SoxBlanco

But he could probably use another team that is willing to go long term.

I think they would have. I honestly don't think it was about being cheap. I think it was about being horrible during the negotiations and not thinking SD was serious. I posted this earlier, but think of it this way: If the front office could go back in time and offer a 10 year deal worth $310 with an opt out after 5 year, and they knew for a fact Machado would accept, would they do it? I think the answer to that question is yes.

Couldn't agree more with this.

Was Madrigal's hit to the opposite field?

Could this be something that goes down before the trade deadline this year? If the Rockies are in the hunt, could this be something both teams would want?

Grab a pitcher next offseason, and then wait until 2021 for a position player. I know Trout is a free agent after 2020 (and we won't be signing him), but who are some big name free agents after the 2021 season?

I tend to think it’s the second one as well, which is the only reason I have a sliver of hope for Harper. If they learned their lesson and truly want him, they could make it happen. But I still only give it about a 5% chance of happening.

Agreed, but the point of my post is not what it would have taken to get Manny to sign. I’m wondering why the Sox didn’t offer that magic number. Is it because they are cheap and simply refuse to go that high? Or is it because they didn’t think they needed to go that high?

Here’s the question I keep going back to... If JR, KW, and RH could go back in time and offer Manny a deal of 10 for $320, with an opt out after 5 years, and they knew this would 100% get him to sign, would they do it? If the answer is yes (and they simply got beat in negotiations because they never thought SD would go that high), then there is still some hope for Harper. But if the answer is no, then we most likely have no shot for Harper (I say “most likely” because there is the very small chance that we wouldn’t give Manny that much, but we are willing to give Harper something like 10 for $330)

Is there an EXIT sign or an ENTER sign above this metaphorical door?

What did WSD say?

The sad part is that 3 months ago, we all would have laughed at the thought of being able to land Harper at 10 for $330. It's a steal, but JR doesn't want to be the one to "ruin" the market for the rest of the owners by giving out such a big contract.

While I would agree with this line of thinking during the first couple years of the rebuild, I think it’s time to move past that. One of the most overlooked parts of a rebuild is letting the young players learn how to win. It’s also another reason I am furious with the Machado debacle. I don’t think we would have been a playoff team with Manny, but I think he would have made guys like Moncada, Eloy, and TA even better. I don’t think Jay makes a huge impact, but I’d much rather have him in the lineup than Engel.

Excited to see how Flores does this spring. One of my favorite under-the-radar prospects.

That’s more like it! Lock it up. This is a done deal. I’m 100% convinced we sign Harper by Wednesday this week.

I need your optimism back. Even though this will certainly end poorly, just like it did with Machado, give us some hope at least.

I know...it was a joke.

I would say that it’s great to hear Moncada didn’t strike out at all today. Nice!

So if Santana makes the team, where does that leave Covey and Banuelos? Option 1: Banuelos is part of the bullpen because he is out of options, and Covey starts in AAA. In this scenario, would Covey be a starter in Charlotte? Option 2: Covey is the long reliever, and they risk losing Banuelos. Option 3: Both start the year as part of the bullpen.

May have been lying? They were absolutely lying. There's no way Santana or Nova will have any bearing on when Cease and Dunning get called up.

They will bring up Cease and Dunning when they are ready, and it will have NOTHING to do with Santana and/or Nova.

So the question that somebody needs to ask them is this... "If you thought your offer was better, then why not just give him the "worse" offer, if it means locking him up?"

Just like Manny doesn't want to play on the West Coast? (I'm just giving you shit, when in reality, I have zero confidence we will sign Harper)

He’s not saying two different frameworks. He’s saying JR had a plan/budget in place for getting both guys to sign with us.

Yeah, I don’t think his sources were wrong. I even think Hahn thought we would land Machado.