Is Jon Lester a Hall of Famer?

 Is Jon Lester a Hall of Famer? As much as I love Jon Lester - I would have to say NO.

In his 16-year MLB career he had 200 wins, 2,488 K's, and a 3.66 ERA (117 ERA+). That's good but not Hall of Fame good. He also made over $198 million in his career so don't feel too badly about Jon not getting into Cooperstown.

People are making the argument for Lester because of his postseason heroics. He was a stud on three World Series Championship teams (two in Boston and one in Chicago). He was a cancer survivor and all-around good guy. Hard not to root for him.

I love Jon Lester and the way the Red Sox treated him as they parted ways was when I started to get disenchanted with the organization. If the organization didn't lowball Lester (initial offer of $70 million 4-years when he ended up signing for $155 million over six) and had offered him a fair deal he'd have never left Boston. But in 2014 owner John Henry didn't want to invest long term in a 31-year old pitcher.

He pitched another 7 seasons after leaving Boston and now people are making arguments about if he's a Hall of Famer. If he does get in - I hope he wears a Cubs hat.

Linky Links

 Stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.

- Interesting tale of the creation and success of Obvious Shirts. Inspirational. (HT Daddy Pundit)

- Heh Heh

- Who knew? Diagon Alley is a real place in London. (HT Daddy Pundit)

- Cool Imposter Syndrome story from Neil Gaiman

Flotsam and Jetsam

Miscellaneous thoughts and observations.

"It was a damp squib of a fart" is the "It was a dark and stormy night" of intestinal distress stories... To be honest - the only Secretary of Labor I can name off the top of my head is completely fictional... If I were Under Armour now would be a good time to announce that they've signed Buzz Aldrin to a shoe deal... How the Cubs informed Bob Newhart's philosophy on life... So if the Left supports Nike's Kaepernick ad campaign and the Right boycotts Nike - who is the real loser here? Yep - Birkenstock! Too bad they're a private company otherwise you could short their stock... It has now been 4-years years since Kim Kardashian "broke the Internet" but this still makes me laugh every time... Happy 89th birthday to comedy legend Bob Newhart! Here's to many, many more...

My Dream of Jon Hamm

Had a dream this morning where the Chicago Cubs announced that they have hired Jon Hamm to play a front office role for the team.

When asked about the fact that Hamm is famously a St. Louis Cardinals diehard fan the Cubs official said that Jon Hamm is a great actor and stressed that he'd be "playing a role."

This was an actual dream I had. Just thought I'd share.

Theo Epstein

Today is Theo Epstein's 43rd birthday. Happy birthday Theo!

I am seriously curious about what he'd want for his birthday. What do you get for the man who has everything? Seriously - what does the man who ended the "curse" for both the Red Sox and Cubs desire for his birthday?

I'm guessing there are some billionaire Cubs fans out there that would absolutely get Theo whatever his heart desired (especially this year). Although it is more likely than not that Theo would just ask for donations to his favorite charities.

Linky Links

Stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.

- Heh heh - I can't help but giggle at that.

- In pictures - Ireland's historic victory over New Zealand's All Blacks. The first time in 111-years.

- This is cool. A man's lived a rich life if he has a friendship like this that lasts 51-years (and still going strong).

- Tough to describe what beauty is but you know it when you see it. This is beautiful to me. Trinity College Library, Dublin, Ireland.

- Heh heh 

- Incredible - this is Gary Oldman as Winston Churchill.

Flotsam and Jetsam

Miscellaneous thoughts and observations.

Congratulations to the Cubs and the City of Chicago. I have the feeling that this is just the first of a few Championships to come... I love this poker story... Jut a reminder - the Red Sox magic number is now 163... Any time I see Newt Gingrich - I try to picture him as Santa's gay half-brother to see if it makes him more likable... Some good tips for better swimming... Not only is Tom Brady 1st in quarterback rating, he's also tied for 11th in TD's despite missing the first 4 games... Pretty sure Rape Whistle would be a horrible name for a band or a coconut rum drink... Henry Miller's 11 Commandments of writing... First it was the Chippendale Dancers, then it was the Thunder Down Under, now it's MEAT RAFFLE!... Should the Jaguars hire Tom Coughlin? I say yes (or hire Josh McDaniels)... I think if Mel Gibson came out and endorsed Hillary Clinton then most of Hollywood would forgive him en masse...  Heh heh...

Linky Links

Stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.

- Bill Murray is the best (but only because he's Bill effin Murray). Picture anyone else doing this and would you find it as entertaining?

- If Jon Hamm did the above it would only be to troll Cubs fans

- Heh heh

- NASA finally getting all the data from New Horizons fly-by of Pluto

- I don't want to spend a day at Dale Earnhardt Jr's estate. I want to live at Dale Earnhardt Jr's estate. If I can't live there then I would like to live in a tree house like the one he has.

- Tim Ferriss' breakfast routine

- Thursday Night NFL games this season explained in one graph

Linky Links

Stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.

- 100 of the best leadership quotes of all-time

- Interesting tidbit

- The inside story on David Ortiz's injuries. This should put to bed the idea of him coming back for another season.

- 19 beautiful bookstores in the US. I've only been to one listed - 18 more to go!

- Speaking of books - 52,000 books being re-shelved at the NYC Public Library

- Heh heh

Theo Epstein

Fantastic profile of Chicago Cubs President of Baseball Operations Theo Epstein.

I learned a lot in the article including how Theo has a twin brother Paul (never knew that) and Epstein's regular guy approach to getting his law degree at the University of San Diego.

The Cubs are poised to be a monster both this year and for the foreseeable future. And it is all Theo Epstein's doing.

Daniel Murphy and the Mets

Congratulations to the Mets and Daniel Murphy for advancing to the World Series. I do have to wonder what would have been the outcome of the series if the Cubs had simply intentionally walked Murphy every single at bat though. Would it have made a difference?

Murphy had 17 AB vs the Cubs with 7 hits and one walk. Included in those 7 hits he had 4 HR and a double. According to my simple math - if the Cubs walked Murphy every at bat it would have dropped his OPS from an incredible 1.561 during the series down to an even 1.000. That's why I can stop wondering if the Cubs had just walked Murphy every at bat - would they still be playing for a World Series birth?

Flotsam and Jetsam

Miscellaneous thoughts and observations.

If I was Dana White I'd have the UFC make a $100 million offer to Floyd Mayweather to fight Ronda Rousey in the octagon. I bet more people would pay to watch that than Saturday's fight. Of course Mayweather wouldn't take the deal but then the UFC could claim that Mayweather is afraid of women who fight back. It would be another nail in the coffin for boxing and great publicity for the UFC... Reconsidering The Wire amidst the violence in Baltimore... Who knew? The reason dealers at casinos clap their hands when leaving the table is to show the "eye in the sky" that they aren't taking any chips away from the table cupped in their hands... Heh heh - Don Pardo's old business card... The Mayan calendar was so exact it was only off one day every 6,000 years... I wonder if Cubs fans are starting to feel about Jon Lester the way some older Red Sox fans felt about Mike Torrez...

It Wasn't Personal - It Was Business

So Jon Lester has signed with the Chicago Cubs for $155 million over 6-years. I agree with Rob Bradford that the reason this happened was simply because Boston didn't want him as much privately as they publicly claimed. An extra $20 million and a vesting seventh year was the difference. That difference would mean NOTHING to ownership if they really wanted Lester back.

Simply put - the team didn't want to sign a 31-year old pitcher to a long-term deal. But publicly they had to make it look like they did.

I like Jon Lester and will continue to root for him but what is becoming increasingly clear to me is what I really root for is laundry. Whoever is wearing the Red Sox uniform is the guy I cheer for (unless that guy is dickhead AJ Pierzynski).

Many people will place the blame for losing Jon Lester on Larry Lucchino and to a certain degree they would be right. I would guess that the low-ball $70 million over 4-years offer the team made to Lester in the Spring had Larry's fingerprints all over it. Larry is also the guy to blame for ownership thinking Bobby Valentine was a competent manager. Balancing the negatives, however, are the undeniable positives of three World Series Championships in the last decade and the fact that Lucchino was the man mainly responsible for turning Fenway Park from what was becoming a urine soaked rathole into a great (albeit expensive) place to experience an MLB game.

The real blame for losing Lester rests with principal owner John Henry. Simply put - he didn't want to sign a 31-year old pitcher to a long term deal. If he really wanted Lester back - then the extra $3 million a year (the cost for a below average veteran back-up outfielder) would have been no obstacle.

So now the Red Sox have a pretty potent line-up, some spare parts to deal and some starting (and bullpen) holes to fill. It should be interesting to see what laundry Ben Cherrington can come up with for me to root for.

Meanwhile - Godspeed Jon Lester.

Flotsam and Jetsam

Miscellaneous thoughts and observations.

As if he wasn't going to be compared to Aaron Hernandez enough - new Patriots tight end Tim Wright will be wearing Hernandez's old number 81... Buying carbon off-sets to me always seemed like the modern equivalent of rich Northerners paying for replacements to fight for them in the Civil War. And just as hypocritical...  Carnal Acquaintance would be a good name for a band or a fantasy football team... Actual movie - MANBORG: a warrior who's half-man, half-machine, but all hero. Look awful... If Cubs fans were told before the season that Theo Epstein would have the team either ahead or tied by record with the Boston Red Sox - those Cubbie fans would have been pretty pleased.

Dan Haren

The Angels did not exercise their 2013 $15.5 million option on starting pitcher Dan Haren and instead will be giving him a $3.5 million buy-out making him a free agent. That news comes on the heels of the news that an announced deal that would have sent Haren to the Cubs for Carlos Marmol fell apart at the last minute.

I don't understand this - I don't understand this at all.

First off - Carlos Marmol isn't chopped liver. He's a good reliever with a live arm about to enter his prime (just 29-years old). If the Cubs were willing to give up Marmol then there had to have been other clubs offering something - anything for Haren. By not picking up Haren's option then the Angels get nothing.

I've seen speculation that the Cubs may have been scared off the deal once they saw Haren's medical reports. This could be. Haren does have a bad back but Haren also came back from that bad back to go 3-2 with a 3.07 ERA in September in the middle of a playoff race. That's worth the risk for a team like the Red Sox who have deep pockets but not a deep rotation. 2012 was a bad year for Haren yet his 4.33 ERA for the year would have been the best among Boston pitchers with at least 10 starts. Don't tell me they wouldn't have given up something for Haren.

Could this have been financial? Marmol is on the books for almost $10 million in 2013. But again - by declining the option the Angels still pay the $3.5 million buyout but get nothing in return. This just doesn't make sense.

Bill Murray for Cubs Analyst

Bob Brenley is leaving his post as the color analyst for Cubs games on WGM. In my opinion WGN should throw whatever money it would take to get Bill Murray to replace Brenley in the broadcasting booth.

This would make lots of sense financially for WGN. How many out of town cable systems would pick up WGN just to hear what the immortal Bill Murray has to say? Rain delays alone would become epic!

Plus whatever network that is about to broadcast Roadhouse could get to sponsor the Murray family calls to Kelly Lynch! That sponsorship money by itself could pay Bill Murray's salary!

Who could possibly be against this idea?

Player Comparison

Here's a player comparison that I found interesting - keep in mind that both players are 29 years old with not much big league experience:

Player A: 211 AB/ 30 R/ 13 HR/ 28 RBI/ .284 BA/ .890 OPS
Player B: 143 AB/ 26 R/  3 HR/ 26 RBI/ .294 BA/ .873 OPS

The numbers are fairly close. Player A has more power but he also has a third more AB this season. The big difference is the hype around the players. Player A is Cubs prospect (and pride of Worcester) Brian LaHair while Player B is the vastly under-heralded Daniel Nava.

It is supposed to be the on the field performance that counts. It will be interesting to see if that holds for good guy Nava.

Red Sox / Cubs Negotiations

In the next two weeks or so you will see lots of stories about the negotiations between the Red Sox and Cubs breaking down regarding the compensation for Theo Epstein. Don't waste your time reading stories like this.

Theo Epstein will be announced as the new Cubs GM but it won't be until after the World Series. Everyone knows that. MLB has an embargo on announcements until then because they don't want anything or anyone to take attention away from the games. Everyone involved knows that. Remember how MLB treated A-Rod as a douchebag when he announced during the World Series that he was opting out of his Yankees contract a few years ago?

That doesn't mean that a certain anxiety won't become prevalent. The Cubs and Red Sox represent the two most neurotic fan bases on the planet. The media will feed that neurosis. Don't fall for it. The Cubs want Theo Epstein and will pay a fair compensation price - my guess is one top prospect. The Red Sox will act like they hold all the cards but they don't want Epstein back at this point because the offseason has already become a three-ring circus. They don't need the return of Theo to make things into a further national joke. MLB in turn will see to it the deal is completed.

The whole situation reminds me of the great movie The Quiet Man. In the movie there is a problem with the dowry and John Wayne calls the brother-in-laws bluff by returning the wife and thus shaming his family. Picturing Larry Lucchino as a less manly Squire "Red" Will Danaher also amuses me.

Theo to the Cubs

There has been so much smoke about Theo Epstein going to the Chicago Cubs to be their new GM that you have to think that there is really something to the story. Consider that the "organization" used house organ Dan Shaughnessy to announce that the Cubs had indeed asked permission. The club could have quietly said no. But they didn't do that. Announcing it like this through the Curly Haired Boyfriend says that the team wants the buzz out there. Buzz out in Chicago will build demand from the fans and create more pressure on the Cubs ownership to pay a price that normally might be considered too high.

This Red Sox organization may not be able to tell the worth of a free agent starting pitcher worth a damn but they can maximize value on assets. Theo Epstein is nothing but an asset at this point - an asset that has just one year left on a contract that Epstein will not renew. They want to sell high and they know the Cubs will be willing to pay the price.

The way I'd love to see this play out is the Red Sox grant the Cubs permission to speak with Epstein wit some basic ground rules. Then assuming Epstein signs with the Cubs - I'd like to see the compensation eventually worked out being the Red Sox assuming the final year of Carlos Zambrano's contract and the Cubs taking on the final 3-years of John "JaMarcus" Lackey's contract. The Red Sox could then eat part of Zambrano's contract and flip him to the Marlins for a prospect. I think this would be a fair deal. The Cubs would get the GM they want, the Red Sox would shed themselves of a cancer of a player and who knows - John Lackey may actually rebound to be a good 3rd started for the Cubs. To replace Theo - Ben Cherington would then be promoted to be the new Red Sox GM.

Keep in mind that potentially the Cubs have the contracts of both Aramis Ramirez and Carlos Pena coming off the books. That's almost $25 million which could be put towards a mega-contract for Albert Pujols. Can you imagine the buzz around the Cubs if they got both Theo Epstein and Albert Pujols?

This could be a rare situation where everyone gets what they want. So let it be written - so let it be done.

Flotsam and Jetsam

Miscellaneous thoughts and observations.

It made the news recently that there was an app that supposedly helped homosexuals pray away the gay. Some people have now noticed that the app store no longer has that app and I just wanted people to know that the gay conversion thru prayer app wasn't yanked - I prayed it away!... Dude puts on scuba gear, jumps into TSUNAMI, dodges debris, finds his house and his wife and saves her. For his next trick he will kick Chuck Norris' ass with one-hand tied behind his back... My new "10 Inch Penis through Prayer" App is going to make me rich!... Charlie Brooker on the Media's Japan coverage. I haven't seen this Charlie Brooker before but he seems pretty funny... "'When I use a word,' Barack Obama said, in rather a scornful tone, 'it means just what I choose it to mean - neither more nor less." The quote is actually from Humpty Dumpty but you easily could see Barack saying it - couldn't you?... I've been thinking about this shot a lot lately. 30th anniversary of most famous shot in BYU history: Ainge's end-to-end dash... Even Lefties like Sam Simon are abandoning Barack Obama over Libya. This was a Tweet from Simon the other day:

The only thing I can think of that explains what Obama's doing in Libya: Gadhafi has his real birth certificate.

Saddam had Baghdad Bob - does Qaddafi have a Tripoli Timmy?... The damning contradictions of Obama's attack on Libya... Semi-kidding but is it too early to call American involvement in Libya a quagmire? The press didn't wait this long to declare Iraq a quagmire... Very cool - skiing with a jetpack... In 1981 BYU makes it to the Sweet 16 while the best Notre Dame basketball team in ages gets upset in 2nd round. That same week REO Speedwagon hits #1 with its hit Keep on Loving You. Now 30 years later BYU is back in the Sweet 16, Notre Dame has its best team in 30-years beaten in the 2nd round and Rebecca Black comes out with a song that is as bad and as popular as Keep on Loving You... Cool - Ballhawks: The Obsession of Catching a Home Run Ball Outside Wrigley. Narrated by Bill Murray.