halodground

I've done LAX to Heathrow and LAX to Frankfurt, both weren't too bad. The longest single trip I've taken was when I was an airline employee and was trying to non-rev to Honolulu. I couldn't get on out of LAX so I flew non-stop LAX to Newark, slept for 3 hours, and then flew Newark to Honolulu nonstop. That made for a long trip. I was only in Hawaii for 2 nights too. And then had to fly back to LA via Houston. Good times.

Here in my neck of the woods we have two crappy choices for an ISP: DSL from Centurylink (which is awful) or cable from Suddenlink (which is a lot faster, but their hardware is terrible). After considerable research online I've decided I want to go with an ac router. My first choice was the Apple 2TB Time Capsule but after talking with a tech from Suddenlink I was told they have compatibility problems with Suddenlink data packets (whatever that means) and that Apple's Airport Extreme is not a good choice for their system. So I've been looking at a bunch of other set ups. For those of you that may have experience with Suddenlink or just have knowledge regarding this stuff in general please give me your input. The major questions I have are: Is the Suddenlink guy full of shit regarding the Apple Router? Is it better to go with buying my own cable modem and a separate router rather than a combo piece like the Motorola Surfboard Extreme SBG6782? Should I just use Suddenlink's standard Arris modem and buy my own router? (Requires rental monthly from Suddenlink) I've had a lot of issues with Suddenlink's wireless hardware, so I'd really like to upgrade to something that will at least allow me to stream video without constant loading From what I can find online, the solution is to upgrade your hardware on your own. I've read the other threads here and about a million on other sites and I'm still not sure which is the way to go. I appreciate any feedback you guys have. Thanks!

I'm with the "I just have a good feeling" group. Something feels right to me even though logic says I shouldn't be confident. I feel like the pitching is going to be better than expected. As long as the offense performs close to expectation I think we win 90+ games.

Read the Sweetspot article on ESPN. Tanaka's stats relative to other NPB imports are pretty impressive.

AW has been my go to for Angels news and discussion since 2008. Thanks for all the hard work Chuck and Co.

Anybody know anything about Salas? Is there at least quality stuff there maybe without results? I'm trying to find a silver lining here. Wasn't he the closer for St Louis for a brief time?

Right now this looks awful. Trading young, high upside guys for mediocre older players reeks of the first 4 decades of this franchise. That being said, trades are best evaluated at a later date so I'm trying not to get too worked up about it.

I'd be thrilled to get Joe Kelly. David Freese however would be a really bad idea. He's never been that great, he's a stiff on D, and now there are injury concerns. Pass, unless he's just a throw in. Freese for Bourjos or Calhoun would really piss me off.

It's a shame all those closed minded, conservative Christian, white mid westerners generalize like they do. If they were more open minded like me they would understand that Oriental people are good,hard working people who are really good students!

Looks like they got a fine education in the Ranger art of folding at the end of the season. Calhoun, Richards, and DDLR are young players who held their own this year and adding them to Trout, legitimately we still have some young talent.

The Angels could hire Georgia Frontiere's granddaughter to manage and I'd still watch and support the team. I'm having a hard time understanding how the manager affects being a fan to level that some express on here. Ya, he's frustrating sometimes and a change may be needed, but isn't it the players on the field that are the reason for watching? Or beyond that just loyalty to your team?

I followed a similar path. VHF left out the best part of being a RN though.......the 3 day work week. I don't make quite as much as I made in my previous career but I have a LOT more time to enjoy life with the money I do make. Plus it's pretty interesting and some days I even feel like I made a difference.

I think the biggest advantage to trading him is that we have potential replacements that are ready for a shot. Green and Lindsey with more depths waiting below them. Dipoto wouldn't be doing his job if he didn't at least see what was available in return. That being said I think Howie is undervalued on this board and the return would have to be significant to actually make a move.

Not that all of those are deadline deals, but the Haren and Grienke trades look like the worst to me. It is all hindsight though, sometimes you have to take a chance. Clearly it doesn't always pan out.

Or, to put it in different terms, what does the Angels' 2013 look like if they'd refused to make a trade since 2009? Chatwood and Corbin in the rotation. Santana in the rotation. Skaggs as depth in the minors. Morales DH'ing with Pujols on the shelf. Walden closing games instead of Frieri. Will Smith setting him up. Segura at shortstop. Mathis at catcher. Forget about that last one. It would have been a much, much better team. Good enough to complete with the Rangers and A's? Not sure about that. But a better team. Be careful what you wish for, cause you just might get it. Remember when we all bitched because Stoneman didn't make deadline deals?

I agree that it probably isn't maximizing his value but if he was effective it would improve the overall bullpen putting Ernesto in a setup role and on down from there.

I know they want to keep him stretched out for multiple innings and spot starts (which has value) but what about Jerome as a closer? I think he has the stuff for it and he seems to handle pressure pretty well.

Well said Chuck.

People who make accusations about roids and age with Pujols are ridiculous. You must believe in UFOs and Bigfoot too. You don't think the Angels thoroughly looked into this? What about MLB? How bout just a really motivated journalist looking to make a name for themselves? There is NO evidence to support these claims. Talk about how bad he is this year all you want but stop with the unfounded accusations. There is enough to complain about without adding stupid BS conspiracies to the discussion.

This is far from the worst I've seen. I still have hope for this year. It's dwindling, but there is still some there.

Why trade a potential superstar with 5 years of club control left for prospects? We'd probably be trading Trout for players who are older than he is. It makes no sense whatsoever. You build around players like Trout and Trumbo, not trade them. We are stuck with Pujols and Hamilton. Accept it and find other solutions. I'd rather listen to the fire Scioscia drivel than this crap about selling the most valuable pieces of the team.

I'm not sure which is more silly? The idea of trading Trout or saying that a team with Trout and Trumbo wins 40 games for the next 5 years? The Angels have never lost 100 games in a season but now they are going to lose 120 for the next five? I am going to one up Vladfan and say: Preposterous!!

I'm in for the CBS keeper league.

If you aren't a fan of WAR what stat do you prefer to value players?

nuh-uh