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Public Service Announcement: #2 Draft Picks
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Q. Is it possible for local fans to over-hype their own prospects?
A. Asked and answered.
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Q. Are Seattle fans doing this with Danny Hultzen?
A. Danny Hultzen was THE NUMBER TWO PICK IN THE ENTIRE DRAFT.
Look, gentlemen, if we were talking about Mike Carp or Alex Liddi or Kyle Seager or Carlos Peguero, that would be one thing. But don't paint every prospect hopeful with the same "he's just a prospect" brush. Each year there are four or five super-prospects.
You don't luck into a Danny Hultzen, dump $10.6 million on him, and then lose interest when he walks a few guys in his first pro year. Draw a distinction between "the kids" and players who are legitimate super-talents.
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Q. In your mind, who are the M's legitimate "super-talents"?
A. Dustin Ackley was also the #2 pick in the entire draft. We're not talking about "in Jeff Clarke's" mind. Ackley and Hultzen and Mike Zunino were, in their drafts, the BEST hitters and pitchers in the INDUSTRY. Not among the best. THE NUMBER ONE players.
Jesus Montero also came with a super-elite pedigree: he was the TOP hitter in the minors, him and Harper, when Montero was in the minors. Jack Zduriencik evaluated him as comparable to Albert Pujols. You don't wander off and lose interest because the kid only hit .295 on the road at 22.
Taijuan Walker is on a Felix Hernandez career path, give or take half a year. Consider carefully what you'd have felt like, had we traded Felix at age 19? James Paxton is better than Hultzen.
Trash the actual prospects, Carp and Liddi and Romero, if you want to. But keep a sense of proportion on Hultzen, Ackley, Paxton, Taijuan, Zunino, and Jesus Montero. Those players are a different breed of cat.
Nick Franklin, you could argue about. But there's no arguing about the Six.
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Q. Justin Smoak was supposed to be elite.
A. He was elite. At this point, there's enough data return to downgrade him.
If your reaction is "Because of Justin Smoak, or Ben Grieve, or Delmon Young, or Sean Burroughs, or Andy Marte, I'm just not interested in 1-1 draft picks any more," then that's on you.
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Q. Would it be reasonable to trade Jesus Montero for Billy Butler?
A. Shedding Jesus Montero for Billy Butler --- > could easily become a historically classic blunder in the Lou Brock for Ernie Broglio template. Bill James once said, 90% of the worst trades in baseball history were like this: giving up a super-talented youngster for a well-regarded, proven veteran.
Jeff Bagwell for Larry Andersen, Jason Varitek for Heathcliff Slocumb, Sammy Sosa for an aging Harold Baines...
And in this case, Montero for Butler type concepts, you don't even expect (reliably) that Butler will give you a significant upgrade over Montero NOW. You can't just use a "all-hope team" logic to paint Jesus Montero with the Mike Carp, Alex Liddi brush. Montero is a top-10 BBA prospect.
And yet Billy Butler is a legit cleanup hitter. Consensus is to shed Montero if you get Butler, but I'm totally opposed to that apples-for-apples swap. If they grab Butler and keep Montero, that's good by me.
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Jack Zduriencik's evaluation, at the time of the trade, was that Jesus Montero compared to Albert Pujols. He's got to stick with that.
My considered opinion is similar. Jesus Montero did things with the ball, in 2012, that ARod and Junior didn't do. He fought off jam pitches for line-drives to right center ... he got on top of 96 fastballs ... he kept the hands back and drove soft stuff to right field ... he showed the ability to square up literally every kind of pitch in every spot of the strike zone. It's not a cliche. I'm talking about watching him do it.
I don't say Montero's a guarantee. I say he's the kind of young player you don't abandon for baubles lying on the side of the road.
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Q. Should there be untouchables?
A. Pat Gillick was exceptionally win-now. But he would create a list of 3-4 players that he simply refused to trade on principle. He felt it would be a broach of his personal integrity to trade the teenaged Felix Hernandez or Jose Lopez -- yes, those were literal names on his lists -- for the ability to win this year.
The M's are now making noises like they'd package truly elite prospects, in bundles, for Billy Butler types. Even Gillick wouldn't have done that. When you have sailed past Pat Gillick in your win-now imperative, you have lost your compass.
If you want the Mariners to increase payroll, to try harder to win, then argue for that. But don't argue that Montero, Zunino, Ackley and the Big Three are overrated. They are not.
BABVA,
Dr D
Exercise on your own vs. personal training
Making the time to exercise is one of the best things you can do for your body. However, you will find you may be tempted to get a personal trainer. This is when you should know more information about if a personal trainer is a great option or if you should continue to exercise on your own.
The first thing you need to realize is when you exercise on your own, you will only be paying the gym membership fee or no fee at all, if you workout or run outside. You will not have to be concerned about paying extra money. Not only will you only be paying this fee or no fee, but you will not have to be concerned about doing the exercises the trainers want you to do, even when you do not feel like doing them.
With a personal trainer, you will be getting someone to help you who has taken courses in exercise and is well known for the exercises they can teach you. So you will not have to be concerned about the exercises not being the ones you need to do for the results you want to have. Without the personal trainer you can do exercises, but they may not be the proper ones to help you in targeting the specific muscle group you want to focus on.
Being able to have the best exercise around is easy to do, no matter what you are doing. However, when you have the option to choose between a personal trainer or doing exercises on your own, you should weigh a couple of options. Once you do this, it is easy for you to make the proper choice on which way you should use to get in shape.
Journal and diary apps for the iPad
If you want to use your iPad for journaling, you will find yourself faced with a bewildering variety of choices, both free and paid. The first thing you should do is narrow down your list of "must-have" features:
- Will you be attaching photos very often? Or do you imagine this as strictly a text entry sort of journal?
- Do you ever want to make your entries public, by sharing them on Twitter, Facebook, etc? Or is this going to be a private diary?
- How much security do you want? (Note: Even if you don't share your iPad with another household member, you probably want at least a basic password protection to keep any random coworker or fellow student from picking up your iPad and paging through your diary.)
- What kind of style do you want? Classic leather-bound look, fun and sparkly, or high tech calendar-based?
Let’s talk about sex
When was the last time you got lucky in between the sheets? And when was the last time you talked about sex with your partner? If you are like most people, the last time you discussed sex with your bedmate was probably not anywhere nearly as recent as the last time the two of you had sex with each other.
Sex is everywhere these days. It is constantly portrayed in the movies and TV shows, it is suggested in print ads and you probably even talk about it with some of your closest friends. Yet, even with sex going mainstream, many couples still shy away from having an open discussion with each other about sex.
If you think about it, it is actually sort of funny. People feel okay about sharing their intimate details with friends who they will probably never get down and dirty with. Yet they feel awkward about discussing sex with someone who they are fine being naked in front of. It is rather silly, isn’t it?
As awkward as it might feel to talk about sex with your bedmate, it is something that you really should try to do. Talking to friends or strangers won’t help improve your sex life much, but talking to your sex partner about it will.
Let your bedmate know what drives you crazy, and what you can do without. Then listen to what your lover has to say about the matter as well. Not only will it bring the two of you closer as a couple, but it will also help to bring your sex life to a whole new level.
I-502: What changes on Thursday?
As of tomorrow, December 5th, marijuana use will be legal in Washington for people 21 and over. But be sure to set your expectations correctly: Washington won't immediately turn into a giant state-wide Hemp Fest. (Well… mostly.)
Get ready for the Rehoboth Beach Marathon
I am so excited! December 8 is the day of the 2012 Rehoboth Beach Marathon, and yours truly will definitely be there to run the race. This will be my second marathon race, and I am hoping to have a better performance than I did at the National Marathon in Washington DC earlier this year.
Last time, the sun was really beating down on us back-of-the-pack runners toward the end of the race. It caused my run time to really suffer. This time, being that the weather should be rather nice and cool, I have high hopes for a new personal best.
In comparison to Washington DC’s National Marathon, the Rehoboth Beach Marathon is a much smaller race. Fewer runners will be running the race, and fewer spectators are expected to be there. Considering the fact that I really thrived on the energy of fellow runners and spectators during the last race, I am a bit concerned about Saturday’s race. Luckily though, I will never have to be alone while out on the race course. My husband will also be running the race with me, and he intends to stay by my side throughout the course of the marathon.
If you live near Rehoboth Beach and have some free time come Saturday morning, do consider coming out to cheer on us runners. We will all really appreciate it, and it does make a difference to us that you are there. Spectators help to give us the energy to run when we feel like walking, and can help us to run faster overall. So think about it, and I thank you in advance.
Pulling at My Heartstrings: Baby Elephant Frolics In Wood Chips
The nice people over at The Oregon Zoo recorded this adorable video of a baby elephant playing around in a pile of wood shavings. This four-day-old calf really understands the joy of a good rub down. I wonder if that just feels like a whole-body loofa. If so, I'm down.
Getting back to fundamentals
Many gym goers have a chosen sport or exercise routine they like to follow. They may have started by learning basic moves and techniques, and then practicing until they’ve gained a certain level of proficiency. Often people want to rush through this process, and then move on to what they consider the fun elements. Although this tendency is natural, it can also backfire. In the long run, lack of emphasis on fundamentals can cause the gym goers to progress more slowly than they otherwise would.
Along with learning techniques, practicing the fundamentals can be crucial to building up your fitness for a particular sport. For example, let’s say you’re interested in Olympic lifting, and you’d like to learn the clean and jerk lift. Attempting to clean and jerk before you’ve developed a strong core and have trained foundational lifts, such as the back squat, and positional lifts, such as the overhead squat, will reduce the progress you could make in the long term. Learning the fundamentals builds the strength and power needed to be successful at this lift, and it can reduce the chance of injuries.
Those who play other sports will also benefit by occasionally returning to the fundamentals to ensure their form and technique remain solid.
If your interests lean toward group fitness classes, such as kickboxing, you’ll still gain more from your program when you learn the moves correctly, and implement them consistently through the workout. Approaching your workout sloppily will not give your the same benefit as giving it your full attention. Please share, do you occasionally return to the fundamentals? Why or why not?
How to create smoky eyes
Smoky eyes are a look that isn’t going away any time soon. The reason why is that women love the sexy and enduring look it creates. The look makes them look mysterious, daring and seductive all at once. It is also an easy look to accomplish and makeup companies are making it easier by combining the colors we need for this in one eye shadow kits. If you are still trying to grasp this look, here are some pointers to guide you.
First, gather the supplies you will need. This will include a primer for your prep process, dark eyeliner, the eye shadows and dark mascara.
Your first step is prepping your eye area. You should do this because it will help the eye-shadows and liner to stay in place. Plus, it will help camouflage any flaws you may have. This includes some fine lines and some discoloration one may have around their eyes. The primer should be put on lightly around the bottom area of the eye and along the side.
Step two is lining your eye lid. You should do this in a gently approach. You don’t want to apply it in a rough manner that will cause your eyes to become red or teary. You should trace the liner inside the upper lash line and completely under the bottom line. Once you are finished lining the eyes, you should smudge them a bit. You can do this with a cotton swab.
Step three is the act of applying your eye shadows. You can begin by trying these example colors. Take a gunmetal type color and apply it on your lash line. Next, you can take a silver or pewter shade and apply over top of the gunmetal color on your lash line. Finish, by using a clean brush and applying a light shade over the rest of the eye lid, sweeping over the outer edge of your eyes.
Finally, step four is to apply your mascara. You should apply this to your lower and upper lashes. You should apply two coats to your upper lashes to help make them look fuller and longer. Presto, you are done and your eyes should have a smoky, as well as sexy look.