If you google it you can find more info.  The basics:

10 episode mini season and then a movie.

Target date 2013.

This is real.

And yes, I know this isn't a meaty OP but the SL seemed to warrant a fanpost rather than a fanshot.

https://twitter.com/newyorker/status/120599846745931777

https://twitter.com/ditzkoff/status/120599071613403137

http://twitter.com/#!/batemanjason/status/120629729819766785

Has this news made your day?  Have you made your bed today?  Is it today today?  Discuss.

BTW: the word counter does not work.  It appears to be counting characters, not words.

All this realignment talk has been bugging me so I gave it some thought.  I know it has been said before but there is only one good way to fix things.  That is to create two more teams.  We would end up with eight 4-team divisions.  A balanced schedule could come from this.  Oh yeah, and we could drop the DH because fuck David Ortiz. (not really cuz of him but because it just gets in the way.)

The first question is where to put the two new teams.  This was pretty simple: I looked at list of populations by metropolitan areas and found two places that could easily support another team.

1 - Riverside, CA.  There are 4 million people living in the Inland Empire.  There are 12 million in LA/OC.  Also a third team down there helps with alignment.

2 - NY, NY.  18 million people supporting two teams.  Most of the population centers have between 4-6 million.  They used to have three teams. They can have three again.  Alternately a team could be thrown into the Garden State near NYC.

3 - The A's could potentially move up to Portland, but otherwise everyone else stays put.  Or the A's Could move to one of those other two areas and they could create a Portland team. I don't think there really is a place in the Bay Area for them anymore, though.

Divisions:

NL West: SF, SD, LA, AZ

NL East: NYM, NYNew, PHI, WAS

NL North: MIL, PIT, CIN, CHI

NL South: ATL, FLA, STL, TBR

AL West: LAA, RIV, SEA, OAK

AL Central: DEN, HOU, DAL, KC

AL East: BOS, NYY, TOR, BAL

AL North: CLE, DET, CHI, MIN

Yeah, there is a Central and a South.  The rest is fairly balanced. If you check a map this makes things much much more smooth.  Some teams get to move.  Colorado and Houston switch to the AL.  They Rays switch to the NL.  The Cardinals get kind of screwed because they are a little further from their current rivals and lose the Cubs and Reds (long time rivalries.)

Things don't change much for Denver who are just in a bad spot as it is.

While we are at it, we would institute digital ball/strike calls.  The umps would get a chime in their ear to call the pitch so they still would have an on-field function. This would be very nice because for the first time ever we would have a 100% consistent strike zone.  I think it would be fun to see how pitchers adapt to a solid zone that never changes.  I suspect they would get much better.

Well, thoughts and opinions are always fun so please share.

I think there was a soccer ball in Toy Story and if you are paying attention you know that Toy Story 3 is coming out next week.  Let's talk about that because we all will anyway and I am freaking excited and I know Natto is and prolly someone else.

Preliminary reviews are outstanding out of the park home run OMG this might be the one to win the Oscar sort of thing.  Everything that I read is saying this movie surpasses the second, just as the second passed the first.  This is kind of bewildering due to the quality of the first two.  It is Pixar and Pixar has been making the best films in the world for a good chunk of time now.

For many of you, I imagine, you saw the original Toy Story as a kid...I was 22 or 23 and thought it was incredible.  I can only imagine what it was like through an 8 year olds eyes.  I somehow missed the second one in theatres.  I don't even remember it being out, to be honest.  Note: 1995 and 1999 are the years for the first two.

Anyway, please share your excitement or your experiences seeing these classics of modern cinema.

For the first time that I can remember, the general public has begun openly criticizing Sabean...or the media is allowing the criticisms to leak through.  This is a good thing and looks like we can see the light at the end of the tunnel.  The fact that he became so flustered as to offer his job up to Ralph and/or anyone was very telling.  These are not the words of a man who is happy with his job or his continued ability to maintain.

So I ask you, do you think you could replace him?  And to what degree?

If I could somehow get an interview I would take that chance in a hearbeat.  I am sure many of you would, as well.  Giants brass is not going to be checking resumes any time soon, though.  That's just not how things work in MLB.  It would be nice, though, as new blood and new ideas could do a lot to improve things.

I included a poll and my choice is "I don't know what the job entails beyond fantasy..."  Please respond and feel free to give some words as to your first weeks in office, laying the foundation for your dynasy.

For me, I would acquaint myself with all the statistics to a degree that I could break them down to a level where I could easily lecture on them and teach them to a group.  Then I would start interviewing all the coaches in the organization and get rid of the ones that didn't share what was in my mind the correct philosophy.  The first question I would ask anyone is "What is the most important attribute of any hitter?"  Anyone who did not immediately answer "The ability to not make outs" would get put aside for potential firing.  The guys who got it right get a pass for the time being.

I would find the guy who I felt would be a suitable manager and give Bochy the axe.  DeRosa would go in for surgery.  Rowand would be benched and relegated to 4th/5th OF.  Posey is called up and made the starter.  Molina is released outright.  Bowker gets LF, Torres in CF, Schierholtz in RF. 

I would hire 10 guys and give them 3 organizations each.  Their job would be to intimately follow every player and direct scouting for those teams.  In my mind, knowing another teams players throughout the system would allow for better decision making in trades for us and just a better idea of how to deal with the opposition over the years.

This would just be a start, of course.

How bout you?

I was all set to jump down Bochy's throat on Tuesday, but then he did something weird.  He made the right decision.  Rather than letting Wellemeyer start on Timmy Day, he is actually going to start Timmy.  This makes perfect sense.  Sometimes he gets things right.  Because of this I decided to give him the whole road trip off.  No bitching, whining of complaining till the team gets home.  He deserves it or something.

After I made this decision I decided to look at Sabean and see if I could come up with a similar plan.  This wasn't too hard,either...he sent Waldis down.  This, to me, is the right move.  We do not need seven guys in the bullpen with such a strong starting rotation.  Waldis is not pitching at all and would benefit from regular work.  As such, Brian gets a pass for dropping an unneeded bullpen arm.

So, if you guys see me breaking my vow, feel free to call me out on it.

How bout you guys and dolls?  Anyone want to make a resolution?

There are a lot of Sharks fans swimming about and not all of them are going to spend the evening at the Sharks SBN site.  It seemed like a decent idea to create this thread because no one else has yet.  Someone has to jump in first, right?  If the mods hate it they can also drown the thread or feed it to the sharks.  I'm so funny.

Game has started so go Sharks!

After the debacle of the past few days I have naturally descended into an arrogant mindset that I know better than Giants Brass.  I suspect many of you are in the same boat, or dinghy.  I thought we could have some fun and create a developmental system that makes sense and would, hopefully, lead to major league ready ballplayers.

My idea is that there would be some way of making sure players are ready to take the next step.  There are a number of different levels in the minors: AAA, AA, High and Low A, and Rookie are the main ones, though.  With that in mind, what skills are necessary?  At what point does a player move on?  When is an exception made to allow a player who is more skilled in one area than another move on to a higher level.

For hitters:

Bunting

Learning your own personal strike zone

Hitting the other way

Pitch recognition

Pitchers:

Throwing from the stretch

Holding baserunners

Control/Command

Fielders:

Hitting the cut-off man (for outfielders)

Where to go when the ball is in play depending on the situation

General situational awareness

There are many other factors that I am sure others could contribute.  In my mind some bits would be:

Rookie ball - AA = Diplomacy with the press.  This doesn't seem to be that huge an issue so I feel it is something that can develop over a few years. 

Rookie ball = Healthy diet / exercise.  Again, this is something that should be taken into account as it makes a difference in the long run.  Make sure they understand this stuff before bumping them along.

Low A = Fundamentals.  If a player just does not understand the fundamentals of the game after a year or two of professional coaching they will never be a MLB player.  Drop them out of the system.  The only time I can see advancing a player with poor fundamentals is if they have something really special about them.  Huge power.  Super speed.  Able to leap tall buildings in a single bound.  Of course, pitchers are a little different here as they have a different developmental path.

High A = I think by this point the coaches should really make sure a player knows their strike zone.  With modern equipment/video and all the other fun stuff that is available this shouldn't be too hard.  I do realize a player does not have much time to react to a thrown ball but to be a MLB hitter it is vital to have a sense of what is and what is not a strike.

I will stop here to allow for others to chime in and give their opinions and/or tear my idea apart. 

Oh yeah, one last thing.  From the very beginning teach players that it is never ever ever a good idea to slide into first base to beat a throw.  From day one have them run down the line a few times and run through the base and slide into the base.  Show them the times.  Kick them in the nuts if they ever do it in a game.  Immediately remove them from the game and put them in time-out till the game is over and everyone has showered and gone home.

Holy shit!  Did anyone else just here this?  Apparently there is a press conference scheduled for 11.  What?  I thought the 75 word limit had been removed but now it is back?  I have nothing else to say at this point.  I just want to post this.
I believed what I had read before.  Now I feel like a fool.  I really wish this were the case, though.  Seems like a great trade, especially in light of recent events.

I have decided to jump in with everyone else and say what my ideas are for the offseason.

1 - Wait for November 19th.  Sometime around 11AM PST the NL Cy Young winner will be announced.  I am rooting for Timmy to win it for a couple reasons.  The first is he is my favorite player.  The second is he is a Giant.  The third is because I feel he was the best pitcher in the NL this year.

2 - The second thing I am going to do is wait and see what Giants Brass does.

     2a - With each move I will either support it or join the groupthink and call for the head of Brian Sabean.

3 - I will look forward, eagerly, to Spring Training.

4 - Once individual season tickets go on sale, I will do my best to score seats for Opening Day.

5 - I will do my best to keep the snarky comments to a minimum in all these horrible rosterbation threads that are popping up.  My eyes have been rolling so hard I think I can see my brain.

KNBR is reporting that Timmy has been busted for possession of marijuana up in Washington.  He was speeding and surrendered a small amount of weed and paraphernalia to the officer who pulled him over.

Really don't have much else to say to fill the 75 word limit.  He's a celebrity and part of that is your personal business gets reported in the media.  It's unfortunate but whatever.  It's just weed.  He's young and will make mistakes. At least he didn't steal an officers bicycle.

Bengie is injured.  He has not been playing and is not starting tonite.  In my mind this is a good thing.  I feel he is the biggest problem the team has (compounded by Bochy starting him 4th) and with him off the field the team is better.

Now I am not "happy" he is injured but I am not disappointed.  I really hope this seals his fate as a non-Giant next year.

How do you guys feel?  And yes, I know this isn't much of a topic for a post; I would have just done a fan shot but I wanted the poll.

After Tim Donaghy was caught fixing games in the NBA it has opened a whole new set of circumstances.  Just because the Black Sox Scandal happened 90 years ago, doesn't mean that it can't happen again.

I have never believed baseball games were fixed until this series.  I know a lot of you feel the same.  Usually we give the umps the benefit of the doubt because they are human.  In this case there were so many "mistakes" made in such a short period of time, ALL favoring one team, that it makes it a viable hypothesis that these games were fixed.

I only included yes/no in the poll because silly answers and ridicule are best saved for the comments section.  I just am curious what percentage of the faithful have had their faith in the fairness of the game compromised.

CF Rowand
RF Schierholtz
3B Uribe
1B Sandoval
LF Lewis
SS Frandsen
C Whiteside
2B Burriss
P Sanchez

I like this.  A lot.  I predict many runs and a victory.  Of course there are slight changes to be made, I'd rather have Renteria than Frandsen but I can't complain about Nate getting a start at all.  I like having Winn available off the bench, too.

Hopefully Sandoval tears it up some more and makes Bochy reconsider his clean-up guy.

I know many people here have seen or want to see the film.  Also, many of us like chatting about movies.  So...here we go. 

If you have not seen the film, beware of spoilers.

****SPOILERS****

I saw Up today in 3d.  Loved the film.  I agree with what Natto said in another thread, it is about on the level with Ratatouille.  Up is not a childrens film.  This is a very adult film with a bunch of kiddie stuff thrown in to appeal to the youngsters.  Well, very adult is exaggerated but the main themes of the film will totally fly over a childs head. 

Anyway, I loved the symbolism in many of the shots and scenes.  Especially the shot after he puts out the fire.  He is pulling his house along, it is barely about the ground and the balloons are just enough to get it done.  He is fighting so hard to achieve his goal that though his hope and joy are about to give out.  But he has to achieve that goal no matter what and it's just enough to get there.  That's the shot, but then the rest of the scene as he arrives home (getting the house to the point next to the waterfall) and realizes that he has been holding on to the past at the sake of his future.  He then emptys the house, removing all the baggage that is holding him back from doing what is right. After this he soars into his future with clarity of mind and strength of purpose and from there we go into act 3.

I was disappointed at the credits.  I don't know what I was expectinng but after the sheer wonder of the credits last year, I was hoping for more of the same.  Oh well.  A few years ago I noticed how they credit the children that were born during the production of the film.  This time I noticed that even the shipping and receiving clerks were credited.  Pixar is bad ass and truly understands how important gratitude is.  I find this very admirable.

As for the 3d, it was great.  It simply served to add depth to many shots.  I don't feel it subtracted anything from the film but I also don't think it added anything of substance.  I like watching things in 3d, though.  I don't think directors have really picked up how to use blocking in ways that only 3d would allow. 

Really curious to read your opinions.  :)

In another post there has been much discussion about the value of animated feature films to an adult.  FairweatherFan has thrown down the gauntlet and agreed to watch three films of our choice.  The films will be: a Pixar film, a Miyazaki film, and another film that is not from one of those two producers.

He has already chosen Spirited Away as his Miyazaki film.

In this post is a poll to vote on the Pixar film.  Also, we shall discuss what the third film should be.  In addition to this, BruteSentiment and I have agreed to watch three films of FwFs choosing.  I encourage anyone else who wants to participate to join in.

My choice for third film is Bolt.  I don't expect this one to get many votes.  If you have a suggestion for a film, please check the posts and see if it has been mentioned.  If it is a new idea, please post the film title as a subject line and a little bit about it.  This way each individual film can be discussed on its merits and things should remain orderly.  I will put a few titles that I think may pop up to get things started.

***

I did not add Up! to the poll because at this point none of us have seen it.  I considered for a moment suggesting that be the Pixar film because it comes out tomorrow and the big screen is the best way to see a film.

***

From FairweatherFan:

My contention was not that animated films can’t be funny. Ex: Southpark Movie (fucking hilarious, but didn’t change my life in any way shape or form)

I’m more looking for animated films with social significance. Works of art.

I’m working on my list, and how to separate it so I don’t just list 3 war movies ;

I wonder, how many of you would be willing to fully boycott the Giants.  No more watching games.  No more radio.  No more reading anything on the net (except this site which would be a HQ.)  No more spending a dime on merchandise or game tickets or anything.  Some of you may already see where I am heading so for the others I will get there fairly quickly.

Perhaps it is far-fetched, but we, the fan base, have a lot of power.  It would take a lot of work, but who would be willing to completely boycott the Giants and encourage others to do so, as well.

The goal would be to make a financial impact on the team with a unified front DEMANDING the immediate firing of Bruce Bochy and the coaching staff along with Sabean.  Even though our GM has overseen a few nice drafts in a row, I suspect it is more the people under him that did such a good job.  In any case, it is clear we need to move in a new direction.

Now there are some that say the future looks good, and this is true.  It is also true that for years it has been clear what needed to be done and Sabean did not do it.  We went into the offseason with one main need: offense.  We got an over the hill SS.  That's it.  True, it wasn't the best free agent class, but there were solutions out there. 

Perhaps this is a frustrated pipe dream.  Perhaps not.  I do know that every day I live in fear that Sabean will do something stupid.  In my mind, this would require hundreds of people to write individual letters to the team specifiying exactly why they are unhappy and stating clearly that no more money will be coming from that source.

Before anyone posts all the negatives to this.  Namely the fact that it is incredibly difficult to organize a protest of this nature or the fact that the team won't care if they only get a few complaints because the advertisers will still be paying them and it would take a while before any sort of impact would be felt.  Really, if only 1000 people did this it would barely nudge the bottom line. 

Ultimately, the reason the team is here is because the fans pay for it.  If enough people made a stink it might cause waves.  I do believe that if 1000 people wrote letters to the team that would have an impact.

It's a romantic notion and essentially a waste of time as baseball is a luxury but yeah.  It's been running through my mind for a while and wonder what other people think.  Please post your comments, thoughts, ridicule, baking ideas, and even arguments against my idea.  I'd really love to hear some pro-Bochy, pro-coaching staff arguments...if there are any.

The Giants have made four major player moves so far this offseason.  These are the acquisitions of Edgar Renteria, Randy Johnson, Jermey Affeldt and Bobby Howry.  We all know this already but I feel compelled to list their names before talking about how I feel to have them around.

I am most excited about Johnson.  From what we saw last year, the man still has some gas in the tank and though he was a little bit pricey may still prove to be valuable.  Hopefully he stays healthy and lives up to expectations.  If he does, our rotation is going to be pretty filthy. 

Signing Affeldt so quickly I think was a pretty strong move by Captain Lunatic Fringe.  A hard throwing, improving, bullpen lefty is a pretty helpful piece and he probably wouldn't have last long.  I wish I could say I was excited about Howry, but I am not.  Howry I think will be one of those relievers that we see in losing games.  I really believe Affeldt will help a lot.

As for Renteria...what is there to say?  We probably overpaid for him by quite a bit but it is only for two years.  The team seems confident that he will be worth it.  This could turn out to be true.  We definitely have a need at SS.  At the very least it will allow the younger guys some more seasoning.

The team still has not addressed the biggest most obvious flaw: power.  This team was anemic last year.  We need some pop and we need more solid hitting.  If we don't fix this we really have no shot.  Fortunately there is a guy out there that we should be able to land.

Manny.  Yeah, of course.  Anyone who says they don't want him is just not thinking about it enough.  There is not a better hitter available.  We have a glut of outfielders?  So what?  Also, all those BS projections that he is only slightly better than Lewis are totally ridiculous and it is shameful that they are being used as evidence against signing Manny.  Sometimes statistics can be taken too far.  The team would be better with Manny so get him.

We all hate Roberts.  We all love Lewis.  We all want to see Nate get a shot.  We all think Rowand was a dumb signing.  We all see Winn as tradable but deep down want to keep him cuz he is our best OF.  So there we have our current group of five OFs but where would Manny fit in?  Who knows.  Who cares.  He is better than any of those five.  DFA Roberts.  Trade him and pay part of his salary.  Just get Manny.

There is another thing blasting through the media right now and that is the Barry Bonds situation.  The federal government wants to get him so bad, especially after wasting millions of taxpayer money to accomplish this stupid goal.  I think it is becoming more and more clear that he is going to be fully exonerated.  The feds have successfully proven him guilty in the court of public opinion and made him spend millions of his own dollars.  Their case is also going to crash and burn and finally the whole ordeal will be over.

This is important.

The season starts in just about two months now.  What an exciting time!  Now we discuss the future and I am going to mentally masturbate for a minute.

Assuming we do the smart thing and sweep Manny out from under the Dodgers our lineup will probably look something like this:

Renteria

Winn

Manny

Molina

Sandoval

Rowand

Ishikawa

Frandsen

Yeah, yeah.  No Lewis.  He is the obvious man out.  He can sit on the bench and be pinch hitter #1, late inning D and start 3 or 4 games a week while spelling one of the other three.

Lincecum is entering year #3.  He is young, dedicated, incredibly talented and focused on getting better.  I don't think we have seen his best yet and I fully expect him to be even better in 2009.

Cain has pitched just fine and things have to balance out eventually.  All he has to do is continue pitching as well as he has and we have nothing to complain about other than being third best and making too many pitches.  Unless I am mistaken, he is actually younger than Lincecum.  Expect improvement here, too.

Sanchez I think is a bit of a question mark but still believe he will be better, too.  He pitched great on many occasions in the first half of the season.  As the #5 starter he should be fine.  He will likely be a league average starter at the minimum.

Johnson is a bit of a question mark but he should still be better than league average.

Zito has GOT to be better this year.  We all want him to be.  His offseason workout has got many of us asking: can he consistently throw 90 again.  If he can, he should have more good starts than bad.

Overall, the starters should give us a good chance to win the majority of their games.  I'm going to wager that for ever two times through the rotation they will give us a really good chance to win (ie: if we score 4 or more) 6 or 7 times.  I think that is a pretty modest projection, too.

The bullpen is a question mark but Wilson should improve a bit in terms of his pitching and regress a little in terms of his production.  Still a solid closer.  Romo, Affeldt and the gang should be an improvement, too.

I can easily see us running away with the division if these things all come to be.  I also don't expect Bonds to be offered a contract by any team, even after he no longer faces possible jail time.  This brings me to:

Sign Bonds in August for the playoffs.  This will give him enough time to get in shape and will terrify the opposition and give us a disgusting WS lineup (DH).  Will this happen?  Who knows, the future is the future and I can make anything up that I want.  Just imagine this lineup:

Who cares

Who cares

Manny

Bonds

Who cares

Who cares

Who cares

Who cares

Man, isnt' that sweet?  Ooooh yeah.

There was a thread hijack in one of Grants posts recently that caused a lot of movie talk.  I am a big movie fan and like talking about them quite a bit.  This post may come off as pretentious and that is not at all my goal and I apologize in advance if I come off as such.  Please remember that this is only my opinion. 

So, who/what do you feel should win varoius awards?  I added a poll to this post and I ask that you only vote if you have actually seen enough of the films to fairly judge your choice against others.  Admittedly, I have not seen all the films...well, the only one I haven't seen is Ben Button.  I'll get to that one, soon.  I also left a couple films off because I am fairly certain the five nominees will come from the seven.  Definitely four of them and in that case the fifth will be one of these:  The Reader, Doubt, Synecdoche, NY, Gran Torino...and the two horses that are so dark that you wouldn't be able to see them in a white room: Dark Knight and Let The Right One In.

Best Pictures, and my thoughts:

1 - Wall-E.  This is my personal choice for best picture though I am dubious that it wiill garner nomination.  This is in large part because of the "animated" category.  The thing is, this movie goes beyond being just a kids film.  I have never felt so good about being alive after a film as after seeing this the first time.  Children love it.  Adults love it.  It will stand the test of time.  The only complaint that a reasonable person could make is that the message is a bit heavy handed.  Other than that it is a perfect film.  Wall-E is such a real character that he somehow captures love in a way that anyone can feel.  Also, the space dance is the most beautiful scene I've ever seen.

2- Revolutionary Road.  This will definitely get a nomination.  The film is a true work of art made by one of cinemas true craftsmen.  It is not the most pleasant film to experience due to the realism of the Wheelers relationship.  Great cinematography.  Incredible acting.  Wonderful subtle touches..for instance, Leo appears to have put on weight so he would look like a man actually did in the 50s.  Everything that the people do is believable.  We are fortunate to be able to see a film as fine as this.  I believe this really is the best picture of the year.  At least in terms of a normal type of best picture. 

3 - Milk.  My sense is this will win best picture because the academy seems to like political statements and in most years this would be a fine film to honor.  I don't feel it is as good as a few others, though.  Mainly because the plot is a little bit thin.  It will definitely get nominated.

4 - Slumdog Millionaire.  This will definitely get nominated, too.  I really hope it doesn't win as it just doesn't stand up compared to some of the other films.  It's a good film, just not great.  It has flaws that are pretty apparent when you think about things.  It's enjoyable, funny and feel good.  It's not the best picture of the year.

5 - Frost/Nixon.  Rivetting from start to finish.  Well-directed, well-acted.  Nothing bad can be sad about this film.  I wouldn't be surprised to see it win, but it won't happen based on the extremely stiff competition.

6 - Ben Button - I have not seen this.  I hear it is good but long.  Everyone says it is long.  This tells me that the movie has a major flaw in the way it flows.  Oscar bait but it won't win.

7 - The Wrestler - I don't know if this will get nominated.  I wouldn't give it a nom mainly because I think those first five I mentioned were all much better.  I do think this is a great film but it has a very amateurish look to it.  I realize this is deliberate.  It's gritty, it's real, but it's also suffering from exteme competition.

Others:

Dark Knight - Highly overrated.  Easily the best part(s) of the film are when Batman and Joker are on screen and that is like ten minutes of the film.  The movie wasn't even about Batman, it was about Harvey Dent.  Nolan wanted this to be his last Batman film and tried to do too much and almost nailed it, but missed.  Split this into two films or tack on another hour or who knows what and it could have been great.  Also, Iron Man was the better super hero film...and that is because the star, Robert Downey Jr., made it so.

Let The Right One In - A true dark horse for a nom.  Great flick.  Just not meaty enough to stack up against the main contenders.

Synecdoch, NY - I said this in the other post but I truly believe that in ten or fifteen years or longer, this will be viewed as a masterpiece.  Kaufmans first film as director and he not only tried to hit a home run, not only a grand slam, he tried to create the greatest movie ever made.  He missed the mark but comes close.  I won't even talk about the screenplay category because I don't think there is anything that comes close to this one.  Original screenplay, that is.  I give adapted to either Rev. Road or Slumdog.

Actors:

1 - Sean Penn - He's gonna win.  There is no doubt of this.  Not for a second did I think "hey, tha't Sean Penn acting up there."  Daniel Day Lewis was a shoe in last year, Penn was better this year.

2 - Leo - He's getting closer and closer.  He suffers in large part because he was acting next to Kate Winslet and he just doesn't stack up yet.  But wow he is getting so so good.  He is definitely going to win some day.

3 - Mickey Rourke - No, just no.  Yes he was great in a role that he fits perfectly.  He really is great.   But c'mon...

4 - Frank Langella (Nixon) - Think about this: he made Nixon human, sympathetic and likable.  If Penn wasn't just so freaking amazing I'd give it to Frank.

5 - I am guessing Pitt will get a nom.  The four above are pretty much shoe-ins, though.

Actress:

1 - Winslet.  She's going to win. Just amazing, as usual, but more so than usual.  If that makes sense.  (Rev. Road, btw)

I actually can't think of many that really stand out to me this year.  I would nominate Merryl Streep for Mamma Mia.  She gives a poofy film a soul and is so genuine in doing so.  Plus she can sing.  I doubt this will happen but it's a role that really stood out to me.

Supporting Dude:

1 - Heath Ledger - Sympathy vote and he truly was awesome.  My pic.

2 - James Franco - Milk.  Mainly because the role he plays is so different from other roles I have seen from him while still being real.

3 - I think i'm starting to burn out as I can't even think of others at the moment.  Oh well.

Supporting Chick:

1 - My choice is Dianne Wiest in Synecdoche.  Only one that stuck out to me this year.  Also, I'm not looking at the golden globe noms.

EDIT: 2 - Marissa Tomei (Thanks to Neifichicken for the reminder).  I was going to add her initially and think she is very deserving.  My fav part of that film.  (Wrestler)

Best Director

1 - Sam Mendes - Rev. Road.  My choice because of just how real everything is. 

2 - Gus Van Sant - I think he will win.  Mendes has won before, Van Sant hasn't and Milk is great.  Not a bad choice, by any means.

3 - Darren Aronofsky - The Wrestler.  He's got a good chance, too.  I feel his directing was better than Van Sants.  This movie looks REAL.  Some people who saw it thought it was a real documentary.  The wrestling stuff itself is incredibly well done.  Very deserving.

4 - Danny Boyle - Slumdog.  He's got a decent shot, too, but as I mentioned before...the film has flaws and parts that pulled me out of the film.  Not good enough.

I'm pretty sure those four will be in, dunno what would be #5.  My choice:

5 - Charlie Kaufmann.  Won't happen because a movie with no act structure is off putting, but wow what a debut.

So..that was a long read.  Go ahead and skewer me for being overly pretentious or not giving TDK or your favorite film enough love.  I really hope this sparks good coversation as there hasn't been any Manny news in a while and I love movies and peoples thoughts about them.

---

Addendum.  This is something howtheyscored wrote that I really feel needs to be highlighted...it's about Wall-E.

Like I said, it’s ballsy for the younger demographic. It’s not that ballsy in a wider sense, but the overall tone is pretty damning. Earth as a barren wasteland. Humans disaccociated from not only each other, but also life as a whole. It might not be anything you’ve never seen, but it’s the kind of thing that is dumbed out of a lot of these movies to keep them kid friendly. I appreciate that the movie took the risk to show that difficult concepts can be kid friendly.

And as for it being a love story, it’s not a love story in the sense I think you’re going for. The whole love theme in the movie is based around the idea of contact, and specifically holding hands. It’s not just Wall-E and Eve, though they are the characters who present the theme most directly. You see it played through with John and Mary (wow, I just realized what their names are). But the idea of touching and being touched, though visually very literal in the movie, is standing in for the idea that human contact improves individual life. When people begin interacting, then good things start happening, and therein lie the seeds of love.

Which is the theme that I’m getting at. It’s not the LOVE story. It’s a story about where love, where all of the best parts of society start. That’s the theme you get with the plant bud. It’s just sprouting. But even it doesn’t survive without human interaction (remember, the Captain waters it). You see Wall-E and Eve, and then John and Mary experience the beginnings of love. You see again the idea of love and beginnings when John and Mary save the babies (“John, get ready to have some babies,” Mary says). Then again, through the credits, you continue to see the motif of sprouting, the ideas of interaction, cooperation, relationship building, etc.

Although, when you say “You might as well have parrots in love. (Say! There’s an idea.)” it just makes me think that everything you’re missing is the result of an inability to suspend your disbelief for some “robots.” And if that’s the case, you’re missing a damn lot.

Yep indeedy.  This Tuesday, November 11, is the date which MLB has chosen to announce the National League Cy Young winner is Tim Lincecum.  Um...I meant they are announcing the recipient of the award.  It should be Tim Lincecum but sometimes people are dumb.

In any case, we have not had a Timmy Day in a while and it is with great hope that we can have a final stirring Timmy Day to close out the 2008 season.  I know that I have been struggling to focus on the GM meetings in large part because until the award is announced, I am still stuck in 2008.

Anyone else feel this way?  Anyone else excited and counting the seconds (approximately 240,000 if my really quick estimate is correct) until we get some much needed validation.  I don't know why but as much as life goes on with a snub, I feel that this award would be more than just a personal achievement for Timmy, it would be a prize for all of the fans.

The votes are cast, the ballots are drawn, the polls are closed.  It's just a couple days now.  Anyone want to share a Lincecum memory?

I have two.  My father has been raving on and on about his seats for the last game of the season.  Tenth row, third base side.  He had watched Timmy but never like this and he's been marvelling ever since.  I began hyping Timmy a couple days after he was drafted but dad didn't really listen.  It does the heart joy to see him on the bandwagon.

My own personal lincecum moment was at his final minor league start.  I sat right behind the plate, front row, and watched in awe as batter after batter flailed away.  Many walked from the plate with their head shaking.  I had never seen a pitcher with such filthy stuff from such a viewing angle.  Hopefully I can do that again.

And a small comment on Cain.  He seems to be an object of much debate recently.  Some people say trade him for a bat, others say keep him.  Me?  I say keep him for one really simple reason: he loves it here.  He did not have a baseball loyalty growing up and the Giants are the first team he has actively rooted for.  He has no intention of ever leaving, from what I have read.  He seems to be a simple country southerner.  We could keep him forever at affordable rates.  Trading him might help him improve quicker as he would likely be very upset and focused on showing we made a mistake.

---

I'm curious what strategies you have come up with that you think would be of benefit on a big league diamond.

My first/main one is when to bring in relievers.  Barring injury, they are almost always brought in at the start of an at-bat.  On occasion a pitcher will be so bad that he gets the yank in the middle of an at-bat, but this is rare.

I would like to see relievers brought in in the middle of at-bats.  In my mind, if you change pitchers during the at-bat, you put the batter in a really bad situation.  Take this: it's a 1-2 count and you have a reliever ready to go who trhows from the other side.  You could stick with current pitcher or bring in the other guy for a VERY high percentage of getting a K.  If you are planning on switching anyway, who cares if you upset your pitcher...the goal is to get the guy out. 

This would backfire when the new guy couldn't find the zone, but most often a reliever who knows they just have to throw that one nasty strike will be able to come out of pen and do it. 

You see what I'm getting at?

My other idea is to steal home more often.  Not in the early innings, but how often do you have a guy w/ speed at 3rd, in the bottom of the ninth, two outs, weak hitter up, down by a run?  It's pretty common to see that or something similar.  Usually the manager just tries to eke out a hit. 

A good OBP is around .400, so that means that 60% of the time, at least, it is game over.  I don't know what the stat is, but I imagine straight steals of home are in the same range of success.  This could be done often, of course, or the opposition would expect it.  Many closers don't hold runners on well, and can be somewhat wild.  I'm sure you have seen steals of home succeed because the pitcher overthrew and didn't set the catcher up well.

In any case, I think stealing home in the right situation would pay off more often than doing the standard try to get the ball in play against this K machine closer who throws a million miles an hour, strikes out everyone, and picks his nose during on screen interviews.

I'm sure there are more ideas out there, please share.