Tiger337

The worst numbers for measuring economic health are the probably market indexes.  They are measuring something in which the majority of American are unable to participate.  Why would someone who has no money to invest care about the S&P 500?    

ZeroHedge is a conservative darling but he's just the messenger.  I don't think these numbers are fake.  They will be adjusted later, but that's not the same as being fake.  

3 hours ago, Tigeraholic1 said:

 

People are fighting against the authoritarianism and the protests seem to be working a little bit.  Good for them.  

16 hours ago, Stormin said:

Media sources seem to be constantly mentioning Javy having a bad second half.  What seldom seems to be mentioned is how well Javy played in the playoffs.  Played all 8 games at SS. led everyday Tigers in hits and average, second in OPS, only 3 strikeouts across 8 games.

He was good in the playoffs, but his second half performance was one of the reasons they almost did not make the playoffs.  He was horrible in 2023-2024.  Maybe that was because of his injury.  I don't know, but I don't consider him a reliable offensive player.    

46 minutes ago, Tigeraholic1 said:

ICE is fully funded but the dems don't care. 

Yes they are and that is a problem.  

50 minutes ago, Edman85 said:

I am going to see who else he gets involved before subscribing. It looks like Mike Smith is going to contribute, which is good, but why do I get the feeling sportz finds a home there? Or if he is bringing on prospect help, there are several people in that arena I wouldn't want to support.

Who is Mike Smith?

Edit: just looked him up.  I emember you mentioning him before.  I've been following him since then, but haven't been on twitter regularly.  

2 minutes ago, Sports_Freak said:

I remember that comment, about the Tigers not having recent success. And I didn't agree with it at all. The Tigers are one of a handful of teams who has won a playoff series two years in a row. Sometimes winning is a process where there are steps that gets a team deeper and deeper into the playoffs. Paying your dues, so to speak. And I really do see this Tiger team of being on the cusp of not just contending this season, but Scott Harris may be building something special, a team that's consistently going to be near the top of the league for srveral years.

Becoming a consistent playoff team is a process.  Getting deeper into the playoffs is not a linear thing though.  Having a better team doesn't necessarily mean you'll do better in the playoffs.  Even Verlander admitted yesterday that the playoffs are largely a crapshoot.  The key is to get there as as often as possible and have more opportunities to win.  Having a lot of pitching gives you a better chance, but's is still not a guarantee as exhibited by the Dombrowski era Tigers.  

My thought was that they were not being aggressive enough.  Now, I have a l lot more confidence in their willingness to do what it takes to win.  

12 minutes ago, Screwball said:

Gambling has been a problem for a long time. It's just easier now. There are more ways to do it as well. Visit a local animal club over the last 50 years and you will see tons of people pissing away money they shouldn't. Guy gets paid on Friday afternoon. Gets home Friday night and has lost it all in 4 hours. Happened 50 years ago and still happens today.

I agree.  It's always been a problem, but it's more widespread because it's so easy and acceptable now.  It is now widely promoted as a fun, entertaining activity and it's going to get worse.  

2 minutes ago, chasfh said:

No, I'm being serious: who said no one who's any good would ever want to sign with the Tigers ever again? Because that wasn't me. I made a qualified statement that no one want to sign with a team with a recent-memory history of blowing it up and tanking, which is definitely true, and which applied to us.

We did break a seal with Valdez, but he was also a distressed asset who, apparently, had to make a choice between us and the Pirates, which is a no-brainer for roughly ten out of ten players. However, breaking that seal, and then signing Verlander, was pretty important and, assuming we make the playoffs again and perhaps go even deeper, should help during the next normal offseason.

I already said "ever" was the wrong word.  You made it very clear that you didn't think the Tigers would be able to sign a major free agent this off-season.  

1 minute ago, NorthWoods said:

I've always enjoyed reading Lynn to see what flowery phrase he can turn today.   That and the fact that he's always been the most accessible baseball writer (at least for me).   We've carried on a sporadic conversation  for nearly a decade now. 

Yes, he is very accessible and not condescending like some writers.  He also seems to genuinely like baseball and that's another thing I don't get from all baseball writers.  I am not going to pay for his newsletter or whatever it's called, but I don't dislike him.     

1 minute ago, chasfh said:

Who said that?

Not "ever" but this off-season.  Every time somebody talked about the Tigers signing a good free agent, you said that none of them would sign with the Tigers because they didnt see the Tigers as a winning organization and they'd rather play for big market teams.   

6 minutes ago, chasfh said:

It occurs to me that if, miracle of miracles, Perot had become President, we'd've seen a similar kind of pro-oligarchy, anti-labor, deregulating regime we are seeing now.

I didn't really pay attention back then, but Perot came across as a lot smarter than Trump (the bar is low).   Listening to him talk didn't make me want to puke, but again I wasn't paying a lot of attention.  

5 minutes ago, chasfh said:

I can see why people were so doom and gloom about the franchise, given the decade that preceded the 2024 playoffs, which they seemed to treat as a one-off (and maybe still do, who knows). Some people are simply the type who like to say they're just waiting for the other shoe to drop. I think part of it is, nobody wants to be disappointed, so they prevent themselves from developing expectations, or even from hoping.

What I hope is that we're past all that and we can see the Tigers for what they are: a franchise on the rise, with a chance to step in among the elite of teams for a little while, rather than a team that simply got lucky with a bunch of nobodies for a couple of years and is destined to go splat any day now due to operator error.

And some people said nobody good would ever even want to sign with the Tigers!

7 minutes ago, Edman85 said:

It is one already.

I think you are right.  You can't measure it in deaths like you can with opioids but it destroys lives and families.  

26 minutes ago, Longgone said:

Because you can't judge a player on an injury plagued year, and people heal.

Right, I think the bigger concern with him is staying healthy.  I hope he doesn't share his brother's health genes.  

I'm not confident Baez will hit any better than Meadows.  In fact, looking over the last three years makes me think Meadows will outhit him.

21 hours ago, chasfh said:

The gambling craze in this country is even more out of control.

It will be our next big addiction epidemic if it isn't one already.  

30 minutes ago, Cruzer1 said:

Lynn Henning mentioned in his new daily that he would split between 3rd and SS. A part of me wants him to be up asap so he can compete for roy, so the Tigers can get another 1st rounder next year.

I recommend Lynn Hennings new sub, he's on substack.

I thought about it, but I am not paying $70 to read Lynn Henning.  

1 minute ago, gehringer_2 said:

I don't have any trouble understanding people who feel participating in the system is pointless.  I don't agree with the sentiment but I understand it. And for those people, I can't say I see the point of voting 3rd party either (or voting at all FTM), not from any political angle in this case but just that it's a pure waste  of their time to participate at all if they believe the system is irredeemable. Which ties back to the idea of casting a pointless vote as some kind of private  protest or ego gratification. Maybe it makes someone feel like they have poked the system in eye, but the system doesn't feel a thing and doesn't care.

What the discussion here focuses on for me is the practical value of various voting strategies once one has decided they do care about the process/outcome.

Perhaps, it is the hope that they can start some kind of momentum.  Ross Perot got 19% of the vote in 1992.  That's a lot votes.  It didn't go anywhere, but perhaps the right person in the right time could change that. 

8 minutes ago, Longgone said:

Eventually. Making the jump is harder these days than ever, and it's probably unreasonable to expect instant success and not some bumps.

That is the most probable outcome.  It sounds like he has a high floor and I think think there is a good chance he makes the opening day roster, but I would expect some troubles initially.  

A real example of what I think PFife is talking about (I think):

There are a LOT of people (including very smarts ones) who think that we are screwed whether we have a democracy, a dictatorship or something in between because of global warming.  They think that neither party comes close to addressing the issue in a meaningful way.  Why should they vote for either party?  I'm not really with them because I don't know enough about it to know how bad it's going to get or how, so I vote for a democracy.  However, if I shared their dire views, I sure wouldn't worry about our form of government over the world surviving.   

1 hour ago, NorthWoods said:

 

Jason Mackey

@JMackeyPG

·

1h

Some sad Pirates news to report: ElRoy Face passed away. He was 97. RIP Baron of the Bullpen.

18-1 as a reliever in 1959.  Relief pitcher w/l record is one the most meaningless stats, but I still get a big kick out of that.  

1 hour ago, NorthWoods said:

McGonigle will be the all star bat

That is a real possibility.  If so, it will make a big difference.  

2 hours ago, chasfh said:

We were ranked 7th in runs scored before stumbling down the stretch. I don't think the problem was that the offense sucked. I think the problem was that a good offense stumbled down the stretch.

I am not tearing my hair out over lack of All-Star bat added the offense. To all appearances, Harris is counting on improvement from hitters we already have on board. He's got us to within one game of the ALCS two years in a row. I know I'm on an island here, but if he does not add an All-Star bat to the offense, then I'm going to give him the benefit of the doubt.

Or maybe a weak offense played over their heads in the first half.  I think it's somewhere in between.  I don't believe they have the 7th best offense in baseball, nor do I believe they have a terrible offense.