greg775

I get in trouble a lot on the board for praising certain guys like Davidson and Palka and praising guys because their traditional stats are good. I've noticed some Sox fans only want Harper and Machado in free agency and really want to stay away from pretty much everybody else. So I ask caulfield cause he understands me, what do you advanced stat guys look for in a FA hitter? I know most fans want no part of Moose and I wouldn't mind him coming to the south side at all. Is it OBP and only OPB as well as WAR? Is that it?? Unless those two stat categories are very high very very high do most advanced stat peeps want no part of a FA? In regards to Palka and Davidson, I as a traditionalist like them cause of traditional stats of HR and RBI (their BAs aren't that hot admittedly) taking into consideration limited at bats.

Congrats Rice football team and coaches. Team clobbers Montini on Friday night to go 9-0. The team didn't have a bad game all season. Marist game was the closest in the opener. St. Rita game was close too. Defense has allowed 52 pts in 9 games with three shtuouts in a row. I guess things could go south in the playoffs but this team has to date had a perfect season. Not sure how the playoffs work. Hope they get to play at home for at least the first two playoff games. Coach Badke and his staff and the players are tremendous.

Let's face it, message boards are a microcosm of society. People are screaming at each other in elevators because of politics. I had a buddy at work accosted by a coworker over politics. She totally freaked out and he could have and probably should have gotten her fired. If you are an owner of a message board, I'm sure it's not worth the hassle of people freaking out and blasting other folks who use the boards. If I owned a board I wouldn't allow it either. However this board has a million moderators who kept it in check. Of course this board has moderators who are very vocal and chippy themselves. Moral of story: Smart to kill it altogether in the year 2018. Americans despise each other except in times of tragedy IMO then we do anything we can to help each other. It's a wild dynamic. Farewell filibuster, a victim of the modern era of meanness.

I'd like to see us acquire some players if smart people think we can contend just cause of Eloy being added to a core that includes some of the guys I've mentioned as being in love with before: Timmy, Moncada, Avi, Abreu, Davidson, Palka and Collins. And if smart folks feel our new young starting pitchers are ready to dominate. If smart people think our team still blows even with Eloy, I guess I'm in favor of letting Jerry line his pockets some more and the pockets of his investors while waiting for Robert, Rutherford, Burger, Madrigal and all those pitchers, Cease et all. But if we can be a contender next year? I'm all for adding RELIEVERS and a veteran starter and an outfielder or catcher. I'm one of those who believes we have no chance at Manny/Harper. If Jerry acquires one of them we know he's serious bout winning soon.

You are an interesting guy/poster. I get the feeling you think we have bad fans and bad fans on this board. Who is throwing a decade long temper tantrum about the Sox? Yes some of us are pissed and especially bring the venom in games in which we get blown out early or games in which some of our retread pitchers get rocked, but almost everybody on this board praises the Sox at some point. I think you overreact to how bad some of us fans are. I'm sure when I was a little kid to me the Sox could do no wrong and I'd be happy to just be at a game but now as an adult sure I get pissed especially when the team arguably is trying to suck. In conclusion ... I think we have good fans. Aren't you impressed like me at the crowds of 25,000 on some nights when we are 25 games out and those crowds cheer, too, where applicable?

I agree with Fan O'Faust. Our fans are great. Whenever I'd get depressed over fans on here wanting us to lose games, I'd see how our fans reacted when we did something positive in games at The Cell. Our home fans are into the games, at least the ones where we aren't trailing 7-1 after 3 or 4 and only wonder whether Davidson will pitch tonight.

I like the negative Balta as he offsets the ever positive southsider IMO.

I loved it but in supporting myself I can say normally my long posts and positions were either not correctly explained by me, or peeps took one line out of context and made me appear evil at best, a simpleton at worst. ... I do believe in this day and age there aren't many people who can hold a civil discussion about politics, about abortion, about gay marriage and rights (the cake), about the borders and about Kavanagh and Trump. On a light note, this is one of my favorite SNL skits of the modern era on political discussions ...

This isn't right. First of all our fan base is too small to factor into management's decisions about anything. Secondly our fans may be impatient (sort of) but really the attendance was actually pretty decent for a 100 loss team. The Cell was rarely a morgue despite baseball's insistence on making us play Cleveland, KC, Minnie, Detroit so many times. Ugh. Boring! As well as baseball not yet attacking the millennial problem of how boring it is and how long it takes to complete a game. Again I know we're near the bottom of MLB attendance But we averaged 19,862 per game with a payroll of 75 million. We had 1.6 million fans compared to Cleveland's 1.9, Minnie's 1.9, KC's 1.7. Yeah we are a big city but cmon our fans aren't that bad. I think I read somewhere our TV ratings suck but geez you can't blame the fans for not wanting to watch us lose 100 games. The team still is rolling in dough and the overall worth of the franchise is HUGE. Your love of management is perplexing. Balta is also a mod and he rips the team enough. Don't get me wrong. If you told me we could win it all in 2005 and stink the next 13 years yeah I'd have sold out for that cause it's that difficult to win it all. I give management all the credit in the world for 05. Kenny, Jerry, all of 'em. But right now I'd say our fan support is still pretty good for what management has put on the field. Cmon ... please respond. We drew 1.6 mill. with a 75 mill payroll. That ain't so bad, southsider.

Eloy has to be the real deal or we might as well just give up. I think most people are expecting Eloy to be one of the top five players in the game fairly quickly. If he's not a standout, a star, again we might as well forget about hyping prospects.

I enjoyed the Buster obviously. It has to die, though, because if somebody made a long thought out response, usually rather than that open up a nice discussion, somebody would grab one small portion, usually out of context, and then all hell broke loose. Let's face it. The left is intolerant. The right is intolerant. It's impossible to hold political discussions. Just ask any family that makes that mistake after a few beers at a holiday party.

I think it's fair to say most fans consider winning incredibly important. Chicago is a little different in that the Sox are the second team in the city and we can be grateful there has been ownership willing to keep them here. Veeck and Reinsdorf mainly preventing moves. However, you can be a real fan and not condone the crap we've been watching of late. My years of fandom of one team, the Sox, indicate I'm a true Sox fan even though I've been disgusted by the rebuild. Nobody can tell me I'm not a true fan. I have followed the team too long and fought too many fights with Royals fans to not be a fan.

Now that's a great post.

Good points. I think most fans would prefer just trying to field a good team as the Sox had in 05 and after that continue trying to stay on top by acquiring free agents where necessary, making smart trades when necessary. True, you aren't going to get many top first round draft picks, but if you pick wisely you still can get a good MLB caliber player in round one. This is off topic, but regarding this current Sox rebuild. If you were the front office, you actually could continue this and do it on the cheap and still have most media/fans on your side. Three seasons from now, the Sox could field both a starting rotation and bullpen from guys currently in the organization. By then Rutherford and Robert and Madrigal and all those guys will be on the parent club as well as Collins. All will be making pennies, same as our pitchers. Even though I want free agents to supplement the rebuild, the front office could get away with not doing it. Because in terms of quantity, there's going to be tons of pitchers and everyday players that we groomed for the rebuilt Sox, ready to play. You could conceivably field a WS winner with a 50 million payroll if you just play all the guys we acquired and skip the free agency part of all this. Why acquire Manny when in 2-3 years you have an infield of 1B (whoever we keep there, Palka or Davidson, whomever), Madrigal, Timmy and Moncada. My point is ... your outfield is eloy, robert and rutherford. Collins is your catcher; and tons of homegrown pitchers. If you were Hahn wouldn't you just go with all the guys you've acquired? Screw the free agents and let Jerry have more spending money for Christmas gifts, etc., to boot.

Any dentists on here? I need a crown on a tooth where I chew a lot. They say they will put in a temporary one and then a few weeks later permanent. Is this still the correct procedure or is my dentist getting too old? Also how much will it run me to get a crown? Like Curley in the Stooges episode where the boys pull his tooth, I have a bum tooth.

I agree with Brian. Good advice. Follow it. At least stop spending cash on her. Brian is right.

No. I was saying they got their one WS from the tank/rebuild. We got one doing it the normal way. Just trying to field good teams every year and hoping for lightning in a bottle.

That is the best line ever on this topic. Tanking is like filing bankruptcy. Yes sir. That's how I feel about it! I like your analogy much.

Great trade for the Sox.

Some modern players just don't have it in them to hustle out of the box to first. Some guys get mad when they hit a routine grounder and loaf. It shows up on occasion when there's a bobble. That's when Ricky yanks guys out of the game. Would he remove Machado from said game?

Great post but I don't think we were exactly tanking in the true sense of tanking, which is what is going on now. Don't forget that team also had AJP who was huge; Iguchi, Uribe, Dye, Blum, Ozuna, Contreras, Marte and Hermanson. You didn't name some of the other guys.

You are the rare fan who rarely if ever blasts the front office or expresses displeasure of any kind. If your patience is rewarded with year after year of excellence you will have the last laugh on a lot of people who are angry now. The rest of us complainers will enjoy the winning years as well.

I wouldn't mind them building a palace in the suburbs. Why does the park have to be at 35th and Shields? Sell the team to Mark Cuban and build a wondrous stadium out in a suburb in a spot where traffic can get in and out 'somewhat' efficiently. If not, build it downtown Chicago and make it the 8th wonder of the world type building.

I'm not done with him. I'm just saying are the folks who actively root for losses ecstatic over him? I hope he does just fine. Of course Timmy and Moncada are not going anywhere so even if he progresses at the rate he's supposed to, where's he gonna play? It's 3B for Moncada probably and Madrigal at second. I'm not saying that's a bad infield. I am just saying you folks who follow the draft should expect a much better prospect than Madrigal at No. 3 this year. Arguably the Sox pick needs to be Eloy-ish.

This is why tanking/rebuilding slays me. I prefer the old way that got us a title in 2005. Being decent to good most years then having everything go right one year. The Cubs total rebuild has resulted in one WS title. Great. As a fan I would deem it a successful season making the playoffs as well. BUT no doubt the Cubs wanted more than one WS title with the rebuild. Are they gonna get more? Probably not. And if they don't, they got one WS title doing it the tank/rebuild way and we got one in 05 doing it the other way. This tank/rebuild stuff is not a guaranteed formula for success folks. I'm personally looking forward to Eloy raking with Moncada, Tim, Abreu, Avi, Palka and Davidson. Me likey that.