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Friday, March 25, 2005
Link-O-Rama (and the iPod Shuffle Aftermath)Aaron Gleeman: Loads and loads of porn, most likely.It's better if I leave out all context, trust me. And yes, I realize that's not an actual link, but it does set things up nicely for ... On a related note, now that I'm finished with the Top 50 Prospects series, the next thing on my agenda for The Hardball Times is my Twins preview. You would think writing a few thousand words about the Twins would be easy for me, but it is more difficult than you'd imagine trying to come up with new and exciting ways to say that Luis Rivas stinks year after year. From Patrick: I think Dennis Leary said it best:I figured John Mayer's name being on the list would get the most negative reaction, but apparently James Taylor is still the man for the job. From Arthur: The thing that jumped out at me was the shocking lack of ANY female artists. None. Zero.That's a long e-mail, so let me take a moment to respond. First of all, I'm a big Warren Zevon fan and I have about 4-5 of his songs in my iPod. I think some e-mailers were under the impression that the 40 songs I listed where the only songs in my iPod, since I got a bunch of "hey, why don't you have X in your iPod" e-mails, but that's not the case. Those are just a random sampling. Second, I didn't realize until Arthur pointed it out that I didn't have a single female artist represented, and it does surprise me. With that said, I obviously like male singers better. I'm not sure what I can say. I like male comedians better too, is that wrong? And guess what? I'm not a big fan of women's sports either. (Oh no, I can almost hear the avalanche of e-mails heading my way ...) Also, on the long list of things that might hurt my "ability to relate with the ladies," the songs on my iPod are probably near the bottom. And really, I listen to music because it sounds good, not because I want to know what someone "has to say about the whole ex/relationship thing." Just because someone is singing that stuff doesn't make me any more interested in hearing it. But by far my favorite part of Arthur's e-mail is when he says: "But on a positive note, 'Walking in Memphis' was a nice surprise on the list. Great tune." Why is that my favorite? Because about 10 minutes after he wrote that I received this e-mail ... From Kirk: Walking in Memphis is quite possibly the worst song ever written. Other than that, you're forgiven.Together, those two e-mails represent the epitome of reader feedback. I'm sure I'm missing a few, but here's at least a partial list of the blogs/bloggers who took me up on my challenge: - Christian Ruzich at The Cub Reporter ("Because Gleeman told me to.") - Brad Dowdy at No Pepper ("To say my list and Aaron's are different would be the understatement of the year.") - M.O. at Mariner Optimist ("As for his comment on Maroon 5, and having to admit that he liked one of their songs, I must say that I've enjoyed EVERY Maroon 5 song I've heard, which I think is all of them.") - Lumpy at Lumpy's Blog ("I don't really have much to say about that list, some of it is quite embarrassing.") - Steve Silver at SteveSilver.net - Will Young at Will's Minnesota Twins Page ("I swear to God I didn’t know I had #25 on my computer. I’m also slightly ashamed of #9. On the other hand, I like #19 so deal with it.") - The Knicker Blogger at KnickerBlogger.net ("So here is my wide variety of complete crap.") - A Mets Fan at Moist Happenings ("Feel free to make judge me based on 1.5% of my library.") - Jacob Lewin at The Launching Pad ("My initial reaction is that I don't seem to have that much variety considering that I have over 6200 songs in my library.") - Daniel Judge at Random Thoughts ("Please don't judge me by these 40 songs ... although, I'm sure most of yours would be worse.") - Jason Turner at Randomness of Me ("Some songs I am mildly embarrassed by.") - Bill at Vague Space ("I doubt anyone reading this will enjoy it, especially since no one I know likes my music. Oh well. Maybe Gleeman will link to this like he said he would.") - And last and certainly least, Dan Lewis at Walk-off Balk took my request for "snide remarks and pithy comments" to an extreme level. I'm not sure why I'm linking to and quoting someone who went out of their way to be a jerk to me, but what's the difference. I'm sure he has a good reason (and I did ask for it, sort of). Here goes: Aaron Gleeman, who used to write a good blog about baseball and now writes one about poker, his journalism classes, the size of his bladder, and hot babes he likes, went out on a limb and posted the first 40 songs his iPod pulled up when programmed to "shuffle".Actually, I find that to be an amusing opening paragraph. Jerky, but amusing nonetheless. It would be particularly amusing if it weren't, say, written about me. The rest of the post is quite long and not that interesting, so I'll just give you a couple "highlights": If Paul McCartney, why "Maybe I'm Amazed"? If Guns 'N Roses, why "Patience"? If Neil Young, why "Old Man"? This smacks of someone who doesn't bother to own the albums and instead opts to hunt down and pay 99 cents for already vastly overplayed material.One of my least-favorite types of people in this world are the ones who think something is bad once it becomes popular. I'm sure you all know plenty of people like that -- apparently Dan is one. Imagine, someone actually liking well-known, oft-played songs. Oh, the horror! Why "Maybe I'm Amazed," "Patience," and "Old Man"? I dunno, how about because I enjoy listening to them? Apparently I should have based my musical taste on making myself feel special for picking obscure songs. And why should I care if an artist has been "dismissed outright by every serious blues aficionado in existence"? That's like a guy asking his buddies if they think his girlfriend is attractive, and then dumping her if they say no. As someone once told me, "You're the one who has to f*** her, so what the hell do you care what they think?" Dan also goes on to mention the "utter crap that defiles Aaron's list," calls "Space Cowboy" by the Steve Miller Band "one of the most horrific things ever committed to magnetic tape," and finishes up by saying "I was just trying to get some hits via Gleeman." Mission accomplished, jackass! For more examples of some guy named Dan Lewis being too cool for the room while mocking my musical tastes, head over to ... well, I'm not going to bother linking to it twice. You can scroll up and find it if you want to. See ya Monday ... Today at The Hardball Times: - Top 50 Prospects of 2005: 1-10 (by Aaron Gleeman) - Five Questions: Texas Rangers (by Tom Meagher) - Five Questions: Detroit Tigers (by Brian Borawski) - Fantasy: Closer Rankings, Part Two (by Ben Jacobs)     
Thursday, March 24, 2005
The iPod ShuffleThis has absolutely nothing to do with anything, but I was talking to someone earlier this week about being embarrassed to actually like a Maroon 5 song and I thought it might be kind of interesting to put my (generic) iPod on shuffle and see what the first, I don't know, let's say 40 songs are that come up.Keep in mind now that this sort of exercise can really only lead to you guys mocking me for my musical taste (or lack of), so it takes some guts to do it. Music is one of those things where you're bound to say you like a song that someone else thinks is complete crap. And I also fully admit to liking a wide variety of complete crap. Also, I realize 99% of you couldn't care less, but oh well ... 1) Led Zeppelin - Over the Hills and Far Away 2) Bill Withers - Use Me 3) John Mayer - Love Soon 4) Billy Joel - Piano Man 5) AC/DC - Highway to Hell 6) Richie Havens - Here Comes the Sun 7) Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg - Nothin' But a G Thang 8) Al Green - How Can You Mend a Broken Heart 9) AC/DC - Back in Black 10) Joe Cocker - A Little Help From My Friends 11) Led Zeppelin - Ramble On 12) Otis Redding - Sittin' On the Dock of the Bay 13) Jimi Hendrix - Johnny B. Good (Cover) 14) Guns and Roses - Patience 15) AC/DC - TNT 16) Foo Fighters - Times Like These (Acoustic) 17) Lynyrd Skynyrd - Simple Man 18) Al Green - Here I Am (Come and Take Me) 19) Neil Young - Old Man 20) Warren G - Regulate 21) Smashing Pumpkins - Bullet With Butterfly Wings 22) The Who - Baba O'Reilly 23) Paul McCartney - Maybe I'm Amazed 24) ZZ Top - La Grange 25) Steve Miller Band - Space Cowboy 26) Al Green - Love and Happiness 27) Notorious B.I.G. - Mo Money Mo Problems 28) Stevie Ray Vaughan - Pride and Joy 29) Jonny Lang - Red Light 30) Allman Brothers - Jessica 31) Bob Seger - Beautiful Loser 32) John Lee Hooker - Boom Boom 33) James Taylor - Carolina on My Mind 34) Van Morrison - Domino 35) Paperboy - Ditty 36) Marc Cohn - Walking in Memphis 37) Train - Meet Virginia 38) Nas - Street Dreams 39) Bush - Glycerine 40) Ice Cube - It Was a Good Day Feel free to send any and all snide remarks and pithy comments to me via e-mail. In looking at the 40 songs that popped up first, it probably could have been worse. For any other bloggers out there reading this (baseball or otherwise), I challenge you to do the same thing and open yourself up to the barage of criticism and mockery that is sure to be heading my way right about now. Seriously, I double dare you. I'll link to it. Today at The Hardball Times: - Top 50 Prospects of 2005: 11-20 (by Aaron Gleeman) - Five Questions: Seattle Mariners (by Jeff Shaw) - Five Questions: Cincinnati Reds (by Greg Tamer) - Fantasy: Closer Rankings, Part One (by Ben Jacobs)
Wednesday, March 23, 2005
The Restovich DilemmaI'm very happy about the ever-increasing chance of Jason Bartlett opening the season at shortstop. However, the domino effect his making the team could have on the roster is really infuriating. With Bartlett starting, the Twins would likely keep Juan Castro and Nick Punto as backup infielders.That strikes me as something straight out of the Department of Redundancy Department, because a team doesn't really need two light-hitting utility infielders, particularly when they've got a light-hitting (and supposedly slick-fielding) second baseman. (That would be Luis Rivas, for those of you who are new here.) So if Bartlett makes the team, the Twins will pay Castro a million bucks a year for the next two seasons to start once a week and play late-inning defense every few games after Matthew LeCroy pinch-hits for Bartlett or Rivas. And they'll then keep Punto around for ... well, I'm not sure what he would have left to do with Bartlett starting and Castro playing defense. But whatever it is that Punto would do, it would come along with the team potentially losing Michael Restovich. Restovich is out of options, so he either makes the team or has to be passed through waivers before he can go back down to Triple-A for the 50th year in a row. And according to the Official Twins Beat Writer of AG.com La Velle E. Neal's recent article on Restovich: Barring an injury, Restovich can make the team as a backup outfielder. The Twins' five-man bench -- if Jason Bartlett opens the season at short -- would look like this: Restovich, catcher Mike Redmond, designated hitter Matthew LeCroy and infielders Nick Punto and Juan Castro.Keep in mind that, unlike Punto if Bartlett and Castro are also on the team, Restovich would actually have potential uses throughout the course of a season. He could be a good pinch-hitter (although he's not left-handed, so Ron Gardenhire wouldn't use him) and he would make an excellent platoon partner for Jacque Jones out in right field. And yes, I realize I've said that same thing about a dozen outfielders over the past few years, but it remains true. The Castro signing struck me as a poor move when it happened and it has somehow gotten worse since then. Castro has already committed seven errors this spring when defense is his only possible asset and he was brought in as insurance for Bartlett not being ready. But because Bartlett appears ready, that leaves Minnesota with a crappy infielder making a million bucks a year to fill a role Punto could fill for $300,000. Not only that, having to keep multiple utility infielders weakens the bench and may cause the team to lose someone who is relatively young and potentially useful. Isn't it funny how even when something goes my way (Bartlett playing well this spring and possibly becoming the starter at shortstop), I can find something to complain about? Just killing time until Opening Day, that's all. Today at The Hardball Times: - Top 50 Prospects of 2005: 21-30 (by Aaron Gleeman) - Five Questions: Milwaukee Brewers (Tom Meagher)
Tuesday, March 22, 2005
Plug DayI've been working on a whole bunch of different stuff lately ... The second installment of my Top 50 Prospects series is up over at The Hardball Times. This one covers prospects 31-40 and, like the first installment, includes a Twins prospect. - Top 50 Prospects of 2005: 31-40 - Top 50 Prospects of 2005: 41-50  Keeping with the prospect theme, I've started my third season of covering prospects over at InsiderBaseball.com. It is a subscription site, but if you're a serious fantasy player it is, without question, worth the money. Insider Baseball has all sorts of fantasy related content on a weekly basis, with tons of in-depth stat-crunching stuff that is pretty unique and valuable. My role is basically to cover the minor leagues like a blanket. I'll be profiling a handful of prospects each week and will also be constantly updating a massive database of prospects that includes top-50 lists and skills grades for pitchers and hitters, team-based rankings, updates on players who make their big-league debuts, and a whole bunch of other cool stuff. Basically, if you're in a hardcore keeper league or eight, with a focus on acquiring young talent, this is exactly what you've been looking for. So go check out the website: InsiderBaseball.com. I don't get a commission for you signing up and my salary doesn't go up if their readership increases, so I'm just genuinely recommending it as a worthwhile, subscription-based site.  And last but certainly not least, my latest Rotoworld column is ready for mass consumption. This one takes a look at some intriguing spring training battles that are going in various infields, including a look at the Twins' shortstop situation. Go check it out. Today at The Hardball Times: - Top 50 Prospects of 2005: 31-40 (by Aaron Gleeman) - Five Questions: Washington Nationals (by Craig Burley) - Five Questions: Toronto Blue Jays (by John Brattain) - Fantasy: Shortstop Rankings (by Ben Jacobs)
Monday, March 21, 2005
Revving the EnginesLost in all the exciting NCAA Tournament action (my bracket is already such a mess that I'm ashamed to have wasted time filling it out) is the fact that Opening Day is right around the corner. In preparation for the glorious end of yet another far-too-long baseball offseason, we are turning it up a notch over at The Hardball Times. As the great Izzy Mandelbaum once said, "It's go time!"It's not that we haven't been busy during the offseason -- we've had at least one new article each weekday since Doug Mientkiewicz caught the final out of the World Series and I have personally written three dozen columns during that time -- but we are now really getting back into the in-season groove. Starting today, we are publishing in-depth previews for all 30 teams. I'll be penning the Twins preview, of course, and my fellow THT authors Studes, Steve Treder, Tom Meagher, Larry Mahnken, Ben Jacobs, Brian Gunn, Craig Burley, Brian Borawski, and John Brattain are covering teams between now and Opening Day as well. Plus, we have some great "guest" writers lined up for various teams, beginning with Bradford Doolittle of the Kansas City Star previewing the Royals today. Also starting today is my third annual Top 50 Prospects series. I'll be counting down from #50 to #1 this week, ranking and discussing 10 prospects each day, culminating with my Top 10 prospects on Friday. Today's installment covers prospects 41-50 and leads off with a certain injured Twins outfielder. The Twins are fairly well represented in the top 50, although not quite as well as in past years. Last Tuesday marked the one-year anniversary of The Hardball Times. On March 15, 2004 Matthew Namee and I welcomed everyone to a new baseball website, introduced THT as "a place where you can come to find great writing about baseball," and promised that we'd "have new content each and every weekday." In the year since, we've published over 1,000 articles and two books, and have seen our daily readership surpass even my most optimistic expectations. I thought about writing a column about our first year, thanking the readers and everyone else who made it possible, but I decided that a better way to say thank you would be to simply do it all over again for another season. So if you don't already, consider making THT part of your daily reading routine as we unofficially kick off our second year today. We have four articles for you to enjoy, covering a wide variety of topics, and we'll have a whole new set of articles for you tomorrow. Today at The Hardball Times: - Top 50 Prospects of 2005: 41-50 (by Aaron Gleeman) - Five Questions: Kansas City Royals (by Bradford Doolittle) - Roberto Alomar: A Forgotten Legend? (by Matthew Namee) - Fantasy: Third Base Rankings (by Ben Jacobs)
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E-Mail: aarongleeman@gmail.com Twitter: twitter.com/aarongleeman  Read Me Elsewhere Rotoworld NBC Sports MinnPost Minnesota Twins Stuff Minneapolis Star Tribune St. Paul Pioneer Press MinnesotaTwins.com LaVelle E. Neal III Joe Christensen Kelsie Smith Kelly Thesier Seth Stohs Stick and Ball Guy Nick Nelson Parker Hageman Phil Mackey John Bonnes Edward Thoma Josh Johnson Howard Sinker Twinkie Town Pat Neshek Sports Stuff Hardball Talk Rotoworld Fan Graphs Baseball-Reference.com The Hardball Times Baseball America Baseball Think Factory Bill Simmons Rob Neyer Joe Posnanski Big League Stew The Big Lead Deadspin Fanhouse Baseball Prospectus U.S.S. Mariner Al's Ramblings Sports By Brooks Baseball Musings MLB Trade Rumors Non-Sports Stuff MinnPost Alan Sepinwall David Brauer Adam Carolla Poker Road Gorilla Mask Wicked Chops Poker WWTDD? Popoholic The Superficial Steve Silver Tao of Poker Discount Sporting Goods   ![[Powered by Blogger]](http://buttons.blogger.com/bloggerbutton1.gif){kind=small}
 Official Fantasy Girl of AG.com OFGoAG.com Timeline: Heidi Klum (8/2002 - 12/2003) Jessica Alba (12/2003 - 10/2004) Elisha Cuthbert (10/2004 - 11/2006) Vacant (11/2006 - 6/2008) Keeley Hazell (6/2008 - 3/2010) Mila Kunis (3/2010 - Present) OFGoAG.com Candidates: Marisa Miller Jenna Fischer Kate Beckinsale Keeley Hazell Diora Baird Top 40 Twins Prospects of 2010: 1. Aaron Hicks, CF 2. Kyle Gibson, SP 3. Wilson Ramos, C 4. Miguel Angel Sano, SS 5. Ben Revere, CF 6. Angel Morales, CF 7. David Bromberg, SP 8. Danny Valencia, 3B 9. Matthew Bashore, SP 10. Billy Bullock, RP 11. Rene Tosoni, RF 12. Chris Parmelee, RF 13. Adrian Salcedo, SP 14. Joe Benson, CF 15. Jeff Manship, SP 16. Tyler Robertson, SP 17. Carlos Gutierrez, RP 18. B.J. Hermsen, SP 19. Anthony Slama, RP 20. Max Kepler, CF 21. Alex Burnett, RP 22. Robert Delaney, RP 23. Luke Hughes, 3B 24. Ben Tootle, RP 25. Deolis Guerra, SP 26. Shooter Hunt, SP 27. Trevor Plouffe, SS 28. Michael McCardell, SP 29. Reggie Williams, 2B 30. Estarlin De Los Santos, SS 31. Derek McCallum, 2B 32. Jose Morales, C 33. Chris Herrmann, LF 34. Bobby Lanigan, SP 35. Danny Rams, C 36. Josmil Pinto, C 37. Steven Tolleson, 2B 38. Anderson Hidalgo, 3B 39. Loek Van Mil, RP 40. Joe Testa, RP |