Malman

I don't want Schmidt...he sucks. 807899[/snapback] Very insightful post... :blink:

I'd take Zach Greinke... :shifty

Hey musk...your post is about a year too late. :whistle

FO has to be actively thinking Willingham. I just pray they are not thinking of him as trade bait. We don't need Pitching. We have four and a half starters. And the Pen is strong enough (with a couple of quality Minors arms waiting in the wings. And Valdez and Alfonseca only a few weeks away.) And position players are set with depth provided by Conine and Easely. In case of injury we have players ready to fly in. And I think of Willy as a back-up catcher. Not as good as Treanor but for the once-a-week back-up start, his defense is not as significant as his offense. I'd package Mota and Treanor for whatever "best value" we could get (maybe another quality utility IF.) And bring up Willingham as a Utility plus back-up Catcher. 807531[/snapback] Not sure Willingham can "cut the mustard" behind the plate...also don't think there would be much value for Treanor outside of the organization. The gutsy move would be to trade Lowell, put Cabs at third and Willy in Left. Hermida can take over for Enc in 2006. :hat

Thanks for the updates...they are much appreciated. Please keep them going through Omaha! :notworthy

Willingham is as good as gone at the deadline. 805658[/snapback] Don't be so sure...give the FO a little more credit. Don't think that Ramp, rferry and farmer fran are the only one's that are high on Willingham. I have a feeling that Beinfest and Hill have significant plans for "the hammer." The recent draft indicates that some of the young arms are going to be moved. :thumbup

By ANNE GEARAN AP Diplomatic Writer Posted June 9 2005, 3:27 AM EDT WASHINGTON -- Saudi Arabia has plenty of oil -- more than the world is likely to need -- along with an increasing ability to refine crude oil into gasoline and other products before selling it overseas, a top Saudi official says. "The world is more likely to run out of uses for oil than Saudi Arabia is going to run out of oil," Adel al-Jubeir, top foreign policy adviser for Saudi Arabia's de facto ruler Crown Prince Abdullah, said Wednesday. In a wide-ranging interview with The Associated Press, Al-Jubeir said relations between his nation and the Bush administration were strong but "the environment in which the relationship operates ... still leaves a lot to be desired." He denied his country has any nuclear weapons ambitions, despite international concerns about a Saudi request to lower international scrutiny of its lone nuclear reactor. He said he was "bullish" about the Saudi economy, which although based on the country's vast oil reserves has also diversified to include a galloping stock market. Al-Jubeir dismissed speculation, including in a recent book, that the country was hiding the true picture of its oil reserves and that it may have far less than publicly assumed. He said Saudi Arabia has proven reserves of 261 billion barrels, and with the arrival of newer technology could extract an additional 100 billion to 200 billion barrels. "We will be producing oil for a very long time," al-Jubeir said. Saudi Arabia now pumps 9.5 million barrels of oil daily, with the capacity to produce 11 million barrels a day. The country has pledged to increase daily production to 12.5 million barrels by 2009, and the nation's oil minister said last month the level of 12.5 million to 15 million barrels daily could be sustained for up to 50 years. High oil prices benefit the Saudi economy in the short run, but al-Jubeir said his nation wants a stable price that won't hurt consumers so much that they reduce their energy demands. The problem for both the Saudis and the United States is what happens after the oil is pumped. "If we send more oil to the United States and you can't refine it, it's not going to become gasoline," al-Jubeir said. The United States has not built a refinery since the 1970s, and other markets have similarly outmoded or limited refining capacity. Environmental concerns and local opposition make it unlikely new U.S. refineries can be built quickly, even with the current gas price crunch. Saudi Arabia has partly stepped into the breach, with new refineries being built inside the kingdom as well as in China and soon in India, al-Jubeir said. The country has also invested in gasoline stations, part of a strategy of "going downstream" from oil production to distribution, al-Jubeir said. "We continue to do it, and we have one of the largest refining and distribution systems in the world," he said. Ordinary Saudis remain deeply distrustful of the United States in the aftermath of the Iraq invasion and revelations about mistreatment of Muslim prisoners at the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq and a range of complaints about conditions at the U.S. military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, al-Jubeir said. "Why do they hate you? They don't hate you, they just don't like your policies." Al-Jubeir said the Saudi regime takes no umbrage at U.S. efforts to spread democracy in the Middle East. President Bush and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice have made democratic expansion a centerpiece of Bush's second term foreign policy. "We believe that the idea of spreading freedom and democracy is a noble one," but change must come on terms each country can accept, al-Jubeir said.

Lets trade him for Barry Bonds.. he sucks this year, .000 avg.. :plain 802019[/snapback] Ladies & Gentlemen...we have a comedian on the board... :blink:

Sun-Sentinel... MIAMI GARDENS ? With rumors swirling around Marlins hitting coach Bill Robinson, Jeff Pentland knows the feeling. A highly respected and former Marlins hitting coach, Pentland was fired by the Kansas City Royals on May 30. "Firing hitting coaches is in vogue right now," Pentland said Wednesday by phone from his Tempe, Ariz., residence. "It's just a tough business. Pitching has improved." Hall of Famer Eddie Murray was fired in Cleveland last week, and there is growing speculation Robinson could be next. The Marlins entered Wednesday's game hitting .269 with runners in scoring position, 10th in the National League. "I've heard nothing but good things about Bill Robinson, and I hope it's not the case," Pentland said. "We're all in a fraternity. I certainly hope it doesn't happen to him because it's a rotten feeling, that's for sure." Despite the Marlins being tied for the league's second-highest batting average (.273), Robinson expressed concern over his job security after Sunday's loss in Washington. Wednesday, he said no one in the organization had reassured him his uneasiness was unwarranted. "I think [the media] is trying to run me out of town," Robinson said. "[unjustly] you guys have put it on one element of a losing streak. I can't control the base hits. I can only give my guys the knowledge and the swing plane and thought process. Once the game starts, everything is totally out of my hands." Should the Marlins make Robinson the scapegoat for their hitting woes, minor league hitting coordinator John Mallee could be a possible replacement. More likely, according to a National League source, the Marlins would look to an experienced hand such as Pentland. Pentland, 58, spent five seasons in the Marlins organization, scouting in 1992-93 and working the minors for 21/2 seasons. When Rene Lachemann was fired at midseason in 1996, Pentland was promoted as the hitting coach for new manager John Boles. Marlins special assistant Orrin Freeman is a holdover from those days and has always thought highly of Pentland. Marlins Assistant GM Jim Fleming also goes way back with Pentland to their days coaching college ball and in the minors. Pentland counted Barry Bonds among his top pupils at Arizona State and he is credited with tapping Sammy Sosa's potential during his stint with the Chicago Cubs from 1997 to 2002. During his two-plus seasons with the low-payroll Royals, Pentland's 2003 club led the majors with a .304 batting average with runners in scoring position. That figure was the sixth-highest mark in big-league history. "Baseball is a sport where when you don't do the right things as far as getting runners in, everybody sees that," Pentland said. "Hitting is contagious one way or the other. As a hitting coach, the worst thing that can happen is you get most of your team not hitting at the same time. You go through it once or twice a year. You just hope it's short-lived." :whistle

About five teams have expressed interested in acquiring left-hander Matt Perisho, who the Marlins designated for assignment Tuesday. The Marlins told suitors they would begin fielding offers upon conclusion of Wednesday's draft. Any chance we could swap Perisho for Ryan Drese? Aren't the Rangers in a similar situation after designating Drese for assignment? :mischief2

I will add my 2 cents on that one: All i have to say is.. Castillo-2B LoDuca - C Cabrera-3B Delgado-1B Encarnacion-CF Conine-RF Harris-LF Gonzalez-SS Pitcher Try it tonight. 800752[/snapback] Lenny time!!! :notworthy

so disappointing 800292[/snapback] I find this comment rather humorous...we have an entire scouting department working countless hours on the MLB draft. Do you really profess to be a better judge of talent than Felming, Jennings and the rest of the staff? Perhaps if you were at Harvard or Yale...I'd have some more faith in your analysis. :whistle

If this is true...does the front office get it?? I mean so much pressure is put on the pitchers because this team never scores runs.? I hope something else was done about that part of the game too because if it hasn't been it shows me that Beinfest, Loria and company are idiots.? It looks like they want to be able to say they did something even though it might not have been what needed to be done.? Time will tell. 799262[/snapback] "idiots?" - hmmm...ain't that the pot calling the kettle black? :whistle

De Los Santos?!? Wasn't he just sent to A Ball? 799158[/snapback] Wasn't it more of a rehab stint? Doesn't he have ML experience with Milwaukee??? :mischief2

You are the man...thanks! :notworthy

I'd like to see Chad bentz get a shot as our lefty specialist.

Ant tv???

Any pics of Asian babes??? :drool

Thanks TS...I really love the height on Volstad...sounds like a super prospect. :notworthy

Any chance of someone posting some brief bios on prospective Marlin draft picks? Ramp could you set up a link to something like this via your site? Thanks. :mischief2

Yes! My baby Marlin... :notworthy

Any thoughts on our starting lineups in 2007? My guess is that Lowell will eventually be traded for some solid prospects... CF - Pierre LF- Willingham 1B - Delgado 3B - Cabrera RF - Hermida C - LoDuca 2B - Castillo (?) SS - Andino Beckett Willis Olsen Borzardo (?) Mota Resop Messenger :mischief2

Why call him up to rot on the bench? I have a feeling that Willi will be a good MLB player some day, but not for the Marlins 784559[/snapback] He will be starting someplace for the Marlins next year. Aguila will be a journeyman and never play for any meaningful stretch with the Marlins.

BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- Conflicting reports emerged Thursday from Iraqi officials about whether they knew insurgent leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi had been wounded. "We are not quite sure if he is alive or dead," said Interior Minister Baqir Jabbur, citing information on al-Zarqawi's injuries the government received several days ago. But Iraqi Prime Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari later said the government didn't have anything accurate on al-Zarqawi's status. Al-Zarqawi, the most-wanted man in Iraq, is blamed for bombings and kidnappings throughout the country. The United States is offering a $25 million reward for information leading to his capture. CNN's Jane Arraf asked Jabbur after a Baghdad news conference whether he believed al-Zarqawi had been wounded. "He said, 'Yes, it is true he has been wounded,' " Arraf said. Several Islamist Web sites reported this week that al-Zarqawi had been wounded, asking supporters to offer prayers for the militant. In an analysis of one posting, Octavia Nasr, CNN's senior editor for Arab affairs, said the author "doesn't go into the seriousness of the injuries." "If indeed there is an injury, the injury is serious enough for the group to be inclined to announce it publicly so that in case of death, it won't be a total shock," Nasr said earlier this week. The message "could be just a prelude to announcing something even more serious," she said. (Full story) Last year al-Zarqawi pledged his allegiance to Osama bin Laden, who later praised the insurgent's work against American troops in Iraq. At the Pentagon, U.S. Army Brig. Gen. Carter Ham said Thursday that he cannot corroborate reports about the insurgent leader's possible injuries and sought to downplay such a development. "While al-Zarqawi is an important character, his organization is bigger than just one guy," Ham said. "His demise, whether he is captured, which would be preferable, or if he is killed or wounded, that would not cause al Qaeda in Iraq to cease to function." My fingers are crossed... :whistle

:banghead