Leaderboard

Chris Sale wins Cy and clinched his entry into the Hall. Cease 4th.

This deal is a $1M above league minimum. And we’re talking about a weak-side platoon OF, so it’s not like he’s even blocking any of the AAAA OF prospects we have anyways. Honestly, this is actually a pretty solid move to potentially add some offense against LHP. May not work out but worth the gamble at the price.

The disappointing thing about him is the plate discipline. In college he was advertised as having pristine plate discipline. In mlb his contact ability is fine but he consistently has above average chase rates and low walk rates. In college he walked a ton every year. Not sure what the issue is. Either he got pitched around so much that he walked despite mediocre pitch recognition or he has more trouble seeing mlb stuff than college stuff. His lack of ability to pull fly balls might actually be a coaching issue as sox have preached oppo approach and hit over power. I still think under the right circumstances he could take a step forward. 90% zone contact and a 112 Max EV is a good combination even though a mid 30s percent chase rate is not ideal of course but also not extremely egregious. With the right coaching I could seem him having a season where he hits 280 with 30 bombs.

While it was entertaining to see the usual suspects lose their collective s%*# over a throw away comment, the truth is right here. Dude had a big leap going into this year, and a big fall this year. He had well reported problems hitting a fastball, and well reported back problems. Of course we have had a complete lack of reporting on how either of those things is going at this time. Could he not gear up for velocity because of his back problems, or are these two separate things. Of course, no one is ever going to actually ask any of these questions, but really it is the key set of things to how Colson moves forward. Until those things get played out, this is a great exercise in confirmation bias.

I don't mind the negativity when it's warranted. And it surely is with the state of the organization. It just has come to dominate and overwhelm any value added conversation here. One can craft nuanced posts picking apart why the Vargas trade sucked. See Timmy U for instance on warning signs, red flags, and prospect evaulation. Compare that to someone like Whitesox2023 whose posts consist of "Lol Getz Sucks!" or "Coulda had Keaschall!" Dude could be replaced with a bot or a soundboard and no one could tell the difference. There are so many posters here whose takes I enjoy reading. It's a shame those posts often drown amongst so much s%*# posting. But yea. I suppose I'm whining about the whiners. I guess I should accept it will be this way until/if the organization manages to right the ship.

Isn't rewarding mediocrity how Getzy got his current gig?

I never said Taylor could be flipped for a haul. I said that I thought there were better fliers to take a chance on than some of the players Getz acquired last offseason. I also wanted Getz to go after Joey Bart and Victor Robles during the season when they were made available via DFA, but he passed. However, I do remember when @greg775, yes @greg775, owned you last Spring Training. See the screenshot evidence below. Game, set, match, old chap… 😘

Glad that p**** is gone

I did not expect to learn one of these details. https://bsky.app/profile/chgo-whitesox.bsky.social/post/3lbfpp2s3ws2x

The WSox could have a decent rotation with current staff including Crochet, Canon, Thorpe et. al.. Add possible future starters Noah Schultz and Hagen Smith and that rotation (and the entire team) takes another step toward competing with the best teams. Yes, WSox need some hitters/position players so add them through FA ...but don't rob from Peter to pay Paul so to speak. Spend some damn money on FA instead of trying to go on the cheap by trying to outsmart other teams with trades and "developing" prospects while we watch another painful rebuild. Fvk that.

I remember Konerko asking how many years in Vaughn was, and after he answered Konerko said something like "well, now or never I guess" and I just started laughing.

I will give you -1000

Oh no I was wrong! It only takes one!

Pham finished last season with 478 plate appearances and a -0.2 WAR. His final season line was brutal as well… .248 .305 .368 .674 Also, his numbers with the Royals were worse than with both the Sox and Cardinals. Pham will be 37 to start next season. Getz will bring in enough negative WAR players on his own just like last offseason, without us giving him any suggestions.

IMO, there would be a compelling pitch to be made to Crochet that would be somewhat unique to the White Sox, and that would be significantly front loading the contract extension. The Sox payroll should be historically low the next 2 seasons, Crochet is still just 25. Additionally, it's objectively true he's dealt with injuries and missed significant time during his career, which creates risk for both Crochet and the team signing him to an extension. A front loaded deal gets him paid more, faster, and creates payroll flexibility for the White Sox in 2027-2028 when theoretically the team is in a position to compete, and Crochet is still 28-29 years old.

We can hope. To me it all comes down to hitting gas. Hopefully, the issue was his health or correctable.. it would seem to me that issue would have reared its ugly head before 2024, so I have some hope. if you can’t hit gas, you’re screwed. He did have a good Fall League, but so did most.

The argument for Vaughn is his pedigree, complete mishandling by Hahn and to see if their new hitting director can help him unlock more power and patience. The ship has probably already sailed for him, but that is why you'd take a chance on him for 1 year/$6 mil. Like I said, if you're really worried about payroll then you just give Elko a shot, or maybe see what's available after the 40 man roster crunch settles. Bring Abreu in on a 1 day contract to retire as a White Sox player, or add him to the coaching staff or as a special assistant. His playing days are over.

Guys, can it be possible that Colson is still a top prospect that had a rough season, this diminishing his shine, but he also has a pretty good Fall League showing (unless your name is Keith Law?). He looked like a sure thing at the beginning of last year and now there are questions, but he could still turn out great.

Didn't you and others spend most of the season complaining about how the Sox wouldn't have lost so many games if they didn't make these exact kinds of moves, for players with extreme negative value? But now you're ok with losing that many because the Sox can save 5.25 million by signing an ancient Jose Abreu, who might rebound from a stretch where he was the least valuable player in baseball, solely because he's hitting a couple dingers against low level competition in PR? I don't really care if Vaughn stays or goes, but if there's a binary option only I'm taking Vaughn over Abreu 100% of the time. If we're being realistic, then I'd just give Elko a shot for league minimum, because while he might be awful, the FA options in the Sox range are also all awful and he's likely still gonna be better than Abreu.

I didn't realize it was a finite amount of money that drained. I do not want Andrew Vaughn back, but paying him 6.5 million dollars would not be the reason they don't sign a big name FA. It would be because they are the White Sox and just don't do that regardless.

Lol so because I don't see the word fired anywhere and you draw conclusions based on your personal life and apply it to baseball that make you right. I'm just questioning if he was fired.You engaged me and Asked if I believe everything I read. You expect me to believe you instead ? You didn't offer any special insight I hadnt already read . If people can't handle having their opinions questioned without saying don't lecture me f*** you because I use knowledge to my advantage and actually discuss instead of mock or bully people. No wonder so many aren't posting anymore. Whether he was fired or his contract ran out and wasn't renewed makes no difference. All these hires are basically met with jokes and skepticism when to most objective observers in the media these are good hires Getz is making .It seems like he really trying to get more analytical info to players and hiring people who are good at making it easier for players to use. On the CHGO podcast interview with Eric Kratz of The Foul Territory podcast he really liked the new hire from the Brewers and used examples of how that guy improved defense among some catchers not known for their defense. I don't know what's so bad about being positive about the recent hires rather than quibbling with me over semantics of fired or didn't renew his contract, or whatever. Guys like Vinnie Duber from CHGO and various Sox podcasts like Sox in the Basement and Future Sox praise the hiring of Fuller and the bench coach Walker McKinven. Here on Soxtalk we get more run prevention and Greg Walker jokes than anyone taking a stab at being positive about their qualifications or what it is about them that fits in with what Getz is trying to accomplish and that's just sad. I praised one of our posters about making a good positive observation @Boopa1219 , I think and I got 2 laugh emojis. I wasn't being sarcastic. I really liked the post and don't understand why I got laugh emojis. Maybe McKinven will help Edgar Quero and Lee become better defensively and with framing. Crochet credits Katz and Bannister with his development and yet our posters can't ? It's just meaner and tantrumy than ever around here now.

https://www.mlb.com/news/the-white-sox-case-for-keeping-garrett-crochet Of course, what the cost of an extension would be and the unlikelihood of JR authorizing not considered in the article... It's understandable to see fans praising certain returns in mock Crochet trades on social media and scoffing at others. They wholeheartedly embraced the last rebuild, and despite being disappointed by the long-term results, they once again understand the team’s current rough situation with a hope for better days in the not-too-distant future. But think of Crochet working at the front of the pack of starters just mentioned. Much like a good card player, if you have an ace, you really don’t want to discard it. Check out what Tarik Skubal did for a solid but not always spectacular Detroit team that ultimately reached the playoffs and won its Wild Card Series as a prime example. Gee, this sounds like a familiar argument, right?

The lack of development is more on Hahn than Getz. Having him skip all of the upper minors because our major league LF got injured in spring training was an all time stupid decision and almost certainly stunted his growth to some extent.

A sales job?! I am losing my mind here. A sales job of what? He was putting up Maldonado numbers before he was cut.

Your favorite player was Nicky Lopez?

Calling guys up based on artificial timetables and not because they earned it was a defining move of Rick Hahn’s GM career.

So do I, but rewarding mediocrity for the sake of a lack of options is a really bad precedent to set for a supposed "revamp" of the system. Let the kid prove he belongs.

I think he's gonna be the Opening Day SS.

Good luck Monty. Haven't earned it yet IMO.

passssss the lotrimin on the left hand side

I can only speak for myself but I recall reading them as soon as Moncada had to go on the IL which was shortly after the season began. His back injury was aggravated by the half way around the world flights he was on for Cuba.

Done deal

I wish I could place a prop bet on negative fWAR for this latest dumpster drive.

It's what we all have to hope for. Essentially we have to hope that the replacement for himself that Getz hired/s is light years better at development than he was.

Fair price and worthy addition IMO.

I figured it would be the same guaranteed amount DeJong got last year.

Be careful, I hear if you say the "K-word" three times that summons him

Adam eEngel also had a huge Fall League. But it’s better to have a good one than bad one.

I think Montgomery can turn it around but I sure can understand people having doubts when it comes to Sox first round position player draft picks. They have been pretty putrid on the whole over the past 25 years. The best players are Anderson and a guy they traded away in Burger. Vaughn is mediocre and many people want to see him non-tendered. What a sad list… 2000 - Joe Borchard 2003 - Brian Anderson 2004 - Josh Fields 2008 - Gordon Beckham 2009 - Jared Mitchell 2010 - Josh Phegley (supp.) 2011 - Keenyn Walker (supp.) 2012 - Courtney Hawkins 2013 - Tim Anderson 2016 - Zack Collins 2017 - Jake Burger 2018 - Nick Madrigal 2019 - Andrew Vaughn 2021 - Colson Montgomery 2023 - Jacob Gonzalez

How many of the 22nd picks were top 20 prospects? At this point in his career, he's beyond where most 22nd picks were. Don't bother looking it up, you win. You guys can continue your your circle jerk of hating everything White Sox, including the prospects, players and fans.

You said he made it farther than the vast majority of 22 picks. The strong majority of 22 picks make the big leagues. Beyond that, you are giving him credit for things he hasn’t done and asserting that others don’t do that when they do. I don’t know what his issue was last year, but last year was not a performance of a guy who would stick in the big leagues. If he’s having health problems - that derailed a couple of the guys who didn’t stick. The 22 pick from 2020 had TJS in 2023 right after making the big leagues. There’s lots of things that could still go wrong with this player, he is coming off a really down year.

He's a Midwest HS pick who had 111 MiLB PA's before the age of 20. He advanced 3 levels in a single season and hit some adversity in AAA. Montgomery will undoubtedly play in the majors and will most likely stick for a while based on being a LH bat with excellent patience, solid defense and good power. That's his floor. Nobody ruined Colson Montgomery.

I see him ahead of where he should be given his draft position and history - Indiana HS player - while being in the Sox organization the entire time. I'm curious how the Sox ruined him while having him pretty far ahead of where the vast, vast majority of 22nd picks ever end up being.

Sox are a little short on CF depth. These are the types of signings we are going to get. Even Sox rejects are getting signed by others teams like Deivi Garcia and Raphael Ortega.

Montgomery was a 22nd overall pick out of HS who climbed to a top 20 prospect on pretty much every ranking, struggled in AAA while being among the youngest players in the league, and the Sox screwed him up? Explain.

If the other option is collectively paying $2M to three league min guys that are worse than Miguel Vargas I’ll take the former.

Pass, no thank you.

I still have never seen any evidence that he was some sort of team leader.

He was 19 when drafted in 2021, so he would need to be added by next offseason (4 years). But he'll be on the roster long before then anyway.