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I don't think you're wrong, and I think what is going to end up happening is that they're both going to sign a 1-year deal sometime in May, and go at it again next offseason. Edit: Laugh all you wan't people, but they won't sign long term for less than $300M. I think they'd rather take a 1-year deal and go at it again next year than sign something ridiculous to them like 7/175.

Dammit, guys. I went to lunch for an hour and got excited when I saw 5 new pages upon my return. All of those pages were arguing about Aroldis Chapman and the Sox market share. Damn you all.

Okay, just finished the bottle of NyQuil with salt. Tasted pretty weird. What do I do next to get on the dream quest?

I miss when the White Sox were considered to be good enough and known that they were the villain in baseball movies.

wut

This Cubs-Sox talk in this thread is ridiculous. First, while we all may be diehards, that doesn’t mean everyone has to pick one team or the other. The value of playing in Chicago is you have access to a huge market when things are going right and can take advantage of a big population of band-wagoners. In terms of true die-hard fan-bases within the metropolitan area, I’d give a slight edge to the Cubs but it’s probably pretty close. What superates the Cubs from the Sox is their support from the causal / transplant audience and much more of a regional reach (i.e. Iowa, etc). No matter how you want to argue it, the Sox are NOT a small market club.

Good lord, the Cubs are not signing either of them and we have known this for 3 months. And Manny Machado isn't taking a one year deal to chase hypotheticals.

Aaaaaaaand that's how get agents to never negotiate with you again

Manny Machado is a 26 year old with no $300 million offers. He's not going to willingly go back out on the market as a 27 year old with a QO attached. He's not taking a 1 year deal.

They won't sign to 1 year deals. Nothing will change from now to next off season in terms of how the market is going to operate. By signing a year deal, they will be risking injury or a down season. Also, their agents won't let that happen. If two of the biggest agents in baseball allow their top players to not get a good deal and let them sign 1 year deals because they were unable to produce a contract for them, that would look awful for them in terms of business. Why would any other player hire them as their agent when those two top agents can't produce for the leagues premier talent? The less talented players wouldn't sign with these two agents who take bigger %'s out of their contracts to get an outcome that any other agent can get. A one year deal will not happen. The market won't change next year, there is too much risk involved, their agents, and their agents ego will not allow these two generational talents to do it.

Sox Twitter created a petition for Hector to throw out the first pitch at a game this season lol

If I know anything about the White Sox fanbase, there isn't a ton of overlap with the Reddit demo

Eh, I like to give them away to fellow Sox fans.

After the Yankees you see more White Sox gear in the New Zealand than any other baseball team. Sox have a good aesthetic. None of these people give a shit about the team but they like the look.

Jack, Most fans are fairweather fans and honestly there's nothing wrong with that. I have been a season ticket holder myself and my family for my entire life. Love the White Sox, but I went to 8 games last year - usually I'd go to 20. I didn't record and watch every game last year - which is something I usually do when they're remotely competitive. As you get older, it just feels stupid to waste 2 hours a day 162 days a year watching something that sucks. Fans have other things to do. The diehard fans will always be there, but the casual fan isn't going to tune in to watch Adam Engel put up a -24 wRC+, or Lucas Giolito give up his 14th homer in the first inning. The casual fan will return when you're good.

That guy has been spewing random rumors all winter and has never been right

Mt. Greenwood, Canaryville, Midway, Beverly, Morgan Park, Pilsen, East Side, Hegewisch to name a few. Edit: Add in Oak Lawn, Blue Island, EP because they might as well be the city too.

As their Arb guys continue to balloon, they need to build a bullpen, and add a starter or 3. Plus there's two 3rd basemen almost equally as attractive next year. The money is not going to be there in twelve months.

In the spectacular rare case that they do sign a one year deal, there is absolutely no bloody chance in hell that they sign it with the White Sox. That has to be one of the worst takes in this entire 585 page depression.

Bob Nightengale was on hot stove and thinks machado will end up with the sox. Says sox are getting more confident as the days go on. Says this is playing out like red Sox and martinez last year. Thinks it will end with in the next week.

I have a good feeling absolutely nothing happens today. No source needed

Since nothing has happened for months, I had more than enough time to carefully select an appropriate reaction gif in the event of him signing with the Sox or elsewhere.

I'd rather the Sox get Harper.

To me, it's more interesting about who tweeted this initially

For the love of all that is holy in baseball, please tell me I'll never have to watch a pitcher hit again.

Ah yes, the JR truthers have arrived. This can't get done soon enough.

Would agree with this, but the problem is the new generation of fans (8-15) that all they’ve really seen is the Sox being bad and the Cubs being good. It’s not cool to be a Sox fan right now.

I agree! if this front office loses on Manny I truly believe it will set back this franchise years in the eyes and support of the fans. Yes, if there ever was a time for the ownership to step up and get this done it is now and with Machado!

They absolutely are the Mets. 100% there is nowhere in Chicago that is Sox first, outside of Bridgeport. I vehemently disagree with that article. I don't believe one bit of it. That may have been true in 2006, but the success of the Cubs in 2007-08 and then again from 2014-present has shifted the landscape drastically.

Not sure about the methodology and validity of the study but the Sox do not have a 47% share of the Chicago market.

I mean, he did trade 7 years of Gleyber Torres for 3 months of a reliever

No chance. The Sox control 47% - according to this study by the Times https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/04/23/upshot/24-upshot-baseball.html - of a major metropolitan area. According to that study, Cook County is split nearly 40/40. Cook County alone is 5.3 million people, meaning the Sox have nearly 2.2 million of that in Cook alone. St Louis has 300,000 people - the metropolitan area has 2.8 million people. Of Sox Fans in Cook alone, they nearly match the total of St Louis. Chicago is a MASSIVE market in which the Sox have a 47% share of. There are 10 million people in this area, and if you want to say the Sox just control 40% of it (It's higher, FTR) then they control a fan base north of 4 million people. That's bigger than the entire St Louis Metro Area. The White Sox are not a small market team; don't let them sell you otherwise. In the early 90's the Sox were a bigger draw than the Cubs. Jerry being a big part of the strike hurt a lot with the fan base, but the Sox still have a market share bigger than 90% of MLB teams.

I posted something a while back in this 75000 post thread but I think any union aims must be considered to be more likely to worry about the fact that only like 50% of free agents found jobs than worrying about top level numbers for Machado. It's very unlikely that any cba changes may increase the individual contracts of Harper or Machado as much as juicing the low-level, mid level markets to get jobs.

Luxury tax is based off the AAV of the deal, not the yearly figure. Therefore backloading it wouldn't make a difference

Ellsbury doesn't come off, and Gardner came off this year, and Harper isn't there. The Cubs have a ton of additional money being added without adding anyone.

Rule #1: No one WANTS to go to Philly.

Yankees and Cubs have big money coming off the books. They both could fit them in without going into the tax next year, which they can't do this year.

Stay in this universe, Parkman is a bit drama

I would've felt the same way had you told me that in November. Now? I would almost be surprised if he doesn't take a one year deal.

If Manny Machado signs a 1 year deal I will eat my hat

Teams will line up around the block to pay Sale, Cole and Bumgarner and I think that could there wont be enough left over for Machado, Harper and Arenado. The Yankees and Red Sox are gearing up for a massive bidding war over Sale in particular. There seems to be a general attitude that position players are not difficult to develop whereas pitchers are near-impossible in comparison. Clayton Kershaw going into his age-31 season after a few years of being seriously hobbled by injury got 3 years, $93 million without even having to negotiate. Meanwhile two 26 year-old star position players cant even get squads to make formal offers. I look at everything going on and think that everything we thought we knew about baseball is wrong.

I've been saying this will drag into the regular season for a while now.

I'm buckled up for this to drag out another month. Everyone should be prepared for that.

The bright side is that baseball isn't the living nightmare that the NBA is where nobody is paid what they're worth (many are overpaid, though!) and players are randomly shuffled between teams in complicated cap-related moves as nobody gives a shit about anybody but perhaps 5 teams and everyone else is stupid unless they get the #1 pick.

Nightengale was on hot stove. Awfully confident Machado would be signing with us next week.

So the guy on espn.com who picks All Star teams is guessing Harper to SD, Manny to Philly. That would be a kick in the nuts. A direct hit.

I have a feeling that something will happen soon.

Frank Robinson - It has recently come out that the Sox were in the hunt for Frank Robinson before the start of the 1966 season as well. When the Reds gave notice they were willing to deal Robinson, whom they considered a ‘malcontent,’ Sox G.M. Ed Short immediately contacted Reds G.M. Bill DeWitt with an offer. The report said that when all was said and done, the White Sox offer was better then Baltimore’s, yet DeWitt sent Robby to the Orioles. In return Cincinnati got pitchers Milt Pappas and Jack Baldschun and outfielder Dick Simpson, one of the worst deals in baseball history. The Sox offered outfielder Floyd Robinson, pitcher Johnny Buzhardt and a third player, possibly All-Star relief pitcher Eddie Fisher (the Sox had the deepest bullpen in the league at the time) With those players Cincinnati won 76 games in 1966. With Robinson winning the Triple Crown, the Orioles swept the Dodgers in the World Series and their dynasty began.