CaliSoxFanViaSWside Posted November 9, 2018 Share Posted November 9, 2018 (edited) Was digging and came up with a Cruz/ Machado link/friendship/mentoring thing from 2015 . Interest in Cruz due to Machdo ? I'd say yes. https://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/bal-orioles-observations-on-machados-friendship-with-cruz-and-brittons-wild-ninth-inning-20150811-story.html This is the crux of it. Asked whether they would remain friends despite being separated, Machado said: “Hell yeah, hands down, no matter where he goes. He’s that’s type of guy, no matter what. He came out to my charity event. I wasn’t even the one who called him. I didn’t want to bother him. I know he’s busy. He called me up and said, ‘Hey, I know you’re having your charity event. Can I pass by? … My daughter and kids, they’d love to bowl.’ … That’s just the type of person he is. I think the relationship we built last year, it’s not just going year to year, but it’s a lifetime relationship we'll have. " Edited November 9, 2018 by CaliSoxFanViaSWside add Machdo quotes Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Asked whether they would remain friends despite being separated, Machado said: “Hell yeah, hands down, no matter where he goes. He’s that’s type of guy, no matter what. He came out to my charity event. I wasn’t even the one who called him. I didn’t want to bother him. I know he’s busy. He called me up and said, ‘Hey, I know you’re having your charity event. Can I pass by? … My daughter and kids, they’d love to bowl.’ … That’s just the type of person he is. I think the relationship we built last year, it’s not just going year to year, but it’s a lifetime relationship we'll have. "
chitownsportsfan Posted November 9, 2018 Share Posted November 9, 2018 I've watched Cruz a lot here in Seattle. I think he's got another good season with the bat in his tank. But I don't really see why the Sox would sign him unless they are planning on clearing up room at DH and contending in 2019 and that means signing a lot more FA after Cruz. Maybe they are, if they spend a bunch of money I'll stop complaining for a minute. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GreenSox Posted November 9, 2018 Share Posted November 9, 2018 Don't see the point. Org is loaded with DH/1B types. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CaliSoxFanViaSWside Posted November 9, 2018 Share Posted November 9, 2018 22 minutes ago, GreenSox said: Don't see the point. Org is loaded with DH/1B types. Did you read the post 2 above yours ? If you think the Sox signed Castillo as a good player but also a player with ties to Machado then you would have to think a Cruz signing is also an attempt to woe/impress Manny/. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Balta1701 Posted November 9, 2018 Share Posted November 9, 2018 7 minutes ago, CaliSoxFanViaSWside said: Did you read the post 2 above yours ? If you think the Sox signed Castillo as a good player but also a player with ties to Machado then you would have to think a Cruz signing is also an attempt to woe/impress Manny/. Just bid the extra $30 million you'd spend on Cruz on a higher contract for Machado and play Palka. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thad Bosley Posted November 9, 2018 Share Posted November 9, 2018 12 minutes ago, CaliSoxFanViaSWside said: Did you read the post 2 above yours ? If you think the Sox signed Castillo as a good player but also a player with ties to Machado then you would have to think a Cruz signing is also an attempt to woe/impress Manny/. Quick! Who are Harper’s baseball bff’s! We need to find and sign them as well, as quickly as possible! 😁 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Balta1701 Posted November 9, 2018 Share Posted November 9, 2018 16 minutes ago, Fan O'Faust said: Quick! Who are Harper’s baseball bff’s! We need to find and sign them as well, as quickly as possible! 😁 Adam and Drake LaRoche #FamilyFirst Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CaliSoxFanViaSWside Posted November 10, 2018 Share Posted November 10, 2018 1 hour ago, Balta1701 said: Just bid the extra $30 million you'd spend on Cruz on a higher contract for Machado and play Palka. I'd guess Cruz gets a 1 year deal. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caulfield12 Posted November 10, 2018 Share Posted November 10, 2018 1 hour ago, Balta1701 said: Adam and Drake LaRoche #FamilyFirst Aren’t they still in Thailand busting up trafficking rings? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GreenSox Posted November 10, 2018 Share Posted November 10, 2018 2 hours ago, CaliSoxFanViaSWside said: Did you read the post 2 above yours ? If you think the Sox signed Castillo as a good player but also a player with ties to Machado then you would have to think a Cruz signing is also an attempt to woe/impress Manny/. I just think that's silly stuff. It's like trading for 1 year of Machado so that he'll see how wonderful Ricky's clubhouse is and will sign for cheaper. Or they make silly move A to flip in move B. Just a bunch of contrivances. That stuff just never works out. And fortunately, it usually never gets off the ground. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CaliSoxFanViaSWside Posted November 10, 2018 Share Posted November 10, 2018 52 minutes ago, GreenSox said: I just think that's silly stuff. It's like trading for 1 year of Machado so that he'll see how wonderful Ricky's clubhouse is and will sign for cheaper. Or they make silly move A to flip in move B. Just a bunch of contrivances. That stuff just never works out. And fortunately, it usually never gets off the ground. I like to think of it as leaving no stone left unturned. I don't think it's an attempt to get him cheaper. They know they are going to have to still outbid everyone. It's just laying the groundwork to tell Machado we want to make you happy . We don't want to be bad anymore and we will do everything in our power to build a winner as quickly as possible. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whisox05 Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chicago White Sox Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 I know people will disagree, but I’m all for Cruz at the right price. Given his market size should be tiny, I’m glad to hear we’re actively engaged and staying in the mix. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YouCanPutItOnTheBoardYES! Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 Unless they get one of Harper/Machado, I don't understand the point of Cruz. Might as well let Palka DH full time in that case. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chicago White Sox Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 10 minutes ago, Whitesox27 said: Unless they get one of Harper/Machado, I don't understand the point of Cruz. Might as well let Palka DH full time in that case. What if it improves our chances of landing one of those guys? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YouCanPutItOnTheBoardYES! Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 2 minutes ago, Chicago White Sox said: What if it improves our chances of landing one of those guys? I wouldn't be opposed to it if that was the case, though I can't imagine that signing 38 year old Nelson Cruz would sway their decision to sign here or not. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Polar Bear Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 4 minutes ago, Whitesox27 said: I wouldn't be opposed to it if that was the case, though I can't imagine that signing 38 year old Nelson Cruz would sway their decision to sign here or not. It puts us more in a win now mode and adds a player that is good friends with Machado and a feeat clubhouse presence 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Balta1701 Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 24 minutes ago, Whitesox27 said: Unless they get one of Harper/Machado, I don't understand the point of Cruz. Might as well let Palka DH full time in that case. Daniel Palka should be the main DH for this team in almost any case. Perhaps some platoon Davidson or Abreu time there when a lefty is on the mound. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob Sacamano Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 (edited) 7 minutes ago, Balta1701 said: Daniel Palka should be the main DH for this team in almost any case. Perhaps some platoon Davidson or Abreu time there when a lefty is on the mound. Signing Nelson Cruz would be the exception. I can't quite remember, but didn't someone provide stats later in the season showing that Palka had actually improved over the course of the season defensively? If the Sox could find a cheap, right-handed, at least average defender (not Engel please) to platoon with him in RF, I'd be fine rolling with that in RF. Edited November 21, 2018 by soxfan2014 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Balta1701 Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 1 minute ago, soxfan2014 said: Signing Nelson Cruz would be the exception. I can't quite remember, but didn't someone provide stats later in the season showing that Palka had actually improved over the course of the season defensively? If the Sox could find a cheap, right-handed, at least average defender (not Engel please) to platoon with him in RF, I'd be fine rolling with that in RF. Defensive splits aren't exactly convincing numbers or something we should trust, even if they were something we want to think is positive. Palka is a solid DH right now and there's a good chance he could hit comparably to Cruz next year. Cruz put up only a .850 OPS last year, no matter how many home runs he hit that's down 75 points from where he was the previous year, a similar dropoff next year would put him below Palka's 2018. Take the money given to him, put an extra $10 million in the Machado offer, and put players where they belong. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChiSox59 Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 26 minutes ago, Balta1701 said: Defensive splits aren't exactly convincing numbers or something we should trust, even if they were something we want to think is positive. Palka is a solid DH right now and there's a good chance he could hit comparably to Cruz next year. Cruz put up only a .850 OPS last year, no matter how many home runs he hit that's down 75 points from where he was the previous year, a similar dropoff next year would put him below Palka's 2018. Take the money given to him, put an extra $10 million in the Machado offer, and put players where they belong. The $10M paid to Cruz doesn’t mean they can’t add $10M to Machado. Not really how it works. I am all for Cruz on a 1 year $8-10M deal. Still plenty of AB for Palka. He’s terrible defensively; but depending how the roster looks I am Ok with him getting OF reps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chicago White Sox Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 33 minutes ago, Balta1701 said: Defensive splits aren't exactly convincing numbers or something we should trust, even if they were something we want to think is positive. Palka is a solid DH right now and there's a good chance he could hit comparably to Cruz next year. Cruz put up only a .850 OPS last year, no matter how many home runs he hit that's down 75 points from where he was the previous year, a similar dropoff next year would put him below Palka's 2018. Take the money given to him, put an extra $10 million in the Machado offer, and put players where they belong. Cruz had a wRC+ of 134 last year, good for 19th amongst qualified hitters. You are ignoring park factors and the fact that his peripherals suggest he didn’t really fall off that much last year. But I know Balta, everything with you is linear and whatever happened the year before is predictive of the next. Let’s just ignore his massive BABIP drop and assume he’ll continue to decline so much that he’ll somehow be worse than Palka next year. While anything is possible, the odds are high that Cruz is a significantly better hitter than Palka next year. Steamer has his wRC+ projected to be 34 points higher. I can totally understand the argument against adding Cruz, but trying to rationalize it based on production is bat shit crazy. And for the millionth god damn time, $10M to any free agent will have zero impact on our ability to land Machado. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Balta1701 Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 3 minutes ago, Chicago White Sox said: Cruz had a wRC+ of 134 last year, good for 19th amongst qualified hitters. You are ignoring park factors and the fact that his peripherals suggest he didn’t really fall off that much last year. But I know Balta, everything with you is linear and whatever happened the year before is predictive of the next. Let’s just ignore his massive BABIP drop and assume he’ll continue to decline so much that he’ll somehow be worse than Palka next year. While anything is possible, the odds are high that Cruz is a significantly better hitter than Palka next year. Steamer has his wRC+ projected to be 34 points higher. I can totally understand the argument against adding Cruz, but trying to rationalize it based on production is bat shit crazy. And for the millionth god damn time, $10M to any free agent will have zero impact on our ability to land Machado. I'm sure you'll be surprised to hear this, but his falloff last year was almost entirely due to decreased performance against 4 seam fastballs, it was his worst season against the hard stuff since he got on the juice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jose Abreu Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 3 minutes ago, Balta1701 said: I'm sure you'll be surprised to hear this, but his falloff last year was almost entirely due to decreased performance against 4 seam fastballs, it was his worst season against the hard stuff since he got on the juice. You said the same thing about Abreu in June, and claimed that Greg Bird was a better hitter, and then Abreu went on a tear (positive regression to the mean) before his injury issues Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chicago White Sox Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 1 minute ago, Jose Abreu said: You said the same thing about Abreu in June, and claimed that Greg Bird was a better hitter, and then Abreu went on a tear (positive regression to the mean) before his injury issues He did say this (over & over again) and based it entirely on Fangraphs pitch value, but ignored all the Statcast data I provided that showed no decline against high velocity fastballs. It was slower fastballs that were the problem during Abreu’s slump. But hey, once Balta has an idea in his head, it’s literally impossible to convince him otherwise. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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