Look at Ray Ray Run

If he falls off a cliff he falls off a cliff. It's much more likely a 31 year old catcher falls off than a 32/33 year old first baseman. There is risk tied to any post 30 MLB player, but I think the risks have been greatly exaggerated. I also think guys with his work ethic tend to have gradual declines. Konerko had 4 seasons in a row as bad or worse than the season Abreu just had before a rejuvenation his last three/four years. Abreu should feel more comfortable, and have less desire to "carry the offense" now that he is just a COG and not the COG. I wouldn't be shocked to see an uptick in production next year, honestly. I'll disagree with your next point; the Sox won't just play Abreu if Collins or even Sheets become a superior hitter.

They've had this inside track since Minnie; Minnie is like the Latin Jackie Robinson.

I don't really see how. Vaughn won't be up next year, so at the earliest he is up in 2021. No matter how well he hits, I think we can assume he'll spend at least one full year in the minors. If the White Sox didn't want to sign a DH this year, and wanted to see how Collins/McCann/Abreu/Grandal handle the position then this really doesn't change much. McCann is gone after next year. If Collins shows enough he moves into the back-up catcher back-up DH/1B role after next year. Abreu shifts into full time DH. Vaughn moves to 1st base. If Collins doesn't show enough this year, they move on from Collins and they retain McCann as their primary back-up catcher.

Agreed; winning is great, and fun, but winning with good people feels so much more rewarding. It doesn't define my fanhood, but guys like Timmy make the game more fun and my fanhood more enjoyable. #TimForMayor

I'll also point out that Vaughn is YOUNG. He spent last season as a 21 year old; he wasn't even "old" for any level he played in and he still hit despite some bad batted ball luck, and the fact that he had a very long year of baseball due to the college season starting much earlier.

People are losing their mind over nothing. A 2 year, 28 million dollar extension on top of his QO if entirely fine.

This changes the cash nada; in fact, it gives them 2 million extra this year.

Edit: I'm wrong. Double Edit: I was right I think, that 4 million is tied to the last year and is deferred.

3 years, 46 million basically - that deferred money really shouldn't be counted. That's not a bad deal at all; basically a 2 year 28 million dollar extension. That's fine. Edit: I just realized that 4 million was not being assigned to a year. So wrong. Double edit: On second glance it looks like the 4 million in the final year is deferred so the final year is really 14 million.

Splits tool on fangraphs. https://www.fangraphs.com/splitstool.aspx?playerid=19181&position=C/DH&splitArr=2&strgroup=season&statgroup=2&startDate=2019-09-03&endDate=2019-09-29&filter=&statType=player&autoPt=true&players=&sort=NaN,1 He had 44 AB's in that time frame. Since he was called back up, his wOBA was also a solid .364.

The best year of Benetendis career to date was 21% worse than the year Yoan Moncada just had and 10% worse than the season Tim Anderson just had. Again, this is a poor argument and stating that hed be the best hitter on the sox is an absolute joke.

WAR? I'm using wRC+. Benetendi had a wRC+ of 100 last year - exactly league average. Yoan, for example, had a 141 wRC+ - 41% better than league average (elite). James McCann had a highed wRC+ than Benetendi last year. My goodness. Eloy, Abreu, Timmy, and of course had much higher wRC+ last year. Benetendi is a very average hitter, and he certainly would be no where near the best hitter on the White Sox. To even make an argument that he's a better hitter than Yoan Moncada is crazy.

?????? WTF Benetendi would have been the SIXTH best hitter on the White Sox last year.

That was McNeil who asked the question. "How aware are you of how far down on the pecking order the White Sox are in this town? even when they're winning they don't get on the front page." What is the point of asking that question?

Replaced by who? Guys just as bad? That's the point I'm making. What's the point of having a carousel of arms that are all bad. You as well, have a great holiday as well.

Grandal.

Again, if you're 8% worse than league average most teams will not have a replacement better than that for their 5th starter spot. There were only 61 qualified starters in MLB baseball - the number you are using to say Lopez ranks at the bottom. There are over 150 starting pitchers in MLB baseball. In a given year, on average, over 210 starters will be used. Lopez ranks near the bottom of the mlb qualify starters who warrant pitching every 5th day. He doesnt rank near the bottom of mlb pitchers In general.

how unprofessional do you have to be to ask that question to a MLB player who chose to join your show?

Everyone counts; just as you can't cite that Reynaldo was the 15th ranked starter by fWAR because it only lists qualified performers. You create league averages vs the full sample - not just qualified. So he is 8% worse than league average in FIP. That's all that matters, imo.

I'm really really going to enjoy the Cub demise and the White Sox ascension over the next 3-5 years. The Cubs gotta might fat and arrogant, but reality is about to hit them hard.

I clarified this above, but he is the 15th ranked starter in fWAR among QUALIFIED starters over the past two years. If you take out qualified, he moves all the way down to #25 - which is certainly still serviceable. On a WAR rate basis, he'd rank even lower as WAR is a cumulative stat. Depending on how you want to value him, things change but he's certainly not someone you should just throw away and discard.

I turned the radio off after I heard Parkins and McNeil say this will likely be the only real signing, but it's better than nothing. This was right after Bruce and his "now they just need to find a lefty bat who hits 25+ homer" comment. To even ask the question above is just embarrassing but I expect nothing more from that station since the Sox left and the Cubs moved in.

In the modern game? A lot, given that Lopez was again only 8% worse than league average. You need to stop looking at his ERA as if it was 15 years ago and realize that scoring is up league wide so ERA's are up league wide. a 5 ERA today is similar/same to a 4.4 ERA in a less friendly run scoring environment of the past.

What is confusing about my post? I have said here that his defense is overvalued - certainly that is true. Does that mean I am not happy about signing one of the 3 best catchers in baseball? No. Does it mean I think Grandal is as valuable as the 4+ fWAR player he's been over the past 3 years? No, and I think the market confirmed that it agreed with my opinion as well - he wasn't paid like a 4 WAR player, he was paid like a league average player 2-3 WAR. I stand by my initial post, and I'm still excited about the signing. I'm not sure how I can't do both of those things, but OK. Is it OK for me to think Grandal's defense wasn't as good as "BEST IN BASEBALL" all while being excited about him joining the White Sox?

his FIP- is identical, so yes 4.6 and 5.03 are actually exactly the same when put into context of league averages over those two years. Run scoring was up; therefore his FIP in relation to his peers was the same.