hogan873

Strange behavior indeed. On the very slight (like Jim Carey "So you're saying there's a chance") chance he's right, it would be funny to see Stone and the others who vehemently denied it respond.

I like the idea of adding teams for the playoffs. Too many teams are essentially eliminated by mid-summer, and with the increased number of teams that are doing extended rebuilds, that issue is magnified. This could be a step in the right direction to discourage the long rebuilds and/or the teams that won't spend year in and year out. However, the top seeds picking their opponent is just silly. It should be seeding that determines who plays whom.

.270 BA, 42 HRs, 120RBIs, slightly improved defense.

Had two Destihl sours yesterday. Here Gose Nothin’ was good, and Synchopathic was really good. I didn’t know what to expect from a dry hopped sour, but I was impressed.

The thread about the Goose Island Sox beer seemed to generate some good conversation around beer. And since I'm a big fan of beer, I figured why not start a thread to discuss this wonderful beverage. I call myself a beer snob, but I'm not against "slumming" with Miller Lite at a party or when destroying a plate of wings. I've tried about 600 different beers, and when I talk about this people ask what my favorite beer ever is. That's hard to answer, mainly because it depends on what I'm in the mood for. However, a few exceptional ones are Founders Breakfast Stout, Samuel Smith's Oatmeal Stout, and Three Floyd's Zombie Dust. Also, Hoegaarden is one I can always drink. I'm loving the numerous craft beer joints popping up over the past couple years. Around Will County there are quite a few really good ones with some great beers. A few standouts are Mad Hatchet, Elder Brewing, and Werk Force. I used to track all of my beers on RateBeer, but someone recently turned me onto Untapped, which is basically Facebook for beer lovers. Anyone else use Untapped? Now I'm thirsty.

I'd buy it just for the packaging. I mean, I'll drink the hell out of it, too. But the can is bad ass.

Has there ever been a post season ban imposed on a pro team in any league?

Still 1st and 2nd round picks. Instead of having a pick at 30, they'll be picking in the low 100s.

Heyman now reporting a deal is near. $12M for 1 year.

WTF

Yeah. Not sure if it really means anything. I doubt it’s about an EE signing.

I feel so much better about the rotation. If Kopech and Rodon are healthy, we have a lot of options.

Nice addition to the rotation, and the terms are not bad at all. The rotation is set. Now a little more offense...

"Well, we really liked him and even briefly considered trading for him a couple years ago. But, we were happy to have a seat at the table and felt pretty good about our chances. He chose to play elsewhere, but we thought we had a chance."

Right. Wasn't trying to remind anyone...just making a statement. Sorry if it was redundant.

Next signing will be Rod Munch.

Of all the White Sox trade rumors out there, which there aren't that many, Lindor seems the least likely. I wouldn't be surprised if Lindor is traded, but I just can't see the Sox being involved.

Lindor is one of those guys that if you have a chance to get, you get him. Worry about who to play where afterwards. That being said, I don't think it's likely for a couple reasons. It would be a trade within the division. And it would cost too much. Unless you could guarantee he would sign an extension, you'd be getting him for two years. Nothing wrong with adding a guy like that for the next two seasons, but the window for the Sox should be fully opening in 2021 and hopefully stay open for several seasons.

At least there are signs of life. Until today it seemed like Hahn had taken a nap after the winter meetings and forgot to set his alarm. I don't have a problem with this, especially if there's another arm coming.

Minor league deal?

I'm going to reserve judgment for a while. There's plenty of off season left. As the team sits now, they are positioned to score a lot of runs...and give up a lot of runs. They need at least one SP (two is ideal to allow Kopech to start in AAA and get back up to speed), and some additional bullpen help will be required. Ryu, Bumgarner, and Keuchel are not sexy names, but any of them would help this pitching staff. I'm going to cross my fingers and toes in hopes that they land one of these unless they acquire someone else via trade. As far as offensive help, 2B still needs to be addressed unless they're planning on Madrigal starting with the team out of spring training. I wouldn't mind seeing a compliment to Mazara for RF. Castellanos would be really nice, but I see that as a remote possibility. My thoughts on "the big three" are as such: Strasburg was almost certainly going back to Washington, Cole's contract is insane, and most of us probably agree that it's good that the Sox didn't offer more than that. Rendon is a bit puzzling considering what Machado was offered last year. However, I wouldn't be surprised if the front office didn't look at acquiring him to be a priority considering we have a superstar at 3B already. Still, if you sign him you can figure out where to play who and get his bat in the lineup. All that being said, I'm not surprised the Sox didn't land one these guys. I still think the Sox sign one of Ryu, Keuchel, or Bumgarner and pick up another lesser SP for one year. I also wouldn't be surprised if they sign a middle IF (Gennett, Schoop, etc.). I'm not terribly excited about how the off season has gone so far, but it's early. I hope a move or two is made by Christmas because things are moving a lot faster than last year. If the Sox don't start filling holes soon, other teams are going to swoop in, and the Sox will be left with Nova and Santiago.

It's hard to tell. I do believe that they will pick up some pitching, and if trading for Mazara allows them to spend more elsewhere, that's great. However, the other tweet about deciding about RF once the roster is filled makes me think they may look for a RH compliment. Maybe both will happen...hopefully.

There's no one in the minors, aside from Robert, who's ready to play in the outfield for the Sox. I don't deny that there were other options that could have produced better results over the next 1-2 years. This is a low risk, cheap, stopgap...for now.

This is the first thing I looked at when I saw the rumors yesterday. I get WAR, I understand it, but traditional stats tell a good part of the story. This guy can hit, and he's going to hit many a HR at the Rate. Lots of splashes at the Goose Island.

Yeah, I saw some reactions last night saying the Sox could have just rolled Walker out there next year instead of Mazara. I would assume (hope) that it was frustration talking. Mazara is a proven MLB hitter that hits very well against RH pitching. Walker, and most of the other OF prospects the Sox have, are not ready for the ML in 2020. Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying this a great move. It's just not a bad one.