Ron, I’ll get you that gold star. Keep an eye out for my posts, see when I veer way off topic for about 5 in a row, and then nail me. If Billfer doesn’t give you the gold star, I’ll give you mine. I guarantee it’ll still be shiny, too.

As for Renteria, my feelings on him are well known so I won’t go into it again. One thing I like to see out of a baseball team is a “win now, build for the future” mentality. You see this with clubs like Boston, New York and the like. Hitching your wagon to a 32 y/o SS with questionable actual value at the cost of two highly regarded young players is kind of the antithesis of that. I know we’ve cried a lot over this bit of spilled milk, but it kinda makes me question what this team will look like in 2010. Back to the cellar, I assume. Look at the link about Strieby. The first sentence says it all.

hehe that’s my boy!

Remember when you were in 1st grade and you came home crying cause all the kids were pronouncing your name “seen,” and mom and I said, dear, that’s how it’s supposed to be pronounced,” and you ran up to your room and we had such a laugh! Those were the times, eh?

And when you’re doing the housecleaning don’t “forget” to do the bathroom like you usually do.

You’d better watch what you say, mister. I’m on my way to the top, and nobody’s gonna stop me. There’s going to be some housecleaning when I get there, too, believe me.

Now get back to work.

MEMO TO ALL OF MY UNDERLINGS (this means YOU)

Whereas

a) He’s just plain funny

b) He really does post pretty cool stats once in a while, though they’re not as cool as mine

I hereby decree that the poster known as Coleman shall be exempt from any and all requirements for topical relevance.

Furthermore, whereas

a) I was unaware of Edgar Renteria’s vital defensive contribution to what was perhaps the most joyous 8th inning in all of 2008

b) I feel the need to clarify my thoughts on Mr. Renteria and distinguish my reasoned analysis from the easy jokes about an established and not entirely undeserving member of the Whipping Boys

I volunteer to get to the nitty-gritty of Mr. Renteria’s contribution to run production since the break.

In closing, I would like to add that Armando and the Whipping Boys have officially and four-handedly Restored The Roar to DTW for at least one more series, and that any less than 500 posts for Friday’s Orioles game shall be deemed unacceptable.

Soyez là ou soyez allé!

Other gold star recipients included Joel Zumaya for his “we need to be able to throw strikes” comment, and to Edgar Renteria for his suggestion “we should stop hitting into so many double-plays.”

Fair enough. My biased guess is this number will fall in the “bad” range of the spectrum. Probably not ugly, but certainly not good. But I’d love to be proved wrong — and I totally agree with you.

Personally, I have to disagree, though, about giving Renteria another look next year. Perhaps we won’t even feel the biggest disappointment of this season until 2009 and beyond, when the direct results of the suckitude of this year affect Ilitch’s payroll tolerence in upcoming years. If the rumors are true that Ilitch is so disgusted with the unprecedented underachievement this year, forcing DD to cut significant fat (to the tune of under a 100M payroll), Renteria should be the first casualty. I’d personally rather see Ordonez stay if it means we have to have a guy like Holliman man SS.

But at the end of the day, if we end up trading Ordonez and Guillen or guys like that (i.e. the achievers), on account of the underachievers (or on account of whatever one choses to attribute the flop of this season), and if DD dismantles the cream of this team, that makes this season even more painful to me. I can see us perpetually trying to build for another run that may never come.

The biggest issue I have with Renteria is I know he’s a talented bat and can contribute like he has the last couple games. Which makes it even more frustrating to see that contribution come now, in mid August, after the Tigers have been all but mathematically eliminated.

Fair enough. I read it differently the first time. I just get irked with the concept of “clutch hits that don’t matter.”

He had started building toward this over the last month, and it wasn’t just after they slid to a near impossible point of comeback.