SoxBlanco

Because it’s a hypothetical. Of course these aren’t the only real life options. The point of the exercise is to see whether you are willing to accept TLR if it means a better team. I would selfishly take option 2, and I wouldn’t hesitate. But I also understand if someone can’t look past the TLR debacle and want nothing to do with him.

After the season, if you could choose one of these offseasons, which would you choose? Keep Renteria, sign Bradley Jr, sign Odorizzi, sign Chafin Hire La Russa, find out he got a second DUI, sign Springer, trade for Marquez without giving up Vaughn, sign Quintana, bring back Colome

Why doesn’t McCann get shit on the way Grandal does when he drops pop ups or gets called for multiple catcher’s interferences?

Even if they are trying to resign McCann, how does that contradict what I said?You said JR is tired of throwing money at free agents and getting nothing in return. Well, they threw money at Grandal and got exactly what they paid for. They also threw money at Kuechel and got more than most people expected.

He threw a bunch of money at two big free agents last year and got a lot in return.

Wow, completely disagree. The burgers are great there. They’re like a delicious version of the Whopper.

Don’t you know that Bauer is a huge Portillos fan? He eats there every time he’s in town to face the Sox or Cubs. So obviously he checks all Portillos related Twitter feeds. The Sox know he’ll read the stuff about Springer and get worried we’ll spend all of our budget. Bauer to the Sox confirmed. Should be done by the end of the weekend. Brilliant move.

Can you give us your opinion on who we are more likely to sign between Bauer and Springer? Obviously signing neither is very possible/probable, but assuming we did sign one of them, who would you put your money on?

Good thread. I was thinking about this today. I’m not expecting TLR to be gone, but if he is, I’m not sure who they would turn to. Joe Espada? Sandy Alomar?

Doubtful. But I see your point ?

Let's hope so. Interesting question: Before the offseason, if you had the chance to sign up for an offseason that consisted of hiring TLR after another DUI and also signing Trevor Bauer, would you do it? I think I would take it. Is that selfish of me? Yep, without a doubt. P.S. TLR is a piece of shit.

I’m with you in regards to Cease. I was actually higher on him than most during this past season, and I’d love to see what he could do with a different pitching coach. It’s tough. Part of me says no way we should give up both Cease and Kopech, but another part of me says it’s more likely both become busts than both become stars. So even if only one hits, getting Marquez could be a wash. But then I keep thinking that there’s a chance Kopech is an absolute ace. I’d hate to give up on that possibility. Alright, I’ve convinced myself. Just sign Bauer and don’t give up both of them.

Agreed. I think I would give up Kopech and Cease for Marquez., but I could be convinced otherwise.

Alright, give them Cease, Stiever, and Madrigal. Does that get it done?

What would it take to land Marquez from Colorado? Could we get it done without including Vaughn?

I still love last offseason. Grandal and Keuchel were the biggest pieces, and they were great. That’s why you can’t call the scenario you described as awful without knowing how Bauer performed. If I could sign up for the following offseason/results right now, I would do it in a heartbeat and consider it a great offseason: 1. Sign Bauer and he wins the Cy Young 2. Sign Joc and he’s worse than Nomar was this year 3. Sign Q and he misses the entire year due to injury 4. Sign Colome and he’s a little worse than last year, but still solid as a closer

I think signing Springer would be a waste of resources. We need a SP much more than we need a RF. If we’re going to spend big, then we better be upgrading the rotation before spending big on another position.

If we trade Cease for Marquez, that would mean we basically got Eloy and Marquez for Quintana. And while we're at it, we might as well sign Quintana. Then that would mean we got Eloy and Marquez for renting out Quintana for a couple years.

Agreed. What do you guys think it would take? Stiever and Adolfo?

Definitely a solid offseason. I would sign off on that right now if I could. Nothing spectacular, but I'm not sure I would consider anything spectacular if Bauer isn't involved.

Maybe it’s not a reading issue. Maybe it’s an issue articulating your point. Do you actually believe that if we offered somebody the most money, they would say no, and one of their reasons for saying no would be because they didn’t like how we handled the Machado situation a couple years ago?

The Machado situation is a reason why you might not expect us to land a big free agent. It’s not a reason why a big free agent would choose not to sign here. I believe you are the one who has reading issues.

Who do you have in mind, other than Bauer?