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Side question: Is there a way to tell who “reacts” to your posts? Or is it always “somebody”? Or is there a poster named “somebody” who is my biggest fan?

Tim Anderson hit lead off 4 games last year, hit .474 (6 for 19) with 2 doubles and a HR. OPS of 1.211. His second best slot was 6th, where in 12 games he hit .426 with OPS of 1.161. He mostly hit 2nd (65 games) or 7th (35 games), where he basically hit his seasonal averages. Here's one little tidbit. As the first batter of an inning, with 119 PAs, his slash line was .455/.470/.714/1.184. Based on those numbers, I would hit him lead off to begin the season. He also led the team with 17 SBs, so there's that. Even though he only walked 15 times, you have to see what he can do at the top of the lineup. If he fails, the Sox have options. Luis Robert would tend to be my pick to lead off once he's established. He didn't walk much either in the minors. 11 walks in 202 ABs in AAA. But the OBP was .341. And he can steal bases. But the key is that he's got power to drive in the bottom of the order guys, and he'll eventually be one of your best hitters, so give him the extra ABs. Nick Madrigal doesn't strike out, but that doesn't make him a great lead off batter. It makes him a great batter behind someone with speed who is on base, because you can hit and run, and he can get deep into counts without fear of striking out. This allows more pitches to steal a base. Madrigal posted a .398 OBP in AAA over 28 games. That's certainly excellent. But his OPS is .792 compared to Robert's .974. Who do you want having more ABs? Robert or Madrigal? It's no contest. Given this, here's my initial lineup to start the season, but only until Robert shows he's ready to hit better than Anderson. 1. R - Anderson 2, SW - Moncada 3. R - Abreu (whether he deserves to be here or not, this is where Renteria is going to keep him) 4. R - Jimenez (or could be Encarnacion). This is based off his ridiculous September when he mashed .340/.383/.710/1.093 5. SW - Grandal - he might hit 4th, but I keep him here for better R/L balance 6. R - Encarnacion (he hit better than Abreu last year - could be 3rd, 4th, or 6th) 7. L - Mazara (against lefties, I put Robert here, with Mazara's platoon partner 8th) 8. R - Robert - only until he shows he's ready to hit major league pitching, then he trades places with Tim Anderson 9. R - Madrigal - even though he should have a good OBP, his OPS will likely be the lowest in this lineup. This allows him to hit behind a speed guy where his bat control should have extra value. And if he gets on, he's poised to be driven in by the top of the lineup. The reason I put 8, 9 and 1 together is those are the 3 fastest players in the lineup, so you can play speed games with them. You can also play the hit-and-run game at the bottom of the lineup with Madrigal, and with either Anderson or Robert in the 8 hole, you can steal and have them score with a single by Madrigal.

Stone should start doing eyeballs.

Robert Moncada- S Abreu Eloy Grandal- S Encarnación Timmy Mazara- L Madrigal

Yoan shouldn't be anywhere but the 2 or 3 spot. Didn't they try leading him off last year and he was bad or am I mis-remembering? He is the ideal 2 hitter. Robert Yoan Eloy EE Grandal Abreu Tim Mazara Madrigal Is what I would probably do depending on performance. I like Madrigal at 9 to get on for Robert, wouldn't mind flipping Tim to 8 for the same reason. Abreu is probably cemented at 3rd though because of our manager. Eloy it would depend if he was like the September Eloy or early season Eloy. Either way that lineup is extremely deep and should hit for a lot of power.

So 6 years of Collins for 1 year of a clubhouse cancer ?

Why is he a non-entity to any fans younger than 35? Is he out of touch with younger fans because he’s older? If that’s the case, the majority of announcers are in the same boat as Stone. Stone tweets about the Sox and even replies to fans questions. He appears to be staying in touch to me. Besides, Benetti couldn’t carry Stone’s jockstrap.

That's a fair argument @Sambuca. I like that you believe in it. Hat tip

Edwin Diaz would be a HUGE get, on the level of a Josh Hader IMO. Diaz is a huge bounceback candidate and would give our bullpen the dominant guy.

How about this? Sox Get: Diaz Mets Get: Marte Pirates Get: Collins, Rutherford, Kilome(#10 Mets Prospect)

Robert's OBP is gonna be around 310 at least to start. Speed or no speed, you can't justify leadoff with that. When he gets north of 350 then sure move him up there. Actually he should be 3 eventually, right in the heart of the order Long term this would be awesome too half of the lineup 1 Madrigal 2 Moncada 3 Robert 4 Jimenez 5 Grandal

I want bat control and contact at the top (Madrigal / Anderson) Moncada and Encarnacion (3 - 4) The Abreu Eloy Robert factory (however ordered) Grandal Mazara However you slice it, this line-up should not be boring. That lefty-righty thing is overrated. Either you can hit MLB pitching or you can't.

I think RR goes with something like this to start. TA (until Robert is acclimated) Yo Abreu (we know is will happen) EE Grandal Eloy Mazara Robert Madrigal I would go Robert Yo Eloy Grandal Abreu EE Mazara TA Madrigal Lots of speed and power up top, good mix with the power guys in the middle, and speed at the bottom setting the table for the top again.

Robert, Grandal, Yoan would be my idea 1-2-3

If Robert signs early, I’d shoot for him from the start. Moncada belongs at 2.

He’d make more sense for the Pirates, but far less sense for us. I know Zack has limited trade value right, but giving him up for a reliever with one year of control (plus questionable character) would be terrible.

Imagine being friends with your boss and working for the business you tweet about.

Interested to know how Stone is an insider all the sudden...seems to have legitimate scoop as opposed to WSD

Haha he shot that down real quick.

Thanks sir. All I was saying is he reminds me of Manny Sanguillen and prior to last year his stats were dandy for a catcher. He also has a helluva arm. Let's not discuss this and re-cause a commtion. Just saying I had my reasons, not trolling. The Sir understands me apparently. Thanx.

I feel Madrigal is the only option at lead off that makes sense. He’s the one guy who doesn’t have to sacrifice anything else in his offensive skill set to get on base. It’s pretty much the name of this game, although I do understand a lot of that will come from BA. If he can’t produce a high BA then he doesn’t really belong in the majors anyways. I believe the Sox will instill in him a more patient approach. Not only to draw more walks, but to ensure he’s making contact on the pitches he can drive. Which would in turn increase his BA. He belongs at the top of the order. Moncada belongs 2nd. Those are the main two spots I feel most strongly about.

Robert, Yoan, Eloy puts lots of first inning runs on the board.

I like Madrigal Moncada Abreu Grandal Encarnacion Eloy Mazara Robert Anderson

I would've loved that trade except change it to where the Sox get Marte prior to acquiring Mazara

Benetti is cool, and works well with Stoney. Steve would never ask Jason to carry his jock because, you know, he’s not a dick.

Looked at the Twins depth chart and I don't know if there are even three positions that the Twins are better than the Sox. MAYBE a slight edge at SS, DH and CF. Also the Sox seem to have a better rotation.

I bow to your obvious wisdom of Collins and knowledge of the future. I presented a case study...Ted Simmons, who I think is similar to Collins. TS put up 45 WAR in a 9 season stretch almost all of it with offense...his average DWAR over 21 seasons was basically 0. You countered with...what...his 30 bad at bats in June? To state categorically that Collins will not be a future hitting star because of his swing and miss issues (He hit .280 in AAA which is not helped by juiced ball or BB&T) echoes what others here said about Moncada last year at this time. Seems someone said half way through the season that he would NEVER hit above .280 in a season...except, your know, last year. What is one of Moncada's best skills...his elite batters eye, which allowed him to learn to wait for pitches he could hit. If Collins, as a lefty, can hit .275 in the majors and walk 100 times...and hit 30 homers...and be a slightly below average defensive catcher...he will be a 10 time all star. Obviously that is his ceiling. I am just bothered by the suggestion his ceiling is back up catcher and pinch hitter.

Robert Anderson Abreu Moncada Jimenez Grandal Encarnacion Mazara Madrigal

I’m just glad they showed up. Vs second string or not...they still can’t score but at least they didn’t lose by 40 and end the year on a complete dud.

Ugh, Madrigal, Vaughn, Moncada and even Grandal would be better than Anderson. If your OBA is .22 above your BA You would have to hit like Rod Carew every year. Not bloody likely with TA.

Kevin White, Adam Shaheen, Mitch Trubisky... Pace would’ve wasted the draft pick anyways. How this guy is still employed is amazing.

But when a better reliever could be had for $5M, it isn’t worth trading a top 10 prospect for.

Considering they need to give Raiders a worse pick as they can, I'll take it.

Anderson had a 357 obp last year. He may regress but wouldnt oppose to him leading off and yoan hitting second to open the season.

Must be very gratifying work.

Rutherford's hitting metrics were pretty good last year. He had an avg exit velocity of 91 mph. 46% of his balls in play were 95+ mph and 6% were hit 105+ mph. There's power in there he just has to lift the ball more often and at 22 years old he has plenty of time to figure that out.

Having Leury and his awful OBP would be managerial malpractice

They aren’t adding another poor glove guy to the mix IMO. If they do add another OF I’d imagine they would at least provide some defensive value relative to Eloy & Mazara.

Domingo Santana looks like a good platoon option, at least offensively. Defense is pretty bad though.

I don't really see Robert as a leadoff guy. He's fast and has power but he's unlikely to post a BB rate above 5% (based on his MiLB career) and he doesn't have the elite contact skills of Madrigal or (to a lesser degree) Anderson. I think ideally he will be a 5/6 hitter with considerable power but an OBP that hovers between .320 and .330. Madrigal would be ideal, but he has to hit first. If not, i'd prioritize on-base skills over speed. That might mean Moncada or even Grandal leading off.

I'm with you Fathom. I can see why Collins might not have a fit on the roster, but I still want him DHing against RHP even with Encarnacion. For Kela, I would not give up Collins. I'd give up an A ball player. I don't think Kela would require much in trade.

Speedy little fast guy who makes contact? Yes. Once he gets situated toward the bottom of the lineup, Renteria will likely fall in love and move him to leadoff.

Yeah IDK why legendary sportscaster Steve Stone would be getting any information at all from the front office when theres a direct pipeline. You're right, he should save it for the REAL insiders with less direct communication.

Nope, I sit behind my screen on White Sox forums for a living

90 wins is within range. I would say i would bet on us being between 85 - 88 at the moment.

Elijah Tatis?

How you haven’t been suspended yet for blatant trolling is beyond me.

Wow, there is some real optimism here. To win the division, or even to make the playoffs as a wild card, a few things will have to happen. 1. Starting pitching will need to take a huge leap forward. We all expect Giolito to repeat, or even get better. Keuchel and Gonzalez have been pretty reliable, so we can likely expect normal years out of them. After that, Lopez and Cease need to take leaps forward, or at least one of them does if Kopech steps up when he can return. Rodon will also most likely be needed for depth because you never get through a season with 6 starters. 2. The bullpen will need to be stronger. There will a lot more games where we will need our A pitchers to hold a lead or stay close, and fewer B games where we're so far behind it doesn't matter what the pen does. That can burn a pen out quickly if it's not deep enough or managed well enough. Just ask the Nationals. We all expect the Sox to make additions here. 3. Robert will need to hit the ground running. He's much more important to the offense than Madrigal, who is going to hit from the get go, but doesn't have the power to change a game. It would be great if he signed an extension and started Opening Day. What would hurt is if he has the growing pains Moncada had as a rookie. 4. We need pretty good health. Every team gets injuries, and we have more depth to cover than we did last year. But we can't lose one or more of our mashers or key starters for an extended period. 5. Renteria has to manage the team he has, with appropriate adjustments for the players hitting and pitching skills. On the offensive side, that likely means less bunting, for example. For the pitching, managing the bullpen will be critical. Managers do make a difference. I'm not going to predict a W-L number. But I think the team will have a shot at making the postseason.

I love Madigral as a prospect, but I can't imagine them extending him yet. You don't know hat type of player he will be, nor his eventual worth. The guy they need to extend is Moncada. He recently proclaimed his desire to play here for his whole career. Strike now while he's still feeling all warm and fuzzy.