CaliSoxFanViaSWside

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Oct 29, 2009 -> 07:03 AM) Guys, there is about zero chance that we sign a second baseman. We are young and cheap there with two kids, plus a CJ Retheford in the wings if he wanted. With the other holes on the team, and the tight budget we are going to be looking at, it isn't going to happen. I agree the budget is a major concern , however that just means that one of the high priced vets might have to be moved and unfortunately the most likely candidate is Mark Buehrle . Replacing MB with Hudson would be a huge risk especially with Garcia on his last legs. I wonder if the Nationals would be interesting in moving John Lannan and Nyger Morgan. Would take a decent package of say Buehrle + part of his salary , Getz , Hudson ..more ? I know , I know how could I even think of sending MB to the Nationals of all places ? I have no idea what the salaries of Lannan and Morgan are so I don't know how much salary could be freed up by such a deal. Too bad it seems like we're stuck with Rios.

QUOTE (Chicago White Sox @ Oct 29, 2009 -> 07:01 AM) Unfortunately, I don't think you even have the choice. IMO, the Sox need to use their financial resources to fill an OF spot, find a DH, and hopefully bring in a 2nd lefty. I just don't see us having the money to upgrade 2B, especially when we have three cheap options in Getz, Nix and Retherford. Having said that, I can see the value of bringing in a veteran as a stopgap at 2B. However, I think the Sox would have to be pretty sure that Retherford will be the 2B of the future. Otherwise, you have to give Getz the starting spot for development sake. I think finding a DH should be way down the Sox list of Sox needs. Pitching and defense will take them a long way. The development of Beckham , Quentin being injury free , Rios showing signs of having a pulse and a deep bench would go a long way towards rotating the DH position among those on the 25 man roster. This would also give regulars decent amounts of rest in an age when they no longer have the use of uppers to get them through what is a long grind of a season.

QUOTE (bigruss22 @ Oct 29, 2009 -> 06:47 AM) If Im spending money to bring in a second basemen its for Hudson, no one else on the FA market is worth it. Hudson is the best no doubt but with salary concerns ,signing the best available player at the position limits what you can do in other areas. Polanco is an American leaguer and knows the hitters and knows our pitchers , which helps his positioning, which helps his defense. Hudson would have to rely on advance scouting which a lot of us have had concerns about. These concerns in the past about advanced scouting are in regards to why pitchers the Sox hadn't seen before gave them problems and you can also apply it to why a guy with plus speed like Getz seemed so limited in his range to acquire negative defensive ratings for the year.

QUOTE (tommy @ Oct 28, 2009 -> 11:48 PM) I think a lot of people are really getting used to Getz being our starting 2B. A lot of it comes from the Sox brass mentioning infield shall stay intact. In order to improve the defense, one of the 3 key infield positions (3rd, SS, 2nd) needs to be upgraded. The Sox already have cheap players at all 3 positions and Alexei and Beckham will stay put at 3rd and SS. Polanco would provide a defensive veteran presence among the other 2 young players helping them to settle down and improve defensively along with being at those positions for another year. With the starting pitching the Sox have veteran leadership and improved D could carry them to another title.

QUOTE (bigruss22 @ Oct 28, 2009 -> 11:36 PM) I think alot of people just see him as too much of an expense at a position that has decent (but definitely not good) options for league minimum. He could be in for a big payday and we have bigger issues (though, if the price was right, he would solve the leadoff spot while playing excellent defense). Hudson fits the bill he just will be more expensive to sign then Polanco will. I see Hudson getting 4-5 years whereas Polanco could be signed for 2-3 years and at less money per year.

QUOTE (witesoxfan @ Oct 28, 2009 -> 10:57 PM) The article mentions that bullpens are hit and miss from year to year - this is true - but defense is hit and miss from year to year too. Generally, the best will be better than the rest, but a guy like Polanco, even at 34 years of age, is going to start breaking down in the next few years and could become a rather mediocre shortstop. And on top of that, Getz is solid defensively and Nix's scouting report says that he is fantastic at 2B (and though I didn't see much, I did hear that there were some flashes of that this year). A lot of times defense has more to do with putting athletic players on the field and advanced scouting. You can put a world class sprinter in CF, but if he's out of position, he's almost never going to catch a ball. I know you meant to say 2nd baseman. Despite his age Polanco has been and probably will continue to be one of the best defensive 2nd baseman in the game for another year or 2 and is a fine hitter also. Getz fielding metrics weren't that good and Nix can't hit righties at all. With the starting pitching we have now it's imperative to give them all the support they need to do their best and that means putting good D behind them for at least a 2 year window of opportunity . It's still a safe bet that the offense wouldn't be hurt by his presence either. I realize Getz had injury problems that most likely limited what he could produce both offensively and defensively. Despite all the debate about Getz and Nix 2nd base is really the only infield position that's important enough to upgrade with someone like Polanco who won't cost an arm and a leg. Like it or not Beckham and Alexei are entrenched at their positions unless either is traded. Not sure if your reference about being a world class sprinter was in reference to Morgan or just fielding in general and for the most part I'd agree that positioning is important. However world class speed plays a large role in determining range factor which counts heavily in UZR or UZR/150 ratings both of which are excellent for Morgan. It's also not very often that you get that kind of speed with a howitzer for an arm.

I don't think the Sox will concentrate at all on acquiring a DH. Defense should be a key factor in any acquisition followed by salary . I see the Sox rotating the DH position among whoever fills out the 25 man roster.

We've all heard the axiom "good pitching always beats good hitting". This is true because even as a good hitter you fail 7 out of every 10 ABS. What we all are optimistic about is the 2010 starting pitching. The best way to make that pitching even better is putting a good defense behind it. I read this recently from http://www.examiner.com/x-425-Chicago-Whit...ld-glove-ballot : "Good defense makes a pitching staff better. Just ask the Texas Rangers, which saw its team ERA go from a MLB-worst 5.37 in 2008 to a middle-of-the-pack 4.38 in 2009. A lot of that was due to the Rangers' UZR improving from a league-worst -51.7 in '08 to a top-six 33.2 in '09. And if Zack Greinke didn't have a league-worst -49.3 team UZR playing behind him, we might be talking about one of the best seasons by a starting pitcher in the last 25 years. That's 49 runs the Royals allowed because of poor defense—an absolutely staggering number ". I know the Sox have other needs such as bullpen help but getting help there is such a hit and miss proposition from year to year it makes sense to acquire more proven qualities. So one more top fielder in the infield and one in the outfield would be a fairly successful off season IMHO. With Beckham at 3rd and ARam at short , 2nd base is where we could improve the most. That's where free agent Placido Polanco fits in. He's among the best fielding 2nd basemen in the game even at age 34. Currently he's a type B free agent. In the outfield Nyger Morgan of the Nationals should be targeted in trade talks. He's among the finest defensive CF's in the game today with great range and a cannon for an arm. He also stole 42 bases ,had an OBP of .369 and bats LH all of which should appeal to the Sox. He's 29 years old and somewhat of a late bloomer. Rios can then play RF and Quentin LF. By the way if you've never read the author of the previously mentioned article , he also has 2009 season in review of all Sox players and uses all the offensive and defensive metrics and does an excellent job. Now how the Sox will pull this off I have no idea. I'll leave that to the people who know how much money the Sox have to spend or how much money they can move.

QUOTE (lostfan @ Oct 13, 2009 -> 10:08 AM) GMAFB, it does not take a sabermetric stat geek to see that a DeWayne Wise shouldn't get anywhere near as much playing time as he got with the Sox. You don't even need to see his stats at all. This isn't worth that much attention to be honest. Hence my post earlier. Of course he shouldn't . I mean really who ever said he deserved more playing time or even deserved the time he got ? Who are you arguing with here ? Greg liked some moments with Wise and see's some value in the role he had .Is that so difficult to comprehend ? Yea the Sox sucked so let's all pick on Wise. Just sounds like bullying to some of us here. Pick on the weakest link. The guy hustled and gave it 100% ,saved MB's perfect game, had 4 OF assists, a pinch hit here and there, pinch ran for guys way slower than himself. Some times the underdog or the guy without the most talent can prove his worth to a team in small doses. It's happened plenty of times in the World Series just as the strongest link can suck over a short period. It's gotten as much attention has it has because Wise seems to be a microcosm of arguments about sports in general. Some people just enjoy watching athletes compete at the highest level and for Wise to be in the major leagues means he's one of the most talented baseball players in the world. Now that's overlooked somewhat because he's one of the least talented players at the highest end of the food chain . Yes, in the major leagues he can derisively be called the "tallest midget" but it's certainly not incomprehensible that one can appreciate his talents for what they are.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Oct 10, 2009 -> 08:22 PM) Oh please. It must be hard to see from sooooo high up on that horse. Usually I love your posts. This one seems a bit out of character for you. He takes a lot of flak already for his opinions. I'm surprised you would join in with the rest of the wolf pack. Some of us are entertained by insults on a message board and being nice is boring . You're considered snooty if you mention you have higher standards . Greg is like Jesus on this board .

Greg I like the way you post. It's cool you remember Wise's moments (small to some not to you). I don't see any harm in what you're saying. All you're saying is you liked him as a 25th man. You're a Sox fan and you happen to like Sox players. They don't have to be a superstar. I don't see why anyone would try to talk you out of liking the guy by siting his stats. You already know he sucks , you're not disputing that. When baseball really was America's game it was not because every fan knew sabremetrics and knew what bad habits players had. It was when the Yankees won a lot of the time and all the fans of other teams had were glimpses, small moments of the season to remember for yet another losing year. Ignorance was bliss. Now everybody is a know-it-all and they think they're better off. But all knowing-it-all means is you have more reasons to cry about the 25th man on a losing baseball team. If it wasn't for people like you the world would be filled with cynics. So go ahead and raise your voice against the howling winds and appreciate the small moments. It's all you really need to be happy.

He'll sign with the Nats. Hit .333 in 666 PA. 35 HR's 25 outfield assists, 120 RBI, make 5 game saving catches then become a key figure on Obama's staff.

QUOTE (Tony82087 @ Oct 3, 2009 -> 06:09 PM) Correcting spelling of names is annoying, isn't it? tooshay.

Anyone think Garcia looks slimmer ? Maybe no munchies any more. 6 shutout innings.

QUOTE (BlackBetsy @ Oct 3, 2009 -> 06:01 PM) Detroit is looking very tight. I might throw 5 shoutout innings against them. When did Freddy get a forkball? Split finger I believe and he was playing with it in his last go round with the Sox.

AJ still needs a hit to break the all-time Sox record for hits by a catcher in a season. Set by himself twice. That's consistency.

Garcia 5 shutout innings.

QUOTE (BigSqwert @ Oct 3, 2009 -> 05:50 PM) Why the hell is Lillibridge even on the field anymore? He should not be in our plans next year. I wish he'd choke up but not many players do that any more. He K's way too much and when he hits the bat looks as long as he is tall.

Rios steals . Sox 5th stolen base of the game. IBB for Alexei to get to Lilli-B for the 2nd time this game. Lilli-B GO force. 3 out.

Sox 5th. Konerko walk. Q HBP (2nd time this game) on the bill of his helmet. Kotsay GO DP. Rios looping RBI single to right with 2 outs. Rios has 3 hits 2 RBI. 4-0 Sox.

Freddie piches out of 2 on 1 out jam getting Maggs to pop out and Cabrera to GO.

Hawk with a new catch phrase. Big hat no cattle .

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Oct 3, 2009 -> 12:54 PM) Actually, I read it wrong, there is only one the other 2 were in their 20's when signed. And since 2005, there are exactly three players signed from the Dominican, Venezuela, Panama or Colombia who have reached the major leagues: Cincinnati's Pedro Viola, signed at 22; the Cubs' Esmailin Caridad, signed at 24; and Fernando Martinez, signed by the Mets at 16 Considering the number of guys from Latin America that get signed for a ton of money when they are 16-17 waiting 8 years for them to develop seems like a huge risk of big money. So much can go wrong in 8 years, let alone is their age claim even valid? I'm as excited as anyone when the Sox sign one of these players and always assumed their lack of signing them was a negative. Now I think differently. These guys are supposed to be top players. That only 1 teen signed in the last 5 years has made the major leagues, and face it Brent Lillibridge has made the major leagues for 2 teams, has to make an organization think twice about throwing millions at a player and then having to throw almost as much into developing him. Let someone else pay him the bonus and develop him and trade for him later on. Guess we'll have to hope Viciedo can do it.

Lilli-b flys out to Maggs. 3 out.