South Side Hit Men

The bottom line is the Sox will continue to play Vaughn as a regular, and the team expect him to continue to play well. You have all these platoon scenarios running through your mind, but in the real world the Sox are utilizing their roster correctly, for now and in the future, by continuing their plan, playing Vaughn regularly. If it were up to you, he wouldn’t have the chance to improve relegated to a platoon basis. When Eloy returns, he will DH and or Vaughn and Eloy will get a majority of starts between LF and DH. They will ride Goodwin while he is hot, but will not be around long once the four injured OFers return. PS - Do you need more evidence Brian Goodwin is not a capable ML outfielder, that speed doesn't make up for his poor routes, his poor fielding, his poor throws, his lack of judgement? There is a reason Goodwin is fighting just to stay at a minimum salary, this may very well be his last stop.

They haven’t been traveling for ROAD games. No “bullshitting”. If you watch, not sure why you need the volume on if you hate him/them. I employed the Hawk mute button for decades.

Collins is playing well and doing what the team is expecting him to do. He has improved his defense to the point of being trusted on a regular basis, and has built confidence over the season with the two most important young Sox pitchers. Can he continue to improve? Sure, but he is fine in his role, and perhaps can continue to grow and be a 3 in 5 game starting catcher in 2024 with more coaching and work. The platoon brigade freaks out every time he starts against a LHP, but his role as catcher far outweighs a platoon advantage. I get ripped for saying this, but Tony, Katz, Carlos and Lucas agree with this arrangement, and that is all that matters. In addition, you get the benefit of a fresher Grandal if he can rest or play DH/1B two out of every five games.

Eaton was healthy in April, had a 126 OPS+ which would lead the team today. If he is fully healthy, he should produce above average OPS vs. RHP. Goodwin is a NIR, a poor fielder and a .640 OPS. Sheets played two games, and is a far below average OF at this stage. Hamilton is fine as the fifth OF. With 2 or 3 non catcher bench spots, Goodwin is the one who goes if Eaton and the rest return healthy. 2021 Playoff Roster (13 hitters): C Grandal. Collins (R) INF Abreu, Anderson, Garcia, Mendick (R), Moncada. OF/DH Eaton, Engel (R), Hamilton (R), Jimenez, Robert, Vaughn.

Nice to see Tony mature and not enter the beanball wars he has been known for since the 1980s. Ozzie talking trash, still embarrassed as a Sox fan by Ozzie's Sean Tracey incident.

Projected fWAR 2021 / 2022 / 2023 Moncada 3.2 / 3.3 / 3.2 Jimenez 2.9 / 2.9 / 2.8 Anderson 2.7 / 2.7 / 3.0 Madrigal 1.7 / 1.9 / 2.2 Abreu 1.8 / 1.2 / 0.4 Flavors of the month Burger 0.1 / 0.3 / 0.5 Lamb 0.1 / -0.1 / -0.1 Goodwin -0.2 / -0.2 / -0.4 Sheets -1.0 / -0.9 / -0.8 Somewhat perplexed: Vaughn -0.2 / 0.2 / 0.2 (Assuming dinged for projected 1B vs. a bump for LF).

I see Tony is now following me on SoxTalk. Glad I could help.

I'm not a big Eaton fan by any stretch, but he's a sunk cost at this point and rates higher than Hamilton, Goodwin and Sheets in terms of a starting OFer. Also hoping the White Sox no longer consider Eloy an OFer, not sure if/when Engel will return and be able to play consistently this season after the first half. That leaves LF Vaughn, CF Robert RF Eaton as the likely playoff OF. The wild card is whether Eloy is fulltime DH, or only partial (allowing Grandal to DH for Collins starts).

Looking at the following projected lineup, which may have more replacements than normal due to the day game following the night game, new recent arrivals, and injured player availability (Yoan, Abreu, Hamilton) after the quick turnaround. SS Tim Anderson 3B Yoan Moncada # (Could be the biggest lineup "wild card" due to his "barking" shoulder) DH Jose Abreu (Hoping Tony gives him a day rest at 1B due to the quick game turnaround) 1B Yasmani Grandal # (expecting him to DH if Jose plays 1B) CF Brian Goodwin ^ (A liability in CF, but Hamilton still banged up) RF Gavin Sheets ^ (Stick with the hot bat, at least until the th/8th for a defensive replacement) LF Andrew Vaughn (Tony may give him a day off against a tough righty, but you gotta face them at some point and he is playing great this week) C Zach Collins ^ (That's right, Rodon is on the mound and he has been hitting well) 2B Danny Mendick (Tony may continue with Leury, but I think he gives him a day off after being banged up a bit and playing everyday since. Couldn't take him out yesterday since Tony gave Tim Anderson a breather, which made sense).

I typically don't like blowouts much due to a lack of drama, but stuck with this one longer than most games of this nature due to the fact it was the Twins and based on Josh Donaldson's general overall douchebaggery which he ramped up the past two days. It sucks he homered twice, but the wins far overshadowed all of it. Solid matchup today, looking forward to listening to a White Sox sweep this afternoon!

He typically has scheduled / set days. Plus, he hasn't been pitching well of late, so it's a good time to let him work things out without pressure.

Welcome to the Major Leagues, Gavin!!! The Twins STILL suck ass!

Nice ride there, Twins bullpen keeps adding to their near record inherited runners allowed tally. The Twins continue to suck ass.

Mercedes is having some good at bats tonight, keep working it Yermin!

Amazing, Jose comes through!!!

Don’t screw up what is working. Yoan is a top 3rd baseman, and is hitting well there.

Because he’s going to be a beast in the major leagues and he will only get better from here.

Yermin has hit well his past three games 4 for 9). Very hopeful he has turned a corner. As long as he has better approaches, like the walk, the results should follow. PS @CaliSoxFanViaSWside - You’re right about Colin Quinn (not Dennis Leary), thanks for noting.

The first call is Tony’s call and he leaves it to the players. A guy like Jose will play as long as he can walk, regardless of whether he is contributing and or making his injuries worse. It’s the Front Office’s job to ensure the short snd long term interests are served. The Wild Card is whether the FO has some/any authority in this bizarre situation JR has instituted if there is a disagreement, since it’s very possible Tony answers to JR alone.

Sounds like Ozzie is a little butt hurt for Josh calling him out. The Ozzie circus will be closed once JR steps down.

This, and it’s been sold as a multi championship window, not a multi playoff window. You don’t dump core pieces to try and get an extra home game in a single year playoffs. If you can acquire players for taking on contracts, fine. If the Sox are too cheap and give up players for teams to eat money, than no, JR is not serious this year or beyond. The only money he’s committing is buying out minority shareholders. They weren’t serious last year when Dyson was the lone acquisition on a good team that had 2-3 starting pitching holes.

More interested in what his other agent may say about this situation. https://www.Twitter.com/agentRachelLuba PS - Noah Syndergaard is a douchbag, he should be more focused on trying to pitch this season than trolling in poor taste. https://www.Twitter.com/noahsyndergaard/status/1410050539736506372

I don’t think I’m in the minority in saying Billy Hamilton was one of my favorite surprises during the first half of the season. Makes me smile / happy when he gets a hit or makes a great play in the field. He has the same impact on the team, especially Tim. Hoping he gets more chances to prove himself and stay on the roster throughout the rest of the season and even beyond. Like to see him play even against at least some righties and start against all lefties while Luis remains out.

Hope Arizona throws in Seth Beer as well, would be a perfect meal.

Alright, here is a redhead, Kari Wuhrer, and Ken Ober's two other sidekicks, Adam Sandler and Dennis Leary. Yes youngsters, you read that right. And for those interested in White Sox baseball, June 4 game highlights include a few pertinent performances: https://www.mlb.com/whitesox/video/cg-det-cws-6-4-21?q=TeamID %3D%3D [145] AND ContentTags %3D ["condensed-game"] Order By Timestamp DESC&cp=CMS_FIRST&p=0 Billy Hamilton's defense is more important than any offense Brian Goodwin theoretically provides. On a warm day with the wind blowing out, Nick Madrigal can go yard. Yasmani is a first ballot HOFer. Jake Lamb is not an outfielder. Making outs on the bases is stupid. Healthy or not, Evan Marshall is a borderline AAA/AAAA pitcher at this point. Yermin Mercedes is clutch and should continue playing with DH Eloy out.