CWSGuy406

QUOTE(Steff @ Dec 1, 2005 -> 12:56 AM) In house and 1 more incoming.. If I say something three times, doesn't that mean it will come true? Not Juan Pierre... Not Juan Pierre... Not Juan Pierre...

Rogo hit .293/.374/.444 last year at Birmingham. Real nice OBP there, but the SLG% is very, very low (obviously). I'd start him at Charlotte, and in late '06, '07, use him in a Ross Gload type role pre-injury, playing LF/RF/1B. Ozzie likes versatility, plus, if he can add a little power, there's a chance he could be a pretty decent hitter.

QUOTE(Jordan4life_2005 @ Nov 30, 2005 -> 08:20 PM) Pierre is a maybe guy because of one down year, a year in which he still hit a solid .276 and finished second in the NL in stolen bases and triples? And had a .326 OBP. But yeah -- he stole bases.

QUOTE(ptatc @ Nov 30, 2005 -> 03:59 AM) Oh but I forgot, this is the formula the Sox used to win thn the World Series when the high SLG lineup of Mags, Thomas, Lee, Valentin etc. couldn't. Stats can show the run production and predict wins but the style we used last year always does better than the predictions. The Twins beat us when the run production predictions said we should have beat them and we beat EVERYBODY last year when the run production stats said we shouldn't have made the playoffs. Stats are fun for discussion but pitching and defense are the main components of winning. (sorry, end of rant) It's true, too. In 2003, the pitching staff was nowhere near as good as the '05 staff. Buehrle had (arguably) his worst season, Loaiza was awesome, and Colon was like '05 Freddy Garcia. Garland was average, and any other starter we threw out that year sucked. The bullpen was decent, but concentrated in two (okay -- three) arms -- Wunsch, Gordon, and Marte. Wunsch is a LOOGY, so he didn't have a huge impact. Marte and Gordon were good, but I'd take the depth of the '05 bullpen over the dominance of two pitchers of the '03 pen anyday. I think I'll always look back on 2003 and shake my head. If only we had gotten into the playoffs...

QUOTE(JimH @ Nov 30, 2005 -> 02:49 AM) Who said this? There is no way they're going to trade Marte and Sweeney for one year of Juan Pierre. No chance whatsoever. It all comes down to Ozzie Guillen wanting a new #2 hitter. He wants to move Iguchi down. Brian Anderson is not a #2 hitter. Owens? Maybe. Jim, I saw earlier in the thread a suggestion of Marte + Sweeney for Pierre. Nomahhhhh! But I know you're also (somewhat) on board with that idea, so we're on the same page there. No. But, what correlates better to scoring runs? Batting average, or SLG%? It's SLG% -- and OBP, for that matter (not sure which correlates better, but I'm confident in saying SLG% and OBP correlate better to scoring runs than BA does). Pierre's OBP is very batting average heavy. So -- if he has a year in which he doesn't hit for a BA above .300 -- he ends up with a line like last year -- .276/.326/.354. Oh -- but I forgot about all the havoc he'll cause on the basepaths...

If Juan Pierre played to his career line next year -- .305/.355/.375 -- even with Rowand's "bad" season, I'd argue that we'd be worse off in CF next year. Why? Mainly, defense. Pierre is nowhere near the defender that Rowand is, but he also doesn't slug as much as Rowand does, either. Pierre's 73% stealing percentage, which I doubt would get a whole lot better moving to a team that has potential cold months in April and September/October, really doesn't help the team a whole lot either. His value as a basestealer is minimal, actually. So, we're giving up Damaso Marte and Ryan Sweeney for one year of Juan Pierre? Afterall, whoever plays there is pretty much keeping it warm for Chris Young (or, Brian Anderson). :banghead Maybe next year we can have a team of Scott Podsedniks. Oh, and Paul Konerko, signed for a hundred billion dollars for ten years.

QUOTE(Texsox @ Nov 29, 2005 -> 01:25 PM) At 29, he would be younger than Thome at the end of this contract. I don't have a problem going 5 with Paul, depending on the total dollars. I was expecting 4/$52-$55 so 5/for about the same dollars seems reasonable. Of course he should be offering a home town discount and is he doesn't sign he's a greedy asshole. *He'll be 30 before Opening Day 2006.

See, I don't want Nomar as our everyday thirdbaseman. He's a HUGE downgrade defensively from Crede, and that alone is worth a lot of runs. The reason I like Nomar is because (IMO) he'd be able to play one positions pretty well (1B, with a whole Spring Training there under his belt), DH (duh), and two other positions not extremely well, but he wouldn't kill us out there (3B, and to a lesser extent, SS). He's versatile in not just where he can play in the IF, but also where he can be put in the lineup. You could probably pencil him in anywhere from the #2 spot to the #6 spot.

QUOTE(Balta1701 @ Nov 29, 2005 -> 01:36 AM) One thing about the Angels...when they write deals with people, the deals they write seem like smart deals at the time, unlike some of the stuff we've seen lately. Even the Finley deal, which blew up in their faces, looked good at the time it was written. It did? Orlando Cabrera says hello.

QUOTE(JimH @ Nov 29, 2005 -> 03:43 AM) Well thought out, nicely done. You are right, KW was indeed interested in Nomar before, with the whole Maggs deal. So it makes sense he's a Plan B option from KW's perspective. There's no secret they're intent on having some 3B insurance for Crede, which is smart. Pablo can handle it here and there but he's more effective as an energy player vs. a guy you plug in for two or three weeks at a crack. If Nomar is brought in, I think Thomas is out the door. Unfortunately... But, Nomar seems to be a good fit. He can play both positions on the left side of the infield (though, I wouldn't recommend him at SS very often), and could probably handle 1B if he practiced there during Spring Training. He could also DH. Question -- if they do sign Nomar, who hits #2 in the batting order? Nomar seems (to me) to have a more natural swing to RF. Plus, he strikes out a lot less than Iguchi does (nearly 50 less K's). Iguchi's 47 walks are right around Nomar's career average, so there isn't a whole lot of difference there. I'd say, bat Nomar second (while playing 1B), and go with a lineup of... Pods -- Nomar -- Dye -- Thome -- Iguchi -- Pierzynski -- Crede -- Uribe -- Anderson That lineup would hit less homers than last year (I'd guesstimate in the 165-180 range, with a couple springled in by the bench), but would have a better OBP. I think Kenny would take that if the OBP increase is significant.

Mench is an overrated offensive player. This year, in 557 ABs, he put up a .264/.328/.469 line -- that's decent, but barely above league average (good for a 106 OPS+). Soriano isn't much of an upgrade over Walker, either. Neither are good defensively, and the past two years, Walker has been the better offensive player. Sure, he's older, but by only a couple of years -- and Walker makes $5 million less than Soriano. Plus, the Rangers would get Cedeno + Aardsma + others? Nice deal for Texas...

Owens ought to be the fourth OFer this year. The way Ozzie uses his backups, Owens will get his fair share of ABs. You can spell him in CF for Anderson against tough righties, and in LF early on in the season to keep Podsednik's legs fresh. Owens will probably be an upgrade over Timo last year (scratch that -- he will be an upgrade over Timo). BTW -- again -- I know most of you guys aren't fond of the ZiPS Projections, but here's Owens' line: 288/344/347. If he can do that for us, we have a nice fourth OF'er who can be relied upon. Heck, if that's his rookie year line, move out of the way in '07, Scott Pods...

QUOTE(fathom @ Nov 28, 2005 -> 07:46 PM) Another board also has a guy who usually has inside information that says Nomar is the back-up plan. I personally think it would be a great fit for Nomar, as he could play 3b if Crede has back problems. If you can put Nomar/Thome in the 3-4, and have enough money left to re-up Garland and AJP, that would be a great offseason. ^^^^ I brought this up at another board. IMO, Nomar makes a helluva lot of sense. Moreso than Mueller, even. Fathom, from what you hear, how much of an "ego" guy is Nomar? I mean, he'd be in pretty much every game, it's just that he'd probably have to rotate between 1B/DH/3B, and the rare occasional start at SS. Oh -- and, he could hit second, too, which allows Iguchi to move down in the order. That's why it also makes sense.

QUOTE(WinninUgly @ Nov 27, 2005 -> 01:23 PM) They will probably go after a 3B for some insurance on Crede's back or add a backup 1B that can DH in addition to Thome. Mueller or Olerud seem like viable options. Both are great OBP guys and Olerud has actually won a couple of GGs. If you're gonna sign Olerud, why not just keep Gload?

QUOTE(TLAK @ Nov 27, 2005 -> 09:19 PM) The candidates are Marte, Hermanson and Vizcaino. Two short men and a middle. I doubt Hernandez can do these jobs. In terms of a season, I don't think El Duque is suitable for any role other than starter. If BMac is going to take his place then Orlando has to be moved. The ramificaton of that is who becomes your 6th starter in case of injury? Sean Tracey? El Duque's not going to be the fifth starter, unless someone gets hurt. Pretty much, his options are as a long reliever, or he'll be traded -- one of the two. You figure he'd like pitching on more of a daily basis, and have a chance to be in a game, than pitch every five days. But ptact says his shoulder can't handle it, which is understandable. Plus, I could see El Duque not wanting to be 'demoted' to the bullpen -- but I wouldn't look at it like that, because if he can pitch in the mid-90s in the bullpen (meaning, hit 92-93 rather than 88-89), I think he'll be a big addition to the bullpen. Then again, I'd also be in favor of trading Hermanson -- I doubt his trade value will ever be higher -- and put Bajenaru in the bullpen, but I doubt Baj ever gets a shot with the Sox...

Orton has been pretty bad this game. That should've been pick number two...

QUOTE(NUKE_CLEVELAND @ Nov 26, 2005 -> 09:30 PM) Or just keep throwing your money away on a s***bag hockey team that is built for mediocracy and drone on and on about loyalty even though neither the players are just there to collect a paycheck and the management doesn't give a rats ass about winning. :rolly Not true one bit, but keep spewing your crap. It's laughable for the rest of us.

QUOTE(WinninUgly @ Nov 26, 2005 -> 07:17 PM) I know teams have to do what they need to do, but this guy had one decent year and now he receives the biggest contract ever for a reliever. This is a perfect example of what not to do. The last three years, he's averaging over 11 K's/9 IP, and has put up ERA's of 3.40, 2.28, and 2.43. This is one of the top five-ten relievers in all of baseball. Of course, I do agree with you that this is way too much money, but Ryan is one helluva pitcher.

Anyone have a list of possible non-tenders...?

Where's Crede in your lineup? When Williams said "insurance", I assumed he meant a guy who could step in if needed, but not someone who's going to take Joe's spot if he's healthy. Mueller could probably grab a starting spot in several other places -- I highly doubt he's coming here as a backup.

QUOTE(SSH2005 @ Nov 26, 2005 -> 06:52 AM) Adding Jim Thome and Bill Mueller would be a massive improvement to our team OBP. But leaves us well short in the power department, assuming Thome matches Konerko's 40 of last year. We'd still be well short of matching Everett's/Thomas' 35 (or around there), as Mueller would only knock out ten. That's why it's hard for me to think Mueller is coming here. He's not coming here as a backup (I don't think). And you're losing a lot of power if he's your everyday firstbaseman. IMO, they're still one power bat short of where they need to be.

http://chicagosports.chicagotribune.com/sp...-home-headlines

QUOTE(Greg The Bull Luzinski @ Nov 26, 2005 -> 03:57 AM) That is a stupid move. Did the Jays re-hire Gord Ash and the rest of us not know it? Before last year, most people never heard of BJ. The guy has 42 career saves. In his career, he has not even done what Bobby Thigpen did in a year. Umm -- who cares about the saves. 12.50 Ks/9 the last two years. He's really good, no doubt, but just not this good.

When Benson was drafted, I believe I said something along the lines of -- "I don't know if this is the right RB they're drafting, as you could make as strong a case for Cadilac Williams as you can for Benson." I forgot what I said about Williams, but I was sort of responding to the people who were 100% positive that Mike Williams was the second coming of Jerry Rice, and that Angelo was an idiot for not taking him. I agree with you about Derrick Johnson. Imagine the Bears defense with a LBing core of Johnson/Urlacher/Briggs... Hillenmyer has done a good job, but DJ is so freakin' good.

http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/story/369023p-313970c.html :headshake