SoxBlanco

He was claiming they might NOT be division favorites. It was a typo.

Are you counting Pineda? If so, then we have 4 if you count Kopech.

Thank you.

Well there's the difference. I don't believe the ship has sailed on contending in 2020. Is it less likely than we may have thought before Wheeler signed elsewhere? Of course. But talk to me in mid-March if you want to have a discussion on whether the 2020 team can contend.

And I agree with that...but that still doesn't contradict my point that it's pointless to get upset right now.

There aren't any...although I'm not sure of the point you are trying to make and how it relates to what I said.

Yes, that guy...along with me, a guy with common sense who is not paid to be a shill for the White Sox.

Merkin is saying exactly what I've been saying the past week or two...

I won't argue with that. But when you say that we are petty enough to not do business with Boras, that is false. I guarantee we have discussed deals with Boras already this offseason, which means we are not too petty to do business with him. Like you said, we probably just prefer not to.

Good post. The success of this team over the next few years will largely be determined by the success of Lopez, Kopech, Cease, Dunning, and Stiever (mostly the first three guys). If we can get one #1/#2 starter out of that group and one guy that is at least a #3, I really like our chances moving forward.

I don't think it's very likely, but I think it's possible. His defense will scare teams, and his asking price is probably very high right now.

That's why I added the caveat about him staying on the market for a while. I think there's a chance that nobody wants him at a high price and he's still on the market in February. At that point, if the price for him lowers, I'd like to sign him.

It's a pretty well known myth that I believe will be busted over the next month or two.

Do you really believe we just refuse to do business with him? If there was an over/under bet in Vegas on the White Sox signing 0.5 Boras clients this offeseason, I would bet the over.

Alright, as of today, here is my Plan B: Sign one of the following: Ryu or Keuchel Sign one of the following: Teheran, Wood, Bailey Sign Castellanos Most people won't like the Castellanos move, but if he stays on the market for a while and can be had at a reasonable price, I think he can be a nice fit paired with Mazara at RF and DH. I'm not sure what we'd do with Collins in that scenario, though. Maybe he goes to AAA or maybe he gets traded.

Why is that? I don’t want Wood, Teheran, or Bailey any more or less than I wanted Miley...or Nova for that matter. There are several pitchers out there in this tier, and I just want the Sox to grab whichever one they feel strongly about. Maybe they want upside. Maybe they want an innings eater. The point of my Miley/Nova comparison was that people were getting upset about Miley because another pitcher was off the board, but there’s no way they would have reacted that way if Nova signed somewhere.

Speaking of Nova, he turns 33 next month and had a 2.0 WAR last year. Miley just turned 33 and had a 2.0 WAR last year.

He wasn’t listing teams interested in Ryu. He was listing teams that need starting pitching.

I don’t know...maybe Wood? Teheran? Bailey? We might have just not liked Miley at all. Like I’ve been saying for a couple weeks now...just wait until the offseason is over before complaining about each and every move. We could sign Keuchel and Wood still and nobody would think twice about this Miley deal.

Or they liked other fliers better that they feel they can get for the same price or cheaper.

Just offer him 5/$100M. Front load it so we’re not paying much in years four and five: 24, 24, 24, 14, 14 Do front loaded deals like that even exist? Or will he never accept that because he might as well just take a 3 year deal with the assumption that he can beat those last two years with another contract?

They thought they were overpaying!! They used the exact strategy you are describing. Do you think a negotiation is just a completely transparent process where you see all other team's bids and you know exactly the amount it would take for him to sign?

Actually, it's apparent they weren't...otherwise they would have made him an offer like 6 years for $180. They offered a huge contract and he chose a different team. Now they move on. The important thing people don't seem to grasp is that there weren't/aren't a lot of good options after Wheeler. Just like the RF options, they all have flaws. So we have to make a decision on whether we want to overpay for a flawed option, or just sign a couple 1 year guys. I would personally go hard for Ryu, but I understand not wanting to do that.

Come on. I've seen posts like this a couple times recently, and it's ridiculous. We were all thinking 5 for $110M could possibly get it done (some people were even saying anything more than $105/$110 would make it a bad deal) The Sox offered 5 for $125. It's easy to judge in hindsight, but that is a great offer. What did you want them to offer? 6 years for $180M?

I would just let Collins get as many at bats as possible this year, and then let the situation take care of itself. If Collins struggles all year, then he's not really in the plans moving forward and Vaughn comes up to pair with Abreu at the 1B/DH positions. If Collins turns into a legit bat, then perhaps somebody gets traded for pitching help next offseason (and in this scenario, Collins would be a much more valuable trade chip than he is right now). Or maybe you just let McCann walk and roll with Grandal, Collins, Abreu, and Vaughn for C, DH, and 1B in 2021.