CWSGuy406

QUOTE(kyyle23 @ Jul 30, 2007 -> 07:22 PM) Best what? Hitter? Maybe, but still doubtful as the guy strikes out a ton. And his defense is nothing short of atrocious Who cares if he strikes out a bit? If it means he's taking strong cuts and is hitting 20-30 homers, I could care less.

QUOTE(iamshack @ Jul 30, 2007 -> 07:14 PM) Even if we did get just a sandwich pick, what would we be losing out of from WMP and Hansen? Where are you getting Hansen from? From all reports it's either Delcarmen or Masterson. Masterson would rank in the top ten prospects in the Sox farm system, and Wily Mo would rank right now as the best OFer we have heading into 2008 (sad as that may seem). WMP is also one year removed from a very good season. I'd much rather have that than two draft picks, neither of which would be in the 30 (I think it's more likely that Dye signs his last big contract with a 'winning' team).

QUOTE(joeynach @ Jul 30, 2007 -> 06:17 PM) Why the hell would we want Willy Mo Pena unless hes going to be a 4th OF. The Sox probably don't see WMP as a fourth OFer. They see him as a guy who, if given consistent playing time, could put up a line similar to what he did in 2005 and 2006 -- .260/.315/.475. That's not spectacular by any means, but it's an upgrade over anything we have for next season. And his bad defense but plus-plus arm is certainly an upgrade over Podsednik's defense in LF the past couple seasons.

QUOTE(kwolf68 @ Jul 30, 2007 -> 05:58 PM) Masterson makes me happy...Hansen makes me happy....Maybe we'll hear different. THis deal isn't done. Why would you want Hansen but not Delcarmen? Manny D has 80 innings of a 4.26 ERA that say he can, at the very least, be a competent backend-of-the-bullpen reliever. Hansen, OTOH, has 40 innings of Nick Masset numbers in the majors. I'd be happy with either Delcarmen or Masterson, but damn, it would be quite the coup for Kenny to pull off both.

QUOTE(kwolf68 @ Jul 30, 2007 -> 05:53 PM) He can't catch the ball no. The guy is Dave Kingman the 2nd. He can hit a ball 800 feet, but will be a terror in the OF. Hell, we'll have Jerry Owens in center who can't throw it 20 yards, Mo Pena in right field pretending he is playing soccer, and in LF? Maybe a converted 3rd baseman. Oh yea, things are looking up now. Oh come on. People act like we've seen gold-glove defense from either of our corner outfield spots the past couple seasons. That simply isn't the case. You don't need great defense in left-field, and I doubt Pena is much of a downgrade defensively from Dye, especially once WMP gets used to playing at US Cellular.

QUOTE(iamshack @ Jul 30, 2007 -> 05:50 PM) Why can't we get a ss? Why not Lowrie at least Kenny? Boston fans at BTF seem to think Lowrie isn't a sure bet to stick at SS. He seems like a rather 'low-ceiling' player. I'm really intrigued by getting Masterson -- see, Greg Pratt, we can agree every once and a while.

Wow, you guys are definitely right about Masterson. He has a GB/FB ratio of 2.31 this season -- he also has a K/BB of better than 3-to-1. If Kenny's "statistical people" are giving him this info, this seems like the type of pitcher Kenny has been talking about acquiring lately. If they somehow can get all three -- Pena, Delcarmen and Masterson -- that'll be a fantastic deal for our Sox.

QUOTE(Gregory Pratt @ Jul 30, 2007 -> 05:20 PM) PS: why are you insinuating that I'm wearing 3D glasses? Does that really need an answer? Who is that there in your avatar? Who is that quote from in your sig?

QUOTE(Gregory Pratt @ Jul 30, 2007 -> 05:12 PM) What should they have given Salty up for? A pitcher, perhaps? Have you noticed through the blue-and-red shades that they have no fourth or fifth starter? Or that they just made a trade (McBride for Ledezma) that looks extremely silly now that Ledezma has been DFA'd?

QUOTE(Gregory Pratt @ Jul 30, 2007 -> 05:07 PM) It's as predictable as people saying, "Oh, no, they've given up so much!" They haven't given up anything more than what they can afford. It's all about value. The value of a catcher with the skills of Salty are much more rare than the value of a player with the skills of Teixera playing first-base. I will say this. JS has, quite obviously, earned his own 'leeway' with trades and other transactions, so I'll keep my mouth shut.

QUOTE(Balta1701 @ Jul 30, 2007 -> 05:05 PM) What happens if the Braves manage to resign Tex? Need I even comment on how unlikely that is?

QUOTE(Gregory Pratt @ Jul 30, 2007 -> 04:42 PM) This isn't such a bad deal for Atlanta at all. Salty = second to McCann, with good reason. He was just a trade chip for them. They've filled their huge hole at first base. Sure, they gave up Elvis, who is phenomenal, but who knows how he'll end up. That's a crapshoot -- and besides, they've got Renteria and Escobar. With the pitchers, that's always a crapshoot, too, especially when any injuries are involved, but it's a trade off that's definitely worth it and it doesn't do terrible harm to their system because these guys were expendable, and Atlanta's farm is self-sustaining. Hah, this was predictable. JS is giving up six years of Salty -- a catcher who, if he wasn't behind McCann, could probably step in and be one of the top eight catchers in all of baseball -- along with some other good prospects for a year-and-a-half of Tiexera. Basically, if Atlanta doesn't win it this year, I can't see this being a very good trade for Atlanta...

I was told by a friend that a large chunk of the loop was shutdown last night due to filming for the new Batman.

QUOTE(Tony82087 @ Jul 30, 2007 -> 03:05 AM) IMO, if were just talking about a 4th OF option, Owens will get the job done for at least half the cost of Podsednik. We have been saying this for almost a year now, but as it stands, Podsednik is a zero tool player. Can't hit, can't get on base, can't run, can't field, and can't throw. There should be no spot for him on this team. Podsednik would be an awful fourth outfielder, too -- he can only play one position. And as it is, we already have two fourth outfielders in Terrero and Owens -- let's hope this organization doesn't try to make them anything more than that.

I was at the game today, and I'll be honest and say I thought there was a 50% chance that Konerko was traded or that something was close. My seats were reasonably far away from the Sox dugout and I couldn't see Konerko and he obviously wasn't in the lineup. I was expecting to see at some point in the game on the scoreboard, "The Sox have sent Paul Konerko to Anahiem for Casey Kotchman, Brandon Wood and Joe Saunders."

A mod really needs to merge this thread with the regular 'catch-all' thread or just delete it altogether.

QUOTE(danman31 @ Jul 29, 2007 -> 12:49 AM) Jerry Owens with a HR? Wow! His first career HR. Danny Richar and Jerry Owens are the offensive highlights today, who knew? Shockingly enough, Jerry Owens' homer wasn't the most "WOWing" homer of the day. Jason Tyner went deep. I haven't seen it yet, but man, it's very tough for me to even see him hitting the ball to the warning track.

That was a cute little swing. A hit for Owens that went more than 100 feet? My goodness.

QUOTE(Jeremy @ Jul 28, 2007 -> 06:36 PM) I didn't love it myself though I'm relieved that we're not opening another huge hole with Tad's departure this way. I agree that the organization seems to criminally underrate Getz. I'm just waiting for Kenny to trade him to a smarter GM for a bag of balls. Why do you say the Sox criminally underrate him? Since he's been drafted from Michigan, the Sox have been trying to fast track him but he was absolutely terrible last year -- his OPS was .647. He was doing fine this season, but he's also 24 years old and repeating AA -- he should be dominating the level if he has any hope of staying on the 'prospect' map. If anything I think you're criminally overrating Getz. He has absolutely no power, so unless that changes, I can't see him becoming anything more than a utility player.

QUOTE(Balta1701 @ Jul 28, 2007 -> 08:45 PM) I don't let Konerko go to the Halos if Wood is not involved. I would have told them bye at that also. Why is Wood a must have? He's hitting .262/.343/.479 in the PCL. For a supposed top prospect that's pretty weak. We're not talking about a Justin Upton type here -- even when Wood was smoking the crap out of the ball with 100 extra basehits, he was still striking out a TON -- last year he K'd in 33% of his at-bats. That's not to say that I wouldn't want Wood, just that he shouldn't be considered "must have" in a deal. For me, getting Kotchman back would be the most important thing in a Konerko deal. Kotchman would ensure that the drop-off of production at first would be minimal. I may overrate Santana a bit but I'd like to have him, too -- perhaps Bud Black leaving has had some type of effect on Santana. I just don't understand why the Sox would balk so easily at a deal headlined by Kotchman and Santana (with presumably two decent but not top prospects also included).

QUOTE(Dick Allen @ Jul 27, 2007 -> 03:28 AM) Its funny we didn't hear how mentally fragile Damaso Marte was until Ozzie hit town. I will go to my grave thinking Ozzie gets way too much credit for Garland's turnaround. Garland was basically the same pitcher even a little worse his first year with Ozzie. And he's averaged a little less than 1 more inning per start since Ozzie took over. He cut his walk rate down. If Ozzie is the reason for that, what's the deal with the current bullpen. This is a good point. Most of the people who wanted Garland gone prior to his "breakout" season were the kneejerk types. Garland was perfectly fine as a pitcher before 2005 -- he was a kid in his low-20s giving the Sox 190 innings of a 4.55 ERA, yet at one point I believe even Garland got the "tee-ball stand" treatment. Garland was basically learning on the job -- that's why the Floyd comparison holds no water. For one their two very different pitchers, and their 'flight paths' aren't similar at all.

QUOTE(iamshack @ Jul 28, 2007 -> 08:06 PM) I was told by a pretty decent source that the Angels offered Kotchman, Santana, and two low-level prospects for Pauly, and we basically told them to pound sand. Gee, I hope that's not true. I can understand wanting a little bit more but totally dumping on the deal? That's a pretty good package right there -- if the Angels added Willits to the deal (removing the two prospects), I'd make that deal in a heartbeat. You get your leadoff man for next season along with payroll flexibility (and Kotchman is no slouch at first, either).

Rosenthal said the Angels offered Kotchman and Joe Saunders for Tiexera. Since Konerko is locked up longer than Teixera (but is still a slightly worse hitter than Teix), I think their values might be close. I probably wouldn't do Kotchman and Saunders for Konerko, but it's an offer that has me listening and very intrigued. It might be me just overrating Kotchman a little bit, but I don't think he's a whole lot worse than Konerko is right now, and he's a better bet going forward given the ages of the two. And then there's the whole $12 million per season that would be off the books, allowing the Sox a ton of payroll flexibility (I'd go at Hunter for more money but less years).

http://xbox360.ign.com/articles/807/807831p1.html Great GTA IV inside look. Come this winter, I'm definitely going to have waaay too many games to even think about playing.

QUOTE(Tony82087 @ Jul 27, 2007 -> 10:19 PM) Could be very, very far from the truth, but kinda interesting. I just think the market isn't very good for second basemen. Look at Ronnie Belliard -- he had a pretty similar season to Iguchi's 2007 campaign (89 OPS+ vs 88 OPS+). Belliard also had the tag of 'World Series champion' after "helping" St Louis win their ring. Still, Belliard couldn't even get a guaranteed contract on the open market this winter. Unfortunately for us, average(ish) second basemen just aren't that big of a commodity.