Ordonez, Granderson rest

As far as this season goes, I take the stance that it was ALL injuries. Injuries to the wrong guys at the wrong times. If one guy goes down, it can have a trickle down effect on the others, and some of these subpar performances are a result of that. We also had guys playing while still hurt which also damaged our chances. Otherwise, we had good seasons from some guys and bad seasons from others. Pretty typical of any ballclub, good or bad. I know the players and management won't make the excuse, so I'll make it for them. It was all injuries this year. And we still look to finish with maybe 88 or 89 wins. That wins some divisions in some years.

I'm not saying you stand pat for next year, I'm just talking about what went wrong this year.

We can't use guys like Maybin and Hessman. Maybin, quite frankly, has looked terrible. I don't think Granderson looked that bad at any point in his career, and he should definitely remain in centerfield. Maybin needs to a) get more experience and B) lose that dumb Dimiti Young/Nook Logan "undercap." Hessman will never hit at this level.

You basically come back with most of the same people while making any needed changes. The ones that are possible, that is. Nobody is exempt, however, from being moveable. 2003 is out of the rear view mirror now and those guys have had their just reward for living through it. That's no longer an issue.

One last word on Brandon Inge: if he's traded, fine with me. If he's not traded, fine with me. I don't care.

In my lifetime, we made the postseason in 1968, 1984, 1987, and 2006. The rest of the time I was watching pretty poor ballclubs. I'm supposed to be upset with having a contender, even if we don't win every single season? That's not going to happen here.

Certainly one positive out of the injuries was Jurrjens. I remember reading a rumor that he was headed to Pittsburgh for Jack Wilson. He'll certainly be more valuable in trade this offseason...if he goes. It will be interesting to see what happens at SS. Pittsburgh's braintrust changed so Wilson might not be available. Should Santiago be given first shot as an everyday SS?

We also made the postseason in '72 (two words: "DUCK, LERRIN!"). Other than that I agree with you both. I'd like to know if there are FA 3B's that can match Inge, but I would rather he just stop lunging at every first pitch that comes his way. I like Brandon, but for the good of the team....

All those injuries this year underscore the importance of a good farm system. It was nice to have the Mudhen connection when guys started going down. But most of them are not ready for prime time.

As for the SS situation, I like what we have. Casey, a great defensive 1B who hits .300 consistently; Guillen, who can rest while spelling Case; and Santiago, a great glove to showcase whenever Carlos needs a rest. If Santiago was the regular SS, fans would be up in arms to get a shortstop who can hit .300 or 30 home runs. He's just not going to do that.