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Post by jclmontana on May 15, 2017 15:43:24 GMT -5
I have been following this site since 2003-2004. I was never much of a baseball fan before then, but I was visiting my brother and his family in 2003 who live outside of Worcester and I caught a game on TV. Then I caught the fever. The 2003 playoffs hurt so good, I had to have more, so I started paying attention to the minor leagues. Since I don't live near any major sports team (Seattle is closest, around 450 miles), I can pick and choose my sports loyalties. Amazing time to start following the Sox. I was a big fan of the teams, but also admired Tito and the front office. It really did have a Camelot feel to it all.
I am still a fan, but the Sox seem pretty ordinary these days. The team is half-compelling, half meh. Farrell and the front office seem mostly run of the mill. The minor league story lines are still compelling, half-sport and half-mystery novel.
As for this site, I have barely posted, but was a heavy lurker for a number of years; now, not so much. Here is my probably unwelcome advice: revamp the moderator pool and philosophy. Most of the moderators are quite knowledgeable about the game and the minor leagues, so it isn't a problem with expertise. The moderators on this site can spot holes in a baseball argument without much difficulty, but they do not seem to be able to moderate.
Many of the threads quickly become intolerable. Petty arguments, name calling, and repetition is allowed to go on far too long. And some specific, kinda smart, users are allowed to behave poorly for longer than others because they are, well, kinda smart. Moderators mostly don't function as moderators at all, they act mostly as super-users who throw their weight behind arguments they like, and shoot down opinions or approaches to understanding the game that they object to. The overall effect is a that there is a rigidity and narrowness to the site and the moderation, a clear "right way" and "wrong way" to think about the game and player development. The wrong way, unfortunately, often includes simply disagreeing with a moderator's position or frame of reference. If posters color inside the lines, then great, they are tolerated. Go outside the lines, and this is a pretty unfriendly site.
So now I do a lot more skimming, and avoid some of the more obviously tedious threads, but that also means I spend a lot less time on this site than in years past (which, ironically, is probably a good thing).
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Post by johnmark on May 15, 2017 15:54:59 GMT -5
I am from just outside of Milwaukee, but grew up in Florida. I was a baseball card junkie as a kid and my fav player was Jim Rice. 77-79....a few of the best baseball stats you will see. Imagine Rice hitting a juiced ball. Yikes. And yes I have a few of his RCs.
Also a huge Florida Gator fan and love any of the prospects from there.
Mark
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ianrs
Veteran
Posts: 2,409 
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Post by ianrs on May 15, 2017 17:21:09 GMT -5
Hey all, not a new member, but figured I would join in connecting on a more personal level. Sorry for the gripey posts at times, as I'm one of those spoiled young Red Sox fans... I've been following the site since about 2003/2004 or so, when I was just 12 years old, and a rabid Red Sox fan. I vaguely remember Jorge De La Rosa, Jon Lester, and Chad Spann as highlights of the system at the time. And got to witness the glorious rises of Hanley, Pedroia, and Youk. Born and raised a Rhode Island native, I frequented PawSox games as a kid, which cued me into who exactly prospects were. I then scrounged the internet for more information, stumbling upon this site. Soxprospects really enlightened me to a side of MLB/MiLB infrastructure that I was not aware of previously, and I am extremely grateful for the site because of that. I started out mostly lurking, only becoming a semi-regular poster over the past few years. I'm now 25, a graduate student in psychology living in Utah. My interest in baseball has faded a bit, but still follow the Red Sox, and particularly prospects, on occasion, so thanks so much to all who make this a lively place for discussion and rich database of knowledge.
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Post by johnsilver52 on May 16, 2017 0:11:09 GMT -5
I am from just outside of Milwaukee, but grew up in Florida. I was a baseball card junkie as a kid and my fav player was Jim Rice. 77-79....a few of the best baseball stats you will see. Imagine Rice hitting a juiced ball. Yikes. And yes I have a few of his RCs. Also a huge Florida Gator fan and love any of the prospects from there. Mark You ever get to see Jim Ed play for Winter Haven in '71 if memory serves correct? He played here with the old orange domed citrus showcase backdrop that can be seen on so many of those old baseball cards. |
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Post by ryan24 on May 16, 2017 6:13:22 GMT -5
Been on the site for a few years. I have learned a lot. Get upset with the constant bashing of certain people. Learned a lot about baseball metrics. I do not always agree with them but also understand that they can help explain what's going on. Metrics can not replace what some people have as a skill that allows them to forecast what a player will look like in 3 to 5 years. It is certainly not all metrics. By the metrics Anderson E is rated a very high prospect, but For a power pitcher who is 6 ft and 165 experience tells me he is one pitch away from tommy j surgery because his body size can not support the speed and effort his body has to give. physics not metrics. BUT it is fun to listen to some of the opinions and look at the data to support those opinions. I will continue to watch.
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Post by johnmark on May 17, 2017 9:52:19 GMT -5
I am from just outside of Milwaukee, but grew up in Florida. I was a baseball card junkie as a kid and my fav player was Jim Rice. 77-79....a few of the best baseball stats you will see. Imagine Rice hitting a juiced ball. Yikes. And yes I have a few of his RCs. Also a huge Florida Gator fan and love any of the prospects from there. Mark You ever get to see Jim Ed play for Winter Haven in '71 if memory serves correct? He played here with the old orange domed citrus showcase backdrop that can be seen on so many of those old baseball cards. Nope, that is before my time! |
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dd
Veteran
Posts: 979
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Post by dd on May 20, 2017 11:46:31 GMT -5
70 yo retired guy here. Been addicted to SP since about 2006 or maybe a bit earlier. I'm also a spreadsheet addict, hence the ranking commentary every month.
My baseball fandom began in the mid-50's living in Chicago and I was a White Sox fan. My major heroes were Nellie Fox and Luis Aparacio, both HoF'ers. I still get nostalgic when I think about them (like now).
My family moved to the Boston area in 1957 or 58. In those pre-internet / pre-cableTV days it was hard to follow an out of town team. I hung in there though until 1971. At that point I really didn't know many of the ChiSox players and then Aparacio came to Boston to finish his career. Been a Red Sox fan since.
One thing that made the switch easier was that White Sox fans also hated the Yankees, maybe more in those days than the RS fans did. It seemed that every year the WS wound up in 2nd place in the AL to the MFYs. God I hate them!!!
I've lived for the last 31.5 years in Hopkinton. Plan to be walking from here to Boston September for the Jimmy Fund. Maybe we should have a SoxProspects team.
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Post by nelledouville on May 20, 2017 11:48:13 GMT -5
I don't comment for a few reasons: 1) I don't have sufficient baseball knowledge to add anything significant to discussions. I thoroughly enjoy reading the insight offered, but that leads to 2) there are occasional flare ups of bickering that lead me to turn heel and run the other way. As a lurker, it is no fun watching people insult each other or the points they make. I'll add a 3) I wear my outlook on my sleeve, a human rights investigator and wannabe novelist who yearns for us all to elevate each other, and tries my best to do so. That too could be detrimental to sports related opining. The issues of life have a way of wandering into sports.
I don't see myself changing my approach. I'm one who just likes to see what you all offer up. It's a learning thing. You do a great job with this site, and I thank all who put so much into it.
nelle
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Post by geostorm on May 21, 2017 13:28:35 GMT -5
Good Afternoon...
I'm Ron and live in New Mexico.... been a Red Sox fan for all of my 59 years - having grown up in Connecticut. Don't have much time to post, although I do visit the site daily...
Have had a few great Sox memories, and a few not-so-good ones... I was at fenway for Mo Vaughn's first game,,, quite a few opening days back in the 80's... and was in attendance back in 1990 when Dwight Evans hit a walk off against the Orioles (when the sun came out on a cloudy day just before the hit, and went back behind the clouds after he circled the bases)...
Anybody remember that one ?? 
This is my "go-to" site for Sox news and opinion, kind of like one-stop shopping...
Was that the game when Evans had previously homered to tie the game in the 8th inning? If so, I remember listening on the radio. I was nine, and Evans had been my favorite player since I started following a couple years before that. He wasn't playing very well that season either, so that was a particularly nice moment. Clemens was fantastic that day too if I recall correctly. Had a sib (one of three brothers), in Air Force, back in RI, on leave, and my Dad picked up tickets to that game & next day's game, v Orioles, for the five of us. Dewey, was one of his fave players, and he had picked up a copy of MLB's first issue of magazine "The Show", which was rockin a sweet pick of Dewey on the cover... thumbs.ebaystatic.com/images/g/EEUAAMXQTghRNhlt/s-l225.jpg...my brother swears that was the talisman that allowed for Dewy's heroics, through-out that weekend. He tied the game in the 8th, then, after Tettleton hit a bomb to put the O's on top, in extras, and here come Olson, who had not allowed an HR, up to that point in the year... ...and dawnbringr, you are 100% correct...I remember another sib's joking, as the sun came out..."it's a sign!...it's a sign!", trying to make the best out of what we'd just seen from Tettleton, half chuckling, half hopeful...and, well, you can imagine us after Dewy's 2 run shot walked off the Sox w a 4-3 Win. (...then, next day, his HR accounted for the only 2 runs, in a 2-0 Sox win, with my AF sib of course mentioning his critical "play" in again bringing along his now even more treasured premiere copy of The Show, "for luck".) That we saw, in person, a couple of his last career Sox game winners - iirc, he beat the Twins on the 4th of July, on a walk-off HR, that year, and another team, later in the year, w a HR in 1-0 game - is still something we revisit, now and then. It was a bit of a bummer, 1990 wasn't his final year in baseball...that he & Sox couldn't come together, for 1991. I absolutely do not like that 1992 Topps #705...does NOT look right! |
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Smittyw
Veteran
Posts: 1,286
Member is Online
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Post by Smittyw on May 23, 2017 13:59:56 GMT -5
I don't comment for a few reasons: 1) I don't have sufficient baseball knowledge to add anything significant to discussions. I thoroughly enjoy reading the insight offered... That's basically where I am...I find the quality of discussion and knowledge level here is so high that I rarely have much to add. I've frequented several Red Sox-centric message boards over the years and consider this site the gold standard. |
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Post by jimed14 on May 23, 2017 15:11:26 GMT -5
I don't comment for a few reasons: 1) I don't have sufficient baseball knowledge to add anything significant to discussions. I thoroughly enjoy reading the insight offered... That's basically where I am...I find the quality of discussion and knowledge level here is so high that I rarely have much to add. I've frequented several Red Sox-centric message boards over the years and consider this site the gold standard. The one thing I've noticed is that every Red Sox board have completely different consensus opinions on certain things where you'll be completely attacked if you question it, even if it's the consensus opinion at a different board. It's pretty strange how the internet works. You see groupthink working perfectly. |
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Post by benogliviesbrother on May 23, 2017 18:40:59 GMT -5
That's basically where I am...I find the quality of discussion and knowledge level here is so high that I rarely have much to add. I've frequented several Red Sox-centric message boards over the years and consider this site the gold standard. The one thing I've noticed is that every Red Sox board have completely different consensus opinions on certain things where you'll be completely attacked if you question it, even if it's the consensus opinion at a different board. It's pretty strange how the internet works. You see groupthink working perfectly. I completely agree, JimEd. |
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Post by koufax on May 25, 2017 7:00:04 GMT -5
I just joined. The first MLB baseball game I ever went to was at Ebbetts Field with my father. My second was at Fenway with my mother, back when tickets were easy to get. My mother chuckled at the sight of Pumpsie Green in a Red Sox uniform (just as she, Irish to the core, chuckled at a lineup of black athletes wearing "Celtics" uniforms in the 1950s).
I have lurked here for about 10 years but never joined. Frankly, I'm not sure I have much to contribute, but if I can I will. I only see about one MiLB game a year, so it's hard to add anything to what the long timers here contribute.
This is a great site and I wish it well. Happy to be a "member".
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Post by hugtheplate on May 27, 2017 5:14:46 GMT -5
This is a great site.
Been here watching for many years.
Lots of great posts.
What i like is "breaking news" type of posts, great soxprospects posters first reporting things.
Hey would you rather watch fox/cnn for your morning bite at the feedtrough? Eat sawdust in first bite?
There are alot of good posters here, some very experienced, some less...
There is a real core of this site that nobody can find elsewhere, podcasts, draft coverage, coverage of the minors..., and if you can find it, please send me the website...
For what its worth, adding a little bit of harmony to what some previous of posters have said......
And i dont want to be deleted after my first post but may i suggest --
1) there have been lots of nice, decent posters who never make it to post 100.......perhaps your Mods seal team 6 can consider eliminating your best young posters as a reason for your eliminating commentary....
2)there is nothing wrong with our minor leagues, as this is the best minor league system at the lower grades that we have had in probably 10 years....
3) You have a great team who work for you and people like James Dunne understand this stuff...
If he has not spotted it already.....
andy
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Post by waterview on May 31, 2017 15:50:50 GMT -5
Here is my probably unwelcome advice: revamp the moderator pool and philosophy. Most of the moderators are quite knowledgeable about the game and the minor leagues, so it isn't a problem with expertise. The moderators on this site can spot holes in a baseball argument without much difficulty, but they do not seem to be able to moderate. Many of the threads quickly become intolerable. Petty arguments, name calling, and repetition is allowed to go on far too long. And some specific, kinda smart, users are allowed to behave poorly for longer than others because they are, well, kinda smart.... I have to agree with above quote, sadly. I used to post quite a bit (joined back in 2008 when Ryan Westmoreland was drafted), but now pretty much lurk. One reason, which may seem silly, is that I reached veteran status before the site transitioned to the current software and then was right back to rookie. That was discouraging. That change seemed to coincide with more negative exchanges that turned me off. Those only seem to get cut off after far too long (by which time any impetus to post has been lost). I still value the site for the scouting reports, prospect ranking discussions, and news stories to catch me up on what's happening. It's fun to check in on the game day threads and catch up if I missed a game. My favorite posts are first-hand observations, something I used to post occasionally (I go to FL for part of spring training each year and live close enough to Pawtucket to go from time to time). My family is full of rabid Red Sox fans and they all refer to this site as "my site," but I'll probably continue to lurk unless I see many fewer acrimonious exchanges. I do thank Mike and the rest of the site staff very much for their hard work in making this the go-to place for Red Sox minor leagues. Waterview |
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Post by hugtheplate on Jun 1, 2017 7:36:59 GMT -5
Here is my probably unwelcome advice: revamp the moderator pool and philosophy. Most of the moderators are quite knowledgeable about the game and the minor leagues, so it isn't a problem with expertise. The moderators on this site can spot holes in a baseball argument without much difficulty, but they do not seem to be able to moderate. Many of the threads quickly become intolerable. Petty arguments, name calling, and repetition is allowed to go on far too long. And some specific, kinda smart, users are allowed to behave poorly for longer than others because they are, well, kinda smart.... I have to agree with above quote, sadly. I used to post quite a bit (joined back in 2008 when Ryan Westmoreland was drafted), but now pretty much lurk. One reason, which may seem silly, is that I reached veteran status before the site transitioned to the current software and then was right back to rookie. That was discouraging. That change seemed to coincide with more negative exchanges that turned me off. Those only seem to get cut off after far too long (by which time any impetus to post has been lost). I still value the site for the scouting reports, prospect ranking discussions, and news stories to catch me up on what's happening. It's fun to check in on the game day threads and catch up if I missed a game. My favorite posts are first-hand observations, something I used to post occasionally (I go to FL for part of spring training each year and live close enough to Pawtucket to go from time to time). My family is full of rabid Red Sox fans and they all refer to this site as "my site," but I'll probably continue to lurk unless I see many fewer acrimonious exchanges. I do thank Mike and the rest of the site staff very much for their hard work in making this the go-to place for Red Sox minor leagues. Waterview |
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Post by hugtheplate on Jun 1, 2017 7:38:56 GMT -5
Did you used to be Sail? Yes you were a good poster before....alas sometimes even the best posters get ground down....
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burk
Rookie
Posts: 22
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Post by burk on Jun 3, 2017 11:15:25 GMT -5
Alright I will post something since you asked. I live in Bardstown, Kentucky. I have been coming to this site since 2006 because I found it one day when surfing during a down time during school. I am a school teacher teaching/working with special education students. I am also a former high school/ youth baseball coach for about 16 years but retired from that in 2012. I am also a high school golf coach for the last 15 years. Anyway I have been a Sox fan for awhile probably because my grandmother used to watch the Louisville Colonels in the old days and when NBC Saturday baseball games would be on she would be watching the Sox. She also said she saw Ted Williams play and that summed it up for me. I also have been fortunate enough to coach two professional athletes one is a golfer JB Holmes who I coached in youth baseball and the other is Zack Cox currently in AA for Detroit. Lastly I also have been keeping football stats for a small college in Kentucky for 28 years and 311 consecutive games which is one of the longest streaks in the NAIA. I love your site but would rather read than post. Anyway, sorry to ramble but there you go!
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Post by tommy2 on Jun 3, 2017 15:42:26 GMT -5
Hello.....from Canada. I'm the #1 Sox fan in this Nation(my own undocumented opinion) I have been a reader for years. I'm also an oldtimer who has been a Sox follower since 1946 when I was 6 years old. My favs through the years include Bobby Doerr in the '40s, Billy Goodman in the 50s, Tony C and Dalton Jones in the '60s, Fisk and Rice in the 70s, and Ellis Burks in the 80s..now it's Mookie. I hit your site first thing every morning to check your 'Cup of coffee" report, then on to a Milb scoreboard to see team details and finally to the Sox site to aggreviate my frustration.
Thanks for your site . It has been a blessing,so much info unlike the old days when the best I could get was from The Sporting News. For the past 10 years or so I have lived in an area where I can get to see the Spinners when they come north to play the lakemonsters in Burlington VT and am looking forward to their visits this summer. Obviously very interested in the upcoming draft to see who will makeup the Lowell roster
Again thanks for being a major part of my baseball life......this is my first post
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Post by benogliviesbrother on Jun 3, 2017 18:55:10 GMT -5
Hello.....from Canada. I'm the #1 Sox fan in this Nation(my own undocumented opinion) I have been a reader for years. I'm also an oldtimer who has been a Sox follower since 1946 when I was 6 years old. My favs through the years include Bobby Doerr in the '40s, Billy Goodman in the 50s, Tony C and Dalton Jones in the '60s, Fisk and Rice in the 70s, and Ellis Burks in the 80s..now it's Mookie. I hit your site first thing every morning to check your 'Cup of coffee" report, then on to a Milb scoreboard to see team details and finally to the Sox site to aggreviate my frustration. Thanks for your site . It has been a blessing,so much info unlike the old days when the best I could get was from The Sporting News. For the past 10 years or so I have lived in an area where I can get to see the Spinners when they come north to play the lakemonsters in Burlington VT and am looking forward to their visits this summer. Obviously very interested in the upcoming draft to see who will makeup the Lowell roster Again thanks for being a major part of my baseball life......this is my first post Nice first post, eh? |
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Post by plantierforever on Jun 4, 2017 9:48:14 GMT -5
Thanks for the thread. I'll bite. I'm 48 years old, live in DC, work for the federal government. I went to school in Boston twice and became a huge fan of all the Boston teams. I remember the burning interest the whole region had in the Sox. I miss being around that. I don't subscribe to the Globe and I can't get NESN down here, so I don't feel very plugged in to the day-to-day flow of the team anymore. Soxprospects.com is the one place I still go to feel a part of it all: among all of my Sox-fan friends, I'm still the first to know about the good guys who are on the way.
I probably started viewing the site a decade or so ago. I used to post here and there, and I think I may have hit veteran status (100+ posts?) at one point. But the truth was I never had much to say and it was too much of an effort to try to come up with anything that sounded intelligent. (How do you turn Trey Ball into a MLB-caliber pitcher? How the heck would I know?....)
So mostly I lurk, and that's fine. I don't mind the occasional flame war; it spices things up a bit and I recognize that heavy posters should be given a bit of leeway (within reason) because the site needs them as much as they seem to need the site. I think the mods do a fantastic job keeping things in order, splitting off pointless or separate discussions from the main thread. Further, I recognize that they are volunteers, and as someone who has given a lot of volunteer time to other things, I know you shouldn't quibble with them.
Best to all, and go Sox (and Pawtucket and Portland, etc.)!
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Post by tomhouse on Jun 4, 2017 12:43:55 GMT -5
I was mocked by a high profile member and frequent contributor when I joined, so I have rarely posted since. I'm really too busy to do more than lurk on occasion.
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Post by rjp313jr on Jun 4, 2017 18:55:15 GMT -5
I think if this site gave out participation medals at the end of the year more people would post.
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Post by benogliviesbrother on Dec 26, 2017 10:49:58 GMT -5
Good afternoon everyone, happy Friday! I’m posting in the hopes of bringing on a new wave of members to post to the Forum and to encourage the existing members to post more. We’re really striving to set an environment where visitors shouldn’t be afraid to post here for fear that their opinions aren’t in line ...And yet, a moderator will chastise a new member in open forum: jmei Global Moderator ***** Senior Moderator jmei Avatar Posts: 12,281Male 2018 Red Sox roster building Dec 23, 2017 at 7:25pm via mobile Quote like Post Options Post by jmei on Dec 23, 2017 at 7:25pm All but two or three of your posts on these forums have included, as a central element, strongly-worded criticism of the front office. That viewpoint is certainly fine (I share it to an extent), but it has the effect of turning every thread you post in into a referendum on the front office, which derails other topics of conversation. If you want to discuss the front office, please feel free to start a new thread on that topic. I refer you to the forum ground rules on staying on topic and not baiting other members into arguments. Read more: forum.soxprospects.com/thread/4239/2018-red-sox-roster-building?page=59#ixzz52NlxXPOzAnd when another member questions the use of such heavy-handedness, that member's post is deleted. No further discussion, just censorship. Is this the type of forum you want? Rigid guidelines, autocratically enforced? |
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Post by soxjim on Dec 26, 2017 12:39:39 GMT -5
Good afternoon everyone, happy Friday! I’m posting in the hopes of bringing on a new wave of members to post to the Forum and to encourage the existing members to post more. We’re really striving to set an environment where visitors shouldn’t be afraid to post here for fear that their opinions aren’t in line ...And yet, a moderator will chastise a new member in open forum: jmei Global Moderator ***** Senior Moderator jmei Avatar Posts: 12,281Male 2018 Red Sox roster building Dec 23, 2017 at 7:25pm via mobile Quote like Post Options Post by jmei on Dec 23, 2017 at 7:25pm All but two or three of your posts on these forums have included, as a central element, strongly-worded criticism of the front office. That viewpoint is certainly fine (I share it to an extent), but it has the effect of turning every thread you post in into a referendum on the front office, which derails other topics of conversation. If you want to discuss the front office, please feel free to start a new thread on that topic. I refer you to the forum ground rules on staying on topic and not baiting other members into arguments. Read more: forum.soxprospects.com/thread/4239/2018-red-sox-roster-building?page=59#ixzz52NlxXPOzAnd when another member questions the use of such heavy-handedness, that member's post is deleted. No further discussion, just censorship. Is this the type of forum you want? Rigid guidelines, autocratically enforced? I thought jmei was right in doing so. IMO there is no reason why said poster you are referring couldn't start another thread. It gets tiring and boring when said poster you are referring keeps bashing DD on every thread while DD wasn't the subject. I disliked Farrell's managing style immensely and brought it up a few times - so I get it - but this guy nearly every post bashed DD and the bashing didn't appear to be separated in much time . Sorry-- but after a while it's not fun. It becomes monotonous - when all the guy has to do is just start a new thread and that would be fine. If every thread were a DD bashing thread or a Farrell bashing thread etc I'd move on. Wouldn't you? You wouldn't get tired of over-and-over-and-over-and-over-and-over-and-over-and-over? |
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