roster moves at VEB

I am sure you would be an awesome little league coach ;)

Do you have an updated “Blogger Lineup” as well? Which blogger has which day type of thing. Also, just out of curiosity are you retaining “ownership” of the blog? As in, it is up to you to decide who the bloggers are, the guidelines, etc? Just trying to get a feel for how things are going to run.

For the last 2 years that I have been reading VEB daily I have loved your commentary and I hope you stop by and post still I would hate to lose your “no caps” style of writing completely.

Thanks for all your hard work and time. Enjoy your kids.

i can imagine the burden that comes from writing on and maintaining a blog, especially one of the quality of yours. Without your contributions and dedication, there would be a lot more ignorant, short-sighted fans and nowhere else can you find a group of more knowledgeable Cardinals fans. This amazing collection of brilliant fans who bring up all options when it comes to making the team better. Thanks and have fun

No one can question the spending more time with the fam’ mantra, but we are going to miss you!

I’d be lying if there wasn’t a bit more excitement on Mon, Tues and Thurs morning to read your posts, but I’m excited about the new lineup. I never read Get Up baby, because I was always at VEB, but when I did, I really liked it.

Most of all, I have particular fondness for your work in September-October 2006, lboros. You took us from the brink of crisis to the joy of victory in the span of less than a month. Your insights during that period helped make the experience what it was – my first conscious experience of a world champion (I was 3 in ’82). Thanks for the memories (speaking of cliches).

I just wanted to pop in and quickly add my own thanks to what will surely be a chorus of them over the course of the day.

I found this place back at the very beginning of the 2006 season, and fell head over heels in love with it. As time went on, I found a voice that I could speak with. I’ve contributed on the front page, and I’ve just hung in the back and watched as people who knew far more acronyms than I had ever imagined broke down points that I barely understood.

Either way, it has been a pleasure.

Thank you, Lb, for a wonderful place to commune with those who share my passion, and know that you will be missed. The place simply will not be the same without you.

you have your priorities correct and I commend your decision but I will miss your guiding voice here. There have not been too many days in the last couple of years when I have not read this blog. I didn’t comment too often but still felt a part of it all. You consistently offered up the best insights into this cardinal program anywhere on the web. My best to you.

i have decided to not use caps at any point today in your honor. it may look odd on my tps cover sheets, but so be it.

thanks for all the reads. would be nice if you’d stop by for a guest piece now and then.

thanks to you and this community I have increased my baseball knowledge ten-fold in the two years I’ve been here. Unfortunately this is the only place I can go where the folks understand my baseball knowledge. I fear this board will never again be the same without your presence…I hope you come around now and again, and I hope to see a few “guest” posts from you. I look forward to hearing about your boy being drafted by the Cards in about 12 years or so! Best of Luck and all my thanks!! RB, HC and DanUp…it’s on you now, and you have my complete confidence and fait.

This is the greatest blog ever. It has guided me through not so good times (2007) and through great times(post season 2006). Thank you for all your hard work and dedication. I, personally, will miss you and your writing.

MLB salaries have increased at ~10% per year for a long while now, so using that as the discount rate: the NPV on the current structure is 34.11, reverse the structure and it’s 35.6 they save themselves a mil.5 in real dollars by sitting on their money. If the plan is to trade him, right now they pay 7, 9, 12—-eat 5 million and trade him, that NPV is 28.85. If they pay 12 12 9 0 the NPV is 30.34. Again, Mil.5 plus in savings just by eating the money later.

Ideally yes you could frontload it and get a player to take a lesser raw dollar deal frontloaded to get the same NPV and therefore get value-production, but good luck convincing a player that’s the right way to do it. It’s reported 41 mil over 4 years, not 34.11 NPV. A 11.5-10.9-9-7 structure does sound good though, but 38.4 mil just isn’t as sexy as 41.

I’ll say it again, this is why the A-Rod deal is criminally underrated from his perspective as it’s mid-loaded, had it been structured normally it’d be a 300 million deal (yes, even before the bonuses).

…but I take it you will be posting periodically, Larry?

Thanks for all the great work all these years. And thanks for letting VEB live on as a joint writing effort and as a community of readers.

to one of the greatest bloggers out there. This site helps me stay on an even keel—I’ll miss your “the sky ain’t falling as hard as you think” style. Like others have said, you’re leaving for the exact right reason, but you will be sorely missed.

Thanks.

Many, many thanks for all the insights and diversions you’ve given us on this blog. Between Brian Gunn and then you, we Cardinals fans have really been privileged over the past several years to have a steady stream of intelligent discussion about the team. I hope we’ll still hear from you on a more-than-occasional basis.

Enjoy that precioius time with your kids.

that the suggestions that you would be leaving would be wrong but I guess alas, all
good things must come to an end. Even though we’ve never met, I feel like a good
friend is moving away. Someone you count on for advice and tough love from time to time.
Just like those situations, I’m sure everyone will be down for a while until a new friend comes along
to fill that void. I’m sure that HC, RB et al will do a great job, as they already have been doing
but you will definitely be missed LB. Thanks for making the last couple of years fun and informative.
Have fun with the kids and keep in touch.

Your writing on the Cardinals is heads-and-shoulders the best around. I’m really going to miss it.

thanks for all your hard work and for the best cardinals insight anywhere.

we’ve all seen the slippery slope down which blogs can fall; they can turn toxic very quickly. thanks for keeping things professional around here and for placing wins, losses, roster moves, and all cardinal affairs in the proper perspective for us.

good luck in the next chapter of your life. we all wish you the best and look forward to hearing from you.

I’ve told you many times. Thanks for the cool blog, and I’ve meant it every time.

Have fun away from the computer and in front of life. You’ll be missed around here even if you’re just stopping by from time to time.

Actually, I think it’s going to be funny to see Larry become strictly a Game Thread re-tread. Better learn how to use caps (especially caps lock) since the only way to spell MVPWICK is in ALL CAPS!!!!!!

I haven’t been a frequent commentor here, but I’ve made VEB a daily stop for almost two years now. I really appreciate the work you’ve put in on this blog and the way in which you’ve increased my knowledge of the game.

I wish you the best and hope you really enjoy the time with your family. I am sure you will.

I hope to see you around here as much as your schedule will allow.

I have to admit that I am excited about Danup writing here….

Just a quick thanks, cause I have to run to work. Good luck and thanks again for all the great work!

we will all miss you!

It’s been a pleasure reading your posts and learning about this game from you.

haven’t been a frequent commenter, but have benefited greatly from your insight and analysis. I am thankful that I found you those first few months of 2006. I will miss the entries by you, lboros, but hope that you will stop and deliver some of your calm-headedness when things seem out of control. Thank you and I would suggest teaching your child to throw left-handed.

Beyond what is given here, I haven’t read all that much of the others but you have left some big shoes for them to fill. I know that they will do their best to keep up the excellent work that is to be expected at vivaelbirdos.

but i cant thank you enough for what you have done with this site. it has made my love of baseball grow exponentially when i thought it was full to the brim already. i hope you enjoy the time with your kids and please make sure they are patient hitters:) i hope you will still stop by from time to time with a surprise post that surely will make my week…i am excited to read more HC and RB and cant wait to see what DanUp will bring. i am going to ReadUp (terrible i know) on his insights today…good luck, LB!!!

Your analysis and commentaries are spot on – hope you will post from time to time

Thanks lb; veb has been (and will be) the first I read in the morning for a long time now. Very well done, hope you enjoy the kids!

Let me add to the others, I found the site at the beginning of 2006, and wow what a find. My dad and I both read every day, and while we do not post regularly, we talk constantly about the posts that are here. Almost every conversation we have ends up with the phrase, “did you see what larry wrote this morning…”
Good Luck and don’t be a stranger.

…I’m sorry to hear that you’ll be leaving. You have done a fabulous job with this site in the nearly 2 years I have been reading/posting on it. It’s absolutely the best source of Cardinals-related news and analysis on the worldwide web. To you I say thank you and good luck with your full-time working father role. Kids are awesome, I have 2 myself, and I hung up my coaching job about 8 years ago to be with them more. Let me tell you that it was most definitely worth it.

As I made the journey from a more casual to more serious fan, VEB was the first place I always turned to for great baseball analysis, focusing of course on our beloved redbirds. My understanding of everything from baseball statistics, contracts, roster construction, and what have you has increased dramatically over the last couple of years. I believe I first heard of the blog in a Matt Leach article or mailbag piece. Clearly this is the finest St. Louis Cardinals blog on the interwebs, and Larry is the reason why. Thanks!
Sigh… here’s to the Cubs losing, roster matrices, community projections, and a strong 2009.

LB, you’ve done a great job here. If you didn’t have such a great team to step up after you leave, this would truly be a tragedy.

It’s because of you, LBo. I absolutely hate to see you go, and I hope you’ll be around often. But you’ve picked a great young writer in Danup—he’s witty and fun, and he knows his baseball.

Is this just the harbinger of a promotion? From Cardinals blogger to GM of the Col Rockies?

But I most say you ran one heck of a blog.

LB — Just adding my thanks and appreciation to everyone else’s today. I’ve been a near-daily reader of VEB for over three years now; like everyone else, I’ve benefited enormously as a Cards/baseball fan from your knowledge and insights. And as someone who also makes a living putting words together, I’ve always appreciated your direct, concise, yet still humorous writing style.

I tend to be skeptical of the notion of “virtual communities,” but VEB is one case where the word “community” truly applies. That is mostly due to your hard work and your commitment to keeping the site intelligent and free of unnecessary rancor. It’s a privilege to share the highs and lows of following our beloved Redbirds with the community you’ve built here. That said, leading a “virtual community” can’t hold a candle to spending every possible second with your kids. The cliché is true (I’ve got two toddlers myself). Enjoy your new freedom — and I hope you’ll still enlighten the rest of us with the occasional FanPost or thread comment.

Very excited to hear about the addition of DanUp to the VEB roster — I’ve always enjoyed Dan’s blog but haven’t followed it as closely the last year or so. He’ll bring a great voice to the site.

Thanks Lb for this site. I hardly ever post, but i read just about every day, and it has shaped and molded all views I have on the cardinals. I hope you will still “guest” blog from time to time because I have to admit, as much as I liked the other guys you always seemed to give an argument with sufficient evidence that I couldn’t disagree with and enjoyed hearing. Have fun with the kids!

I can’t say how happy I am, and have been, that you don’t follow the Rockies. As a Cardinals fan it’s been wonderful to have such a measured, reasoned voice speak out for the fanbase as a whole, and we’re all better off for it. As a fellow writer—well, I’m just consistently impressed.

To everyone else: I’m excited to join the team, and I look forward to blogging on a… well, a more regular basis. I’ve never happier about an opportunity to be Babe Dahlgren (in which case I hope my scrappiness and hustle make up for my 76 OPS+.)

Giving up a baseball blog for your family and your job? What the hell? This is like Mulder-Haren bad juju. You need to step back from the keyboard for a second, collect yourself and realize THE INTERTUBES ARE MORE IMPORTANT!

Enjoy your freedom from having to split your mind between dealing with what is in front of you and coming up with clever, pertinent and timely topics of discussion.

I’ve loved the different debates you’ve had with WCB ;)

thanks for several good years.

For making me feel better the day after a horrible loss and tempering my over excitement after a thrilling win. It’s like being able to have a conversation with a Cardinal enthusiast everyday, and where I live that’s hard to come by.

I also have to thank you and this site for introducing me to the saber-world. Every fan needs to be introduced to these measurements of our beloved game. Not that you have to live and die by it, but to understand it and appreciate it. I think you balance traditional and saber perfectly on this site. Thanks again, enjoy your family.

Much like the St. Louis Cardinals, the famed VEB will be seeing the end of an era.

The Cardinals’ era of vaunted lineups, MV3’s, and 90+ win seasons ended with a title in 2006. I know, I know…2006 wasn’t a 90 win season, but I count it as the end of that era. With the healthy lineup we had in the playoffs in 2006, the team would have fared much better than 83-78 in the regular season.

The Cardinals, obviously, with the Jocketty firing a season later went in a different route…no more trades in which the farm system is further depleted to bring in a pricey vet that fills a lineup hole nicely for 4-6 years. Now the emphasis on building the big league club is one from within. The goal is to stabilize the crippled farm system and now the direction of the proud tradition of the Birds on the Bat is to bring in a talented rookie to fill a lineup hole nicely for 4-6 years.

Much to nay-sayers’ dismay, the St. Louis Cardinals did not wilt and die. The Cardinals did not suffer through years of cellar-dwelling, as other teams do from time to time, in order to become a contender again. The Cardinals are fighting and still made waves throughout an entire season – one in which they were supposed to be non-competitive.

Viva El Birdos has lost our top man. lboros was not fired in a Jocketty-esque, rebuild-fashion; in fact, in stepping aside, lboros found his own replacement. A replacement who writes on another successful blog. Much like the Cardinals, this “team” site will not have to go through an extended slump, or do any cellar-dwelling. VEB will stay a wonderful site because that is what it is set up to be…the best Cardinals (and thus the best baseball) site on the internet.

Thank you for your guidance and leadership in this endeavor…enjoy your children…stop by and say hi when you have time.

stlfan

I hope you come back and do some main posts from time to time. We’re going to miss your insight on a day to day basis but I can fully understand your decision.

we’ll miss you, lb. a lot. this is like a punch in the gut, but i completely understand your reasons. best of luck down the road, and thnx again for the opportunities you have afforded me here back a few years ago, and for all the links to FR.

happy trails.

I am not too many years away from being an empty nester and the time goes by all too quickly.

After three youth level state championships, a high school state championship (and #9 national ranking), plus three years of college baseball, my favorite baseball memories with my son are still the PeeWee Cardinals in Marietta, GA when he was six years old. Take lots of pictures, have lots of laughs, and don’t be a stranger.

when something bad happens again and again, we often fool ourselves into thinking we’re “due” for a positive outcome this time. “he hasn’t hit a homerun in a few weeks, he’s due!”
we seem to have an injured ace electing to not have surgery, and we just signed a veteran pitcher to a 4 year deal.
are we “due” for these things to turn out well?
actually… don’t answer that question.

teams bid against each other to sign players to bloated contracts that 6 months later they often can’t give away, but sure wish they could.

I, like most others who’ve offered their eulogies of sorts, really appreciate the time and thought you’ve invested to share your insights and analysis with the rest of us.

I also applaud your decision. There aren’t enough “family-first” dads around these days. Some of us should probably spend a little less time at the keyboard and a little more time with the kiddos. It’s a solid decision.

Anyway, thanks again for your leadership and contribution to this site. I imagine that we’ll hear from you now and then. These aren’t actual eulogies, after all!

I started lurking around here sometime last year and it immediately became a required daily visit. I then moved to Tennessee, the first time I’d lived anywhere outside of the St. Louis area. Not having any of my Cards fan friends to watch the games with down there, I started getting in to the game threads here a lot. Although I’m back in the STL now, I still visit the site frequently, and will continue to do so.

I’m gonna miss the LB posts a lot though. Thanks for all the great work and for creating the best baseball blog on the interwebs!

You’ve really helped aspiring young bloggers like me learn how to write the right way, probably more than you think. Thanks for all the work you’ve done and the insight you’ve shared. You’ve definitely been a great influence on me and my writing.

Good luck and enjoy spending time with your family. And don’t forget, Go Cards!

like many ,I’m a long time reader and infrequent poster here at VEB….but would like too thank you for all your time and work over the last few years that I’ve been a daily reader. Spending time with your kids at that age is certainly what makes up a great life….but gettting a cup of coffee and checking out VEB in-between work issues has always been one of the best parts of my day. So thank you and my wishes that your future holds nothing but happiness and joy.

look forward to a lb sighting in the threads and reading your commentary

i echo the sentiments above about the end of the 2006 season. i think i would have blown a gasket if not for your steady hand leading us.

thanks for the daily insights and i look forward to some guest front page sightings.

You’ve set a high standard in writing, analysis, steady good sense, and good humor. My bet is you’re as good to be around outside of VEB, too. I thank you for considerable enlightenment and many hours of good reading…excellent even w/o capitals.

Rob Neyer (Insider content) made fun of your lower case writing today? if so i can make things get uncomfortable for him if it will keep you around…

Yes – family is the most important thing. Consider VEB as your extended family. Stay here. Blow off work.

I rarely post, but am an everyday reader of the site. It seems odd to become so attached to something like a baseball blog, but I am truly saddened to hear you will no longer be directing the site. I’m sure DanUp will do a great job, but I hope that you can come back with a suprise post or two throughout the year. Best of luck to you and your family.

I rarely post, but am an everyday reader of the site. It seems odd to become so attached to something like a baseball blog, but I am truly saddened to hear you will no longer be directing the site. I’m sure DanUp will do a great job, but I hope that you can come back with a suprise post or two throughout the year. Best of luck to you and your family.

I rarely post, but am an everyday reader of the site. It seems odd to become so attached to something like a baseball blog, but I am truly saddened to hear you will no longer be directing the site. I’m sure DanUp will do a great job, but I hope that you can come back with a suprise post or two throughout the year. Best of luck to you and your family.

hopefully you still drop by from time to time as a guest writer or leave a few comments in the game threads. thanks for all the terrific work and good luck with whatever you do next.

It has already been said above, but it wouldn’t feel right to let this post go without giving my gratitutde as well. Thanks for the insight and hard work, I tell everyone I know about this site.

have fun living a real life ;-)

“Keep your eye on the ball.”

If you can teach your kid half as much about the game as you’ve taught me, he’ll be catching the attention of Cardinals’ Manager Aaron Miles in 2023. A sincere thanks for all the time and energy.

What the hell is going on, you’re leaving us lboros? That blows! :)

good luck you crafty middle reliever.

When I first stopped by this site somtime in July 2006, that was the point that my Cardinals fandom went from casual score-checker to rabid lunatic. I enjoyed the ride all the way from then until the WS win in 2006, all the way to the lowest point of JH’s death in 2007. This has been a daily stop for me ever since, and I owe it all to you. Best of luck with the family, and we’re all sticking around if you ever want a release.

You took the sting out of Brian Gunn’s retirement from blogging. The content here is better than any other Cardinals blog—or all the other Cardinals blogs combined, for that matter. Read Strauss, Birdland and VEB and you pretty much know everything there is to know about the greatest baseball franchise in the country. (No, not the Yankees…)

You really should consider doing some guest stints, though. Even the CSO’s retired principal trumpet, Adolph Herseth, still sits in from time to time. Don’t be a stranger.

masha danki, i.e. thank you very much for all the great posts en for giving us such a wonderful Cardinals blog, VEB !!

i completely agree with your balance thing, family/work/blog. hope you don’t forget yourself in the equation… be good !

feel kinda down learning that you’re riding off into the sunset, lb… you were one of the originals and always had great things to say

good luck down the line

I never could understand how in the world you were able to put together a 4000 word essay every other day, with a new idea or three every week just thrown out there for us peasants to try to get our heads around. In the ~3 years I’ve been hanging out here, you and Az and the other main posters have completely changed the way I think about baseball. It’s been a staggering run of creativity and perseverance, and I’ll always be in your debt.

Thanks again for all of the effort you put into building the best baseball fan community on the interweb.

A wise man once said: the happiness of your life depends upon the quality of your thoughts. If this is true in smaller arenas, then I owe you a great deal for advancing my enjoyment of baseball.

All my best to a fine ambassador for the finest of sports.

Larry,

Been reading you since June 2005. You are, without a doubt, the best sports blogger I’ve ever read. A real five-tool blogger, if there is such a thing. Thanks for all of your class, cutting intellect, enthusiasm, innovation, terrific writing, and, most of all, time and hard work.

You’ll be missed! And I look forward to some insightful periodic fan posts.

Happy trails!

-Brian

i would be lying if i didn’t see this coming, but i completly understand why you’re stepping aside. even though you’re gone, i hope the community stays. this community really makes this site a real pleasure to be around, espcially around game time. thanks again larry, you will be missed.

i guess i’ll have to devote a little more time in the morning to read this site if RBs going to pick up any more days.

SB Nation – and the entire blogosphere – is really losing a legend here.

Larry,

I just wanted to point out that your site is how I even discovered SBN. Besides being a diehard Dolphins fan, I’m also a huge Cardinals fan and I was in search of a good Cardinals website a few years ago (probably back in 2004 or 2005). I came across it and instantly made it part of my daily internet rounds.

Little did I know that I’d have the opportunity to join the likes of you (and the others at SBN) down the road.

It truly is an honor to be a part of a network that includes (or now I guess I should say “once included you”). And now I might even have more respect for you (if that was possible) because of why you are stepping down here at VEB.

You’ll be missed around here. Thanks for all the time and effort you put forth into this site and good luck with your future endeavors!

please write

periodically.

As for Danup, welcome. And yes we all know you called the Mulder-Haren deal correctly.

Larry that’s what I told you when I asked to have my screen name changed and it’s still true. So sorry to see you go but I know your eye for talent has brought in the best Cardinal blogers around and I’m sure the level of coverage will be nearly as good.

Just one quick question, does this mean that RB will finally be added to the VEB Board? Seems like the guy has put in his dues, come on and give him a seat at the adult table. I could use some backup on there, with you gone I’m afraid the rest will get together and kick me off next time I start ripping on them.

Especially the part about helping out the other Cardinal bloggers. One of the first stops in a Cardinal fan’s day should be here at VEB and you are the reason for that.

Congrats to DanUp and looking forward to his writings!

This is the only blog that I check daily, and you’ve done a great job getting it going and organizing all of us Crazies.

You will be missed.

You have created a blog that fits so well with my style of baseball. This is truly one of the most classy blogs online. I hope that it will continue this way after you are gone. I look forward to reading more from DanUp, always enjoyed his blog. Thanks again.

after being banished from the midwest to remote idaho, this is my main channel for keeping up with the cards. best of luck with the young slugger!

Thanks for all of the work you have done here. I remember when I first stumbled upon the site while in grad school… Vivaelbirdos provided me with a perfect distraction from study before a big statistics exam. I think it was MLBTraderumors that linked over here during the Cards’ infamous courtship of AJ Burnett (I just saw him at the airport!!!). Anyways, this blog and your careful analysis really took my love for baseball to another level and I’ve been coming back every morning since. Thanks, again.

there isnt much i can add to the praise you have received above, and it is definitely deserved

on a personal level there are a few things you have done or said on this blog that have changed the way i watch games, follow the team, even think about the offseason

but mostly i think you have just shown how to be a man; now that may sound crazy, but on this site you have never compromised your values; if somebody made a good point that wasnt your own, you were fine with it, might even have praised a person for a different way of thinking; but when someone did get out of line you were there to rein them back in

but todays announcement, to me, is your best example of being a man; you saw what the site was doing to you and the way you deal with work and family; and you dealt with it, just like a man should

we will miss you, but because you got a good writer to follow you, i doubt the transition will be as hard as it could have been

Because I just turned on TBS and the first commercial I saw was for Frank TV….

I thank you for your work and what you have given to us. I literally read this first thing every day. I thank you again.

The king is dead.

Long live the King!

HC and RD you are the shit!

I’ve learned more in a year than i have in my 30+ years prior to that. When I was growing up I collected bb cards and I could tell you every stat of every player as long as it was on the back of the cards. I lost baseball for years until I found this site. Brings back all those memories flipping cards and arguing about the qualities of the best players. The site is by far the best read around if you’re a Cardinal fan. Thanks for pulling it together. I live a long way from St. Louis now, but I don’t feel so far away anymore.

Lohse was a good deal. 5 years 45.5 million — gotta count this year.

I don’t think this has been brought up yet, but Pujols and Ludwick finished 1 and 2 in slugging in the Majors.

Might I recommend Hardcore Legend for a position? HL always provides insightful commentary that is fun to read.

I’m very sad to read this, but am happy you have your priorities together. I’ll miss your writings very much and hope that you will still find the time to become an active participant at least. I guess I found the site about a year ago. It’s one of the best sports blogs out there IMO, and it is clear that this is in large part due to the work you put into it. The tone you set. The atmosphere of accountability you foster.

I think you are turning it over to capable hands, but there is no doubt that you’ll be missed greatly by all.

I came here tonight to voice my displeasure about a 4 year deal for Lohse, but will save that for another time. There will be plenty of time for that…

Thanks for all the hard work, Larry.

I want to thank you for all the great work you have done on this site. For years I have been a Cardinal fan living in upstate New York unable to get any real insight into the organization. I stumbled on to this site a couple of years ago and I no longer feel like a man on a deserted island. In addition to that I have a sense that you are a true gentleman and you run this site accordingly. Good luck to you and my God bless you and your family.

I have enjoyed reading your posts. I do not frequently comment on VEB, but I certainly am a frequent reader. I totally understand the kid thing. My oldest is five and starting to learn to play. I am having a tough time getting him to hold the bat correctly and to stop standing on the plate. Only Barry Bonds with his massive armor can get away with standing on the plate…Any advice on teaching kids to hit would be appreciated.

I just wanted to say you will be missed.

I agree with your assessment of the Lohse deal. I think it is in line with the market values, but it has the potential to go south in the future. The deal also means that Lohse is probably going to be the best SP we will be signing, which means we have put ourselves in a situation where we will be depending on Lohse to duplicate or even exceed the numbers he put up this season.

I think this has the potential to be one of the most interesting off seasons for us. I love the hot stove league stuff. It passes the time away while waiting for the day pitchers and catchers report.

Good luck. My hope is that the Cubs will be eliminated from the postseason before your last post.

For all your great writing. You will be missed.

Never posted here much, but I enjoyed reading every day. You are a great writer and, as an aspiring writer myself, a big guide for each of us. I wish you the best. I’ll never forget the time you put me in my place :)

Peace out!

If you’re ever in Thailand, please look me up . . . .

i don’t get to comment much but i always enjoy reading your posts.

thanks for starting this community and keeping it running for so long. it has been a regulation facet of my day since i joined!

and say thanks to Larry. your posts are always at the top of my lists of things I must read each day.

that VEB will continue to be the best cardinal blog

thank you lboros

Yours was a daily blog read for me as well. I have always enjoyed your analysis, writing style, and frankness. Have fun with the family and thank you for always providing engaging, thoughtful commentary.

It was through reading Viva El Birdos that I developed a desire to have my own blog, and your writing and analysis remains a treat to read. I’m still in awe every time I remember that I’m on the same network as you. You’ve made the Cardinals even more of a blast to follow, and you’ll be sorely missed on SBN.

Enjoy that free time, though. It’s very well deserved.

I know this has been a labor of love for you. I really appreciate all your hard work, and your great insights. Though you won’t be totally stepping away, many thanks for a job well done. 2008 Cards would have been less of a joy w/o you at the helm of VEB!

thanks for all you have done lb….found this blog before the season started and immediately felt i had been missing something great all my life…hope you find happiness in being a dad…and make sure your son can field his position too, the cards need a legit 2B prospect soon

well done. M’a sallama, sadi

You have written, and presided, with a steady hand.

Have fun with the kids! And if you coach, well… good luck with the parents!

sorry i missed your big goodbye yesterday, i spent all day driving to little rock arkansas