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Donaldson is good. He makes the Twins better in 2020. He is also 34 years old, and the Twins will most likely be paying him $29M in 2023 in his age 37 season. The backend of this deal is going to hurt them - likely quite a bit. Its a strange allocation of resources for the Twins, but frankly, at this juncture in the offseason he was the guy that made the most sense to the spend the money on. There is no SP left worth paying. The Twins allowing it to get to this point is what is strange. This may be a bit of a kick in the balls to the Sox 2020 ALC chances, but this offseason was never about building a WS contender for 2020. Its about the beginning of a 6-7 year window, and this Donaldson move really does very little to negatively impact the White Sox long term outlook. And if Donaldson is unable to stay healthy the next two seasons - the only two in which you can reasonably expect him to earn his money - this deal is really going to hurt the Twins. Twins fan are excited. And they should be. Their previous forays into expensive free agents have pretty much all failed. The most expensive position player free agent in franchise history prior to Donaldson was a 3/$24M deal to Jason fuckin' Castro. So of course they're going to be excited. This move also improves their IF defense quite a bit by getting Sano off 3B, but I remain unconvinced that Donaldson is anything more than an average 3B at this point, though is 2019 defensive metrics were fairly strong. Everything will be OK Sox fans. Twins weren't just going to standby and make no moves in what is the tailend of their window. 85 wins isn't going to win this division, so let's go out and get 90 wins and see where the chips fall.

I like how after one signing by the Twins and a late signing indeed for an aging 3B, some people seem to forget about the offseason we had and that we bolstered our lineup as well along with adding pitching. It’s just amazes me.

Fan card revoked

This is incredibly anecdotal but at least on my Facebook with my friends it's easily NFL, MLB, NCAA then a mixture of Hawks/Bulls depending if their good or not. I'm in my very early 30's. I don't think there is necessarily some down swing in MLB viewership in my age group. There are just a shit ton of Boomers.

Wonder if the Indians’ drumming guy will switch it up for Houston?

I guess you will have to do your own research on those contracts. But you can agree Donaldson is one year older than Abreu since that is a fact. I also find it odd that despite your railings about people duties as human beings in the Sign stealing scandal that you completely ignored the part of my post about how Abreu stacks up as a model citizen and role model. As far as the difference in OPS I figured that would be the 1st thing I heard about. OPS+ JD 127 ,Abreu 119 . So to use one stat against your one stat it's not that big of a difference and that fielding and the position they play is much of the difference in WAR numbers , But maybe you can't agree on that either. Can you agree that since Donaldson is a year older and plays a more physically demanding position that he is more likely to drop off in production before Abreu ? Perhaps not . It is just one year. If the Abreu contract is viewed as an overpay cannot the same be said of the Donaldson contract ? Which contract is more likely to hurt the team if both go bad sooner rather than later ? Frankly I don't like any comparison between the 2 contracts . It is apples and oranges and It might even be apples and watermelons since Abreu has played a roll as player ,role model, recruiter ,member of the community and might even get a statue right next to Minosos in the future. Donaldson hasn't done squat yet for the Twins.

and if Gio regresses to a 3 WAR pitcher or gets hurt...I mean all the concerns about the Twins rotation apply to Chicago's as well. I don't see an argument for saying their chances are weaker than Chicago's based on a rotation comp.

The Twins sign Donaldson and we are all fighting again

Ok after reading the post from ThunderStruck I admit I’m wrong. Donaldson did have a hip injury late in 2016 but I think saying he has been injured for most of his career may be a bit exaggerating. I will take the L but I’m not going to walk away or stop posting and I hope that’s not what you meant by walking away. I really don’t care if your a MOD or what your title is. We should all be respecting everyone’s opinions on this board. I’m sure you command the same respect as I do so let’s move on.

Lol you don't take an L when another team signs a player that you weren't competing for. The Twins offense is better, the Sox as a whole became a lot better over the offseason. the Sox have 19 games with the twins, they need to take care of business in the other 143 and compete with the Twins when they play them. This division is still wide open, I'm just as excited now as I was before Donaldson signed

Robert will be better than Buxton, and Sano has had like one season when he was better than Abreu. Dude is one year removed from being sent down and finishing the season batting under the Mendoza line.

If Tim doesn't keep that .335 up he won't be better than Polanco. Robert is not better than Buxton, yet. And Abreu is not equal to Sano.

Their is no way of knowing what/ how much what factors goes into a player signing a contract unless the player publicly states it. So we are left with this speculation argument which can go around in a circle. You can't correlate Moncada's decision with Grandel or Robert. All three are different people who could have different motives. One thing is clear Abreu has brought a strong Cuban influence in the clubhouse and does actively recruit for the White Sox. Additionally, It is my opinion that it is a good look to take care of your own players and show loyalty even if it cost you a few million dollars. I think 3/33 would have been a fair market deal. So we paid an extra 12 million dollars over 3 years to a player who has strong club house presence, actively recruits other players( whether this plays into their decision), and has been the face of the franchise during some tough times. To me this seems like small potatoes to gripe about.

Or if Polanco reverts back, or Garver doesnt duplicate, or Kepler goes back to 20 HR Kepler. I am not sold on the collective career years of the Minnesota Twins last year. I think Cleveland is the team to beat and I think the Twins will be the most disappointing team in MLB this upcoming season. Donaldson and Cruz are old guys who were banged up a lot in their career. One or both can't be counted on for full season. I don't buy the Power Surge 100% from Kepler and Polanco. I could be way off and they could duplicate last year but I'm not betting on it.

You have no fucking clue what he did and didn’t do yet you have already served as judge, jury, & executioner.

The White Sox should suspend Keuchel because his teammates with another team cheated while he was there? Like seriously man, you are freaking nuts.

MLB just has to do a better job of policing itself or one day the sport will truly suffer. Gambling had been a big problem with Baseball before 1919 but the powers-that-be looked the other way. Then came 1919 and the sport was lucky to survive. MLB knew about Rose and his gambling long before the Dowd Report. And we fans probably know only a fraction about what happened with Rose. And now the player with the most hits in history isn't even connected with the sport. All together Barry Bonds, Mark McGwire, and Sammy Sosa hit nearly 2,000 home runs, yet none are in the Hall of Fame yet. Fans want this minimum: They want an honest game, Yes, they realize many players are far from being role models. But if the game will not survive if fans believe games are being fixed one way or another.

I think they are investing everything on the QB position and its importance. I don't think you bring in coaches so you can land a vet sto-gap like Foles. They are going to add a vet to drive competition and give them a ripcord to pull if things are looking bad 6 weeks in (and in some ways its going to make things even harder for Mitch...because I think he is a guy who lost his swagger this past season with everyone second guessing everything and having someone like Foles/Dalton or whomever beyond him is only going to intensify that). The best case for Bears is Mitch breaks out and basically just doubles down this offseason and takes an F-IT mentality to the field where he just flat out BALLS. Have fun and ball out. Oversimplifying things, but the dude just thinks too much on the field and that breaks down his ability to read and react. And I think a lot of it comes down to that back of the mind, you over magnify on the what can go wrong. vs what could go right). Dude needs a mental coach to help him with visualization, etc. Shoot, I'm not even close to a professional athlete but I deal with that when I play basketball...when I have a swagger that my buckets are going in, they do and I just play quicker and react faster and make moves. When I'm more worried and focused on NOT turning the ball over or making sure I hit the bucket, every part of me moves and reacts just a bit slower and that difference is the difference between me making baskets and getting layups vs. not. Super basic level cause I'm not a professional athlete, but I really think Mitch's issues lay between the ears and not from the smart vs. not smart, but from mental blocks / lack of confidence/swagger. Maybe he can go all Greinke (remember when he finally got past his mental issues and broke through). Dude was ready to retire and play golf cause he was such a mental headcase. Konerko was kind of the same way...he had his best years once he freed up mentally and got over "fear of failing".

The most famous example involves the Chicago White Sox in the 1960s. The following story is related by Jerome Holtzman and George Vass in Baseball, Chicago Style (Bonus Books, 2001): It began ... in 1965 when the Sox were in Detroit for a four-game series. Tommy John was pitching for the Sox and noticed the baseballs had been tampered with. "All the balls I got that day were like cue balls, hard and slick," John recalled. "And the seams were so low, almost nonexistent. When you're a sinkerballer you can't sink the ball without seams." John relayed the information to manager Al Lopez who told him to bring a ball into the dugout after every inning. According to John's recollections, Lopez said, "That's okay. We'll get them when we get back to Comiskey Park." Lopez summoned Gene Bossard, a second-generation groundskeeper who knew all the tricks. Bossard understood what had to be done and began storing boxes of balls in a small, windowless brick-walled room. He installed a humidifier. In two weeks the balls were soaking wet, moist from the humidity. ... In the four-game series at Detroit, the Tigers had hit 13 home runs ... In the ensuing four-game series at Comiskey Park from July 30 through August 2, the Tigers were swinging at the doctored balls. Suddenly, they were shorn of their power. Their longest hit in the entire series was a double.

"Texas man arrested for following Dallas Keuchel around banging on a trashcan"

Unless Balta does something crazy...

At this point I’m convinced that Bruce either has vision or hand problems. It’s hard to make that many typos even on purpose.

I got him confused with the other Romine and thought McCann is getting traded.

This is obviously just a ploy to lure Austin Romine here when McCann leaves...I am so sick of the front office playing these games ?

Someone had to fill the massive hole left by the departure of Ryan Goins

Because it's Jan 15th and we are all staring out the window waiting for spring?

Man, it would have been so killer if that robertson for luzardo and that crappy 3b trade happened.

I’ll take neither.

Wish I had that KW quote equating Ventura to a four-star general or future CEO in terms of his leadership qualities.

Pretty sad that he was handed an MLB manager job.

Pretty impressive that Farquhar was the guy to figure this out. The more I read about Farquhar -- his work with pitchers while he was playing, his recovery from the terrifying brain issue -- the more impressed I am. He strikes me as a really smart, thoughtful, and interesting guy, and I'm glad he's in our organization.

Takes 2 to tango.

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Give me Moncada over Donaldson and Madrigal over Arraez.

Maybe Kenny will bring back his old quote from when the Tigers acquired Miguel Cabrera... This just puts the Twins a little closer to competing with the Sox for the division. ?

My thought exactly. The umpires must have heard the drum banging. Hear no evil? MLB should at least say something to condemn the umps.

Moncada = Donaldson Anderson > Polanco Madrigal/Leury < Arraez Abreu = Sano Grandal > Garver Robert > Buxton Eloy > Rosario Encarnacion < Cruz Mazara< Kepler

SOX HAIKUS from the middle of the 2005 season Ya gotta believe In this torrid White Sox team To go all the way! Great Ozzie man say Pitching and defense the way To World Series play Lee for Podsednik? Add AJ and El Duque Play Ozzie ball. Win! Little Boat afloat Sailing on to yonder shore Where White Sox are Champs Kenny man, he say Power ball is not the way Go-go Sox are best Garland, Buehrle pitch Fifteen and one and counting Sox duo kick a$$! Big Frank coming back Adds thunder to Sox attack Best team gets better Nineteen seventeen? White Sox fans can't wait to see Champs at Comiskey Thirty-fifth and Shields U.S. Cellular team fields Baseball's supreme team U.S. Cellular, Not Wrigley Field, is home to Chicago's best team McCarthy's the man Filling in for El Duque To mow the Cubs down All the way this year Eighty-eight year jinx over White Sox are World Champs Bosox won last year Now it's time for the ChiSox To wear Series crown

If we are building a team capable of winning Division, League and WS titles we need to be good enough to win against good teams. When we win the Central this year...we don't need to listen about how we didn't have to beat anyone. The season just got more interesting. Go Sox.

Yikes that is a lot of money and a lot of years for a 34 year old. This makes the Abreu contract look even better for one less year and almost half the amount and he’s the leader/mentor of the team.

No one knows what Keuchel did or didn’t do outside of not snitching out his teammates. I’m not going to hold that against him given the ramifications it could of had against him.

He's not replacing a 0 win player though

Decent chance he joins Detwiler back in CHA and we see him in Spring Won't trash Covey, he's a good human who played for an awful team during an awful time Wish him the best

Dylan seems like a nice guy, I'm not gonna dance on his grave. Dude just "got fired" so to speak. If anything this serves as a fitting end to a terrible stretch of bullshit Sox shenanigans.

I was at that game in Boston (June 2018 -- near my birthday and have some Boston roots and family). Fortunate to sit right behind the plate. Covey was insane. 95-96 with crazy darting movement. Lots of sink. Sale was awesome too, but if you didn't know their full resumes, one would have thought Covey had every bit the accomplishments as Sale. For a 4-5 week period, dude put it all together and harnessed the potential that made him a high draft choice to begin with and a viable Rule 5 lottery pick by the Sox. But those overall stats for three years in a Sox uniform. Wow are those ugly. Sort of a pitcher's version of Joe Borchard. Some incredible tools on paper. Every now and then you see a flash. But absolutely zero reason to believe there is going to be any sustained and consistent success. Good luck, DC. Seems like a good guy and clearly worked hard at his game. It's just gratifying to see that the depth is improved that we can cut some of these paper warriors without holding them ... forever.

Balta, I'm going to break some very sad news to you based on how you view people who "cheat" in baseball. Since the beginning of time, a vast majority of players have participated in some form of cheating. The game has been defined by players searching for questionably minute edges that fall within the gray area of legality. Pitchers used to use spit, batters used greenies. Some players corked their bats, while others put a substance on their hat to get a better grip on the baseball. Some players went on to use steroids, while others used video technology to steal signs. One team stole data from another, while another lied about how much they were paying players so they could acquire more of them. The Braves weren't alone in that either as it was a widely known way of skirting the international rules. Some teams even went as far as to pay agents to smuggle players and then give them the upper hand in signing them - using force in SOME cases. Every single era of baseball has had some form of cheating/one-upping to gain a competitive edge. If you told me as a senior in college that if I took steroids, I would have been a guaranteed big leaguer - supporting my family for generations to come via my income - I would have taken steroids I think. I like to tell myself I wouldn't, and for the record I have turned them down when offered but that was because the benefit wasn't guaranteed for me; had I been on the fringe of MLB, I would have absolutely done whatever it took to provide for my family. You view all these things through some moralistic lens, but things are much foggier than the clear choice you are painting this as. Keuchel was provided a tool by the team to increase his production and value; greatly improving his families livelihoods and elongating his career, and from his side of things, everyone was doing it. Veterans, rookies, and coaching staffs were pushing and promoting it. Keuchel did what was not only best for his career and his future, but also what he felt gave him an even playing field with everyone else. This isn't as simplistic as I don't cheat... these aren't decisions you've ever had to make in your life. I am not arguing that breaking the rules is OK, but I am certainly arguing that one voice speaking out against a culture of one-upsmaniship, in which everyone searches for questionable edges over their competition, was not going to change or do anything... and it doesn't make you a poor leader, it just makes you another player in the long line of players who did what they thought they had to do to maintain this life and to maintain this dream.

I'll never forget spending $80 on a ticket last season to see Covey have an infinite era before being taken out.

If there won't be any punishment for the players who either were directly involved with or at best looked the other way while their team cheated blatantly en route to a world series win, should other teams fans just be ok with and accepting of those players? We signed one of the highest profile players on a team that is as of now the biggest MLB scandal in a decade. Do we just shrug our shoulders and admit that we're all ok with what the Astros did now that he's on our team?

So if the Sox sign EE along with the signing of GG does that mean FF is next ? (Freddie Freeman is the only FF i could find )