mikezcim

He gives: Chase Utley, Martin Prado, Carlos Lee, CJ Wilson

I give: Dan Uggla, Andre Ethier, Yoenis Cespedes, Clay Buchholz

My internet connection has suddenly gotten really slow, as in slower than dialup. (I have DSL). Pages that used to take 0.5 seconds to load are now taking about 20-40 seconds, especially if they have media.

To all you who are going to ask, yes, I've restarted both my connection and my computer several times.

I've noticed that my network utilization rate is hovering between 0% and 0.04% when things are loading, would this explain it? (obviously, that's really low)

I get:

Ramon Ramirez

Jermaine Dye

I give:

Sin-soo Choo

Matt Lindstrom

This is essentially Choo for Dye (but he doesn't know that) because Lindstrom is about to lose the closers job (and I have 5 closers anyways). Choo has actually been better than Dye as of late, and I like his average, (I have no spot for Ramirez on my team).

Do I take this deal? (I'm leaning towards a yes)

My team (roto 12-team 5X5)(yes I ended up with A-rod and Wright on the same team...I swindled another manager):

C

John Baker

(Fla - C)

C

Mike Napoli

(LAA - C)

1B

Prince Fielder

(Mil - 1B)

2B

Chone Figgins

(LAA - 2B,3B)

3B

David Wright

(NYM - 3B)

SS

Ben Zobrist

(TB - 2B,SS,OF)

CI

Álex Rodríguez

(NYY - 3B)

MI

Ryan Theriot

(ChC - SS)

OF

Jerry Hairston Jr.

(Cin - 2B,3B,SS,OF)

OF

Jason Bay

(Bos - OF)

OF

Denard Span

(Min - OF)

OF

Shin-Soo Choo

(Cle - OF)

OF

Álex Ríos

(Tor - OF)

Util

James Loney

(LAD - 1B)

P

Roy Halladay

(Tor - P)

P

Roy Oswalt

(Hou - P)

P

Zack Greinke

(KC - P)

P

Frank Francisco

(Tex - P)

P

Scott Downs

(Tor - P)

P

Kevin Gregg

(ChC - P)

P

LaTroy Hawkins

(Hou - P)

P

Rick Porcello

(Det - P)

P

Tommy Hanson

(Atl - P) NA

BN

Asdrubal Cabrera

(Cle - 2B,SS) DL

BN

Carlos Quentin

(CWS - OF) DL

BN

Stephen Drew

(Ari - SS)

BN

Milton Bradley

(ChC - OF)

DL

Conor Jackson

(Ari - 1B,OF) DL

BN

Matt Lindstrom

(Fla - P)

BN

Ubaldo Jiménez

(Col - P)

I give: BJ Ryan

I get: Brian Fuentes

Ryan's got a reported velocity drop to 84 mph and I like Fuentes, who's a solid closer and is on the save-happy angels. I did take Ryan 10 picks ahead of Fuentes though...

The trade was Matt Cassel and Mike Vrabel from the Pats for the 34th pick(2nd round) from the Chiefs.

I think this trade was totally fair. I doubt the Pats got a better offer, and a high 2nd-rounder is more preferable (for cap space, risk/reward ratio) than a high 1st rounder.

What do you guys think?

1) Do you think he'll take this

2) If he does, is it a good deal for me?

3) Could I even possibly get away with offering Salty? (doubt it)

5 X 5 roto, 12 teams, 23 man rosters

He's clearly a bit short on pitching...

I give:

Zack Greinke

Mike Napoli

I get:

Matt Wieters

Max Scherzer

My roster:

C

Mike Napoli

(LAA - C)

C

Jarrod Saltalamacchia

(Tex - C)

1B

Prince Fielder

(Mil - 1B)

2B

Chone Figgins

(LAA - 2B,3B)

3B

David Wright

(NYM - 3B)

SS

Stephen Drew

(Ari - SS)

CI

Edwin Encarnación

(Cin - 3B)

MI

Ryan Theriot

(ChC - SS)

OF

Jason Bay

(Bos - OF)

OF

Álex Ríos

(Tor - OF)

OF

Conor Jackson

(Ari - 1B,OF)

OF

Denard Span

(Min - OF)

OF

Adam Lind

(Tor - OF)

Util

Casey Kotchman

(Atl - 1B)

BN

Ryan Church

(NYM - OF)

BN

Casey Blake

(LAD - 1B,3B)

BN

Ryan Spilborghs

(Col - OF)

P

Roy Halladay

(Tor - P)

P

Félix Hernández

(Sea - P)

P

Roy Oswalt

(Hou - P)

P

B.J. Ryan

(Tor - P)

P

Zack Greinke

(KC - P)

P

Matt Lindstrom

(Fla - P)

P

Frank Francisco

(Tex - P)

P

Ubaldo Jiménez

(Col - P)

P

Fernando Rodney

(Det - P)

BN

Grant Balfour

(TB - P)

BN

Jeremy Guthrie

(Bal - P)

BN

Sean Gallagher

(Oak - P)

His team:

C

Matt Wieters

(Bal - C) NA

C

Jorge Posada

(NYY - C) DL

1B

Ryan Howard

(Phi - 1B)

2B

Robinson Canó

(NYY - 2B)

3B

Hank Blalock

(Tex - 1B,3B)

SS

Troy Tulowitzki

(Col - SS)

CI

Mark Reynolds

(Ari - 3B)

MI

Rafael Furcal

(LAD - SS)

OF

Matt Holliday

(Oak - OF)

OF

Jacoby Ellsbury

(Bos - OF)

OF

Bobby Abreu

(LAA - OF)

OF

Torii Hunter

(LAA - OF)

OF

Justin Upton

(Ari - OF)

Util

Carlos Gómez

(Min - OF)

BN

Ian Stewart

(Col - 2B,3B)

BN

Travis Hafner

(Cle - Util)

BN

Gary Sheffield

(Det - OF)

BN

Josh Fields

(CWS - 3B)

P

Johan Santana

(NYM - P)

P

Brian Fuentes

(LAA - P)

P

Huston Street

(Col - P)

P

Max Scherzer

(Ari - P)

P

Brandon Morrow

(Sea - P)

P

John Maine

(NYM - P)

P

Wandy Rodríguez

(Hou - P)

P

Dan Wheeler

(TB - P)

P

Scot Shields

(LAA - P)

BN

J.J. Putz

(NYM - P)

BN

Mike Adams

(SD - P)

12 Team Roto, 5x5, 23-man rosters

I had 5th pick

Rate out of 10, what needs do I have?

Hitters:

C

Mike Napoli

(LAA - C)

C

Jarrod Saltalamacchia

(Tex - C)

1B

Prince Fielder

(Mil - 1B)

2B

Chone Figgins

(LAA - 2B,3B)

3B

David Wright

(NYM - 3B)

SS

Stephen Drew

(Ari - SS)

CI

Edwin Encarnación

(Cin - 3B)

MI

Ryan Theriot

(ChC - SS)

OF

Jason Bay

(Bos - OF)

OF

Álex Ríos

(Tor - OF)

OF

Conor Jackson

(Ari - 1B,OF)

OF

Denard Span

(Min - OF)

OF

Adam Lind

(Tor - OF)

Util

Casey Kotchman

(Atl - 1B)

Pitchers:

P

Roy Halladay

(Tor - P)

P

Félix Hernández

(Sea - P)

P

Roy Oswalt

(Hou - P)

P

B.J. Ryan

(Tor - P)

P

Zack Greinke

(KC - P)

P

Matt Lindstrom

(Fla - P)

P

Frank Francisco

(Tex - P)

P

Ubaldo Jiménez

(Col - P)

P

Fernando Rodney

(Det - P)

Bench:

Hitters:

Ryan Church(OF)

Ryan Spilborghs(OF)

Casey Blake (1B,3B)

Pitchers:

Grant Balfour

Jeremy Guthrie

Sean Gallagher

FA of note:

Josh willingham

Jason Varirek

JR Towles

John Baker

Kyle Lohse

Jon Garland

Jamie Moyer

Jose Contreras

...That's about it. (yes, our league is deep...)

ID:56281

Password: Basketball

Roster:

C, C, 1B, 2B, 3B, SS, CI, MI, OF, OF, OF, OF, OF, Util, P, P, P, P, P, P, P, P, P, BN, BN, BN, BN, BN, BN, DL

Weekly lineups, 100 move limit

Standard 5X5 roto

ACtive managers only!

What I want to know is, do you have any tips on getting back to form, and how long that should take.

I've basically redone everything I've been doing while playing trumpet (I've been playing for 3 years).

I moved my embouchure from a 50/50 setup to a 33/66 one, moved it about 2 mm to the right (where my natural aperture is).

I had a problem where whenever I played, the left side of my lip was hanging out (A LOT). I figured out that this was probably the result of 2 things: excessive pressure, and a strained jaw muscle while playing a high note (which was a result of excessive pressure).

So I've been drilling embouchure strength (pencil exercise etc.) and lip slurs over and over again. To clear up my tone, I'm doing a lot of long tones.

What I'm concerned with is that my range has gone with a high A to a middle C within a week, and you know, being in High school band that's a problem. I DO NOT want to rush or force my high notes like I did before, so I'm concerned about that.

I have also been training my airstream etc. and have redone my tounguing technique (from ta to the Arban-recommended tu).

So, being stuck at a middle C, do you have any tips for getting used to this new embouchure and any exercises I should do? Practicing schedule? (I practice for about 1 hour a day, depending on homework load).

Perhaps I'm being impatient, but do you think I can work my way up to an A by the end of the summer, middle E in 2 weeks?

AL East:

1) Yankees

2) Red Sox -WILD CARD

3) Rays

4) Jays

5) Orioles

AL Central

1) White Sox

2) Twins

3) Tigers

4) Indians

5) Royals

(really hard to predict if you ask me)

AL West:

1) Angels

2) Athletics

3) Rangers

4) Mariners

NL Central:

1) Cubs

2) Brewers

3) Cards

4) Astros

5) Reds

6) Pirates

NL East:

1) Phillies

2) Mets - WILD CARD

3) Marlins

4) Braves

5) Nationals

NL West:

1) If they get Manny, then Dodgers. If not, then D-Backs.

2) See above

3) Rockies

4) Giants

5) Padres

ALDS- Yanks over White Sox in 5, Red Sox over Angels in 5

NLDS- Cubs over Mets in 6, Phillies over Dodgers in 5

ALCS- Red Sox over Yanks in 6

NLCS- Phillies over Cubs in 7

WS- Red Sox over Phillies in 6

Well, it's pretty late to ask, but yesterday I was doing something and then I was coming out of the underside of one of those playground things (don't ask), stood up to early, hit the metal bar really hard and made a really loud sound from the hit. I was on the ground for about 30 seconds, developed a fairly large goose egg, was slightly lethargic (though I got up and walked home after), slightly nauseous (though I got hungry after like 10 min) and had a slight headache (a tiny one, not a legit headache. I put ice (well compacted snow, same deal) on the bump for the 25 min it took for me to walk home, symptoms persisted for about 20 min.

You don't need to say that I shouldn't sleep, I already did (because I was an idiot). I feel no symptoms today.

Just a quick check.

You've got 3 teams with some of the top pitching in baseball.

Yankees have the best starting pitchers (hurts me to say it), Red Sox have got the best relievers and overall pitching IMO.

You can argue for any of them, really (Rays included, of course)

Yankees:

SP:

C. Sabathia

A. Burnett

C. Wang

J. Chamberlain

P. Hughes/A. Aceves

RP:

M. Rivera (Closer)

E. Ramirez

C. Wright

J. Veras

D. Marte

B. Bruney

H. Sanchez

Red Sox:

J. Beckett

D. Matsuzaka

J. Lester

B. Penny

T. Wakefield/John Smoltz

RP:

J. Papelbon (Closer)

T. Saito

H. Okajima

M. Delcarmen

J. Lopez

R. Ramirez

D. Aardsma

J. Masterson

Rays:

SP:

S. Kazmir

J. Shields

M. Garza

A. Sonnanstine

D. Price

RP:

T. Percival (Closer)

G. Balfour

D. Wheeler

C. Bradford

J. Howell

J. Hammel

J. Nelson

I'm a high school trumpet player, and my playing is horrible right now (I DO PRACTICE, NO NEED TO SAY)

Recently my lips got cut (from being too chapped, I'm an idiot...too lazy to buy chapstick) in 2 places: Basically directly above and below (on the inside) the aperture of my embouchure.

Spontaneously (I really can't tell if it's due to the cuts or if I just spontaneously got bad) I can't buzz anymore. Half the time when I play a sound doesn't come out anymore, the other half it's really bad. Then when I go to a rest I can't play. It's completely messed up my timing etc. and I've made countless mistakes in the last couple of days to make me look like the worst player in my band.

I have to ask, is it a problem with my embouchure (which is bad, though not horrible) or is it because of the cuts?

I really want to know the answer, I have been getting a tad pissed off at myself (and a bit depressed...no, not clinically depressed, don't worry) because I can't play for **** anymore.

Occasionally I'll have spurts where I was as good as before but that comes after like 45 minutes of playing and then goes away.

-----

FOR ALL THE LAZY PEOPLE WHO DIDN'T READ THAT, MY QUESTION IS:

Can cut lips kill your ability to buzz (not just play but buzz)?

Ok guys, I was going to start Anquan Boldin but he's going to get benched this week. I need a replacement (I have no bench WRs lol)

On the FA list is Leveranues Coles vs SEA, Steve Breaston vs NE, Deion Branch vs NYJ, Isaac Bruce vs STL, Davone Bess vs KC, Mark Clayton vs DAL, Donnie Avery vs SF and Amani Toomer vs CAR

Who do I pick up? (championship)

I'm pissed, I have a super stacked team (10 team league if you're wondering) but got forced to the 3rd place game.

Pick 1 QB:

Kurt Warner vs NE

Brett Favre vs SEA

Big Ben vs TEN (Haynesworth and Vanden Bosch are out)

Pick 3 RB:

AP vs ATL

Pierre Thomas vs DET

Matt Forte vs GB

Steve Slaton vs OAK

Chris Johnson vs PIT

Larry Johnson vs MIA

Pick 2 WR (easy but just in case)

Anquan Boldin vs NE (killed me with his 1 pt game)

Steve Smith vs NYG

FA:

Isaac Bruce vs STL

Coles vs SEA

Thanks! (I can't believe I lost. The guy had Plaxico Burress and Jerious Norwood starting.)

Pick 1 QB:

Kyle Orton @ GB

David Garrard vs Indy

Tyler Thigpen vs Miami

Pick 2 RB (really tough choice):

AP vs Atl

Maurice Jones-Drew vs Indy

Steve Slaton vs Oak

Pierre Thomas vs Det

I'm leaning towards Slaton and Jones-Drew/Thomas (more thomas)

Pick 2 WR:

Lee Evans vs Den

Antonio Bryant vs SD

Jerrico Cotchery vs SEA

Thanks!

I give:

Wilson Chandler

I get:

Kenyon Martin

Francisco Garcia.

Roto, 10 team, normal stats. Frankly I don't care that much about this team, it's been stuck in the cellar.

My team:

PG

Steve Nash

(Pho - PG)

SG

Corey Maggette

(GS - SG,SF,PF) INJ

G

Beno Udrih

(Sac - PG)

SF

Andrei Kirilenko

(Uta - SF,PF)

PF

Dirk Nowitzki

(Dal - PF)

F

Rasheed Wallace

(Det - PF,C)

C

David Lee

(NY - SF,PF,C)

C

Marcus Camby

(LAC - PF,C)

Util

Shawn Marion

(Mia - SF,PF)

Util

Michael Beasley

(Mia - SF,PF)

Util

Wilson Chandler

(NY - SG,SF,PF)

Util

Shane Battier

(Hou - SF)

BN

James Posey

(NO - SG,SF)

BN

Raja Bell

(Cha - SG)

BN

Nick Young

(Was - SG,SF)

BN

Mario Chalmers

(Mia - PG)

BN

Kevin Love

(Min - PF,C)

BN

Jamario Moon

(Tor - SF)

I'm up by 8, he's got Kevin Curtis left. (and Plaxico Burress, but that obviously doesn't count)

Normal stats.

Pick 1 QB:

Tyler Thigpen vs SD

David Garrard vs GB

FA: Kyle Orton vs NO

Trent Edwards vs NYJ

Pick 2 RB:

AP vs Arizona

Maurice Jones Drew vs GB

Steve Slaton vs TEN

Tim Hightower vs MIN

Warrick Dunn vs ATL

Kevin Smith vs IND

FA:

Pierre Thomas vs CHI

Pick 2 WR:

Lee Evans vs NYJ

Jerrico Cotchery vs BUF

Roy Williams vs NYG

FA:

Antonio Bryant vs ATL

Mark Clayton vs PIT

Anthony Gonzalez vs DET

Davone Bess vs SF

Thanks!

Pick 1 QB:

Kurt Warner vs MIN

Brett Favre vs BUF

Ben Roethlisberger vs BAL

Pick 3 RB:

AP vs ARI

Chris Johnson vs HOU

Matt Forte vs NO

Steve Slaton vs TEN

Tim Hightower vs MIN

Larry Johnson vs SD

Hehe, I don't need a wr choice, I've only got 2 (thankfully they're Anquan Boldin and Steve Smith)

Pick 1 (defense):

NE @ Oakland (picked up specially for this week's matchup)

Green Bay @ Jax

Thanks guys!