LDF

any hints, any indications of who them are planing on signing???

QUOTE (witesoxfan @ Jan 24, 2015 -> 12:01 AM) The Brewers traded or are close to trading for Papelbon today, and it got me wondering "why?" Maybe they think he's legitimately better than anybody else and he will justify the cost, or maybe they think he is going to help reduce bullpen meltdowns. So I perused the stats on FanGraphs and noticed a little something here that we all saw last year and perhaps couldn't put a finger on just WHAT it was exactly. FanGraphs tracks statistics called Shutdowns and Meltdowns on their win probability section. These correlate to an appearance by a relief pitcher who either increases his team's chances of winning by 6% (WPA of 0.06; this is a Shutdown) or decreases his team's chances of winning by 6% (WPA of -0.06; this is a Meltdown). Here were the Sox rankings in both of these categories as a team: Shutdowns: 114 (8th fewest) Meltdowns: 91 (2nd most) In looking at these, I don't see a team needing a bullpen with shutdown type guys to be successful - the Tigers had the fewest with 98, the Braves and Athletics had 112, the Blue Jays, 113, the Mariners 115, and the Giants 119. However, I do think this CAN allude to high level talent in the bullpen, as the notable teams at the top were the Angels, Orioles, Indians, Cardinals, Pirates, Yankees, and Phillies (and yes, the Phillies are notable, because they have some incredibly talented arms in their bullpen, though they've traded a couple of those away this offseason (assuming the Papelbon trade goes through)). So this is nice to have, but I don't necessarily see this as something that is vital. However, the Sox 2nd most Meltdowns was topped only by the Rockies with 103. None of the 10 teams that allowed the most made the playoffs, with the Indians and Yankees coming closest at 85 and 84 wins respectively. The 10 teams who had the fewest meltdowns? The Brewers, Tigers, Dodgers, Nationals, Athletics, Phillies, Giants, Padres, Mariners and Royals. The Brewers almost made the playoffs last year, the Phillies, as previously discussed, do have a ton of talent, the Padres seemingly always have a good bullpen, and the Mariners finished 1 game out of a Wild Card spot. There's nothing concrete that will help us determine which pitchers will or will not shutdown or meltdown other than accumulating as many good relievers as you realistically can, but it leads some light into possible bullpen constructions. Really, it's nice having guys who can be shutdown relievers, but the most important part of a relievers job is to not screw the pooch. If they can keep everything under control and not blow up, they've done their job. Sorry, wanted to include a link for funsies: http://www.fangraphs.com/leaders.aspx?pos=...=&players=0 very impressive and well written, meaning for someone like me who doesn't know the advance stats. thanks edit ~~~ with the new pen that wa assembled by Hahn, how are those stats and using last yr stats, compiled and compared to last yr ratings.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Jan 24, 2015 -> 12:35 AM) When you say "became superstars for the Sox" you've already excluded some people because KW had that habit of trading guys away. sorry for the ill attempt at a joke. so i didn't realize the bad spot i put you in. let say for this discussion, use those drafted by the sox and traded. i want to use the whole draft history of the sox, regardless of trade. i want to show that there is still a difference of those players drafted and making it, versus signing a int'l player. i think a lot of it has to do with scouting them for months.

QUOTE (shipps @ Jan 24, 2015 -> 12:27 AM) Looking at the pictures of the 05' guys there at the convention. It makes me realize how long ago that was and how old we have all gotten since then...holy jeez. And also I felt that little tingly feeling inside thinking about how special that was and how everyone a part of it will hold a place in my heart. That sounds mushy but its true. old.... give me a break... o5. i have been a sox fan since the 67 sox and i remember wilbur wood as a rookie. never in that time was i ever a sCrub fan. now you know why 05 was special to the old farts like me.

QUOTE (thxfrthmmrs @ Jan 24, 2015 -> 12:14 AM) What more can you ask for on top of the Geovanny Soto face turn, showing up in a Cubs jersey then ripping it apart revealing the "good guys wear black" shirt he's wearing underneath, then jumping on top on the tables and starting the Yes! chants, Daniel Bryan style. ummm i like that too. someone better film that and then post it or link it from the soxtalk site.

QUOTE (KyYlE23 @ Jan 23, 2015 -> 05:00 PM) Its not a problem, type how you want to type. If you want, just type your sentences and dont worry about the width and let the site format it when you post i am using your post b/c you are an admin. guys, those who help me with the sentence format of writing a post, many thanks i learned something today. peace.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Jan 23, 2015 -> 10:34 PM) But you're willing to throw all that away to sign a single guy? i am making a separate post for this, if you do not mind. in a mlb draft, let say from 2000-2010 how many draft picks made it, and how many became superstars for the sox???

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Jan 23, 2015 -> 10:34 PM) But you're willing to throw all that away to sign a single guy? now we are getting into the intangibles that hasn't been discussed. there are those that need be taken into consideration, but if you are saying as a int'l fa and all things being equal...... then yes i would. someone Moncada will be worth the risk. now let me flip this, are you saying you would not, b/c the money is too much, then when would you spend the money to sign a player?? there are risk in everything. the best way is to weigh that risk with other factors, in this case scouting rpts, and you hope those scouting rpt is correct.

QUOTE (Joe B. @ Jan 23, 2015 -> 11:43 PM) Cannot believe how crowded it is here today. It's a blessing for the fans, but a curse for those who are only interested in getting memorabilia signed. Great to see this much hype for the White Sox, haven't seen this in years. welcome to the best sport forum in all of baseball. remember sox in 2015....

QUOTE (fathom @ Jan 23, 2015 -> 10:14 PM) Stuck watching the Kaplan/Ventura interview on csnchicago. Of course, one of the first things Kaplan brings up is the Cubs signed Lester first. Wrong, wrong, wrong! i wish at that point robin would have said, ummm excuse me but this is sox baseball.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Jan 23, 2015 -> 11:05 PM) 24 teams didn't think Mike Trout was worth a first round pick. The Yankees gave up their first round pick, the one that turned into Trout, for Teixeira. How do you pick out the next Mike Trout with certainty? you can't and that is the point. it is all a gamble and that is why you sign players whether it is for the int'l slot money or for mlb draft money. you hope that maybe the scouting rpt is correct and your coaches can develop a piece of coal into a diamond. not to spend b/c it is too much, esp when you have the money, is senseless. "only if the fans comes out then we will spend"

QUOTE (witesoxfan @ Jan 23, 2015 -> 11:00 PM) It wasn't that long ago that Michael Ynoa was considered to be a future ace with a limitless future. He's a pitcher, so there was more inherent risk, but hitters can bust just as easily. In a situation like that, ESPECIALLY a situation like that, spreading out your risk is the far safer and more logical move [unless you have a virtually limitless amount of monetary resources]. i know what you mean, like yoan lopez was mention in the same breath as Aroldis Chapman, and that was b/c of his fastball.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Jan 23, 2015 -> 10:57 PM) At age 19, there is still a HUGE number of questions for just about every player that isn't a once in a generation player. Moncada is not that guy. Reading the scout talk, he wouldn't even have been the #1 pick if he had been in the MLB draft last year. You are putting down $20 million, punting on years worth of signings, and still not 100% positive the kid will be a star. wooow there. i think i read that he would have been top 3 in the mlb draft. this was done by, i think someone in baseball america or something like that. that is why i am really on signing him and been mentioning that he was equivalent to a real high draft pick. i would not have taken this stand if not. maybe i misread this.

QUOTE (witesoxfan @ Jan 23, 2015 -> 10:55 PM) We have it first hand from Jeff Samardzija that anything less than 162-0 is a disappointment. not bad, i can live with that.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Jan 23, 2015 -> 10:53 PM) jon greenberg ‏@jon_greenberg 34m34 minutes ago I told Samardzija the Sox are using him to market the team. "Smart," he said. "I'd do that too." Daryl Van Schouwen ‏@CST_soxvan 44m44 minutes ago Samardzija says he's 'home.' Says #whitesox are built to win 'and built to win every day.' like what else is he going to say???

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Jan 23, 2015 -> 08:56 PM) The answer continues to be we do the best we can. You can only do so much if an injury happens, you can't just have all stars sitting there waiting in every spot, sometimes you have to live and die with what happens on the field. If Robin tries to kill abreu like he did last year and knocks him out for a good stretch of time, there's no way we're going to make up that offense, we just have to get through that time as well as we can. that is funny to even visualize. nice one. but with ref to the other sentence, by this and the past tweets, the sox are done adding. all the lip services that is and will gone is nothing but lip service. maybe to try to build up hype. penciling in Rodon as a starter is what they have plan and with no viable backup for the starting pen. except for E. Johnson, Beck and Montas. why are they beating around the bush, just tell the truth. what they assembled now is what we as fans will expect to see during the season.

well that was my opinion.... what the hell do i know.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Jan 23, 2015 -> 09:44 PM) But the $20 million will stop us from spending. Remember, even last year with the #3 pick in the draft we spent less than $15 million on all of our draft players AND the international players... combined. The Sox are not that team. If they spent that kind of money on Moncada, they would take the money either out of future budgets or out of the major league team budget. yeah but here is another question, would you spend that for a young Jose A, a young Trout??? also Vlad jr is avail for the signing.

QUOTE (SoxPride18 @ Jan 23, 2015 -> 08:36 PM) I'm sure a lot of us would take .240 AVG with 25-30 HRs. well after 1 lousy yr, no one should give up on him. esp with what he brings to the table skill wise. i am going with what he has done and not what his ceiling is. so 20+ hrs, and here is what i am hoping for 240+ in avg. so why didn't Hahn just say, they are hoping for a rebound from Davidson and will address the position needs during spring training.

QUOTE (KyYlE23 @ Jan 23, 2015 -> 08:06 PM) Every time I have gone over 210 degrees I have been unhappy with how dry the ribs get, maybe i am doing something wrong. I dont mind the slow cook though. the house smells awesome ahh baby you are talking now. there is nothing than good caramelized ribs. i do mine in the beginning at 150 - 170 for 2 hours. never using a fork where it puncture the meat. that smell with burnt honey and bbq sauce is to die for.

QUOTE (flavum @ Jan 23, 2015 -> 07:57 PM) Ok. For Sale, Samadzija, and Quintana- 18 starts before the break. 15 starts after the break. And Sale ready to start Game 163 if they need it. Sale is the key and for me Rodon as well. how many times has Sale missed games in the past b/c on injury??? Rodon Sam and Quin will be pitching a lot of innings, innings they are not used to. here is another point, i hate to even say this, but what happen if injury bug happens to the starters, all this is needed to be thought of. i rather go into the playoff with a well rested, injury free pitching rotation, chomping at the bit to get it on.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Jan 23, 2015 -> 07:46 PM) If Rodon is up they'll almost certainly have to skip his turn in the rotation every 3-4 weeks. exactly, expecting a rookie to come in and pitch like a vet in the middle of the playoff run. now if this was Mark Buehrle, he was an ox who could handle the work load. the playoff for me is the important part for next yr. Rodon will have a great career, just groom him for the following yr + .

QUOTE (flavum @ Jan 23, 2015 -> 07:35 PM) First 11 starts, I have Sale going on 4 days rest five times, and 5 days rest six times. For Samardzija, Quintana, and Danks, I have them going 4 days rest six times, 5 days rest four times, and 6 days rest once. If they can't handle that, then shut down baseball forever. this discussion is not whether they can handle it or not. it is to get them ready for the important part of the season. the wild card / playoff.

QUOTE (Chilihead90 @ Jan 23, 2015 -> 07:47 PM) I think Kershaw, Scherzer, Felix, and Darvish will be all above Sale. yeah i agree, even with Felix. but it is still good company.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Jan 23, 2015 -> 07:35 PM) If Moncada gets a $10 million bonus (which is probably really low), not only does that turn into a $20 million obligation by the time the taxes are paid, but it also means that we lose the ability to sign any players in the international pool for two full years afterwards. When you are talking about that age of players, do you bet on one guy, or do you put that $20 million to work on a lot of players over the three year period if you are the White Sox? well Moncada is a unique situation. but lets assume for this discussion this is the player. it all depends on the signing date. ok lets say it is next yr, the fees and the penalty are there. that is a given. that still will not hamper or stop signing all the int'l players you can that yr.. so you load up on talented players go over the slot signing. it is still the same penalty. now here is the wild card. this int'l rule is going to be address and maybe be done with, this was discuss as maybe the yr after next. it is still a good gamble that the penalty will not affect the team. however lets say it does, the sox system will have a major influx of prospects to help the rebuild goes faster.