe it's time to bail. So yesterday afternoon, I set up a stop limit at 125.10/124.90, meaning, initiate a sell of all shares when it drops to or below 125.10, but only if it stays over 124.90. That way, if the stock has a wild hair moment where it drops to one dollar or something before boomeranging back up, I don't get shook out at that price. NVDA was down yesterday, closing at 130.78, ten dollars off the day's high. This morning's pre-market showed it hovering around 127. Good chance the stop limit order would execute. In my limited and shrinking understanding of technicals, the market likes round numbers to serve as resistance and support. So, I could envision the market getting down to just below 125, a very round number, then turning around and shooting up, which would sell me out at the lowest point. Then I would not be a participant in a new run. So I thought, why not take a bit of a chance here and split the order? I'll set up a stop limit sell for half the shares at 124.10/123.90 (down a dollar from where I had it), to avoid a round number shakeout, and the other half at 119.10/118.90, which would avoid the same kind of shakeout at 120. Well ... this morning, NVDA did go down and down, flirting with the 125 floor before breaking through, and going down as low as 124.30, before turning back around. As of 1028am ET, it's back up around 126 and change. So, based on my changes, instead of selling the entire lot out at 125, per my instructions before the market opened, I still own 100% of my NVDA because I had changed those instructions. I think in a perfect world, NVDA goes back up to 140+, then I reestablish my stop limit for something like 129.10/128.90, and I clear a few hundred more dollars. Fact is, though, even if it dives later today and both sells are triggered, I still have almost quadrupled my little investment from $3,100 to more than $12,000, taxed at 15% instead of as income. So even though I'm not getting maximum points for style in that scenario, I can still pay for the housepainting job we're getting done right now with the win. This is the "game" part of the game. And, also, why I don't gamble unless there's only house money involved.

You are disappointed with Greene? A 23-year old posting a 135 OPS+? Tough critic.