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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 really cannot see the Sox signing Puig. He’s not that good. They want to give Mazara at bats. And Puig isn’t going to sign to platoon, especially on the wrong side of it. I do not dislike Puig and he may be a nice guy. I just don’t like the potential disruption of a young clubhouse that looks to be coming together really well. I do believe if a team has enough talent, those kind of teams are the ones that surprise people. If he actually is a jerk, that stuff does matter. You’re not just on a baseball field with him, you’re pretty much tied to him for the majority of the year. In short, his production is nowhere near good enough to potentially have his attitude become an obstacle. I think the the Sox know this.

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

I don't. Robert's going to be their most electric player. 8th is a weird spot.

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.

I think he earned one more year. I have my issues with him but the team didn’t give up and the culture is supposedly pretty good. He has a lot to learn and I think he has the mentality where he will give an honest assessment of everything over the offseason. Reality is everything came too easy for Bears a year ago (players and coaches) and I think from the kicking absurdity in the offseason to the fact that this team had so many guys only used to being on Bears that not enough people realized how difficult it is to consistently win in the NFL really is. I think the lack of edge and maybe arrogance around team certainty had major implications on the season. Mitch being so apprehensive to throw the ball downfield as well as his injury and his shoddy play certainly contributed as well. That said a good offseason, an easier schedule, and some slight adjustments and I can certainly see this team being back in playoffs and back with a nice trajectory...but with Mitch’s future much more in doubt they are going to have a tough choice to make as to how to handle QB situation.

I like Blake but with Mazara as the platoon lefty RF for the next two years, he seems to be blocked.

Relievers are volatile...Givens clearly had a rough year with the long-ball. Other than that, he had a career high K rate (12.3 per 9) and a BB rate just above his career average. I’d happily gamble on a return to form given his stuff.

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.

Of all the problems they have the offensive line is still the worst. How many negative plays have they had today against the 2nd team defense.

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

Must be very gratifying work.

I'd either go 1-2 with Robert and Moncada or 1-2 with Madrigal and Robert. If the former is the way they go, put Madrigal at 9.

That's the same skill that makes him ideal for #2. Fox like.

Kela would be a one year rental, I don’t think it makes much sense to trade for him. Same goes for Giles. I would rather just sign a guy like Hudson or Harris personally.

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.

I don’t see us trading prospects for a one year stop gap, but I could see the Sox trading McCann for one if it’s the right reliever. Maybe that’s not Kela though.

On day 1, should be Yoan. The research on lineup construction would say you want your best hitters to bat 1, 2, and 4. If it's not clear which of your top 2 hitters is better, put the faster one at leadoff. So we should have Yoan 1, Eloy 2, and Grandal 4. Anderson is probably our 5th, 6th, maybe 7th best hitter and should be low in the order. We should make Robert and Madrigal prove their worth although I don't think Madrigal has the ability to be a top half of the order hitter even with everything going well.

On base more important than anything else. If he doesn’t get out, he needs to lead off. That’s just basic baseball strategy

Ultimately, if everything goes to plan, it will 100% be Madrigal. He struck out like 5 times total last year. He’ll get on base. That’s all a leadoff man has to do

On opening day I assume TA. Once Robert is up he will. But I think RR will shuffle this around.

Well, there's a real scoop LOL! Yes, Steve, it actually does make a big difference, depending on what they give up.

Please do not move Collins.

my god why the fuck is stone the mouthpiece. he's a non-entity to anybody younger than 35. sorry I can no longer include myself in that as of this year.

Advanced metrics like him but he's just not very good and gives up a million HRs. He's one of those guys that remind me new age stats and metrics on pitchers have kinks still. You can't tell me Lance Lynn was the 11th best player in baseball last year for the same reason, despite having a really good year.

I feel the same way about White Sox expectations. The amount of potential within the offense is honestly scary. Scary good. The pitching staff on the other hand is what makes me a little bit nervous. I hope our 2 newly aquired vets can stay healthy. If they do stay healthy and Dylan Cease and Michael Kopech dont totally bust, I think our pitching staff will be among the best in the AL. I've already prepped myself to expect Rodon and Lopez both to have alot of time coming out of the bullpen after the break. Hey, more depth! We need depth when we have alot of question marks currently in the pen. I predict that TA will regress to about a .290 avg but Im sure he will be working hard on his OBP because Im pretty sure he will be batting leadoff until Robert is ready for that role. Abreu's numbers will probably decline as well, and as much as I love Jose, I feel batting him 5th or maybe even 6th in the order makes alot of sense and honestly if it helps the team I dont see why Abreu wouldnt be ok with that?? (If anynody has more knowledge about that situation please fill me in.) James McCann will regress, and I also dont think Mazara is all of sudden going to become a star, but I do think he will hit .260 with about 25 Dingers. Not too shabby if that happens. I think Grandal, Moncada, EE and Giolito will have similar seasons to 2019 which would be great. I think Eloy and Robert are going to just CRUSH the ball this year. I think Cease and Kopech are going to pitch great in the 2nd half and just keep improving. I think Collins, Madrigal and Garcia will all help in major ways. I think Ricky Renteria will do his thing. He seems like a great guy and him being bilingual is so huge for this team. IMO we will have our hiccups in the first few monthes especially with our younger pitchers, but an amazing 2nd half is something I can see this squad pulling off. *My HONEST prediction is 89 wins...Sox win the AL Central...Giolito, Moncada, Grandal, and Jimenez all make the All Star Team. Eloy in the Derby. Robert AL Rookie of the year* This is my verrrry FIRST and verrrry optimistic post on Soxtalk! Dont be too hard on my positivity and lack of statistics guys!! I think we can all agree that this team is going to be extremely fun and exciting not only for White Sox fans but for Baseball fans around the league. I have not been this excited for a team since Ventura and Big Frank were in our lineup! Lets Go White Sox!

Robert is younger and was better at every level. He’s more athletic and has way more value in every way, and did not come up to mlb and look like he couldn’t catch up to fastballs.

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.

It would be nice if Robert and Madrigal were up from the start of the season because they should naturally struggle a bit in the beginning acclimating to the speed of MLB. This year is going to be much more entertaining and the Sox could make the playoffs by dominating the Tigers and Royals but I still think 2021 is when we really start to roll. If I had to guess, I'd say 87 wins in 2020.