SoxBlanco

Absolutely.

The sad (but awesome) thing is that he's going to win a World Series before any of those three things happen.

Obviously, but this isn't a debate on which approach to go with to maximize your chances. This is a debate that looks back on something that already happened (obviously hypothetical). After the fact, would you rather have 10 playoff appearances and no titles, or 1 playoff appearance and a World Series? I'm taking the World Series.

It's an interesting debate. In the next 10 seasons, which would you rather have? A) 10 playoff appearances and no titles B) 1 playoff appearance that resulted in a World Series Give me the World Series all day.

I agree that very well could have been what happened.

Your overall attitude sucks. But that’s alright, I’ll keep being pleasant. And I’ll listen to the actual insider here who told us that Hahn was given control of hiring the pitching coach since TLR wasn’t his choice. Could that insider be wrong? Sure. But that’s why I said “I think” instead of speaking in absolutes like you.

Cool. Glad you could clear that up for me with your insider knowledge.

Just because Duncan said he wouldn't be joining TLR doesn't mean we would have taken Duncan if he was interested. I think Hahn was given control of hiring the pitching coach, and I don't think it was going to be Duncan even if Duncan wanted it.

I hear ya. I agree on the 10% chance.

No way it's that high for us. Sherman is legit, but I don't think he actually had any real info. I honestly think he was just trying to think of which team Bauer would be a good fit for. And I'm usually one of the more optimistic people here. I thought we'd sign Machado, I thought we would land Wheeler, and I think we will sign Springer. I just don't see Bauer happening.

Great question. I suppose I would guess the Mets if I had to pick. As much as I would love to sign Bauer, I am fine with the plan to go hard after Springer instead. Lock down the positional side of things with Springer and Vaughn, and then just look to upgrade the starting pitching year by year. If that means starting this year with Richards and Quintana, I am fine with that. Eventually we will have to land a big gun.

This seems to be exactly what is going on. I don't believe Bauer is an option for us, unfortunately. I think Sherman was just taking a wild guess because we could use a starting pitcher, and now people are going to run with it.

Didn't he say AL?

@Harold's Leg Lift, was that you speculating? Or did you hear that Jerry told TLR he would spend more if La Russa became the manager?

I would expect a trade for Darvish to include the Cubs kicking in a little bit of money. But that's just pure speculation...I really have no clue.

My assumption is that if Colorado is willing to part with Marquez, they want some good prospects. They aren't going throw in Blackmon as a salary dump and then take a lower package. I believe Hahn's plan is to sign Springer, trade for a solid starter, sign one of the back-end rotation guys, and sign a bullpen piece. I think he is going to shop around for the best deal to get that solid starter (Marquez, Darvish, Lynn, etc.).

Round table discussion on Springer. No mention of the White Sox. These guys seem to think Boston and Toronto are the most likely landing spots. https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.mlb.com/amp/news/george-springer-where-will-he-sign.html

Thanks. Somebody mentioned that we were interested in him before the TLR hire. Do you think this was a Hahn pick or a La Russa pick?

What do you like about Cairo, in particular, Jimmy?

Uh oh. Is this the kiss of death? I heard the same thing from you with Machado and Wheeler, and then you were 99% sure we’d hire Hinch when the TLR rumors were really heating up. (I’m just giving you sh*t...I’m feeling pretty good about it as well)

Agreed, but it was in response to a vague question about whether the Sox would spend money. Jimmy was just saying that he did expect them to spend, but not something crazy like signing both Bauer and Springer. Then the vague question was clarified by asking if he thought we’d go after one of those two guys, and Jimmy said that yes, we are currently going hard after one of them.

That Jimmy post is causing so much confusion. All he’s saying is that he doesn’t see any scenario where we end up with both Bauer and Springer. But we are definitely targeting Springer right now.

I'd rather not give up Kopech or Vaughn unless I'm getting somebody like DeGrom back. But Jimmy's post just meant we aren't signing BOTH. We are trying to sign Springer.

Yep. And that's exactly why Stone said he would wait until things played out until commenting. He also knew.

I don't view it anywhere close to "trading the farm", especially without giving up Vaughn, Kopech, Crochet, Dunning, Kelly, Thompson, or Dalquist. Marquez has four years of control left. Wouldn't Marquez and Cease both be free agents in 2025? So we are essentially swapping those two without jeopardizing any amount of control. And to make that upgrade, we have to give up Stiever and Madrigal (Adolfo doesn't appear to be in our future plans). I like Madrigal more than most, but I think we can easily find another 2B. I think we just view Marquez differently. I think he's a lot better than you are giving him credit for, especially when you look at his numbers away from Coors.