CaliSoxFanViaSWside

Not didn't ; haven't yet .

Ad if this is a lesson that needs to be learned since the Sox don't seem to do it very often is SS's and CF's prospects get the most attention because they can be switched to other positions.

I understand, it's just I think you are getting a near Trout like bat in Cruz for the same money as someone like Tanaka , Ordorizzi, Paxton guys you really have to cross your fingers on. Cruz is due for regression one of these years but after being Trout like in 2020 how much drop off can we really expect ? That lineup and BP would cover up a lot of pitching regression if Keuchel and Lynn aren't up to their usual snuff. You could pick up pitching at the TDL but a bat like Cruz isn't readily available in most circumstances. Cruz seems like he almost single handedly got the Twins into the playoffs.

It's a big field and fielders played where they did in the past to equally space guys out to cover the most ground possible . Now if in the age of data we know certain hitters hit the ball in a certain place more often then they space the fielders to cover the ground where a guy hits it. To me it's the same. Just because you hit the ball hard has never guaranteed a hit . Baseball has always been a game of hit it where they aint'. They aint in the stands and they aint playin' a pull hitter the opposite way .So either hit it over the fence or put the ball in play where there are no fielders. Adapt to your environment or perish.

I think I speak for more people when I say I don't give a fuck.

If Bauer gets an AAV of $40+ per year for 5 years I will like , no i will love, all your posts from now until I am no longer able to.

I think he just laughed at your post. That should tell you something about him.

Reinsdorf read the OP and said " Time to fuck with that bastard. I'm going to put it out there that that Sox fans will be very happy right after Hector Tweeted about Cruz and the Sox and watch this schmuck it eat it all up with a big ol' spoon. Muhahhahaha !"

One day you're starting a thread facetiously thanking Reinsdorf for being Reinsdorfian and the next day you're trusting Hector Gomez thinking the Sox are going to spring for Nelson Cruz because there is more to play with than we think ? You are on a world class roller coaster my friend. Trust your instincts not Hector. Your heart is in the right place but not your mind. One vague Tweet about Sox fans being very happy and you lose it. Is it fun to think about ? Oh hell yes but it's not bloody likely. As a matter of fact it's so much fun to think about I want this post to age very very very poorly.

Time can never mend The careless whispers of a good friend To the heart and mind Ignorance is kind There's no comfort in the truth Pain is all you'll find

In wRc+ last year Cruz was at 164. That was tied for 7th in all of baseball with Mike Trout. Guys just lower than him include Jose Ramirez , Trea Turner , Bryce Harper, Ronald Acuna, Jr. Mookie Betts, Fernando Tatis, Jr., Manny Machado. Abreu was MVP and his was 167 .

I am actually very sympathetic to your post. I too think pitching is the top priority over anything else. However the Sox could ve decided that with the best lineup in baseball and a top BP that it can carry them pretty far this year in a year that FA pitching is a crapshoot. Cruz would be a bridge to Vaughn just as Lynn is a bridge to Cease, Kopech and other youngster who need another year to develop . I gave up on the hashtags you used a while ago thinking it's just to difficult to do for a franchise that has never done it and an owner who doesn't seem to care about it very much. Of course it may not be about Cruz at all .

I know u got some nice responses but to me it doesn't feel like EE at all. I never wanted EE , there were plenty of signs he was trending downward. Cruz hasn't slowed down at all. 169 OPS+, 2 WAR as a DH in just 214 plate appearances .397 OBP, .992 OPS. Even if he came down a little from those numbers he would still be one of the best hitters on the Sox full of good hitters. He would really have to have a precipitous drop to regret signing him.

Many are disagreeing with you and debating the crap out of it won't change anyone's mind. There are just those of us who think Lynn will do his thing for 1 year as a clearer path to make sure the Sox get to the postseason. Is it a sure thing ? No. But on one hand you have a guy who was in the running for a Cy Young and another guy who made some rookie starts coming off TJ who looked good but certainly is not a horse the caliber of Lynn. 1st we have to get to the playoffs and if we do that it'll be for the 1st time in back to back years for this franchise. It was one older prospect who got his feet wet vs. an older pitcher who has had a good career and even better lately. We still may not have seen the best of Moncada, Eloy and Robert is capable of being better than both of them. This lineup and BP could carry the Sox a long way and just imagine if Cease and Kopech improve a lot . There will always be guys who liked the Dunning for Lynn trade and those who don't. Each have valid reasons. We are long past debating how smart you think it was. Only time will tell. It's silly to fight amongst ourselves when it's the Sox way to settle rather than going for the throat that puts us at each others throats.

Has LaRussa's salary ever been mentioned anywhere ?

I've been mentioning him since the end of the season when the thread titled ,Who do you think is the 1st free agent the Sox sign. I said Walker then and he's still around. Just figured they would end up looking for a 4/5 at some point and not be willing to pay much. Maybe Walker has put himself in the $10M/yr category with his showing last year but I doubt it. He only made $2M last year and was traded to the Jays at trade deadline for a PTBNL who wasn't even on the 60 of Seattle. I think anyone who offers him a 2 year deal or a $7M plus team option for $9M in with a $1M buyout for 2022 gets him.

I think what you see is before they settled which was salary from 2020 + est. arb raise = est. 2021 salary . It actually came out higher in 2021 salary: Evan Marshall 30.8 4.090 1 yr, $2M (2021) Lucas Giolito 26.5 3.080 1 yr, $4.15M (2021) Reynaldo López 27.0 3.091 1 yr, $2.1M (2021) Adam Engel 29.1 3.058 1 yr, $1.375M (2021) Jace Fry 27.5 3.005 1 yr, $862.5k (2021) =$10.4875 M

Roster Resource has it @ $131M

Taijuan Walker is 28. I've been beating his drum for a long time. Love that he finished super strong as an indicator to me that he is now strong after TJ surgery.

I totally expect next week we start seeing names like Mike Fiers, Julio Teheran, Brett Anderson, J.A. Happ and Jake Arrieta tossed into the Foodies Twitter salads for Sox fans consumption.

They sprung for Hendriks because he is the best option to win games we should win heading into the 9th. With our BP and hitting we should be leading a lot of games heading into the 7th inning. We need to win as many of those as possible to cover for any lack of starting pitcher on the back end of the rotation. That is why they got Hendriks so him and the rest of the pen can win winnable games and in games we are behind get us some late inning come from behind wins. They are smart enough to know we need another starter but cheap enough to say we can win a lot more games with a great BP than we can with the back end starters still available in Free Agency. Almost all other FA starting pitchers could give you the same results no matter what they cost. Finding the right one might purely be a matter of luck rather than how much you pay one of them. Tanaka, Ordorizzi or Paxton may not be any more likely to provide better results than, Richards, Walker, Leake, Fiers, Samardzija, Teheran etc. If they don't end up trading for SP then my suggestion is sign the guy with the best chance of staying healthy all year. We may already have that guy in Lopez

You should probably read some of the other threads. Twitter food guys giving that $8 figure with hopes of also adding a LH bat. They say most of the other starting pitchers in the Sox price range are asking for $10M including Q and Richards. Still working on trades. Not sure if some of these guys sign soon or if market will wait them out hoping for prices to come down.

If Bauer signs for 1 yr. $8M he's ours !

I agree with this all except for the part about Lynn being extended. He's a bridge pure and simple to get Cease and Kopech from point A to point B and give all our other MiBL starters a year to grow and assess them. The only way he gets extended is if he rather take guaranteed money now to forego Free Agency knowing a bad year can hurt him . I also doubt the Sox are willing at this time to extend him for anything beyond 2 yrs .$35M if they want to at all. Until there are butts in the seats the Sox will be operating with trying to get as much as they can from the young pitching they already have. The only way I see this changing is the Sox trading for a cost controlled pitcher and giving up the Minor league pitching+ in return.

TWTW