Some good news and bad news for Liriano
Posted on February 14th, 2008 – 5:59 PMBy Joe Christensen
Twins pitcher Francisco Liriano could miss the first week of spring training because of visa problems stemming from his 2006 drunk-driving arrest.
Liriano had planned to travel from his native Dominican Republic to Fort Myers, Fla., on Friday, but the U.S. consulate in Santo Domingo alerted him that he needed to go through an alcohol counseling session before getting his work visa.
New U.S. immigration laws are requiring visa applicants with drunk-driving arrests within the past three years to go through the counseling session. He has an appointment to fulfill his obligations Friday, but it could take 7-10 more days to process his application.
“[The Twins] told me to take it easy and not to worry, that everything is going to come out OK,” Liriano told the Associated Press, which first reported the story.
Twins pitchers and catchers are scheduled to report Sunday, with the first workout scheduled for Monday.
“He is obviously going to cooperate fully,” said Twins General Manager Bill Smith. “We’re going to follow all the guidelines set down by the immigration department and the consulate, and we’ll get him here as soon as possible.”
The good news is Liriano feels he is 100 percent recovered from Tommy John elbow surgery in November 2006. He pitched two innings recently in a scrimmage at the Twins’ Dominican academy in Boca Chica.
Liriano has told team officials that he fully intends to make the Opening Day roster.
“He’s in good shape,” Smith said. “None of this affects his preparation. He’s been throwing. He’s healthy. He’s strong. This is an administrative speed bump.”
70 Responses to "Some good news and bad news for Liriano"
I injected Rondell White.
Damn Feds
There’s a fantastic article on The Hardball Times concerning the Twins’ ownership, Santana, and the fans.
http://www.hardballtimes.com/main/article/who-wants-to-subsidize-a-billionaire/
Liriano should of been here early. If he’d of wanted to get here early, he’d of at least been on time.
snepp,
Thank you for the Hardball Times article. You’re right. It is fantastic.
Glad to hear Liriano’s feeling well. I just hope he doesn’t get thrown to far back by this whole thing.
Good luck Franchise!
I got about paragraph into that Hardball article and quit. There’s nothing new. Just another: “Pohlad’s a cheapo who should use his personal money.”
That was a bad article. Yeah, Pohlad is greedy and we should all hate him, but that doesn’t mean that we should deny that Santana is also a greedy man.
Can’t we just sneek him a cross the border.
I got about paragraph into that Hardball article and quit. There’s nothing new. Just another: “Pohlad’s a cheapo who should use his personal money.”
No, it wasn’t. But you wouldn’t know that because you didn’t bother to read it. Reading something and disagreeing with it is one thing, but dismissing it entirely without bothering to read it just makes you look like an ass.
Off topic, I know, but Bonds tested positive in 2001? Shocker!
http://mlbfleecefactor.com/2008/02/14/rumor-bonds-failed-2001-drug-test/
One more question mark for ‘08 pitching staff. The Ace of the staff coming off Tommy John surgery and getting alcohol counseling. Does anyone know if it’s just a minor thing? I can hear it now:
“Francisco Deliriano Tremens”.
I can’t wait to see Liriano see the fruits of his hard work getting back from Tommy John. I know that the Twins will handle him well in his coming back. He’ll emerge as the ace the he’s destined to be and lead the Twins with 15 wins in less than a full season of starting.
DWI’s don’t mean that you have an alcohol problem. Lots of completely normal folks have a few too many and make a dumb decision. I mean, look at our elected officials!
Go Liriano!
Whoops I just threw up in my mouth a little bit again on the Livan deal????
As long as we are signing the old and washed up - WHY NOT KENNY LOFTON?
Hi MRG, welcome to last week. We’ll save a seat for when you decide to catch up with the rest of us.
But you wouldn’t know that because you didn’t bother to read it.
Well that’s too bad for the article. Should’ve done a better job of declaring a theme and supporting points in it’s opening paragraphs.
Ask any writer and they’ll tell you that the most important part of a story is the introduction. Screw that up you lose the reader.
SNEPP:
Really enjoyed that article! Started crying,though. This related article cheered me up:
“Minnesota just signed 54 year-old right-hander Livan Hernandez”.
Yeah those DUI’s will follow you around for awhile.
Cant wait to see Liriano in action!
The Hardball Times article is interesting, but there’s one line in it I don’t understand. They talk about loyalty and whether loyalty should have led Santana to accept less than his market value in baseball to stay in Minnesota. What are they implying Santana’s market value in baseball is/was? $130 Million? Not in Minnesota, Kansas City, Milwaukee, Cincinnati, Pittsburgh…. Do I need to go on? It’s time for the baseball media to stand up for the baseball fans and say enough to the current baseball system. Santana had a market value of about $130 Million to maybe 3 or 4 teams. His market value for the rest of the 26-27 teams is/was about $80-100 Million, which is what the Twins offered him. MLB’s lack of a (real)salary salary cap will eventually make MLB baseball a regional sport (New York, Boston, LA, maybe Chicago). Realisticly, the 2008 MLB season starts with maybe 10 out of 30 teams having a chance to win the World Series. This is a huge problem for baseball. Lets face it. The problem is not that the Twins would’nt give Santana $130 Million. The problem is that over 95% of the teams in MLB would’nt or could’nt. MLB needs a (real) salary cap so that a player’s market value might be somewhat even for all teams. How many more World Series can MLB have where one team’s payroll is three times the payroll of the other team? This was what the 2007 Series was. It was a joke. I did’nt watch a pitch (Why waste my time watching the Red Sox buy another championship) and based on the ratings, a ton of other people did’nt watch either. I’ll watch the Twins in 2008. But when the game of the week comes with its endless diet of Yankees/Red Sox/Angels/Mets I won’t be watching.
The HBT article states that Carl Pohlad is a billion dollars better off over the past couple years because of revenue sharing and a new stadium.
Exaggerate much, Mr Brattain?
Just more typical stathead whining about ownership. Nothing to see here. Move along.
Looks like USAFC and T have a couple of things in common: both mock articles/fans critical of Pohlad, and both really like letters instead of actual names.
yup,
At least, YOU use your actual name.
And that was just ONE crappy article that deserved to be mocked.
I mock articles/fans critical of Pohlad when they pull sh!t out of thin air and post it as fact.
A BILLION dollars? With a B? Really?
Anyone critically reading that article stops right there, because the author is obviously not objective.
I am no big fan of the Pohlads.
But I don’t need to invent fantastic fairytales to form that opinion, nor do I take the kneejerk “poor players” stance as a default position.
Gee, T, I wonder what first paragraph that was that caused you to decide the article was not worth continuing to read? Was it the actual first paragraph, the one word paragraph of “Loyalty”?
Just in case the article link “disappears,” here it is for all to judge how “crappy” or “out of thin air” it is:
“Who wants to subsidize a billionaire?
by John Brattain
February 13, 2008
Loyalty.
Have you ever wondered why players seem so disloyal? A lot of it is because we read so many editorials about ‘disloyal, greedy players’ or ‘when is enough, enough?’ and how ‘it’s always about the money’ etc.
Why don’t we examine this issue from another point of view?
To begin with, in MLB today team ownership is only for the incredibly wealthy. In many cases, a team is simply part of a larger portfolio.
Now, let’s look at the issue using the Johan Santana trade/new contract as a template. Why? Well, Jim Pohlad (related obviously to multi-billionaire Twins owner Carl Pohlad) made a statement recently and I get livid whenever I dwell on it:
“There’s loyalty and wanting to stay in Minnesota, and it varies from player to player.”
As you know, the Twins are finally to receive a new stadium largely financed by taxes. Let’s break down what has happened with the Twins since the strike of 1994-1995:
Revenue sharing brought into the game, Twins receive increasing amounts of it since post-strike collective bargaining agreements were ratified. The club has easily received this subsidy to the tune of nine digits.
New stadium will bring massive new revenue streams to the Twins in the form of luxury suites, premium seating and other amenities.
In addition, the Twins will receive another windfall since the new stadium will allow the team to charge more for everything from tickets to hot dogs since demand for tickets will result in an increase in price.
Due to the new moneymaking potential of the stadium, the value of the Minnesota Twins will increase substantially.
Between revenue sharing, public money devoted to the new park, and increase in franchise value Carl Pohlad may well be close to a billion dollars better off than he was not long ago.
The Twins are ‘in the money’ and obscenely so. What has the Pohlad family done to warrant this jackpot? Nothing positive to speak of—they threatened the team and fans repeatedly for a new park when the old one was less than 15 years old.
Therefore, multi-billionaire gets a gargantuan windfall for doing basically nothing.
On March 13, 1979 in Tovar, Venezuela, Jesus and Yasmile Santana said hello to a new addition to their family. This would be their second of five children they would ultimately have; they named the boy Johan. Johan showed an aptitude for baseball and in 1995, he was signed by the Houston Astros as an amateur free agent. In 1999, he was tabbed by the Florida Marlins in the annual Rule 5 draft and they, in turn, traded him to the Minnesota Twins.
Most players are optioned frequently to the minor leagues—this is done sometimes to give a player more seasoning, but it’s also used as a device to slow a player’s service clock to qualify for arbitration and free agency rights.
In 2004, Santana’s first full year as a starting pitcher he won the AL Cy Young Award. His efforts helped the Twins win their third AL Central crown (he pitched in the playoffs in each of the two previous years).
He made $1.6 million that year. Two years later, he was paid $8.75 million while copping the pitcher’s ‘Triple Crown’ and winning his second Cy Young. With the expiration of the four-year $39.75 million contract signed in February 2005 at the end of the 2008 season—Santana could, after 14 years in professional baseball, become a major league free agent for the first time.
After four postseasons and two Cy Youngs, all of which made tons of money for the Pohlad family, Santana, could, with one more year’s work, reap the fruits of his labor and do what all too many major leaguers never do and hit the open market.
It was this set of circumstances caused that Jim Pohlad to utter the statement: “There’s loyalty and wanting to stay in Minnesota, and it varies from player to player.” What did Pohlad mean by this? In all practical terms in meant that Santana’s loyalty should translate into accepting less money than he is worth in baseball’s marketplace.
If Santana accepted this route, what would happen in the grand scheme of things—who benefits? Will the savings cause prices to watch Twins games to go down?
No.
Will it reduce the costs of going to games in the new park?
No.
Will your cable/satellite package that carries Twins games go down?
No.
Will the extra money be ploughed back into the roster?
Possible, but the Pohlad family’s track record indicates otherwise.
What then happens to the money Santana forgoes?
It goes right back into the pockets of the Pohlad family.
What the Pohlads are saying in effect is that the loyalty means that a kid from Venezuela who worked at his profession for 14 years to get to this point in his life should subsidize one of the wealthiest men in one of the richest countries on the planet.
‘What about the fans?’ you may ask.
Let’s be honest here. There will come a point in Santana’s career when age, injury or both will slow his fastball and cause his breaking pitches to flatten. He will get lit up like a Christmas tree. He will lose games—possibly important ones. Will the fans rally to his side? Insist that he be paid top dollar and put in the game on a regular basis? Is there some kid in Triple-A or toiling in the bullpen that reminds folks of a younger Santana? Will fans clamor for Santana to keep his job and keep the kid in Triple-A/the bullpen?
No, we’ll be writing on our websites and blogs that it’s time for him to go, that we want the other guy. When Santana was on top we wanted him to show loyalty to us—when he is at the bottom we want him gone. We know, he knows it and the Pohlad family knows it.
We see that all loyalty will accomplish is make the owner wealthier. He’ll sit up in his owner’s box with the player’s discount sitting snugly in his bank account while he chuckles at how a little media manipulation and misusing the word ‘loyalty’ gave him yet more free money. He is secure in the knowledge that loyalty is expected from the player and not the owner. In Santana’s case the Pohlads threatened to take the fan’s team away, offered the team up for contraction, made close to a billion dollars without lifting a finger and were all too willing to let another team pay Santana what he is worth.
All the while people think that Santana should prove his loyalty by subsidizing this multi-billionaire with no loyalty to Minnesota Twins fans. Don’t forget, the fans will have to pay more to watch their favorite team in a facility that they largely paid for.
This is the sick sort of brainwashing team owners perform on us through the media. They think that a player has played for well over a decade professionally. He’s endured the lows, the doubts, the long bus rides, the aches and pains while working his butt off all to be the very best at what he does. The team employing him will use every device the collective bargaining agreement allows to postpone the day the player qualifies for salary arbitration and free agency. He watches players performing half as well as him and get paid many times over what he earns.
The player survives all this, he avoids the attrition that happens to so many and makes the point in his career where he can see what his skills honed through many years of hard work is worth—and what happens?
He has to endure what he hears on the radio, in print and on the web about how he should show a little loyalty to the very fans who will one day reject him and subsidize some of the richest men in the country.
I don’t think so.
Suppose we know our boss owns a yacht, a fancy cottage on a lake, a mansion, a fleet of expensive cars, all the technical goodies that life has to offer. You’ve given a lot of years of hard service for his company–you know that you’ve been denied promotions due to office politics. One day you become aware of a job opportunity that offers you a substantial raise. He calls you into his office to ask you to turn down the offer, offering you a tiny raise and asks that you show a little loyalty the company, your co-workers and the firm’s customers. He implies his main reason for doing so is that he wants to pay you less simply so he can have more—how would you react in such a scenario?
Well, that’s how our cries for loyalty sound to those in the game. It’s easy to say that they make enough money that they should be willing to accept less. It’s not about the money—it’s about the principle and chances are good major league free agents know in the long run that no loyalty will be shown them, so why subsidize a billionaire?
Kind of evens things out to let the author say his piece in full right here, right now, for all to see.
For those who don’t want to read past the first paragraph, I’m sure there’s a podcast of Rush L. or Sean H. or whoever the whack flavor of the moment is to listen to somewhere.
Say hi to Carl’s wallet, guys!
Yup, I really wish you would not have posted that article, because the more I read of it, the madder I become. I can’t get over the part talking about the Twins saying Santana should have accepted less money than he is worth in baseball’s marketplace to re-sign with the Twins. There is no such thing as “market value in baseball’s marketplace”. Because MLB does not have a real salary cap, Santana’s market value to the Mets was almost 50% higher than his market value to pretty much 90% of all other teams in MLB, including the Twins.
Also, by not signing Santana, the article says ticket prices will not come down. Who cares? The real point is that had the Twins signed Santana for that money, ticket prices would go up, as they continue to do with these ridiculous contracts.
Does’nt the media realize that it’s not the owners who will pay for these obscene contracts. It’s the fans.
yup,
I read it all the first time.
It says nothing new.
It has been said many times “If you want loyalty, get a dog”.
When did the Twins ever tell Santana that he should resign with them because he owed them loyalty?
That was fans and bloggers pleading, not the Twins.
The author and the article are misleading and full of it.
Good luck on that Pullitzer, Mr. Brattain.
You should be Sports Editor of the “Weekly Wipe”.
Carl Pohlad is the worst owner in baseball. Subsiding and filling the pockets of a billionaire requires an incredible amount of stupidity on the part of the Twins.
As a dumb fisherman that fishes in Canada, even I am familiar with the rules regarding DWI’s (and I’ve never had one)…hard to believe the Twins aren’t on top of that!!?
yup…you have to be kidding…who would read all that……
WAAAAAAAAAHHHH.
He’s a billionaire and I’m a loser!
Its just so unfair!
WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!
Get a life!!!!!
Actually, I am richer than Pohlad.
I could buy and sell that guy.
My friends, neighbors and family don’t even know.
I just keep it a secret so I won’t have to hear all the bullsh-t that he does.
The Twins are ‘in the money’ and obscenely so. What has the Pohlad family done to warrant this jackpot? Nothing positive to speak of—they threatened the team and fans repeatedly for a new park when the old one was less than 15 years old.
That’s how far I got the first time, and it’s as far as I could make it again.
And yup, I don’t know why you’d think the link would get taken down. Though your full reprinting may be teetering on the fence between fair use and infringment.
and both really like letters instead of actual names
Why does it matter that I use “T” instead of a name? I could put “Alan Schwartz” or “Steven Bridgeman” and it could just as much be my name as “T”.
But if you want to go ad hominem, by all means do so. It’s par for the course around here.
Congratulations to Yup. He’s set some
sort of record for longest post. I just wish it could have had something interesting in it beyond the usual class warfare “rich people are mean and not nice” stuff. In the words of the
governor of Kah-li-forn-ya…STOP WHINING!!! The Twins didn’t offer Santana a SMALL raise, they offered him a 50% increase. The Mets were just able to offer more. I’ll always be a
Santana fan and I hope he has a great year. “Yup” get over yourself and your bitter outlook on life. It’s no way to live.
Congratulations to Yup. He’s set some
sort of record for longest post.
Technically that honor belongs to the guy who’s article he copy/pasted. 
But I’m sure yup will be honored to accept it on his behalf.
Crap. I read an entry from Joe about Cisco and when I open the comments, it’s nothing but the same old BS about Pohlad again… and again… and again.
Wake me when someone’s ready to talk baseball.
Posting the article in full so folks could read it here apparently struck a nerve with ya’ll. I thought Gene Johnson’s comment was the best: “yup…you have to be kidding…who would read all that……”. Gene, that’s the point of critiquing something…to read it in its entirety before lodging a gripe about it. Guess that says a lot ’bout the mindset here. Too much readin’! If someone read it to me, maybe, but too much readin’ for me! Waaaaaahhhhhh!
To Lawyer T/Alan Schwartz, a full article reprinting is nothing new here, and you know it. It’s part of the conversation, it’s not for profit, and full credit to the author is given. Keep your threats for the widows and orphans you plan on evicting from homes on behalf of Carl.
To God of War, what an ironic viewpoint you have: “…get over yourself and your bitter outlook on life. It’s no way to live.”
Sid, how pathetic.
I will talk ball with ya Jim.
The Johan fiasco, while frustrating as all hell, is over with, time for us to look forward.
Has anyone heard, seen, anything about what Cisco’s “stuff” looks like thus far?
Sounds like he has been throwing for a while. Wondering if there are any reports or anything mentioned how far along he is?
I am interested to see what he looks like this spring. While it is doubtful he makes a full comeback from TJ this first year, the way it is sounding he is right on track to do so.
I think that will be the biggest story this spring. How the “Cisco Kid” is coming along.
I’m still waiting for someone to show me how the Pohlads are a billion dollars better off than they were not long ago.
When someone can show that to me, I’ll give the article something of a closer look.
Until then, I’ll use it as the birdcage liner it is.
JimCrikket-Sadly,JoeC and LEN have no control over the responses on the their own websites.Some bloggers control the whole process.
That’s a profound statement you made, Geno. It’s plain who are the blog controllers around these parts.
Thanks for the effort yapper.
Yes it would be nice to know whether Cisco’s 2 innings at the Academy means he mowed down 6 potential prospects without breaking a sweat, rather than he walked 3, hit 2 and gave up a couple of dingers in 2 innings of pitching to a bunch of 15-16 year olds. But I guess we have to settle for knowing he threw without pain.
I’m holding out some hope that the fact that he had the surgery early enough to give him a few months of rehab longer than your average off-season TJ surgery pitcher will mean he has a better shot at coming back at full strength than most guys would. With the other improvements in the roster, I think Liriano could be the key to whether the Twins have any chance at competing with the rest of the Division.
Yep I think he is the key also. However, I think alot of people (I guess myself included) are expecting too much from him right away.
Dealing with the loss of Johan will be alot easier if Cisco comes back and dominates or at least shows flashes.
We potentially have 2 guys that I feel can be top line starters in Liriano and Baker. Whether they show consistency(Baker) and bounce back(Liriano) is the question and likely the most intriguing thing taking place this season for Twins fans.
I am also excited to see what Delmon can do and I also believe Gomez starts the year in CF for the Twins. If he really cannot hit, then he needs to learn the Castillo 2 hopper so he can utilize his speed.
Let’s steer this back to baseball talk instead of insulting all the other posters. This schoolyard sh*t gets old.
If he can’t get a Visa, why doesn’t he just get a Master Card?
yapper, I agree it’s not fair to expect Liriano to be his old self and salvage the season for the Twins. But the fact remains, if there’s any hope for the year, that scenario will be a big part of it. It is what it is (hmmm where have I heard that line lately?).
There are always going to be surprises, some good and some bad, so if someone else, like Baker or maybe Humber, comes through with a breakout season, that takes pressure off of Liriano. It’s just that, right now, Cisco seems like the best bet.
Personally I am very hopeful about Humber. Prior to his TJ surgery he was a top notch prospect. He’s now 2 years removed from the surgery and I have a hunch he’ll be the talk of camp and make the starting rotation.
One can dream.
Santana is gone. This is the last thing I will write about that whole thing. While I hate the Pohlads, there is no way they could, or should, have given him Mets money. There is a MLB salary problem that far trancends Carl Pohlad. If MLB doesn’t favor a two tier A and B league, it is time to step up and fight for a salary cap. Having said that, I am now done. Spring training is here. It is time to move on.
You are right Jim. Liriano being dominant is our only chance. We would need him to be the “lights out” guy that he was before the injury for us to have any chance at competing in the division or wildcard races.
Man I hope that slider can still bite like it did and him still stay healthy!
As for Liriano’s visa issues, the Twins front office should have been aware of policy changes at the State Department. Any team with foreign players has someone on staff with knowledge of the visa process.
Most teams need an ace at the top of the rotation because their four, five, and sometimes even third starters are crap. Twins have about five guys tney can start that are all about the caliber of a number 2 starter. They can have a nice balanced rotation.
JP, while I agree the rotation looks balanced going in, it’s highly unlikely that it stays that way. Some guys will step up, some will step back. We just don’t know for sure who will do what.
Even if they do all stay balanced, I think it’s a reach to project them as a staff performing at #2 level. If we’re lucky, they’d all be #3s… and it could be lower.
USAFChief: Your lips to god’s ears on Humber.
I’ve been told by many that he’s out of options (as he was on the Mets 40-man in 2005, 2006 and 2007), so I was pretty sure he was going to make the roster out of camp - either in the rotation or bullpen. But I’ve been nosing around and, I think, finally found out the answer to the option question. For anyone who was puzzled by this, I think Humber gets a fourth option year because he’s only been a pro 3 years. This is from Cot’s:
“A player may be eligible for a fourth option year if he has been optioned in three seasons but does not yet have five full seasons of professional experience. A full season is defined as being on an active pro roster for at least 90 days in a season.”
[…] Visa Problems Hold Up Twins Pitcher: Francisco Liriano is having trouble getting to spring training due to a DUI arrest from 2006, and it’s part of a new immigration law — he’s got to go through a program first in his native Dominican Republic. [Minneapolis Star-Tribune via SbB] […]
JT,
Good investigation.
What is Cot’s?
Do you have a link or a more detailed name for that source?
Cot’s Baseball Contracts:
http://mlbcontracts.blogspot.com/2003/01/transactions-glossary.html
Scroll down to section on Options
Since the playoffs are a pipe dream going into this season, it’s a good chance for Liriano to pace his return back to full power.
I’d rather see him ease back into a low pressure situation than have to come back and be expected to be at the top of his game.
If Santana were still here, I have a feeling that would be the case. Keeping Johan “one more year” would put pressure on Liriano (and other youngins’) to feel like they absolutely have to make the playoffs this year.
Sure, Santana’s gone…but the Twins wouldn’t have made that move if they didn’t feel confident with they’re current roster. Maybe not this year, but in the long term I believe Smith likes what he’s got to work with.
Hopefully guys like Liriano and Young see that and let this year be more “relaxed” (horrible word but all I can think of at the moment) as they start taking on the role of a key everday player (was Young ever the “star” on his team?)
JT, nice job of researching.
I sure hope the Twins’ front office is aware of the additional option year, assuming that’s correct.
Sounds silly, I know… but between them misunderstanding their options concerning Craig Monroe’s contract situation when they traded for him and now being unaware of the State Dept policy on the effect of a DUI on a player’s visa application, well… suffice to say I wouldn’t assume this group is staying on top of details like this.
JT,
Thanks for the link.
Why is the Twins making the playoffs this year a “pipe dream”? I don’t understand why everyone is writing them off, remember how good they were in 2006? Our team at the beginning of the year this year looks better than it did at the beginning of the year in 2006.
robert,
If one of our pitching prospects comes out of nowhere like the 2006 Liriano, and the 2008 Liriano becomes like the 2006 Santana, you could be right.
And if the hitters have career years like they did in 2006, WE ARE ON!
JimCrikket: Frankly, I was scratching my head that they would trade for a pitcher that was out of options given the available depth of pitching. I thought that was pretty bone-headed and I’m glad I found information about the 4th option year. Humber without another option is a potential nightmare. I’m confident that the FO had this figured out way before I did as Humber doesn’t show up on the official depth chart yet.
“Why is the Twins making the playoffs this year a “pipe dream”? I don’t understand why everyone is writing them off, remember how good they were in 2006? Our team at the beginning of the year this year looks better than it did at the beginning of the year in 2006.”
Usually teams with zero established major league starters are not expected to make the playoffs. I guess you could say Livan is established, but basically, he is about a lock to put up an ERA in the high 4’s, low 5s.
Also, with the rest of the roster being young and very little offensive production projected, it does look like a pipe dream. Now alot of those young guys could break out this year and then we might have a chance.
sorry T we are not a 40 year old who lives with his mother
so……….now that we got that out, what about Cory Patterson?
i totally agree with you yapper you must be way smarter than T
Yup is a pup who needs to get more sleep at night. Your response to God of War was weak…
The playoffs might be improbable but after 2006 I’m willing to believe almost anything is possible.
Yup is a pup.
I wonder if his master has considered having him fixed.
