either way its not such a scary offense once they get in to a park WITH oooo lets say with more than a 2hundred 50 ft fences as oppose to there 180ft walls …

geeeeezz are they even capable of playing real baseball or is it just an all out allstar/homerun derby game in the city of brotherly scum

that’s an understatement…. it’s insane.

only Beltran at 22 seems about right

i like the golf analogy (or whatever you want to call it). all the effort in the world (on the course) doesn’t win golf tournaments. in fact, you’ll probably play worse if you’re trying too hard–great thing about golf. it allows lazy people like me to be very good at it (was almost a scratch in high school, up to like a 7 these days–depressing).

but i think people are looking for a reason why a guy like david eckstein can succeed, and they come up with some bs like “grit.” well, he certainly tries hard. but it’s not like the other 8 guys on the field aren’t giving their all. you just notice it with him because he makes easy plays look difficult and has to exert maximum effort to come close to playing on a major league level. his “scrappiness” is a lack of talent being exposed by the talent of the rest of the players on the field.

i don’t agree that pete rose was determination over ability, though. you don’t get 4200 hits through “determination.” more than a little hand-eye coordination and baseball IQ is required there. yes, i understand his nickname is charlie hustle and that he worked his butt off 365 days a year, but if determination over ability is possible, then every unathletic kid in the world could play at the highest level in a given sport. and JD Drew? dude’s 13 points away from having a .900 career OPS. if he wasn’t injured constantly, he’d have a hall of fame career. bad luck for him, and i’m not sure grit and fire could have helped him overcome injuries.

i think we made some progress today danny. a pleasure as always.

In fact, you brought up something I have not really pondered. I have played organized baseball, football, rugby, I was a collegiant sprinter, and I currently play a hell of a lot of golf. Grit doesn’t allow me to hit a golfball straight down the middle. But it certainly allowed me to score a few tries late in a match when my legs were beaten down and ribs tenderized.

I equate baseball far more with the golf scenario than I do the rugby scenario. Sports are different, but baseball is one of the more precise games with numerous variables playing into exectuion. Obviously not as much as golf, but certainly far more than any of the other more physical games. Seriously, imagine if a boxer didn’t have grit or fire?

So yes, grit and fire are far less relevant in the game of baseball. But it still does exist, which is why the Ecksteins of the world are allowed to annoy the crap out of us. Pete Rose is another fine example of determination over ability. And imagine if JD Drew had a little fire and grit? I would think he would actually live up to his potential.

nah, just kidding.