December is “the” month. It is the month of my Mother’s Birthday. It is the month of my Birthday. It’s the month of Jesus’s Birthday. It is the month that we Aussie’s call – The Silly Season.

Christmas in this part of the world occurs in Summer. It’s hot here, damn hot! Regardless of the lack of snow, we still follow alot of the traditions that people in colder parts of the world do. Things like making plum puddings, gathering for a scrumptious lunch or dinner on Christmas Day, running all over town in search of the right present, the Christmas card write-a-thon and the main event, the decorating of the Christmas Tree.

Most of us Aussies use artificial trees. It has been the rare occasion that our Family had a real tree taking pride of place in the lounge. For our little family, decorating the tree is a big deal. Both the boys put on their decorations, and Mum or Dad help them reach the higher parts of the tree. Each takes a turn each year to place the star on top, while the other has the task of turning the Christmas lights on.

Decorating the Christmas Tree - 2008

This is little event is very much looked forward to in our home. It brings back great memories and creates a few new ones. Nothing silly about that.

Enligt den tyska hemsidan westline.de är den holländska storklubben nära att köpa Schalkes och den turkiska landslagsmannen Halil Altintop.

Anfallaren har inte fått mycket speltid i Schalke denna säsong under tränare Magath, och är redo att försöka återgärda detta någon annanstans.

Halil Altintop kom till Schalke 2006 och har spelat 96 matcher, endast gjort 16mål. Hans kontrakt går ut sommaren 2010.

PSV’s tränare Fred Rutten är enligt uppgifter en stor beundrare av Halil och skulle mer än gärna lägga till honom i PSV trupp.
Halil Altintop var ordinarie i Schalke förra säsongen och då tränades klubben utav just Fred Rutten.

Även Frankfurt och Galatasaray är intresserade av honom.

The official beginning to the silly season is upon us. It is a chance to think back on all the wonderful things one has and appreciate the some wonders of one’s life. For many people though, it is an opportunity to dwell on all the things they are missing, to reflect on situations unexpected / unfortunate and over-analyze the subtleties of life itself in minute detail and generally turn themselves into an emotional mess.

With all the holly jolly going on in every which direction and happy faces projecting some type of supposed holiday cheer it can become easy to feel alone if you’re jobless, relationshipless, familyless, moneyless, etc. One can pretend they are ok with their situation when around crowds of people and the support of those around them, but that hollowed out feeling when one returns home comes back even greater having been exposed to the excess elation.

It’s no wonder then suicides seem higher from the Thanksgiving Day through New Year’s Day. Even for the strong willed it can be a trying time. How do you gauge reality, when reality shifts and the solid ground you once put in trying to find a foundation suddenly feels like quicksand under your feet?

Putting on a happy face only makes it worse as the effort and energy it takes to front a good situation emotionally can be draining, leaving nothing left for the wee hours of the night when you need to retain that focus the most. Feeling torn up inside from having lied ones way through happiness and betraying their own situation doesn’t help at all. Then there’s seeing all those happy people and knowing your own issues and the inevitable comparisons begin and possibly jealousy ensues. Of course too, there’s the inquiries to which one really has no good answer prompting frustration and loathing. The greying, cold weather plays into the mess and the next thing you know, the complex flood of emotions begins to eat away at even the positive.

And, there you have it… the intellectual, analytical types pine away at half-attempts at reasoning, drilling away at the cracks of reality with all kinds of excuses to deteriorate their mindset into a swirling mess of what if’s and would have’s… while the spiritual, emotional types pry into their hearts searching for answers focusing on all the things wrong and how they are the root cause of them creating a mushy, de-congealing sadness… with the net-effect of a damned, sad soul created in the crevice of a crappy set of circumstances because the holiday henchmen have hacked away at reality.

Those around mean not make the situation worse by putting on a happy face… nor is the corporate commercialization meant to contribute to the craziness of people’s emotions like that… nor was the original intent of the season itself supposed to bring out the dark side of humanity, but it does, for a great many people.

Sadly, many who suffer from holiday depression don’t admit it and may not even understand they are suffering from it.

I’ve been there. The complexities of life have played up to all the best-worst traits that make me who I am. The analytical nature of my being comes out in its utmost asininity during this time of year critiquing and criticizing nearly everything under the inundating weight of the holiday hell. The eternal realist in me over-balances itself and inherently reaches for strides to take the highs lower but unfortunately is not always as successful at getting the lows higher to reach an equilibrium, thus robbing me of the euphoric nature and leaving me leaching from that analytical reasoning. Then, the reflective introvert begins to go haywire because in the depth of the holiday crowds when I’m not the person being stopped on the street to take pictures of tourists i begin to crawl into my own mind and find all the flaws, and the late nights spent alone provide more than enough opportunity to ostracize myself from the positives.

The thing is, (nearly) every time I feel myself fighting a bout of self-stupidity… go figure. When any other time, the rational, introspective, realist in me can be some kind of asset, there is always the opportunity for the whole thing to backfire and become a liability with just the right catalyst.

Knowing all I need is a catalyst, like tripping the sensitivity of one of my quirks, or an irrational situation beset with the free will and emotions of another, or, just some illfated reflection itself, i can completely understand why this time of year can wreak havoc on other people. It’s never been my feeling to that degree, but I can begin to relate from that respect. If looking at the world around you and all it’s candy coated holiday hedonism is enough to drive a sane person crazy, it must really be a hum-dinger for one who is not completely at peace with themselves for whatever reason. After all, normal is already tipped on its side, tip it again with all the expectation of the season and its sure to be expatriating.

So simple things like relationships (budding or established), money (lost or found), employment (having or not), etc. all of a sudden take on a greater meaning that the albatross-like weight they may already be carrying as one moves into the silly season and the next thing you know it goes from a graying color pallet to a technicolor terror that is more dizzying that daffodils.

Giving thanks may not be as easy as it appears for a great may people around you this holiday season. There may not be as much to celebrate, despite what might appear from an outside perspective. That is not to imply that one shouldn’t be happy for what they have and express it as they feel most comfortable and confident in doing, but it wouldn’t be without a bit of compassion in the spirit of the season to remember that not everyone can embrace their elegance as well as you. An unexpected hug or extra few minutes might be enough to provide an extra sense of euphoria but be cognizant of the complete picture and really take the sincere time to touch someone more than superficially this season.

It’s more than just a time to give thanks for what you have… It’s a time to help someone else remember why they need to give thanks for what they have too, or next season, perhaps, you might have one less person to give thanks with and the silly season will continue is sad soliloquies fading into the distance never to be heard speaking again. Just something to think about… the gift of life is nothing that can be purchased from a store shelf come black friday…

Enligt dansk media så ska Olafur Skulason under dagen genomgå den obligatoriska läkarundersökningen och sedan skriva på kontraktet med Sönderjyske. Frågan är om Conny Karlsson under parternas korta möte igår, lyckades få Skulason att ändra sig och därmed stanna i HIF? Min åsikt i frågan är att Skulason gärna får stanna, men inte som en nyckelspelare utan snarare som en breddspelare. Han besitter inte de egenskaper som HIF behöver på sitt innermittfält, så enkelt är det. Under dagen lär vi få svar.

Conny Karlsson är på plats och det kommer hända saker med truppen, frågan är om CK tar med sig någon lirare från Assyriska?  Blir lite nervös när jag läser att Stefan Batan är kontraktslös.

I övrigt hoppas jag HIF inte är en av de klubbar som jagar Kenny Pavey,  AIK:aren vars kontrakt gått ut och inget nytt är påskrivet. Elfsborg sägs vara en av klubbarna som jagar den galne Milwall-fantasten.

Tror det kommer dröja till kommande vecka innan det kan börja bli klart med nya spelare, frågan är om Bosse är redo att åka ner och scouta lite? Finns det pengar att värva?

Som jag nämnde igår skrev tidningen Aksam att Ivan Obolo kan vara på väg till Turkiet och då vara en sorts ersättare till den skadade Milan Baros. Svenska medier och fansiter verkar blint ha trott på detta rykte och därför kan det vara bra att belysa vad det är för källa alla utgår ifrån.

Igår skrev man i en notis att Sportchefen Haldun Ustunel hittat sin nya anfallare till det kommande halvåret och det skulle då vara AIK´s anfallare Ivan Obolo. Men då kan man ju först och främst nämna att Aksam är en dålig källa, liksom dem flesta andra tidningarna och medierna i Turkiet. I en bransch där man i Turkiet har ett 30-tal tidningar, bygger tidningar ofta sina artiklar på rent nonsens. Noterbart i detta fall är hur samma tidning en gång i tiden skrev att Derek Boateng var klar för Sivasspor. Dagen därpå gick AIKs hemsida ut med att man sålt Derek till Israel.

Annat som talar emot detta rykte är att LigTV, som är en av få trovärdiga källor i dem flesta fallen, igår gick ut med nyheten att Sportchefen och Rijkaard under denna vecka ska prata om dem olika behoven laget har gällande spelare materialet, vilka positioner som måste stärkas och vilka spelare som inte platsar.

Dessutom måste klubbar från Turkiet tänka på kvoten för utländska fotbollsspelare. Man har rätt till att använda 6 utländska spelare i startelvan och byta in 2 ytterligare under matchens gång. Ser man till vilka spelare man har i dagsläget så skulle det vara otroligt onödigt för klubben att värva in en medelmåttig anfallare som Obolo och på så sätt slösa en plats på det.

Rykten kan alltid stämma, men det är tyvärr, mycket som talar för att detta rykte inte blir mer än just ett rykte. Tänk på att den enda källan är AKSAM, alla tidningar i Sverige använder denna tidning som källa. En annan tidning har jag hittat på nätet som nämner detta rykte och det är en tidning vid namn Yenisafak som dessutom skriver att GS skulle vara intresserade av att LÅNA spelaren. Hur stor är chansen att AIK vill låna ut en spelare som vars kontrakt går ut om 6 månader?

Därtill kan man lägga till att Galatasaray gått ut med att man satsar på att vinna Europa League, är detta då en värvning i den linjen som man värvat efter under sommaren då man värvat etablerade namn som Keita, Elano och Franco… inte riktigt i min mening.

Där av ta detta rykte med en handfull salt och inte en nypa och kom ihåg att om ryktena som kommer i Turkiskmedia skulle stämma så skulle MFF´s gamla ytterback vara ytterback i GS sedan 2 år tillbaka och AIK´s kapten Nisse J skulle i fjol ha gjort sin debut i Galatasaray…

Nu är jag äntligen tillbaka och bloggar. Förra veckan var jag bra hängig tack vare en förkylning, men den är på väg bort nu. Skönt! Det hände dock lite grejer förra veckan som jag ska ta och skriva om.

I onsdags ringde hon som jag praktiserade hos i somras och sa att det var något konstigt med hennes webbsida som jag gjorde åt henne. Jag gick in för att kolla detta och då hade Google stoppat trafiken till hennes sida och skrivit att webbplatsen du vill besöka kan skada din dator. Jag började kolla upp detta och laddade hem alla filer till min dator och öppnade upp dem i dreamweaver. Jag behövde inte leta länge förrän jag hittade den skadliga koden i html och javascriptsfilerna. Det hade även lagts in en php-fil som man inte kunde ta bort. Det visade sig att någon/några jävla idioter har hackat och kapat sidan. Det hjälpte inte att jag laddade upp sidan igen utan den skadliga koden, för efter ett par timmar var skiten tillbaka igen. Så fort man går in på hennes webbsida ser man hur statusen laddar vidare till en annan webbsida. Jag läste på om detta via en webbsida som Google länkar till StopBadware.org. Idioterna som ha kapat sidan har tydligen öppnat en bakdörr på webbhotellet som hon har sin webbsida på och styr sidan via en server någonstans i Ryssland eller Asien. Det scriptet som idioterna har lagt in kan vara så illa att det lägger sig på datorn och loggar lösen och inloggningsuppgifter för att sedan skicka vidare.

Jag ringde upp henne och förklarade vad hon skulle göra. Idag fick jag svar från henne och hennes webbhotell har rensat hennes utrymme, gett henne nytt lösen och förhoppningsvis stängt alla bakdörrar. Det jag gjorde efter att jag laddat upp hennes sida på nytt var att logga in på Google och verktyg för webbansvariga. Dör skickade jag in en begäran att de ska granska hennes sida på nytt för att se att allt står rätt till nu och att de kan häva blockeringen. Men än har Google inte hävt den och runt 18-tiden idag laddade jag hem hennes webbsida igen för att kolla koden och då såg den ut som vanligt. Nu är det bara att hålla tummarna för att detta förbannade problem är löst.

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I fredags fick jag svar på jobbet som jag sökt och gjort en presentation för. Det var negativt. Svaret jag fick var att just nu har de inget behöv av mina tjänster, men om det dyker upp något i framtiden kommer de höra av sig. Så kan det gå. Nu är det bara att leta vidare. Nu på onsdag ska jag iväg och träffa min kontaktperson på arbetsförmedlingen och diskutera min situation. Det är så att jag kollade med henne som jag praktiserade hos i somras om hon ville ta emot mig igen. Hon kan tänka sig att låta mig praktisera hos henne i fyra veckor och detta ska jag ta upp med arbetsförmedlingen. Jag ska även kolla med AF om deras starta eget kurs då jag har börjat tänka i de banorna nu när det är så förbannat svårt att hitta ett jobb. Det är bara att köra.

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Nu börjar silly-season ta lite fart inför att transferfönstret öppnas i januari. Det ryktas om att den turkiska storklubben Galatasaray vill köpa Iván Óbolo från AIK. Om det ligger något i detta får man nog veta inom en snar framtid. Just nu är AIK:s mästartränare Micke Stahre och AIK:s sportchef Björn Wesström i Brasilien och scoutar spelare. Om de nu skulle hitta någon spelare där blir det inget köp nu då de bara är där för att titta på några namn som verkar intressanta, och om någon spelare visar sig vara av intresse blir det förmodligen en resa till för Micke och Björn.

När det gäller andra spelare som är på väg bort från Gnaget sägs det att AIK:s succémålvakt Daniel Örlund är klar för den norska klubben Rosenborg och att AIK:s högerback Markus Jonsson kan vara på väg bort till den norska klubben Molde. När det gäller Örlund tror jag att han har spelat sin sista match för AIK, men när det gäller Jonsson får man ha lite is i magen om nu ryktena stämmer.

DUBBLA MÄSTARNA ÄR HÄR – AIK!!!

Det var allt för idag.

Adios!

Politikens ”silly season” är i full gång. Inom de flesta partierna pågår nu de interna nomineringarna inför valet 2010. Det handlar om vilka som ska stå högt upp på listorna. Listorna som sedan lägger grunden för vilka som ska företräda partiet i valrörelsen och som därmed ska begära väljarnas mandat att få leda en kommun, ett landsting eller landet.

För mig och de flesta andra, såväl medlemmar som väljare, utgår och det med rätta att den som är listetta är den som kandiderar för att bli KS-ordförande, LS-ordförande eller få en tung position i riksdagen. Svårare än så är det inte. Man ger besked till partiet om sin valbarhet och man söker stödet hos väljarna.

Nu är ju detta något som gäller de flesta. Dock inte Thomas Bodström. Bodström planerar att flytta till USA med sin familj hösten 2010. Ur en familjesituation fullt begripligt, men ur ett politiskt hänseende obegripligt. Bodström ska vara första namn i Stockholm till riksdagen. Ett uppdrag han vill ha, för att direkt efter valet lämna det. Trots det så utgår han från att kunna bli minister.

Det ska bli spännande att se hur detta hanteras av S. Möjligen duckar man. Än mer intressant kommer det att bli att se ur väljarna i Stockholm resonerar. Kommer man att lockas tillbaka till S för att man har ett första namn som inte vill företräda dem?

Bloggar: Göran Pettersson och Under den lugna korkeken och Magnus och Den hälsosamme ekonomisten och motvalsbloggen och Eva Westberg och SVD ledarblogg och MinaModerataKarameller och Tokmoderaten

Olafur Skulason lämnar troligtvis HIF. Som vi tidigare nämnt här på bloggen så finns det bland annat intresse från de brittiska öarna för den isländske mittfältskämpen och under helgen som gick så kommenterade Skulason sin framtid med den isländska nyhetssajten Visir.is där han berättar att han tror att han kommer lämna HIF och att han vill testa något nytt. ( Google translate är inte hundraprocentigt så jag reserverar mig för ev. feltolkningar). Intresse finns tydligen förutom från England även från Danmark och Sverige.

Geez, a guy goes to work for a few hours and comes home to discover that the Twins shed three more players from the 40-man roster and added another.  Busy day.  Most of you have probably seen the list of moves by now, but I’ll summarize with my thoughts:

1.) Armando Gabino was placed on outright waivers and claimed by the Baltimore Orioles.  This doesn’t upset me too much.  Gabino had another option year left, but it was pretty clear in his limited big league time this year that he’s not yet ready to contribute at the Major League level, and there are other players who the Twins should prioritize protecting on the roster.  I’m just fine with this.

2.) Justin Huber was outrighted to AAA, meaning that he cleared waivers.  Huber always seemed to me like the most obvious candidate for removal from the 40-man roster.  He was a late addition, not being added to the 40-man until his contract was purchased on September 8.  He’s out of options.  There’s no obvious place for him to play next year, and no track record of Major League performance to suggest that the Twins should have found room for him.  This move was pretty clearly coming, and now we’ll just have to see if Huber is convinced to come back to Rochester next year to give it another go.  My guess is he’ll be moving on.

3.) Orlando Cabrera filed for free agency.  This was inevitable, it was just a matter of timing.  I never understood why all eligible players don’t just file on the first day of the window, but I’m sure there’s a good reason.  Either that, or their agents are just lazy.  Anyway, with J.J. Hardy in the fold, there wasn’t any chance the Twins were going to negotiate a new deal with Cabrera, so that made it doubly inevitable, I suppose.

4.) In a somewhat surprising move, the Twins purchased the contract of RHP Juan Morillo from Rochester, placing him back on the 40-man roster and protecting him from the Rule 5 draft.  The Twins obviously liked what they saw from Morillo after he was claimed from the Rockies and sent to AAA early in the year.  I like this move, because if Morillo can control his heat (the numbers in Rochester were very promising in that regard), Morillo could be a useful addition to the bullpen in 2010.  He’s out of options, so Spring Training will be make or break for him.  Still, he’s worth protecting and I’m glad the Twins stuck him back on the roster.

I wanted to post a few thoughts that immediately came to mind about today’s Carlos Gomez for J.J. Hardy swap.  There’s a good bet that I’ll be talking more about this in the coming days (and probably weeks and months):

1.) I’m surprised the Twins went this direction rather than making a concerted effort to bring Orlando Cabrera back.  Cabrera worked out pretty well for the Twins after they acquired him at the deadline.  Perhaps he was insistent that he wanted to test the market.  Maybe the Twins see more upside to bringing in Hardy.  Whatever the case, it still surprises me.

2.) Michael Cuddyer is a mainstay in right, Denard Span deserves to start every day in one position, and Delmon Young showed signs of life in his bat late in the season that the Twins couldn’t ignore.  That left no place for Gomez to play.  At least the Twins decided to get a major league caliber player for him who will (hopefully) help the club next year.

3.) A lot of people think that trading Gomez (shortly after Kevin Mulvey was sent to Arizona in the Jon Rauch trade and Philip Humber became a minor league free agent) makes the Twins front office look bad for the Johan Santana trade, since now only Deolis Guerra is left from the deal.  I look at it differently.  I’m a firm believer that you need to evaluate trades at the time they are made, not after the fact.  GM’s can get lucky or unlucky just like the rest of us.  A good GM makes smart decisions based on what he knows at the time the deal takes place.  If you want to call the Santana deal bad, fine — but base that argument on the trade when it happened, not on what has gone down 2 years later.

4.) Incidentally, the Twins now can be viewed as having traded Santana for Deolis Guerra, a year of J.J. Hardy (the problem with writing when you don’t have time to look up facts is that you tend to make things up, as I did here — Hardy is not eligible for free agency for a couple of years), and a year and a half of Jon Rauch.  I’m not sure what to think about that.

5.) One last point regarding the front office looking bad for moving players acquired in the Santana deal.  For those of you who feel that way, what exactly do you want the front office to do?  Let’s say Bill Smith makes a bad trade (you could certainly argue the Santana deal was one — I’m a little more generous and will say that he made the best deal that he could make given the circumstances, although he could have managed the clock on the deal a little better and might have been able to make a better trade earlier).  Either way, should a front office that makes a bad trade be forced to keep the underperforming players in a desperate bid to demonstrate that they’re still worth something?  Or should a GM that finds himself in that situation do what he can to fix the situation, either through a trade (as with Gomez and Mulvey) or by getting rid of the player (as with Humber)?  I don’t think it makes a GM look bad just because he moves a player who was involved (and arguably the centerpiece) of a previous big deal.  The trade itself might make the GM look bad, but not the fact that he moved a guy.

Who do you think will be in EGR’s #1 Bass Pro Shops Chevy next season ? The seat of #1 Chevy that’s been piloted by Martin Truex jr. for the past 7 or 8 years is up for grabs and an announcement could be coming this week on who will replace Truex.  A few names have circulated the garage area the past few months and the conversation always end with Jamie McMurray getting the nod, which coincidently is where McMurray started his Cup career subbing for the injured Sterling Marlin.

My personal opinion is it won’t be Mac daddy(Jamie McMurray) in the drivers seat, I hope I don’t ruin his chances because I’m always wrong but I think Bobby Labonte will be the pilot of the EGR #1 Chevy. He seems like a better fit past champion, team leader, huge fan base, and a bit of an outdoorsmen which is something Bass Pro Shops wants. That might be the key because Bass Pro contract ends at the end of the 2010 and they have an eye on sponsoring #39 Ryan Newman who is an outdoorsmen and would be a great fit for Bass Pro unlike McMurray who is not an outdoorsmen, so if EGR does go with McMurray then it pretty much sends Bass Pro to the #39 if EGR goes with Labonte they have a chance of re-signing Bass Pro at the end of 2010. Really it all depends on how confident EGR is about sponsorship in 2011, Bass Pro has only purchased 23 races in 2010 so EGR will have to find a Primary sponsor for the #1 for the remaining 13 races, they have a slew of associate sponsors maybe they can convert one of them to the primary spot.

HIF-bloggen har under lördagskvällen fått uppgifter på att HIF är en av flertalet klubbar som anmält sitt intresse för Bajens Emil Johansson, precis som JJ berättade i HD. De uppgifter vi har fått tyder på att Elfsborg och Malmö FF är två av klubbarna som är intresserade av Bajenbacken, samt ett par klubbar utanför Sverige.

Andreas Dahl finns på HIF:s lista men inget konkret intresse ännu, däremot ska två allsvenska klubbar anmält sitt intresse för Dahl. En av klubbarna ska tydligen vara guldjagande IFK Göteborg.

Trevlig helg!

HIF-bloggen lanserade under förra veckan något som vi valt att kalla “Detektivavdelningen” och redan nu har vi fått in en del tips.

Det mest intressanta som kommit fram är att vi från två olika läsare fått info om att HIF har hört sig för angående Adelstam i ÄFF. Detta styrks dessutom av att vi från en tredje källa fått liknande info, denna gång muntligt. Hurvida källorna är tillförlitliga eller inte är svårt för oss att avgöra men Silly Season är ju ett virrvarv av rykten och detta är ett sådant. Kanske blir någon av dessa två läsare belönad för sitt tips.

Vet du något speciellt eller hemligt om en allsvensk spelare eller om ett allsvenskt lag? Känner du till något som inte kommit ut i tidningarna? Har du bilder som avslöjar något unikt? Har du sett något som du inte borde? Hört något spännande? Hör isåfall av dig till : hifbloggen@live.se

Bom dia, fufeiros. Hoje esbarrei, quando navegava pelo site do jornal inglês The Times, com o seguinte gráfico, que mostra de forma cristalina a aposta do jornal no que eles acham que será o grid da F-1 em 2010. Para mim, apenas mais um grid baseado nos boatos que estamos ouvindo recentemente, mas não deixa de ser curioso. Quem quiser ver o gráfico, bonitinho até, clique AQUI (formato PDF, já aviso. Não me culpem se os vossos browsers travarem!!).

Quem não tiver saco (ou for sensato), porém, não se aflija. Abaixo segue a lista da aposta do Times, com meus comentários. Beijundas, e uma óóótima semana a todos!

Ross Racing
- Jenson Button
- Nico Rosberg

Acho uma aposta sensata. Tem boas chances de acontecer.

Red Bull
- Sebastian Vettel
- Mark Webber

Não tem muito o que dizer. Ambos estão confirmados e, salvo uma reviravolta de última hora, como Kimi no lugar de Webber, será isso mesmo.

McLaren
- Lewis Hamilton
- Kimi-Matias Raikkonen

O Times faz uma ressalva, dizendo que Button é agora candidato também. O time prateado quer Kimi, mas para isso tem de convencer Luisinho e Luisão. Não é fácil.

Ferrari
- Fernando Alonso
- Felipe Massa

Aqui meu comentário vai para o fato de o Times ter grafado o nome de Fernando na frente. Será que teremos NOVAMENTE a saga do “dono do Ferrari da câmera vermelha”? Me poupem.

Toyota
- Jarno Trulli
- Kamui Kobayashi

Tomara, tomara! Quero ver o Koba-San! Fiquemos de olho, porém, na possibilidade de Kimi ficar sem time e acabar aceitando correr na equipe nipônica.

Williams
- Rubens Barrichello
- Nico Hulkenberg

Acho que será isto mesmo, mas nada está confirmado ainda.

Renault
- Robert Kubica
- Timo Glock

Não sei de onde o Times inventou que o Glock vai correr na Renault, mas enfim, vá lá. Seria uma dupla interessante.

Force India
- Adrian Sutil
- Vitantonio Liuzzi

Podem mesmo manter a dupla, mas Liuzzi não me parece tão garantido, não. A conferir.

Toro Rosso
- Sebastien Buemi
- Jaime Alguersuari

Outra dupla que pode ser mantida ou não, como diria o Caetano. Buemi me parece praticamente certo, mas quanto ao Alguersuari, não sei não…

Manor
- Lucas di Grassi
- Heikki Kovalainen

Di Grassi de fato está em negociação bem adiantada. A dupla com Kovalainen faria sentido para o time, que buscaria a experiência em um dos pilotos. A conferir.

USF1
- Pedro de la Rosa
- Kazuki Nakajima

Posso morder a língua, mas a dupla me parece totalmente improvável. Totalmente.

Campos
- Bruno Senna
- Nelson Tamsma

O Times, quem diria, aposta em Piquet no grid, e chama a Campos de “Brazilian Dream Team”. Menos, menos. Além do mais, o time é o que está com maiores dificuldades financeiras. Arrisca nem alinhar no Bahrein.

Lotus
- Fairuz Fauzy
- Anthony Davidson

O piloto malaio nada fez de expressivo para justificar uma vaga na F-1, mas a nova Lotus é sediada na Malásia, portanto a indicação faz sentido. Antônio Pizzonia andou conversando com os caras também, e torço por ele. Vocês sabem, qualquer um é melhor que o “meu desafeto” Anthony Davidson (só pode ser mal do nome, não é possível).

Qadbak (ex-BMW)
- Nick Heidfeld
- Romain Grosjean

Eu aposto em Heidfeld em outro time. Ele tem experiência, pode ser útil aos estreantes. Não acho que a BMW irá sobreviver, infelizmente. Quanto a Grosjean, se sumir do mapa ninguém se dará conta.

Silly Season

Har en egen lista på spelare som jag gärna skulle vilja se i klubben till kommande säsong, listan kommer redigeras efterhand.

Andreas Dahlén, vänsterback i Gefle som ännu inte skrivit på nytt kontrakt. En av seriens bästa vänsterbackar.

Miiko Albornoz (blden) i BP är en oerhört talangfull vänsterback ev. mittfältare.

Daniel Sjölund är en kreativ mittfältare som har ett utgående kontrakt och vore perfekt i HIF.

Niklas Nielsen i BOIS, en jättetalang som inte bör spela i Superettan ett år till.

Malmös Gabriel är en stor, tuff och enkelt spelande mittback och kommer inte överrens med MFF om nytt kontrakt. Kräver nog dock en del i lön.

Samtidigt hoppas jag HIF tar en titt på unga lovande spelare i Superettan.

Silly Season På E-zine går debatten vidare kring vad som bör hända inför nästa säsong och användaren “Stolt HIF:are” kom med en önskelista med hyfsat realistiska värvningar:

Emil Johansson: Helt klar intressant med ett bajen i superettan blir säkerligen inte någon jättedyr lösning.
* Luton Shelton: Fast på bänken och vill röra sig vidare. Har ett flertal gånger sagt på bla facebook att han hade sett fram emot en sväng till på Olympia.
* Erik Edman: Kör förmodligen sin absolut sista säsong men inte fått spela särskilt mycket. Bör överväga att komma till Olympia redan till jul..
* Alvaro Santos: Ingen jätte trolig värvning men åker ÖIS ner måste HIF iallafall diskutera med honom.. Klart användbar och agera som mentor för yngre spelare.. Gått rykte om en klausul som säger att han kan lämna ÖIS vid nedflyttning.
* Jonathan Berg: En intressant spelare som inte fått tillräckligt med uppmärksamhet. Duktig i offensiven och grymma frisparkar. Kan bidrag med mer defensiv arbete än makondele iallafall..
* Pavel Zavadil: Åker ÖIS ner vore det tjänstefel att inte försöka locka över honom till HIF. Klart den bästa spelaren i ÖIS och jag tror han hade funkat mycket bra med Lantz.
* Prince Ikpe Ekong: En annan jag hemskt gärna hade sett bredvid Lantz, stor och stark som en varg kan mycket vara den nya mariga. För mig är det ett jävla under att han inte fått spela mer i djurgården med sina 200.000kr i månaden.
* Daniel Sjölund: I sina stunder kan han vara en av det bästa i allsvenskan, har mycket i sig men varit skadedrabbad pga sin viktnedgång. Tror med lite träning och några kilo till så är han en tillgång.
* Paulinho: Häckens anfallare som absolut borde vara intressant för en rimlig summa. Kan blomma ut hos oss ordentligt. Kanske en aningen dyr men det skadar inte att höra med häcken.
* Simon Helg: Vad vore ett allsvenskt lag utan Simon? Nä, just det.

Nu vill vi ha in så många önskelistor på spelare som möjligt. Alla som kommer in kommer publiceras. Antingen skickar du den till hifbloggen@live.se eller så skriver du den här under kommentarer.

Ett axplock av spelare vars kontrakt går ut efter säsongen:

AIK: Markus Jonsson

Djurgården: Daniel Sjölund(bilden), Mikael Dahlberg

Gefle: Andreas Dahlén, Yannick Bapuba, Yussif Chibsah

Göteborg: Tomas Olsson

Halmstad: Magnus Bahne, Ajsel Kujovic

MFF: Gabriel

Detta är bara några av de spelare vars kontrakt går ut, jag finner åtminstone ett par stycken intressanta för HIF.

Vilka spelare tycker ni att HIF ska försöka knyta till sig när vissa lag kommer tvingas spara pengar? Vilka spelare i Djurgården, Hammarby eller Örgryte bör HIF hugga på när det står klart vilka klubbar som får lämna Allsvenskan?

Sjölund från DIF?
Emil Johansson som ny vänsterback?

Dela med dig av dina tankar!

Please see the new post regarding Rene Tosoni — it may make the discussion of Tosoni in this post rather premature.

My last silly season post covered the question of which players the Twins should remove from the 40-man roster (or at least, the players that the team should think about removing).  The roster space cleared up by these maneuvers will help the team create space for free agent signings and possible trade additions — but more immediately, it will also make room for the Twins to protect a number of promising young players from December’s Rule 5 draft, which will take place on December 10 in Indianapolis.  The team needs to get those players on the roster by November 20 in order to protect them, and the Twins usually wait until close to that date to make their additions.

If you’d like to see a complete list of the players eligible to be taken in the upcoming draft, you can check out my new page on Rule 5 Eligibles (accessible anytime by clicking on the page link on the right side of the screen).  There are far too many to comment on all of them, but the rest of this post has a few thoughts on players who I think should get at least some consideration for protection by being added to the 40-man roster.  Unfortunately, the Twins face a bit of a tough challenge this year, as there are more players who arguably merit protection than there are going to be spaces available on the roster.  As a result, this could be an ugly December for fans of the minor league system.

Very Likely to Be Protected

Anthony Slama – RHP Not eligible until 2010 — I forgot he was a draft-and-follow (thanks to Seth for pointing that out)

Many Twins fans were clamoring for the right-handed Slama to be promoted to the Twins during the season, and for good reason.  In 51 games with the New Britain Rock Cats, Slama posted a 2.48 ERA and 1.19 WHIP with 12.8 K/9 and an overall 93-32 K-BB ratio.  While the Twins were hesitant to bring him up all the way to the big leagues from AA ball, he did win a promotion to Rochester, where he posted a still respectable 3.45 ERA and 1.21 WHIP with 10.9 K/9 and a 19-8 K-BB ratio in 11 games.  Slama may not be quite ready for the big leagues mentally (the Twins apparently didn’t think so), but he seems the perfect candidate for a Rule 5 selection by a team like the Nationals or Pirates, who could always use quality arms.

Danny Valencia – 3B

Valencia’s name, like Slama’s, surfaced a lot in late August and early September as a possible September callup.  The chatter wasn’t all that surprising — the Twins will need to protect the promising third baseman from the Rule 5 draft this year, and if he was going to find his way onto the 40-man roster anyway, why not put him on in September and give him some big league seasoning?  Frankly, he would have made more sense on the roster than Justin Huber (who, let me remind you, got 2 whole AB’s in September).  The Twins decided, for whatever reason, to go in another direction in September.  It would be highly surprising for them to expose Valencia to the draft this December, however.  His .284/855 in 218 AB’s for New Britain showed his promise, and he backed it up (mostly) with a .286/758 in 269 AB’s for the Red Wings after earning his promotion.  The difference in OPS, by the way, was almost entirely the result of Valencia’s hugely diminished walk totals (he drew just 8 in Rochester, as opposed to 31 in 51 fewer AB’s for New Britain).  Look for Valencia to get on the 40-man, and to get a long look in Spring Training (even if the Twins pick up a free agent third sacker on the free agent market).

Strong Candidates for Protection

Alex Burnett – RHP

Burnett had an outstanding season, split between Ft. Myers and New Britain.  A 1.99 ERA and 0.93 WHIP, coupled with a 10.3 K/9 and 26-7 K-BB ratio compiled in 18 games for the Miracle led to a promotion.  Burnett backed it up impressively, with a 1.79 ERA and 0.99 WHIP, 8.5 K/9, and 52-19 K-BB ratio in 40 games with New Britain.  That performance earned him a trip to the Arizona Fall League — a sure sign that the team has faith in Burnett.  The only reason I don’t have him in my “Very Likely” list is that he’s spent only slightly more than half a season at the AA level, and so is still a bit raw.  That might make him less likely to be selected in the draft, or to be returned to the Twins if he were selected, and therefore could increase the likelihood that the team will take a chance on sliding him through the draft unprotected for another year.  I suspect that a strong performance over the next month in the AFL would force the Twins hand a bit — it’s hard to keep a guy a secret if he has success in a showcase league that GM’s are paying a lot of attention to.

Rob Delaney – RHP

Since 2007, Delaney has been one of the outstanding pitching prospects in the Twins systems.  That continued at the beginning of the 2009 season, when Delaney posted a 2.00 ERA and 1.06 WHIP, 10.0 K/9 and 40-6 K-BB ratio in 36 innings with the Rock Cats.  His solid performance earned him a promotion to Rochester, and 47.2 innings later Delaney had a 4.53 ERA.  Other categories, however, suggest that Delaney was a bit unlucky — his 1.22 WHIP, 7.2 K/9, and 38-15 K-BB were still at pretty acceptable levels.  I would think, therefore, that the Twins won’t place too much emphasis on the increased number of earned runs.  His performance to this point has been strong enough to warrant protection, and he’ll probably get it.  There’s just enough of a question, however, that I can’t put him in my “very likely” list.

Brian Dinkelman – 2B

Given the Twins lack of middle infield depth in the organization, it seems prudent to protect solid players like Dinkelman.  The left-handed-hitting Dinkelman hit .296/823 for New Britain this year in 459 AB’s — a marked improvement from the .247/668 he put up for the Rock Cats in 198 AB’s for the last half of 2008.  Dinkelman doesn’t seem ready for the big leagues yet, however, and while the Twins probably would like to protect him, the fact that he’s never performed above AA might make them confident in their ability to carry him through this year’s draft unprotected, giving them another year to evaluate him.

Possibilities

Steven Singleton – 2B

Singleton was given a chance to play in the AFL over Brian Dinkelman, which may suggest that he is a stronger candidate to get a spot on the 40-man roster than Dinkelman is.  Personally, however, I don’t quite see it that way.  There are a number of possibilities for why Singleton and not Dinkelman may have gotten the nod.  For instance, the Twins could have decided that they already know whether they want to protect Dinkelman or not, but want to further evaluate Singleton.  Dinkelman may have been hurting after a long season, and needed a break.  Maybe the Twins just wanted Singleton to get more work.  My point is that I feel justified in including Dinkelman in a higher category despite his absence from the AFL and Singleton’s inclusion in it.  Singleton’s numbers with New Britain (.291/737 in 158 AB’s) were not as strong as Dinkelman’s, and he has less experience at the AA level.  To me, that makes Dinkelman a more likely candidate — but a strong AFL season for Singleton could perhaps change my (and possibly the Twins) way of thinking.

Rene Tosoni – OF

Tosoni is another AFL player who could potentially earn his way onto the roster with a solid winter league season — although it seems like nothing more than a slight possibility.  His numbers for New Britain this season (.271/814/15 HR) were reasonably strong, but I’m not sure if he fits a need in the Twins 40-man roster right now.  It may be better off for everybody to leave him off the roster and give him a chance to catch on somewhere if he has a chance to do so.  A monster AFL season, however, could change the calculus and convince the Twins to exchange him for Jason Pridie on the roster.  His way forward just seems awfully limited in Minnesota, so we’ll see what happens.

Erik Lis – 1B/OF

Speaking of players who are blocked with the Twins!  Lis had a nice season with New Britain, hitting .283/815/17 HR in 459 AB’s.  Where can he be expected to play, however?  Justin Morneau is obviously the team’s 1B.  Jason Kubel fits nicely as the DH.  Lis has never played above AA.  Yes, they could protect him and see if a spot opens up for him (and, just as importantly, if he plays well enough at AAA to even warrant a shot at the big leagues) — but while I see it as a possibility I think it’s more likely that he’ll be left off again this year.

Matthew Fox – RHP

Fox was a 1st round pick back in 2004, and has made steady progress through the organization since missing the 2005 season.  His 3.58 ERA/1.32 WHIP for New Britain (coupled with a 7.2 K/9 and 120-56 K-BB ratio) were reasonably solid, and he’s now had 4 solid seasons in a row.  But how much should the Twins value solid (but not exactly spectacular) seasons at the AA level and lower?  Is he worth a roster spot?  While I think it’s possible I also think the answer is probably no, at least for another year.

Wild Card

Deolis Guerra – RHP

What role will pride play in Bill Smith’s decision making?  Guerra is, of course, best known as a part of the Johan Santana trade — and at the time many pundits thought that Guerra would make or break the deal.  He was (and is!) very young, with a great deal of potential.  Two seasons later, Guerra has yet to develop into the type of pitcher the Twins were hoping they were getting, although there are some positive signs.  Guerra was, to put it kindly, downright bad in 2008 with Ft. Myers.  His 5.47 ERA and 1.61 WHIP were dreadful, his 4.9 K/9 was nothing special, and his 71-71 K-BB was cause for considerable concern.  While his 2009 numbers were far from gaudy, they nonetheless showed decisive improvement.  First, in Ft. Myers, he put up a 4.69 ERA and 1.39 WHIP.  His K/9 jumped to 5.9, and his control improved, improving his K-BB to 57-25.  That was enough for the Twins to move him up to AA, where he posted a higher ERA (5.17), but improved his WHIP to 1.26, his K/9 to 7.0, and his K-BB to 49-17.  He seems far, far away from MLB ready — but he is still incredibly young, and has shown enough signs of improvement that a team may be very willing to snatch him up in the Rule 5 draft.  Protect him?  I’m leaning towards yes, but I think it’s far from a clear case.

Others

There are other intriguing players that could find themselves on the roster.  For instance, it’s intriguing to think what Loek Van Mil could do if he put it all together — but he seemingly remains nothing more than a project at this point.  David Winfree had a nice season for Rochester — but probably not anything that will get him serious consideration for the 40-man.  Kyle Waldrop is a former first round pick who had a 1.46 ERA and 1.24 WHIP in 55.2 innings for New Britain — but his K-BB and K/9 numbers aren’t that strong, making me wonder how strong a prospect he really is.  Is he worthy of a roster spot?  Are any of the other players I didn’t mention?  We’ll find out in about a month what the Twins think.