Chisoxfn

QUOTE(jphat007 @ Jul 24, 2005 -> 12:41 PM) LOL. AJ Burnett just hit a bomb in SF. Maybe he can hit too. Thats the plan...he's the offensive and pitching solution

QUOTE(danman31 @ Jul 24, 2005 -> 12:40 PM) Paul Konerko is hitting .327 in close and late (Close And Late - results in the 7th inning or later with the batting team either ahead by one run, tied or with the potential tying run at least on deck.) situations. OPS of .984 in the same situations. And you're telling me he sucks when it matters. :rolly I just laugh at everyone who says Paulie swings for the fences all the time. All you have to do is look at what he does with 2 strikes. Paulie specifically looks to go to right, more specifically the right center gap. If you doubt that look at how the outfielders shift when Paulie gets two strikes on them. You'll see the CFer move over to cover that gap. Paulie is not a selfish hitter. He has his faults and isn't dominating (although I'm positive he's hitting pretty darn good since the break). Now he has struggled with runners in scoring position, but hey, s*** happens and career wise he's always been a pretty damn good run producer. He comes through clutch and I can't help but laugh when I see so many people talk about how crappy he is. Without him, this offense would be a whole lot worse. Are there better 1bman, sure there are, but not many. By the way Dan, I'm just kind of adding to what you said, definately not disagreeing with ya.

Its the "FOP"STER.

I can get the overall gist of it. I just read between the lines. Like for the Contreras thing, just know that he thinks Jose has the best arm on the staff and if he ever puts it together he'd be the best pitcher on the staff.

QUOTE(CYGarland @ Jul 24, 2005 -> 12:37 PM) And it was on a breaking ball It was a good pitch to hit too.

My dad didn't go, but he vividly remembers them. He's been a Dodger fan since he was a wee lad. When he first got his car he drove out to Brooklyn from Iowa to see a game. He will always tell me how his Dodgers were heavy under-dogs and came in and stole the series. I so badly want to see the Sox win it all. Oh man I'll go crazy.

QUOTE(Dick Allen @ Jul 24, 2005 -> 12:29 PM) The Count is getting up there in the pitch count, and when he loses it, he really loses it. I hope Ozzie has the bullpen on point next inning. Thats why I see Schmidt as more of the upgrade. Burnett can go deeper into games a little more than Contreras, but it isn't huge. Hell, could the key be how Ozzie keeps talking about keeping his pen fresh. Maybe he realizes that Contreras flat out isn't capable of going deep into games. What better way to freshen your pen by getting another starter that can go deep. The only problem I have is that Burnett hasn't exactly proven that he'll consistently go 6+. Now Schmidty, he has. Oh man has he ever. Although with all things quiet on his front, it makes you think the Giants are just going to stick things out this year and make some moves in the off-season and try and retool for the West. Schmidt and Omar still have good years ahead of them, Schmidt may have quite a few more (he's not all that old). I'd be so thrilled if the Sox got Jason centered around Contreras and prospects.

QUOTE(JUGGERNAUT @ Jul 24, 2005 -> 12:28 PM) Options are inherited from minor league contracts so free agents who have never signed a minor league contract are not eligible. The option is associated with the player & not the team. Gotcha..thanks for that info Juggs.

QUOTE(WHarris1 @ Jul 24, 2005 -> 12:21 PM) Ya I doubled posted, you deleted 1 and I deleted the other. My question; what is new with Burnett? If a deal was that close wouldn't he get scratched from his start today? Which he did not. No, because Fla is in the race so they aren't going to not let him pitch based on a potential deal. Anything can happen between close and done.

QUOTE(Milkman delivers @ Jul 24, 2005 -> 12:26 PM) I heard a good argument against them, though. Their starters are all young, and they might tire out by the end of the season. They also have Zito and Harden who are very talented players with some experience (maybe not tons of it, but they have plenty of playoff experience). Oakland is surging and I gotta give Beane some credit (I bashed the hell out of him too).

You know what, I'm starting to think that changeup is one of Jose's best weapons. When he throws that pitch for strikes, he's totally dominating or can be.

QUOTE(Soxnbears01 @ Jul 24, 2005 -> 11:07 AM) lok for the gloadinator to be amazing as usual He may of gotten out his 1st AB, but I already saw enough. He's gonna be really good down the stretch for the club. His approach at the plate is just great.

QUOTE(JUGGERNAUT @ Jul 24, 2005 -> 11:24 AM) He has no options. That's why he was designated for assignment. It's up to Shingo if he's not traded. He can accept assignment to Charlotte & keep his pay or he can opt for FA & lose his pay. The only way he avoids Charlotte & keeps his pay is if the WSox choose to simply release him. My guess is that he will opt for Charlotte. Why? Because then he can be called up in Sept when the roster expands. Why would he have no options?

QUOTE(beck72 @ Jul 24, 2005 -> 11:04 AM) Freddy's K/ 9 rate says otherwise [though I agree, he can be lights out when his control is on, getting ahead of hitters and then they can't sit on a fastball. His fastball alone (94 mph] isn't overpowering. But the thing is BMac's more of a FB pitcher. Both MB and Jon get their fair share of GB's. KW has talked about getting a diverse set of pitchers in the rotation. BMac falls more in line with what the sox have. Getting a strikeout pitcher [like Burnett] compliments what the sox already have. That's why it wouldn't surprise me to see BMac part of the trade to get a SP like Burnett He has hard stuff. He may not get the K's, but thats part of the reason why he's doing better this year. He's becoming a little less afriad fo the bats. However, if Freddy needs a K he can get it. Plus I tend to think anyone with a 94 MPH FB or higher can be over-powering, especially with Freddy's breaking stuff, which I think is as good as any other starters in baseball (If he ever learned to harness everything, Freddy could become one of the 5 best pitchers in baseball, imo).

QUOTE(Rowand44 @ Jul 24, 2005 -> 11:03 AM) That's how I feel unless of course Burnett was then flipped for Wagner then while I'd still hate to part with Brandon I would do it.

I know one thing...Kenny doesn't want to deal Bmac. The question is will other teams step up and force him into it. Personally, I think he should just back out if thats the case cause like I said, when you break the deal down, its questionable as to the type of upgrade it is. Had Duque pitched like piss last night, I'd be saying different things, but if its Contreras that Burnett replaces, I don't thin kthats a significant upgrade to the rotation. Of course if Contreras turns into a stud reliever, well than that would be something. I like Burnett, just not sure I want to give up Bmac. I'd gladly deal outfield depth though (just not named Chris Young). My question is, does Fla really need an OF prospect?

QUOTE(Rowand44 @ Jul 24, 2005 -> 10:53 AM) I haven't read through this whole thread so this probably was mentioned. But I just woke up to the radio and Bruce said the Sox are closing in on a deal for Burnett but it's Damaso and Brian Anderson. To me that's a no brainer, I still stick by my guns that Damaso won't be traded unless Kenny has another left handed reliever lined up. Now thats a deal I'd do all day long.

QUOTE(Heads22 @ Jul 24, 2005 -> 10:53 AM) There's three teams there that have to be just scary to face. And Seattle's not that bad.... Lo and behold.....Jason and I agree on something.... Haha. NL Central isn't very deep, but I do think right now St. Louis and Houston are as good as any other 1-2 in baseball divisions (only as good or better imo are Angels/A's, and Sox/Twins). The East divisions are top to bottom probably the strongest with the NL being the strongest.

QUOTE(Ozzie Montana @ Jul 24, 2005 -> 10:45 AM) I think the red sox are concentratin more on J.C Romero because when Schilling is ready they'll probably put him in the rotaion and they can have J.C in the bullpen. If they could pawn of Millar for Romero that would be a steal. Mueller for Romero makes some sense though. Twins have a really strong bullpen so I think they could overcome giving up Romero as well, although it could bite em in the ass. BoSox could survive without Mueller or so I'd think. They like the Greek God of Walks (Youkalis).

QUOTE(beck72 @ Jul 24, 2005 -> 10:38 AM) IMO, BMac is expendable because the sox already have 3 control pitchers as part of the rotation for the next few years. MB, JOn, and Freddy don't overpower opponents. BMac also relies on his control in order to be effective. While I don't think signing AJ to a long term deal is smart, it makes sense for this yr as the sox try to win it all Disagree, Freddy is an overpowering pitcher.

I chose the AL West...although I could also make a case for the NL Central and the Al Central. The reason I say the NL Central is because St. Louis is really really good and frankly Houston is a scary team now that they've gotten rolling. AL Central is really solid too with the Sox (best team in baseball) and the Twins (wild card leader). Which has the best races...thats the eastern divisions (Both AL/NL).

ESPN News has a Red Sox reporter on and says that despite reports, they aren't that hot after Burnett. Doesn't think Arroyo would make sense but mentions the Red Sox have some quality pitching prospects down in the minors. Basically put, doesn't think the Red Sox are big on Burnett.

QUOTE(Milkman delivers @ Jul 24, 2005 -> 10:21 AM) Hahahahahaha. Jenks was in our minors for like half a year, and Politte was never ever in our minors. Thats exactly what he said

QUOTE(EvilJester99 @ Jul 24, 2005 -> 10:18 AM) I was actually kind of hoping he would sign a minor league deal to stay with the Sox and maybe work some of his problems out in the minors and maybe come back to the big club sometime or another.... The Sox woudln't of had to do that. I think they knew they weren't going to use Shingo and wanted to give him a shot to catch on somewhere else. Shingo had all his options left so they could of sent him to the minors. Instead they designated him for assignement and removed him from the 40 (opening up a roster spot).

QUOTE(daa84 @ Jul 24, 2005 -> 10:18 AM) check up on your chisox minor league history, cotts came from oakland, jenks from anaheim, garland from cubs, and politte was already a mlb veteran when the sox got him from toronto. only buerhle is the true homegrown outa that bunch You could make a case that the Sox developed Garland. When the Sox acquired Jon he had been considered a bust at that point, however the Sox saw a good arm with potential. He made some adjustments and turned things around and quickly became one of the best pitching prospects in baseball. However, I think the Sox deserve some credit in terms of Garland. Cotts pitched in AA for the Sox for a full season and was lights out. Sox have done a lot with him as well in terms of developing him. However your right, they didn't pick him up.