Sox have inside track on Abreu

[ThunderBolt]

Abreu wants an insane amount of money. Doesn't look like an option for a rebuilding team. http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/8945572...-Angels-uniform

[RockRaines]

Abreu wants an insane amount of money. Doesn't look like an option for a rebuilding team. http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/8945572...-Angels-uniform

He's not going to get near that number. I want alot of things I wont get too.

[G&T]

He's not going to get near that number. I want alot of things I wont get too.

 

Maybe not, but after the Ibanez deal he'll get $10M-12M.

[JohnCangelosi]

Why the hell do we want this guy???? Really? He's not that good. God I hope this report is wrong. He's basically the same age as JD without the same production....I cannot believe this

[SoxAce]

The only thing I don't get is the sox are preaching young, youth, kids, etc.. It absolutely makes no sense to basically get another outfielder basically the same age as Dye regardless if he's the better hitter when they are trying to dump the high contracts. Personally, I'm not buying this.

[Jordan4life_2007]

Why the hell do we want this guy???? Really? He's not that good. God I hope this report is wrong. He's basically the same age as JD without the same production....I cannot believe this

 

It's been proven in this thread many times that Abreu, outside of power, is a better overall offensive player than JD. Until JD is actually traded, there's no sense in putting any stock into a single Abreu/WhiteSox rumor.

[ThunderBolt]

The only thing I don't get is the sox are preaching young, youth, kids, etc.. It absolutely makes no sense to basically get another outfielder basically the same age as Dye regardless if he's the better hitter when they are trying to dump the high contracts. Personally, I'm not buying this.

It's contingent on a Dye Trade. The thought process is Bailey + Prospect + Abreu> Dye.

[ILMOU]

It's contingent on a Dye Trade. The thought process is Bailey + Prospect + Abreu> Dye.

 

Make it happen Kenny! We need a RHP with serious upside to fill out the rotation for '09 and beyond. I love the idea of Abreu as our #2.

 

Now, a little dreaming. The scenario as we end July and enter August of the '09 season:

 

Let's assume Viciedo excels in B'Ham, thriving in the warm Alabama sun despite the park's dimensions, and mostly avoiding the moonpies. Beckham does what I expect him to do, which is kick ass and force a May or June callup. Poreda looks real good at Charlotte, enough to be called up in July. Bailey being groomed to enter the rotation after excelling as the long man in the pen. lA lineup and rotation could emerge that could kick ass for the stretch run. Also, Fields does well enough in early months to warrant serious trade value before the trade deadline, and KW lands more pitching/prospects, and making room for Viciedo, whose fielding in the minors is surprisingly crisp.

 

The major league club has performed well to this point, with Getz and Taveras setting the table competently. The veteran pitchers at the top of the rotation have been great, overcoming inconsistency from Marquez and Richard. Getz shows enough moxie, that there will be talk of grooming him for a super-utility role for '10, giving him appearaces at 3B and SS. Lillibridge and Betemit have been adequate IF backups.

 

Now, in come the reinforcements.

 

The lineup at the end of the season '09:

 

Beckham 2B

Abreu LF

Q RF

Thome DH

Konerko 1B

Axelei SS

AJ C

Viciedo 3B

Taveras CF

 

Rotation:

Danks

Floyd

Buehrle

Bailey

Poreda

 

Pen:

Jenks

Thornton

Linebrink

Dotel

Link

Richard

Marquez

 

Poreda moved to the pen for the playoffs. And it's just the beginning... Don't wake me up.

 

I'm bored like the rest you, so I'm going to start a future seasons projection thread, or otherwise propose a return a Kenny's Big Board thread.

 

 

[chisox2334]

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/articl...vTXGJgD955BNOO0

[ThunderBolt]

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/articl...vTXGJgD955BNOO0

hmmm... Ozzie confirms interest. That's a bit suprising to hear him just come out and say it.

[justBLAZE]

Him and Bobby are Venezuelan Pals.

[caulfield12]

Make it happen Kenny! We need a RHP with serious upside to fill out the rotation for '09 and beyond. I love the idea of Abreu as our #2.

 

Now, a little dreaming. The scenario as we end July and enter August of the '09 season:

 

Let's assume Viciedo excels in B'Ham, thriving in the warm Alabama sun despite the park's dimensions, and mostly avoiding the moonpies. Beckham does what I expect him to do, which is kick ass and force a May or June callup. Poreda looks real good at Charlotte, enough to be called up in July. Bailey being groomed to enter the rotation after excelling as the long man in the pen. lA lineup and rotation could emerge that could kick ass for the stretch run. Also, Fields does well enough in early months to warrant serious trade value before the trade deadline, and KW lands more pitching/prospects, and making room for Viciedo, whose fielding in the minors is surprisingly crisp.

 

The major league club has performed well to this point, with Getz and Taveras setting the table competently. The veteran pitchers at the top of the rotation have been great, overcoming inconsistency from Marquez and Richard. Getz shows enough moxie, that there will be talk of grooming him for a super-utility role for '10, giving him appearaces at 3B and SS. Lillibridge and Betemit have been adequate IF backups.

 

Now, in come the reinforcements.

 

The lineup at the end of the season '09:

 

Beckham 2B

Abreu LF

Q RF

Thome DH

Konerko 1B

Axelei SS

AJ C

Viciedo 3B

Taveras CF

 

Rotation:

Danks

Floyd

Buehrle

Bailey

Poreda

 

Pen:

Jenks

Thornton

Linebrink

Dotel

Link

Richard

Marquez

 

Poreda moved to the pen for the playoffs. And it's just the beginning... Don't wake me up.

 

I'm bored like the rest you, so I'm going to start a future seasons projection thread, or otherwise propose a return a Kenny's Big Board thread.

 

 

Don't forget Carasco...and KW is really high on Nunez (Yankees), and Jimenez (Blue Jays) to a lesser extent. I think we'll see both of those pitchers with the Sox before we see Link this year, unless he has an incredible spring. Heck, Russell or Wasserman could factor in there, too, before Link.

 

 

[greg775]

Get me Dunn and McLouth. Now.

[caulfield12]

Who are you willing to give up for McLouth? Are you willing to trade Fields and/or Poreda, knowing/assuming that KW isn't going to give up Viciedo or Beckham?

[beck72]

If the sox have a deal for Dye, then offering Abreu Ibanez money and yrs makes sense. The sox can move Abreu to DH for the last two yrs of a deal. Ozzie's key quote was Bobby 'needs to get a deal that gets him the most yrs'. Only an AL team can do that

[MO2005]

Get me Dunn and McLouth. Now.

 

Ok Greg you want a guy in Dunn who strikes out 200 times a year and a guy in McLouth who had relatively one good season. I don't get why people are so high on Dunn when all he does is strike out 3 times a game and hit one long solo homer. This is not what the Whitesox need because we already have it. Can anyone say Jim Thome?

[Frank the Tank 35]

Who are you willing to give up for McLouth? Are you willing to trade Fields and/or Poreda, knowing/assuming that KW isn't going to give up Viciedo or Beckham?

 

Fields? I think they have some low-level prospect named Pedro Alvarez. I know they aren't too high on him, but you never know...

 

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08353/935944-63.stm

 

The Pirates are on the verge of signing catcher Ryan Doumit to a multiyear extension, and it could happen within the week, according to a source directly involved in the negotiations.

 

But negotiations with another core player, center fielder Nate McLouth, have gone much differently, with agent Mike Nicotera last night confirming that the chance of achieving a multiyear extension is "close to dead." The parties now are working on a basic one-year contract, the type most commonly arranged for players eligible for salary arbitration.

 

"There's a pretty stark difference between how we evaluate what Nate has done and what we believe his future will be, and their evaluation of that in terms of placing a dollar value on it," Nicotera said. "When that's the case, it's very difficult to reach an agreement."

 

The Pirates generally do not comment on ongoing negotiations.

 

Doumit, McLouth and starter Paul Maholm each is first-time eligible for arbitration, but the Pirates -- in keeping with management's precedent for core players -- decided instead to pursue multiyear extensions. From the team's standpoint, this approach can offer cost certainty through the three arbitration years. From the player's standpoint, it guarantees money.

 

With or without extensions, though, the team controls the player's rights through arbitration for those three years, after which he can become a free agent. In McLouth's case, that means he will remain the Pirates' property -- extension or not -- through 2011.

 

"And Nate's fine with that," Nicotera said. "He doesn't mind having a one-year deal. We're very confident in what he'll be able to do."

 

McLouth had a breakout 2008, batting .276 with 26 home runs and 94 RBIs while winning the Gold Glove in center field. He made $425,500, which was $35,000 above Major League Baseball's minimum wage.

 

Nicotera was asked if the Pirates' view of McLouth as a center fielder or corner outfielder -- management has acknowledged that top prospect Andrew McCutchen could take over in center someday soon -- affected the disparity in perceived value.

 

"No," Nicotera replied.

 

Nicotera did not divulge specifics, but multiple sources confirmed the parties never were in the same stratosphere in terms of dollars.

 

They'd have to be looking for pitching, middle infield depth, or a great corner OF.

[ThunderBolt]

Don't forget Carasco...and KW is really high on Nunez (Yankees), and Jimenez (Blue Jays) to a lesser extent. I think we'll see both of those pitchers with the Sox before we see Link this year, unless he has an incredible spring. Heck, Russell or Wasserman could factor in there, too, before Link.

Did we bring back Carrasco? I thought we might, but i think we declined an option. Still a chance for him to come back, i guess.

[caulfield12]

Carrasco's still on the official roster and not on the MLB list of non-tendered players...

[ThunderBolt]

With Bradley and Burrell soon to be off the market things on the Abreu front are going to speed up . I imagine we’ll be hearing quite a lot more about Bobby Abreu for the next two weeks. Still, don’t think it’s a certainty, but if we did sign him it might force the Reds hand.